angishields, Author at Business RadioX ® Page

BRX Pro Tip: I’m a New BRX Studio Partner – What Should I do First?

November 21, 2024 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: I'm a New BRX Studio Partner - What Should I do First?

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BRX Pro Tip: I’m a New BRX Studio Partner – What Should I do First?

Stone Payton : And we are back with Business RadioX Pro Tips. Lee Kantor, Stone Payton here with you. Lee, say I’m a brand new Business RadioX studio partner. What should I be doing first, man, right out of the box?

Lee Kantor: I think the first thing you should be doing, the lowest hanging fruit for any new Business RadioX studio partner, is to go on LinkedIn and tell your local contacts that you’re looking for interesting guests for your new Business RadioX House show.

Lee Kantor: I think that is the easiest way to, number one, let everybody know you got a new show. Number two, let everybody know you’re part of the Business RadioX network. Number three, let everybody know that you’re interested in interviewing business people that are doing interesting things.

Lee Kantor: At first, I would cast a wide net, starting with the people who already know and like you so that you can get some easy wins first with people who will come on the show because they have a good relationship with you. And then as you get episodes on the website that you can then show strangers, then they’ll be more apt to send guests your way.

Lee Kantor: So I would start with people I already know. I would then invite them on the show. Start interviewing them, asking them for referrals, and then build out the outreach from that point because it’s – I wouldn’t start with strangers first, because when you start with strangers and they don’t see a lot of episodes, then they’re kind of hesitant to come on the show. So I would start building from my friends, family, and colleagues first and build out from that point.

Lee Kantor: And then once you have – and it’s not even like a lot of episodes, even a handful, maybe five episodes under your belt, then when a stranger sees who you had on, then they are going to be more comfortable and confident about appearing on the show. So I think it’s super important you start doing that, and then when you start doing that, make sure after every interview you ask each and every guest for a referral to another guest in their network. And you do that by asking for other people that your guest already knows who’s doing interesting things. It’s an easy way to get a referral from them.

Lee Kantor: Expand your network and start serving your business community.

Navigating Gut Health on the Go: Elizabeth Hall’s Travel-eeze Solution

November 20, 2024 by angishields

Women in Motion

Navigating Gut Health on the Go: Elizabeth Hall's Travel-eeze Solution

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In this episode of Women in Motion, Lee Kantor talks with Elizabeth Hall, founder of eeze Natural Health. Elizabeth shares her journey from flight attendant to entrepreneur, driven by her personal experiences with gut health issues. She developed Travel-eeze, a gut health supplement designed for travelers. Elizabeth discusses the challenges of product development, the importance of gut health, and her entrepreneurial journey. She emphasizes community and networking among women entrepreneurs and offers advice for aspiring business owners. Elizabeth also reveals her plans to expand her product line and increase retail availability.

Elizabeth Hall is the founder of eeze Natural Health, a company dedicated to promoting gut health through natural supplements. With a background as a flight attendant, Liz experienced firsthand the challenges of maintaining digestive wellness while traveling.

This inspired her to create Travel-eeze, a gut health supplement designed specifically to relieve traveler’s constipation. She envisions the product being conveniently available at airports and local convenient retailers, making it accessible for people on the go.

Liz recently took the stage at the Women’s Business Enterprise Council in Las Vegas to pitch Travel-eeze to a panel of corporate representatives, marking a significant step in her entrepreneurial journey.

Additionally, she is working on her upcoming book titled Shut the Gut Up: How to Optimize Your Gut Health, further cementing her expertise in the field.

Through her company and ongoing projects, Liz is committed to helping people achieve optimal digestive health, no matter where life takes them.

Follow eeze Natural Health on LinkedIn and Facebook.

Music Provided by M PATH MUSIC

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios, it’s time for Women In Motion. Brought to you by WBEC-West. Join forces. Succeed together. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here. Another episode of Women In Motion. And this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, WBEC-West. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories.

Lee Kantor: Today on Women In Motion, we have Elizabeth Hall and she is with eeze Natural Health. Welcome.

Elizabeth Hall: Hi. Thank you for having me.

Lee Kantor: I am so excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about eeze Natural Health.

Elizabeth Hall: Yes. So eeze Natural Health is a gut health supplement business that I launched last year, and our flagship product is Travel-eeze, which is a gut health supplement that is specifically for when you’re traveling. So it helps with your gut immune system and traveler’s discomfort and bloating and constipation, which is a common issue when people travel.

Lee Kantor: So what’s your backstory? How did you get involved in this line of work?

Elizabeth Hall: It’s kind of crazy. So in my early years, I was a flight attendant, so I always heard countless stories of people who suffered from health issues while traveling due to changes in routine, different foods, and the stress of travel. And it wasn’t until – actually, years later, I was on vacation with my husband where I was having the same issues with my gut, where it was literally ruining our vacation, not just mine, but his as well. So I knew that I – like, there was nothing on the market for it. Yes, there’s probiotics, there’s prebiotics. But my product isn’t that. It is strictly just vitamins and minerals that help with your gut when you need it.

Elizabeth Hall: And I – like, literally just came to me, like, I need to do this for myself. So I created this product for myself. Of course, I did end up getting doctor-approved and third-party certified because I’m not a pharmacist or a doctor, but it was something that I needed for myself. And now I have it and now I’m sharing it with the world.

Lee Kantor: Now, when you’re an individual, a layperson out there that has kind of this type of issue that you have, how do you even go about knowing what ingredients to experiment with? Like, what was kind of your process to develop Travel-eeze?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, it’s kind of a crazy story. So I had suffered from health issues for many years. In fact, I had to retire as a flight attendant because of my health issues.

Elizabeth Hall: So I think I was a natural expert without even realizing it. I always wanted an alternative product instead of being on medications that I had not thought of. I do have colitis, but it’s been in remission for many years. They thought that I had Crohn’s disease. I still don’t believe that I ever had it, but I was diagnosed with that. I had endometriosis and that affected my gut and all kinds of other issues. So I always studied other natural products that would help me versus going through the heavy medication, pharmaceutical, pharmaceutical products.

Elizabeth Hall: And when I started creating my product, I just started researching the ingredients that I knew that would be helpful for myself and my gut. It’s kind of crazy. My husband says that I went through – I was like in a trance when I was in my kitchen mixing these formulas and all of these ingredients together, and I was my own guinea pig. I literally was experimenting on myself.

Elizabeth Hall: For example, you know, like, vitamin C is one of my ingredients. And I recall in the beginning I was getting mouth sores because of the vitamin C, and there’s different types of vitamin C that I learned.

Elizabeth Hall: So once I realized there was a product that worked for me, that’s when I did go to get the proper reassurance from someone who actually had the background in it, such as a doctor and pharmacist.

Lee Kantor: And then it’s one thing to know the ingredients, but also to know the amounts of the ingredients. Like, did they help you with that?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, yeah. So once I knew something was working, then of course I went. It is third-party certified who did confirm all of the proper amounts and what is good for you and what’s not. So I did go through all the proper stages, but it was kind of crazy in the beginning. I was just really figuring it out on my own at the very beginning.

Lee Kantor: And then, how do you ingest this? Is it a pill? Is it like a powder that gets drunk, like with water or something?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, that’s a great question. It is a powder formula and they are in individual stick packets for the convenience of traveling. I specifically wanted it in a powder formula because it forces you to pour it into an 8 oz minimum glass of water, 8 to 12 oz. So you are having to drink a full glass of water so that you are hydrating yourself. Most people are dehydrated when they’re traveling or also having gut issues.

Lee Kantor: So that’s just – people don’t realize that they are dehydrated. So this is a great way to help them just stay a little bit hydrated, right?

Elizabeth Hall: Exactly, exactly.

Lee Kantor: Now, did you realize how important gut health was before doing this, or was this something I know you had some issues in and around gut health, but was this something that, you know, you became obviously more educated on? Because I know a lot of people don’t understand the importance of gut health. It’s one of those things that aren’t on everybody’s radar.

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, exactly. I think, like I said, I think I was like a natural expert without realizing that I was. I did know and since then have also felt like I’ve become even more of an expert. What many people don’t realize is that approximately 70% of your immune system is in your gut. So prioritizing your gut health is essential for a strong immune system.

Elizabeth Hall: And now that has been my message. I’m just trying to share the information that I’ve gained and learned so that, you know, people are aware that, it all starts in your gut. They call it your second brain. And I think people are starting to learn it’s becoming more of a topic. But that’s – I think now I’m on a mission to share the knowledge about how important your gut is.

Lee Kantor: Is there some kind of do’s and don’ts when it comes to gut health? Are there some foods that maybe you should be avoiding, or maybe other foods that you should be kind of eating more of?

Elizabeth Hall: Well, yes. I think that people need to eat more vegetables and fruits. Right? So I always like to make it. I like to try it in my mind. I think that I’m making it simple for people to digest, is think of your food as a rainbow. The more colorful your food is, the more healthier it is for you. So, that’s basically how I like to think of food because vegetables are colorful, fruits are colorful. If you’re eating a lot of white processed foods, then you know it’s processed; a lot of white starches, rice, breads, those are all white foods that are not the best for you because they’re heavily processed.

Lee Kantor: And then, that negatively impacts your gut health.

Elizabeth Hall: Yes, exactly.

Lee Kantor: Now, what was it like to go from, you know, entering the world of being an entrepreneur? Like, it was one thing like, okay, I’m going to solve this problem for myself, but then to solve it for yourself and then to, you know, get the packaging right, the branding right, and getting it into stores and selling it either directly or through other people, like, that’s a whole other animal there. How did you kind of do that?

Elizabeth Hall: I think that I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart. I am like a go-getter. So I also have been in real estate for the past decade. So as a real estate agent, you are really – you’re running your own business and you’re an entrepreneur. So I was fortunate to use those skills to get me going for this business. But it’s an entirely different world that I was not a part of or knew anything about because this is an actual product that I was launching.

Elizabeth Hall: So, you know, honestly, I still don’t even know how I did it. I think that I just started asking questions. I knew that I was on a mission and I had a passion. So, once I had a formula that I started working on and I knew it was foolproof, I just started asking anyone I came across, like, “Oh, do you have a contact to a manufacturer?” “Do you know who does branding?” And I also used Google. That was my alumni.

Lee Kantor: Did you start out selling direct to the consumer, like, you know, through Amazon or Shopify or one of those things, or were you trying to get into retail?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah. So I am direct-to-consumer currently. So I sell on my website, on Shopify. I also am on walmart.com, which I’m very proud to say, and I am on Amazon and I am talking to retailers currently to work on that path. My goal is to have it at the airports and at the – and hotels. I believe that’s where people need it the most. So I’m trying to make it convenient and have it easily accessible to people. So, that’s my goal and that’s what I’m working on.

Lee Kantor: So how did you do the learning curve of e-commerce? Because that is a slippery slope there for a lot of folks.

Elizabeth Hall: It is. It’s a deep hole and I’m still figuring it out working it out, to be honest.

Lee Kantor: Did you kind of put it out there and did you get results right away, or was this something you had to tweak, like pricing? I mean, there’s a lot of variables when it comes to selling direct-to-consumer.

Elizabeth Hall: Yes. In the very beginning, I felt that I got very lucky and fortunate. I did get orders right away. And then, I went down into a lull where I’m like, “Oh, I’m not really getting any orders. So what’s going on?” And now I am working on ads. So you do need marketing dollars to send out ads on every platform for your website through social media, even ads specifically for Walmart, ads specifically on Amazon. So it’s heavily involved with ads, ad spend.

Lee Kantor: And then, are you having those individual platforms, you know, ship the stuff and do all of the kind of logistics of that side of the business?

Elizabeth Hall: Yes. So like Walmart and Amazon, they deal with the distribution and filling the orders directly so that you’re able to get it the next day on Prime or, you know, two-day delivery. And I also do some ordering. I fill orders myself currently on my website. So the orders that I receive directly from my website, I fill those orders myself till this day.

Lee Kantor: Now, recently you were able to take the stage at the Women’s Business Enterprise Council in Vegas to pitch. What was that? What was that like?

Elizabeth Hall: You know, it was exhilarating and very nerve-wracking. That was my very first time ever doing a pitch, and I was honored and really excited to be a part of it. I made it through the second round, just to be able to make it to the second round. I was excited since that was my first time pitching.

Elizabeth Hall: And I, since then, have practiced my pitching. I actually signed up for a three-day boot camp with, it’s called the Speakers Institute, and I’m really trying to up my pitching game, and I feel that I since then have gained a lot more knowledge and experience. And I can’t wait to pitch again, hopefully with WBENC next year.

Lee Kantor: Now, was there something you learned from going through kind of that experience? Because a lot of times when they’re trying to poke at you, they uncover some things that maybe you didn’t think of or moves you could make. Did you learn anything from going through that?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, I did. Well, I learned that I really need to focus and work on my nerves because it is very stressful.

Lee Kantor: That could be your next – that could be your next product.

Elizabeth Hall: But I also learned that it was – it’s really important to have your pitch down, and you need to be prepared no matter what because you only have a very short amount of time to get your message across. So having it down is really, really, you know, it’s could be your one and only opportunity to really change your business to the next level or get it to the next level. So I am prepared for the next one for sure.

Lee Kantor: Now, you’re also working on a book. How did that come about?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, I am, which I’m really excited about. That came about with all of my knowledge about gut health. It’s called Shut The Gut Up, How to Optimize Your Gut Health, and I will just be sharing some tips and tricks on how to help your gut in simple ways, and also gut and also your, not just your gut health, but also your mental health like your mind, body, and soul. Right? It’s all connected. We’re all connected. So I just want to share my knowledge of what I’ve learned and how I’ve been able to help myself and with my product and go from there.

Lee Kantor: Now, your company is eeze Natural. Are there other products other than Travel-eeze on the roadmap?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, I do have a product called Daily-eeze that I will be launching in the new year. So it is a slightly – it is a different formula and it will be a powder formula as well. And I’m excited to get our next product Daily-eeze out. So Travel-eeze is just – you take that when it’s needed, and Daily-eeze, you will take on the daily.

Lee Kantor: Now, what was the reason that you joined the WBEC-West community? What were you hoping to get out of that experience?

Elizabeth Hall: Oh, I’m very honored to be a part of the WBEC-West. Well, first, I just love being around like-minded female founders and boss ladies, but also the contact and the information they share and their events that they have are very inspiring. And also just connecting with, you know, all the corporations because in the future, my goal is to have my products and retail stores such as Target and I am on Walmart currently, but I want to be in their stores directly, and I want to be in hotels and at the airports. So I’m working on those relationships and that’s what WBENC-West provides.

Lee Kantor: Is there any piece of advice you’d like to share for other women entrepreneurs out there, something you’ve learned that really stuck with you?

Elizabeth Hall: Well, I say, if you have an idea, it’s been – you know, you’ve been hearing it in your head, you’ve been mulling it over but you haven’t really made that jump yet or you’re afraid, I always just say, just do it. It’s like the Nike slogan, just do it.

Elizabeth Hall: What do you have to lose? You could start out small. You don’t have to go out big with a bang. Just share your ideas with other people. And I always say I’m here to support other women. So if they have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me, and definitely be a part of WBENC because they provide so many resources that can help you grow your business and start your business. And I also just say listen to your gut.

Lee Kantor: So what do you need more of and how can we help you?

Elizabeth Hall: Well, exposure is always good, so please just share, share my knowledge of your gut health. And if you’re ever traveling soon, always have some Travel-eeze as your must-have travel essential.

Lee Kantor: And if somebody wants to learn more and connect with you or somebody on your team, or learn more about your products or book, what’s the website?

Elizabeth Hall: Yeah, our website is eezenaturalhealth.com. That is E-E-Z-E, naturalhealth.com.

Lee Kantor: Well, Elizabeth, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Elizabeth Hall: Awesome. Thank you for having me.

Lee Kantor: All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Women In Motion.

BRX Pro Tip: Price is a Story

November 20, 2024 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Price is a Story

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BRX Pro Tip: Price is a Story

Stone Payton : Welcome back to Business RadioX Pro Tips. Lee Kantor, Stone Payton here with you. Lee, let’s talk a little bit about pricing, pricing strategy, just the whole thing, man. That is – that’s something a lot of us have a challenge with in the professional services arena, I think.

Lee Kantor: Yeah, I think one of the thought leaders that have influenced me the most in the area of price and he says price is a story is Seth Godin. That’s one of my favorite quotes from him. And that’s absolutely true because just think about this.

Lee Kantor: You can go to Costco and buy a bottle of water for about a quarter. That same bottle of water would cost you about a dollar if you bought it at a farmer’s market. That same bottle of water would cost you about $3 if you bought it at a restaurant. That same bottle of water would cost you $4 if you bought it at a football game. And that same bottle of water would cost you about $5 if you bought it at the airport. Same product, different location, different occasion, different price. Nobody blinks at paying the same – for the same exact thing at a variety of prices.

Lee Kantor: So price is a story. It’s whatever you tell yourself it is, it is. Another one of my favorite marketers is Rory Sutherland. And he said that Rolls-Royce used to sell their cars at auto shows, and they were getting frustrated because whenever they went to an auto show, they were the most expensive car and nobody was buying what they were selling. So they stopped showing their cars at auto shows, and then they started showing them at airplane shows. So at the auto show, the Rolls-Royce is expensive, but at an airplane show, a Rolls-Royce is an impulse buy. It’s – the price is nothing compared to what these people are thinking about spending when it comes to an airplane.

Lee Kantor: So if you’re having a hard time raising your prices, maybe you’re hanging out in the wrong places and you’re comparing your services to the wrong things.

Uguanda Simpson with Picture That Houston

November 19, 2024 by angishields

Beyond the Uniform

Uguanda Simpson with Picture That Houston

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Uguanda Simpson, with Picture That Houston, is a retired Army veteran with over 28 years of military service. An Adjunct Professor and full-time serial entrepreneur.

During her military career, Uguanda worked as an Information Systems Technology (IT) Professional, a field in which she continues to excel, bringing her clients the latest and greatest software developments for the events and entertainment industry.

With advanced degrees in Information Management and Assurance, Uguanda turned her passion into purpose. Recognizing the need for formal training, she earned her certification as an Event and Meeting Planner.

For Uguanda, doing what she loves never feels like work. Her dedication to community service remains strong, as her expertise in event planning and entertainment solutions allows her to serve communities across the United States with premier services.

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix.

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Houston, Texas. It’s time for Houston Business Radio. Now, here’s your host.

Trisha Stetzel: Hello, Houston. Trisha Stetzel here bringing you another episode of Houston Business Radio Beyond the Uniform series. I’m so excited to have this guest on with me this week. We were introduced through, I know you might be surprised that Houston Regional Veterans Chamber of Commerce and probably Dave Weaver. Specifically, I have Uguanda Simpson on with me today who is a retired Army veteran with over 28 years of military service. She is also an adjunct professor and a full time serial entrepreneur. She’s the owner, founder and CEO of Picture That Houston, Uguanda, welcome to the show.

Uguanda Simpson: Thank you. Thank you for having me, Trisha.

Trisha Stetzel: Absolutely. I’m so excited to have you. Now, if any of your clients are listening, they might know you as Wanda.

Uguanda Simpson: Absolutely, yeah.

Trisha Stetzel: So you want to tell us a little bit more about you and how you got into business after the military?

Uguanda Simpson: Yes. So I actually started my business while I was in the military, and it kind of happened on happenstance. I was planning my daughter’s sweet 16 birthday party, and, um, it started with a photo booth, believe it or not. Um, our our business is events and entertainment, but it started all about a photo booth, and we couldn’t find one within 250 miles. And, um, my husband, he actually, uh, came back to me, I think the next day he said he was going to, you know, check it out, see what he can find. And I’m like, wow. I looked everywhere, like in three different cities. I could not find one. And the next day he came back and he was like, I found one. And I’m like, where? And then so we we got this photo booth because that was the one thing that my daughter wanted, you know, to have as entertainment for her guests at her sweet 16 party. And, um, the DJ that I hired for her event, he actually, he he loved it so much. And he asked us, hey, um, I’m having a I think it was a New Year’s Eve masquerade ball. And her ironically, her theme for her sweet 16 was a masquerade, um, gala for her. And so he asked us how much would we charge? And like, oh, we don’t know.

Uguanda Simpson: You know, we’re just doing this for our daughter. And it’s like, oh, no, I think you guys would love this. You should do it. You can make a lot of money. And I’m like, well, yeah, we’re just doing this for this. And I said, well, you know what? He said, well, if you don’t want to charge me because we were like, no, we won’t charge you. He said, well, if you don’t want to charge me, just charge the guest. And I was like, oh, okay, that sounds doable because we have no idea what we’re doing right now, but I always knew that I wanted my business to be more than about photobooths, because I’ve always had a passion for pretty things and creative thought and putting things into, you know, making a beautiful masterpiece. So and when I think back about it, I’ve actually planned a lot, a lot of things. Instead of having a wet and court wedding coordinator or planner for our wedding, I actually planned the entire wedding, and I planned several events leading up to that. While I was in the military, I was on the protocol team where we the planning team for, um, a lot of the a lot of the dining outs, dining ins and, um, all of that.

Trisha Stetzel: Wow. Very cool. You know, it’s we’ll just blame it on your 16 year old daughter back in the day, right? That got all of this started. So it started with a photo booth And as things started to come together for you, you do full event planning. So how did you get from just the photo booth to full event planning with picture that Houston?

Uguanda Simpson: Trust me, it was not something that happened easily overnight. It took a little bit of time and a lot of thought. And how was I going to make this transition? Because initially, all of the client base that we had was reaching out to us for photo booths. So I started sharing more of with social media, explaining that, hey, we’re more than just a photo booth company. And it was one of those things, how do I win someone over as a client to do event planning versus someone just calling me to do, um, event entertainment? And, um, what I did was I’ve taken a lot of courses. I’ve been in the I’m not sure if you’re familiar with Ivmf. Through Syracuse University, the um, for military families and veterans. I’ve been through that. I’ve been through the VA wise, which is a veteran women ignite uh, a series through Ivmf. I’ve also been through the entrepreneur veteran boot camp and all of these things in the beginning, started turning the wheels to get me to the place where, you know, I really want to transition to something more. So when we were going through those particular courses, we did the pitch competitions, and that’s where I started incorporating how do I pitch this business as an events and entertainment company versus just an entertainment company? And after I did that, I went through a course at the University of Houston called the Shaw Program.

Uguanda Simpson: And that’s an excellent program. It’s free. Um, it helps small businesses, um, to it really helps to set you up for success. And I went through that and that really started the wheels turning on when we had all of the different speakers come in and speak to us. Um, I saw this lady that that spoke with us that had all of these credentials and I’m like, wow, what does this mean? And she when she started talking, she said, don’t worry, guys, I’m going to explain to you what all of these credentials are. And when I saw it, I was like, oh, I want all of that. And, um, they, they brought people, uh, in from the local government as well. Sba, um, just the mayor’s office, just a whole lot of different people that actually started, uh, we also had, um, business, uh, coaches in the through the University of Houston that would, uh, give us, you know, ideas to help pull the information out. And what it did was when I initially started, I had my, um, my plan in process of, you know, in progress of how I wanted things to go. But when I went through there, it really defined everything for me how to actually construct a business plan, how to, you know, go from this to this, and how are you going to transition? How are you going to win clients over? And after that, it actually gave me the courage to, uh, to go out and seek government, uh, from the local government.

Uguanda Simpson: And then I started thinking bigger, how do I get contracts from the federal government? So we ended up getting certified all all the way across. We are certified as a veteran owned business woman, business enterprise, minority business, enterprise, managed business enterprise, airport concessionaire, uh, business enterprise and persons with disabilities business enterprise. So it, um, after that, uh, we also got our first contract with the company that was actually coming into town. Um, they were bringing their entire company from different areas across the United States, and they had reached out to me, um, about planning their event. And that’s where it all started. And then after that, it was the next the next event, the next event. And then we also after, I think the third one, we the second one we did was with the US Army, and I was really happy to be a part of that. Um, it’s like, wow, you know, after serving 28.5 years in the military, now I’m actually working with the military on a different level, whereas I’m doing it from my business perspective, where, you know, from the beginning it was me, you know, serving in the military. And then after that, we won our first bid with the city of Houston.

Uguanda Simpson: and where we planned their active living summit.

Trisha Stetzel: That is amazing. And I, I know that you’re a lifelong learner, and you take advantage of all of the tools and resources that are out there, which is really catapulted you to where you are today, along with a lot of sweat equity and tears. I’m sure, getting this thing built and off the ground. How do you think your military service Uganda plays into getting from the beginning, buying a photo booth to where you are now?

Uguanda Simpson: Oh, wow.

Uguanda Simpson: You know, I think the military honestly, when I was in when I was serving and I had troops up under me, I always used to tell my, my soldiers, you know, let the military work for you. Don’t always look at it as the military is getting all these things out of you. What can you get out of the military? And I can say with all of the roles I’ve, I’ve had while in the military.

Uguanda Simpson: As a signal one officer. I’ve been in many leadership positions. I’ve been the, um, OIC, uh, and, you know, doing having to attend many meetings and, and one of the things I can say, well, I can say many things, but one of the things for sure, with the planning, the reconnaissance, the execution and doing the after action review, after you put something together, you have to come back and say, okay, what did we you know, what went right, what went wrong, how can we fix it? You know, I think it’s like the 5 or 3 that we have to get, you know, get three goods, three bads and all of that. And then another thing I can think of is like the FTC, um, where it’s mission. Well, we don’t have any enemies, but that’s what the E is for in metric terrain, troops, time and consideration. So all of those things plight into effect when I think about what I do in my business.

Uguanda Simpson: I always have to put the mission first. I know I’m speaking with the client. I’ll find out from that client what are the deliverables and how can we, you know, as a business, reach and exceed those deliverables to deliver a exceptional product that we can have those clients returning to us or even wanting to refer us to their friends and colleagues.

Trisha Stetzel: Absolutely. And I think about resilience and never giving up. Right. I think those are some really big ones that we don’t always think about. But but as military veterans, you know, how are in the military active military. You didn’t have a choice to not be resilient and never give up. Right. So, um, you have a beautiful business. I want to talk more about it. So, uh, first let’s insert here where folks can find out more information. I know that they can Google, um, picture that. Houston, do you want to give them the direct, um, URL to your website so they can learn more about you specifically and even the certifications that you named off?

Uguanda Simpson: Okay. Yes, sure.

Uguanda Simpson: So you can find us on the web at ww.picture@houston.com. We’re on all social media platforms as picture that Houston and we’re on LinkedIn as picture that Houston. And when I say we’re on all platforms that means Facebook Instagram TikTok YouTube LinkedIn. I think we reached all of the platforms we can thus far. We were on TikTok. Well, uh x well before they transitioned to X, we were on on X as well, but we we kind of went away from that one. But yes.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay. Fantastic. So let’s talk more about picture that Houston. Um, who are your clients? How do you serve them? You just take this wherever you want it to go. Because I want our listeners to really understand who it is that you serve and how you might be able to help them.

Uguanda Simpson: Oh, wow.

Uguanda Simpson: So the majority of our clients are corporate clients. Um, we do also, um, execute social events, but the majority of our clients are corporate. And that’s one of the things you have to think about when you’re starting a business. Who is your target audience? I really didn’t understand that when I initially started my business, when someone would ask, who is your target audience? And I was like, everybody’s my target audience. And after being in business for a while, you you truly learn who your target audience is and who you want to work with. And for me, that is, uh, corporate government, um, those type of entities.

Uguanda Simpson: And the way we go about with connecting with those type of clients are we’re part of many different organizations. Um, for one we are with uh, I think it’s called Houston first. Um, we’re, we’re we’re a member of that and the Houston hospitality. So we also get clients that come, you know, that go through Houston hospitality. That’s especially I think that’s how we actually got the one client. Well we’ve gotten a couple now, but the first one that came from out of state, um, that they came in and that one was the Nci’s, the National. Um, oh gosh, the surveyors, I can’t remember what the acronym stands for, but the surveyors, they brought all of their people in. And, um, so a lot of our client base come from those types of, um, connections being a part of those. And then we also being a part of the chamber. Um, when I initially joined the chamber, I didn’t know that we had a veterans chamber in this area. So when I found out about it, I was super excited to be a part of something because I always feel like whenever there’s a veteran involved, I feel like that’s my tribe. I feel comfortable around those people. And being a part of the Houston Veterans Chamber has been, um, outstanding for me. I’ve actually met clients through events through the um, Houston Veterans Chamber. As a matter of fact, I did an event earlier this year, uh, from a client that I met at the expo for the Houston Regional Veterans Chamber last year. Uh, I did a their their corporate 75th anniversary, um, gala, and that was a huge success. So we really we really enjoyed that. And from that, I actually got recognized by Congressman Al Green, who was in attendance, and that was really special and significant to me and my company.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, absolutely. That’s fantastic. I want to talk a little bit about the event that you just did, because I personally got to experience some of the work that you do. So you, um, brought part of what you do in a picture that Houston to the Houston Regional Veterans Chamber of Commerce. We sponsored the Veterans Business Awards luncheon. That’s a mouthful, right. Uh, just I it was just last week, I think, or maybe the week before. So you want to talk a little bit about the service that you provided for that luncheon. And then I’d like to make some personal comments around my experience.

Uguanda Simpson: Absolutely.

Uguanda Simpson: So I’ve been on the plane, I was on the planning team for the Houston Regional Veterans Chamber of Commerce, um, for this past event, which was the Veteran Business Awards as well as the Business Expo, and I’ve been a member. I shouldn’t bring it up. I’ve been a member. This is my second year as a member with the Houston Regional Veterans Chamber. Um, for that event, we did a, uh, the event planning. We were part of the planning where we did the full setup. We designed the concept for the room, the color coordination, the floral centerpieces. Um, we did some balloon artistry, and, um, it was it was wonderful. It was a really beautiful setup. We were we coordinated with all of the vendors that, you know, all of the veteran owned business vendors, I should say, because we we really have a lot of veteran owned businesses here in the Houston area. So I was able to coordinate, you know, everything with the deliveries and, um, the setup and arranging all that for the chamber. So that was part of the planning piece.

Uguanda Simpson: So we truly were excited to be a part of that and to make it such a huge hit and success, especially because it was the first the inaugural, you know, Veterans Business Awards, in which we’ll be going into annually now. So seeing the success of the overall event and how successful it was, the amount of people that, you know, the large turnout we had and most importantly, seeing the creation of my work after the setup, I was truly, like, amazed. And I was happy that members of the chamber could actually see what it is that we do, aside from just entertainment.

Trisha Stetzel: Absolutely. And I have to say that the room was just breathtaking. It was absolutely beautiful. And one of the things that I think is really important, Uganda, you and I talked about this before is that the the leadership of the chamber didn’t have to do the setup or the takedown. It was actually a service that you provided to us. And it took so much stress, stress and tension off of the pre and post event. By the way, we had 240 people at the luncheon, which is huge. Uh, and for those of you who are listening, if you haven’t seen the pictures that I posted, I put a really cool testimonial out for Uganda with some gorgeous pictures of the room. We had an overhead like catwalk where I was able to take a picture of the entire room, and it was gorgeous and we appreciate you giving us that setup so much. All right, so as we get to the end of our conversation today, I know you have a few other things that you might like to get out to the audience. So what else do you have for us? Uganda.

Uguanda Simpson: Well, I would like to say So, um, we we don’t service a lot of veterans. We would love to work more with veterans, create partnerships with veterans. Um, and I would love and welcome the opportunity to speak with, you know, more about what it is we do, how we can help them. And you touched on something that’s very important, how our business, we alleviate the stress. And that’s key. That’s very important when it comes to planning the event because it’s a lot and it can be a lot on a host. And we want to make sure that the host does not have to worry about all of the little things when we can do it for them. So I appreciate you touching on that, because I did not mention that that’s one of the key things that we we pride ourselves in doing, making sure that we alleviate the stress and make it a very seamless event you know.

Uguanda Simpson: All the way through, beginning to end.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, absolutely. And so I’m, I’m going to put all of the links to everywhere you can find Uganda in the show notes. So if you’re a veteran, if you have an event coming up, by the way, it’s the holidays. I know it’s hard to believe we’re already at the back end of this year. Uh, but it’s not just holidays that you want to is, um, where she serves her clients. It’s throughout the year. So if you have a conference or some kind of event where you need someone to take the stress out of getting it done and making it beautiful, Uganda is definitely the person you need to talk to. Picture that. Houston. So Uganda, how can people find you?

Uguanda Simpson: Yes. So you can find me on all social media platforms under Picture That Houston, as well as our website. Picture that www dot picture that houston.com as well.

Uguanda Simpson: And you can call us at (281) 819-0274, and you can also reach out to us via email. Hello at pictured@houston.com. I do go by Wanda because it’s hard for a lot of people to pronounce my first name, but I am not opposed to being called Uganda, which is my given name. And um, yeah. And even if you were to reach out on our website, we have a little chat box down there. You can chat with us through there. We’ll respond, um, within ten minutes or less. We try to respond expeditiously and, um. Yeah.

Trisha Stetzel: Fantastic. I’m so excited to have you, um, come and talk about your business today, Uganda. Is there anything else that you would like the audience to know before we finish up today?

Uguanda Simpson: The only thing I would like to say is that we’re waiting. We’re waiting to workwith you. We’re waiting to create a masterpiece. You give us your deliverables. We’re ready to deliver.

Trisha Stetzel: Fantastic. Uganda. Thanks so much for being on the show with me. For our listeners, just know you can just point and click to any of the links that we’ve put in the show notes to find Uganda. I would encourage all of you to at least have a conversation with her about your event, or even connect with her. If you know people who have a need for an event coordinator or planner because she is a phenomenal thank you for being on the show today.

Uguanda Simpson: Thank you.

Trisha Stetzel: And that’s all the time we have for today’s show. Join us next time for another exciting episode of Houston Business Radio. Until then, stay tuned, stay inspired, and keep thriving in the Houston business community.

Adapting to Change: Michelle Manire’s Experience with Virtual and Hybrid Events

November 19, 2024 by angishields

Women in Motion

Adapting to Change: Michelle Manire's Experience with Virtual and Hybrid Events

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Today on Women in Motion, Lee Kantor interviews Michelle Manire, Founder and President of Coast to Coast Conferences and Events. Michelle shares her journey from the hotel industry to establishing her own event planning company. She discusses the challenges of breaking into the market as a woman-owned business and the importance of strategic planning and measurable goals for successful events. Michelle also highlights the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry and the shift towards hybrid events, underscoring the value of community, education, and mentorship in achieving long-term success.

Michelle Manire is a highly accomplished professional renowned for her exceptional contributions to the event and hotel industries. Breaking barriers, she was the first woman appointed as the General Manager for two major hotel chains before founding Coast to Coast Conferences & Events in 1994. With three decades of experience, Michelle has been a trailblazer in providing innovative, time-saving solutions, comprehensive conference and event management, and consulting services for clients nationwide.

A distinguished alumna, Michelle graduated from Leadership Long Beach, Goldman Sachs 10ksb, and earned her MDE from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. She is also a Senior Certified Meeting Manager (CMM). In response to the challenges posed by the pandemic in 2020, Michelle swiftly adapted, obtaining certifications in Virtual Event & Meeting Management and Pandemic Meeting and Event Design from the Event Leadership Institute.

In addition to her achievements, Michelle serves on the Advisory Board of Directors for the UC Santa Barbara Client Experience Certification Program and is currently enrolled in the 2024 Tuck Capstone Program. She and her company, Coast to Coast Conferences & Events, recently won the Silver Pyramid Award at the PPAI Expo 2024, recognizing their outstanding contributions to the industry.

Michelle is skilled in simplifying the event planning process through her proprietary systems, which not only save clients time and money but also reflect her commitment to staying at the forefront of industry trends. Passionate about mentorship, Michelle actively guides emerging meeting planners and empowers women business owners.

In 2023, Michelle’s dedication was acknowledged when her company, Coast to Coast Conferences & Events, was honored with the “Supplier of the Year” award from Women’s Business Enterprise Council – West, a testament to her leadership and commitment to excellence.

Michelle has shared her expertise in various speaking capacities, including webinars and panels. Her engaging speaking style, coupled with her love for imparting knowledge, has positioned her as a respected figure in the industry. Michelle continues to leverage her experience to uplift and inspire others, embodying the spirit of a true industry leader.

Connect with Michelle on LinkedIn and follow coast to Coast Conferences and Events on Facebook.

Music Provided by M PATH MUSIC

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios, it’s time for Women In Motion. Brought to you by WBEC-West. Join forces. Succeed together. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here, another episode of Women In Motion and this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, WBEC-West. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on Women In Motion, we have Michelle Manire, and she is the Founder and President of Coast to Coast Conferences and Events. Welcome.

Michelle Manire: Thank you. Glad to be here.

Lee Kantor: I am so excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about Coast to Coast Conferences and Events.

Michelle Manire: Wow. Where do I start? It’s a 30 year old company. I’ve been at the helm for the entire time. I’m obviously a woman-owned business. It’s gone through several reiterations from being just exclusively working with Catalina Island, and then our clients really wanted us to work on the mainland with them, and it has grown from there.

Michelle Manire: And we are now on our fourth iteration, and we are Coast to Coast Conferences and Events because we produce conferences and trade shows nationwide. Seventy percent of our clients have been with us multiple years. We are truly strategic partners and game changers for our clients. We’re not, as I say, just event planners, we do the logistics flawlessly, but it really is being a strategic partner and caring about the ROI and enhancing their programs.

Lee Kantor: So, what’s your backstory? How did you get involved in this line of work?

Michelle Manire: You know, I was just thinking about that because I think it started when I was social chair of my sorority, so I was planning events way back then. But I actually never thought of the hotel industry, which was where I started my career. I was taking a year off school and working on Capitol Hill – not school, when I graduated, but taking a year off then I was going to go to law school.

Michelle Manire: And, you know, started working on Capitol Hill and somebody said I would be really great in the hotel business. And I couldn’t think of anything worse because one of my sorority sisters worked at a front desk at a hotel, and I thought, “Oh, that is just so cacky,” and I don’t know why I thought that. But I ended up, you know, what’s the worst case scenario? I gave it a try, and I was in a training program with the Westin Hotels at the Mayflower in Washington, D.C., with eight grads from Cornell, and just really fell in love with it. And I became the first woman general manager for two major hotel chains, Stoker Hotels and Resorts and DoubleTree, and absolutely loved it.

Michelle Manire: How I made that transition was I didn’t want to move anymore. My niche was opening hotel properties so I wouldn’t stay anywhere longer than a year or two. And then, once I landed in California, I went, “You know, I think I want to stick around for a while,” and that’s how Coast to Coast started.

Lee Kantor: Now, when did you start getting involved in event planning and conference planning for other people? Like when you left the hotel then did you just immediately just jump right into that with your own firm?

Michelle Manire: Yes. I wanted to do something, I love the hotel industry, but when you’re a general manager, it’s really where they want to send you. And I turned down five moves, and I said that’s not fair to the company, and I was wanting to stay put for a while. So, I wanted to do something compatible with the hotel industry, because I still work with all the same people that I worked with just on the other side. So, that’s how Coast to Coast was born.

Lee Kantor: So then, you started, I guess, where you were at and you just started doing conferences and events at hotels nearby?

Michelle Manire: No. I mean, we always were national. It really depended on where our clients wanted to go because we had so many repeat clients, they don’t want to go to the same place over and over again, and they usually have rotations, you know, east to west or south to north. So, we decided to, obviously, really develop the nationwide conference and event management side of our business.

Lee Kantor: So, at first you were getting clients just from the existing relationships that you had just accumulated over the years?

Michelle Manire: Yeah. And a lot of our business is referrals, so we’re not stuck in one particular industry. So, we service all industries, and it’s predominantly initially because a lot of our business was referral. But, obviously, we have a marketing agency and we do lead generation, so we do pick up leads and prospects through other sources as well.

Lee Kantor: So, different organizations and groups will come to you and say, “Hey, we’d like to plan an event,” and then you can help them kind of plan location to what’s going to happen and the activities and things like that?

Michelle Manire: So, we do everything related to an event A to Z. I mean, there isn’t anything. We write scripts, we do stage production, we do all the logistics, we source for the venues, everything. The only thing we don’t do is sponsorship sales, because that’s not what we’re good at. But we will help them develop their sponsorship decks. We will manage the sponsors after they have signed. We manage speakers. Like I said, there really isn’t anything that we can’t do in our space.

Lee Kantor: Now, how did you handle the pandemic? Were you doing virtual events?

Michelle Manire: Yeah, so that was really kind of quite surprising when that happened. I mean, you know, we have recessions, 9/11, et cetera. And I’ll never forget, I was in Saint Louis managing a conference the weekend before everything kind of hit. And we heard kind of rumblings that there was something coming down, but it really didn’t affect that conference. I flew back Sunday night, and then we had a conference starting Monday at the L.A. Convention Center for the Mayor of Los Angeles, and it was their investor’s conference.

Michelle Manire: And everything got set up, everybody was checking in, and all of a sudden a lot of the attendees, the bankers and investors, were dropping their badges off at the registration desk and saying we’re leaving. I’m like, “The Mayor’s just about ready to speak, what are you talking about?” And they said they just got an edict from their corporate office to get home, that everything’s being frozen. And that’s when it started.

Michelle Manire: And we thought, “Well, okay. This will be a month, maybe, or two months.” And we start contacting all of our clients and moving them to Q3 and Q4. And it didn’t change. I mean, it just got worse. So, we went, “Okay. How can we be of value to our clients?” And how we could be of value was to learn everything we could related to virtual events. And that was a really big task, a really big learning process. But my team, we all agreed that’s what we needed to do.

Michelle Manire: Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything out there that could walk us through A to Z on virtual events until Event Leadership Institute came up with a certification program, which was about a month after all of this happened, and we just jumped right in both feet and produced trade shows, fundraisers, conferences, you name it through the virtual platform that we had. So, that’s how we survived, and we actually grew over that time because a lot of people just left the industry.

Lee Kantor: Yeah. I mean, it was so disruptive.

Michelle Manire: Yeah, and it still is to this day to be perfectly honest.

Lee Kantor: There’s still ramifications from it.

Michelle Manire: Oh, yeah. I mean, I speak on trends and different things in our industry, and the costs have soared, and 40 percent of the labor force didn’t come back. So, we’re still dealing with shortages of labor all across the board, and that takes twice as long to plan an event now, because it just takes time to get answers from the partners that we need answers from.

Lee Kantor: Now, is one of the unintended consequences of having to go virtual is that now people are also including virtual as part of their kind of conference plans or is it something that’s just gone away?

Michelle Manire: No. Actually, what happened, which is kind of interesting, a couple of things I really had thought that did not materialize. One, that there would be smaller regional meetings rather than national meetings. And that hybrid, which is where you have a virtual component and in-person component would be very big when we came back. Well, regional didn’t happen. All the in-person are still national. I mean, there are regionals as well, and our attendance has skyrocketed. But also because of the expense, because you really need two separate teams to do an in-person and you need a team for the virtual, so because of that expense, most clients did not want to do that.

Michelle Manire: But how we conquer that, we either live stream but they are not integrated with the in-person side of it or we record on-demand and then they can sell that product. So, that’s another revenue stream for our clients. But we do, do virtual. In fact, next Tuesday we have a virtual conference for L.A. County for their community meeting.

Lee Kantor: Now, when the pandemic broke, did you find that just people are hungry for this kind of in-person face-to-face, you know, shake someone’s hand, look them in the eye experience that it’s been a while, and now they’re just kind of looking for opportunities to do that kind of interaction?

Michelle Manire: You know, initially there was a lot of safety concern that we had to address. Some people were fine hugging, some were fine fist bumping, some didn’t want to be touched at all. So, we had to take all those considerations into account. And we had to just make sure that all the safety protocols were in place so that the attendees felt comfortable coming out to an in-person event. And then, slowly, that faded away, and now it’s just gangbusters. Like I said, I think all of our conferences that we have done since COVID have probably grown 20 to 50 percent in attendance.

Lee Kantor: Is the attendance for any given one higher, or is it just more people are doing more events, or both?

Michelle Manire: I think both. I think costs are now becoming a really big issue because it’s so expensive. A gallon of coffee, $185. I mean, it’s it’s just really, really tough. And that’s one of our differentiators. We have a track record of saving our clients 15 to 40 percent on the bottom line. And that’s part of our strategic partnership, is that we care about that ROI, so we really work with them on improving that.

Lee Kantor: Now, is your clientele like organizations that are doing events for themselves, or is it like associations or organizations that are doing conferences, or could it even be a trade show where you’re helping, you know, 100 vendors set up in a trade center?

Michelle Manire: So, it’s all of the above. It really is. And a lot of our conferences have an exhibit or trade show connected with it. We have a medical group in June that we’ve had for several years, where they have 200 exhibitors as part of their conference. So that, you tend to see and it’s a really good revenue stream as well, so it’s really across the board.

Lee Kantor: So, you talk a lot about you’re not shying away from the revenue and ROI side of the business, can you talk about is that a point of differentiation for you? Like you’re not just trying to have an event just, hey, we all had a great time, high five. You’re trying to have an event that is strategic and is helping them achieve some sort of an ROI.

Michelle Manire: Absolutely. So, let me just touch base on our process. So, we have the same process for every project, whether it’s a repeat or not. And one of the things I really got tired of hearing when a client would come to us and I go, “Okay. Well, what are your measurable goals for your event?” And they kind of give me a glassy starry eye look and say, “Well, we do it every year.” And I’m like, “But that’s not really a measurable goal. How do you know you’re successful at the end if you don’t have measurable goals?”

Michelle Manire: So, I wrote a proprietary strategic planning guide that we give to our clients prior to coming to the onboarding strategic planning meeting that we have with them and they work with their team on the guide. And ultimately it starts with the why, but where I’m getting them to is their measurable goals. And then, when we do our onboarding strategic planning meeting, we talk about those goals because that truly helps us to know what their goals are so that we stay focused on that. And we’re not going off in different tangents that aren’t going to have the result of them being successful with their goals. So, that happens at every single project that we start, and obviously, we do agendas, we have meetings with them.

Michelle Manire: And I would say another differentiator is our post event report. I really have not seen another event management company do an extensive as we do with the post-event reports. So, we collect all the analytics, the data. Obviously, we do debriefs internally, we do it with the client, we do it with sponsors, we do it with speakers. We really want to get an overall comprehension of what happened in that conference and how we can improve on that year after year. And that saves our clients a lot of time. They’re not going back and going, “Okay. Who did we use? What vendor did we use here? Oh, how did we do here?” I mean, everything is succinct and in one location.

Lee Kantor: So, how do you help your client kind of educate themselves, because they’re obviously not in the conference and event business, but they have an idea that they would like to do one? How do you help them understand certain things are measurable and we can achieve certain outcomes? I would imagine there’s an education portion to this where they don’t know what they don’t know. And you can really help them exceed their expectations if it’s done the right way.

Michelle Manire: Yeah, and we love education. So, we have clients that don’t have a clue, like what you’re saying, don’t know what they don’t know. Or, we have clients, a lot of clients – just one that comes to mind, a film company came to us and was overwhelmed. She was new in her job. And seven weeks prior to their conference, she was over budget. She didn’t have the staff to manage it. So, we took over her conference and we were able to save them 35 percent, even though the contracts were signed, and really saved the day for her. And that’s kind of why we’re game changers.

Michelle Manire: But we really like to educate our clients. Some clients just say just do it and I don’t want to be bothered. We’ll have them approve, obviously, things they need to approve. And then, some want to be in the thick of things. And we’re happy to have either, because it’s fun to educate our clients on what they need to look for, how are we saving them money. And we can walk them through our secrets, if you will, of how we do that. And they have fun too.

Michelle Manire: And we try to get them involved with speaking at their conferences too. We did that a lot in the virtual world, and they were so afraid. And we had to train the speakers because the speakers were used to being in-person and feeding off an audience, and now they were just looking into a camera and that was quite different. But it was fun to take all of our clients through being speakers and being part of their conference. So, those are kind of the fun things that we do.

Lee Kantor: Now, is there some advice or tips you can share for the organization that maybe hasn’t done a conference yet but is considering it? Is there some advice you can share?

Michelle Manire: Yeah. Come see me. Don’t start until we have a conversation. And I just had this conversation at one of our investor’s conference we just did Friday. I spoke with a gal that wanted to do a conference, and, you know, there’s so many factors. I don’t want them to be unsuccessful their first time around. And they really need to develop a budget. They really need to think about do they have the influence that people will come to their conference in-person? There’s just a lot of factors that really need to be taken into consideration before you jump in.

Michelle Manire: It’s very expensive, and I just want to make sure that they know what the output is going to be. And to really work on a zero-based budget, meaning that everything that they take in for that conference has got to pay for that conference. So, if that doesn’t happen, then they’re not ready for a conference.

Lee Kantor: Now, why was it important for you and your firm to become part of WBEC-West?

Michelle Manire: Well, we were woman-owned certified, which was great. I think when people join WBEC-West or get certified, they think immediately corporate contracts are coming. And that doesn’t happen most of the time because most of the corporations already have five-year contracts with other vendors. But to me, what I really enjoyed is mentoring other business owners.

Michelle Manire: I was past Orange County forum chair, and I really enjoyed that. It was bringing what we call WBEs, women-business owners together. And I knew one of my big aha moments as I went through my career is that I didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. I didn’t have to do things myself. I know if I connected to the right person, they’ve already been through what I was struggling with. So, I really wanted to make sure that I was connecting WBEs with each other and making sure that they had the support that they needed to be successful, and that was one of the big things.

Michelle Manire: And I think the other thing is the education, the education is phenomenal both in WBENC and WBEC-West. I just finished a program at Tuck, the MBA school at Dartmouth College, that was a scholarship program. And it just was perfect timing because we were revising our five-year plan and succession plan. So, there’s so much that WBENC and WBEC-West can offer beyond the contracts.

Michelle Manire: The contracts are great, but I collaborate with other WBEs and we do business together. One of the WBEs that I did business with, we signed a $100,000 contract, and she did the marketing side and we did the logistics and the strategic side. So, there’s so much to offer and I love the organization.

Lee Kantor: Is there a story you can share about one of your clients? Obviously don’t name the client, but maybe share the challenge they came to you with and how you were able to help them get to a new level.

Michelle Manire: So, we have a medical client that came to us and they had 25 trade show booths and they had, I think it was 250 attendees, and it was just failing and they didn’t know why it was failing. And so, we sat down with them and we talked about what their process was, et cetera. Well, I go back to measurable goals. They didn’t have any measurable goals. Their attendee satisfaction was poor. They were just kind of shooting from the hip, and you really can’t do that when you’re planning a conference.

Michelle Manire: Your program is very, very important. Are there takeaway tools that the attendees are getting? Is there interaction? Or do you just have a bunch of talking heads, I call them, you know, presenters? And so, we really worked with them on developing the program. We work with them on their sponsorship deck and their exhibitor deck. And three years ago is when we started with them, now it’s a 1,500 person conference and 200 trade shows at trade show booths, and 94 percent satisfaction.

Michelle Manire: So, it’s really just a matter of getting them focused on what their goals are, and then taking the logistics and the things that they shouldn’t be worried about away from their plate and us doing it on their behalf.

Lee Kantor: Now, if somebody wants to learn more, have a more substantive conversation with you or somebody on the team, what is the website? What’s the best way to connect.

Michelle Manire: So, team@ctcconferences.com is a great way. If you want to talk to me personally, I’m happy to take your call as well, and that’s Michelle, M-I-C-H-E-L-L-E, @ctcconferences.com. We do have a website, it’s up but we are redoing it right now, but it’s www.ctcconferences.com. And our phone number is 562-980-7566.

Lee Kantor: Well, Michelle, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Michelle Manire: Great. Well, thank you, Lee. Thank you for your time.

Lee Kantor: All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Women In Motion.

BRX Pro Tip: Steal from Hip Hop

November 19, 2024 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Steal from Hip Hop

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BRX Pro Tip: Steal from Hip Hop

Stone Payton : Welcome back to Business RadioX Pro Tips. Stone Payton, Lee Kantor here with you. Lee, we talk a lot about collaboration, I enjoy collaborating. What are your thoughts these days on collaborating effectively?

Lee Kantor: I think that we should be taking a lesson from the musicians out there, the people in hip hop and in other genres of music. They do a great job of collaborating amongst each other, and this introduces their music to a whole different group of music fans. And I think that that’s something that you as a business owner can do as well, especially if you have a business radio show or a Business RadioX studio partner. I think it’s a great way to get new eyes and ears on the work that you’re doing, so I would recommend that you start thinking about your business in this way.

Lee Kantor: The first thing I would do is identify complementary groups and organizations and then start reaching out to them to explore ways that you can collaborate to introduce each of your audiences to each other. I mean, if you’re doing a podcast, you can reach out to other podcasters and be on each other’s shows. You can interview them. They can interview you. If there’s another business group out there, you can kind of figure out ways that you can join forces. They can – you can interview their leadership. They can have you speak or they can introduce your content to their members.

Lee Kantor: There’s lots of ways to collaborate. There’s lots of ways that you can be helping each other. If you go into this kind of with an open heart and an open mind, you could be doing joint meetups together in real life; you know, invite all your friends and family and fans and they can do the same thing. And you can do a joint meetup of just networking, or you can do a joint, a meetup where there’s education and you can bring a bunch of subject matter experts on a variety of topics that you’re good at, and your collaborators are good at. So use your imagination and figure out ways to work with other stakeholders that are in your niche