Like Steve Shannon, BurrellesLuce executive vice president, I have also attended several conferences, recently. (See “Are You a Conference Commando” post). The live tweeting is an interesting phenomenon, which has really taken off. Most conferences now promote a hashtag (# followed by a short tag) to use when tweeting about the event.

This use of a hashtag has allowed me to achieve a new level of engagement:

1. I’ve found new people to connect with by following the conference hashtag. I really enjoy meeting other Twitter users at the sessions, and adding live interaction to our online relationship. Tweeting gives us instant camaraderie!

2. I rarely take notes anymore. My tweets (or someone else’s) will tell me all the important points.

3. I am adding value for my followers, who are able to get the key points from the conference. Many of the conference tweets have been re-tweeted by followers who are not attending.

Here are some of my recent tweets highlighting the latest industry conferences:

• Steve Holt of WCBS does not answer his phone. Don’t send follow-up e-mails. Don’t pitch a story CBS network is doing. #mrs09
• A good pitch is a new idea. Parker-Pope doesn’t have time for meet and greets. #mrs09
• Old media relations tools still apply to social media. Be transparent and have something to say. #mrs09
• Remember to optimize your tweets for search says @courtneymbarnes #ca2009
• Hagler: for pitches-don’t lead with your strength, lead with what you want to grow. #CA2009
• Tip – Measure relationships i.e. process measures, quality of relationship or value of no coverage. #CA2009

Are you creating a hashtag for your next conference? Are you live tweeting from conferences you attend?

This entry was posted on Friday, June 12th, 2009 at 9:41 am and is filed under Career Advice, Public Relations, Social Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.