City of Edmonton Update

When people ask the question – How do you measure the return on social media?  I typically respond with some basic fundamentals in mind and always refer to the fact that it depends on what the specific objectives were to begin with.

Can you measure buzz and awareness?

Absolutely, several different ways in fact.  This is where the use of social media is a no-brainer as a starting place.  In the case of the City of Edmonton and the upcoming Open City Workshop (register here space left is limited) my opinion is that increased awareness is critical.  Sharing ideas, listening and educating new audiences as to what Open Data is will be one of many messages I expect to come out of Saturday.  Further, software developers local and non-local alike are no doubt excited to hear about upcoming announcements, the vision in general and how they may play a direct role.

Magnify the effect through sharing

One of the fundamentals of Government 2.0 is participation.  The social web, in particular the government 2.0 segment of the social web is already responding to what the City of Edmonton is doing.  By agreeing to share the live bilingual webcast feed (a first for the City and very progressive by anyone’s standards in government) with anyone who would like to embed the feed on their site, it’s already opened up new communications doors for the City of Edmonton brand.  Not the least of which is GovLoop.com out of Florida.  With over 25000 Gov 2.0 community members having the stream featured on the home page of this site is important for the purposes of building international credibility and awareness for the Open Data movement and the City of Edmonton.

Here is another example on Mashable.com of the buzz potential surrounding what’s happening here.  Evan from our team made sure to mention in the comments what we’re all up to, nicely done Evan.  One never knows who may choose to watch and participate in the online discussion as a result and where that will lead, only time will tell.

Further, the media is also getting into the act and so you can expect to find the feed on one or more major traditional media websites on Saturday too.  In fact, the Edmonton Journal has authorized me to let everyone know that they’re excited to be carrying the feed, it’s so great that they’re participating and helping to spread the word about Open Data.

The bounce

What can we expect short to mid-term out of this effort on behalf of the City’s IT and Communications collaborative efforts?  In politics and other circles it might be called the “bounce.”  I predict that Edmonton area companies, the Alberta and federal governments, more than one post-secondary institution, as well as, countless folks outside the region will definitely see all kinds of opportunity coming out of Saturday.

I also think City Council and administration in Edmonton (and others whom I know are watching closely) will be able to witness first hand just how much the City of Edmonton is quickly moving towards being a strong model for Open Government.  Saturday will prove yet again that working in real-time with citizens can be extremely beneficial and not something to be feared but embraced.  That sharing our plans with the world outside our region is progressive and it too will benefit the local economy and attract new people, business and brand awareness.  The Edmonton area (I’m in Sherwood Park) is a great place to live, work and play.