By the time XOXO got underway, attendees had created more than 150 channels to discuss and organize around nearly every topic imaginable. The most widely read channels were “the commons,” where the Andys posted news about the festival relevant to all attendees. But subgroups formed in a hurry. There were channels for discussing accessibility; channels for singles and the polyamorous; channels for people interested in cannabis; channels for attendees who identify as LGBT. Some channels had dozens of members; others had 10 or fewer.
The result was that by the time many attendees arrived in Portland, there was already a subset of their fellow festival-goers waiting to greet them. And throughout the three days of XOXO, Slack was a thriving hub of conversation, offering a place for attendees to encourage and congratulate speakers, ask questions about the event’s code of conduct, and find like-minded souls with whom to sneak out and grab a beer, or a bite, or whatever.
Fascinating.
Slack has cracked online communication in a new way. Turns out, this can be used for far more than just internally by companies.
