Alrighty then. Who? What? When? Where? How? I guess I am going to have to prod people along on this process. So those who are wanting the be involved in the planning phase, lets get started. You can comment in the comments of this blog, but it you don't want to register, send your comments to bloggingwhilebrown at gmail dot com.
- Who volunteers to be on the planning committee ( no obligation to attend)?
- When do you think we should have this? ( I say at the same time as YearlyKos)
- Where do you want this to happen? (Off the top of my head I am thinking Denver, No particular reason)
- How? I don't know what this questions is? Maybe the question is HOW MUCH to you think a reasonable registration fee should be?
- What should be the focus? ( I say social networking/entertainment and social justice/politics)
- How long should it be? (I am thinking two days, a Friday and Saturday)
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/ss92/aminahhanan/BWBLogo-2-1.jpg
http://i565.photobucket.com/albums/ss92/aminahhanan/BWBLogo-2-2.jpg
8 comments:
I think that before really thinking out these logistics, we definitely have to look into some fundraising efforts. Regardless of if the conference is in a homeless shelter or the Hilton, it's going to cost some major scratch.
I used to work in the convention business, so I know when it comes to rates and availability, you have to ask quickly because most venues will have events planned out years in advance (where I once worked, it was at least five years out). Also, rates will fluctuate from year to year. On average, though, they will increase.
I think it's a good idea to plan out at least 10 dates in advance, because chances are the first pick won't be available. Also, it'll be good to see when most people can attend (outside of holidays). I'm partial to August, if only because of the possible Black Weblog Awards tie-in. :)
The popular convention cities (Chicago, DC, Vegas, Orlando and Atlanta) I think are good places to start. They'll have more venues, different rates, so if one place doesn't work out, another one will.
Oh, and one more thing (I know, this is turning rather long): what's the maximum number of attendees? Getting that sorted out up front will help tremendously on venue spaces and fundraising efforts since there will be a definite upper limit.
Karsh I actually was going to be discussing that with whoever chimes in to be on the advisory committee. I was debating whether to form a 501 c(3) or an LLC. I was also going to target getting underwriting. I was wanting to have an initial group locked down by July 1st so we can have our proposals and targets identified.
I don't think it HAS to cost major scratch. As someone who has planned family reunions and class reunions in major cities, the cost depends on what you do and where you do it. Also there is also the option of the large conference centers at colleges and universities. I take it you are in so I am going to ad you to the advisory committee mailing list. You are the first!
Sure, I'm in. :) I was thinking big on the money part as far as filling a convention center or something, but events have to grow, right? I'm sure there would probably be plenty of HBCUs that would love to play host to a conference like this.
real quick (been kind of busy): i am so down for this. right now things are crazy en mi casa.
but i will digest this and get back.
I attended a blog conference SOB07, in Chicago recently. There were about 200 people and 3 of us were black. I was the only black blogger. I felt this conference should have been more diverse and if the 2 groups could work together, economies of scale would help both and there could be seperate conferences with some events together.Liz Strauss was the chair of this event and could provide some advice.
I've never done any convention planning, but I think Denver would be a reach, especially in 2008. To be honest, if we wanted Denver, during the Democrat Convention, we should have begun planning the minute Denver was chosen by the Democrats.
I love the thought of a HBCU that someone suggested. What time of year would it take place?
Oh, don't like the idea of choosing the date of the YearlyKos. We should have our OWN date. Maybe folks want to attend YearlyKos- I don't, but maybe some others do. And, I don't want to give the folks at YearlyKos a sense of overemphasized importance.
That is a valid point. I wouldn't dream of having it DURING a political convention. I just like Denver. You have a very valid point. That is why outside opinions are important.
I like the idea of a hosting it at an HBCU a lot. I think there is great potential in that idea and deciding on hosting it a HBCU also helps narrow your location choices as well. But the college tie in makes great sense. The host college might be able to help with sponsorship or suggest other tie ins that would help support it. So I really support going with that.
Post a Comment