Attending the Main Street Morning Buzz in Woodstock GA

We were in attendance for their program, which included a presentation by the Woodstock Police Foundation.

The presentation also included information on the great things taking place in downtown Woodstock. They shared the vision for the new park & that it will hopefully begin construction this November!

"The BUZZ is your chance to network with other Main Street Woodstock members, meet with businesses, residents and local non-profits, and learn more about YOUR Woodstock community. If you want to be in the loop, you've got to get to the BUZZ."

Here are the next dates for the meetings and topics:

September 30:

Meet the Candidates

Come out and meet the candidates qualified for Woodstock City Council as well as other local officials.

October 28:

Cherokee County School District

Come and hear from Dr. Frank Petruzielo and School officials about our district and the upcoming SPLOST for Education.

We hope to join the group soon! See you there?

#ChirpWdstck

Cherokee County GA has it's very own tweet up every third Tuesday of the month.

The tweet-up known under the hashtag on twitter as #ChirpWdstck began meeting at Canyon's Burger Company: http://canyonsburgercompany.com/locations this Spring. Canyon's is a favorite spot for both Olivia & Suzanne & their sons', so it was the first place they decided to try a local tweet-up. A tweet-up is simply a meet-up for tweeps(twitter friends) on twitter.

This July we will meet a little early @Acru. We will have an #earlychirp give away for those who

can come at the 5:00pm time and meet up there: http://acruwealth.com/ They have a great coffee shop inside and a wonderfully open space for meeting and tweeting. Foursquare venue link: https://foursquare.com/venue/21265725

From there we hope to go to Pure taqueria and hang out on the rooftop! (details confirmed first week of July)

We can have food, fun and chatting too!

http://puretaqueria.com/locations

Looking forward to seeing you there!

We have a twtvite set up so you can RSVP there: http://twtvite.com/chirpwdstck4

iwearyourshirt Shared Sponsor Day 1/2/2011 Wrap up!

Wow what a fun day we had as one of 26 companies featured on iwearyourshirt.com Shared Sponsor Day!

DeAndre @deandresays

Now too long ago, we were glued to our computer waiting for Jason to announce that the 2011 calendar was live! and we waited, and waited and waited... and then POP.. live it went and then sadly they had some server issues? The early days went quickly... you see they charge a fee for 5 shirt wearers to wear a shirt with your logo on it, then they post about your company on facebook, tweet about it to their followers, make a video about your product and post it to YouTube, then promote that video using facebook and twitter and finally you are featured in a live video chat on Ustream.tv with the shirt wearers and your product featured. It is a great opportunity to entertain and engage your fans and followers, and acquire some new ones as well. The fee goes up incrementally by $5.00 per day. Jan 1st is $5.00, then the 2nd is $10.00 and the 3rd is $15.00 and so on and so on. Jason Sadler and his iwearyourshirt team are starting their third year. You can learn more about it here.

Our budget is low so we really were hoping for a day in January or February. We were so excited when we were able to get January 2nd! So were 26 other folks who also by some glitch got the same day. Jason's solution was to refund our money and let everyone share the day! It ended up being 1 of the 5 t-shirt wearers wore 5 or 6 logos... and featured those 5 or 6 companies. We enjoyed DeAndre's hard work and think he did an amazing job. Check out his Inception inspired video below

Here is DeAndre's Recorded Live video chat on Ustream.tv both @swaygrl and @suedaisy were able to contribute to the live chat!

We shared our day with Logo 222 and Coffee Submarine and The Social Tweep and Tixlist  and Simply Delectable Gourmet. What great brands and companies to be bundles with. Do check them out.

Our twitter followers grew, as well as our fan page likes. We also made some great connections with the other shared sponsors for the day. We think that the new formula of 5 shirt wearers is going to be alot of fun, and the companies/brands will get a fantastic bang for their buck!
Thanks again iwearyourshirt.

suedaisy

Qr Code Contest & Seasonal Treats Available for a limited time!

You know what is one of the best things about the Holiday season? Not just the crisp in the air, Holiday decorations, Christmas music, family traditions, and Christmas specials... but the Seasonal Treats available just this time of year. One of our favorites is the Chocolate Chip Peppermint Shake at Chick Fil A.

Their calendars are pretty awesome too. Coupons galore. Another sweet treat are the mint flavored lattes and coffees at Dunkin Donuts. Warm and delicious, and the peppermint sprinkles on their donuts are so cute.

We have Trader Joe's here in the Atlanta area and they are just genius when it comes to affordable holiday treats. They have these adorable iced mini gingerbread cookies that are now so popular they were already out of stock at my closest Trader Joe's by December 16th. Don't worry there were many other Seasonal offerings. Not a bad substitute are these dark chocolate stars.

Add these to your cookie tins and teacher's gifts. So delicious. I am surprised they did not sell out quickly as well. So you don't have a Trader Joe's? You can still indulge in a Seasonal Treat from Little Debbie or even Kellogg's Pop Tarts got in on the act this year.

Personally I have not tried the Pop Tarts, let me know if you have and how they are? I showed them to my kids and they made that scrunched up face they make that translates into "That's gross Mom!"

Lastly we can't leave out the very delicious Starbucks holiday drinks. Their Peppermint Latte, the Gingerbread Latte, and the Eggnog Latte just to start. And now they have added the Caramel Brulee Latte this season.

Have you tried it? Do you want to? Well here's your chance to on the Gotogrls.

We are giving away a $25.00 Starbucks Gift Card. All we ask is that you leave a comment on this blog post and tell us about your favorite seasonal treat. Contest will expire January 2nd 2011, at midnight. Leave us your email or twitter name so we can contact you if you win! We will then pick a winner at random from all the entries. Now that's not all... For more ways to enter, we are trying out a new promotional tool. The QR code.

You will need a smart phone, a computer and a QR code reader. You can get one from your phone's marketplace. Suedaisy uses Barcode scanner, while swaygrl uses At&t code scanner. Once you have a bar code scanner app on your phone point it at this QR code for instructions on what to do next. Thanks for playing.  We appreciate any feedback on this contest. Happy Holidays to all.

Suedaisy



What the heck is a QR code and why should I use one?

A QR Code is a matrix barcode (or two-dimensional code), readable by QR scanners, mobile phones with a camera, and smartphones. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on white background. It was created by Toyota subsidiary Denso-Wave in 1994, the QR code is one of the most popular types of two-dimensional barcodes. QR is the abbreviation for Quick Response, as the creator intended the code to allow its contents to be decoded at high speed. The use of the QR Code is free of any license. The QR Code is clearly defined and published as ISO standard. Denso Wave owns the patent rights on QR Code, but has chosen not to exercise them. The term QR Code itself is a registered trademark of Denso Wave Incorporated.

QR Codes can be used to display text to the user, to add a vCard contact to the user's device, to open a url or to compose a text message or email. For example: this QR code will point you to our Gotogrls website.

Don't have a reader on your cell phone?

that's alright, you can download one from the marketplace for free. I use ShopSavvy available here.

Olivia @swaygrl uses AT&T code scanner.  I even used my code reader while shopping for deals for Christmas. When I came upon an item out of stock at Target, I used the code reader to scan the barcode sticker of the item where it should have been in stock on the shelf, and the app not only told me where else had it, and how many they had in stock, but, how far away it was and how much it was listed for. You can also set up alerts and wishlists, and the reader will tell you when there has been a price change. Soon I believe everyone will be taking advantage of their code readers on their phones.

OK now back to why YOUR business should use a QR code.

You can also create a QR code that will include a message. Scan ours below and it will return a message that says "Contact GotoGrls.com for all your social media marketing needs."

You can create a QR code that will send a phone number to the phone all set to be added to the contact list.

Or this QR code below will send me a text from you with a message. (once you hit send of course)

So we can collect your cell number and have a message that will alert us as to where you came across this QR code.

So now that we explained what a QR code can do... what can the QR code do for your business?

We can put it on your Facebook page.

and we can put it on your custom twitter background

on a business card or even on a t shirt.

And don't forget the url, the QR code can point to a coupon, promotion or giveaway on your twitter feed, facebook fan page or your website. We can combine the QR code with a social media campaign. Have folks from your website read the QR code to get a special promotional code. Let us know where you have seen a QR code lately, tell us which app you use? Contact us for a brainstorming session, and have fun with your QR code reader.

suedaisy

Meeting face to face

In this digital age.... That sounds odd, yes, but anywhoo...

Working in the social media business, I can see how it is easy to stay behind your screen your favorite tab and connect away. While I enjoy time online chatting with my friends (who for one reason or another don't get to see IRL) for me personal interaction gets me motivated. I like people and being in a group has always inspired me. So I'm thrilled that @suedaisy & I get to have at least one face to face meeting a week. Ya know ~we get out from behind our computer screens. We put our phones down and get out a notebook. We drink coffee and chat about goals for the week and ideas for the future.

For us @GotoGrls we choose Mcdonald's. It's not too far away for either of us. We also meet there because they have Free Wifi and a play place for @suedaisy's little one to entertain himself while we work.

Do you have a favorite meeting spot? Are you in business alone or with a partner? How do you deal? Share with us in a comment here where you meet and what you talk about. You will have a chance to win a gift card from us for a free meal from Mcdonald's so you can have a face to face for free from us! We will have a drawing from those who leave us a comment! Contest runs until Midnight December 15th.

Have a great week and get out there and meet some people IRL (in real life) face to face! As always Thanks for taking the time to read what we are saying, commenting And sharing us with your friends!

@swaygrl

Let us help you make a great impression.

Just as your personal appearance can help make a great first and lasting impression, so too can your web presence. Just as your clothes should coordinate and reflect who you are, so too should your social media marketing materials. Why not utilize your print materials, and have us create custom facebook landing pages, twitter backgrounds, and/or email blasts. We can help design and deliver the entire package.

And it's not just about looking good. Once your web presence is established, we will utilize the investment and spread the word about your business. We will work on growing your fans and followers, and once your community is growing and thriving, we can promote to a warm consumer. You now can easily communicate with your customers, engage and be engaged. Reach out immediately, make offers, reward your followers, share some news. The possibilities are endless.

here is our page
http://www.facebook.com/GotoGrls


For $150.00
We will create a custom facebook landing page, complimenting your existing marketing materials or website. This page will be the default page when a fan visits your site.

We will get you your vanity facebook url after your reach 50 fans.
We will research and recommend other facebook fan pages to like, pertinent to your business.

For an additional $150.00
We will create or change your twitter name to reflect your business.
We will design a custom twitter background to compliment all your other marketing materials.
We will tweet for you 30 times for the month. (content provided by client)
We will research and recommend other twitter folks to follow, pertinent to your business.
We will run a facebook wall campaign, with a twitter campaign to encourage conversation, and engage your followers and fans.

Includes up to 2 revisions, all other revisions will be charged at an hourly rate of $25.00.

Don’t have a logo? Want to do a custom campaign? More tweets please? How about a promotion? Additional creative services are available. Contact us and we will provide a custom quote based on your specific needs.

Call either Olivia 678.327.5083 or Suzanne 678.468.1617 or feel free to email us at Gotogrls with your contact information and we will get back to you!