Tweetup Discussion at IAC

Co-authored by Michelle Samplin-Salgado, HIV.gov New Media Strategist

Early before the start of the International AIDS ConferenceExit Disclaimer Scott Sanders, who provides lead communications support to the International AIDS SocietyExit Disclaimer, organized a "Tweetup"Exit Disclaimer for individuals tweeting from the conference. Some represented organizations such as UNAIDSExit Disclaimer, amFarExit Disclaimer, Doctors without BordersExit Disclaimer, AtlasPlus, British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDSExit Disclaimer, and those working on the Vienna DeclarationExit Disclaimer. Others were tweeting as individuals (@allissaadler)Exit Disclaimer, researchers (@dadakim)Exit Disclaimer, and advocates(@mmontaner)Exit Disclaimer.

Facilitated by amfAR's Jirair Ratevosian(@JRatevosian)Exit Disclaimer, the meeting was an opportunity for usto share lessons learned, best practices, and tips about how we manage andevaluate our work on Twitter. The IAS has committed resources to evaluate how people are engaging with social media in general and Twitter, in particular, at the conference. We will share the findings from that evaluation in a future post.

During the Tweet-up, participants shared that Twitter has created significant outcomes for their organizations. One participant commented that, initially, she did not understand how Twitter could help her conduct a global drive tosupport changes in drug policies. Her understanding changed when sherealized how rapidly Twitter could help her reach and mobilizethousands of HIV community members.

We learned that many of our colleagues in the session are the only ones managing and promoting Twitter within their agency or organization, and they are working to educate their colleagues about how Twitter and other new media tools can helpextend their programs’ reach. We will continue to write about theirsuccesses and lessons learned in the coming months.

We look forward to following andparticipating in the conversation!