|
I don't know about this conference, since I wasn't there. But speaking as someone who has helped organize conferences attended by a few thousand people, there are two points I would like to respectfully make: 1. Sometimes, the conference is about PEOPLE and the content of the sessions. I confess that at more than a few of the events I helped organize, it was no accident that the WiFi was wonky or non-existent. Yes, some people bitched and moaned, but the overall effect was that that attendees and speakers felt engaged with each other because everyone put their laptops away and actually paid attention to one another. In conversations and after-event surveys, the #1 bit of positive feedback was, "Hurray for having an event where the WiFi was turned off." Yes, we all know that a lot of people attend events and use Social Media to bring in a larger audience from those who could not attend (I do), but all too often, I see people sitting there with laptops open to work e-mail. They're not there to add anything to the discussion, and really, what's the point of even being there? Of course, a good conference organizer has already worked to insure that the speakers are well-prepared, moderators are trained and will actually do their job, and the content is valuable (not a sales pitch). It pains me to no end when I attend an event that waste my time by not having those three items checked off. 2. "Now you booked a venue and they say that they can handle the WIFI for you. Chances are, they are lying." Respectfully, there's no conspiracy here. If your event is taking place at a hotel or conference center, then more times than not, WiFi is an expensive add-on (all things are expensive add-ons in the hospitality industry, but that's a subject for a much longer post). You have no control over it, and in fact, if you try to rig up a few routers and roll your own hotspot, you're often in violation of your facility's contract which means fines or blacklisting from future events. Just my two cents from my own experience. Yours may differ, so we may disagree, but no flames, please. |