Working From The Basement

We all know the story of the cobblers kids walking around shoeless.  Well, I have been feeling that way for awhile now.  While Diana has had the B-Law LLC Fan Page up, I’ve been negligent and hadn’t done one for either WFTB or 2ndot, so last week I took the plunge.  The experience so far has been interesting in that, while I am used to getting followers on Twitter, a Fan Page can be a one-way street.  Twitter encourages conversation, while Fan Pages are more passive and the only way to talk to people you don’t know is to become their friend – unless they participate, which kind of defeats the purpose.  You can start a discussion, but there is no guarantee that anyone will participate and sending a Facebook email seems too invasive.

So what use are they, you may ask? Well, it does provide you with a fairly low-maintenance way to interact with potential clients and build a referral network without much work.  I have always found it annoying when people update their personal Facebook status from TweetDeck or some other Twitter-related tool because most of the time it is Twitter speak (lots of @ symbols and short talk).  Facebook now provides a link to go the other way, which seems more effective as long as your first 120 characters gets your point across.  (The other 24 characters get turned into a shortened link pointing back to the Facebook post). It is also easier to update than a Blog, which actually takes time to think about, write, add links, and check your spelling and grammar etc., while adding an external link, photo or status update in Facebook with a comment is a fairly quick and easy process.

So the next question is what do you put up there? Do you just rehash the same thing that you put on Twitter?  My answer is no.  Since I started with the 2ndot Fan Page, let me explain a little bit about what I did with it.  Since @2ndot is my primary work-related and personal online personality, I wanted the page to reflect that persona.  So I decided to provide links to information that an everyday computer user would find interesting or useful.  My business normally doesn’t provide home computer support, just business-related services. But I have a wealth of information that can help home users, so a Facebook Fan Page provides a perfect platform for this.  A bonus here is that I don’t need yet another website to maintain, and it’s a totally opt-in relationship.  Also being able to use the discussion feature allows people to ask home computer related questions.  Facebook is also a great product to use for event scheduling, with attendance tracking and just notifying people in general, so having a Fan Page opens up another communications avenue.

While my personal profile on Facebook is very active, I don’t like spammy Fan Pages, so I have decided to limit my posts to only one or two a day maximum.  I think this may even be too much and I will adjust it if I get complaints.  As for the WFTB Fan Page, well, for now I will probably use it to promote the site much in the same way I do in Twitter.  Since WFTB is a blogging website I think you would use it to direct traffic to the blog, but only time will tell.  I am really interested in any feedback about my techniques used here and how other micro-businesses use their Fan Pages, so feel free to comment.

Again thanks for visiting WFTB…

WFTB – Michael Lawson

While attending the TweetCrawl in Glastonbury last month Suzi Craig and Lisa Davenport announced that they would be throwing a party to raise money for Operation Home for the Holidays (OHFH).  Which at the time seemed like it was going to be just another CT TweetCrawl event; well it didn’t turn out that way.  Along the way this was planned to be a Rave Party, Dinner Event and ended up being something even more spectacular. Now I really don’t think Suzi or Lisa actually sleep, because to pull this off with all the changes in less than a month is simply amazing.

The goal was eventually set to raise $25,000 which even in a good economy with only a month’s time frame is a tough task.  This was to be done originally through traditional large business sponsorships of the event, well that didn’t happen.  Money is really tight and trying to get even smaller donations from larger clients is harder than ever. So what happened instead, the little guys pitched in, and I think we did really well (and by “we” I mean everyone who donated or helped)!  Not only did the event go from being a traditional fund raising dinner (albeit in a warehouse), but it became kid friendly, fun and spawned these other events listed in this article here.  I also got up on stage and raised money by singing bad karaoke.

A lot of small businesses, micro-businesses and individuals donated and continue to donate without having to go through corporate hoops. (Hint: check out the sidebar on the right of this blog to donate until December 4^th, 2009.)  Dealing with the smaller donors is harder, but with the Internet and an existing Social Networking presence it is a lot easier than it used to be.  Suzi and Lisa where able to rally the troops (literally, just check out the pictures in the resources at the end of this post), and raised over $12,000 which is a pretty good amount with still over 2 weeks left to go.  It wasn’t even the money that was the most amazing thing, but the donations of time, food, auction items and raffle prizes that rolled in.  (yes I won the first raffle with no superglue this time, but I still got yelled at…) I was by no way an insider into this, and other than going to TweetCrawls, participating online and raising money I can only imagine the amount of work done to pull this off.

So to everyone who participated, I think congratulations are in order for a great fund raising effort, especially Suzi Craig, Lisa Davenport, Enza Dandeneau and The Marlborough Business Association who planned the whole thing.  The food was also excellent and was provided by Agave Grill which was one of the first TweetCrawl hosts.  The MCs where Ann Nyberg and Damon Scott who did a great job keeping the event moving along throughout the day, and announcing the winners for the auctions and raffle prizes.

To everyone wondering how my efforts paid off I was very close to my goal of $250 most of which was handed in at the Karaoke event. My personal thanks to everyone who showed up to watch me make a fool of myself and to anyone else who donated.  One thing I learned from this is just because your business is small doesn’t mean you can’t contribute to a larger cause and do great things, Micros Rock!  On that note I’ll leave you with a serenade…

Resources:

Suzi Craig’s The Deep End Article here:
Stephan Krauchick’s Video here:
CT TweetCrawl Page here:
Brent Robertson’s Photos here:
Seshu’s Photos here:
NEW: Order T-Shirts online here:

The photo used in this article courtesy of  Brent Robertson, his other photos of the event can be found on Facebook by using the resource link.

As I mentioned above we are still trying to raise money so please click on the ChipIn widget on the right sidebar to donate or buy a Limited Edition T-shirt for $15 (Leave a comment on this article if you want one). Also you can order prints ($10 each, 5×7) from Seshu, and 20% of the proceeds will go to Operation Home for the Holidays.

WFTB – Michael Lawson

I just wanted to mention a few good events coming up over the next few weeks that might be of interest. This Friday Oct 30, 2009 Diana will be at the Middlesex Expo in Cromwell Ct from 9:00a– 8:00p at her B-Law booth, I’m sure she would be happy if you all stopped by.  Our friend Charlie Schein will also be helping Diana man her booth.

Friday October 30^th 2009
Middlesex Expo 2009
Crowne Plaza Hotel
Cromwell, CT
9:00am – 8:00pm

The ambitious event schedule for TweetCrawl continues with fund raising efforts this time focusing on Operation Home for the Holidays.  If you haven’t been to one of these yet it would be a good time to meet new people and help a great cause.  Diana and I will be at the one on November 11^th in Middletown, we are not sure about which of the others yet.  It’s Karaoke night so stop by and see if you can get Diana on the stage to sing.

Thursday October 29^th 2009
Hot Rod’s TweetCrawl
114 Bank Street
New London, CT
5:30pm – 8:30pm

Thursday November 5^th 2009
TweetCrawl at Wadsworth Atheneum
600 Main Street
Hartford, CT
5:00pm – 8:00pm

Wednesday November 11^th 2009
Karoake TweetCrawl at Public’s in Middletown
337 Main Street
Middletown, CT
6:00pm – 9:00pm

Friday November 13^th 2009
Open Studio
555 Asylum Street
Hartford, CT
6:00pm – 8:00pm

THE FOLLOWING EVENT HAS CHANGED
Saturday November 14^th 2009
Operation Home for the Holidays TweetCrawl
The Warehouse of Lisa Davenport’s Home Gallery
9 Austin Drive
Marlborough, CT
1:00pm – 5:00pm
This Event is now “Open House to Bring Them Home” party
Kid Friendly and lots of Raffles and Prizes, please RSVP on Facebook.

7:00pm – 10:00pm
$40 per person to benefit Operation Home for the Holidays.
Order your tickets here or RSVP on Facebook and pay at the door.

Another Event that I would recommend is the “Starting and Staying in Business – What it takes to survive in today’s crazy world“  seminar hosted by Rothstein & Co.  Alan is a great speaker and is very engaging, this should be a really good presentation. A donation of $10 to FOODSHARE would be appreciated, please rsvp to cpa@rothsteinco.com and let them know you read about it on WFTB. The agenda and contact information is listed below:

Job Stability is Being Self Employed
Alan Rothstein, CPA/PFS
Alan works extensively with small business owners and entrepreneurs

What can go wrong in business, and how to prevent it
Susan Busby, Attorney

New Rules on Marketing and Communications
Using Social Networking to grow your business
Darlene Susco, President Susco Visual, Inc.

November 11, 2009
Farmington Marriott
15 Farms Springs Road
Farmington, CT
7:00pm – 9:00pm
$10 per person requested donation to FOODSHARE

I want to thank all the people that got back to us about  Diana’s Thankful Friday post, it was one of our biggest days here at WFTB. It was very encouraging to hear that we are helping motivate others in their daily lives.

WFTB – Michael Lawson

Me and Lisa Davenport holding the rug I won

I went, I saw and well I didn’t Crawl, but I did gingerly step around things.  This week’s TweetCrawl was held at Lisa Davenport’s Home Gallery in Glastonbury.  The Home gallery was the first TweetCrawl I’ve been to that was not in a restaurant and I must say it was fun.  My only problem was that I was afraid to put my drink down on any of the nice furniture.  Another thing that was really interesting was that I stood all night while the people new to the TweetCrawl just sat down in the comfy chairs, how’s that for conditioning.

This was the first time Diana and I went out to specifically promote this blog, and based on the results the day after I found that the TweetCrawl is a great place to get traffic to your site.  I also won the door prize again and I am beginning to wonder if my business cards are embedded with superglue.

This TweetCrawl had over 60 people registered for it, and I think most of them attended. A lot of people new to Social Media took up refuge on the couches and received some training on a laptop.  I had a lot of great conversations with people about contributing to this blog and picked up on some great people to follow.  This didn’t stop me from mingling with the group now known as the regulars, and heading out to the Diamond to continue our conversations afterward.

Suzi Craig has been working hard on these events and announced a couple of changes.  In the next month there will be an event or two every week and even a Party in a warehouse.  I emailed Suzi about this and she made a couple of points.

• December is a bad time to schedule anything so there will be nothing in December (as of now).
• A lot of people have been unable to make these events so she is scheduling them throughout the week.
• By spreading to different venues and more diverse locations more people may attend.
• Suzi also announced a fund raising campaign to help Governor Rell bring troops Home for the Holidays, which means you need to have an ambitious schedule.

Suzi also hinted at more changes to come next year, not bad for something that’s only 6 months old and was initially promoted just on Social Media sites.  While I hope to keep trying to make a lot of these, I am afraid even a person normally stuck in a basement like me won’t be able to keep up.  This is by far one of the most fun networking events in Connecticut at the moment and attracts a great bunch of people.  I also promised Suzi that I would not put my business card into the drawing for the next few weeks, so come out while you still have a chance to win something.

Some semi-irregulars and new people hanging out at TweetCrawl

Suzi’s Deep End blog can be found here.
Additional Information can be found at the TweetCrawl Group page on Facebook here.
TweetCrawl Twitter name @CTTweetCrawl.

Again we would like to thank Tim Tracey for contributing to yesterday’s blog and being our first guest blogger.  Anyone interested in contributing to Working From the Basement please just signup as a registered user and shoot a message out to @WFTB on Twitter.

pictures courtesy of the CT TweetCrawl Group on Facebook…

WFTB – Michael Lawson

I thought I would put together a little something about the upcoming TweetCrawl before it happened to entice any one that is on the fence about going.  Suzi Craig from Fathom has been putting these events together for about 6 months now and so far I haven’t been to one I didn’t like.  Tweetcrawl is not only for those of us who use Twitter, but for anyone interested in making connections through any Social Networking outlet i.e. Facebook, Linkedin etc… This is a great resource for the solo entrepreneur to leave the basement and meet other people.

The events used to be held primarily at restaurants, but now are expanding to other places, such as the current one at a Lisa Davenport’s Home Gallery in Glastonbury CT.  Attendance has been growing for each event and while there are the regulars such as myself, new people come to each event.  I have met a bunch of people that I wouldn’t have run into at chamber meeting and other such groups.  Remember while you may not make a direct business connection an indirect recommendation works just as well.  One of the side benefits of a trust economy is that you can start doing business with people you actually like and get along with.  Going to a TweetCrawl lets you find the connections you need, while allowing you to  go beyond just an elevator pitch about yourself.

Top Three Reasons I like TweetCrawls:

1. A chance to meet interesting and friendly people.
2. low cost or free alcohol and great food.
3. I get to leave the basement.

Like any good social media event the signup is hosted on a social media site, so let Suzi know you are coming by registering for the next CT TweetCrawl Event on Facebook. You can also follow @CTTweetCrawl on twitter for the latest updates.  I hope to meet some new faces, so come out for the evening and hang out with the cool kids.

WFTB – Michael Lawson

It gets lonely in the basement and once and awhile you need to get out in the light.  Meeting on a regular basis with other basement dwellers can help keep you motivated and focused.  One of these groups meets the first Thursday of every month at Ken’s in Glastonbury, CT.  It is important when forming one of these informal peer groups that a specific schedule is planned.  Groups that don’t do this are bound to fail, some people will always be absent, but by setting a specific day most of the members will attend.  Small groups like this can be either a great addition or replacement for the more stringent BNI groups that have strict attendance guidelines.  BNI groups can be particularly rough on solo entrepreneurs, since we are the only ones available to service our clients.

While the Geek Meet caters to the technology crowd it is actually attended by people in other businesses and has grown from 4 to about 8 regulars.  This time we didn’t get our regular table ahead of time so we had to spread out and make the rounds.  Some of the attendee’s are as follows:

Michael Lawson – (Me) Advanced Technology Consultant and head Geek
Ted Jennings – Financial Software
Harry Kiernan – Computer Consultant, Artist, Organ Donor, and Chief Schmoozer
Rick Williams – Web based Training and Compliance Software
Rachel Pianka – Website Design
Diana Bartolotta – (Diana) Awesome Attorney and certified geek
Greg Flint – Network Design and Consultant
Steven Summit – Desktop Support
Charlie Schein – New Independent Insurance Agent, formerly in Insurance Software sales
Tim Tracey – Insurance Software and founder of YouGottaCall.com referral network
Joe Courchaine – Former business owner

What most of these people have in common other than some technology interests is that we all are either independent, virtual or very small businesses.  Some of the conversations included Diana and I discussing our new collaborative website and getting the participants of Geek Meet to contribute articles.  Tim explained his website and how it can help grow your business, along with reminiscing with Charlie and myself about Insurance software.  Since I have the only Iphone I was being picked on for looking at it every 5 minutes, then showed everyone the new app I purchased called TFLN.  Harry is donating part of his liver, after donating one of his kidneys a few years ago, so I guess we will be seeing less of him (just joking). Lastly Charlie and I discussed some personal Insurance that I was interested in.  I am sure Diana will post a comment with what was discussed at her table once she reads this.

While groups like this may not always directly lead to business opportunities they can help keep you sane and provide a much needed break.  Larger informal groups such as the Tweetups also allow for even more exposure for your business and are good for network building.  Currently Suzi Craig runs the one in Connecticut called the CT Tweet Crawl and I highly recommend it.

On another note we all have a name for our spaces at home and I picked the name of this article based on Rachel’s.  She credited me with giving it that name, so whether you work from the basement, dining room, living room or  “fortress of solitude” always remember to change out of the PJ’s, brush your teeth and put on your super hero cape.

WFTB – Michael Lawson

Last week, I attended the Middlesex Businesswomen’s Alliance monthly event.  The presentation that evening was “LinkedIn 101,” by Gateway Financial Group’s President and resident social media expert, David Wood.

First, let me tell you what Little Dave got right:

1.  Put a picture on your LinkedIn profile. His reason – take the profile seriously.  My reason – what does your face look like?  Have we met before?  It creates a personal connection, which is what internet connections are supposed to facilitate.

2.  Groups, groups, groups. Little Dave hit this on the head.  In fact, he said this in a presentation a year ago and, honestly, this was the first time it had occurred to me.  Groups can be your greatest way of connecting with those who need your services.   Join groups whose mission and values appeal to you, develop real connections, and then when those people need services of the professional nature you offer, you will be the first name that comes to mind.

3.  Don’t advertise.  It annoys people. That’s why it’s called “spam.”  Create valuable content with real benefit to the end user, and that person will seek out your services.  Don’t come right out and say “Buy my 3bed/2bath ranch in West Hartford.”  Instead, provide the people following you with useful information, such as, “The tax credit ends on November 30.  Did you realize that’s on the Monday right after the five-day bank vacation of Thanksgiving?  Better aim for the beginning of the month.”

Now, let me tell you what Little Dave got wrong:

1.  His advice, “Connect with people whose connections are valuable to you, pick up the phone, and call them.”

He missed the whole point of Web 2.0 (soon to be Web 3.0).  He advised to apply traditional methods of networking – figure out who people know, whether you can use them or who they know, pick up the phone, and start a dialogue.

Don’t call me.  Email me if you’re really brave (caveat emptor), but definitely don’t call me.  Connect with me online – follow me on Twitter, connect with me on LinkedIn, and join my fanpage on Facebook.  But don’t call me.  When I need you, I’ll find you.  If you call me, you’re getting yourself blacklisted for cold-calling me.  When you need my help, find me and tell me you need my help.  You’ll already know what I do, because we’ve legitimately connected, shared resources, and discussed ideas.  But definitely don’t call me.

2.  Judge people by their connections.

I disagree completely.  LinkedIn, to me, is like a virtual exchange of business cards – in one direction only, in my viewpoint.  If someone invites me to connect, I connect.

Caveat – I am NOT an open networker.  I do not follow people on Twitter, simply because they follow me, and I don’t connect with everyone who wants to connect with me.

But why is he wrong?  Three points:

a.  LinkedIn profiles are dynamic.  Just because someone is not valuable today does not mean they might not be valuable in the future.

b.  When someone invites me to connect, that person is allowing me to pump their head full of my propogand…..er, marketing materials.  That, by itself, is a value.  And once I spread my prop…er, marketing materials to that person, the viral nature of the internet means that it’ll end up exactly in the hands  of the right person.  So, the more, the merrier.

c.  Database.  By connecting with the person, I can see the details of his/her connections when I’m using the database feature of LinkedIn.  (A hidden secret, for later discussion.)  So, we all know people who are Division 3 in the world of business.  But, since we all know them, then they all know us, right?  When I need another Division 1 or 2, I can find them through the database feature, which gives me much better information than a simple Google search.  I can figure out quality, education, background – everything – by using the person I don’t want to connect with as a filter.  (Thank you, LinkedIn, because I know that wasn’t intentional.)

3.  I do really have 300 friends.  They’re Facebook friends.  It’s a different category.  Facebook friends are, again, people with similar interests, with whom you have crossed paths at some point in your life.  They are people whose kids’ photos you actually do want to see, whose ham sandwich you do know about (because she’s vegan and shouldn’t be eating ham), and whose thoughts and interests you are genuinely interested in.

I want to see pictures of my college roommate’s kids, because when am I going to get back to Pittsburgh again anytime soon.  I want to hear Jochen’s adventures in whatever crazy European country he is now.  I want to hear about Isaac’s adventures teaching English in Korea.  Because that is interesting to me.

I don’t want to be Facebook friends with the Governor, because I don’t think she’s giving me the cow I need for FarmVille, and she’s probably not going to challenge me to a game of Farkle or Bejeweled.  That’s not a Facebook friend; that’s a LinkedIn colleague.

Facebook friends are the ones you would sit and chat with, laugh with, and play with, if time and geography were not limiting you.

The future of business:  Real relationships with people you like

I say – this is the dialogue, connecting online is the dialogue, the relationship.  Business is no longer about who you know and how powerful you are.  Business is about who you are. Be yourself, and the people who want to do business with a person just like you will find you.

Connect with people you like.  Do business with people who like you, just the way you are.  With the advent of social networking technologies, you can now locate and develop relationships with people just like you.  Under traditional networking approaches, you were limited in scope to those you could connect with physically.  Now, remove those boundaries and use the internet as a network to connect with those most like you.

Do business with people you like.  Enjoy life.  Because life can be amazing, if you just let it.