10 Quick Steps to Being Interactive at the
American Marketing Association Marketing Research Conference

We're introducing a variety of interactive and social media approaches to expand your onsite learning and networking at the 2009 American Marketing Association Marketing Research Conference. The efforts will also extend the conference experience to marketers who can’t be with us in person.

Here are 10 Things You Can Do To Expand Your Interactive Experience - Try them all to enhance your conference learning and networking in dramatically new ways:

1.    Visit the Conference Website - The main conference website is http://mrc2009.ama.sixent.net/. It's THE place for speaker bios, posts on presentations, video interviews, comments on Twitter, and much more. Check in throughout the conference and afterward to find out What's Next!

2.    Sign up for a Twitter Account - Twitter is a social media tool for sharing information, ideas, and links - all in 140 characters. We'll use Twitter to post session highlights during the conference. If you don't have a Twitter account, go to http://www.twitter.com. You'll select a Twitter identity. Pick your name (if available) or something representing your company or personal brand identity.

3.    Follow the Conference on Twitter - Once logged in on Twitter, click Find People to search for and follow those tweeting information about the conference: @amamrc, @brainzooming, @bzoominglive, @dadvincula, @sylc, @sallyhogshead, @ResearchRocks, @lorischade. The conference website will also show others using Twitter to comment on the event.

4.    Track All the Tweets about the Conference - To help you track all tweets on the conference, search on the phrase #amamrc (the conference hashtag) on the Twitter main page (see image at the right). Doing so will highlight all tweets including the conference hashtag. To see all tweets for a specific session, visit the conference website for a list of session-specific hashtags and search codes.

5.    Make Your First Tweet - Here's a suggested first tweet  if you're stuck for an idea. Type the following statement in the "What are you doing?" response box: Attending American Mktg Assoc #MarketResearch conf. #amamrc

6.    Tweet About the Conference - Don't feel locked in by the Twitter question, "What are you doing?" Use your 140 Twitter characters to comment on a presentation, ask a question of a presenter, or share an idea with researchers at the conference or elsewhere on Twitter. BE SURE to include the characters #amamrc so your tweet will be seen with other conference tweets. We'll be selecting Twitter comments and questions from the general sessions to display for the whole audience to see.

7.    Suggest a Topic on Monday and then Share Your Perspectives at a Tuesday Unconference session - Tuesday morning, we'll have three concurrent sessions where conference attendees will recommend topics and then present the content. It's a great opportunity to customize your What's Next experience and demonstrate your expertise. On Monday, share a topic you'd like to see covered by tweeting it or dropping your suggestion in designated locations.  Then at the Tuesday sessions, share what you think on selected topics with other attendees!  Visit the conference  website at http://mrc2009.ama.sixent.net/ for more information on how to participate.

8.    Visit Exhibit Hall Booths - Be sure to maximize your learning about What's Next in research techniques by visiting all the intriguing booths in the Exhibit Hall. Also use the opportunity to meet other attendees, and if you're on Twitter, have a tweetup at the Conference Interactivity Team's hangout.

9.    Generate Your Own Content for the Conference Website - We'll be posting attendee-created pictures, videos and video interviews, and blog posts on the conference website. Your blog post can be 100 to 500 words - so even if you have a few ideas to share, we'd love to see them! To share your visual and written perspectives on What's Next, email them to Simon Chen, our webmaster at schen@ramius.net.

10.    Introduce Yourself to Lots of People - Amid the online interactivity, don't forget to use all the available time before and after sessions, in the exhibit hall, and at luncheons and special functions to meet and learn from the outstanding group of market researchers assembled for the 2009 American Marketing Association Marketing Research Conference. You never know when a new contact you make will hold the key to what's next for you personally and professionally!

Important Links for the AMA Marketing Research Conference

Conference Website (to keep up to date on conference info & news): http://mrc2009.ama.sixent.net/
Webmaster (to share pictures, videos, or ideas): schen@ramius.net
Conference Twitter Identity (to follow for conference updates): @amamrc
Conference Twitter Hashtag (to search for all conference-related tweets): #amamrc