It's been a number of weeks since I attended the excellent first and (I sincerely hope) annual BlogIndiana conference at IUPUI. Here are some thoughts I came away with.
First, I want you to sit down. Relax. Pour yourself some Stormhoek. Breathe. What I'm about to say might give you a bit of a shock: A serious Web-2.0-focused conference actually took place last month wherein 1) the keynote slot was not occupied by someone with the same four case studies and a lame book to sell, 2) there was no inane sniping with other conference organizers, and 3) I'm quite certain no one said "Web 2.0" once.
Second, when you get to hear the perspectives of a blogger whose primary interest, and that of his or her readers, is Korean restaurants in the northwest counties of Indiana, you're reminded that that's what "social media" is all about — passion, insight, and a willingness to share — not celebrity and, in the words of William S. Burroughs, "getting there firstest with the brownest nose". Note: Just because someone in the Technorati 500 is on your radar and might even know your name doesn't mean you understand social media.
Third, I was particularly inspired by Tom Britt's talk. Tom publishes local Web portals for the community around Geist Reservoir and surrounding areas. He's hit upon a perfect combination of how print (Yes, print! To heck with you and the Kindle you rode in on!) and the Web work in concert to serve hyperlocal needs.
Fourth and finally, you owe it to yourself as a public relations professional and a digital citizen to go to smaller conferences like this with a geographical or topical focus. I can probably count on one hand the number of reasonably well-known social-media-savvy PR folks who make it a point to go to conferences as a regular attendee — where they've not been invited to speak! Many in that line of work only go to conferences where they've been placed on the agenda.
NB: That kind of intellectual dishonesty will kill this business.
And by "this business", I don't mean "social media consulting".
I actually do mean "public relations".
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Comments (3)
The infrequency with which "social media experts" seem to do any kind of continuing education makes me sad. We all know that some of the biggest selling points of social media are the abilities to improve listening and learning - yet so many of the people who are out there lecturing that point don't seem to be doing it very well themselves for their own businesses.
Posted by Sarah Morgan | September 8, 2008 8:07 AM
Posted on September 8, 2008 08:07
Thanks for the review, I dugg.
I attended as well and agree that it was nice that the conference wasn't all about selling books or consulting.
There were some comments on the early review posts that the major sponsors were pushing software, but what can you expect when they are paying to support the conference.
Posted by Daltonsbriefs | September 8, 2008 10:33 AM
Posted on September 8, 2008 10:33
Phil, thanks for the kudos. Yes, print is alive and kicking, no matter what the newspapers tell you. Their printing presses aren't killing them, it's using them 7 days a week and losing money 5 days a week that is killing them. PS: I hate kindles, too.
Posted by Tom Britt | September 8, 2008 4:23 PM
Posted on September 8, 2008 16:23