Successful Women in Business - Women Business Owners

"How to Succeed When You Don't Feel Successful" Susan Ratliff - Susan Ratliff Presents

Susan Ratliff Exhibit Experts		The discouragement we sometimes experience from overwhelming obstacles and the frustration we suffer from unexpected challenges can derail our chance for business success, yet just one spark of encouragement can redirect us onto a positive path. Susan Ratliff has experienced her share of barriers and road-blocks, but ignored the naysayers and pushed past the pessimists to become an award-winning entrepreneur, author and professional speaker. Her inspiring story chronicles that unique entrepreneurial journey as she shares her fears when facing failure and some of the lessons she’s learned about beating the odds, achieving your dreams and the will to succeed. Whether you own your own business or work for others, at one time or another we’ve all felt frustrated and discouraged by the challenges we face. Today, Susan will share her personal encounters with entrepreneurship, her fears and choices when facing failure and some of the lessons she’s learned about achieving your dreams, beating the odds and the will to succeed. In spite of numerous potholes, pitfalls and disasters, Susan Ratliff has survived and thrived on the way to the top of her industry. Naysayers are her motivation for success. Lack of experience is her catalyst for innovation. With no degree, business experience or industry education Susan built Exhibit Experts into an award-winning exhibit company and is the 3rd largest Featherlite Dealer in the country. While many said she couldn’t, she wrote and published four books with a fifth in the works. Without a clue about producing a conference she created and personally financed the Women Entrepreneurs’ Small Business Boot Camp for micro-business owners that is now her signature event.



“Master Your Message, Then Master the Media" Kathy Kerchner

Kathy Kerchner Master Your Message		Bring your team to this session and learn how to gain control of media interviews to confidently deliver key messages to the media. Get practical advice, honest feedback and discover nuts-and-bolts techniques for acing an interview • Make the most of any media opportunity to build your brand and visibility • List three to five lessons attendees will take away from this program: • How to formulate key messages that will resonate with your audience • How to bridge into those messages no matter what the interviewer asks • How to handle tricky or difficult questions • How to develop quotes and soundbites that reporters can’t resist • How to look and sound your best in interviews Kathy Kerchner is passionate about helping people successfully perform in front of live audiences or the media to deliver their key messages. A seasoned media coach, Kathy listens to your issues, asks the hard questions, and helps you craft key messages. She knows the business and today’s tough media challenges. She’ll teach your key players how to confidently handle aggressive reporters and hard-hitting questions. Kathy’s depth of experience includes 15 years as an Emmy award-winning TV news anchor and reporter, and nearly 20 years as a communications trainer and advisor to international corporations, not-for-profit agencies, associations, government agencies, banking institutions and other organizations. She has coached CEOs of Fortune 500 companies to perform better during analyst calls and media interviews, has helped executives win new business using masterful presentations, and has prepared business leaders to face Dateline NBC and 60 Minutes.



2008 SELECTED WORKSHOP PRESENTERS

"Turn Your Customer Service Into Cash" Norma Huibregtse

Norma Huibregtse Captivated Customers		A raving fan is a loyal customer who tells all their colleagues and friends how much they love doing business with you-and why. Learn six strategies to reap the cash benefits of attracting, connecting and engaging your customers. Discover: • The importance of developing a customer service plan of action • How to make that personal connection that will generate repeat business • The secrets to customer communication that works Norma Huibregtse started Captivated Customers LLC to be the Source of customer service strategies for business. She has years of experience as a top ranked sales consultant for an international company and motivated independent sales teams for ten years. She is professional, knowledgeable and results driven, providing one-on-one consulting and complete customer service training to small businesses.



"Viral Marketing in the 21st Century" Linda Thompson

Linda Thompson Life Path Solutions		If you've heard the phrase "social networking," but are not sure how to apply it to your business, this workshop will answer that question. From Linkedin to Twitter, from YouTube to Merchant Circle. this session will explain what they are, why you need them, the rules of best practices use, and much more. A live demonstration will show how to create a profile of your business or yourself. • An understanding of how social networking and viral marketing can enhance your business • A list of many sites available to you free of charge, and the focus of each • Why you, and your business, need more than just a website for effective Internet marketing • How to set up an account, what to and what not to include in your on-line profile • Why one site will work for you when others may not – the reason why you need to be on many sites Linda Thompson is an author, professional speaker, and trainer. She has authored three books – each on different topics that affect all of our lives – and also published her Mother's biography. For over 8 years she has facilitated workshops for companies and organizations across the Phoenix metropolitan area and beyond, on such topics as generational conflict in the workplace, family caregiving and the non-financial side of life planning. Linda has spent countless hours researching the pros and cons of Internet marketing and readily shared her findings with others. From that, Linda was asked to make a presentation on Viral Marketing in the 21st century at the Chandler Public Library. This presentation was such a hit, she developed a 2-hour interactive workshop which she has since offered across Arizona to many audiences, large and small.



"Practical Organizing for Better Business Efficiency" Sue Zepeda

Sue Zepeda The Next Level Business Solutions		Discover practical strategies that will get you back in control and help you develop a systematic approach to your business. Unlock the keys that will give you more time and maximize your effectiveness at the office and at home. Learn how to • Access activities of importance • Create a personal Command Center at your desk • Get You back in control of yourself • Give yourself permission to let go of what doesn’t work • Understand why more isn’t always better. Sue Zepeda is the only 2nd generation organizer in the National Association of Professional Organizers and the Director of Organizing for The Next Level Business Solutions. She has been creating customized home and office systems for her clients using their own personal styles since 2004. She knows what business owners need to do to balance their work and personal life and how to motivate them to get there. Her non-judgmental, motivational style takes you from ‘where you are to where you want to be.’



"Publish Yourself as an Expert" Patricia L. Brooks, MAOM

Patricia Brooks Brooks Goldmann Publishing Company, LLC		Patricia takes you to writing with passion because you must be an instrument for change. The journey is fresh and uplifting as she shares with you how you too can be enthused as a writer of non-fiction while enhancing your career. She shows wit and courage during these times of challenge by giving you suggestions for goals, objectives and strategies. Patricia asks you to do your homework, understand research, practice good interview skills, read, experiment, observe, survey and learn your topic well. Learn how: • Written materials compliment your business • Sharing your expertise with others grows your business (changed) • Adding writing to your life will enhance all that you do • Being well organized will launch your creative side • Understanding yourself frees you to understand others As an inspirational speaker, Patricia L. Brooks, MAOM, has contributed to the development of successful women for many years. Brooks Goldmann Publishing Company, LLC showcases her as the author's partner and book shepherd for publishing consultation and workshops on writing and publishing. While helping other writers to launch their work she is also working on a couple new books of her own. www.brooksgoldmannpublishingcompany.com Patricia L. Brooks Seminars, LLC www.plbrooks.com http://www.plbrooks.com, features topics in Organizational Management and Marketing. With her book Gifts of Sisterhood and the supporting grief workshop, Journey from Grief to Gratitude, she is a favorite for many Wellness Programs. She earned a prestigious AZ Authors Association Literary Contest Non-fiction award for this book.



"Shatter Stress: the Ultimate Stimulus Package" Karen Gridley

Karen Gridley KMG Enterprises		In this energizing and thought provoking workshop you will examine common stressors and how they affect you and your business. Learn the difference between a stress and stressor and how it affects your bottom line. You will be able to transform stress into increased profits and improved customer satisfaction. Learn how: • How to have the stress formula empower your organization • Common stressors that may be sabotaging your business • Reclaim your business with stress transformers • Proven techniques to infuse joy and appreciation improving productivity & effectiveness The Recovering Excuse Maker™, Karen Gridley, is a professional speaker, author and life coach Karen who masterfully guides people through the art of transformation. Individuals gain accountability and personal empowerment skills resulting in greater effectiveness, lower stress and improved communication. Experience improved morale, greater individual responsibility, and increased productivity and efficiency for you company. Her own personal transformation process and her 20 years experience as an analytical chemist (her scientific career comprises private industry, the medical, government and legal sectors) gives her the unique ability to dissect challenges beyond appearances. Karen demonstrates how examination of the invisible is required to create desired visible outcomes and succeed.



"Selling your Way to Greatness: 5 Steps to a Close" Kandi Lee

Kandi Lee One-Eleven Companies		It is time to get back to the basics. That is the gift in today’s economy. The pieces of a sale are simple; however, people often leave a meeting wondering why they didn’t close the deal. The truth is if a client does not see the value of what you do, he or she will not purchase from you. Most importantly at the end of the day relationship trumps all. Communicating value and creating extraordinary relationships will not only improve profitability but create longevity in your business. Attendees will learn: • How to create relationship and build rapport. • How to build value in a sales meeting. • How to accurately delivery information. • How to close more business! • Creating clients for life. Which audience is this presentation most relevant to? Both - Emerging and Established Business Kandi Lee was a single mom and a corporate sales trainer rocketing to the top of her profession when she had a vision to start her own company. When she looked at her bank account, the balance was $1.11. She took the $1.11 moved to Scottsdale and founded One-Eleven Companies. One-Eleven Companies is a coaching, consulting and training firm that combines personal and professional development, accountability and business strategies to coach clients to extraordinary results. One-Eleven Companies is a community based organization cultivating a culture of contribution, excellence and integrity. Most recently Kandi Lee and One-Eleven Companies were awarded the Sterling Award for the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce.



"Creating a Business Plan for Success" Cindy Anderson

Cindy Anderson GreatBiz Plans		Successful business owners don’t leave planning to chance. With this much money on the line, can you afford delays, or to shoot from the hip? Cindy Anderson will teach you the 3 basics of her Fast Track Biz Plan© that have helped hundreds of business owners like you find new ways to grow their business in a snap – in days, not weeks or months, and without getting a Ph.D in business planning. Learn how to: • 3 Basic Steps to An Effective Business Plan. • The 5 reasons the SBA says most start-ups fail, and what to do about it. • How to identify and leverage your competitive advantage. • For Your Eyes Only vs. Ready for Primetime: What lenders and investors really expect to see in your business plan. • Marketing 101: Address all 5 stages of the Customer Lifecycle Cindy Anderson helps business leaders build their businesses to assure faster and greater success. She specializes in writing business plans and packaging SBA loans for start-ups and franchises, plans that can secure funding and support fast track growth. Hundreds of entrepreneurs have had their dreams for success come true because of her thorough and high-impact work, including more than 40 national franchise brands and myriad privately held companies across the country. Cindy is the founder and CEO of two small business consulting firms, Great Biz Plans and Anderson Business Development, Inc. She continues to run her own firms in parallel to her work with select consulting clients. Earlier, she held executive leadership roles at such Fortune 500 firms as Qwest, Sprint, AT&T, and SBC, and various medium and small companies in Arizona. Cindy is a featured speaker at national franchise trade shows, sharing her expertise with “Start-Up Survival Guide: What Every Owner Needs to Know”. She is on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics of Arizona, on the Board of Advisors for Access Church, and a founding member of both the Arizona Excellence Group and the North Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce. She has been recognized by the Governor for her work with small businesses in the region, and President Bush for her work in Arizona.



"Different Strokes for Different Folks: Marketing to an Ethnic Audience" Denise Meridith

Denise Meridith Denise Meridith Consultants		Arizona has just gone through the worse recession ever. Hundreds of businesses (your suppliers, your clients) are closing. Thousands of people (your former customers) have filed for bankruptcy. Your hair’s on fire. Who has time to worry about diversity? Actually, as resources become scarcer and competition greater, only those businesses, which have adapted to the new world, will survive. Ms Meridith will demonstrate how effective marketing to diverse audiences may become your [only] competitive advantage. Lessons attendees will take away from this program: • Who’s on First?: To identify the dramatic changes occurring in your customer base and to develop a sense of urgency • It’s All About the Benjamins: To understand the impacts of marketing to new audiences on your bottom line • More than a Sombrero: Five steps you can take to enhance your marketing to diverse audiences Denise Meridith has been a skilled government, communications and business executive, as well as a successful entrepreneur. She has been CEO/President of Denise Meridith Consultants Inc (DMCI), an MBE/DBE-certified public and community relations firm since 2001. As the first woman professional ever hired by the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM), she spent 29 years with the agency, serving as the top executive in several states and as the Deputy Director of the whole Bureau in Washington, DC during the Clinton Administration. She was a pioneer and often lone advocate for diversity in everything from building partnerships with HBCUs to minority hiring and procurement to accommodating employees and visitors with disabilities. Her career is vividly described in her autobiography—Thoughts While Chillin’.



"How to use Relationship Intelligence Strategies to Boost Business" Dee Schiavelli

Dee Schiavelli Results Marketing		Building strong business relationships is more important now than ever. When business is threatened or your want to grow your business, it’s your relationships that will help you succeed. This program is not about meeting people at events and getting/giving a business card. It’s about turning the “right” relationships into new business. This program will help participants strengthen personal and business relationships and learn how to build valuable networks – relationships and networks that will result in business success. • Identify key people in their network and other important relationships • Learn the rules and plan to develop a meaningful introduction with the right people • Nuances of networking (Who do I know? What do I do?) • Build personal and business relationships so that they last • Understand where social networking fits in (business relationships and reputation) Dee Schiavelli, founder of Results Marketing, trains professionals, small and large businesses and organizations on how to turn relationships into new business. She works with clients on all aspects of business development. She has more than 25 years experience working with professionals, small and medium size businesses and non-profit organizations. She is an accomplished trainer who has designed relationship building programs that have enabled clients to create new business opportunities. Dee is a prolific speaker on relationship building skills and other marketing topics. She earned her Bachelor of Science, Management and Communications, cum laude, from Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, and is a Communispond Certified Professional Trainer.



"Ready, Aim, Fire up your Business"

In this fun and fast format, ten industry experts will take aim at important issues facing small business owners today and deliver rapid fire facts that will put you on target for higher profits and better productivity. Be there when they zero in on solutions that will hit the mark for your company and help you set your sites on building a better business.