It is not a secret I am a fan of BarCamps. In fact I just attended #tweetcamp, an unconference for Twitter users in London, that amazed me to great extents.
If you are not familiar with BarCamps, have a look at this.
Despite lots of animated discussion with traditional event planners, I am still convinced BarCamps and the unconference represent the model of the future.
Why?
Well they are free to attend, early adopters like them, quality of people usually goes over the top.
There is a problem with BarCamps though, event management.
The Volunteers Dilemma
Having managed BarCamps myself and having talked with fellow organizers, we all agree that managing the event with a volunteer-only scheme can quickly turn a beautiful experience into a nightmare.
Especially on the project management side of things.
While established event management companies can count on proprietary software to manage their event, BarCamp organizers are left by themselves using a sad Excel spreadsheet and tons of emails.
Introducing Eventle
What I liked about Eventle is that they are reaching out to the BarCamp community.
They created a platform that reminds us of Plancast or Lanyrd but has a clear scope in mind, making organizing and signing up for BarCamps easy.
Just have a look at the BarCamp Brno page. Despite I did not understand a single word of it, I could tell there was something going on.
Polls, attendees profiles, Twitter feed and most of all the Queue…
The Meaning of Queue for BarCamps
BarCamps are usually free events. If you run a putyourtopichereCamp event and you make people pay hundreds of Dollars, Pounds or Euros, it means you didn’t get it.
Nonetheless, when it comes to free events, managing commitment is a pain in the neck.
People just tend not to show up if they have not committed money. It’s a sad truth. Despite there are indeed ways to avoid no shows at events, managing attendance for free events can drive organizers crazy.
The queue featured by Eventle allows organizers to easily control attendance and reduce no-shows to the minimum. By combining a good notification strategy and drop-outs management, you will be able to fill in all the seats.
What about Event Management, Man?
Well, I like they way they are suggesting [in questionable English (hey it’s for free after all)] what next:
I also appreciated the integration with Twitter and Facebook, stand-alone sign up is dead.
In Conclusion
Eventle is an evolving platform, the ultimate beta site. Give it a go, play with it and if you run a BarCamp, use it.
They put lots of work in it and I am sure they will do great.
