Rachel's Biztalk posts

Business blogger support group, part 2 -- a discussion forum!

Hey gang,

A while ago, I initiated a discussion about putting together a blogging support group. Part of what we talked about was that many Biznikers who aren't local to the King County area are still interested in chatting and collaborating about business blogging.

So...I found us a place to have our remote conversations. Check out my small business blogger discussion forum at bizblog.informe.com! I hope Sara, Charles, and Ed, especially will think about starting up some conversation there.

Also, since I'm new to setting up bulletin boards, if anyone has any useful feedback for me, please send an email my way (rachel@writewithmeaning.com).

Biz bloggers unite!

Hey gang, Just a quick heads up that I have an event coming up next week. It's a gathering for biz bloggers to commiserate (read "bitch") and support each other through the process of blogging for their businesses. I plan to make this a recurring event and would love to see more folks there to liven up the discussion with their sordid tales of woe.

http://biznik.com/events.html?id=252 Hope to see you there.

Filing Washington state taxes for service professionals

Hey gang, For those of you who have a service-based business (like therapy or coaching, etc), I have a question: what do you file your income under for WA state taxes? Thanks!

Blogging support group

Hey gang,

I had an idea and want to see if there's any interest in it. After my last business blogging class and conversation with Dominic, I thought it might be cool to start up a Blogging support group.

This would be a laid-back, community chat/happy hour kind of gig. I thought about hosting it on a once-every-other-week basis. We would all bring our ideas, and maybe even draft posts, and use each other to brainstorm, bitch, and get better. I'd be there to offer opinions and help out when people get really stuck, as well as to get info on what biz bloggers want to know more about.

Would anyone want to come to something like that?

Biz blog class rescheduled

We moved the blogging class a week forward so that our attendees didn't have to commute on the ice. Dominic and I hope to see lots of excited blogger faces on this coming Thursday, Jan 18th. It's liquid Schwartz for your blog, so what are you waiting for?! Here's the class link: http://biznik.com/events.html?id=223.

Blogging class nearly here

Those of you who saw our last business blogging class on the schedule but couldn't attend got your new year's wish: we are doing it again!

I'm plugging Dominic's and my class because there are so many events lately and only three events can display on the main Biznik page at a time. So I wanted to raise awareness that this Thursday is bringing a class you don't wanna miss.

Don't wait to get started on your new year's resolution to boost your business. Join us Thursday and fulfill your resolution for revolution!

What's your best advice to brand new entreprenuers?

If you could go back in time and talk to yourself when you first started your own business, what are the most crucial things you would want to convey?

I'm in grad school with therapists and coaches, and I'm developing a class for them to help jumpstart their learning about entreprenuership.

My biggest piece of advice for them is to network their butts off. I would love to bring them your wisdom, as well.

Free consultations -- are they working for you?

Hey gang,

I was talking with an indie friend of mine and we were debating the effectiveness of the free consultation. I like to get the feel of a potential client, and give them the opportunity to feel me up, too (heh). Sometimes clients don't seem to get how a free consult works, though, and the half hour can turn into an actual session.

I am still working on refining how I present the consultation and keeping up good boundaries around time and content.

What are your experiences--good or bad--with the free consultation?

Business blogging questions, or how I learned to stop worrying and love the blog.

Hey gang,

As you may have seen, Dominic and I are hosting a class about blogging next week. I would love to hear some of your questions about business blogging to help me prepare. My focus is on HOW to write engaging blog posts that help your potential customers connect to you.

What do you want to know?

Thanks, Rachel

How important is grammar?

A few people have been having an interesting discussion that sprouted from a post I made to Biznik about writing.

I would love to hear what other Bizniks think on the topic of grammar in business writing. When you are looking for someone to hire (graphic designer, mortgage broker, whatever), how much does their competency with grammar affect your impression of them?

Will you hire someone, or not, just because of their writing skills?