In this episode of Talk Local to Me, hosts Heather and Mike explore the challenges and opportunities small businesses face at the beginning of the year, from goal-setting and adapting to change to managing stress. They emphasize the value of networking and share updates on upcoming CVABC events, along with a new loyalty punch card program. Special guest Tamika joins the conversation to promote the Lead On Fire conference, sharing insights on business growth, community support, and sponsorship opportunities. The episode also includes practical tools and strategies to help streamline operations and improve work-life balance.
Transcript:
Certainly! Here is the revised transcript with "Skywatch" changed to "Media Squatch" and all last names removed:
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Speaker 2 00:00:35 This is Coq, local to me from the Central Virginia Business Coalition. Streaming live each week on Media Squatch plus and available on demand in the app or wherever you get your podcasts. Local stories. Local business. Local impact.
Speaker 3 00:01:00 I just, like, jam to the music a little bit, right? I get it, and then I'm like, oh yeah, I'm supposed to talk. So welcome everybody to talk local to me. I'm Heather with the Central Virginia Business Coalition, and I'm Mike with visiting churches of Lynchburg, America's choice at home care.
Speaker 3 00:01:16 Yes. I hate when you pause because then I'm like, oh, let me just talk. And I'm like, oh, wait, nevermind. You're gonna you're gonna you're gonna follow it up with the America's Choice now. That's right. So, Yeah. Second episode of the New Year. How's your new year starting out? Oh, it's been busy. Yeah, it's been, different, to say least. It's been, I will say, a little stressful. The start of the new year for me has been very stressful. but we are. Everything you put off from last year is now, too. Yeah, yeah, that and there's just been a lot of changes and things happening. And you know, you kind of got to roll with the punches and figure it out and set new goals being set. And then you know yeah you're doing a lot of pivoting already. I hate that word, but I'm already doing a lot of that. but, you know, that's okay. That's okay.
Speaker 3 00:02:04 I feel like maybe a little bumpy start will lead to smooth sailing for the rest of the year. We'll see. We're gonna keep our fingers crossed. You know, the chaos out in the first couple of weeks of that? Yeah, yeah, we'll see how it goes. We'll see how it goes. But, we do have a guest that's going to be calling in the second half of the show, and we're going to be talking with Tamika, about a upcoming conference that she has happening, at the end of January that I think is going to be really exciting for our area leaders in our area, healthcare professionals in our area. And the cool thing is, is it does kind of tie in, we're going to be with the CBC tying in a little bit into our upcoming, conferences like we do in March, our lead on conference and then our women's conference in April, our in power conference. So that's going to be a great kind of lead on lead into those because I think, you know, we do a lot of these conferences more towards the beginning of the year because we want people to be able to utilize what they're learning and implement them as the year goes on.
Speaker 3 00:03:05 Right. And so for me, I mean, I guess, you know, you could do it at the end and get ready for the next year. But, we have a lot. It's a lot of a lot of stuff happening. Yeah. And good, good opportunities for people to go out and learn, and, and build their business and implement new things and all of that. So I'm excited to hear more from her. so she should be she should be calling in in just a little bit. But we are going to chat a little bit more on the goals topic and then talk a little bit about, for those of you who are listening that are small businesses, what type of like tools or things that you can use in your business that will help, like streamline operations? I think a lot of people, especially like I know for myself when I, when I first started, I would do certain things and I'd go, oh, I wish there was something that could help me do this, or I wish there was something and there normally is something.
Speaker 3 00:04:04 You just don't know what's out there or you think, oh, it's going to be super expensive, or I can just do that myself. And I'm learning more and more that the more I can kind of look into different tools and options, it makes my day easier and less stressful. And, so I just kind of wanted to highlight some of the things that I use or that I have heard about, and some new things that we have coming out for the CCBC that's helpful to our members. So yeah.
Speaker 4 00:04:34 Yeah. And we've got our first coffee talk of the year coming up on the 22nd at the Happy Waffle.
Speaker 3 00:04:42 So no, the 30th is the Happy waffle.
Speaker 4 00:04:44 30th. It's a happy waffle. Yeah it's the 22nd.
Speaker 3 00:04:46 The 22nd is our Alta Vista Coffee Talk. So we'll be at the Spark Innovation Center in Alta Vista on Thursday the 22nd, and then we have on the Friday the 23rd. We have our Appomattox Coffee talk at the Appomattox Inn and Suites. And then on the 30th we have the one at the Happy Waffle.
Speaker 3 00:05:05 So those are three upcoming networking events. And, you know, speaking of networking. I feel like that is one of the biggest tools people can use that cost you nothing but your time. I mean, it does cost your time, but I tell a lot of people, I, you know, I had a a member message me last maybe it was last week, maybe two weeks ago. And they were, you know, like, hey, we've used our billboard. We're getting ready to do the podcast and, you know, March or April, you know, what else is there? Like, what am I getting for my membership, my membership. And, you know, speaking of tools, I always tell people the Central Virginia Business Coalition, in a way, as a tool. for businesses, we're here to help you grow and promote yourself. But like any tool, you have to pick it up and use it right in order for it to work properly. I always, I always talk about, like, the hammer and the nail.
Speaker 3 00:06:06 The hammer doesn't just pick itself up and start, you know, beating nails in. You have to physically pick it up and, you know, do it for it to actually accomplish the job. So I messaged them back and I said, you know, it's great that you've used some of these, these options and that's what they're there for. But there are so many options you're not using. Like, I haven't seen you yet at a networking event. We've done. Right. And you know, we host three or some, you know, at least three a month. So there should be that that opportunity to go out there. And when you're networking building relationships and I'm actually doing you can put this on your calendar as well because I'm doing a luncheon learn this month on the, building authentic relationships in the power of networking. Right. I encourage anyone to come out to this because I know network can be scary. People don't necessarily always like to get up in front of people and talk and walk into a room full of strangers and people they don't know.
Speaker 3 00:07:03 It's it's scary. And it it can be daunting. And, you know, you don't want to be that person just hanging out in the corner drinking coffee by yourself. Right. So come. You know, come to that and get some tips and some pointers. But definitely do it because referrals come from trust. And that's just my opinion. People that you trust and you're building relationships. And so you're using that networking tool to do that.
Speaker 4 00:07:28 And you can't be in every room right? No, you can't be in every room out there where somebody is talking about, let's say, for instance, home care. Right. Because that's what I do. So I can't be in every room and telling people like, what does angels does. Like how we can help different things like that. but by going and networking and telling people what I do, that's, you know, 50, 75 other people that now know what I do. And somebody in their circle, you know, and other circles may say like, yeah, I think I really need to get some home care for my mom, my dad, grandpa, you know, brother, sister, husband, wife, whatever.
Speaker 4 00:08:00 And somebody can say, oh, I know, I know somebody who does that. Right. And that's gonna, that's gonna go for the those referrals and things like that. If you don't if people don't know what you do, they don't know how to find you or even look for you. Right, right.
Speaker 3 00:08:14 Yeah, yeah. And I mean, in fun fact, like, you know, networking, it doesn't cost you anything. And more than likely you're going to gain something from each one you come to. Right. I don't host the networking events each month because, you know, I necessarily get most of the time, I know everybody in the room. Right? I'm putting these on for the community and for the business owners to come and learn more about each other. Right. And so, you know, the more that we host these, and that's why we've started hosting them in different areas because, you know, I've had people like, well, I live in Appomattox, I don't necessarily want to drive to Lynchburg every time I want to network.
Speaker 3 00:08:54 So we're expanding and we're coming to your, your area. So take an hour and just drop by, grab some coffee, bring some business cards and, you know, talk to one person, like leave with one person that you've met that you didn't know when you walked in the room.
Speaker 4 00:09:10 Right.
Speaker 3 00:09:11 And so networking is kind of like the top tool in my, you know, I say in my pocket that I tell people about.
Speaker 4 00:09:19 Yeah. And you always want to try and learn somebody else's elevator speech. So you kind of know what they do. Right. Because you're trying to learn someone else's. Then hopefully someone else will learn yours too. So, I think the easiest one to remember is Jeff's because it's we wash houses. Yeah. So you know, but but I, I love his messaging because he keeps it simple. Like that's what we do. Yeah, right. And every time I see him in my head, I think we wash out.
Speaker 3 00:09:40 Yeah. And it doesn't have to be scary.
Speaker 3 00:09:42 I think people think, oh, I got to give a 32nd speech now. It doesn't have to be scary.
Speaker 4 00:09:45 It doesn't.
Speaker 3 00:09:45 Have to be crazy.
Speaker 4 00:09:46 To do a 32nd. Sometimes they, you know, 45 50s.
Speaker 3 00:09:51 Oh, yeah. Some people go.
Speaker 4 00:09:52 On, but some people, it's hard to people have a hard time talking about themselves sometimes. So it can be hard to get up there. But you just got to give the a simple message. And, you know, the easier it is for you to say, the easier it is for them to remember.
Speaker 3 00:10:06 So I was going to say short, sweet and snappy.
Speaker 4 00:10:08 Because at home in the mirror. Yep. Right?
Speaker 3 00:10:10 Yep. I say that all the time. So, Yeah. So I definitely tell people, get out, get ready to network. You can go if you're looking for places to network. I mean, you can go to our CBC website. We have all of our upcoming events, but also I mean check social media.
Speaker 3 00:10:27 I constantly see people posting. I know, like, for example, this Friday, Jay with Paul Davis restoration, they do a coffee and donuts event, that they're hosting, and I plan to be there as well, because that's an event that I don't host. So I may meet new people at. Right. so you can always kind of look and find something somewhere. join a resource network, join a group, a leads group, or networking like a resource group. And if people have done, like the Bennetts and the 221 and, there's a resource network group in Lynchburg that people can join and look, there's. So there's lots of options. And one thing you can also do is when you're out networking, talk to somebody else and say, hey, where else do you network? Where could I go? Yeah. So, yeah, that's.
Speaker 4 00:11:12 My more than one option.
Speaker 3 00:11:14 Absolutely. So that's my my goal for our listeners for the month, find at least one place to network this month and do it.
Speaker 3 00:11:25 just one.
Speaker 4 00:11:25 Just one.
Speaker 3 00:11:26 Just one. If you want to do more, more power to you.
Speaker 4 00:11:29 Once you do one, it's easy.
Speaker 3 00:11:30 Just do one. Yeah, absolutely. And it's fun. I mean, it really is fun. So. Yeah. Yeah. So there's that. but yeah. So we have, you know, all of that going on this month and, you know, we have a lot of bigger events that are going to be coming up soon. But that kind of leads me into some other tools for for businesses and kind of what you're doing. You know, we've talked about, I'm already seeing a pattern here at the beginning of this year. Businesses are they're struggling. it's it's it's going to be a little a little tough. I think we're seeing some impacts with the economy. we've we've seen small businesses now that are, that are closing or they just are having to be a little bit more, you know, financially responsible with what they're doing. And they're looking at their, their budget and their dollars.
Speaker 3 00:12:17 And, you know, what can we afford to do and what can we what has to be put on the back burner?
Speaker 4 00:12:21 Right.
Speaker 3 00:12:23 and and sometimes, you know, I say this, you have to spend money to make money, but.
Speaker 4 00:12:31 You know, hanging out my office today haven't you.
Speaker 3 00:12:32 Know, I haven't. Y'all had that that that talk today.
Speaker 4 00:12:35 We did, we did.
Speaker 3 00:12:36 So you do have to sometimes spend money to make money. And that goes into like, marketing. I see a lot of people that, They're like, oh, I gotta cut all my marketing. We can't we can't do any marketing. Worst decision.
Speaker 4 00:12:49 Right.
Speaker 3 00:12:50 Honestly. because once you stop, you're less likely to start it back up, and then you people don't don't see like you're gone. Like you're no longer there.
Speaker 4 00:13:03 Yeah. Our biggest fan just said month starting with J are typically the lowest production or volume months. Oh, yeah. So show up for your local businesses.
Speaker 3 00:13:10 Yeah I, I that's probably honestly that's that's a great advice because I agree with that January because people are nervous about the new year June and July from Christmas.
Speaker 3 00:13:19 Yeah. You know June or July, everyone's on vacation, so nobody wants to go do anything or they're, you know. Yeah. Get that.
Speaker 4 00:13:25 And then Jovan Buri November. That's that's a tough month too.
Speaker 3 00:13:30 Yes. So, really just kind of looking at your marketing and I guess it kind of puts like social media in there too, but, like, how are you looking to market this year?
Speaker 4 00:13:43 Yeah, because marketing doesn't necessarily mean spending money. Correct. Right. You've got networking is a form of marketing. It is. But, you know what? What did you say? Social media. Social media. Social media. Taking advantage of that. Like it doesn't cost anything except for a little bit of time to sit down and make a post. And of course, if you have a business page, if you're doing it the right way, you have a business page, right? You don't just have a personal page with your name on it, with your business name on it. You can schedule those posts right, so you can schedule them as far as like you can sit down and do it for the whole month.
Speaker 4 00:14:10 And you know, so it's that's one of the things we're working on, on, on in our office as well. because we don't post a post on Facebook a whole lot. Right. So our, the social media, so, trying to get out there and do more of that and we'll get out there. We're sitting in our office, but trying to get more of that and kind of developing a team approach to that, you know, even kind of using some outside sources for that as well. So if you don't have time to manage it, then, you know, sometimes it can be worth spending a little to get someone to, to do that outside of your company.
Speaker 3 00:14:38 And I will say just a touch one more time on the networking part. We have tried to think about, you know, as far as the Central Virginia Business Coalition, because, you know, our organization, we we kind of thrive off of membership and sponsorship and people coming to networking events and, you know, growing and referring each other.
Speaker 3 00:15:03 And so we kind of were thinking about for us, one of the biggest benefits is actually coming out and utilizing that. And how do we get more people to, come a network, come into. Whether it's coffee talks, ribbon cuttings or a big one lunch and learns things like that, that you can just meet other people. So we are actually kicking off, a networking basically incentive this year and we'll be passing them out starting at our well, hopefully they'll be in in time, but they should be at our coffee talks next week. but we have created, networking loyalty cards. So they're like Joe Beans punch cards in a way. And each each card has ten punches on it. So every time you come to a networking function or a ribbon cutting or a luncheon, learn, or bagels in bed, any of those sorts of things, right. we can punch your card and after you have ten punches, you know, filled up, you send it into us, you can either mail it or stop by the office and say, hey, here, it's worth $10, so every punch is a dollar, and then you can take that $10 and you can use it and say, hey, I want to take $10 off of my ticket to annual dinner or $10 off my membership fee for next year, or $10 off of a billboard.
Speaker 3 00:16:20 So and you can accumulate those throughout the year, and you can save them all up for one big, you know, blow out thing. Like, here, I want to use this, but it's a super easy way to actually utilize it and get some money off of some of the bigger things. But you're coming to the event and you're seeing the benefit of networking on top of it. So I'm really excited for that. for that plan. And then we have, one of our members is working on creating an app for us that you can also log in to events and click that you were there. So for those of you who don't want to carry around a card, or.
Speaker 4 00:16:58 Or who would lose.
Speaker 3 00:16:59 It or. Yeah, just maybe you show up one day and go, oh, because I'm so I'm the worst about going to Joe Beans and not having my punch card all the time. I've got like ten of them, and then I have to show up and be like, hey, can you please merge all ten of these together and get me my free coffee? Because I've gotten, like, a new card every time I come for 12 different times.
Speaker 3 00:17:16 So, but this will kind of help alleviate that too, because they can. Yeah. Clock in too. So we've got kind of two ways to do it. So I like that. I'm really excited for this new I'm hoping it will get more people out and about.
Speaker 4 00:17:29 I have a reason to.
Speaker 3 00:17:30 Yeah. We'll see. Yeah. We'll see something easy to do. And you know, it doesn't take much effort. So I'm really excited for that. I like it, but that's kind of what I'm talking about. Finding new tools that you can use for the new year and things like that. But, you know, back to like to marketing. Another thing, you know, I was telling people about is like, are you sending like we do a newsletter every week. So using things like MailChimp or what are some other.
Speaker 4 00:17:55 constant contact.
Speaker 3 00:17:56 Constant contact, like using some of those to, to get involved or kind of keep in contact with your, your connections that you may already have.
Speaker 3 00:18:05 Maybe it's all your clients. Yeah. being able to send out information. I did tweak our newsletter a little bit. Did you see it? Did you see.
Speaker 4 00:18:14 The news behind on email?
Speaker 3 00:18:15 Oh, my gracious. I sent a new. I tweaked our newsletter a little last week. It has a slightly different look to it, so I'm hoping I'm still going to be playing with it. and, and tweaking it, but I thought it looked pretty good. So, but we also added, for us, we added the option to add text message. So SMS features. So now our members can sign up for SMS messaging and we can, you know, do push notifications out. So like the day before coffee talk that just says, hey don't forget we have coffee talk tomorrow and you know and AltaVista. Hope to see you there. So then we're able to kind of put it first and forefront in their mind versus them going, oh, I forgot about this because yeah, I saw the newsletter last week, but I forgot that it's tomorrow sort of deal.
Speaker 3 00:19:03 And also it kind of alleviates too, because I'm sure most of y'all know, like with social media, with the algorithms and stuff, half the time I see an event and it was like yesterday I was like, oh darn right. If I hadn't known about it, I'd have gone to it. But if I remembered it, I'd have been there.
Speaker 4 00:19:17 But it doesn't send it.
Speaker 3 00:19:18 I don't see.
Speaker 4 00:19:19 It right away anymore. It's like it. It holds on to it. And then let's. Yeah. Tries to mix it in later.
Speaker 3 00:19:24 Yeah. So you know using a, you know kind of adding this to our, our toolkit. Hopefully we'll put stuff kind of in front of people's minds here and there. And I think, like for me, I'm more apt to look at a text message. I hate getting constant emails, but like a text message, I'll be like, oh, okay, I see it, you know, go on about my day. But I'm not sending like five emails a week about different, different things, right?
Speaker 4 00:19:48 So do you like the new layout? So looking at the newsletter I do like the new layout.
Speaker 3 00:19:51 Do you like it? I thought it looked pretty good. I was trying to change it up some add a little, little creativity to it so it didn't just look like flyer flyer, flyer, flyer, right stuff. So and we're adding we'll have our first. This week we were having a sponsor spotlight section. So I had one of our sponsors do a write up about themselves. And that's going in this week. So we're gonna start highlighting sponsors and we'll start putting in like a member spotlight.
Speaker 4 00:20:17 And I like.
Speaker 3 00:20:18 It different things to make it. You know people.
Speaker 4 00:20:21 Want more a little more content to look at and.
Speaker 3 00:20:23 Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:20:23 Yeah, just flyer flyer flyer flyer.
Speaker 3 00:20:25 Correct. Correct. And then we put some very strategic rules in place as to, you know, if you send me something and it doesn't follow these guidelines. It's not going in. Not going in. So, yeah, we're just trying to be a little bit more intentional.
Speaker 4 00:20:39 Right.
Speaker 3 00:20:40 With how we're doing our our weekly newsletter and how things go in.
Speaker 4 00:20:44 So yeah.
Speaker 3 00:20:45 Yeah. So what what tools does visiting angels use that is like like I would say one that you use that you see a lot of benefit from. Like what are some things that you guys implement.
Speaker 4 00:20:58 So not necessarily for marketing but just for a general thing. So we use internet work for answering our phones after hours and things like that so that we don't have to. So we hand off a phone in the office and whoever has the phone is on call, but they're not necessarily getting every phone call, right. It has to be kind of filtered out through the answering service. So knowing that we can't answer the phone 24 over seven, right. If that call comes in at 3:00 in the morning, from somebody looking for care, and they just happen to be up and googling and they want information, they're like, okay, let me call and leave a message like I used to get those calls live. So, that's not a healthy boundary, right? to have in place. So, we use an answering service for that.
Speaker 4 00:21:39 We, we have a company that does SEO and website management, things like that. they also help us with recruiting and things like that. We're actually switching companies that do the recruiting process for us, where the process of getting that set up, we use, of course, like quick, a lot of people use QuickBooks, but we we have a couple additions to QuickBooks that we use, like we have a, we have a brand new thing that we just got last week where everybody in the office has a budget for their department or their job and things like that. And so they actually have a card they carry that the budget resets every month, and they it makes it a lot easier to get things, you know, to do marketing and things like that, because we're going to start doing a little bit more outreach and things like that. So having little gifts that we can drop off to people, you know, food and stuff like that. Okay. And so being able to manage the biggest reason we hadn't been doing that in the past is because everybody had to come get my card, right? Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:22:32 And so you've got to catch me in the office. Good luck. And you've got to go get the thing, bring the receipt back, bring the card back, all that. And the system actually helps us to kind of manage that and give everybody a budget. So like, hey, go get what you need. And it also helps us with cash flow because now instead of it just coming straight out of our bank account, we're paying it at the end of the month. So, it makes it to where, you know, where, because a lot of, I know Ryan loves the meme, and so do I. The one where it's like, you know, Monday bank account balance, you know, $75,000, Tuesday bank balance, $5.13. Right. So with with small businesses, a lot of times there's a lot of expenses that go out at once. And, you know, the income comes in, builds up and then it all goes. And so you're making sure that you're spending and not putting yourself in a tough position.
Speaker 4 00:23:23 It can be hard to keep up with everything that comes out especially monthly things like that. So yeah. which I guess if I use QuickBooks to budget a little bit better, that will probably. But that's another story altogether. So.
Speaker 3 00:23:33 Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:23:34 Yeah. And, what else do we use? So we use a program called podium. that I was excited. There's another local business in our area. Grace. They use it as well for their phone system, and it allows us to text our clients and caregivers and things like that. And everybody in the office has it on their phone and their computer to where, if somebody text our office, you we can answer it and you don't necessarily know who it's coming from. So I get called ma'am a lot, since I'm the only man that works in the office at our office. So, but we we it makes it to where it's not on one person to try and keep up with that communication channel. Okay. that that helps a lot. That's probably the biggest thing.
Speaker 4 00:24:11 And it's not cheap, but it is worth every penny for what we pay for it. So yeah, it's good things.
Speaker 3 00:24:17 I think another tool that I use a lot, and I found this and I think I started using it more last year and I'm continuing to, to do it this year. is my calendly. So for anyone who has or has not ever heard of Calendly, it really did help me one with registration. Like if I needed to have for some of our events, being able to let people register or sign up on my calendar. because I would say, oh, well, let's, let's do this today. And then I would sometimes not sometimes always forget to put it on my calendar. You know, I in my head it was there, but it wasn't on my calendar, which then, like if Megan wanted to look at something and see, like, where is Heather today? Right. Heather knew where she was, but Megan had no clue or. Right. You know, she couldn't help me or talk to somebody and schedule something because she, you know, didn't know.
Speaker 3 00:25:03 So, Calendly is a great app. for anyone who is looking to better manage their calendar, because you can go on your calendar and put, like, blocked off, like, this is what I'm doing today. But like, so for example, every Wednesday, from noon to one, people can go on to our podcast link for through calendly and sign up to be on the podcast. And they know, like if that day is open because it'll tell them it's open, that that is okay for them to book. Right, to be a guest on the show. Right. but I and then I block off like travel time after and travel time too. So then I don't accidentally have somebody do a one on one meeting with you.
Speaker 4 00:25:42 You have to be in Bedford at one, and that meeting goes until two, and then you have to be in Amherst at 230. Yep. Right.
Speaker 3 00:25:48 So it only lets people book the time that you show available on your calendar. And then once they book it, it, you know, of course that takes that slot up.
Speaker 4 00:25:57 You can also limit how many meetings you have in a day. So you're not doing back to back to back and then like you're just frazzled at the end of the day. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:26:02 So that so I, I, you know, I think that one and people may have another calendar app that they use, but.
Speaker 4 00:26:08 There's all sorts of things you can do it through Google. You can do it through, there's the fixer AI, there's, fathom I think. Does that yeah. It's don't don't, don't. I tried it I tried it for a month and it made my inbox chaos. So it's supposed to help manage your email? Things like that. I probably just didn't have it set up right, but it was not good to me.
Speaker 3 00:26:29 I don't do I don't like.
Speaker 4 00:26:30 And then, of course, the other thing that, I use all the time that I almost forgot about just because. Because I actually used it. Trying to find your goal from last year. is ChatGPT ChatGPT? Yes.
Speaker 4 00:26:40 So I pay, like, the $20 a month. Whatever. because it, it made a flyer for me the other day, and it doesn't always get logos and things like that. Right. So I was just like, take the logo off and recreate it and just added the logo myself and it, you know. was it the best flyer I've ever made? No. Would I have designed it the same? No, but it took 10s compared to 20 minutes of picking a background, pulling it in, setting all the things up. So yeah, it was, and it's for a senior networking group, so it wasn't like it was, you know, something that was critical for branding and all that sort of thing. So yeah. but just adding my, my logo manually afterwards.
Speaker 3 00:27:16 So yeah, I use, I use chat, I'm, I use ChatGPT. I try to do some flowers. Sometimes it just. That irritates me. Plus, I have a fabulous marketing team here at Media Squatch that does a lot of my flyers.
Speaker 3 00:27:31 So I also say if you are in, if it is in your budget to find someone who can handle your, social media, your SEO, that sort of thing. Definitely look into that. Now, if you're still not at that place, places, you know, stuff like this, ChatGPT things like that are good with.
Speaker 4 00:27:49 Flyers and.
Speaker 3 00:27:50 Stuff.
Speaker 4 00:27:50 Like that. Canvas.
Speaker 3 00:27:51 Also great. Yes, Canva is good.
Speaker 4 00:27:54 For every penny.
Speaker 3 00:27:55 I'm not good at Canva, but that's just because I'm just not. I'm just not good at like artsy stuff. I can't, I'm not I'm not a creative. That's one thing about me. I can I can think of things, but I can't, like, put it out there. but there's also and we're going to cut to commercial in just a second. But I will also just mention really quickly, if you're looking for places like, customer relationship management, there's like HubSpot, there's things like that where you can also meet other, can make other, you know, connections with business owners in the area, too.
Speaker 3 00:28:26 And I do recommend some of the assignable. I think it's another one people go on where you can kind of just meet other businesses and kind of like LinkedIn, okay, those sort of things. So those are tools that if you aren't using for your business, you probably should look into potentially. Yeah, anything. But I just thought it was a good idea to highlight some of these things kind of coming off of our goals. But like if you're using your goal, like, you know, mine was to be very intentional on things. What tools am I using to continue that? You know, like, I wanted to be very intentional in what I'm doing and what I'm using going into the new year and kind of set that now. so I wasn't scrambling halfway through, if that makes makes sense 100%. So. All right. Well, we were going to cut to a quick commercial and then we will be back. Hopefully our guest will have called in by then. If not, you'll just hear me and Mike still chatting about, probably some more of these types of, goals and tools that we can implement in our business.
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Speaker 3 00:30:31 Omega disaster restoration. Lynchburg. All right, we're back.
Speaker 4 00:30:37 Awesome.
Speaker 3 00:30:38 We are back. And Tamika has not called in yet, but I am sure she will. I know she had a, She was in the middle of, like, a conference call with she. So she's a trainer. She trains.
Speaker 4 00:30:50 Nurses, education.
Speaker 3 00:30:51 Education for health care. and so she was in she was going to be doing a training today, but she was going to break them for lunch in enough time to call in each part of the show. So she did tell me that if she was running a little behind, she would hopefully be able to, to break them. And, Yeah. So, you know, speaking of the, the tools, we have a new tool that the CBC is also doing, which is teatime. I thought maybe we could chat a little bit about tea time. Yeah, we kind of touched on it last week.
Speaker 4 00:31:23 And the episodes have started coming out.
Speaker 3 00:31:25 Yeah they have. I think they look great, not just because we're the hosts and we're on them, but.
Speaker 4 00:31:30 But they.
Speaker 3 00:31:31 They but.
Speaker 4 00:31:31 They've been they came together very well. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:31:33 Yeah, they've been very informative. So for those of you who haven't, for one, if you're not following our Central Virginia Business Coalition Facebook page, go ahead and do that because we're uploading them to that that page. and then you have the opportunity from there to click on the teatime videos, which will take you to our new YouTube channel. And then you can subscribe to the Central Virginia Business Coalition YouTube channel, which will have these tea times uploaded weekly. But also, we're going to start doing other content that will be uploaded to that, as well as our new Instagram account. That means we just got that up and going. And so yeah, like I'm telling you, we're doing all kinds of things. So we're, you know, definitely do that and you'll be able to see more about our, our teatime videos. And if you are a business that would like to come on tee time, you can schedule that as well.
Speaker 3 00:32:34 we're scheduling kind of the month prior. So like right now we're getting ready to record for for February and then February will record for March and so on and so forth. But it's an opportunity for you to come out and tell your business story. We're kind of talking about the people behind the business, and it's a very quick 15 minute interview.
Speaker 4 00:32:51 Yeah, a very structured interview, which is different for us. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:32:54 So that's something new to look forward to. But we're going to break away for talking about that because we do have our, our guest who is called in and we are excited. I said sighted, you know, that's what I've been talking to my two year old granddaughter too much. Like, are you sighted today? Right. So no excited to talk with Tamika? How are you today?
Speaker 5 00:33:17 I am good. Thank you guys for having me today.
Speaker 3 00:33:21 I am super glad to have you on the phone. I know you and I have been chatting for the last couple months about your upcoming conference that's happening at the end of the month, and we want to talk about, you know, that and kind of what it's going to be about and how people can still register for it and all those things.
Speaker 5 00:33:40 Right. Thank you. And thank you, Heather, for inviting me to come today and to call in. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to be there in person, but I appreciate the opportunity to call in.
Speaker 3 00:33:53 So for those of you who have never met Tamika, you're missing out for one. Yes. she is a. Oh, yes. Yes, you. So she is a fabulous speaker. in our in our area. she's so educated on leadership and she's your Maxwell John Maxwell certified, correct? Yes, yes. And so, she's also extremely talented in the music, and she's in lots of what?
Speaker 4 00:34:23 Oh, I didn't know.
Speaker 3 00:34:24 Oh, yes.
Speaker 4 00:34:24 I knew she was in plays, things like that.
Speaker 3 00:34:26 Yeah, she's in plays. This girl can sing. but she's also just an overall fabulous individual. So, you know, definitely we've had the pleasure of having her speak at some of our conferences, our women's conference. She's speaking again at empower this year, so we're glad to have her back.
Speaker 3 00:34:43 So, that's kind of my intro to Tamika and and how wonderful she is.
Speaker 5 00:34:50 To kind kind.
Speaker 3 00:34:53 So tell us a little bit, Tamika, about the conference. Like kind of an overall, what the day the it's a two day conference. So what is it kind of looking like? What are some of the topics?
Speaker 5 00:35:06 Okay, great. So first of all, let me say that this conference was born because I've been teaching leaders for many years. And, I have a real heart for leaders because I understand leadership. I'm a registered nurse. I've worked my way through nursing leadership, for many years. health care leadership in many different ways. And, I have been burned out and stressed and tired myself as a leader. And every year when I teach new leaders, I see more of the same, you know, more people who are tired, more people who are burned out, are stressed, carrying the weight of the world really on their shoulders. And this past year, after teaching a group of leaders and having them leave, and as they were leaving out, you know, they said to me, they said, Tamika, you know, every year we come to these trainings with you.
Speaker 5 00:36:05 whether we need them or not, it's not about CEUs. It's not about, you know, those things? It's because we leave, reinvigorated, right? We leave renewed. We leave inspired to keep going. And sometimes we all just need that type of inspiration, right? To keep going. Because life is hard sometimes, and especially when we're leaders post-pandemic, it's been even more challenging than it was before, you know? So, that's where this came from. it was just really kind of a God given vision, earlier last year, 2025. And, this conference is called the Lead on Fire 2026 Leadership Conference. It is really all about fueling people's flame, elevating their leadership, giving them that love back for what their calling is, reigniting that. Why? Why did I do this anyway? You know, because there were times years ago that I asked myself that, you know. Now, why did I decide to do this? What was my reason? And I needed to find that purpose again.
Speaker 5 00:37:15 So I wanted to start the year of 2026 with us, reigniting our spark, you know, and refueling our purpose. And so this experience is going to really just empower leaders. I hope that that's our goal. And with the speakers that we have in the topics that they're going to be doing, I think this is going to be a wonderful, wonderful conference. Actually, I know it is. so it's going to be two days. Like Heather said, January 28th and 29th at the Hilton Garden Inn in Lynchburg, Virginia. the hours are 9 to 4 because we just have so much to give you. lunch is included. And we also have, chair massages available during lunch, as well as professional headshots are going to be done by, one of our very own. Maggie. and so we're really excited about that. I wanted this conference to be mind, body and soul, mind, body and soul. So, you know, we have some. If you want me to talk about some of the speakers, we have some dynamic keynote speakers, that are that you? Many of you probably know, we got Butch coming to talk John Maxwell, emotional intelligence and how that is so important to leaders.
Speaker 5 00:38:35 we got, Carrie coming to talk about, communication for leaders, kind of using some of those Enneagram principles and talking about communication. we got, Charity, who's doing a wonderful workshop on the genius of team building and using the six working geniuses to put your people in the right places, in your organization. So that's going to be phenomenal. I'm so looking forward to that. I have a great friend of mine from Richmond, Virginia, who is doing and she's a social worker, and she's doing a whole segment on mental health for us as leaders because we are burned out, we are stressed, and we all need to know how to protect our mental health. as well. just so many wonderful topics. I could sit here and just spit them all out. Alicia, who many of you know is our community cheerleader. She is starting us off with a talk about reigniting your why, figuring out why, you know, and and finding that authentic side of you again as a leader. And yours truly will be up there, too.
Speaker 5 00:39:46 I'll be, closing out day one, of this conference. But it's just a wonderful opportunity for leaders to come and get away from all the stress, you know, and spend two days with like minded people. So that's the goal of this conference.
Speaker 3 00:40:03 I think that sounds wonderful. I am really excited to be attending the conference. you know, kind of going back to what you were talking about at the beginning when you were you were saying that this is for for people that are sitting here going, you know, why am I still doing this? Like, what is going on? Burnout is is a real thing. And, you know, I talk a lot about how much I love what I do and what I do. You know, with the Central Virginia Business Coalition. But I'm going to be extremely honest and vulnerable right now. The last two months have been very difficult. just looking at and it's really just like, you know, when you're, you're working so hard, but there's so many things out of your control.
Speaker 3 00:40:45 Very specifically on my end, like what the economy is doing right now and how we're, you know, we're losing business and we're losing like some, you know, sponsors and things like that. It really gets you down. And you sit there and you wonder, why do I continue to work so hard? And all these things are are changing and you're just not sure what's going to happen month to month. You need something like this where there are people that are inspiring you and and helping to build you up and let you see, like you need to look at a different side of things. You know, there may be something you need to do differently, or you need to just realize that's not in your control and it's okay. Right. And and there's, you know, things like that. So I'm I'm excited for this conference. My my office manager Megan, is attending it with me too. I think she'll get a lot out of it. So, hopefully, you know, if you're listening today and this sounds like something that you want to be a part of.
Speaker 3 00:41:41 You can still register for that, correct?
Speaker 5 00:41:45 Yes, yes. Registration is open. and, Heather, I don't know if you guys have the website, but I can give it here. It's, my company is a Virginia adult care education, so the website is based training the a c e CE training.com, and you can either go directly to that website and just click on Lead on Fire Conference. There's a link there. Or you can actually do forward slash lead hyphen on hyphen fire hyphen registration. Okay. To register for that conference for that two day conference, I have created and we can share this on on here if you'd like. there is a code for all of my ABC people because, Heather has been so wonderful and helping us and has partnered. ABC has partnered with us to bring this. So, we're just really excited to be able to partner with you, on this. So I've created a $50 off code just for my CV, ABC folks. So, would love to have you guys register and be a part of this conference.
Speaker 5 00:42:58 We also have vendor opportunities available as well. And we're running a vendor show actually between now and January 20th. So if you want to come and display your business, there are people registered all over the state. Okay. So your business will get a great deal of reach if you're able to set up at this conference and be a part of it.
Speaker 3 00:43:20 So yeah, I saw where y'all had the the call for vendors. So hopefully if there's anyone out there that wants to, you know, highlight their, their business, they can get registered.
Speaker 4 00:43:32 Yeah. Tamiko, if you think about it, send me an email. Yes.
Speaker 3 00:43:36 And I know.
Speaker 5 00:43:37 Yes, I will, I will.
Speaker 3 00:43:39 And I know too, if you're listening in and you want to get a little bit more involved, you do still have sponsorship opportunities.
Speaker 5 00:43:47 We do. Yes. Thank you Heather. Yeah we do. the sponsorship opportunities are always available. They are available on the website. if you go to that, that website, you could actually click on sponsors.
Speaker 5 00:43:59 It shows you all the different sponsorship options and what you get. And actually we are as we speak, marketing our sponsors. And so if you want to get your name out there on all of the materials that we're going to be using, all the marketing that we do from now until the conference and thereafter, you know, definitely come be a part of the sponsorships. Honestly, I think the sponsorships are very reasonably priced for what you're getting because there's a lot of marketing involved with this. And of course, on the day of your name's going to be displayed and mentioned over and over again to people who are at the conference. And again, these folks are coming from all across the state of Virginia. We have Northern Virginia represented Central Virginia, of course, tidewater area of Virginia, southwest Virginia. so folks are coming from all around to this conference, and I'm so grateful. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:44:54 Yeah. And and if they need information on sponsorship, they can reach out to you and get kind of that information.
Speaker 5 00:45:04 Absolutely. There's some available on the website, you know, but they have questions and they're just wondering. I have actually put together some personalized sponsorship plans for people, so I'm not opposed to that. You know, if there's something that people want, I'm glad to to help with that because the more sponsors we have, honestly, you know, the more we can help other small businesses. And I know that Heather knows this, but that has been one of my goals of this conference, because I'm a small business here in Lynchburg and I work all over the state. But one of the things I find is that so many times our small businesses, need any extra push we can get. Right. Right here in the place we live. because I know how it is. I know how it is as a small business, you know, and I know the challenges that we face. And so part of this is to uplift other small businesses. So as many small businesses or other businesses that we can get as a part of this, I want to promote you.
Speaker 5 00:46:06 I want to promote you too.
Speaker 3 00:46:08 So yeah. And I and I know sometimes like you look at this and you're like, oh, it's a two day conference. I don't know if I can, you know, make the time to be there. but I, I highly encourage you as a business owner or a leader in your business to make the time, or even if, you know, even if you have to come for, you know, from 9 to 2 and you may have to cut out for a speaker or something. I mean, even if you have to do that, still, I think this is a great opportunity to come and get, you know, some great information, uplifting, you know, just encouragement. Yeah. And you really are hearing from some fabulous speakers.
Speaker 4 00:46:46 That the speaker list is really good.
Speaker 5 00:46:48 Yes, yes, yes, indeed. And I tried to pull on these. fantastic people we have here. And of course we have many more. I mean, of course there's a speaker as well.
Speaker 5 00:46:59 We have many more great speakers. but, you know, I tried to pull on the speakers that are here, you know, as much as I possibly could because I want to give our folks, you know, an opportunity to shine and learn more.
Speaker 3 00:47:12 And I'm so glad you you you did that. And you mentioned that because I know one of the things, like when I do lead on and when I do empower, you know, we've brought in like foreign power. We've brought in like a keynote from outside of the area. But we do always try and keep our local speakers, you know, out there because, well, for one, I'm not even gonna lie, if y'all have y'all seen some of the rates these speakers charge? I'm telling it. It hurts my feelings. It really does. which is why I'm going to start speaking again. So, people, if y'all want to hire Heather, it's only, you know, $5 billion.
Speaker 4 00:47:44 Now, I still got to send you my invoice for a lead on last year.
Speaker 3 00:47:46 Yeah, but no, but I mean, it does it does give our local speakers the opportunities to, to get their name out there and and you know, why not? They they offer some great insight. And I do get a lot of compliments from people for that about like thinking about using local versus.
Speaker 4 00:48:04 And I think by using local sponsors I mean local speakers to you also have like the unique perspective of how it is in our area. Right, right. Because you've got somebody that's coming from somewhere, you know, a really big city or something like that, and, you know, and they come here and they're like, oh yeah, just reach out to, you know, your 42 different competitors. And it's like, we don't have 42 competitors to do what we do. Right? So, you know, it's it's a completely different game when you get, you know, like for my industry there's like maybe eight competitors. Right. And I'm just throwing a number out there because I'm not really sure how many it is because some go in, some come out and things like that.
Speaker 4 00:48:38 But, we're visiting angels based in Pennsylvania. There's 142 competitors with the office. That is where visiting angels is based. Right. So it's a completely different marketing game. You know, things like that. Like you've got to be a lot more aggressive and things like that. Whereas, you know, here you just need to find what works, right? So yeah, and especially dealing with stress in a larger city, in a smaller town that, that sort of thing. So I love that we have the local speakers and being able to, to kind of bring it back to local, you know, to, to I agree.
Speaker 5 00:49:16 Yeah I agree.
Speaker 3 00:49:17 Absolutely.
Speaker 5 00:49:18 Dynamic people. I mean, anyway, Jim, you know, and not just not just speakers but business owners and businesses, you know. really, Lynchburg is a real goldmine when it comes to that. And so I wanted everybody to get a piece of this, you know, just to have a piece of this.
Speaker 4 00:49:33 Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:49:33 So, yeah.
Speaker 3 00:49:34 Well, I think it's going to be a wonderful conference. I cannot wait for it. if you're listening, get your tickets. what? You're you're leaving? registration is open until what date?
Speaker 5 00:49:45 Registration is going to be open until the 26th, actually. Okay. So you still have some time. You still have two full weeks. No, don't try not to wait till the 26th if you can help it.
Speaker 4 00:49:56 Yes, ma'am. I hear you have everything.
Speaker 5 00:50:01 You know, but we live in, you know, late Lynchburg sometimes. And so I know, sometimes we we wait until later. I do it, too. You know, I look at conferences and I say, oh, you know, I have some time, you know, and don't. And then time creeps up on us. But as soon as you can would be great. But, come no matter what. Come. That's what we want. And, we will make you feel comfortable there. And I think you will have a fantastic time.
Speaker 5 00:50:31 In fact, I know you will come be a great time. Come to the fair. Because if nothing.
Speaker 3 00:50:35 Else, I know. Right? That's what I'm. I'm. I am ready for that.
Speaker 4 00:50:38 how tight is security at this event for a chair massage?
Speaker 3 00:50:42 Oh, but also, I will say to our ABC members, if you come to the Lead on Fire conference, you will get a flyer that day too. That will give you a discount to attend, lead on and empower. So you'll be able to kind of get these three conferences in right here at the beginning of the year and get some discounts on the other. So, that's another way to just save some money. So before we let.
Speaker 5 00:51:05 Any healthcare providers listening, I'm sorry. No. Go ahead. If there are any health care providers listening. I just wanted to say that, you you will earn ten CEUs. my company accredits all of our trainings. And so I'm going to credit all of these trainings under that national organization.
Speaker 5 00:51:24 So if you're a health care leader, you might get some CDs out of the, out of this to ten CEUs are going to be accredited. This conference is accredited for ten seniors.
Speaker 3 00:51:35 And that's really that's really awesome because, you know, I know people are always looking at how they can get those credits. and being able to do it right here in our area and not have to drive anywhere out of out of town.
Speaker 4 00:51:45 Or have to do an online course and Yeah. Yell at your computer because it's.
Speaker 5 00:51:49 And then it's.
Speaker 4 00:51:50 The next thing. Yeah. Right.
Speaker 5 00:51:52 That's right. That's right.
Speaker 3 00:51:54 So, Tamika, before before we let you go, can you just tell us one more time the date and location, for the conference?
Speaker 5 00:52:05 Absolutely. Lead on fire. 2026 leadership conference is January 28th through 29. at the Hilton Garden in Lynchburg, Virginia, right on Wards Road in Lynchburg, Virginia. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.. Registration will open at eight, so you'll have a whole hour for networking, a light breakfast.
Speaker 5 00:52:30 and registering. And then we will begin promptly at 9:00.
Speaker 3 00:52:33 Perfect. And I think what we'll do, normally at the end of every show, we take a picture with our guests so that we can put that up. I so I'm thinking for this show, what we'll do instead of putting up a picture, because obviously Tamika isn't here with us. It. We'll go ahead and put up a picture of the flyer for the conference.
Speaker 4 00:52:49 Sounds good.
Speaker 3 00:52:50 And that way people can can see that information.
Speaker 4 00:52:53 You mean I dressed up today for nothing? I put I put pants on and everything.
Speaker 3 00:52:56 Pants on and everything. Gosh, I brushed my hair for this, but. Yeah.
Speaker 5 00:53:00 I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3 00:53:03 Well, Tamika, thank you so much for joining us today. I know you have a class to get back to because you are busy, busy, busy. but thank you for joining us and telling us more about this conference. And hopefully we will get some people registered for it and learning with all these great, great speakers.
Speaker 5 00:53:22 Absolutely. And thank you. Thank you guys so much for having me today. And I'll see you guys at the conference. Yes. What I'm saying anyway.
Speaker 3 00:53:31 Yes you.
Speaker 5 00:53:31 Will the conference.
Speaker 4 00:53:32 I hope so. I'm gonna I'm gonna look at my schedule and see if I can make it work.
Speaker 3 00:53:34 So thank you, Tamika.
Speaker 5 00:53:37 All right, come on. Yeah. All right. Thank you guys so much.
Speaker 4 00:53:40 Have a.
Speaker 5 00:53:40 Good.
Speaker 3 00:53:40 Bye. Bye.
Speaker 4 00:53:42 It's always great talking to her.
Speaker 3 00:53:44 It is. Oh, my gosh, she is just the sweetest. She is, so uplifting. and just all around good person, right? So definitely, I encourage you, if you're listening to, you know, head out to this. You know what we should do? What, are you going to hate me? But I'm going to say it anyway. Oh, no. You know, because.
Speaker 4 00:54:03 We should just do the podcast from there.
Speaker 3 00:54:04 Yes. How cool would that be to do an on site podcast at the At the Lead on Fire conference, even if we don't do a full on our, you know, because you and I both want to attend and we.
Speaker 4 00:54:14 Should do it during lunch and just walk around and interview.
Speaker 3 00:54:16 Oh my gosh, that would be so cool. All right.
Speaker 4 00:54:19 Sorry about the knife down. Where do you put the knife down?
Speaker 3 00:54:21 It's okay, it's okay. We're we're gonna discuss it later. It'll be all right. anyway, what about you? Kind of cool it, you know, on the on the. What is it on location? Yeah, we've done a few of those, and they've actually been really well received. We have been really cool. I like it, so, Yeah. Well, you got anything else for today? No, no. Me either. You go put your pants and take your pants.
Speaker 4 00:54:42 Off and Iron I'm hanging.
Speaker 3 00:54:44 Take a.
Speaker 4 00:54:44 Nap. Like. I'm good to go.
Speaker 3 00:54:47 Oh, goodness. Well, thank you guys for tuning in. To talk local to me today. Hopefully you have gotten a little insight on some tips and tools you can use going into the new year. Yeah. And also, again, big thank you to Tamika for joining us, on by phone to tell us more about the conference.
Speaker 3 00:55:04 And if you want information about the, events that we've talked about today or how to be a member with the CCBC or more information about the lead on our conference, because we do have their information on our site. You can go to.
Speaker 4 00:55:18 CVABC, dot org. Have a great week. Keep up with those goals. We'll see you next Wednesday.
Time Stamps:
Podcast Introduction (00:00:35) Show intro, hosts Heather and Mike introduce themselves and the Central Virginia Business Coalition.
New Year Reflections & Business Challenges (00:01:16) Hosts discuss the stressful start to the new year, setting goals, and adapting to changes in business.
Upcoming Guest & Conference Preview (00:02:04) Announcement of upcoming guest Tamika and discussion of local leadership conferences.
Tools for Small Business Operations (00:03:05) Discussion about tools and resources to streamline small business operations and reduce stress.
CVABC Networking Events Overview (00:04:34) Announcement of upcoming CVABC networking events: Coffee Talks and locations/dates.
The Value of Networking (00:05:05) Emphasis on networking as a key business tool, sharing personal experiences and advice.
Building Relationships Through Networking (00:06:06) Advice on using networking events to build authentic business relationships and trust.
Overcoming Networking Anxiety (00:07:03) Tips for overcoming fear of networking and making meaningful connections at events.
Expanding Networking Opportunities (00:08:14) CVABC’s efforts to host events in more locations and encourage broader participation.
Elevator Pitches & Effective Messaging (00:09:19) Advice on crafting and delivering simple, memorable elevator pitches.
Finding Networking Opportunities (00:10:10) Suggestions for finding additional networking events and groups in the community.
Networking Challenge for Listeners (00:11:14) Encouragement for listeners to attend at least one networking event this month.
Small Business Financial Challenges (00:11:30) Discussion of economic pressures on small businesses and the need for financial responsibility.
Marketing on a Budget (00:12:31) Advice on maintaining marketing efforts even during tough financial times.
Seasonal Business Trends (00:13:03) Observations about low business activity in months starting with "J" and the importance of supporting local businesses.
Cost-Effective Marketing Strategies (00:13:30) Highlighting social media and networking as low-cost marketing tools.
Social Media Management Tips (00:14:10) Tips for managing business social media, including scheduling posts and team collaboration.
CVABC Networking Incentive Program (00:15:03) Introduction of networking loyalty punch cards and a new app for tracking event attendance.
Email & SMS Communication Tools (00:17:30) Discussion of using newsletters, MailChimp, Constant Contact, and SMS for member communication.
Newsletter Improvements & Content (00:18:05) Updates to the CVABC newsletter, including new layout, sponsor spotlights, and content guidelines.
Business Tools Used by Visiting Angels (00:20:45) Overview of tools used by Visiting Angels, including answering services, SEO, recruiting, and budgeting tools.
Managing Business Expenses & Budgets (00:22:32) Explanation of new budgeting systems and managing cash flow for small businesses.
Communication Tools: Podium (00:23:34) Use of Podium for office-wide text communication with clients and caregivers.
Calendly & Calendar Management (00:24:17) Benefits of using Calendly and other calendar apps for scheduling and event registration.
Other Useful Business Apps (00:26:08) Mention of Google Calendar, Fathom, and other productivity tools.
Using ChatGPT & Canva for Marketing (00:26:30) How ChatGPT and Canva help with creating flyers and marketing materials.
Customer Relationship Management Tools (00:27:55) Recommendations for CRM tools like HubSpot and LinkedIn for business networking.
Aligning Tools with Business Goals (00:28:26) Encouragement to use tools intentionally to support business goals for the new year.
Omega Disaster Restoration Advertisement (00:29:25) Ad for Omega Disaster Restoration and their services in Central and Southwest Virginia.
Return from Break & Guest Introduction (00:30:31) Return from commercial, update on guest Tamika, and introduction of new CVABC initiative "Tea Time."
CVABC Tea Time Video Series (00:31:23) Introduction of the new "Tea Time" video series and CVABC’s expanded social media presence.
Tamika Joins the Show (00:32:54) Tamika calls in; hosts introduce her and her background in leadership and music.
Lead on Fire Conference Overview (00:35:06) Tamika describes the purpose, structure, and goals of the Lead on Fire 2026 Leadership Conference.
Conference Speakers & Topics (00:38:35) Overview of conference speakers, topics, and the focus on leadership, mental health, and team building.
Importance of Leadership Renewal (00:40:03) Discussion on leadership burnout, the need for inspiration, and the value of attending the conference.
Conference Registration & Discounts (00:41:41) Details on how to register for the conference, discount codes, and vendor opportunities.
Sponsorship Opportunities (00:43:39) Information about sponsorship options and the benefits for local businesses.
Supporting Local Speakers & Businesses (00:47:12) Emphasis on featuring local speakers and businesses at the conference for relevant insights.
Conference Logistics & CEUs (00:51:05) Conference dates, location, schedule, and information about earning CEUs for healthcare professionals.
Show Wrap-Up & Podcast On-Location Idea (00:54:03) Hosts discuss possibly recording the podcast at the conference and wrap up the episode.
Closing Remarks & Contact Information (00:55:04) Final thanks, information on CVABC membership, and where to find more event details.
Key Words:
Central Virginia Business Coalition, Talk Local to Me, Heather, Mike, small business challenges, networking opportunities, community engagement, goal setting, stress management, CVABC networking events, Coffee Talks, Luncheon Learns, networking incentive program, business growth tools, streamline operations, QuickBooks, Podium, Calendly, ChatGPT, Lead On Conference, Women's Conference, Empower Conference, Virginia Adult Care Education, vendor opportunities, sponsorship opportunities, local business exposure, burnout, local speakers, business encouragement, dynamic business community, registration open, networking events, community support, business promotion, marketing strategies, healthcare professionals, business tools, conference attendance, referrals through networking.