Tuesday, January 30, 2007
RE: The 28th Annual Simmons College Leadership Conference
Simmons College will host its 28th annual Management Leadership Conference, "Ways Women Lead," in Boston on Saturday, May 5. More than 2,500 businesswomen from around the nation are expected to attend this year's conference. Nearly 75% of conference attendees have an average annual household income above $100K.
The conference will feature keynote speeches from Christiane Amanpour, CNN Chief International Correspondent; Marta Sahagun de Fox, former First Lady of Mexico; Queen Latifah; and Yue-Sai Kan, entrepreneur and humanitarian.
Previous event sponsors include: Office Depot, Pink Magazine, USPS, Eileen Fisher, Novartis, Phillips, Gillette, Xerox, and Ford Motor Company. 2007 corporate sponsorship opportunities are still available. Contact Ute Lutjens at 617.521.3830 or by email at ute.lutjens@simmons.edu.
- To register visit: www.simmons.edu/leadership/about.html
- Download the conference brochure.
Technorati tags: executives women re:invention Simmons Amanpour marketing Xerox Ford Gillette
Friday, January 26, 2007
RE: "No Shortcuts to Success" Marketing.
Today Seattle PI columnist Susan Schreter declares, "Instant success is an illusion in business." Couldn't agree more!
Entrepreneurial success is unlikely if you don't begin with a business plan. There are no shortcuts to success.
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention success seattle schreter marketing PR Chicago
Thursday, January 25, 2007
RE: Intuit's 10 Year Entrepreneur Forecast.
The first installment of a new 10-year forecast by Intuit and Institute for the Future was released today. The report identifies three major trends: 1 - the changing face of small business, 2 - the rise of personal business and 3- the emergence of entrepreneurial education.
Intuit's report suggests women will increasingly turn to entrepreneurship. Among them: "mompreneurs" -- mothers who start part-time, home-based businesses. As posted on re:invention's blog earlier this week, currently less than one-third of all women business owners have children living at home. In fact, women business owners are MORE LIKELY to be taking care of an elderly relative. Mompreneurs are a growing segment for sure, but keep in mind that most are sole proprietorships -- and for the most part, women's sole proprietorships are quite small. According to the SBA, only 2.7 percent of women-owned sole proprietorships produce $200,000 and above annually.
Additional Resources:
- Want to court enterprising women? Consider catering to home-based businesses -- but remember one shoe size does not fit all. Read 6 additional tips now from re:invention's free report: How to Court Enterprising Women.
- Indulge in Intuit's press release.
- Visit Intuit's Women's Resource Center -- thanks to Intuit for listing re:invention's blog as a resource.
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention Intuit mompreneurs forecast trends
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
RE: Venture Capital's State of the Union Address.
Venture capital reached a 5-year high of $25.5 billion in 2006 -- up 12% from 2005. Biotech and medical devices companies garnered the most investment dollars. The most robust growth occurred in the industrial and alternative energy category, where venture capital investments more than doubled to $1.8 billion.
MORE.
Women-led ventures still secure less than 5% of all venture capital...
Investments in Illinois companies increased 25%.
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention VC venture capital investments biotech energy Illinois
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
RE: Less Than One-Third of Women Business Owners Have Children.
No matter what the media tries to tell you, the majority of women business owners ARE NOT WORKING MOTHERS. Although more than two-thirds of women business owners are married, LESS THAN ONE IN THREE WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE CHILDREN AT HOME. In fact, women business owners are slightly MORE LIKELY to be taking care of an elderly relative.
Why does media try to spin the story of mompreneurs and women with children? Perhaps because mompreneurs and women with children are easier on the eyes. It also makes for a great traditional values Mother's Day story.
Truth is -- 51% of all women are single and living without a spouse. And a record number of women are childless.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Fertility of American Women Report, 44 percent of all women of childbearing age (15-to-44 years old) are childless. Seventy-one percent of these childless women participate in the labor force.
SOURCES:
- U.S. Chamber of Commerce
- Small Business Television
- Fertility of American Women Report
- Women eNews, "Working Women Delay, Forego Motherhood"
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention childless single mompreneurs fertility marketing
RE: Death of the Woman Marketing Rockstar. AKA: Men Can Rock The House But Women Still Get Chided For Raising Their Voices Above a Whisper Or Dancing Suggestively.
If you check the signature line to this post, you'll note that it's a post written by Kirsten, not our team. Yes - re:invention's blog has morphed into a team blog in 2007. I feel compelled to post today....
THE HEADLINE...
This morning a re:invention associate forwarded me Matthew Creamer's new AdAge article titled, "Death of the Rockstar CMO." Creamer's article muses about women marketing executives who fail to get a hit record and are bumped (prematurely) by the band.
Over the past month there's been enough burning out and fading away among marketing rock stars to show the limits of careers built on bold statements and media attention...A quartet of high-powered, outspoken women -- Julie Roehm, Kerri Martin, Jerri DeVard and Mary Minnick -- all fell (or at least, in Ms. Minnick's case, hit the proverbial ceiling) despite, or perhaps even as a result of, crafting images as mediagenic change agents shaking up moribund institutions...
The article goes on to perpetuate rumors, alluding to "unqualified sources" who suggest "attractive nontraditional thinker" Julie Roehm may have slept "with a subordinate" and violated "ethics policies."
Creamer concludes:
What remains to be seen is just how (these women will) deal with the spotlight (in their next roles), especially if prospective employers begin to take Mr. (Guy) Kawasaki's practical advice to heart: "Forget the rock star: Hire good, bright people who want to prove themselves, not live off the past."
WE KINDA TAKE ISSUE...Now I've got a bone to pick with reporter Matthew Creamer and Sir Kawasaki...
According to the
CMO Tenure Report from Spencer Stuart, a global executive search firm, CMOs -- all CMOs -- have short tenures. And over the past few years, the average tenure of CMOs has been decreasing.
- Average tenure for CMOs: 23.3 months (down from 3 years ago).
- Less than 14% of CMOs for top brands have been with their present company for >3 years.
- Nearly 50% of CMOs for top global brands are within 12 months of being on the job.
So it seems odd for AdAge to point the finger at these particular rockstar women marketing executives for their short tenures. Short tenure is common among all CMOs.
BUT HERE ARE A FEW VERY INTERESTING FACTS...Earlier this year, Brandweek issued their first "
State of Women In Marketing Study." As re:invention noted in our Sept 24th blog post titled, "
Toasting Women CMOs," it appears the CMO role is evolving into
a pink ghetto. Marketing seems to be the way for women to make it to the top. Of the 146 companies listed in the 2005 Brandweek Directory, 37 reported having a woman Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). In recent years, women have headed up marketing units at such firms as General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Staples, Yahoo!, AT&T and Visa. At the time of the article, Brandweek suggested that these numbers represented encouraging progress. 67% of Brandweek's study survey respondents (
75% of men, 57% women -- yes, surprisingly MANY more men than women) said women in marketing are more successful relative to other departments.
"The marketing department has traditionally been a 'safe' haven for women who, however successful, may not have been promoted as quickly in more competitive, male-dominated divisions of the company."
The article concluded...
"If the proverbial corporate glass ceiling does indeed exist, it appears to be lifting in the marketing department."
ODDLY ENOUGH, according to Spencer Stuart's
CMO Tenure Report, the average tenure for CMOs (23.3 months) is significantly shorter than the average tenure for other C-level executives. CEOs hold out an average of 44.4 months; CFOs last 39.4; and CIOs 36.4.
ONE MIGHT CONCLUDE A LITTLE GROWING GENDER BIAS HERE... One might conclude a little growing gender bias here. Follow along with me -- I'll go slowly...
- More women are rising to the C-level ranks in the role of CMO.
- CMOs have short tenures -- and the average CMO tenure is decreasing (ironically as more and more women leaders qualify for the role).
- Women are still being ghetto-ized into marketing -- even being told that the Marketing Department will speed their rise to the executive suite -- only to find themselves scapegoated and pushed out of their leadership roles. Faster than ever before. Faster even than other C-level executives. Guess you could call this a subtle form of "BUSINESS GENDER GENOCIDE." At minimum, it shows that male dominated Fortune 500 boards and C-level executive suites view Fortune 500 corporate marketing much like they view outside retained agency relationships (easy come, easy go). And that is a real shame from a continuity perspective.
This to me is the real brewing story. So here's a gift from re:invention for Julie Roehm, Kerri Martin, Jerri DeVard and Mary Minnick...
Our 9.11.06 blog post -- "
How to Get Fired Like a Man."
And let's take a moment to mourn the ousting of other women C-level execs including Carly Fiorina (HP), Patricia Dunn (HP), Edna Morris (Red Lobster), Jacqueline Heslop (ConAgra), Joan Chow (Sears), Anne Stevens (Ford)....
P.S. Feel free to drop a note to
Matt Creamer. Tell him I said so.
Technorati tags:
executives women re:invention CMO Adage Matt Creamer marketing Kawasaki
Monday, January 22, 2007
RE: Sallie Krawcheck Makes Chairman.
This morning Citigroup named (South Carolina born, former Cheerleader) Chief Financial Officer Sallie Krawcheck as Chairman of the company's Global Wealth Management Division, succeeding Todd Thomson. Citigroup's Global Wealth Management Division includes Smith Barney, The Citigroup Private Bank, and Citigroup Investment Research.
In a June CFO Magazine article, Sallie quipped:
"People talk about having it all, and I always want to tell them I don't. What I have are two things that are very important to me: my children and my career, but if you walk along Third Avenue on a summer's evening, you'll never see me out drinking wine with my six closest friends. You won't see me doing a lot of charity work. I'm not very nice to my siblings. I don't see as much of my husband as I'd like. There are many women who would not make the choices I have made...."
Sallie, daughter of successful
attorney and S.C. House Rep Leonard Krawcheck, met her husband, Gary Appell, while she was an associate at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette. At the time, Gary was managing director of DLJ Merchant Banking, DLJ's private equity investing arm. Gary now serves as
Vice Chair of New York-based private equity investment firm Castle Harlan.
FOR MORE.
Technorati tags:
executives women re:invention corporations Citigroup Krawcheck Chairman CFO
Sunday, January 21, 2007
RE: Forrester Research Trumpets Need for Marketing Reinvention.
"Marketers don't need to reorganize - they need to reinvent their organizations. This requires more than a slick internal communications campaign - it means that marketing needs to take a leadership role to help the organization become customer-centric in structure, culture, technology and partnerships."
- A "Big Idea," so noted by Forrester Researcher Peter Kim.
Forrester Research (Nasdaq: FORR) is an independent technology and market research company that provides pragmatic and forward-thinking advice about technology's impact on business and consumers.
Technorati tags: marketing women re:invention corporations Forrester Peter Kim FORR
Friday, January 19, 2007
RE: A Minnick Minute.
A quiet hush falls over the room...
Mary Minnick, Coke's executive vice president and president of marketing, strategy and innovation, today announced that she is leaving the company in March. She plans to move to Europe to pursue personal and professional goals.
Ms. (Soon to Be Former) Queen of Pop Minnick was passed over in December when the company named Muhtar Kent company president/chief operating officer. Minnick was ranked #85 on Forbes' 2005 Most Powerful Women List.
Sigh.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
RE: The Top 15 Women In Business.
Cynthia Good's Pink Magazine and Elissa Ellis' Forte Foundation have jointly released the "Top 15 Women In Business: Game Changers" list.
The list includes Gina Boswell (senior vice president and COO, Avon North America), Deborah Brooks (president and CEO, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research), Beth Comstock (president, NBC Universal), Lisa Ellis (president, Sony Urban Music), Karen Flanders (director, The Coca-Cola Company), Aerin Lauder (senior vice president, Estee Lauder), Duy-Loan Le (senior fellow, Texas Instruments), Pernille Spiers-Lopez (president, IKEA, North America), Marissa Mayer (vice president, Google), Tamara Rosenthal (vice president, Lacoste USA), Stacey Snider (CEO, Dreamworks SKG), Susan Sobbott (president, OPEN from American Express), Nina Tassler (president, CBS Entertainment), Lindsey Ueberroth (managing director, Preferred Boutique), and Robin Uler (senior vice president, Marriott International).
Random Interesting Facts?
- One-third of the "Top 15 Women in Business" hold MBAs or advanced degrees.
- Forty-three percent of all Forte Foundation members (ages 18-25) say sexism is still a factor at their workplaces.
MORE.
Technorati tags: executives women re:invention Pink Forte IKEA Avon Google NBC Universal
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
RE: Ace Hardware Flaks Promotes Franchises.
A new Ace Hardware survey (sample size 1,059) has found that more than eight out of 10 Americans consider themselves "entrepreneurial," and one quarter dream of owning their own business. 71 percent report financing is a barrier.
And so Ace Hardware has launched the Dream Ace contest giving aspiring entrepreneurs an opportunity to win their own Ace Hardware store valued at $1 million. Register online at: www.dreamacehardware.com. Ace's Dream Team is all male. Sigh.
Ace's current franchise network counts 4,600, up 1.2 percent from 2003. The company's franchise program (ranked #18 in the nation by Franchise 500) offers qualified individuals $195,000 in incentive benefits -- including training, recruiting/staffing, store set-up, grand opening event assistance, and inventory discounts.
Roughly 10% of all franchises are women-owned. According to a 1999 U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) study (the latest data available), nearly half of all women-owned franchises involved products and services for kids and cost an average of $60,000.
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention franchise ACE promotion SAP
Monday, January 15, 2007
RE: Opting Out Isn't An Option.
In 2003, national news ran headlines declaring women "opt out" of the work force to stay at home. Heather Boushey, Center for Economic and Policy Research economist, debunked the myth. Her 2005 report "Are Women Opting Out?" found that the drop in women's work participation rates between 2001 and 2005 was due to a weak labor market (men's labor rates dropped during the same time period).
A new Simmons School of Management study supports Boushey's findings. According to the report...
...only 18 percent of women have voluntarily stopped working.
...more than 90 percent have used some kind of flexible work arrangements during their careers.
...women who used flexible work arrangements had incomes on par with women who did not employ flexible work arrangements.
"It's a myth...that women are opting out of the workforce in droves...the women in our study say they must work, both to support themselves and to provide a significant percentage of their household income. But they have been smart and creative: they have negotiated flexible work arrangements as a strategic and powerful way to remain in the workforce."
- Mary Shapiro, lead study author.
Other Related Studies-
A 26 year study from The Center for WorkLife Law discovered that most women who did leave their jobs did so because of inflexible office policy.
- In December, a
Lifetime TV Survey suggested that 85 percent of young women plan to continue working after having children regardless of their financial situation. And today's girls place a high value on work-life flexibility.
Technorati tags:
executives women re:invention business corporations Simmons
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
RE: Stevie Awards Finalists Announced.
Finalists were announced today for the 3rd Annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business, an international competition recognizing the accomplishments of outstanding women executives, business owners, and the companies they run.
For a complete list of finalists by categories, CLICK HERE. Congratulations to all!
re:invention's CEO, Kirsten Osolind, serves on the Stevie Awards Board of Distinguished Judges and Advisors.
Technorati tags: Stevies awards finalists re:invention judges osolind
RE: PR FOR Women Biz Owners.
Shout out to Shannon Cherry -- Albany, NY mompreneur who specializes in PR for new women business owners. For $499 a month, Shannon teaches media basics to emerging women entrepreneurs. An inexpensive solution for women biz owners who want to dabble in press releases and local PR but who aren't quite yet ready for a big PR agency.
Smart corporations and progressive companies know that women business owners (especially work-at-home mompreneurs) are price sensitive. Access to capital is their biggest challenge to growth. re:invention can help companies identify key influencers like Shannon Cherry, who have direct daily contact with women biz owners. We can also help you generate women-targeted public relations and marketing to boost your company's sales and profits....
RE: But today it's only 21 degrees...
The front page of today's Chicago Tribune reads: "The Warmest Year Ever!"
Today a strong cold front hit Chicago.
Current temperature with wind chill? 21 DEGREES.
Average January temperature? 18.
Makes for a nifty example of media lead times. You can improve your chances of getting media coverage if you understand the lead times of various media outlets when pitching story ideas.
Daily newspapers = typically one to two weeks.
Three noted exceptions:
1. The story involves someone famous.
2. Someone deserves a spankin' (they've gone-n-done somethin' very, very bad -- media wants to wield the belt).
3. The story has immediate, earth-shattering consequences.
Here's a handy media lead times reference guide....
Technorati tags: media newspapers leadtimes re:invention advice PR
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
RE: Enterprising Women Ain't Got Time to Watch ABC.
In today's news....
ABC plans to pilot "Cashmere Mafia," from "Sex In the City" creator Darren Star and "Working Girl" writer Kevin Wade. The show will focus on four successful female executives, friends since college, who rely on each other as they juggle the demands of career, family, hard choices and high ambitions in New York City.
Over at NBC, they've (finally) green-lighted "Lipstick Jungle," based on author Candace Bushnell's second book. The show follows three calculating, cliche caricatures -- a movie executive, a magazine editor, and a fashion designer -- in their 40s.
The networks might give women entrepreneurs and executives incentive to watch if they offered them walk-on guest star roles and product placement opportunities (free advertising!). Great way to generate word-of-mouth. Sadly, authentic enterprising women execs and entrepreneurs are too busy to indulge in primetime television soaps for pleasure...
Technorati tags: cashmere mafia lipstick jungle bushnell re:invention women marketing ABC NBC
Monday, January 08, 2007
RE: Procter and Gamble Launches Capessa - A Women's Website.
Today's WSJ reviews Procter & Gamble's new women's website -- Capessa. Produced by P&G for Yahoo Health, Capessa came to life on December 21. Touting the tagline, "collective wisdom of women," the site aims to be an inspiring "gathering place for women looking to change their lives -- from getting fit to finding love, changing careers to dealing with illness." Capessa...is Procter & Gamble's first introduction to consumer generated content in the digital space...P&G's long history of developing original content dates back to the 1930's when the company created Soap Operas, which evolved into award shows, television specials, movies of the week, sitcoms, and now, a community-based website.
Check out the Capessa promo from VMIX. Women are beginning to blog on MySpace about Capessa because the site makes them the star! Online marketers are already commenting on Capessa's potential site traffic.
P&G knows one of the 8 "Marketing to Enterprising Women" secrets: connect with enterprising women through their professional and personal communities and enhance their credibility within their communities. (Source: "How to Court Enterprising Women," re:invention marketing).
"The point of these sites (like Capessa) is not to advertise, but to interact with consumers and learn from them. It's much like a worldwide focus group."
-- BusinessWeek Online's Stephen Baker
We admit to having "
insider knowledge" about P&G. re:invention's CEO, Kirsten Osolind, once worked on the Head & Shoulders brand.
Our evaluation?Thumbs half way up. We think Capessa is a good first start. Plenty more opportunity to expand the online community to make it relevant and engaging...
Interested in learning more about how women use the web?
Begin with this smart summary from Marketing to Women Online. Set aside an afternoon to read the
Pew/Internet "How Women and Men Use the Internet" Report. Then,
contact re:invention marketing for a free 1/2 hour consultation.
Technorati tags:
P&G Capessa re:invention Pew/Internet women BusinessWeek social-networking
Sunday, January 07, 2007
RE: We Don't Get Out of Chicago Much!
And so we look with solemn and eager deference to Brad Spirrison's column in the Chicago Sun-Times for Chicago's 2007 Technology Forecast. Noted in the column? Predictions from some of Chicago's most prominent investors and entrepreneurs including Freshwater Venture's Eric Antonow:
"Chicago will transform itself as a technology leader by being the first major city in the U.S. to offer free WiFi at its airports," prophetizes Eric Antonow of Freshwater Ventures.
Uh - hey Eric? Do you have a minute? Shh! Let us girls quietly slip you a top secret link to this handy
Free Wi-Fi Airport Directory from SmallBusiness.com. 133 airports with free Wi-FI listed to date including Las Vegas, San Francisco, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa, JFK (NYC), Pittsburgh...
This just might explain why Silicon Valley doesn't take Chicago seriously...
Don't worry boys.
This January, Eric is headed to Google. Hopefully Eric is lucky and his new boss won't read the Sun-Times article.
The P.R. lesson here? If you aim to be an industry resource for the media, know your facts.
P.S. Believe it or not, the employee buses to and from downtown San Fran to Google campus have free Wi-Fi too!!!!!!
Technorati tags:
Antonow Chicago tech business freewifi airport smallbusiness.com Sun-Times Google
Friday, January 05, 2007
RE: Taking Stock of CEOs Who Wear Stalkings.
We almost missed this smart gender-based analysis of Fortune 500 company stock performance from USA Today. There are now nine Fortune 500 companies with female CEOs -- up from eight in 2003.
"The stock performance of large companies run by female CEOs broke a two-year losing streak in 2006 when the women-led firms tied those run by men...Four of the nine women-led firms outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 index. Five underperformed, but one of those was nearly in a dead heat. Investments in companies run by female CEOs performed much as a portfolio of large companies run by men would have."
Market Outperformers:1. Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE:RAD), led by
Mary Sammons, +61%
2. Reynolds (NYSE: RAI), led by
Susan Ivey, +37% since she took over
3. Avon Products (NYSE:AVP), led by
Andrea Jung, +17%
4. Xerox Corp. (NYSE:XRX), led by
Anne Mulcahy, +17%
Market Underperformers:1. Safeco (NYSE: SWY), led by
Paula Rosput Reynolds, +12% (1.7% points shy of the S&P 500)
2. PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE:PEP), led by
Indra Nooyi, +6% (-4% since she took over)
3. eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY), led by
Meg Whitman, -30%
4. Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE), led by
Brenda Barnes, -10%
5. Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM), led by
Pat Woertz, + 30% (-41% since she took over)
Doug McIntyre, partner at 24/7 Wall St, concludes: "
There are not many women running big companies. But, those who do, have the same problems as men."
Technorati tags:
CEOs women re:invention business S&P500 stock
Thursday, January 04, 2007
RE: More Meme Madness.
Anita Campbell over at Small Business Blog has memed re:invention in the latest chain-letter blogging meme. In Anita's words...
"Here is the way it works. I have to answer five questions....Then I get to tag five other people to answer the questions. They in turn can tag five others. (That's where it resembles a chain letter.) And so on. So what's in it for you? Reading the answers is a good way to get to know other people online."
So today, I'll helm re:invention's team blog, and respond to Anita's five questions with my personal answers:
1. What have you learned so far from visitors to your blog?
When I launched re:invention's blog back in 2003, I quickly recognized the social relational nature of blogging. Blog readers can be friendly, fickle, infuriating, or fanatic. I once wrote that blogging is alot like high school. Its about top dogs and popular people (Top N Lists and A-list bloggers), sucking up (link love), bullies (riffs, spam, negative comments), exchange students reinventing themselves, and pedagogue teachers (from seth godin to guy kawasawki) who make too many rules and lists.
re:invention blog visitors are unique. The majority of our site visitors are NOT bloggers. re:invention's blog traffic includes corporate executives, investors, working women, and members of the media.
Nearly every week we receive love letters from women around the world. They thank us for inspiring them to launch their own business or for connecting them with a helpful resource listed in our library of links. We live for those love letters! We also receive more than our fair share of hate mail. Like others before us, we find hate mail amusing.
2. If someone would offer to pay for a course (or more) for you, what would that course be?
One of re:invention's specialties is PR spokesperson development. A company spokesperson doesn't always have to be the CEO -- at Whole Foods Market we often used our chefs and Store Team Leaders as spokespeople -- but the combination of a strong brand and an effective CEO spokesperson can help establish and sustain a powerful marketplace presence. We offer a 1-day spokesperson training session for clients. Contact us to schedule yours.
According to a recent Hill & Knowlton USA study, women spokespersons can be equal to or better than men at conveying credibility and authority. Sadly, men dominate as spokespersons and experts: 86% of all people featured in new stories as spokespeople are men. Men also make up 83% of all experts.
3. Are you satisfied with what you've achieved in 2006, in general?
A woman is never satisfied. Apparently neither are men. For 2007, I'm jonesing for a recurring news show or talk show correspondent spot.
4. Has blogging changed your life or your personality in any way?
Blogging keeps me honest and humble. It's exhilarating. Not as exciting as scoring a feature story for a client or shoe shopping, but pretty darn close.
5. If you had the opportunity to meet one person that you admire the most in the world, who would that person be?
Throughout my career I've been blessed with the opportunity to meet some amazing, admirable business and political leaders and extraordinary ordinary people. I've met some gosh durn good people blogging (some dinkheads too, but that's part of the drill).
The one woman that I would like to meet in person: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I was quoted in an article about Speaker Pelosi, alongside Hillary Clinton (!), in today's Baltimore Sun. Like her Blahnik shoes, Pelosi is pretty darn nifty -- and a powerful role model for women.
Now it's time for me to tag five people to answer these same questions on their blogs. I tag: Claire at
Change Servant,
Laurel Delaney, Diane and Friends over at
The Women's Dish, Wendy (
Kinetic Ideas), and Pamela Sims (
Escape from Cubicle Nation). For good measure, I'll add three more:
Morra Aarons,
StupidMarketing, and
Baltimore Boy.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
RE: "I wanna win. I want that trophy, so dance good."
500,000 women and minority business owners have voted AT&T as DiversityBusiness.com's "Top Organization for Multicultural Business Opportunities of 2006." AT&T was also recently chosen as Forbes Company of the Year. King Ed rules!
Other companies on the DiversityBusiness.com list? Coca Cola, Bank of America, Dell, Toyota, Procter and Gamble and Wal-Mart.
- MORE.
RE: AsktheVC.com launches - Women Entrepreneurs Take Note!
We're so diggin' Brad Feld's new blog, Ask the VC. Co-written with Jason Mendelson, fellow Mobius VC and U of M alum (we forgive him), AsktheVC.com opens daily dialogue between venture capitalists and entrepreneurs around the world.
Mobius Venture Capital, led by Managing Director Heidi Roizen, is noted for being one of the VC firms leading the charge in funding women entrepreneurs. re:invention's 2003 Venture Capital for Women Entrepreneurs report explored venture-backed businesses helmed by women and the venture capitalists responsible for funding those enterprises.
Women business owners, take note! Want to meet worldly investors? Here's your chance...virtually. Bookmark for a worthy read!
Looking for a Chicago VC blog? Try Matt McCall's VC Confidential. Matt is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago, as is re:invention's CEO, Kirsten Osolind.
Technorati tags: entrepreneurs women re:invention VCs askthevc.com vcconfidential.com Mobius Feldthoughts Roizen
RE: Deadlines Approaching for Filing 1099s
Re:Invention's nationwide certified team of senior-level independent marketing professionals prevents our clients from having to waste their time and money searching for experienced marketing advisors for their business. Since we bill our clients directly, we also streamline our clients' independent contractor tax requirements.
Before the end of January deadline, Re:Invention issues 1099-MISC forms to members of our certified marketing network who earned over $600 working on Re:Invention client projects. Copies of the 1099s must also be filed with the IRS by February 28th (March 31st if filed electronically).
Issuing 1099-MISC forms: an important January tax tip compliments of Re:Invention.
You can order forms from the IRS by calling 1-800-TAX-FORM or ordering them off of the IRS website. Another alternative? Consult your company accountant, pronto. Looking for a woman-led accounting firm in Chicago? Try Roberta Osher and Associates. For the record, they aren't a re:invention client.
More About 1099s.
Interested in becoming a member of re:invention's nationwide certified team of senior-level independent marketing professionals? CLICK HERE to learn more about our quality standards, team benefits, and application process.
Technorati tags: business women re:invention taxes 1099-MISC IRS
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
RE: Marketing to Men Begins with Women.
On the heels of Conn Iggulden's W-O-M wonder titled The Dangerous Book for Boys, John Bambenek (Blogcritics Assistant Editor and University of Illinois researcher) kicks off 2007 with "The Culture of Permanent Boyhood." Both book and article are worthy reads.
For curious minds, a swift summary of differences between boys and girls from Specialty Toys and Gifts Magazine (2005)...
Boys Seek the Following from Their Toys: a best buddy; action of self-sacrifice; nurturing each other through aggression; competition that hurts, but then empowers; victory which brings independence; don't need soft objects like girls do; enjoy harder objects; not as wide a need as girls for range of secondary colors; success as a quick goal rather than a slow process; hunting, questing; risk-taking (more physical than emotional); challenged by dark, gloom; toys need to fit into hierarchy development; underdog, wounding, overdog; weapons; violence.
Girls Seek the Following from Their Toys: colors (both primary and secondary); texture (more soft than hard); best friends; asking: am I lovable?; asking: am I attractive?; enjoy family cohesion; like to feel superior to boys; show empathy quickly; less need for aggression; competitive, but more subtle than boys; asking: is anything wrong with me?; looking for self-talk and self-empowerment; enjoy independence, but not if it means losing group bonding; less need for doom and gloom; dislike violence.
The tides appear to be changing and top
marketing minds are rethinking the male consumer.
Interested in marketing to men? Men who are counting down the days till Superbowl? Men who dig Star Wars and Superheroes? Men who run companies? Men who buy engagement rings? Men of all races and ages? Remember that men can be boys -- sometimes bad, sometimes good.
And consider this: smart brands that market to men begin by involving a woman in their marketing research. Women still make or influence 80 percent of all consumer purchases.Technorati tags:
marketing women re:invention men Iggulden Bambenek Rose Cameron Leo Burnett
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