So I just finally got a chance to write something up about the most recent Online Community Unconference we attended, (Twitter hash #ocu2008). It was last week in San Francisco. If you haven’t heard of an “unconference” yet, it’s likely you will soon. It’s an increasingly popular format where participants in the conference determine most or all of the sessions. Then participants to to the session and… well… they participate. The outcome is ideally some good notes and learnings for unconference goers, the same information - assuming a good note taker - gets captured in the conference Wiki for the whole world, and also - in this case - Twinkies. (A picture of the snack table.) I hadn’t had Twinkies in years. So, sadly, I had to choose a couple of those over the more healthy snacks. But… I digress…

The Changing Character of the Unconference

These are getting better. I have to admit, when I first experienced the “unconference” format, I was at first skeptical and afterwards, my low expectations were met. The experience was lacking. However, after attending several more, (at Web 2.0 Expo, this conference and some others), I’m changing that opinion. Why? What’s happened with unconferences?

• The Participants: Attendees are learning how this format works and making more of it. Some are showing up with solid clarity on what topics they want to propose. Which has pros and cons of course. The pros being at least some sessions with clearer agendas, the cons being the nature of an “UN”conference is to have a ton of flexibility. In any case, it was nice to see a few semi-structured sessions at this one mixed in with all the more organic sessions.
• Unconference Leaders: In spite of the open nature of these things, there still needs to be some clarity in original direction and session coordination. The companies and individuals running these things are getting better at that.
• The Venues: While one would think such things could be anywhere and have value, (and they can), there’s certain aspects of the venue that can make a difference. Having good spaces, that have laptop connections to projectors and solid WiFi available make a huge difference. Organizers have been better about making sure venues are ready.

Twing as a Sponsor

Twing actually attended this conference as a sponsor. We were fairly popular. I’d like to think it was just because people loved Twing. And we did get some really good feedback. But we also gave out these great book premiums as well. (We brought 100 copies of Patrick O’Keefe’s Managing Online Forums book.)

I think being here as a sponsor was an overall positive experience for us. Besides gaining awareness for our product, we got great feedback from people who are deeply entrenched in social media. They understand what we’re trying to do and as a result were able to offer helpful comments. It’s difficult to do the conference / sponsor thing; not just due to the costs in dollars, but the time / effort to organize and attend when you’re trying to build new features at the same time. But this one was one worth it. Hopefully, you’ll see more of us at such venues in the future. (Though more often a bit closer to our metro NYC home.)

Scott

Trackback URI | Comments RSS