Freelance Forum: It’s Our Annual Business BLAST-OFF!

Let’s make 2016 the best year ever for freelance business! Our Business Blast-Off circuit meeting will provide great ideas you can use immediately to market your services, streamline your work, increase your business and generate greater success and profit!

You’ll take home new ideas and strategies in four key areas:

• Business development tools that really work
• Social media tips to get you out there in a big way
• Technology hacks to make you more productive
• Marketing tactics to get your brand into the marketplace

Following an introduction by Programming Chair Helen Anne Richards, our seasoned facilitators will get the conversations going in small groups. Take good notes, because you’ll hear the best ideas your colleagues have. They’ll tell you what works and what doesn’t, share best practices and get you motivated for the year ahead. And don’t forget your part – bring your best ideas to share, too!
See you there.

Our special Group Facilitators for the evening include:

Sandy Barth (Business Development) – Sandy is president and creative director of High Profile Group and has earned a number of creative awards over her 25+ years in advertising. Her company is a full-service creative design and strategic marketing firm that specializes in integrated online and print marketing solutions to meet the challenging demands of businesses targeting consumers or other businesses.

Laura Heck (Technology, Workflow) – Laura has been a production artist since 1987 for design firms, corporations and government, specializing in expert photo retouching, complex document layout and large display graphics. Her experienced hands and digital problem-solving skills translate your creative vision into reality. Precision project management and attention to detail mean less stress for you.

Traci Sampson (Social Media) – Traci is owner of Traci with an Eye Graphic Design, LLC. A graphic designer and illustrator for more than a decade, Traci specializes in small to medium-size business branding and identity including logos, business card and letterhead design, brochures, invitations, billboard design, ads, postcards and flyers. She’s extremely skilled in social media marketing including Facebook, Twitter and email blasts/campaigns.

 Linda Travis (Marketing) – Delivering the right message starts with asking the right questions. Seasoned copywriter and researcher Linda Travis combines curiosity and knowledge to give brands a unique voice. With niche expertise in copywriting, brand consulting and qualitative research services, Linda delivers both insight and content to address business challenges head-on. Linda works both behind the scenes, through other research and communications firms, and directly with in-house marketing teams to augment their talents on a project basis.

 Sandra Wills (Technology/Web) – Sandra and her business, The Graphics House, have the tools and expertise needed to build a web presence for your business. Sandra builds sites in both WordPress and HTML to create both e-commerce and responsive sites. In addition, she offers web hosting, domain registration, banner ads, email newsletter templates and customized social media platforms. In short, Sandra can provide everything you need to market your business online, leading to more web traffic, leads, connections and best of all, sales.

*The Creative Circus is located at 812 Lambert Drive, near the intersection of Cheshire Bridge Road and Piedmont Road, in northeast Atlanta. Depending upon your route, you can access Lambert from either Cheshire Bridge or Piedmont. The building is at the end of Lambert, which jogs to the right past the concrete plant. Need a landmark? Barking Hound Village is just across the street from the school.
Enter The Creative Circus building through the doors on the raised patio bordered with blue fencing — NOT the first main entrance. You must sign in at the front desk. Then proceed down the hallway to the presentation theater on the right (sign is above the double doors).

Members: FREE
Non-members: $15
Students: $10