We just finalized plans and signed the contract on our first Social Media Clubhouse and I am tickled pink (well not pink, but you know what I mean). From March 7-13th, we will be in Las Vegas for the New Comm Forum and the Community 2.0 Conferences, so we rented an awesome house where we will host something equivalent to what Coke did with the World Cup (We All Speak Football)and what Podtech did with Bloghaus, with our own unique twists.

The house is about 5 minutes by cab from the Venetian for New Comm Forum, and 15 mins by cab from the Red Rock Hotel and Casino for Community 2.0. It will be worth the drive - ride sharing can be organized on the Wiki, and if you are planning on coming, we would ask you add your name there each day so we can make appropriate plans. More information will be posted over here on the wiki in the next few days. The house was just completed recently, a new custom home, and it is quite amazing. It has a pool (not heated), wifi to DSL, a great home theatre room for movie nights, a BBQ, a tennis court, a big backyard and hopefully a pool table by the time we arrive.

Our plan is to have a series of small hosted cocktail parties and movie nights, and we will host a BBQ on Sunday afternoon/evening and hopefully a Pool Tournament on Thursday March 8th after the New Comm Awards. The final schedule will be posted on the wiki. We are seeking sponsors to help pay for some of the costs which will include sponsorship of the parties and all the media produced for Social Media Clubhouse, via blogposts and podcasts, so contact us if you are interested.

We will begin hosting similar activities at all of the various Social Media conferences we attend and the one’s we organize ourselves. We are also seeking to have the house serve as a gathering/collaborating place along the lines of what Dave Winer imagined as a Hypercamp, where bloggers and podcasters and others attending the conference have a place to hang out and produce media together - sharing resources, references and pointers to information that will strengthen the quality of the media being created - and having a fun time, which is truly what it is all about. I will be hosting Podcasts each morning and evening on the drive to and from the conferences in the stylish MiniVan, in addition to writing blog posts and shooting photos and hopefully some video each day.

We are also offering members of Social Media Club an opportunity to have a less expensive option for housing while attending the same conferences - which provides another way to connect across our growing network. In addition to myself, Howard Greenstein will be there with us from Wednesday to Saturday, Tom Foremski will be there from Wednesday through Saturday and my fiancee Kristie Wells will be there from Saturday through Wednesday. At the moment there is at least one room available each night we will be there, with a few more during Community 2.0, so let me know if you are in need of a place to stay - it works out to about $125 per night and we should all be able to fit in the minivan on our way to and from the conferences each day.

So this is what I mean by ‘Club’ - a group of people who trust each other and are able to work together beyond the walls of their organizations, and connecting as independents within our growing global neighborhood. Together we can not only help each other be successful with our work, but reduce our expenses and have fun.

I look forward to welcoming you to our first Social Media Club House in Las Vegas! Yeah Baby!