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How PR and social media work together to amplify your message

11 February, 2022

 Veronique James is an EO Arizona member and CEO of The James Agency, an integrated agency specializing in consumer advertising, public relations and digital marketing that has been honored locally and nationally for its excellence in workplace culture. Members of her team, public relations expert Christina Caldwell and social media guru Jessica Suerth (pictured with Veronique at center) shared how PR and social media can work together in the ever-evolving effort to get business messaging out into the world:   

The way people stay informed about the world around them has changed dramatically over the last two decades—all thanks to social media. Gone are the days when your biggest online worry is your MySpace Top 8 or your AIM away status. Now, social media provides a consistent feed of entertainment, opinions and news. It’s the biggest lens through which we view the world.

Cultural debates about the long-term effects of this phenomenon on our collective mental health aside, we’re left with an undeniable fact: Social media and news are now forever entwined. 

According to Pew Research Center, about half of Americans get their news on social media. That means your business has an incredible opportunity. 

For the people who don’t visit news sites or are among the estimated 50 million Americans who consider themselves “cord cutters” (don’t have cable TV service), social media is the perfect outlet for them to see your business’ updates. 

In other words, if you want to get your news out to the broadest audience, capitalizing on social media is the way to do it.

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Categories: Best Practices PR/MARKETING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Tags: Christina Caldwell eo arizona Jessica Suerth Pew Research Center The James Agency Veronique James

EO Canada Vectra Forum

Why experience sharing is key to entrepreneurial growth

9 February, 2022

EO Canada Vectra ForumAlmost 10 years ago, I had my first experience with a professional Forum when I joined Entrepreneurs’ Organization. A Forum, which is also often referred to as a Mastermind, is a group of peers who meet regularly, with the goal of helping each member improve personally and professionally. The Forum structure is a foundation of many professional organizations and self-help groups. 

In a standard Forum meeting, a member makes a presentation about an opportunity or challenge they are facing and asks for the group’s input. After the topic at hand is presented, each Forum-mate is given a set amount of time to share their perspective.

Given the request for input and feedback, you might expect a presenter to receive various advice from the other Forum members. However, most Forum organizations train members to specifically avoid giving advice. Instead, members are guided to share an experience they’ve had, or that someone they know has had, that is similar to the presenter’s challenge or opportunity. Then, they explain the action taken in that situation, and the outcome.

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Categories: Best Practices Entrepreneurial Journey Mentorship PEOPLE/STAFF

Tags: acceleration partners Elevate Podcast eo boston forum Friday Forward robert glazer

3 ways the Olympics are similar to entrepreneurship

4 February, 2022

Lou Cysewski, EO Seattle, is co-founder and CEO of Coolperx, the world’s first net carbon neutral merchandising company. As a minority female entrepreneur, Lou shared her observations on the Olympics and how they reflected and exposed the struggles of female entrepreneurs striving to build sustainable businesses. With the 2022 Winter Olympics upon us, we’re reposting this article that originally appeared on EO’s Inc.com channel.

The 2020 Summer Olympic games (which took place in Tokyo in 2021), were my 10-year-old daughter’s first real exposure to competitive sports. She’d watch and ask, in her sweet innocence, “Why are the Americans teasing the other team with the ball? Why don’t they throw it? I don’t like that!”

Her observations alerted me to ways in which we see and experience competition throughout our lives. I noticed many similarities between the athletes’ experiences prior to and during competition and my own journey over the past four years as a minority, female entrepreneur.

Here are three observations I made about how the Olympics are similar to entrepreneurship:

Courage is required.

I care deeply about the environmental impact of my industry, which led me to gather carbon emissions data on all consumer goods. I knew I couldn’t hold this data for just my clients. This was important information to share with the world, as we slowly but surely shift to more sustainable ways of working and living. But I was uncertain about presenting it publicly. The little voice inside my head, the one that questioned whether people would work for me, buy from me, and follow my lead at the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey gave me pause about my company’s important contribution to stopping and reversing climate change.

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Categories: Entrepreneurial Journey WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Tags: Coolperx eo seattle Lou Cysewski Naomi Osaka Olympics Simone Biles

balance sheet

If you can’t answer these 3 questions, you’re not ready to sell your business

2 February, 2022

balance sheetThe process of selling a business is complex and multifaceted: It involves working with multiple stakeholders who sometimes have conflicting priorities. While only you can decide when to sell your business, you also must rely on these other stakeholders in order to have a successful sale. It’s your job to make sure their decisions align with your own goals.

Why sell your business?

Every business owner will have to consider a transition at some point in their career, whether that’s upon entering retirement, starting a new business, or even reentering the workforce as an employee. Even if your gut feeling is telling you not to sell your business yet, you might find yourself in circumstances that leave you with few better options. On the other hand, you might be looking for the chance to sell and suddenly sense the timing is right. Regardless, you have to consider a number of factors other than your intuition. You can’t go with your gut unless you’ve also prepared well for a business sale. 

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Categories: FINANCES OPERATIONS Sales

Tags: best practices Four Pillars Investors Nick McLean

healthy conflict

How to foster serendipitous innovation in hybrid and remote teams

28 January, 2022

healthy conflictDr. Gleb Tsipursky is CEO of the boutique future-proofing consultancy Disaster Avoidance Experts, which helps forward-looking leaders avoid dangerous threats and missed opportunities. A best-selling author, his newest book is Returning to the Office and Leading Hybrid and Remote Teams: A Manual on Benchmarking to Best Practices for Competitive Advantage. We asked Dr. Tsipursky how leaders can emulate the spontaneity of in-person employee idea generation for hybrid and remote teams. Here’s what he shared:

When leaders weigh the pros and cons of remote teams versus in-person work, one topic of concern is the water cooler effect.

In office environments, employees from different departments often run into each other, spark conversations about their individual projects, and spontaneously generate what could be game-changing ideas for the company.

“I don’t see how we can replace the serendipitous idea generation of hallway conversations. If we don’t return to the office full-time, we’re going to lose out to rivals who do so and gain the benefits of serendipity.” That’s what “Saul,” chief product officer of a 1,500-employee enterprise software company, told me at his company’s planning meeting on the post-vaccine return to office.

I told Saul that this is a common issue among organizations, and one that can only be addressed by adopting best practices for innovation in the return to the office and the future of work.

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Categories: Best Practices Company Culture Crisis INNOVATION PEOPLE/STAFF

Tags: Disaster Avoidance Experts Dr. Gleb Tsipursky Gleb Tsipursky

Alon_Ghelber

5 ways to optimize the power of customer experience (CX)

26 January, 2022

Alon_GhelberBrands can leverage customer experience (CX) to differentiate themselves from competitors. Because it’s difficult to create a completely unique product in today’s overcrowded market, more and more businesses are turning to improving the customer experience they provide in order to stand out.

The CX industry has grown significantly in recent years: Over half of B2C companies have a dedicated CX team, and the US CX industry is expected to grow by 15 percent annually over the next decade. While traditional business models may have overlooked the importance of customer experience, it’s definitely not something you can ignore in the modern market.

CX optimization isn’t achieved at the drop of a hat. It requires getting inside your customers’ minds, understanding what they want, and adapting your practices to their needs. That being said, there is significant overlap between industries. Any analysis of CX trends is based on broad strokes, with the nitty-gritty details depending on the industry, location and target audience.

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Categories: Best Practices BUSINESS GROWTH PR/MARKETING STRATEGY Technology

Tags: AI in CX Alon Ghelber Netflix omnichannel marketing Revuze Scott Harris

5 signs it’s time to rebrand your business

21 January, 2022

For many growing businesses, a rebrand is part of the cycle. While there are many reasons a business may choose to rebrand, it’s not always easy to see them from the inside.

Choosing to rebrand isn’t easy, but it’s necessary when your business hits a wall and needs a refresh for continued success.

What is a rebrand?

A rebrand is the process of redesigning how a business or product is perceived by consumers. It may include everything from redoing the name, logo, tagline and assets to small changes in vision, mission or website.

Most rebrands begin as you’d expect—from current brand perceptions. Maybe your brand has a negative association with certain consumers, or you’re expanding in a way that no longer makes sense with your current branding strategy.

Even the strongest brands are subject to market shifts, rapid changes among consumers, and other external forces. In most cases, a brand is only fresh for five to 10 years.

It isn’t a question of whether you need to rebrand as much as when you need to rebrand, but it’s still vital to embark on this process at the right time.

5 signs it’s time to rebrand

1. Your brand doesn’t reflect your vision

A brand name is a big part of developing a recognizable and long-lasting brand. If your name is less than ideal, especially with the passage of time or cultural shifts, it’s the perfect time for a rebrand.

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Categories: Best Practices BUSINESS GROWTH PR/MARKETING

Tags: C2 Creative Google BackRub Patrick Smith

How an ex-cop turned entrepreneur gives back by combatting human trafficking

19 January, 2022

Contributed by Robert Young, an EO Nashville member, who is the founder and CEO of Covert Results, a private investigation and security firm. He’s also the founder of Operation Rose, a non-profit focused on solutions to prevent and combat human trafficking. Robert’s sister, Angela Proffitt, is an EO Nashville member who encouraged him to start his own company.

Tell us about your entrepreneurial journey.

I grew up in Nashville, Tennessee watching my late father conduct investigations as a federal police officer with the railroad. He had a cool job, and I wanted to do the same thing! After obtaining a bachelor’s degree at Middle Tennessee State University, I entered the Metro Nashville Police academy in 2007. After six months of training, I earned the Top Gun award and hit the streets.

Five years of hard work later, I landed my dream job on the 20th Judicial District Drug Task Force. The small unit of six officers produced unbelievable cases—something straight out of a movie. In 2014, I started working a cocaine trafficking case, which eventually led to the largest cocaine haul and most complex wiretap case in Nashville history. (I documented the ups and downs I experienced in my true-crime thriller, The Good Line.)

Soon after this record case, our unit was dismantled due to politics. Nashville citizens were left vulnerable. Crime skyrocketed.

I loved the job and tried to stay on course. But, after going through my Dad’s death while being mandated to work uniformed assignments and subtracting my overtime pay due to bereavement leave—I became salty. It was time to retire and start a new venture.

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Categories: Entrepreneurial Journey Impact Inspirational Member Spotlight

Tags: Angela Proffitt catalyst Covert Results EO Accelerator eo nashville Operation Rose Robert Young

7 EO members explore the impact of core values

14 January, 2022

Contributed by Kym Huynh, an EO Melbourne member, EO Global Communications Committee member, and co-founder of WeTeachMe. Kym is fascinated by entrepreneurs and their journeys, so he asked EO members from various chapters to share their experiences. Read his earlier posts on what EO members wish non-entrepreneurs knew about entrepreneurs and how they define success.

In this third installment of Kym Huynh’s Leadership Toolkit series, Kym asked successful entrepreneurs from EO chapters around the world, “How important are values? How do you bring them alive in your business?” Here’s what they shared:

Never underestimate the power of simple words and simple ideas

When I took over my family business at age 25, my father’s advice to me were these three ideas: honesty, hard work and integrity. At the time, I considered them “not profound” due to their simplicity.

However, I find myself referring to and using them when I conduct staff interviews as they encapsulate the qualities we look for in team members. Those who don’t conform to these values aren’t a natural fit, and leave accordingly. These values are our guiding principles. I discovered that as time progressed, they become embodied in our mission statement.

— Ai-Ling Wong, EO Malaysia and founder of The Decorateur

Values help clarify ambiguous questions

I refer to values whenever I have a question in need of an answer, whether personal or business. Asking whether the matter-in-question is aligned with my values has more often than not answered questions that otherwise I was unable to answer with complete conviction.

When I first learned about the importance of values in the workplace, I thought that it was OK if a decision ticked three out of the five values boxes. I soon learned that if something does not tick all five boxes (assuming there are five values), then the answer is no— no matter how attractive it may seem or how many people try to convince me otherwise.

The importance of values is a lesson for which I will be forever grateful.

— Andrea Grisdale, EO Italy, founder and CEO at IC Bellagio 

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Categories: Company Culture Entrepreneurial Journey PEOPLE/STAFF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Tags: Ai-Ling Wong Ambisie Andrea Grisdale Connolly Owens david fastuca EO Atlantic Canada eo colorado EO Italy eo malaysia eo new zealand IC Bellagio Just Life Group Just Water keith roberts kym huynh locomote OAK Journal Ron Lovett The Decorateur Tony Falkenstein weteachme zenman

Women millionaire founders under 35: Three different journeys

12 January, 2022

Contributed by Libby Rothschild, EO New Jersey, the founder of Dietitian Boss, an online education and coaching platform that shows registered dietitians how to start, grow and scale a virtual private practice.

In photo, from left: Christine Yaged, Justine Tiu and Libby Rothschild.

Hitting the million-dollar mark isn’t easy—as every founder who has done so will tell you. Only 3 percent of women break US$1 million in annual revenues, and even fewer women founders hit that milestone before the age of 35. 

I rarely meet women who’ve reached the million-dollar milestone under the age of 35. In an effort to explore this topic, I tapped my network to find like-minded women founders and co-founders who fit this age criterion. I have gathered our experiences to share our best practices and inspire women of all ages that it’s possible to hit the million-dollar benchmark. 

1. Justine Tiu of The Woobles: $1 million in annual revenue at age 32

Justine Tiu co-founded a crochet kit company, The Woobles, with her husband. She describes her company as an e-commerce store that sells learn-to-crochet kits for complete beginners. Here’s what Justine shared:

“My co-founder (AKA my husband) and I started the business in 2020, and hit seven figures in revenue in under a year. The whole experience has been a whirlwind! 

“When we started The Woobles, we made every kit with our own four hands. We bought the supplies at retail stores, spent hours winding yarn balls on Sharpies, crocheted the first few stitches of every kit, and hand-stamped every bag.

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Categories: Entrepreneurial Journey WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Tags: 1000 Small businesses Christine Yaged Dietician Boss eo new jersey Forbes Business Council Goldman Sachs 10000 Small Businesses Justine Tiu Launch Potato Libby Rothschild The Woobles womentrepreneur YEC Young Entrepreneur Council

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