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The first Social Media Breakfast Tech Valley was a great success and we're pleased to have SUNY Cobleskill on board again to sponsor our second event.

Social Media Case Study: The what, how and why of a social media campaign Featuring guest speaker Justin R. Levy of Caminito Argentinian Steakhouse and New Marketing Labs.

Justin R. Levy lives and breathes social media. (Seriously. He got married earlier this year and live-tweeted his own wedding!) Justin is the general manager of New Marketing Labs, a new media agency and home to the Inbound Marketing Summit, Inbound Marketing Bootcamp and other educational events.

Levy is also a partner and general manager of Caminito Argentinian Steakhouse in Northampton, Mass. After buying into Caminito, Justin immediately cut the traditional marketing budget by approximately 80 percent and began implementing a social media strategy he had developed. Prior to this the restaurant was barely profitable. Immediately following the implementation of his social media strategy, Justin began to see sales steadily increase at a rate of 22-35 percent each month over the same month in 2007. Other accomplishments included obtaining over 7,500 results in Google for the restaurant in just an eight-month period and five positive reviews from food critics.

Justin will share his success story with us at Social Media Breakfast. He'll break down the social media tactics he used, which include blogging, Yelp and YouTube, and walk through how he has integrated them into the restaurant's overall operating strategy - and how he measures the results! Justin will present for about an hour and then take questions from the audience for the second half of the event. 

Location

The breakfast will be held at the Capital Repertory Theater (on Twitter @CapitalRepNY) in downtown Albany. Everyone in attendance will be entered into a drawing to win a pair of tickets to Capital Rep's current production, Shear Madness:

"Shear Madness is America's hilarious whodunit, where the audience gets to solve the crime. A mixture of improvisation and up-to-the-minute spontaneous humor, the play is delightfully different every time you see it."

Parking information

Capital Rep is located downtown on N. Pearl Street next to The Big House. Street parking is available but many metered spots have time limits - please note posted parking regulations for metered spots.

The closest municipal garage is the Quackenbush Square Garage, located at Orange and Broadway (First left off 787 exit 4B; one block from the theater). The rate is for 3 hours is approximately $7.

Another garage option is the Columbia Garage. From the North, take exit 4B off 787, turn left on Broadway, left at the second light onto Columbia St. and right into the garage. From the South, take exit 4 off 787, follow the signs to make a right onto Broadway, turn right at the fourth light onto Columbia St. and right into the garage. Map and detailed instructions for this garage are available here.

Several privately owned pay surface lots are nearby.

Event details

• The event begins at 8 a.m. with registration and some brief time for networking. Please arrive on time so you can get your name tag and breakfast before we start.
• Breakfast consists of coffee, tea, juice, bagels and cream cheese.
• We will be sitting in the actual theater, so power outlets will be limited and you'll have to put your laptop on your lap. Charge your battery!
• WiFi is available but somewhat limited at the theater. If you have a broadband access card, please bring it, or consider using your mobile device instead of a laptop.
• We are interested in recording and/or live-streaming this event. If you or someone you know can help us get this event up on Ustream, please contact Amy Mengel [amy.mengel @ yahoo.com]
• If you register but later find out you are unable to attend, please let us know so that we can offer your seat to someone else.

About Social Media Breakfast

Social Media Breakfast was founded by Bryan Person in August 2007 as an event where social media experts and newbies alike come together to eat, meet, share, and learn. Marketers, PR pros, entrepreneurs, bloggers, podcasters, new-media fanatics, and online social networkers are all welcome to attend.

The breakfast series began in Boston and has now spread to more than 25 cities throughout the United States and around the world. It was brought to Tech Valley by Amy Mengel.