taste of echo park at city sip LA

| heather parlato

CitySipLA heather parlato and nicole daddio at CitySipLA

this month’s taste of echo park benefiting the echo park chamber of commerce was held at CitySipLA, my very favorite neighborhood wine bar in echo park. i can’t say enough about how much i love this establishment and how it’s run by owner & wine enthusiast nicole daddio [pictured with me, above]. everyone on her staff is not only friendly, but knowledgeable and excited to tell you about wine. on more than one occasion i’ve been able to ask daddio about wineries to visit in our surrounding wine countries and she always has great suggestions of places i’ve never been. i really enjoy their sunday night happy hour, where you can get any glass from an open bottle for half-off from 9-11pm—a great way to taste wines you may have passed up on another night.

for the taste of echo park, CitySipLA offered a wine flight of 3 international wines that were all really unique:

heron’s nest chardonnay 2008 [s. africa]. i’m not usually a fan of most chardonnay, but sometimes an unusual terroir can really change what comes out in the wine. this one was lighter than almost any chardonnay i’ve ever tasted and was pleasantly bright and fruity.

mas malbec mendoza 2007 [argentina]. this malbec was lively and spicy with a rounded balance of blackberry and pepper with a note of tobacco in the finish.

maison galhaud merlot [vin de pays d’oc]. the first thing i noticed was the color—for a merlot, this wine was an exceptional bright cherry red even in candlelight. notably smooth mouthfeel highlighting a red berry blend of flavors.

[photos by rosie betanzos]

networking exercise: follow-up and follow through

| heather parlato

today’s LA area chamber networking exercise was about follow-up and follow through in making and keeping contacts. i always like to think i’m better at this than i am, but that seems to be a trend very common with people who do a lot of networking [i recently heard some advice that simply following through will put you in the top 95% of your field simply because people don’t do it!].

the idea was to go through a list of conditions of meeting people, and collaborate on what follow-up efforts best fit each situation. i worked with pamela edwards of innovative feng shui on improving our follow-up, the questions & answers are below:

what is the first thing you do when you receive a business lead?
research the lead online, email to make contact.

how do you acknowledge receipt of the lead?
thank the referrer with a personal call or email.

how do you qualify the lead?
research online, ask the referrer for background information, make a research call directly.

what steps do you take to contact the lead?
initial email with an invite to connect, follow up phone call, send an intro pack by mail.

what’s your strategy for connecting with the lead?
once qualified, set up a personal meeting to get to know each other and our businesses goals and see if we can work together. if not, see if we can refer each other.

what is your personal commitment to returning phone calls?
i return phone calls within 24 hours [personally, i prefer to find a best time to talk rather than return calls within an hour if i’m less focused].

what is your personal commitment for responding to emails?
i reply to emails asap [for some reason i can always craft a good email response in a busier setting than a phone call, so i do what i’m best at on the asap schedule].

how do you keep the referring person abreast of the lead?
rather than keep a set schedule for this, i do it at the natural milestones of the relationship. if the lead and i make plans, i take time to thank the referrer again. if i don’t hear from them, i give a week or so and ask the referrer if there is anything i should be aware of. if we work together, i usually follow up with the success of the project and another thanks [you can’t be too thankful for good referrals!].

what do you do to acknowledge leads that result in new business?
i don’t currently have a set discount kickback for referrers, but i will often kick down small favors or package extras with projects for those of my clients who have sourced new work for me.

how do you respond to requests for information on your business?
i have a lot of channels in place for clients and prospects to find information in their preferred forum. i usually invite them to view my web site with direct links in an email, i ask if they’d like to receive an intro pack, which is a printed sample of my work and intro to my services. i also post lots of start-up information in the about section of my site, which i’m happy to explain in person, but it’s also available to anyone looking for information online, including past client testimonials. finally, if they’d like to meet up and get to know each other better, i can bring a portfolio with printed samples of my work.

and finally, driving the point home is this biznik article i found corroborating the lack of follow up that could use vast improvement: How to Get Clients: One Thing You Must Do to Turn Prospects Into Clients by Sue Clement

biznik articles for the week

| heather parlato

i have 2 for this week on the subject of social media and how to integrate it into your business. it seems that all the business organizations i belong to are having some sort of seminar on how to best use facebook, linkedin, twitter, etc., to their advantage. i’ve sat in on a few of these [mostly for the networking, as you can see in my blogroll, i’m already using online social networks regularly] and i’m seeing very similar reactions in every community. many small business owners are skeptical about conversion and the true value of investing time in these outlets, while others are mistakenly thinking the online communities are promising to do more for them than any really can. here are some good articles about how to use these sites and what you can expect from them.

Social Media: Strategy and Protecting Brand Identity by Michelle Bomberger

this article is a better introduction than many of the seminars i’ve attended, where they present the sites first, rather than introduce you to how you’ll be using them. when presented with technology first, many people put up a block and start to ask “why is this important to me,” when i think bomberger puts it best in saying “[online networking] relates to building relationships, just as one would in face-to-face networking scenarios.” that’s the key right there, it’s just an extension of the networking and promotion you’re already doing in person–you’re just catching different people in their preferred forum, with a consistent message across all platforms. enjoy!

It’s Not the Technology – It’s YOU, WITH the Technology by Christopher Burbridge

as a follow up, i think this article takes the emphasis off the technology and puts it back on you. with the flurry of these new networks coming on the scene, everyone is talking about them, and their importance in the grand scheme of a marketing plan is a bit conflated [which is okay for now, their current use is probably higher than it will level out to be]. while a strong presence online will certainly support your efforts, it is not the effort in itself. make sure all your marketing communications flow directly from you, the visionary, outward to all the channels that work best for you & your business.

biznik articles for this week

| heather parlato

The tone of your voice. (when you are talking) by Loren Weisman

this is a good article for anyone running their own business who is meeting people regularly. i am usually very comfortable talking to people, but i always have that moment of nerves before it’s my turn to introduce myself at an event or make contact with someone for the first time. weisman approaches the ins & outs of communication and how we relate to voice very clearly with good reminders of how you sound to others.

12 Steps To Your Personal Success by Joanne Victoria

here’s a bonus feel-good friday article about approaching life in the moment for more personal happiness, balance and success. it’s the simple things we already know that we often forget which allow us to get caught up in other things. take a minute to read through these and note when you’ve done some of them even this week [i’ll admit, i saw myself in a few].

have a great weekend!

creative freelancer conference: august 26-28, 2009

| heather parlato

i just signed up for the creative freelancer conference in san diego, august 26-28, presented by HOW and marketing mentor. i’ve been following marketing mentor for the last couple years and have found their advice for designers & creative professionals extremely valuable. also, while i love a good design conference, having an event that specifically focuses on running a creative business is perfect for people like me, and something other design events can only address peripherally.

aside from all the valuable info, i am looking forward to connecting with some of my favorite colleagues, hearing them present their topics of expertise, and meeting a lot of other indie pros. also of note, there are more networking events than are listed on the conference web site, including breakfast roundtables and networking happy hours you can sign up for once you register [i’m hoping to connect with my kernspiracy contingent at the welcome happy hour]. the early-bird deadline has been extended, and there are opportunities for all kinds of savings if you’re interested in going. and if you do sign up, let’s meet up & hang out!

shameless sister promotion

| heather parlato

gretchen parlato

my sister-client / client-sister got song of the day on npr today!

john murph puts it perfectly as he writes: “The magic in Parlato’s version has a lot to do with what she doesn’t do. Notably, she doesn’t oversell the words with flashy vocalese, nor does she instill the original with a smug, knowing wink. Instead, she relies on the conviction of her artistry — and on the song’s inherent beauty.”

biznik article of the week

| heather parlato

Should You Divorce Your Designer? Five Signs it’s Time to Find a New Creative Professional by Angela Ferraro-Fanning

graphic design is a profession with a huge spectrum of experience and expertise. ferraro-fanning makes good points about working with a designer who wants to talk about you and your goals, wants to keep you on message, works within your budget and delivers work you’re happy with. since this isn’t always a given with every designer you encounter, use the information in her article to evaluate whether you’re getting the service you want. and if you’re new to hiring a designer, don’t be afraid to ask about your prospective designer’s process and have them outline a typical project timeline. what ferraro-fanning says may seem obvious, but they are good reminders on how to get the most out of working with a creative professional.

networking exercise: who’s missing from your network

| heather parlato

“tipping the scales tuesday” at the LA area chamber’s referral breakfast involved growing your network by taking time to think about who you know, who they might know, and who you want to know, getting them all on a list, and taking action toward connecting with these people. the idea is simple, you make a list of people in your network you’d like to connect with in the next month, and then a list of people you haven’t met yet, that you’d like to connect with in the next 1-3 months. the list starts with names, but as you move into areas involving people you don’t yet know, you can come up with all kinds of avenues to tap into.

i worked with walt whitney of CPEhr to build our lists. here’s what we came up with [without naming any names].

people you know that you want to connect with:
– favorite clients
– friends & regular network contacts
– old friends you’ve found on social media networks who are up to something new
– former colleagues & co-workers

people you know of that you’d like to meet in the next few months:
– people you’ve met while networking that haven’t gotten enough face-time :: set up a meeting
– ask favorite clients & former colleagues for referrals :: good people will know more good people
– members of your professional organizations :: connect with your fellow members
– reach out to industry partners :: build your network through strategic partnerships
– esteemed colleagues :: compliment someone’s work you admire and ask them about it
– upcoming conferences :: research who’s going and make a list of who you’d like to meet
– upcoming mixers :: if you can get a list of attendees, email ahead and plan to meet

and speaking of upcoming mixers, don’t forget about our biznik happy hour tomorrow night.

people who are doing the same thing every day

| heather parlato

it seems like i’m meeting a lot of people who have committed to projects involving production on daily results. i figured i’d commend them now that i found three who are each doing pretty interesting things every single day.

jonathan mann [above] has committed to write one song every day, perform it in video and post to his site chronicling every song for 2009. jason met him at sigint 2009 and he came back to LA for a visit before going home to the bay area. in his time here, we got to see and participate in the process of daily songwriting, as well as host him at betalevel for a talk about the process of daily creative work and the pitfalls of perfectionism.

i’ve never met evan kleiman personally, but i am a big fan of her approach to food, showcased in her traditional italian, farm-fresh restaurant, angeli caffe, on kcrw as she hosts good food, her position as the slow food LA chapter presidency, and her cookbooks [many co-authored by another favorite, viana la place]. this summer she is baking a different pie every day and posting the recipes online. i like to follow along with her facebook fan page, but you can try any of the recipies [and many more] on the good food kcrw blog

i found the joshua langlais’ i heart strangers project through one of my friends he photographed who linked it from her own blog. he goes out to find someone every day, shoots their portrait and writes a little about meeting them. pretty interesting when you think of how many times he has to approach people with his story and a request for a photo shoot.