El Punto Networking Night at Chips and Salsa

El Punto Network Meetup at Chips & Salsa Restaurant

Many people braved the cold evening to attend El Punto Network's meetup.  To encourage networkers to break the ice and mingle, they gave out activity sheets.  The first networker who was able to complete the sheet won a prize: a digital picture frame.  It was well attended and the restaurant featured happy hour prices.  There were $3 margaritas, $5 bottled beers, chips and salsa (of course), and other appetizers that came from the kitchen and were quickly consumed before I got a chance to look at it (Darn!).

I chatted with several people and exchanged business cards.  One gentleman I met was from herematch; you download the herematch app and it basically tells you who is at the event that matches your criteria for doing business.  herematch connects people seeking a service with people who can provide the service.  It sounds great and I'm looking forward to exploring it.

I also met up with cheerful Ms Missy, a distributor of Mia Bella's scented candles and soaps.  The ingredients are all natural, nothing artificial.

Ms Missy, Distributor, Mia Bella's

I also got a chance to talk to Omar Reyes, president of Tech Service LLC.  He provides a particular type of informational technology service.  No not web design, which is what I immediately thought but his company is able to clean out a company's network computers so that when they are discarded, valuable information will not be available for scammers to use for identity theft.

Omar Reyes, President, Tech Service LLC

It was a successful meetup with many people taking off their coats and enjoying the evening.  Before I left, I got a chance to Augie Acevedo, an agent for Aflac.  We discussed how Obamacare was changing so many things in the insurance field.

The restaurant, Chips & Salsa is located at 43 w46th St and features Mexican and Colombian cuisine.

Scott Wolpow: What You Need to Know Before Creating an Online Presence

It was a bitterly cold evening, but that didn't stop more than fifteen people from attending Scott Wolpow's presentation last night.  And it was a great presentation about what you needed to know before you create a website.  Of course a lot of people who attended the gathering were budding entrepreneurs.  Others, like me, were interested in finding out how to make their website more effective.

The one important piece of nugget that I retained (and there were many good nuggets that Scott gave out) was that content is king.  You have to have something worth saying in your website that people will seek out.  Given that, then one of my challenges is how to make this website relevant.  I think that's a challenge for anyone who has a website.  His main suggestion, if you really don't know anything about a website and your funds are limited, is to create a simple, turnkey website.  As your business grows, you can improve it.  In essence you never stop improving your website because it will be constantly changing.

Scott also said that he networks all the time and by networking, he is interested in how he can help people make connections.  I think that's nice and I like how he defines networking.  So to be a helpful person I'm giving Scott a plug; if you're interested in putting a website together, contact Scott at Scott@wolpow.com, and see if he can be helpful in building your website.  Judging from his presentation, he knows a lot and he's a nice guy.

The presentation was sponsored by QEDC, also known as the Queens Economic Development Corporation, a non-profit that exists to help people in Queens to start and grow their businesses.  Their website is www.queensny.org/qedc.