Social Media Portal interview with Oxana Morozowska from the VirComm Summit 2013

Social Media Portal (SMP) profiled interview with Oxana Morozowska, Co-founder and CEO of Ginger Events

Social Media Portal (SMP): What is your name and what do you do there at the VirComm Summit 2013?

Oxana Morozowska (OM): Oxana Morozowska, Co-founder and CEO of Ginger Events, the events company behind the Virtual Community Summit conference.

SMP: Briefly, tell us about VirComm Summit 2013, what is it and when / where is the event scheduled?

OM: The Virtual Community Summit is the UK?s first and only conference dedicated to community management. It is a one-day conference, which is taking place on the 7th February 2013 at the Royal Institution, London.

SMP: Who are your target audience and why (and who should attend)?

OM: The event is aimed at community and social media managers - from those brand new to the field right up to veterans whose experience spans decades.

SMP: Why was VirComm Summit 2013 started, and how long has it been going?

OM: The Virtual Community Summit 2013 was created in response to members of the Yahoo! group for community managers ?e-mint?  (e-mint is the largest and oldest international group of online community managers. Founded in 2000, the community now has over 1000 members worldwide) discussing within the forum, that there were no conferences in the UK aimed specifically at their profession.

It was then that Rebecca Newton (the co-founder of VirComm and one of the founders of e-mint) and I decided to create our own event to fill this gap in the market.

Our first event was in February 2012 so we have been running for a year.

SMP: What is VirComm Summit 2013 event doing that?s different?

OM: The Virtual Community Summit is not as formal as many other conferences. We maintain a relaxed atmosphere through engaged roundtables and panels ? audience participation is key!

SMP: Why does the industry need this event?

OM: As discussed above, VirComm13 was created in response to the absence of an event dedicated to community management in the UK. There are other more generalist digital and social media events out there, which touch on community management, but none that completely focus on this.

SMP: What will be the highlights at the event?

OM: One of the key highlights will be the talk from John Coate, former community pioneer at the WELL (one of the world?s first online communities and one which Wired magazine called ?the world?s most influential.?) It will be interesting to hear how online communities have evolved since then and how he believes they will develop in the future.  

In fact, a main theme at the conference will be how the role of community managers has changed during the rise of social media. It will be interesting to hear from our speakers, who are from a plethora of different industries and backgrounds, regarding what they believe the new breed of social media managers can learn from community management and how they see social networks evolving.

SMP: How are you attracting attendees to the event?

OM: Our main base of attendees will stem from the e-mint group from which the conference was born out of.

SMP: What are the most important things that attendees can take away from this event?

OM: We pride ourselves on being a networking based event ? so hopefully attendees will come away having made lots of new connections and become and feel a part of the e-mint group.

The idea is that although new knowledge can be gained and shared at the conference we didn?t want this to happen on just one day of the year. By being part of the e-mint network, attendees can share experiences and learn from the knowledge of others between conferences too.

SMP: What are the low moments of what you have been doing so far in terms of the VirComm Summit 2013 event?

OM: It is definitely the difficulty of trying to find the time to achieve everything you set out to do. I have so many ideas I want to implement but I often only get around to doing about 50% of them.

SMP: What are the high moments of what you have been doing so far in terms of the VirComm Summit 2013 event?

OM: We have been extremely pleased with the high calibre of speakers that wanted to get involved with the event this time round and also the large percentage of returning attendees.

SMP: How can agencies and brands get involved in VirComm Summit 2013?

OM: We are still looking for sponsors for the VirComm Summit. As an independent conference, the sky is the limit, with regards to the flexibility we can offer in catering to a company?s particular objectives e.g. exhibiting, running a workshop, featuring in the conference program.

We are also always interested to hear from partners who could support VirComm with publicity or entertainment.

SMP: Have you any early birds discounts (if so when does it end)?

OM: We offered an early bird option up until the end of December. However, if you keep an eye out, there are still special offers, and discount codes available through our partners? sites.

In addition, we also offer special rates for start-ups, freelancers and group bookings.

SMP: Why is community management such an important talking point and why will it continue to be throughout 2013?

OM: It has become harder and harder to break through the noise via traditional marketing methods. I think running a community allows for a less evasive way of connecting with customers and potential customers via a two way process.

It is also not an option for companies to ignore social media anymore. The ?customer? expects to be able to contact a company via social media, so relevant business processes need to be put in place to manage the process.

SMP: What are your top five tips for community managers / or those working in the community management space?

OM replies with:

• Encourage members of your community to meet up with one another and form groups based around shared interests or a common location.
  
  
• Identify leaders within your community and support these people as much as possible. They are some of your most valuable assets. Reach out to them, and let them know you appreciate their contributions to the community.
  
  
• Ask your members what they think and respond to questions and comments. This is key to a social media and community engagement strategy.
  
  
• Understand that not every brand or company is going to be able to use social media in the same way. Take some time to gain clarity about what your brand is, and let those insights inform your process in the social space.
  
  
• Community management is about making a real connection with something you care about. And it's about building communities ? which really means building relationships. You need to ensure you are authentic and invest fully in the community.

SMP: What do you think the next big developments in the community management space are likely to be and what role does social media have to play in this?

OM: I think that community management will become more specialised and the profile of the profession will be raised.  

Rather than the community manager having to handle multiple roles i.e. customer service, marketing and PR -  their role will be more clearly defined.

The advent of social media, becoming a main form of communication now, has been something that companies have had to adapt to. This has meant that there has been little clarity as to how best to handle this new communication medium.

SMP: Best way to contact you?

OM: I can be contacted in a variety of ways. I am always happy for people to connect with me via LinkedIn (I am open to all kinds of new connections), and can also be contacted via Twitter on @oxydm or @vircommsummit.

I can also be contacted via good old fashioned email at oxana @ virtualcommunitysummit.com



SMP: What did you have for breakfast and lunch?

OM: For breakfast I had juice made freshly with the juicer my lovely mum bought me for Christmas. I think she still worries about me getting enough vitamins - bless!

And for lunch I had a ham and cheese Panini.

SMP: If you weren?t running or working on VirComm Summit 2013 (or doing what you do) what would you be doing?

OM: I would be running a vineyard in France. I love France, wine and can speak French? but maybe I?ve watched too many romantic films about people escaping the rat race and renovating dilapidated vineyards.

SMP: When and where did you go on your last holiday?

OM: I went to Ireland for a friend?s wedding. The ceremony took place in her hometown ? a beautiful village just 30 minutes outside of Dublin. I then drove down the West Coast - Ireland?s equivalent of Route 66!

SMP: What was your New Year?s resolution and how are you going to keep to it?

OM: My New Year?s resolution was to worry less. However, I don?t seem to be doing very well at this? there is always so much to take care of when running events. It is very fast paced and things change on a daily basis - it is the nature of the beast.

SMP: What?s the first thing you do when you get into the office of a morning?

OM: Well, we have an office cat, Bobby ? a stray we have taken in. So I feed him first, before anything else. He wouldn?t allow me to do anything else before this!

SMP: If you had a superpower what would it be and why?

I would be able to read people?s minds. I know there are downsides to being able to do that, but it would be so interesting. I consider myself to be quite perceptive, so it would be good to really test this out.

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