Planning a Teched-Out Twestival by @bethebutterfly

Twestival is not only an opportunity for the Social Media community to raise money for a nonprofit; it is an opportunity to organize a cutting edge event using technology that will create a memorable experience for the attendees.

A lot of planning goes into creating an event like NYC Twestival this year. Two exciting startups, Hashable and Watchitoo are working with us to use their platforms to make this event not to be missed.

Some basic things when considering a venue for Twestival are:

  • Good cell service and/or wifi. A venue underground or in a dead zone where smart phones don’t work makes it difficult for people to be communicating real-time at the event. This is easily overlooked but key.
  • Screens. A big screen and a projector, televisions, or a place to put a big screen and projector. Having a large screen with a projected Tweetwall of some sort is really a must at any Social Media event.

    At Twestival Local NYC 2011, Hashable will be running our stream. This is an evolution to Twestival, which has traditionally been about Twitter.

    Hashable is an app that allows users to track connections, send virtual business cards, receive pings when their friends are connecting, and so much more! Hashable rocked #SXSW and we are thrilled to have them on board as our headline sponsor.

    Having a Hashable stream will allow people to use Twitter or Hashable to connect on any hashtag – including #JustMet #SigningUp (to be a Mentor with @iMentorTweets), #drinking, #Twestival, etc. The result will be a more robust stream for people to view what is happening at the event. We are excited to see how it changes the dynamic of people meeting and connecting.
     
  • Broadband. In order to live stream our event, we had certain broadband Internet requirements. We actually switched venues at the last minute to be able to accommodate this and the venue had Time Warner come in to run special cables for our set-up.

    We are very lucky to have Watchitoo as our Live Stream show host this year. They will be filming the event, interviewing guests, sponsors, the CEO of iMentor and Mentors that currently participate in the iMentor program. This amazing platform allows them to create a live show on the internet that anyone can tune into. One of Watchitoo’s unique capabilities is to be able to pull content from anywhere on the web, files or photos, to be able to incorporate into the show real-time.

Can’t be at Twestival NYC? Be sure to look out for the link for our Watchitoo show!

All these special features will make it a memorable experience for attendees, allow folks not at the event to tune-in, and will give iMentor and our sponsors maximum exposure.

We can’t wait! Hope to see you there!