innovation - Social Media Week New York (SMWNYC) - MAY 4

The Difference Between Facebook and Google for Data Marketers

Posted on June 1, 2016 by SMW Staff

In an attempt to figure out how we can do more to change the world, Social Media Week brought five leading thinkers in the data and analytics field to discuss some of the big questions surrounding data’s impact on social change.

Brian Reich, Director, Hive/USA for UNHCR, led a session on why we aren’t doing more with data analytics and science to discover solutions for social good, and what some of the barriers are to doing this.

Panelists included Christine Campigotto (Social Sector Lead, Civis Analytics), Matthew Daniels (Creator, Polygraph), Ari Wallach (CEO, FastCompany Futures), and Mike Williams (Research engineer, Fast Forward Labs).

“Can we solve the world’s more complex problems with big data?” Ari Wallach sums the answer up saying, “desire is there, but the ability to access it across platforms is not there.” Another valid point was voiced from Mike Williams, adding that part of the problem therein lies in getting the human capital (the data scientists) to the table, since the money is elsewhere.

This poses a strong argument that was echoed by others throughout the talk, this idea of getting the best people, those at the top of their fields, to do the right thing with their skills. While this may be a valid reason as to what’s stoping us from solving the big problems, it illuminates an important idea about the altruistic nature of each of us.

Christine Camigotto spoke to this bigger philosophical component of the question, “The unit of measure is a human, and we know that humans don’t always behave rationally.”

If we all assume that someone else will do it, what happens when no one does? There’s no allusion of the truth here, most of us are out for ourselves, but if none of us are mining the solutions to social issues and creating social good for us collectively, who will? How can we change the world if we don’t help?

Data allows us to capture valuable insights, mine and measure information that can aid in changing the entire landscape of a business or cause. The power of data is not lost on any of us who work with social media or with data science.

Read the full session recap at SMW News

Secure your spot in February of 2017 to join 2,000+ leaders in media, entertainment, and technology for a week of inspiring and educational events learning.

Putting Your Brand at the Center of Storytelling with Sam Olstein, GE’s Global Innovation Lead

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Tyler Becker

Entertainment, experience, and authentic engagement can transform brands in the eyes of fans. Today’s Millennials are hungry for stories that are relevant to them, and they don’t want to be sold to. Instead, they want to be active participants with a direct connection to their favorite brands.

At General Electric, there’s an ongoing goal to foster global innovation on new digital channels, and introduce the GE brand and story to new audiences. Sam Olstein (Global Innovation Lead, General Electric) will participate at SMW New York to discuss insights on community management, the power of social influence, and how mobile technology facilitates “advertainment” in today’s digital ecosystem.

Attendees that register for SMW New York and attend this session will learn how to use content and stories to reach and engage a Millennial audience, the differences between a welcomed entertainer versus an unwelcomed sales person, and the keys to find and work with the right influencers for your brand.

This session, “Your Brand, Their Story: Exploring The Shift In Content Creation And Consumption” takes place Friday, February 26 at 9:00AM at The SVA Theatre (EDU Stage).

Image Credit: USC Annenberg

Yunha Kim, Founder of Locket: Why I Quit My Job To Launch A Startup

Posted on October 9, 2014October 8, 2014 by Stephanie Carino

When you initially meet Yunha Kim, you wouldn’t automatically assume that she is the mastermind behind Locket, the super successful lock screen app for Android, but that’s before she begins to speak with an intelligence and passion that you would expect from the head of a company. I’m not the only/first/last person to take notice. When companies like TechCrunch and VentureBeat are writing about your company and when Tyra Banks expresses interest in investing in your idea, people are bound to jump on the band wagon. During my visit to San Francisco, I got a chance to speak to Yunha about her journey from Investment Banker to Founder and CEO of her very own startup. Find out below what exactly it takes to get an idea from concept to realization.

1) You started your career as an Investment Banker and with your switch from iPhone to Android user, you quickly found the calling for this company. Can you tell me a little bit about your first couple of months of the company?

YK: I can barely remember the first couple months of the company. It was just so crazy.

In the first month, I was running around pitching our idea for investment. After getting funded by Great Oaks VC, I was then running around pitching to advertisers and I did that for a half year. Then I started pitching again for another round of funding.

When we had no money or product, I was getting somewhere around four hours of sleep every night. I was living with five other guys out of a two-bedroom apartment with three dogs and a hamster where we worked and lived. We were also getting by with hot dogs and ramen noodles.

Sometimes, I wondered, ‘What did I sign up for?’ but I think I was really happy, getting things off the ground, creating something out of nothing.

2) This idea actually came from our culture’s tendency of constantly checking our phones. Can you give us a little more insight into that?

YK: While pulling long but boring hours in investment banking (prior to Locket), I wasn’t able to do anything fun on my monitor, so I was checking my phone a few hundred times per day. That’s when I realized I keep on checking my phone every single day, bringing it to the restroom, everywhere I go. Every single one of those moments I was unlocking my lock screen which was a picture of a daisy which came as a default lock screen with my Galaxy S3.

One day, I was looking at it wondering why anyone wasn’t doing anything with the most valuable real estate in advertising. If people check their phone 150 times per day, with 71 million Android users, that’s 10.7 billion glances on the lock screen every day in the US that we have not been able to monetize. It occurred to me that this will be the next big thing in mobile advertising.

3) What do you feel are some of the benefits of Locket?

YK: Locket brings content you care about to your lock screen based on your interest, swiping habits and time of the day. It’s a quick passive way to learn about what’s going on around you, in your world. I am too busy to check out all my apps on my phone, but with Locket, I am consistently updated. I was able to learn about a fire in Soma which is only a few blocks away from our office through my lock screen, then I looked outside my window and I saw that fire.

4) How do you find a life work balance with being in such a busy and quickly expanding company? What does your typical day look like?

YK: When you are in a startup, it’s really difficult to balance your work and life (if you even have a life). It’s like when you have a baby (your startup), and the baby cries, you can’t really say you are off your work hours and let it cry. So, it will feel like you are on call 24/7.

5) I know focus on the company has changed, can you tell me a little about that?

YK: Recently, we have stopped our paid-per-swipe-ad service. We are now focusing on contextual content on your lock screen. Based on an user’s interest, swiping habits and time of the day, we serve content that people care about in a visually delightful way on the Android lock screen, and as the apps is consistently used, the content becomes more relevant

For more on Yunha and Locket, please visit: http://getlocket.com/.

Stephanie Carino has spent over the past 10 years working in the city in the Fashion, Food and Event industries. She currently works in the PR Department at leading Technology and Business Book Publisher, Apress. On the side, she also writes event coverage and reviews for, Socially Superlative, a NYC-based event website, covering predominantly food, travel and entertainment stories. Connect with Stephanie on Twitter.

5 Questions with Aman Bhandari: Health & Data Strategy

Posted on February 20, 2014July 11, 2014 by Nicky Yates

This is a guest post by Julia Wu of Luminary Labs

Aman Bhandari is U.S. Director, Health IT & Data Strategy at Merck, and previously served as a Senior Advisor to the White House. He moderated the Health: Big Innovation Playbook panel as part of the Future of Now: Health Innovation Track, Presented by Merck. The session was packed and full of great questions, which you can see:

Now, meet Aman:

Aman, what are you most looking forward to at Social Media Week?
I’m always curious to learn more about how other industries are approaching digital and how these trends apply in a healthcare context. There are ton of great talks from across the spectrum, but I’m especially looking forward to hearing Anil Dash interview Steve Case, given the very different perspectives they bring.
Can you tell us more about social media’s role in healthcare innovation?
While we’re just beginning to fully examine how social media can be used in health, we’ve long known that some of the most critical aspects of health and wellness lie in information exchange, connectedness and community. These themes are now being explored in entirely new ways through online platforms.
This is an exciting time, and I see a tremendous opportunity for those who can figure out how to use social media to have an impact on health.
How does data fit into the picture?
Right now, data is hot in healthcare both because of health reform and the potential for technological disruption. The healthcare industry is being incentivized by Obamacare to leverage data, and players across the industry understand that we need to measure what works because the old system is not sustainable. This massive policy shift along with increased data liquidity is creating new complexities, and as a society, we need to keep privacy considerations foremost in our minds as we explore this enormous opportunity.
You’ve been recently involved in some interesting partnerships across health IT/digital health and data/analytics, what’s the biggest learning or insight you can share from these collaborations?
Because of the huge changes we are witnessing in the health, wellness and technology spaces, collaboration across the industry is no longer an option, it is a necessity. Yet, rather than finding opportunity in this demanding environment, many large organizations are still using a 20th century approach to business and partnerships.

Collaborating outside of your organization has to be done with great care. It is hard work to be aligned, but when done right, partnerships can yield benefits greater than the sum of the parts and keep larger organizations at the forefront of innovation.
Do you have any advice for others looking to transform the healthcare space?
Learn from the industry insiders, but also pay attention to the periphery, as the best ideas often come from those working outside the bounds of industry orthodoxies.

One of my favorite quotes is from Steve Jobs who said: “I’ve always paid close attention to the whispers around me.” He understood the importance of listening to fresh perspectives when coming up with breakthrough products.

We are thrilled to have Aman and Merck join us at SMW NYC! Healthcare is hot — and it’s only getting hotter.

Leica Cameras: Equipping Content Creators for 100 Years

Posted on February 14, 2014July 11, 2014 by Sara Adam

Leica is an amazing example of a company that has been around for generations, yet still manages to keep innovating and releasing cutting-edge products. This year they are celebrating their 100th anniversary of engineering precision photographic tools that help people realize their vision.

Just like this one by Andrew Xu, taken with a Leica X2.

A Leica is the kind of camera that makes photographers drool. Committed to the basics, Leica cameras use manual focus, making the resulting images that much crisper.

As a company, Leica understands that the camera is not the one that takes the amazing photographs; it is the person behind the camera.

As a company whose core competency is creating tools for content makers, they have done a great job of engaging their community to share what they create with their Leica cameras.

2014 marks a Century of Innovation for Leica Cameras. To celebrate, Leica will be providing Professional portraits to all Social Media Week attendees at Campus, utilizing their unequaled Medium Format S-system Camera. This means you’ll get to take home something to be proud of.

Register now for Social Media Week, February 17- 21, to get in on the amazing sessions and panels in our lineup this year. Bonus points for anyone photographing the events and parties of SMW with a Leica camera! See you there!

Featured image courtesy of s58y.

3 Reasons Design Will Shape the Future

Posted on February 7, 2014July 11, 2014 by Sara Adam

Design begins with a problem, a pain, or an inconvenience. This makes designers problem solvers at their core. They are directly involved with the way material is represented visually as well as with the interfaces that connect us to our devices. Design is a critical part of shaping the future and here’s why:

Our World is Increasingly Visual
In our always on, always connected world, people are stopping less to read large chunks of information. We want information that we can digest on the go- like lists or infographics. As the demand for visual information increases, designers will play a larger role to organize that information in ways that make sense and are aesthetically pleasing. Join JWT as they dive deeper into this shift in their seminar Reading Is No Longer Fundamental: The Shift to Visual Vocabulary.
Good Design Makes Technology More Human
We have all interacted with a piece of technology (e.g. every VCR ever made) that makes us feel unintelligent because it seems impossible to figure out. Designers are simplifying devices and making so that they can enhance our lives instead of detracting from them. To learn more ways that designers are shaping the future and making technology more human, check out this seminar, hosted by The New Museum, Why The Future of Innovation Belongs To Artists & Designers.
Design-Thinking Unlocks Creativity
According to Tim Brown, president and CEO of IDEO defines design-thinking as “a human-centered approach to innovation that draws from the designer’s toolkit to integrate the needs of people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements for business success.” Sign us up! Design-thinking is part of how businesses are reshaping their processes and creating new and better technologies. Experience it for yourself at Design Thinking LIVE, hosted by City and Country.

Whether you are a designer or not, there is something for you at SMW NYC, February 17-21! Check out our schedule for events on other topics like health and wellness, entrepreneurship and marketing. Register now and we’ll see you soon!

Featured image courtesy SocialisBetter

What’s In Store for Health? Merck Joins SMW NYC

Posted on January 24, 2014July 11, 2014 by Nicky Yates

Technology and social innovations are revolutionizing the healthcare industry. While start-ups and consumer facing brands have been able to more quickly adapt to these changes in business, healthcare is just beginning to scrape the surface of bottom-up innovation. As these new ideas take hold, what’s exciting is the massive potential that exists to drive social change — not just in our everyday life but also in longevity, happiness, and with medical accuracy and efficiency.

Value creation in the healthcare arena is now inextricably connected to digital, data, and more recently, hardware technology. Through quantified-self innovations allowing users to take control of their own data, technology is now the fiber of the 21st century health care organization. It is this understanding of the challenges and potential that has prompted us to focus more deeply on this issue this SMW14. And we are honored to have Merck onboard as our City Supporting Sponsor as the creative force behind this.

Featuring a half day track at our new Campus this February, we will be diving deep into how healthcare is changing, innovating, and who is leading the charge in the industry.

Make Good Shit Happen at SMW NYC

Posted on January 7, 2014July 11, 2014 by Nicky Yates

In just six weeks, Social Media Week will kick off and we’re excited to share some of what’s happening.

Building Essential Products, with betaworks' CEO John Borthwick
To many of us, our work is our life. But what if we did it slightly differently this year? betaworks’ John Borthwick joins us at SMW NYC to talk about new approaches to product creation and the process, like how to allow ideas that might have once fell to the cutting room floor get picked up, tested and put into beta.

Why The Future of Innovation Belongs To Artists & Designers, with The New Museum
This year, many of us are being challenged to live more presently and actively. That’s where The New Museum can help. The collaboration between artists, designers, and technologists is increasing to help devise tools that are more human, social, and creative. The New Museum will explore these new partnerships and showcase how it’s making a more cohesive life experience for us all.

Making Good Shit Happen, with Nancy Lublin, CEO of DoSomething
Then, let’s use our power to create change. Join DoSomething’s Nancy Lublin as shares how she and a bunch of old people are getting youth actively involved by turning the standard activism model on its head, using creative marketing and collaborations.

Join betaworks, The New Museum, and DoSomething, along with hundreds of other amazing speakers and partners, February 18-21, and help us explore the future of our always on, always connected world.

And as a bonus, we’re extending our 20% Early Bird Discount until January 15th, giving you more time and more savings!

Get your pass to see the action and our discount here now.

Blow Shit Up: Cindy Gallop Taking SMW NYC By Storm

Posted on November 11, 2013July 11, 2014 by Nicky Yates

Cindy Gallop has been a long time friend to Social Media Week. An active member of our Advisory Board and a frequent speaker, we’re honored to have her on our team. She’s a woman of action. The founder of two powerful organizations, IfWeRanTheWorld and Make Love, Not Porn, Cindy stays busy. IfWeRanTheWorld helps create microactions to turn human and corporate good intentions into action.

IfWeRanTheWorld works with businesses to create specifically tailored and unique Action Programs that integrate social action and their business objectives. Her goal is merge business and social responsibility. Cindy’s vision is that this creates Action Branding, communication through demonstration. Cindy acts like a business innovator for these brands, selecting only brands that want to change the game. What we love is Cindy is straightforward and not afraid to shake things up. Her motto sums it up best: “I like to blow shit up. I am the Michael Bay of business.”

In addition to IfWeRanTheWorld, Cindy launched Make Love, Not Porn. Stemming from a realization that hardcore pornography is distorting the way a generation of young men think about sex, she launched a site to counteract it. Make Love, Not Porn expanded into a series of talks and even a TED Book.

Cindy is known as a staunch advocate for women, but as with all of her activities, she’s not your standard feminist. Not shying away from the word, she wants to see women be more self-confident, aggressive, and a general shift for more gender parity. Something we love here at SMW (check out our Gender 50/50 initiative).

“Because it is uncomfortable to work with women, because we are different from you. Women ask tough questions, they ask them in life and they ask them in business. Greatness comes out of discomfort. Hire women, champion women, promote women, spend time with women. It is not as comfortable as hanging out with the guys, but it’s going to be more productive.”

We think you’ll love her disruptive views. Challenge yourself and join us at SMW NYC this February.

Get your pass here.

5 Minutes With Huffington Post’s Roy Sekoff

Posted on February 14, 2013January 14, 2015 by Nicky Yates

Yesterday, we helped get things moving towards SMW NYC with our partners, HuffPost Live. Covering how safeguarding free expression and an Open Internet is still a critical issue, they hosted a dynamic exchange on the current issues facing both our country and the global community, with leading thinkers, including: Jillian York of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Andrew Rasiej of Personal Democracy Forum, and Christine Chen of Google and moderated by Ahmed Shihab-Eldin.

Not only was it engaging and get you thinking, but it also displays the professionalism and innovation that represents HuffPost. With their use of Google+ On Air HangOuts, HuffPost Live does live integration of social media better than most.

And we’re thrilled to be partnering with them this year! SMW NYC is honored to have President and co-creator of HuffPost Live, and founding editor of Huffington Post, Roy Sekoff, join us. Before his event, get to know him a bit more:

Roy, this year, our global theme is “Open & Connected: Principles for a Collaborative World.” How does The Huffington Post embody or support this idea?
HuffPost thrives precisely because our staff is utterly committed to all three of these attributes. Openness and transparency are core principles at HuffPost – both culturally and editorially. We are obsessively connected – which is good, because collaboration is the lifeblood of what we do. Rare is the email or GChat that isn’t rapidly – and creatively responded to.

The publishing industry is undergoing change overall; and the Huffington Post has been a leader in that. Where do you see the future of journalism and publishing heading?
HuffPost has been around for almost 8 years. In that time, we have seen the rapid rise of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and so many other game-changing products. We adapted and incorporated them all into what we do, but can’t say that we saw them coming. So, in a time like this, one rife with innovation, trying to look into a crystal ball and divine the future seems like a fool’s game.

The Huffington Post has continued to innovate, making waves in social video. How is the development of HuffPost Live leading the way and where do you see social video heading?
With HuffPost Live, we have placed our bet on people’s growing desire to engage with the news – on the shift from presentation to participation. They want to help shape the stories – and the issues – of our time. HuffPost Live was designed as a platform for engagement – one that puts our users front and center in what we do.

What has been the biggest success from HuffPost Live?
Because of our commitment to engagement, we are proudest of our engagement metrics, which confirm that we have created a unique and addictive social and community offering. Over 6,500 guests have joined us from all over the world via Skype and Google Hangouts. Over 750,000 comments have been left on the HuffPost Live platform (with many more left on HuffPost stories that have HuffPost Live videos embedded in them). And our users are spending over 15 minutes on the site per visit.

As more news and media outlets rely upon citizen journalism, how can the issue of accuracy and accountability be adapted? What recommendations would you have for smaller outlets just getting started?
Accuracy and accountability are vital. For us, that means doing everything we can to assure the accuracy of what we publish, and moving quickly and transparently to correct any mistakes that are made.

Advertorials have come under scrutiny lately, and we’re seeing many outlets experiment with different revenue models. What trends are you seeing for media and entertainment outlets maintaining a profit?
As the old models plateau, brands are clearly looking for fresh ways to reach consumers. And it’s important for publishers to try to lead the way in that innovation – but it’s critical not to blur the lines. Consumers value high-quality content, whether it comes from publishers or advertisers, but they should never be confused about the source. Our key touchstones are authenticity and transparency.

What are you most excited about for SMW NYC?
Thursday’s session on “The Shift from Presentation to Participation.” It will be a great discussion.

We couldn’t agree more. A big thanks to Roy for taking the time to talk with us. Make sure you check him out in-person this SMW NYC or join via livestream!

#SMW12 This Time Next Week: Friday Feb 17th

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Sara Haile-Mariam

Throughout this week, we’ll be giving you a heads up on everything that’s going on at our content hubs this time next week. Events are filling up fast so check out what’s going on this time next week and click on the corresponding event link to register!

Note that events are listed in chronological order based on the time of day they occur.

Business & Innovation: 8:30-9:30am: Keynote: Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of LinkedIn on The StartUp of You: A revolutionary new guide to thriving in today’s fractured world of work.

Global Society: 9-9:30am: The Guardian Interviews, hosted on the Nokia Global Stage at Big Fuel: Alec Ross

Art & Culture: 9-10am: Where is social media taking the travel industry in 2012?

Advertising & Marketing: 9-11am: What Real Time Marketing Really Takes

Social & Environmental Change: 9-11am: Keynote: Jeremy Heimans, CEO of Purpose, followed by Panel: Building A Transnational Human Rights Movement

Global Society: 10-11am: RAPP presents RAPPATHON – Hacking for Change: A New Way of Collaboration

Health & Wellness: 10-11am: Biomarkers, Technology, and Age-Reversal

Art & Culture: 10:30-11:30am: Untapped Drive: How innovation and entrepreneurship is revolutionizing daily life through social media & tech platforms.

Business & Innovation: 10:30am-12:30pm: Social Media, Sports, and Gaming

Health & Wellness: 11-12pm: How Socially-Enabled Feedback Loops Are Strengthening Your Wellness

Global Society: 12-12:30pm: Jon’s Fireside Chat: David Hirsch on Venture Funding

Art & Culture: 12:00-2pm: The New Role Models: Chefs, Restaurants, Bloggers & You — An Interview with Robyn O’Brien, Amanda Hesser & Bun Lai, followed by Who is Kale’s PR Agent & What Dictates a Food Trend? Panel Debate

Social & Environmental Change: 12-2pm: Keynote: Alec Ross, Office of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, followed by Panel: Team Obama Talks Digital Vision: Strategies and Tools for 2012 and Beyond

Advertising & Marketing: 12-2pm: The LinkedIn Difference: How Brands Are Building Deep Connections with Professionals

Global Society: 1-2pm: Future of Social Technology

Health & Wellness: 1-2pm: Keynote: Daniel Kraft, MD, Executive Director, FutureMed

Business & Innovation: 1-2:30pm: Social Media HAS Changed the World

Global Society: 2:30-3:30pm: Peer Pressure: Using the skills we learned in 6th grade for good

Health & Wellness: 2:30-4:30pm: Feast on Health

Business & Innovation: 3-4pm: Keynote: Jalak Jobanputra on What in the World? The Global Startup Scene: Micro and Macro Trends Fueling Tech Growth around the World

Social & Environmental Change: 3-4pm: Leveraging online platforms to inspire social good

Art & Culture: 3-4pm: Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll: Social’s Steamy Side

Global Society: 4-5pm: Investigative Journalism with Social Media: How It’s Being Done

Advertising & Marketing: 3-5pm: Left Brain Meets Right Brain – The Blueprints for a Sophisticated Social Marketing Campaign

Interested in a particular Hub? Click on the following links to browse events according to content area; Art & Culture, Advertising & Marketing, Business & Innovation , Global Society , Health & Wellness , Social & Environmental Change.

You can also view the full #SMW12 Schedule by Clicking HERE.

Event Guide: Business & Innovation

Posted on February 9, 2012February 9, 2012 by Sara Haile-Mariam

We’re doing all that we can this week to help you optimize your #smw12 experience. While each of our hubs serve as homes for specific content areas, the number of sessions we host on a specific topic far exceeds the capacity we have in our Hubs.

To help you navigate the schedule and find sessions that are relevant and interesting for you, we’re constructing a series of guides, which we hope will surface new and interesting content you might not have otherwise been aware of.

Your Guide to Business & Innovation:

Monday February 13th 3-5pm:
Keynote: Howard Lindzon followed by Panel: The Evolution of Reg-FD: How Social Media Has Changed Investor Relations, Hosted by StockTwits

Tuesday February 14th 9-9:30am:
The Guardian Interviews, hosted on the Nokia Global Stage at Big Fuel: Jalak Jobanputra

Wednesday February 15th 9-11am:
Keynote: Ben Kaufman on Reinventing Product Development, followed by Panel: Marketing is Ruining the Internet hosted by JWT

Thursday February 16th 12-12:30pm
Digital Fireside Chat: John Winsor on Connections 2.0

Friday February 17th 8:30am-10:00am
Keynote: Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of LinkedIn on The StartUp of You: A revolutionary new guide to thriving in today’s fractured world of work.

Coming up over the next couple of days, SMW Guides on Advertising & Marketing, Social & Environmental Change, Music, Science, Technology, Startups, Small Business & Health & Wellness.

#SMW12 One Week from Today: Monday Feb 6th

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Sara Haile-Mariam

Welcome to the first of post in our “One Week from Today” pre-Social Media week blog feature! Throughout this week, we’ll be giving you a heads up on everything that’s going on at our content hubs this time next week. Events are filling up fast so check out what’s going on this time next week and click on the corresponding event link to register!

Art & Culture: 9-11am: The Mobile-Social Living Room: How Emerging Media is Reviving the Live Television Experience

Advertising & Marketing: 9-11am: Keynote: David Eastman, CEO of JWT North America, followed by Top Trends that will Shape Social in 2012

Business & Innovation: 9-11am: Keynote: John Bell, Global Managing Director at Ogilvy, on The Insidious Plot to Socalize Enterprise

Global Society: 10-11am: Managing Social Media on a Global Scale

Health & Wellness: 10-12pm: Keynote: Carol McCall, Chief Strategy Officer of GNS Healthcare

Health & Wellness: 10-12pm: Keynote: Michael Graves on People First: Redesigning the Hospital Room

Advertising & Marketing: 12-2pm: Beyond Borders: Impact of Social Media in Global Economy

Business & Innovation: 12-2pm: Keynote: Jeff Dachis, CEO, Chairman & Founder of Dachis Group Followed by Panel: Big Data and Bigger Conversations: Measuring Your Brand’s Social Performance

Global Society: 12-1230pm: Jon’s Fireside Chat: Social Listening with Patricia Gottesman, CEO of Crimson Hexagon

Social & Environmental Change: 12:30-2:30pm: Global Keynote: Don Tapscott, Speaker, Consultant & Author of Macrowikinomics on Re-Civilization: Empowering Change Through Collaboration

Global Society: 1-2pm: Global Social Media Listening

Health & Wellness: 1-2pm: Fast Forward Health presents 73 Cents followed by Q&A with Regina Holliday

Health & Wellness: 2-8pm: The Walking Gallery: An Exhibit

Art & Culture: 3-5pm: Keynote: Jermaine Dupri on Building Community

Advertising & Marketing: 3-5pm: State Your Case: Research vs Social Analytics

Business & Innovation: 3-5pm: Keynote Howard Lindzon followed by Panel: The Evolution of Reg-FD: How Social Media Has Changed Investor Relations, Hosted by StockTwits

Social & Environmental Change: 3:30-5:30pm: Is it Getting Hot in Here? Considering Social Media’s Impact on Climate Change

Global Society: 4-5pm: 10×10 Educate Girls, Change the World. Accelerating social change and leveraging media, technology and innovative strategic partnerships to get there.

Art & Culture: 4:30-5:30pm: Social Sharing and The Art of Doodling

Health & Wellness: 4-6pm: Designing for Desire

Health & Wellness: 6:30-8:00pm: Networking Cocktail Reception, Sponsored by Johnson & Johnson

Global Society: 6:30-9:00: Meet the Afropolitans: Digital Media + Culture In Africa

You can also view the full #SMW12 Schedule by Clicking HERE.

Making Your SMWNYC Event Unique This February

Posted on November 9, 2011December 17, 2011 by Ben Scheim

Are you submitting an event to take part during Social Media Week this February in one of our twelve locations around the world? Consider the following for some thoughts on how to make your event sing and rise above the crowd during the week.

Let me cut to the chase–in a sea of awesome SMW content, there’s one surefire way to make your event rise the top, and that’s to innovate the form of the event beyond the basic panel format.

To wit: in 2011, there were over 1200 events that took part during Social Media Week, and the vast majority of them were panel sessions. There’s no doubt that the panel format has been battle-tested and does work, but it’s also sort of the lowest common denominator and asks the least planning and preparation of its participants. For more on this topic, see the following inspired post by Toby Daniels last summer outlining how and why it’s good to think beyond the panel.

Here are a few examples of events from the past that worked well that did a little to go beyond the panel format:

UNEXPECTED VENUES

Here’s a global example, and one of my favorite Social Media Week ideas yet, this event in SMW Rome last February really shows how a smart idea can pick up steam and carry a freight train’s worth of impact when executed well and by the right folks (pardon the puns).

“Journey to the Center of the Net”, organized by Augmendy, SMW city partners for both Rome and Milan,took the idea of a pre-SMW kickoff event and put it rails. Many SMW cities host pre-week launch events as press conferences, lunches or virtual events, but Augmendy had the ingenious idea to go above and beyond all of that with a cross-country blast that managed to combine all of the above plus networking, high-speed travel and multiple SMW city connectivity.

How did it all happen? For ”Journey to the Center of the Net”, the Augmendy team worked with SMW Rome sponsor Ferrovie Dello Stato, aka the Italian Rail, to commandeer a high speed train heading from Milan to Rome for an SMW journey like no other. This event pulled in leaders and luminaries from the Italian tech, media and press and invited them to take the three hour trip across SMW cities to connect and learn more about social media “in Italia”. This event featured an immersive cultural speed dating experience where attendees rotated on 10 minute shifts of meeting face-to-face with other train attendees. The event then wrapped with a press conference at the Central Station, where SMW Rome held court throughout the week.

PANEL NOT PANEL

Facebook-building brand KickApps organized an energetic session in New York last February at JWT for the Advertising & Marketing Hub called “Social Strategy Cage Match: Offense vs. Defense” that focused on social strategies taken by brands. The conversation saw an array of agency leaders split into two different teams and were given a series of scenarios where each team had to come up with an “offensive” (proactive) or defensive strategy. By utilizing this unique format, it turned what would have been an interesting panel into an awesome and exciting event that both shared ideas and gave a window into the thinking processes of some of the world’s pre-eminent agency experts.

MAKING LEARNING INTEGRATIVE

Enabling audience participation in learning is another way to create significant and memorable event experiences. One such example was an event organized by IDEO in February 2010 called “Humanizing Social Media” that sought to explain the framework of the social web functions by integrating attendees into the event itself.

IDEO’s invited guests into their office and created an event posing the following question: as people grapple for meaning in an increasingly connected world, how can we bring the “human” back into social media? By creating an environment that asked attendees to wander around, interact with, and interrogate each other, it played with the idea of social connection in its most basic, human form, yet still within the context of today’s methods of communication. Like few other event experiences, everyone came away with the feeling that they’d learned and had fun in ways non-standard to the events they typically attend.

So what can your brand do to take part in Social Media Week New York this February? Brainstorm and think big! If you know already, go here to submit your event or get involved, or contact us if you want help talking through an idea.

Attend PSFK’s Annual Conference

Posted on March 25, 2011March 25, 2011 by

PSFK’s annual NYC Conference will be on April 8th this year. The speaker lineup includes: Rachel Sterne the newly appointed Chief Digital Officer from the NYC Mayor’s Office, Nick Denton from Gawker and Yancey Strickler from Kickstarter.

As a long term partner and friend of Social Media Week, PSFK has kindly offered up a discount to the SMW community that can be accessed through the link below.

http://psfk-conference-nyc-2011.eventbrite.com/?discount=smw

We have attended this conference for the past few years and can honestly say that it will be one of the more inspirational and thought provoking events you will likely experience this year.