Web conferences have become host to the new wave of viral tools and technologies that are enhancing community and business meetings. Carlson Marketing calls this next-gen conference style ‘Meetings 2.0.’ As a worldwide enabler of business meetings, Carlson has added mobile tools and social networking to their meetings and events offerings, which expands the experience from just ‘During’ to include ‘Before’ and ‘After.’

Twead carefully during your keynote

Recently, at the Toronto Mesh web conference, a lot was revealed about the future of conferences. Specifically, the massive impact of mobile devices and social media tools on these types of get-togethers. The communication vehicle of choice? Twitter, of course. During the two-day event, power-tweeters (frequent users of Twitter) introduced the power and benefits of micro-blogging to dozens of twuddites. (Twitter luddites)

What was the call to action for these new adopters? Easily a quarter of the audience members in any given session had laptops open, and half of them were twittering amongst themselves, expanding the presentations and panels to deep discussions in the seats.

Twemes, a Twitter API implemetation, further enabled the conversation between tweeters, as Mesh attendees or ‘Meshies’ tagged their 140-character-or-less comments with ‘#mesh08,’ allowing the community to follow the discussion in real time as the comments rolled by. You can see all of these comments aggregated here.

I recommend trying out Twemes.com: ideally, follow a “hot pick” in the top right corner (these are usually conferences) and click “start live update” to see the topic-tagged twitters roll by. You can imagine the additional engagement this provides for events and conferences.

The added value of the Twitter conversation backchannel was obvious. During the conference, Meshies were using Twitter to discuss the future of music as a business model, and taking the liberty of re-branding Saturn’s awkwardly named social network ImSaturn (the marketer from Saturn tried desperately to point us to the correct URL, but stumbled through the difficult address).

Do we even have to attend anymore?

ScribbleLive was unveiled at Mesh ‘08, a live blogging platform with real-time updates. In this forum, ScribbleLive users live-blogged forums and presentations, allowing multi-taskers and attendees in other sessions follow multiple discussions. For a great example of the group blogging output, check out the live blog of Steve Jobs’ Keynote at the WWDC, including his announcement of the new iPhone 3G.

My mobile meeting manager

Mesh ‘08 also boasted an impressive, although slightly off-the-mark blackberry app. The technically-oriented (crackberry-addicted) audience presented an optimal opportunity for Sweet Caesar to offer a free downloadable guide to the event. The features and user experience of the app were quite valuable, even though it just left me wanting more.

Among the features were a venue map, schedule and presenter bios. Unfortunately, this information didn’t update over the two days and was incorrect (as conference schedules go) as soon as the first keynote began. Overall however, the implementation demonstrated the potential for great value in the future. Now event planners must consider “What is my mobile strategy?” “What is my web strategy?” Maybe next time we’ll see the integration of Twitter, ScribbleLive and social networking tools to enhance our next Mesh (or your next conference’s) experience.

Look for Part 2 of my post on the evolution of Meetings and Conferences: Meeting virtually in real life (Part 2): Entertain us, we’re bored and twittering.

Filed under: Future, Marketing, Social Networking, Twitter, Web Strategy by Craig Ritchie
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Tags: app, blackberry, carlson marketing, conferences, imsaturn, iphone, meetings, meetings 2.0, mesh, mesh08, mobile, scribblelive, strategy, sweet caesar, twemes, Twitter, Web Strategy, wwdc

While Seth Godin is questioning the longevity of everyone’s patience for “Green” marketing, Dell has achieved great success in its current campaign, “What does ‘green’ mean to you?” In partnership with and in support of Regeneration.org, Facebookers can use the Graffiti tool to enter their artwork to be voted on by their fellow social networkers.

More than 7,000 entries have been submitted.

The top 150 (yes, One Hundred and Fifty, not top 10 or 20…) are now available for voting, and the quality of art is astonishing. Spend some time in the virtual art show here.

Also notable is the quality of the conversation and virulence of the campaign. The discussion board boasts more than 100 topics, with conversation ranging from Global Warming - Real, or Hoax?” to sub-campaigns started by the participants suggesting that competitors “Rate the Person Above You’s Grafitti!!”

The engagement reaches beyond the page as 1,471 Facebook fans are spreading word of the campaign.

Quite simply put, there is a monumental difference between social media strategies that sputter and die because of lack of knowledge and direction, and successful campaigns like this one that is lead by expertise and focus.

Hat tip to Jeremiah Owyang (twitter @jowyang) once again for the link.

Filed under: Facebook, Marketing, Social Media, Social Networking, User-generated Content, Web Strategy by Craig Ritchie
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Tags: contest, dell, Facebook, graffiti, green, jeremiah owyang, Marketing, regeneration.org, seth godin, Web Strategy

I don’t know if you’re experiencing it too, but if 2007 saw a social explosion online, the first quarter of 2008 is witness to the fallout. As Facebook adoption slows, Twitter is exploding with new users, LinkedIn’s engagement seems to be soaring, and niche social media sites are finding their stride among an empowered prosumer population. I’ve spent the last few months using a multitude of tools, and finding new life outside of Facebook.

The fallout is everywhere, and new, real growth from that fallout is happening thanks to users spanning beyond the early adopters and tech-savvy teens. So, ‘Hi’ to the grandmothers and other “late adopters” (CEOs?) out there joining the conversation. It’s richer now, and we’re all benefiting.

Filed under: Community, Social Media, Social Networking, Twitter, Web 2.0 by Craig Ritchie
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Yes, Facebook and Flickr are neat. Tags are cool, and the Long Tail is very intriguing… But where’s this all headed? Microsoft’s latest acquisition, “Photosynth” answers, as demonstrated here.

Filed under: Future, Social Networking, Web 2.0 by Craig Ritchie
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SEOMoz.org has awarded it’s 2007 Web 2.0 Awards. I’m sure these won’t be annual, as the term 2.0 will soon be obsolete, and the majority of the award winners will probably get picked up by the big sharks in the Internet pool.

Filed under: Social Networking, Web 2.0 by Craig Ritchie
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Just like a decade ago, corporations are jumping on the Internet – but this time instead of the blanket, uninformed statement “We need a website,” the suits are shouting the trendy war-cry “We need social networking!”

The benefits, when executed correctly, are obvious. Connecting with one’s customers and market in and allowing them to connect with each other at such a deep level is a modern marketer’s ultimate goal, but crowbarring a Facebook clone and blogs into your website probably isn’t the best method.

To anchor and focus the Web 2.0 strategy and planning for any client or web offering, I consistently turn back to Amy Jo Kim’s self-categorized “cult classic” Community Building on the Web: Secret Strategies for Successful Online Communities. It’s a book from 2000, but the concepts remain relevant in the new age of WOW and Wiki, Flickr and Facebook.

Kim outlines the practices she uses to this day for attracting customers and surfers and increasing stickiness to an addictive level. These practices are commonplace today among the best producers of online-ready games and community web sites, but others, including the corporations and organizations who see the potential of 2.0, don’t have the understanding that is truly necessary to drive users to join, build and return with friends in tow. Community Building on the Web pulls many of its concepts from successful offline communities. Ideally, users must feel that they are a part of something, and that their interaction with the site and with other members truly affects the content, direction and focus.

Amazon reviewer Donald Mitchell describes the design strategies Kim espouses, which I expand on here:

1. Define and articulate your PURPOSE

– As quickly as possible, the user must understand, what is the community for; who are the players involved; what are the benefits of joining and participating?

2. Build flexible, extensible gathering PLACES

– The current trend for Web 2.0 sites is to have a “forum” on every page where there is content. Blog-style comments allow users to interact on every page of the site. Where and how can your users interact?

3. Create meaningful and evolving member PROFILES

– Personalization is more than just putting the user’s name at the top of the page and saying “Welcome back.” Just like in offline communities, users need to feel that their personality and profile affects the way the site works for them and how others interact with them. How can you further define your users, thereby further defining your site?

4. Design for a range of ROLES

– As users join and embrace your community, how will you welcome and instruct newcomers; empower and honor your leaders?

5. Develop a strong LEADERSHIP program

– What better way to create stickiness and simplify maintenance than to allow passionate users to create content, police other members while lowering your costs?

6. Encourage appropriate ETIQUETTE

– Arguably the most difficult to implement, appropriate etiquette is more important than one might think. Web 2.0 sites struggle with it now in many different ways, with chain letters, cyber-bullying, copyright infringement and spamming filling up YouTube’s content and commentary. If the users create the content of your site, how does your site’s voice “sound?”

7. Promoting cyclic EVENTS

– How do your groups “meet,” how can you promote performances and competition?

8. Integrate the RITUALS of community life

– Kim uses an older example from the Ultima MMORPG, where advancing levels or rank, much like in school or at a job, becomes much more important if the transition involves an award ceremony, or going out for drinks. How can you create rituals to entice and reward users?

9. Facilitate member-run SUBGROUPS

– Subgroups are the cornerstone Facebook and World of Warcraft. It is simple enough to say, “We’ll allow users to create and join groups or to link up with friends.” The challenge is to match your Subgroup strategies with your site’s purpose. Who can create subgroups and who can join them? What is the process? What are the benefits? How do others know that a user is a part of these groups?

The book also proposes 3 design principles:

1. Design for growth and change

2. Create and maintain feedback loops

3. Empower your members over time

Amy Jo Kim’s “handbook for community builders” should be read by anyone who wants to build a social network.

She currently operates ShuffleBrain and teaches game design at USC.

You can also check out her Musings of a social architect here.

I’ll be first in line if she decides to write a new version of Community Building on the Web.

Filed under: Social Networking by Craig Ritchie
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