Thursday’s second annual Social Media Day celebration was a huge success throughout the world. Thousands of people came together offline in their local communities to recognize the technological advancements that enable everyone to connect with real-time information, communicate from miles apart and have their voices be heard.
Participation in the event more than doubled since last year with more than 1,400 Meetups and nearly 11,000 attendees. Seven cities and one U.S. state joined Vancouver and Victoria, B.C. in proclaiming the day official. The state of Arizona and the cities of New York, Toronto, Dublin, Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada and San Jose and San Carlos, California officially marked June 30 as Social Media Day.
Around the world, Social Media Day Meetups took place in 90 countries across six continents. Some of the most well-attended events occurred in places like Sao Paolo, Panama City, Toronto, Detroit and Santa Ana, California.
Nearly 43,000 tweets were sent with hashtag #smday, and 26,000 of those were on Thursday alone. Notable accounts such as Facebook, DKNY, WWE Universe, and the Miami Heat mentioned #smday on Twitter, showing the event’s reach across a wide variety of communities. There are more than a thousand photos on Flickr, Instagram and Facebook as well as hundreds of videos on YouTube with hashtag #smday.
A number of media organizations, including Fox News, CNN Money, The Christian Science Monitor, the Los Angeles Times and The Examiner covered the event. Many news stories focused on social media’s growth and how it has affected many of our lives.
A huge thank you to everyone who organized or attended a Social Media Day 2011 Meetup. Without you, this global event wouldn’t be the success that it is.
Who’s ready for next year?!
Social Media Day Photos
Cincinnati
An awesome Social Media Day cake was made for #SMDay Cincinnati, the winners of our Most Social City contest. Photo by Christiaan Todd Photography.
Detroit
Detroit had more than 1,000 people attend their Social Media Day events held at Soundboard in the MotorCity Casino Hotel. Guests were treated to djs, prizes and speakers.
Key West
Mashable Director of Communications Stacy Green and attendees at the Social Media Day celebration in Key West, Florida.
Miami
Miami's Social Media Day celebration was hosted by SocialBuzzTV at Sugarcane Raw Bar and Grill.
New York City
Mashable celebrated Social Media Day at Brooklyn Bowl, where many attendees took to the lanes. Photo by Stephanie Haberman.
New York City
NYC Chief Digital Officer Rachel Sterne presented the city's proclamation declaring June 30 Social Media Day to Mashable Publisher Sharon Feder and Community Manager Meghan Peters. Photo by Stephanie Haberman.
Tunis
Tunisia's capital city held a large Social Media Day celebration at Barista's Cafe.
San Francisco
Mashable staffers Kate Hayden, Louis Dorman, and Jennifer Van Grove celebrate Social Media Day with Mashable fans at House of Air.
Istanbul
More than 100 people met up in Istanbul, Turkey for Social Media Day. The organizers said they even made frozen shot glasses with the #SMDay logo on them.
Sao Paulo
Sao Paulo, Brazil had several Social Media Day Meetups, including one led by Anderson Criativo that had 1,000 attendees. "The most successful part was the engagement of our community," Criativo said.
Social Media Day Videos
Paris’ Social Media Day celebration. Video by James Medd.
San Francisco’s Social Media Day celebration. Video by Danny Skarka.
Thumbnail photo courtesy Flickr, Anthony Quintano.
Mashable community team members Stephanie Haberman, Todd Olmstead and Chelsea Stark contributed to this report.
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