Posts Tagged ‘social networking’
Once in a while, great things happen. In fact, great things happen every day. We move our business forward every day. We find out things that help us in our business every day.
It’s the time of year for workshops, events, seminars. So far, my October and November calendars are full with events and traditionally, this is quite common for entrepreneurs and business owners.
A little gem that I am heavily involved with is the Cork Women in Business Group, headed my Margaret Smith and Tori Hawthorne. What a great pair, and I have written about Margaret and her appearance on nationwide recently.
This support group provides a space for women in business to find out what they need to know to help them in their business and our monthly speaking events cover finance, law, networking, sales and other relevant areas.
We, the Irish race, are great for the “ole banter”. We could talk for Ireland and we do talk for Ireland. Most conversations begin with a discussion about the weather. Only in Ireland could you hear “sunny spells, chance of showers, developing into thunderstorms, to clear later with a sharp frost” in one sentence. Unless of course you are in Inuvik perhaps. Here is a very funny one I was presented with by our national weather forecast the other day:
As an Irish born and bred national, I have lived and travelled in many different countries. The experience helps me learn about other cultures and countries, but one thing I realised over the years is that people are the same wherever you go – they are good or they are bad. As a race, we interact at an intellectual level, and tend to seek out similar people as ourselves.
The trick really is to look beyond your comfort zone. Look beyond your immediate personal network. Look beyond your social “class” whether that be financially or socially. Look beyond your own capabilities and seek mentors who do things that you think are great.
Build your network. Build your online network through social media, social networking and Read the rest of this entry »
What a week it’s been!!
You know that time, when you know something is coming up, yet you are not quite prepared for it? Well, I am sure we all feel like that when we know we will be exposed to the public at large. I really feel the hardest part is actually watching yourself.
It’s been a great week for Cork on the telly this week. I have the absolute pleasure of being closely involved with a fantastic group of business women in Cork, who meet to support each other and help out with business issues. We spend more time discussing social media, accounts, sales and services than passing business cards and delivering elevator pitches.
The real benefit for the business owners, is the support and information received at the meetings themselves, but more so with the buddy-up system. This allows two randomly picked members to meet 1-1 in between the monthly meetings, and really learn more about their actual businesses. This is the core of the referral and networking that is done secondary to the support and encouragement we can provide for each other.
Like the Bulmers advert on TV lately, when we have a problem what do we do? We fix it ourselves! And that is what Cork Women in Business Advice and Support is all about.
It began in Margaret Smith’s front room, and now we are moving to hotel premises and have regular great speakers every month, a fantastic website, facebook page, twitter account, a dedicated committee and up to Aug 2011, 35 paid up members. I am confident membership will increase rapidly as a consequence of the Nationwide Show this Wednesday.
Of course, no better time than to share air space with the wonderful charismatic James Whelton who has just completed his Leaving Certificate, is planning his graduation alongside running his successful business and FREE coding workshops for young people around the country.
Well done all, a great week for Cork, and a great boost for business owners, technology and innovation, all by the river Lee.
The programme is only live on the RTE Player until mid Sept, so make sure you watch it in time 
[Apologies for the adverts before the actual show]. There is a YouTube version of just Margaret’s story – click the PIC below to watch it.
Click the picture to see the show
Well done Margaret, you are now a star, an inspiration to many women in Ireland this week!!!
P.S. The neck piece I am wearing in the show is from the beautiful Kuta collection from Dink Design
This month we are running with a great series of TOP 10 tips for your business survival for the traditional break, and on into the New Year.
TIP NO 5:
S ~ SOCIAL MEDIA
Get talking, get into the conversation. Why is Social Media so important for your business? Simply because:
- It is another way to communicate your message
- It is another medium to use to connect with your customers
- It is another medium to use to connect with future customers
- It is evolving into a sophisticated online communications protocol
If you do not get involved now, you will struggle to understand the next phase of the Web – the Semantic Web.
That’s not to say that every business type will benefit from Social Media, but not only is it an excellent tool for B2C (Business to Customer) but also growing in popularity for B2B (Business to Business).
What is Social Media? Read the rest of this entry »
