Ideas And Angles

Now that most of the holiday chaos is behind us we can get back to business. This is part two of our topic that explores the relationship between the things you are talented at (and enjoy) with the ability to make money doing them. Be sure to read part one.

An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field. -Niels Bohr

Somewhere a person is having trouble with an issue you could help them with. I guarantee it is happening right now. There is no reason why you can’t be the one to help and you can’t get financial gain for your expertise.

A lot of people have trouble putting value on their knowledge because it isn’t like ordering food. The cost of everything needed to make a meal and prepare it to be offered is quite exact but you can’t say the same for your knowledge. As a photographer this is something I still struggle with but one day someone put it in perspective for me. I was at an auto repair shop and a lady was upset because it took a very short amount of time and effort to fix her vehicle but the amount she owed them was still a decent chunk. The owner listened to her complaint and empathisized but she was still upset…he paused and said this…

“You are not paying to have a wrench turned 3 inches. You are paying for the work and time it took to know that to fix your car, a wrench needed to be turned 3 inches.”

Don’t undercut the value you can offer people in any field. Here are the main things you need to think about if you want to break down the walls and make money for yourself.

1. What knowledge to I have to offer?
2. How can I package this knowledge to sell?
3. Who needs my knowledge?
4. How do I connect with the people who need my knowledge?

Here is an example, if I woke up and had a lot of musical talent out of the blue I would try to find an angle from that talent. Everyone has a band or knows somebody in a band and everyone wants to be heard. I would help bands record. You could offer this service on a lot of different levels. It could be as simple as listening and consulting to doing the heavy lifting by actually doing the recording for a group. The more you can do to offer different packages to appeal to more people the better off you will be. There are a lot of ways to meet bands through the local music scene and you could start a website showing the quality of work you can produce for a price that is reasonable.

The 4 points are addressed. You are helping a person out while doing something you love and getting financial gain from it. That is a great feeling.

It is almost 2009. There is absolutely no reason to be doing something you hate. Get out there, meet people, show them what you offer has value, and make it happen.

Chris and I been working behind the scenes to put Ideas and Angles in a position to hit the ground running in 2009. Juggling site updates, e-mails, phone calls, and meetings isn’t always easy and sometimes the growth feels like a huge blur but we took some time to reflect on the past 7 months. We still believe we can make Kansas City a place where technology and social media thrives.

There are so many people who have given us support on this journey…

Chris and I have known each other for more than 15 years. We have both been blessed with encouragement and love from our friends and family. I often say that I have no idea what I did to deserve some of the people that are in my life. Your interest and helpfulness in this project are not taken for granted by either of us.

Thanks goes out to the local social media community backed by the Kansas City Social Media Club. The relationships built through our shared loved of creativity, technology, and entrepreneurship have helped foster friendships that we hold very dear.

All eyes are on 2009. We look forward to announcing partnerships that will expand our abilities to help clients. There are some projects in the planning phase that will flex the power of social media to build brands from scratch. We also are finalizing plans to take on new clients that are involved in different and challenging fields.

Happy Holidays to everyone and best of luck in all that you tackle in this coming year. Remember, if you say nothing nobody will repeat it!

Looks like people are starting to notice the good things coming from Kansas City. We are excited about all the projects being developed aside from our main goal. Making Kansas City a place where technology innovation and social media thrives.

(Via USA Today)

Kansas City

Never considered Kansas City as a vacation destination before? Over the past few years, the city has been working hard to make itself a destination worth the trip. And the effort is paying off big time during 2009 when more than $9 billion in major improvements will be reinvigorating its downtown area and lending major credibility to its arts and dining scenes.

Recent developments include the new nine-block Power & Light District, downtown’s newest mixed-use neighborhood packed with restaurants, shops, and entertainment and performance venues. There’s also an outdoor stage featuring live entertainment more than 150 days a year. The Crossroads Arts District hosts one of the largest art walks in the nation from 7 to 9 p.m. on the first Friday of every month. Downtown, there’s also the new Sprint Center, which hosts large concerts and special events, and the College Basketball Experience, a giant entertainment facility with interactive exhibits and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

Beyond downtown, revitalized and expanded attractions draw crowds as well. The well-known Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art just finished an expansion last year. Already ranked among the top art museums in the country, the new expansion increases the museum’s exhibition space by one third, and makes more room for the museum’s collections of modern and contemporary art, African art, and photography. And just in time for its 100th anniversary, the Kansas City Zoo has also undergone a major renovation.

As if that isn’t enough, Kansas City is expanding its culinary reputation. Long known as a mecca for barbecue, a number of Kansas City chefs and their fine dining establishments—including Bluestem, American Restaurant, and Michael Smith—have recently received national recognition as well.

Even better (especially this year), Kansas City is one of the country’s most affordable major cities to visit. It’s well-served by airlines including American, Continental, Delta, Frontier, Southwest, and United. So much service means prices tend to stay competitive. Hotels, dining, and attraction costs tend to be less expensive than in many other cities around the country as well. In fact, Hotwire.com recently ranked Kansas City as one of the top value-priced destinations in the U.S. based on airfare, accommodations, and entertainment prices in 50 U.S. cities. Plus, there are dozens of free museums and attractions to visit.

The reasons to come will just keep expanding. 2010 will bring the opening of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, and the unveiling of a newly renovated Truman Sports Complex (home of the Kansas City Chiefs).

Photo by Zachary Cobb

It took a while for me to realize I was an expert at something. I was in college working a summer job staining and sealing wooden things like decks and fences. The company prided itself on its quality work and they did brisk business. I remember before we all went out one morning our boss talked about how some guys were referring to many customer questions up the chain when they could have been answered by crew members. “We have taught you everything, you are wood protectant experts.” At the time I rolled my eyes but he was right, I could talk someone’s ear off about the ins and outs of finishing decks from my training there.

I took to photography really fast starting up my own freelancing business at ZCPhotography. Photography and the different techniques I use to get my unique brand of photography seems really easy because it is what I am talented at. I didn’t value it very much as something I could help teach others because I figured if others wanted to take to it like me they would be able to with the same ease. I didn’t put much value in my expert status.

It hit me this weekend that everyone has some kind of strength. My business partner Chris is fantastic at coming up with fresh ideas and finding other people’s strengths they didn’t think they had for business purposes. My mother is amazing with people, she helps people in the hospital at some of their most frustrating and painful moments. My father leverages relationships for business and philanthropy purposes as well as anyone I have ever seen.

My friend Brad is the drummer for the band “Destination Go” who was recording this weekend. During a break I sat down at his chair and started drumming it up. It was hard. Sure, I put together a few beats that made sense for about 5 seconds but some of the stuff he does? I think I could literally never pull it off.

Think about what you are good at, it could be simple to you but it is a big deal to someone who doesn’t have that strength and they could be seeking it out.

In the second part of this post we will talk about using your newly found expert status to generate business ideas.

I have always liked Shaq because of how candid he is and how much he smiles and has fun in life.  I am not a huge NBA fan, but I am a sports fan and keep up with what is going on.  It is just so neat to see social media expanding to so many, no matter their status.  A lot of social media has an interpretation of being technical or someone being technologically “savvy.”  The beauty of how social media is evolving is through sites like Twitter that are super easy for anyone be join and get as involved as they want.

Will Shaq interact with his followers?  To me, I do not care if he does.  He will with out a doubt receive lots of replies and DM’s, to which he will never to be able to keep up with.  We all have to keep this in mind and not be quick to bash him, or anyone for that matter.  Using Twitter, is kind of like having a cell phone.  Is it for your convenience or for everyone else’s convenience?  What I mean is, do you carry a cell phone so anyone can reach you at any time or do you carry a cell phone so you can connect with other people whenever you want?  We have to keep this in mind when someone of his celebrity status uses a social media site such as Twitter.  Just be happy that he is using it.  Follow him if you want.  Remember, you do not have to follow him or listen to anything he says if you do not want to or if you are offended that he does not respond to your efforts to reach out to him.

I am excited to see Shaq on Twitter because it will be a launching pad to introduce Twitter to many new users who would not necessarily know about Twitter.  Tweet on big man.  I am following and interested to see what life is like for a giant man with a giant celebrity status.

Follow @THE_REAL_SHAQ on Twitter.  If you do not believe it is actually him, check these out:

Mashable!

Twitter Blog

The New York Times

What do you think of Shaq being on Twitter?  What are your thoughts about Shaq interacting with his followers?  Is there anyone else on Twitter with a celebrity status that we should know about?

I was really happy to get a notice in my inbox today of a new user following my twitter account. The Kansas City Public Library.

We are lucky to have a library system in our community that is so proactive in so many ways. Last month they recieved a 2008 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the nation’s highest honor for museums and libraries, at a White House ceremony.

Using Twitter to try and get out the information about the wide selection of events going on at the library is a fantastic move. They have also benefitted from a recent website design featuring a blog on the front page, open for comments and user interactions.

People in this city are starting to “get it” in regards to social media and the results are going to be very exciting to see. 

Photo: Kansas City Public Library by Zachary Cobb

We were really excited to be able to present all of the great things happening in Kansas City to the crowd at Highlight Midwest.

Whitney provides an excellent breakdown of a recent campaign to show off the opening of the AMC Fork and Screen Theater in Olathe. There was a lot of effort put forth to reach out to local bloggers and the results were very positive. Be sure to check out her post and the interesting way in which the metrics for success are presented by Spiral16’s software.

AMC took a bold step and realized the way to communicate the excitment about their new facility was in opening the place up and letting it speak for itself. Instead of forcing marketing speak on customers and having to control the conversation they put local influencers in a position to create the conversation and were rewarded in rich content that they didn’t even author and targeted exposure of their brand to customers. 

Team I+A has been gearing up for Highlight Midwest for some time now and we were so excited at what came from the event.

There are recaps posted below by a number of people that give you a good feel for the event as a whole. Be sure to read up on thoughts from Lava Row, Swindlr, Jeffisageek, Social Lites, Troy Rutter, Andy Brudtkuhl, and Silicon Prairie News just to name a few.

With the happenings of the event so well covered we wanted to post a few thoughts on other things that we took from the experience.

We are not alone. Sometimes in this journey we feel like we have been speaking another language. Bringing these emerging technologies to new people is a fun process but it can be tedious at times. It was comforting to see that others are passionate about social media and ideas to ignite companies new and old. Other people are going through some of the obstacles Ideas and Angles faces as an upstart technology firm.

Even better than being energized by people that have the same loves and interests we do was seeing those synapses fire for people who were not previously exposed to a lot of the ideas presented at Highlight Midwest. During the presentations at the evening session I stood towards the back of the room keeping an eye on some of the people I had met who were there as outsiders looking in. You could see the light bulbs go on, and the gears start to turn.

The post event chatter has focused a lot on the excitement in the relationships built between all the attendees from the different cities and how to keep those relationships strong. Using our shared experiences in a supporting role to lift all boats up at the same time. As amped as we are to have all these smart people as allies we would like to encourage everyone to keep striving to find ways to connect with people who don’t know about emerging technologies. Work to be the bridge that lets someone discover the power of social media and upstart entrepreneurship.

Thanks to everyone for the conversation, laughs, ideas, and inspiration.

Still gathering some different media to show everyone what a giant success Highlight Midwest was, expect a post soon. We have been busy collaborating with insanely smart people from around the country to keep on top of what is happening in the world of social media and emerging technologies so we can pass on that expertise to businesses and people in Kansas City. There has been a lot of positive feedback from the presentation Chris gave at the Kauffman Foundation about the great work by Kansas City technology start ups as well as the expert panel discussion Zach was a part of.

No matter how busy everyone gets social media’s expanding role in this city keeps showing itself…

Kansas City based heavy hitter HR Block gets some serious love for its work in using social media for brand positioning across many networks. Below are some of the results of the campaign.

- 43% more awareness of H&R Block’s digital products from 2007 to 2008.
- 52% increase in awareness of the TaxCut product
- 1 million unique visitors to Digits since its creation
- 60,000 interactions through widgets and tools created for the campaign
- 6 million impressions in the blogosphere

We can’t help but cringe (just a little bit) at the emphasis in bean counting to measure the reach of a social media campaign. We wrote recently about some different ways to measure effectiveness but those are still some eye opening numbers and we applaud HR Block for their ability to implement such a program in such a large corporate structure.

In other news we were really pleased to show up on the radar of a really influential figure in the Kansas City social media scene. Jeff added us to a list of companies to watch for businesses looking to dip their toe in the waters of emerging technologies.

Remember, keep creating and keep sharing. Your customers are begging for you to connect with them in a genuine manner to help them use your products and services.

Welcome to all of our new readers from Highlight Midwest. We look forward to your contributions.

Ideas and Angles cofounder Chris Culbertson speaks with Highlight Midwest Conference attendees at the Kauffman Center. Kansas City, MO.