Kibbe on Marketing: Cyber Sanity

Fresh from taking in some Cyber Monday deals while doing my holiday shopping online, I reflected on what a nice experience it was. Cooling down from my morning walk, Christmas carols playing on my computer, no crowds, no pepper spray…

I was appalled, like all of you, to hear the reports of violence on Black Friday, the so-called shopping day after Thanksgiving when retailers traditionally turned a profit. Everything from cat fights to robbing at gunpoint to pepper spray attacks, to say nothing of the now-expected stampedes through the doors all in the name of unbridled greed and overconsumption. And this is to say nothing about store clerks dragged away from family gatherings at some ungodly hour, whether or not they made time-and-a-half for the privilege.

Seriously?!!

Isn’t this supposed to be the time where Christians celebrate the Nativity of the Lord, Jews commemorate the miracle of the oil lamps, others honor the hearth and home of the solstice time and everyone brings a little more cheer, charity and peace to the world? A greater, and frankly sadder, irony could not exist in the mockery Black Friday has made of the season.

I could debate the desperation of people in this economy, mob psychology, Occupy This and That as causes behind the frenzy, but the fact is Black Friday craziness is just that. I am frustrated and ashamed that retailers allow the extremism to continue. Are they really making so much money on that one day that they can turn a blind eye to people actually requiring hospitalization after visiting their stores? We arrest the tramplers and pepper-sprayers but aren’t retailers who allow this to continue somehow culpable as well? Since the once-shocking, now routine incident of someone being trampled during a Black Friday door rush, I have boycotted specific retailers and Black Friday in general. What if more people also boycotted Black Friday? Do you think there might be a retailer out there with enough backbone to think of some other way to stop the insanity and still make a sale?

I've come up with a simple solution for all this nonsense – bring more cyber sales to Black Friday. If retailers must partake of the insanity the holiday shopping season has become, start offering more online deals earlier. Go ahead – offer fantastic prices on Kindles, hexbugs, flat-screen TVs (to be sold on Ebay, not used at home, of course) and Tickle Me Whatevers starting at 9 p.m. Thanksgiving night between football games. We can shop from the relative comfort and safety of our own homes (relatives not withstanding), retailers don’t have to overstock stores or hire security guards, clerks can stay home with the fam, and nobody is trampled, shot, stabbed or sprayed.

Here’s to a safer, saner and still profitable Black Friday 2012. Let’s see if we can’t do a little better next year, OK, people?


Cindy Kibbe, an editor for a New England business publication for nearly a decade, can be reached at cindykibbe@comcast.net.

Kibbe on Marketing: Do it for Laurie, do it for New Hampshire

This week’s blog was supposed to be a punchy, informative column on shopping local for your holiday gifts – and it still is – but the more I thought about it, the more I thought about Laurie Ferguson.

For the one or two people in New Hampshire that didn’t have the privledge of meeting Laurie, you missed talking to one of the Granite State’s biggest cheerleaders. She was the founder and longtime executive director of New Hampshire Made, the state’s marketing, branding and “locally made” advocacy agency. If there’s a product made in New Hampshire, chances are Laurie had something to do with bringing it to the marketplace.

I first met Laurie when I was “the world’s oldest-living newsroom intern.”  I would call on her very often, sometimes weekly, to get her take on what was happening with New Hampshire’s small businesses for the articles I was writing. And on more than just a few occasions, she’d give me some much-needed career advice.

Laurie had had a thriving career on Madison Avenue – yes, THE Madison Avenue. She was also good enough at skiing that she could have gone pro. Certainly life and family made her take some course corrections, as it does with all of us, but it is no small thing to say she gave up both of those paths to work on this one-time experiment in branding and marketing New Hampshire-made goods and services. Vermont maple syrup sold in New Hampshire? Really?!

Her frequent emails on behalf of NH Made to my newsroom computer always were read, so I wondered why they suddenly stopped last spring. I knew she had, years earlier, fought a courageous battle against cancer. Working in silos as we often do, it didn’t register for a few weeks that I hadn’t heard from her lately. It never registered that the disease had re-entered her life. It came as a crushing blow when I found out last April that she had passed away after her second tour of duty as it were. I sat in my cubicle and cried.

At the helm of NH Made since its inception in 1998 until her death in April 2011, Laurie helped breathe life into literally thousands of small businesses. As we enter our first holiday shopping season without her, I know Laurie wouldn’t have wanted any tears. She would have wanted us to SHOP NEW HAMPSHIRE!

At good place to start your shopping is at www.nhmade.com. There you’ll find a directory of thousands of locally made products and services. By shopping locally, you will be supporting local businesses AND JOBS, not to mention avoiding the crowds at the mall and giving something uniquely New Hampshire made. Want to avoid traffic altogether? Virtually all NH Made vendors have websites, can process orders through the Internet, and can ship across the country.

So shop locally this season. Laurie would have wanted it that way.

Here’s a few of my favorite New Hampshire products by NH Made members (Yes, I really do buy these products frequently, and no, they didn’t pay me):

    * Bellows House Bakery  – Your search for the most decadent chocolate brownies on earth has just ended.
    * LaBelle Winery   – Forget everything you thought you knew about fruit wine. The grape wines are some of the best the state has to offer as well.
    * Farnum Hill Ciders  – Imagine a vivacious Riesling-like libation to serve with all your holiday gatherings (and no hint of apple flavor, I swear).
    * A&E Coffee Roastery  – Coffee the way it should taste.
    * North Country Smokehouse   – The perfect ham for the holiday table, but you just might want to keep it for yourself.
    *  Boggy Meadow Farm  – The creamiest Swiss cheese you’ll ever have – and I hate Swiss cheese.
    *  Just Naturals  – All-natural products for bath, body, home, baby and pet. The store alone is so bright and fresh, you can’t help lingering.
    * League of NH Craftsmen Stores  – Don’t forget to buy your annual keepsake ornament, not to mention everything else on your gift list.

Here’s a few more of my favor local shops:

    * Be Day Spa & Image Studio   – Where I go to learn to breathe again. Pick up some gift certificates for the Pumpkin Spice Facial or Cranberry Butter Cream Pedicure.
    * Bonne Vie Salon & Spa  – I’ll cut back on electricity or heating oil before I’ll cut back on my highlights. They are that good.
    * Bedford Fields Garden Center  – For garderners, winter is planning season. They also have a wonderful array of pet items. Don’t miss the Holiday Shop.

Cindy Kibbe, an editor for a New England business publication for nearly a decade, can be reached at cindykibbe@comcast.net.

Kibbe on Marketing: New Hampshire Conference for Women

What happens when you combine hundreds of bright, creative, hard-working women and six outstanding leaders in their field? Something wonderful.

That something wonderful is the 2011 New Hampshire Conference for Women, held this year on Friday, Nov. 18, with registration beginning at 8 a.m., and sessions starting from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel in downtown Manchester.

Created by Leslie Sturgeon, founder of the women’s professional networking and business support organization, Women Inspiring Women, this year’s conference looks to be the biggest and the best yet.

Headliners this year include six women from a variety of backgrounds. Kathleen Peterson, of PowerHouse Consulting, will discuss “the five lessons” she has learned from life’s experiences – some as simple as spelling, use of language, and the difference between fine wine and not so fine.

How do you create health and wealth from the inside out? KBK Wealth Connection owner Kathleen Burns Kingsbury will show us how to stop sabotaging our perceptions of money and create a more financially secure and fulfilling future.

You can’t lead others effectively if you can’t lead yourself. Laurie-Ann Murabito will discuss how to build a culture of excellence within ourselves to bring out transformational change.

We’ve all been to conferences that sap our energy more than they inspire it. Humorist Lesley Smith will be on hand at the New Hampshire Conference for Women to make sure we take time to laugh and regroup.

Wrapping up the day will be hikers Nancy Sporborg and Pat Piper. They’ve been to the mountaintop – literally and figuratively – and will show us that we all have the skills to scale the seemingly insurmountable in our life.

Throughout the day there will be dozens of exhibitors, door prizes, and of course, more than a few surprises.

I chatted with Leslie and here’s what she had to say about this years event:

CK: Are you surprised at the way the conference has grown from last year?
LS: This is the 2nd NH Conference for Women (plus we also did the 1st Annual Inspiring Women in Business day-long entrepreneurial event in May of this year). We had a waiting list for last year’s event as we filled up very quickly so this year we moved it to the Radisson/Center of NH so we could have unlimited numbers of women!

I am thrilled that it has grown to where it is today, but not surprised! Women are finding great strength and support when they are around other women. They are networking and connecting more than ever! And women are starting businesses faster than men in NH and making great strides in their careers as well. They are taking time to stimulate their minds, learn new things and be in a positive environment – all of this has resulted in tremendous growth for WIW in general, making us the largest organization for women’s empowerment, personal development and networking in NH.

CK: What’s new this year?
LS: The venue is new! In addition to our returning sponsors – PSNH and NH Division of Economic Development – we also have Exeter Health Resources who has sponsored us for all of 2011 and T-Bones/Cactus Jack’s is an event sponsor. We are attracting women from more of NH – last year we had 43 towns represented and we have exceeded that this year.

The speaker line up is new as we always strive to keep it fresh. Many new exhibitors are participating, including some from national companies. Enhancing the attendee experience and keeping it new and exciting is part of our success, so we always have surprises. And of course we will continue to have an impeccable attention to detail to make it a dynamic, awesome day!

CK: What do you know attendees come away with?
LS: We actually ask this on the evaluation forms, but get a lot of testimonials, emails, etc., too. Connecting with other women is a huge part of the day, and a sense that we are all in this exciting life together, helping and supporting each other on our individual journeys.

Some women have said that the conference has encouraged them to work at higher level and also to recognize they need to take more time for themselves to do the things that are important to them. Others said NHCW gives them the tools to analyze their life and figure out what’s working and what isn’t.

When Leslie told me WIWNH and the New Hampshire Conference for Women were more about hugs than handshakes, I didn’t believe her until I went to a meeting. I was moved to tears by the power and support in the room – and yes, I received hugs.

I’ve had the privilege of attended last year’s event and as well as the monthly WIWNH meetings and each time I come away with a renewed sense of not only optimism but also of myself. I will be attending the conference. I hope to see you there!

Registration for the 2011 New Hampshire Conference for Women is $59. Contact Leslie Sturgeon, Women Inspiring Women, at info@wiwnh.com or 603-744-0400. For more information and to register, visit www.wiwnh.com.


Cindy Kibbe, an editor for a New England business publication for nearly a decade, can be reached at cindykibbe@comcast.net.

Kibbe on Marketing: Part 2 - Born or Made?

Well, are our “shovel muscles” all limbered up now? We were without power for five days. I never, ever take my blessings for granted, including the miracle of hot running water, so I was even more grateful when the power came back on.

My crisis management muscle also was exercised. I was pleased with how I was able to keep things calm and under control as humanly possible, which led me to think a little more on my last discussion of whether entrepreneurs are born or made.

I still contend that, while concrete skills like bookkeeping and marketing can be learned by all new business owners, successful entrepreneurs have innate qualities that make them, well, successful. I never thought I possessed some of the more critical ones – my complete aversion to risk-taking, for one – but “Snowtober” and a recent workshop at the Hannah Grimes Center in Keene has me changing my mind. Perhaps with right planning and coaching, anyone can learn to harness his or her own innate abilities to create and run successful ventures, too.

Helaine Iris, life and business coach and owner of Path of Purpose Coaching, led “Four Things to Consider Before Starting Your Own Business,” held Oct. 27 in Hannah Grimes’s new offices. What made this workshop unique is, as far as I can tell, it’s the only one I’ve found that is for those considering whether starting a business is right for them. Certainly, SCORE, the Small Business Development Center, and other business resource agencies have excellent “how to” programs but I haven’t found many “Do I want to?” programs. (If you know of another one, let me know!)

“Four Things” discussed some of the more emotional considerations as well as concrete issues that should be pondered before moving forward with a decision to start a business. Helaine was a wonderful speaker and an incredible resource precisely because she has gone through everything the business-pondering attendees are going through. (Where will the money come from as I’m building a business? Can I still have a social life? What if the business fails? What if I fail?) Attendees received a packet that included several questionnaires and readiness assessments to help rein in some of that mind chatter.

One of the points I learned at “Four Things” was to have your values connected to you passion. This may seem obvious to some, but others wonder if some of their more noble aspirations would sabotage a business in the long run. Whether you’re baking Moon Pies, building websites or anything else, you can and should incorporate your values into your business. That will not only help sustain your passion and the reason why you started a business in the first place, it will help see you through the deeply challenging times as well.

Folks always talk about having a business plan before your start your venture, but so many entrepreneurs don’t even think about having one until there’s a need for a loan. Guess what?  I learned, yes, you really DO need a business plan before you start getting clients if at all possible – but it doesn’t have to be “loan-worthy,” at least not in the beginning. And I’ve learned from other seminars on entrepreneurship, that a business plan is never finished; it grows, changes and evolves as the business (and you as the owner!) grow, change and evolve.

Exit strategies are typically not things business owners think about as they are building their business – but they should. Helaine said every business will always have an end whether that is a sale or merger of the business or the retirement or even death of the owner. Perhaps those are more dramatic endings, but for those considering a business I learned it is good to have a concrete idea of what has to happen if the business is going to continue or when to pull the plug.

For those of you who are intrigued with the idea of owning a business, I encourage you to give Hannah Grimes, Helaine Iris or another business resource agency a call. Remember, there is also as much gained by learning that business ownership is not for you as there is by moving forward with your venture.

Hannah Grimes Center may be reached at 603-352-5538; hannahgrimes.com. Helaine Iris can be contacted at 603-363-4252; helaine@pathofpurpose.com. For those who have made the decision to take that next concrete step toward business ownership, call Hannah Grimes about its 12-month Business Start-Up Program, covering the skills and receiving the support needed to reach your business goals alongside other like-minded entrepreneurs. Class starts Nov. 10.

Cindy Kibbe, an editor for a New England business publication for nearly a decade, can be reached at cindykibbe@comcast.net.