If you are in New Hampshire between October 1-4, 2009 come visit the award winning NH Made Building at the Deerfield Fair.

The NH Made building is located across from the information booth at the lower level of the arts and crafts building. The building is filled with quality locally made products including cutting boards, candles, quilts, laser cut silhouettes, custom pressed suncatchers, jewelry and much more.

The NH Made building also has locally produced foods including fudge, caramel corn and caramel apples, spiced nuts, soda, ketchup, smoked meat and cheese, ice cream and more!

Find complete fair details and directions here.

Enjoy the great Fair and the awesome NHMade vendors and stop buy and say "hello" to me as I help out at venue.

I'm offering a special pre-release price on a new program. I'll be starting the program on September 28th, but until September 14, 2009 I am offering it at a lower introduction price. The discount is a thank you for being a reader of this blog. (Update 11/25/09 the pre-release offer at lower introduction price is no longer available contact me for pricing and questions)

Social Media Madness!

It's mainstream, just listen how everyone is talking about Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. They are MUST-HAVE Marketing tools if you have customers that...well...have a computer.

Why?

The roots of these tools are really Networking, Communicating and Relationship building, and an essential key to marketing your business is building your relationship with your customers. These "new" social media tools allow you to do just that and more.

Do you find it's overwhelming and have little time?

I've lost count of how many business owners, managers and employees I've spoken to that say they are overwhelmed and don't have the time to learn and utilize these tools. And yet...success stories about these tools are revealed everyday, and the trend toward utilizing these communications tools is NOT slowing.

Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are still in the forefront as cutting edge tools necessary for successful businesses. Entrepreneurs and business people that wait to join in will find they have much more catching up to do and may find their success lags behind those businesses already building these new relationships.

The Solution (you knew I'd have one)

I've been researching and using these tools for months now and I'm currently putting the finishing touches on this Social Networking Training Program that will get you up and running quickly, effectively and with purpose.

The Social Networking Training Program

1. Initial 1-hour Purpose Meeting - You and I will establish a social networking strategy aligned with your business goals, objectives and values.

2. Initial Draft of Social Network Tools - You supply your logo, pictures and information and I use them to draft your pages for the communication tools we agreed you should use.

3. Two Training Sessions - You and I will sit down for private, in-person training sessions to get you up and running as quickly as possible.

4. Unlimited Support via phone and email between the training sessions.

Important Information

I know you have questions or may need a little more information so just contact me right here.

And yes, if you have a friend or colleague that you think could use this training, forward this post to them.

Remember the deadline for the introduction price is September 14, 2009 so just contact me right here to register.

Take Care

As a member of the NHMade Board Trustees I'd like to share some news with you that some of you may be interested in or know of someone who could benefit from this opportunity. The deadline is July 17,2009

Here is the announcement from NHMade

NH Made received a grant from the USDA to select 20 small and emerging businesses in Grafton County and/or Coos County to provide the technical assistance they need to develop effective web sites, web site materials, and e-commerce capability. At the conclusion of this program, not only will these businesses have the training they need, they will also actually have an up-and-running attractive web site, e-commerce capability, and a collection of professional-looking digital photos of their products and business locations.

The criteria is listed below. If your business qualifies, please email Ann at ann@nhmade.com by July 17th to apply to be considered by the committee as one of the final 20 recipients.

CRITERIA FOR CONSIDERATION:

Business Demographic and Finances 1. Located in either Grafton County or Coos County and primarily be (80% or more) from towns with a population under 5,000;

2. Primarily be (80% or more) from towns with a Median Household Income that is less than 85% of the state's Median Household Income of $49,467;

3. Business is an up-and-going concern, but producing far less than $1 million in gross sales;

4. Business is registered with the state of NH;

5. Employ fewer than 5 full-time employees;

6. Are U.S. Citizens.

Current Web Presence

1. Have either no web site or a very basic web site with no or very primitive shopping capability that needs enhancement and search engine optimization in order to be found on the world wide web and attract sales;

2. Photography used on the web site is of low quality and unoptimized.

Required Commitment

1. Have internet access and the ability to pay for monthly hosting fees for their web site; (cable or DSL high speed highly recommended over dial-up)

2. Have a computer able to handle the memory and functionality needs required; i.e. Windows XP or newer OR Mac equivalent, 512 MB RAM or more, Internet Explorer 6 or greater OR Firefox 2.0 or greater, and at least on free USB port.

3. Have access to a digital camera needed for keeping their web site fresh with attractive photos; (if no camera, they can borrow one or use a "loaner" from NH Made.)

4. Willing and able to pay $160 as their contribution to participating in the grant program;

5. Commit to attending the all-day conference and the program follow-up event in Plymouth, NH;

6. Agree to devote time working with the computer consultant and photography consultant and do what is necessary and required to get their web site operating with their help within the time-frame specified;

7. Agree to maintain and update their web site as needed once the program is over with the knowledge and technical capability they have learned;

8. Will supply the necessary information NH Made needs to measure the success of this program such as gross sales figures, the number of hours in the business, the number of employees, etc.

9. Be a member of NH Made, or BECOME a member of NH Made, for $75;

10. Agree to sign a letter on your own letterhead confirming that you agree to this commitment and understand all that is being asked. (The actual wording for this letter will be supplied by NH Made for you to sign - it will be similar in scope to what you see listed here.)

NOTE: If you know of a business that is not currently a NH Made member but who could qualify and benefit from this grant, please tell them they are eligible if they BECOME a member of NH Made.

Good Luck!

It is my pleasure to be speaking at the upcoming Women's Business Center's Breakfast Table being held next Thursday, February 19th.

The WBC has chosen a new venue to hold this particular breakfast table event. It will move from the standard Portsmouth location to Derry at Birch Heights on Kendall Pond Road.

This down to earth and focused presentation will inspire you to take action. You will learn how to:

1. Implement strategies that improve the way you market your business.

2. Build upon your current relationships and strengthen customer loyalty and growth.

3. Focus on low cost tactics that won't deplete your resources but will capture customers' attention.

You will walk away with actions and more that you can easily put in place and transform your marketing.

So start your day off joining many others and me on February 19th from 7-9 a.m. EST. You'll enjoy a full hot breakfast, a great topic and fun people.

Registration is required and you can find how HERE. Membership to the WBC is not required.

The Women's Business Center (WBC) is hosting Ken Easton, the author of Surviving Your Business Debt.

The event is on December 17, 2008 from 7 to 9 a.m.(EST) at the Portsmouth Country Club.

Lois Matheson, WBC Business Counselor and Program Manager, states:

"Having had the pleasure of meeting Ken here at the WBC, you can trust me when I say that this is an individual you want to hear speak on a subject that we all must quickly address as the economic outlook further weakens.

Ken is funny, approachable and above all extremely knowledgable. He will address:

1. The benefits and consequences of developing working capital via business debt.

2. The borrower in trouble.

3. What you don't know, but should.

4. Your worst case scenario - emergency procedures."

The event is Free to WBC members or $25.00 for non-members.

For more information or to register go to the Women's Business Center website.

I recommend this to everyone. I have been to several of the WBC breakfast meetings and have found each one a valuable learning tool.

Here in New Hampshire tomorrow we celebrate Thanksgiving. The history of this holiday is not all that was told to me in my young school days. The treatment of Native Americans was not fair and just in many ways and for some this holiday is not a celebration.

For me Thanksgiving is an opportunity to give Thanks to the people in my life and for what I have. So, here is just a short, but meaningful list of my Thanks

1. You - for reading and sharing your thoughts with me.

2. My customers - for their trust, their support and allowing me to work with them.

3. My loved one, family and friends.

4. My health.

5. This beautiful and precious planet and my connection to it.

I would like to share with you a Teton Sioux Vision Quest Prayer for you to share with others in the next few days:

Let me do the right things for my people. Not for the sake of merit, but because of the sacrifice of my people in this land which belongs to them."

I'd love to hear from you what you give Thanks for how you may have shared this prayer.

Have a safe and peaceful Thanksgiving.

If you are in New Hampshire this weekend I suggest taking some time to check out the NH Open Doors Event. This event is presented by NHMade and the League of NH Craftsmen.

Artisans and craftspeople across the state are opening their studios and shops on November 8the and 9th and inviting you to come meet the people behind the creative products.

The website allows you to search by region, category, business and organization so you can plan your day.

Enjoy

I recently received some exciting news that I would like to share with you. I was selected from hundreds and hundreds of submissions to be featured in the 2009 Woman's Advantage Calendar. The calendar (available now at WomensAdvantage) will provide advice for women business owners from influential women leaders across the US and Canada.

Mary Cantando, Growth Expert of The Woman's Advantage stated:

"Charlene's quote was selected because it was powerful yet easy to understand. Her idea is relevant to almost every woman in business today."

The calendar will provide sound bites of advice on key business issues including: organization, promotion, sales, and human resources.

I am honored to be part of this calendar.

If you don't power down your electronics at the end of the day then next Wednesday is your day to begin. HP, Citrix and Intel have joined together to kick-off Power IT Down. A portion of the cost savings generated from all those that sign up to join will go to the American Red Cross, therefore, whether you already power down or not you may want to sign up to help the ARC and to show support in the effort.

I've signed up. Let me know if you do too!