Key Takeaways from the Art of Small Business Conference 
On October 21, 2013, I attended the Art of Small Business Conference at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Ron Bester, a connection on LinkedIn, gave me a complimentary pass, and I thank him for it. I attended the second half of the conference and heard John Jantsch (@ducttape), Stephen Shapiro (@stephenshapiro) and Michael Gerber (I missed Mitch Joel, Jonathan Fields and Brett Wilson, which I am sorry about, but it couldn’t be avoided) speak. There were many key takeaways, and I learned many lessons from The Art of Small Business conference, but I was dismayed that not one woman was included in the line-up. Am I to believe that there wasn’t one qualified woman who could have been included, even on the panel? Mitch Joel, whose work I love, and who I learn a great deal from, was both a speaker and the moderator of a panel discussion, could the role of moderator not given to a woman?
Key Takeaways from the Art of Small Business – Nuggets of Wisdom
Stephen Shapiro
- When innovation is done the right way it creates job.
- Expertise is the enemy of innovation.
- To get the right answer, you have to ask the right question, the right way, to the right people. How you ask a question has an impact on the response you get.
- People want to get rid of their pain. They want the problem solved. Anything can be framed as a threat or an opportunity, a pain or a gain. When you frame something as a threat or pain, people take immediate action. If you want to build a case, frame as an opportunity.
- Most people spend their time on things that really do not matter.
- We find solutions based on our experience, which seldom leads to innovation. Instead, frame things differently and connect the problem to something very random. This disrupts your thinking.
- Einstein advocated that you spend 59 minutes framing the problem and a minute solving the problem. This suggests that if you have taken the time to adequately prepare, the solution will become apparent.
John Jantsch
- Strategy comes before tactics.
- Develop your marketing strategy and define your ideal customers for your business. How would you spot your ideal customer? What makes a customer ideal?
- Create a process to attract more of your ideal customers.
- Commit to a value proposition. Most people are saying the same thing. Find something that allows you to stand out. What do your customers really value? Find six to eight of your ideal customers and question them.
- Publish educational content. Seventy to 90 percent of purchases are made by people who research online before they make a purchase.
- Publishing Model
- Create a body of work.
- Have some foundational work.
- Identify themes.
- Create an editorial calendar.
- Build a blog with great content.
- Use mixed media.
- Content delivery platform: WordPress blog, podcast, newsletters, e-books, guest posts, webinars, seminars and offline.
In another posts I will share more lessons and key takeaways from the Art of Small Business conference. Also read Sam Brennand's post, 6 Key Takeaways From The Art of Small Business Toronto. Please let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. Liked this post? Share it and subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
Author Bio: Avil Beckford, an expert interviewer, entrepreneur and published author is passionate about books and professional development, and that's why she founded The Invisible Mentor and the Virtual Literary World Tour to give you your ideal mentors virtually in the palm of your hands by offering book reviews and book summaries, biographies of wise people and interviews of successful people.
Book links are affiliate links.
Photo: John Jantsch with one of his slides in the background.