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Posts from the 'Microenterprises R Us' Category
May 21st, 2009 by Allen Voivod

We wanted to give NH microbiz owners the head’s up about this event, because we’ve been part of the 2007 and 2008 editions of this annual training day, and it’s always been tremendously beneficial. We’re certain this one will, be, too! Read on to learn more.
Howard Brodsky of CCA Global Partners will be the featured speaker at MicroCredit-NH’s “Entrepreneurial Exchange 2009: Connecting Tools, Techniques and Talents.” The annual small business training conference will be held on Thursday, May 28 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at SERESC, 29 Commerce Way, Bedford. Register here!
This year’s Entrepreneurial Exchange will focus on the effective use of technology to market businesses. Presentations will cover integrated marketing approaches, including sales, blogging, social and e-marketing.
Brodsky got his start in his family’s business, Dean’s Carpet in Manchester, after earning an economics degree from Wesleyan University. Dean’s quickly grew into one of the largest carpet stores in New England, but Brodsky had a still-larger vision.
The co-founder, chairman and co-chief executive officer of CCA Global Partners will be inducted with Alan Greenberg into the Cooperative Hall of Fame on May 6 in a formal ceremony in Washington, D.C. They are being honored for their vision 25 years ago of empowering and enriching entrepreneurs by creating a floor covering cooperative that would bring to owners of small businesses some of the market advantages that national chains enjoy.
Today, CCA is one of the largest cooperatives in the U.S., with 14 independent businesses in four countries and over 3,600 locations producing annual sales of $10.2 billion. And the business model that Brodsky and Greenberg developed – which includes ethical and environmental responsibility, along with sustainability and growth – has been adapted to numerous industries, markets and countries.
Following Brodsky’s address, Entrepreneurial Exchange attendees will turn their attention to the day’s featured workshop presenters: Christine Halvorson of Halvorson New Media, a blogging consultant who specializes in social media strategies, and Stephanie Jacques, Realtor and blogger for The Masiello Group, who conducts Social Media Marketing classes and workshops through Keene State College and the Hannah Grimes Center.
“Howard Brodsky’s story is one that every person with an entrepreneurial heartbeat should hear,” said MicroCredit-NH Director David Hamel of the keynote speaker. “And if you’ve been wondering what this new world of social media has to do with your business, you won’t want to miss what our two presenters have to offer.”
Pre-registration is required. Fee is $55 ($45 for MicroCredit-NH members) and includes the price of lunch and refreshments. To register or for more information, visit www.microcreditnh.org’s registration service, or call MicroCredit-NH at (800) 769-3482.
MicroCredit-NH is a program of the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, Inc., a statewide non-profit organization headquartered in Concord. To accomplish its mission of increasing the income and economic stability of microbusinesses and the self-employed, MicroCredit-NH provides business development programming, loan capital up to $15,000, and expanded marketing and networking opportunities. MicroCredit-NH delivers its services through local business groups of self-employed individuals and small business owners.
Since program inception in 1996, MicroCredit-NH has loaned more than $1 million to New Hampshire’s entrepreneurs. MicroCredit-NH is generously supported by the Citizens Bank Foundation, NH Community Development Finance Authority, the Community Development Block Grant Program, the Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, among others, and is endorsed by all New Hampshire County Commissions.
Posted in Microenterprises R Us, Social Marketing, Tools to "A-Ha Yourself!" | No Comments »
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February 26th, 2009 by Allen Voivod
We’ve mentioned once or twice that we’ve been members of MicroCredit-NH since 2006, and how much the organization has helped us on our journey as small-biz owners in our big little state. Well, they just recently released a video through their parent organization’s YouTube Channel that features a number of members talking about the concrete benefits and results they’ve experienced in the program.
They’ve just re-structured their services in a new and exciting way for 2009, so have a look at the video, then check out their site to learn more. (Hey - I’m even on their homepage! I’m the guy in the red shirt in the “What’s New” section - that photo’s from a breakout session I led at their 2008 Entrepreneurial Exchange. I didn’t even know they’d put that up there until today…)
(And see if you can spot Lani - she’s in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it shot at the very beginning, when the word “Networking” appears onscreen.)
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February 10th, 2009 by Allen Voivod
I say “pseudo” because this is being written after the fact, in the comfort of my kitchen, with the baby asleep and Lani ‘n Joe on Gunstock Mountain, taking advantage of the town Parks & Rec. cheap skiing program. Ahh, the quiet.
So there we were, two married-with-biz pros among the crowd of 120-odd small business owners on hand for three sessions put on by the NH Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the BIA (”New Hampshire’s State Chamber of Commerce”).We were there because I was included on the third and final session, “Sustaining Your Business in Challenging Times” (more on that later.
After an opening speech by NH Gov. John Lynch (that’s him up there - guess we should have sat closer!) in which he promised to veto any attempt to institute a sales tax or income tax in order to balance the budget, the opening panel featured Republican and Democratic leaders from both houses of the NH Legislature.
In all honesty, we’ve been pretty disconnected from political stuff going on in the state, and how it might affect our lives and business since we moved here. Some of the topics weren’t too suprising - health care expenses are a huge issue here, as they are everywhere. Labor issues - particularly the use of inmates in correctional facilities and the retention of young workers post-college graduation - were new to us, and absolutely fascinating.
NH Senate Republican Leader Peter Bragdon served up the first big softball of the day for us by telling the assembled group, “When things slow down, that’s the time you increase your marketing…the company that scales back in tough times finds that tough times get tougher even faster.”
Session 2 featured the tag team of Dawn Wivell, who’s the Director of a department name is longer than your arm (take a deep breath and say it with me): The NH Office of International Commerce and the NH International Trade Resource Center; and Justin Oslowski, Director of the (federal) US Department of Commerece Export Assistance Center. (And hey - the new Secretary of Commerce is Judd Gregg, former Senator from NH - go Granite State!) Apparently it’s a rare thing to see state and federal agencies working together as well as Dawn and Justin do, and even on stage they seem to have a great dynamic together.
They also brought with them John Sutton of Dartware and Kate Kaplan of ALPCO as two case studies for how small businesses can successfully export their goods and services from NH to the world.
Finally, session 3. The panel I was on also included Andrea O’Brien, Environmental Program Manager for the SBDC, and Jim Pratt, a commerical lender for First Colebrook Bank here in NH. NH SBDC State Director Mary Collins moderated the panel.
Andrea talked about the three engines that make up a sustainable business (read: one that not only survives, but thrives while being mindful of the environment as a value, and not just to appease regulators), one of which is Social - including community relations, image/PR, and reputation. Jim, in his list of the top three things to share, emphasized that you can’t stop marketing - how else will anyone know you’re still in business?
All of which was great fodder for me to add in on the fly, as I talked about my top three for businesses looking to ramp up their marketing:
1. Getting on the big 3 social networks this year, or risk getting left behind (2009 being the year of the Great Social Divide, after all
2. Having more FUN with your marketing, whatever that looks like to you (because the only effective marketing is the marketing that actually gets done).
3. Giving of your time, knowledge, and expertise, in ways that also show clients, customers, and prospects how they can keep working with you, taking advantage of your services, and help your business grow no matter what the economy looks like.
We met a bunch of great people at the event, and I have to thank Heidi Edward Dunn, the Education Program Coordinator for the NH SBDC for having us at the event, and Kevin Skarritt at Acorn Creative, who put the bug in Heidi’s ear about us as possible speakers (albeit for a different event).
Posted in "A-Ha!" NH, Fun With Marketing, Microenterprises R Us | 1 Comment »
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February 6th, 2009 by Allen Voivod
We’re really looking forward to the 4th Annual Small Business Day at the State House next week (which isn’t exactly at the state house, but close enough for government work). We’ve been working with the awesome Heidi Edwards Dunn, who coordinates the statewide entrepreneurial education program for the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center, including this event. Here’s the official press release with all the details!
Durham – The New Hampshire Small Business Development Center (NH SBDC), an outreach program of the UNH Whittemore School of Business and Economics, will host a panel at the 4th Annual Small Business Day at the State House, Tuesday, February 10th, 7:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., Holiday Inn, Concord, NH, presented in conjunction with the NH Business and Industry Association. Sustaining Your Business in Challenging Times will offer expertise and practical information for small businesses struggling to stay afloat in this economy.
Panelists include Andrea O’Brien, Environmental Management Program Manager, NH SBDC; James Pratt, Commercial Lending, First Colebrook Bank; Allen Voivod, co-owner, Epiphanies, Inc., with moderator Mary Collins, State Director, NH SBDC. A Toolkit for Sustainability will be available to each person attending Small Business Day.
“NH SBDC is continually looking for ways to help New Hampshire businesses be sustainable,” remarks Mary Collins, NH SBDC State Director. “For example, our e-Learning for Entrepreneurs program utilizes today’s technology to provide knowledge, tools, and resources for the state’s business owners. In this uncertain economy it is even more important that businesses statewide have access 24/7 to management assistance that will help strengthen their firm’s bottom line.”
Sponsored by Public Service of New Hampshire, Small Business Day is an opportunity for small business owners and managers to meet New Hampshire’s top policy-makers, learn more about legislative issues that could affect companies’ bottom lines, and receive valuable information about tools to help companies grow and prosper.
Governor John Lynch is scheduled to offer opening remarks. Senate President Sylvia Larsen, Senate Republican Leader Peter Bragdon, House Speaker Terie Norelli and House Republican Leader Sherm Packard are scheduled to participate on the State Leadership Panel.
Never Too Small to Export, presented by Dawn Wivell, director of the NH International Trade Resource Center, will help small business owners will learn why exporting may be an option for their business and cost – effective ways to get started.
The NH Small Business Development Center provides confidential business management consulting and educational programs to New Hampshire’s small businesses. The NH SBDC is the only NH agency that has full-time certified business advisors providing one-on-one, long-term, management consulting to small businesses. NH SBDC is a cooperative venture with the U.S. Small Business Administration, the State of New Hampshire (DRED), the University System of New Hampshire, and the private sector. For more info on NH SBDC, visit www.nhsbdc.org.
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February 5th, 2009 by Allen Voivod
If you’re an entrepreneur who comes from a corporate background, and you want to improve your business, or if you’re planning to take the leap and want to start out on the right foot, here’s your chance to learn from the experiences (and mistakes!) of others just like you. It’s the Corporate Entrepreneurs Unplugged TeleSummit, taking place Tuesdays and Thursdays, February 10 - March 19, 10 am PST/1 pm EST.
It’s being thrown by Sherri Garrity and Marcia Hoeck, and they’ve got a fabulous roster lined up, including: Pamela Slim, Michael Gerber, Naomi Dunford, Michael Port, Marie Forleo, James Roche, Gina & Stephen Bell, Elizabeth Potts Weinstein, Melanie Benson Strick and Alicia Forest.
I joined the preview call they held earlier today, and what follows are my notes from the call!
Sherri and Marcia met at Ali Brown’s OSBW, and had an instant connection. They have similar businesses - corporate communications and marketing. Complementary specialties - change management, team building.
They say there’s a difference between lifelong entrepreneurs and peeps who escape corporate for the entrepreneurial lifestyle…and a complete mindshift that needs to happen in that latter set. Especially when it can seem like you escape the corporate world just to create another “job” for yourself. And coming straight out of academia to entrepreneurship creates its own set of issues.
The series is designed to provide positive role models of people who have left corporate and succeeded, and/or serve corporate escapees and do so with a business that doesn’t also work them to death.
Top three reasons why people leave their corporate positions:
- Control - because you have little or no control in a corporate position…
- Security - corporate provides a false sense of security…
- Money - there’s a cap on what you make in a corporate position, and none on your own business!
And here, the main focus of the preview call, are the seven biggest mistakes corporate people make when starting/working their own businesses.
1. Thinking that being good at what you do is the basis for a business. You have to have a market, and people looking for what you have to offer - who can pay for it! - before you can make a go of it. “Starving customers,” as James Roche put it once.
2. Thinking that you can do it all by yourself. You come out of corporate and think you want to ditch everyone, keep it simple, go it alone. And what happens is you plateua in your energy, your lifestyle, and your income, because you can’t leverage your specific abilities. You can have employees, a virtual team, contract for services…there’s more than one way to compound the math of the productivity.
3.Thinking that you can keep yourself on track. You’re so used to the structure of your organization that it feels like you’re throwing off the shackles. And while it can be thrilling to be free of that, it can also be difficult to know what to focus on, and support yourself when you’re the boss and have no pre-ordained structure to rely upon. Mastermind groups help here, too!
4. Thinking that you need to get people’s approval. Nothing is further from the truth. As an entrepreneur, nobody’s there to push you, to tell you what’s right or wrong. It can be very liberating or very lonely, or both at different times! Sometimes there’s an adjustment period to getting stuff OUT THERE without five levels of approval, and the stakes are higher when you represent yourself instead of someone else’s company. Also, even with a team, no one cares as passionately about it as you do. And friends and family aren’t the people to rely upon for advice necessarily, so you have to learn to trust yourself and put a good support system in place.
5. Not continuing to learn. In corporate, all you have to do is your job. If you need education for your job, the company sets it up, and you just show up. When you’re on your own, it’s easy to get caught up working in your business and not on it. You don’t break out of their routines to learn something new, and that’s true of successful AND not-so-successful businesses. And then you find yourself falling behind. Instead, you need to work on your business and yourself - and not just in your field. It’s also learning about marketing, leadership, self-improvement, you name it! In a survey of 200 Chief Marketing Officers, 6 of the top 10 things they’re looking for in new hires relates to knowledge of Web 2.0 and community-building strategies.
6. Not knowing what you really want. Especially if you do in your business what you did in your corporate career. If you don’t, you end up doing things that work well for other industries, or other business models, and it’s not on a path that YOU want to be on. The guests of this series saw their success take off when they tapped in to what they really wanted, found something that aligned with what their market wanted, and found a way to leverage it beyond working 1-on-1. Eight of the 10 interviewees in this unplugged series are women with kids at home, and four of them have kids under five years old.
7. Thinking it has to be “perfect.” Get out and try it, even if it isn’t “perfect” yet. You’ve got to move quickly and get things started, and that’s a better way anyway. The longer you wait, the more you worry, the more you second-guess, the more you let fear in and let fear breed even more fear. “It’s easier to direct the troops once they start moving.” –General Norman Schwartzkopf. The Zigzag Principle: Success never takes a straight line. - -James Roche. Jack Canfield gives the example of driving at night - you can only see a couple hundred yards ahead of you at any time with your headlights, but you can drive all the way across the country that way.
Please consider checking out this great event - it looks like it’ll be incredible, and Sherri and Marcia are donating a portion of the proceeds to Kiva.org, the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world. Their work, though international, is similar in mission to a group we’re members of, MicroCredit-NH. So we can totally get behind it. We’ve already signed up for the Telesummit, and hope you will, too!
Posted in Call in the Coach, Dances With Gurus, Entrepreneur Diaries, Microenterprises R Us | No Comments »
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January 30th, 2009 by Lani and Allen
We’re just coming off a great teleconference with Steve Boucher, whose official title is “Communications and Legislative Director” for the NH Division of Economic Development, which includes the NH Business Resource Center and is the agency behind NHEconomy.com.
That straight-laced description belies a creative mind. Steve’s main focus is to show savvy business owners the powerful reasons why NH is the best place to produce and profit. Limos, motorcycle sidecars, Segways (and even a failed attempt to use roller-derby girls in an ad campaign for BusinessNH Magazine) are just a few of Steve’s outside-the-box strategies to grab the attention of his Ideal Audience.
It’s a thrill and a joy to find someone like Steve working within a government agency (he’s been with them for nine years now). And to the agency’s credit, Steve says his bosses have been very supportive of his unconventional media visibility tactics.
After our conversation today - which covered a lot of ground in time that seemed to fly way too fast - Steve graced us with this:
“I’m sick as a dog, but this is the best meeting I’ve had all month.”
We feel the same way, Steve! (Except not the “sick as a dog” part. We’re as healthy as Tom Cruise on Oprah’s couch, knock on wood.) So we put this together with AhaBizVideo.com for you…
As we learn more and more about what’s available — and possible! — in this small-but-spunky state, we’re blown away by the biz boosting resources waiting to be discovered and put to work for innovative biz owners. Not the least of which are the great people in these state buildings, working their butts off to pump up the economy and enhance the lives of its residents and business owners.
As Steve says, “This isn’t your grandma’s state government agency.” Thank goodness for that.
Posted in "A-Ha!" NH, "A-Ha!" TV, Agents of Karma, Microenterprises R Us | No Comments »
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January 7th, 2009 by Lani Voivod
I just left a comment over at the Small Biz Bee’s blog, where they said the only piece of advice a business owner may ever need is this:
“Keep doing what you’ve always done and you’ll keep getting what you’ve always got.”
In the interest of multitasking my time and content, I’m sharing my comment here:
Thanks for the post. You know, I was just talking to my good friend Lisa Steadman (an amazing author, relationship coach, and solo-preneur in her own right), and we were talking about the comfort zone thing. Lisa and I realized we both “suffer” from a split personality issue that many entrepreneurs likely share. It’s a battle between our BOLD, FEARLESS selves and that squeamish, sulking, other self.
Seems like whenever the cranky, complacent one looks the other way, the BOLD, FEARLESS personality makes all these plans, promises, and proclaimations. They’re all super ambitious, scary, and completely unreasonable to a normal person.
Then that comparatively lazy, ambivilant personality realizes what the other has done, and is forced to step up and fulfill the plans and promises, despite a raging resistence to the whole darn matter.
It’s a constant inner battle between these two personalities — the one who’d be fine doing what she’s always done, and the one who absolutely hails the message you write in your blog post.
The ultimate battle cry from that incorrigible BOLD, FEARLESS persona:
“REACH! GROW! LEAP! TAKE CHANCES! FAIL, FAIL, AND TRY AGAIN! EXPERIMENT! And most importantly…GET OUT OF THAT DANG COMFORT ZONE!!!”
Sometimes she’s exausting, but for the most part, Lisa and I agreed we’re VERY lucky to have her on our team, or we’d never get anywhere.
May you, too, be *blessed* with a similar split personality disorder that shoves you out of your comfort zone and into a fuller, richer, more inspired life.
Posted in Entrepreneur Diaries, Microenterprises R Us | No Comments »
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October 20th, 2008 by Lani Voivod
SARK ((Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy) has been a HUGE influence on who I am, my capacity for creative thinking, and my appreciation for living, nurturing, and tuning into a more “succulent, bodacious, juicy” life, to crib a few of her favorite words. SARK has been a transformative teacher and leader for over twenty-five years, has written and created 15 best-selling books (and hundreds of products!), and is the founder and CEO of Planet SARK, her company that creates products and services to support empowered living.
I just came across one of her posters on her Amazon blog about “How to Relax About Money.” She wrote and published this little inspiration message way back in 1990, and is sharing it now because of all the current wackiness with our economy. I thought it was good to share here, especially in light of the fact that Al and I are about to do Session 2 of our 3-part teleseminar series, “How to Recession-Proof Your Business,” tomorrow at 1pm.
Tomorrow’s session is “Desperate Times, Desperate Marketing?: 4 Bad Marketing Habits You Gotta Break Now, PLUS 4 Keys to Breaking Them.”
(Can you join us? To show up live or get all three of the MP3 recordings and “Cheat Sheets” to cruise ‘n peruse at your convenience, register here. To read the press release and learn more about the teleseminar event, go here.)
So, without further ado…click here to see Sark’s awesome poster and associated blog post. (I had the image below, but a kind assistant from Sark’s camp asked me to remove it, which of course I did immediately. Sorry, Planet Sark! Won’t happen again. I love you guys and am very embarrassed. My most sincere apologies.)
And RELAX. It’s all going to be OK. Really. It is.
Posted in Call in the Coach, Microenterprises R Us, Mood Boosters | 2 Comments »
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August 28th, 2008 by Allen Voivod
Thanks to the fab folks at Acorn Creative for freshening our WordPress blog with an injection of new code! (Okay, so they updated us to the latest version - I’m stretching out the metaphor well beyond what it was made for.)
And here’s the photos I promised, of me working on a client’s online marketing strategy in the Kokatosi game room…

…and our campsite. After I packed it in and left the game room, Lani and I went out in a two-person kayak and had our weekly business meeting on the lake, drifting as close as possible to the loons floating and diving in the water.
Ah, business. Ain’t it grand?

Posted in Married - With Business, Microenterprises R Us | No Comments »
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June 14th, 2008 by Lani Voivod
Social media. Social networking. Facebook. LinkedIn. MySpace. Ryze. Zaadz (or is it Gaia?). Twitter. Friends. Colleagues. Contacts. Invitations. Clubs. Connections. Communities. Networks. Events. Winks. Tags. Walls…
Anyone else confounded by the whole world of online networking hubs?
Wouldn’t it be nice to connect with real, live, breathing professionals who share similar goals and interests while still remembering to HAVE FUN?!!! (Cuz really, if you’re not having fun while you’re pursuing your passions, building your business, or creating your life, what’s the point?)
I’ve struggled to stay awake at various chambers of commerce meetings from DC to LA to Laconia, NH. I’ve noshed rubbery chicken and flavorless pasta dishes at networking events in and around Boston. I’ve been searching for “My Peeps” for a while now, and had pretty much given up the quest.
Until last month, when I hit the 1st anniversary celebration of Women Inspiring Women (WIW), a “networking and development” group that’s growing like gangbusters in membership and reputation throughout NH’s Lakes Region…and the state of NH, too.
Maybe it was as simple as the dozens of pink boas strewn around the tables and displays. (That alone made me giddy.) Or perhaps it was Powerhouse Consulting’s Kathleen Peterson and her keynote speech, “From 34B to 40D…One Woman’s Journey,” in which hard-won tips on personal branding were interspersed with tales from the menopause trenches and the pitfalls of wearing Spanx.
Or maybe, just maybe, it was the the fact that I was greeted with genuine warmth and enthusiasm by everyone, including FABULOUS founder and president Leslie Sturgeon, Career Sparks’ Michelle Whitenack, Edward Jones’ Katie Laux, and so many others.
No one assessed my nametag, shoved a business card in my face, and went off to the next victim…er, I mean, target. No one looked like they were being tortured, or like they overdosed on Lunesta. (Conversely, no one looked like Charo on the Love Boat, either, which can happen at some women-dominant events.)
It just felt like a fit. I kept thinking to myself, “I belong here.” That’s a good feeling, especially in this time of impersonal digital blast networking gone wild. (Thousands of friends? Really?)
This month’s meeting — a lunch soiree featuring Certified Image Consultant Susan Osborne of Be Image Consulting — hit all the right notes, too: Relevant, engaging, well-attended, useful, interesting, unstuffy, and FUN. I gave them my membership dues with gusto, and I’m already looking forward to the next inspired batch of panel discussions, socials, programs, and roundtables.
For a professional gal who’s short on time and always on the look out for personal and professional support and success strategies, I feel insanely lucky that Leslie Sturgeon decided to launch her brainchild up in our neck of the woods. Thanks, Leslie! I’m psyched to be on the WIW team, and can’t wait to learn, blossom, laugh, and grow with you and the rest of the pink boa-wearing power players.
***Hey — if you’re a chick doing biz or playing with your passions in NH, I highly encourage you to come join the party!***
P.S. Need a reminder of what networking’s all about? Check out this article, “The 1-2-3 of Successful Business Networking,” from Career-Resumes.com (for which my dear hubby serves as Chief Blogger).
Posted in Masterminding, Microenterprises R Us | 1 Comment »
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