[UPATE: Thank you for your interest in ISMA – this organization is in process of being dissolved. You may read about the transition below. If you were a member of ISMA, you will continue to receive access to all materials via my website on a special platform – please keep an eye on your email Inbox for information.]

This is not an easy post to write, but here goes — after much deliberation, my partner in ISMA and I have decided to dissolve the International Social Media Association. There are many reasons behind this decision and it was certainly a tough one to make.

Mark and I have enjoyed this journey together since September 2009 and are most grateful to our more than 3,000 members. Between the tw

o of us – along with Mark’s entire family – much effort has gone into building ISMA to this point.

However, like I say, for a number of reasons we have chosen to wind up our partnership and ISMA.

All our members received a special, heartfelt email message this morning with details of our announcement.

Live Q&A Broadcast

In order to communicate the transition of ISMA in person and answer any questions our members and other industry professionals may have, I will be LIVE on Ustream TODAY, Friday, April 30th at 1:00pm PST / 4:00pm EST.

Do drop in any time if you can at http://marismith.tv

I will broadcast live for approximately 90 minutes. The show will be recorded and the replay will be available at the same link if you’re unable to join me live.

UPDATE: I have embedded below the replay of the live Ustream broadcast:

What Went Right?

Rather than dig in and analyze what went “wrong,” I’d rather focus on what went right. [Props to Ian Newby-Clark, psychologist at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada for this great reframe in Psychology Today.]

Facebook beginnings

By way of background, I began my journey in the social media industry back in early summer of 2007. For the previous seven years, I was a relationship marketing specialist – focusing on internet marketing, information product creation, copywriting and email marketing. I would travel, speak, consult and lead online trainings – similar to what I do now, sans social media!

When I was introduced to Facebook, I was convinced that I didn’t need yet another online social network to help me network. I’m already a natural networker. However, I dove deep into this  magical world on a team of beta testers for a Facebook app.

Social media = paradigm shift

Of course, what we had begun to experience as a society and beyond was a complete paradigm shift in how we function, communicate and do business on the planet. Suddenly, it was ALL about the relationships. Not what you know, but who you know. And – often more importantly – who knows you.

Words like “authentic” and “transparent” were all abuzz. As consumers, we began to expect that individuals and companies would be more open, more sharing, more inclusive. Social media became “word of mouth on steroids,” as my friend Gary Vaynerchuk calls it.

Towards the end of 2007, I was creating Facebook training products, leading seminars and traveling to speak about Facebook marketing.

Best practices

But, I felt uneasy about what was beginning to look like a giant free-for-all: a new industry without best practices. There were so many unspoken rules of etiquette. With all due respect to the well-intentioned marketers who push the envelope and try new ways of using these new technologies, I just felt strongly about leading by example… and, I envisioned creating an organization grounded in best practices. I had a vision to create Certification Programs and an international community of like-minded, supportive professionals.

Fast forward more than two years on, and last fall – after leading my six-month “Mentor With Mari” program – I co-founded the International Social Media Association with Mark Eldridge, co-author of The Obvious Expert.

Gratitude

What went right is that I followed my heart and took action. What went right is I surrounded myself with a solid, supportive team. What went right is we attracted over 3,000 wonderful members and each week we were able to bring them wonderful industry experts who generously shared their knowledge and expertise.

We built community. We built a special place for loyal professionals to support each other. We spawned new businesses, new collaborations, new relationships.

I will always be deeply grateful for this profound opportunity to go for my dreams and birth an amazing social media association. I couldn’t have done it without the relentless support of Mark Eldridge and his family. And, we couldn’t have come this far without our members.

Closing a door is never easy. Yet, as you well know, another door always opens. This isn’t an ending – it’s a beginning. I won’t rule out other associations in my future. And, I’m certainly open to joining forces with other social media industry leaders… but not before I free up a wee bit more time in my hectic schedule!

My major focuses right now are:

• The launch of my first published book - Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day (Sybex, May 3) co-authored with Chris Treadaway. Do come join us at our virtual launch party on Monday, May 3! Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day is a comprehensive guide for marketers, business owners and practitioners alike. Discover all the ways your business can maximize everything Facebook has to offer, from simple quick techniques to full-on campaigns. Order your copy today and get a free series of online classes!

• My favorite event of the year: the extraordinary online Social Media Success Summit – brainchild of my dear friend, Mike Stelzner – which begins on May 4 and runs for four weeks. (It’s entirely virtual!) The Summit features twenty-four of the world’s leading social media experts, practitioners and leading brand representatives. See my post here for additional details. And, take a look at my video on YouTube: Ten Reasons to Attend the Social Media Success Summit.

• My own two-day live training programs: Social Marketing Mastery Immersion coming up on June 11-12 and again September 3-4 in San Diego. Attend live at a great San Diego hotel, or virtually via webinar!
• A long-awaited collaboration with my dear spiritual mentor, Esperanza, called Conscious Social Media. VERY excited about this – I can share details in just another few days!

• Plus, continuing my travels to speak around the globe on social media success and lead training programs on Facebook marketing.
• Plus, continuing to lead private trainings and provide social media strategy consulting for my dear clients.

I look forward to evolving and growing with you, my peeps!

Do feel free to add your comments, questions, concerns, ideas and feedback below! I’d love to hear from you.

I’m about to set off on a wee tour – which originally began as a private mastermind retreat in Albuquerque, New Mexico, April 12-17

Then, my friend, Peggy McColl, asked me to speak at her amazing Viral Explosions book launch extravaganza in Ottawa, Ontario, April 16 and 17. It’s such an amazing event, and my big sis lives near Ottawa so we get to meet up!

And, my friend, Joel Comm contacted me to let me know the Loveland Chamber of Commerce *really* wanted me to come speak at their next Social Media Social. We ended up selecting a date that worked for all of us, and I added on extra time on the front end of my trip! w00t!

So, if you’re in the Northern Colorado area, or Albuquerque or Ottawa – I’d love to meet you IRL (in real life!) at these upcoming events:

Northern Colorado Social Media Social – Loveland, CO 

WHEN: Thursday, April 8, 2010 from 5:30-7:30pm
WHERE: Embassy Suites Loveland, Clydesdale Parkway, Loveland, CO 80538
COST: Loveland Chamber investors: $8 to pre-reg; $10 at the door. Everyone else: $12 to pre-reg; $15 at the door
RSVP: CLICK HERE to register. [NOTE: I have 4 guest passes left. If you know for sure you can make it, DM me for a guest pass!!]

Mix, mingle and meet the people behind the avatars and Twitter handles! I’ll be giving a short presentation on social media marketing, especially a few of my Facebook and Twitter ninja tricks. PLUS, the Loveland Chamber are serving Aqua Mari’tinis in my honor – gotta love that!! Follow the @LovelandChamber and @NoCOSocialMedia on Twitter.

 
[Pic: @JoelComm & @MariSmith at the Affiliate Summit West in Las Vegas, Jan 2009]

Spring Tweetup – Denver, CO

WHEN: Friday, April 9, 2010 from 6:30-9:30pm
WHERE: The Lobby Denver, 2191 Arapahoe St, Denver, CO 80205
COST: No fee, but Happy Hour Specials & food available for purchase, of course!
RSVP: http://twtvite.com/springtweetupdenver [Please let us know you're coming asap so we know how many to expect!]

NOTE: It’s opening day for the ROCKIES, parking may be a wee bit tight. Carpool and take public transit if you can.

“To mark the beginning of Spring to see old friends and new, and to welcome Mari Smith to Denver.”

Thanks to my Twitter bud, Ashley Kingsley, for spearheading the organizing of this fun tweetup!! To see who’s attending, just go to the Twtvite page here.

Who’s going so far: 
 

New Mexico American Marketing Association, Albuquerque, NM

WHEN: Tuesday, April 13, 2010 from 7:30am-9:30am
[7:30-8:00am - Check-in & continental breakfast; 8:00-9:30 am - Mari Smith presentation]
WHERE: Hotel Albuquerque, 800 Rio Grande NW
COST: $25 NMAMA members / $40 non-members
RSVP: CLICK HERE to register.

JAVA TALK Workshop – Facebook Fortune & Twitter Treasure. How to grow your business using the top two social networks. 90-minute presentation for local business owners and entrepreneurs.

Huge shoutout to @KimGusta who happened to see me tweeting about my retreat at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya and she tweeted/DM’d me inviting me to speak to the AMA. Gotta LOVE Twitter, social media and the sheer power of networking!!

The Ultimate Success Event – Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Presented by Peggy McColl. Includes mega book launch party extravaganza for VIRAL EXPLOSIONS

WHEN: Friday April 16, 2010 from 6:30pm-11:00pm (FREE book launch party)
Saturday, April 17, 2010 from 8:00am – 6:30pm (The ULTIMATE Success Event)
WHERE: Chateau Cartier Hotel (relatively close to downtown Ottawa, Ontario)
COST: Friday’s party is FREE! Saturday’s seminar is just $199!
RSVP: CLICK HERE to register.

To kick off the official launch of Peggy McColl’s 7th book, Viral Explosions, and ensure you have everything you need to make this your biggest and best year ever . in Life and Business!

LIVE entertainment by Diego the Humor Hypnotist! And Magician, Elliott Smith! And, Singers, Alison Comrie and Kristen Stephen!

Presenters at The ULTIMATE Success Event include Gay Hendricks, Joyce Bone, Scott Stratten, Mike Koenigs, Brian Proctor, David Riklan, Arielle Ford, Steve Shapiro, Ken Brown and more!

This will be one magical event – I look forward to seeing you there! Register now if you can attend.

Let me know in the comments below (and/or on Twitter) if you’re able to attend any of these fun four events!!

Here’s hoping you had an extraordinary Valentine’s Day! I just flew back home to San Diego after speaking in Nashville at the National Speakers Association Winter Conference. (Definitely a way fun event; made awesome new connections and we even enjoyed a local tweetup last night!) Oh, and props to SouthWest Airlines for all the LUV!

Valentine’s Day surely means different things to different people. In many cultures, it’s a day to express romance to a significant other. In other cultures, it’s more a day to acknowledge friendships of all kinds.

When I was growing up in BC, Canada, I found it odd that all the kids at school would bring in playful little cards for every student in class, along with candies, etc.

Yet, in Scotland, where I later lived for 20 years, Valentine’s Day was more about romance.

Here in the U.S., I think Valentine’s is about romance, friendship, and everything in-between!

As a sidebar, I’d love to know how many Facebook users who have their relationship status set to “It’s Complicated” are in the U.S. – per capita – compared to other countries! LOL. I just tried to find out using the Ads wizard, but it seems advertisers can only target Single, In a Relationship, Engaged or Married. even though there are three other categories of relationship status. heh!

I also see some folks refer to “VDay” as “Singles Awareness Day.”(I imagine someone made this term up sort of in jest, which I find rather sad; if you’re single today, it’s a time to rejoice and celebrate YOU! And to express your love for and to ALL your loved ones!)

Valentine’s Day back in 1999 has much significance to me; I had only lived in California just a few weeks after arriving from my previous home in Scotland. flat broke, and knowing just one person.

I was laser focused on finding a way to earn a living and remain in San Diego. One of my hobbies for many years in my 20’s was decorating cakes. (My dad was a baker and I went to night school for three years to study confectionary!) I had submitted my portfolio to a local bakery just in case I could find temporary work to get me started, and had been praying for a sign that I was supposed to stay in the U.S.

Sure enough, within a matter of hours, the phone rang: it was the local bakery needing help with their Valentine’s Day big rush on cakes and cookies! (The rest, as they say, is history! Hehee.)

By the way, maybe you can relate: I’ve had the great fortune to enjoy a very wide and varied career since I left school and started working at the young age of 15! (I’ll save my journey to becoming a recognized social media evangelist for a different post!)

Another significant Valentine’s event: I got married on February 14, 2001.

However, after 8 years, I made a conscious decision to transition back to singlehood (LOL, sounds more playful than “divorce.”) You’re welcome to read about my personal journey (and how it relates to social media), if you haven’t already on my blog.

So, this is actually my first Valentine’s Day as a “single” person since 1999. And, I just have to share that I’ve never felt more liberated.

I am blessed to have a wonderful spiritual mentor, Esperanza; her work has made a profound difference in my life over the past year.

One of my favorite quotes from Esperanza is:

“The most important relationship you have in the world is the one you have with yourself; everything and everyone is a direct reflection of the quality of that relationship.”

This is so true.

Just this past week, I had a wonderful phone conversation with a friend I’ve known for years. She asked me a very poignant question about what exactly it was that I did to catapult my success and visibility to the “stratosphere” in the past 12 months or so.

She wanted to know the name of my PR Agency, or Speakers Bureau. or??

I began to chuckle.

I told my friend my answer would surprise her. I shared that, in fact, I hadn’t hired any third party publicity support and that all business comes to me via the “Law of Attraction,” if you will.

See, my big boost in success can be directly attributed to my choice to pursue a more spiritual path last year.

I chose to stop playing small, stop the self-doubt and fears. I made myself step further into my power and light. To own my gifts and be willing to share even more.

I’ve always resonated deeply with Marianne Williamson’s words, but I finally chose to embody: “our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.” “.as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”

My friend was astounded by my reply. She was looking for something formulaic; something she could simply plug into and achieve similar results.

Well, the good news is she can. And so can you.

At my speaking engagement this past weekend, I shared the same story right up front with the audience. And I told them I’ve never felt more on purpose during the past three years of my career.

I was deeply touched by the overwhelmingly positive feedback from the audience members on my presentation… and by the number of people who shared how inspired they were by my inclusion of spiritual principles.

See, so many times, we get afraid to talk about spirituality (and/or religion) in the “workplace.” We tend to think that’s part of everyone’s “private” life.

Yet it’s not private at all. (Well, your own beliefs can certainly be held privately!)

We are all, in some way shape or form, regardless of anyone’s belief systems, impacted by energy, spirit, consciousness, God. whatever you want to call it.

SO, my wish for you this Valentine’s Day and beyond is that you, too, stop listening to those doubts and fears. Those voices in your head (that quite often are not even your own!) that hold you back.

And, instead, begin listening to that still small voice that knows who you ARE at the core. Listen to the part of you that absolutely knows without a shadow of a doubt why you came to this planet. And dare to go out and take big, bold action steps.

This, in fact, is also the message from Seth Godin’s latest book, Linchpin – Are You Indispensable?. I had the great fortune to meet Seth at an incredible event last week and I managed to “livetweet” the bulk of his deeply inspiring one hour keynote. (See tweets here).

I’d love to hear your own thoughts on the pursuit of success and how it relates to your own spiritual path. And your thoughts and feelings about the biggest day of romance and love of the year – what does it bring up for you? Do share your thoughts in the comments below:

Big hugs,
Mari

P.S. Another quote from Esperanza – if you happen to be single (or your S.O. is away) right now: “You can never be alone because you will always have YOU.”

My favorite events on my calendar are giving social media talks to all sizes of audiences, across many industries and a variety of formats. Whether it’s an opening keynote on social media success in general, an in-depth Facebook and/or Twitter breakout session or a full day training.

My 2010 calendar is filling up nicely, and this year I’m intent on pacing myself a tad more, and also allow a bit of extra time in each city to a) sightsee and b) connect with Twitter peeps at local Tweetups. Yay!

My public calendar can be found here, which is always current. Meantime, I thought I’d put together this post with a smidge more detail of what I have booked for 2010 so far and I’ll update it as more events are added. and add some video content too!! [If you'd like to hire me to speak at your event, hop over here.]

   

2010 Events – Let’s Tweet Up!

Here are my travels for 2010 so far; as more are confirmed I’ll add to this post and also to my public Google calendar. Most all of these are speaking engagements; a few I’m attending as a participant.

If you live in any of these cities – or will be at these events – please do tweet/DM me!!

January – Hollywood CA

• January 28 – February 1: The GRAMMYS! Hollywood, CA. (I’ll be in a mastermind all day Jan 30 and at the GRAMMYS Jan 31; I’m going up a couple days early and staying an extra day for a mix of pampering plus business meetings!) Special mention of my dear friend, Amy Michelson, designer of my Grammy gown. pics coming!

February – San Diego, Orange County, Los Angeles CA | Nashville TN

• February 4: Keynoting the California Restaurant Association (CRA) San Diego meeting, San Diego, CA
• February 6 & 7: Social Marketing Mastery IMMERSION – retreat at Casa de Mari, San Diego, CA
• February 10: Guest lecture on Facebook marketing for UCSD at Becky Carroll’s class.
• February 11: An Evening With Seth Godin – Dana Point, CA
• February 12 to 14: NSA, National Speakers Association Winter Conference – Nashville, TN [Valentine's tweetup Feb 13!]
• February 19 – 20: Program Director Grad School, Los Angeles, CA
• February 19 – 21: David Finkel’s 2010 Business Owners Success Conference – San Diego, CA

March – Seattle WA | San Diego, Los Angeles CA

• March 5: Girls’ Night Out – Total Networking Event, Seattle, WA (I’m giving the main keynote)
• March 3: LIVE Conference – Social/Mobile Media at its Best by Qittle, San Diego, CA (I’ll be here as an attendee)
• March 8: Free WEBINAR – How Social Media is Changing the Face of Local Business Marketing featuring Mari Smith and Erik Qualman, hosted by @EgbertOostburg
• March 9: Free WEBINAR – Maximizing Facebook: How To Effectively Use The #1 Social Network To Explode Your Business! (for ISMA members – free membership)
• March 11: Private CLASS – Guest lecture on social media marketing for Grossmont College at Steve Eisenberg’s class.
• March 13 & 14: LIVE event – Women, Power & Purpose – The Live Experience, San Diego, CA [Also on this weekend: South by Southwest #SXSWi, Austin, TX; Yanik Silver's Ungerground6 in Washington DC with @garyvee keynoting; Mastering Your Life with Esperanza in San Diego, CA]
• March 19 – 21: LIVE event – Ken McArthur’s IMPACT Event, San Diego, CA
• March 24 – 27: LIVE event – T. Harv Eker’s Guerilla Business School, Garden Grove (LA), CA
• March 26 – 28: LIVE event – Christian Mickelsen’s JV Networking Mixer, San Diego, CA

April – Loveland CO | Albuquerque NM | Ottawa Canada | San Diego CA

• April 8: Spring Northern Colorado Social Media Social, Loveland Chamber of Commerce & Visitor Center (details being firmed up)
• April 13: American Marketing Association New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (details being firmed up)
• April 13 – 16: Private Conference, Albuquerque, NM
• April 16 – 17: Ultimate Success Event with Peggy McColl, Ottawa, Canada
• April 23 – 24: Social Marketing Mastery IMMERSION – retreat at Casa de Mari, San Diego, CA
• April 30 & May 1: Wisdom 2.0 Summit – Sillicon Valley, CA

May – San Diego, Los Angeles CA

• May 3: Mari’s Book Launch Celebration! Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day published today!
• May 4 – 26: Social Media Success Summit 2010 (virtual event with TOP speakers!).
• May 20 – 23: Clients, Cash & Contribution with Christian Mickelsen. San Diego, CA
• May 22 – 23: The You Conference with GaryVee and Dave Lakhani. Los Angeles, CA

June – Los Angeles, CA

• June 21-23: SANG IV, Los Angeles, CA (invite-only mastermind).

July – Dallas TX

• July 15 – 18: eWomenNetwork 10th Annual Conference, Dallas, TX

Ali Brown, JJ Virgin, Mari Smith, Baeth Davis, Tamara Gold at Richard Branson & Eve Branson’s Rock the Kasbah fundraiser in Hollywood.

Review of Speaking in 2009

I was most fortunate to have an extremely full speaking schedule throughout last year. Among my 2009 highlights were speaking at all these incredible events and getting to share the stage with other amazing speakers, leaders and luminaries including:

SANG – Speakers & Authors Networking Group

Larry Benet’s SANGII and SANGIII in Las Vegas and Hollywood, with Tony Robbins, Paula Abdul, Brian Tracy, Jay Abraham and Jeffrey Hayzlett (CMO of Kodak);

Engage Today

Engage Today in Calgary, Canada with Sir Richard Branson (pic!) His Holiness The Dalai Lama, President F W deKlerk, Stephen R Covey and Wyland.

Underground Seminar

Yanik Silver’s Underground5 in Washington DC, with GoDaddy CEO & Founder Bob Parsons and former James Bond George Lazenby. (See you at Underground6 in March with Gary Vaynerchuk keynoting!)

eWomenNetwork

eWomenNetwork in Dallas TX, with Judge Glenda Hatchett, Lisa Nichols, Roxanne Emmerich, Loral Langemeier, Debbie Meyer and many more fine speakers and leaders. and 3500 attendees!

Blog World Expo 

Blog World Expo 2009 in Las Vegas, NV with Matt Goss, Scott Monty, Jeremiah Owyang, Brian Solis, Frank Eliason, Laura Fitton, Sarah Evans, Wendy Piersall and many, many more fine professionals! (Check out Blog World Expo’s home page with fab video widgets from my fave Yubby!)

MarketingProfs

Marketing Profs Digital Marketing Mixer in Chicago, IL with Dr. BJ Fogg, Ann Handley, Amber Nusland, Jay Baer, and many more top notch marketing pros!

Twitter Conference

140 | The Twitter Conference in Los Angeles with Twitter Co-Founder Biz Stone, Dr. Drew, Tyrese Gibson, LaVar Burton, Guy Kawasaki, Robert Scoble and many more fine folks!

PLUS.!

Other awesome highlights included: speaking for Fabienne Fredrickson, Arielle Ford and Mike Koenigs, Adam Urbanski, John Assaraf, Jack Canfield, James Malinchak, Dan Kennedy and Bill Glazer, Jim Bunch, Christian Mickelsen, and Craig Duswalt.

.and a few fave pics!

Mari with Sir Richard Branson, Frank Kern, Dan Kennedy, Scott Monty, Wyland and Robert Scoble.

Group pic: L-R: Ellie Drake, founder of BraveHeartWomen; Karina Smirnoff from Dancing With the Stars; me; actress Tava Smiley from TLC’s Cleansweep; talk show host Rolonda Watts.

Feel free to leave your comments/questions below about any of these events, my travels/whereabouts, and your own events. I look forward to connecting soon! And, to book me as a speaker at your next event, please check out this page.