How TEDxAmsterdam used Google+ Hangouts On Air to create compelling content before, during and after the TEDx conference - by Oliver de Leeuw.
For more information about my involvement with the online communications and live reporting of TEDxAmsterdam, please visit:
• http://nameshapers.com/2013/11/21/tedxamsterdam-de-geheimen-achter-het-sharing-van-ideeen/
• https://www.slideshare.net/odeleeuw/the-57-most-beautiful-photos-of-5-years-tedxamsterdam-by-oliver-de-leeuw-updated-with-2013-photos
• http://www.linkedin.com/in/oliverdeleeuw?
• http://www.twitter.com/odeleeuw
• http://www.oliverdeleeuw.nl
______________________________
Hi. I’m Oliver, in charge of
creating content
for TEDxAmsterdam.
Connect with me on Twitter via www.twitter.com/@odeleeuw; on LinkedIn via nl.linkedin.com/in/oliverdeleeuw/; via my social media company Nameshapers at www.nameshapers.com; or email me via Oliver[at]tedxamsterdam.nl.
You may know TEDxAmsterdam from...
• Our
extraordinary speakers.
• Events.
• Campaigns
• Online
• More than 100 volunteers
• Or just because
you’re a TEDhead.
We’re always looking for ways
to interact during events.
Only a few can attend in real life,
while tens of thousands
watch the live stream.
So our ongoing
challenge
is:
what do we do with the online
visitors?
Lucky for us,Google had just released Hangouts.
On /steroids/ Air!
And our partners (KPN, ING and DELL) were up for an experiment, too.
We produced
4 Hangouts.
How did we get there and what did we learn?
(1) Hangouts Preparations
- technical needs
- content needs
- participants' needs
(2) Hangouts Live Learnings
(3) Hangouts Afterwards
Read the manuals
It’s really pretty straight forward, but you’re better off knowing everything in advance.
Google additionally prepped us with several documents based on early adopters’ best practices.
Obviously, all participants (and organizers) had to have an active Google+ account.
We wanted everyone to be experienced with Hangouts, before we went On Air.
Most people weren’t, so our producer organized several Hangout test
laps.
Save room
Ever tried fitting 10 people in 1 chair? That’s kind of what happens to bandwidth when you are in a video group call.
So high speed, cable (not wireless) internet was a strict requirement for all.
Invite only
I wanted to be in control so we made the Hangouts ‘invite only’. This prevented random
viewers from being able to join.
Anyone could watch live though.
You can read more over at Google’s Hangout
support page.
Public event
Quite confusing, we did organize 4 ‘public events’. This way anyone could register to watch, comment and... share with friends.
We later posted the ‘On Air url’ in the event description.
You can read more over at On Air event support.
17. Only a few can attend
in real life,
while tens of thousands
watch the live stream.@odeleeuwSource: http://tedxa.ms/XvpjtJ
18. what do we
do with the
online
visitors?Source: http://tedxa.ms/11HfpXT
challenge
@odeleeuw
So our ongoing is:
19. Lucky for us,Google had
just released Hangouts.
On steroids Air.Source: http://tedxa.ms/16e2ii1
@odeleeuw
20. And our partners*
were up for an
experiment, too.
* KPN, ING and DELL
Source: http://tedxa.ms/12A0voG
@odeleeuw
21. We*produced
4 Hangouts
On Air.
How did we
get there and
what did we
learn?* That’s mainly Feller Media,
our video production partner.
Big shout out to you, guys! @odeleeuw
23. 1 2 3
@odeleeuw
Hangouts
Preparations
technical needs content needs participants’ needs1 2 3
@odeleeuw
Hangouts
Live learnings
@odeleeuw
Hangouts
Afterwards
@odeleeuw
☝ Click to go there ☟ ☝ Click to go there ☟ ☝ Click to go there ☟
27. 1 Technical
needs
Obviously, all participants
(and organizers) had to
have an active Google+
account.
Be experiencedWe wanted everyone to
be experienced with
Hangouts, before we
went On Air.
Most people weren’t, so
our producer organized
several Hangout test
laps.
@odeleeuw
28. 1 Technical
needs
Ever tried fitting 10
people in 1 chair?
That’s kind of what
happens to bandwidth
when you are in a video
group call.
Save room
So high speed, cable
(not wireless) internet
was a strict
requirement for all.
@odeleeuw
29. 1 Technical
needs
I wanted to be in control so
we made the Hangouts ‘invite
only’. This prevented random
viewers from being able to
join.
Invite only
You can read more over
at Google’s Hangout
support page.
Anyone could
watch live though.
@odeleeuw
30. 1 Technical
needs Public event
You can read more over
at On Air event support.
Quite confusing, we
did organize 4 ‘public
events’. This way
anyone could register
to watch, comment
and... share with
friends.
We later posted the
‘On Air url’ in the
event description.
@odeleeuw
32. 2 Content
needs We approached the
Hangouts as television
talkshows.
There should be one host
or moderator. At certain
intervals the host would
change topics.
It’s a talkshow
@odeleeuw
33. 2 Content
needs
All participants had to join the discussion.
And they needed to
have opposing
views on the given
topic to keep things
interesting.
Opinionated
@odeleeuw
34. 2 Content
needs
In close cooperation with
our partners we chose 4
themes that would fit both
Human Nature
(TEDxAmsterdam’s theme)
and our partners’
audience.
To spark some buzz, we then
contacted 4 thought leaders, well
known in their area of expertise.
Fitting experts
@odeleeuw
35. 2 Content
needs
This all meant we
had to pre-produce
the participants’
contribution as
much as possible.
We also invited people
to ask their question in
advance on the
TEDxAmsterdam
Google+ page.
Our partners also
communicated this callout
on their own online outlets.
Know it all
@odeleeuw
39. 2 Content
needs
I know it’s Dutch, but
you get the picture.
Ensure some support
from partners to
engage people you
can’t reach by yourself.
Cross media
@odeleeuw
40. 2 Content
needs
This cut both ways: we gathered
valuable content and we sparked
a bit of buzz on multiple
platforms.
Content or buzz?
@odeleeuw
41. 2 Content
needs
A producer contacted the
participants 2 days before
the event.
He checked if they understood
what we were planning to do, if
they would be surefire able to
join and what their point of view
on the subject at hand was.
Double/triple check
@odeleeuw
42. 2 Content
needs
We had also contacted
“backup” participants from
our partners. They were
standing by (and we
checked on that, too).
Back it up
@odeleeuw
44. 3 Participants’
needs
High speed, stable internet.
A well-placed webcam. Sufficient lighting.
A production scenario
(summary).
Clear rules on the
moderator’s role.
Roadmap
@odeleeuw
45. 3 Participants’
needs Get everyone to wear in
ear headphones. Works
great, does not look
silly.
Set up ground rules
And have them agree to talk one
person at a time.
@odeleeuw
46. 3 Participants’
needs Train and practice with
the moderator so he or
she is able to switch
the focus between
participants.
Switch cameras
@odeleeuw
As part of the rehearsal,
people who don’t know this
feature can get used to it.
47. 3 Participants’
needs Or have a second person
doing the switch, much
like... a live talkshow on
television would do.
Have a crew
@odeleeuw
48. 3 Participants’
needs
Ask the participants to
share their input with
followers in advance.
Make a splash!
“I will discuss new economy
business models for SME’s
tomorrow. Watch and join at [url]!” @odeleeuw
50. Communication The exact URL to view
the actual Google+
Hangout On Air is only
created when the
organizer starts
broadcasting (privately).
So we had some communication
logistics to wrap our heads around.
Act last minute
@odeleeuw
51. Workflow
This is the workflow we created
after figuring out all the ins and
outs during the rehearsals.
@odeleeuw
Communication
52. Producer starts Hangout.
All people
involved only
had 5-10
minutes to
spread and
embed the url.
Workflow
Assistant producer emails (yes,
it’s true) the broadcast URL to
the partners, the video stream
director, the social media crew,
and the TEDxAmsterdam
website manager.
1
2
3
@odeleeuw
Communication
53. One thing we consistently
forgot was to update the
event’s URL to point to the
live broadcast.
Whoops
@odeleeuw
I think it went
right only once.
Communication
54. One thing that went
smoothly was switching
between the studio (our
livestream show during the
stage breaks) and the
Hangout sessions.
I call that meta interaction.
Whoop whoop!
@odeleeuw
Communication
55. We offered all Hangouts on
our website’s front page as
an alternative to the
livestream studio show.
Front page
Promotion
@odeleeuw
56. Ever hosted a talkshow?
It’s complicated.
Especially when you have to look
at 5 parts of your screen while
talking.
Multitasking
@odeleeuw
Moderation
57. So, the moderators all
got an ‘in ear’ producer
audio feed.
And we posted some old school
sticky notes at the side of his extra
large screen.
Old school tools
@odeleeuw
Moderation
Old school tools
always work.
59. Video needs Since Hangouts On Air are
broadcast live on YouTube,
they are published
immediately afterwards.
To edit or not to edit?
@odeleeuw
60. Video needs One can edit the video by
setting its privacy to
‘hidden’, downloading it,
and reuploading later on.
All we did was insert
a branded bumper.
Quick & dirty
@odeleeuw
61. Buzz needs
Needless to say we spread
the videos on our online
platforms, including our
partners’.
Share
@odeleeuw
62. Content needs
Long tail content
@odeleeuw
The relevance of
any Hangout’s
content
diminishes
quickly.
I would advise you to write a
blog post about each Hangout,
including highlights, quotes
and interesting links.
64. Buzz needs
Most online marketers know how to
put YouTube tools to use. Optionally
you can insert descriptions, links and
annotations to optimize search results.
Video marketing
@odeleeuw