Register at http://www.groopskool.net
For more information about the HOW Interactive Design Conference, go to http://www.howinteractiveconference.com/

Our first ever “Groop Skool Video Newsletter”. All video newsletter covering updates, upcoming Groop Skool workshops and events.

CEOs talk about their experiences working with The Groop and how The Groop has helped their business grow.

Next Tuesday, our guest on This Week in Web Design will be Razorfish Co-Founder and CEO of Dachis Group, Jeff Dachis. We are going to talk about his role in starting one of the first Digital Agencies in 1995 and now founding Dachis Group, the world’s largest social media consultancy after having Austin Ventures invest 50 million in his prediction that everything that can be social will be. We promise that this is going to be an amazing show. You can’t miss it.

This Week in Web Design

LIVE Every Tuesday

3pm PDT 6pm EST

www.ThisWeekIn.com

In May of this year Myspace invited The Groop to provide their creative vision for its redesign. The new Myspace focuses on being a social entertainment destination showcasing music, movies, games, articles, events, TV and much more.

The Groop provided a new look and feel to the Myspace interface in addition to shooting video based user profiles, animated interface previews, and a promotional spot for the official launch.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to collaborate with the Myspace team in this huge undertaking both directly and by providing our extensive network of creative talent for this effort. It is a testament to creative collaboration and The Groop’s ability to help facilitate online opportunities for our clients,” said Jose Caballer, Chief Visionary at The Groop.

To check out the new Myspace click here

A Sense of Scale: Social Networking By The Numbers (Video) « Web Strategy by Jeremiah Owyang | Social Media, Web Marketing.

When executives need a marketing catalyst to come in, challenge a “this is the way we’ve always done it” mindset, and inspire consumers to take immediate action, they ping Brody. Exploring and developing new innovative approaches to business is not a hobby for him; it’s a full time pursuit.

Brody arms North with over 20 years experience in venture analysis, brand strategy, product launches, retail promotions, consumer anthropology, and developing disruptive concepts in traditional and emerging mediums.

Before drinking the Virgin Kool-Aid, Brody wore just about every strategic leadership hat within the advertising industry; from Copywriter to Account Planner to Creative Director. He created and spearheaded the Concept Team for the Integer Group/TBWA, America’s 4th largest retail promotion agency with over 800 employees nationwide. The sole mission of this intrepreneurial project was to breed a higher degree of innovation and trigger breakthrough impact for new business and high-priority client initiatives; it resulted in putting more beers in hands, more butts in seats and game-changing thinking into motion for big brands like Coors and Coors Light, the NFL, EarthLink, Qwest Communications and United Airlines.

He first sharpened his experiential marketing chops as Director of Game Operations for the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the Continental Basketball Association, where he was recognized league-wide as a promotional innovator. Each home game he entertained the fans with a mix of stunts that included dropping pizzas from the arena rafters and showcasing on-court diaper derbies. He even taught the team’s mascot how to dunk (yes, “with authority”) off the mini-tramp. Brody graduated from the University of Arizona, and spends his free time pedaling bikes, tracking down the ultimate carne asada taco, and boasting about his prowess in Ping Pong.

So we have taken a little bit of time to compile some of the”How-To’s” grow Twitter followers. We have experimented for the last year with a lot of different ways and we where curios as to the experiences out there. Here are 3 list that we found that we liked.

Here is our “web round up”:

From WebStudio13
How to Grow Your Twitter Followers – 5 Ways That Work for Me
by Andrew Ran Wong published September 12, 2009

From Ploked
11 Ways To Grow Your Twitter Following
April 15th, 2009 | ploked

From TechCrunch
Kevin Rose: 10 Ways To Increase Your Twitter Followers
by TechCrunch on January 25, 2009

As with all things digital I am obliged to experiment with the latest. I began using Twitter on February 9th 2007. (I found this date using MyFirstTweet.com) About 6 months after Twitter was founded. I will admit that I did it because it was “new” and our resident entrepreneur the CEO of MetBlogs, Sean Bonner, was raving about it. Over the two years that followed I experimented with Twitter in many ways and I wanted to share my experiences with you and what worked and how.

So, does Twitter matter? Does it work? If so how and why? What was my experience over the last two years?

To answer the first question, yes, Twitter does matter. To me personally it matters because it allows me to reach a wide audience with valuable bits of information, Groop updates and the occasional personal update.
If you are in advertising it should matter because it is on everyone of your customers minds. If you don’t personally use it, how can you talk to your clients about it? Even if it is to poo poo it.

If you are a media company it matters because it allows you to broadcast small bits of information on an ongoing basis. The news now breaks on Twitter, your next film will gain buzz on Twitter, your readers will hear about the latest article on your blog on Twitter.
Does it matter less If you are a lifestyle brand? That depends on the lifestyle of your customers.

Does it work? It works both as passive ambient awareness of what is going on around you and also as a discovery tool for things that you might not be looking but catch’s your eye. I know that I have personally discovered products, events and people that I was not looking for by just seeing what people are talking about.

To give a few concrete examples here are some experiments I tried over the last two years:

1. How many friends in New York (I live in LA) could I get to a bar if I notify them the same day?
The answer? A lot. Using Twitter, Facebook, our blog and our Email list(s) and mounting a campaign from my hotel room. Here are the pictures to prove it:

2. How many attendees can you get to a free seminar? A lot. Again, using a combination of Twitter, Facebook, our blog & our email list(s) we where able to get 300 people into a room.

3. How can you help a client, for us Opportunity Green attract an audience of 500 people to attend their conference? I don’t have to repeat it again.

As you can see, it is never Twitter by itself, it’s an eco-system of social tools that help create tangible impact and movement within our sphere of influence. It also does not have to be just for events. In my experiments using Twitter to send out interesting blog post we find, send out our newsletter after we have sent it via email, retweeting interesting articles we find on important topics of the day, have great response. I have found that the consistent low-level messaging that occurs helps create a conversation and a story about who The Groop is.

So that’s great Jose, but how does this relate to my business and how do I do it?

First and foremost it’s less about “your business” and more about you. Note that for the most part all of what I have described has been done from a Twitter account for – JoseCaballer. A person is easier to relate to on Twitter than a brand. That said, it does not mean that they are mutually exclusive. We also have a Groop twitter account. But overall my preference is to use an account that is from me. Not just a company. It makes it more personal, more human.

In summary, Twitter, like any other communications medium has it’s pro’s and con’s, but it is undeniable that the power of passive ambient awareness is here to stay. Whether as Twitter or as something else.

I want you to ignore all the commentary from the peanut gallery and get started experimenting with Twitter.
To get started I would like you to join us for “Church of Twitter” on October 17th. You will be able to bring your laptop and start with the basics of getting set up and growing your followers. “The Reverend” Casey Eberhart will share with us the secrets to using Twitter and Facebook as marketing tools.

http://churchoftwitter.eventbrite.com/

Join us for Church of Twitter: Using Twitter & Facebook to Market Yourself & Your Clients

Save-The-Date: Saturday October 17th From 3:00 pm to 6:30 pm

Featuring the worlds first 140 character hymn Choir or “Twire” as we call it.

West side location still to be announced.

$125.00 Early Bird – $175.00 Regular – $195.00 At the Door

Sign Up Now!

What You Will Learn:

How Twitter works & getting started
Adding and growing followers
Do’s & Don’ts
Measuring impact
Using Twitter together with Facebook
Planning and executing Campaigns
And much more!

Who Should Attend:

Advertising Professionals
Media Planners
Account Executives
Creative Directors
Art Directors
Media Executives
Writers
Producers
Actors
Consultants
Musicians
Artists
Graphic Designers
Illustrators
Fashion Designers
Photographers
Architects
And More!

A percentage of our revenue goes to support individual art & design students through the Legacy Circle scholarships.

Legacy Circle is an Art Center Alumni led fundraising effort that aims to help young creatives afford a professional arts education by providing scholarships from Alumni to current students.

For more information visit: http://www.artcenter.edu/legacycircle/