Add Some SPARK to your business on May 24th!

Calling all Philly Entreps and Business Owners:  Don’t miss our favorite conference and networking event of the year- SPARK!

Monday, May 24th, 2010 at The Hub Cira Centre

Spark is an interactive entrepreneurial conference that focuses on helping entrepreneurs grow their business, develop vital relationships and take away valuable insights from educational workshops. The conference has two parts; the morning session which consists of educational workshops and networking, while the afternoon is the opportunity for several entrepreneurs to pitch their business in front of an esteemed panel of successful entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture consultants and experienced advisers.

Check out this great video from last year‘s event!

SPARK 2009

Check out the day’s schedule here: http://sparknetworking.com/agenda.php

Read more

Networking and Coworking Days for 2010

2010 is off to a great start, with entrepreneurship on the rise and the strength of building a networking community being of utmost importance in our society.  As business owners and entrepreneurs, we are constantly forced to evolve our businesses to stay ahead of the curve  and remain competitive.

If you are committed to evolving your business in 2010, coworking is for you.  Coworking is a great way to get a change of scenery from your home or corporate office and hang in the presence of some of Philly’s brightest entreps.  Our group brings together the open share of ideas and the strengthening of the entrepreneurial community here in Philadelphia across all industries.  Our meetup days are informal and a great way to share your business concept, make connections, get some work done on your laptop, grab a bite to eat, and gain new perspectives.

EE Coworking and Networking Days are here to stay in 2010! We will be working from various wifi spots throughout the city once a month on the second Thursday of each month.  We’ve had a great turnout at all of our events.  Check out some of our coworkers in our quickie vlog post:  http://www.watchuslaunch.com/

Please join us for our next coworking day!

Date: Friday, April 30th, 2010 starting at 10am.

Come and go as you please, but we will be grabbing some food and doing business introductions at 1:00pm

Location: Chapter House Cafe
620 South 9th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19147

Be sure to RSVP here.

Then please tweet that you will be attending, or just follow all of our participant tweets using #EECoworking.

Entrepreneur’s Entourage sponsors Entrepreneur Expo 2010

There has never been a time like the present to start your own business and become successful at what you do best.  Entrepreneurship is hot right now.  You can major in it at college, you can be your own boss, and you can dictate your own future in this troublesome economy.

We find that our business is starting to lean more towards those wanting to get the word out about their venture, or grow their existing business.  Some of the major ways we help these clients is by providing internet marketing campaigns, social media management, research and sales strategy development, website design, and branding.

One great way to get the word out about your business is to network and embrace your local entrepreneurial community.  We are doing just that by sponsoring and attending the upcoming Entrepreneur Expo on April 13th in Philadelphia.  The Expo will have over 200 attendees as well as 3-4 dozen vendors all taking about their passions and dreams!  Not only will we be there to share how our business can help others grow, but we will also be giving away a great tool for growing your business and branding – a Flip video camera! Our custom designed Flip Mino video camera prize will help you start vlogging and recording all your business successes!  So make sure to stop by our booth, share your business ideas, and enter to win the coolest Flip on the market!

More details on the Philadelphia Entrepreneur Expo 2010:

Philly Startup Leaders present The Entrepreneur Expo – Innovation on Display – April 13, 2010 at University of the Arts. This is a showcase of work by entrepreneurs and the entrepreneurial community. If you’re an entrepreneur, you will be able to talk about your work and hear about the work of others. If you’re interested in new ideas, new business plans, the uses of new technology, or are simply curious about the creative energy in this region, you’ll have a chance to see and meet those beginning to make a difference.

April 13, 2010 6 pm – 9 pm Solmsson Court, Hamilton Hall University of the Arts Pine & Broad

Get excited about the future. Get excited about the entrepreneurial spirit of Philadelphia. Come to the Entrepreneur Expo. Come and see tomorrow, today.

https://philly-startup-leaders.ticketleap.com/entrepreneur-expo-2010-04-13-2010-18-0

Baby Amaya Contest!

• Review posts below (first come, first serve!)  One bet permitted per person.
• Enter your bet for baby’s delivery date (ETA 3/3/10!)
• Enter your bet for baby’s birth weight (typically this is 5.0- 9.0 lbs)- don’t forget to include the ounces!  Reference the latest pic of Cheryl to ensure accuracy! —> —>
  
• If you’d like, enter a quick wish for Cheryl, Avery and baby along with your post
• Post them as a comment below for a chance to win BIG!

We will announce both winners once the baby arrives, and you will have 6 months from delivery to cash in your 25% off prize on any of our packages!

Note- prize is transferable (makes a great gift!)

Do You Love What You Do?– If Not, Get Inspired by Coworking!

With Valentines Day just around the corner, we all have *l-o-v-e* on our minds.  Whether you’re busy planning your weekend away with that special someone, or planning a night out with friends; Valentine’s Day represents a special time of year where we can reflect on all the loves of our lives, and what better way to do that than attend an EE Coworking and Networking Day in Philadelphia!

Given our hectic work schedules and commitment to a work-life balance,  it’s hard to argue that our work which takes up at least 40 hours per week of our lives, is not a major part of who we are.  If you are one, sitting miserably in your cubicle right now, reading this blog post, watching the clock tick down to 5:00 (hey, we’ve all been there!), then this post is for you!

Do you love what you do? Does it wake you up in the morning and motivate you through the day?  Do you feel a sense of pride and accomplishment in your work?  Do you have a great idea, but does the fear of going out on your own and forging your own way seem out of reach?

I’m here (as proof) to tell you that it’s possible!  If that’s not enough, come out and witness other local entrepreneurial dynamos in action! Bring a laptop, or a notebook and come meet and interact with folks who are working their butts off to make their vision for their business a reality.  Come pick our brains, and share your ideas and hear war stories about how we’ve worked to turn a vision into a reality.

The next Philly Coworking and Networking Day will be held on Friday, February 12, 2010 at the TBar on 12th and Sansom.

Take the day off from your cube and commute and come cowork and network with some of Philly’s brightest entrepreneurs and small business owners.  There’s no dress code, and no rules; just a group of people spending a few hours of their day getting some work done, collaborating on their thoughts, having a good laugh and truly loving what they do.

Come join us on Friday and get inspired.. we’d L-O-V-E to see you!

Philadelphia is an Entrepreneur’s Haven

We recently found out that Philadelphia was not on the list of cities to be featured in Fast Company Magazine’s Shine section.  Immediately all of us at the networking event were shocked and then very interested in learning how we can get involved to get Philly on the list!  Thanks to Innovation Philadelphia we were provided with the email address to send our thoughts along.  Here is part of what we shared.  We hope many of your entrepreneurs out there feel the same way and will share your thoughts.

“I came to Philadelphia 4 years ago when my job as a magazine publisher moved me here.  As part of a large west coast media company I did not get very involved in my community and neighborhood within Philadelphia for networking.  But, when I left the magazine a year ago and decided to start my own company with a local friend, I was immediately embraced by the community and exposed to the limitless opportunities for networking, support, and social marketing.  We couldn’t imaging running our virtual company, Entrepreneur’s Entourage, from anywhere else.  We have been able to provide our clients with great services like web design, branding, internet marketing, research, copywriting, and project management by including so many of Philly’s talented entrepreneurs and free-lance consultants on our team of professionals.

There are many more reasons why my partner and I have found great success with our new business as a result of being located in Philadelphia.  There is a networking group and business development group for every type of start up.  There are great places to work from that are either coworking offices or just meetups or jelly sessions at one of the numerous coffee shops throughout the city with free wifi.  There are also new entrepreneurs emerging every week in this area that are looking for assistance in getting their business moving forward!

Our top Universities excel in providing programs and opportunities for entrepreneurs and start up companies alike.  The University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University both have entrepreneurial clinics and offer many services to our community out of their Small Business Development Center.  Another great resource that my partner and I have been invited into is the entrepreneurial clinic at the University of Pennsylvania Legal Clinic.  Each year graduating seniors work with companies in the area to help meet their legal needs pro bono.  We were able to utilize the clinic to form our partnership agreement as well as help negotiate some business documents.

Many think of Philadelphia as industrial, dated and a little on the maniacal side when it comes to sports fans; but in reality, our city has only been on the up and up with making our neighborhoods green and eco-friendly, providing accessible resources for small businesses to launch, and providing better services for our budding entrepreneurs.  Plus, what’s a city with a World Champion sports team without a few die hard fans!”

Help us send a message to set a new precedent to put Philly on the map as one of the leading cities cultivating entrepreneurial activities!

Evolve Your Biz Through Coworking in 2010!

Happy New Year to all! As we look back over 2009 and look forward to 2010 a great mantra comes to mind- Rather than creating a list of “resolutions” that quickly fade away (and leave us with deflated egos!), decide to evolve instead! As business owners and entrepreneurs, we are constantly forced to evolve our businesses to stay ahead of the curve and remain competitive.  Evolution is simply that- change over time.

What better way to focus on your biz evolutions than to spend the day working side by side with like-minded entrepreneurs! Coworking is a great way to get a change of scenery from your home (or bland corporate) office and hang in the presence of some of Philly’s brightest entreps. Share ideas, make connections and gain new perspectives- all of which are limited by the confines of your isolated cube!

Coworking is at it’s core about reciprocity- The mutual or cooperative interchange of favors or privileges; i.e., you give, you get. Your ideas and hindsight 20/20 reflections on lessons learned can translate across industries to help other professionals (new or veteran). In turn, those same peers have perspectives to share from their unique experiences that can help you as you work on your own business. This organic approach to business development promotes the open share of ideas with the common goal of improving all of our businesses in a collaborative process.

If you are committed to evolving your business in 2010, coworking is for you. Our group represents the open share of ideas and the strengthening of the entrepreneurial community here in Philadelphia across all industries.

We had a great turnout at our last event, and have an even bigger crowd registered for our event on 1/7. Check out some of our coworkers from December in our quickie vlog post: http://www.watchuslaunch.com/ and check out the pic below:

We would love to have you join us for our next coworking day!

Date: Thursday, January 7, 2010 starting at 10am

Location: Chapterhouse Cafe- we will be downstairs
620 South 9th Street Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia, PA 19147-2028

Learn more about the event and be sure to RSVP on our site.  Follow all of our participant tweets #EECoworking.

Announcing: Coworking and Networking Days in Philly!

Finding The Relevance of the GCECS/Innovation Philadelphia Conference

The Global Creative Economy Convergence Summit was not only a mouthful to say but an earful of information.  From workshops to panel presentations to pecha kucha slide shows one could gain insight on just about any topic closely related to the creative workforce.  Both Emily and I were glad to be a part of this convergence summit on October 5^th & 6^th, 2009, and pleased with what we got out of it.

Day one started off with a welcome by Kelly Lee, President of Innovation Philadelphia, and was followed by an interesting breakfast talk by Elizabeth Gilbert.  We all know her from her famous book, Eat Pray Love, but few of us knew (before this week) about the next book she is putting out early 2010 about marriage!  Yup, you guessed it with whom she got remarried to!  Elizabeth told us of her life and dreams and inspired us to find our creativity in ours.

Entrepreneur’s Entourage gave a Social Media workshop following the breakfast keynote.  We expected a much different crowd, and not knowing anything about our participants’ backgrounds, nor how many were planning on attending, we decided to be creative in our presentation to better meet the needs of our participants.  Our workshop introduced effective ways to build any social media campaign and then turned it into a Q&A/Discussion.  We found that many people had specific questions about their current practices and wanted feedback on how to do it all better.  I am so thankful that our web guru Mary was presenting with me to help answer the dozens of questions.  All in all I think we helped a ton of people understand how to run their campaign with differentiation, relevance, efficiency and quality.

Later that afternoon Emily, Founder of Entrepreneur’s Entourage, sat on a panel discussing alternative workspaces.  Many participants here were interested in the co-working buzz and how to find ways to make their office use some of the alternative practices to save money and go green.  Emily talked a lot about industries that are ideal candidates for outsourcing and the benefits of using virtual professionals.  Her other fellow panelists included David Walker, who runs a co-working space in Austin, Todd Sundsted, a manager of Shift101, and Nathan Gasser, Founder of Rock River Star.

The second day of the event was kicked off, rather abruptly, but the one and only Peter Shankman.  He was his usual entertaining self and focused on the importance of relevance in a social media campaign and how to effectively market your business.   Other great sessions throughout the event were delivered by Jane McGonigal, via Skype, all about the use of gaming to optimize human ability (which was really fascinating); Gloria Bell, Hajj Flemings and Melinda Emerson on growing your creative passion; and Emily Morgan on taking your office virtual and the green benefits.  You can see that presentation at: http://watchuslaunch.com

The opportunities for networking each night of this 2-day event felt rushed.  We had so many contacts lined up to speak with and ended up speaking to only 1 each night!  Just one!  But, that one conversation each night was fun, insightful and meaningful.  We thank David Walker of Conjunctured and Melinda Emerson, the small biz lady, for their time and open discussions about business growth and networking!

Innovation Philadelphia hosted a great event and brought together some very talented entrepreneurs and professionals as speakers, sponsors, attendees and volunteers.  We look forward to working with them again in the future.  We also look forward to following up with everyone who attended our sessions and provided us with such great feedback and support.

Why we LOVE Google!

I am not ashamed to admit that I have an obsession with Google and all of their fantastic products.  I run my businesses through Google, and everyone on my immediate team must have a google account.  Whenever we bring on new clients, I encourage them to make the switch to gmail, and find myself continually dishing out the details on why we love it so much.  So here, in one place, let me lay it all out.

Gmail.  This entire post will be dedicated just to gmail and it’s amazingly user-friendly and smart functionality (maybe we’ll cover other products like Cal and Docs in another post!).  If you are not currently using gmail to manage your email, you are missing out and most likely wasting time.  From a functional standpoint, perhaps the best feature of gmail is it’s email threading.  Never again will you need to scour through email chains to find responses.  Gmail appends one email to the next, so long as the subject remains the same.  This key feature keeps your correspondence neat, tidy and accessible.  And when in doubt, gmail has it’s own google search box at the top for a detailed search of your mailboxes.

In a close second would have to be gmail chat– including v-chat- gmail’s own video chat.  We use g-chat literally all day long to communicate.  It makes working independently much more interactive.  Everyone on the team knows that they can always reach me on g-chat, since my gmail is always open!  They recently introduced gmail video chat- which allows you to video chat with other gmail users.  This came in very handy this past summer when I was in Maine and my son in NJ!  We were able to see and talk to eachother at the push of a button!

So without overly obsessing on gmail, let me just mention a few more key (and mucho useful!) features- most of which you’ll need to manually add through your settings.

• (1) To do lists- this is a new addition.  Take your emails and with one click, add them to your to do list, which you can then add comments to,  and sync to your google cal!
• (2) Labels- gmail’s answer to folders.  Tag emails with as many labels as you like.  With one click, find all the emails under that particular label.  Want it out of your inbox, just archive it!  It takes some getting used to if you are coming from a folder system, but you will see the beauty of it when you can label one email with multiple relevant labels rather than sticking them in just one folder!
• (3)  Multiple identities- Add other email addresses (just about any email will work- hotmail, yahoo, work emails, etc) to your gmail account to send messages, receive messages, forward messages.  This is a key feature that allows me to keep one inbox with multiple aliases for multiple clients!
• (4) Attachment reminders- Seriously it is smart enough to know that if you mention an attachment in your email and actually forget to attach it,  gmail will remind you before you can send it!
• (5) And last but not least- gmail has an UNDO feature!  Oh yeah… sent out an email that was totally sent to the wrong person, or said something you had second thoughts about?  Right after you hit send, gmail gives you a few seconds to literally undo your msg, as though it was never sent- lifesaver!

Now I’m not saying you need to be as obsessed with gmail as I/we are, but Google definitely deserves some love for this amazingly useful product and their commitment to developing fabulous new tools to make it even cooler!

Feelin the love… Emily

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