With the successful sales of Putting the Public Back in Public Relations, Brian Solis is at it again!

Brian will be visiting Atlanta for a brief 24 hours on February 23, 2010 and will be bringing his marketing expertise with him!

Since his newest book Engage does not hit the shelves until March 15, 2010, he will be offering a special treat to those who visit him in Atlanta on February 23, 2010.

For a limited time, you can purchase Engage and pick it up in person by purchasing a ticket at the EventBrite page and joining him at 7 p.m. EST at the 5 Seasons Brewing Westside in the upstairs Sky Bar.

There, you can pick up your book, have it signed by Brian himself and enjoy a great night of fun filled laughter and entertainment.

These copies will be coming straight from the printers and will be the first available printed set. Engage will not be available for purchase at the event. So to ensure that you get a copy of the book, you must pre-purchase your ticket by Monday, February 15!

Where: 5 Seasons Brewing Westside – upstairs Sky Bar
Time: 7 p.m. EST.
Ticket: EventBrite
Hashtag: #engageATL
Can’t make it to Atlanta? Pre-order Engage from Amazon now!

We are now only one week away from the first Silicon Valley Tweetup of 2010. Come join 200 other Twitter-inclined socialites for networking, drinks and fundraising for the Twitterkids of Tanzania.

The event will take place on January 20th in San Jose’s Santana Row from 6-9pm at the V-Bar inside Hotel Valencia. Drinks and food will be provided; all that is asked for is a $10 donation to the charity. A netbook and an iPod touch will also be raffled off to benefit the Twitterkids.

Shel Israel will be attending and signing copies of his newest book ‘Twitterville - How Businesses Can Thrive in the New Global Neighborhoods’. This is the perfect opportunity to connect with Shel in person and pick up a great Twitter resource.

You can RSVP for the event here, and connect with the event organizers Michael Brito, Jennifer Leggio, and Gabriel Carrejo on Twitter.

Be sure to come by and say hi!

Disclaimer: I work for FutureWorks, one of the sponsors of this month’s Silicon Valley Tweetup. I also regularly attend these tweetups, and have a great time.

By Miiko Mentz

If you don’t have plans tonight and want to mingle with a few friendly folks who are active in Silicon Valley’s social media scene, then head on over to Cielo Lounge atop Hotel Valencia at Santana Row in San Jose. It starts at 5:30 and if it’s anything like last month’s tweetup it will go well into the night.

At last month’s Silicon Valley Tweetup, which was the second one to take place, we met up with Michael Brito of Intel. Brito started the monthly Silicon Valley Tweetups in July and it’s been quite a success. In our video interview with him, he shares with us why he started it and how it’s a great way to bring people together and at the same time support a good cause — the Anissa Lopez Foundation and George Mark Children’s House.

Tonight’s Silicon Valley Tweetup is sponsored by Lithium Technologies. Also, our very own Brian Solis will be on hand tonight for a book signing of his latest book “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations,” which was co-authored with Deirdre Breakenridge. Copies of the book will be on sale and the profits will be donated to the Anissa Lopez Foundation and George Mark Children’s House.

hashtag: #svtweetup

Follow me on Twitter: @MiikoMentz

by Michelle Lentz

I love it when my city hits the national news for something other than race riots or boycotting Robert Mapplethorpe. In fact, I can proudly say we’ve come a long, long way since those days.

The latest national news out of Cincinnati is what’s being billed as The World’s Largest Tweet-Up. I’m not sure if that’s accurate on a number of levels, but it doesn’t matter. It’s good marketing for a good cause, and a great example of a non-profit using social media to raise awareness.

Last July, musician Katie Reider passed away at age 30 from a rare form of cancer that attacked the left side of her face. It left her blind in one eye and unable to do what she did best – sing. Katie was a local musician for us, but she’d been on the national scene as well, and was one of those artists spotlighted on WB shows like Dawson’s Creek.

500Kin365.org, was created in May of 2008 with the help of Katie Reider’s loyal fanbase to reconnect and introduce 500,000 people to Katie Reider, her music and her story over the next year, as she continued to undergo treatment. The site took off, and the goal is to introduce 500,000 people to her music. Two sets of Katie’s songs can be downloaded for only $1 each on the site and 100% of the proceeds to go help pay off the family’s exorbitant medical bills.

Now for the Tweet-up. About 500,000 people attend our annual Taste of Cincinnati event on Memorial Day weekend. Until last year, the Katie Reider Band had entertained at the food festival for almost 10 years. This year, Taste of Cincinnati will spotlight the Katie Reider Stage, presented by Avalon and Metromix.com Cincinnati at P&G Gardens, as the first stage in the history of Cincinnati named for a pioneer of gay and lesbian rights and as the first stage in the annals of Taste of Cincinnati named for a performer. I told you we’d come a long way.

The goal is for everyone to tweet awareness of the whole deal. 500,000 attendees might equal 500,000 downloads of Katie’s music. Called 3 Tweets 4 Katie, the campaign uses the shorthand Katie used in her everyday life.

Tens of thousands of tweets are expected to fill the Twitterverse over the Memorial Day weekend in honor Reider’s life and music. The Friends of Katie Reider encourage peeps around the world to adopt new Twitterminology and embrace a Reider family tradition: “3″ means “I love you” and “4″ means “I love you, too.” With tweets limited to 140 characters on Twitter, organizers believe the Reider family tradition of “3″ and “4″ may likely gain a global following as new Twitter shorthand.

Remember, you don’t have to be at Taste of Cincinnati to participate. You can tweet directly from the 3 Tweets 4 Katie site and show your love for the cause. Your tweet will help expose other people to Katie’s music and help achieve those 500,000 downloads. Or you can just spend $1 and download a set of her songs.

Here’s a a YouTube clip from Katie Reider’s last show:

__

Contact Michelle with news, stories, events, and more.
Email: michelle[at]writetech[dot]net
Twitter: @writetechnology, Friendfeed: michellel
Sites: Write Technology, Wine-Girl.net

words and pictures by Brian Solis

When we peer into the looking glass into what truly made SXSW Interactive a unique and successful culmination of culture and real life networking, we see something very different and exceptional.

The real story is the human network and the Social Economy that fosters the conversations that serve as its currency – on and offline.

SXSW is about the emotional and psychological connection between people and our investment in the personal traits that others find irresistible.

Relationships….RELATIONSHIPS…count for everything here, and they’re measured by the mutually beneficial rewards that all parties experience over time. We invest in each other and harvest the fruits of our collaboration and interconnection.

Nothing was more evident of this than the Flashmob party that stormed the Driskill, forever becoming a part of the SXSW legacy.

After the Diggnation party, Erica O’Grady, Jeremiah Owyang, Charlene Li, Chad Catacchio, Francisco Dao, and I opted for the the elegant and stylish decor that adorned the Driskill lobby bar to regroup and plan our next adventure. What we had yet to realize, was that the evening at the Driskill would unfold into our next adventure.

Overcome with contentment and the prompt attention for service, we decided to Tweet our location while also personally texting some of our close friends to join  us.  Almost immediately, tweets were flying, “headed to the Driskill.” As each person arrived, they too would tweet, “At the Driskill, it’s incredible.” They cycle continued for the duration of the evening.

Soon, hundreds of people crowded the spacious lounge, the staff called for reinforcements, and we celebrated friendship and The Human Network together, creating one of the most memorable nights in SXSW history.

I’ll let the pictures tell the rest of the story…

Jolie O’Dell

Francine Hardaway

Justin Levy

Heather Meeker

Jessica Berlin

Laura Fitton aka Pistachio

Brian Solis

Shira Lazar

Brett Petersel and Rebecca Corliss

Randi Zuckerberg and Michelle Deforest

Leora Israel

Jessica Alter and Frank Gruber

Halcyon

Melody McCloskey

Andrew Mager

@NikoleZ

Megan McCarthy

Pete Cashmore

Jeff Dowd (The Dude) and Brian Solis

Cal Henderson

Tessa and Gregarious

Steve Garfield

Alexia Tsotsis and Kevin Rose

Lala, Lara Doucette and Brian Solis

Vanessa Camones

Chris Heuer and Leora Israel

Gary Vaynerchuk and Jen Consalvo

Michael Gruen Ilana Arazie

More on Flickr.

Please read:

The Human Network: The Social Economy is Influenced by How We Communicate Online & Offline (My philosophical analysis of what makes SXSW so special)

Which parties did you hit or miss?

Check em off at Diddit: SXSW Interactive Festival 2009 Party List

Pictures:

SXSW – The Calm Before the Storm

SXSW Day One

TechSet + Windows Mobile Rat Pack 2.0 Party

SXSW Day Two

Diggnation Party at Stubbs

We Flashmob the Driskill

AllHat @Allens Boots

Brian Solis Book Signing @SXSW

Are PR Agencies a Dying Breed: Brian Solis joins the panel

Kirtsy, AllTop Party @Allens Boots

Pool 2.0 – SocialMediaClub

SXSW Day Four

Paul Nelson Performs in the TechSet + Windows Mobile Blogger Lounge

Dell Adamo Premiers at SXSW

Power Geek Girl Tweetup in the TechSet + Windows Mobile Blogger Lounge

Rackspace + Scoble Party

Blurb + Mashable Party

SXSW Day Five

WorldSings.com

Connect with me on:
Twitter, FriendFeed, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Plaxo, Plurk, Identi.ca, BackType, or Facebook

words and pictures by Brian Solis

It was a beautiful day in Northern California. We all had more than enough work to lock us indoors for the remainder of the day, but we had a different idea.

Robert Scoble, Jeremiah Owyang and I opted instead, to host a last-minute Tweetup in at the Miramar in Halfmoon Bay. The Pacific Ocean served as the backdrop and great friends provided the ambiance. Overall, it was a wonderful way to spend the day.

I’ll let the pictures tell the rest of the story…

Shirley and Jeremiah Owyang

Maria Ogneva and Gregarious

Gregarious

Krystel Ariel

Karen Hartline

Brian Solis by Robert Scoble

Christopher Peri

Krystel Ariel and Francine Hardaway

For more pictures, please visit my album on Flickr.

Connect with me on:
Twitter, FriendFeed, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Plaxo, Plurk, Identi.ca, BackType, or Facebook

by Brian Solis

The W Hotel, Westwood

I flew to Los Angeles for 24 hours to serve as the lunch keynote speaker at PR 2.0: Breaking into the Conversation. Following the event, and a full day of work, a few of us decided to host an impromptu Tweetup in The Backyard, poolside at the W Hotel in Westwood. It was a beautiful night, which was complemented with some very incredible people.

I’ll let the pictures the rest of the story…

Click here for the names of a few of those who joined us

Shira Lazar

Kurt Daradics and Mike Prasaad

Nicole Jordan and Todd Cohen

Rafat Ali of PaidContent and Patricia Handschiegel

Jackie Peters

Sean Percival, Shira Lazar, Nicole Jordan

Kurt Daradics

Damon Alexander Young and Nicole Jordan

Laurie Percival

For more pictures from the LA Tweetup @The W, Westwood, please visit my album on flickr.

Connect with me on:
Twitter, FriendFeed, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Pownce, Plaxo, Plurk, Identi.ca, BackType, Jaiku or Facebook

by Brian Solis

Everyone! (click the image to tag & add a note to your pic and those you know)

Kristen Nicole and I organized a last-minute Chicago Tweetup at Crimson in the Hotel Sax to celebrate the emerging tech sector in Chicago. I was in town to speak at the Chicago Community Trust event, The New Media Revolution: How Arts Organizations Can Thrive in the Digital Age. I was overwhelmed by the amazing people who showed up and shared their time and stories with everyone.

Thank you to Kristen for bringing everyone together. And, thank you to Emile Cambry for helping me with everything once I landed in Chicago.

I’ll  let the pictures tell the rest of the story…

The one and only Kristen Nicole

Francine McKenna, Liz Strauss, Barbara Rozgonyi

Blagica Stefanovski Bottigliero

Jeffery O’Hara

Birthday boy Jim Figliulo and Roderick Richards

Kristen Nicole and Liz Strauss

Andrew John Angelos, Amanda Mooney, and…

And now for the fashion show…

Congratulations, you’re still in the running for becoming America’s Next Top Model

For more pictures from the Chicago Tweetup, please visit my album on flickr.

Connect with me on:
Twitter, Jaiku, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Pownce, Plaxo, FriendFeed, Plurk, Identi.ca, BackType, or Facebook