Organizations

Events / Networking / Organizations — No Comments
7
Jul 10

Creative Real Estate Buying Meets Social Media: LOVELAND Presents The Big Inch Block Party

Meet Inchy

Meet Inchy

iDetroit encourages you to attend LOVELAND’s Big Inch Block Party. On Saturday, July 17th, at sundown (approx 9:06pm) and going until people get tired, LOVELAND kindly takes over the Downtown Synagogue and plans to spill into Cafe D’Mongo’s Speakeasy in downtown Detroit as the crowd gets bigger.

Headed by Jerry Paffendorf – an expatriate from Silicon Valley by way of New Jersey, LOVELAND is building a fun and interactive way to buy actual real estate in the city of Detroit. Leveraging social media tools and innovative green technologies, they have been selling square inches of the city, which makes the cheapest and most expensive real estate you can buy. The Big Inch Block Party is a fundraiser for LOVELAND, but also a way to say thanks to the community that they have been serving and looking to serve more. Now is your chance to buy your first inch of Detroit for only one dollar ($1) and it’s an interactive process, so that means you can tweet that you bought a piece of the city. ;) Come be a part of Detroit history and invest in our humble city. Be sure to RSVP on Facebook as well as share this across your social networking profiles.

In addition to owning a (possibly your first) square inch of Detroit, you can witness:

  • Food and drinks (afforded by sponsors – Betaworks and McClure’s Pickles)
  • Immersive video projections by Dan Land (who happens to have worked on Insane Clown Posse’s Miracles video — F’ing inches… how do they work??)
  • DJing by Greg Baise
  • Live music by Lightning Love, The Reelers, The Band of Lovies, and the Detroit Party Marching Band
  • Live giant painting of the whole scene by Marianne Audrey Burrows
  • Time-lapse recording of the entire party via Project Lemon Battery
  • Personal video recording booth
  • Tiny land
  • “Inchvestors”
  • Cool peoples
  • Further surprises

We hope to see you there!

Also, please peruse the LOVELAND blog and follow them on Twitter at @makeLOVELAND, where they showcase all the cool projects they have created and curated, like this 8-bit interactive map of Detroit.

Conferences / Events / Meetups / Networking / News / Organizations / Tech / Tweetups — 6 Comments
28
Dec 09

What you can expect from iDetroit in 2010

Looking back, 2009 was definitely the start of something great.

This past year, interactive and tech-themed events held in Metro Detroit connected more than 1,000 people and helped raise thousands of dollars for local charities. Dozens of individuals, including many outside of this group, worked very hard to organize such events so that we could all socialize, network, collaborate and learn together.

Here is how we at iDetroit plan to carry this incredibly powerful momentum forward into 2010.

Bigger and better events
We are already hard at work putting together some awesome events for 2010. Members of our team are already in the early stages of planning for the very first Ignite Detroit, as well as the return of Startup Weekend Detroit.  You’ll also see internationally renowned social media and business thought leaders coming to Detroit for Module 2010 (Future Midwest) and Brand Camp University 2010.  While we can’t share all the details at this time, we promise that it’s totally worth the wait.

Great conversations and ideas
Our own Hubert Sawyers III and David Murray have spearheaded the creation of two fantastic social media-related groups that are experiencing explosive growth. Tweetea recently announced its expansion into new cities and the recruitment of regional ambassadors. Social Media Club – Detroit has garnered nearly 700 fans in just a few short months, making it one of the largest Social Media Club Facebook communities ever. Look for these two groups to host some of the most thought-provoking and insightful events in the Detroit area next year.  There will also be plenty of special guests.

Plenty of new faces
Since word got out about our tweetups, conferences and late nights rocking the mic, iDetroit has been contacted by other local professional and social groups that are interested in becoming part of our community.  With these new relationships in place, we hope to not only cross-promote events, but also find opportunities to integrate our groups.

Your thoughts
This year taught us a lot about the value of participation, friendship and community.  So, what comes next?  What do you hope to see happen within Detroit’s interactive community in 2010? If you share your ideas, we can work together to make it happen.

Events / News / Organizations — No Comments
6
Dec 09

Social Media Club Detroit Holiday Party

Social Media Club DetroitIn the spirit of the holiday season, the Detroit chapter of Social Media Club invites you to our holiday party!

This year we will be celebrating at Vintner’s Cellar of Royal Oak.  Enjoy wine and an evening with your fellow SMCD members, all while helping a great local charity: Gleaners Community Food Bank in Detroit.

Cover charge is only$10 and will include 5 samples of wine. A dollar of that cover charge will go to Gleaners. Vintners Cellar will also donate 10% of all wine bottle sales that evening to Gleaners.

Our awesome staff of volunteers will be providing the munchies.

Finally, we will be collecting nonperishable food items, so please bring something other than spinach and kidney beans.

We are looking forward to seeing everyone.

Please got the to the SMCD Facebook Page to RSVP.

Thanks so much and happy holidays!

Events / Meetups / Networking / Organizations / Tweetups — 2 Comments
4
Nov 09

Upcoming Interactive Events for November 2009

Detroit SkylineWondering what’s happening this month in Detroit’s social media and tech space? Here are a few events to add to your calendar.


Social Media Club Detroit – November Chapter Meeting
Join presenter Christopher Barger, Director of Global Communications Technology for General Motors, at this month’s Social Media Club – Detroit chapter meeting on Wednesday, November 18th at Goldfish Tea in Royal Oak. Christopher will be discussing GM’s team approach to social media communications and how the organization’s digital strategy translates internationally. The meeting starts at 6pm and the presentation is scheduled for 7pm. For more info, check out the Social Media Club – Detroit Facebook Page.

Detroit Urban Craft Fair Tweetup
Handmade Detroit has joined forces with iDetroit and I3Detroit (Note: Two different groups. Both awesome.) to host a fun and interactive event that celebrates creativity with cocktails.  On Friday, November 20th at 7pm, come join Detroit Urban Craft Fair vendors the night before their big show at the Majestic Cafe in Detroit. There will be snacks and desserts courtesy of Handmade Detroit and Twitter crafts (make your Twitter nametag button for your next Tweetup). Now in its fourth year, the Detroit Urban Craft Fair will be showcasing more than 50 vendors representing a variety of art crafty goods at the Majestic Theater on Nov. 21. For more info, check out detroiturbancraftfair.com.

TechKaraoke Detroit
Think Tweetup meets networking event meets karaoke meets awesome.  Join other members of Detroit’s tech and social media space at Royal Kubo in Clawson as TechKaraoke Detroit gathers to rock out.  There WILL be prizes, including a $30 bar tab “stimulus” for the “Best in Show” performance courtesy of Royal Kubo!  The event starts at 8pm and karaoke kicks off at 9pm.  To learn more about TechKaraoke Detroit, check out its Facebook Group.

Know of any other events happening this month that we should know about? Let us know in the comments.

Events / Organizations / Tech — 1 Comment
29
Sep 09

i3 Detroit Provides Us With Our First Hackerspace

Saturday, October 3, 2009 – the date of the grand opening of i3 Detroit’s collaborative work environment, better known as a “hackerspace.” The open house will be from 12:00pm to 5:00pm with a party to follow at 7:00pm. It is on one of iDetroit’s favorite streets – Fourth Street in Royal Oak (322 E Fourth St to be exact). As the lame duck mayor of Fourth Street, I want to welcome i3 Detroit to the neighborhood. All we at iDetroit ask is that you let the Rudy’s drive the cupcake car you guys are building in there.

Here is Edward Platt of newbit Design Lab and a main conspirator of i3 Detroit pitching my VADO HD camera:

For more information, check out http://www.i3detroit.com

Events / News / Organizations — No Comments
2
Aug 09

Welcome to iDetroit

love detroit It’s an exciting time to be involved with social media and technology here in Detroit. We are now home to some of the most engaging and interactive conferences in the Midwest.  The regular social media meetups and tweetups are attracting large groups of like-minded individuals on a consistent basis.  Our numbers are growing and everyone is hungry for more.

However, with all of this activity, there hasn’t been a team in place dedicated to rallying the troops and spearheading the efforts behind uniting and growing our community.

To address this problem, a few of us decided that working together was far more constructive than operating independently.  By pooling our resources, experience and talent, we could take Detroit’s social media and tech community to the next level.

The result of this combination: iDetroit

Think of us as a community exercise.  A group with big hopes and ideas for Metro Detroit.

What you can expect from iDetroit:

  • Valuable events and conferences designed to connect Detroit’s tech and social media community.
  • A hub where you can learn about the region’s latest happenings.
  • The promotion of events organized outside of iDetroit.
  • Honest feedback and reviews of other local events.
  • Opportunities to get involved and help shape the future of Detroit’s social media and tech scene.

What we need from you:

  • Feedback.
  • Suggestions.
  • Comments.
  • Participation.

What you’ll start to see is many of the local events you regularly attend flying under the iDetroit name.  We want everyone to know that these gatherings are part of something bigger.

Our goal is to become the most active force within Detroit’s social media and tech community.  We can’t accomplish this without your help.

While we have big plans for iDetroit, we are just getting started.  We hope you’ll join us for the ride.