You can run as far as you like, but you just cannot hide from Social Media.
Call it what you will; ‘socmed’, ‘invaluable tool’ or ‘waste of time’, the impact is undeniable; Social media has quite literally changed the world, and trying to ignore this revolution is futile. Futile I tell you!
The beast itself is a beautiful thing. Social media is allowing brands to engage with users, closer and quicker than ever before, it makes real life connections even stronger with a personal…but not too personal, instant new form of communication, and your average Joe can become a Twilebrity overnight if he can string together some valuable musings in 140 characters or less.
The only backlash of the rise of social media is the side effect that comes with all new marketing/communication phenomenons; self-proclaimed ‘experts’. Those looking to get their head around the medium are hit from all sides by those looking to make a quick buck off the back of a new trend and selling their ‘expertise’ to anyone that’s buying.
If you’re about to throw yourself in the social media ring, you’ll figure out pretty quickly that the majority of people and events claiming to help you along your way will, in fact, lead you down the garden path.
Choose wisely.
Here’s my checklist to help you decide whether you should attend a social media event.
The speakers
Do a bit of research before you part with any attendance fees. Check out the listed speakers, and don’t just take the event organiser’s word for it; look up their names and credentials and explore whether their experience is relevant to what you are trying to achieve within social media.
Big names pull in attendees, but they don’t always add value to an event. Check out their LinkedIn profile, or their Twitter stream, and look at what they’ve really achieved when you strip away the shiny brand name they work for.
The sponsors
There is nothing worse than having irrelevant sponsors’ material shoved down your throat at an event. Are the sponsors relevant; or did the organisers bring on any man and his dog willing to pay the sponsorship costs?
Check up on the sponsors. Look into the companies behind the logos to help you decide whether the sponsors are going to help you; or just annoy you when you’re trying to learn.
The agenda
Check out the titles of the sessions and speaker presentations. Yep, they’ll all probably sound the same. By the looks of things, they’ll be examining, evaluating, adapting, measuring and analysing the life out of social media, its state, potential and future.
Look a little deeper; is the presentation or session going to provide you with any real value?
It’s easy for speakers to rattle off social media metrics and trends, but at the end of the day, you want real action points to take away with you, and ultimately, implement into your own use of social media. Cut through the buzzwords and be brutal. Will you really get anything out of it?
The audience
Is there are public guest list? Can you search attendees through a event hashtag on Twitter? Does the event have a Meetup page, Facebook fan or event page?
If you can get an insight into who’s already going, you can get a better idea whether you should be there or not. There’ll be quite a few of the ‘social media experts’ I mentioned earlier, but ideally, you’re looking for people in a similar situation to you; you’ll find it better for learning.
However, networking is networking – you can always find great new contacts at events like these, so be on the look out for people you want to link in with. Just a word of warning; if you’re completely new to the space, don’t waste people’s time asking questions about the basics. If you’ve got a question, Google it. Topical discussions, or even just a ‘how about this weather’ will get a better response.
So, the Social Media World Forum is coming up next month, and, in-keeping with the checklist, I thought I’d give it a once-over.
Based on the points below, I’ve decided to attend; but check it out for yourself before you sign up!
- Yes, there are big names attending, but I’m actually interested in what they have to say. For example; Kristin Wadge of Metrica is an expert in PR evalution and measurement, a subject I’m interested in, I can see from her Twitter stream that she is a seasoned speaker. That’s a good start. See the list of speakers here.
- One of the silver sponsors; yiid looks like a great concept. As someone who uses multiple social media tools, their offering looks like just the thing I’ve been waiting for. I’m looking forward to seeing what they have to offer at the event, and also, Social Media UK is the event’s main networking partner – I’ve been to one of their events before, and thought it was great. Good sign.
- I spotted a session on the second day; Social Network Advertising and Monetisation, a subject I think will be one of the biggest talking points in social media this year. I’d love to engage with the panel on this one.
- A quick Twitter search of the event name has given me an insight into who’s already going; as well as an idea of how much buzz this event is creating. I can see lots of new, interesting faces I’ve never met at social media events before, so the networking opportunities look to be well worth it! Search #SMWF.
