How WordCamp captured attendee attention while pivoting from a 350 person in-person event to a 1,400 attendee global conference in the face of COVID-19.

About WordCamp San Antonio

WordCamp brings together WordPress communities to celebrate the open-source content management system and the ecosystem that has sprung up around it. WordCamp San Antonio (WCSATX) is a local branch of the global WordCamp conference series. There are over 500 WordCamps held across more than 60 different countries. WCSATX is annually held at the University of Texas at San Antonio’s downtown campus. The conference features multiple tracks of programming including user, developer, and marketer sessions. The last in-person WordCamp San Antonio (2018) had a capped attendance of 350 people.

The Challenge

WordCamp faced three specific challenges:

1. Transitioning their event from an in-person to a virtual event.
2. Ensuring that their system worked with their new streaming software.
3. Maintain the high levels of attendee and sponsor engagement that has become the hallmark of WordCamp

The Solution

TINT provided support to WordCamp as they made of the move to digital. We conducted technical and practical testing to ensure that all TINT tools worked well with Crowdcast, their streaming software of choice. A three-pronged approach was identified to meet their goals.

1. Use TINTmix to cycle through live social content, sponsorship slides, and welcome materials to keep engagement high.
2. TINT would support with white-glove monitoring services to ensure that all social mentions and displayed content showcased the best face of the event.
3. TINT would also provide reporting at the end of each day to share the successes with the organizing team.

The Results

WordCamp was a resounding success. The move to virtual opened the door for more than 1,400 people to join from dozens of countries.

WordCamp attendees enjoyed seeing their social content shared across virtual sessions and “rooms”. WordCamp sponsors were happy to be recognized every 15 minutes on cycling slides in the TINTmix Intermission. They also took part in the social conversation to promote their participation in the event.

WordCamp organizers appreciated the efficient onboarding, ease of use, and responsiveness of TINT. They were eager to see analytics and data at the end of each day. They also found the exportable Analytics PDF useful when reporting event metrics to sponsors and WordCamp Central, the sponsoring organization of all WordCamps.

Final Takeaways

TINT came on-board early as a sponsor for our live event, providing an easy way for us to display sponsor info before and after sessions along with live-streaming feedback about the event on social media. When we went virtual, they pivoted with us, providing a way for us to continue providing that info between sessions. Post-event, they have provided us with valuable information about social media interaction with the event.

Susan Smylie, WordCamp Organizer, and owner of The Box SA Web Development Agency.