8/25/09: Ivan Reyes shares about audio sharing and Marna Friedman discusses self-publishing
We had a great show this Tuesday and we were happy to welcome our regular Stephanie (Frost) back this week. Another big thank you to our good friend Stephanie Lloyd for guest co-hosting with Erik last week.
First, joining us this morning was Ivan Reyes, CEO of Chirbit a free online tool for audio sharing. People can record, upload, and share smaller recordings, from about two minutes long to two hours. A few great practical business applications are to share small daily tips with clients or highlight smaller segments of larger shows. Launching his first startup, Ivan shares that the biggest hurdles to overcome are networking and getting the word out. But thankfully, Twitter and Tweet-ups have been doing a great deal to increase business networking.
Marna Friedman, self-publisher and small business consultant extraordinaire also joined us. She talked about how accessing information on the Internet can be difficult when you don’t know what you are looking for. Her book, “The Small Business That Could,” makes the search much easier by listing all of the sites that a small business might need. She also went on to publish a book specifically for women entrepreneurs, “The Small Business That Could For Women.” The books come with space to record your passwords and tips on how to make them both easy to remember and secure. Marna lets us in on some self-publishing insight, including some common stumbling blocks regarding ISBN numbers. She also created a chapter in her book with details on self-publishing and all of the different companies that offer self-publishing services.
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8/18/09: Steve Tingiris of Enthusem.com talks about turning the sales funnel “upside-down” and Justin Daniels + Ted Schwartz give great tips for landing office space
We had a great show this week! First though, we’d like to thank our good friend Stephanie Lloyd for stepping up and guest-co-hosting while our regular Stephanie (Frost) was off.
Our first guest of the morning was Steve Tingiris of an innovative startup enthusem.com which allows users to create, personalize and send customized printed greeting cards to their contacts. The enthusem.com tools even provide the means for users to provide an online attachment for each printed greeting card and track the number of times it’s accessed. But the most remarkable thing about what Enthusem does isn’t in the tools themselves, it’s in how they can be incoporated into an effective selling strategy.
Steve talked about how the traditional model of a “sales funnel”, where businesses market to a large market segment and then filter down to the prospects most interested, is an outdated approach to small business marketing. He instead recommends turning the funnel “upside-down” by focusing energy on a very few targeted outstanding prospects. We definitely recommend checking out enthusem.com and all you Twitter geeks out there should check out the innovative social media applications of their program.
We also spoke to our lawyer friend Justin Daniels and commercial realtor Ted Schwartz about how to negotiate your office lease. Ted quickly dispelled the myth, by the way, that bad market + real estate surplus = practically free office/retail space. He also gave us some great insight on what to look for in a landlord.
What may be most memorable from our discussion though was Justin’s analogy comparing a commercial lease to an octopus with it’s tentacles perpetually reaching for your wallet. There is obviously a lot of detail there that many business owners aren’t going to be able to easily navigate without an eye for fine print. So, until octopus-proof pants are readily available on the mass market, Justin recommends consulting with a lawyer before entering into a long-term lease with a landlord.
Feel free to email Justin or Ted with any questions!
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8/11/09 LinkedIn and Networking with Sean Nelson and Scott Dunn
Every time we talk with Sean Nelson, we learn something new about LinkedIn. As the author of three books on LinkedIn, Sean really understands the ins and outs of this business networking site. And, it’s clear that a lot of people really don’t take advantage of everything it has to offer. Sean broke down some of the ways LinkedIn can be used more effectively. He says that there are four sections you need to familiarize with:
- People
- Jobs
- Answers
- Groups
He says that while you may be connected to 500 or 1,000 peple directly, features such as Groups can connect you with hundred of thousands of people depending on which ones you belong to.
The next thing he said is to make sure that your profile is 100% complete and that it is publicly searchable. But, even with a 100% complete profile, that’s just the minimum. Starting to interact with the LinkedIn community via Answers or Groups is really where you will get the most out of using LinkedIn. Make sure you have a clear photo on your profile and that there are no typos or grammar errors.
Finally, he said that it’s important to be clear about why you are on LinkedIn. While most people will say they are there to network or learn, he said that LinkedIn should be used to make money. If you are clear that you are on there to increase your business but do it in such a way that is professional, then LinkedIn can be a great business tool for you.
His free advice was to connect, be active, be trustworthy and continue to explore how to use LinkedIn to build your business.
Next up we spoke to Scott Dunn who runs SONARconnects which helps local businesses use social media to build communities and enhance their brands. SONARconnects is a full-service agency in Johns Creek, Georgia.
Both Sean and Scott had some great tips for using social networking tools to build your customer base and brand. Thanks to both of them for joining us.
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8/4/09: Author Pam Slim + Dan Greenfield of Bernaise Source Media
GFR is excited to be a sponsor of an upcoming event on August 15th with Pam Slim, author of Escape from Cubicle Nation and the blog by the same name which she has been writing since 2005. Pam joined us via phone to talk about her book and her upcoming workshop, Reduce the Risk of a Failed Startup: Lessons from the Field.
Pam escaped her cubicle in 1996 and began working as an independent contractor. She had a more flexible schedule and really enjoyed having more control over her time. But, as she worked for various corporations, what she noticed is that many people were not happy with their corporate lives. They wanted to work for themselves but didn’t quite know how to “escape.” She began her blog as a way to evangelize the benefits of being an entrepreneur and it is now one of the top career and marketing blogs on the web. Her book was an outgrowth of the blog and it is what she calls “a coach in a book” which people can use as a guide to help them transition from the corporate world to that of an entrepreneur.
The workshop will be an opportunity for attendees to not only interact with Pam but other aspiring entrepreneurs which Pam says is invaluable. Being around other entrepreneurs can be very helpful and energizing.
Finally, Pam’s free advice was the best: “Test often and fail fast.” She said that it helps to view your life through the lens of a scientist. Instead of seeing something that didn’t work out as a “failure,” view it as a hypothesis that simply didn’t get the results you wanted. Move on. Learn to laugh at your mistakes and try again.
Next up we were joined by Dan Greenfield, a veteran communications executive and principal of Bernaise Source Media, a new and traditional media consulting practice. Dan is also the organizer of an upcoming “unconference” called PR Camp which will take place on August 21 from 8:00-12pm. PR Camp will focus on the shifting role of PR in the age of social media and increasing transparency. Companies can no longer filter their message through a well-crafted press release. On the flip side, they now have an opportunity to develop more meaningful relationships with their customers and have the ability to truly listen to them and perhaps learn from them as well. PR Camp is for any company or anyone interested in learning what this new landscape looks like and how they can benefit from it. Here’s the lineup of speakers or “counselors” for the event:
- Katie Mingo, Senior Marketing Associate, Delta Airlines
- Marilynn Mobley, Senior Vice President, Strategic Counsel, Edelman PR
- James Andrews, Managing Partner, Everywhere
- Carol Flammer, Managing Partner, mRELEVANCE, LLC
- Christopher Jones, Digital Strategist, Ketchum PR
- Melanie Babcock, Senior Vice President, Digital Strategy & Services, Manning Selvage & Lee
- Peter Fasano, Principal/Lead Catalyst, mass+logic
- Bert Dumars, Vice President E-Business & Interactive Marketing, Newell Rubbermaid
- Irfan Kamal, Vice President, Digital Strategy, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
- Jenny Schmitt, President and Director of Client Strategy, CloudSpark
- Shirley Powell, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Turner Broadcasting System
- Debbie Curtis-Magley, Public Relations Manager, UPS
Thanks to both Pam and Dan for joining us. Great show and we hope to see you at one or both of these terrific local events soon!
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Gravity Free Radio Sponsors an Exclusive Atlanta Workshop with Entrepreneurship Guru Pam Slim
Gravity Free Radio, a weekly national radio program, hosted by Erik Wolf and Stephanie Frost, is sponsoring an exclusive workshop with author, blogger and nationally-recognized entrepreneurship guru Pam Slim (@pamslim on Twitter) in Atlanta on Saturday, August 15 2009.
Pam’s workshop will be a lively and interactive event with presentation integrated with lots of Q&A. During the day-long workshop, Pam will discuss how to select and evaluate business ideas, how to build a winning personal brand, how to replace the need for a large budget with a focused effort, how to build a supportive team of peers, mentors and teachers and, maybe most importantly, how to manage the doubts and fears that get in your way.
The event will be help on Saturday, August 15 from 9AM to 4PM at the GTRI Auditorium at 250 14th Street in Atlanta, 30318. Attendance is being capped at 200 attendees, so be sure to register in advance. Tickets are $79 in advance or $99 at the door (if available, bring your checkbook).
For more information and advanced registration, be sure to visit PamSliminAtlanta.com.
Pam will also be signing copies of her book Escape From Cubicle Nation for all attendees so be sure to pick a copy up at your local bookstore or at Amazon.com before the event.
The Pam Slim in Atlanta event is being co-organized by Atlanta Web Entrepreneurs, Atlanta Web Design Group, Atlanta Social Media Enthusiasts, StartupChicks and Women Intelligently Networking.
