How Social Media is Enhancing the Conference Experience

For each industry, there is an unlimited number of conferences and events available for the public. This year, Mashable - a top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture - has listed over 100 social media and technology conferences planned for just 2010. These conferences not only discuss the topic of social media, but also use various social media outlets before, during and after those presentations. Many other conferences, events, and gatherings are also catching on to the social media movement.

Many people are beginning to dedicate both a Twitter account and a Facebook Page or Group to their conference. The online presence of Facebook and Twitter, connects the conference and its presenters to their attendees allowing them to form communities. It allows potential and confirmed attendees to see photos, schedules and to start discussions about the conference and its topics. These accounts are also used to update the community on speakers and announcements as well as possible conference changes. They can also be beneficial for conference sponsors, as a platform to develop relationships with their conference community.

Utilizing the Twitter hashtag is another popular tool for conference communities. Hashtags are used to categorize Twitter posts and are created by putting the pound symbol (#) before the word denoting that particular category. By using a hashtag within tweet (from a public account), anyone who searches for that hashtag (or category) may find your tweet.

Hashtags encourage engagement from conference participants, because they can be used for notetaking, recording post-conference tweets or sharing conference knowledge with the Twitter community. Hashtags can also be used to update those who can’t or aren’t attending, telling them what is going on at the conference in real time. This engagement helps build the social community of the conference and its presenters, attendees and sponsors.

Social media is becoming more influential as we move into the future. Next time you attend or develop a conference, consider Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets as a means to help enhance the experience.