Discussion Panels – How to Use Their Potential

Discussion Panels – How to Use Their Potential

utworzone przez | | COMMUNICATION

I often hear during a conference that the discussion panels are boring and do not contribute anything. It’s time you can go for coffee, talk to your friends at the booth, or return unanswered calls. I don’t think it has to be like this. Below you will find some ideas on how discussion panels can become the most interesting part of the conference.

I have had the opportunity to participate in many conferences. Some of them were boring, but there were also some great conversations that strongly influenced me. I often ran the discussion panels myself or took part in them, and I started to wonder what to do to make them better. How could I ensure that both the participants and the panelists themselves benefit from the event? Below are some observations and conclusions that will certainly be useful to all who will one day organize such panels.
1.Define Discussion Panel Goal

I know it sounds cliché, but have you ever asked yourself what the purpose of the panel is?

I think the listener should get the impression that he is listening to the conversation of friends in a cafe. Friends who share their opinions and their experiences. Sometimes they add some details, but above all, they draw conclusions from the group. They say what was done well, where they were wrong, how they rate what they’ve seen recently, etc.

In my opinion, the main aim of the panel is to present the opinions of others who we often consider to be experts in their field. Of course, it is good if you can learn something from someone who interestingly told you how they did something. However, the most important thing is to present your point of view on the specific thing, problem, or situation being discussed.

How do you do it?

Prepare your discussion panel well:

a) Meet the panelists

Of course, if you do not personally know your panelists it is worth getting to know them before the day your panel will meet. Making a phone call to get to know a little more about that person will help bridge the gaps that keep us from being able to talk to them like we would our friends or family. That bridge will also help when it comes to dealing with older ones on the panel who may require more sensitivity on our part, due to their ages or positions.

b) Prepare yourself for the subject you will be discussing

It seems trivial, but sometimes you get an offer to run an event that is not entirely within the realm of your speciality or it has little to do with it. Try to imagine what types of questions your guests may have for your panelists.

c) Prepare issues

They should take into account the objectives of the panel and share them with the other participants. Ask them what they think about your objectives and maybe they have their own ideas on such topics as personal branding, presentations of project effects, or promotional services. Each participant (e.g. the organizer, panelists, audience) has their own goals and you, as the moderator, should strive to take each one into consideration.

d) Find out who your guests will be

A very interesting thing happened during one discussion. It was based on the use of artificial intelligence on the internet.

One of the participants stood up during the question session and admitted that she had expected a much more advanced conversation. She expected to hear conclusions that went beyond the usual repetitive thinking. Everyone was stunned, but after a while, they began to applaud.

For me, this whole situation was a complete surprise and, at the same time, it clearly showed that guests are looking for more information than the norm. Since the conference has a certain format and is addressed to a specific group of recipients, we should understand their needs. Therefore, the debate mustn’t be too complicated for beginners nor too boring for the advanced in our audience.

Panele dyskusyjne – jak wykorzystać ich potencjał

2. Conduct the discussion panel appropriately

You, as moderator, set the tone for the discussion. I really enjoyed one debate when the moderator began the discussion with an introduction of the issue that would be raised.  Then  he invited people to take their places. Each one had the task of talking about themselves and why it would be worth listening to them carefully throughout the debate.

Another interesting solution is to have two moderators. The differing opinions, and even taking a place on both sides of the stage, can give the conversation more dynamics. I don’t like to ask the same question to each participant. By preparing specific questions for each panelist you get to hear what they think individually. Then the discussion gets even better when the panelists talk to each other and add their suggestions and comments. As the moderator, you can stimulate this discussion by asking additional questions to those on the panel.

An example may go like this:

Moderator: Katie, tell me what you think about the use of artificial intelligence in medicine.

Kathrine: I really like this topic… (examples of applications)

Moderator: Tom, what do you think about what Katie said? Do you agree? Any remarks?

Thomas: Yes, but I have a few more of my own… (examples)

When preparing for the discussion panel, we often determine the number of issues that are worth discussing. I remember during one panel, the conversation about women in the IT industry expanded so much in one area that it took 80% of the time. When I talked to the host, I asked her if that was the goal. In response, she showed me the notes she had prepared. That was only one of the ten issues she wanted to address. She said that since the participants were so involved in the discussion, it meant that the topic was important to them and worth developing. That was a great approach! It turned out that after the discussion ended, we all stayed and continued our discussion.

3.Questions from the audience

Often, when talking to various organizers, the question is should we allow or not allow the audience to ask questions, and if so, when? Personally, I don’t think there’s just one answer. I advise against rigidly dividing the time allocated for our discussion into two parts. That would require our panelists to go first and then we would include our audience in the discussion. This could become tricky when our listeners have no questions and the panel is left to come up with something to say just because there is time left to use and no more questions. I think it’s best to allow questions to be asked during the conversation. Therefore, an important job of the moderator is not only to keep an eye on the panelists but also to keep one on the audience to quickly spot a raised hand.

4.Dress code

I think this is much easier for men. Proper slacks, or a pair of jeans, with a shirt and jacket and they are all set. It’s harder for women. I feel that the demands on women are greater, but that is just my impression. I love dresses myself. It’s a simple and quick way to look good and not think about whether everything fits together. I do not wear too short dresses for official events, and yet I have seen in some photos that the dress rolled up and I showed too much thigh. It wasn’t my intent and I was embarrassed about it so now I’m going to choose even longer dresses.

What’s important is the shoes. I’m not talking about them being clean, because that is obvious. They should be well taken care of. In women, flat heels look bad, unless they match the outfit. I encourage you to wear heels, even if they are only to be worn on the panel itself. In my opinion, a woman looks much better in them.

https://anitakijanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Panele-dyskusyjne-–-jak-wykorzystać-ich-potencjał

5.Body language

You sit on the stage, however, your listeners have your feet at their eye level. It always amuses me when I am listening to a speaker and see what they do with their legs. Sometimes they cross their legs or bend them in very strange ways, but they don’t realize how they look to the audience. I understand that they are focused on what others are saying, that they are nervous, or that they will be the next speaker. In addition, the debate is often in a foreign language, so we are wondering how to present a given issue so that it is understandable. However, from an audience’s view, your body language may portray something entirely different than the professional person that you really are.

 

Communication for the Success of Innovation Development

Communication for the Success of Innovation Development

utworzone przez | | BUSINESS, COMMUNICATION

Innovations, startups, IT industry—these are such powerful words. The search for the first Polish unicorn continues!

However, creating a well-functioning IT company is a real challenge and we often hear statistics that 9 out of 10 companies are failing. Focusing on technology, consecutive lines of code, and software effectiveness are essential. Unfortunately, this is only the tip of the iceberg, because the solution must be properly communicated to sell it.

Advanced algorithms, artificial intelligence, and IT technology allow for increasing the possibilities of automating our work, predicting purchasing behavior, and supporting sales departments. All this is so extremely interesting, but it also raises many doubts among people who do not understand the functions of each one. What, then, should be done to ensure that the work of developers, testers, and graphic designers working on solutions is not in vain? How do you increase your success in the fastest-growing market in the world?

Technology is the future

The drive towards information technology is not surprising. There’s an increasing number of investors, business angels supporting young people (although not always), who are eager for  them to be successful. In addition, government programs are supposed to help Poland become another Silicon Valley, so that we can have another Skype, even Facebook. Everything is accompanied by successive rankings of the richest in the country and in the world, where the representatives of the IT environment are increasingly represented.

What unites everyone, without exception, is effective presentation and communication. Of course, these are apart from continuous product development. Without understanding how the technology works and how it can help us solve our problems, it will be really difficult to convince anyone to buy it.

If you haven’t had a chance to read Geoffrey Moore’s book, “Crossing the Chasm. Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers”, it is time to catch up. The author presents the development phases of each product in an interesting way. For this purpose, he uses the theory of the diffusion of innovation by Everett Rogers. This theory assumes the division of people based on their reactions to new technologies. Among them, we will find innovators, early adopters, late majority, and laggers.

Moore convinces us that the biggest challenge in the development of any innovative product is to move between different groups of people. At the same time, he theorized only such a process guarantees success on a global scale. In his book, we will find a description of how to reach each group and how to communicate technology so that it is understandable.

Komunikacja sukcesem rozwoju innowacji

How do we get started?

First of all, start your adventure with communication by answering the question: who do I direct this product to? Whose needs does it address and to what extent? It seems to be a trivial question. But if you meet a journalist and discuss what you do, I won’t be surprised if he says, „So, what are you so incredibly innovative in that I should write about it?”

And here we have another challenge. That is, how to talk about technology in an understandable way. How is a person with a strict mind supposed to present to a humanist the activities of web harvesting or Fog Computing? The simplest answer—in context. Think of all sorts of situations where your product is useful. Prepare yourself and gather such examples. Try to make your examples as interesting as possible and at the same time more widely applicable. This is especially important if you want to reach business or lifestyle media. Although this is the first plan of action, unfortunately, it is sometimes the most difficult.

Ideally, you would already have a case study, one showing your method of design and implementation.

 

 

Why Do I Work in the New Technology Industry?

Why Do I Work in the New Technology Industry?

utworzone przez | | COMMUNICATION

When I first attended the InternetBeta conference nine years ago, I didn’t expect how much it would change my life. That’s how I got into the new technology industry, which absorbed me completely.

I didn’t use to imagine myself in the world of IT. If someone had asked me a few years ago if I wanted to work in innovation, I would have said, “Me? Never in my life!” By education, I am a Doctor of Social Science. I graduated in political science and English philology, and it has nothing to do with what I have been doing since 2009.

Some Things You Just Have to Nature For

Time has some very useful advantages. First of all, it heals wounds, but also with its course, our priorities and interests may change. That’s how it was for me. Along with its passage, a huge passion for technology was born in me, and a hunger for knowledge awakened in my life.

I spent every spare moment acquiring substantive knowledge, getting to know experts in the industry, and getting the best from them, loads of experiences, and even more useful information. I learned from scratch how it all works; I wanted to be proficient in all concepts and mechanisms related to IT. What did that do for me? Today I run a public relations agency specializing in new technologies.

My Dream Job? Communication and Working With People

One thing’s for sure! Since I was a kid, I knew I’d be working in communications. However, I had no idea in which direction life would take me or exactly what I would do. If someone asked me the same question today as a few years ago, if I imagine working in innovation—I would answer without hesitation, “What kind of question is that? Of course.” As of today, I am very satisfied with what we do in the company, who we work for, and what the plan for our business in the coming months looks like.

Dlaczego pracuje w branży nowych technologii1

What makes me love this environment? Why did I decide to take such a direction in my professional life?

  • Technology changes the world before our eyes

Watching changes that directly affect society is really amazing! How technology affects our daily behavior, e.g., in the field of media consumption, is only a substitute for what is meant by “innovation.” It also has a big impact on people who have not yet had the opportunity to pass on their skills to the world, and now thanks to technology they have a real opportunity to exist and show their talents to a huge audience. Technology improves our lives, speeds up communication, and makes us feel like the inhabitants of a global village.

  • It creates awareness of potential solutions for our customers

Most customers introduce completely new products to the market, and this is associated with great trust. At the same time, it also gives us a chance to create how we talk about a given solution. Awareness of influencing such an important area as presenting an idea, subjecting it to wider public opinion is an honor that entails responsibility.

The ability to create, to play a kind of artist showing the potential of technology, is really fun and one of my favorite aspects of our work.

  • Openness to the world

I do not know another social group that so eagerly and regularly takes care of relations and meets at events related to the new technologies industry. Some might say that instead of working, we’re just partying. I believe if there is demand, there is supply, and in the end, the results will verify us.

At the same time, this environment must be open to new solutions. Otherwise, created products would not be able to break through in such a competitive world. This, in turn, is associated with a favorable attitude towards ideas and initiatives on our part. Nothing but invention, implementation, and testing will tell whether this is not the most effective way to educate our client.

  • Diversity

If someone asked me what technologies we currently communicate about, I would list solutions using artificial intelligence, machine learning, low latency, digital transformation, IoT, or martech. I have to talk about each of these things in an understandable way so that a completely inexperienced person can understand what it is about.

I, a person with education in human behavior, explain almost every day to journalists or interested people what state-of-the-art technologies are, how they work, and how they can help you grow your business.

If I’d made a bet with someone in high school that I’d be doing stuff like that, I never would have believed it! And I’m glad I had such a small imagination. 😉

  • Avant-garde

Avant-garde is something that particularly drives me. In addition to creating, I love to have priority in communicating new things. Of course, imitators have it easier, but for me, creating innovative things is the greatest professional fulfillment. And when the customers make money off it and come back for more, I feel like I’m on the right track.

However, there is also the other side of the coin.

 

  • You need to learn new technologies constantly

 

Just as I argue that diversity is an advantage, it can also be a solid challenge. Sometimes I joke that my brain will no longer accept knowledge and technical solutions. I have permanently logged into foreign portals with technological news; I follow select IT bloggers that have their ears to the ground. I read how someone presents a solution, and I pay attention to what words they use and in what context they present what they are working on.

Technology is permanent learning. Fortunately, it’s extremely interesting.

  • Communication of new products takes a lot of time

Rome was not built in a day, and 22.5 million Poles did not use Facebook right away. Everything takes time. You need to test whether the way you present to your customers is understandable and whether it encourages others to use your services. Depending on the degree of acceptance, readability, and clarity of your story about the next product, it takes more work for me to determine the best possible way of communication.

  • You never know if it’s a bubble

We can check people who come to us with an idea who are looking for support in PR, asking about the process of advancing product development and the number of customers. We never know whether the company we work for will really succeed or not. It could be six months later that the system does not work, new errors are constantly appearing, and instead of a great campaign, we have continuous crisis management, which will later end in the failure of each of the parties.

We have never had such a client before, but you never know. This is a real challenge because by cooperating with journalists, public opinion, and encouraging the use of our partner’s services, we are issuing him a quality certificate to some extent.

If I had the opportunity to choose the environment in which I work, modern technology is definitely something that reflects my dreams and goals. We always look for such people to join our team. People who have similar motivations and priorities and are not afraid of technology, but even want to be a part of its development.

If you are reading this text and would like to try your hand at our place, write to me 😊 [email protected]

The Power of Events – How Events Have Changed My Life

The Power of Events – How Events Have Changed My Life

utworzone przez | | COMMUNICATION

We constantly hear about how we limit our relationships with others in favor of residual conversations on social media. I’m sure there’s a lot of truth in that. Perhaps it is due to the haste that accompanies us every day. We have more and more tasks, plans, things to do in a fairly short time. As a result, we often neglect interpersonal relationships. But I believe in the power of events!

InternetBeta 2009

For me, this was the case with the InternetBeta conference in Rzeszow. When I signed up to participate in it in 2009, I represented the Marshal’s Office of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship and UMCS in Lublin. I was a freshman doctoral student who talked about cities on the Internet. Not knowing anyone at all, I went to the event alone, unsure of what to expect from it. I decided to participate in it to leave the world of scientific conferences, show myself in a different environment, and create my image as a specialist in territorial marketing (I wrote a doctorate on this subject).

What I saw there surprised me every step of the way. There was a real organizational gap. I was used to tables covered with green cloth, behind which there were speakers, while here on the screen in the main room I saw an online broadcast on Blip (yes, there used to be something like this).

I won’t forget how surprised I was to see people sitting with laptops during lectures instead of with notebooks! I took a picture of the impression!!

https://anitakijanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Siła-eventów-–-jak-wydarzenia-zmieniły-moje-życie.jpg

This one 😉

Every presentation made me feel like Indiana Jones. Each was a new discovery. I already had Facebook, and naszaklasa.pl. That’s when I learned that you could create fan pages for institutions, companies, run campaigns…

The evening at the party, I joined, among others, Dominik Szarek and Marcin Jaśkiewicz. Men completely unknown to me told me that they created KrakSpot in Krakow. They explained what barcamps are, what the whole idea is about, and… I admired it completely.

As it turned out later, they knew a large part of the participants, and by the way, I started to get to know them.

Once again, I would like to thank Mateusz Tułecki, the organizer of the event, for what he does by integrating various Internet-related environments in Rzeszow!

Women in the World of Technological Events

However, this conversation caused something else. Less than a year and a half later I started with barcamp KielceCom in my hometown of Kielce. Together with Łukasz Nowak and Piotrek Kargul, we decided to check how such an event would work in our hometown.

We started organizing original meetings, and well-known (especially today) Internet entrepreneurs attended them. They talked about the development of social media, the mobile industry, computer games, and e-commerce. We organized several such events that allowed me to meet the most recognizable people in the environment. I talked to them about the challenges and opportunities offered by the use of new technologies, and I fell in love with this industry more and more.

https://anitakijanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Siła-eventów-–-jak-wydarzenia-zmieniły-moje-życie.jpgSiła eventów – jak wydarzenia zmieniły moje życie

 

Over time, I began to participate in other events in the country, getting to know what life looks like outside Kielce, which was getting tighter and tighter for me. And I couldn’t have ended up in any other place than Warsaw.

The Power of Women and Wenusjanki

That’s where I decided to start my own business. In a strange city, I felt a little lonely, so I wanted to organize something that would allow me to make new friendships and acquaintances. I invented Wenusjanki (transl. Venusian Women). I did not want to limit myself, and the experience of driving in different cities showed me how nice it is to have friends in Krakow, Wroclaw, or Gdansk.

That’s why I set out from the beginning to build our community of women active in several cities. I wrote about the whole initiative earlier. For over a year I suspended its activities. What Wenusjanki has given me is an incredible load of experiences, tremendous emotions, and many really valuable connections that I maintain to this day.

Siła eventów – jak wydarzenia zmieniły moje życie

I met thousands of women (annually we had nearly 2,500 of them out of 25 events). I am in constant contact with some of them. We meet, we talk, we go out together. Thanks to Wenusjanki, I have tamed Warsaw, Krakow, Wroclaw, Poznan, and the Tri-City (I do not count Kielce, because it is my hometown). They weren’t so strange to me anymore, because there was someone everywhere I could write, meet, or talk to. This initiative has given me great friends, lots of warmth, and support.

Siła eventów – jak wydarzenia zmieniły moje życie

The Power of Events

Such initiatives generate many opportunities, which the participants of the events organized by us had a chance to see. Thanks to KielceCom, a lot of people could become friends with new technologies. Partnerships have been established and are ongoing to this day. Wenusjanki helped women find jobs, employees, or subcontractors; it showed the power of the gentler sex.

I am very happy when our work makes not only us organizers grow, but also when others can get to know each other, exchange experience, and find support. It’s incredibly constructive and motivating.

Interestingly, I will tell you that we are about to start another initiative: this time, supporting companies in the field of education about international expansion. I am already looking forward to this project, and the global character is probably a natural continuation. First, there was Kielce, then selected cities in Poland, and now it’s time for an international dimension.

More information on new events coming soon 😊

What Does IT Promotion Have to Do With a Grocery Store?

What Does IT Promotion Have to Do With a Grocery Store?

utworzone przez | | COMMUNICATION

What Does IT Promotion Have to Do With a Grocery Store?

In April this year, I had the pleasure to speak at the East-Media conference in Bialystok. The event is devoted to trends in marketing, especially the use of new technologies in reaching potential customers. At this point, I congratulate the Organizers for preparing an interesting and well-planned conference.

Promocja IT

During my speech, I talked about what IT promotion has to do with a grocery store. Companies use this type of service primarily to stand out, to show their uniqueness. Public relations is communicating about the activity of the company and implementing projects, and this in turn contributes to inspiring greater trust in our work among business partners or investors.

Effectively implemented promotional activities make others more willing to use our services, believing in our experience and know-how. Below I will present the most important issues that I raised during the whole speech.

The Grocery Store Is Usually Close to People

The difference between a grocery store and a supermarket is big. Namely, when deciding to shop in a grocery store, we know that we will get fresh and good quality products there because we often know the seller personally. In addition, these small shops are usually close to our house, and we go there wearing sweatpants when, for example, we lack the ingredients to finish cooking. This is not the case for purchases in large retail chains. For those, we organize an expedition, we prepare by making a list of things that we need to buy for the next month.

The situation is similar in the case of technology. It is supposed to serve us, help us solve everyday problems, to make life easier. It should be prepared and communicated in such a way that its use is not a challenge.

Simple, interesting messages, showing that their creators understand the needs of customers, will do more to promote your solution than even the most ambitious manuals that explain all functionalities. The fact that your app, portal, or device is based on state-of-the-art technology is very important, but it will interest very few people.

Want to reach more customers? Show clearly why your product is the one we should buy, and leave all technological facts to those who will be able to understand them.

The Seller Understands Your Needs

Due to the smaller distance between the seller and the buyer, face-to-face shopping in a grocery store means that you can tell what you are making for dinner and what you are having trouble with, and the other person will advise you and give you tips because he knows his products well.

You are this salesman. Therefore, when, for example, you promote a sports application, you need to know which customer’s need is to be met and in which situations it will be used. Why? To properly select the communication channels. For example, are you a startup dealing with the topic of health? Perfect. Remember that articles on technology fan portals will not necessarily translate into the development of the company, but rather think about health portals, magazines, and conferences presenting how to have a healthy lifestyle. There you will find people who may need exactly what your company does.

IT Promotion – Use Simple Language and Don’t Forget to Present the Benefits

You see some exotic fruit or vegetable on display. On the one hand, you are curious; on the other hand, you are worried—will you know how to make it? What do you do to get to know this new taste? How do you deal with it properly? If you ask the seller, he will surely give you the name of the product, tell you how to use it and what it tastes best with. And all of a sudden, the fears are gone. You buy it and bring it home to surprise everyone with a brand new exotic dish.

It’s similar to the case of creating a new program, application, or product. You’ve seen it work for someone, and now you’re wondering if it would work for you. Questions and doubts begin to multiply in your head: you’re not sure you’re going to do everything right, or maybe it will take you too long to learn this solution and it will turn out that it wasn’t worth it at all.

In the case of providing IT services, you do not always have the opportunity to directly talk to a potential customer. Often, the first point of contact is the website. It is a showcase of what you do. Remember that industry language can be difficult to perceive, and thus may discourage your audience. What do you need to do now? First of all, show the website to several people with different tastes and ask them for opinions on the readability of the website and the clarity of the messages contained therein. Then let them play the role of your client and tell you about their needs.

Promocja IT

Context Counts Every Time

Would a grocery store located next to a gas station or between clothing stores in a shopping mall inspire your trust? It wouldn’t for me, because in my opinion, such a store doesn’t fit in such places. The same is true for IT promotion.

Beginner entrepreneurs come to our agency and say they want to be everywhere. We advise them against this type of activity every time, because:

  1. This would often be associated with a very large time burden—it would also take time to participate in interviews and recordings, and they usually cannot afford to take a few days off to just meet journalists.
  2. Not every medium will reach the group that they are actually interested in—so maybe their ego would grow, but it would not translate into an increase in value or the number of customers of the company.

I strongly recommend choosing the media channels that are crucial for the client, and then establishing and building a good and lasting relationship with journalists. I would advise against the reckless transmission of information to everyone, as well as sending one piece of information to multiple people at the same time. It is just a step to spoil the cooperation that has not yet started.

We Buy With Our Eyes

How many times did you stop by the grocery store and buy a product that you didn’t actually need, but it was so nicely displayed that you immediately wanted it?

The same is true of your company. The better you present it, even using attractive photos or graphics, the more you will attract the attention of others. Remember this! Our brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text. And as shown by the 2014 State of Inbound Marketing study:

  • 63% of the content posted on social media is photos.
  • 94% of content placed on the web, and enriched with photos, has more views than without them.
  • Tweets with photos are shared more often by 150%.

And finally, remember that the best promotion does not sell the product. It sells values, emotions, and feelings. Now imagine how effective your company could be if you were to conduct communication activities properly and interestingly.

Promocja IT Promocja IT

Photos credits to Dawid Chatkiewicz

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