training – Page 4

Entrepreneur’s Workshop With LOCA

July 16, 2010 by admin

Creative Connections

Date: Wednesday 21 July

Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm

Venue: 51b Holme Bank Mills, Station Road, Mirfield, WF14 8NA

(From Mirfield go under the bridge for Mirfield railway station and turn left following the road with the large sign for James Walker Properties.

From Hopton turn right just before the Mirfield railway station bridge and following the road with the large sign for James Walker Properties).

Creative Connections are quarterly events for artists and creative businesses in and around North Kirklees, run by Loca as part of its Creative Business Support Programme.

As well as encouraging the development of a supportive and well connected community of creative people within North Kirklees we are also encouraging people to look at their businesses more professionally and with more of a critical eye. With this in mind we have a very motivational and thought provoking presentation to offer to you.

Mike Chitty is a writer, trainer, coach and adviser on enterprise and entrepreneurship. Despite having a background in physics his work strikes a chord with creative people and artists of all kinds. In this 30 minute session Mike will provide a fast paced, honest and highly practical introduction to The Entrepreneur’s Workshop and introduce us to 10 powerful tools that can help us make sure that our creative enterprises serve us rather than the other way round.

Twitter: @mikechitty
Facebook: mikechitty

As an extra bonus, we are holding the evening’s event at the new studio of Andrew Warburton, Area Rugs and Carpets where you be able to view inspirational work by Andrew, Dylan Edwards and Amazed Rugs. Andrew will once again demonstrate the production methods he uses to create his bespoke, high quality rugs and there will be the opportunity to have a go for the more adventurous among you.

Creative Connections is a chance to meet informally with other creative people to pick up ideas, information and contacts which may be useful in your work. It’s also a great opportunity to promote your own work and what’s going on creatively in the local area, so please do use it as a platform to let people know about events or projects that you are involved in, or to sound out interest in an idea you’re developing, or to request information. Why not bring along your portfolio, brochures or other visual material to show your work to others and help develop your contacts?

The Loca team looks forward to seeing you at Creative Connections. Please contact us if you have any particular access needs.

Please park in the free car park. Andrews studio is under the barriers to the right. There are three small steps up to the workshop with handrails.

The evening is free and light refreshments will be provided.

RSVP to Loca on 01924 488844 or email: loca.admin@loca.co.uk

Making Social Marketing Work – 29th July Leeds

July 2, 2010 by admin

This practical workshop will introduce you to the theory and practice of social marketing – how to use marketing techniques to achieve specific behavioural goals designed to lead to social good.

Whether you are trying to promote healthy lifestyles, encourage people back into work or to start a business, get back into education, or engage in a campaign, an understanding of social marketing can help you to:

find new people who want to work on your agenda
support them on their journey to make real change happen
get the right people at the right events at the right time

What Will You Learn?

You will learn how to:

Develop marketing collateral (leaflets, posters and websites) that might just work
Use the media effectively – PR and role models that work
Build ‘Word of Mouth’ strategies and referral networks
Work with ‘gatekeepers’ to ‘gain entry‘
Manage introductions in the community

The day will involve some theory and explore a number of examples of good and not so good social marketing campaigns. Participants will have the opportunity to apply what they learn to a real campaign of their own.

Agenda

What is social marketing and how can I use it?

What behaviours are we trying to promote?

Using Segmentation to Increase Impact

Eating an Elephant – bite sized chunks….

Social Marketing Tools – with a focus on emerging social media (twitter, facebook, wikis etc)

The Role of Traditional Marketing and PR

Developing a Social Marketing Campaign (making a start)

Marketing through Relationships and Networks

Find out more and book your space – http://socialmarketingworks.eventbrite.com

Crib Sheet for The Entrepreneur’s Workshop

June 18, 2010 by admin

A Crib Sheet

Workshops are fascinating and dangerous places. In the right hands they can produce things of great beauty and real lasting value. In the wrong hands they can do great damage and wreck lives.

The entrepreneur’s workshop is no different.

True enough; the tools in the entrepreneur’s workshop have no sharp edges, burning fires or high speed drills.

The entrepreneur’s tools are a set of ideas, principles, practices and habits that, applied with care and passion, can produce a wonderful lifestyle. Learn to use these tools properly and they will serve you well.

Misuse them and the consequences are likely to include debt, damaged relationships and misery.

10 of the most powerful tools in The Entrepreneur’s Workshop:

The Truth Detector – How to decide what might work for you
Want to or Have to…?
The Double Edged Sword
Getting Organised – doing what has to be done, and doing it well
Entrepreneur Artisan or Artist?
Have, Do, Become…
Build a Team OR Do it All – the choice is yours
The ‘investment ready’ Business Plan
Situational Enterprise – the importance of technique and motivation
Towards the Total Quality Enterprise – a tool to decide ‘What’s next?’

For more information contact Mike on 07788 747954

Twitter: @mikechitty

Facebook: mikechitty

LinkedIn: mikechitty

Never Teach a Pig to Sing

June 4, 2010 by admin

Never teach a pig to sing. It frustrates you and annoys the pig.

Mark Twain

Yet this is often what we try to do.

It is not enough that we find a wonderful artisan with a great product.

No, we also expect them to be great marketers and financial managers too. We may as well ask them to walk on water while we are at it.

We try to teach the pig to sing.

Instead we should be helping the pig to be the very best pig it can be.

To become the very essence of pigginess.

And we should show the importance of finding someone who is able to market and sell their products and services and to make sure that their financial management and planning is robust.

The most common objections to a team based approach to enterprise?

‘I can’t afford to hire anyone’,

and

‘I must learn to do all of this if I am to be a real business person’.

One of the best things that the coach can do is to effectively confront the pig with its limitations.

Tell it to give up the vocal coaching and find someone else to sing for their supper. And it need not cost much at all – certainly to get started. It is nearly always possible to find someone who will work with you for nothing, or for commission, or for equity if they really see what a beautiful pig you are….