PR is not what it used to be. My job has less and less to do with going to cocktail parties and building relationships with the movers and shakers of a certain industry or a glittering crowd of media representatives and more and more with sitting in front of a computer and learning how social media are evolving and keeping track of the fast-paced evolution of languages. This is neither a good thing nor a bad one, but it is the reality with which we all have to reckon: good PR does no longer consist in writing and issuing well-crafted press releases. Rather, it is about telling your story in the right way, on the right platforms, so that it leaves a prodigious digital footprint and doesn’t fade away too quickly – even though fade away it must, eventually.
Does this mean people like me never get to see the light of day again? Well, potentially, that’s why we have conferences. Joking aside, conferences are those magic occasions on which we get to exchange knowledge and help each other’s industry evolve, while also interacting with our fellow humans in real life. It is no wonder, therefore, that I should attend several every year. They are, in the words of my friend Elena Poughia (Data Natives), the universities of the future.
Data Natives, Elena Poughia, Digital, Conference
One of my favourite conferences, which I try to attend every year, is Munich’s Bits & Pretzels, which I consider a beacon of innovation and a spectacular observatory on digital change, in a Country which is dragging its feet – to say the least – where such change is concerned.
Thanks to a few anarchic minds, who keep driving the tidal wave of digital change forward, the start-up scene (and myself) can rely on a few annual highlights to look forward to.
Attending Bits & Pretzels, for me, means networking with people who are likely to bring about change in the world we live in, learning about the new hot topics in my industry (and in neighbouring industries) and being able to take part in workshops and groundbreaking projects. And, last but by no means least, meeting brilliant innovators and interviewing them for this very blog.
As summer draws to a close, therefore, I am looking forward to this year’s edition of Bits & Pretzels and to its unique spirit, the excitement that precedes and accompanies it and the joy of meeting amazing professionals and listening to inspiring speakers. And if the rumours of Obama being booked as a keynote speaker this year are true, you can be sure to read about it on this blog soon…
