Hello!

Just wanted to fill you in, if you hadn't heard, last year Penny and Thomas Power sold Ecademy to Lyndon Wood and it's new name is Sunzu, The Art Of Business.

Croydon Ecademy business networking meetings are typically very small and informal, (often 10 or less people) though Thomas has spoken at a meeting in the past when there were a lot more, and they've been running since 2003!   I took over in September 2011, 8 months pregnant and am still not fully back into my…

I once had a client shaped liked a banana. Well, not shaped like a banana as it turned out, at least not full-time. A part-time banana.

I’ll explain. It was at one of my earliest filming sessions. Having prepared a small temporary set in a meeting room, one by one members of the company’s team would come in and do their prepared slot. Being in control of the room, background noise, lighting etc I greeted each person, then could almost sit there merrily drinking coffee whilst they…

Online + Offline = Oneline. A Straight Line...

Yesterday, a perfect example of the straight line connection between online and offline behaviour was shown on a TV news programme.  Christmas sales were in full flight and the interviewer was speaking to a shopper who was using an app on his smartphone to read QR codes and barcodes to gather product and pricing information. 

First the offline link in the…

Last year I delivered a few seminars (which several NiS Members attended) on Google Places - the worst-kept free advertising secret in business! That was before it was 'sucked into' the Google+ World and became Google Local. I was delighted to be sent a link to the following article by Dave Llorens in the Fast Company ezine.

It certainly gave me food for thought, as was firmly in the 'failed…

A bit of silly season nonsense which must be true, as it comes from the Daily Mail!

Picturesque: But behind the leafy highways and byways, Surrey is a hotbed of sizzling S&M sensuality. The county has been revealed as the biggest devourer of the erotic Fifty Shades books...

The original book has…

Just read an interesting article by Gabriella Griffith on the London Loves Business website:

From sweatworking to sorting out your LinkedIn page - networking is an essential element in your career progression

Peddling furiously on his…

Tis the season to be jolly, but sometimes employees overstep the mark at the office party under the influence of alcohol, and Christmas merriment can lead to New Year disciplinary action or even dismissal.

I've posted links to the blog of my long-time contact Gerry McGovern, widely recognised as a world authority on how customers use websites, and what they are really looking for when they reach your site.

His latest post hits the spot (as usual!) and chimes perfectly with what I tell my clients when they are asking me to revamp and 'sex-up' their sites.  There are common misconceptions that web surfers go…

Surrey superfast broadband deal gets the green light

10:09am Tuesday 27th November 2012 in Redhill & Horley Life

 Plans to roll out superfast broadband to virtually every home and business in Surrey have been given the go-ahead.

The European Union (EU) has…

I posted this on the "Hive" totally forgetting that only memebers can see it?!?!

Anyway, I believe so many NiS members are losing out by not checking out the superb benefits of NiS+ that tis worth memtioning to y'all!!  Incidentally, I'm NOT on a commission structure with Keith, OK?!?!

Yes, I wasn't actually intending to shoot myself in the foot there!!

Here at NiS we believe in face-to-face networking - and we're not alone! Read the original article (and more on this subject)  here on Business…

Wooo-ooo - it ‘s Halloween, and the 'trick or treat-ers' are out in force... spooky! I wear a devil mask to answer the doorbell, just to enter into the spirit of things - and because I'm a big kid at heart.

I'm like a kid in a sweet shop at the moment, because I'm just in the process of launching my new networking group – the MyTeam…

I just received an email newsletter from Networking in Berkshire Member John Cassidy, Photographer, and I couldn't agree more with the excellent point he makes... in fact, it matches a blog post I made on NiS two and a half years ago! (check it out here)

Here's John's piece:

First Impressions Count…

Webinar Presentations – 12 Tips for First Timers

 If you’re reading this the chances are your boss has asked you to give your first webinar presentation. Either that or you’ve witnessed the rapid growth of webinars and want to grasp this fantastic opportunity to put your message across.  Either way, it’s a presentation format with its own challenges and rewards.  Mastering the challenges will produce an attractive and effective…

When I started secondary school, I remember coming across mathematics problems that went something like this: “The total wage bill at the Widgets Factory is £10,000 per week. Men are paid £2.00 per hour, and women are paid £1.50 per hour, for working a 40 hour week. If there are 100 men employed, how many women are employed at the factory?”As it was an all-girls’ school, we were naturally incensed that men and women should be paid at different rates…

Anyone SERIOUS about Networking may wish to take advantage of a slip Keith has made!!

I made a point of becoming a founder member early in 2012 at a special quarterly introductory rate of £29.95.  Well his new annual fee is LESS than that until 1st November!!

I've previously posted a comment on the excellent value I believe it represents at my own…

Are you scared of Networking? Me too!

I was chatting with a fellow networking friend this morning and 'he' said I should start a blog on being a networking newbie............

So he rattled my cage, so here goes!

To be honest, this is rather hard for me to wite as I was petrified - it brings back memories of…

I met Gerry McGovern a few years ago while working on government websites for the Inland Revenue (as it was then called - stop boo-ing at the back please! :0) and for Business Link. 

He's a genial Irish genius, blogging about the total online experience in general, and specialising in helping large organisations all around the world (particularly in the public sector) to create and manage large-scale web projects.

Gerry's blog is one of the few that I follow, and one of the…