Three more days until BlogHer10-keep an eye out for Whrrl to win TONS of prizes!
The countdown begins this week for BlogHer 2010 – and I’m more than excited to be joining the masses of bloggers, Tweeters (and soon-to-be Whrrlers, if you’re not already) in New York City!
We have tons of fun things planned for our bloggy friends while in The Big Apple, including giving away more than TWO THOUSAND dollars in prizes! You’ll find Whrrl (and me!) here:
Crazi Beautiful’s I Heart New York Social:
We know this will be many bloggers’ first trip to New York, and you’ll want to hit up all the “must-see” NYC sites – The Met, Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty, Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum and more. One-hundred lucky ladies attending CraziBeautiful’s I Heart New York Social on Thursday will receive The New York Pass in their swag bags. This pass is the ULTIMATE New York tourist pass – free entry to more than 55 locations across the city and skipping line privileges (it would normally cost you $800 for all the entry fees!)
We’ve created the I Heart New York Society, which includes most of the must-see destinations on the pass. (Psst…if you don’t get a pass or an RSPV to the party, you can still follow along in Whrrl from your mobile phone with the Society, so join now by clicking the link!)
We’ll be giving away more than $2,000 in prizes for checking in on Whrrl at one of the sightseeing places on The New York Pass.
Each time you check in to a place with a prize, you’ll get a chance to win. (Each check in to a prize-holding place within a 24-hour time frame will receive a chance to win.)
Here’s what you’ll get, and where:
- The Empire State Building: One lucky lady will win a Dell Mini Inspiron Netbook ($299), and two gals will win NuSkin’s ageLOC Transformation Package (more than $400 value)
- Statue of Liberty: Summer Heat Beach Bag Packages from NuSkin with an ageLOC Galvanic Spa in each bag (three total – each worth more than $400)
- Madame Toussad’s: A silver charm bracelet from Lisa Leonard Designs
- Museum of Modern Art: A $250 leather bag (in black) from Hobo
- The Met: The “Help Me Be Good” children’s book box set from Joy Berry (winner of the iParent Media Award and worth $128!) and an interactive “I Love Potty Training” app for iPhone from Joy Berry.
- Guggenheim Museum: Another free one-day pass from The New York Pass (worth $58)
- UPDATE: American Museum of Natural History: iLuminess Airbrush Cosmetic System ($229)
And there’s more prizes coming! Follow Whrrl on Twitter – we’ll be Tweeting in the #BlogHer stream, announcing prizes and chances to win throughout BlogHer10!
Sex and the City Whrrl Walking Tour through NYC:
I’ll be leading a Sex and the City walking tour through a few spots in NYC that the ladies filmed at, including Carrie’s doorstep and the garden where Steve and Miranda were married. We’ll also stop to taste the infamous Magnolia Cupcakes that Carrie and Miranda love – and I’ll be teaching a Whrrl feature at each stop. If you’re not on the RSVP list, you can add yourself to a waitlist (in case someone cancels last minute) or take the tour yourself by joining the Sex and the City Society on Whrrl!
During the two weeks after BlogHer, we’ll hold a contest for the best Whrrl Society created, and the winner will receive a coveted Kindle from Amazon.com! (Details coming soon, so stay tuned).
If you can’t make either of those events, be sure to look for this person:
I’ll be available on-site at the BlogHer events to tell everyone how they can start their own location-based service through Whrrl Societies, bringing their real-world passions alive for their blog readers, and partnering with brands in a whole new way!
Look for me out and about at the official BlogHer parties, events and the lobby during panels (I’ll also have a cute little gift to give you, if you find me). I won’t be wearing a hot dog hat, but you get the idea.
And don’t forget – you can use Whrrl in NYC as your personal tour guide to the city. We have tons of New York City-based Societies that will help you find the best shopping places, breakfast spots, Latin food and more. And, each place you check in at could have a recommendation of what to order or try! Take recommendations from New York’s Whrrlers of the best places to go and things to do…
NYC Sports Bars: http://whrrl.com/j/KRKRJ3T
NYC Wine Bars: http://whrrl.com/j/Z4QEJL
NYC Nightlife Society: http://whrrl.com/j/WWXS2B
Sex and the City Society: http://whrrl.com/j/SATC
Cupcakery Society: http://whrrl.com/j/UGPNY4
NYC Shopping Society: http://whrrl.com/j/WKM8KAG
NYC Underground Hot Spots Society: http://whrrl.com/j/undergroundny
Latin Food Society: http://whrrl.com/j/latinnyc
Al Fresco New York Society (rooftop patios and bars): http://whrrl.com/j/W2B6YX3
See you in New York!
“Give It A Whrrl” – come have lunch with our team!
Since our launch of recommendations in Whrrl, it’s been super exciting to me, a Seattle native who considers herself a city insider, to see recommendations for places to go and things to do throughout Seattle that I’ve never even heard of.
Even more cool – I’ve heard from a number of Whrrlers that they’re experiencing the same thing in their cities across the nation. This is exactly what we had in mind when we launched Whrrl – an app to use on-the-go to get you out of your social rut!
We couldn’t be more thrilled to see all the local recommendations cropping up from users throughout Seattle, home to Pelago. So, we decided to gather for lunch as a team a couple weeks ago to try out Lunchbox Laboratory – a hot spot in Seattle where we drooled over the long list of recommendations like these:
Not only did we embark on a field trip to try the “perfect burger,” we hosted our very first “Give It a Whrrl” lunch and invited a Whrrler along – Mike Schneider, the author of the Digital Before Digital blog. Mike was able to meet the Whrrl team, give us his ideas and feedback, and most importantly – devour the Burger of the Gods! You can check out our Whrrl story on our first “Give It A Whrrl” here:
All of us had such a great time clicking “Did It” on the recommendations we had saved at this popular burger joint, and bringing along Mike for the ride, that we decided we’re going to launch a regular event: “Give It A Whrrl” lunches!
Do you live in Seattle, or have travel plans here soon? Come out with the Pelagoons, trying a new, hip place fellow Whrrlers have recommended! Lunch is on us; we’d love to meet and get to know YOU!
Don’t live in Seattle? How about hosting your own “Give It A Whrrl”?
E-mail me at jeanna [at] pelage [dot] com if either of those ideas interest you!
Let’s give it a whirl!
Whrrlers & Red Bull fans in NYC: Keep an eye out for the Whrrl Green Man!
The Red Bull Air Race starts tomorrow in New York City, and parties are happening all over New York tonight for Red Bull and Whrrl fans! Become a Red Bull Society member now to ensure you don’t miss out on the action!
Celebrate the start of the weekend’s events in style by dancing to guest DJs, scoring two for one Red Bull drinks, and gaining free entrance to some of New York’s hottest bars. And don’t forget to try out the Red Bull Air Race flight simulator to experience what it’s like to be one the world’s best pilots – racing against the clock through a low-level track made up of air-filled pylons, reaching speeds of 230 mph while withstanding forces up to 12 G!
Check in on Whrrl at the following locations for Red Bull Air Race Take Off Parties:
- Ulysses Folk House – 95 Pearl St., New York, NY
- The Dubliner – 45 Stone St., New York, NY
- Becketts Bar & Grill – 81 Pearl St., New York, NY
- Stone Street Tavern – 52 Stone St., New York, NY
Also don’t miss:
- Two-for-one Red Bull + Svedka Vodka at Blvd, Village Lantern and Opal when you check in on Whrrl
- $6 Red Bull + Stoli O Bombs at Trinity Place and Dublin 6
- Complimentary entry at Tenjune
- $5 Red Bull Cheery Bombs at Thunder Jackson
- $2 off Red Bull cocktails at Tonic East, Saloon, Libation and more!
While out in New York, or at the Red Bull Air Race this weekend, keep an eye out for the Whrrl Green Man – yes, he’s green with a Whrrl logo painted on his chest – and the Whrrl Street Team, which will be at specific locations throughout NYC now through Saturday. Together with the Whrrl Street Team, Red Bull will be announcing where the Whrrl Green Man is located on Twitter and Facebook. All you have to do is find a Whrrl Green Man and take a picture of him on Whrrl to win Red Bull Air Race prizes!
If you haven’t already, get your tickets now to Red Bull Air Race, and become a Red Bull Society member on Whrrl to get in on all the action!
Here is the official schedule for Red Bull Air Race on Saturday and Sunday:
From the Pelago crew: thanks to all who helped make SXSW awesome
Well, I made it through another successful SXSWi this year and even didn’t get SXSars (AKA sick after the conference). As a “veteran” – ok, it was only my second conference, but still – I knew what I was getting myself into when I landed in Austin. Lots of social media and technology rockstars I wanted to meet in person. Lots of friends I hadn’t seen since CES if not last year. Lots of networking events and parties I needed to attend. And one thing was for sure – I wasn’t going to get lots of sleep.
Now that’s it’s been almost two weeks since SXSW Interactive started, I’ve thought about what the key takeaways were from the conference and what I wanted to share. I’ve read the beautiful, sassy Jolie O’Dell (@jolieodell) say she won’t be back next year. Influencer Robert Scoble (@scobleizer) agreed with Jolie about how SXSW has become more about mobs of people and less about meaningful interactions. I even recently spoke with MyTekLife (@myteklife) and gave an overview of my experiences where I agreed SXSW has lost some of its value. You can read that post here.
But, at the end of the day, I still believe there is NO better place to meet, network and connect with key players in social media and technology than SXSW. Let’s face it- everybody is there. Even if the only value you receive is from face to face interaction, I say yes- I’ll be there, year after year. And I met and saw some awesome people this year. While I can’t mention everyone here, I did want to point out a few awesome peeps you should follow on Twitter and get to know, if you already haven’t:
Damien Basile (@db): Social media consultant based in New York. Damien and I have multiple friends in common and have chatted on Twitter and Facebook for years but never met in real life. He’s also one of the most well-connected, intelligent and thoughtful people in social media today – the real deal.
(cc) Kenneth Yeung – www.thelettertwo.com
Rick Bakas (@rickbakas): Head of social media for St Supery winery, based in Napa. And let me tell you something- this guy gets it. He’s connected with the most influential folks in social media to both host in-person and virtual wine tastings to help build some solid online buzz for the tasty brand.
Brian Simpson (@bsimi) Heads social media for Roger Smith Hotel, a boutique, family owned property in New York. Brian has broken through the clutter so that when you think of all the hotels to stay in the Big Apple, Roger Smith tops the list.
Jen Grant (@cr8tivejen) Jen is a consultant that works with the Four Seasons hotels, one of the top luxury brands in the world. She’s also extremely savvy when it comes to thinking about new ways to market the brand via new and interesting social media channels.
Kelly Olexa (@kellyolexa) Kelly is the queen of social media in Chicago. A self-professed sales and marketing diva, I consider Kelly to be one of the most connected people in the tech industry not just in the Windy City, but in the nation.
Wayne Sutton (@waynesutton): Funny that I’ve spoke with Wayne, who’s considered to be a thought leader in the LBS space, many times. But it took sitting down in person at the Mashable party to really understand just how awesome he is.
Whether I saw you at places like the Belmont, Mashable party or the Techset Blogger lounge, I wanted to thank everyone I met this year at SXSW for such a memorable experience. Also, a HUGE thank you to everyone who supported Whrrl at the conference, too (you know who you are). :) 2010 is an exciting year that has already proved to move very fast, and before you know it, we’ll all be at Internet Week in New York- see you there!
You can see all the Whrrl check-ins during SXSW on our Austin Underground Society page… lots of fun pics and parties were documented!
Seattle Twestival a huge success…
Last night’s Twestival in Seattle was a huge success – raising $10,000 total for Concern Worldwide. The total donations, counting in-kind, the Seattle community made to support Twestival Global was more than $16,000! Wow. Pelago is so proud to be a member of this amazing local group of businesses and social media fanatics who work so hard to support charitable causes.
Seattle Twestival was held at Emerald City Trapeze, who graciously allowed all attendees swing on the trapeze for free – how fun is that. The evening included apps from Elegant Gourmet Catering, drinks from Fremont Brewery (perfect candidates for our free merchant program ;), Hansen’s soda and Magnificent Wine Company, and stellar ribbon and trapeze performances.
Thanks to all the great Seattle peeps who helped pull the event together – Karianne Stinson, Jeff Shuey, Shauna Causey and more. Here are some of my fav pics from the night:
Left: Swinging ribbon performer. Right: Johnathon Fitzpatrick (freelance news reporter) David Hoang (SocialLOL.com), Monica Guzman (Seattle P.I. reporter) and me, posing as the AT&T bars
See full details and more pics on the collaborative Whrrl story here:
You can see other great pics taken of the night on @ogalthorpe’s Flickr site. (Some great shots of the trapeze & ribbon performances.)
Thank you Seattle for being part of the Whrrl and Twestival Community!
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