Small Contractor Alert: Networking and Education July 26 at the AFCEA Small Business Innovation Summit

The upcoming July 26 AFCEA Small Business Innovation Summit follows on the heels of the AFCEA Innovation Shark Tank, where small contractors competed for the right to present at the Innovation Summit. The three winners from these events are on the agenda of the Summit.

The Small Business Innovation Summit will address cutting edge technologies where small contractors can play a big role: AI, Zero Trust Networks, Agile DevOps, Blockchain, the Space Revolution, and 5G. The presenters on these panels are among the most experienced techies from industry and government.

There will also be panels on OTAs (contracts for Research and Development) and a panel for communicating your company’s unique value. The communication panel is moderated by my friend, the wise and wonderful Sarah Djamshidi, a true veteran of the small business IT trenches. I have been invited to participate on this panel.

This Small Business Innovation Summit can help a small business identify growth areas and map out a go-to-market strategy. It affords you the opportunity to network with peers and to meet market influencers.

I look forward to each speaking engagement and try to prepare my remarks based on the expected audience.

There are many issues facing small businesses in this market and any time I get to help companies make small (or large) strategy adjustments, I feel like I am doing my part.

AFCEA conferences are my favorites, especially those focused on small business. They always have an engaged audience, eager to brain-pick, network and absorb info from some great presenters.

There is limited seating at this event so register today!

I will also be attending the Market Connections Federal Contractor Study overview on July 17; speaking at the Government Blockchain Association event July 19; and on August 28 I will be speaking at 930Gov, the best end-of-FY conference now in year 6!

Each of these events affords opportunities for any contractor, especially for small contractors.

Connecting Dots in the Dark: The Waldo Factor, part 20

Recently I recorded an interview with Mike O'Connell for www.itsalljournalism.com. I know Mike from Federal News Radio where he is the web editor and he is adept at social media. The interview focused on the many uses of LinkedIn, including why it is important for journalists and others.

During the interview I used a phrase that shows up in many of my live presentations on LinkedIn: connecting dots in the dark. The dots are things you know or suspect are "out there", you are just not certain where and who.

Even by itself, this is an interesting metaphor. In the context of LinkedIn it means several things, among them-

   * the ability to find people who share their discipline, but people you did not previously know

   * key people at companies you want to do business with

   * finding people you have not seen in years

   * finding groups (communities) of like-minded thinkers

   * ideas - coming across interesting discussions that are pertinent to what you do, started and commented on by people you probably need to know

   * and so much more.

I view LinkedIn as one of the coolest, most useful and versatile marketing tools I have run across in my thirty-plus years of marketing, with literally something for anyone in business.

You can read the interview (it's not long) at www.itsalljournalism.com.

Highlights from Past & Upcoming Presentations on Leveraging LInkedIn (The Waldo Factor, part 15)

During my July 2008 Government Marketing Best Practices seminar I stated that publications and associations without a robust social networking presence were going to loose marketshare. The same certainly applies to businesses.

I made that statement because by mid 2008 social networks had evolved to the point of becoming important in information sharing and the government trade publications were ignoring them completely.

Since that time groups on LinkedIn like Carl Dickson's Business Development group, Peter Weishaar's GSA & VA Schedule group, and my Government Market Master group have grown into successful online communities largely because they are each well-managed and each provide an active forum where information from GovCon professionals is shared and commented on regularly.

There are several other good groups, but I think these three stand out. These communities have become a vital part of the information sharing ecosystem among professionals that is making "old media" fall behind.

In 2012 over half of my 20+ public presentations either included or focused on leveraging LinkedIn. Further, more than half of my over 60 in-house presentations and webinars also focused on LinkedIn.

Why?

Because LinkedIn has become the major hub on online networking for the Government Contracting community. And the GovCon community is here because the government buyers, influencers and managers are here.

Developing and  managing relationships is the true core of success in this market.

In an era where government travel and event participation is down, online networking becomes even more critical.

So here are a few recurrent highlights and tips to think about.

1: It all begins with a good-to-great profile.

A profile is not a presence. A profile with little or no information is worthless, as people viewing the profile have absolutely no reason to connect with you or even remember you.

2: If your photo makes you look like a hooker, psycho, or party animal, you lose credibility.

This happens more frequently than you might think. Prime contractors and government buyers don't need to know about cleavage or your drinking habits. They want to see someone they can rely on.

As we are all visual learners, our eyes go to the photo first. If your photo does not show you in a positive light, your credibility suffers immediately.

This is a professional network, so present yourself in a professional manner.

3: The headline under your name is valuable real estate and should not simply reiterate your current job title.

The headline should be used to highlight the skill you bring to the market, not simply repeat one of the next things that appears on your profile. It should grab the attention of the viewer and encourage them to read more.

4: Groups are there not simply to join, but for participation.

Groups are communities where people of similar interests gather online to share articles, ideas, and opinions. they are superb venues for raising your visibility to a targeted niche by offering your thoughts and opinions.

Among the other changes, LinkedIn removed the applications and plans to replace them with rich media feeds. Stay tuned for that...

There are many ways to leverage LinkedIn to raise visibility for you and your company. Simply being there is not enough.

Those without a robust social networking presence will lose marketshare in direct proportion to their social networking inactivity.

My next LinkedIn for Contractors seminar is February 19 at Capitol College. This 4 hour session is the extended version of my LinkedIn Blackbelt Workshop. Drop me a line for details. markamtower@gmail.com or register here
https://www.govevents.com/details/5422/linkedin-for-government-contractors


I will also be speaking about LinkedIn at the

APMP dinner speaker series January 16:
http://www.apmpnca.org/events/events/january-16th-speaker-series/

and the NVTC breakfast February 22:
http://www.nvtc.org/events/geteventinfo.php?event=BUSDEVL-60

Top Tier Relationships: Do You Need a Board of Advisors? (The Waldo Factor, part 12)

Almost every small company I have seen up close or advised as a consultant could use a Board of Advisors, especially those whose owners are rarely, if ever, wrong.

These firms tend to do one of two things: stagnate at a certain financial plateau, or die.

Even my small company (there is just me and my wife) has had a Board of Advisors, though not currently. I plan to correct this very soon.  A Board of Advisors can provide what I refer to as "adult supervision" to an entrepreneurial firm that is truly ready for some growth. 

Over the years I have also been on several Boards of Advisors: boards for events (FOSE and eGov), associations (The American Small Business Coalition), start-ups (Pest Patrol, which sold to CA: HyLighter, a really cool company with a cutting-edge collaboration tool) and others. Each has been rewarding to me in various ways, and I have been able to add value in each situation.

Well chosen and well-run Boards add dimensions to small companies that are simply out of reach to most companies.

Choosing Board members whose experience in your market niche allows you to tap into multiple wells of expertise. These various sources of experience can help you avoid pitfalls, shorten learning curves for you and key staffers, open some financial resources, and introduce you to other market nuances that you may not find on your own, and much more.

Another dimension is the top tier relationships each board member can bring that expands your exposure exponentially. Chosen well, your Board members can make some key introductions for you that might otherwise take years, if they were to happen at all. 

Being introduced by a Board member also raises your credibility when you are being introduced. In a market that is driven by relationships, this can be the ultimate value-add. The Waldo Factor here is being found not by everyone, but by the few who can make a big difference for your company.

Marissa Levin, founder and CEO of Information Experts, has a new book out on the topic: Built to Scale. I have had it for nearly two months and am just getting into it - and I am sorry I waited: it is a good read with some great advice. She deals from experience with the many facets of putting a successful Board together and using it well.

Get the book, digest the book, then get aboard!

It all begins with your profile...The Waldo Factor (part 8)

First, the news: On Feb 9, 2012, LinkedIn announced it had reached 150 million members.

Now, a short tour of a past post: (from this blog: The Waldo Factor part 1, August 30, 2011)

Here’s the scene, and I think we’ve all been here: You are at a conference and the person on stage speaking to 1,000+ people is somewhere between adequate and pretty good, but you are thinking he/she is not as good as you. My usual thought is along the lines of “where did they dig up this clown, and why is he/she talking about last year’s hot ideas as if they were new?”

So why is that person on the stage and you are sitting, frustrated, in the audience? What got them up there and not you?

While there are no easy answers to that question, the biggest factor is they are better known for what they do than you are. It may be because they wrote a book or some articles, they had some other speaking engagements, they were recommended by someone advising the event producer, or maybe they “knew somebody” or probably some combination of these and other factors. Somehow they were able to get in front of the right people at the right time and get the speaking engagement.

Regardless of the factors that created the situation, the fact is they are on the stage and you are in the audience. People are looking at and listening to them, and you are one of those faceless people in the crowd. Again, we've all been there.

Think of the person on the stage as Point B, and you as Point A. How do you get from Point A to Point B?

*************

That's what I wrote last August. And here is the short answer:

It all begins with your LinkedIn profile.

LinkedIn is the best place for business professionals to post information about themselves, regardless of your discipline.

As a business professional, regardless of what your function is, you need to be findable to those in your field. To be findable among 150 million other professionals will take some hard work, but it is do-able.

A good-to-great profile can make the difference between you getting your next job, consulting assignment, or that elusive speaking gig. This is the place where you need to define and discuss the value you bring to your profession without hyperbole.

To become more "findable" by those who need your expertise, here are the top 5 elements for your profile, in order of importance.

1- The Photo: this is the first thing people gravitate to as we are all visual beings. A professional looking photo, with you smiling, is usually best. Nobody needs to see your boat, your dog or your family- just you.

2- The Headline: this is the tag line under your name and it is valuable real estate. The default mode is your current job title. A good tag line gets people to read your profile.

2- The Name: this is your name. We have all seen people with email addresses, professional designations and more in the name field. Use your name- just your name.

4- The Summary/Specialties; view this as your first conversation with your profile visitor. Make it an interesting conversation and talk about what you bring to the market. The "specialties" (2nd part of the summary) is where you enumerate each of your skills.

5- Experience: this is the job section. Don't simply list the job title- tell people what you did and what the company does.

There are several other facets to the profile, but these are the biggies. Do these right and you will start attracting attention from the people you want attention from.

Your LinkedIn profile is always a work in progress. Check out OPP- other people's profiles- and get some ideas on how to improve your profile.

Remember, a good-to-great profile can make the difference between you and your next job, consulting assignment, or that elusive speaking gig. A bad profile is the difference between your next job.....


Need help with LinkedIn? Drop me a line (markamtower@gmail.com). I host a monthly LinkedIn Blackbelt Workshop (near BWI ariport), one-on-one coaching and company coaching (both via teleconference), and I also offer a profile analysis. 

There is networking, then there's connecting, then there is being "connected": The Waldo Factor, part 7

In the governnment contracting community there are arguably only a handful of networking events where there are a significant number of "power players" in one place at one time- senior executives from the top contractors, senior government officials, key press contacts and others.

One such event is the annual Deltek holiday party, now held at the Ritz in McLean. Due to Fire Marshall issues, it has become an invitation only (gotta be on the list) event.

This event was started byTom Hewitt when he ran Federal Sources. Of all the people I have ever met in the government market, Tom knew the value of networking and went out of his way to meet people, make introductions, create networking venues and help as many as he could. He is a truly gracious guy. On many occasions I was the recipient of introductions by and invitations from Tom, and I remain grateful for both.

Hewitt was the epitome of being connected. He was the LinkedIn of the 1990s.

He started the annual holiday party in the late 1980s and held it at the McLean Hilton as an open, anyone can attend event.  There was no fee to attend and it remains so to this day, although you need to bring a $20+ toy for the US Marines "Toys for Tots" program.

When I attended this event for the first time (according to my old Day-Timer collection, 1991), I looked around the room and thought, "These are the people I read about in Federal Computer Week, Washington Technology and Government Executive - and here they are!"

My job that evening was to meet as many people as I could, gather as many business cards as possible, and see if I could develop some consulting business. I had some minor name recognition at the time through my newsletter (hardcopy, snail mail), from being on the Board of Advisors for FOSE, a little word-of-mouth, and a few speaking engagements. But I was far from being "well known" in the contracting community.

So I'd gather the business cards, drop people a note (snail mail), follow up with a phone call.

The results were not stellar, but they were OK.

Tom Hewitt may have known many or most of the people in that room but I certainly did not. But everyone in that room knew Tom Hewitt. His rolodex and influence was truly unparalleled in this market throughout the 1990s.

So 20 years later I find myself at the Ritz at the annual holiday party and I'm looking around and I am thinking - "These are the people I read about in the trade magazines, hear interviewed on Federal News Radio, see on LinkedIn - and here they are!" The attendance is around 1,200 of the most influential people in the contracting community.

While I have better name recognition and good overall market visibility, I still don't know everyone I'd like to know. So I still collect business cards.


So my goal with the business cards is to make certain that while I may not know everyone in the room, I want to have most of them in my "network" - so I invite the key players to connect with me on LinkedIn, making certain my business card collection pays some dividends.


There may be 1,200 people in that room, similar to the way it was in 1991. But the difference for me is by connecting to key players (by offering them a reason to connect with me), I have reduced the number of degrees between me and anyone in the room. My network now includes all top contractors, many senior government executives, much of the government trade press, and more.


I may never have the power or influence of Tom Hewitt, but my goal is to emulate certain of his behaviors so my reach in the market is as broad and deep as possible.

So far, so good.

LinkedIn Master Workshop

I just hosted the inaugural LinkedIn Blackbelt Master workshop this morning and there are now 8 more intelligently armed soon-to-be LinkedIn experts out there.

This is a 3 hour workshop with very limited seating so everyone attending gets some one-on-one coaching along the way.

Without a doubt, LinkedIn has become the premier social network for business professionals. With nearly 140 million business professionals and over 2 million individual company profiles, LinkedIn is the place to be found for business professionals, and to find and connect with influencers in your market niche.

However it is estimated that fewer than 25% of those registered to use LinkedIn do so effectively, and less than 10% maximize the value this powerful tool can bring to you and your company.

Unlike some other social networks, LinkedIn is all business all the time. If you are not maximizing this extraordinary tool, you are losing mindshare.

I currently host this session monthly near BWI, but should be hosting a Virginia monthly session in the near term - hopefully no later than March.

The next BWI session is Wednesday, February 29 from 8:30-11:30 AM.

Drop me a line for details on upcoming sessions.

mark@federaldirect.net

The Waldo Factor - part 1

Here’s the scene, and I think we’ve all been here: You are at a conference and the person on stage speaking to 1,000+ people is somewhere between adequate and pretty good, but you are thinking he/she is not as good as you. My usual thought is along the lines of “where did they dig up this clown, and why is he/she talking about last year’s hot ideas as if they were new?”

So why is that person on the stage and you are sitting, frustrated, in the audience? What got them up there and not you?

While there are no easy answers to that question, the biggest factor is they are better known for what they do than you are. It may be because they wrote a book or some articles, they had some other speaking engagements, they were recommended by someone advising the event, or maybe they “knew somebody” or probably some combination of these and other factors. Somehow they were able to get in front of the right people at the right time and get the speaking engagement.

Regardless of the factors that created the situation, the fact is they are on the stage and you are in the audience. People are looking at and listening to them, and you are one of those faceless people in the crowd. Again, we've all been there.

Think of the person on the stage as Point B, and you as Point A. How do you get from Point A to Point B?

In the book series Where's Waldo, a tall guy with glasses dressed in blue pants, a red and white striped shirt and matching hat is always somewhere in a scene so crowded with other things and other people that it is hard to find him. The reader’s (really, viewer, as there are no words) job is to find Waldo.

In the speaking scenario above, the only one easy to find is the person on the stage. Unless you are wearing a red and white striped shirt with a matching hat, you will be hard to pick out in that audience. That's not usually the way you want to stand out in a business crowd.

Your job is to intellectually stand out and stand apart in your business niche, and to be easily found by those who need to find you because of your expertise. Then the people you want to meet and know will have an interest in knowing you and having as part of their online and offline network.

Growth in any market niche is predicated on building relationships with key influencers in that niche, and then becoming an influencer in that niche. Those influencers can include prospects, partners, press, investors, C-level execs and others influential in your market.

To build the relationships and maximize your presence, you need to develop credibility in your market, then build your visibility. Visibility without credibility has no value or worse, negative value.

Credibility is developed by being good at what you do and working at getting better,  being among the best at what you do, and adding value to the community. Then you find ways to share some of your knowledge and opinions with others.

Once you start this process, you are already creating visibility, but it is necessary to continue to build your knowledge base as you expand your visibility. Markets evolve and you must evolve with them to retain your credibility.

Traditionally we have face-to-face events for networking, seminars and conferences where we share or receive knowledge, publications where we read, write or be quoted. These are still excellent venues.

But wait!!! There's more!

With the advent of web 2.0 tools, we have the ability to either bypass traditional methods or enhance them by incorporating them into our web-based activity.

For business professionals, LinkedIn has become an incredibly valuable tool for developing credibility and visibility. Your ability to stand out in a crowd is now predicated on your ability use both the traditional and web-based tools and coordinate the activity between them to make you among the most “findable" experts in your niche. Think of it as "findability".

So here is the initial equation:

credibility + visibility = findability.

There are several examples and one great example is Steve Ressler, founder of GovLoop.

Steve was a government IT analyst and program manager at the Department of Homeland Security. While working for the government, on his own time he co-founded Young Government Leaders, which has become a great networking venue for the next generation of public managers.

Then in 2008, Steve started the online community for Feds, GovLoop (by for and about Feds - the Facebook for government).

Steve's use of social media, which also led to being featured in traditional media, is a great example of what can happen if you develop an expertise and share your ideas. Along the way he won acclaim and awards from industry groups and trade publications, leading to even more visibility.

Steve stays active through GovLoop, Young Government Leaders and mainly by sharing ideas in as many forums as possible.

None of this happened overnight for Steve, and it all required hard work.

We don't all need industry-wide visbility, but most of us need visibility within a defined niche. And the tactics to gain that visibility are basically the same:

1- be good at what you do and work hard at staying good;

2- find the venues where those in your niche congregate, both online and offline venues, and get involved;

3- participation in these venues involves helping with events, working in special interest groups, developing and sharing ideas, commenting on other ideas, etc;

4- always be on the lookout for ways to share with others who would be interested.

Credibility, visibility and findability are truly keys to success.


IF you need assistance in developing and implementing a plan to raise your findability, send an email to markamtower@gmail.com . 

Creating Visibility for You & Your Company

We have all read articles written by people who may not be the most qualified experts, and we certainly have all seen speakers who would be better off taking copious notes from the audience rather than dispensing advice from the podium. There are even some business book authors out there who have one or more books out that really offer little value, yet they seem to find an audience.

How did they get the speaking gig, article assignment or book deal, and how do they develop an audience?

Each of them has defined a niche and studied it at least enough to get the attention of a trade magazine or book editor or a conference director. Then they have designed a way to get on the radar, to generate some attention.

Becoming visible to your business community, your niche, is not an easy or quick process. It can be simple, but it is not easy, but we all need the attention only our niche can provide if we are to survive and thrive in these tough times. It does not matter if you have a small, medium or large company (although some will argue it is easier for large companies to get PR), or even if you are a solo-preneur like me - each of us needs enough attention to generate new business, to find the right job, to get the book deal or to move to the next level.

There are many tools available, and more becoming available every day, but the process of selecting and deploying the right tools for your niche.  There are hundreds of web 2.0 tools out there, but let's just look at one for right now: LinkedIn.

LinkedIn has well over 100 million register business professionals, 990,634 groups (as of  11:22 AM EST, 7/19/ 11), many useful apps to use with your profile, and a ton of ways to help you stand out in a crowd and connect with key epople throughout your market.

But how many people on LinkedIn are really using it to stand out in their respective niches? My estimate is less than 2%. But key decision makers are using LinkedIn to identify the "experts" in various fields, and these include people who hire speakers, give writing assignments, and offer book deals.

So what does it take to truly stand out?

Knowing your subject well is always job #1.

Defining your area of expertise in terms that will resonate with your niche is job #2.

Getting the word out is job #3.

I use LinkedIn as the "hub" for my web activity. When I write an article, I post the link for it in pertienet groups on LinkedIn. The result this week is one of the most read and most emailed articles at www.WashingtonTechnology.com . It makes the editor happy to have fresh traffic coming into the site, it keeps my name active in the market niche, and it could generate some business. I write an article for Washington Technology's web site once a month, and each time my promotional activity helps make it a well-read article. And it doesn't take me long to do this.

I will also "tweet' the article link, which will put it on all the social networks I use and maybe generate some re-tweets as well.

How are you leveraging the available tools to generate some targeted viisibility in your niche for you and your company?

If you need some fresh ideas on how to stand out in a crowded market, drop me a line - markamtower@gmail.com

Best of luck with your efforts!

Mark

Amtower Off Center turns 4 (and Amtower & Company turns 26!)

Amtower Off Center turns 4! After completing 3 years at WFED, Federal News Radio – Amtower discusses his twenty-six years in the market as Amtower & Company (January 2010 starts his 26th year as Amtower & Co.- a double anniversary show). In an interview on In Depth with Francis Rose, Amtower talks about the dynamic nature of the government market, why B2G is different form B2B, common missteps companies make entering the market, the difference in the problems facing small, medium and large companies, what marketing methods can works, how market share can occur, the importance of differentiation, best marketing practices in the market, why ongoing education is critical in this market, why and how social networking is becoming a critical element in marketing programs, -all this plus classic Amtower anecdotes and more in a lively discussion with Francis Rose.

http://www.federalnewsradio.com/index.php?nid=17&sid=1868948

End of Week Notes

The Government Media and Marketing Networking Reception is Tuesday, Feb 24 at 7:30 AM at the Tower Club is Vienna, VA. To register, go here - http://www.eventbrite.com/event/263857204. I would suggest registering now as this may sell out. This is a reception - not a lecture. You can meet and talk to editors, reporters, radio hosts and a few PR folks. Tony Welz & Evan Weisel put on great events. If you attend, look for me.

My radio show Monday (noon, 1500 AM, simulcast at www.FederalNewsRadio.com ) features Louis Numkin and Gretchen Morris of FISSEA, the Federal Information Systems Security Educators Association. The 22nd annual FISSEA conference will be held at the Gaithersburg, MD Capus of NIST March 24-26. These are great people who work tirelessly to get the word out on computer security in federal agencies. They also provide in-agency education on all things related to computer security and are big advocates of the various security certifications available. I have been watching them for almost 20 years, ever since Lynn McNulty (who then worked in Dr Jim Burrows Computer Security Lab at NIST) told me about them around 1991. Time flies when you're having fun!

The ASBC held two Business Over Breakfast events this week: the usual one at the Tower Club on Wednesday (with over 40 people), and then one this morning at La Madeline in Columbia, MD (with about 12 people). I was lucky enough to atend both. If you haven't attended one, come next Wed to the Tower Club, but pre-register at www.TheASBC.org .

I also was at the Tower Club Thursday meeting with Bob Gosselin of EMC. While we were in the dining room, at the same time The Washington Breakfast Club (part of the ASBC) was hosting an SRO crowd across the lobby in the Fairfax Room...

This past Monday I had a one-on-one meeting with the Howard County (MD) BRAC Director, Kent Mesner. BRAC plans are proceeding and will certainly impact the national capitol area on both sides of the river. If Mr Mesner's name sound familiar, he went under the title Colonel Mesner when he was commander of Fort George G Meade.....