At the October meeting of the Social Media Club Detroit Chapter, Brand Camp University organizers Hajj Flemings and Brandon Chesnutt shared how they tackled building a social media conference from the ground up and what they learned from the experience.

1. BRAND CAMP STORY How to Avoid Conference FAIL Hajj Flemings @hajjflemings Brandon Chesnutt @bchesnutt http://www.flickr.com/photos/51035555243@N01/155918164/

2. The start.

3. The upgrade.

4. Why do major conferences matter to Metro Detroit? http://www.flickr.com/photos/91672498@N00/2558066319/

5. Conferences add credibility to growing digital communities. http://www.flickr.com/photos/34887679@N00/3609957389/

6. They provide an “experience” you simply cannot find online. http://www.flickr.com/photos/12842055@N03/3622769631/

7. Detroit is in a Brand Crisis.

8. Conference development requires careful planning. http://www.flickr.com/photos/82586629@N00/3595836235/

9. Start by growing your idea. http://www.flickr.com/photos/54738725@N00/67066830/

10. You can approach it like an “entrepreneur…” http://www.flickr.com/photos/15237218@N00/2297256726/

11. … or a “franchisee.” http://www.flickr.com/photos/10576939@N04/2768022703/

12. Match your conference content to the market. http://www.flickr.com/photos/81787495@N00/52445415/

13. Find the right content to personality ratio. http://www.flickr.com/photos/75429951@N00/3191716153/

14. Be ready to handle “interesting” requests from rockstar speakers. http://www.flickr.com/photos/76453579@N00/2261560287/

15. Create reasonable expectations. http://www.flickr.com/photos/15965815@N00/2527974200/

16. Differ from the “norm.” http://www.flickr.com/photos/84143785@N00/319841141/

17. Questions? http://www.flickr.com/photos/15965815@N00/2527974200/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/91903883@N00/2311427946/

18. Thank You! http://www.flickr.com/photos/16761280@N00/2306001896/