creating a social media strategy for your event

Creating a Social Media Strategy for Your Event

Charlene LiAltimeter GroupApril 13, 2010

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Prepared for Eventbrite

© 2010 Altimeter Group

It’s not about the technologies


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It’s about relationships


Three Principles Of Modern Events

1. Events should have a strategy that includes the before and after – not just during.

2. Events should integrate with existing communities and social networks where they exist.

3. The audience can assert control over the event, so encourage audience engagement -- and know when to get out of the way.

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Define Your Strategy With Goals5

Learn

Dialog

Support

Innovate


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Social engagement must be continuous

Before During After

Learn

Dialog

Support

Innovate


Learn where communities already are

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Tap Plancast attendees at similar events for leads

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Encourage sharing to jumpstart dialog

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Encourage advocacy with badges


If you don’t, others will.• For example: #NCAA #NCAABB #FinalFour

#Final4 #MarchMadness Decide on event hashtags in advance.

• Also designate session hashtags if needed. Publicize in advance in all channels

• Website: attendee section, bloggers/media section

Promote at the event itself – repeatedly• Include in signage, printed programs• Announce from the stage, again and again

Encourage dialog with hashtags10


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Create groups/communities to connect


Support pre-event networking12


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Ask for proposals via social media


SXSW asks for comments on proposals

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Before During After

Learn

Dialog

Support

Innovate


SXSW connected with an iPhone app16


Aggregate and display the backchannel

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Balancing front- and backchannels takes practice, skill, and experience

Frontchannel Backchannel

Real-time comments

Online Q&A

SMS

Audience vibe

Real time adjustmen

ts


Determine the role and relationship of the backchannel to speakers at your event

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Will speakers be able to adequately monitor the backchannel?

When is the speaker expected to be able to see and respond to the backchannel, if at all?

Is the organizer prepared to monitor and address “bad behavior”?

Integrate the backchannel differently for different formats (e,g, Webinar, panel, keynote).


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Designate non-presenter to track questions,

if possible. Remind everyone about hashtags being

used. Monitor Twitter, live blogging, and Webinar

Q&A.• Address connectivity, volume, platform issues.• Screen and prioritize questions.• Notify presenter about any problems.

Example: We prepped and practices before this Webinar.

Webinar best practices


Moderator reminds people about hashtag for comments/questions.• Also provide SMS texting option if desired.

Moderator monitors the backchannel.• Or designate one or more people to moderate

the questions and DM/text questions/issues.• If moderator monitors, requires practice practice

practice to succeed at this. Panelists can also monitor the backchannel. Example: Jeremiah Owyang at SXSW

pushing discussion into Q&A because of backchannel.

Panel best practices21


Presenters with prepared speeches have little possibility of reacting to the backchannel.• Speaker is focused on reading the audience,

making real-time adjustments to the room. Conference organizers must be prepared,

and also prep the speaker.• Designate someone to monitor the backchannel

and signal speaker with any major problems.• Message with monitors or SMS – but speaker

needs to be prepared (and most won’t be open to this).

Speakers need to engage active backchannel members – even until you get on stage.• Get them on your side.

Keynote best practices22


What can go wrong – danah boyd at Web 2 Expo, Fall 2009

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danah had a new speech, couldn’t see her laptop, and was nervous.

She didn’t know about the backchannel that would be displayed.

Audience was reacting to the backchannel, she reacted to the backchannel, etc.

Organizers turned off the backchannel screen and then back on, unbeknownst to danah.

More from details from danah at http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2009/11/24/spectacle_at_we

.html


A better way to include and expose the backchannel – during Q&A

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Show backchannel during Q&A so that the speaker can select the questions.• Emcee can ask pre-selected questions to get

started. Monitor the backchannel during the speech

and ask Q&A on behalf of the audience. • Also eliminates “non-questions” and floor

hogging.


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Before During After

Learning/innovating

Advocacy

Support/planning

Dialog


In the backchannel, launch a survey.• “Rate the panel, talk, scale of 1 (poor) to 5

(excellent).” Create a place where people can go to have

further discussion, if warranted. Promote your next event or session.

• Direct people to related sessions.

Ask for feedback and extend the dialog

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Rexi Media empowers speaker ratings


Create a blog post or page that summarizes the event.

Encourage replay by sharing content.• Upload to SlideShare, Scribd, Flickr, YouTube,

etc.• Embed in your post/page.• Include an audio recording, linked to slides if

available. Link to relevant blog posts that covered the

event. Capture entire backchannel, insert as an

archive. Worried less about cannibalization, more

about extending the experience of paid attendees.

Create and share event summaries28


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It’s about the relationships, not the technologies.

Create and foster dialog before the event to drive attendance and engagement.

The social backchannel changes the relationship between speakers and attendees – so be prepared.

Encourage replay by sharing, not hoarding, content.

Summary


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Thank you

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Charlene [email protected]

blog.altimetergroup.com

Twitter: charleneli

For slides, send an email to

[email protected]

http://bit.ly/buyopenleadership

creating a social media strategy for your event

Technology

practice practice practice

social engagement

event hashtags

webinar qa

moderator monitors

social media strategy

social networks

signal speaker