Hosting a

social media conference

in your community

WebLink Summit 2009

Twitter hashtag: #weblink

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Introduce yourself!
• Your Name
• Your Organization
• Are you using social media?
• Have you hosted or do you plan
to host a social media event?

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Jessica Hibbard
Communications Director
Frederick County (MD)
Chamber of Commerce

Social media enthusiast

Obsessed with polaroids
Enjoys living la vida local

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
Frederick Chamber

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
Brown Bag Lunch Discussion
• Significant interest
• More time for in-depth learning
• Wide range of experience
• Variety of sub-topics

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Other Factors
• Decreased interest in annual job fair
• Decreased interest in Chamber Academy
• Lack of in-depth professional training on
social media offered by other
organizations in our region

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Why we thought it would work …
• Demand – Brown bag lunch showed us
that members were interested
• Opportunity – We could offer something
valuable without duplicating services
• Capability – Expertise within the
Chamber and within the region

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
 Event Design &
Production Process
• Concept
• Budget
• Planning
• Implementation
• Follow-up
• REPEAT

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Concept
• Does this event support our mission?
• Learning from past events & trends
• Establish vision & goals for event
• Establish planning committee

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Budget: Major Expenses
• Facility rental
• Food & beverage
• Audio/video equipment
• Speaker fees
• Marketing
• Interpreter

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Flickr photo by
jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Budget: Sources of Income
• Attendee registration
• Exhibit spaces
• Sponsorships

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Budget: Results
• Goal of 150 attendees & 8 exhibitors
• We had 105 attendees & ZERO exhibitors
• 20% of attendees were “future members”
• 20 registrations were complimentary – We
didn’t charge presenters to attend

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Logistics
• Hotel & conference center setup
• Audio/video equipment rental
• Social media conference essentials:
– High-speed wireless internet
– Outlets, extension cords, power strips

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Überpic by
@fredcobio

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Topics & Sessions
• Informative & interactive – Participants
were encouraged to bring laptops
• Breakout session topics were informed by
Brown Bag Lunch Discussion &
brainstorming with planning committee
• Developed closing panel discussion to
spotlight local stories – Chamber
members already using social media

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Twitpic by
@gotbob

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Planning: Schedule of Events
• Registration & networking
• Keynote presentation
• Breakout sessions I, II, III
• Buffet lunch with optional Twitter demo
• Breakout session IV
• Closing panel discussion

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Flickr photo by
jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Developing Tracks
• Beginners – No experience with SoMe,
don’t know what it is, don’t know if they
should use it
• Intermediate – Some experience with
SoMe, probably mostly personal use, not
sure how to use effectively for business
• Advanced – Already using SoMe for
personal and/or business, want to
optimize
Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
 Flickr photo by
Mount St. Mary’s
University

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Speaker Recruitment
• Needed total of 20 presenters
– 1 keynote speaker
– 4 x 3 breakout session speakers
– 1 speaker/instructor for Twitter demo
– 6 closing panelists
• Developed proposal form & required all
presenters to complete it
• Call for Presenters publicized locally &
regionally – PR, social media, invitations

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Flickr photo by
jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Registration
• Created printed/PDF packet with schedule
of events, description of sessions,
registration form, etc.
• Offered online registration
• This was the first event we set up in
WebLink!
• Create a Twitter hashtag EARLY and use
it on everything

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Marketing
• Integrated with regular monthly advertising to
save $$ (radio, newspaper, magazine)
• Print & radio ads ~ one month before event
• Extensive online publicity: Twitter, LinkedIn,
weekly email updates, web site
• Grassroots publicity: Planning committee,
attendees, announcements at events
• Local & regional PR: Advance & post
coverage on TV, radio, blogs, and in print

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: E-Book
• Idea generated within planning committee
• Goals:
– Get each registered attendee to sign up for major
social media platforms (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook)
before the conference
– Answer the question: “What is social media?”
– Provide glossary of terms
– Link to resources for pre-conference learning

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: E-Book
• Developed with assistance from one of our
planning committee members
• Emailed link to PDF to all registered
participants about a week before the
conference
• Some participants claimed that this e-book
was worth the cost of registration
• Even Mario Armstrong was impressed!

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Planning: Evaluation & Feedback
• Keep it simple – Ask the same open-
ended questions about each session:
– What did you enjoy most?
– What would you do to improve this session?
• Anonymous is best, with minimal
identifying data. (You already know who
your attendees are.)
• Make it easy to complete & return

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

“What have you learned so far?”
Video by @MDEnsemble

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

“What have you learned so far?”
Video by @MDEnsemble

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Online Tools
• Twitter Search (search.twitter.com)
• WTHashtag.com
• Twtvite.com
• Drop.io, Posterous, Slideshare, Scribd
• YouTube, TwitPic, Flickr
• PollDaddy.com, PollEverywhere.com,
Twtpoll.com, Google Docs Surveys/Forms

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Planning: Tools
• Our Chamber transitioned to WebLink just
a couple weeks before
the conference!
• What WebLink tools
do you use for
planning & presenting
conferences?

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Follow-Up
• Process evaluations & feedback
• Send thank you notes to speakers &
service providers
• Debriefing meeting(s) with planning
committee & other stakeholders
• Monitor social media mentions &
traditional media coverage
• Follow up with non-member attendees

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
 Twitpic by
@gotbob

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 What worked well
• Top-notch keynote presenter
• Wifi, extension cords, power strips, outlets
• Buffet lunch on the premises
• Pre-conference e-book
• Twitter hashtag, drop.io, other online tools
• Social media buzz & marketing value
• Realistic budgeting

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Twitpic by
@MDEnsemble

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 What we’ll change next time
• Include comp/presenter registrations in budget
• Classroom-style vs. theatre-style setup
• Workshop (hands-on tutorial) vs. interactive
seminar (strategic discussion)
• Slightly longer sessions
• Online evaluations (?)
• Sponsorship & exhibit spaces
• Include a tweetup after the event, free & open
to the public

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Flickr photo by
jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Building on success
• Post-event brainstorming session with
SMC attendees, marketing committee,
education commmittee, board members,
and trustees
• Emerging Ideas Conferences
– Feb. 2010: New Media & Technology
– June 2010: Exploring New Markets

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Twitpic by
@MDEnsemble

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

 Instant Poll
• PollEverywhere.com – Free multiple
choice, free text, or goal (fundraising) polls
• Enter your response
– SMS text
– Twitter (@poll)
– Online (poll4.com)

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb
 Thank you!

slideshare.net/jesshibb
scribd.com/jesshibb

Jessica Hibbard ▪ jesshibb@gmail.com ▪ Twitter: @jesshibb