Forge News and Updates |
Are you and your company looking for the perfect professional meeting space that meets all your needs? Look no further! Here is your guide to finding the meeting and event space of your dreams.
With more than 75 meeting spaces in Birmingham, finding one that fits your needs and desires may be overwhelming. That’s where I’m here to help. When booking a space in Birmingham, it’s important to make sure it has everything you need.
1. Professional Setting
2. Clean and Sanitized (especially during the current pandemic – you can never be too careful)
3. Well-Equipped with the Proper Amenities
4. Welcoming and Relaxed Environment
5. Cost-Effective
6. Parking and Accessibility
7. Geographically Convenient
8. Plenty of Room – You don’t want to feel cramped while in a meeting!
Here’s a list of some of the best Birmingham meeting spaces, that meet all of these requirements and more!
- Forge
Did you really think I was going to write an article about the best conference/ meeting spaces in Birmingham and not include Forge?! Forge, in the heart of downtown Birmingham, offers four beautifully designed conference rooms for members and visitors. These conference rooms can accompany varying numbers of people and offers beautiful natural light, proper technology, and stunning views of Birmingham. Forge also has event space available for groups of up to 100 people. Book a meeting room today or check out the event space!
2. The Hub
Located in West Homewood, AL, besides Seeds Coffee, the Hub offers meeting spaces for up to 15 people. The space has all the proper technological equipment and WIFI needed, as well as a lounge, greenspace, and coffee next door. Similar to the next three places, the Hub is a collaborative co-working space for professionals of all kinds.
Photo from The Hub Website
3. Social Venture
Social Venture is a co-working and meeting space, located in the heart of Woodlawn. It offers small and large sized meeting rooms with Apple TV, HDMI inputs, podiums, and more for all meeting and conference needs. For more information on reserving these spaces visit, click here.
Photo from Social Venture Website
4. WORX BHM
Worx BHM, located off Lakeshore and Columbiana, offers two great options for conference rooms. They have rooms for 12 – 20 people, depending on location! If you’re interested in booking a space here, please contact info@worxbhm.com or call 205-379-6023 to reserve a room.
Photo from Worx Instagram
5. Back Forty Beer Company
Recently, Back Forty opened their B40 Barrel Room which is the perfect space for a more casual medium to large meeting space. The indoor stage and 20’ projection screen are the perfect added details for any presentations and conference rooms. For more information, please email info@backfortybham.com.
photo from Bham Now
6. Elyton Hotel
The Elyton Hotel offers wonderful meeting and event spaces, in downtown Birmingham. They have a number of different spaces that can accommodate groups of all sizes – from smaller 10 – 30 groups or up to 125 guests. The Elyton is the perfect place for your next meeting or conference. Call ahead or visit their website online for more information.
Photo from Marriott website
7. Avondale Brewing Company
In Avondale resides a historically preserved and restored building, known to many as Avondale Brewery. However, inside this stunning building is a beautiful space for all weddings, formal meetings, and more. For more information, please visit their website and fill out their Booking Information Form.
Photo from Wedding Spot
8. Grand Bohemian Hotel (Mountain Brook – Crestline Village)
The Grand Bohemian provides meeting/conference spaces to meet all your capacity needs. Larger meetings and conferences may utilize the 400-person ballroom. In addition, they have smaller rooms for 10 to 35 people available for rent. Call ahead or book your space online.
Photo from Marriott Website
9. Aloft Hotel Birmingham (Soho Square)
Located in the heart of downtown Homewood, ALoft provides a beautiful space with up to 60 people capacity. Once the meeting is over, ALoft’s locations offers a variety of Birmingham local dining establishment within walking distance. The conference room offers a variety of different meeting set ups depending on your particular needs. For more information or to book the room, click here.
Photo from Marriott Website
I hope this list of conference room and meeting and/or event spaces is a great start to an extensive list of incredible spaces located around Birmingham. If none of these places work out for you, I encourage you to continue to find and share spaces that work for all of your needs.
The first four suggestions are special to us here at Forge, as they are all coworking spaces located around the Birmingham area. In fact, they, and some others not mentioned, are all a part of the Birmingham Coworking Collective(BCC). The BCC’s goal is to grow and strengthen the coworking community in Birmingham through increasing awareness and much more.
In efforts to increase awareness, support coworking, and empower professionals around Birmingham, the Birmingham Coworking Collective has a Passport which allows you access to all seven of the coworking spaces in the Birmingham area – allowing you to visit and try out each space before potentially committing to a membership.
Even if coworking is not for you, we highly encourage you to check out these wonderful collaborative working spaces and some of the meeting and conference rooms Birmingham has to offer.
Member Spotlight |
Hello! Welcome to Forge Member Spotlights! This is one of our favorite types of blog posts, because we get the unique privilege of highlighting one of Forge’s incredible members. I had the honor of chatting with one of our members and learning more about her and her story.
Everyone meet Kameron Monet, a YouTuber, Influencer and Lawyer – I think you’ll find her as cool as I do!
How did you get into YouTube?
What inspires you to create content?
Unlike many other aspiring lawyers, I didn’t grow up always wanting to become a lawyer. Growing up I loved the performing arts, photography and video production. I was in several local plays, school plays, and would record my own at-home short films. I’d say I’ve always been a creative at heart. Fast forward to college, I had to pick a major and felt the pressure of picking a “real career” as people around me put it.
Also, during this time, I started my YouTube channel, specifically on October 6, 2014 I uploaded my first YouTube video not realizing this was a step towards my future career. So, I spoke with my academic advisor, who was a lawyer himself, and he told me to take some pre-law classes and check out the mock trial team to see if law was something, I’d be interested in. I took his advice, joined the mock trial team, became a legal assistant at a local law firm, and I was hooked! The same empowering feeling I got on stage, I then got while being in the courtroom.
I received my Bachelor of Science in Political Science and a minor in Criminology from Kennesaw State University in 2015. Upon graduation I took a gap year before going to law school and began my legal journey at Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in the Fall of 2016.
During this time, I remember searching on Google and YouTube for law school tips and law students showing their day to day lives, but there really wasn’t much out there. So, I picked up my camera and began to vlog my experience, the raw, real, honest truth about law school. I was nervous because my content up to this point was all about hair, makeup, and beauty type videos, but I quickly realized there were other aspiring lawyers out there that wanted to see what it’s really like to be a law student.
3 years later, I graduated from Cumberland School of Law in May of 2019, I took and passed the Alabama Bar Exam in 2019 and began my career as an Associate Attorney practicing Employment Litigation, while simultaneously using social media to create content around fashion, beauty, lifestyle, as well as female professionalism and career building. At this point, the idea of a non-traditional lawyer career path became more and more appealing. So, I quit my 9-to-5 law firm job to live what I call the best of both worlds.
Today, I have built an engaging and organic audience with over 100,000 followers across my platforms @kameronmonet, working with brands from Dove to Dyson to Ulta Beauty. After realizing my social media expertise and license to practice law could provide value for aspiring “Lawyer Influencers”, as well as educate content creators about the power of contracts when signing brand deals; I launched my Influencer Contract Consulting service. On a monthly basis I help creatives on a one-on-one basis navigate the legalize of contracts to gain complete understanding and secure higher paid opportunities!
What is your favorite part of being an attorney?
And your favorite part of being an influencer/Youtuber?
I love having one foot in the door as an influencer/content creator and the other in the door as an attorney! It allows me to see both sides of the coin very clear and perfectly bridge the gap between the two.
I bet it is difficult to juggle the demands of being an attorney & an influencer. How do you manage both?
Three things come to mind when I think about how I manage juggling the demands of being an attorney and influencer.
- Staying organized and planning. I use Google Drive, Google Calendar, ClickUp, and timers to stay on top of everything I need to get done on a daily, monthly, and quarterly basis.
- My manager. I hired her back in August 2020 and she has helped me so much with staying on top of brand partnerships and so much more!
- Prioritizing self-care. I’m what most people would call a work-a-holic, I genuinely love working! However, I can’t pour from an empty cup, so I really make it a priority to implement something related to self-care almost daily. Overall, I love what I do so it’s worth the crazy, busy, and stressful times, haha!
What is the biggest lesson or takeaway you’ve gathered from your time as an attorney and influencer?
My favorite life lesson quote is ‘What’s for you, is for you.’ Being in both the legal profession and the social media industry can make it hard not to fall into the comparison game or have imposter syndrome. I’m speaking from personal knowledge. But once I decided to stop focusing on how fast others were meeting their goals or how they would get an opportunity I’d love to have, I realized that I’ve always gotten the opportunities perfect for me. I love supporting others on their unique career journeys and no matter how many resources I share with them or how many connections I help others make, what is meant for me, will always be for me. I truly believe that no one can take what God has planned for my life.
If you were to give advice to your younger self what would it be?
It always seems impossible until it’s done. One of the hardest things about starting something is actually starting it. I can think of many times when I’ve talked myself out of starting something because of the fear of failure and the intimidation of accomplishing a goal that seems impossible. But everyone has to start somewhere. The successful people we’re inspired by had to start somewhere.
So, guess what I have to do? Start somewhere. Which is why I constantly remind myself to not compare my day 1 to someone else’s day 27. If you would’ve asked me on October 6, 2014 after uploading my first YouTube video if I’d make money from it, let alone build an entire career from it, I would’ve said ‘that’s impossible.’ Today my response, ‘it’s beyond possible.’
What is something you wish more people knew about you and the industries you work in?
When people think of what defines a lawyer, they immediately think of what they see on tv shows. Generally, society says lawyers are conservative, always dressed in a suit, constantly in and out of the courthouse for trials, mostly men, working at law firms, barely sleeping, stressed, and making hundreds of thousands of dollars. Sure, there are a few doing some of that but that is not the majority. Even taking it a step further, law schools put a lot of pressure on law students to get the best grades, work for the best big law firms and become partner at that firm someday. However, this completely overlooks so many other amazing career opportunities that come with simply obtaining a Juris Doctorate.
As a black female lawyer leaving the traditional law firm life to build a lane to bridge the gap between law and social media, simply put, I’m paving the way to show others that there’s more than one lane to succeed in the legal profession. No, I may not be the first, but I pride myself in being authentic, genuine, honest and real. On my YouTube channel “Kameron Monet” I show the raw behind the scenes of the good, bad, and ugly through my “Weekly Vlog” series. My goal is to redefine what society generalizes as a lawyer and to inspire and motivate others on their law school journey and entrepreneurship journey!”
What is your favorite part about your job?
My favorite part about being an influencer is creating genuine connections with my online community and providing value to my audience through the knowledge and experience I gain! My favorite part about being an attorney is being able to give my clients more time to create and not worry about making sure they’re protected in their brand partnerships and watching them get excited about the power of contacts!
Why did you decide to join Forge?
I’m sure we all can relate to being tired of working from home or being more productive when working around others working, and both of those were me! I used a free day pass to get a feel for Forge and I was so much more productive that I knew I had to sign up to become a member. Forge is such a beautiful space, perfectly located downtown exactly where I wanted to be, and does a great job with encouraging member connections! I haven’t participated in many members group events, but I love that I have that option and I’m excited to start attending more soon!
_________________
I hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about Kameron Monet and her passions. If you want more from this incredible women, visit her website, YouTube, Instagram, or other socials. To join Kameron and the plethora of awesome members at Forge, please visit our website. You can book your tour of Forge today. Forge is currently running a Summer Special, if you join with a Coworking Membership in May or June, you can buy the first month and get your second month of membership free!
Member Spotlight |
As we close out Women’s History Month, we’re looking to the female business owners at Forge. These women range from podcasters to marketers to estheticians- we absolutely love the variety of companies represented in our workspace. Forge even has a member who has developed an app helping prevent police violence. Read on to find out more about the women owned businesses at Forge!
CLM Experts | Lynette Samuels
Lynette Samuels is the Founder & CEO of CLM Experts. She prides herself in possessing over 20 years of experience in credit repair, collection and business. Lynette enjoys helping people develop business relationships and create multiple streams of income while creating secure true financial education and freedom.
Since January 2017, Lynette has been building CLM Experts from the ground up. She has worked with over 250 clients to help them start their own business and repair their credit stores.
Elevate Communications | Debra Nelson
As the Founder of Elevate Communications, Debra Nelson is recognized among the nation’s leading diversity and inclusion practitioners and public relations experts. Her successful corporate career includes executive positions in industries spanning media, higher education, automotive manufacturing, construction, and gaming and hospitality. Debra leads Elevate, a firm dedicated to delivering professional development and communication services.
She is a career coach, speaker, and seminar leader on topics related to diversity and inclusion, professional development and women’s empowerment.
The Popcast | Jamie Golden
Jamie Golden is the Co-Founder of The Popcast Media Group. Jamie B. Golden has been cohosting The Popcast with Knox and Jamie since August 2013. It is a nationally ranked, weekly pop culture podcast that’s part deep dive, mostly shallow end. Jamie and Knox also launched their newest podcast, The Bible Binge, in February 2018. Both of her podcasts are ranked in top 1% of all podcasts. We love that The Popcast records their podcast right here in Forge! Jamie has over 50,000 followers on her Instagram so go ahead and follow along if you want to be entertained!
One Degree Marketing | Jacqui Jones
Jacqui Jones is the CEO of One Degree MMM and founder of Elevation Academy. One Degree MMM is a core-service marketing firm fueled by the best and brightest marketing and branding creatives who empower entrepreneurs and business owners via quality marketing services that will grow and sustain their business vision. Jacqui is a talented marketer, teacher and speaker. Check out her TEDx Birmingham talk!
Empirical Data Strategies | Jami Medina
Jami Medina is the CEO of Empirical Data Strategies. Their goal is to support small and growing businesses with the same project management, software development and implementation, custom CRM implementation and dashboard-driven analytics that the big guys provide, at a price that any business can afford. Empirical Data Strategies also offers the best in Data Science Consulting. Their expertise is in providing you with the mentorship to get big work done, make big decisions, and have easy access to information to grow your company.
Shea Shea Beauty & Brow | Shea Doriety
Shea Doriety is the Owner of Shea Shea Beauty & Brow. Shea is an Esthetician and make-up artist that has been customizing professional looks for 15 years! Shea has amazing reviews from her clients like this one- “Shea not only is a professional at what she does, but she takes care of her clients as if they are family. She gives you high class treatment, doesn’t rush you, or waste your time.”
RightThere Corporation | Maria Watkins
Maria Watkins is the Founder and CEO of RightThere Corporation. She developed the RightThere protech app/wearable device to accomplish their mission of preventing police violence. The app assists in preventing police misconduct, reducing civil rights violations and much more. The wearable device will be interfaced with the RTC Protech App and provide some of the same features. Other features will reduce dangerous encounters, such as hate crimes, child abductions and domestic disputes.
La Luna Agency | Onna Cunningham
Luna is a marketing collective founded in Birmingham and committed to serving clients across the globe. Onna is Owner of Luna and an agency professional with ten years of experience in leadership, team management, client relations, business and operational development in the marketing industry. Luna specializes in marketing strategy, campaign and messaging development, social media strategy and management, website design and development, public relations and much more!
eCure | Shawn Powe
Shawn Powe is the Founder of eCure and she is also a Nurse Practitioner. The ER isn’t needed for all medical conditions- that’s why eCure is available to take care of your telemedicine appropriate conditions. eCure will soon have CureCalls (HouseCalls), where they come to the comfort of your home. Powe believes in eCure’s vision of providing affordable and convenient healthcare. Powe’s life goals are to fight for equal healthcare for the disenfranchised while also educating the community to live healthier lifestyles.
Kameron Monet | Kameron Buckner
Kameron M. Buckner, Esq. is a licensed attorney, content creator, and social media strategist. Kameron has built an engaging and organic audience with over 100,000 followers across her platforms @kameronmonet, working with brands from Dove to Dyson to Ulta Beauty. After realizing her social media expertise and license to practice law could provide value for aspiring “Lawyer Influencers”, as well as educate content creators about the power of contracts when signing brand deals; Kameron quit her 9-to-5 law firm job to live what she calls the best of both worlds.
Are you a female entrepreneur, small business owner or remote worker looking to get out of your home office? We know it’s tough to stay productive at home. Come try out Forge! We’d love to offer you a free Day Pass to try out our coworking space. Email us at info@workatforge.com to claim your free day pass!
Forge News and Updates |
It’s March. Can you believe that we’re already 3 months into 2021? I cannot. One thing I’ve always loved about March is that it means warmer weather is coming. However, I a few years ago I discovered that March is also Women’s History Month. No more winter, warm weather, and Women’s History Month all in one – I don’t think it gets better than that!
Women’s History Month is dedicated to highlighting and celebrating women’s contributions to history and society. In honor of all of the fabulous women who have come before us, and who will come after us, we wanted to take a moment to highlight some of these awesome women in Birmingham.
Here is a list of 13 Female Owned Restaurants in Birmingham that You Must Visit
(in no particular order)
Ashley Mac’s
Various locations in Homewood, Cahaba Heights, Downtown, Hoover
Ashley McMakin, Founder of Ashley Macs. Photo from Style Blueprint
Ashley Mac’s offers café dining, catering, and to-go options. They have a wide variety of delicious options for everyone. Their frozen to-go meals are perfect for a busy family who wants to eat healthy. Ashely Mac’s baby blue salad and poppyseed chicken are a personal favorite.
photo from Ashley Macs Instagram
Blueroot
2822A Petticoat Ln
Mountain Brook, AL 35223
Jennifer Ryan, Owner of Blueroot. Photo from Village Living
Located in the heart of Mountain Brook Village, Blue Root offers delicious and healthy meals from oats, granola, breakfast, salads, bowls, soups, and sides. Their meals are loaded with a number of flavorful ingredients. They are allergy conscious, making this the perfect healthy place for those with any dairy, gluten, or vegan intolerances. After dining in or grabbing to-go, make sure to check out their sweet treats or desserts.
photo from the Blueroot Instagram
The Essential
2018 Morris Ave
Birmingham, AL 35203
Kristen Farmer Hall, Co-Owner of The Essential. Photo from Style Blueprint
The Essential should be your new go-to restaurant. It offers a wonderful menu filled with lunch and dinner options that will leave you full and satisfied. The menu has something for everyone, whether you’re craving a salad, sandwich, pasta, or burger – they have it all In addition, they offer a wide variety of cocktails to add to your meal. On the weekend, they offer a delicious brunch consisting of all your favorites, but even better.
photo from The Essential Instagram
Chocolatá
1927 2nd Avenue North
Birmingham, Alabama 35203
Kathy D’Agostino, Owner of Chocolata. Photo from Style Blueprint
If you love chocolate, this will quickly become your new favorite place. Chocolates are especially blended for their unique flavor pairing, using carefully handcrafted recipes. Head on over to Chocolatá for some of the best Chocolate you’ve ever had – you won’t regret it.
photo from Chocolata Instagram
Daughter’s Baking
(PICKUP BY APPOINTMENT)
195 Vulcan Road
Homewood, AL 35209
Mallory Webb, Founder of Daughters Baking. Photo from Style Blueprint
While they do not have a storefront, yet Daughter’s Baking should still be at the top of your dessert list. Daughter’s is known for their beautiful, flavorful naked cakes. They also offer cookies, crumbs, and crunches. If you have any type of celebration coming up, or if you just want to treat yourself to a delicious cake, go ahead and place an order with Daughter’s Baking.
photo from Daughters Baking Instagram
Urban Cookhouse and Farm Bowl & Juice Co
1920 29th Avenue South
Birmingham, AL 35209
Andrea Snyder, Founder of Urban Cookhouse & Farm Bowl & Juice Co
While very different establishments, these two are owned by the same woman. Urban Cookhouse offers customers with delicious lunch and dinner meals. You cannot go wrong with anything on their menu, and their warm orange rolls are mouthwatering delicious. Farm Bowl is an acai place, located next to the Homewood Urban Cookhouse Location. Farm Bowl partners with local farmers in Alabama to bring fresh, locally sourced ingredients to their bowls, smoothies, and juices. You cannot go wrong with either one of these places for an afternoon lunch.
photo from Farm Bowl + Juice Co Instagram
Bitty’s Living Kitchen
Kimberly McNair Brock, Owner & Chef of Bitty’s Living Kitchen
Bitty’s Living Kitchen is the perfect place for healthy and delicious. They offer a variety of juices for your next juice cleanse or fast. It does not get much better than Bitty’s Fresh Pressed Juices to start your day.
photo from Bitty’s Living Kitchen Instagram
Magic City Nutrition
2201 2nd Ave S, suite 104
Birmingham, AL 35233
Faith & Britni, Owners of Magic City Nutrition
Magic City Nutrition is the place to go for a healthy drink. They offer a wide variety of teas and shakes for all your needs. Their shakes are only 200 calories and are full of proteins. You can order ahead, so your drink will be ready by the time you get there. If you love tea or a good shake, but don’t want the calories that come with them, Magic City Nutrition is the place for you.
photo from Magic City Nutrition Instagram
Highlands Bar and Grill
2011 Eleventh Avenue South
Birmingham, AL 35205
Pardis Stitt, Co-Owner of Highlands Bar & Grill
Highland’s Bar and Grill, while temporarily closed because of COVID, is a place you must go before leaving Birmingham. Highland Br and Grill’s cuisine is rooted in French technique and provides customers with a daily changing menu. Highlands is one of the top restaurants in Birmingham, and it has received national recognition. It was named a finalist in the James Beard Foundation Award for Most Outstanding Restaurant in America 9 years straight, before winning it in its 10th nomination year. If that alone is not enough to persuade you, their pastry chef also won Most Outstanding Pastry Chef.
photo from Highlands Bar & Grill Instagram
Satterfield’s Restaurant
3161 Cahaba Heights Road
Birmingham, AL 35243
Becky Satterfield, Owner of Satterfield’s. Photo from Satterfield website
Located in the heart of Cahaba Heights, Satterfield’s is one of Birmingham’s finest culinary destinations. Satterfield’s offers customers a relaxed fine dining experience. They pride themselves on their fresh ingredients, and while their menu changes daily, customers can expect a wonderful blend of cuisines in every bite.
photo from Satterfields Instagram
Crestline Bagel Company
Locations in Mountain Brook’s Crestline Village, Cahaba Heights, and Downtown
Jennifer Yarbrough, Co-owner of Crestline Bagel. Photo from Style Blueprint
Crestline Bagel Company has been serving the community of Birmingham for over 20 years. Crestline is the perfect spot for pre-work breakfast. They offer an array of different bagels, made daily. As a sucker for Bacon, Egg, & Cheese bagels, I can say this is an easy favorite place. Crestline’s menu extends past bagels as they offer wraps, sandwiches, salads, panini, or pizza bagels. You can’t go wrong ordering from here.
photo from Crestline Bagel Instagram
Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn
5831 1st Ave. North Suite 200
Birmingham, AL 35212
Tanesha Sims-Summers, Founder & CEO of NBN Kettle Corn
I don’t know about you but popcorn is one of my greatest weaknesses. I’m a huge movie lover, and a movie complete without a bowl of popcorn in hand. In recent years I’ve grown to appreciate kettle corn more than the butter covered popcorn at movie theaters. Naught but Nice Kettle Corn satisfies every popcorn craving you can imagine. 10/10 would recommend their salty & sweet kettle corn. However, if you’re feeling a bit more adventurous try their green apple pie or strawberry flavors. Either way, I can promise you that you will not regretting stopping by.
photo from Costarters
Automatic Seafood & Oysters
2824 5th Avenue South
Birmingham, AL 35233
Suzanne Humphries Evans, Co-Founder of Automatic Seafood. Photo from Bham Now
Here’s another James Beard nominated restaurant – a 2020 finalist for best new restaurant in the U.S. While relatively new to Birmingham, Automatic Seafood has amassed quite the reputation for its flavorful food, ambiance, and service. If you’re a seafood fan, this should be the first place you visit. I highly recommend their fish collar appetizer. It’s arguably my favorite thing I’ve eaten…ever. They are booked most of the time, so schedule ahead of time and reserve online. Automatic Seafood & Oysters reputation precedes them, and I cannot recommend this one enough.
Photo from the Automatic Instagram
Forge celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8 with a virtual panel of 3 local female business leaders- you can view the recording of that event on our YouTube channel! If you’ve been working from home and find yourself struggling to be productive, consider coming in for a free day at Forge. With unlimited coffee and super fast wifi, you can be the most productive version of yourself in our workspace! Schedule a tour of Forge today.
Lunch & Learn |
Do you dread networking? Even though we know that networking may not be at the top of your priority list, everyone knowns networking ultimately helps you grow your business. Jenna Curry recently taught a Forge webinar about the power of networking! Jenna is the owner of Remedy Digital Agency and we are recapping the highlights from her teaching. You can watch the full recording here.
Jenna Curry, Owner of Remedy Digital Agency
How can networking get you…
friendships
clients
referral
partners
board members
donors
employees
free advice
free stuff
In order to network effectively, you want to bring your best energy to each opportunity.
For networking to work, you must connect! Here’s how:
- Have a “give first” mindset- see how much of an impact you can make on others
- The only self-serving goal should be to find at least 1 thing you can learn from someone to apply to your business/life
- Know your value and determine what value you bring to each situation
- Know the problem your business solves for your customer and your customer’s customer
- Care about the people you network with
- Exercise that energy/value
- Focus on getting to the next step on the ladder instead of sealing the deal
Networking with Mixtroz at our IWD 2020 event
Getting Started with Intentional Networking:
1. Make a list of your next 10 dream clients
2. Write out what time, knowledge, gift or access can you provide to your ‘Future Dream 10’ Clients?
3. Write out who, what, where, and when for each person you want to impact
4. Start making contact and keeping track (using a CRM or Google sheet) of who, what, where, and when for each.
5. Iterate and repeat
6. Grow your contacts and grow your business!
Jenna told us to ask ourselves, how can you leverage your energy?
- Emotions: send encouraging messages, pay attention, give feedback
- Time: volunteer and show up!
- Knowledge: offer a free training, a guide, “how to”
- Monetary: gift or offer
- Access: to a connection, space, to information, to a following, a community, an event
Connect- Virtual Networking Meeting
What time, knowledge, gift or access can you provide to your ‘Future Dream 10’ Clients?
Who can you thank today? Take time to send a text or write a personalized thank you card!
Here are some things that Jenna has personally done to grow her own network:
- start a networking group
- share wins for myself and others on social media
- host a ladies night
- host a training
- volunteer for events (show up early, stay late)
- join a business book club
- treat friends to golf
- write an article
- host/attend a fundraising table lunch
- write a review
- send a thoughtful gift
- invite someone to a Zoom lunch where she had lunch delivered
- refer business
- and much more!
Don’t forget to thank people profusely!
Forge recently launched Connect– a weekly virtual networking meeting. We wanted to create a way that you can conveniently make new connections to ultimately grow your business! Connect is open to the public and meetings are Tuesdays from 12:00-1:00pm. You can still sign up as a Founding Member (at a discounted rate of $15/month) through March 31. April 1 price will go up to $25/month.
Thank you Jenna for sharing your wisdom and experience with networking! Be sure to check out Remedy Digital Agency– look at their blog for lots of helpful resources!
