CNET Base Station Social Media Marketing At Comic Con 2011

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This was a great idea: to make a deal with a restaurant next to Comic Con, then take out its normal tables and make it into a bar and gaming center. That’s what CNET, the online tech news source, did to Lou and Mickey’s bar and restaurant at 224 5th Avenue in San Diego’s GasLamp District. Lou and Mickey’s is right across the railroad tracks from the San Diego Convention Center and Comic Con. Here’s my video interview with Sarah Bolton, the mastermind behind the CNET Base Station concept:

As you can see in the video, the CNET Base Station is the first place you run into when you go to the Gaslamp District. Last year, my friend Krystal Baldwin and I had a great pasta dinner at Lou and Mickey’s, and met the creators of NBC’s The Event, who were there promoting the (sadly) now-cancelled series. This time, CNET hit the jackpot.

I even managed to get some cool flashing glasses that I touted about:

CNET used the tables in the space to set up computers and stage a social media contest, of sorts. If you went to CNET’s Facebook page and typed that you “were chillin at the CNET Base Station, you got the glasses you saw, and a cool t-shirt. No word on how many Facebook likes they generated, but considering the people who came in for the free beer and food, I’m sure it was considerable.

But to me, having more Tweets is more valuable, especially if you can push whatever hashtag you have to Trending Topic status. Still, congrats to CNET for using crowdsourcing in that way.

In all, the CNET Base Station was total fun – the drinks were great, the music was cool, and the women were hot. My only crit is that the place itself was HOT and humid. I think the best answer for next year is to enclose it and turn on the air conditioning.

Stay tuned.

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