Friend Request These 7 Social Media Gurus Who Are Keeping MIA Hot

  • opener

    They might not be voted into office and they probably won't be holding any press conferences soon, but make no mistake — these seven social media gurus run this town. With die-hard followings on Facebook, constant retweets on Twitter, and general omniscience when it comes to all things local, nothing cool, forward-thinking, or new happens in Miami without one of these movers and shakers hearing about it first.

    So, we chatted up these tech-friendly savants — tracking them down from the Design District to MIA's own Google outpost — on how they brand, well, themselves. From their Twitter jockeying to invite-wrangling, each of these seven Miamians are experts in the viral ways of the social-media ninja. And yes, their hashtags are that killer.

    Start Slideshow
  • 01_Bette-Ann-Schlossberg_P2
    Bette Ann Schlossberg, Google+ community partnerships team

    You are the "Google+ Gal of Miami." What's it like working for one of the coolest companies in the U.S.?
    "Working at Google is amazing. Every day is different — one day I might be working with top designers and fashion bloggers, the next I am working with travel bloggers and foodies."

    In short, what makes Google+ different from other social media sites?
    "The main difference is that Google+ will have an impact on how people interact and share information across all of Google, from products like GMail to YouTube. Some of the unique features that I love most are Circles, Hangouts, and Instant Upload."

    If you could only wear one designer for the rest of you life, who would it be?
    "Mara Hoffman because she is my idol — I love her bold, eye-catching prints. They're always a conversation starter."

    If you weren't a social media ninja, what would be plan B?
    "I would produce events for high-profile people and celebs."

    Photo: Courtesy of Bette Ann Schlossberg
  • 02_AlexHernandez
    Alex Hernandez, nightlife photographer

    You're a riot on Facebook — how do you come up with this stuff?
    "Most of the time, I just try to speak for the people in general. I say the things that they would really want to say but are probably scared of being judged."

    How have your Facebook antics changed your life?
    "They haven't really changed my life, but I do get stopped quite a lot and am thanked for making peoples' days better, which I am grateful to hear, by the way."

    Walk us through your closet; what is omnipresent?
    "I just came back from New York City, so a lot of bags filled with clothes and shoes."

    What is Miami's best kept secret?
    "My homemade gourmet sandwiches!"

    You're a photographer — whom would you love to photograph next?
    "An after-hours Hugh Hefner party. What happens in the mansion stays in my camera."

    It's your day off; quick, what are you doing?
    "I'm watching Planet of The Apes as we speak."

    Photo: Courtesy of Alex Hernandez
  • 02_02_FrankArriola
    Franky Arriola, CEO Nap Dog Media and director of social media for Pipeline Brickell

    How has your addiction to social media shaped your career path?
    "I've been a stand-up comic six years now, and when I started, I was flat out horrible at comedy but was great at marketing myself through social media. I had huge crowds come to the show and see me bomb, but week to week, I'd still keep people coming and keep the clubs packed thanks to my clever status updates. You can say that I built a big audience out of sitting all day at Starbucks and marketing myself through social media. Most businesses were slow to catch on how to use social media, so when they saw my success, they started to reach out. And, before I knew it, I was getting knocks on my door by individuals and businesses asking me to take care of social media for them."

    From a professional standpoint, what's the big diff between Facebook and Twitter?
    "Facebook is for people you know, and Twitter is for people that you want to know."

    What event in Miami do you most look forward to every year?
    "Social Media Day."

    Do you start to feel ill when you're away from you iPhone?

    What is your guilty pleasure — well, the G-rated one at least?

    Photo: Courtesy of Frank Arriola
  • Anna-Maria Nicole Williams-Weber, vice president of marketing for Dacra and vice president of Design Miami

    What is the latest and greatest with Dacra?
    "Where do I start? There are huge plans for the Miami Design District over the next few years such as LEED-ND Gold Certification, a collaboration with several talented architects, an extensive landscape plan that includes rooftop gardens, a boutique hotel and residences, rollout of new branding including a totally new and dynamic website set to launch in mid-October, and, of course, several luxury fashion retailers opening in the neighborhood — Cartier, Céline, Louis Vuitton, Dior Homme, Hermès, Agnona, Prada, Berluti, just to name a few!"

    How has social media shaped your life?
    "Life is less private, but I've rekindled old friendships, and now, I get my news updates immediately via social media outlets instead of watching the news at the end of the day. My work takes me all over the world, and social media allows me to maintain friendships with people in far-flung places and have a sense of their daily lives. I stay in tune with what's happening in the outside world as it's occurring. It's also the first thing I check as I open my eyes every morning, followed by emails."

    What is the most annoying characteristic about social media?
    "It never stops!"

    Do you get the shakes when away from your iPhone too long?
    "Sadly, yes. I feel naked without it."

    What kind of status updates push your buttons?
    "Overtly emotional love posts. Serioulsy, TMI. And, pictures of what people are having for lunch — very rarely is there a sandwich so outstanding that it qualifies as news."

    Photo: Justin Namon
  • Erica Fickling, director of development and programming at Lin Projects

    How has social media changed your life?
    "It's helped keep my social life organized! Let's be honest, who can memorize over 2,000 birthdays?"

    What is the most annoying characteristic about social media?
    "Facebook event invites — while I love that my friends are having cool events, it sometimes seems quite impersonal to receive 100 notifications a day."

    What kind of status updates bug you?
    "Food status updates — it's as if my friends are taunting me with their love of pork buns or fried chicken wings. Don't they know I'm on a never-ending diet?"

    Photo: Courtesy of Erica Fickling
  • Liza Walton, principal at Miami Social Marketing

    You are the Twitter-ati of Miami; how did your addiction to social media shape your career path?
    "My background is in tech and public relations, so social media is the best of both worlds for me. As my addiction grew, I began having friends and colleagues ask me how to better use social media for themselves and their brands. I realized that I could actually get paid to be on Twitter and started my own social media marketing company."

    Walk us through your closet. What will we find?
    "Dresses! Almost all of them being short. You'll also be hard-pressed to find any black in my closet — unless it's shiny, of course!"

    What is Miami's best-kept secret?
    "The Fashion District in Wynwood for short and shiny pieces, Cheap N Chic Boutique because the owner has an amazing eye, and Claudia Sanz from Green Grass on the Racks is kind enough to deliver a rolling rack of clothes every few months to me and the girls to try on at the office!"

    Do you get the shakes when apart from our iPhone too long?
    "Yes, and I never leave the house without my iPhone charger! There's nothing worse than wanting to snap a picture or send a tweet and having a dead battery."

    What is the best part about being a social media ninja?
    "Without a doubt, it's the new friendships I've made. Miami can be pretty small, and social media has expanded my horizons and introduced me to so many different people, with varying interests — many of whom I can say are now friends."

    Photo: Courtesy of Liza Walton
  • Dirk DeSouza, chief marketing officer at Dirk DeSouza Management Consulting

    How have your Facebook shenanigans changed your life?
    "People approach me in public and ask if I'm Dirk and say incredibly nice things to me. I've gotten marriage proposals, one million dates, strategy clients, social media clients, encouragements to write books, made new friends, and even started an impromptu Haiti Relief organization called 1st & Alton, prompting NBC doing a story on me titled Facebooking For Haiti, where I suddenly found myself in Port au Prince hanging with Sean Penn. Two years ago, Ocean Drive magazine gave me a monthly column after following my posts."

    Women often ask you on dates purely from your status updates. Have you ever found love this way?
    "Women comment and private message me constantly, which is incredibly flattering. They've led to dates and hookups but not love."

    What kind of status update annoys you to no end?
    "If you upload a picture of a cup of coffee, you're deleted. It's the lowest form of expression."

    Photo: Courtesy of Dirk De Souza