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Tips on Getting Most Out of any Conference in India + How to Plan, Attend Social Media Week Bangalore

Social Media Week Mumbai & Web Marketing Academy

Courtesy: Social Media Week Mumbai

Image Courtesy: Social Media Week Mumbai. The Indian Networker   Sampath K Iyengar

I have attended, spoke more than 500 + events in my Digital marketing career,  I learned a lot from attending, meeting new people in those events. Here are some of the tips for the conference participants in India.

For those who are confused about the sessions, I have my take on it. There are 80 Digital/Social Media Events happening in 5 days in 5 different venues:http://socialmediaweek.org/bangalore/bangalore-official-venues/

Venues viz. -The Leela Palace, City Bar, Hard Rock Café, Fava and Barleys

How to Get More out of any Event/Seminar/Conferences:

1. Read the blog post 5 Reasons to attend Social Media Week Here:  http://goo.gl/ohlnRi

2. The Goal of attending the event. Have specific goals like meeting new people, potential business, partners, learn

3. Want to get hired ? Conferences are one of the best place to get hired, but you have to open up and speak, ask interesting questions, network with others

4. Want to hire people ? Conferences are great way to find talents, those who are attending the events are interested and have a passion, so keep your eyes open to identify your next potential candidate

5. Make it a point to meet atleast 10 new people in the event

6. Be respectful of the sessions. Silence your cell phone and keep your voice low when talking to the person next to you. Keep those Gossip for after hours or during breaks. If you are not interested in the session, walk away there are plenty of other sessions to attend.

7. Convince your Boss to send you and your team to SMW Bangalore, show them the line of speakers, participants and pictures from past event. Send an email to you boss, what you are going to bring back from the event and how it is going to help the company and the team. Pictures of SMW Mumbai: http://goo.gl/erCd9D

8. Know which sessions are you attending.

9. Read the Speakers BioFollow the #hast tag: #SMWBangalore

10. Attend the parties. It is happening in 5 different venues, so plan your session ahead of time

11. Bangalore traffic. Plan to reach 30 minutes ahead with Bangalore traffic it might take more time than you think. Go for a Cab or Auto whenever possible, you can avoid the stress of parking, traffic. Have cash for rick, cab.

12. If you plan to travel, best time to avoid traffic is before 9 am, during the afternoon and before 6 PM

13. Metro will save a lot of time, you can avoid traffic by traveling in Metro. Hard Rock Café is walkable distance from MG Road Metro station.

14. Come with your friends, collegaues so that you can attend multiple session and get take aways from each other

15. For God’s sake sit with someone new, we are so used to sitting comfortably next to our friends. Get out of the comfort zone and talk, network with like minded people. The person next to you is just like you, make the first move, take the inititative to introduce yourself.

16. Have your elevator pitch ready

17. Bring a lot of business cards

18. Connect with the speakers, add them to your F/B, Twitter and interact with them

19. Bring your charger for Laptop, Mobile

20. If you want to get most out of it get your own power extensions and it will help others who are out of battery.

21. The weather in Bangalore is getting warmer, dress comfortably and there is no formal dress, so wear your comfort clothes, shoes 🙂

22. Get enough sleep you will attend a lot of parties

23. Those who are coming out of Bangalore, know how far is the venue from where you are staying. Get a local buddy to help you out.

24. All the restaurants, shops close by 11 PM, plan accordingly

25. One of the biggest challenge is to find an iron in your hotel room, ask the reception when you check-in the laundry time and services. I always carry a travel iron

26. Guys, carry your shaving/travel kit, shoe polish, cologne, gum

27. Carry your medicines, travel kit , lotions

28. Get your old school pen and paper, yes you have your phone, laptop, a notepan will come handy to take notes

29. Keep your questions ready to ask the speakers, participants, Ask a lot of questions but respect the audience time. Keep your questions and answers to limited time, you can always ask questions offline

30. If you are familiar and know one subject, go for a different sessions

31. Get your own Internet Data Card.Internet in some of the venue might be a challenge

32. Keep your camera or your phone camera. Its easy to take a picture of the slides for reference

33. Tweet/Share before, during and after the event

34. Give links, credit while sharing

35. Bring your thumb drive/pen drive

36. Find a spot that you are comfortable with, come early to reserve your spot in the front row, watch for the speakers, it might get loud sometimes

37. Finally have some fun !!!

BONUS Tips:

 

Social Media Bangalore WMA India

Courtesy: Social Media Week Mumbai

We wish we can attend all the events, but these events happens simultaneously in all 5 venues, picking the event and attending the ones that are important to you might be challenging and needs a little bit of planning. This blog post will help organize and identify the sessions that matters to you and you would ‘definitely’ not give it a miss. Also a tip: please note the timings since there are simultaneous events and keep a note handy, while you are registering so that you know which one you want to attend and avoid confusion.

Disclaimer: All these suggestions are by me and of my best knowledge and purely based on the session’s description. To remind you again, WMA is the official Digital Knowledge Partner & Host for three events. Please do your own research to attend the sessions.

http://socialmediaweek.org/bangalore/free-events/  – List of all 80 events

Day 1 & Day 5: Paid Events:

SMW Bangalore have lined up some pretty amazing speakers like Varun Agarwal, Kiruba Shankar, Mahesh Murthy and good line of speakers. If you can afford for both the days,  you will get a lot more. Of course you will learn a lot from the free events: http://socialmediaweek.org/bangalore/paid-events/

Day 2:  Tuesday, 18th

  1. If you are looking for mobile website, design, user experience this is a good start Design in Digital Age : Hosted by: Hyphen Strategic Design at Fava
  2. A Panel discussion, learn what is working and what is not for digital, social, a heated discussion with experts like Ashwin, Khusbhu. An informal discussion and ask your questions too. Challenges, Solutions & latest Social Digital Marketing Trends Hosted by: Web Marketing Academy at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  3. Social Media Campaign, planning and management: Social Media Campaigns Hosted by: Spry Social Media atCity Bar
  4. Branding Unconference style:Changing Paradigms Hosted by: KRDS atHard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  5. Corporate Social media  Communication and PR: Preparing to Take the Social Plunge Hosted by: Genesis Burson-Marsteller atHard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  6. Start ups -what is important: Story Telling, Which Channels to choose. Cost effective ways to market your start up: Digital Marketing/Social Media for Start Ups Hosted by: Web Marketing Academy atCity Bar
  7. Cyber Security, Social media privacy and more: Awareness of Security in Social Media. Hosted by: Lucideus tech at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  8. Facebook App, API’s, Plug-in. Looks interesting: Social Applications for Startups Hosted by: Xanadu at City Bar
  9. Body Language, Expression can be useful for Communicators, presenters:Body Language- Its not what you say, its how you say it! Hosted by: Tortilla Entertainment atFava

10. Content for Social Media:Hey! Are You Listening? Hosted by: RSQUARE Consulting atHard Rock Cafe Bengaluru

11. Content Marketing:Future of Online Engagement, Content Marketing and lead generation Hosted by: Dhempe’s Group atCity Bar

12. Panel Discussion on Sex, Sexting & Social Media Hosted by: Apurv Nagpal atFava

13. Social Media Engagement:Sustaining Engagement & Conversations on Social Hosted by: Genesis Burson-Marsteller atCity Bar

14. Social Media Branding: Building brand through Social Media Hosted by: UB atHard Rock Cafe Bengaluru

15. Video & Content Advertisement (Advertorial) Video killed The TV Star Hosted by: Qyuki.com atHard Rock Cafe Bengaluru

16. Power of Social Media for projects, AwarenessDream Live – Talk by Bharadwaj Dayala Hosted by: Motorcycle Travellers Meet atFava

17. Instant Messenger, often we don’t dicuss about IM, but a powerful medium:Dream Live – Talk by Bharadwaj Dayala Hosted by: Motorcycle Travellers Meet atFava

  1. 18.  Stories from Travelers: Mountain Stories Hosted by: Iquest Outdoor leadership and Adventure Consultants atFava

 

Day 3:  Wednesday, 19th

  1. Social Media do and don’t’s : Social Media Dos & Don’ts for Startups Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  2. Brand Management/Branding:Brand Management in Social Media World – Level 1 Hosted by: SPRY Socia at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  3. Facebook Contests:Timeline Contest and Instant Gratification Hosted by: KRDS at City Bar
  4. B2B Content Marketing:Content Strategy for B2B enterprises – How companies are redefining social Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  5. Social for young Leaders: The Essence of Youth Leadership Hosted by: AIESEC at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  6. Digital Brand Building:Content Marketing Moving Beyond Facebook Updates Hosted by: PageTraffic at City Bar
  7. Social Media for Education: Impact of Social Media on Education – Case studies from the U.S and India Hosted by: Money-Wizards at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  8. Community Building through Social Media: Building communities around content & stories Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  9. Social for Mobile: Integration of mobile environment with social-media marketing Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  10. Mobile Application:Your Wish is My App Hosted by: Nokia at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  11. Twitter Marketing: Twitter: A Jewel in the Social Media Crown Hosted by: Digital Vidya at City Bar
  12. The New Buzz Word, I am personally Looking forward for this session: Internet of Things becoming Social Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  13. Another Interesting session on Social Gaming: 10 insights into product development from social-gaming Hosted by: Construkt Festival at Fava
  14. Advanced Google Adwords, Retargeting & Display Ads: Workshop on Google Adwords, Remarketing, Display Ads Hosted by: Web Marketing Academy at City Bar
  15. Social Media in Higher Education Hosted by: Welingkar Institute of Management at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  16. Blogging Brand building through Blogging: How to organize a Blogathon for your Brand? Hosted by: Dhempe’s Group at Barleyz
  17. Startup Social Diaries Hosted by: LetsVenture.com and Sociall.in at Fava
  18. Video, Social , Travel and Biking: Online Video Talk and Interaction with Jay Kannaiyan, Expedition Leader at Jammin Global Adventure Travel Hosted by: Motorcycle Travellers Meet at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  19. Social Media AnalyticsSocial Media Command Center Hosted by: Spry Social Media at Barleyz
  20. Social Media & CRM: Challenges and Opportunities: Customer Management in a Social Media World Hosted by: Germin8 at City Bar
  21. Applications:Appology – The App Ecosystem Hosted by: Nokia at Fava

Day 4:  Thursday, 20th

  1. Digital and Social for Social GoodPower of Digital Marketing using Social Media for Social Good Hosted by: FoxyMoron at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  2. Content & Blogging:Speed Blogging Contest Hosted by: Yellow Seed Content Solutions at City Bar
  3. Food Blogging Hosted by: Gourmet India at Fava
  4. Has Social killed Restaurants? Hosted by: Gourmet India at Fava
  5. PR for Start-Ups Hosted by: Genesis Burson-Marsteller at Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru
  6. Social Media for Customer AcquisitionHosted by: Digital Vidya at City Bar
  7. Facebook Ads:Dynamic Facebook Ads – Possible? Hosted by: KRDS at City Bar
  8. Socializing through Social Media Hosted by: RSQUARE Consulting at Fava
  9. Women Safety: Role of Social MediaHosted by: RSQUARE Consulting at Fava
  10. Branding :Brand Management in Social Media World – Level 2 Hosted by: SPRY Social at City Bar
  11. Challenges – Women Motorcycle Travellers Hosted by: Motorcycle Travellers Meet at Fava
  12. TwitterHow to execute a trending campaign on Twitter? Hosted by: Dhempe’s Group at Barleyz
  13. Analytics:Big Data for Social Good Hosted by: RSQUARE Consulting at City Bar
  14. PhotographyBetter Light Makes Better Pictures Hosted by: Hyphen Strategic Design at Barleyz
  15. Social Media for SEOHosted by: PageTraffic at City Bar

Branding

Social Media Campaigns

Hey! Are You Listening?

Building brand through Social Media

PR Communications

Preparing to Take the Social Plunge 

Start up’s

Digital Marketing/Social Media for Start Ups

Social Applications for Startups

B2B:

SOCIAL MEDIA WITH A B2B TWIST @ Infosys
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About Web Marketing Academy: WMA India Provides Certificate Courses in

1. Corporate Digital Marketing

2. Digital Marketing for Business & Individuals

3. Google Adwords Certificate Programs

4. Google Analytics

More About Web Marketing Academy here: https://www.webmarketingacademy.in/about-web-marketing-academy-india/