Shannon's thoughts on marketing, public relations, social technology, entrepreneurship and other things

Shannon Mouton
Shannon Mouton

the principal at Topaz Consulting, is a relationship marketing professional, with a passion for utilizing social technology for building B2B/B2C relationships, sharing information, networking and advancing the greater good. She has over 20 years of public relations, marketing and community building experience. Her combination of political, nonprofit, higher ed and corporate experience has afforded her opportunities to build communities where none existed, develop and launch innovative programming and bridge generational, economic and racial divides.

Shannon serves on the board of directors for the In Series, a Washington, DC performing arts organization. She is a regular contributor to Women Grow Business and Discover Exceptionalism, and her blog, Shannon Sez So, examines life's joys, pains and idiosyncrasies. Shannon is the founder of Topaz Consulting, a DC based marketing consultancy with a nationwide portfolio of clients. She graduated from Mount Vernon College (now part of The George Washington University) and is a proud native Washingtonian.

TwitterFacebookLinkedInPlurkTumblr

Tags

Archive

2011 (31)
2010 (74)
 

What's in your wallet, purse, briefcase or backpack and how much is it costing you

The vast majority of small businesses require credit in the beginning, and a lot of them maintain some level of credit debt while in business. The debt is usually in the form of credit card(s) because they are easy to obtain, have low monthly payments and come with long term payoff plans. All to often the business's debt is tied to the entrepreneur's personal finances because the credit/charge cards are in their name, meaning the credit is backed by their personal assets. This is a necessary not-so-good (not quite at the level of evil), which many face when making their dreams come true. Using credit cards and getting into debt are not concerning in and of themselves; rather, it is the amount of indebtedness and length of time to pay off the debts that cause the problems.

Nugget of knowledge: Credit card debt may be a way to START your business, it isn't a way to STAY in business.


Additional resources:
The Credit Process: A Guide for Small Business Owners
Small Business Loans & Grants

Media_httpwwwcreditca_fzknv
via creditcardprocessing.net

Posted
 

Lessons Learned From Vacation

It is August and a lot of people are vacationing this month. The process – having passion and a purpose, doing proper planning and careful preparation – to execute an enjoyable time away from work, traffic, email, et al is the same process for launching a new venture, be it a business, a blog or personal improvement.

Passion
You want to go to a place about which you're passionate. You will end up spending a lot of time and money getting there and enjoying yourself once there. It is a place that brings a smile to your face when the thought of it crosses your mind. The same holds true for your next venture, the mere idea of it gets your mind racing with ideas and your spirit excited with anticipation. Your enthusiasm about the project is contagious.

Purpose
You know exactly why you're going on vacation. You need time away from "those people" and "that place" to relax and rejuvenate. This is time for you to reconnect with yourself: your body, mind and spirit. Similarly with your venture, there is a reason you're heading down this path. You dream about it or wake up in the middle of the night with ideas. There is an unction in your spirit to do it, if you don't who will, if not now, when?

Planning
You have done the research: you Googled, purchased guidebooks and talked to family, friends and colleagues. You know exactly where you are going, how you’re getting there, where you’re staying and what you're doing. You know how much it is going to cost and you know it is going to be fabulous. For your new venture, you have researched the industry, your competition and the gaps in products or services you can fill. You know the big players in the field, the up-n-coming and where you want to fit.

Preparation
You saved the money and made the lists: to do, packing, emergency numbers, etc. You put in for the time off and you set your email and phone to the out-of-office auto-replies. Likewise, you have secured capital, the domain name, P.O. box, phone number and business cards. You’ve put a support team in place and set-up your home office.

Now…GO!...DO!...BE!

 

Posted
 

Look BEFORE you leap into Social Media

Have you listened to your customers lately?

A lot of businesses are looking for the silver bullet, the next thing to take their products to the top, and A LOT of them are looking to social media for the answer.

Social media is no different than any other marketing channel, you get out of it what you put into it. It requires businesses and organizations to use their most valuable resources: time, people and money (free, isn't ever really free). They are all required to make your marketing efforts successful.

Nugget of knowledge: part time, ad hoc, one-off effort in social media will net your enterprise part time, ad hoc, one-off results

As with any new initiative, research and planning are pivotal for resource allocation and implementation. Before you jump head-first into the deep-end of the social media pool, consider a few things:

Is your target audience in the social media space? They may be there in droves, they may be an emerging demographic or there may be a few of them testing the social media waters to learn what all of the hype is about.

Nugget of knowledge: go to where your audience is

 Have you listened to your customers lately? Before you send one tweet, put up one wall message or write one blog post, find out what your target audience is saying about you, your products/services and your competitors.
Nugget of knowledge: take a listening tour of the social media space
What do your customers want to know? Give your customers what they are asking for, not what you want them to have. How many times have you received *that* gift and the giver says, "I wanted you to have it"? That is sweet, but you don't want it.

Nugget of knowledge: provide your customers a solution to THEIR problems
Is everyone enjoying the experience? Social media should be fun, it's a way to meet new people, learn new things, expand your horizons and share in the collective wisdom of the community.
Nugget of knowledge: it's not brain surgery, be creative, try some new things....GO FOR IT!
Posted
Posterous theme by Cory Watilo.
​