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The creator of Penny Stones is in the Top Ten in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business

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Penny Stones Blog

Posts Tagged ‘entrepreneur’

Creating Powerful Support Networks

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

I was recently included in a blog post for Entrepreneurs: The Passions and Possibilities Project.  They’re discussing how to create a support network and I contributed a few ideas:

  • “To make my dream a reality, one of my best first steps was to make an appointment with S.C.O.R.E advisors.  They helped me create my business plan, gave me invaluable critical feedback, and helped me think of my product as a business, not a hobby.
  • I have partnered with other women entrepreneurs who manufacture products sold to the gift wholesale and retail market.  Developing relationships with people who can relate to your problems, concerns, frustrations, and accomplishments adds another dimension to the rewards of owning your own business.
  • Next month, I will be joining a group of women entrepreneurs who meet once a month for three hours and discuss the challenges they face.  These women will become my Board of Advisors.  I have been looking for a support group like this and am very excited to have found one locally (Akron , Ohio ).

Check out what the other folks had to say: http://www.passionsandpossibilities.com/category/blog

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Posted in entrepreneur | No Comments »

Upcoming Workshop: Making a Strong First Impression and Becoming a More Effective Communicator

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

I will be leading the above workshop at the Regional Economic Development Trade Summit 2010 on May 5 in Cleveland, Ohio.  Here’s the preview:

In order to run a successful business, a woman needs to know how to communicate effectively, ask for the sale, negotiate deals, make a positive first impression, develop relationships, promote her company and herself, give presentations, and many other communication-related skills.   

  • Be more aware of their first impression and how to improve it
  • Tips for their handshake, eye contact, and other details during introductions
  • Be aware of nonverbal cues and what their body is saying
  • A few rules to successfully start a conversation with anyone
  • Tips for networking
  • Examples of conversation starters as well as transitions and conversation enders
  • Tips for communicating within social media: blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter
  • Tips for e-mail communication
  • Tips for giving public presentations

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Posted in Conversations, communication, communication skills, conversation starters, entrepreneur, interpersonal skills | 1 Comment »

Mom Entrepreneur: Hot by 6

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

One of my new interests is other mom entrepreneurs.  I love how so many moms are solving a problem they have and creating a business in the process.  One problem I have is finding time to cook at the “bewitching hour” in our house: that time when the kids need me for homework, I realize I haven’t planned dinner yet, and my husband is on his way home.

Here’s one solution that I love and it was created by moms.  Plus you can try it for free - even better! :)

Getting dinner on the table every night for our families can be a point of frustration.  Not only because everyone is staring at you ravenously hungry, but because it often times makes us feel defeated and overwhelmed.  Many moms want to provide healthy home cooked meals every night, but they also want it to demonstrate to their families how much they care about them. It’s so much more then just throwing something together and slapping it on the table. However it’s easier said than done.

   A few moms got together and dissected exactly makes it so hard to make dinner every night.  The result of this study was the development of Hot by 6. 

  Hot by 6 is an on line meal planning site that allows you to use dinner planning software you can tailor to your personal style.  What can you expect from the website?  Hot by 6 focuses more heavily on family dinners, so the majority of the recipes are dinners, however there are plenty of side dishes, desserts, appetizers, and more to choose from too.   

   The process is simple.  First you browse through the step by step recipes and find ones you like.  Then you click add to my meal plan.  After you have selected all the meals you want your ready to print a categorized grocery list, along with assembly instructions, labels, and your meal plan.  This process can be done in the amount of time it takes your kids to get their shoes and coats on in the morning before school.  Best of all you don’t have to know a thing about cooking to use this site.  Everything is thought out for you and easy to understand.

  What makes it different from other meal planning software?  Hot by 6 recipes are all freezer friendly, and formatted to be prepared ahead of time and placed in the freezer.  However you do not have to utilize that step if you don’t want to.  Also most moms enjoy selecting recipes that they feel their family would enjoy and putting some heart into it.  So Hot by 6 gives you the freedom to create the meal plans yourself instead of posting a generic one each week.  And last but not least the exclusive group feature.  There are endless reasons scientific and emotional on why it is important for women to spend time with their girlfriends.  So Hot by 6 has a feature that allows you and your friends to create a meal plan that calculates a group shopping list for all the recipes ordered as well as meal plans and labels for each person. It is fun to use with a group of friends, or on your own.  Visit www.hotby6.com to try a free one month trial when you enter in the promo code penny.

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Posted in entrepreneur, family | 3 Comments »

An Insider's Look at the Gift World

Friday, February 12th, 2010

Last January, I had my very first booth at a gift trade show - AmericasMart in Atlanta.  I shared half a booth with another mom entrepreneur in building three, floor four, aisle 1100 in the children’s section.  It was incredibly intimidating: three buildings, millions of products lines, thousands of vendors, tens of thousands of shop owners/buyers, tons of key accounts (think Crate and Barrel, Macy’s, catalogs), and lots of press. 

While it was intimidating, it was also exciting, fun, and inspiring.  I more than doubled the number of accounts I had and a great rep group agreed to take my line.  So that meant I went from the temporary booths to the permanent showrooms.  And their sales reps started showing Penny Stones to their accounts.  It was an exciting time.

Flash forward to this year.  I’ve gone up quite a bit on the learning curve of the gift world but still have ways to go.  I went to Atlanta in January again.  This time, I showed my line in the permanent showroom and met with the sales reps, key accounts and owners/buyers.  I think I learned even more this year than last year!  I discovered that people buy on relationship as much as they do on the product itself.  I came to appreciate how important it is for me, the owner/creator of Penny Stones, to be there and present my product line.  And I learned how being with a great rep group gives a small, new company like mine credibility.

Unfortunately, Atlanta is only one of many national gift trade shows.  So when I got home, I decided I needed to go to all the other main shows where I can meet the rep groups I use now and meet new rep groups in regions that don’t have one yet.  So I went to Dallas, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle and New York City.  I became a veteran traveler in a matter of a month’s time.

My bookkeeper is happy that unlike last year, I sold more than I spent in January.  And I’m now in talks to sign with a couple great rep groups – wish me luck!

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Posted in Gifts, Penny Stones, Trade Shows, entrepreneur | 1 Comment »

Guest Blog on Living My MoMent

Monday, December 28th, 2009

I wrote a guest blog for Abbey Fatica while she was busy having a baby (congratulations!) and it just posted on her site for mom entrepreneurs.

Here’s an excerpt:

What I find most rewarding are the Penny Stones stories I get to hear. Customers have shared memorable conversations that were started by a Penny Stone. They have connected with their family on a deeper level. Or they found out something they never realized about a loved one. And whenever I hear those stories, I know that Penny Stones are helping people develop deeper relationships. It’s the most satisfying feeling! So, when someone asks me “Is it worth it?”, I say “Absolutely!”

Here’s the direct link:  http://livingmymoment.com/2009/12/is-it-worth-it-wtammy-from-cmd-gifts

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Posted in Games, Gifts, Penny Stones, conversation starters, entrepreneur, family relationships, hostess gifts, ice breakers, interviews | No Comments »