Community Roundup Week Ending September 29

The Challenges Facing WordCamp Organizers

I don’t know if it’s economy-based, apathy-based, or something-else-based, but this year seems to have proven much harder to plan and run a successful regional/local WordCamp.

As a WordCamp mentor, I see the struggles that both larger and smaller camps have. As a WordCamp Organizer (Buffalo and Rochester) I feel it firsthand. It’s been harder to find sponsors, speakers, and attendees.

I know that in a year of layoffs, corporate belts have been pulled tighter. This has made it much more challenging to meet the rising costs of hosting WordCamps. Getting creative in finding space isn’t always easy. And the cost of traditional spaces like hotel and conference centers has risen greatly post-pandemic.

WordCamp speakers are mostly self-sponsored to speak at events. So every time they travel to speak, they’re often spending their own money. Although speakers can be sponsored by their corporate employers, it’s often freelancers and small business owners who are making the rounds to WordCamps, and mostly on their own dime.

This week Tom Finley and I joined Doc Pop on the Torque Social Hour to talk about the challenges that WordCamps are facing.

Conclusion: we don’t have all the answers. But WordPress and others are looking for solutions.