Greetings Fellow BBCzines!

Today we shall be continuing from last week’s topic of submitting data for developing web pages for all you “BBC Regulars”; our own BBC-MC Tim “I Do Everything” Longley will lead this exciting session.

Picture to left: here we see BBC photographer, Steve Giovanis, setting up for a shot with his new camera (not sure who that “BBC Regular” is). If you still need a good picture of yourself, see Steve (web contact info below). Maybe he can make you look as good as Fay Wray or Carl Denham (depending on your business needs).

If our wi-fi is actually up and running in Winslow this time, we’re on for an exciting web-presence hands-on discussion! So see you there.

7:30-8:00 — Coffee/Tea, Food, Chat, Networking.

8:00-8:00 — Being a “BBC Regular” – BBC-Website member pages.

8:30-9:00 — Coffee/Tea, Food, Chat, Networking.

Join us for a morning cup of BBC … Better Bainbridge Caffeine.

EARTH DAY Plus One – BBC On Earth & In eSpace

A BBC Regular! "Where's my latte?"

7:30-8:00 — Coffee/Tea, Food, Chat, Networking.

8:00-8:00 — Being a “BBC Regular” – BBC-Website member pages. And the advantages and disadvantages of e-Marketing.

8:30-9:00 — Coffee/Tea, Food, Chat, Networking.

TODAY’S TOPIC: e-Business, e-Commerce, & e-Marketing

e-Business: very broad entity; deals with entire complex system that comprises a business using electronic medium to perform or assist overall or specialized business activities.

e-Commerce: best described in a transactional context; e.g., an electronic transaction of funds, information, or entertainment falls under the category handled by principles of e-Commerce. Technically e-Commerce is a subset of e-Business.

e-Marketing: also a subset of e-Business; involves electronic medium to achieve marketing objectives; set on a strategic level, in addition to traditional marketing and business strategy.

HUH? if you ask a business consultant about this topic, nine-times-out-of-ten you’ll hear a similar three-fold answer as above – but you will likely also get “didn’t you know that?”

I am here to tell you “Who cares!” Those answers are not getting me any closer to my goals of marketing my business in an electronic fashion, developing face to face contact with clientele, generating fliers, newspaper ads — well I am sure you know the rest of that story. So, what’s my point? We need something practical here.

Some points to ponder before tomorrow’s discussion of the difference between “e-Marketing” and “Interactive Marketing”: “e-Marketing” is a broader more easily consumed term, which describes any marketing activity performed via electronic medium; “Interactive Marketing” is generally a subset of e-Marketing, which involves a certain level of interaction.

Advantages of e-Marketing:

• Reduction in costs through automation and use of electronic media
• Faster response to both marketers and the end user
• Increased ability to measure and collect data
• Opens the possibility to a market of one through personalization
• Increased interactivity

Disadvantages of e-Marketing:

• Lack of personal approach (which is what we are all about)
• Dependence  on technology
• Security and privacy issues
• Maintenance costs due to a constantly evolving environment
• Higher transparency of pricing and increased price competition
• Worldwide competition through globalization

Join us for a morning cup of BBC … Better Bainbridge Caffeine.

BBC & Cafe @ The Pavilion – 16 April 2010

Well, we’ve all paid our taxes now, so it’s only fun from here right into Summer and the Grand Old 4th Of July with the Bainbridge Island Yacht Club’s Fireworks, the first ever BBC Booth, and—maybe?—a BBC Float; but that’s still just a bug in the wind! Right?

(Bug in the wind?)

7:30-8:00  &  8:30-9:00

So, this is our low-key mid-April BBC Friday.  Let’s just concentrate on getting to know one another better, even more than “what we do,” make it “who we are.”  First and foremost, this Friday, we should seek out a few people we’ve never spoken with, or with whom we’ve spoken little.  Ask about “Their Story”; then, after listening lots, tell a little of your own story.

So, plenty of time for visiting, gossiping (“I didn’t say that!”), networking, coffee/tea and bagels and usually some kind of fun breakfast sandwich (for those who don’t want to indulge in a big, delicious Danish or sweet roll).

—Thanks once again to our gracious hostess, Thuy Nguyen.

8:00-8:30

During our regular-regular BBC ½ Hour Special time, we will talk and brainstorm some more about the upcoming 4th Of July.  We’ll also update everyone on the ever-gradually should-maybe changing BBC web presence. It will happen.  (“Who said that?”)  And if nothing else and there’s a few minutes left, we’ll play act and put on a short version of “The Taming Of The Shrew”; definitely not “High School Musical.”

Goodnight.  And remember:  “You won’t be there until you get there.”

Dave Kragen
BBC Staff, COC Gendarme, and City Of Bainbridge Island Secret Service

PS… Tim is busy applying a new look to our BBC BLOG…This will teach him not to leave his computer on…

Take a look when you get a chance!

http://www.eofficeinnovations.com

This week’s Friday Morning with the BBC will feature speaker David Emerald, Author of “The Power of TED. ” David is also the Co-founder (with his wife Donna Zajonc) of the Bainbridge Leadership Center. David’s Topic will be “Stop Reacting & Get Back to Creating!”

“As entrepreneurs and small business owners, we often begin ventures with vision and passion.  However, as we begin creating, the challenges we face can weigh us down and force us into a Problem-focused and reactive orientation.  By understanding the differences between a Problem Orientation and an Outcome Orientation, we gain the awareness necessary to break the cycle of reacting and get back to the creating. “

The presentation is based on David’s ff’s book, The Power of TED* (*The Empowerment Dynamic).

Don’t miss this interesting topic – and we plan to keep it on schedule for those of you with commitments after 8:30 AM.

Also, remember to bring those surveys or email them to Dave or myself.  If for some reason you didn’t receive your survey by email, contact Dave or Tim to have a copy sent to you. Thanks.

Tim Longley
BBC Chair

Blue Ocean Café Closes Its Doors  /  BBC Looks For New Venue

It is with a sad heart that I must report to you: the Blue Ocean Café has closed its doors as of March 1st, 2010.  The Bainbridge Business Connection, celebrating its One Year Anniversary just a week earlier, started at the Blue Ocean as a small group of local business folks with a desire to get to know one another, learn and share ideas together, and have a cup of coffee and a wonderful waffle.  Needless to say, the Blue Ocean Café was a terrific place to put wings under our new networking community.

On behalf of the BBC Members, I want to thank David Beck, Carolyn Frame, the wonderful and always cheerful staff that created an “at home” environment for us to enjoy, and anyone else behind the scenes at the unique Blue Ocean Café.  It truly was A Great Place to Meet.  We will miss this neighborhood icon—and hope someday it might be resurrected.

So, where do we go from here?  Last Friday, Kevin Dwyer, Executive Director of the Chamber Of Commerce, spoke with Thuy Nguyen, owner of Café @ The Pavilion.  Thuy was very excited about hosting our BBC community on Friday mornings, same time as always, from 0730 to 0900.

Thuy will be expecting our rowdy bunch, continuing our usual meeting format, this coming Friday, March 5, 2010, for hot coffee, lattes or tea, and pastries.  During this meeting, we can all decide if the new location is a fit for us.  Kevin said that they have plenty of tables and chairs to add, as needed, to what’s already there.  The Pavilion also has wi-fi.

The good news is, except Sound Reprographics up by the main entrance, there are no other businesses open at that time of the morning, so we essentially have the Café and the pavilion mall all to ourselves!

Make sure you make this meeting to check out the new digs, and help show our appreciation to the owners of Café @ The Pavilion. 

See you there for that morning cup of BBC!

Tim Longley, BBC Chair

K. D. Kragen, BBC Editor in Chief

Here is a map to the new Digs!

How many referrals did you pass along this month? Were you listening to your friends, clients, casual acquaintances, folks met on the bus?

When you’ve said, “I am so tired of that faucet dripping, it’s driving me nuts,” do you have a friend, business acquaintance, or an outspoken client, who can’t wait to run down the list of businesses that can come to your rescue (even though all you really needed was a therapist)?

I have a few colleagues like that. They are kind of deal-killers for me to be honest. We are bombarded with advertising and media overload nearly every waking moment.

OK, so why is the Chairman of the local Business Networking Group talking like this?  Hey, aren’t you supposed to be encouraging us to make referrals for one another?

Yes.  But I didn’t say anything about annoying everyone with whom you come in contact.

So, just for fun—and for a great, controversial meeting topic—here are my top ten ideas for providing great referrals:

1. Be quiet and listen to your friend, colleague or client:  One of the most important rule of good listening is to keep your mind open. Don’t, for instance, start thinking about solving the person’s problem before they even finish their sentence. Hear what they are saying—completely—and take a few seconds to try to stand in their shoes.
2. Ask some follow-up questions about their situation and echo back to them what they told you:  Using the above example, say, “So your faucet is dripping like a sieve and for some reason it is driving you over the edge. You said you could fix it, but you just have too much on your plate and are very stressed out. You say you don’t know what to do.” Thought it was a plumber they needed, did ya? Wrong! If we would have listened longer we might have found out what they really needed was a massage and Qigong lessons. Ooops.
3. Make a mental note about the person in need of assistance:  Are they wired or are they laid-back? Do you think referring a business colleague that is “like totally mellow” would work for someone that has ADHD?
4. Try to make the highlight of your conversation about your new or ongoing relationship versus just another advertisement for a business colleague:  If you are in the latter frame of mind, it’s likely that your “target” (in the above case) will just try to brush you off, so you will stop trying to sell them on something they may not be able to afford anyway.
5. Make sure you really know the business, and preferably the business owner, you are referring:  You are just like the company you keep. For example, you won’t find me referring someone to a car dealer who simply offered to buy me dinner if I would send their way some poor unsuspecting sucker, er person, I know (and probably like) into their clutches. If I am referring a business to a friend, colleague, or client, I want them to have a great experience. Remember, that friend, colleague, or client is also going to be in a position to refer my business to someone else.
6. When making a referral, think of that “emotional tidbit” that will stick in the mind of the person to whom you are giving the referral:  Emotional experiences, whether good or bad, leave strong traces in the brain. For example, “Joan at Alpha Massage hit a spot in my neck that absolutely lifted the world off my sholders. She is a terrific massuse!”
7. Let the person receiving the referral have their own “ah ha” moment:  Don’t go immediately for their jugglar vein with, “—and Joan can be reached at this number/ email—can I have her call you?” I can’t think of a better reason to scan my calls or make use of my spam filter than this. If you made an impression on them with your emotional hook, then they will likely ask you how to get a hold of Joan.
8. The businesses in your circle of influence are a major part of your own business’s  success:  Your network wants you to be successful, because the more clients you connect with, the more potential clients for them. It’s the only pyramid scheme that actually works (ok … I am going to get letters for that comment).
9. Be sure to let your colleague know that you were thinking about them:  Tell them you dropped their business name/referral on a potential client. This gives them a chance to know what expectation you set on their behalf and a brief snippet on what the prospective client is like. Both parties will appreciate your effort and will remember you when they want to refer someone.
10. [And finally, my favorite, and the reason people actually come to me for referrals….] Get to know your colleagues on a personal level:  Do things together. Get involved in each other’s charity or social groups (this does not include email, twitter, or other SN, social networking media).  If you are in the trenches together—eye ball to eye ball—you have a much better chance of winning the little battles that life puts in front of you.

Thus, the subject matter of this Friday’s open discussion session.  Bring your thoughts and ideas!  And bring a friend!

One year ago today we founded a “networking” group that  we had been warned in advance  — “this was done before… and destined to fizzle in a couple of weeks” (well it did do that a couple of times) but here we are today!

Our small group of entrepreneurs has become so much more than I or my “personal board of directors” had ever dreamed possible – but that is exactly why it was formed; To bring together the energy, the talents, the resources, and the friendship of a unique group of business people that struggle every day to bring Bainbridge Island (and in some cases much further) the goods and services need to make it thrive.   I can’t tell you in words how exciting and valuable this experience has been to me over this year.

In 2010 our Friday morning group will be growing in exciting new ways.  We are planning, with your help, to blaze some new paths into “making connections in a new way.”  We might even dust off a few old tried and true events and exercises to make it interesting. But the bottom line of today’s message is to express to you how glad I am that I get to make this journey with you!

Happy Birthday Bainbridge Business Connections! And Thanks to Kevin Dwyer and the Chamber of Commerce for getting the word out about us.

And don’t forget to have your morning cup of BBC!

Tim Longley
BBC Chair

So, enjoy some coffee, tea, breakfast, and enlivening conversation.

Start the day well — with a morning cup of BBC.