What you may not know is that I'm also a research geek, having done market research for The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones, and many small businesses and nonprofits. It's rare that I can combine both passions into one project but Ventureneer, in collaboration with Caliber just fielded a survey about social media habits and best practices among nonprofits.

It's a Theme: Collaborate!

by Geri Stengel on Jun 18, 2010 - 4:10pm

#siex10 Best Practice Lessons Learned Motivated by Purpose SIEX10 Social Impact Exchange Conference

Throughout the Social Impact Exchange Conference, the recurring theme is "collaboration." A panel facilitated by Matthew Nash, Duke University, focused on that very subject, gave me much food for thought.

Small Business Networks Help Each Other and Their Communities

by Geri Stengel on Feb 23, 2010 - 9:00am

BALLE Best Practice Motivated by Purpose Small Business small business network small business online community small business support social entrepreneurs triple bottom line

The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) is a great example of what you, through survey responses, and I have been saying for a long time: Peer support is a valuable asset to small business owners and social entrepreneurs.

Social Enterprises: Taking a Well Traveled Road versus Blazing a New Trail

by Geri Stengel on Nov 9, 2009 - 2:59pm

Best Practice social enterprise social enterprises social entrepreneur social entrepreneurs social entrepreneurship

Last week, I attended the 6^th Annual Conference of Social Entrepreneurs at NYU Stern’s Berkley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. My big take away: Sometimes the past provides a road map for the future and sometimes you need to blaze a new trail.

Report Shows Nonprofit Leaders How to Make the Most of Financial Infrastructure and Funds

by Geri Stengel on Oct 13, 2009 - 10:23am

Best Practice Business Incubators nonprofit best practices nonprofit financial health nonprofit fiscal management nonprofit leader

Nonprofit leaders can improve the effectiveness and reliability of fiscal management using tips and examples in a new report, Maximizing Nonprofit Resources in a Challenging Economy, which is based on a survey conducted by Fiscal Management Associates and ERE LLP at the end of 2008.

Branding Basics for Social Enterprises

by Guest Blogger on Jul 30, 2009 - 11:42am

Best Practice branding components of a sussessful brand Howard Levy Red Rooster Group social enterprises your brand

By Howard Levy

So you’re starting a social enterprise or have one and want to know how to build or strengthen your brand. Well, what is a brand? Is it advertising, your spokesperson, a logo?

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Surveys Are a Great Marketing Tool: Ten Tips for Doing It Yourself

by Geri Stengel on Jul 14, 2009 - 11:34am

Best Practice market research online surveys print surveys response rate sample survey telephone surveys

With the right survey, you can gain interesting insights into a market. For nearly 30 years, I've conducted mail, online and telephone surveys for organizations such as The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones, MasterCard, Mathew Bender, the New York City Chapter of NAWBO and Governance Matters. For the first time I’m putting my skills to use, conducting a survey for my own company, Ventureneer.

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Go With the Flow: “Good Business” Inspiration for Our Times

by Geri Stengel on Jun 25, 2009 - 11:30am

and the Making of Meaning Best Practice Flow Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience Good Business: Leadership Mihaly Csikszentmihaly Patagonia Yvon Chouinard

Good Business: Leadership, Flow, and the Making of Meaning by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is not a new book, but its message is timeless: businesses can be more than just about making money. This resonated with me and I thought it might for you.

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Anatomy of a Successful RFP

by Guest Blogger on Jun 19, 2009 - 12:50pm

Analysis Best Practice branding growth strategies How To marketing Nonprofit request for proposal RFP Small Business small businesses Social Enterprise technology

By Howard Adam Levy

Looking to redesign your website or upgrade your agency’s branding and putting out a Request for Proposals (RFP)? Make sure you get the best consultant you can by making your RFP the best it can be. Consider this list of what to include gleaned from our 17 years of responding to RFPs.

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Innovate or Go the Way of the Dinosaur

by Geri Stengel on Jun 18, 2009 - 11:49am

Best Practice innovation Nonprofit nonprofit Small Business small business Social Enterprise social enterprise

At this point, you’ve most likely gotten past being frozen by the depth and breadth of the recession. You’ve cut your budgets and staff to the bone and are lean and mean. If you weren’t aggressive about your business before, you are now. You have been in survival mode and congratulations...you made it.