A note from the founder
MeasureCamp started as a crazy little idea around five years ago, to run a new Digital Analytics conference that would be different. Using the format of Barcamps, it would be held on a Saturday, it would be free to attend and anyone would be allowed to speak. It must be admitted that a big motivation for creating the conference was to allow me to speak at a conference. And with these ideas in mind, a small group of members from the London Digital Analytics community, with no experience in organising events, put together an (un)conference.
The first event had 130 people attend. To the shock of organisers, people travelled from around the UK and beyond to be there. The format worked. There was some chaos but lots of fun and knowledge being shared. The traditions of bacon & egg rolls to kick the day off and a beer being on offer for the final session were begun. The biggest question asked at the end of the day – when can we do this again?
From humble beginnings, MeasureCamp has been held every 6 months in London ever since. It has grown to 280 attendees with the capacity restricted to ensure the personal nature of a MeasureCamp is not lost. This makes claiming a MeasureCamp ticket a challenge of its own, each release going in seconds. About 40% of attendees travel from outside the UK to be there with the occasional visitor from further afield. It’s now been a crazy five years and we are up to #10 here in London.
But a few years back, I were asked if MeasureCamp could happen elsewhere, say in Paris? So we went global. MeasureCamp has now been held 26 times in 14 cities around the world, all over Europe plus Hong Kong, Melbourne and Sydney. I am so happy and excited that it is finally making it over the pond and that the USA gets to join in the fun. The first MeasureCamp will be held in Cincinnati on the 13th May with the second to follow in San Francisco on the 22nd July.
So what is the MeasureCamp experience like? As it is held on a Saturday, everyone there has given up their personal time to be there and really wants to talk Digital Analytics. Anyone can run a session and it can be anything. Some are presentations, some are discussions – the room could be full or a very select group – it could be highly technical or on different storytelling techniques. That lobby bar experience you get at other conferences – those are the discussions you have all day at a MeasureCamp.
MeasureCamp Cincinnati is happening because Hananiel emailed me to say he heard about it and wanted to bring the experience to his hometown. That he was willing to put the personal time in to make it happen. Now, given previous experiences, I am confident that MeasureCamp will spread across the US as it has elsewhere in the world. So, my question to you – don’t you want to be able to say you were there when it all began? If so, I will see you in Cincinnati on the 13th May.
-Peter O’Neill
