B-I-N-G-OMG! Who’s Ready To Get Social?

At our March event, instead of a traditional social media breakfast, attendees grabbed their special Social Media Bingo cards and circulated throughout the room networking, sharing laughs and business cards, and seeking out fellow attendees to fill in their Bingo card squares with signatures from their cohorts. Here are just a few of the questions they asked each other:

• Have you received a reply from a celebrity on Twitter?
• Do you manage four or more Facebook pages?
• Is this your first time attending a SMBMad event?

Sharing Social Media and Professional Insights

During the session, attendees took time to share their views about SMBMad and what brings them to these early morning sessions. Not surprisingly, networking topped the list of an informal poll. Folks like to chat with members of the social media community and swap info.

Check out some of their comments:

Joan Pajari, ABR Employment Services and Kinsa Group, said she comes for the networking and to meet local people.

“I’m a one-person marketing department,” she added. “If I’m not sure how to proceed, it’s nice to know I can reach out to professionals and get honest opinions. The community is an invaluable resource.”

Jude Sullivan, The Fitness Pastor, enjoys interacting with other people. He wants to find out how attendees use social media and how it connects people with varied backgrounds.

“I’m impressed with the different skills and talents that people have that I wouldn’t have known about. This is the part I love the most,” Jude said.

As a third-time attendee, Gail Sumi, League of Wisconsin Municipalities, said, “I like the connections you’re able to make and the new ideas you come away with. It gives me an opportunity to network and that’s what I’m here for.”

For Monika Allen, content writer, SMBMad is helping her find out what other people are doing in the social media community. Before attending a meeting, she followed the organization on Facebook for a year.

First Timers Check Out SMBMad

“I want to know how to expand the reach of Girls Scouts of Badgerland,” said Jade Morschauser.  She attended SMBMad for the first time and is new to her job as a marketing specialist for the organization.

Linda Armas, Prepare Parents LLC, works as a strategic behavior coach for parents, businesses, and schools. “This organization will help me to be better recognized in the social media world,” she said.

Sam Worple, Apex Systems, wants to meet people from all walks of life and learn about social media. He also wants to learn about social media to help grow his side business tying musky ties for fly fishing.

Social Media Breakfast also drew first timer Anne Spurgeon, Transana. She is interested in finding other attendees who need to reach an international audience. Anne’s goal is to connect with a narrow niche of academic researchers located all over the world.

Long-time Attendee Praises Event Presenters

Melissa Carlson, Melissa Carlson Creative, has attended SMBMad since members first started meeting in the basement of a Madison restaurant many years ago.

“They’ve had many great speakers. One that resonates with me is the presentation where Megan Watt, Dream Catalyst Labs, performed an interconnective LinkedIn exercise,” she said.

Melissa is one of the SMBMad sponsors. She said the organization “keeps me informed and helps me to have a basic working knowledge of social media.”

Shout out to Fran Puleo, University of Wisconsin – Madison, for speaking with video sponsor Nick Palkowski, Live Action Production, about the reasons why she’s such a fan of SMBMad.

Serving on SMBMad Board

Margie Romani, Romani Digital, has served on the organization’s board for 3.5 years. Now she’s the vice president.

“I really like what we’re doing for the community. We help educate people. It’s fun to find speakers who fill a need,” she said.

Margie said that it’s “crazy” that SMBMad can attract so many people for the 7:30 a.m. meeting. Each session gets 150 to 200 people with 10 to 20 new attendees each time. Margie’s goal is to attract more sponsors so the organization can plan a summit or conference in Madison sometime in the future.

Faith Dey, Live Well Social Videos, praised the efforts of the SMBMad board. “It’s great to have up-to-date topics that people want to learn about,” she said.

Invited by a Friend

Spread the word about the benefits of SMBMad. Besides attending, members also can help sponsor the event or work as a volunteer in many capacities.

Harv Linse, CardConnect of Southeast Wisconsin, attended a meeting because Lance Ratze, Yola’s Café—who has also sponsored events, providing tasty breakfast fare, invited him.

“I’ve met great people and established friendships,” Harv said. He’s looking forward to the April 17 SMBMad session with a LinkedIn theme.

Everyone’s a Winner

At the start of the March session, Josh Klemons, president of the SMBMad Board, said all attendees playing Social Media Bingo will win. That’s because the interactive nature of the game encouraged participants to meet new people in the social media community.

After hearing all the positive vibes in the room, few would disagree.

“We have so much to learn from each other,” Josh said.

See you April 17 at The Brink Lounge. Chantel Soumis, Madison entrepreneur, will present Your Digital Reputation: Are You Taking Advantage of LinkedIn’s Many Opportunities?

Leslie Blaize wrote this post on behalf of Winbound, a content marketing firm. Winbound provides an all-in-one content marketing and conversion optimization package specifically designed for small marketing departments.