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Internet TechnologiesEnhancing the Meetings EnvironmentMPI Virginia Chapter (VAMPI)November 1, 2007

uncommoninsight

+ uniqueapproach

+ extraordinarytools

exceptionalresults

Background: SCN, MTO and knowledge of web 2.0

MeetingTechOnline focuses on the education of technology in the meetings industry. Derive content from qualitative interviews with “you”. Show producers, meeting planners, association executives who are involved in the design, implementation and execution of tradeshow, conference and event tools.

My privilege: Gather information to understand the trends and innovations that are occurring.

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Premise & Content

Meeting industry web sites will evolve from information delivery to interaction enablement.

Meeting planners will need to buy, build or rent applications and tools that create interaction.

7 enabling (web 2.0) technologies• Wikipedia• Social Networking• Blogs/RSS Feeds• Podcasts/Video/Webinars• MicroSites• Advergaming/Google Ads• Content Management Systems

Premise of this presentation:The main role of association web sites is evolving from information delivery to interaction enablement.In order to facilitate that evolution, associations will need tobuy, build or rent applications and tools that create interaction.7 enabling technologies that can help associations evolve.

WikipediaSocial NetworkingBlogs/RSS/Online ForumsVideo/Podcasts/WebinarsMicroSites/Advergaming/Google AdsContent Management Systems

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Today’s Presentation

Overview of Web 2.0 Define 7 enabling technologies

• Glimpse of real world examples• Understand adoption and application of these tools

Answer Questions

Lot of websites – buckle upHumor when needed

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Web 2.0 Overview

web 2.0 is a term suggesting a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to an update to any technical specifications, but to changes in the ways software developersand end-users use the web.

• web 2.0 tools facilitate collaboration and sharing between users

• users generate and distribute content, often with freedom to share and re-use

Web 2.0 refers to a perceived second generation of web-based communities and hosted services —such as social-networking sites, and wikis — which aim to facilitate collaboration and sharing between users. The term was first coined by Tim O'Reilly of O'Reilly Media at a Web 2.0 conference in 2004. Although the term suggests a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to any technical updates, but rather changes in the ways software developers and end-users navigate the web.According to O'Reilly, "Web 2.0 is the business revolution in the computer industry caused by the move to the internet as platform, and an attempt to understand the rules for success on that new platform."

Web 2.0 can be defined as technologies such as weblogs, social bookmarking, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, social networking software, web application programming interfaces (APIs), and online web services such as eBay and Gmail provide a significant enhancement over read-only information delivery websites. Youtube and MySpace are two more recent examples of web 2.0 that have impacted our environment. Most websites today are still information delivery websites.

Web 2.0 has been described as “genuine interactivity if you like, simply because people can upload as well as download”

Web 2.0 also includes a social element where users generate and distribute content, often with freedom to share and re-use. The result is a rise in the economic value of the Web as users can do more online.

Video

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Web 2.0 Overview

website of 90’s: MeetingTechOnline• Static content

• Difficult to modify – required a web developer• Organization centric• One way communications• Cluttered messaging• No enabling tools

web 2.0 Websites: MeetingTechOnline v2• Dynamic• Community centric• Multi-flow communications• Clean focused messaging• Enabling tools• Content Management Systems (CMS)

• Modifications not requiring IT expertise

Website of 90’s: MeetingTechOnlineStatic content

Difficult to modify – required a web developerOrganization centricOne way communicationsCluttered messagingNo enabling tools

Web 2.0 Websites: MeetingTechOnline v2DynamicCommunity centricMulti-flow communicationsClean focused messagingEnabling toolsContent Management Systems (CMS)

Modifications not requiring IT expertise

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Wikipedia

wikipedia is multilingual, web-based, encyclopedia project, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization.

• Examples• American Bar Association (ABA)• Consumer Electronics Show (CES)• SIGCOMM• CeBIT• MeetingTechOnline

Wikipedia's name comes from the words wiki (a type of collaborative website) and encyclopedia.

Wikipedia is considered a web 2.0 tool example because of the shift from a traditional encyclopedia of one source of information – publisher to multiple source – collaborative efforts of community users.

As of September 2007, Wikipedia had approximately 8.2 million articles in 253 languages, comprising a combined total of over 1.4 billion words for all Wikipedias. Wikipedia's articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers – the wikipedia community -around the world and the vast majority of them can be edited by anyone with access to the Internet. It today ranks among the top ten most-visited websites worldwide.

Due to Wikipedia's open nature, critics have questioned its reliability and accuracy. The site has been criticized for its susceptibility to vandalism and the addition of false or unverified information, uneven quality, systemic bias and inconsistencies,and for favoring consensus over credentials in its editorial process.Wikipedia's content policies do try to address these concerns.Two scholarly studies have concluded that vandalism is generally short-lived and that Wikipedia is generally as accurate as other encyclopedias

When "You" was awarded Time Person of the Year 2006, praising the accelerating success of on-line collaboration and interaction by millions of users around the world, Wikipedia was the first particular "Web 2.0" service mentioned, followed by YouTube and MySpace.

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Wikipedia

A wiki is computer software that allows users to easily create, edit and link web pages. Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites, power community websites, and are increasingly being installed by businesses to provide affordable and effective Intranets or for use in Knowledge Management.

How to utilize wikis• Creation of online community encyclopedia• Marketing • Participation in definitions

• Definitions are power

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Social Networking

social network solution focuses on the building and verifying of online social networks for communities of people who share interests and activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and activities of others, and which necessitates the use of software.

key elements of a great social networking solution• user experience

• Intuitive• valid

• Established trust with profile information• Profiles with drag and drop words • Community business intelligence• Social networking tools: introNetworks, BD Metrics, a2zInc. NetZone,

A social network solution focuses on the building and verifying of online social networks for communities of people who share interests and activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and activities of others, and which necessitates the use of software.Most social network solutions are primarily web based and provide a collection of various ways for users to interact, such as chat, messaging, email, video, voice chat, file sharing, blogging, discussion groups, and so on.The main types of social networking services are those which contain directories of some categories (such as former classmates), attending TSAE, means to connect with friends (usually with self-description pages). There is also a trust element that background information will not be abused. Popular methods now combine many of these, with MySpace and Facebook being the mostly widely used in 2007.

Key elements to a social networking solution:User Experience - true Web 2.0 Rich Internet Application. Patented method of creating a profile with drag and drop words is 100% customizable, with real-time updating. Backbone of the entire system and drives the sophisticated matching engine –no other systems offer. Community Business Intelligence gained before the event, well in advance, and with enough time to make relevant changes – as well as after the event to affect changes in future events.

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Blogs and RSS

blog (web log) is a website where entries are written in chronological (reverse) order.

Provide commentary or news.Combines text, images, links, web pages, video, etc.Gartner predicts peak in 2007

How can meeting planners utilize blogs?• Grassroots stimulation• Opinion leader involvement• Community participation

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject such as food, politics, or local news; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blogcombines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs – hence the web 2.0 collaborative nature. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs(photoblog), videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting) and are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging which consists of blogs with very short posts.

Gartner forecasts that blogging will peak in 2007, leveling off when the number of writers who maintain a personal website reaches 100 million. Gartner analysts expect that the novelty value of the medium will wear off as most people who are interested in the phenomenon have checked it out, and new bloggers will offset the number of writers who abandon their creation out of boredom. The firm estimates that there are more than 200 million former bloggers who have ceased posting to their online diaries, creating an exponential rise in the amount of "dotsam" and "netsam" — that is to say, unwanted objects on the Web.

How can associations utilize blogs?Grassroots stimulationOpinion leader involvementCommunity participation

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Blogs and RSS

RSSFamily of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content (push)RSS document contains either summary of content from associated web site or the full text. RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated

manner that's easier than checking them manually.

How to use Blog Feeder Applications• My Yahoo!• Google• BlogLine

RSS is a family of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content such as blog entries, news headlines or podcasts. An RSS document, which is called a "feed," "web feed," or "channel," contains either a summary of content from an associated web site or the full text. RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner that's easier than checking them manually.

Key to blogs – make a RSS feeder tool available to increase participation and involvement in blog topics.

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Podcasts/Video/Webinars

PodcastsDigital media file distributed over the Internet

Podcast is distinguished from other digital media formats by ability to be syndicated, subscribed to, and downloaded automatically when new content is added

Costs are minimalResources around video and audio creationApple supports loading the content to the Apple

store where it can be down loaded for free

A podcast is a digital media file, or a series of such files, that is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers. The term, like "radio", can refer either to the content itself or to the method by which it is syndicated; the latter is also termed podcasting. The term "podcast" comes from the words "iPod" and "broadcast", the Apple iPodbeing the brand of portable media player for which the first podcasting scripts were developed. These scripts allow podcasts to be automatically transferred to a mobile device after they are downloaded. Though podcasters' web sites may also offer direct download or streaming of their content, a podcast is distinguished from other digital media formats by its ability to be syndicated, subscribed to, and downloaded automatically when new content is added, using an aggregator or feed reader capable of reading feed formats such as RSS

why post audio when video is more engaging.bandwidth is reaching acceptable levelsyoutube has established the standard with an ubiquitous player

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Podcasts/Video/Webinars

VideoYouTube is a video sharing website where users can upload, view and share video

clips.Visually dynamic content is becoming easier to access with greater bandwidth and

improved connectivity speeds.

Webinar/Web conferencingUsed to conduct live meetings or presentations over the Internet. In a web conference, each participant sits at their own computer, and is connected to

other participants via the internet. Downloaded application on each of the attendees computers or a web-based

application. Webinar is a web conference where the direction of the presentation is primarily one

way from the presenter to the audienceA webinar however can be designed to be interactive between the presenter and

audience.

Web conferencing Used to conduct live meetings or presentations over the Internet. In the early years of the Internet, the terms "web conferencing" and "computer conferencing" were often used to refer to group discussions conducted within a message board (via posted text messages) therefore not live, but the term hasevolved to refer specifically to "live" or "synchronous" meetings, while the posted message variety of discussion is called a "forum", "message board", or "bulletin board".In a web conference, each participant sits at their own computer, and is connected to other participants via the internet. This can be either a downloaded application on each of the attendees computers or a web-based application where the attendees will simply enter a "URL" or website meeting address to enter the live meeting or conference. These web-based applications are used either with Flash or Java technology.A webinar is a type of web conference, although the direction of the presentation more often than not is primarily one way from the presenter to the audience as in a Webcast, which is transmission of information in one direction only, like watching a concert on the internet. A webinar however can be designed to be interactive between the presenter and audience. A webinar is 'live' in the sense that information is conveyed according to an agenda, with a starting and ending time. In most cases, the presenter may speak over a standard telephone line, pointing out information being presented on screen, and the audience can respond over their own telephones.

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Podcasts/Video/Webinars

Benefits of Webinars• No travel costs• Ease of access• Reach a larger audience • Reduce cost • Digitally record and allow future playback

Webinars ToolsWebEx – first and standard in industryTelSpanAdobe Connect ProCitrix GoToMeetingConferenceManMicrosoft LiveMeeting

Webinar Pricing ModelsMonthly Fees: $50 – 500 monthly depending on functionality, number of users, etc.Set-up Fees: $0 - $3,000Per User: $0 - $200

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Microsite

microsite is an Individual web page or cluster of pages which are meant to function as an auxiliary supplement to a primary website.

• own URL. • Specialized group of information either

editorial or commercial. • Main distinction: microsite has purpose

and specific cohesiveness • May be used for purely commercial

purposes to create in-depth information. • Can be created specifically to carry

such contextual advertising or created in order to specifically carry topic-specific keyword-rich content.

What is a Microsite?also known as a minisite or weblet, is an Internet web design term referring to an individual web page or cluster of pages which are meant to function as an supplement to a primary website. The microsite's main landing page most likely has its own URL.

Typically used to add a specialized group of information either editorial or commercial. Such sites may be linked in to a main site or used for a temporary purpose. The main distinction of a microsite is its purpose and specific cohesiveness as compared to the microsite's broader overall parent website.Microsites used for editorial purposes may be a page or group of pages that, for example, might contain information about a holiday, an event or similar item which gives more detailed information than a site's general content area may provide. A community organization may have its main site with all of the organization's basic information, but create a separate, temporary microsite to inform about a particular activity, event or similar.Often, microsites will be used for editorial purposes by a commercial business to add editorial value. For example, a retailer of party goods may create a microsite with editorial content about the history of Halloween or some other holiday or event. The commercial purpose of such editorial microsites, (beyond driving product sales), may include adding value to the site's visitors for branding purposes as well as providing editorial content and keywords allowing for greater chances of search engineinclusion.Microsites may be used for purely commercial purposes to create in-depth information about a particular product or service or as editorial support towards a specific product, such as describing a new technology. A car manufacturer, for example, may present a new hybrid vehicle and support the sales presentation with a microsite specific to explaining hybrid technology.With the prevalence of keyword contextual advertising, (more commonly referred to as Pay per clickor PPC), microsites may be created specifically to carry such contextual advertising. Or along a similar tactic, they're created in order to specifically carry topic-specific keyword-rich content with the goal of having search engines rank them highly when search engine users seek such content topics.

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Advergaming

advergaming is the practice of using video games to advertise a product, organization or viewpoint.

• CandyStand• MillsBerry.com• WebKinz

Application to tradeshows and conferences• Scavenger hunt on exhibitor floor?

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Google Ads

AdSense (GoogleAds) is an ad serving program run by Google. Low cost advertising model that allows purchase of click responses. Because user

demonstrates interest, qualified respondent are filtered through thousands of internet searches.

No click?• Associating Organization Brand with search. • ATI accountant located by Google ads• Realtor wife finds new customers• Association community advertisement?• Meeting professional does a search on industry certifications – TSAE Google ad?

• University of Texas planner seeking an association to join.

When to buy?Try it out – set aside some small test dollars

and experiment with different ads, markets. Engage a consultant.

AdSense (GoogleAds) is an ad serving program run by Google. Website owners can enroll in this program to enable text, image and, more recently, video advertisements on their sites.

Low cost advertising model that allows purchase of click responses. Because user demonstrates interest, qualified respondent are filtered through thousands of internet searches.

No click? Associating Your Brand/Association with their search. ATI Accountant located by Google ads

Realtor wife finds new customers

Association community advertisement?Meeting professional does a search on industry certifications – TSAE Google ad?University of Texas planner seeking an association to join.

When to buy? Try it out – set aside some small test dollars and experiment with different ads, markets. Engage a consultant.

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Content Management System

A content management system (CMS) is a software system used for content management.

• Deployed primarily for interactive use • Wikipedia• Includes computer files, image media, audio files, electronic documents and web

content. • Make files available inter-office, as well as over the web.

A Content Management System (CMS) is a software system used for content management. Content management systems are deployed primarily for interactive use by a potentially large number of contributors. For example, the software for the website Wikipedia is based on a wiki, which is a particular type of content management system.

The content managed includes computer files, image media, audio files, electronic documents and web content. The idea behind a CMS is to make these files available inter-office, as well as over the web. A Content Management System would most often be used as an archive as well. Many companies use a CMS to store files in a non-proprietary form. Companies use a CMS to share files with ease, as most systems use server-based software, even further broadening file availability. Many Content Management Systems include a feature for Web Content, and some have a feature for a "workflow process."

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Content Management System

A CMS example

Presentation Download

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Dynamic Content Example

Applying web 2.0 to the registration process

Presentation Download

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Driving evolution

Meeting planners must be tech savvy! • Not experts – just savvy.

Applications drive interaction. Great user experiences. Technology infrastructure requirements

• Nimble• Content Neutral• Robust Content Databases • Go Mobile Fast

Build content syndication and micro-site content strategies

Association leadership for community relationships must be tech savvy! Media partnerships and links are nice but applications drive interaction. Need someone who can identify great user experiences and then leverage them on behalf of your association community. Technology infrastructure requirements

Nimble – the ability to integrate third party applications quicklyContent Neutral – support multiple data formats and media formatsRobust Content Databases – Be able to link your content to the proper topics and industry termsGo Mobile Fast – We have an entire generation who thinks email is a waste of time, build strategies for using the cell number as your primary marketing tool

Build content syndication and micro-site content strategiesThe web is starved for great content, design and deliver information optimized for syndication and multi-use.

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Links

• Tradeshow Week www.tradeshowweek.com

• ExpoWebHot Contractor Technologies

• MeetingTechOnlinewww.meetingtechonline.com

• IAEE eMERGE Conferencewww.emergeblog.com

• IntroNetworkswww.intronetworks.com

• ASP Inc.www.aspevents.com

• btqnetwww.btqnet.com

• FGSquaredwww.fg2.com

Stephen Nold12741 Research Blvd.Suite 402BAustin, Texas 78759512.310.0628stephen@advontech.com

Yahoo im: snoldt05skype: Stephen Nold

Blogs: eMERGEBlog

Tradeshow Week Event Tech Blog