Meeting Organizers vs. Social Media
Jurors Needed for the Trial of the Century
By James Spellos (continued) Broken Social Scene
In Spring 2009, WWF’s Annual Meeting was, in everyone’s estimation, a huge failure. Attendance for this event only reached 180, although they anticipated and committed to the hotel a block of 500 rooms. Theories abound as to why the meeting failed, including the recent economic climate, as well as the diminishing need for widgets in modern society. Not according to plaintiff lawyer Deborah Gardner. “My client truly believes the meeting’s failure is due to Twitbook,” Gardner explains. “Their misrepresentation regarding their impact and usefulness of their service, as most social media, in helping to promote conferences and events”.
However, defendant attorney James Spellos has a differing opinion. “My client, Twitbook, is not the cause of the meeting’s demise. The 
association is attempting to blame social media and Twitbook for their industry’s shortcoming, including their inadequate and ineffective event marketing. Everyone knows that a service as altruistic as my client would never knowingly misrepresent their abilities. Remember the Twitbook motto—Connecting the Business World, One Friend at a Time.”
Location Rules
With the lawyers unable to find an impartial jury in the States (in large part due to Twitbook’s massive popularity), the judge has agreed to move the trial to Cancun, Mexico. In a controversial decision, the judge incorporated the following rules, ensuring the case is heard and completed in a fair manner:
- Arguments for both parties will be limited to a single, 20 minute presentation
- The trial will last only 90 minutes
- A live and a virtual jury will be accepted, hoping to obtain as many jurors as possible to decide this cases outcome
- The majority decision of the jurors will determine the trial’s outcome – no hung jury
You Decide
Twitbook or WWF? Who do you feel will win? Help determine the verdict and be a part of the jury. Attend this exciting new session at MeetDifferent in Cancun, Mexico, February 20-23, 2010. If you want to know more, watch for the next update right here on the MeetDifferent website. And, you decide who will win this case—Twitbook or WWF!
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Deborah Gardner is a business specialist for DEBORAH GARDNER INTERNATIONAL and COMPETE BETTER NOW! LLC. She is a 26 year veteran in the hospitality industry, an 18 year MPI member and currently the ASU Project Director for the MPI CMP on-line study guide. Deborah is internationally known as a speaker, trainer, consultant and author. To know more about Deborah, go to www.DeborahGardner.com or contact her at Deborah@DeborahGardner.com
James Spellos is the President of Meeting U., a company specializing in helping people become more productive and comfortable with technology. Prior to creating Meeting U., Jim spent 20 years as a meeting professional. His monthly eletter, Techniques, is read by over 10,000 people monthly. Jim can be contacted lots of ways…through his website (www.meeting-u.com ), email (jspellos@meeting-u.com), as well as through Twitter (www.twitter.com/jspellos) and other social media applications. Just Google him.. you’ll find him.