A true storyteller passes away - Trey Pennington RIP

I met Trey Pennington on Twitter, as most of my relationships are started nowadays; about 2 years ago. I immediately gravitated toward his great attitude and desire to assist people with telling "Their Story" online and in person. You can say Trey has a lot of anti-marketing in him... pushed all of us to keep it real, practical and effective. He was not only a good friend to me, Mary, Justin, Amanda, Bruce and Felicia; but to many others all around the World. In the photo above, friends @TreyPennington, @JustinTheSouth @GoGrahamGo @MotherNos tweet away at an event in Chimney Rock NC.

I remember we had a social media class at the Garage at Biltmore during Fall 2009 and Trey raced up to Asheville from Greenville, in the middle of his busy schedule, to be a part of the evening and to help me and Justin out. I remember the day exactly. Great times.

Trey Pennington passed away today, and the Online world and Greenville SC community is now missing a great person and contributor. He spent his life reaching out and helping others. I lost a friend today. Someone who was sincere, fair and inspired me to be a better person and businessman.

Here is what Trey has written in his Twitter bio: "Be the HERO! Conquer marketing clutter with story. Be heard. Be shared. I'll help you discover, develop & deliver your amazing story."

Here is Trey's last tweet at 10:21 this morning, right before he passed away: "Sure am thankful for online friends who are real friends offline, too. Love you."


Trey... I love you too, and I am so sorry this happened to you,


Love Gary

Social Media School Class #2 – Thank you Asheville

We had a great time the other evening at the Free Social Media School in Asheville North Carolina. First I took the group through setting up an email and a Twitter account. Then Justin from Social Village spoke on “Everyone has a story to tell” and how social media is the conduit for expression. Next up was social media and networking giant Trey Pennington from Greenville South Carolina to talk about relationships and how social media increases your effectiveness.


Special Thanks to the Garage at Biltmore for hosting the event and making sure everything was venue perfect. Jan and Chris, the owners, were more than accommodating and very hospitable to everyone. We had a little problem because Preferred Pump decided not to share their parking lot, but The Slosman Corporation in Asheville quickly responded and came to the rescue providing us with the use of their parking lot across the street.

Local Guys Moving in Asheville NC were there to make sure we had the chairs set up and were available to do anything that we needed completed. The chairs were lent to us by Cornerstone Church in downtown Asheville on South French Broad Avenue. Rev Pictures was there to take the video clips of this social media event and did a great job. PSAV provided the projector and screen for this event and assisted with getting everything hooked up right for a great presentation. AVL Custom Closet took care of the printing needs of the evening and was on-call to assist in any possible way. Man Cave Grilling came to the Asheville social media school and brought some great grilled food into the mix.

Sugar Momma's Cookies, Rolf Experience, and Man Cave Grilling all donated great prizes for this event. Thank you so so much!!

Awesome meeting! The next event is planned for April 23 from 5pm - 7:30pm at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville NC with a social time after. See the Facebook Event page or email me to RSVP. Try to plan to stay out with us until about 10pm if you are available. Free Social Media School in AVL! Thank you from G Social Media!

Asheville... Let's Face It, Twittering Away Your Time Can Be Profitable

Everywhere you turn you hear stories about Facebook, Twitter, and something called "social media." If you've wondered what all the buzz was about, if it is all just a passing fad, or even wondering if social media might just be the silver bullet to solve your challenges, then there's a free school for you in Asheville NC.

On March 23, 2010 at Free Asheville Social Media School at The Garage at Biltmore from 5:00pm - 7:30pm, several social media enthusiasts will share what they're learning so you can confidently launch your own social media effort. One presenter, Trey Pennington, who has over 75,000 followers on Twitter and is at the Facebook friend limit, will outline a comprehensive model showing you how to use social media tools to meet friends, potential friends, and prospective clients and customers online. More importantly, he'll share a brief overview of the foundational principles necessary for making meaningful contacts through social media.

"Believe it or not," Pennington says, "social media is being used right now to breath new life into an industry on the 'endangered industries' list—textile manufacturing!" Trey will share this story, plus other real life examples of social media in action. When you leave, you'll have a solid framework for venturing into the new social media territory.

Trey Pennington is a marketing pro, business connector, and storyteller for business who’s passion is helping folks uncover their hidden treasures and put them to work. He uses social media to connect with audiences around the world. HubSpot ranks his Facebook profile as one of the most influential in the world and his Twitter profile in the top 0.01%. He's helped start ten Social Media Clubs in the US, UK, and Australia and routinely speaks to groups using social media to make connections and have conversations leading to commerce.

His book, Spitball Marketing: Using What You've Got to Get More of What You Want is due out in early 2010.

You can RSVP by sending an email to G Social Media (email on the site) or RSVP on Facebook. Thanks.