Roundpeg On-Line Education for Small Business Owners
Most small business owners will admit they have a lot to learn about business planning, marketing, web design, social media, pr and networking. However, with the day in, day out challenges of running a business, there isn’t really time to take off for a seminar. And when you do, there is always so much information to digest and act upon.
I know this is true, because I run a small business.
So I have developed a series of FREE on-line courses on Marketing, Business Planning, Web design, and PR/Social Media Each program includes emails, blog posts, worksheets and the occasional podcast or video.
Episode 18 – Robby Slaughter and Productive Networking
Robby Slaughter of Slaughter Development, an Indianapolis based productivity firm stopped by and shared some networking productivity strategies for small business owners. We talked about how to decide if you are in the right room, open a conversation, and make networking a part of your ongoing marketing activities.
To hear our short conversation check out the podcast now.
Click here to listen to the interview.
What Makes Someone Attractive?
No today’s post is not about makeovers or dating advice. It is about being attractive on line!
About a year ago, I read a post by Jim Connolly. In it he talked about Equality and Attraction. Essentially he was talking about what makes people attractive. While he was focused on internet marketing, I think his comments are relevant in many areas of marketing. He said:
You attract sales, leads and referrals by being attractive. In the online world, this means making your site or blog as valuable to your ideal profile of client / customer as possible. You do this by focusing on delivering quality and quantity.
What do you think? I think many of the same qualities which make people attractive off line make them attractive on line as well. For example -When you go to a cocktail party or networking event, take a minute and look around the room. The interesting, confident people are usually the center of attention. How does this translate to your on-line? Write interesting content and share it with confidence. – A simple post on Twitter or FriendFeed to let your followers know you have something new, then let your readers find you.
In addition to really dynamic and interesting people, the other very popular folks at any party are the good listeners. So spend some time listening as well by asking good questions if you want to be more attractive on line!
Episode 16 – Team-Building Activities for Small Businesses with Deseri Garcia
Deseri Garcia of Vida Aventura is a coach, trainer, motivator, leader, and most of all, Des is my friend. When the weather is nice, we have walking one-on-ones. Instead of sitting in a coffee shop or office, we put on our walking shoes and hit the Monon for an hour. The experience is productive in so many ways.
But the weather has turned cold, and so we had to move our conversations indoors. So when Des stopped by recently, I thought it would be fun to record our conversation for my podcast More than a Few Words.
In this segment, Deseri talks about Team Building, and what small business owners can do to improve the performance of their team!
Click here to listen the interview.
Everyone is Not My Customer!
Everyone is not my customer. While I know that intellectually, sometimes it is hard to embrace that fact emotionally, especially in a tough economy. But the truth is, if I want to use my time well and do the right thing for my clients, sometimes the best thing to do is to turn the project over to a competitor.
This quote is from a post by Seth Godin on this topic. He argued that passing a project to someone else better prepared to handle it will actually raise your image with that client. He said:
This is when you earn the right to be seen as a trusted advisor, not a self-interested shill. Two months or two years from now, when you interact with that person or organization again, he’ll remember that you were the one who spoke up on behalf of the competition, the one who helped us find a better fit, the clearly disinterested advisor who helped us choose between the two remaining good choices.
I know he is right. So to help me make good recommendations I spend time getting to know my competitors. I know areas in which each one excels, so I can pick the best candidate for my client.
Roundpeg is going to be around for a long time. If we miss one sale, but in doing so, establish our position as trusted advisors it will be worth it in the long run.
Talk Less and Listen More
There was once a very impatient young man who went to visit a bible scholar. He demanded the scholar tell him everything he needed to know about the bible standing on one foot.
The scholar, who was a very old man smiled, stood on one foot and said, “Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you! All the rest is commentary”
Regardless of what you believe about the origin of the bible, almost everyone will agree this is an extraordinary piece of literature, with many complex themes. And yet, I would argue, the contents of the entire book can be summed up in the simple explanation the old man gave.
What Would You Say?
If that same impatient young man about your business could you meet his challenge? Could you boil down the description of your business to a simple message, deliverable standing on one foot?
Try This Next Time
The next time someone at a networking event asks “What do you do?” Treat the listener like an impatient young man. Avoid a long, detailed description of your products and services.
Instead, give a brief, but compelling description that leaves the listener wanting more … and watch what happens!
What to Say?
If you have caught their attention, the listener will ask a follow up question. Keep your response short as well. The goal is not to be vague, but to provide information in manageable bites for the listener.
Think of a networking conversation like a tennis match. Your goal is to make contact with the ball and knock it back over the net. Remember to ask questions about their business as well.
Episode 9: Are You LinkedIN with Chris Reed
Chris Reed asks the question, Are YOU Linked IN? The owner of Creed Improvements he is also extremely knowledgeable about how to use LinkedIn as part of your business strategy.
We sat down recently to talk about how he uses this tool to complement his own networking activities.
Chris suggests using LinkedIn to learn more about people you meet at networking events. Who are they? Who do they know?
He also suggests you use it to introduce people, and make referrals just as you would in face to face networking events.
Click here to listen to the rest of the interview.
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And to learn more about using LinkedIn check out Chris’ class on December 16 through Rainmaker University.
Episode 8: Market Segmentation with Nick Carter
Recently, I sat down with Nick Carter, the owner and developer of AddressTwo, a simple CRM tool for small business owners. 
More than just an address book, AddressTwo is a powerful tool to help you manage your contact list, transforming a spread sheeting into a marketing engine.
This process begins with segmenting your data. And as Nick explains, segmentation is not just for big business. Anyone can improve the quality of their communication by breaking their contacts into smaller groups who share something in common.
To hear the conversation simply click this link
If you would like to learn more, please visit www.AddressTwo.com or plan on attending a FREE preview demonstration on Thursday, December 10th, from 9:00 – 10:30 AM, It is FREE to attend, but RSVP’s are required
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At Roundpeg, we are so excited about this product, we are now a Partner Provider. This means we will be helping our clients incorporate this tool into their marketing strategy.
At the Water Cooler
I spent the early part of my career working in larger companies. Along the way I discovered I was much more productive, wandering the halls, talking to people, then I was sitting in meeting. I learned very quickly, that real decisions were made, around the water cooler.
When I started my own business, I missed those productive, daily conversations. I knew those informal ”water cooler” conversations were important. It just took me awhile to figure out that my water cooler is the local coffee shop.
The Subject of This Week’s Podcast is The Water Cooler – It’s where I get business done. What about you?
The World is Getting Smaller
One of the services we provide here at Roundpeg is the IndyBiz calendar. We try hard to include business networking events happening in and around the greater Indianapolis area. We solicit events on a variety of social media platforms and get a wide range of submissions.
As I was catching up on my emails this morning, I came across an event submission. At first glance, I did not recognize the organization or location. When I looked more closely, I realized we had received information for a networking event planned for January of 2010 happening in London.
A few of you may realize that there is a London in not only Indiana but also Ohio and Kentucky. This particular event is happening in THE London (as in England). So, while “the world is getting smaller” is an easy catch phrase to throw around, here at Roundpeg that phrase rang true to us this morning.
But if you are going to be in London, check it out, it sounds like fun
Organization: NFI Networking :Date/Time: Thursday 28th January, 2010. 18:00-21:00
Contact Name: NFI Networking
Location: The Woodstore Bar and Grill, North Road, London, N7 9EF
Web Link for More Info: http://nfinetworking.com
Event Description: This is a networking organisation for business people that want to selflessly help other business people, to buy services and recommend the services of other people. It’s about being helpful, not the hard sell. It’s about back-scratching, offering selfless advice and doing favours. It’s about business karma.
It’s not a place where you simply sell your services. It’s about helping people. It’s also about meeting a diverse group of business people, so you are also requested to bring along a representative from another industry not on the NFI list.
Certain groups of people are NFI – Not Flipping Invited – not necessarily because they are unhelpful, but generally because there’s a saturation of them at networking events. After the event, you are asked to post a comment to the NFI Networking blog or LinkedIn group about the selfless advice, help and sales leads that you offered another person – to prove that you were helpful.
Your help should also be validated by the person to whom you tried to help, whether or not the help proves fruitful or not.
