Web 2.0 Expo is one of the biggest tech conferences in SF and NY every year--making it a great show for exposure and conversation. Because it's an appealing event, we generally get at least 10 session proposals for each available slot--but most of those proposals are, frankly, way, way off the mark. This slide deck is from the webcast by program chairs Brady Forrest and Sarah Milstein. They share tips and answer questions to help you craft a proposal that will stand out in a good way.

1. Submit
S b it a
Winning
Proposal
Presented by Web 2.0 Expo co-chairs
Brady Forrest (@Brady)
Sarah Milstein (@SarahM)
(@ )

2. Sarah
S h Brady

3. This talk could also be named

4. This talk could also be named
“Submit a Proposal We’ll Consider S
“S C Seriously”

5. This talk could also be named
“Submit Proposal W ’ll C
“S b it a P l We’ll Consider S i
id Seriously”
l ”
Or
Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pressthebuttononthetop/277470840 used under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

6. This talk could also be named
“Submit Proposal W ’ll C
“S b it a P l We’ll Consider S i
id Seriously”
l ”
Or

7. This talk assu es you e looked a ou C
s a assumes you’ve oo ed at our CFP
form, which guides you through the process:
http://www.web2expo.com/webexny2010/.
If you want examples of past proposals that we’ve accepted, take a look at our
previous shows. The sessions give a good sense of what we like, and the
descriptions are drawn directly from proposals
proposals.

8. Dates
April 12 - Web 2.0 Expo NYC CFP closes
June - Talks selected and registration opens
October 18-21 - Web 2.0 Expo NYC
20

9. Have a U i
H Unique St
Story We want compelling talks,
stories and technologies

10. Session title: “Review of best-practice
recommendations for privacy and policy
implementations in location-aware applications”
Don’t send us this—it’s too generic: “Panelists review key recommendation
and guidelines, and offer advice about implementing cool applications while
complying with the guidelines and regulations on respecting and protecting
privacy.”

11. image: Laughingsquid
Focus your talk towards a
y
Pick Your T
Pi k Y Target
t segment of our attendees

12. Session title: “Redesigning products as design
Redesigning
models evolve in the industry”
Don’t send us this—we can’t tell who the audience for it would be: “This
subject covers the aspects of interactive product design and the necessity for
the continued success of the product to redesign Products have a base set of
product, redesign.
requirements when initiated, as features are added the product evolves giving
us the opportunity to redesign. Periodic redesign is essential for staying current
with the industry trends ”
trends.

13. Focus on lessons learned and
Don’t Pitch
D ’t Pit h NOT the benefits of your product
or service

14. Session title: “Web 3.0: Content is the Heart of
Web
the Matter”
Don’t send us this—it looks like a product pitch: “Location-based
applications are leading the way to Web 3.0 where users create content and
opportunities for monetization are built in XXXX XXXX CEO of XXXX will
in. XXXX, XXXX,
discuss how Web 3.0 recognizes multiple revenue opportunities by putting
content at its center.”
(NB: This was submitted by a PR agent.)

15. Provide a clear description of
Think f the Attendees
Thi k of th Att d what attendees will learn and
hat ill
why they care

16. Session Title: “CompanyX EveryWhere 2.0”
Don’t send us this—our attendees don’t aspire to control remote
employees: “This session will answer the question: How can companies retain
control over employees as working out of the office becomes increasingly more
common due to the high quality of new technologies?”

17. Incorporation of the USA
Don’t send us this—it may be related to Web 2.0, but it doesn’t appear to
be for our audience at all: “XXXXXXX 2.0, Incorporated uses the basic
fundamental concepts of Web 2.0 to evolve the antiquated and obsoleted
20
democratic institutions created over 200 years ago. We must use the technology
of the Web 2.0 and beyond to force the greatest country in the world into the
future.
future The Incorporation of the USA and issuance of stock equity to every
American Citizen, is the start of such an evolution.”

18. Skip th j
Ski the jargon

19. Skip th j
Ski the jargon
Dreadful actual proposal we received:
“This session will provide an overview of
leading-edge e gage e t p at o s
ead g edge engagement platforms
architected to enable real-time brand lift and
ROI with location-aware mobile analytics.”
location aware analytics.

20. Skip th j
Ski the jargon
Decent rewrite:
“This session will analyze three leading
approaches companies take to participating
in and tracking results from social media.”

21. Include people
we don t see often enough
don’t
at tech conferences

22. Include people
we don t see often enough
don’t
at tech conferences
(We see a ton of these guys.)

23. Include people
we don t see often enough
don’t
at tech conferences

24. Include people
we don t see often enough
don’t
at tech conferences

25. Include people
we don t see often enough
don’t
at tech conferences

26. Post compelling video
ideo

27. Post compelling video
ideo

28. Do it yourself
o rself

29. Do it yourself
o rself
Fact: we reject most proposals from PR people Not because we
people.
dislike flacks, but because the proposals tend to be product pitches,
or too general, or too jargony. In addition, if we see a lot of
proposals f
l from one person or company ( hi h i more common
(which is
when a PR person is involved), we think you’re spraying and
praying, not that you have a ton of good ideas.

30. Submit a proposal for
Web2Expo NY by April 12
W b2E b A il
http://www.web2expo.com/webexny2010/

31. Q&A from our live webcasts
f li b t
Q: You HAVE to include video? A: Yes, we require it this year.
Q: Can you clarify on the video: sample speech video or elevator pitch -- which is it? If
you have a video of a strong presentation you’ve given before, feel free to post the
link to that. If you don’t have a great video (or any video), create a quick-and-dirty
(but clear and energetic!) elevator pitch and post that.
Q: So for the video - just be your fabulous self... yes? A: Yes, but we want to see that
you can communicate. If your recording a fresh pitch for us, make sure you describe
your talk who it’s for, and what they’ll get out of it. The video should be no more
talk, it s for they ll it
than about two minutes long.

32. Q: You HAVE to include video? A: Yes, we require it this year.
Q: Can you clarify on the video: sample speech video or elevator pitch -- which is it? If
you have a video of a strong presentation you’ve given before, feel free to post the
link to that. If you don’t have a great video (or any video), create a quick-and-dirty
(but clear and energetic!) elevator pitch and post that.
Q: So for the video - just be your fabulous self... yes? A: Yes, but we want to see that
you can communicate. If your recording a fresh pitch for us, make sure you describe
y
your talk, who it’s for, and what they’ll get out of it.
, , y g
Q: What’s the ideal video length? A: The video should be no more than about two or
three minutes long.
Q: Are there sample videos available? A: Not yet. We’re working on that.
Q: Is there a certain topic that you feel is overdone or that you get a lot of so that we
can maybe avoid it? A: Not specifically, but we do see a lot of generic proposals that
look very similar. If you propose a session that has unique lessons or data only you
could reveal, it doesn’t matter nearly so much if the topic is fairly common.
, y p y

33. Q: Can the presentations be too technical? A: We have a Development track, and a
very large number of our attendees are programmers. See past shows for examples
of technical talks we accepted. (Of course, we also take non-technical talks that are
about applications or implications of technology. See past conferences to get a feel
for the sort of things we look for.)
Q: If the speaker will speak at Web 2 0 San Francisco will they NOT be considered for
2.0 Francisco,
New York? A: We try not to repeat people too much from one show to the next. But if
a speaker is very good, we will work with them for more than one show.
Q: Are you open to receiving two proposals from a given company? A: Our system
doesn't prevent you from submitting multiple ideas. But a lot of proposals from one
individual or organization most often looks like that proposer has no idea what will
work and is just spamming us with everything possible. Better to focus on one or
maybe two ideas that are really sharp. We're far more likely to take those seriously.
Q: You ve mentioned particular ''tracks'' of conferences -- are those listed or
You've tracks listed,
something we should consider when proposing? A: In the CFP form, we ask you to
pick one or two topics that your session would fit under; those topics are the tracks.
We don’t change the tracks a ton from show to show, so y can also take a look at
g , you
previous shows to get an idea of our tracks, which generally include Development,
Marketing, Design and Business Strategy, plus a bunch of hot topics..

34. Q: You've had hands on session previously, are there any of those available? A: We’re
looking primarily for 20-minute and 50-minute breakout sessions. These sessions
can feature single speakers, co-presentations or panels. If you have more in-depth,
hands-on content, we also program several 3-hour workshops, scheduled for the
first day of the conference.
Q: Would submitting myself as a panelist be any different than a single speaker? A:
Unlike a lot of other conference organizers, we don’t typically create panels
ourselves. That is, we accept proposals for full panels, but we very, very rarely come
up with ideas for p
p panels on our own and then solicit p p for them. In addition, we
people ,
almost never place somebody on a panel that’s been proposed to us. So you’re
welcome to submit panel ideas with yourself as moderator or panelist, but we can’t
recommend that you simply submit yourself as a potential panelist.
Q: Do you allow co-presenting? Example: agency + client. A: Sure. But beware that
often, those agency + client proposal look like product pitches. And we’re seriously
allergic to product pitches
pitches.
Q How many people attend Web 2.0 Expo? In NY in 2009, we had about 1,300
conference attendees (and about 4.500 total attendees, including people who came
( , gp p
for just the keynotes and/or Expo Hall). Double both numbers for Expo SF in 2009.

35. Q: What makes a proposal stand out? A: A talk is two parts: the speaker and the topic
(we talked earlier about sharing your unique story). A gem is less-known speaker
who has been writing/speaking about their ideas. A great way to get a speaking slot
is to be noticed first for your thinking and writing. Hacker News, for instance, is a
good place to get recognized for Development sessions. Bar Camps and Ignites are
another great place for speakers to share their ideas and show us some
presentation chops
chops.
Q: If we have more questions, who can we ask? A: ny-idea@web2expo.com or sf-
idea@web2expo.com.
@ p