North San Diego Business@Large

I had a chance to sit down with Toni Padron at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce to discuss how the Chamber can benefit solopreneurs.

One of the things I learned was that the Chamber offers a 90 Day Guarantee on their memberships. I believe that every small business owner should support their local Chamber and now, with a 90 day guarantee how can you pass up that offer?

Toni was recovering from a cold, so I want to thank her for braving my questions. So, tell me….how does the Chamber benefit your business? Please add to the conversation by commenting below!

As businesses throughout San Diego and San Diego County face increasing challenges and seek solutions for navigating economic uncertainty, the San Diego North Chamber of Commerce will begin a dialogue that will seek to underscore the impact of economic and social factors on businesses large and small. With a new twist on a traditional event, the Chamber will present “The State of a New Community 2008” Luncheon on April 3, 2008.

“The definition of ‘community’ is rapidly evolving beyond geographical borders and is incorporating an understanding of socio-economic issues as well,” says Michael Robinson, president and CEO, San Diego North Chamber of Commerce. “This dialogue will help set the course for North San Diego businesses and organizations to become stronger, more successful and aware of the impact regional issues may have in the future.”

Robinson will moderate a panel discussion featuring an eclectic group of regional leaders, each offering a unique perspective on what “community” means from their vantage point. The panel will consist of San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders; Cami Mattson, president and CEO, San Diego North Convention and Visitors Bureau; Bella Huele, president and CEO, San Diego World Trade Center; and Brent Altomare, president, Groovy Like A Movie, a San Diego-based new media company.

“Important local issues, trade and tourism, and even the notion of new media and virtual communities will be part of this important conversation,” continued Robinson. “With no doubt, everyone who attends this luncheon will leave with a better understanding of how ‘community’ in the 21st Century can translate into a competitive advantage for their business in today’s economy.”

The San Diego North Chamber of Commerce’s State of a New Community event will be held at the San Diego Doubletree Golf Resort, 14455 Penasquitos Drive in the San Diego community of Rancho Penasquitos. Doors open at 11:00 a.m. for networking with colleagues. Lunch and formal program begin at 12:00 p.m. Tickets are $65 for SDNCC members, $75 for non-member guests. Visit the San Diego North Chamber of Commerce web site at www.sdncc.com, e-mail events@sdncc.com or call 858-487-1767 for more information or to reserve seats.

ABOUT THE SAN DIEGO NORTH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
The San Diego North Chamber of Commerce is the third-largest chamber in San Diego County representing 1,000 member businesses along the I-15 Corridor. Through its programs, services and events, the SDNCC ensures sustainable prosperity. For more information, please visit www.sdncc.com.

How would you like to have your content delivered daily to your prospects desktop? What would that mean to the success of your business? Dianna Arreola of Core Specialties shares how you can reach out to your prospects, motivate and reward your employees, and strengthen the core of your business with a variety of programs.

After listening to this 10 minute interview, I’d love to hear how you are using new technology to reach your prospects and strengthen the core of your business! Please leave a comment!!

Currently Dianna is reading, The Carrot Principle: How the Best Managers Use Recognition to Engage Their Employees, Retain Talent, and Drive Performance by Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton. The Carrot Principle illustrates that the relationship between recognition and improved business results is highly predictable–it’s proven to work. But it’s not the employee recognition some of us have been using for years. It is recognition done right, recognition combined with four other core traits of effective leadership.

Maybe if you read this book, you won’t have to worry about your employees suing you. If you didn’t read the book, and your employees are thinking about suing you, check out the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce’s First Friday Breakfast April 1st.

It’s been reported that one out of four private employers has been sued by employees. What steps can you take to sty out of such legal disputes? Would you know what to do if an employee sues you?

The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring it’s First Friday Breakfast, Friday April 4th. The Chamber’s current Chairman of the Board, Lou Storrow, will discuss six ways to avoid being sued by employees. Storrow is a business and employment attorney in Carlsbad. He has advised and represented clients in business and employment matters since 1988.

It’s a great networking event, so come and meet other small business owners in Carlsbad. Make sure to look for me!!

When was the last time you asked a customer/client for a referral? So many times I hear that as a business owner it is uncomfortable asking for a referral. Yet last week I listened to three rookie insurance/financial advisors talk about how they began their businesses and what were the important keys that have made them successful. Asking for a referral was right up on top. Your current customers can be your best influences on prospective clients. So what can you do to break through the "discomfort" of asking for the name of someone they know that could use your product or service?

If you had to guess, what percentage of people are visually oriented: that is, they need to see something before buying it - you know they need to drive a car, feel the material of a suit/dress or preview a house before purchasing it? More then 95% of people are visual consumers. So how do you a service provider create this opportunity?

Why not start with a testimonial from a client who has had a very positive experience working with you? How many times have you heard, "I don’t know how to thank you"? That is the perfect time to ask them to put their gratitude in writing. Testimonials can become part of your powerful arsenal for opening the door to new prospects. Something magical happens when you read those testimonials, a special relationship develops with that customer opening the door to relaxing the "discomfort" of taking the next step and asking for referrals.

Testimonials should be used in all of your promotional materials, they can be developed into case studies that you can verbally convey when someone asks, "how do you do that?". Testimonials are one of the most effective and powerful strategies, they create an air of credibility for your business and gives you confidence when approaching new prospects.

The Challenge: Review your marketing strategy and begin asking for testimonials! Let us know if you have any concerns.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams. Visit Mind Masters for a meeting location near you and start on your path to business success.

The San Diego Special Edition is a collection of posts from San Diego Bloggers. Visiting the site, you’ll find posts on business (my interview with Sheila McDonnell), the economy, lifestyle…some great St. Patrick’s Day posts, and of course, sports.

Carol Lane published the Special Edition the 15th of each month. If you are a San Diego Blogger, then you should check Carol’s site. This is what we call, spreading the link love.

The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce is holding it’s business networking Sundowner this Wednesday evening, March 19th at the new Sheraton Resort at the top of Cannon, just between Faraday and Legoland.

We were there for the First Friday Breakfast and it’s a beautiful resort with a spectacular view. This promises to be a well attended event. If you need any tips on how to work a mixer, check out the Leads Club blog, where networking expert Lisa Bentson posts tips on business networking.

Of course, I’ll be there.  Just look for "that hat lady."  See you Wednesday evening. Bring plenty of cards!!

It’s Friday. I’m off to the Score Women’s Breakfast to network with 150 other women. If you aren’t there, you are really missing a great event. Check out Score’s website for information on the May breakfast.

Given it’s the end of the week, I wanted to share a new screen cleaning product. It’s my advice you go out and purchase one of these "green" products for your home office. You won’t regret it. This is a great product. Enjoy!! And…let me know what you think of this screen cleaner. I guarantee it’s completely environmentally friendly.

See you around town!!

I recently had the opportunity to meet with Mindy Selinger, Power Partner Connections and The Link System, to talk about business networking. This is the perfect time to hone your networking skills. The Four Chamber mixer is coming to Tri City Hospital on April 17th.

Mindy also publishes the San Diego Networking Guide, which I strongly recommend you sign up for, given she covers approximately 200 networking events each month. You’ll be "in the know" with the San Diego Networking Guide.  She’s also a WordPress.com user, which I love. Her San Diego Networking Blog is a good read. Check it out.

Here’s the interview.  Join the conversation by commenting below. How do you network?

This is the audio from the webinar held Monday, March 10th in my virtual conference room. This was the first of a two part series on business blogs. In this audio I discussed what a blog is and how it’s different from a traditional html website. I also showed different ways of incorporating blogs into your business strategy. They can be the perfect compliment to your existing website.

As always, please feel free to leave your comments below.