Excerpt from “Black Inventors, Crafting Over 200 Years of Success”,

Laura Bazile from England

Here is the recipe I tasted a couple of weeks ago when I attended Social Media Week which is a global event, held in various big cities all around the world, at the same time.

~ Whisk together social and events

The “social” side of the event is not the only reason that triggered my decision to attend. My passion about experiencing what digital can bring to events leads me to create my own company providing editing services for event stakeholders. My point here is that running your own business comes with keeping it as “social” as possible eg. networking, connecting with people who have common values, path or experience, create the bridge with suppliers you may develop your business with and … meet potential clients.

~ Add media

You cannot exclude social tools if you wish to communicate on a global scale. I realized that the more techy you are the more demanding you become. I am not speaking of getting the ‘must-have’ handset or create an account on the ‘must-be’ social tool : I am referring to WHAT you can get from what you already have, picking up options that you really need whilst relying on a well-built work frame.

This said, meeting other freelancers, bloggers, professionals is the best way to see if you can 1/ get details from the amazing blogger you just met 2/ provide yours to an agency/supplier/client 3/ write down notes …. all of this at once, hassle-free and efficiently.

~ Bake an one week program

Being away for a business week is only a pretext for step out of your comfort zone. I met amazing people during my business trips, plus I built upon and learnt how to improve my business pitch.

~ Serve immediately, in 5 or more business meetings in London

I had the worst experience ever at the Adam Street Club, right after an event held there during SMW. I took the opportunity of being there with my laptop to jot down ideas before heading to the next event. I kindly asked a staff member if I could stay in the lounge and I was about to order a cup of tea to the barmaid who invited me to take a seat. I assume I probably did not choose the right flavor as another crew member zoomed along, asking me to leave. The best part was when I told her that I actually asked for permission a few minutes seconds earlier. She literally set up what could have been The Court of Justice scene, asking “who did you ask to? could you describe her?” – “Nope… I plead guilty Your Honor! now could you excuse me, actually I am heading to a coffee shop to work and … pay for my drinks!“.

True story/wrong debate, definitely the smartest way to say that optimizing event time by selecting locations where you can work on the fly is a must. Could be a/ from hotel room (quiet enough, with an internet connection) b/ from cosy coffee shops c/ from libraries d/ from co-working spaces. Experiencing working outdoors is the best time to nurture yourself and explore new schemes.

So is this a good recipe to try? I would say “yes” if you choose events that fits your requirements (location, budget, networking potential). Choose what can bring the opportunity to “speak out loud” about your business (make sure you are in the right place for this to avoid procrastination or irrelevance pitfalls – many events offer networking lounges or networking breaks before/after the show).

Are you an entrepreneur? Are you browsing to find the best recipe that could feed the social-side of your business?

Laura