Corporate Partner Corner2024-04-23T15:16:12-07:00

Corporate Partner Corner

Special benefits and offers from our corporate partners for NAWBO members.

President’s Message | January 2021

Dear NAWBO Silicon Valley Members & Friends,

WELCOME 2021! A new beginning to create an abundance of opportunities for our businesses and make new friends while doing so.

Don’t miss the deadline to apply for the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program due January 8th, 2021 at 11:59 PM PST. Apply Here.
To kick off the new year, join us later today for our first Thirsty Thursday of the year (register below) as well as on January 26th for our special event “Meet our Corporate Partners and Affiliates”. You’ll get to know more about their companies, the services they offer, and the importance of why our partnership helps our members and the community at large.

We are updating our events calendar. Let us know what topics interest you or provide recommendations on speakers. Contact us at info@nawbo-sv.org

Look at this month’s NAWBO National virtual Lunch & Learn programing and Community Connects where members across the nation can share best practices and support one another.

Wishing you a safe and healthy year with wonderful experiences to be had and a prosperous economy for all.

From your TEAM… Griselda, Maxine, Flor, Marina, Robin, Megan, and Randi.

#NAWBOSV #NAWBO #NAWBONation

Google’s Mobile-First Indexing – Coming March 2021

Submitted by Roberta Kiphuth, President Detati Digital Marketing

Google announced in 2016 that they were changing the index algorithm to be more focused on mobile users. Well, the shift is officially happening in March 2021. If your site is not mobile-first ready, it runs the risk of not being indexed or blocked.

What does being mobile-first really mean?

The mobile version of your site needs to be as content rich and complete as the desktop version.

Do you need to be worried about my site?

If your site was designed or redeveloped within the last few years, you probably already have a “responsive” site. This means that it was built to accommodate desktop, tablet and mobile devices by wrapping and reformatting the content to those device sizes. If, however, your responsive site displays less information in the mobile version than in the desktop version, you may see a drop in indexing.

If you created a separate mobile site specifically for mobile devices (m. site) that is completely separate from the regular www. websites, indexing and subsequently traffic could drop significantly.

To read how to prepare your site, see FULL BLOG POST

3 Ways Professional Women Undermine Themselves on LinkedIn

Submitted by Sandra Clarke www.linkedinmentoring.com
I work with busy, smart professionals who know they’re good at what they do. Whether it is in my one-to-one coaching or my group program, they rarely have a problem saying to me “I’m good at what I do” or something along the lines of “I’m known for the incredible success of my team and the companies I’ve contributed to.” But they also tell me they are lacking in self-confidence or do not like to brag publicly. I suspect what they really mean is that they do not want to seem to be bragging on LinkedIn.
Is this you?
1)   Minimal profile that shows no personality
  • Your headline is your job title and company name at most
  • The “About” section is missing entirely or is the same as the top of your resume
  • Nothing added anything to the new “Featured” section on LinkedIn
  • Few recommendations
2)   Staying in the background
  • You check out what other professionals are posting on LinkedIn
  • You may “like” a post occasionally
  • You rarely go beyond a comment such as “congratulations”
  • You worry about what it will look like if you say the wrong thing
3)   Hiding your light
  • No insightful comments
  • No original posts, videos, or articles
  • No reaching out to proactively connect with other leaders
If you would like to be a thought leader in your industry, you could be leading the way for other professionals. Showcase your personal brand on LinkedIn simply by participating in appropriate and relevant conversations on LinkedIn. Every time you do so, your name and headline show up for others to see. It’s not difficult to share short-form posts or other content and show your influence. We need to hear from you!

Did You Pivot Your Business?

Submitted by Gina Covello, MA, Habla Language Services
Did you know COVID and its lockdown was coming? Were you prepared to pivot as soon as possible? Are you still looking for ways to continue doing business while we continue to operate with 6 feet of distance and face masks?
Gina Covello of Habla Language Services was prepared. She has friends in Asia and doctor friends in the US that warned her that Coronavirus was coming. She made sure she had a Zoom account linked with Calendly and converted her classes as soon as the Shelter in Place was announced. She emailed the new after-school program participants that she would be converting their 1 hour of weekly small group lessons to 30 minutes of private lessons via Zoom, thus avoiding having to refund all the new clients for a program that never got to launch.
When she realized that her annual Spanish Immersion Program in Costa Rica wasn’t going to happen, she began thinking of ways she could bring Costa Rica to her clients. She developed Zoom tours with animal sanctuaries, cacao farmers, and is offering a “Christmas Around the World” Zoom event involving representatives from every continent who will share how Christmas is celebrated in their county/culture.
Other examples of small businesses pivoting include 10th Street Distillerywho recognized the urgent need for hand sanitizer and turned their whiskey-making business into a hand sanitizer operation. Flights of Los Gatos added drive-thru groceries and essential items to their menu. If you are a retailer and haven’t yet, consider upgrading your website to make online purchases easier.
What can you do to continue building your business? Be innovative and see what other businesses in your industry are doing. As you think about ways you can pivot, think about the possibilities – not the loss.

Use Content To Build Trust in 2021

Submitted by Lori Maupas of Worddiva Marcom Writing Services
In the aftermath of Covid-19 and the political and social unrest of 2020, there is a craving for engagement among consumers like never before. Content is a great way to engage on a personal level with your audience.
But what you put out there matters. Here are three tips for using content to connect with customers and prospects in meaningful ways that support transparency and inspire trust in 2021:
  1. Use social platforms to build community. Your social presence can make or break or break perceptions about your brand — 74% of peoplefollow brands on social media, and 96% of brand followers also interact with them there. Instead of using social channels for shameless self-promotion, build trust by providing relevant content that enriches your audience’s understanding about topics related to your business, and inspires trust in your expertise.
  2. Communicate about the things that matter. Consumers are looking for brands that align with their beliefs and the causes they support. And, 92% of Millennials are more likely to buy products or services from a business they consider to be ethical. Instead of burying your head in the sand, don’t be afraid to take a stand. You might lose a few customers but being true to your beliefs will help build and maintain a loyal audience.
  3. Remember: Less is usually more. In the past, more content meant better SEO. That is no longer the case: People are bombarded with information, and Google and other search engines have become savvy to these tactics. Rather than posting a flurry of short articles that touch lightly on a topic, think about developing fewer but meatier pieces that help establish thought leadership and authority on topics that matter to your audience.
Use these simple strategies and watch your audience — and their trust in you — grow.

President’s Message | December 2020

Dear NAWBO Silicon Valley Members & Friends,

2020 has been a tumultuous year and we have been by your side.

Early into shelter-in-place we reinvented our way of communicating and staying connected with you by creating a virtual meeting platform. Our Educational and Networking Meetings continue every 3rd Tuesday of the month, and on the 1st Thursday of the month, respectively. We developed Thirsty Thursday to encompass a casual atmosphere for our members to network and get to know each other’s business and their needs & wants.

Last month we announced the launch of our new Member’s Only Newsletter to share valuable information just for our members, in conjunction with our CONNECTIONS Newsletter, which gives our corporate partners and affiliates the opportunity to share pertinent information with our subscribers.

We also reengaged with our alliances and created new partnerships. Join us on January 19th and meet our Corporate Partners  and Affiliates  to explore business opportunities, to get to know them, and the importance of why the partnerships were developed.

NAWBO National has also been busy with their weekly virtual Lunch & Learn programing and Community Connects where members across the nation can share best practices and support one another.

The Institute for Entrepreneurial Development remains open to all women business owners. The platform facilitates communication, virtual networking, best practice sharing, and education for Women Business owners, partners and supporters with measurable and significant impact.

Don’t miss the latest opportunity to qualify for the NAWBO Accelerated Growth Program sponsored by Wells Fargo, a premier suite of learning modules designed to help women business owners scale through high-level education and mentorship. This program for just 25 participants will increase their market competitiveness and position them to achieve the next stage of growth and expansion. Deadline to apply is Monday, December 14th.

As we approach years end, we are hopeful for a safe and robust 2021.

Happy Holidays from the team Griselda, Maxine, Flor, Marina, Robin, Megan and Randi.

#NAWBOSV #NAWBO #NAWBONation

Virtual Holiday Celebrations

Submitted by Kathryn Fortin, Fortech
We’re all more dependent on virtual video communication these days with the pandemic. Not only for business, but to connect with friends and family too.
At Fortech, we have been hosting virtual happy hours for years, as we’re a geographically dispersed team. Here are some tools we recommend.
ZOOM: If you do not have Zoom, you can create a free account. With the free account, you can have up to 100 people join, for a maximum of 40 minutes. What many people don’t know is when you’re kicked off after 40 minutes, you can reconnect with the same meeting link. The person that set it up originally must reopen it. We have found that Zoom does not stream videos very well if you want to watch as a group.
Google Meet: Google Meet is the new and improved Google Hangout. Like Zoom, you can create a free account, which in this case is a Google Account. With the free account you can have up to 100 people (250 with a GSuite Account) for 24 hours, but we haven’t tested this. We have used Meet for a 3-hour call and streamed videos with no issue.
Tips for a Successful Experience:
1. Shut down EVERYTHING running in the background that you won’t be using in the get-together. This includes email, calendar & Slack. They take a lot of processor and RAM.
2. Avoid background noise by using a headset for computer audio.
3. If you’re having bandwidth problems, dial in on your phone for audio.
Now the fun stuff!
Here’s a list of games we have played during our happy hours.
Free Online Bingo – play traditional, or “Never have I ever” with customizable cards
JackBox Party Games – Only one person needs a Steam account to host, everyone else connects via cell or web browser
Kahoot – Create quiz games for your virtual party. Only one person needs the account to set up, everyone connects via cell or browser.
More information on organizing virtual happy hours can be found here .

How To Rewrite Your Career

Submitted by Lisa Bennett
In June, after 3 months of sheltering in place, I thought, “How can I help others?” — because that’s where I get the greatest satisfaction, and reaching out to give will help keep me alive (being an extrovert) and my social channels humming.
First, I asked a friend to help me build an aviary – I live on 10 acres in a forest, after all. There’s always room for an aviary! Within 3 days it was finished, and it has been the temporary home for 2 batches of baby birds from Native Animal Rescue.
In August I began creating dozens of short videos and posted them on LinkedIn detailing my process of escrow in my most recent real estate investment purchase.
This month, I hosted free workshops on “Tips for Online Presentations” for everyone in my business circle.
Next month I will hold free seminars on, “Cleaning up Your Credit,” and, “Where to Buy an Investment Home in the US.”
In January I’m holding an all-day Seminar called, “Rewrite Your Career,” for people who have been laid off or are afraid of upcoming layoffs; workers who are now afraid of speaking up.
Contact me at lisa@workforcemillionaire.com if you would like to attend any of these – all free.
We all have talents and ways we can help. Reach out and give to someone else – there is nothing quite like the feeling of giving from the heart, during this season or any other.

Buon Natale—Italian Arts for Future Generations

Submitted by Kathy Winkelman of Gioia Company
Since the mid 1400’s pottery has been made in Deruta and throughout Italy where the art has flourished, painted by hand using patterns that have been designed by family members hundreds of years ago as well as new designs and using a special tin glaze to bring out the finest colors. The only closure was during the two World Wars and now due to Covid 19 pandemic.
Gioia Company wants to help to preserve the arts through a program called Gioia Luce, Shine the Light on Italian Artists. In every part of Italy where Italian Artist friends live and work, they share the same sentiment: It is very dark in Italy for arts. No tourism, no business, no creating.
Can you imagine four generations of Lace Makers and Fabrics business in Burano Island of Venice having to close for all these months? Venetian glass blowing thrived during the Renaissance times and still the same tools are used today to make beautiful jewelry known as Millefiori meaning a thousand flowers. The glass is blown through a long ancient tube shaped like a flower and cut into small pieces and assembled like a puzzle into unique jewelry pieces each one made by hand. It is these arts and others that I wanted to personally help sustain for future generations.
Now especially at Christmas time we can do something good and receive something beautiful in return. We help to keep the lights on in Italian Art studios. “Joy for Those who Give and Those Who Receive”.

Become a California DECA Judge

Submitted by By Amory Gao, State President, California DECA
As shelter-in-place orders persist throughout California, 900+ Silicon Valley high school students will still be pursuing their business dreams from home. This January, they need your help to compete at the virtual DECA Silicon Valley Career Development Conference.
DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management in high schools and colleges around the globe. (Learn more at deca.org/about.) California DECA currently serves 5,400 business-oriented high school students, ensuring their college- and career-readiness.
Every year, the Silicon Valley Career Development Conference (SVCDC) brings together students from 13 high schools to participate in DECA’s 50+ competitive events. Students spend 5 months meeting with their mentors and teammates, preparing to demonstrate their business proficiency at SVCDC. Every event is scored by volunteer judges.
California DECA would love to see you at virtual SVCDC in January.

President’s Message | November 2020

Dear NAWBO Silicon Valley Members & Friends,

Fall is here and our beautiful California weather continues. November is a special month for us as we focus on what we are thankful for. This week we launched our “Giving Campaign” for our Corporate Partners.

We are thankful to the affiliations we have made throughout the years with other wonderful organizations and local offices.

Most recent is the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), a special district office who will share advanced notice of procurement opportunities and also assist our membership with securing DBE/SBE certification.

Also with The Startup Squad, a Macmillan-published book series and mission-driven entity dedicated to inspiring and empowering girls through entrepreneurship – https://www.nawbo-sv.org/affiliates/.

We are especially thankful for our members who believe in our Mission and Vision and the sisterhood of NAWBO.

And also dear to my heart, I’m thankful for my fellow board members; Flor, Robin, Megan, Vandana, Marina, Jennifer, and Maxine who stand next to me and volunteer their time and energy to this organization.

Best wishes to you and yours this Thanksgiving.

Sincerely,
Griselda Quezada-Chavez

#NAWBOSV #NAWBO #NAWBONation

Sales Tax and Online Sales During The Pandemic

Submitted by Monika Miles of Miles Consulting Group

In the last 10 months, daily life has been turned upside down because of the pandemic. One of the many consequences of COVID-19 is less in-person shopping, so many consumers have turned to online shopping as their default. This has offered many retailers the lifeline they needed to stay afloat, but it has also creating problems for those who were unprepared for the complex sales tax burdens associated with online retail.

President’s Message | October 2020

Dear NAWBO Silicon Valley Members & Friends,

On Sept. 21 – 23 NAWBO National had their first Women’s Business Conference virtually. Due to COVID they went from an in-person event to totally online. The challenges of turning this event around were huge, but the determination and perseverance of NAWBO really came through. This feat was a perfect example of strong, determined, smart and organized women that can make things happen. This describes the caliber of women we have in this organization.

It was a fabulous event based on the theme Brave is… We celebrated NAWBO’s 45th Birthday, the 100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage, and paid tribute to some of our outstanding women of 2020-2021. There were wonderful speakers on topics from creating leaders for world change, leveraging technology for your business, to strategic planning.

One of the highlights was a Fireside Chat with Glennon Doyle, award-winning author and activist. If you did not get a chance to see her, you’ll want to read one or all of her books: #1 New York Times bestsellers Untamed and Love Warrior and bestseller Carry On, Warrior.

NAWBO awarded the “Woman Business Owner of the Year Award” to Rebecca Fyffe, CEO, Landmark Pest Management, presented by Bank of America.

NAWBO National also, wait for it, announced the 2020 Accomplishments and Initiatives Chapter Awards. We are proud to let you know NAWBO Silicon Valley was 3rd place among 50 chapters for Best Chapter 2020 and the 5-star Chapter Award.

Congratulations to the NAWBO Silicon Valley Chapter!

Stay safe and healthy. We are here for you!

Sincerely,
Griselda Quezada-Chavez

#NAWBOSV #NAWBO #NAWBONation

President’s Message | September 2020

Dear NAWBO Silicon Valley Members & Friends,

During these unprecedented times, our community continues to demonstrate its resilience amidst the multiple fires in the Bay Area and beyond. We have members directly affected and therefore, we will be postponing our meeting events for the month of September.

But wait… there is a ray of sunshine and it is packed with an abundance of opportunities.

NAWBO members, you heard it here first! The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) has upcoming projects and they want YOU to apply for:

  • Financial audit services
  • On-call facility repair, painting & remodeling
  • Temporary staffing services

What else does VTA Buy?

  • Highway, bikeway, pedestrian LR and facility construction
  • Professional services
  • Legal, audit, temp labor
  • Hand sanitizer, masks and other PPE
  • Custodial services & products
  • Office & promotional supplies
  • Uniforms & accessories
  • Consulting services
  • Public relations
  • Real estate services
  • Technology & equipment
  • Safety/security services
  • Telecommunications
  • Automotive, bus & light rail parts and related services

VTA’s Business Diversity Programs include the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program for federally funded projects, the Small Business Enterprise (SBE) Program for state funded projects and the Minority, Women, Disabled Veterans and LGBT Business Enterprise Programs for locally funded projects.

Through these diversity programs VTA assists certified businesses seeking construction, purchasing and professional services contracts and create a level of playing field on which minority, women, disabled veteran, and LGBT-owned businesses can fairly compete for contracting opportunities in Santa Clara County region.

Visit the business center, view solicitations, get registered and get certified. Contact John Wesley White, Deputy Director & Chief Procurement Officer for specific details.

We have a fun filled month coming in October. Make sure to check out our events page.

Stay safe and healthy. We are here for you!Sincerely,
Griselda Quezada-Chavez

#NAWBOSV #NAWBO #NAWBONation

Employee Appreciation Gift Idea

Submitted by Tracy Gordon Proforma Concepts Unlimited

Every year, my client and I come up with ideas for a branded Employee Appreciation gift to distribute throughout their offices. We’ve done numerous items over the years including logoed blender bottles for shakes, lunch box containers, t-shirts, tumblers, etc.

I was wondering what we could do this year, during Covid-19, while so many employees are working remotely. My client and her committee developed a wonderful idea, a booklet called, Together Appreciation Book | Messages of Gratitude from our Community.

They received an outpouring of messages from their communities to thank them for the care they provided. They compiled a collection of messages, pictures, and quotes from the client’s employees and their children to thank the Doctors, Nurses, and first responders.

Instead of giving another logoed gift item, they provided a booklet filled with inspiration to help lift one’s spirits as their health care community works together through these challenging times.

What a unique and wonderful gift!

Download Sample Booklet

Focus on the User Experience, Rather than the Content When Designing Online Courses

Submitted by Kathryn L Fortin
Many schools, universities, companies, and organizations are attempting to quickly shift from classroom training to online. They’re trying to adapt their classroom education materials for online learning. But not all of these organizations employ or rely on instructional designers.
It’s natural for instructional designers to think about how students process information during online training programs. But not all trainers or instructors consider this important factor. Many times their focus is on delivering a course that covers the “necessary information”. Maybe they use activities and quizzes to assess students’ knowledge and understanding.
But many instructors use their online courses as PDF repositories. That model was barely acceptable before the pandemic – But it’s not sufficient anymore.

How is your online course UX?  Is your organization scrambling to move classroom programs to online?  Are you taking time during that process to think about the learner UX? This can be REALLY overwhelming, especially now. But we have tips to help you.

First of all, let’s slow down and think about the content from the user’s perspective. If we’re teaching in-person with our students then we can read the room, engage our learners, and elaborate on topics. But for online courses we have to focus on user engagement through polls, group activities, games, and knowledge-checks. It’s challenging, but if you set it up thoughtfully, and take the time to plot out each step, you’ll save tons of time and $$$ going forward. Plus, your students will love you for it.

Online courses are typically delivered through an LMS (Learning Management System). Your LMS definitely plays into the user experience. Planning is critical to delivering content that is tailored to your audience. Set up your virtual classroom in the same mindset as if you are walking into your physical classroom. Is our online classroom welcoming to your learners? Does it guide them through what they need to do. Can they work through the content without your personal guidance?

eLearning Stress designing online courses

What if you have no control or influence over your organization’s LMS. What can you do? Turns out, You can actually do a lot!

But, let’s start from the beginning.

If you don’t have an LMS and/or a system to deliver virtual live training, talk to us before investing in one. And, don’t let this stressful decision stop your progress getting your training/instruction online. We have systems like LMSs, virtual classrooms, a webinar platform and 3D virtual training worlds, that you can use without committing to your own. Plus, it’s always good to test drive before you buy! Picking the right LMS to fit your organization’s needs is an entirely different discussion, so maybe table that for another time.

Think of how an automobile 🚘 is designed. Engineers perfect the engine, drivetrain, aerodynamics, etc. But the same engineers do not design the interior of the car; aka the user experience. Similar to designing the car, when it comes to online learning you don’t have the database engineers or the IT department design the user experience for an online course. That’s the job for the instructor designer. 🚧 But not everyone has the budget or bandwidth to hire instructional designers. So what are your options? You have several.

  • Self-paced online courses
  • Self-paced online courses taken in cohorts/groups (you can add group activities and spark some fun competition for motivation)
  • Virtual live online classrooms
  • 3D virtual world live training – VR without the headset, kind’ a like playing SIMS. (you can bring the job site to the school)
  • VR/AR (though you would have to buy and maintain the headsets, which could be a computer support issue), there are many programs already available, that you could integrate into your courses
  • Virtual live group breakout sessions
  • Online group projects (applying what they have learned)
  • Question forums, maybe a question of the week to inspire and engage the learners
  • Online libraries, resources, and glossaries

🎯 Remember: The more engagement = more retainment  

Keeping with the automobile analogy, think of these online training options as a car’s features. You don’t NEED them all, but boy wouldn’t they be nice and make your life easier?  We recommend using many of them together, or maybe all of them. Yes, all!

Let’s go back to the virtual classroom setup.  What are some of the most important things to consider for the Learner UX?

  • Make everyone feel welcome.
  • Make it entertaining. Keep things interesting.
  • Make it relevant. Bring real world artifacts into your course design.
  • Make it accessible – make sure “readability” is set up correctly. Many people think about blind or visually impaired accommodations, but many people forget about color blindness when designing.
  • Make it engaging – Don’t create an online course that only spits out information to read or watch.  Include questions, social events, workshops, and other participant-centered activities that will pull your learners into the content.
  • Avoid overload – It can be difficult to stay focused in an online course.  Break your content into 5-8 minute chunks.

Need Help, or a little direction?  Schedule a free consultation with us.

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