Forge News and Updates |
As you probably already know, podcasts are a very valuable resource for small business owners. Do you need to learn about marketing or SEO? There’s a podcast for that. Do you need to learn how to scale your business? There’s definitely lots of podcasts for that. We’ve done the hard work for you and taken recommendations from Forge members on their favorite business related podcasts.
Masters of Scale
Masters of Scale is hosted by Reid Hoffman, Co-founder of LinkedIn. Reid shows how companies grow from zero to a gazillion, testing his theories with legendary leaders. This podcast is the first American media program to commit to a 50-50 gender balance for guests and it won the 2018 People’s Voice Webby for Best Business Podcast. Masters of Scale is definitely a Forge member favorite!
Perpetual Traffic
Every week Molly, Keith, and Ralph have shared cutting-edge paid traffic strategies they’ve used with their clients and in their businesses. They also share the struggles of digital marketing and online advertising and how they overcame them. If you’re hoping to acquire more customers online, Perpetual Traffic is perfect for you!
How I Built This
If you love storytelling and business, this is the right podcast for you. Guy Raz talks with the some of the most influential companies to learn how they began. How I Built This is full of inspirational stories from lots of entrepreneurs and founders. We love hearing about the humble beginnings of such influential companies- so be sure to look up How I Built This.
Without Fail
We all know that any big successes were accompanied by some failures too. Without Fail is a new show from Gimlet Media that asks people who have pursued incredible things: What worked? What didn’t? And why? It’s hosted by Alex Blumberg. We believe that if you’re a business owner, it’s definitely worth your time!
Goal Digger
Hosted by Jenna Kutcher, the Goal Digger podcast answers many questions we have as entrepreneurs: How can I make money online? Am I ready to leave my 9 to 5 job? How can I grow my Instagram following? Jenna shares plenty of tangible tips that she personally used to become a self-made millionaire. Listen to Goal Digger for inspiration, a unique perspective and plenty of interviews with industry leaders.
Entreleadership
Under the umbrella of Dave Ramsey, the Entreleadership Podcast is hosted by Ken Coleman. You can find interviews with some of the top minds in the business world like Seth Godin, Donald Miller, Jim Collins and many more. You can never have enough leadership advice so we suggest checking it out!
If you try any of these out for the first time, let us know your thoughts! Do you have other business related podcasts you love? Tell us about them! We’d love to add to our list.
Forge News and Updates |
Forge member Jacqueline Jones wrote this blog post about mistakes we make in DIY marketing- we found it extremely helpful! Check out the original blog post here.
A large majority of businesses handle their marketing in-house. Unfortunately, marketing efforts often get overlooked or handed off to someone who knows only a little about how to manage marketing for a brand.
If you’re a “solopreneur”, you may find that you simply have to do everything yourself because outsourcing can be costly.
There is nothing wrong with DIY marketing, but there are a few things you should attempt to avoid.
1. Only talking to your audience when you’re selling.
The majority of small businesses find themselves grasping at straws when it’s time to meet sales numbers. So naturally, social media posts and emails only go out when it’s time to ask for money.
Your brand’s content strategy should focus more on building a relationship with and educating your audience. If they trust you, they will spend money with you. When they spend money with you, they shouldn’t feel like they had a cheap one-night-stand because the communication ended with the sale.
Understanding the process you want your customer to experience is extremely important to building and maintaining a profitable relationship. Most marketers call this sales-funnel development.
2. Not using Call-To-Actions.
Publishing great content is a wonderful step to achieve in the process of marketing your business. It’s just pretty pictures and nice copy if you don’t have a call-to-action.
CTA’s tell your audience where to go next. This means you have to make a place for them to go before asking them to. Don’t forget to add links, instructions, lead pages, or whatever is the next step for potential customers to take. This is a common, yet avoidable, pitfall.
3. Thinking social media is all necessary to market your brand.
Do not do think that social media is all you need. Because social media platforms are free and accessible to all, many people feel that’s all they need to market their business. It’s just not true.
Social media is only one aspect of marketing a business. It’s a great tool, but should only be a part of your process. Marketing 101 would teach you the 4 P’s of marketing are price, place, promotion, and product. Social media falls under promotion, as does digital and print advertising, website development, t-shirts, and pens.
Marketing is far bigger than your social media presence. Spend time creating a strategy that covers all bases. It will make marketing your brand much easier and far more effective.
These are simple mistakes. Mistakes can be corrected. Invest the time, money, and effort in properly marketing your business. Doing what you love and you are passionate about is, actually, the easy part. Do what it takes to take your passion to the right audience.
Forge News and Updates |
This article was written by Lauren Bedford for Bham Now!
Have you ever wondered what coworking is? Have you seen #workatforge floating around Instagram or Facebook? Do you work remotely or from home? Self employed? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be interested in learning about Forge coworking space.
What is Forge?
Forge is currently Birmingham’s first and only professional coworking space. Other coworking spaces in Birmingham include The Hub, MAKE Bham and Social Venture. Forge is currently the only coworking space that is geared toward professionals only. A coworking space is a space from which all kinds of people can work. This includes entrepreneurs, those who work remotely, and the self-employed creatives with big dreams. The facilities at Forge are state of the art and the space is stylishly decorated. Kim Lee, founder and CEO, is committed to those that call Forge their home 40+ hours a week and does everything she can to make sure they have what they need.
Forge is located in the Pizitz building and overlooks the Food Hall. The working space runs around the edges of the building. Next time you’re grabbing a drink at The Louis or breakfast from Alabama Biscuit Co., look up. See those people? They’re working in Forge.
Happy Birthday, Forge!
Forge recently celebrated its first year of business with a lunch party. There was balloons, champagne, lunch catered by Ono Poke and cupcakes. The Forge community came together for a celebration of the space and the founders. After just one year, the space was full of people celebrating and spending time together — a huge testament to the supportive environment found at Forge.
A Little Background
The fearless leader: Kim Lee, Founder of Forge
Lee has a Bachelor’s degree in Business from Samford, and a Master’s in Counseling from Covenant College. Her first job after graduation was for a window-washing company as a business-development team member. Though this seems like a sharp detour from a path that would lead to coworking, Lee cites this job as the place where she really fell in love with business in this way — business as service and hospitality.
“When we moved back to Birmingham and I went back to work, I discovered this concept of coworking. I thought to myself, ‘This, somehow, combines everything we love. We love building community, serving the city, growing the city, providing ways for people to work and building an ecosystem for small businesses.’”
Some people may come to lament the fact their job becomes monotonous, the same thing day in and day out. That is not the case when running Forge. Kelsey Sizemore, Marketing and Community Manager at Forge, feels like there is never a dull day — and that is one of her favorite things about working at Forge. She also notes one of her favorite things as the fact that she gets to meet so many different types of people based on all the unique people that call Forge their work home.
“I like the variety of getting to interact with a lot of people here. It’s fun that there are people doing a lot of really different jobs, so I get exposed to a lot of different things I never would have known about otherwise.”
Apart from the difficulty of finding the perfect downtown location, Lee basically had the idea from the start and has been able to execute her plan well. Although Forge opened later than she had originally planned, it has been an immense success and something that brings both her and Forge members joy and utility everyday.
How Does Bham Feel About Coworking?
The response from the community has been supportive and people are very interested in the concept of coworking. Not only that, but people are coming from all over to check out Forge. Many of the companies that work from Forge have noticed that their client meetings tend to be onsite simply because people really want to check out Forge and see what’s going on. That is definitely a perk of working from Forge — everyone wants to come to you!
The kitchenette on site features fruit-infused water, coffee, tea and snacks. The black / brown / white / gold color scheme is modern but still funky and creative. Natural light floods the workspace. Forge features three conference rooms, plenty of workspace, rentable desks and full offices available for rent. The location is unmatched, especially when the lunch hour rolls around. You can easily pop downstairs to the Pizitz Food Hall and choose from poke bowls, sandwiches, mediterranean food and more.
Lee is also dedicated to furthering the education of all Forge members. She hosts events like lunch-and-learns and happy hours that allow members to meet each other and learn more. Events held include marketing seminars, discussions on small businesses and more.
Forge Testimonials
“Working at Forge has reinvigorated my business. I am more motivated, productive, and fulfilled now that I have the balance of self-employment and workplace culture. The best professional decision I have made was to move to Birmingham and start my own company…the second was to develop this company while working at Forge.” – Suzanne Humphries, Interior Designer
“Since day one there has really been a sense of community and collaboration at Forge. There is something to be said for the creative and entrepreneurial spirit you find here, that you can’t find working from home or your typical office.” – Connor Hand, Agent Leads for Big Gen Inc.
“I’ve been working at Forge for a year now. I have found a strong sense of community working at Forge. The familiar faces and great business connections really have helped me as an entrepreneur and my company move forward. Kim and Kelsey have been so wonderful and helpful every single day. The events that happen at Forge are so helpful to the journey of a small business owner. I’m grateful to have them happening right there in my workspace. I can partake of continuing education while I eat lunch and still stay focused and on track with work. Working at Forge has been a game changer for my journey as a small business owner and I’m grateful to work there.” – Jacqueline Jones, Owner of One Degree MMM Marketing and Creative Agency
Member Spotlight |
We are reposting this article from Bham Now- check out the original article here!
You might know who directs your favorite TV shows, but you may not know the mind behind the commercials! Enter Brandon Loper, a local filmmaker and commercial director working out of Forge in Birmingham.
Born and raised in Alabama, Loper graduated from the University of North Alabama in 2005 with a degree in entertainment media production. He lived in San Francisco, California for almost eleven years before moving back to Birmingham with his wife and two kids.
For a creative like Loper, Forge is the perfect spot to manage his projects. From directing his own films to working with big-name advertisers, Loper does it all from his spot overlooking Downtown Birmingham. We hopped up to the 2nd floor of the Pizitz to find out what Loper has planned for the future.
How do you define your work?
I’m a commercial director as my day job, so I partner with advertising agencies, production companies and directly to brands to execute a concept or flesh out an idea. A lot of times, I get a script and they’ll say, “Hey, we’d like you to put your spin on this. What can you bring to the table?” I’ve been lucky enough to do that for brands like Nike, Google, Twitter, Comcast, Starbucks… a lot of brands that have a lot of national recognition.
The heart of it is storytelling, which is why I’m pushing more towards narrative filmmaking. I just finished my first short narrative film that I submitted to Sidewalk. I also submitted the documentary I did for Nike last year, “Still KD,” on Kevin Durant and his run-up to winning the championship.
Where did you get your start?
When I moved to San Francisco, I got an internship in a large advertising agency called Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. I had a boss there, James Horner, who started a young director’s program. This was pivotal in my career because I’d always wanted to direct, but I viewed myself as the guy editing, shooting, writing, and making everything.
I got my first gig outside of the Goodby world directing with producer Dalia Burde exclusively for five years, and her production company produced my feature documentary, “A Film About Coffee.”
When I moved here, I went nonexclusive in an effort to work more with people here in Birmingham. It’s been fun to travel and see the world, but I really want to be home at night.
How long have you been working out of Forge?
Since January. I toured it in August of last year, before it even opened. If I’m in town and not hanging out with my family at home, I’m usually here. It’s great being downtown.
What does a typical day look like for you?
I’ll get here after I take my kids to school, have my second or third cup of coffee, and then go settle into my spot. When I’m not co-working, it’s a headphones-on situation.
Depending on what I’m working on, I’ll take advantage of the phone booth, or one of the conference rooms that you can use for phone calls. I don’t take my phone calls in the middle because usually, I can’t really talk about what I’m working on, so I’ll go there to chat.
How is networking with others at Forge?
Kim Lee, the founder and CEO of Forge, is a major networker. A few weeks ago, we were having coffee in the kitchen, and I was telling her about everything going on. She says, “You’ve got to meet this person! You need to work together.” Later, we were meeting about me directing her TV pilot. There are a lot of cool connections. Working at Forge has been great because we can just pop into a meeting room and whiteboard it out.
What are you up to now?
I’m launching an online film workshop called On Set Prep, and I’m working with someone here at Forge who is helping me do the marketing and sales funnels. I’m really excited about that because I enjoy teaching and being a part of education. My course, On Set Prep, is a boot camp for people to learn to be a production assistant. We’re going to be launching it this month. I’m also looking to partner with local high schools and the Film Birmingham coalition. I’m very excited about what’s happening in the film community in Birmingham.
Loper is just one of the very creative people working at Forge.
Forge News and Updates |
With so much growth in businesses today, new and innovative ideas are leading to more startups and independent businesses. According to Huffington Post, 33% of the current workforce is independent or freelance, and this number is projected to grow to 40% by 2020. Because of this, more people are ditching traditional office spaces and overcrowded coffee shops and moving into the flexible atmosphere of a shared workspace.
With Birmingham quickly becoming a growing hub for entrepreneurs and small businesses owners, people are constantly searching for a more relaxed, enjoyable, and communal place to work.
The answer? Coworking spaces.
We’ve sifted through the options and compiled a list of the top coworking spaces in Birmingham.
1. Forge
Located right above the Pizitz Food Hall, Forge offers a unique layout that is both architecturally captivating and engaging with its members. Lots of natural light, free Revelator coffee, and a modern atmosphere overlooking the city gives Forge an edge over other spaces.
A membership at Forge includes a number of things: a flexible workspace, conference rooms, private offices, member events and best of all, a network of business leaders. With breakthrough sessions, Lunch and Learns, and Member spotlights, Forge encourages member engagement and creates a network that leaves a lasting impact on the community.
As the first professional coworking space in downtown Birmingham, Forge finishes as number one on our list. So head to the Pizitz, grab a bite to eat, and come work at Forge!
2. The Hub
Located in West Homewood, The Hub is a coworking spot that offers a communal work space, conference rooms, and event spaces.
Aside from free Wifi and unlimited Seeds coffee, The Hub offers a community. The Hub takes it a step further in redefining the value of collaborative coworking – with a lounge area, putt putt course, and communal garden, the Hub encourages collaborative relationships within its members. Their focus is on the people, making it a rich experience.
“We build together, create together, dream together, imagine, re-imagine, redefine, and give life to the unimaginable.”
3. MAKEbhm
A makerspace in the heart of Avondale is the perfect spot for creatives and artists looking for a place to work. With studios, class offerings, and retail spaces, MAKEbhm draws in creatives and gives them access to equipment they otherwise wouldn’t have access to.
Though primarily a studio space, MAKEbhm does have the option for a creative coworking membership. With an entire floor dedicated to coworking, members have access to the lounge area, conference rooms, community tables, and private offices.
MAKEbhm provides the free Wifi, coffee, tools, and space – you provide the inspiration.
4. Innovation Depot
Innovation Depot: Birmingham’s home for startups. With all 140,000 square feet dedicated to housing technology, startups, and entrepreneurs in the Birmingham area, Innovation Depot gives business owners a competitive advantage in growing their business.
Innovation Depot provides a coworking space for members to work alongside other entrepreneurs. With conference rooms and assigned desks available, members are able to take advantage of space and resources needed to promote their business. Want access to seminars and events, fast Wifi, and an affordable spot to work? Check out Innovation Depot.
