SEO and Social Media is not an event but a process —
SEO is a collection of methods that help search engines find your website more often. Like a game the goal is to get a high ranking, to appear the highest on the search engines’ list. Your business, organization, etc. gain more visibility the higher you appear on the search engines’ list. Think about it, how often do you search pass the first page when you’re doing a Google search. Base on your own personal experience you know it’s less likely that people search past the first page.

SEO is not an event but a process. Your business goal as it pertains to SEO attractiveness is always evolving. Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. understands what the search engines require for optimum results. We pair the search engine’s requirement with your goal to position your business to get the best results.

Social media has a profound impact on search engines. We teach you to have a social media presence. Facebook and the impact of other social media outlets are largely misunderstood by many businesses. Understandably so, the name social by nature is misleading in business. However, developing a social media foundation can be one of the most beneficial methods to remain relevant and engage with your business’ current audience while attracting new customers.

Imagine that you are in the business of selling digital products. Through your website, social media and your store you create an experience, an environment where you become a part of a conversation. Imagine that conversation being initiated by your customers. Rules of engaging customers have changed. Businesses don’t get to tell customers what they want anymore. Meeting customers on their terms is the norm. Their terms can be in your store or online. Your customers get to tell you what they want, but most importantly customers get to tell you why they want certain items. Barry Judge CMO of Best Buy coined the phrase dream support team to best describe how Best Buy fulfills the needs of their customers.

Businesses that are looking for a more effective method of engaging customers can follow Best Buy’s example. Become the dream support for your customers, engage them, fulfill dreams, respond to questions, and consumer requests.

— Peace & Harmony Solution, Inc. helps effective engagement with your customers so you can began to fulfill dreams and solve problems for your customer.

Mentors, coaching and networking, find your own personal board of directors at the Small Business Nonprofit Development Group (SBND) Empowerment Reception. 

Thursday, March 28, 2013
6:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Fifth Third Bank, Chicago-Hyde Park Banking Center
1420 E. 53rd Street
Chicago, IL 60615
No charge for admission

If you are looking for a place that is charged with energy, a place where ideas are shared and your concepts are enhanced then, connect with the SBND team.

Unite with this unique group of leaders to discuss strategic business development, marketing, creative services and tactical media outreach. Enjoy networking and mingling with other professional business executives who know what it takes to fund your enterprise and expand your competitive edge.

SBND sponsors and participants gain visibility to over 16,000 professional network constituents through SBND social media platforms and websites.

Event Host:
Fifth Third Bank, Chicago Hyde Park Banking Center

Presenting Sponsor:
Cool Herb Smack Down Catering

Media Sponsor:
Chicago Defender
“Empowering the Community via News That Matters”
This is a media resource for any size business.

Please join these and other supporter’s of the Empowerment Reception:

• Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. – Providing Strategic Marketing, Printing, Coaching, Web and Visual Communications

• Learn about the Proof of Concept Center from SSN/SBND & Victor Korzen’s
  The Proof of Concept Center (POCC) is an expansion of SBND with a primary goal of providing assistance to early-stage enterprises, talented innovators and prospective entrepreneurs who are in need of engineering development, commercialization, and financing for expensive research and/or seed capital.

• Notes of Flavor
  Debuts their intoxicating collection of alcohol cakes. Purchase individual slices of Apricot Brandy, Margarita, Jack Daniels cake and more.

What is Project Based Learning?

By Buck Institute for Education | 18 Commercial Boulevard | Novato, CA 94949 |Phone: 415.883.0122
Email: info@bie.org

For the past 22 years, the Buck Institute for Education (BIE) has worked with school districts and networks, state and federal educational agencies, Ministries of Education, advocacy organizations, foundations and university partners to expand the use of effective project based learning. This work is global in scope, and BIE has conducted professional development workshops in the United States, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore and South Africa.

In Project Based Learning (PBL), students go through an extended process of inquiry in response to a complex question, problem, or challenge. While allowing for some degree of student “voice and choice,” rigorous projects are carefully planned, managed, and assessed to help students learn key academic content, practice 21st Century Skills (such as collaboration, communication & critical thinking), and create high- quality, authentic products & presentations.

Rigorous and in-depth Project Based Learning:

• Is organized around an open-ended Driving Question or Challenge. These focus students’ work and deepen their learning by centering on significant issues, debates, questions and/ or problems.
• Creates a need to know essential content and skills. Typical projects (and most instruction) begin by presenting students with knowledge and concepts and then, once learned, give them the opportunity to apply them. PBL begins with the vision of an end product or presentation which requires learning specific knowledge and concepts, thus creating a context and reason to learn and understand the information and concepts.
• Requires inquiry to learn and/or create something new. Not all learning has to be based on inquiry, but some should. And this inquiry should lead students to construct something new – an idea, an interpretation, a new way of displaying what they have learned.
• Requires critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and various forms of communication. Students need to do much more than remember information— they need to use higher- order thinking skills. They also have to learn to work as a team and contribute to a group effort. They must listen to others and make their own ideas clear when speaking, be able to read a variety of material, write or otherwise express themselves in various modes, and make effective presentations. These skills, competencies and habits of mind are often known as “21st Century Skills.”
• Allows some degree of student voice and choice. Students learn to work independently and take responsibility when they are asked to make choices. The opportunity to make choices, and to express their learning in their own voice, also helps to increase students’ educational engagement.
• Incorporates feedback and revision. Students use peer critique to improve their work to create higher quality products.
• Results in a publicly presented product or performance. What you know is demonstrated by what you do, and what you do must be open to public scrutiny and critique.

If we are serious about reaching 21st Century educational goals, PBL must be at the center of 21st Century instruction. The project contains and frames the curriculum, which differs from the short “project” or activity added onto traditional instruction. PBL is, “The Main Course, not Dessert.”

Why use PBL?
Students gain a deeper understanding of the concepts and standards at the heart of a project. ! Projects also build vital workplace skills and lifelong habits of learning. Projects can allow students to address community issues, explore careers, interact with adult mentors, use technology, and present their work to audiences beyond the classroom. PBL can motivate students who might otherwise find school boring or meaningless.

How is PBL used?
Some teachers use PBL extensively as their primary curriculum organizer and instructional method. Others use PBL occasionally during a school year. Projects vary in length, from several days to several weeks or even a semester. PBL can be effective at all grade levels and subjects, and in career/technical education, afterschool and alternative programs.
—P.B.L.

For these reasons and more in 2012 we created our printing division to provide print solutions for our customers because “PRINT is Not Deadweight for Your Company.” Print is not only used for advertising in newspapers and magazines but in business we use it for:


Visit peaceandharmonyprint.com for all your printing needs. 

Pick 2 to 5 of these methods, set goals and let us help you improve your business. Contact: Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. (312) 379-9828

“Invest in the community that invests in you.” —  A truly profound statement. For SSN Small Business & Nonprofit Development Group (SBND) this mantra represents the challenge which they put in front of Chicago businesses and citizens. How large or small businesses endear themselves to the community in which they do business is important to the success of their business and sustainability of the surrounding community. Positive change resonates when the entire community can feel and see the impact. Manicured lawns, streets, highways and pathways, organized activities for youth, packed trains with people traveling to and from work, jobs for young people, board ups that have transitioned into homes, police presence, quality schools, mom and pop stores as well as thriving strip malls are all signs of community stability. These are the things that any business or resident will be proud to show off.

Unfortunately, many neighborhoods have struggled financially simply because dollars don’t change hands in the community, presenting an insidious cycle of economic decline. Dollars that are exported outside of the community only fuels depression within those neighborhoods that the currencies are being exporting from, and expanding the communities in which the money is being spent.

Think of it like this, when local banks such as Citibank and Hyde Park Bank support agencies like SBND (and they do) those banks are suddenly a part of the prosperity and growth within communities. They are recognized as ambassadors of change. The people in the community either experienced positive change or can provide firsthand accounts of the progress. The enlightenment and enrichment of entrepreneurs translates into a community of greatness. It translates to jobs, prosperity, support, favor of supporting companies and of course endless opportunities.

Just in case you are not familiar with SBND. SBND is an extension of Strategic Solutions Network, Inc. (SSN), a small management consulting firm that created SSN Small Business and Nonprofit Development Group (SBND) to improve its impact in providing a laser-focus on self-employment and job opportunities.

SBND provides support in the form of mentorship, strategy, financial sourcing for entrepreneurs, small and micro businesses find the answer to the question, “What are the characteristics of successful business leaders in an economy that is fighting to maintain its competitive edge?” SBND believes it’s their relentless drive to accomplish goals and tenacious ability to capitalize on opportunities missed by others.

⁽¹⁾ “In consideration of this belief, SBND recently created a community enterprise platform of opportunities to expand business markets and cultivate new customers. Through multiple marketing outlets, those who partner with SBND will increase their chances to gain positive publicity for contributing to the economic turnaround in communities most affected by the recession. More specifically, SBND is focused on driving the economy forward with the creation of more self-employment opportunities, and by increasing the number of new legal enterprises, jobs, and tax revenues in Illinois, Cook County and Chicago neighborhoods.”

The agency founded by Nita Marchant has received great favor from Governor Pat Quinn, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, President of Cook County Board of Commissioners Toni Prekwinkle and others in support of SBND’s outstanding initiative. The City of Chicago believes that “small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the glue that holds communities together.”

⁽²⁾ As I go back to the opening statement, “Invest in the community that invests in you.” This is what many of our small businesses do for this country and the impact is significant. Just how important are small businesses to the U.S. economy?
⁽³⁾ Small firms:

• Represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms. 
• Employ half of all private sector employees.
• Pay 44 percent of total U.S. private payroll.
• Generated 65 percent of net new jobs over the past 17 years.
• Create more than half of the nonfarm private GDP.
• Hire 43 percent of high tech workers (scientists, engineers, computer programmers, and others).
• Are 52 percent home-based and 2 percent franchises.
• Made up 97.5 percent of all identified exporters and produced 31 percent of export value in FY 2008.
• Produce 13 times more patents per employee than large patenting firms.

Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. applauds SBND for its work with small businesses and helping them to build foundations that will greatly improve our economy.

Whether you are a local business who would like to invest in the community that invests in you or an entrepreneur seeking services, for more information visit their website:
www.ssncandoit.com or www.sbnd-bizhelp.com or email Nita Marchant at email sbnd@ssncandoit.com.

________________________
^(1,2) Pulled from Introduction SSN Small Business & Nonprofit Development Group (SBND)
⁽³⁾ Source: U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Census Bureau and Intl. Trade Admin.; Advocacy-funded research by Kathryn Kobe, 2007 (www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs299.pdf) and CHI Research, 2003 (www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs225.pdf);U.S. Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

For one week each October, Chicago Ideas Week (CIW) brings together some of the world’s most outstanding speakers to present their ideas and ignite the innovations of tomorrow at 80+ sessions across the City of Chicago. Chicago Ideas Week is an asset that belongs uniquely to Chicago, and reflects our great city in its inclusiveness, diversity and excellence of intellectual discourse. It is about the sharing of ideas, sparking action and inspiring change to positively impact our world.

People who come to CIW are artists, engineers, technologists, inventors, scientists, musicians, economists, explorers—and, well…just innately passionate. It is a platform that continues to be shaped by the people, organizations and institutions that care about the future of Chicago as well as communities around the globe. CIW is an excellent platform to generate ideas. No matter what your interest; technology, education, green initiatives, bio-technology and more; this week long event will engage you. And the networking opportunities are endless!

We know many fantastic entrepreneurs and two of them will be presenting during Chicago Ideas Week, Sheila Moss-Brown and Dr. Joseph F. West. Join Brown and West as they speak on Manifesting Ideas. Hear them share their stories, triumphs, challenges and lessons. Shelia Brown is the founder of the board game Authenticity. Dr. West is an Epidemiologist, Playwright and author of the book Trod the Stony Road.

Destiny Speakers Bureau and International House Global Voices Program are presenting Manifesting Ideas, which will be held on Thursday, Oct. 11th at The University of Chicago Assembly Hall.

For more information about the about Manifesting Ideas and other presentations visit: http://chicagoideas.com

Chicago Ideas Week beginsMonday, October 8, 2012 – Sunday, October 14, 2012

Peace & Harmony Solutions will be attending.
We look forward to seeing you there.

There is still time to register for the Business Entrepreneur Expo.

• Over 3,000 Attendees
  
• Networking opportunities
• 135 Exhibitors
• Over 30 Free Expert Workshop Sessions
• Networking opportunities

If Your Business Has 100 Or Fewer Employees, Don’t Miss Chicago’s Premier Networking Day!

Business Entrepreneur Expo
Friday, October 5th, 2012
8:30 A.M. until 3:30 P.M.
UIC Forum
Free Admission
Self-Registration At: www.chicagocitytreasurer.com

Upon arriving at the UIC FORUM let the on-site Expo researchers know that you heard about the conference from Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. Print the attached flyer with map included for your convenience.

Peace & Harmony Solutions will be attending.
We look forward to seeing you there.

In any business or nonprofit there are only two departments that create revenue, MARKETING and SALES/DEVELOPMENT. All other activities contribute only to expenses. A recent survey showed that 87% of executives believe marketing & sales/development are the most pivotal in terms of accelerating growth for a company.

Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. not only provides business consulting from a marketing/strategic business perspective; we also help business owners and nonprofits via “Marketing Coaching.” This type of coaching helps business owners identify the dangers they face through our unique strategic planning process. In addition, through scheduled coaching sessions, we’ll empower you with tactical strategies, awareness, education and accountability required to achieve the results you’re looking for in your business.

So, what is Marketing Coaching?

Marketing coaching is simply: Your mentors. Your counselors. Your personal board of directors.

Our goal is to personally connect with all companies, nonprofits and entrepreneurs no matter how large or small the budget. Our coaching techniques enable us to embrace clients who have minimal marketing budgets but strong business aptitude. Instead of only providing services that meet their budget, which more often than not would not help them achieve their desired goal; we also offer coaching to empower our clients personally so they can impact their sustainability, increase growth potential and enhance brand awareness for their business.

Our coaching arrangements accommodate clients that have numerous expectations and marketing needs but a very finite budget. We can assess the tasks and assume roles that can only be handled by marketing, strategic business and print professionals. In addition, we can coach the business owner through tasks that can be managed by the business owner and/or staff.

More often than not, business owners will find that teaming with their internal staff to manage some of the tasks will reveal underlined skills of their employees. A great example is that you may need regular social media updates for vehicles like Facebook or Twitter created for your business. In expressing this to your staff you may find someone who is social media savvy that can generate the updates for your business.

Furthermore, we advise on certain aspects of your marketing/business plan and manage others.  For instance, we can create an email template for you, help you craft the message and then you can be responsible for distributing the email blast.  In addition, through the coaching process and based upon your budget we help you determine the following:

What portion of the process you will own

What portion of the process we will own

What portion of the process we will collaborate on jointly

Our coaching empowers our clients personally so they can impact their sustainability, increase growth potential and enhance brand awareness for their business. We are compensated for the value we deliver to our clients both from a project and coaching perspective. We provide business owners with TACTICAL STRATEGIES, AWARENESS, EDUCATION and ACCOUNTABILITY through scheduled coaching sessions to help them implement proven marketing and business strategies.

Below we describe our Marketing Coaching Services and how your business can benefit from our coaching sessions.

What does this mean for you?

The coaching process includes but is not limited to the following:

• Education & Accountability
• Develop a Communications Calendar
• Lead Generation
• Brand Awareness
• Action Items
• Track Results: Successes, Milestones and Benchmarks
• Talent
• Next Steps
• Growth & Sustainability

Be creative – work together with neighboring business

Consider combining your dollars if you are financially challenged by limited resources.  Often strip malls and neighboring businesses can work together to develop awareness campaigns, which they all contribute to equally.

Let us help you get the best out of your marketing dollars.

We have an online system in place to provide you with something as simple as business cards or as elaborate as the development of an integrated marketing campaign. Contact us today so we can help you maneuver effectively through the upcoming holiday season. Our communications campaigns will assist with attracting your target audience or helping you set your sites on a new target audience.

Consider one-time coaching or yearly coaching. Let Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. guide you on developing a plan. Email us today at info@peaceandharmonysolutions.com for your free consultation to see if our marketing coaching technique is right for your business.

Incoming search terms:

• activities of personal board of directors

You’re at one of those esteemed cocktail parties or networking events where you have to work the room. You have to make a dynamite impression within a short span of time. Somewhere following that great elevator pitch that you just gave comes the opportunity to exchange contact information, usually a business card to follow-up with an appointment, etc.

Just like a weak handshake can leave a bad impression, so too can a poorly designed, flimsy business card.

If you’re wrapping up a brief or lengthy communication, you want your business card to reinforce some of what you discussed in that communication. In the case where the only thing you can do is to share your card; then you want the card to entice someone to contact you for additional information.

Think of your business card as your calling card for future opportunities. It should reflect the personality of your business, an extension of your brand.

Below is a list of the most common elements for business cards.

The layout of your card should reflect the basic principles of design. If those principles need to be broken, let a professional designer do it; someone that has a flair for going against the grain creatively and successfully.

Other options to consider:

We recommend an integrated marketing strategy that connects All of your marketing efforts, through All of your marketing materials, which reflect your unique brand. Your business card/calling card is one of many marketing materials.

A professional designer and marketing team can help you develop a color palette. The color palette is a designer tool for creating color combinations that work well together. Good web designers choose color carefully to serve a strategic purpose for their respective piece.

Finally, if your budget will allow for printing, on both the front and back sides of your card, take advantage of the back side and expand your message.

For more information contact Peace & Harmony Solutions, Inc. Marketing or Print Division.