Green Options

I had the pleasure of being the guest on a (the?) twitter #SmallBizChat last night.  The brain child of up and coming small biz powerhouse Melinda Emerson (a.k.a. @smallbizlady), #SmallBizChat happens every Wednesday night from 8-9PM EST.  Melinda, along with her co-host Cathy Larkin (@CathyWebSavvyPR) run a great event that is worth checking into as a listener/participant but also as a guest.  The whole evening is topped off with a PDF transcript of the event made available within in minutes courtesy of Sonia Schenker (@yourjobmyoffice).

Last night’s topic was, obviously, greening your small business.  I had prepared a dozen questions and answers and was expecting to field additional questions. But what happened, and here’s the beauty of Twitter and why this kind of event is Twitter at its best, is that a real dialogue occurred.  I didn’t have much chance to interject, mostly because several people had perfectly good answers that came from their day to day operations. For example, when question #2 was posted:

I, as planned, posted my 140 character response:

Its a perfectly fine answer, but the chat took off and many other terrific “definitions” kept popping up.

EcoTuesday, the sustainable business leaders networking forum, is celebrating it’s two-year anniversary this Tuesday, Feb. 24th at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco. The featured speaker is Dave Rochlin, CEO of Climate Path and former COO of TransFair USA. ClimatePath is applying transparency principles to carbon markets.

A growing number of socialites are finding that running a networking event is not just a way to get the word out about their products, company or service, but rather a fantastic little side-gig!

Want to talk to like-minded people who are interested in sustainability? Sounds good to me.  But is networking anything really more than an excuse to have a few drinks at a new bar?   GreenYour.com, “your guide to green anything,” has a good primer on how to find green networking events and offers this if you’re wondering if green networking is for you:

On the prowl for an eco-job? Looking to make sparks fly with an eligible green god or goddess? Recruiting for a conservation project in the community? Simply looking to connect and converse with like-minded folk? If you responded “yes” to any of the above queries, attending a green networking event may be the solution.

In past posts, we’ve covered how to write a business plan and even how to pitch a professional investor such as a venture capitalist. However, there is a missing step between those two activities, which an Ecopreneurist reader wrote in to ask about, and that is: How do you even get an investor to return your call (or email)?

Although this answer is an over-simplification, I’ll recommend to you: Personal Contact.

A few days ago, a venture capitalist told me that he, with the other three partners in his firm, look at 1100 companies a year. These people have a lot of other things to do as well, such as attending board meetings of portfolio companies, conducting detailed due diligence for the few firms they choose to seriously consider for investment, speaking on panels at conferences, etc.

If you send an email to someone who gets hundreds of emails a day, you really need to stand out. Ideally, your subject line would say, “Referral from X.”

Making it Personal

Keep in mind that investors in early-staged companies are investing in people. Before it is really up and running, a Company doesn’t have much value. Ideas are a dime a dozen.

The value is built by executing on a vision and creating a brand, a customer base, a strong team, revenue streams, etc. It is as important to be seen as a trustworthy, capable person as it is to have your business idea be judged as sound.

You’ll have a higher rate of responses from potential investors, if you make use of introductions.

CouchSurfing saved my life.

Well, possibly.  No one yet knows what role quality sleep plays in one’s life, or whether one could die from sleep deprivation.

But if it weren’t for the Couchsurfing.com network, I would be–more or less–homeless.

Since I gleefully waved goodbye to my soggy, moldy tent in mid-July, I’ve been faced with the dilemma of… well, now where do I sleep?  For a week or so, I was wearing out my welcome at my friend’s houses and at my boyfriend’s place (whose sleep schedule is around 5 hours off of mine).  Realizing that this was causing inordinate stress, both on me and on the parties involved, I knew I had to find a semi-permanent solution.

With no cash and no lease, where would I stay?  Enter: Couchsurfing.

When I first heard about CouchSurfing, I had the same instant, emotional reaction I had when I heard about Free Ride: the oh, this is way too cool to be true! feeling.  Of course, as with the other projects that I have blissfully filled my life with, it was true… and so cool I felt compelled to participate.

CouchSurfing is a website that connects travellers who need shelter for a brief stay, with hosts who wish to welcome them.  It is rare that someone will CouchSurf within their own city–yet that was exactly my situation after my grimy tent became more like a prison sentence than a home.  

I admit it, I am addicted to the internet. However, this addiction isn’t all bad -  my hard earned internet savvy has paid off time and time again in the form of referrals and new clients. Without even having to overtly advertise, I have gotten many inquiries about my services and quite a few good clients from my online activities. I’ve also made a lot of friends in my field and networked with other designers that I can bounce ideas off of and partner with on creative pursuits, all online. Yes, the internet is a glorious thing.

One of my favorite things about using the internet to promote my business is that it’s green and inexpensive (if not free). So online marketing and social networking is a great way to get your name out there without using any paper or creating any trash. A good way to start your foray into the world of online marketing is to first establish a web site for your business. This will often be your potential customers’ first impression of your company, so it will be an important investment in both time and money. Once you have a web site, networking through social media sites is a great way to promote it and drive traffic to your site. Online marketing is a strategy that’s becoming more and more popular among entrepreneurs, and thankfully it is one with minimal impact on the planet.

After looking forward to it for several months, the Opportunity Green Conference is now just around the corner. To be held November 17 at UCLA, the conference’s organizers are asking a question that seems to be on everyone’s lips: “Is green the new gold?”

The conference will bring together those involved in all aspects of green business, from visionaries and entrepreneurs to executives and investors, all of whom are dedicated to building socially conscious, sustainable, and profitable [...]

Always on the lookout for new green events, I’m excited to have found something that promises to be more than just networking (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) On Thursday, June 7th, the Los Angeles Net Impact chapter, in partnership with SustainLane, is hosting an event dedicated to sustainability.

The event features guest speaker Gillian Christie. As founder and CEO of Christie Communications, a communications and public relations firm, Christie works

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Let’s face it: networking is hard. Striking up conversations with total strangers can be uncomfortable. But, if you’ve ever been to an industry-specific networking event, then you know that it always helps to have something in common with the other folks in the room.

That’s why the monthly Green Business Networking event in Santa Monica is such a great place for the shy among us to break out of our shells and meet like-minded

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With the eyes of much of the world focused on China these days, even a cursory review of the news reveals two themes. First, the country is experiencing enormous economic growth accompanied by a massive urban migration. Second, China has a long way to go towards protecting the environment and the health of its people, and will encounter many roadblocks along the way.

To address these two conflicting issues, UCLA’s Sustainable Resource Center is

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