“Built to Sell”–Even Better If You Don’t Want to Sell

Please don’t overlook this book because you don’t want to sell your business, or don’t want to sell it in the near future.

In fact, the book is just as valuable to small business owners who are looking to make their businesses better, and don’t want to sell.

Bo Burlingham, in his Foreword ofBuilt to Sell,by John Warrillow, says it best:

“The point is that the best businesses are sellable, and smart businesspeople believe that you should build a company to be sold even if you have no intention of cashing out or stepping back anytime soon.”

In 2008, Warrillow received an offer he couldn’t refuse, and sold his business, which was built using the principles of this book.  Today, Warrillow and his wife and kids live the good life in Provence, France, thanks to the sale of that business.

This book is actually the second edition, updated with an Implementation Guide, and published in April, 2011 by Portfolio / Penguin.  The original version, published in 2010, is written in parable form, and is well-loved by many, including the Small Business Trends Book Review team, and you canread the original review, by Book Review Editor, Ivana Taylor.

I had received a review copy from John Warillow and couldn’t wait to tell you about it. But  I didn’t want to regurgitate the information from the original book review (and it’s terrific, and I recommend checking it out), so I spoke to Warrillow, and asked him about some specific parts of the book that really called to me.  Here are some highlights from the interview:

Question:  What is the number one reason small business owners tell you that they buy your book?

John Warrillow:  I hear most often that it’s because they want to grow their businesses.  They’ve often reached a ceiling on their earnings.  Maybe it’s $200,000.  Maybe it’s $700,000.  Whatever it is, they want to understand how to make their businesses scalable.

Question:Making a business scalable seems to be an important concept in your book.  Can you describe what you mean by that?

John Warrillow:  A scalable business has to meet the three criteria I detail in the book:  1) a service or product that is “teachable to employees,” so that the owner isn’t always the one doing the work; 2) a service or product that is valuable to your customers, and is not a commodity; and 3) a service orproduct that is “repeatable,” meaning customers need to return again and again to buy.

Question:It’s clear how some products are scalable, such as razors.  In your book, the main character, Alex, creates a scalable business out of logo design, which many people consider a “non-scalable” business, since it’s a professional service.  Is this just an outlier, or can service businesses really create “scalable products?”

John Warrillow:   Here are two examples.  I know of an attorney, who, instead of offering her services on an hourly basis, like the vast majority of attorneys, offers them in a product package, such as $5,000 for a no-contest divorce, and $1,200 for a new business incorporation.  Another example isHassle Free Home Services, Inc., created by Jim Vagonis. It offers customers a single point of contact for all of their home care needs, by paying a flat fee for one year, in a renewable annual contract.

Question:What’s the most common question you get about your book?

John Warrillow:   It’s “why can’t I offer scalable products or services and still do custom work?”

Question:Ah, the old, why do I have to have a niche, why can’t I offer everything argument…

John Warrillow:  Yes, and it’s the concept I’m most passionate about.  That’s one of the reasons I wrote the implementation guide.  In it I describe trying to do just that at one point in my market research business, and failing miserably.  I also reiterate throughout the book that the key to success intransitioning to offering only a scalable service or product is to always charge upfront, so you have positive cash flow.  You may have some bumpy times, but after a year or so your business will generally grow steadily.

Question:You also make a point about describing your clients as customers, not clients, in a scalable business.   Can you explain that a bit more?

John Warrillow:  The term “client” implies a consultative, personal relationship.  It’s not the kind of thing that can be scalable.  If your company has clients, it implies that each client has a one-to-one relationship with someone at your company, often the owner. If your company has customers, the entire team works with them.

As always, I have to thank John Warrillow for writing a great book, one of my favorite business books of all time.  The second edition is even better with the addition of the Implementation Guide.  Run, don’t walk to get this book.  Your business will thank you.

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We’ll Call It a Victory

My mom always told me that when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. That being said, these are tough times, even for lemonade purveyors.  Even so, I try to look at the bright side.

I played for an afternoon with how one might spin truly horrible numbers. Throw in a $100 word like“burgeoning”and you’ve got yourself a tasty little cartoon.

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Small Business News: Great Tips and Tools

You need an edge to succeed in small business. Make no mistake. Your products and services may be great, your marketing and sales process flawless, but there are a lot of little things that will eventually put you on top, if that is indeed where you’re headed. Those edges, those tools and tips, are not part of some marvelous secret code distributed to you by gurus. No, it could be a whole variety of tips and tools you’ve learned about or picked up over yo0ur small business career. Today we’d like to share a few resources we’ve collected from our community and from the thought leaders we follow. Feel free to create your own lists as well.

Marketing

Have you built a community? You should, you know! Communities can serve so many functions for a small business from networking to cultivating prospects that may become customers. But most important they give small businesses the edge over big companies by making direct and personal connections that convert into future business down the road.BizSugar Blog

Tricky Twitter tool tip. It may be hard to say, but when you read this post you’ll know why. We needed something attention grabbing to tell you more about a tool that goes way beyond the typical Twitter functionality. This plugin is a small business online marketing innovation. Here, in detail, is how you can make it work for you.IBlogZone

It’s all about the experience. It doesn’t end with a sale, believe it or not. In fact, to hear John Jantch tell it, how you handle the transaction after the sale and how you followup, stay in touch and measure results and satisfaction are all part of the marketing process as well. It’s how you create the proper customer experience, one that has them telling their friends and coming back for more.Duct Tape Marketing

Tech

How can autoresponders work for your business? Using an autoresponder can increase both efficiency and customer experience for your online business. The tool will allow you to respond to customer inquiries without additional staff or a call center. At the same time, autoresponders help you build customer service while keeping track of important contacts and communications 24/7 even if you’re away from your computer at the time. Buzzle.com

Legal

Know your employment law cold. No matter where in the world your business is located, knowing the laws governing local employment is critical. Mistakes in this area can be damaging and costly, especially if abiding by employment law will make your business model unworkable. Do you know the employment laws where your business is located?365 Days of Startups

Funding

Tips for funding your new venture. These ideas from Barry Moltz may be nothing new, but the basic sources of small business financing haven’t changed that much either. You will probably even find a few startup folks who disagree with some of the advice here. That’s OK. Getting started is the point, and a few more suggestions about how to bring in the investment necessary to make your new venture a reality can’t hurt.Open Forum

Resources

Five questions that will help your business prepare for the future. No matter how large or small your business may be, you must plan for the future. Businesses that do not do this run the risk of being left behind or worse, of having their market completely disappear. But fortunately you don’t need any special ability to predict the future here. Some basic questions can tell you where your business is heading and what you will need to get there.Inc.com

Five free tools for infographics. They’re all the rage these days, especially in online marketing. But you don’t need the artistic skills of a Warhol or a Max to create super awesome infographics that grab attention and translate information like no medium before. Prepare to take your marketing to the next level.Fast Company

Sales

How to increase your sales with video. A lot of talk about video and other online marketing centers on boosting brand, but you know what? Creating content for the Web can do a whole lot more. For example, in this brief post Todd Youngblood looks at how to multiply sales calls (in theory) by adding some video to your site. Can’t afford a sales team? Do you have a Flip camera? Then get to work!Dreamland Interactive

Let Google be your sales manager. Always one for dreaming up a unique approach to sales leads, Chris Hamilton has this suggestion for using Google Insights and Google Trends not only to see what keywords and phrases are being used to describe your products or services but also to generate sales leads, the life-blood of any business, large or small. Enjoy!A Sales Tip a Day

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5 Ways To Help Your Content Go Viral

Thanks to social media, small business owners and big brands have become obsessed with a common goal– getting their content to go viral. We’ve all seen that funny cat video on YouTube with 2 million views and know we want to know how that can be us. How we can use content and viral marketing to run, grow and promote our business. Whether you realize it or not – you’re a content marketernow, using your blog and your brain to publish content that people simply can’t resist passing on to their friends. Or at least that’s the goal.

If you’ve ever hit the ‘publish’ button on a post to only be met by crickets, you know that getting your content to go viral isn’t as easy as we’d like it to be. However, there are some things you can do to increase your chances of viral success. What are they?

Take a look at the five tips below.

Master the Call to Action

A strong piece of content that doesn’t include anequallystrong call to action is a piece of content wasted. One of the most important things you need to do as a content marketer is learn how to create calls to action that compel people to act and take action. If you want someone to retweet your post, to share it on Facebook or to post it to their LinkedIn group, you need to give them a strong reason to do so and you must tell them what that reason is. Sometimes it can be as simple as adding“please RT” or “please vote” to the end of your tweet and sometimes it’s going to take a little bit more ingenuity. But right there, in that moment and that CTA, is your chance to influence someone toward a viral action. Don’t let it slip by.

Act to engage the bored

When you’re trying to get a piece of content to go viral, your audience is not simply the person most interested in buying your product or using your service. You’re going after the “I’m bored” the “I hate my job” clan, as well. These are the people who spend their entire day sitting in an office reading blogs, scanning Twitter, and messing around on Facebook simply because they’re bored or have nothing better to do. To go viral, your content should be something that even normal people (aka people not affiliated with your world) will enjoy sharing and passing around.

Be conscious of publishing times

This sounds pretty logical, right? People need to be around in order to share your content. So if you’re publishing your killer blog post at 6pm Eastern on a Friday afternoon, you’ve probably already botched your attempt.Because no one is around.They’re off for the weekend or, if they’re on the West Coast, they’re getting ready to be off for the weekend. Be conscious of factors like this and plan around them. Research shows that people are more likely to share content earlier in the week, so if that’s your audience, that’s when youshould be posting your most viral-worthy content. Also be aware of the time. If you’re a West Coast publisher, that may mean you need to write posts in advance and schedule them for earlier in the morning. If you’re posting content at 1pm Pacific, you’ve nearly missed an East Coasters entire day. This stuff matters.

Create stuff people want to read

Okay, so going viral isn’t just about poking the bored, it’s also about putting out material that provides real value. What does that really mean? For many audiences, it may mean being the first to break a big news story, holding a contest that generates a lot of interest through its prizes, or publishing an instructional How To that breaks down a problem for a large segment of your audience. If you’re not sure what your audience is looking for, I’d encourage you to check out this post onhow to sculpt great contentfrom the SEOmoz blog which I think does a great job illustrating how easy it can sometimes be to give people exactly what they’re after.

Break down the barriers

We’ve talked about this before – it you want people to share your content, you need tobreak down the barriersand encourage them to take that act. That means using social media buttons to make it easy for users to share your content, to use tools to see how they naturally share your content, and really making it part of your process.

Make no mistake– getting your content to go viral isn’t an easy task. If it was, we’d all be able to do it and it would lose its value. However, the list above runs through a couple of things you should be doing to at least increase your odds.

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Do You Have What it Takes to be the First CRM Idol?

Small companies trying to make a name for themselves in the CRM/Social CRM space are making efforts to get connect and collaborate with key players like investors, influencers, technology/strategic partners and media connections. But they are often thwarted in that effort by ineffective (or no) PR efforts, or by being drowned out by the incredible number of companies trying to attract the attention of influencers inundated every week with briefing requests.

This is whyCRM Idol 2011: The Open Seasonexists.

The concept– the brainchild ofPaul Greenberg– is simple. If you meet the submission criteria outlined below, you’ll have the opportunity – on a first come first serve basis– to secure a time slot that will put you in front of some of the most influential people in CRM/SCRM. They will spend an hour with you in a demo to hear about your technology product– software only – and will write a jointly signed review of what they saw to be published in multiple venues. It can be a good review, a bad one, a mix or indifferent– but they will be opinionated and fair.

Forty companies from the Americas and twenty from EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) will get a shot at this. Four finalists from the Americas will be chosen, as will three finalists from EMEA.

Once finalists are chosen they will be voted on in two ways:

1. Popular vote: All votes will be tallied from the public sites– in aggregate. That’s 50% of the vote.
2. Extended Judges Panels: Each judge will select a specific winner from the finalists. That’s the other 50% of the vote.

Even if you don’t make the finals your company should receive some great media attention. If you make the finals, some prizes will go to you as well. The winners will get a major array of prizes, and be declared “CRM Idol 2011 Winner.”

The Criteria

This competition is for small companies in the CRMish/SocialCRMish world, meeting the following criteria:

1. You have to have software that is commercially available by the time of the August demo. If you’re not commercially available, and you have a time slot, you will lose it.
2. You have to have 3 referenceable customers that, if we care to, we can contact and ask about you.
3. You have to have revenue under $12 million U.S. your last fiscal year. As far as disclosure goes, you have the choice of making the claim that you do– though that will have to be stated in your submission and we’ll trust you or you can disclose your revenue in the submission with the knowledge that only the permanent judges will know what it is. If you make the claim, please be prepared to back it up if we ask. Your call on how.
4. You have to be willing to make a ten minute video if you get to the finals.
5. You have to fit a category– though there is some leeway there.

The Software Categories

1. Traditional CRM Suites
2. Social CRM
3. Sales– Sales Force Automation, Sales Optimization, Sales Effectiveness
4. Marketing– Marketing Automation, Revenue Performance Management, Social Marketing, Email Marketing, etc.
5. Customer Service– all permutations
6. Mobile CRM
7. Customer Experience Management
8. Social Media Monitoring– requires the possibility of integrating with a CRM technology
9. Customer Analytics
10. Enterprise Feedback Management
11. Innovation Management
12. Community Platforms
13. Enterprise 2.0– collaboration, activity streams etc.
14. Social Business
15. Knowledge Management–requires the possibility of integrating with CRM systems
16. Vendor Relationship Management
17. Partner Relationship Management

If you don’t see yourself in this list make the case as to why you have some customer-facing possibilities, and the likelihood is that we’ll be cool with it.

The Rules

Submissions

1. There will be 40 slots made available in the Americas and 20 in EMEA.
2. The submission will be by email ONLY to:nextbigthing@crmidol.com.
3. The submissions will occur starting today– Monday, April 25 and will continue until Friday May 13 or until all slots are filled, whichever is first (watch#crmidolon twitter for updates on that as it occurs).
4. Each submission will include:
   1. Company contact and named person contact information.Twodate and time specific slot requests.
   2. The category you feel you fit into.
   3. A description of what the product/company is and why it should be included in the contest
   4. The names of the three (3) referenceable customers– the company, the contact and their email and phone.
   5. A statement that says that you meet the revenue requirement. You can state the actual number with the knowledge that the primary judges in each of the Americas and EMEA will treat it as under non-disclosure.
   6. A statement saying you are committed to making a 10 minute video for submission if you make the finals.
5. If accepted, you’ll be notified privately but it will be posted that you’ve been accepted on the Twitter #crmidol stream. The time will be sent to you privately.
6. If you don’t includeeverythingspecified in the rules for submission, it means automatic disqualification and you cannot resubmit.

The Video

The standards for the video will be mentioned to the finalists once they are named. How much you spend and on what will be up to you as will the content and how you present it. We’ll issue guidelines when the time gets near.

The Prizes…So Far

These are the prizes as of launch today. There are several others in the works that will be announced as the contest rolls out.

All Finalists

Finalists get to choose one day of consulting from the list of influencer consultants. The order of choice will be based on the popular vote on the video which will be kept confidential but used for the choosing.

The Americas and EMEA Winners

Each winner will get to choose four prizes from the list. A few of the prizes are listed below.Use this link to see the complete list.

1. Accenture
   1. Getting in front of Accenture for possible partnership and/or possible investment.
2. Capgemini (for EMEA winners only)
   1. A half day workshop to explore joint go to market opportunities and help you refine and test your value proposition.
3. Social Media Today
   1. A blog post featuring the winner of the contest to run on both The Customer Collective and Social Media Today
   2. A single blast to the Social Media Today opt-in list (approximately 50,000 names) which will conform to their minimum standards (valued at $10,500)
4. Microsoft
   1. 12 mos. of CRM Online Free for developing extensions to CRM
   2. 12 mos. of Windows Azure Free for developing web-based portals and BI solutions
   3. Access to the Office 365 Beta for building collaborative applications and services
   4. Access to theBizSpark One program-a program designed to connect emerging businesses and their investors with a Microsoft advisor to help them identify unique opportunities and expand its business presence
5. SugarCRM
   1. Free 10 user subscription to SugarCRM Professional or Enterprise
   2. Membership in the Sugar Exchange and free consulting on product integration with SugarCRM
   3. CEO Larry Agustin, a successful venture capitalist in his own right, does a mentoring& VC matchmaking session with the winners

Dates and Times Table for the Americas and EMEA

We’ve put together an easy little table with all the relevant dates and times that you’ll need as you progress through the competition.

Dates/Times	Americas	EMEA
Submission Dates	August 15-19; August 22-26	September 5-9
Submission Times	3pm ET; 4pm ET; 5pm ET; 6pm ET	3pm GMT; 4pm GMT; 5pm GMT; 6pm GMT
Finalist Video Submission Date	September 30	October 14
Winner Announcement	October 17	October 31

The Judges

Primary Judges

Judges will be involved in the one hour reviews each and will jointly sign off on each review which will be posted to multiple media sites. They will also choose the finalists.

The Americas

1. Paul Greenberg– Managing Principal, The 56 Group, LLC
2. Jesus Hoyos– Managing Partner, JesusHoyos.com, LLC
3. Esteban Kolsky– Principal and Founder, Thinkjar LLC
4. Brent Leary– Managing Partner, CRM Essentials
5. Denis Pombriant– CEO, Beagle Research Group

EMEA

1. Laurence Buchanan– Vice President, CRM& Social CRM, EMEA, Capgemini
2. Silvana Buljan– Founder& Managing Director, Buljan& Partners
3. Paul Greenberg– see above
4. Mark Tamis– Social Business Strategist, NET-7

Mentors

Each executive below has volunteered a day of their time– two during the finals and one with the winners – to provide the benefit of their experience to the contestants.

1. Anthony Lye (SVP/GM Oracle CRM)– will provide one day for the Americas finalists and one day for the EMEA finalists for consultation on how to best do the content for the contending videos and other pertinent advice.
2. Joe Hughes (Social CRM Lead, Accenture)– will provide one day for the Americas finalists and one day for the EMEA finalists for consultation on how to best do the content for the contending videos and other pertinent advice.
3. Larry Augustin (CEO of SugarCRM)– This is a prize for the winner of EMEA and the winner of the Americas. Larry wasrecently featured in our One on One conversation series.

Extended Judges Panels

The influencer panel is made up of well known experts including Robert Scoble, Brian Solis and Jeremiah Owyang.Use this link to see a list of the complete influencer panel.

The Vendor Panel

The vendor panel includes executives like Microsoft Director of CRM Product Management Bill Patterson, Salesforce.com VP of Market Strategy John Taschek and Cisco GM of Customer Care John Hernandez.Use this link to see a list of the complete vendor panel.

The Journalist Panel

The journalist panel includes CEO of Social Media Today Robin Carey, Sift Media Group Editor Neil Davey, and Small Business Trends Publisher Anita Campbell.Use this link to see a list of the complete journalist panel.

Media Partners

The current partners and links to their sites:

1. Call Center News (Argentina)
2. CRM Magazine/DestinationCRM
3. CustomerTalk (Netherlands)
4. Mundocontact (Mexico)
5. MyCustomer.com/Sift Media
6. SearchCRM
7. SmallBizTrends.com
8. Social Media Today

Dates, Hashtag and Email

1. The hashtag is#crmidol
2. The email for submission isnextbigthing@crmidol.com

If you have a problem submitting to that email send your submission and a report of the specific problem to Paul Greenberg atpgreenbe@gmail.com.

Good Luck!!!

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Will the Early Stage Innovation Program Make a Difference?

TheSmall Business Administration (SBA) recently announcedthe start of the Early Stage Innovation Fund, a program that will provide $200 million per year in equity funding“over the next five years,”to“early-stage companies {that} face difficult challenges accessing capital, particularly those without the necessary assets or cash flow for traditional bank funding.”

Ray Leach of Jump Start America arguedthat the new fund will dramatically increase the amount of capital available to the founders of high potential companies. I disagree. The program’s expected impact, when measured in terms of incremental increase in available capital, companies funded, or jobs created will be very small.

Leach says that the new program will provide“incremental funding that… is… almost 10% of the total capital invested by risk investors in 2010…. {and} 28% of all the seed and early-stage capital invested last year.”I believe that these numbers overestimate the likely impact of the program for three reasons.

First, the SBA Early Stage Innovation Fund calls for a 1:1 match of government and private sector funds. But it is unlikely to achieve such a match. Private sector investors often apply for matching funds by pledging money they would have invested in the absence of the match. As a result, matching programs often increase available capital only by the amount of the incremental government funding and not by the amount of incremental funding plus the private sector match.(If you think that Leach is right and I am wrong about how private sector investors will behave, then you should double the numbers I show below to estimate the impact of the program.)

Second, Leach compares the $1 billion Early Stage Innovation Fund to annual equity investments in high potential ventures. However, the SBA is committing $1 billion over a five year period. Therefore, we need to compare the $1 billion fund to the amount of capital provided by investors over a similar time period to estimate the amount of incremental money the new program provides.

Third, Leach doesn’t consider angel investors when he estimates the size of the market for financing high potential ventures. But angels invest a similar amount of money in high potential companies as venture capitalists, and account for the lion’s share of seed and start-up stage funding.

If we include the money invested by business angels and compare the new funding to the size of the equity capital market over the same time period, we see that the amount of additional equity capital provided by the SBA program is very small. According to the University of New Hampshire’sCenter for Venture Research(CVR) and theNational Science Foundation(NSF), angel investors put $105.4 billion into young companies from 2006-2010. TheNational Venture Capital Association (NVCA) reportsthat venture capitalists invested $124.1 billion in young companies over the same time frame. Therefore, the SBA program increases the size of the high potential venture equity capital market by 0.4 percent.

The NVCA estimates that $6.7 billion of venture capital went to seed and start-up stage ventures over the last five years and the CVR calculates that $40.3 billion of angel money was invested in businesses at these stages. Thus, even if all of the money from the new SBA program goes to seed and start-up stage ventures, the size of the early stage equity capital market for high potential ventures would increase by 2.1 percent.

The Early Stage Investment Program will provide financing to a very small number of businesses. The average venture capital deal was $6.7 million last year and the average seed or start-up stage venture capital deal in 2009 (the latest year for which data are available) was $5.2 million, according to NVCA figures. At that investment size, the new SBA program would add 30 venture capital deals or 39 seed or start-up stage venture capital deals per year across the entire country. And that’s if we assume that the new funds don’t increase the size of the average deal. The numbers are a little better if we look at angel deals. Given the average angel deal size of $337,000 reported by the CVR and the NSF, we would get an additional 593 new angel deals per year from the new program.

To give you a sense of the size of the increase we are talking about, the United States has 366 metropolitan statistical areas (MSA)– places like Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Arizona, and Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida. If all the SBA money went into angel deals, then the new SBA program would add funding for a little more than three angel-backed companies every two years in the average metropolitan area.

The direct job creation effects here will also be very small. Analysis by the NSF and the CVR indicates that every additional $130,000 invested by business angels leads to one more job at an angel-backed company. That means that the new SBA program should create 1,538 jobs per year– or about 4.2 jobs per year in the average MSA. Keep in mind that this is the number of new jobs that would be generated in an economy that the Census Bureau estimated created more than 14 million new jobs between March 2008 and March 2009, when the economy was in a deep recession.

While I’m glad that people are talking about the new SBA programs, I think the discussion needs to be more critical. Rather than just cheerleading administration efforts, we should carefully examine the expected impact of the programs being introduced.

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More Events and Conferences for Small Businesses

Welcome to our biweekly roundup of small business events, conferences and webinars, brought to you as a community service bySmall Business TrendsandSmallbiztechnology.com.

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Small Business Works: Tools for Small Business– 2011 and Beyond
April 28, 2011, Pittsburgh, PA

Starting a small business or growing your small business? Looking for all the right resources?
Attend the Small Business Works event in Pittsburgh and hear guest speakers, find out about financial options and consult with exhibitors who can help your business be successful! Event partners: Allegheny County, The City of Pittsburgh, Small Business Administration, Small Business Development Center from Duquesne and Building Bridges for Business.

Small Business Roundtable: Strategies to Achieve Success
April 28, 2011, Online

Focus.com roundtable teleconference onApril 28th, 2011 at 11am PT/ 2pm ETwith Mirna Bard, Anita Campbell, John Carroll, Jill Konrath, John Spence and moderator John Carrol, discussing key business trends and strategies to help you improve business performance and achieve success in any economy. Topics include:

1) Business outlook and key challenges ahead for business leaders

2) Sales& Social Media  trends every business should pay attention to

3) How to improve your company’s business results in any economy

FundingPost Angel and Early Stage Venture Event
April 28, 2011, Las Vegas

Interested in meeting early-stage Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Las Vegas? If so, then register for the FundingPost event on April 28th! FundingPost has hosted 175+ sold-out venture events in 20 cities over the past 9 years. At this next event, the panel of investors will focus on Early-Stage Venture Investing: How to meet investors, pitch them, and what it really takes to get them to write you a check!

Thrive& Kick It Into Overdrive: Business Solutions That Work Conference
April 29, 2011, Cerritos, CA

THRIVE offers 18 unique educational breakout sessions, keynote speaker, networking, and a resource marketplace… a truly distinctive learning environment that can take your existing business to the next level.

Empowering Women in Agriculture and Small Business
April 29, 2011, Nashville, TN

This conference seeks to educate and empower women, enabling them to return to their businesses, communities and families with new confidence, ideas and techniques to help them better manage finances, communication, marketing, time and stress. The event will also focus on current issues facing agriculture and how to get more involved at the local, state and federal levels to encourage positive outcomes for the industry.

Extreme Business Makeovers
April 29-May 1, 2011, Orlando, FL

This dynamic and transformational“Connectinar” features top-caliber small business thought leaders as well as like-minded,“intentional entrepreneurs” for you to network and form strategic relationships with.

Speakers include such powerhouses as Joel Comm, Frank McKinney and Scott Ginsberg who will teach you how to…
1) Uncover your hidden assets
2) Overcome your challenges
3) Create your action plan to bring you to the next level

GE OMD Summer 2011 Incubator Program
Apply by May 1, 2011, New York City

General Electric and Omnicom’s OMD have partnered to create a 10-week incubator program bringing together the brightest student entrepreneurs to work in New York City for the Summer of 2011. Dubbed the GE-OMD Incubator, the  Incubator provides a space where accepted applicants will share ideas and experience with each other, learn from industry mentors and build relationships with the venture capital community. In addition participants will receive an accelerated education on launching their start-up and refine their personal initiatives with some the most influential decision makers in the marketing/media industry.

Selected entrepreneurs or teams of entrepreneurs will receive complimentary work space, access to GE and OMD executives and compensation throughout the Summer.

Log into Blue Hen Jobs atwww.udel.edu/CSC/and see the complete program description listed under OMD (company name) and application materials.

Women Entrepreneurs Rock the World
May 4-5, 2011, New York City

Savor the Success (business network for women entrepreneurs) is hosting the Women Entrepreneurs Rock the World conference in NYC.  This year, attendees will be creating their blueprints in branding, marketing, social media and sales. This is a time to sit down, get inspirational and practical advice from experts, and get an actionable plan in place.

There is an exclusive 10% discount for Smallbiztechnology readers using codeSMALLBIZ.

Morgan Entrepreneurship Series at the Hudson Library
Multiple dates, Hudson, OH

Entrepreneur Success Stories
Wednesday, May 4, 2011, at 7:00 p.m.
Entrepreneur success stories will feature a panel of successful Northeast Ohio entrepreneurs who are living the dream of running their own businesses.

BlogWell: How Big Brands Use Social Media
May 4, 2011– Washington, DC

This event is all about how big brands use social media. No agencies, no startups— just big companies sharing what they’ve learned and providing practical, how-to advice on creating great content, earning management buy-in, training employees, engaging fans and keeping everything ethical and legal.

Small Business High Speed Growth
May 9, 2011

Are you ready to position your business for rapid growth? Join the Small Business High Speed Growth sessions to get face-to-face with leading mentors in marketing, finance and business development.

Becoming the Obvious Choice for Your Customer Regardless of Price
May 9, 2011, Online

Focus.com Roundtable teleconference at 11am PT/2pm ET with Niall Devitt, Craig Elias, Melinda Emerson, Susan Payton, Ramon Ray, Deborah Shane, and Ivana Taylor discussing today’s most successful strategies and tactics that will help you find your ideal customer and get them choose you, every time, regardless of price. Topics include:

- How to find and identify your best customer
- Best practices for building solid customer relationships
- Strategies and technical tools you can use to analyze your sales and marketing
- How consumers’ buying habits have changed
- The mindset of a successful entrepreneur
- How to use communications (blogs, articles, etc) to find customers

Online Marketing& Social Media Crash Course
Multiple Cities& Dates

Discover how you can harness the power of the Internet to get your business found online (in an affordable way), engage new customers with your brand and keep old ones coming back. Deluxe for Business and Sprint are proudly sponsoring thesefreesmall business events across six cities in 2011, with the help of host Entrepreneur EXPO and keynote speaker Starr Hall.

May 11– Chicago
June 15– Atlanta
July 14– New York City
August 16– Los Angeles
September 13– Miami

12th Annual U.S. Department of Energy Small Business Conference& Expo
May 10-12, 2011, Kansas City, MO

This event will feature plenaries, educational workshops, an Exhibit Hall with over 200 exhibitors/sponsors, as well as business matchmaking sessions. Over 1,600 attendees will represent all levels of federal, state and local government agencies, the small business community, large/prime contractors, minority educational institutions and many more.

The largest civilian contracting agency within the federal government, DOE spent over $25 billion in contracts in FY 2010.

The Receivables Exchange Cash Flow Forum
May 11, 2011, Los Angeles
May 12, 2011, San Francisco

For one day only, a panel of experts and business owners will discuss strategies for managing working capital in the changing economy, and share tips you can use to accelerate your business growth.

The new credit reality requires new strategies for growing businesses. At this one-time event, hear from experts and business owners who have survived– and thrived – in a tight credit market, and learn how they did it.

unGeeked Elite
May 12 -14, 2011, Chicago

unGeeked Elite will cover social media, marketing and branding.  This three-day Retreat’s unique format:

* No keynote speakers: unGeeked levels the playing field by presenting you with an influential list of international, national and regionally recognized consultants and authors.
* No Presenters: unGeeked is where you participate in open discussions with“discussion leaders” regarding leveraging your corporate and personal brand.
* Fewer Powerpoints or Prezi’s: Really? Don’t like them. However, if the speaker needs to use one of these tools, they are limited to only five slides.
* More speaker and attendee interaction.

Limited to 125 participants. Note: Anita Campbell, CEO ofSmall Business Trends,will be speaking at this event.

BizTech {Mobile Apps}
May 12, 2011, San Francisco

Discover the coolest and latest mobile apps. Connect with everyone who cares about the mobile industry and learn what’s going on in the mobile technology world today.

Additional upcoming event:
BizTech {Event Technology}- July 12, 2011

Looking Up in a Down Economy– Secrets of the Inc. 5000
May 12, 2011, Boston

Join Inc. magazine and Salem Five for an inspirational evening of thought-provoking discussion with Inc. 5000 CEOs from the Boston area and Jim Schleckser, CEO of the Inc. CEO Project. Network with fellow entrepreneurs and business owners, hear how these extraordinary entrepreneurs grew their businesses in the teeth of the economic downturn, and gain inspiration for growing your own company.

Panelists:
Rich Doyle, Co-Founder& CEO, Harpoon Brewery
Joe Albanese, President& CEO, Commodore Builders
Lewis Schiff, Executive Director, Inc. Business Owners Council

Moderator:
Jim Schleckser, CEO, Inc. CEO Project

Birmingham Business Alliance Small Business Summit and Expo
May 17, 2011, Birmingham, AL

The event will kick off with a breakfast and keynote speech from Kevin Schmeigel, vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, followed by the announcement of three Recognition Award winners. Then attendees will enjoy morning breakout sessions, a roundtable boxed lunch and afternoon breakout sessions. The day’s events will wrap up with a “Wine’d Down” reception.

Mahoning Valley Small Business Conference& Expo 2011
May 18, 2011, Youngstown, OH

Created for both the novice and the experienced small business owner, the Mahoning Valley Small Business Conference& Expo 2011 will cover the latest trends in small business assistance and minority and women business owners. Any small business owner and entrepreneur, whether just starting to write his or her business plan or very experienced, would benefit from the instructional workshops. Certified small business, MBE, DBE and EDGE businesses will have the opportunity to meet buyers from companies committed to increasing their supplier diversity.

Prepping to Pitch
May 18, June 22, June 30, 2011, New York City

NYC Business Solutions Lower Manhattan Center is proud to announce an upcoming workshop series titled“Prepping to Pitch.” This free series is designed to help business owners prepare to obtain equity financing and will feature workshops teaching entrepreneurs how to pitch investors, understand and negotiate private equity agreements, and find potential investors.

Session 1: Advice for Pitching Investors- Taught by Yao Huang of The Hatchery
Session 2: Understanding Angel Funding- Taught by David Lifson of Postling
Session 3: Negotiating Private Equity Agreements- Taught by Shahmoon& Ellisen LLP

Expect the Unexpected: The Importance of Being Nimble
May 18, 2011, Los Angeles

Disasters can strike at any moment. In business today, it goes unsaid that you should be prepared for anything so that your company can outlast the unexpected. Join Inc. and CDW for an interactive, invitation-only gathering where you’ll hear from Inc. Editor-at-Large, Bo Burlingham and a panel of leaders from some of the fastest growing companies in America. They’ll share their experiences on rebounding after a disaster: what worked, what they wish they’d done differently, and how technology helped.

Empowered Woman Success Summit
May 19-20, 2011, Miami, FL

The Empowered Woman Success Summit“is not your typical‘women’s’ conference… no rah-rah useless mumbo jumbo. This is about getting practical tools and strategies for building your brand, raising your profile and generating profitable opportunities for the long haul,” says founder Michelle Villalobos. This year’s theme is“Elevate Yourself,” designed to help all professional, ambitious women (entrepreneurs, freelancers, corporate execs, solopreneurs, career-switchers& more) elevate themselves beyond where they are today. The last summit drew over 700 smart, savvy women.

Small Business TrendsCEO Anita Campbell will be speaking, on audience-attracting secrets.

How I Built It

Monday, May 23– Washington, DC/America’s Small Business Summit
Thursday, June 9– Austin, TX
Thursday, September 15– Chicago
Wednesday October 5– New York City/World Business Forum

JoinWall Street JournalSmall Business Editor Colleen DeBaise as she moderates an esteemed panel of top entrepreneurs for dynamic discussions in your area. Gain firsthand wisdom from these entrepreneurial gurus as they delve into their journeys of launching successful businesses.

America’s Small Business Summit 2011
May 23-25, 2011, Washington, DC

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s annual event — America’s Small Business Summit — unites small business owners, managers and entrepreneurs from across the country to learn, network and discuss common legislative and management concerns. Help influence our nation’s economic and political agenda by advocating for pro-business policies through the Rally on the Hill portion of the program. Register before April 1st for early bird pricing.

Keeping the Promise– California Disabled Veterans Alliance Business Matchmaking
May 23-24, 2011, Los Angeles

The 19th Annual“Keeping the Promise” (KTP2011) Conference, Exposition and Matchmaking Event provides a unique opportunity to meet with disabled and veteran entrepreneurs, May 23-24, 2011 at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott in Los Angeles, CA. Business Matchmaking will be held on Tuesday, May 24, 2011.

BlogWorld Expo
May 24-26, 2011, New York City

BlogWorld is the world’s largest blogging and social media conference, and it’s known worldwide for presenting internet luminaries and entrepreneurs, the most popular and knowledgeable bloggers, podcasters and social media marketing thought leaders. This year’s event will feature great educational content, so new media content creators and businesses of all kinds will learn the best tips, technologies and methods for growing their brands, audiences and businesses online.

In addition to learning new ways to hone your content skills and promote your content and brand.  Get 20% off registration with discount codeSBTVIP20.

Faster, Better, Smarter: How Great Small Businesses are Using Technology to Drive Growth
May 24, 2011, Atlanta

At this roundtable discussion, a panel of leaders from some of the fastest growing companies in ATL will discuss how they’ve embraced the latest technologies to get closer to their customers, make the most of their time and scarce resources, differentiate themselves from the competition, and develop innovative strategies that set the stage for growth.

The Art of Angel Investing: What Investors Look for, and Look Out for, When Investing in Startups
May 24, 2011, New York City

This event is a must-attend for anyone interested in learning more about pitching business ideas, venture capital/angel investing and starting their own business. And for those who are Fordham students or alumni, come cheer on your peers in the final round of the Fordham Business Plan Competition!

New England XPO for Business
May 25, 2011, Boston

Connect, collaborate and communicate with over 10,000 business owners and professionals from across New England at the 3rd Annual New England XPO for Business. This event is the largest and most profitable B2B networking conference in the Northeast, featuring 36+ educational seminars and over 300 exhibits packed with hundreds of business products and services.

The Art of Angel Investing: What Investors Look For, and Look Out for, When Investing in Startups
May 26, 2011, New York City

Featuring:
Top NYC Angel Investors Are Pitched By Several Startups& Award up to $40,000* in Prizes including $10,000 cash prizes and $30,000 of in-kind services. This event is a must attend for anyone interested in learning more about pitching business ideas, venture capital/angel investing, and starting their own business.

Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Centers Procurement Conference
June 2, 2011, Warrensburg, MO

More than 1,200 government agencies and prime contractors have been invited to discuss their contracting opportunities with interested businesses.

The conference is sponsored by Missouri’s senior Sen. McCaskill, Missouri PTAC, the Missouri Small Business and Technology Development Centers, and the Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies and Development at the University of Central Missouri.

12th Annual Enterprise Council on Small Business Summit
June 6-8, 2011, New Orleans

This year’s ECSB Summit will examine the“silent majority” of satisfied small business customers whose positive experiences don’t translate into vocal endorsements. By identifying these potential advocates, studying what motivates them to communicate to others, and mapping the networks where referrals occur, participants will uncover the best practices needed to drive active advocacy among small business customers.

Internet Retailer Conference& Exhibition
June 14-17, San Diego

This year’s event theme is“E-Commerce Shifts Into Overdrive—the Race Is On,” and the event is specifically designed to give e-retailers practical information they need to compete in today’s faster-paced e-commerce market. The speaker roster for the 2011 Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition represents the largest group of expert speakers ever assembled in online retailing, including: Christopher Payne, VP& GM, North American Marketplaces, eBay; Arianna Huffington; Sona Chawla, President, E-Commerce, Walgreen Co. and more.

Inc. Leadership Conference
June 15-17, 2011, Dallas

The event begins June 15 with a pre-conference reception. The next morning opens on the main stage with a presentation revealing the tangible tools for creating competitive cultures. The day culminates with an awards dinner recognizing this year’s Winning Workplaces honorees— leaders recognized for having created exceptional companies. The final day of the conference will offer additional main stage presentations and more intimate sessions with opportunities for greater networking and education.

140 Characters Conference
June 15-16, 2011, New York City

This event is expected to be the largest worldwide gathering of people interested in the effects of the real-time Internet on both business and“we” the people. It seems like everyone is talking about Facebook and Twitter, but so what? Why do they really matter?

#140conf exposes you to the power the Internet has to disrupt businesses, change lives and create serendipity. You will leave with a fresh outlook on how the real-time Web can be used in your business or personal life to actually do something meaningful.

Vertical Response 2011 Take Action User Seminar Series
Multiple Cities& Dates

June 23, 2011– Chicago
September 30, 2011– Denver

The Vertical Response 2011 Take Action User Seminar is designed to educate you about email marketing in the age of social media. Complement your attendance with a one-on-one email consultation and get the chance to take what you learn and immediately put it into action. Join Smallbiztechnology’s Ramon Ray in New York City and get $10 off early bird registration at thislink.

2011 Creative Freelancer Conference
June 23-24, 2011, Chicago

The Creative Freelancer Conference, presented byHOWmagazine and Marketing Mentor, is the only business conference for creative solopreneurs, from designers and writers to illustrators and photographers. Whether you’re a veteran or just starting out, you’ll get the specific tools you need to launch, build and grow a successful freelance business. You’ll also get plenty of time to connect with, learn from and share solutions with your fellow freelancers.
Register by the early bird deadline of April 1 and save $30.

Veteran Entrepreneur Training Symposium
June 27-30, Reno, NV

Do you run a veteran-owned or service-disabled veteran-owned small business (VOSB/SDVOSB) and want to work with the government? Or do you want to team with a veteran-owned company but aren’t sure how? The National Veterans Small Business Coalition has created the Veteran Entrepreneur Training Symposium (VETS) to help you accomplish your small business goals.

Unlike other small business conferences, VETS connects thriving veteran business owners with emerging veteran entrepreneurs to expose the knowledge needed to acquire government contracts and teaming opportunities. While attending, also expect to network with government agencies, large companies, and potential clients and customers.

FAA Small Business Opportunities Training Conference and Trade Show
June 28-July 1, 2011, Oklahoma City, OK

The FAA will host its Annual National Small Business Procurement Opportunities Training Conference and Trade Show on June 28– July 1, 2010. The conference provides a forum for small businesses (including service-disabled and veteran-owned small businesses and 8{a} certified firms) to participate in technical and procurement opportunities workshops. Sessions will link small businesses with program managers, address business issues and concerns, and provide information that will benefit small businesses seeking to do business with the agency.

National Veteran Small Business Conference
August 15-18, 2011, New Orleans

The Department of Veterans Affairs is hosting this event. The largest nationwide conference of its kind, the National Veteran Small Business Conference provides veteran-owned and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (VOSBs and SDVOSBs) an opportunity to learn, network and market their businesses.

4,000 leaders from various VOSBs, SDVOSBs, large contractors and federal agencies as well as veterans from the New Orleans area are expected to participate.

NAWBO Women’s Business Conference 2011
August 31– September 1, 2011, San Diego

The NAWBO Women’s Business Conference is the only event of its kind focused on connecting women entrepreneurs to real business opportunities that deliver bottom-line results. The conference brings together businesses of all sizes from various industries to provide women entrepreneurs with both personal and professional tools and resources to take their businesses to the next level of success.

Affiliate Summit East 2011
August 21-23, 2011, New York City

Affiliate Summit East 2011, the premier affiliate marketing conference, is taking place August 21-23, 2011, in New York City. This three-day conference includes an exhibit hall with affiliate merchants, vendors and networks, and multiple tracks of educational sessions covering the latest trends and information from affiliate marketing experts.

25th Anniversary Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference, Women’s Business& Buyers Mart
September 14, 2011, Chicago

The oldest conference and business opportunities fair for women in business in the country, this is the premier event for women business owners in the Midwest.

This year’s conference offers women business owners solutions to the current problems they are facing and the opportunity to increase the profitability of their businesses by building relationships with corporate and government buyers, business experts and other women business owners.

The New York Enterprise Report Small Business Awards
September 21, 2011, New York City

The New York Enterprise Report Small Business Awards is the annual awards program honoring the achievements and accomplishments of the 500,000+ small businesses throughout the tri-state area. In its sixth year, the Awards Gala–which sold out in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010–attracts more than 400 business owners and executives and is often referred to as“the networking event of the year.” Don’t miss the chance to do business with the “who’s who” of the New York small business community.

Inc. 500/5000 Conference& Awards Ceremony
September 22-24, 2011, National Harbor, MD

The Inc. 500 | 5000 Conference and Awards Ceremony celebrates the revered Inc. ranking of the fastest-growing privately held companies in America. The momentous event brings together current Inc. 5000 honorees and alumni of the list, along with the greater business community, to recognize the remarkable achievements of these companies and the great contributions they have made to the global economy.

The Summit for Women in Business
October 6-9, 2011, Pigeon Forge, TN

The Summit For Women in Business is providing and showing you how to implement the needed strategies and tools to remain competitive and current within today’s evolving business climate. Created by women business owners for women business owners, this Summit is designed for SOHO (Small Office/Home Office) entrepreneurs, independent and self-employed professionals.

Western Mass Business Expo
October 18, 2011, Springfield, MA

As the region’s business publication,The Business Journal of Western Massachusettsbelieves the businesses and communities that comprise Western Massachusetts should be represented at a region-wide trade show to better promote buying and doing business locally. The day begins with breakfast at 7:30 followed by the Expo’s official opening at 9 a.m. and will feature seminars, speakers, lunch and a high-energy, end-of-day networking event featuring music, food and drink.

To find more small business events, contests and awards, visit ourSmall Business Events Calendar.

If you are putting on a small business contest, award or competition, and want to get the word out to the community, please submit it through ourEvents& Contests Submission Form.(We do not charge a fee to be included in this listing— it is completely free to list your event.) Only events of interest to small business people, freelancers and entrepreneurs will be considered and included.

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