eric rochow : social media handyman

Chris Brogan posted some tips/thoughts about how to improve in-person social events and I wanted to elaborate a bit on my comments on his blog.

We all go to these events hoping to connect with that person that is key to our plan, right? Well, at least I do. But its a bit of a mystery who of all the people in this room I really need to talk to. Which person is the key to my future?

…in a room with 150 people, filled to the gills, there’s a lot of silly bouncing off each other that happens while trying to find the right kinds of people to met. Chris Brogan

Bill Sobel, host of NYMIEG, does this neat thing before his events. He posts a list of attendees on his Yahoo Group listing their company and/or website. I scan this list, sometimes even loading it into my Treo, and when I get to the breakfast, I know who I want to talk to. Sometimes they even want to talk back to me.

Nametags are also key. Bill has a laptop and label printer at the entrance, and your nametag is printed right there. Graced with a very short attention span, your name just below your shoulder is real helpful.

At BKLN 2.0 I ask everyone to make their own nametag, we have a stack of blank labeles and a pen, and it works. Simple.

On the BKLN 2.0 meetup page, you can scan who has RSVP’d for the event, and most post some sort of information about themselves along with a picture. It works.