The Entrepreneurial Spirit
The Harvard Business Review ran an article this summer on How To Start An Entrepreneurial Revolution. How interesting I thought to myself; we have a great group of entrepreneurs here in Philadelphia that are all very active and networked, but are we really creating a revolution? In reading on it was very interesting to hear about other countries and how their government is getting behind entrepreneurs and supporting them for who they are and what they are trying to do. How refreshing; build upon skill sets and knowledge rather than pushing them to be a certain way or provide a certain service to fit the mold. As Rwanda’s president put it, “Entrepreneurship is the most sure way of development.”
Here in Philly experts in their field are stepping out of the mold to start their own companies and provide services they know best. We entrepreneurs are a strong force and growing every day. We are providing quality and necessary services ranging from web design to copy writing and everything in between. As a result of all sharing common goals, and the City of Brotherly Love, we are creating the ecosystem to foster growth and support for entrepreneurial success. In the article, 9 steps are outlined for Creating an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, and sure enough, step two is to the shape the ecosystem around local conditions to tailor the suit to fit its own local entrepreneurship dimensions, style and climate. We are doing just that; entrepreneurs in various fields are coworking, there are weekly meet ups to meet the needs of any level of networker, and above all, entrepreneurs are accepted and celebrated for their efforts.
The opportunities for an entrepreneur to be successful in this current market are high. Many companies are seeing the value of outsourcing and slowly starting to open their checkbooks to bring in these expert entrepreneurs to help their business grow. Many groups are also supporting entrepreneurs by hosting coffees, lunches, happy hours, meet ups and conferences to allow for networking, sharing, and learning.
In doing our part to support the entrepreneurial ecosystem, we have been hosting coworking and networking events around the city. Our next event will be on Thursday, January 20th, in Northern Liberties at One Shot Coffee. Here we meet with dozens of other entrepreneurs to work as a community for the day; sharing stories, asking questions, making new introductions, drinking coffee and just enjoying eachother’s company as we meet our work demands.
As a bonus for the new year, we will follow coworking with a Philly Entrep Hapy Hour, starting at 5:30pm at PYT in The Piazza
Please join us for our next coworking day!
Date: Thursday, January 20th
Coworking: starting at 2pm
Location: One Shot Coffee
George Street (and American) behind Liberties Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19123
Come and go as you please; we will be grabbing some food and making business introductions all day!
Happy Hour: starting at 5:30pm
Location: PYT @ The Piazza in Northern Liberties
1015 N @2nd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19123
*Parking available on the street or in the free lot located on Germantown Ave on the Northeast side of the Piazza.
Be sure to RSVP here.
Coworking and Networking at The Piazza
EE Coworking and Networking Days are here to stay in 2010!
We have been working from various wifi spots throughout the city this year, with great turnout at all of our events. Entrepreneurs, business owners, freelancers, and other independents looking to get out of the office and network have been coming together at these events to meet, work, eat, and share business cards. Check out some of our coworkers in our quickie vlog post: http://www.watchuslaunch.com/
This month we are heading to a clean, bright, and friendly cafe in Northern Liberties called Euphoria Cafe. They have great coffee, tea, smoothies, sandwiches, and our personal favorite, iced bubble coffee! Euphoria offers free wifi and a comfortable area for us to all sit together to work and mingle. This cafe is also in the exciting Piazza, surrounded by restaurants, shops, galleries, and of course the big outdoor courtyard with the giant screen TV so you can stick around and watch the Phillies game that night!
If you are committed to evolving your business in 2010, coworking is for you. Entrepreneur’s Entourage’s Coworking events are 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 strength of the entrepreneurial community here in Philadelphia across all industries. Our meetup days are informal and a great way to share your business, make connections, get some work done on your laptop, grab a bite to eat, and gain new perspectives.
“The collaboration, feeling of not being alone, and ability to get out of the house without being in a completely public place is why I am a part of these coworking and networking events”- Gloria Bell, owner of Red Stapler Consulting
Please join us for our next coworking day!
Date: Thursday, June 10, 2010 starting at 10am.
Come and go as you please; we will be grabbing some food around 12:30pm, and making business introductions all day!
Location: Euphoria Coffee
1001 N 2nd Street in The Piazza
Philadelphia, PA
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
Blog, Blogging, Video Blogging – How much is enough?
Social Media is all the rage right now, and rightfully so. Where else can you tap into your target market, share your content, and even get their feedback? One of the other big draws to social marketing is the affordability. One aspect of social media that is often overlooked is blogging. Blogging is creating posts online, relating to a specific subject, your business, your passion, your hobby, or just what you happen to see that day walking to work. There is no right or wrong answer about what to post, as long as you keep it clean and are sharing relevant information.
Did you know that it is National Blog Posting Month? Of course you did because you are in touch with the latest trends and have your pulse on the social market. And if you didn’t know about NaBloPoMo09 then don’t think your career is doomed, just get involved with the internet and become active in social media campaigns, namely blogging! Blogging is also good for the environment, it saves trees, it lets you share your thoughts with your target market in a non-intimidating manner, and it is low cost.
In case you are not a blogger, here are some more reasons for you to become a believer. Blogging helps improve your search engine rankings through easy to implement SEO, increases your customer base, and gets your name and brand out there to your target market. Blogging is just journaling online and can live on a variety of free and inexpensive hosting sites once you figure out a catchy domain name for your blog! This blog becomes your first image and your web page to promote your brand.
If you are running a blog, good for you! Share it with us in your comments and we will take a peek and hopefully learn some new information or at least have a good read! Do you have a good audience for your blog? While we are proud of you for getting your thoughts and ideas out there, how effective is your time being spent if no one is listening? Marketing, email campaigns, and building an audience is an essential part of your social media, namely blogging, campaign.
Have you thought about video blogging? Vlogs are more involved that posting a video of you talking on your website. A Vlog is more along the lines of a video journal or a video post as just another way to share your information. You can vlog on anything you can blog on; for example we vlogged about the launch of our business! I can’t tell you how many takes we did some days and how much fun we had documenting this process in such a unique way. It sure beat coming home after a long business development day and feeling obligated to write a long blog post. Check it out if you want some good insight as well as some good laughs! http://www.watchuslaunch.com
At the end of the day, blogging and vlogs are just good business practice. Take a moment to set yours up, talk to a friend, or call us to make it happen. As long as the content is relevant and interesting keep on posting!
What the heck is a Vlog and why do I need one in my biz?
Video Blogs, also known as vlogs, are entries that are primarily composted of embedded video or video links rather than text. Vlogs are taking on almost any topic imaginable from documenting research, to delivering news, to sharing a special moment. Video Blogs have been around for almost a decade, but it was just in the last couple of years that they have become an accepted form of marketing and communication. Vlogging started gaining momentum in 2005-2006 with the launch of YouTube and then the creation of the first annual video blogging awards – the Vloggies in November of 2006!
And the users of video blogging might surprise you. While all vlogs are experimental, some have a little further reach than others. Politicians are hosting their own vlogs to share information and answer questions. Radio and TV shows are using video blogs to interact with more listeners and viewers. Even iTunes allows you to upload video through their podcasts! Check out a sample here:
There are many sites to host your video blog. If you already have a blog check there first, as almost all allow video uploads. Some good sites for hosting a blog as well as a video blog are WordPress, Blogger, and Typepad. If you are launching with just a vlog then look into a video hosting site. Sites like WordPress have specific video themes (skins) that you can purchase to kick up your vlog. We went with a Woo Theme, “Groovy” to host our vlog, www.watchuslaunch.com. Install some google analytics and you’re good to go!
Tip: To shoot easy video for your vlog, check out a Flip Cam- available at Best Buy, etc for around $100! This cool, palm-sized camera has a built in USB port that snaps right into your computer. Just shoot, flip and upload it right to your YouTube account. And it even comes in cool colors like pink, orange and green, so you can fully personalize your vlogging experience!
Getting your message out there: Whether you want to share your birthday party video with your sister, show a new product about to be released to your end users, or just give some insight into starting a business (www.watchuslaunch.com) you have to promote and market your vlog. Social media tools are an excellent grass roots campaign starter. Depending on the scope of your reach you may just want to keep the videos public on YouTube and promote them within your industry circle. Either way, using RSS allows others to subscribe to your site or have your content feed into their reader. This is simple if you have an existing blog that you can add your video to. Record yourself, post it, and share it! We hope to hear about more of your joining the video blogging world!
