The general consensus at MPI’s World Education Conference in Vancouver last month was that the Twitter conversations were up and complaining via Twitter was down.

So, I did a short analysis on the Twitter conversations from WEC to see if this was true. My analysis was purely structural and did not allow me to do any deep categorization of the tweets.

Here are some statistics:

• 511 Unique Tweeters on the #wec10 hashtag from 24-28 July
• 5126 Individual Tweets under this hashtag.
• 80% of the Tweets (4100) were made by 20% of the Tweeters (97 people).
• 36% (1826) of the Tweets were “RT” version retweets.
• The word love appeared in 161 Tweets, the word great in 469 tweets and the word like in 200 tweets.
• The word bad appeared in about 40 tweets.

For those of you that are curious, the word “Fiasco” appeared zero times.

What do these statistics mean?

First, they show that we can measure and frame the conversation. However, statistics on their own need to be put into context. I don’t have any statistics about the other MPI events to know if these statistics are above, below or on par with the normal tweetage. (I just made that word up.)

Second, the large number of retweets tells me that the twitterati found ideas tweeted by others worth sharing with their own social networks. Since, we were trying to spread ideas and information outside of the MPI and WEC community – I think this is a valuable statistic.

Third, I did a light keyword analysis and found that the sentiment was mostly positive among the tweeters. I think this is great – because at some events – the twitterati can be brutal. If I had the resources, I would have taken a closer at the keywords and phrases to see what appeared to be the most popular. (The wordcloud above is the best that I could do.)

Finally, these statistics give us insights on participation. Social Media participation does not follow a standard bell curve distribution. You rely on a few people to create most of the Social Media content and a larger group to comment and share that content.

A Word About “Social Media Kung Fu”

Live Tweeting during a session takes some Social Media Kung Fu type skills. Speaking from experience it is hard. Here’s what your live-tweeters have to do: Listen to a sound bite from a speaker, synthesize it into a simple 140 character message, type it into your smartphone without errors and tweet it. All of this happens in seconds. It takes practice to become proficient at it. Not all Social Media people can perform at this level on-site at an event. I still consider myself a student.

Bottom Line

If your intent is to spread ideas from your event to the world, then be sure to recruit some twitterati to live tweet during sessions. When selecting them make sure that they know Social Media Kung Fu and have some tools (like a table and chair with power) so they can type faster.

There is a lot here for us to talk about. What else would you add?

Note: I did receive partial registration reduction for agreeing to participate in the Social Media Guru program at MPI’s World Education Conference.

The post WEC Final: Love 161, Fiasco Zero appeared first on Interactive Meeting Technology.

Is “Technology” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of meetings sends some people flying toward technology. This was evidenced by the thousands of attendees that flocked to the many technology sessions to learn about the latest whizbangs and strategies. This was evidenced by the paperless program, the Mobile apps and the Pathable community.

So, it’s technology right? Smartphones and that kind of stuff. Um, not exactly.

Is “Environment” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of meetings sends others into the “better room layout” and “environment” corner. Joan Eisenstodt, for example, wants pictures on the walls, natural light and flexible space. When she says that many in the crowd nod with approval. Some cheer. Venue Executives mumble profanities. While others would just be happy if the room setup would match the session. “Rounds in the general session room? What’s that all about,” asks one attendee.

So, it’s environment right? Redesign the conference centers OR match the room setup to the needs. That must be the future of meetings. Um, not exactly.

Is “Content” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of meetings sends others into the “content” corner. These people are talking about content delivery, interactive formats, learning styles, objectives, discovery, etc. They say less time listening to boring speakers and more time interacting in an informal learning environment. When someone says more collaboration and interaction – groups of people start whooping and hollering Texas style. Speakers scratch their heads and ask if better hand gestures would help.

So, it’s content right? Use more collaborative formats. Get people out of chairs and writing on white boards. Um, not exactly.

Is “Attendee Experience” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of meetings gets others talking about attendee experience. It’s about putting the attendee at the center of the event. Ruud Janssen says that we need to think about it like “100 events for 100 people.” Another person talks about interviewing “professional attendees” – the conference road warriors – and using their needs as the model for how these experiences could work.

So, it’s attendee experience right? Design events with the attendee in mind. Um, not exactly.

Is “Storytelling” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of meetings gets others talking about storytelling. It’s about narrative and personas they say. They talk about the strong characters in movies and books that we identify with. They talk about the dilemmas created in good vs. evil situations. They continue on with more stuff that is over our heads – but sounds good. Many nod in approval.

So, it’s storytelling right? We just hire a scriptwriter create good characters, put Bruce MacMillan in a flying harness and get Stephen Spielberg to show us how to produce the stuff. Um, not exactly.

Is “Inspiration” the Future of Meetings?

The keynote speakers from the Opening General Session will tell you that the future of meetings is about passion and inspiring people to become part of something greater than themselves. They will site examples of people coming from remarkable circumstances that you couldn’t ever imagine to do something extraordinary. Since, we are all amazed – we nod with approval and donate $20.

So, it’s inspiration right? We find someone or something that inspires us – like Bruce Willis or the A-team. Then we book them for our next event. That’s the ticket! Um, not exactly.

Is “Outside the Industry” the Future of Meetings?

The topic of the future of events gets others to talk about looking outside our industry for the answer. Looking for inspiration in art, in movies, in design, in Farmville, in nature and in space. Or was it in Oldspice? Regardless, asking ourselves what the Future of Meetings looks like – doesn’t help – because we all have the similar answers. As we hear this point of view, we nod again.

So, it’s looking outside ourselves right? We watch a few OldSpice commercials, play Farmville and “friend” that Zuckerberg dude who created Facebook – then we will know the future of events. Right? Um, not exactly.

So what is the Future of Meetings?

Well, if the future of meetings is not technology or space or content or attendee experience or inspiration or outside factors – then what is it?

I have no idea. I just can tell you that it is not ONE of those factors – it is all of them. As far as I can tell that is the conclusion drawn from the MPI World Education Conference.

What do you think our future meetings and events will look like? or what do they need to look like?

Note: I did receive partial registration reduction for agreeing to participate in the Social Media Guru program at MPI’s World Education Conference.

The post The Future of Meetings: Are You My Mother? appeared first on Interactive Meeting Technology.

As part of the deal, I made this little video with my iphone:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PhW7VhM63A]

The video immediately prompted questions about what I am bringing to participate in Social Media onsite. So, here is a list of what I am packing for the event.

iPhone 3GS: My Social Media Swiss Army Knife

The iphone has a camera, video camera, wifi capability, auto-upload to YouTube and photo editing software. plus a number of social apps. I plan to use my phone for most of my on-the-spot content capture and creation that will occur in the hallway conversations and during meals. Expect to see tons of photos and videos from me. All via the iphone.

Macbook Pro 13 inch: My workshop

I can type like a world champion with the keyboard and film short videos with the built-in webcam. I can edit movies, write power tweets, schedule tweets, write/publish blog posts and podcast. I will use the Macbook Pro during sessions to write and respond to tweets – because I type to slow on my iphone 3GS.

Powerstrip and Extension Cord: My Lifeline

Apple makes great products – but they never have enough battery power. To keep myself plugged-in to the content, I will carry a powerstrip and an extension cord around with me.

Headphones: My Podcasting Tools

Mike McAllen and I plan to record a few editions of our Going Digital Podcast. So, I will bring along my headphones with microphone to make sure that I am ready to record a show in the hallways or on the Expo floor.

Paper / Pen / Pencil: My Old School Tools

While I am mostly digital, I still like to use paper and pen to frame up ideas or solidify my understanding of interesting concepts. So, I plan to have a pad of paper and pencil in my bag as well.

Small Rollerbag: My Transportion

While the A-Team has a cool van to carry their gear, I will have a roller bag – backpack thing. Um, not so cool. But I need it! One of the challenges of carrying your gear is that you need compartments and organization. The roller bag backpack gives me an office on the go type of setup. So, I can setup and unpack in a few minutes. (If you have a cooler suggestion – let me know. I am all listening.)

Bottom Line

In my opinion, these tools will be more than sufficient to engage with you all of the on-site and remote attendees via Social Media. 

What do you have in your Social Media Toolkit?  Is there anything else that you recommend?

The post Attendees: What is in Your Social Media Toolkit? appeared first on Interactive Meeting Technology.