3-22-12 Facilitating a productive meeting

As a professional facilitator, it drives me crazy to be a participant in a poorly planned and facilitated meeting.  Here is what I expect when I go to a meeting:

• There are clear goals for what the meeting is intended to accomplish;
• There is a simple agenda that has been created and is followed as much as possible; some deviations may occur as long as these contribute to the goals of the meeting;
• The meeting is set for no more than an hour and a half;
• The leader of the meeting keeps everyone focused on the agenda and assures that no single voice dominates;

I am a great believer in the value of creating small group discussions where people are asked to laundry-list ideas, concerns or responses to some stated questions.  Small groups make it easier for each participant to share.  Allowing people to prioritize by selecting three to five of the listed items is an excellent way to see the consensus views. 

My overall goal is to have everyone leave a meeting smiling and feeling confident and comfortable that they were able to share their responses and hear what others had to say.

3-15-12, The basis for a good story

One of the articles I wrote for the Whidbey Island Life Examiner, about John Auburn and his business, J.W. Desserts was picked up by our local newspaper, the South Whidbey Record, and a shortened version was published on March 14, 2012.

I think this story is a good example of going beyond a simple description of a successful business (J.W. Desserts of Clinton) and providing an expanded story about John Auburn's contribution to his local community and to other business owners seeking support.

Simply describing a business does not necessarily make interesting reading, but a deeper description of the human interest element makes it easier for the reader to identify with the story.

3-6-12 The first rule in marketing is people need to know who you are...

One of the hats I wear on Whidbey is as a Board member of the Whidbey Children’s Theater.  I have been able to use my facilitation skills to conduct two Board Retreats, and recently I used some of my marketing skills to encourage local businesses to donate products or services to our fund-raising auction. 

Besides asking for the donations, I provided suggestions and ideas for ways in which the donations would also be marketing tools for the donors.  For example, a local winery – Spoiled Dog Winery, in Langley -  not only donated a bottle of their award-winning Pinot Noir, but I suggested they provide a tour of their vineyards (where they grow most of the grapes used in their wines) and the winery.  This item was used in the live auction and people were very enthusiastic with their bids.  While the owners had suggested the value of their donation was $125, the winning bid was $300, and many of those at the auction learned about Spoiled Dog Wines.

The first rule of marketing is that people have to know who you are and what you’re selling.  Donating to a local non-profit can be an excellent way to help in your community while building awareness of your business.

Welcome to Carolyn's Blog

Hello and welcome to my new website.  For most of my professional life, I have been identified as a marketing research and community involvement consultant.  For most of my professional career, I was known as Carolyn Browne and my business name was Carolyn Browne Associates.

Then, in 2002, I married Rich Tamler; and in 2006, we moved to Whidbey Island.  Most of the people who know me on Whidbey know me as Carolyn Tamler.

So, I thought it was about time to eliminate my old websites (“Carolyn Browne Associates” and “Envision Your Future.biz”) into this new website.  It combines my experience and abilities as a marketing research professional with the facilitation and writing that have become more of my identity on Whidbey Island.

My passion is to help people plan the marketing of their business and to bring their ideas into focus.  Nothing pleases me more than to know that a survey I conducted, or a group meeting I facilitated, or an article I wrote, was productive and helped those in charge make decisions that were truly wise and effective.

I hope to continue to be known as someone who can help others make a difference in the world.  If you think I may be able to help you, please email or call me.  Simply talking through an idea or a concern can be extremely productive.

Update on Monday, February 27, 2012 at 12:18AM by Carolyn Tamler

Thanks to the creator of this website.

Many thanks to Kim Tinuviel (www.tinuvielcreative.com) for providing the creative energy and design to combine my two old websites into this new one that provide a much better description of my current business life and business interests on Whidbey Island.