It’s been a pretty crazy ride since we first contacted Bryan Person and Social Media Breakfast back in early December where we expressed an interest in taking on the role of organizers for the Montreal chapter of this expanding phenomenon.
A phone call or two after the initial email was sent and some back and forth exchanges of Wordpress admin info and some Q&A on how to get started, and our heads were officially under water.
The website and in particular the blog has been an indispensable asset as we find ourselves going back to it again and again. Our hope moving forward is to get more involved in the SMB community on Yammer.com which appears to be continuing to grow.
One of the many challenges we are facing here in Montreal, like I’m sure many of the current SMB host/organizers have as well – is that the Social Media and Tech networks are flourishing, and there seems to be 1,001 different networking events taking place every other day of the week. This becomes a two part challenge in that we are competing for people’s attention amidst all of these other events AND we are new.
To overcome this and break the loop for networker’s (thanks Marty and Xurxo of Bloom Search Marketing for their insight) who have expressed these types of events often cater to the same (type of) people – we are going the extra mile to encourage attendance of small and medium sized business owners and PR/Marketing managers who may or may not have a Social Media strategy in place, or who may not know anything about it at all. Via our membership in several local Chambers of Commerce we have unleashed an email campaign inviting just such people with the offer of a free breakfast and the opportunity to learn something about Social Media.
We hope to build on this strategy for future Breakfast’s and believe that by populating the registration list with those who stand not only to share but learn and ”buy into” these ideas, that we’ll create some leverage and with that continue to be able to go out and get some top-level speakers who could potentially land some new business in exchange for their expertise and time.
One of the greatest appealing factors of this event is the notion that the atmosphere should remain casual, and that it should be an interactive one – where everyone benefits. It is amazing how freely the ideas flow and successes/failures shared in a relaxed atmosphere.
Below are the details, main topic, and speakers for our inaugural Social Media Breakfast – Montreal. Over the next few days I hope to get some bios and photos up of each of the presenters – but would like to thank them now for committing to helping out. The Eventbrite registration form is also located below for those interested in attending.
Wednesday February 17th, 2010
Cost: 0$ – You cannot find a better deal than this! Breakfast included to boot!
From 9AM – 11AM
Event Topic – Social Media for Small Business
Speakers
Com Mirza (@thelemonadeboy on Twitter) – Viral Video Marketing for Brands & Business
CT Moore (http://www.gypsybandito.com/) & Jonathan Kennedy (@jonnywired on Twitter)
Discussions on Blogging & Facebook for Small Business
Only 40 spaces available – First come first served
Contact jeff@heelatch.com with any questions.
REGISTER HERE
The event is going to be taped and posted here along with our recap, so please check back a few days after the event to check it out.
Thanks for reading and wish us luck!!
Jeff Taylor, Founder – SMB Montreal – jeff@socialmediabreakfast.com