As the owner of Cornell Gallery (a picture framing business in Pleasantville, NY) I had always aspired to get onto the Westchester Magazine “Best Of” list which is published in the July issue every year. Well, in 2008 those aspirations became a reality as Cornell Gallery was named “Best Framer in Westchester”. It was quite an honor and we aspire to win it again.

Chris S. Cornell mixes social media with his custom framing and baseball art business.

Last month, I received an envelope from Westchester Magazine that was unexpected. It informed me that I had been named to the “Best Of” list once again — but this time as “Social Media Guru” for 2010 — as a result of this Twitter Professor website I have been using to build community through social media in Westchester and beyond.

Today Westchester Magazine published the list of 2010 winners on their website, and the magazine should be available on most newstands.

The great thing about this award is that it was completely unexpected. The reason I launched TwitterProfessor.com was to promote the use of Twitter, and subsequently other forms of social media for the benefit of the community around me. Through the process, I have met scores of local people who share an interest in social media — many of whom are having great success in using it to build their business, promote their organization or accomplish their own personal goals.

TwitterProfessor was one of the ingredients that helped form Westchester140 — a Westchester-based group that aims to “inspire Westchesterians to discover their potentials through the use of social media and nouveau marketing.” Westchester140 is the group behind each of the first five very successful Westchester TweetUps, including the one held last Thursday at XV Motorsports in Irvington (read write-up here), and organized by House Party. Westchester140 was founded by Chris Dessi, Polly Kreisman, Andy Barovick, Anthony Colasacco, Sarah O’Grady, Adam Stone and myself.  Dessi and Kreisman are no longer organizers, but both are still extremely active in local social media.

TwitterProfessor has provided me with the opportunity to meet local people who are walking the walk. Examples include Linda Rey, Christopher Roberts, Heather Flournoy,  Nancy Shenker, Stacy Geisinger, Kris Ruby, Jeff Kornfeld, Dom Crincoli, Peter Barossi, Paul Feiner, Walter Olson, Dagmar Bleasdale, Denise Treco, Natalya Aikens, Elizabeth Nunan, Gerald Stern, Van Shea Sedita, Rick Wolff and many others.

I have also met some great social media minds from far beyond the borders of Westchester. These include Tim Massie, Becky McCray and David Mathison, just to name a few. TwitterProfessor also provided me with the knowledge and confidence to launch my BaseballArt website and Facebook page — which has in turn introduced me to nearly a hundred baseball artists and other experts in the field. That endeavor owes all of its success to what was learned here in Westchester.

I must also mention that I have learned a tremendous amount about Twitter, Facebook, and other forms of social media while conversing and working on this confusing stuff with my wife, Connie, who is the public relations director for Blythedale Children’s Hospital in Valhalla.

The work that was started here on TwitterProfessor may begin to shift to my new website WestchesterSocialMedia.com — because what is going on now encompasses so much more than Twitter. I welcome you to become an active particiapant on both of these sites, as well as on the WestchesterSocialMedia Facebook page. We are at the tipping point, and I believe it’s only going to get better from here on out.

I’m guessing that most of you reading this are already aware of the 5th Westchester Tweetup scheduled for this Thursday evening from 7-10 pm at XV Motorsports in Irvington, NY. For those who haven’t heard,  House Party, Inc. and the NY social media networking team Westchester 140 have partnered up for an exclusive event focused on driving community through social media. The event will include a panel discussion about the the fast-changing world of social media, and will be live-streamed (http://houseparty.com/athome), beginning at 7:45 pm.

There are still a few spots left for those who are interested in attending this event. RSVP now at Twitvite. The event will also feature swag bags, a raffle of prizes (including an iPad!) to raise money for Abbott House, and other goodies.

Today’s interview is with POUR Cafe and Wine Bar owner Anthony Colasacco. If you are looking for a real business owner in the Westchester area who is putting social media to work for a real business — Colasacco is your guy. POUR Cafe — which is located in Mount Kisco, NY — is an extremely well-run business, and Colasacco is using various forms of social media to amplify his message. Colasacco is one of the founders of Westchester140.

Twitter Professor: How long have you been engaged in social media?

Anthony Colasacco: I have been following the social media trend for some time now but as far as using it for my business, it has been about 6 months now.

TP: Did you “get it” right away, or was there a learning period?

AC: I absolutely got it right away. I just needed to figure out the best way for me to use it for POUR.

TP: What is your business objective or goal(s) with social media?

AC: Grow my business, stay connected to and feel the pulse of my customers and potential customers.

TP: Are you able to see measurable results so far?

AC: Absolutely. Since the first TweetUp was hosted at POUR, business has taken off. I can’t say for sure it’s all due to social media but I can certainly say it has helped immensely. Put it this way, here’s an example I use all the time when trying to explain to people who don’t “get” social media or want to know why to use social media. At the first TweetUp at Pour we had 50 twitter users attend; now those 50 people had a reach of at least 10,000 people through Twitter, so if 50 people can reach 10,000, how many can those 10,000 reach? It’s unlimited and grows exponentially. When I use that example, people “get it” right away!

TP: What has worked? What hasn’t?

AC: It’s all worked. Anything that drives business works.

TP: Any surprises?

AC: Yes, the speed in which it took off. My getting involved in social media was a natural progression for my business. I like to think I stay one step ahead of the crowd in what I do at Pour and social media was a no-brainer. If used correctly, the potential is unlimited and the ability to reach out to my customers as well as potential new customers via social media is very compelling, and also free, which in this economy is very appealing.

TP: You’ve mentioned that Sarah O’Grady — one of the other co-founders of Westchester140 — has helped you with your efforts. What has she done to help?:

AC: I have never done traditional advertising at Pour — its growth has come strictly from word of mouth and grass roots marketing, so social media was a natural progression. I just needed to pull it all together, which is where Sarah O’Grady came in. I had reached out to a few people regarding a social media campaign and Sarah was the one to pull it all together. After a few meetings with Sarah, we came up with a plan to use social media to expand business at Pour, which it most certainly has done. Her knowledge and professionalism blew me away — bottom line is she gets it better than most anyone I’ve met, period.

TP: Any advice for other businesses as they consider whether to get involved with social media?

AC: Take it slow, figure out what your objectives are. Be real, people will see through you immediately if you are trying to pull something over on them. Don’t be a used car salesman, meaning don’t always be trying to sell something — that will get old real fast, and people will stop following you. I read somewhere to think of it as a conversation at a party. If you sit and talk about yourself all night, people will walk away. Engage, interact, listed, share, just as if you are speaking to a friend.

TP: Why do you think so many businesses are reluctant to get involved with free services (such as twitter, Facebook and blogs)  that have the ability to help them reach out to their customers?

AC: I don’t think they understand it. They assume they don’t have the time, it’s too complicated, it doesn’t work, etc. There are a host of reasons and excuses people use for not getting involved, but they will — they will have to if they want to stay in the game. It’s not an option anymore — get social or go home.

TP: Is there any reason why you think your business is particularly well suited to benefit from social media?

AC: Yes. I sell a product people are very passionate about — food and wine. The ability to engage with my customers about something we’re both very passionate about is incredibly rewarding. To post a new wine I just got in or a special and see that so many people click the link and take a look at it and comment is awesome. There’s never been such an immediate way to connect and interact with customers and potential customers so quickly. There’s a reason large successful companies are changing their marketing efforts to include social media… it works!

TP: Do you have any particular social media philosophy or strategy?

AC: Yes, keep it simple and truthful, the same as I do in my business. Integrity is my top priority.

TP: How has the Westchester TweetUp worked for your business?

AC: It has gotten POUR’s name out to lots of people, and it continues to do so. I have met some great people via Twitter and Westchester140.

TP: Future goals?

AC: Grow my business and expands on to others. Use social media to help people to give back in some way. I’ve only just begun.

Pour Cafe & Wine Bar is located at 241 Main Street, Mt. Kisco, NY 10549. POUR will be hosting a Sip & Twit European Tasting Tour Tuesday March 23, 2010. For more information, call 914-864-0606, or go directly to this website for a discounted price: http://www.eventbee.com/view/tasting/discount?code=pour. You can learn more about POUR at http://PourMtKisco.com.

Michael Balkind, "Be the Media" author and keynote speaker David Mathison and POUR owner Anthony Colasacco at the 4th Westchester TweetUp held January 21 at the Jacob Burns Film Center's Media Arts Lab in Pleasantville. Photo by Chris S. Cornell.

Anyone looking for proof of the power of social media needed to look no further than the third Westchester TweetUp, at the Jacob Burns Film Center’s Media Arts Lab in Pleasantville on Jan. 21.

The event brought together more than 80 people interested in learning more about how to communicate their message through various forms of new media. It also featured a keynote address by “Be the Media” author David Mathison as well as networking opportunities for guests. This was the third event organized by Westchester140, a group of six Westchester residents that promotes community through social media in Westchester.

The event, which was fully booked within six days of being announced, raised more than $1,300 for ShelterBoxUSA, a non-profit organization assisting in the relief efforts in Haiti.

More than a dozen of the attendees live or work in Pleasantville, but guests from all over Westchester and beyond comprised the attendee list. Tim Massie traveled from Poughkeepsie to attend the event with hopes of meeting others who share his view of social media’s usefulness and potential.

“It’s important to meet others who are using social media so I can learn from them,” said Massi, the chief public affairs officer and an adjunct professor at Marist College. “I’m teaching future communicators, and [my students] need to know how to get their messages across and break through the clutter. Traditional forms of media will still be around, but as we learned Thursday night, each person has the potential to be his or her own medium.”

Other attendees included communications professionals, small business owners, representatives from local non-profits, students and attorneys. They heard Mathison speak about ways they can employ social media to amplify their message through Twitter, Facebook and blogs without additional expenditures.

Mathison, an internationally recognized media consultant, speaker, publisher, radio host and hi-tech entrepreneur, has more than 25 years of experience in content distribution. More than 5,000 copies of “Be the Media” sold in just 11 days via his Web site, blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts. Mathison is also a former vice president at Reuters, the world’s largest news agency, The event was widely discussed throughout Westchester, both in face-to-face conversations and online, via e-mail, Twitter and Facebook.

“This event was a success; people are still talking about it,” said Sarah O’Grady, a founding member of Westchester140. “Immediately following (the event), people wanted to know when the next one would be. Our TweetUps provide a comfortable, non-intimidating environment for people to discover, explore and share their social media experiences and practices.”

The selection of ShelterBoxUSA as the recipient of the event’s proceeds was another example of the power of social media. The organizers were looking for a way to help in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake, and they had gotten to know ShelterBox team member Yi Shun Lai at the first two TweetUps held last year. Lai used social media extensively as a way to amplify her communications efforts.

“ShelterBox has been using social media to its advantage during this highly important time,” said Lai. “Since social media is now regarded as a place to get quick news, it makes sense that our home office would use this medium to quickly and easily document the moment our boxes hit the ground, for instance, and that we would use another account to quickly update our followers on what our teams are doing in the field.”

“And, of course, when I’ve had a great fundraising day and multiple folks or companies are responsible for it, well, I get to thank them quickly and publicly,” Lai added.

Denise Treco, the Jacob Burns Film Center’s director of marketing and owner of Flour & Sun Bakery in Pleasantville, was enthusiastic about the event. She said she was pleased that the film center was able to bring the Twitter community together to meet face-to-face, and visit the media arts lab as well.

“The key to successful marketing has always been about [building] relationships, Treco said. “Social media allows you to do just that in a meaningful way.”

The venue was donated by the Jacob Burns Film Center, Mathison donated his speaking services, and food and drink was provided by the sponsors, POUR Café and Wine Bar, Sundance Deli, Flour & Sun Cupcake Bakery, and Captain Lawrence Brewery. Attendees also went home with gift bags, overflowing with goodies donated by local businesses.

Westchester140 is comprised of  Andy Barovick, Anthony Colasacco, Chris S. Cornell, Chris Dessi, Sarah O’Grady, and Adam Stone. This article appeared in January 26, 2010 issue of The Examiner.

Today’s article is an online interview I conducted with Westchester140 founding member Sarah O’Grady. O’Grady became involved with the Westchester TweetUps from the start, while she was consulting with POUR Cafe and Wine Bar owner Anthony Colasacco as he integrated social media into his marketing efforts. POUR was the host of the first two extremely successful Westchester TweetUps.

Sarah O'Grady

TwitterProfessor: How did you get involved in social media? Sarah O’Grady: I have been intrigued with social networking and online media opportunities for many years. (In fact, my husband and I met on Friendster.com, one of the pioneers in online social networking, originally based on the ’6th person removed’ principle.)

My career has taken a lot of very unique twists and turns — I started out writing copy at a boutique ad agency and segued into event planning, trend research, and fashion styling for L’Oreal, and then (via a few creative, editorial detours) had the opportunity to create a new, modern voice for the all-American home furnishings brand Ethan Allen and their recently re-launched website. Unfortunately, working for big corporations can have it’s downside when it comes to taking creative ‘risks’, or exposing yourself in unchartered territory, especially online. Let’s just say a lot of great ideas ended up on the cutting room floor. But my excitement and passion for the online space grew, and I managed to explore that further through Facebook and Twitter consulting gigs with brands like Beauty 360 (CVS/pharmacy), Pour Cafe & Wine Bar in Mt Kisco, NY, and others.