Happy Friday! Of course, the major buzz this week in the association community was the cancellation of ASAE’s Technology Conference and Expo and the emergence of an un-conference, UnTech. Organized by a group of volunteers and supported by several vendors, UnTech was a virtual un-conference and had 500 total attendees — 75 in person and 425 on a Webcast.

MemberClicks is proud to be a sponsor, and although we wish we could have made it to D.C. to participate in the awesome-ness, it is quite a bit warmer in our Atlanta office.

However, UnTech wasn’t the only thing association bloggers wrote about this week. There were lots of other awesome topics covered, so, in no particular order, here’s my top five.

1. Aaron Woloweic wrote a fantastic post about tips for studying for the CAE exam. His five tips will help anyone who is already taking the exam, or thinking about sitting for it. There’s a lot of material covered, to be sure, but determining a schedule adn sticking to it can help you earn that CAE designation.

2. After the Super Bowl was over, Deirdre Reid wrote a thoughtful post about the National Association of the Deaf’s reaction to The Who’s “deaf, dumb and blind” lyric that was sung during the halftime show. NAD posted a message on Twitter saying they would take action against the offensive lyric, and Deirdre wants to know if the person behind the tweet was authorized or just acting under emotions. What would your association do?

3. What’s the best marketing and communication strategy, Scott Oser discussed this week. Does your association understand how to use market research and incorporate the results into its communications? Direct marketing is tricky, and it’s important to get a complete picture of your members, vendors and volunteers.

4. In the first of a five-part series, Shelly Alcorn tackles the economic uncertainty still facing the country (and world) and how it affects associations. Don’t fall prey to hubris and think that your association isn’t at risk. Success can be your own worst enemy and can lead to neglect of the members and programs that got you to where you are, Shelly writes.

5. Finally, after the first day of UnTech concluded, Peggy Hoffman shared some reflections about the power of volunteers and patience of attendees, as well as praising ASAE for recognizing the force that drove the community together. It’s pretty amazing to see the power of volunteers and social media at work.

I encourage you to participate in the second day of UnTech 10. Check out the schedule here, and be sure to follow the action on Twitter with the #UnTech10 hashtag.

Have a fantastic Presidents Day and Valentine’s Day weekend! Hopefully some of you have Monday off — enjoy it!

There’s been so much activity going on in the association world the last few days — ASAE’s Technology Conference and Expo was canceled and a group of people stranded in Washington, D.C. organized the UnTech Conference, the unofficial alternative to the canceled one.

We’ll be participating virtually, so look for MemberClicks team members Shannon Otto, Kevin Patrick, Hannae Berhanu, Nicole Hanks and others! Follow us at @MemberClicks on Twitter, and be sure to follow the #Untech10 hashtag for the latest updates from all attendees.

We’re definitely bummed the Technology Conference was canceled, but this is a great opportunity to participate virtually with other association executives and learn tons of new information.

Here’s a list of our previous posts about the Technology Conference and UnTech:

• Announcing we’ll be exhibiting at the Technology Conference
• Meet the Technology Conference Team: Hannae Berhanu
• Meet the Technology Conference Team: Duncan McCreery
• How to follow the Technology Conference online if you won’t be attending
• Reflections on ASAE’s decision, and the UnTech announcement
• Friday Top Five: UnTech10 and more
• UnTech Reflections: Day One
  

UnTech will be heavily virtual, so no matter where you are, go register! This is a fantastic opportunity for small-staff executives to learn about mobile tools, Web site options, social networking, and video!

Crises are not things any organization looks forward to dealing with, but it’s crucial to always have a contingency plan.

ASAE and The Center’s move on Tuesday to cancel the Technology Conference and Expo was the right call. Even though the event is the organization’s third biggest event of the year, the winter weather presented too many risks to attendees and exhibitors alike.

On top of making the safe decision, ASAE also announced everyone would be issued a full refund.

This is an extremely refreshing move on ASAE’s part. Obviously, no one can control the weather, but ASAE kept it classy with full refunds and apologies. To be honest, on Tuesday morning, I didn’t think the event would be cancelled. But as I continued to keep up with the #Tech10 Twitter stream throughout the day, I realized that the risks far outweighed the benefits.

Long lines at the Atlanta airport...

Our own MemberClicks crew made it as far as Richmond, Va. They were supposed to fly to D.C. this morning, but when flights started getting axed, we sent them up early, anticipating that the show would go on. When it was cancelled, we decided it wasn’t safe for them to drive from Richmond to D.C. on snowy, icy roads, and they returned to Atlanta.

...and long lines at the Richmond airport.

We’re going to be virtually attending UnTech conference, which will last from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday. If you’re in the D.C. area and can get to the Renaissance Hotel, try to be there in person! If not, they will be streaming some session live. If you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow the #UnTech10 stream, as well.

We were truly happy to see ASAE make this right, albeit difficult, decision and hope small-staff association professionals in the D.C. area take part in the UnTech conference. Or, just sign up and attend virtually! Many speakers will be presenting their planned sessions, and this is a great opportunity to take part in the association community, ASAE-official or not.

It’s one of those things we have no control over. No matter how much you plan and how detailed those plans are, we just can’t control the weather.

So what do you do when the radar map for your area looks like this, as it does for Washington, D.C., just days before you’re supposed to travel or host an event for your organization?

What are your provisional plans?

And how can you follow ASAE and The Center’s Technology Conference and Expo if the snowy weather prevented you from getting to D.C.?

Provisional plans

Hosting an event during winter can be tricky. Even if you’re not in a city where snow is common, things happen — and if attendees live in Northern cities, they could have trouble leaving their local airports.

There’s no reason why keynote speeches and learning sessions can’t be streamed online, or at least recorded for future viewing. Publicize which sessions will be recorded and available later, and make them available in as many formats as possible – YouTube, a blog, links on Twitter, etc… Inclement weather is an unfortunate and unavoidable situation, and with today’s technology capabilities, no one should be denied a virtual experience if the situation is out of their control.

Plan to post presentations on SlideShare for easy sharing in the future. (Here’s my summary of SlideShare from the Beyond the Big Three series.)

Enlist volunteers to tweet and take photos during sessions. The more information out there, the better.

Amy Lestition, Executive Director of Association Media and Publishing, posted her organization’s provisional plans for the Technology Conference on Twitter earlier this morning.

Each of these tools are fantastic for sharing information quickly because they store data on the Internet and are mobile. Google Wave hasn’t quite taken off the way Google expected, but it’s still a great resource to communicate with multiple people and share files amongst yourselves.

As for our own provisional plans, MemberClicks team members had originally planned to leave for Washington on Wednesday morning. Not surprisingly, flights from Atlanta to D.C. had been cancelled. So they packed up their bags a day early, hopped on a flight to Richmond and are braving the icy roads to drive the rest of the way. It will definitely be an adventure, but everyone will have a good story to share once they get there!

A virtual Technology Conference

Snowpocalypse, Snomg, Snowverkill, Snowmageddon … there are many variations of the blizzard Washington, D.C. is experiencing right now, but no matter what you call it, it’s created a tricky situation just days before ASAE’s Technology Conference and Expo.

ASAE’s Technology Conference Twitter account (@TechConf) tweeted Monday that the show would not be cancelled and then changed plans this afternoon. Unfortunately, countless flights to D.C. are cancelled, and attendees and exhibitors alike are making provisional plans on the fly.

There are alternate “unofficial” plans in the works for those who already made it to snowy D.C., so be sure to check our Twitter (@MemberClicks) and the #Tech10 stream for information if you’re in D.C.

There will still be lots of info available online, though. There has been talk of speakers putting together mini-webinars of their presentations, recording them and putting them online for everyone.

ASAE created a great hub to compile all the tweets and blog posts about #Tech10. Visit http://tech10.org on your computer or http://tech10.org/m on your mobile device to get the latest info from in-person and virtual attendees. All the tweets that contain the hashtag #Tech10 are included.

Other tools to follow the hashtag: TweetChat, TweetDeck, HootSuite and Seesmic Desktop. If the Technology Conference is anything like ASAE’s Annual Meeting, the Twitter feed will be blowing up with gems from attendees during sessions and expo times.

The Acronym blog also put out a call to association bloggers who will be updating during the Technology Conference. The blog roll can be found here, and there are tons of awesome blogs on the list — everyone will have a unique experience, so read around to get lots of different perspectives.

Stay tuned for back-up plans to this year’s Technology Conference. There will still be many “unofficial” events going on, and possibly webinars of learning sessions, as well.

I was catching up on some video posts last weekend and this morning, and thought I’d compile them in one post here for our readers.

January was Governance Month at ASAE and The Center, as well as its Acronym blog, and they posted a few video interviews with association CEOs about having those “crucial conversations” with your board.

Mike Grubb, CEO of the Southern Gas Association, talks about building a stronger relationship with his board.

John Saunders, executive director of the National Forum for Black Public Administrators, chats with ASAE about confronting a board member about an ethical issue — a topic we all know can be tricky!

Finally, Tonya Howe Johnson discusses how best to introduce a difficult concept to your board. Key takeaway here: Make sure to position it as a professional idea, not one you have a personal interest in.

Communication is such a crucial factor in your relations with the board — don’t underestimate the power of an honest conversation.

All videos courtesy of ASAE and The Center’s YouTube channel; I’m just sharing the love! Feel free to share any videos (association-related or not) in the comments!