Last week Experient hosted it’s customers and key industry supplier partners in Orlando, FL at the beautiful Hilton on Bonnet Creek and Waldorf Astoria hotels.  While the weather was certainly hot, as it is August in Florida after-all, the education content, networking and social functions sizzled!  For a great video recap of the event please check out Jeff Hurt’s blog article.

On Tuesday afternoon (August 17, 2010) I facilitated two (2) fifty minute “Exchange cafe” sessions addressing the subject of Social Media for Events.  For context, an exchange cafe embraces the following:

Café Culture — Focus on what matters.  The event should be embedded with a spirit of collaboration and shared learning.

Open Minded — No idea is a bad idea

Collective Insight Evolves from:

• Honoring unique contributions
• Listening into the middle
• Connecting ideas
• Noticing deeper patterns and questions

In each session we spent the first 15-20 minutes, after introductions, in small groups of 3-4 ppl ea.  and shared experiences, ideas and best practices with one another on effective ways to utilize social media with events.  An individual in each group was appointed as a scribe.  In the second part of the session we came together as one group and each sub-group shared their thoughts.

Exchange Café Insights Shared

Deidre Ross Discussing Twitter Base Camp

From those group discussions came the following takeaways:

Strategy — Several participants shared that their organization crafted a strategy to help focus their organizations on where, how and why to use social technology with their events.  Point well taken.  I adamantly support this best practice.

Do the Research — In conjunction with building a strategy, learn about which social networks conference participants frequent, and then align your strategy with those channels.

Attendee Instructions — Provide some instructional support to attendees regarding how to use social technology applications as part of the conference orientations process.  Examples of this are tutorials at the event website, or written information in the conference program.

Video Wall with Twitter Stream/Flickr Photos — Setup a large two-sided video wall in a heavily utilized passageway.  On one side place a Twitter stream posting tweets from the conference hashtag and on the other feature a rotating digital photo album (using a program such as Flickr) with frequently updated candid photos taken at the conference.

Live Video Streaming (Webcast) with Twitter Back Channel — Several café participants brought up this method of utilizing social technology as an effective event strategy.  This one speaks for itself.

Twitter Base Camp (Customer Service) — Establish a service team of organization staff to monitor the Twitter stream and respond to Tweets.  (Through Hashtag)

Use of Conference “Wiki” for Information Exchange — this really is a terrific collaboration tool and enables conference participants to build upon each others ideas and knowledge to solve challenges and develop new processes and best practices.  There are a number of wiki programs available.

FourSquare Contest (Location Based Technology) — Great for scavenger hunts, or trivia contests.  Fosters attendee engagement and builds buzz for a conference.

Question:  What social media best practices have you adopted with your events?  How have they benefited your attendees event experience?  Look forward to receiving your feedback!

Over the past few months I’ve attended or spoken at more than a half dozen events and meetings. All different and very worthwhile. As a communications person, I was fascinated by the pervasive presence of technology…everywhere and with everyone. We’ve come to expect that event organizers will employ the latest and greatest technology to deliver a powerful experience. What’s changed now is the impressive array of technology that is also in the hands (literally) of the attendees and how smartly and creatively they are using it to enhance their meeting experience. This convergence of technology is definitely changing the event experience for everyone…organizers, attendees, speakers and content providers.

Hank Wasiak

Video, livestreaming, i-reporting, laptops, tweet streams, blackberries, i-phones, i-pads, podcasts, videographers are everywhere. In some ways the energy and buzz around all of this activity and technology creates mini events within the events. For me, these were all positive experiences that generated energy, enabled new forms of engagement and added spontaneity to the events I attended.  There was one experience in which I was involved that is particularly interesting and worth sharing.

For two of the events I was fortunate be one of about thirty bloggers invited to “cover” the event as part of what was called The Bloggers’ Hub”….a private social media press club. We had great seats, full access to everything at the event, and all the power and broadband internet connectivity we needed.  (Well, most of the time…we did crash it a few times). We had free reign and were encouraged to be active and free flowing.  None of us really knew what to expect.

It turned out to be a very positive and productive experience for the bloggers, our audiences, the speakers, attendees and the organizers. The open and diverse mix of people created a “bloggers’ hub effect” with some very tangible benefits, Here are few:

Bloggers Hub Benefits:

• Facilitates a friendly, open platform for bloggers to provide real time updates, commentary and coverage of the speeches, presentations and other content. These are simultaneously shared with everyone at the event and over the internet and archived for later use.
• Serves as a micro-community of a diverse group of bloggers connecting around a common interest…live reporting and disseminating information of significance from the event…on the spot content creation.
• Creates an environment of mutually supportive and connected energy that feeds on itself. A special “vibe” that brings a new collective dynamic to a usually solitary writing process.
• Provides a “streaming commentary” on topics and discussions as they happen and invites real time response and interaction from each blogger (and their audiences) which in turn fuels better reporting and writing.
• Links a network of “Trust Agents” to apply leverage to content being presented and discussed among the attendees. We created our own mini “Archimedes Effect” at the event.
• Provides a sustainable linked in platform for follow up commentary, analysis and networking that lives well beyond the event itself….in some cases for months.

Technology is changing the way people see and experience just about everything, including meetings and events. Technology driven change presents opportunity and challenge. The opportunity to engage people in meeting experiences that are more interactive, participatory, shared and sustainable. The challenge is to remember that it is great ideas, substance and powerful content that make technology meaningful and valuable.

This article was published in the January Issue of Meetings:  Minnesota’s Hospitality Journal.  You can find that article by clicking here.

Like many people, you probably have more tasks on your daily “to do list” than you can shake a stick at.  Have you added any Social media applications to your business toolkit?  More importantly are you engaging yourself consistently in leveraging their value in your business communications?

A comment I often hear from business colleagues is “I just don’t have time to put anything else on my plate, or I am too busy for social media.”   Sound familiar??  Well, read on…

In the past year a major shift has occurred in the way people do business.  The financial pressure of the poor economy combined with the continuous introduction of web 2.0 applications into the marketplace has generated a major focus on social media as an effective business solution.

The Meetings and Events business is particularly well-suited for use of social media.  Educational and informational content can now be delivered not only with face2face meetings, but also using added virtual components such as webcasts, or webinars.  Organizations are enhancing those digital experiences with back channel communications such as Twitter hashtags to create additional buzz and conversation before, during and after their events.

These communication channels are very effective and economical, and thus, their staying power is obvious.  New business models and markets for meetings and events are emerging as a result of these innovations.  Quietly, a paradigm shift (from skepticism to validation) of this technology has been occurring in many businesses.   Early Adopters are already miles ahead of their competition.  Looking ahead, the reality is organizations dismissing social media as irrelevant will begin to lose market share as their customers abandon them for more forward thinking business partners.

On a personal level, using social media applications a person may initiate and build new and existing relationships as well as share knowledge and experiences with other like-minded individuals.   If you haven’t already done so you would be wise to engage yourself with these business tools, and do so quickly!

Incorporating social media into your personal routine is more complex than just signing up for a bunch of these accounts.  You must commit yourself to “learning the ropes” for the chosen applications and then work vigorously to establish credibility for yourself within them.

The first step in the process is developing an action plan.  There must be a balance between the time you spend with SM and other job responsibilities.  Due to their interactive, dynamic and sometimes addictive nature, some people find themselves preoccupied with these tools.  Subsequently their overall job performance may suffer.  Needless to say, a mistake such as this could be career-limiting.  So, here are some tips on how to make your journey with social media smooth and successful.

Step #1 — Plan Well — Create a written statement outlining your vision of what you wish to accomplish with each Social media application.

Sample Plan:

• Facebook
  • learn more about clients’ background and interests
  • strengthen personal connections
  • make consistent personal touches with them
• Twitter
  • Collaborate with other industry Twitter users, exchanging information, relevant articles and perspectives on hot business topics.
  • Develop my personal brand and reputation in the online community
  • Build and maintain new & existing business relationships
  • Monitor the customer service of my company and respond to clients posting comments/complaints/issues.
• LinkedIn
  • Develop an online business profile validating my credibility as a business person and individual.
  • Participate in relevant industry Group communities demonstrating thought leadership and building personal reputation.
  • Strengthen existing industry relationships and develop new ones.

Step #2 — Schedule Strategically — develop a routine allocating certain times of the day for social networking.

Sample Routine:

• Early Morning (7am – 8:15am)
  • Visit Facebook page and review posts made, check message inbox and respond accordingly.
  • Socialize with Facebook friends online.  (water cooler talk)
  • Open Twitter and review tweet posts made by users followed.
  • Follow up tweets of interest (Retweet, or acknowledge value to author).
  • Review News feeds, and post relevant tweets with article links to followers.
  • Review growth of follower base from previous day.
• Mid Day (12noon – 1:15pm)
  • Check LinkedIn site for activity in member groups.
  • Respond to any discussions of interest and clip any relevant articles, posting them to Twitter for followers.
  • Review LinkedIn Inbox messages and respond.
  • Check Twitter messages, and review new tweets posted by users followed.
  • Follow up tweets of interest (Retweet, or acknowledge value to author).
  • Stop by Facebook to review any new posts and comment on those as appropriate.
• Late Afternoon (4-5:15pm)
  • Stop by Facebook to review any new posts and comment on those as appropriate
  • Check LinkedIn message inbox and respond.
  • Check Twitter messages, new posts and follower volume since the morning.
  • Follow up tweets of interest (Retweet, or acknowledge value to author).

Note: This schedule is theoretical, and depending on your work responsibilities and routine, could shift from day to day.

Step #3 — Learn the features of the Social Networking applications and use them prudently.

• Schedule Your Posts — Twitter has a few sister applications allowing users the flexibility of creating their tweet posts at their convenience and then scheduling them to be posted later.  One such application is called “Socialoomph.com“  There are many other applications like this available… the analogy I would use is that these tools function in much the same was as Tivo does for television.
• Tweetdeck – is a powerful external twitter client application (with Facebook interface) that enables a user to organize and filter through all the Twitter and Facebook posts they receive.  Here is a link to a really good article providing some tutorial guidance on this great tool!
• Manage your Online Friends — Each application has its own functionality for this process.  There is a time commitment to building these relationships so make good decisions regarding who you initiate an online relationship with.  If you have some folks on your friends list not contributing to the connection, then you may wish to evaluate whether they should continue being part of your network.

I firmly believe you will receive a return on your time investment into social media commensurate with the effort you put into it.  I am available to you as a resource, should you have further questions about incorporating these very important tools into your business routine.

Contact me anytime at:

Michael M McCurry, CMP

Phone:  847-825-0243

Cell:  312-961-5486

Email:  mike.mccurry@experient-inc.com

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/michaelmccurry