Preliminary Results of the TVCNet 2008 Membership Survey

You may have noticed a trend in business lately where companies and organizations have touted themselves as being "transparent".  A company that is transparent may have different meanings to many people, but ultimately it means the company is open about their practices and how they work.

I always felt that TVCNet operates in the same fashion.  In the spirit of transparency, I decided it would be good to share some preliminary results from a recent membership survey that was conducted to measure the overall value of TVCNet membership and find area to improve upon.  While the results weren't surprising, it did give me a better view of the organization and where we need to leverage our talents to create a stronger organization that better serves its members and the community.

Here are some of the results:

• Most indicated their membership held good value to them. 
  
• Areas where we need to improve upon: networking among the consultants, referrals from other consultants and overall visibility in the Boise business community. 
  
• Positive marks for our recent meeting venue (The WaterCooler), topics, speakers, and attendees. 
  

Overall, I was pleased with the response.  Approximately 2/3 of the membership responded and the feedback was open and honest.  While it gave me, the organizer, some ideas on where we need to improve, as a reader of this blog I hope it gives you a better understanding of the organization.  If you are considering joining our group please give it some thought.  One thing that holds true with TVCNet is the more members we have, the more opportunity we create for ourselves and for others.

Putting Creativity to Work For You Presented At September Treasure Valley Consultants’ Network Meeting

Treasure Valley Consultants’ Network proudly presents Putting Creativity to Work For You, a presentation by Shaun Loughney of Lytic on Tuesday, September 18th from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. This event will be held at Lotus Garden, 2120 E. Fairview Ave. in Meridian. Business-to-business consultants, business owners and managers are encouraged to attend this event. Members admitted free, non-members pay $5.00.

Solving complex problems and creating fresh opportunities for growth in a changing world begins with creative thinking. This presentation will highlight key thinking skills that drive creativity and innovation and how any professional can introduce them into their daily decision making. The presentation will also explore common blocks to creative thinking, how to free associate with an idea map, and formulate a Creative Action Plan. Participates will understand creativity blocks, have new tools to evaluate a fuzzy situation, determine alternative solutions, evaluate & select and put to action a solution.

For over 17 years, Shaun Loughney has worked closely with leaders in business to dramatically improve their results. She has experience providing business systems analysis and successful project implementation for information technology, web application development, business automation and customer service solutions.

April TVCNet Meeting - Building Your Consulting Practice Through Word of Mouth

Our April meeting is officially on!

TVCNet is pleased to present Building Your Consulting Practice Through Word of Mouth, a presentation by TVCNet member Justin Foster of BlueLine Grassroots Marketing on Tuesday, April 24th from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Please note that this month’s meeting will be at a different location. It will be held at BlueLine Grassroots Marketing located at 1011 W. William Street in Boise (corner of Boise Ave. and Broadway). All TVCNet members, business-to-business consultants and business owners are encouraged to attend this FREE event.

In preparation for this month’s meeting, I was thinking how consultants and independent business professionals in the new economy have begun to discover that traditional marketing methods lack the power to effectively promote their knowledge and expertise. Looking at an advance copy of the presentation, Justin plans to cover some innovative marketing techniques that can be applied to any consulting practice or business to break through the barriers our customers and perspective clients have put in place to filter out messages competing for their attention.

Justin will discuss:

• How to build a self-promotion toolkit consisting of a website and blog and what to include in each
• How to craft your message so you can communicate with your target audience in a professional manner
• How to use networking to create citizen marketers who will help carry your message to the business community at large

We look forward to you attending. If you plan to do so please RSVP by Friday, April 20th by calling (208) 484-6692 or e-mail me at justin@tvcnet.org.

March Meeting Recap - Peggy Jordan and Business Writing Basics

It was an intimate, yet engaging crowd in attendance at Tuesday’s TVCNet meeting where Peggy Jordan of Working Words Communications presented Business Writing Basics. We heard a great presentation from a prolific writer and communicator based here in the Treasure Valley.

Business writing, on the surface, may not seem like a hip and cool topic. Nevertheless, it’s still important especially to consultants and business owners who rely on the written word to demonstrate and communicate their thoughts and ideas to their target audience. Whether the purpose is to market or to inform, words are an essential tool for doing business and providing services. Lacking basic writing skills can make the most brilliant person sound like a buffoon. In the midst of the Web 2.0 world we live in, practically everything we consume is content driven and we need to take advantage of this to reach out to our audience and establish ourselves among the many independent business professionals in the workforce today.

Here is what I think are some of the key takeaways from Tuesday’s meeting:

1. When it comes to the written word, it only takes 7 seconds to make a good impression on your audience.
2. Know your audience. If you don’t know who you are trying to communicate to, what is your purpose in writing?
3. There is a lot of value in being brief and to the point. “Spend every word as if it were 5 dollars.” Thanks for quote Kathy Martin!

Peggy had so much more to talk about regarding this topic. I was sorry I had to cut her off due to time constraints. Perhaps we can have her back again to go into greater detail on a particular subject surrounding business writing.

Our words are what help us connect with others. If we concentrate on making a good first impression with our writing, clarify our target audience, and be succinct in our word choice and usage, I believe consultants and business owners will be able to stand out from the crowd and reach the people we want to do business with.

BlueLine Open House

Our friends at BlueLine, and fellow TVCNet members, will be hosting an open house on January 18th to show off their new offices. Stop by between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. at 1011 W. Williams St. in Boise to meet these great people who I have got to know over the last couple years.

This is a monumental step for BlueLine as they recently moved from the BSU TECenter in Nampa to their own offices. If you plan on attending please RSVP by e-mailing them at info@bluelinegrassroots.com or call 342-BLUE.