Please Read And Qritique... The Military Entrepreneur Conference

[villarrealsj]

I'd like to know your opinions, your thoughts, recommendations, etc. on this...

I'm listing my "tentative" event and information in hopes to get some feedback from the Young Entrepreneur Forum. I realize some of you may not be familiar with the military niche, but you're all Entrepreneurial minded, so I know you can definitely relate. So without further delay:

For those who don't already know, I'm currently serving on active duty in the US Marine Corps(11yrs). After 11yrs, I have decided to leave the Marine Corps in September. I've always wanted to get other Entrepreneurial minds like me together just to talk, network, etc.

Recently, I attended a 2 week course called the Transition Assistance Program, which helps military service members, that are leaving the military, prepare for the civilian workforce. They spend A LOT of time on resume writing, interviewing process, the do's/don'ts, etc.

BASICALLY EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GETTING A JOB... WORKING FOR SOMEONE ELSE... BLAH BLAH BLAH.

NOTHING for those who want/plan to start a business/work for themselves. When I asked if they offer this information the answer was:

"I'm sorry sir. This program is solely to prepare you for the private sector workforce or federal employment. If you want information on starting a business go to www.SCORE.org or contact the SBA, they will be able to help you."

I thought to myself... UN-FREAKIN-BELIEVABLE!

MY LIGHT BULB MOMENT: After that, I was unble able to focus on the class. I was too busy writing notes, jotting down schedules, possible guests, etc. for an idea that I am going to call "The Military Entrepreneur Conference."

I'm considering soliciting for sponsors to cover the majority of my costs. A few other things I'm considering:

1. 2 day event... Friday and Saturday from 8am-3/4pm.

2. On second night have a "Mixer" night from 6/7pm-9/10pm: Casual Networking Event

3. Have 2-3 Guest/Keynote Speakers: Speakers will have military background to directly relate to attendees. Cosidering contacting Phil Town and CEO of CWA Media. Let's see.. who else?

4. Schedule 3-4 Mini-Seminars as part of the event. 2 will go simultaneously each day and attendees can choose to sign-up or not. For example, a class on preparing a business plan or asset protection or incorporating a business 101, etc..

5. Invite Organizations such as SCORE, SBA, Veterans Administration and other organizations to speak and explain benefits, opportunities, programs, etc. to attendees.

6. Special Event: Elevator Pitch Competition... 3-4 participants(pre-registered) will have 2-3 minutes to pitch their business idea/service/product to attendees and the winner will receive a cash prize. I'm hoping between 1K-10K. That would depend on sponsors I can get.

7. I will also contact certain military friendly/supporter businesses/franchisors to offer deep discounts or promotional packages for attendees. In return, they will be mentioned on marketing material, handouts that will be given to all attendees,etc.

8. I plan to have 8-10 vendor booths available for vendors interested and charge a fee for them.

Well, that's my idea for the conference in a nutshell. I'm considering having the event from Sept 14-15, 2007.

YOUR THOUGHTS?

[ltressel]

Hi Villarealsj,

First off, many thanks for your sacrifices you've done for the country.

Second, here's what I think of your idea. I think it is brilliant. You are thinking in your element and you're plans are beneficial for others like you.

Third, the only thing that I can think of that might not fit into your equation is your time frame. To organize an event such as this, you will need to give yourself enough time to book your venue, market the event, book your vendors, and all the rest of it that goes with event planning.

You need to make this as organize as possible due to it being your first venture and first impressions will count. Vendors will expect some return for their time and monetary investment. Attendees will expect that there will be quality speakers and wealth of knowledge to get from this event.

You will have to bring this elements on and I think you are shorting your prep time. I realize that there are a lot of servicemen that needs this junction to happen, but the better you put some time, the better the benefits all around.

Overall, I do think this can work very well for you. I am in California in case you need further support.

Kind Regards,

LT

[usakos]

Why is there agreat similarity in terms of layout and design between your site www.mymilitaryclassifieds.com and this site at http://www.boardal.com, which is a carbon copy of Craigslist.org?

I'd like to know your opinions, your thoughts, recommendations, etc. on this...

I'm listing my "tentative" event and information in hopes to get some feedback from the Young Entrepreneur Forum. I realize some of you may not be familiar with the military niche, but you're all Entrepreneurial minded, so I know you can definitely relate. So without further delay:

For those who don't already know, I'm currently serving on active duty in the US Marine Corps(11yrs). After 11yrs, I have decided to leave the Marine Corps in September. I've always wanted to get other Entrepreneurial minds like me together just to talk, network, etc.

Recently, I attended a 2 week course called the Transition Assistance Program, which helps military service members, that are leaving the military, prepare for the civilian workforce. They spend A LOT of time on resume writing, interviewing process, the do's/don'ts, etc.

BASICALLY EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GETTING A JOB... WORKING FOR SOMEONE ELSE... BLAH BLAH BLAH.

NOTHING for those who want/plan to start a business/work for themselves. When I asked if they offer this information the answer was:

"I'm sorry sir. This program is solely to prepare you for the private sector workforce or federal employment. If you want information on starting a business go to www.SCORE.org or contact the SBA, they will be able to help you."

I thought to myself... UN-FREAKIN-BELIEVABLE!

MY LIGHT BULB MOMENT: After that, I was unble able to focus on the class. I was too busy writing notes, jotting down schedules, possible guests, etc. for an idea that I am going to call "The Military Entrepreneur Conference."

I'm considering soliciting for sponsors to cover the majority of my costs. A few other things I'm considering:

1. 2 day event... Friday and Saturday from 8am-3/4pm.

2. On second night have a "Mixer" night from 6/7pm-9/10pm: Casual Networking Event

3. Have 2-3 Guest/Keynote Speakers: Speakers will have military background to directly relate to attendees. Cosidering contacting Phil Town and CEO of CWA Media. Let's see.. who else?

4. Schedule 3-4 Mini-Seminars as part of the event. 2 will go simultaneously each day and attendees can choose to sign-up or not. For example, a class on preparing a business plan or asset protection or incorporating a business 101, etc..

5. Invite Organizations such as SCORE, SBA, Veterans Administration and other organizations to speak and explain benefits, opportunities, programs, etc. to attendees.

6. Special Event: Elevator Pitch Competition... 3-4 participants(pre-registered) will have 2-3 minutes to pitch their business idea/service/product to attendees and the winner will receive a cash prize. I'm hoping between 1K-10K. That would depend on sponsors I can get.

7. I will also contact certain military friendly/supporter businesses/franchisors to offer deep discounts or promotional packages for attendees. In return, they will be mentioned on marketing material, handouts that will be given to all attendees,etc.

8. I plan to have 8-10 vendor booths available for vendors interested and charge a fee for them.

Well, that's my idea for the conference in a nutshell. I'm considering having the event from Sept 14-15, 2007.

YOUR THOUGHTS?

[villarrealsj]

USAKOS: Was it necessary to ask that question here in this post? I asked for your thoughts on the idea, not my links.

To answer your question, it's probably because they used the same source/person as I did. He apparently has created some sort of software-in-a-box and it happens to fit great for what I need.

If you don't mind, next time you have a question that does not pertain to my post, could you just e-mail or PM me? Thanks.

[villarrealsj]

I appreciate your comments and I know you're right about timing. Guess I'm letting the excitement get the best of me.

What I'm thinking is that this first conference will probably be small. I would expect less than 75 attend.

I haven't announced anything yet, so for the next few weeks I'm going to begin working on it and if it looks like I'll need more time, then I will rethink the date.

Question: As far as monetization... do you(or anyone else) have any suggestions on how to generate some money from this? I don't necessarily expect to make a killing, but a little $$$ would help create the foundation for future events like this.

Hi Villarealsj,

First off, many thanks for your sacrifices you've done for the country.

Second, here's what I think of your idea. I think it is brilliant. You are thinking in your element and you're plans are beneficial for others like you.

Third, the only thing that I can think of that might not fit into your equation is your time frame. To organize an event such as this, you will need to give yourself enough time to book your venue, market the event, book your vendors, and all the rest of it that goes with event planning.

You need to make this as organize as possible due to it being your first venture and first impressions will count. Vendors will expect some return for their time and monetary investment. Attendees will expect that there will be quality speakers and wealth of knowledge to get from this event.

You will have to bring this elements on and I think you are shorting your prep time. I realize that there are a lot of servicemen that needs this junction to happen, but the better you put some time, the better the benefits all around.

Overall, I do think this can work very well for you. I am in California in case you need further support.

Kind Regards,

LT

[ltressel]

Question: As far as monetization... do you(or anyone else) have any suggestions on how to generate some money from this? I don't necessarily expect to make a killing, but a little $$$ would help create the foundation for future events like this.

The money would come from a lot of areas.

1) Getting your sponsors. Sponsors mean you would give them exposure and importance during the event. They will pay more to be sponsors than what a vendor would pay for a table per se.

2) Vendor booths. Charge x amount of money per 6 foot table to display and offer their goods.

3) You can get hand outs made and for part of that hand out, businesscard size adverts from your vendors.

4) If you create a website for the event-same thing- banner ad sales.

Just a few thoughts-


LT

[villarrealsj]

Looks like we think a lot alike.

I've already got those on my "To Do" list, so I'm on the right track. Thanks.

I've been thinking about replacing the word "Conference" with a word that doesn't give it such a large feel. Since I expect to have this event either monthly or every other month, it obviously can't be that big each time.

Question 2: Do you(or anyone else) have any suggestions for a replacement word?

I'm thinking maybe Seminar, Expo, Biz Event, MeetUp...

Question: As far as monetization... do you(or anyone else) have any suggestions on how to generate some money from this? I don't necessarily expect to make a killing, but a little $$$ would help create the foundation for future events like this.

The money would come from a lot of areas.

1) Getting your sponsors. Sponsors mean you would give them exposure and importance during the event. They will pay more to be sponsors than what a vendor would pay for a table per se.

2) Vendor booths. Charge x amount of money per 6 foot table to display and offer their goods.

3) You can get hand outs made and for part of that hand out, businesscard size adverts from your vendors.

4) If you create a website for the event-same thing- banner ad sales.

Just a few thoughts-


LT

[ltressel]

I like Meet-up. I think its goes with the idea of camaraderie rather sounding like just another cold pitchin' expo.

[villarrealsj]

I like it too, but it also may not interest businesses in advertising/sponsoring... ya think?

I like Meet-up. I think its goes with the idea of camaraderie rather sounding like just another cold pitchin' expo.

[ltressel]

I think if the info-pack you will send to sponsors and vendors, you will be explaining this event for them. The thing is-expo/conference does have that large event feel. It might sound even misleading for your sponsors and vendors who are expecting hundreds or thousands attendance.

Just a thought-

LT

[akula]

Villarealsj,

I too would like to express my gratitude for the sacrifices that you're making during military service.

I don't see a problem with your concept. In fact, I like it. It's exciting.

At this stage, the challenge is execution and I've been to enough botched conferences to know that this space is not easy

The most sucessful conference shop to ever exist is Weight Watchers Inc

Take them as an example. Don't overwhelm your self with thinking about staging some huge conference. Think of your self as organizing small discussion groups. The point of the group is to get people to talk about their common problem, and you can sell them things at the end of the meeting.

Anyway...I don't need to say anything to you that you can't learn from a weight watchers case study

[villarrealsj]

Akula,

Thank you for taking the time to say those words and thanks for the motivating advice.

E-X-E-C-U-T-I-O-N... such an important word as you stated.

I'll definitely take a look at the Weight Watchers case study now that you've gotten my interest.

Thanks Again,
Sammy

Villarealsj,

I too would like to express my gratitude for the sacrifices that you're making during military service.

I don't see a problem with your concept. In fact, I like it. It's exciting.

At this stage, the challenge is execution and I've been to enough botched conferences to know that this space is not easy

The most sucessful conference shop to ever exist is Weight Watchers Inc

Take them as an example. Don't overwhelm your self with thinking about staging some huge conference. Think of your self as organizing small discussion groups. The point of the group is to get people to talk about their common problem, and you can sell them things at the end of the meeting.

Anyway...I don't need to say anything to you that you can't learn from a weight watchers case study