Small Biz Podcast

Rick Mahn shares his networking secrets

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Mon, 03 May 2010 13:42:00 +0000

Rick Mahn is a long-time friend, and recently launched his own business.

He took time to talk to me about his online networking secrets, going to in person events, and the parallels between small cities and small towns. He also tells about his new business and using social tools behind the firewall.

Download the audio here.

Find Rick online at his blog: www.rickmahn.com and on Twitter: @RickMahn.

Photo (CC) by Tyson Goodridge.

Paul Chaney is The Social Media Handyman

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 19:15:00 +0000

Paul Chaney knows small business and social media. We met in 2008 when Zane Safrit introduced us at BlogWorld Expo. When Paul told me he was launching his own consulting firm, I invited him for an interview.

We talk about Paul's small town connections, his experiences leading up to writing The Digital Handshake, and his new business consulting with small businesses. We also discuss multiple streams of income and turning freebies into paying clients.
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Download the audio here.
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You can find Paul at:
his book site: The Digital Handshake
his blog: The Social Media Handyman
on Twitter: @pchaney

Personal branding with Phil Gerbyshak

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Wed, 27 May 2009 13:40:00 +0000

Hometown boy Phil Gerbyshak shares his thoughts on personal branding in small towns.

Shot at SOBCon '09.

Third Thursday is changing Hutchinson

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 14:09:00 +0000

When I saw what an exciting thing the Third Thursday downtown in Hutchinson was, I grabbed my cell phone, and Jim Seitnater, the Downtown Development Director for Hutchinson, and did a quick interview. The quality of my cell phone video is awful, but the content is terrific.

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Jim explains how one committed artist took a terrific annual art walk evening, and convinced everyone to make it a monthly affair. Now on Third Thursday, the downtown is alive with music and people.

Anne Dowell of Apron Strings in Hutchinson was super busy with a Third Thursday night crowd. She took one minute out to do another cell phone interview with me. The sound is terrible, but Anne says you can never outguess the customers!

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Caught on the #Hutch blogger tour.

Carls Bar in Hutchinson Kansas

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:26:00 +0000

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Carl's Bar has a long history in Hutchinson, Kansas. Then an upstart new owner, Dan Heimerman, who moved back home, moved it to a new location, and revived a local tradition.
I found him while on the #Hutch blogger tour.

Dan is a hands-on owner. I caught him fixing bar stools after our interview. :)

Yoder Hardware

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 15:54:00 +0000

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We're still gathering the Point of View of small businesses all over. This time I'm at Yoder Hardware in Yoder, Kansas, talking to Rod Fry , proprietor. Can a business survive in a town of 70 people?

Captured on the Hutchinson Bloggers Tour #Hutch

Video: 11 ways to do more without hiring

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:52:00 +0000

Every growing small business runs into a crunch time, that time when the work is pouring in faster than you can afford to hire help to do it. How do you get out of a crunch without hiring? That's what I chose to speak about at the OpenBeta event in Oklahoma City.

This lightning talk had a specific format: exactly 20 slides, shown exactly 15 seconds each.

The slides are available at Presenting 11 ways to do more from OpenBeta OKC. The ideas were drawn from 10 ways out of a crunch without hiring employees and also 10 Ways to Delegate Without Hiring Staff.

El Dorado Promise

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 02:45:00 +0000

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Dr. James C. Fouse directs El Dorado Promise. The promise... go to school, graduate, get a scholarship. He was the guest speaker at the NWOSU Foundation annual donor appreciation dinner, and I asked him about the promise, about how small business can play a role in education, and about El Dorado, Arkansas.

Why is Cart-Away at BlogWorld Expo?

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 13:10:00 +0000

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Cart-Away showed up at BlogWorld Expo with a concrete mixer. Were they just in the wrong place, or what? No, they were there to learn, to learn social media, blogging, and related skills.

Standard advertising just didn't work for them, so they've given that up, in favor of exploring the world of online community.

Bruce and Tom are great guys. Keep up with them at the Cart-Away blog. And we'll check back with them to see how it goes.

And if you are looking for a new business idea, take a look at their concrete, rental and landscape store franchise opportunity.

Video: Social Media Explorer Jason Falls

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 02:20:00 +0000

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Jason Falls grew up in a small town and works in marketing and new media. He shares some advice for small town small businesses, how social media can level the playing field. Right after he establishes his small town cred. Find more from Jason at Social Media Explorer.

This interview took place in the speaker ready room at BlogWorld Expo, part of a daisy chain interview that went all the way around the table.

Paying for college with Chris Penn

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:57:00 +0000

Financial aid expert Chris Penn shares his insight on scholarships and loans, with some special considerations for small towns and for small business owners. Chris also tells us why your credit score is a bigger consideration this year.

Links Chris mentions:

Where to find Chris:

Financial Aid Podcast.com
206-350-1208
Email financialaidpodcast@gmail.com
ScholarshipSearchSecrets.com: free ebook on using Google to find financial aid

[Photo of Chris Penn by C.C. Chapman on Flickr. Used under a Creative Commons License.]

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Quick business plans

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 21:16:00 +0000

Most of us agree we need a business plan, but of course, most of us don't have one. So this week, I took my own advice, and started on my own simplified business plan.

Here are four tips to help you move to start your own plan.

Simplify - I've given you an outline
Reuse - copy and paste info you create for the bank, tax filings, or existing lists
Start on the easy part, the part that interests you
Take advantage of variety - print it out, reshuffle, make visual parts, tell stories. Use your best skills.

This was kicked off by a post from Zane Safrit, referring back to Tim Berry. And Zane's link to an interview of Tim by Guy Kawasaki. And before that, it was kicked by an audio conference from the Business and Professional Women/USA.

New here? Take the Guided Tour. Like what you see? Subscribe. Want more stories? Read our shared stories from all over.

Video: Prune your products and services

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 12 May 2007 14:05:00 +0000

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If you haven't pruned lately, your line of products or services may be holding back your business. Becky McCray, a small town entrepreneur, talks about the four factors to consider when pruning and adding to your product lines to revitalize your business:

sales
seasonality
customer requests
keyword trends

She also talks about how this applies to those entrepreneurs who run multiple small businesses to make a living.

Video: Helping customers pick a product

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 01:04:00 +0000

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In a product based business, it can be tough to pull together items from many different manufacturers. To help customers make easier buying decisions, Becky McCray recommends three tips:

Simplify
Standardize
Add ratings

Video: Cheap Microphones

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 20:59:00 +0000

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You don't need to spend a lot of money on podcasting equipment. Odds are that you have a usable microphone laying around. It's a good way to jump in and try audio without investing too much.

Video formerly posted at Chris Brogan's New Media School. Editing and on screen comments by Chris.

Video: Getting Started With Podcasting

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 20:45:00 +0000

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Video guide on how to get started with podcasting. How to focus on your content, find your niche, and just enough technical details to get it done.

Formerly published at Chris Brogan's (old) New Media School. Editing and onscreen comments by Chris.

People like to be asked

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 21:44:00 +0000

People like to be asked.

Sometimes we order the people we work with, or drop tasks on them.

We send out leads, "This will help you."

We tell customers "I have this."

We email direct orders "check this out."

But, people like to be asked.

Music by Frenz, from Pod Safe Audio.

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Nothing New

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 20 Jan 2007 16:58:00 +0000

Think what we are saying is too basic? Or too repetitive?

“People need to be reminded more often than they need to be instructed.”
Dr. Samuel Johnson

It's what Mark Taylor calls "a Blinding Flash of the Obvious."

Music by Frenz, from Pod Safe Audio.

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Where do new business ideas come from?

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 04:25:00 +0000

Podcast:

Gather up all those ideas for getting new business, asking for referrals, and finding new clients into one big file. Then when you need a new idea to grow your business, it will be right at hand.

If you like this show, you may enjoy the group of experts on the Great Big Small Business Show.

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Podcast: Winning Workplaces

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 21:42:00 +0000

This week, we have Guest Comments from Mark Harbeke. He stopped by our Brag Basket a couple of times, so we're letting him share some more. If you have something to share, email me!

Hello, Small Biz Survival Readers. My name is Mark Harbeke. I’m manager of content development for Winning Workplaces, a nonprofit in the Chicago area that helps small and midsized businesses create better work environments.
Your host, Becky, asked me to say a few words about Winning Workplaces. I read Small Biz Survival regularly and have posted on it a few times. Perhaps you will identify with what we do.

Winning Workplaces was founded in 2001 by the family that co-owned auto parts manufacturer Fel-Pro, Inc. from 1918 until 1998. Based in Chicago, from the early days Fel-Pro was recognized throughout the city as a great place to work. By the 1970s and 1980s, the company was using people-friendly practices to engage and empower employees – many of which were pioneering at the time. These included not just open book management and hosting regular meetings where employees could voice concerns openly and honestly, but great benefits like a summer camp, tuition assistance and a “time off to volunteer” program. Throughout the 1990s, Fel-Pro was featured as a great place to work in magazines like FORTUNE and Working Mother.
When the family sold the business, they wanted to create an organization that would serve as a resource for small and midsized businesses – a place for that audience, large and contributive to our economy but often underserved, to go to for help in improving morale, their work cultures, productivity and the bottom line. Thus, Winning Workplaces was born.

We have three offerings for small and midsized organizations:
A free information clearinghouse of workplace best practices via our website, WinningWorkplaces.org, and our monthly e-newsletter, Winning Workplaces Ideas;Affordable consulting and training services to help organizations realize their potential, including easy-to-use Tool Kits; andAn annual recognition program for exceptional small organizations.
I want to talk about this third offering a bit more, as it’s undergoing a transition. In the past, we focused on honoring, with a media partner, the Best Bosses of small and midsized businesses throughout North America. You can see all the past winners on our website. Along with announcing the list of winners through our media partner, we’ve held a Conference & Celebration in the fall to honor them in person. In fact, the awards ceremony at this conference is the culmination of a series of workshops where small business owners and leaders can learn directly from their successful peers.

For 2007, we’re shifting gears. We recently announced, in cooperation with The Wall Street Journal, our Top Small Workplaces recognition program for exceptional small organizations. Through January 2007 we are seeking nominations of businesses that fit our criteria. I encourage you to nominate your organization for this honor by visiting StartupJournal.com. You may also wish to forward this link to friends, family and colleagues. As a small nonprofit (we have a full-time staff of 5 people), we’re very excited about this partnership and are trying to assemble a broad pool of nominees.

Nominated organizations will be sent a formal application in January 2007, which will be due back to us in March. Our staff and a panel of judges will then do due diligence on the applications, and the winners will be announced in a special section of the Journal’s StartupJournal paper in October 2007. The same month, as we’ve done in years past, we will also honor these organizations at a conference. The conference will likely be in Chicago; the date will be announced soon.

If your small organization is struggling, whether at the management or employee level, we’re here to help. You can read more about what our Consulting & Training area offers on our website, WinningWorkplaces.org. You can also view a list of past clients on this page, many of which are nonprofits and academic institutions. If nothing else, you can benefit from our experience and research by registerin g to receive our free e-newsletter.

Thanks for listening, and for supporting the good work small businesses do every day by reading Becky’s Small Biz Survival blog, which, she recently announced, was named as the only blog of note on the Montana Tribal State Economic Development Commission’s website.

Here’s to creating and building enterprises that truly are “better for people, better for business”!

Music by Frenz, from Pod Safe Audio.

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Interview with Pat Matthews, CEO of Webmail.us

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 14:53:00 +0000

Podcast:

Becky interviews Pat Matthews, CEO of Webmail.us, Inc., based in Blacksburg, Virginia. Pat blogs at Small Town, Big Ideas.

Pat talks about advantages of being in a small town, working with the community, and encouraging more small town entrepreneurs.

Watch for a second interview with Pat on the Great Big Small Business Show.

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Your customers

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 18:04:00 +0000

What do your customers want? Let's ask them!

For more ideas, read Basic Methods to Get Feedback from Customers by Carter McNamara.

Music by Frenz, from Pod Safe Audio.

small biz rural entrepreneurship customer service podcast audio

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Great customer service in three tips and a story

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 03:39:00 +0000

Is your business synonymous with great service?

Some actions you can focus on today are:

greet everyone who contacts your business
pay attention to every customer who contacts you
provide the little extras that are now mostly gone

small biz rural entrepreneurship customer service podcast audio

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100 Nos

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Sat, 30 Sep 2006 15:17:00 +0000

Want to increase your business? Go get 100 "no"s.

Print the word NO 100 times on a sheet of paper.
Pick out the most important marketing/sales you need to do right now.
Plan a reward for reaching 100.
Start making calls. Each time you get a no, cross off one NO.

You'll get 100 nos, but imagine how many Yes'es you'll also get!
Celebrate!

small biz rural entrepreneurship marketing podcast audio

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How your business looks affects your success

noreply@blogger.com (Becky McCray) — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 02:37:00 +0000

If customers come to your location (retail, service, home office), you know it matters - first impressions last!

If no customers visit, you still have to work there. The environment does affect your productivity!

Do a walk through with a stranger. Write down everything they notice, without arguing, explaining, or rationalizing.

Ask employees or anyone you work with what's broken, or what they notice.

Create a schedule, and fix it all.

Your business will thank you!

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