Video of Interest: Follow Your Interest

As a business owner, what do you care about?  Who do you follow?  What do you want to know?

Follow your interests (e.g., @WomenPresidents).   Keep discovering and growing.

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Commentary of Interest: The Power of Persuasion; Does It Sell Anything?

Are you advertising with your business?  Yes, remember that good old-fashioned way of getting the word out to a large number of people about your brand via television, print or radio?

Or maybe you've switched to heavy use of social media platforms like Linked In, Twitter and Facebook to boost the star marketing power of your business.  Have these platforms rewarded you in some fashion with having the most number of fans -- say with new business?

Clearly, as business owners, we need to revisit the whole point of social media and social networking:  to sell a product or service.

Read:  Just How Influential Is Your Social-Media Program if It Isn't Helping To Sell Product? ~ by Rance Crain

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Article of Interest: How Reframing Behavior Can Lead To Organizational Change

When business owners talk about change, they usually have a desired result in mind:  wake people up a bit (change the company culture), a better approach or relationship to clients, a focus on profit instead of just revenue.

Sometimes a given situation merely calls for new behaviors and a change in practice.  Learn the secrets on how to make it happen:

"That's the Way We (Used to) Do Things Around Here"

White Paper of Interest: Life After Exit

Most business owners reach a point when they are ready to exit from their baby, the business that is.  In Chicago, with three robust chapters, we generally have at least one or two members in each chapter who are positioning to sell their business.

The itch to exit starts with getting weary from doing the same thing (the passion is lost), a readiness to retire or the contemplation of an offer from a buyer that you cannot refuse.  Whatever the reason and whenever the point in time, one needs to prepare well in advance.  Doing your homework matters and so does finding out how others handled the sale of their company, which might resemble a circumstance similar to yours.

Esteemed fellow WPO Chapter Chair Barbara Roberts (Zenith group), authored a 38-page "white paper" for the Eugene Lang Entrepreneurship Center at Columbia Business School: "Life After an Exit:  How Entrepreneurs Transition to the Next Stage (immediate download of PDF file)."

For the paper, Ms. Roberts interviews 23 entrepreneurs who sold their company for $10 million to $970 million.  The interviews are about how they experienced the sale and how they learned about wealth management.  The interviews also cover how they had transitioned to the next chapter of their lives.  The "white paper" includes what they did well and what they wished they had done better before, during and after the sale.

If you have questions about the white paper or would like to contact Ms. Roberts to attend an event when she will be speaking more about the themes of paper, feel free to connect with her directly here.

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Blog Post of Interest: 5 Tips On How to Grow a Business

Dennis Crowley, founder of Foursquare, knows a little something about growing a business.

Read:  Growing Your Business:  5 Tips From the Founder of Foursquare

Quick glimpse on the tips he offers:

1.  “Twitter is your best friend”

2.  “Keep it light”*

3.  “Guerilla customer service”

4.  “Small and scrappy marketing 4eva”

5.  “Show off your team”

*Light as a feather

Register: WPO 2011 Conference in Vancouver, BC

Registration is open for the 2011 WPO Conference, Grow Boldly, Lead Globally, Vancouver, BC on April 27-29 at the Westin Bayshore (pictured).

Keynote Speakers include:

Coping with the Economy in Turbulent Times
Meredith Whitney, CEO, Meredith Whitney Advisory Group, LLC

Lululemon: From One Store to a Global Brand in 10 Years
Chip Wilson, Chairman of the Board, Lululemon

A Global Leader – Her Story
Rebecca MacDonald, Executive Chair, Just Energy Group

And ... Dancing and Drumming with the Rainbow Creek Dancers!

For registration and more information, click here.  For a quick look at the workshops, go here.

See you there!

Article of Interest: Effective E-Mail Marketing

Whether it's Valentine's Day or any special occasion, these e-mail tips will help you target better and sell more product or service offerings throughout the year.

Snippet:

1. Use social media to help your campaign.
Yes, we just said customers are more tolerant of e-mail pitches. But an established social media presence will smooth and enhance the path to direct ...

Read more:
7 E-mail Marketing Tips for Valentine's Day

Article of Interest: For the Geek in Your Life

As business owners, we like to be hip and trendy in how we run our companies and purchase gifts.  With Valentine's Day right around the corner, take a look at some of these simple yet inspiring items that run counter to ordering the same old chocolates and flowers.

One can never be too geeky.  See whether your employee, colleague, significant other or best client might enjoy one of these.

10 Valentine's Day Gifts for the Special Geek in Your Life

Photo credit:  USB Tulip Hub, Mashable

Video of Interest: How to Craft a New Set of Wings

In the course of growing a robust business, everyone at some point or another runs into this scenario:  You launch a new product and it falls flat on its face. 

As a business owner, what's the typical reaction?  Keep working it (same old, same old) or cut your losses fast (e.g., pull it from the market).

But there are other options.  You can, according to Marissa Mayer (pictured), V.P., Consumer Products at Google, breathe new life into failed ventures.  That old adage of "if you don't succeed, try, try, again" can actually work.

Find out how here by watching a short video.

Photo credit here.

Legal Tax Alert From Our Sponsor: Foley & Lardner

We are grateful for the support we receive from our WPO national sponsor Foley and Lardner and always look forward to their important business news updates.  Here's one of them below.

See how the new law might impact the way you run your business.  If you have questions, reach out to the co-author partner Mary Kay Martire.

A legal news alert on the Illinois tax increase and another pending piece of legislation designed to expand the scope of sales/use tax nexus. 

Read the entire article here.  While you're there, sign up for their newsletter.

Illustration credit here.

Article of Interest: Contracting With Women-Owned Businesses

Find out how a woman running a construction business beat the odds and fostered growth for her own business and others by contracting with other women-owned businesses.  If she did it, you can too.

Snippet:

Increasingly, federal contractors of all types are being held accountable for meeting the modest goal of doling out 5% of their subcontracted business to women-owned firms. (Currently, the overall goals are to direct 23% of total Federal dollars to small businesses, plus 5% each for ‘disadvantaged’ and women-owned businesses, and 3% each for businesses in designated locations and those owned by disabled veterans.)

Want to Find Women-Owned Suppliers?  Build Your Own!

Article of Interest: How to Prioritize to Reach Your Business Goals in 2011

One of the great ways to simplify the process of prioritizing is to use software.  Here's a look at how to deal with the complexity of large projects -- from scheduling to resource allocation -- without busting your piggybank.

How to Use Software to Plan and Prioritize Projects

Blog Post of Interest: Women-Owned Businesses Fastest-Growing Segment of the Economy

Women-owned businesses continue to be the fastest-growing segment of the economy. But if women business owners are to achieve entrepreneurial parity, they must address the kind of businesses they open and their commitment to growth.

That's where the Women Presidents' Organization (WPO) comes in. WPO helps women business owners accelerate business growth, enhance competitiveness, and promotes economy security.

Read the entire blog post:

Women-Owned Businesses:  Numbers Climb, Revenue Lacking (Forbes)

Learn more about how the Women Presidents' Organization can help you grow your business here.

We wish you a happy and prosperous 2011!

Illustration credit here.

Warmest Season's Greetings From the Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Friendly wishes for a warm and wonderful holiday season.  May you find your path to success in life.

Photo credit:  Laurel Delaney, Pratt pier, Rogers Park, Illinois, U.S.A, December 26, 2010

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Article of Interest: Qualities That Distinguish Women Leaders

Running a multimillion dollar business is no walk in the park.  To do a good job, it requires certain personality qualities as a leader to get things done.

From Finding 2:

This combination of traits enables the women in our study to express a unique approach toward dealing with disappointment, rejection or situations that don't work out their way. Dr. Greenberg explains, "They will feel the sting of being set back. They may even dwell on it, and tend to be a little self-critical. But then they will muster their assertiveness, shake off any negative feelings, learn what they need to carry on and a voice in the back of their heads will say, 'I'll show you.'"

Here's a look at specific qualities that distinguish women leaders.  It starts with these fabulous four:

1.  Persuasive
2.  Learn from adversity
3.  Inclusive
4.  Take risks

See if you have what it takes to succeed at becoming a standout leader.

The Qualities That Distinguish Women Leaders

Illustration credit here.

Article of Interest: How Not To Throw Your Business Plan Out the Window

Planning is a difficult process.  Business owners need to plan to launch new products, hit profitability goals and to attract funding.

Business moves fast: the product's features morph, new competitors emerge, or the economic climate shifts. When these changes occur, many people just throw their business plans out the window. For a plan to be truly valuable it needs to evolve with your company and stay relevant in the face of uncertainty.

Find out what the experts say about business plans, how to create one and how to keep it fresh.

Read:  Keeping Your Business Plan Flexible

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Video of Interest: Women Presidents' Organization

The Women Presidents' Organization (WPO) is the premier global peer advisory organization for women entrepreneurs with multimillion dollar businesses. Go here (/www.womenpresidentsorg.com) to learn more and join.

Article of Interest: Best Business Books for 2010

According to Strategy & Business, which I follow religiously, this is no time to be hunkering down and waiting for business as usual.  You've got to make things happen and spur innovation in remarkable ways.

In order to do that, reading helps enormously to foster breakthrough ideas.  Set aside quiet time to read, ponder and plan out what you want your business to look like in 2011 and beyond.

Here's a list that offers a good start. 

Illustration credit here.

Article of Interest: Thinking About Taking Your Business Global?

There are many factors to consider before you take your business global and Small Business Trends founder Anita Campbell covers five of them exceptionally well.

Read her contribution:

Preparing Your Business to Go Global

Since WPO is a global organization, you can quickly drive results for your company internationally by first connecting peer-to-peer (member to member) within WPO.  Take a serious look at how you can do business in the UK, Canada, Peru, South Africa and the United States -- locations of WPO chapters throughout the world. 

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago

Resource of Interest: shatterbox

For young people who love what they do, this site's for you: 

Shatterbox wants you to wake up in the morning and love what you do. So we’re going to introduce you to lots of people who do and help you find how to get there yourself.

And as you grow your business well beyond the million dollar mark, we want you.  Only women presidents and CEOs need apply:  Women Presidents' Organization.

Illustration credit here.

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago