HITMC Call-In Meetup

The HITMC team is launching a new way for the Healthcare and IT Marketing Community to stay connected. We’re going to use new technology to modernize an old-school format – the venerable call-in radio show. We hope you can join us 4pm ET on March 25^th, April 8^th, April 22^nd and May 6^th for a fun, interactive and educational event – a Call-in Meetup.

To register for the March 25th Meetup, click here.

As lock-downs, shelter-in-place and physical distancing mandates become more common, people are finding novel ways to remain socially connected. Over the past few weeks there have been many innovative virtual events in the healthcare community including:

• Virtual conferences
• Virtual booths
• Webinars
• Collaborative Conversations (@CariumCares) – https://twitter.com/cariumcares/status/1240625870856994819
• Happy Hours (HT @SarahBennight)
• Dance Party (@amariedauwer) – https://twitter.com/amariedauwer/status/1240798255585398786
• Drop-in party-lines (@LarryGioia) – https://twitter.com/LGin412/status/1239925042697457664

All of these virtual events inspired us to create something for the Community. We wanted something that would blend education and peer learning with fun and virtual networking. What we came up with is a twist on the classic call-in radio show.

Before YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, the most interactive media format was the call-in show on the radio…yes radio. Popular on sports-only stations and on music stations late at night, the call-in show was one of the few times listeners could participate on air. People would call in and talk with the radio host – either to offer a comment/viewpoint or to request a song.

Because the producers had no control over who called into the show, it often made for hilarious and memorable listening. Sometimes callers would have completely off-the wall things to say. Other times they would have keen insights to share.

In this time of self-isolation and work-at-home, we thought it would be fun to use this format in a video-enabled-webinar. Starting Wednesday March 25^th at 4pm ET (and every other Wednesday for the next two months), we will be hosting a HITMC Call-in Meetup. Everyone is welcome to join!

Here’s how it will work:

• Anyone who wants to participate, just has to register for the Call-In Meetup (via Go-To-Webinar)
• When the event starts, the host (John Lynn or myself or both) will open with a short explanation of the topic
• We’ll then “open the lines” and anyone in the audience can raise their hand (virtually)
• Our producer, Brittany Quemby, will select someone who has their virtual “hand up” and put them “on air” (meaning your camera and microphone will be activated)
• The selected person can then make a comment, interact with the host, ask a question or offer a piece of advice
• The producer will then select another person with their virtual hand up to join the on air conversation
• The goal is to always have four people on air at a time
• After a short time, the guest who has been on-air the longest will be returned to listen-only mode and a new person will take their place

You can think of this as a live-video version of a tweetchat, minus the overlapping conversations. Or for those that remember – it’s kind of like Blab.

We can’t wait to try connecting with the HITMC Community in this manner. We hope many of you will join.

For our first Call-In Meetup on Wednesday March 25^th we’ll be covering two topics:

1. What are you doing to manage through the COVID-19 pandemic? What tips can you share that are working for you?
2. What topic would you like to see discussed on the future Call-In Meetups?

To register for the March 25^th Meetup, please use this link here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4495576896796621067