One of the reasons we use Eventbrite rather than a Wiki for event registrations is that it allows us send email to registered attendees to provide updates.  The Social Media Cafe we are hosting tonight in San Francisco is a perfect example as to why this works and why we chose this path.  We had two primary last minute needs

• With 100 people registered, the out of pocket expenses for refreshments was a bit high, so we asked the list of attendees if they, or anyone they knew might be interested in sponsoring.  Much thanks and lots of respect to Jimmy Wales from Wikia and Mike McAllen from Grass Shack Events and Media for stepping up and helping us out.  Of course, I would be remiss, if I did not also mention the great support we get from Joel Sacks and all our friends at CNet who graciously provide this great space for our use.  While their sponsorship does not cover all the costs, it makes it a lot easier!
• Same issue, different problem - with the higher demand, we started an informal waiting list (next time we will open up waiting list tickets through Eventbrite) so asked in our emails for people to let us know if they were not able to make it tonight.  The result is:

We now have five 5 openings for tonight’s event.  If you want to come out and have a good discussion about what is happening with the “Social Media Industry” and help us figure out what we can do together to keep things on the right track, please register now.

As we mentioned in the other post about this event, which was also sent via email to attendees, this will be our first of many Social Media Cafes.  Next month however, we are doing a slightly different sort of workshop, with a focus on learning how to conduct better interviews.  We will be announcing more details tonight and posting on this later in the week.  If you are interested in sponsoring next months gathering, please contact us here.