I'm sitting at a Panera Bread the day after BlogOrlando, getting ready to head to EPCOT. I plan on posting a full wrap-up post in the next day or two. For now though, I need to go through all the posts and photos that were uploaded from the event.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Quite a few folks are live-blogging from the event:

- Laurie Mayers/Crisis Commuications: Standing PR
- Jake McKee/Customer Relationships with the Rabid Crowd Standing PR

Posted by Josh Hallett at 02:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Guest post by Geoff Livingston

Our man from Silicon Valley Shel Israel keynoted BlogOrlando this morning at Rollins College. He took the stage after a phenomenal intro from BlogOrlando host and Hyku CEO Josh Hallett.

Shel starts up with "I'm a recovering publicist." Shel apologized for launching PowerPoint, as he said the primary tool of "Command and Control." He said that publicisists have been playing the audience (that is the attendees) for 60 years.

Paraphrasing Shel, social media -- or the revolution -- is about the power of conversations says Shel. He gave examples of the big box companies need to communicate en masse, leaving behind the common everyday Main Street conversation. As a result, a contentious relationship has developed. A cold war evolved over 60 years. Conversations could not scale en masse.

With the rise of the Internet that changed. Social media is a cult of generosity. Share everything you can with the world.

Social Media Has Global Impact

A result of his SAP surveys -- a project to determine the impact of social media globally -- Shel found that a great deal of impact is occurring:

.Many tools are available now available to people: Facebook, video blogs, regular blogs.

. Culture has great impact on a country by country basis. For example, Kenyans are more enthusiastic about social media than Germans.

. Countries like Ukraine, Czech Republic, the Easter block, Argentina are experiencing a burgeoning wave of social media. In particular these countries are enjoying waves of citizen journalism that are surpassing traditional media viewer ship.

. Blogging will no longer be exciting in ten years. It will be as common as email is today.

Cultures shape the nature of interaction in social networks. But wherever you are social media is extremely popular amongst younger audiences throughout the world. It's absolutely loved and growing in power. In Estonia, 98 percent of 25 year olds and younger are using social media.

The two percent have physical disabilities that prevent them from participating. Free broadband drives access, and people are voting online -- including the youth online via their social networks.

Another great social media moment Isaac Mao in China. The governments -- here and there -- don't get social media. They can't figure it out and are not able to monitor what folks are being said. Technology allows bloggers in controlled countries to move rapidly enough and avoid authoritative crack-downs.

There are 20 million bloggers in China. They meet-up, and gather. Hong Kong has a blogger meet-up, so will Shanghai. More than 1000 bloggers will gather during the Olympics at Beijing. They may change venues to avoid political issues.

"Social media is one of the tools that is changing freedom in China," said Shel.

Facebook and other networks are creating widespread diffusion of principles. People feel like they should be enabled to speek their point of view. The new generation -- as it rises -- will become the marketplace. Traditional acquisition will fall to the wayside. Social media will be needed to reach younger audiences.

Shel cites the Microsoft channel 9 experience with Robert Scoble as an example. The recruiting video they used humanized Microsoft (Read the book Naked Conversations if you want more on this and other great examples).

Take Aways

Moving forward, Shel says the biggest barrier is language. Right now Google Translate doesn't cut it.

The Long Trail (play off of Chris Anderson) from Silicon Valley's excitement to widespread diffusion. The time is getting shorter and shorter. Shel says we're a year and a half away from widespread excitement about video throughout the enterprise.

It's a tricky time for PR pros. Old school PR is still needed. The traditional role of PR. Participation within blogging though will make your social network is what will really distinguish your company. Over the long term by participating, by communications, by talking you and your company can become recognized.

Posted by Geoff Livingston at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Big thanks to Billy, Andrea, Jill and Sara from Delaware North Corporation for hosting the BlogOrlando session leaders at Kennedy Space Center today.

I'll be uploading my photos in a few days, but for now you can look at some from Chris and Judson.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

John Rife has put together a map of the local restaurant options for lunch during BlogOrlando. Each of the pins on the map is clickable. The yellow house is where we'll be for BlogOrlando.

View Larger Map

Posted by Josh Hallett at 01:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

BlogOrlando kicks off on Thursday night at 6:30 PM at Universal CityWalk. For directions to Universal and parking info check out the official CityWalk site. We'll be meeting up by the big Universal Globe which is near the entrance to Universal Studios Florida (you walk thru CityWalk to get there).

View Larger Map

I'll be there handing out the passes to registered folks till around 7:30 then I need to grab some food and head to Blue Man Group at 8pm. If you need anything e-mail me or call me 863-258-7338.

Image from A-Mon's photostream.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 01:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We finally have the word from Rollins Collge on Wifi. There is no advanced registration required. At the event when you first open your laptop/browser you'll be prompted to create a guest account. When prompted for event you'll select BlogOrlando. Somebody from Rollins IT will be available in the morning to assist with any issues that might arise.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

For those of you that don't know this yet, you can follow BlogOrlando via Twitter at: http://twitter.com/blogorlando If you use (or sign-up for) Twitter you can get updates sent directly to your phone via SMS.

What type of updates? Things like reminders about room locations, directions etc. Or other random stuff that usually appears on Twitter.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wow, I just closed registration for BlogOrlando. We hit the capacity for our venue (280), so I didn't want to take anymore registrations. Yes there will be some no-shows, but I can't take the chance.

It's hard to imagine that last year we had 90 folks attend :-)

Posted by Josh Hallett at 02:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

How do you get to Rollins College and specifically the parking garage? Click here for a PDF with driving directions. Once you get to the parking garage you'll cross Fairbanks to get to Rollins College. We'll have some signs up to help you along the way. Here's a rough map of the layout below:

Once the event is over we'll be heading to Slingapour's in downtown Orlando, here's a map:

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We're hoping to get word on Monday from Rollins College about the wifi registration. As soon as we know we'll post something. Hang tight.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We have a new session that we're going to squeeze into the schedule, it will be on web standards, lead by Mark Trammell. Here are the deets:

Overview:
Using Web Standards To Get The Word Out - Using current and emerging Web standards can amplify your message by applying proper structure and meaning. Topics will include microformats and progressive enhancement.

Bio:
Mark Trammell has been chasing function and usability as a standard for Web design since 1995. Currently, Mark is the Web Standards Evangelist at PayPal. Previously, he directed the Web development, strategy and policy of the University of Florida. In his tenure at UF, Mark led a widely acclaimed standards-based rebuilding of the university Web presence.

Mark frequently lectures on Web standards and is coauthor of Professional CSS: Cascading Style Sheets for Web Design.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I stopped by BarCamp Orlando for a little bit today. Photos from the event are here.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you're attending and/or blogging and/or uploading photos from BlogOrlando please use the following tags:

BlogOrlando
BlogOrlando07

Also there is a Flickr group for BlogOrlando. It was created last year, but will still work for this year :-)

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We've confirmed our Friday Happy Hour location and other details. Starting at 6PM after BlogOrlando we'll gather at Slingapours in downtown Orlando, part of the Wall Street Plaza complex.

The printed schedule at BlogOrlando will contain a map on how to get to the Happy Hour, but here is a copy below. Registered BlogOrlando attendees will receive a drink ticket, after that you're on your own :-)

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

BlogOrlando session leader David Parmet has posted some introductory notes for his, Business Blogging, the Next Steps session:

I’ve been telling clients, audiences and anyone who will listen that companies don’t have to blog, they don’t have to have a podcast or a blogging policy. They have to have a social media strategy. They have to understand that the conversation is happening all around them, with or without them and they can join it or ignore it.

So next week I’ll be covering what I think are the ‘next steps’ for companies to take. Or the first steps as the case may be. That includes the obvious choices, exploring the full range of social media tools - everything from podcasts and videoblogs to Facebook and Twitter - as well as determining if a blog even makes sense for your organization.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 09:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We've had a slight change in plan for Thursday night thanks to our friends at Universal Studios Orlando. The Thursday before BlogOrlando, we'll be gathering at Universal CityWalk at 6:30 PM (or around then) for a night out. Universal Studios will be providing Party Passes to each BlogOrlando registrant. The Party Passes provide free cover to any of the clubs. In addition, we'll each be receiving $10 in Universal Dollars. The $10 is good for food and drinks at any Universal Citywalk restaurant or bar. BlogOrlando attendees can also receive 20% off Blue Man Group tickets if they want!!

We need to provide Universal with accurate counts, so every attendee will be receiving an e-mail for them to confirm their attendance and let us know if you plan to go to the Blue Man Group. Check your e-mail boxes.

We'll be posting the details on where we plan to meet, etc, very shortly. In advance though, be thinking of what you're hungry for. The food and drink options include:

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.™
Jimmy Buffett’s® Margaritaville®
Bob Marley - A Tribute to FreedomSM
Hard Rock Cafe®
Emeril's® Restaurant Orlando
Pat O'Brien's®
NBA City
Latin Quarter™
PastamoréSM
CityJazz®

Originally we have planned to meet at a local restaurant and grab some dinner and drinks, but that becomes a problem with almost 100 people. Remember this event is free, so we really don't have the budget to do one of those standard conference dinners which usually cost event planners $20-$30 per person. It's also hard to carry on a conversation with 100 people at once. With the Citywalk event we can buddy up as we want and then stay as long as we want, but not too late since the main BlogOrlando event starts bright and early the next morning.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Session leader Jeremy Harrington has posted his overview of his 'Design on a Dime' session. Here's the intro:

The plan is to discuss blog and social media design, in particular helping people understand design expense and finding some cool resources to spruce up their projects when time, budgets or size don’t allow for outside design assistance.

So what expenses am I talking about. Simply put - Money, Effort, Time and Quality. We all have to evaluate and weigh each of these with any product and determine where we have a resource deficit and where we may have an abundance. The reality is that many projects, particularly direct-revenue generating sites should involve professional designers at some level. These projects usually require an investment to offset all four of the long-term expenses mentioned above. However lots of other projects may not need this kind of attention. Those are the projects I’d like to concentrate on in my talk.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I always wanted to run an event where I could close registration :-) With that said, I'm going to be closing registration for the event on Friday the 21st Monday the 24th. It's not that we can't handle more people, it's just that a number of things need to be done next week and I can't focus my attention on registration.

So spread the word, if your friends want to attend, they need to register soon.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 07:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Continuing our series of session leaders posting some initial information online, Chris Scott has posted some notes on Blogging Basics. Chris says he plans to cover:

What makes a blog a blog?
- Posts/Entries
- Comments
- RSS feeds
- Trackbacks

Starting a blog
- Free hosts
- Paid hosts
- Wordpress on your current site

Do’s and Don’ts
- Linking
- Commenting
- etc. …

Don't see something you want to know about? Go leave Chris a comment.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 04:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Geoff Livingston has posted an overview of his session, Participation is Marketing, over at his blog. If you plan on attending Geoff's session please check it out.

The current Participation is Marketing theory (Chris Heuer) acknowledges that 20th century mass communications enabled companies to dictate messages, control the market, and use media to ensure brand message. With a fractured, traditional media marketplace and new social media channels, message control is dead. In the words of Jay Rosen, audiences are gone and communities are arising.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Mindy McAdams, the session leader for the "What We're Teaching in J-School" session has posted her initial thoughts on her blog. If you plan on attending her session, head over there and introduce yourself. Start the conversation!

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Universal Studios in Orlando have provided BlogOrlando with some great giveaways. We'll be drawing for these prized during the opening and closing sessions during the event. The prizes are:

20 Universal Studios Orlando Passes (these are good for any visit)
10 Halloween Horror Nights tickets for Saturday, Sept 29th.

Obviously the catch with the Halloween Horror Nights tickets is that you must use them on the Saturday after BlogOrlando, but come on...the tickets are free!.

I'll need to figure out how to break these up for the giveaways. Perhaps we'll do a few in the morning then the rest at the end of the day. You must be present to win :-)

More news in conjunction with Universal on Monday :-)

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

There are a number of sessions in the four tracks for BlogOrlando. Why so many tracks and so many sessions? Well it's hard to create a single topic that will interest 200+ people. By offering a number of session we can hopefully keep the audiences smaller.

One thing I learned last year and at events like BlogPhiladelphia, sometimes the smaller the group the better. With small groups you often get good discussion. That's what we're hoping for.

With that said, what session are you most looking forward to?

Posted by Josh Hallett at 10:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Update: Wait, hold that thought.......another update coming soon.

Thanks to everybody that has sent me their MAC addresses for wireless, however there has been a change in plan. To register for Wifi on campus you will need to call the Rollins Help Desk at 407-628-6363 and request 1-week access for BlogOrlando.

The Help Desk is open from 8:30am till 5:00pm M-F EST.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

We have our room assignments for BlogOrlando. The registration and opening & closing sessions are going to be held in the Bush Auditorium. For those of you that came last year, the Bush Auditorium is in the building directly across from the SunTrust Auditorium. If you're looking at the Rollins map, the Bush Auditorium is in the Bush Sciences Center.

Now for the tracks:

- The PR/Comm track will be held in the Bush Auditorium for the entire day.

- The Media Track will be in the SunTrust Auditorium for the morning (where we were last year). The afternoon sessions will be held in CSS 170. CSS stands for Cornell Science Center.

- The Technology Track will be held all day in Crummer B-10. This is the other room we used last year. It's in the basement of the building that houses the SunTrust Auditorium.

- The Life/Local Track will be held in Bush 162 for the morning sessions. The single session in the afternoon will be held in CSS 170.

Don't worry, the day of the event we'll be providing some basic walking instructions, and it's not far at all.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 08:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

All BlogOrlando registrants will receive a t-shirt....or I should say 'most' registrants will receive a t-shirt. I have to provide a count next week, so if you want/expect a t-shirt you need to register by Tuesday, Sept 18th.

After that, no t-shirt for you!

Posted by Josh Hallett at 05:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Our final sponsor has come on board, and it's an interesting one. The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation. Before you say, "Huh?" I'll explain.

Earlier this year the GPTMC held an event called BlogPhiladelphia. Annie Heckenberger was the force behind this event, and she modeled after it BlogOrlando. Well, Annie called me and said she had a little bit of budget left over and wanted to send some my way.....sure :-)

Annie will be leading one of the session, so you can thank her as well.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 04:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Update: You need to call the Rollins Help Desk (407-628-6363) and request 1-week access for BlogOrlando. The Help Desk is open from 8:30am till 5:00pm M-F EST.

One of the reasons we're having BlogOrlando at Rollins College is because they offer free wifi to all attendees. (Try to find a local venue that does that). There is one catch though. In order to use the wireless on campus the college's IT department needs to register you laptop ahead of time. If you plan on using the wifi will at the event you will need to send us your MAC address by Monday, September 24th.

What's your MAC address? It's the unique ID of your wireless card.

How do you figure out what your MAC address is? Read the two examples below.

Once you have your MAC address, e-mail me - josh@hyku.com - with the information.

Mac OSX:

Open the System Preferences application and choose Network.

In the Show: dropdown choose AirPort

If it isn't already selected click AirPort under the Show: menu. This will show you your AirPort ID--this is your MAC address and is selectable so you can select it and copy it.

 

Windows 2000/XP:

Click the Start button and choose Run... 

Type in cmd in the dialog box and click OK. 

In the command window, type ipconfig /all and press Enter 

In the results, you'll see something like the following:

If you have more than one adapter (most laptops have two), make sure you are looking at the one labeled for your wireless connection. The Physical Address is your MAC address. To copy this, right-click in the command window and choose Mark from the menu. Select the address and press Enter to copy it. 

Posted by Josh Hallett at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm just now realizing that I don't really have a 'contact' section on this web site. How about a post? Hello I'm Josh, I'm organizing this thing :-) You can e-mail me at josh (at) hyku.com.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When you look at the schedule for BlogOrlando you'll see that there are a few open slots. One of the cool things about an event of this type is that those slots will probably get filled with impromptu sessions.

For example, Alex Hillman is coming down from Philadelphia. Alex has been a leader in the co-working movement in that area and recently helped open Independents Hall. Alex Rudloff plans to talk a little bit about co-working in his Orlando Scene session, but let's say folks want to talk some more. That group could use one of the open slots to continue the discussion.

Feel free to start your own discussions.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 09:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

I'm glad to announce that Atlantic Dominion Solutions (ADS) is a new BlogOrlando sponsor. I was contacted over the weekend by Robert Dempsey of ADS. I told him the sponsorship terms. i.e. you don't get to pitch attendees and there are no booths, in other words you're supporting the community. Robert and ADS were cool with that. In fact they're also sponsoring BarCamp Orlando via their Rails for All group.

Thanks Robert.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 09:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I just completed and posted the schedule for BlogOrlando 2007. It was tough to plan out four separate tracks, but it's done. Of course there is always going to be an issue of scheduling things against each other, but it's a necessary evil.

For all the new schedule goodness, check out the official schedule page.

Posted by Josh Hallett at 03:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

BarCamp Orlando had a nice write-up in the Orlando Sentinel over the weekend. Perhaps we can get some press for BlogOrlando :-)

Posted by Josh Hallett at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)