Last Thursday I was among a group of fellow Tweeters, Facebookers, LinkedInners (yes, these are all real words) and other Social Media types at the Exeter Conference Centre, attending the maiden Exeter #Tags event. Turnout was impressive and most of the crowd were walking around adorned with great Twitter ID (Twid?) stickers provided by the team at Peninsular. (My imagination runs wild at the other creative ‘tag’ options we could come up with!)

The Tweetup was a two-hour event, organised by Alastair Banks, David Thomas and Scott Gould.

In a sense, the gathering bore resemblance to the larger and more international Like Minds conference held at the same venue last month. Another panel and speakers, another audience. A group of likeminded individuals getting together to talk about Social Media, and the effect the various platforms for communication are having on our personal lives and our businesses.

John Harvey, our Exeter City Centre Manager gave an excellent presentation highlighting the importance of interaction between (local) government and constituents, and the emerging role of social media, particularly Twitter, there in. To me, it demonstrated the potential of Social Media to reach far beyond purely ‘social’ interaction. Twitter and the other platforms are tools, which can be used effectively for a myriad of different purposes with potentially momentous results. As always, the fruition of that potential lies with us, its users.

John’s presentation was followed by a panel made up of Adam Stone, Martin Rothwell and Sarah Knight, who each shared their experiences with Social Media from a business perspective. Positive experiences with which, as a business owner, I emphasize entirely. Twitter as a business tool is invaluable in terms of expanding networks, advertising, and perhaps most importantly, in connecting with clients on a personal level and developing relationships that facilitate and enhance business opportunities.

There was one aspect of the event that struck me above all else however, and this was the overwhelming lack of participation from the audience. During the panel discussion, our responses, queries and comments were invited, repeatedly. Again and again, we were encouraged to actively participate in the discussion and engage with the panel. Yet this normally vocal group of individuals, who express themselves freely when online, was uncharacteristically quiet at the event.

Traditional media has been a one-way stream of information; broadcast to us, available to be received, and digested. We are used to being ‘talked at’ and I think we are comfortable with our traditional role as listeners. We are used to being an Audience, more at ease with anonymous listening than with attracting attention to ourselves by being vocal. Active participation however is vital to an event such as this; the questions posed and comments made enriched the discussion and provided an opportunity for the panellists to share more of their experiences with us.

Twitter and the other platforms have given us a place to interact in a way and on a scale that simply was not possible before. Interaction and participation are the key elements of Social Media. So let’s interact, and participate. Not just from behind our laptops, but in the ‘real world’ too. At the next event, let’s show up and speak up. The result will be a better experience for all involved.

FYI, you can check out the other #tags write ups here:

• ‘Tags’ Social Media Event Recap by Camilla Todd
• Exeter #TAGS Tweetup by Paul Smart
• Social Networking Sites Can Be A Tool For Business by Ed Oldfield

Claire (@claire_sloane) is a freelance photographer who has recently returned from an extensive photography trip through 11 countries.  Her images on www.clairesloanephotography.co.uk are a glimpse of the breath-taking diversity she’s seen and captured along the way.