Startup SmashUp: Five Boston WomenPreneurs to Follow on Twitter

Each day the Boston WomenPreneurs Twitter account gets new and more amazing followers. These women are starting new businesses, students looking to start businesses, angels, VC's and women entrepreneurs that you haven't heard about in the press yet. Overall awesome people working at startups or starting their own businesses in New England.  What better way to introduce you to some of these women startupers than with a Twitter list each week.

I noticed an interesting fact about the women who are becoming part of the Boston WomenPreneurs community. Our Twitter following and the women who joined us at our first ever collaborative event with Women2.0 last Friday have one overarching theme- women entrepreneurs are not all starting tech companies and we need to bring that to realization here in Boston. The reason we do not hear about tons of women starting businesses in the startup scene is because we hone in on the web startups, mobile startups, the tech businesses. Hopefully these lists will help to shed some light on all kinds of businesses women here in the area are starting or working at.

1. Dani Wagener, @makeupgrrl

"Makeup is transforming, not just physically but emotionally as well…it can really empower a person." Dani believes that makeup can transform and empower women through beauty. Her Twitter bio claims that she is opening her own Beauty Studio on Newbury Street. We can't wait!

2. Pardees Safizadeh, @Pardees

A self-proclaimed PR and Social Media Specialist, Pardees is an Account Manager at Harron and Associates as well as the Director of Social Media at our favorite startup event source, Greenhorn Connect. We are excited to keep seeing what Pardees brings to the table for Greenhorn Connect. Startup domination in Boston and beyond?

3. Jessica Howe, @_JessicaHowe

Boston-based photographer, Owner of 2 small businesses: Stealing  HERE/NOW and Dimensions- a floor planning company. One of the main growth areas in the near future is said to be in collaboration of different industries, for example tech and the arts. Maybe we can learn a thing or two from Jessica.

4. Tara Cousineau, @taracousphd

Founder of BodiMojo, a health community built as a social web site specifically for teenagers. This social platform was created in collaboration with teens and health experts that teens have affirmed will work! We know that Tara will be able to bring healthy lifestyles to teenagers across the globe. 

5. Christine Chapin, @ChristineChapin

Co-Founder and Creative Visionary of Company C! Company C makes vibrant home furnishings that lead you on a colorful adventure of self-expression. We hope Christine will engage in the startup community and spread her colorfulness among us.

What do you think about journalists starting to write about all kinds of startups and not just focusing on the tech startup community? I think the reason that it is harder to write about the women startups that are not within the tech industry is because they are more off the radar and not a vivid part of the startup community.

Liza Adams Launches decktOut: Online Designer HandBag Exchange out of BOSTON!

This article was originally posted on BostInnovation but I wanted to make sure that we hit the readers of Boston WomenPreneurs as well! I usually don't put work from BostInno on here but I found this appropriate.

Less than a year ago, Liza Adams and her roommate were swapping designer handbags as a way to update their bag collections without spending money. Sick and tired of one bag, even though gently worn and still in A+ condition they didn’t want to spend money on a new bag but did like each others. The idea for decktOut was born. Liza started wondering what she could do to change this vicious cycle. Woman after woman buy designer duds, designer gowns, and designer handbags for a hefty amount and then after either one wear (dresses) or after some time of wearing the bag you get sick of it- the bag then collects dust in your closet.

The problem was evident. Taking multiple pictures of your handbag, posting to eBay, and lugging it down to the Post Office to ship out, was just too much work. decktOut was born out of the ideas of simplicity and peace of mind. No longer would the process of updating your designer handbag be one of a long, dreaded process. Ladies could now update their bag collection with the click of a mouse.

Liza Adams founder of decktOut

decktOut launches in beta today – a high end, online designer handbag exchange service (swap). Girls around the world can now refresh their designer collection by exchanging luxury handbags and purses through an exclusive points-based online system. Once you sign up as a member of the exclusive community of handbag swappers, answer six questions about your bag you are given a point value (virtual currency). Questions range from topics on brand, style, material and condition. The best part – there is no printing of a shipping label or taking photos with your smart phone – you simply schedule a time with FedEx to come pick up your bag. Once deckOut receives it they will validate the authenticity, hand check the bag and professionally photograph it for someone else to pick from the online community. Once the decktOut team approves your bag, your points will show up in your account. You may then go ahead and pick out your new bag that you are swapping out your old gem for- all for only a $50 exchange fee.

Fortunately BostInnovation has known about Liza’s long expected launch for months. We were excited to catch up with one of Boston’s long-awaited newest women entrepreneurs:

BostInnovation: How much research did you do for decktOut and who is your target market?

Liza Adams: I didn’t do extensive research, partially because I didn’t have the budget for that. My target market is my group of friends, people my age. I talked to a lot of people in the target market to validate that this would help and make sense. My friends asked their friends and the network spread. The idea was validated as far as the price point, seeing if these women would use it. You can do all the research in the world but you will never actually know if the product is something people will start buying until you start. I wish that I could have done this faster than I did because there is something to be said for getting something up and running and learning from that process.

BostInno: How long has the process taken from idea to actual launch?

Adams: It has taken about 11 months, the first 4 months I was looking for a developer. I had to go with my gut instinct and if it didn’t feel right I wouldn’t go with it. Looking back there are definitely some things that could have been a little unnecessary. For example, I am a designer by day (she is the sole founder and has a day job) and there were certain images and looks on the site that had to be just right. Looking back this probably wasn’t as important as I thought it was at the time.

BostInno: Women would understand the answer to this question but just to validate, what problem are you solving?

Adams: There is no current good solution or easy solution out there for updating your closet or handbag collection. There is eBay and consignment stores which are hassle. decktOut gives people an easy and FUN way to update and exchange items without having to reinvest in a new, expensive item. It is upsetting for many women to have beautiful, luxurious items sitting in their closets that they wont use. With decktOut you don’t have to put a lot of effort into swapping something.

BostInno: Fashion is fun. What do you have to say about the FUN factor and decktOut?

Adams: Every girl loves designer things! Gilt Groupe and Ruelala took off because of their exclusive community where everyday you are looking forward to 12 noon or 11 am because you know there are awesome, designer discounts going to be rolled out. This is similar in a way- every item is one of kind on the site. You will see every bag in inventory. There is real time editing of the site and inventory. You only have 15 minutes to move forward with your pick. If you put something in your shopping cart , you have 15 minutes to chose it or someone else can take it! That is the fun factor.

BostInno: As an entrepreneur launching a new online company what importance has advisors and mentors played in your launch?

Adams: I wouldn’t be in the position that I am in right now without them. I think the key to your success and following through is finding someone or many advisors that believe in you, care about you and want to see you succeed. Advisors have helped me out in so many ways. Friends and family can tell me that I can do it, but they have not been in my position. They cannot comprehend what I am doing and why I am working so hard. Advisors can help give you that push you need.

BostInno: Where does your motivation come from?

Adams: Entrepreneurs are a different kind of person. I have always been extremely hard working. There is something different about you, you have a different type of personality. Part of being an entrepreneur is not giving up too easily and making it work. 90 percent of people give up too soon. Keep an open mind because you can always tweek your idea. Make it work.

BostInno: What would you tell an aspiring entrepreneur who is thinking about going after their idea?

Adams: Only go for it if you are willing to give up almost anything. I have said I would give up anything to make this a reality and I pretty much have. I am 26, single and haven’t gone out in months. I work every free moment I have but that is because I love it. This is more fun to me than anything else. I am willing to sacrifice everything -  or is that I just have different priorities and I am not actually sacrificing anything at all? You have to be willing to take risks and believe in it fully, believe in your idea and mission enough.

decktOut launches today! Head over to the beta of decktOut and begin your swap.You can follow Liza and decktOut on Twitter as well as catch up on all the latest in handbags on the decktOut blog.

Janet Aronica of oneforty on the Ever-Evolving Community Manager Role

Janet Aronica is the Community Manager of oneforty in Central Square in Cambridge. Janet discovered her love for writing and social media while at the agency she worked for prior to joining the oneforty team and possibly even before that dabbling in journalism in college. Wanting to learn to be the best writer she could be, the best way to do that was to write for her school newspaper. Writing for the school newspaper allowed her to learn the tricks and trades of what it takes to be a good journalist. Her journalism skills would later come in handy when she landed her dream job with oneforty working for Laura Fitton- the deemed Queen of Twitter. As Janet would put it, “There is a difference between being a journalist and being journalistic.”

Jounalistic abilities will help you be an outstanding Community Manager. What is a Community Manager and what do you do when you actually land this coveted position with a startup?

After she decided that she wanted to pursue the world of Community Management she started to network and learn as much as she could about social media, blogging and what it takes to build a sold following of quality followers over quantity.  The strategy and plan to bring the oneforty community to the level she envisioned was in her hands now. As Community Manager she started thinking about the differences in marketing perspectives today and what they would look like in the future. How would these changes apply to her role as a Community Manager  moving forward? What is the overall difference between an outbound community and an inbound generated community? This is where her head was. “Was I going to take the five community members (for example) that we had on the website, the fans of @Pistachio and the brand- build upon that? We created a marketing plan to address this group. I needed to learn the scope of the community that we had was, take those people that we did have to make them evangelists to grow the community naturally.”

As a pioneer in the idea of Community Management oneforty is creating an overall group of followers to evangelize the oneforty brand with tools to help everyone spread the overall greatness that is Twitter.

Here are five tips and tricks that will help other Community Managers as they embark on the journey of this role that is ever-evolving in the world of the startup.

1. Learn to be a good writer.

You will be writing emails, writing website copy; what people click on will be what they will judge your credibility and reliability by. By learning to use language in creative ways you will build a stronger voice for the brand. 

Tip: Start blogging on your own, read all kinds of writing including poetry, movie reviews, etc. This will help you in your marketing copy as well as with your tweeting.

2. Watch what you tweet.

As a Community Manager you will have thousands of followers of your personal Twitter account as well as your company’s Twitter account. You are the public face of the brand; make sure that you reflect that in your tweets.

Tip: Keep in mind that most of your followers are going to read your tweets, or at least a good percentage of them. When tweeting, remind yourself that this tweet must have value. Is there anger in this tweet; is there value to our followers who are reading this? If the answer to that question is yes, then tweet it. You must have a voice and keep that voice. Is the tweet valuable and a good conversation starter? Just remember that your influential and strong stated 140-character tweet can sometimes come off misconstrued than what you meant it to be read as. People will make judgments of your tweets on your personal and company brand. Janet reminds herself that there is a good way to think about tweeting, “There is a difference between your outside voice or your Twitter voice,” remember that as you write those 140 characters and press send. Will your followers find ultimate value in the tweet and want to share this content with their followers?

3. Contribute some of your time to become better at your job.

Use your time wisely. You will personally benefit from your personal growth. Your organization will grow and your followers will learn through your development. 

Tip: Spend 10% of your time reading and learning from other companies and other ways of doing things. Seek out resources like eBooks and webinars at HubSpot and look for new tools from oneforty. Use tools like Nutshell Mail to stay updated on new followers or use SocialToo to manage your direct messages on Twitter. If you need a combination of those two things then look to apps like SocialOomph. Is running the company Twitter account taking up all your time? It doesn’t have to with tools like these. Find the right combination of tools and resources to help you do your job better and more efficiently. Think outside the box on new ways to do things. 

4. Monitor all social media outlets to tie together what your community is looking for in terms of content and engagement.

If you can learn to monitor different social mediums and tie them together you will start creating content that is right for your community. The best way to see what your community’s needs are is by reading about that they are asking for.

Tip: If you create content that keeps getting asked for you will create blog posts that you can use over and over again and the reward share will be bigger over the test of time. Remember- Google is not the only place that people go to these days for their information. They go to Twitter, Facebook, etc for their answers. If people are asking about something on Twitter to their following then you can assume they are asking about it on other social platforms and in the search engines.

5. Think social media management.

Community Managers are doing a whole bunch of a lot of different things at once. There are ways to do it more efficiently.

Tip: Find the medium where you community creates the most value. Find what ways will drive the most potential on conversation items and topics. If you find the passion of your community and leverage it through the right tools you will be paving the stones for continued community growth.

At oneforty Janet and her team pride themselves on the purpose of Twitter and how to get business value from Twitter. The passion comes from the right application that will drive the potential for the right conversations. What conversations are happening in your community right now and how can you leverage those?

Janet swears by her community manager toolkit- give it a try and let her know what you think about it. Does this help you? How is the Community Manager role evolving at your organization? What did you do to ready yourself to be successful?