What was the best part of your experience at the Social Media Lounge?
I know answering meeting people is probably cheesy, but it really was the best part. I got to have impact on their professional decisions and I was proud of that. As someone who creates products for event planners, I appreciate any time that I get to spend listening to them. – Dan Berger, Social Tables
For me, the best part of the Social Media Lounge was meeting new folks face to face that I had only known through conversations on Twitter and renewing friendships with others that I had not seen in ages. – Greg Ruby, Greg Ruby Consulting
The best part was being able to give people the help they needed at the level that they needed. You can’t do this in a presentation because everyone is at a different level. Here I was able to help people with the basics and give some other people some creative ideas. – Jessica Levin, Seven Degrees Communication
What were you most surprised by?
By how much everyone really values social media – from students studying event planning to people who have been in the biz for three decades. Everyone gets it. – Dan Berger, Social Tables
The quality of the questions asked during the social media coaching sessions surprised me. Most were very well thought out. I was expecting more questions along the lines of “I know nothing about Social Media – what should I do” or “How do you make sense of Twitter?” I was very happy to be wrong on this aspect. – Greg Ruby, Greg Ruby Consulting
I was surprised by how busy it was and how many people had questions. – Jessica Levin, Seven Degrees Communication
Where do you think planners need the most education?
Planners need help in curating content. Selecting what they’re going to communicate to the outside world is so important because it brands them to their peers and clients. Equally important is understanding how to approach content strategically so that they’re telling a story through social media and not just making a lot of noise. – Dan Berger, Social Tables
Time management is a crucial skill that planners to need to learn if they wish to include social media into their workflow. It can easily take up too much time of the planner’s day, while at the same time the worst thing is to ignore social media and do it hit or miss as you have time. – Greg Ruby, Greg Ruby Consulting
There are people who need the basics. So many people are still newbies. The biggest area is strategy and tying their social media plan into their business and event objectives. – Jessica Levin, Seven Degrees Communication
What was the vibe like in the lounge?
Super friendly, welcoming and warm 
– Dan Berger, Social Tables
I was reminded of the first EventCamp while in the Social Media Lounge. During the tweetup, folks were turning around and pumping into folks that they only knew previously as a Twitter handle and were so happy to place a name with a face. It was an atmosphere of caring and sharing. – Greg Ruby, Greg Ruby Consulting
Oh it was lively. It was chaos. It was fun. Because of the couches, it was very relaxed and approachable. Next year we need more space because so many people were in the booth. – Jessica Levin, Seven Degrees Communication
