Cleveland tweet up for Guitarmania, social media used to promote United Way event

CLEVELAND - A social event became more social thanks to social media.

The United Way of Greater Cleveland and cleveland.com hosted a tweet up, a gathering of Twitter followers, to promote the upcoming Guitarmania.

Guitarmania is a display and auction of 10-foot high guitars, all works of art that will be placed around Cleveland beginning Memorial Day weekend.

“They are wildly successful,” said Jenna Snyder, marketing director for the United Way of Greater Cleveland. “This community loves rock and roll and this community cares about its community.”

The guitars will be auctioned off Oct. 20. Cleveland's previous three Guitarmania campaigns have raised nearly $2 million.

The event held at the House of Blues in downtown Cleveland Wednesday evening, featured the cleveland.com’s Guitarmania guitar. The guitar, by artist Garrett Weider, is finished except for a social addition. Twitter users at the event were invited to submit their Twitter handles (user names) for inclusion on the guitar.

“A tweet up is really just an in-person meet up of people on Twitter who follow each other on Twitter, get their news and information that way and form these relationships and friendships and they get to meet in person every couple of months when we host these,” said Denise Polverine, editor and chief of cleveland.com.

The United Way of Greater Cleveland has 53 sponsors for guitars thus far. Past Guitarmania events, which occur every five years, have averaged 75 guitars, according to Snyder.

“Most of the artists are local artists,” Snyder added. “People get to submit their designs and they get to display Cleveland art.”

The United Way of Greater Cleveland funds 216 health and human service programs which help 450,000 area residents.