#CovTweetUp

Sacrifice is too strong a word, but after 2 years we have had to put on hold our social life, but I think I may have pushed it a little too far this time by treating Amanda for her Birthday by taking her to a Coventry networking event #CovTweetup. Forever and a day this is going to be used to win arguments… not that she needs help, we both agreed the event was a great way to boost our profile within the city.

When you think of Coventry, affluence does not first spring to mind, but I have a soft spot for this city due to family links, going to the University (you could not tell by my grammar!), my wife being from here and where I live and have set up my business.

I believe Coventry has a lot to offer productively and financially too. Believing though and having any tangible rewards are two different things, but maybe #CovTweetup was the first step into tapping into potential. This is in comparison to the last two years, which has seen us choose a lot of local suppliers wherever possible, but has just seen us work in Coventry on only a handful of occasions.

 

Having, like I expect many others, hoped that someone would take the baton and lead from the front I heard about #CovTweetUp only a few weeks ago. It was only 2 weeks later did I realised it clashed with Amanda’s Birthday! Set up by Sally Mahers of the Intelligent VA Company championing this great cause.

From afar I have been made aware of #WarwickTweetUp campaigns that bring local businesses together and empower them via the use of social media, like my worst nightmare, Twitter. Could this happen on a larger scale in Coventry? Could they help social media incompetents like me? ….

 

Now after a few days to digest #CovTweetUp’s evening event, words that spring to mind about the event include inspiration, support and optimism.

The best thing about #CovTweetUp is it’s nice to know there are like-minded people trying to get on with their business and trying to make a living from it. Those that know its more than cooking a crepe on a griddle and are aware of the work done in the background, but at the same point enjoy what they do so are happy to put that time and effort into it.

So am I a social media pro now? Well not quite, but the experts including Todd from a Digital Marketing company behind the local #WarwickTweetUp have guided me onto the right path in how to use the likes of Twitter more effectively. Followers have immediately increased and that can only be a good thing for our brand presence, whilst I’m confident my SEO (Theres one acronym to look for!) will increase if I put their words of advice to good use.

It’s impossible to conclude the importance of my attendance and summarise what #CovTweetup is about as it will hopefully be something that I as a local businessman can take from, but also give something back in return and something that will snowball. For this is why I am going to post bi-monthly updates on my blog about CovTweetup for the foreseeable future.

As a CovTweetup member/supporter I would be really interested in fellow local businessmen/ businesswomen on their thoughts. How to take it forward? How we can help each other out etc. This will also show me that some people are listening to my ramblings. J