Something incredible took place at the W Hotel (www.whotel.com) on Tuesday, February 20, in downtown Chicago. A group of some of the most creative and inspiring minds in the hosting industry collected for a day to discuss the upcoming HostingCon 2007 event. Prominent leaders in the hosting industry shared their opinions and feedback on how to make this an event everyone will be talking about long after it’s over.
The goal of the meeting was to come up with a plan to make this happen successfully. Did come up with a plan? Absolutely. You are probably wondering who the group was at the meeting. It was the HostingCon Advisory Board.
As a member of the HostingCon Advisory Board, I had the opportunity to talk in-depth with enthusiastic people who share the same goal as me – how can we make HostingCon 2007 the best event the hosting industry has ever experienced. We did succeed in coming up with a plan.
Before I give you some ideas on how you can become a significant part of HostingCon 2007, let me introduce you to the key players on the HostingCon Advisory Board:
1. Microsoft - A second Platinum Sponsor, was represented by Leen Kashyap and Michael van Dijken. To my surprise, and everyone else in the room, Leen and Michael did not have on any swag, which was how we thought we could identify them on the first night. They did, however, admit they were not big fans of the Microsoft wardrobe.
They were greeted by a group of people talking about their love and usefulness for Microsoft Exchange Server, which they admitted was an odd experience for them. Leen openly admitted he liked the group right away because we boosted egos and discussed how we all use Microsoft Exchange in our daily lives.
Under normal circumstances, Microsoft employees seem to get abused for any and all problems caused by every piece of software Microsoft has ever developed and deployed. I did have some complaints about Windows 3.1 (jokingly), but I held off so they could enjoy all of the praise that took place.
2. TechPadAgency - The famous Derek Vaughan and Ben Fisher attended the meeting. I happened to score my second TechPadAgency memorabilia, personally signed (You Still Rock) by my hero in the web hosting news industry, Derek. If you want to stay on top of the hosting industry and marketing related news, I would highly suggest getting daily updates directly from Derek. You can signup by going to The Hosting News Website
These guys really brought a lot of great ideas and energy to the room. They even coined the term "Smackdown," although I know I’ve heard that somewhere else, that was then used about 90 times throughout the day. Ben Fisher, very enthusiastic about the marketing side of things, provided some incredible ideas you will see in July!
3. Isabel Wang – A popular hosting industry blogger from www.isabelwang.com, was the third hosting guru I had the opportunity to spend time with and share ideas. Not only did she bring years of experience, ideas, and opinions to the table, you can also get the "unreported" hosting industry news from Isabel. She knows who's doing what these days, which is very important to those of us in the marketing arena.
Her daily interaction with technology, blogging, and industry news provided great ideas for keynote speakers, sessions, and she gave some insightful direction for the Advisory Board. I did learn there is no such thing as small talk with Isabel, as my prior night’s conversation landed FastServers.Net on her Blog the following day. I can spread the rumor that she passed up desert, wears a long North Face coat, and engages in very interesting conversations about the industry. Unfortunately, I was not able to gain any kind of leverage for good blogging material. Maybe next time Isabel!
4. George Roberts, Frank Spaulding, and Sue Church - Represented the official HostingCon team and led the discussions of the day. The agenda, planning, and execution of the event made it one of the most successful Advisory Boards meetings to date. And throughout the day, they really listened to the ideas being shared in the room, participated in the brainstorming process, and provided a meeting that was fast-pasted and chocked full of great content.
It was admitted that as a group, we could probably sit in a room for one week straight talking about various hosting related topics. But since we only had eight hours to get everything in, these leaders made sure that only the most important topics were covered.
Tips For HostingCon 2007
While I am not at liberty to discuss the content of the meeting, what I can provide are a few tips to help make this show the best yet.
1. Press Release - If you are a vendor or thinking about becoming a vendor, have a professional press release written and published the minute you sign up! It's important for your company to utilize the benefits a press release can offer in order to get the word out that you will be attending as a sponsor. If you need help writing your press release, contact me directly (ap@fastservers.net) or contact Ben Fisher from TechPadAgency. One of us will make sure you are in direct contact with professional copywriters who can help you get your press release ready and published.
2. Sign up Early! - I cannot stress this enough. HostingCon will be mailing passes out. Early registration helps them gauge attendance, allocate resources, and put on a better show.
3. Provide feedback during the show. - It's not hard to find George, Frank, or Sue during HostingCon. They really do a great job in listening to your opinions, feedback, and questions. Their goal is to continue developing events that will have an impact on the hosting industry. If surveys are available during the show, please take a few minutes to fill them out. Surveys lead to great things and the information will be used to make HostingCon 2008 even better than HostingCon 2007. During the show you can also catch one of the members of the Advisory Board and provide discuss your opinions on the event. The Advisory Board will be meeting towards the end of the show to discuss topics, opinions, and planning for HostingCon 2008. Make sure you provide feedback!
4. Help create the buzz. - For those of you that have Blogs, or are part of the Hosting Media world, start spreading the word. You can also get in contact with George Roberts and let him know you are interested in a Press Pass. Then you can attend the event and give us your spin on what’s taking place.
To Sum It Up
This week provided a great outlet for meeting some of the greatest minds in the Web Hosting Industry and having the unique opportunity to provide ideas and feedback for the upcoming HostingCon 2007. The people that joined the ranks of this Advisory Board flew in from all around the US, spent their valuable time locked in a board room, and produced a list of fantastic ideas and topics you can look forward to in July. As I end my trip and start the checkout process at the "W," I want to thank everyone that made the trip and gave me the wonderful opportunity to talk marketing, hosting, servers, and technology for three days straight. I look forward to HostingCon 2007!
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