Social Media Week Chicago to Present 90 Free Events

Sessions Available by Leading Social and Digital Experts across the City

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Social Media Week Chicago 2012 will host a lineup of 90 free events across 40 venues throughout the city that explore the social, cultural and economic impact of social media from Sept. 24 – 28. The event is organized by Zócalo Group and the Chicago Tribune.

“We’re very excited to be the city sponsor for Social Media Week Chicago”

In its second year, Social Media Week Chicago 2012 already has more than 14,000 registrations by social media novices, experts and enthusiasts. This year’s increased interest from both the consumer and business communities signifies the impact that social media is having across Chicago and demonstrates the shift occurring in the way people are communicating and connecting.

Due to high demand, registration has been extended for many events, including a variety of keynote speakers, interactive events and educational programming covering all aspects of social media. Be sure to check the Social Media Week Chicago event schedule and social channels for current updates. Some of the highlighted events include:

• Erik Qualman, founder and author of “Socialnomics”
  Tuesday, 9/25 from 11 a.m – 12 p.m. at the Tribune Tower
• Brad Keywell, managing partner and co-founder of Lightbank
  Tuesday, 9/25 from 12:30 – 2 p.m at the Tribune Tower
• Mayor Emanuel’s Digital Trio: a conversation between Brett Goldstein, chief data officer; John Tolva, chief technology officer; and Kevin Hauswirth, director of social media
  Tuesday, 9/25 from 2 – 3 p.m. at CDW Plaza
• Chicago’s Startup Masters: a conversation with Logan LaHive, founder and CEO of Belly; Matt Maloney, co-founder and CEO of GrubHub; and Genevieve Thiers, founder of Sittercity
  Thursday, 9/27 from 3 – 4:30 p.m. at the Riverfront Theater
• “When Social Transforms a City” featuring John Tolva, Chicago’s chief technology officer
  Thursday, 9/27 from 5:30 – 7 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Chicago

In addition, social media and house music lovers are invited to attend one of this year’s featured events – From Chicago to Berlin: Silent House Party, presented by Tostitos® to be held on Sept. 26 at Pioneer Court on Michigan Avenue. The Silent House Party is a collaborative, cross-city music event that unites Social Media Week in Chicago, the birthplace of house music, with Social Media Week in Berlin, a current hub for the house music scene. To kick off the celebration, Kenny Jammin’ Jason from the Hot Mix 5, one of the originators of house music, will blend some of the best house music Chicago and Berlin have to offer. Follow @SMWChicago for details on how to join the party!

To see a full list of Chicago events, visit www.socialmediaweek.org/chicago, go to the ‘Schedule’ tab and select Chicago from the drop-down menu. Of these events, 35 will also be Livestreamed throughout the week and can be followed at http://new.livestream.com/pages/smw.

Social Media Week Chicago also welcomes Brickfish as this year’s city sponsor.

“We’re very excited to be the city sponsor for Social Media Week Chicago,” said Michael Mullarkey, CEO of Brickfish. “It is great to see so many companies learning about how to leverage social media to better engage their consumers and move beyond ‘likes’ to social commerce and ROI.”

Other key contributors to the weeklong event include Science and Technology track sponsor CDW and Cisco as well as other sponsors including Beam, Frito-Lay, Follett Software, Qdoba, Nissan and Lab 42.

Social Media Week Chicago also welcomes media partners Fast Company and WBEZ. Additional partners include Hyatt Regency Chicago, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Sound-Bar, Rockit Bar & Grill, the College of Media/University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Berghoff, Wow Bao, KIND Snacks, O.N.E. Coconut Water and Wava Media.

“We’re thankful for our sponsors and partners who are helping make Social Media Week Chicago a huge success,” said Paul M. Rand, president and CEO of Zócalo Group. “The caliber of global companies and organizations joining this year’s roster is proof of social media’s growing importance across all facets of business and life.”

Occurring simultaneously in 13 cities around the globe, Social Media Week 2012 offers a unique global platform that will provide participants with cutting-edge information and the latest trends in social and mobile media. Events highlight the intersection of social media and a wide range of topics including business, technology, politics, arts, sports and education.

For more information on Social Media Week Chicago, visit http://socialmediaweek.org/chicago/ or follow the conversation on Facebook or @SMWChicago and #SMWChicago on Twitter. For exclusive interviews, reviews and insights related to the social space, or to find a full list of keynote speakers and Advisory Board members, check out the Social Media Week Chicago blog at http://socialmediaweek.org/chicago/chicago/blog/.

About Zócalo Group

Zócalo Group is a full-service word-of-mouth and social media marketing agency, helping leading consumer and business to business brands become the most talked about and recommended in their categories. Based in Chicago, Zócalo Group has received numerous industry awards for brand programs and measurement initiatives. Zócalo Group is a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) and Ketchum. For more information, please visit www.zocalogroup.com.

About the Chicago Tribune

For 164 years, the Chicago Tribune has been a market-leading publication of the Tribune Company. Reaching five million readers each week in print, online and through radio, television and live events, the Tribune is known for its public service journalism and watchdog reporting. In 2010, the Tribune launched Trib Nation, a community outreach and audience engagement program that includes a broad menu of live events such as Chicago Forward: Conversations About the Future, a series of public policy discussions; programs by columnists and other journalists; literary events including Author Talks, Lit Fest, and Literary Awards; and classes and seminars under the banner TribU: Lessons for Life.

About Brickfish

Brickfish® is the award winning social media marketing technology company whose Brickfish Enterprise Platform® helps agencies and Fortune 2000 companies ignite consumer engagement to drive e-commerce transactions and provide actionable data and insights. The Brickfish social media solution has generated 600 million consumer engagements and conversations for market leaders including Microsoft and Nike. Brickfish’s patent pending platform with its Viral Map® and Geo View technologies track reach, frequency, and viral activity in real time across the Web. Chicago based Brickfish is a Red Herring Global 100 winner and an OMMA Award winner for Best Viral Campaign. For more information, please visit www.brickfish.com.

About Social Media Week

Social Media Week is owned and operated by Crowdcentric Media LLC and is a global platform connecting people, content, and conversation around emerging trends in social and mobile media. Delivered primarily through a network of internationally hosted conferences and online through social media, Social Media Week literally connects hundreds of thousands of people every year through learning experiences that aim to advance our understanding of social media's role in society. To learn more, visit http://socialmediaweek.org/.