TweetDeck and Twitter

I needed help when I first started to use this utility called TweetDeck to view and consolidate my Twitter feeds. I found a great video tutorial by Rich Brooks at Flyte New Media. Now, I wouldn’t use anything else.

New Meetup Group

I am hosting a new meetup group in Westlake Village, CA. It is designed as a small business forum to discuss technology without the sales hype or the geek-speak. This is a discussion for businesspeople by businesspeople using their language, and mirroring their concerns and goals. It’s called SmallBizExec Tech Roundtable.

Topics that may be discussed include, but are not limited to:

• Trends in Business Technology
• Social Media Marketing
• Cloud Computing
• Internet versus Desktop Applications
• Small Business Advantages
• Mobile Computing Applications
• Secure Your Business Tech
• Finding Reliable Business Consulting

NO SALES PITCHES ALLOWED. Otherwise, industry folks such as computer consultants and web designers are welcome. As long as we share Rule #1.

We meet on fourth Tuesday of every month at 5:30 pm at Vivoli Cafe in Westlake Village for little dinner, a little wine, a lot af discussion and a generous sprinking of fun.

To find out more, go to Meetup.

Small Biz Can Take Advantage of Federal Investment Dollars

Right now, one of the most asked questions that I get is, how can I as a small business compete and win dollars from the government. And more specifically, how can can I get a slice of the big pile of federal investment dollars. I recently asked a question on LinkedIn about this very subject and I got a great answer from Tiffeny Price, a self-employed marketing consultant and previously employed at Cisco as a marketing expert in the SMB market segment.

The answer is yes, and Tiffeny’s blog will tell you how.

A great idea – I wish I could take credit for it.

In perusing my various small business, e-mails and LinkedIn resources, I came across this blog post from Lewis Howes, President of Sports Networker: 11 positive outcomes from hosting a networking event. It is a great idea for most small business folks looking for a way to get their name into the public. I’m going to give this a try early next year. Hoo-rah!