Talk is Cheap: successful all around

Gary Schlee and his team from the Corporate Communications and Public Relations program at Centennial College in Toronto did an amazing job running the Talk is Cheap social media unconference on November 15. Almost 200 people came out to hear people talking about social media in the real world. I enjoyed the sessions by Tara Wood of the World Wildlife Fund Canada about using social media to augment a traditional awareness campaign; Rick Spence of Canadian Entrepreneur on the power of blogs vs. print; and Jen Maier of Urban Moms  and Michelle Kostya of Cuisinart, who spoke of building community as a way to ultimately build sales.

I regret missing Joe Thornley discussing best practices in social media relations, Wayne McPhail talking about video and Dave Fleet sharing his insights into social media and crisis communications (with a case study about the California wildfires).

Thanks to the Toronto chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) for stepping up to sponsor this first-time event.

Here are my impressions as an attendee and speaker:

• The students were so very helpful. From the moment you walked through the doors, you could always find a fresh young face to direct you to the right place; those of us who are directionally challenged are grateful for this.
• Nice food, especially for a free conference. Much appreciated.
• Kudos for keeping everyone on time. Twenty minutes seemed to work well for the presentations.
• Allowing 15 or so minutes between sessions was a smart idea to encourage networking; there seemed to be plenty of this going on.
• Mixing seasoned pros and young students keeps both groups on their toes; this is a good thing.
• No one was selling anything. Hallelujah.
• The evening went by way too fast for me and left me wanting more. So what’s the deal for next year, Gary?

Congratulations to Gary and the students.

Comments

[Leesa Barnes]

It was fun and well organized. The communicators in the room were an eager bunch. It was quite refreshing.

And I finally had a chance to hear you speak.

[Kristen]

Donna - FYI - the brief video interview you were kind enough to grant me after the Talk Is Cheap event about your presentation is now uploaded on MyRaganTV through the MyRagan.com website.

I think it turned out well. I hope you'll be pleased with it.

Kristen Ridley