It was Saturday morning and I woke up to 8 inches of snow.  It was only 7:00 a.m. in the morning and the weatherman was predicting more snow, anywhere from 12 to 18 inches for our area.  I knew the snow was coming, but didn’t think it would hit that hard and with so much force (blizzard like conditions).  Of course, it wasn’t just any old Saturday, it was the Saturday of Event Camp and I needed to be in New York City at the Roger Smith Hotel for a 4:00 p.m. presentation.

As soon as I saw that the snow was almost over my dog’s head, I sent a DM to @jessicalevin and asked her, “Do we have a backup plan just in case I can’t get into the City today?” Notice that I used social media as my preferred choice of communications.  I knew Jessica would be checking her DMs.  She informed me, there was the possibility of doing a Skype video. This way I would be at the event virtually, if I couldn’t make it in person. After all, isn’t that what social media is about? But, I have a confession…it was at that point that I started to stress out…yes, I’m human and I was stressed   No matter how much the snow came down, I still had my heart set on being in NYC.  I was determined to make it to Event Camp, even if that meant by dog and sled team.

What is it about a physical event that made me so determined when I could have used social media to be a part of this unconference?  That’s where we all have to keep our eye on the ball.  Social media is one of the best things to happen for the event industry and for marketers and PR pros. Yet, there is still so much benefit to getting together face-to-face with a group of like-minded people.

Of course, I made it to NYC with the help of my husband, who is a much better driver in the snow.  And, at the end of my presentation, I participated in a brief interview with the event’s virtual community.  The last question that was, “With all of the snow, what made you so determined to get to Event Camp.”  My immediate response was the pure passion in my heart! For me, it meant so much to me to be in the room presenting and feeling the energy of the audience, meeting the people and talking to one-on-one with people afterward to share ideas.

I think we all realize that social media is incredible, because it enables so many more people from all around the world to access an event and information that just wouldn’t have access to otherwise.  However, there’s a physical component that, in my opinion, cannot be replaced. As much as we can enhance our events with social media, hold virtual events or produce hybrid events, I hope we don’t forget that nothing beats being with people in person, watching their reactions, seeing their heads nod, eyes light up or even seeing what gets them nervous or concerned (I see that every once in a while when it comes to traditional communication vs. social media). In any case, social media will always enhance the success of our events and build a strong community even before the event occurs.  But, if you have a choice or the means to be in person to participate…take advantage of it!

I’m so happy that I made it to Event Camp. The energy and excitement was unbelievable (not to mention the knowledge sharing that was going on during the sessions and afterward in the bar).  The connections I made were incredible and there are people who I will be interacting with in the future.  I’m not sure if I would have made these exact connections or felt the same type of energy, if I wasn’t in person.

Social media gets us excited, molds our passions and energies around a topic of interest and it provides us with incredible and useful information.  It’s the people congregating and sharing who truly make a difference. My advice … if you can ever meet your virtual friends in person then that’s the best event scenario, in my opinion.  What do you think?  Do you believe that in person events enhanced by social media make a better event, or do you think that virtual events will eventually replace our in person connections? And, let me know if you would have traveled in a snowstorm or Skyped your presentation?

I’m really excited about Event Camp on February 6^th.  I’ll be traveling into NYC and speaking at the Roger Smith Hotel to discuss best practice Engagement Strategy for events (from planning your event to measuring participation/engagement).  As a quick aside, I’ve been walking down memory lane this past week, as my agency cleans out our offices and move to new office space.  As I was packing up some binders, I noticed one in particular that stood out. It was called, “PR/Marketing Event Checklist.”  This was a binder used by PR and Marketing managers at my agency more than 10 years ago.  This was their bible when they were getting ready for an event (from press conferences and tradeshows, to movie screenings and client parties).  It was really funny to take a look at how we planned and promoted events and what we put on the check list back in early 2000.

Here are a few things off the a very large event “To Do” but it gives you a sense of what needed to be list accomplished back in 2000:

• Develop event micro site
• Send out a “Save the Date” via email
• Develop e-vites / RSVP date
• Distribution of save the date and invitation to approved list
• Follow-up by telephone to secure attendance
• Develop launch promotion simultaneously with invitation
  • E-blasts
  • Newsletter e-mailing
  • Event postcard
  • Update promo page on site
• Media alert with event details
• News release prior to event and post event release to capture the key highlights of the launch/photo opportunities
• Develop media package
• Small gifts for event attendees
• Reminder e-mail one week prior
• Prepare Presentation/Signs/Visuals
• Photographer to take event photos
• Follow up survey for event participants

There were other “To Dos” on the list but this pretty much captured my agency’s thinking back in 2000.  This list would look significantly different for a 2010 event.  Today, you would see much more social media thinking in your event planning and community building to engage your event participants, long before the program takes place (not to mention afterward too).  What would today’s checklist look like?  Here are a few things I’d put on the list. Feel free to add more!

Social Engagement Event Checklist

• Set up a Ning site and invite people to create up profiles and participate.
• Use eventbrite.com for invitations and RSVPs

• Create videos about the event and share them on YouTube (also embed them into your blog, Facebook, etc.) and with conference speakers and bloggers who may be interested in attending.
• Use a Social Media Release (SMR) to let everyone know the details about the event and to give a glimpse into some of the topics, speakers, etc. and then share it in your social communities.
• Set up live streaming for the event (ustream.com).
• Develop an event badge or widget for download.
• Encourage participants to ask the speakers questions prior to the event to get the discussion going and to see what interests the audience for better participation the day of the program.
• Ask your speakers to blog about the event and to discuss their topics (to give participants and potential guests an idea of what the session will encompass).
• Ask speakers or special guests to share event updates within their social networks.
• Create Twitter hashtags around the event and get the discussion going before the day of the event.  Hashtags should be used during and after the program too.
• Designate a member of the event committee to tweet during the conference using the hashtag.
• Take pictures (twitpics) and tweet them out during the event for people to share.
• Set up an event group or fan page on Facebook to share information photos and video from the event.

This list looks very different than our list from 2000.  Ten years ago we weren’t thinking about the importance of community and participation, and how true engagement and building a community around events leads to success.  What types of strategy do you put in place to capture your audience and to keep them interested and coming back for more events?  I’ll be discussing this on February 6^th.  Hope to see you at Event Camp (or at least virtually there)!