When thinking of ways to do community outreach, beyond digital means for my new client, SOCO and the OC Mix, I decided to put together two of my favorite things: Social Media and Breakfast. Thus was born the first SOCO Social Media Breakfast, a collaborative gathering of social media managers, influencers, creatives and SOCO super fans.
The idea was to gather like-minded people to share tips and tricks about social media, bring questions to the table and network.
What happened was so much more – it was a creative burst of energy. Not only were new personal connections made but also awesome collaborative photos!
During our first meeting, Portola Coffee donated coffee to fuel our creativity. We also got a sneak preview of their partnership with Mr. Holmes Bakehouse.
Collab upon collab! This photo was taken by Stephanie Lin, who had just opened the shop Kestan at SOCO and the OC Mix. Fashion blogger Ashley models a Kestan top AND a cup of Portola coffee.
Shortly after that November meeting, I scheduled a December breakfast, not even a month afterward since I knew the holidays would be hectic for everyone. While most of the original attendees did not make it, we had a new photographer join us and staffers from Travel Costa Mesa. December’s meeting was short and sweet and yet super productive. I just needed to get the group together to keep the momentum going.
We even got Travel Costa Mesa’s Social Media Manager, a photographer herself, model for us!
Naturally, she turned the cameras on one of our other photographers and captured the photo below. I always tell all attendees to come ready to be behind and in front of the camera! I’ve gotten some great headshots of myself from these collab sessions too.
During the first two meetings, we produced some high-quality product shots, which we shared with the shops that lent us their items. We provided quality content for different brands and also increased engagement for the photos used. But best of all, we made new connections and found kindred spirits in the photographers, bloggers, and social media managers, who have attended the events.
The social media breakfasts will continue into the new year. In fact, we already had a meeting this month! Watch the video. The attendees change sometimes and I am careful about who to invite. I feel that the group has to be just right with a mix of social, creativity and community. Besides practical ideas that each one can implement in their social media marketing efforts, we end with more than just content, we leave the social media breakfasts inspired to create more!
