Tech For Free!

For those of us working in the tech field, or in fields of work that typically include a more tech savvy crowd, capturing the “backchannel” of an event is not that difficult. Usually event organizers will select an event tag for its participants to use, and then market the fact that they want participants to Tweet using that tag. Almost magically then, participants excitedly engage in this activity using their own technology whether it be their iPhone or laptop. This approach tends to work fine, but its success is based on the following assumptions:

• participants will have some type of mobile technology (including laptops) at the event;
• technical familiarity with tools like Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, Blogs; and
• understanding of the types of things “worth sharing” through social media tools.

The reality is not every event is made up of participants wielding smart phones and laptops, and those that are, aren’t necessarily users of Twitter, or any other social networking tool for that matter. Given this, one may wonder the purpose in attempting to mine information from a less than tech savvy crowd. After all, its not like participants would be reading it, right? Wrong. You CAN capture this information, and make it available for everyone to read regardless of their technical background and ability to access tools like Twitter.

Background
I was charged with using social media to capture “gems” and “aha” moments from participants at an event. This event was hosted by SpecialQuest Birth-Five, which focuses on inclusion for children with disabilities ages birth through five (pre-kindergarten). I’ve worked for and with this organization for over 8 years and I quickly became aware that the early childhood crowd (generally speaking–I can think of some great exceptions) is not the most tech savvy of crowds, let alone masters of social media. That said, I knew the traditional methods of capturing these gems and aha moments would not be successful. I also new that with the right plan, we could capture much more AND use the information collected in a variety of meaningful ways.

With this in mind, I began formulating a plan that would:

• Allow us to capture the gems and aha moments of individuals.
• Capture other backchannel activity (quality of sessions, hotel logistics etc.).
• Provide individuals that wanted to attend the event an alternative way to do so.
• Provide staff with “real-time” looks into how participants were enjoying the event (or not).
• Offer a way to have/do follow-up activities if necessary.

How I Did It (short version–stay tuned for details)

• I met with event organizers and explained why we would not be successful capturing many gems or aha moments using traditional approaches, and then proposed the idea of using designated iReporters to report throughout the event. A major selling point was that I volunteered to handle the details related to this activity.
• I asked event participants to become volunteer iReporters regardless of their current/prior experience with technology and social media.
• Volunteers were recruited as part of their registration, which was completed through a website.
• Once I had my list of iReporters, I met with them over the phone to discuss their current understanding of social media, and various types of technology. Based upon what I learned in those conversations, I assigned iReporters to Twitter, Blogging, Flickr (photos), YouTube (video).
• I made arrangements to have an “Internet Cafe” at the event so that iReporters were not required to use their own equipment. They could post reports using the computers in the Internet Cafe.
• For those iReporters that did have their own equipment, we made arrangements with the hotel to offer them free wifi access in session meeting rooms and common areas. I also had a couple of Flip Video cameras that I checked out to some iReporters.
• iReporters received numerous emails from me reminding them of their role, purpose. Those emails also repeatedly emphasized the significance of their reports for those following along at home, for those at the event, and for event follow-up.
• I setup a blog that displayed ALL of our social media feeds so that regardless of whether iReporters posted to Twitter etc., participants needed to visit ONLY one website. This single site allowed EVERYONE to read what was happening at the event—no logins, and no need to learn a new tool.
• iReporters could also report directly through the event blog in lieu of another social media tool.
• While iReporters used the Internet Cafe to report, the Internet Cafe was also open to participants and staff so that they could read what was being reported while they were at the event.
• (3) 42in monitors were placed in busy meeting areas of the event. The monitors displayed Tweets made from the event.
• At the event, iReporters were given name badges that clearly identified them as such. This allowed presenters and participants to seek them out as needed.
• Presenters and participants were briefed on the purpose of iReporters, and understood that people might have their laptops open while they were presenting.

A Success!
It’s impossible for one person to be in multiple places at one time, so by having this team of iReporters scattered throughout the event, we were able to collect information (including opinions and perspectives) from sessions, side conversations, and workgroups that we would have otherwise never seen or heard. While valuable to us, this information is also of value to participants.

Over the span of 2.5 days there were over 154 postings to the blog, 70 Tweets, 453 photos and 15 videos posted. The event ended yesterday; however, iReporters are still posting. Additionally, I have 3 flip video cameras full of video (collected by iReporters) that need to be edited and post to YouTube (a task for next week).

Next Steps
As mentioned above, next week I need to comb through 3 hours of video and pull clips to post to YouTube. Once that is complete participants will receive an email containing the url to the blog as a reminder of this valuable resource. Staff will also be carefully reviewing the site to determine next steps in how they choose to work with event participants.

The above bullets are just that. I will be writing additional postings on this topic and will include the details that support each of the bullet points so stay tuned. TIP: Subscribe to Tech For Free Receive Updates