Meet Your Neighbors at Tweetea

Mentobe Cafe

33336 Grand River Avenue

Farmington, MI 48336

(248)987-6481

On Tuesday, October 4th, we will have the distinct pleasure to participate in Detroit Gallery Week. Rob Brogan, director of Artist Relations of 1xRun and the social media manager of 1xRun and 323East Gallery, will join us to discuss the use of social media marketing in the arts and the mutually beneficial relationship between online and real-space galleries.

If you would like to attend, then we need you to sign up as both Goldfish Tea and 323East will have limited space.

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Corner Brewery

720 Norris Street

Ypsilanti, MI 48198

734-480-2739

www.arborbrewing.com/brewery/

I recently made a bold move. It may not seem like a bold move to most, but it was for me. While I am not a stranger to taking action, I find myself struggling – at times – to being a man of my word. On Tuesday, April 19th, I broke a streak that did not seem as if it would ever be broken. I actually went to Ohio to just. Visit.

It all started with a purchase of two tickets to see Minnesotan hip hop group Atmosphere at Newport Music Hall.

I bought two tickets with the idea that I could get a close friend to join me. My plan was to take the drive to Columbus on the same day of the show, possibly stay overnight if we got tired, but not two days. When I could not find a suitable travel companion, I realized that I had a much better opportunity on my hands.

See, since the late 20th century, I have been connecting with fans of hip hop on Internet forums. While people from all over the world would use the forums, I always liked the ones that kept a solid roster of Midwesterners. Guys [and a few gals] would connect In Real Life (IRL) at events like Scribble Jam. That is where the buck stopped for me though. I never went to a Scribble Jam. Catapult some ten-plus years later, there is nothing I enjoy more than meeting people IRL that I made initial contact with on the interwebs.

When I found myself with two tickets and no one to join me from Detroit, I thought it was a good time to do something I have been promising (for what seems like forever) certain Internet chums from Ohio – paying them a visit. As I type this, I am scrambling to come up with a sexy reason for why it has taken me so long to actually make the easy drive to Columbus that has been made by many that I have come to know via forums, Twitter and Facebook. There is nothing sexy about double talk, fear and lack of real drive though. Making the three-and-a-half hour trek had me feeling instantly lame once I saw how smooth it was. Then add the hospitality of the likes of Mike Whaling, Anand Khurma and Nate Riggs and I begin to feel really silly.

photo by Mike Whaling (@30lines)

Tuesday, April 19th at MoJoe Lounge in German Village marked the first TWEETEA in Columbus. In addition to Mike, Nate and Anand, I also got the pleasure to meet Dr. Erika Pryor, Alisha Bicknell and Heather Whaling. The conversation flowed so easily, I wish it could have lasted longer. In the short time I had with the group, I learned about the Ohio Growth Summit, Talktainment, dissertation coaches and PR 2.0 chat (#pr20chat). We even had quality discussions on the varied interpretations of entrepreneurship and the plight of the social media strategist.

After everything was set and done with TWEETEA, I realized that Columbus is a place I need to visit more often. I know I will only be scratching the surface with the IRL first encounters in my two days here. I was so taken by  South Third Street, which MoJoe Lounge resides, that I wished I had gotten in sooner to explore a little more. While the Columbus crew will downplay the coolness of their college town, I find it quite the delightful place. That being said, it is always good to get away and see new things.

I could go on and on about my musings related to my trip to Columbus, but I will leave with this nugget. As trite as it is, do not put off what you could do today for tomorrow. The task is not usually as arduous once you have done it. I learned that for the 4082nd time this past week. As our Ohioan neighbors have shown time and time again, a trip between our states is not that tough, so like Nike, “just do it.”

If you have yet to attended a TWEETEA, this is going to be your best time to partake! One of Metro Detroit’s biggest companies is joining us – CHRYSLER! We are gathering at Tracey’s Corner Cafe in Warren, MI.

Here’s the rundown from the TWEETEA newsletter and Facebook page:

On Tuesday, April 5th, TWEETEA will have the distinct pleasure of playing host to members of Chrysler’s social media team. With Ed Garsten, Head of Electronic Communications for Chrysler Group, Mike Driehorst, Editorial Director – Online Media, and others, we will get the opportunity to talk about how Chrysler uses social media to connect with current and future customers, the recent F-bomb tweet incident, “imported from Detroit” and other related social-media-meets-community topics.

This evening marks the first time a company as large as Chrysler has engaged the TWEETEA community. We hope you will join us to show Chrysler how much we appreciate their team joining TWEETEA to discuss how a large corporate brand uses social media. Come prepared to learn and ask questions!

Special thanks to Nikki Stephan for making this happen!

Farmhouse Coffee and Ice Cream

32644 Franklin Road,

Franklin, MI 48025

(248)562-7708

On Tuesday, January 11th, we had a discussion inspired by this photo gallery on The Observer. While Detroit “ruin pr0n” is nothing new, what was significant was the amount of shares it garnered. That encouraged us to ask what goes into creating content that could potentially go viral. We invited media producers in Metro Detroit to help us in our discussion this week and we would like to thank them here.

January 11th – Invited Neighbors

Matt Dibble – Final Five Productions

Eric Brown – The Urbane Way

Jane Fader – Creative Dynamo

Jeremiah Staes – Portage Media / Detroit Unspun – TWEETEA host

Brian Ambrozy – Icrontic

John and Katherine Dallas Hammond – Fafoutee

Special thanks to folks like Nick Ellis of Hunch Free for joining our discussion and adding tremendous insight and commentary. Also shout out to the folks that gathered in Franklin with Jane, Erik and Sola (Dave Benjamin, Hadi Kadri), braving the snow for good IRL conversation, hot chocolate and other warm or tasty things.

For a great recap of our discussion, be sure to check out Nikki Stephan’s post.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. While October is winding down, that does not mean we should not commit some time to this very important issue. With over 100,000 domestic violence offenses on record in the state of Michigan alone in 2009*, it is very much an issue that plagues our community at-large.

At TWEETEA, we are on a mission to fortify neighborly relationships. Being neighborly means caring about the well-being of others. If you know someone that is a victim of domestic violence, then it is only right to try to help. Fortunately, there are companies like Verizon Wireless that make it easier to get aid for victims of domestic violence.

Introducing HopeLine®

HopeLine® from Verizon collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any wireless service provider. The phones are then refurbished or recycled in an environmentally sound way. Refurbished phones, complete with 3,000 minutes of wireless service, are provided to local domestic violence organizations or local government and law enforcement agencies for use with their domestic violence clients.

via Verizon Wireless

In addition to this program, Verizon is donating $25,000 to local domestic violence protection organizations and shelters.

How You Can Help

It is simple. If you have any wireless device or associated equipment that you are not using, follow these steps:

1. Turn the phone’s power off.
2. Make sure the phone’s batteries are installed in the phone you are returning. Please do not include any loose batteries.
3. Please remove storage cards (microSD, etc.) and SIM cards from phones prior to donation. Also be sure to return any travel chargers or other accessories that came with the devices.
4. Seal the package and adhere the free postage-paid label to the box/envelope and drop it in the mail. To view and print the mailing label, you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader.
5. Don’t forget to include your return address on the shipping label.

For more information on donating your phone and equipment, please go to this page – http://aboutus.vzw.com/communityservice/Shipping.html.

You can also make a monetary donation to the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV).

To conclude, domestic violence is still a major issue that affects all of us. If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic abuse, please call 911 or dial #HOPE if you have a Verizon Wireless phone.

* Data pulled from: http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,1607,7-123-1645_3501_4621-243369–,00.html

Has the ever-evolving digital space changed the way we brand ourselves? What are your experiences? Are you totally against the idea of personal branding?

These questions and others will be a part of the theme at this week’s TWEETEA in commemoration of the third edition of Brand Camp University, put on by Michigander, Hajj Flemings. Personal branding has become a hot button topic, thanks to the many success cases and utter career-ending injuries sustained by individuals using the real-time web.

As an added bonus to this week’s stimulating conversation, we have a contest in place for three (3) free passes to give away for Brand Camp on Friday, October 8th. The contest rules are simple.

1. You must be following @tweeteaIRL on Twitter and/or “like” TWEETEAHappens.com on Facebook.
2. You must “like” Brand Camp U on Facebook and/or follow @BrandCampU on Twitter.
3. Post a tweet using the hashtag #brandcampu OR a Facebook status update highlighting Brand Camp U saying why you think the personal branding discussion is being discussed these days by 8:00PM EST on Tuesday, October 5th, regardless if you believe in personal branding or not.

The winners will be chosen at random at the October 5th TWEETEA. Come join us up in the drawing, accompanied by a delightful discussion at your neighborhood location.

Grand Traverse Pie Company
41640 Ann Arbor Rd.
Plymouth, MI 48170
(734) 459-9200
www.gtpie.com