With Social Media Clubs popping up throughout the Prairie – Kansas City, Des Moines, and Lincoln – and frankly, throughout the world, three Omahans felt it was time to bring the same gathering of like-minded individuals to their city.
Co-founded by Sara Davidson, Jennifer Windrum, and Erica Cenci, Social Media Club Omaha will officially kick off with a launch party at Nomad Lounge (1013 Jones Street) this Thursday, March 25 at 6 p.m.
I caught up with Sara by email to learn more about the Social Media Club on a national and local level:
Silicon Prairie News (SPN): What is Social Media Club?
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Sara Davidson: Social Media Club (SMC) was founded in 2006 by Chris Heuer and Kristie Wells as a way to host conversations around the globe surrounding all things related to social media. SMC is a group focused on the value of sharing social media knowledge, best practices, establishing ethics and standards, as well as promoting and integrating social media for business and personal use. Today, there are more than 150 chapters across six different continents all over the world!
SPN: Why are you starting an Omaha Chapter?
Sara: Social media is an increasingly relevant topic in everyone’s lives as it has completely transformed the way people and businesses connect, communicate, collaborate and relate to each other. Our primary focus is to educate and share lessons to improve overall social media literacy across the Omaha metro area. We want to discuss issues that companies and practitioners face when using social media to build brands, engage potential customers, manage customer service and more.
SPN: What is your vision for SMC Omaha?
Sara: Our goal is to provide exceptional educational opportunities and networking events. Each month, we plan to bring in a social media thought leader from outside the Omaha market so we can hear how other companies are innovating, measuring and improving upon social media strategies. These events will be held the last Thursday evening of each month (we’re confirming the location this week). We also plan to have a monthly breakfast where we will hear a case study about how a local company has successfully leveraged social media to build their business.
In the next few months, we’d like to build up the community and elect a board of directors who will then help shape the overall direction of the group. From there, we’ll form committees made up of volunteers who can plan additional events, panels, workshops and more. We’ll also need to begin securing sponsors for the club and some of our events.
SPN: Who qualifies to become a member of the club and how do you join?
Sara: Don’t let the name fool you – the club is for anyone who’s interested in social media, amateurs and industry pros alike. Just join our Ning community at smcomaha.ning.com. The platform allows you to build your own member profile, join in online discussions, create your own events and more! It will be the primary way to get the most up-to-date information about SMC Omaha as well.
SPN: Tell us more about the launch event that you’re holding this Thursday.
Sara: The official Social Media Club Omaha launch party is this Thursday, March 25 at Nomad Lounge. Networking begins at 6 p.m. and our keynote speaker, dynamic social media pro Kelly Olexa (pictured), will go on at 7 p.m. when she’ll share her insights on “What Not to Wear in Social Media; How Not to Make a Total Fool of Yourself and Your Business.” Kelly currently works for New Media Strategies and was also featured as one of the “Top Young Female Entrepreneurs in Technology” by Business Week in 2009.
