Buddy Media is proud to again partner with Social Media Week, which takes place February 13-17 and attracts more than 60,000 attendees to thousands of individually organized events. We'll be hosting and participating in events in New York City, San Francisco, London, Singapore and Tokyo this year, with some excellent partners.

If you'd like to hear more about why we're partnering with Social Media Week, and what makes Buddy Media tick, read this interview with our Chief Strategy Officer Jeff Ragovin.

Here is the list of events where you can find us:

New York: Tuesday, February 14, 4:30pm-5:30pm - Social Syndication in 2012: Experiences First, Networks Second #SMWsyndication
Hearst Tower, 300 W. 57th Street, 16th floor

Speakers:

• Jeff Ragovin, Co-Founder and Chief Strategic Officer, Buddy Media
• Kristine Welker, Chief Revenue Officer, Hearst Digital
• Kelly Balz, NA Social Media Manager, Avon
• Additional Speakers TBD

According to research from Buddy Media and Booz & Company, social media content and creative capabilities are a priority for 84% of brands. However, companies need to stop focusing on the “where” – Facebook, microsite – and start focusing on the “what” – simple social experiences that get consumers sharing and live everywhere. How can brands and agencies effectively balance building content for specific audiences, while adapting social syndication best practices?

London: Tuesday, February 14th, 4:30pm-7pm - Optimising Your Global Social Media Strategy for 2012 #SMWbuddymedia
Location TBD 

Speakers:

• Luca Benini, Managing Director, Europe, Buddy Media
• Matt Owen, Social Media Manager, Econsultancy
• Additional speakers TBD

Buddy Media Managing Director of Europe Luca Benini will participate in a panel titled “Optimising Your Global Social Media Strategy for 2012.” The discussion will center around how truly global strategies can be established and maintained. The panel will immediately be followed by a cocktail reception. This event is part of Buddy Media's Power Your Connections World Tour.

New York: Wednesday, February 15- 4:30pm-5:30pm - Social Commerce: The Next Step #SMWDigitas
Digitas Headquarters, 355 Park Avenue South

Speakers:

• Dan Reich, Director, Account Management, Buddy Media
• Jeff Sable, VP Sales, Moontoast
• Beth McCabe, VP/Director Social Marketing & Technology, Digitas

Account Management Director Dan Reich joins the panel to debate and define social commerce 2.0 and to discuss how brands can leverage the right technologies and the convenience of buying within social channels. The panel will also look how to take social commerce a step further as retailers move their strategies even deeper into their consumers’ graphs.

Tokyo: Wednesday, February, 15th, 2:00pm-2:50pm - Your Social Media Strategy for 2012  #socialmediaweek

Asia Pacific Senior Account Manager Eddie Cliff will cover 2011 Facebook and Twitter global trends and statistics, and projections on social media usage in 2012. He will also explain how social marketing software can help brands scale their programs efficiently and will present case studies from some of the world’s largest brands.

Speakers:

• Eddie Cliff, Asia Pacific Senior Account Manager, Buddy Media

New York: Thursday, February 16, 9:00am-9:30am - Keynote: The People are the Message #SMWsocialscale
JWT Headquarters, 466 Lexington Avenue

It has been almost 50 years since Marshall McLuhan famously declared, “The medium is the message.” However, in the social media era, it is the people that are the message, because people are the medium.

Today, brands and agencies must focus on creating content and experiences that, at a basic level, build connections between people, versus focusing on strategies for individual social platforms. In this keynote, Buddy Media founder and CEO Michael Lazerow will discuss how companies can grow shareholder value by realizing that “the people are the message.”

Speakers:

• Michael Lazerow, CEO, Buddy Media

San Francisco: Thursday, February 16th, 12:30pm-1:50pm - Beyond: The Future of Sharing
San Francisco State University Downtown Campus, 835 Market Street, 5th Floor

Speakers: 

• Carla Bourque, Senior Vice President, Western Region Sales, Buddy Media
• David Hargreaves, CEO, Beyond
• Additional Speakers TBD

Carla Bourque of Buddy Media joins this panel to discuss how and why consumers share. The panel will discuss the findings of a study developed by Beyond that offers perspective on what lies ahead for online sharing. It will also look at what types of content are shared the most, how consumer's lifestyles are impacting their sharing, and why consumers share certain content over others.

New York: Thursday, February 16th, 4pm-5pm - Beyond: The Future of Sharing #SMWfuturesharing
Global Society Content Hub at Big Fuel Headquarters, 40 W. 23rd St.

Speakers: 

• Michael Lazerow, CEO, Buddy Media
• Ben Smith, Editor-In-Chief, BuzzFeed
• Craig Hepburn, Global Director of Social Media, Nokia
• Jon Steinberg, President, BuzzFeed

Buddy Media CEO Michael Lazerow joins this panel to discuss how and why consumers share. The panel will discuss the findings of a study developed by Beyond that offers perspective on what lies ahead for online sharing. It  will also look at what types of content are shared the most, how consumer's lifestyles are impacting their sharing, and why consumers share certain content over others.

New York: Thursday, February 16th, 3pm-5pm - Social Commerce Is Here, Is your Brand Ready? #SMWsocialcommerce
Ogilvy, 636 11th Ave.

Speakers:

• Myles Kleeger, Senior Vice President, Eastern Region Sales, Buddy Media
• Additional Speakers TBD

This panel, moderated by Myles Kleeger, Senior Vice President, Eastern Region Sales at Buddy Media,  will cover how to implement programs that turn social connections into revenue and conversions. The panelists will discuss how to increase revenue using social share buttons, how to generate content that promotes engagement and conversions, and how to make e-commerce a social experience.

New York: Thursday, February 16th, 5pm-7pm - Buddy Media Cocktail Mixer

Buddy Media will host cocktails and hors d’oeuvres from 5pm to 7pm at The Chocolate Factory, Ogilvy & Mather.
Ogilvy, 636 11th Ave.

New York: Thursday, February 16th, 4pm-6pm - Digital Passport: Navigating the World’s Social Media #SMWdigpassport
Polar Lounge at the Marcel Hotel, 201 E. 24th St.

Speakers: 

• Michael Jaindl, Chief Client Officer, Buddy Media
• Chad Latz, Global Digital Practice President, Cohn & Wolfe
• Liz Birenbaum, VP, Global Digital Marketing, MasterCard Worldwide

Buddy Media Chief Client Officer Michael Jaindl joins this panel with Chad Latz of Cohn & Wolfe and Liz Birenbaum of MasterCard Worldwide to discuss successful approaches and potential pitfalls for making your brand’s social strategy global. The conversation will highlight best practices for how to manage social media across multiple markets.

We’re still planning more events for Social Media Week, so be sure to check back here often to see what else we’ll be up to. RSVP for Social Media Week events here! 

In order to better its guest engagement strategy, Westin Hotels & Resorts has implemented a new social media application called “What’s Popular Right Now”. The social application or ‘sapplet’ as it is being termed has been developed jointly by Buddy Media and Bazaarvoice.

Read the full story at Digital Market Asia. 

Read the full story at Advertising Age. 

Read the full story at AdAge. 

Read the full story at MediaPost.