 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group APCUG's Fall 1997 Conference (Part 1) Carol Daniels cad@melbpc.org.au |
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Saturday, let the Roundtables begin
Although I'm writing this some time after the last roundtable ended, my mind is still buzzing from the many
ideas, projects and activities being used to promote and develop user groups around the world.
Each year brings increasing participation from Region 8 Groups (those outside the USA). As usual the Canadian
contingent was strong, but Fall 1997 also saw representatives from Japan, the CIS, and Australia, from Melb
PC and Brisbug. As one of two Board of User Group Advisors (BoDA) representing Region 8, I'd like to see that
grow to include representatives from every user group in Region 8.
But back to 1997, and the innovative round-tables organised by Rich Schinnell, a member of APCUG's 1997 Board
of Directors and First Vice President of the Capital PC User Group (CPCUG), in Rockville, Maryland USA. I
made a bee-line for roundtables focused on user group communication, magazines, web publishing, marketing and
public relations. Stan headed straight for anything to do with organisational management, presidential
matters, and community service. For Ash it was roundtables for web masters, and those on member databases,
member surveys, and organisational growth.
Editors unite
At the traditional "Meet and Greet Other Editors" session we discussed various approaches to newsletters, not
just different production methods, but different philosophies about the function newsletters serve in user
group communities. Although in 1996 many editors said they were considering a switch to electronic-only
distribution for their newsletters, there were only a handful that had taken or were considering this route
in 1997. The consensus seemed to be, as APCUG Reports Editor Sam Gardner wrote, "Newsletters are the glue
that holds the user group together. Printed newsletters have many unique benefits that in almost every case
outweigh the cost of production." Maybe that's why the sessions on making and managing a user group's money
were so well attended. Having Intuit's irrepressible Richard Katz as one of the presenters for the Financial
Management Roundtable could have something to do with the standing room only audience.
A new spin on tried and true techniques
Alas, I skipped Richard's performance to attend "Publicity, good and bad", led by Judy Taylor (Santa Clarita
PC Group) and Lee Schwab (Napa Valley PC User's Group). Although it wasn't SRO, the room was full to the
gills. Why? A quick show of hands proved that Melb PC isn't the only user group that faces the frustration of
hearing "I didn't know there was computer group in (insert your home town)." It seems that the more common
computers get, the harder it is for user groups to get publicity.
The roundtable started with a short rundown on the theory and practice of public relations. The conveners
also reminded us that as not-for-profit organisations, we are often entitled to have public service
announcements played on radio and television, at little or no cost. This is a powerful public relations
resource that few groups use to its full advantage.
Once the conveners opened the meeting to discussion things really became lively. User group leaders shared
successes and failures and asked for opinions on ideas in the formative stage. The end result was an
avalanche. One good idea triggered another. Twists on old favourites made us all realise that focusing on the
"computer" in computer user groups can limit our vision. Many groups are grabbing the attention of people in
their communities with techniques used successfully time and time again, modifying attention-grabbing
activities to suit their groups, rather than trying to invent totally new computer-focused techniques. The
take-away message? Think about how user groups are like other groups, and learn from them, rather than always
trying to invent the next wheel.
Communication, beyond the printed page
If I could pick one APCUG roundtable to be re-run for Melb PC, it would be Lillian Milliner's "How to
communicate with your members". Lillian is the President of Capital PC User Group Inc. I've long been a fan
of her monthly column, President's Notes, in CPCUG's Monitor, where she often focuses on volunteerism and the
role each member must play if a group is to flourish. She does it in a way that recognises the many different
contributions members make. As a professional trainer and author, Lillian's roundtable was not only the most
polished, but the most innovative. She had us using all our senses as she tried to improve our understanding
of non-verbal communication. Guess what? Most groups have similar problems. The difference between those that
succeed and those that fall by the wayside may have more to do with how they handle problems than the
severity of the problems. There were many gems from Lillian's roundtable, but two really hit home. The first
is that setting and communicating boundaries can make the difference between healthy, happy volunteers and
burnt-out volunteers. The second, that a user group is a community of individuals coming together to share
experiences; within that community, each individual is both a student and a teacher.
The highlight of this editor's trip
The next two roundtables on my schedule had been marked with red ink. They were "must sees". Not only because
the topics "How to give good meetings" led by John Woram and "Effective Writing of Product Reviews", led by
John Woram and Mike Elgan, are vitally important to Melb PC and PC Update, but also because of the
presenters. If you don't recognise the names, John Woram is Consulting Editor, Windows Magazine, author of
The Windows 95 Registry: A Survival Guide for Users, MIS Press, 1996, and the Windows SIG Chair for
the Long Island PC Users Group. Mike Elgan is the Editor of Windows magazine (his monthly Start column
is required reading in my house).
As it turned out, John's entertaining descriptions of classic meeting problems would have been reason enough
to attend. But he wrapped up with sound advice that, if implemented, can go a long way towards solving those
problems. "Each user group needs a Meeting Co-ordinator - someone who will run the meeting with an iron hand,
keep an eye on the clock, keep the speakers (and the audience) on track, and make sure there's a beginning,
middle and end to each presentation. The reward for giving good meetings is that vendors will actually enjoy
coming to a meeting where they're treated with respect, and find they're in good hands. Members will realise
the meeting really does start on time, that it will be well paced and that it will end before they're too
exhausted to make it home." To which we all said, "Amen".
For the product review roundtable, John and Mike were joined by Intuit's Richard Katz, a surprise guest who
gave us a vendor's point of view on the reviewing process. It was time to get knee-deep in issues, theories
and philosophies that make non-editors run, screaming, from the room, while holding their hands over their
ears. For editors, it was the stuff of dreams.
That, readers, is a short summary of Saturday's highlights. I'll write about Sunday's events and some of the
special vendor presentations in the March issue of PC Update.
Reprinted from the February 1998 issue of PC Update, the
magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
