Sandy Mentzel, Founder Social Media Breakfast Savannah July 2018

Who started the first Social Media Breakfast Chapter?

How did a chimpanzee 🐵 help me find my superpower?

The Social Media Breakfast movement was founded by Bryan Person in August 2007 and has grown to chapters in over 40 cities around the world. Sandy Mentzel, the founder of the Savannah Chapter, moved from Houston, TX in May 2018 where there is a thriving community that has been going strong for over 10 years.

How I got involved with Social Media Breakfast

I earned an Economics degree and have worked in the securities and accounting fields. I also stayed at home while my daughters were young and I was involved in many volunteer capacities. I eventually also ran for and got elected as a two-term school board member. All of those business experiences were valuable, but everything changed when I was introduced to a chimpanzee. 🐵

My first foray into digital marketing occurred when I volunteered for an amazing non-profit in Green Bay, WI called MyTeam Triumph (MTT). Little did I know at the time that this was the beginning of my discovering one of my “superpowers” (more on that later). MTT’s mission is to enrich the wellbeing of individuals with diverse abilities and foster lifelong relationships through community athletics. I was asked to be a Race Director for one of their 10K events and was told to learn Mailchimp. The Chimp and I became buddies and I was hooked. Fast forward a couple of years, I became an Event Coordinator for a cash-strapped non-profit that had a static website. I was intrigued and determined to do something about that. After much trial and error, I was able to get a donation button on their website and created online registration forms for their events. After another move, this one to Houston, TX, I began providing digital marketing services as a freelancer.

Houston has a ton of networking & marketing communities

I was like a kid in a candy store. There are WordPress meetups, a PR group, a B2B group, AND a digital marketing group. I took advantage of as many learning and networking meetings as I could, eventually becoming a Board member with the Houston Interactive Marketing Association.

Another group was a favorite as well: The Houston Social Media Breakfast community (HOUSMB). The Houston Chapter was founded by Kami Huyse 10 years ago, and she is an excellent role model for how to lead a great community. Once a month I got to go downtown, eat breakfast, meet wonderful people, network, learn from an expert, and have some human contact! It was a win-win on so many levels.

I knew I'd miss HOUSMB and wanted to see if I could replicate this type of community, here in Savannah.

I would love to know that I had something to do with building a quality community here in my new hometown, Savannah. It would be a way for me to express my skill set and give back to the community. By the way, wondering what my superpower is?

My superpower is knowing how to post a great online review or social media post/video. I have done this for countless businesses. I understand the power of a positive social media presence and when I appreciate something, I back it up with my skill set. Do you know your superpower? I’d love to hear about it!