DISQUS

Congratulations, Todd. You've put together some excellent posts, and it could really help people get through the learning period much easier. Like Chris, I found some new gems in there, too.

Joe, I'm honored that you included Small Biz Survival on this great list. You've picked an outstanding list of resources for entrepreneurs. Thank you!

Shawn, I'm truly humbled by such kind words. Thank you.

On my US News posts, I've drawn a couple of negative comments criticizing me for owning a liquor store. The latest one was really unkind. I used your suggestion #2, and left it totally alone, even though I don't yet have a community there. Three friends from across the different communities have stepped in with positive comments. So it's good to know that your community can transcend apparent boundaries.
@beckymccray

Chris, thanks for introducing me (and all your readers) to John. I'm enjoying getting to know their business. Even if I'm not dropping in to Peabody soon, I'm learning from their innovative ideas.

And thanks for the shout out, friend. :)

Glad to see you jumping back into small businesses and small towns, Chris.

OK. Here's what online interaction can actually do for a small business. It can give you an edge. I use this myself, for my small business in a very rural small town in Oklahoma. It has brought me customers. My competition has zero online presence. Instant advantage.

The food business needs to be top of mind when you are deciding what and where to eat or shop. I think regular valuable updates to customers via the right channels can make a difference.

Chris, I just went through your fall foliage pics on Flickr, and could follow your experimentation. Excellent shots! You're doing great work with the light, and with getting up close to capture the detail.

Fall colors come in such large scale, one trick I've used is to focus in on the small scale, and finding a central focus of interest. Letting a few leaves tell the story of the whole scene.

Here's one of my better shots, with backlight playing an important role:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bjmccray/1987358260/

Keep shooting!

Daniel, it was terrific to meet you and find common ground.

And I completely agree about walking in Vegas!

All great points! And you are absolutely right that we think we know these, but sometimes fall short. Thanks!

Terrific list, Chel. You've captured a lot of meaningful things about Jon there.

Sounds interesting, and certainly useful. Looking forward to the series.

Happy Birthday, Violette! Hope you do lots of fun things today to celebrate. And don't forget to share more pics with us. We love to watch you learn and grow.

Tough to wait, isn't it?
Once they give you a set follow up date, you can certainly get back to them if it passes. Just schedule it for follow up. Stay polite. Ask for the next time you should check back.
And, glad to hear about the job prospect!

Shannon, you are a perfect person to talk with about this. I would love to connect with you a bit more, especially about how you use LinkedIn. Please email me, if you don't mind, at becky at small biz survival dot com. Thanks!

Jason, you make excellent points about small town newspapers in your article. I'm certainly seeing some more innovating action from medium-to-small papers in Oklahoma, than from the metro papers. Thanks!

Vance, those are some great points for small town businesses focused on the local and regional markets. To me, it's amazing how adaptable social media tools are, that we can use them for local business, or to build national or global networks.

Eric, five years! Wow! That is an impressive accomplishment. All the best, and thanks for commenting.

Charles, you are right about local online forums. Most every town of any size has some local meeting place. One word of caution: most are riddled with local politics, so tread carefully.

Mari, experimenting is how we all learn. Enjoy yourself while you go!

Marco, I agree that generally a bigger city business will draw more local customers through social media, smaller town businesses will draw more benefits in other way, by learning, networking, and expanding perspectives. Tomorrow, I'll have lots more on that in my article with examples at Small Biz Survival. Thanks!

Kevin, that is a terrific example! It's a pleasure to meet other people who are thinking about these same small town business issues.

Saravanan, glad it's helpful. We have more in common that most people realize.

Will, true! Good or bad, it is still a tool.

Ricardo, you raise some excellent points. In my small town, I think I am the only one on LinkedIn, but one of many on FaceBook. And you're right. Keep it social.

Richard, thanks for that resource!

Kim, Thanks!

Since Albert replied directly to me, I'll presume to put in a second comment.

I cannot speak for the larger business or corporate perspective. From a really small business perspective, these tools have to compete with all other demands on my marketing time, including getting a new sign, reworking my pricing strategy, and training my people.

If you want to make your living consulting with small business owners like me, you'll need to do more than tout the latest shiny social media tools. You'll also need to talk about the much broader issues I face and how you can make them easier for me. I'm not thinking about easier "consumer driven product management functions." But I am thinking about my customers all the time. And THAT is how you convince me to do business with you.

A long time ago (like 2006) you started saying these same things about podcasting and video. Same point. It's not the tools, it's how you use them.

So glad to see John Crabtree from CFRA came by! They work on rural development issues every single day.
Amazing discussion! Glad you kicked it off.

Terrific thoughts! I'm looking forward to hearing the responses. You and I think along similar lines, and despite hundreds of miles of distance, we face similar small town challenges. Thanks for kicking off a hopefully interesting discussion.