So I went to a tweetup

By now if you're a Jamaican tweeter you know that Kingston hotel giant Jamaica Pegasus hosted a little over 100 of their followers at their hotel for a "tweetup," a twitter meet up if you will. I've thus far read about 4 blog posts on the tweetup itself but I still wanted to blog about it from a little more personal aspect, not just describing how much fun it was and how cool the Pegasus is.

Firstly, I want to share this photo with you. Its me and Francois (@francoisonfame) of Fame 95 fm. I have been listening to this man faithfully in the mornings since I was in high school and I was quite pleased to see him there and snap this pic. I'm sure he was quite annoyed as I interrupted his meal as we fans have a way of doing when we see our favourite "celebs" but hey, he was a great sport. I would have loved to meet Danae too as their rapport is just great and she comes across as a very intelligent but equally funny and witty personality next to a hilarious Francois, I kinda want to be like her when I grow up! But anyway...



Why I appreciated this event is because it was slated to start early and end early. As a new mom I really do appreciate these events so much because if my little one should wake up in the middle of the night, it should be to her mommy and no one else. I also really liked the fact that it was a gathering of totally fresh faces, people that I have never seen before and maybe wouldn't have met had it not been for twitter and this gathering. Sometimes you get tired of the same old crowd and this was one of the reasons I enjoyed myself thoroughly.

But like fellow blogger and tweeter, madbull asked on Stunner's blog post, What's the benefit to the Pegasus for hosting such an event? Afterall, how much of us will be booking rooms with the hotel? At first I wasn't too concerned, free booze and free food in a relaxing atmosphere is not something to be questioned! But my marketing degree and frame of mind would not let me leave such a question unanswered.

Apart from the ripple effects of the word-of-mouth advertising, blog posts and tweets about this event, I'm sure it will be covered in the local media, which can be quite expensive to advertise in, and which a story as opposed to an ad is so much more valuable in a consumer's mind. The reach is quite far. And while many of the tweetup's patrons probably won't be utilising their rooms, if we ever were to plan an event or assist our respective bosses in doing so, the Pegasus will be high on our lists of possible hosts as they proved themselves quite capable of executing excellent gatherings whether social, professional or a mix of the two. Corporate bookings I am quite sure ranks high as a core product for a hotel in the heart of the business capital, next maybe only to room bookings.

The Jamaica Pegasus has an excellent marketing team, they know the real value of social media and they are milking it for all its worth. The cost of hosting the event is far outweighed by the amount of valuable press they will be getting from it, as a "google-able" review by a customer can actually be much more valuable than an ad with a shelf life. This, the kind of company that keeps up with its target market and knows how to connect, makes you think "I wonder if they have any job openings" hmmmmm

More information on the tweetup itself can be found on the blogs of my new friends: Stunner, Jamaipanese and Gordon Swaby and don't forget to follow me and the Jamaica Pegasus on Twitter.