DC’s Social Media Leaders Gather at APCO

On Wednesday, June 23, APCO’s Washington, D.C., office will host the June meeting of the Social Media Club’s (SMC) D.C. chapter. This month’s meeting will focus on “Sports & Social Media,” examining the ways that social technologies are helping fans connect even more closely with their favorite athletes and teams, as well as the forces driving marketing strategies to evolve among the most innovative sports organizations as they cultivate new generations of passionate competitors and followers. Online experts in the world of athletics, such as former Redskins PR director Patrick Wixted and Women Talk Sports advisory board member Sarah Braesch, are slated to participate in a lively panel discussion and exchange with the audience of social media practitioners at Wednesday’s meeting.

In addition to being great platforms to spark dialogue among professionals on hot topics, SMC meetings are also major networking events for the people who actually make it happen online. This includes individuals with expertise in developing social media technologies, the practitioners who executing award-winning communications programs with social media and the analysts who evaluate the growing impacts of social media on our society.

APCO is honored to host this month’s meeting in downtown Washington, as part of our ongoing commitment to social media channels and the influencers that are driving its explosive growth. This gathering will leverage some of the best minds in the area to examine the relationships between local sports franchises and the extremely passionate residents of the DC metropolitan area.  Additionally, since sports communities are frequently on the cutting-edge of social media innovation, I’m looking forward to this session being deeply instructive on best practices that could apply to other segments of our business.

Wednesday’s meeting will also feature some great giveaways. DC United’s Bryan Namoff @NAMOFF) and @CoutureforaCure have teamed up to coordinate a raffle for two free game tickets and a team jersey. Also, Navstar (@navstar) has also been generous enough to donate two pairs of tickets to two different Nationals games for a raffle. APCO will also have HR personnel on hand to talk with any individuals interested in a career in public relations and social media. Demand for an event of this nature has been high for a while and RSVPs have already reached their limit, so we are looking forward to a great event. Check back here Thursday for a recap of meeting and additional highlights.

Social Media Club-DC Web site 
Link to Event on SMC-DC blog

Event details:

Title: Play by Play: Sports and Social Media
Date: Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: APCO Worldwide’s Washington, D.C., office

List of speakers:

• Sarah Braesch (moderator), Draft Day Suit, BlogHer, and Women Talk Sports advisory board member http://twitter.com/goonsquadsarah/ @draftdaysuit)
• Mike Schaffer, social media manager at Iostudio, founder of #sportsprchat @mikeschaffer)
• Anthony Caponiti, partner at Activ8Social (@dcsportsguy)
• Liz Chang, blogger at On Frozen Blog (@dcsportschick / @onfrozenblog)
• Patrick Wixted, sports & gaming account manager at New Media Strategies, former Redskins PR director @pwixted)
• Lindsay Czarniak, NBC News4 sports reporter and anchor) *invited*