We were awestruck to have some of the best hyperlocal web people signed up to attend the event.

Talk About Local Unconference 2009

Links

• Google Group
• Twitter
• Delicious

Timetable

• 0930 Registration opens in the Film Theatre Foyer
• Un-Conference planning, Networking & Coffee
• 1030 Welcome speech in the Film Theatre
• 1100 Morning Sessions
• 1300 Lunch (yes the free one)
• 1400 Afternoon Sessions
• 1600 Closing speeches & mutual back slapping
• 1700 Drinks & Networking in the Clayhanger Bar at the North Staffordshire Hotel (opposite the Rail Station)

Sponsors

Business Link, Media Trust, Ofcom and Cisco.

All the team are working away on different bits to make sure that Saturday is a huge success. We will have wireless connections in the venue for you to use, but due to the complexity of academic networks we will be using 3G routers throughout the building, so if you have your own mobile broadband you may wish to bring that with you.  If you do use our connections please play nice and don’t start streaming movies!   We will have a couple of cat5 connections for people who are presenting or running sessions to plug in to.

As Will has said previously, we are pretty awe struck with the names that have appeared on our delegate list. We have some of the best bloggers and social media people around turning up.   There is one ‘very’ special delegate, Andrew Stott who has signed up to come along and has offered to give a talk on data.gov.uk to say there was a certain amount of jaw dropping when we saw Andrew had signed up would be an under statement!

We have had an excellent response from sponsors and supporters who we would like to say a big thank you to (in no particular order):

Screen WM
OFCOM
Cisco
UK online centres
Business Link WM
4iP
Media Trust
Advantage West Midlands

For making the event possible.

We  have shwag for you, we have pads, pens, mouse mats (does anyone still use them?) mugs, a free copy of The Sentinel courtesy of Mike Sassi.    Interestingly we will be having a competition to win a serious prize provided by Media Trust as part of the Festival of Learning.  Nicky is busily working away at some questions for you to win a blog make over.

The prize will include, a trip to Talk About Local offices in Fazeley, a make over for your blog by some of the best social media practitioners in the UK,  lunch and some other goodies.

We won’t be able to stream the event but there will be a number of social reporters covering the event and we ask that delegates use #tal09 as your tag to appear in these feeds:
- Twitter
- delicious

You can also add photos to the TAL Flickr group and join in longer conversations at the Google Group.

If you have any questions about the event, need to check anything or just want a chat then drop us a mail at info[@]talkaboutlocal.org and we’ll get back to you.

We look forward to meeting you all on Saturday morning, or on Friday night if any of you are getting there early.

Directions to the campus can be found here

Stoke is easily accessible from most rail routes, the M6 and even canal.

The conference is not for you to come and be comatised by web 2.0 marketeers telling you how you can monetize 24/365 relationships or transition viral ROI it is for real people, running real hyperlocal sites to network with people who are doing the same thing.

The thing people say to us most when we are talking about Talk About Local (and you may have noticed we love to talk about it!) is ‘I didn’t know anyone else was doing this’  so we are giving you the chance to meet up with all the other people who you didn’t know were doing the same as you!

The format is going to be Unconference, fun, relaxed and informal.    As well and the unconference event, we will be holding social media surgeries where you can come along and speak to friendly developers and experts to get advice about your site or how to fix that niggling problem you just can’t seem to get your head around.

The best bit is it’s free! Yes FREE!

But there is no such thing as a free lunch I hear you cry.

Well actually there is because we will even feed you during the day!

Please click HERE and fill in our very simple pre registration form and we’ll add you to our mailing list, as soon as we have the venue confirmed we’ll drop you a mail with all the details.