Web Consulting and Online Marketing
I had fun at the Conway Business Expo. I met some new friends too. Below are a few of the pictures I took.
Awesome Chamber Ladies!
Kari Huskey and Jeff Matthews
Monica Reap from Trendee Galz visits with a customer
Friends from Wintrhop Rockefeller Institute
Tiffany Young from The Pointe in Conway
Yesterday, I renewed my membership at the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce. I am so glad I did! So, to celebrate my renewal, I am offering a special for Chamber of Commerce members.
I am offering 25% off of my website packages for Conway Chamber members. That’s right, 25% off until April 30, 2011 to members of the Chamber of Commerce in Conway, AR.
You will need to have signed the contract and paid 50% of the payment by April 30th to qualify for the discount. Also, you will either need to be listed in the Chamber directory or have verification from a Chamber staff member that you are a member.
So, you’ve been thinking about building your first business website or rebuilding your existing website, well, now’s the time! Contact me today to start the process.
And remember, you can always sign up for our free website tips.
Arkansas was one of the “lucky” states to get its US Census Data released early. It, as always, is interesting to peruse.
Conway, it seems, did not quite reach the 60,000 threshold we had hoped for. That’s o.k., we are moving in the right direction. Just ten years ago the city was a little over 40,000 people, and then, boom! Conway grew by more residents than my hometown, Batesville, even has.
Flickr: windley
I spent the past 13 years living in Fort Worth, TX which is the county seat of Tarrant County. Tarrant County is on a pace to out gain its neighbor, Dallas County, to the East. And believe me, if they can beat Dallas in anything, they will take great joy!
Having lived in a large city with tons and tons of opportunities, I was hesitant when I moved here a year ago. All I knew was I was making a new start and living closer to family. I also remember when some guy named Kris Allen won some kind of talent show a few years ago. I heard about that somehow.
So, I knew of Conway’s growth and recent fame, but I did not quite know what to expect. I mean, I am moving from a city of almost 700,000 people to one just a little over 45,000, or maybe 50,000, we really did not know. I really thought it was alright because it was close to Little Rock. However, now I know the truth is Little Rock is alright because it is close to Conway!
Conway has a vibrant Chamber of Commerce. They really care about their members! They want each one to succeed. The Chamber of Commerce, along with some key businesses, lead the way in making this a strong town. Conway isn’t just a town that is growing numerically, but it is a town that is growing in reputation and impact.
I knew when I got here I needed to network to find work. I was a twitter user before I moved here, so, I simply fired up twitter and began looking for folks to follow. Not only did I find folks who were active on twitter, but they engaged in conversation with me and I soon met them. I was amazed at how far along the geeky, technology community of Conway was.
Conway was given a title of one of the 10 Geekiest Cities in the U.S. by OnlineUniversities.com. The community has embraced the title, because they know that technology is the next great industry and can create a strong, vibrate economy and good jobs.
So, it seems, Conway is at a point in which it converges with the US Census, and, well, us geeks. Conway will be o.k. going forward.
Greg Hunt and Sandstone Realty is very involved in the community in Conway, AR. Greg and his company are active members of the Chamber of Commerce and proud University of Central Arkansas alumnae.
I met Jamille Rogers, a Sandstone agent, at a Chamber of Commerce event, and she and the rest of the company became instant friends.
Greg has build the company to be community-involved working with such organizations as Boys and Girl’s Club and the Court Appointed Special Advocates. Greg is also a master networker.
Greg and his team work to make the community a better place and to encourage families to be home owners. They are real “salt of the earth” people. Once you meet the Sandstone team, you will become their friends.
Greg has built an online presence for himself and his team. The Sandstone website was designed by Clarovista of Conway, and he and his agents all have active Facebook and twitter accounts. They work hard at engaging the online market as well as traditional marketing initiatives.
If you are looking for property in Faulkner County, I encourage you to give Sandstone Real Estate a call. They will work hard to help you find a home!
The Poster for BarCamp Conway
Friday (August 20, 2010) I attended BarCamp Conway (Conway, AR) which was hosted by the guys from Conway Cowork. Wow was it awesome! I got hang out with a bunch of tech lovers for five hours. What could be better?
The barcamp idea is known as an unconference. This means that the participants are the presenters, and they are voted on by their peers, other participants, to deliver a presentation. Sample topics included business startup, geosocial networking (gowalla, foursquare), drupal (web content solution), passion via Crushit, project management and more technical and website development topics.
I have to say that the topics I sat in on was awesome. I listened to Zack Hill of Flex360 Website Design in Little Rock, Kristian Anderson from KA+A and Pathagility (Conway, AR), Cotton Rohrschieb from Pleth, LLC (Batesville/Conway, AR) and Luke Irvin from Clarovista (Conway, AR). Each presentation was awesome!
I encourage you to visit a BarCamp near you if you have the chance. You can learn a lot about technology and web development and meet great folks to network with. You might even find your next website developer. And, not everyone at our event were IT and website guys/gals. We had folks from other sectors of the business world.
USA
BarCamp Dallas
BarCamp Jonesboro (AR)
I made a bold move today. I joined the Conway (AR) Chamber of Commerce. If you are a resident of Conway and have a business, you might consider joining. These guys do a great job and it is a good way to get exposure.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thechamberlife/
I think there are many good reasons to join the Chamber, but one thing I like about our Chamber is that they are using social media. Several of the staff tweet often on twitter and they know how to make use of other social media channels such as flickr and Youtube. Last year they even held a Social Media Conference.
It is a great way to get your business some much needed exposure as they list in their newsletter, on their website, and feature you in the member newsletter. They also do “ribbon cuttings.” I participated in one for my church, oneChurch. If you don’t have a marketing team, this is a “no brainer.” If you do, well, you can still benefit.
Thanks to Whitney Farris (@ChamberWhitney) and Jamie Ekenseair (@chamberjamie) who helped me get signed up.
