We have been so grateful for all of the feedback, input and advice we have received from the Twitter community since announcing TWTRCON. One of the best parts of being involved in organizing TWTRCON is that we’ve been able to experience the power of Twitter first-hand. The ability to quickly get input and feedback from a community is one of its many valuable attributes.
We are asking for your feedback again today as we are diving right into planning for the next TWTRCON event. Below we will outline some of the key take-aways we got from the attendee survey that attendees filled out onsite, along with some feedback we have heard in conversations we’ve had with TWTRCON SF 09 participants .
Whether you attended TWTRCON SF 09 in person, participated online, or just found out about the event, we would love to hear any comments, ideas and suggestions that would help us in the planning process. Program ideas? Speaker suggestions? Venues? More snacks? Let us know if you agree or disagree with the comments below, and add in anything we missed!
Summary of the feedback we’ve heard so far — we are numbering the list so you can reference a specific point in your comments:
- Overall, people felt TWTRCON was an amazing experience. One attendee used the word “electric” in describing the energy in the room. The value of the conference overall was rated a 4.2 (out of 5) by attendees who completed the feedback form onsite.
- Most of the panel sessions and keynotes received very high marks, too. The highest rankings went to the sessions that featured speakers who are actually managing Twitter business strategies for their company: Marketing at the Speed of Twitter and Tweeting for Dollars were favorites, along with–of course–the MC Hammer / Stefanie Michaels session on Your Brand is a Person.
- For the most part, people liked the fast pacing of the event, and enjoyed the fact that it was very interactive. A couple of you mentioned that you’d prefer a longer event, but most people want to keep to one day.
- Some of you commented that you’d like to see more in-depth case studies, with more of a focus on how-to content and step-by-step visual examples of how various brands ran specific Twitter campaigns.
- For the most part, people liked the mix of business case studies, keynotes and a sprinkling of celebrities and “twitterati” (though a few suggested Kara bring a bar of soap the next time she moderates a panel with Dave McClure). The last panel with Jeremiah Owyang, Paul Saffo and Dave McClure was very highly rated, but several people pointed out that it is too easy for the tech experts to “hijack” the conversation with buzz words and lose focus on the business value.
- Quite a few people commented they would like to see the addition of case studies across a variety of industries, mixing B2B and B2C, different vertical segments, small/medium/large businesses, education, non-profits, media, services, health care and government case studies.
- A LOT of people said they would like more advice on Twitter ROI, analytics and metrics. While recognizing that it is still very early for there to be real answers in this area, we will definitely look for ideas on how to incorporate good information we can find about this.
- Quite a few people mentioned that they’d like to see more involvement from Twitter management.
- A couple of attendees said the conversation was too technical. A couple said it was too introductory. Does that mean that for most of you, it was just right?
- Many people commented that the conference was very well organized. That’s great to hear!
- TWTR Pitches: people liked the concept for this, but it didn’t work too well in practice. The “pitches” would have been more valuable if the speakers had a little more time to explain features and use visuals.
- Lunch networking sessions: some people loved them, others didn’t. We’re open to ideas on how to make these work better as a way of connecting attendees who have shared interests.
- Location: New York had the highest number of votes as a location for the next TWTRCON, followed by a tie between Austin, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco. We also had suggestions for non-US TWTRCON’s in Germany, South America, London and Paris. (Yikes! This will be a tough decision!)
What are your thoughts? What did we miss? Please let us know, and thank you to everyone who helped make the first TWTRCON such a great success!
Twtrcon was/is Brilliant/Xellent. 1. Twitter handles on badges 2. Sept/Oct offseason Orlando, FL 3. Spouse/signif other program/activities.
I will work 4 fun. I got geek/marketing/meeting planning skills. Lov 2 help!
Thanks, Alan. Yes: Twitter user names on badges is definitely key for the next one!!
What does everyone else think about Orlando?
I would suggest Aspen, one of the most beautiful resorts in the world; & i could hook everybody up with the super-duper “local” deal but tweeks don’t ski and the G-5 jet traffic is redonkulous.
I definitely agree with the consensus. Having pitched, I would have loved even just a minute more and as little as 2 or 3 slides. Having watched the rest, they would have been more interesting if it wasn’t just a business pitch, but a pitch with a purpose… like “In 140 characters tells us why your topic [business, application, whatever] is making the world better.” That’s one of the reasoned we went with the not-for-profits and charities.
NYC is a fine choice, but Seattle would be better.
As far as Twitter analytics go, a large portion of my work focuses on finding the ROI in social media (does it even exist?) and determining how to measure it. Whether people want to talk on Twitter or at the next Twtrcon, it would be great to contribute to that conversation.
@ericpratum
I think it should not be moved, because there are Twitter conferences in NYC already, and no place else draws like the Bay Area, especially if you hope for participation from Twitter folks.
More talk about tools for managing Twitter.
More brand case studies, with enterprise participants.
More B2B with small businesses.
I’d like to talk about Followers vs. Following when you have specific objectives.
#2) Loved Hammmer. Adventure Girl seems not to engage with her followers, simply push out her own content. Follows few. Engages few. Works for her, but not the best Twitter representation. Hammer Rocked it…totally so.
#4) #6) In depth case studies – excellent idea
#7) Yes on the metrics. I have heard the assertion, “it’s social, it’s not about ROI” I disagree. Let’s discuss and compare what we analyze, how we set goals, and what we measure to determine success.
#9) Could be a bit more technical.
#10) Impressed with the organization.
#11) Twitter Pitches need a bit more time. Agreed.
#13) NYC After doing both coasts, decide if 2x/yr each coast works or add Chicago, or Austin.
My 2cents and more. @JerseyDebMadey
Chicago, Chicago, Chicago is my choice. New York is ok, but transit from Airport to Manhattan is a bitch. Orlando, booo! Austin yes.
We loved the live podcasting from the event and we hoped it added to the event. Next time, we would like to bring our portable speakers (sound system) where people can listen live as we are interviewing. We did not do that this time around because we were not sure it would work for the event, but now we know that it would. Many people were gathered around us as we were interviewing but quickly left when they realized that they could not hear anything
We look forward to NY!