I do…on-line

Wow…too long between posts. Sorry. But it’s been an interesting time of vacation and then the inevitable catch-up after vacation.

On August 8 our oldest son, Evan, was married in Edmonton, Alberta to Genoa Waymen. They both work in social media and video so it was natural for them to take an online approach to their big day.

First, they established a website http://wedding.etadnams.com where they told the story of how they met and even set up a Paypal account for online gifts! (We’re still waiting for the photos to be posted). All the invitations were sent by e-mail as were responses.

The ceremony was webcast so that family and friends around the world could share the event. It was a simple set up with a laptop, camera and microphone. After the ceremony we discovered the audio wasn’t working, but it didn’t deter the 36 viewers who stayed with the webcast. As one viewer put it “I couldn’t hear anything, but the plot was predictable!”

The couple, my wife and I and even the pastor tweeted webcast information, and reminded people on Facebook the day of the wedding. People were watching in Canada, the US and as far away as Bahrain!

The cost for all this? $0! It only took time, and not much of that.

Webcasting has a lot of potential. Yes, there can still be glitches, but who hasn’t been at a live event when the sound had problems?

I noticed that a Baptist church nearby is using its highly visible sign to promote its webcast, complete with web address.

This technology is a way to extend the reach of any event. Think of the possibilities. If you can’t get youth into a Sunday morning class…take the class to them…on a Wednesday evening!

The technology is there and inexpensive. It just takes the will to use it.