Watch this exclusive interview with Alfred Edmond Jr. The SVP of Black Enterprise. I asked him a series of questions via our Skype interview and the answers, if applied can help boost your business for greater success.
I need each reader to place a brief comment based on the interview. Your comments count towards my trip to the Black Enterprise Entrepreneur Conference. I will select one lucky individual to attend an all-expense paid trip to the 2012 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference held in Chicago (May 23-26).
Please comment below and hit the share button. Sharing is caring!
Written by : Lucinda Cross
I’m all about the collaborating, it’s another form of support to me. Mr. Alfred Edmond Jr. mentioned the benefit of social networking and Pooka Pure & Simple; I read the article and I agree that Ms. Dawn Fitch did a great job with her social networking.
Supporting minority businesses was also mentioned and I believe in that too, in fact, just this morning I posted in
Lucinda, you were on point with the questions; very specific, great job!
Enjoyed the interview.
Larie
Wow, ok this was a great question and awesome answer. I love the fact that Alfred says that women are natural at collaborating and social media. He’s making some strong points that I know help women in expanding the brand. Now that we know this (coming from a male expert in business) how can we stop limiting our selves. If men see that we are powerful in collaboration and social media marketing, we need to leverage this. How can we change the mindset??
LOVE Dawn and the Pookas!!!
Lucinda,
You asked great questions!
Listen, Respond & Serve! I love it! I do think that is the way to go.
Be Politically engaged and really do business with large corporations.
Do Business!! Are you really buying from other businesses like you?
Never stop being an entrepreneur — constantly evolve.
Corporations are really positioning themselves to do business with small and minority owned businesses. Are you ready?
Cathy
Lucinda, this interview was exceptional! I appreciate all the questions and answers.
They were strategically planned to help the smallest entrepreneur to think BIG!
Moreover, I am leaving with key concepts regarding, how to market to please the consumer; women entrepreneurs are in abundance in my family, a family heritage/biz is something my family and I are working on as I type; being an entrepreneur is not just focusing on one biz when it flops but I am still an enterprenuer; supporting other small businesses; getting my products and services out to big corporations and so much much more were captured in this short interview!
I appreciate the long lasting advice that will keep me #activated!
Thank you and keep up the great work.
Great interview Lucinda! This is a good resource to refer to again and again. Mr. Edmond Jr. is correct about getting out of our comfort zone and networking with others in different industries.
Great reminders:
New media market: Listen, Respond and Serve
Don’t Just Talk Business. Do Business.
This is great information and if followed through women will have this entrepreneurial world on lock.
Great interview and I am interested in building a legacy for my family similar to Mr. Edmonds. Good interview and great quality.
I plan on attending the conference with a new mindset. Collaborations and Connections.
Thanks again for giving us resorces that will bless us and assistant us as women business owners. This interview is another reflection of the caliber of connection you make. Mr. Edmon spoke a word directly to me regarding getting out of the comfort zone.
Did he say?…..LOOK AT YOUR OWN BUSINESS and SEE where you need to Tight’n it UP? Did I look to you for just this VERY thing?…..YEAH!! You and I rocked it!! Now, after the past 6 months…It’s time to review it and Tight’n it up a bit MORE!!! What Mr. Edmond said confirms for me; One must continue to review your business OFTEN to ensure your reflecting the BEST of what you have/do!! GREAT RESOURCES!!
Listen, Respond and Serve !! Great info for leveraging your business. This is what you are able to do in serving us with your mission and vision and sharing this amazing information with us.
Thank you for this amazing interview and the greater insight that you brought to entrepreneurs from Mr. Edmond.
There were a lot of valid points made during the interview. I particularly liked the idea of “playing to certain strengths and collaborate to create a win-win situation”. As a woman entrepreneur, I recognize that I cannot do or know everything there is to make my business successful. Therefore, collaborating with others can assist me in growing my business while at the same time assisting the individuals I connect with.
Another valid response Mr. Edmond mentioned was to “listen, respond, and serve.” One of the keys to success is to listen to what is and is not being said. I often say takes what serves you a purpose and toss the rest in the garbage.
Thank you for asking all the rights questions that will not only assist me but other women who are striving to run a successful business.
Your poise during the technical situation is commendable. You did not miss a beat. Your questions were very well thought out. The interview was very enlightening when he gave the point that all businesses are not to last; however, if you are an entrepreneur you continue to be an entrepreneur.
The question and answer relating to how a small or minority business can build a relationship were so relevant; as was the one related to how does a small or minority business have an opportunity to participate in a round-table discussion with BE’s 100.
I concur with all the comments that preceded this posting. I am inspired, impressed and impressed upon by this endeavor. I am honored that you allowed others to share in it. You culminated one of the messages in the interview: “Don’t just talk about it: Be about it” (paraphrased). Ultimately, you are modeling how you bring people together to get things done.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
This was a GREAT interview! The information was timely. We really have to put ourselves into position and walk forward. I loved the comment on collaborating with each other. This is something that I have recently started doing. When you find the right collaboration; both businesses go very far. Uplifting one another to greatness.
I didn’t realize that there were so many successful entrepreneurs willing to help other up and coming businesses. It would be awesome to sit at a round table among top 100 BE’s to network and learn.
The biggest point that I will always strive for is to make each client/customer feel: Listened to
Responded to
and Served
That is powerful and exactely what I want to deliver to all that I do business with.
Lucinda thank you so much for sharing this interview with all of us and asking the right questions. I’m sure each one of us have taken 1 or more of the answers and are ready to put it to use.
I pray you get to your round table and one day I will be right there with you.
Until we hug again,
Kimberly Morgan
What an awesome interview, Lucinda!! Great questions were ask and even greater answers were given. As a newbie entrepreneur it is always great and refreshing to hear advice and insight from a industry leader, especially being that I am a woman and a minority. This interview as filled with tons of priceless information. What stuck out for me was that women and minority entrepreneurs are the fastest growing but his point was that how to sustain that through knowing your strengths, collaboration, using social media. I love the question on how to create multi-generational wealth!! Listen, Respond, and Serve was a great reminder for me as my role in doing business and fulfilling the needs of my target market. I truly enjoyed this interview. Thank you for sharing!!
Very good points. Love the interactions and frankness. Refreshing.
I enjoyed listening to the interview. Some of the statements that stood out to me was: 1) “use your social media networking to enhance your face to face networking (very profound). 2) listen, respond and serve. I will definitely be implementing those tactics. Thank you for sharing.
I love that you asked about creating a family biz. Awesome question.
I enjoy listening to Mr. Edmond, also, because he knows his stuff.
I hadn’t heard of anyone comparing the “lifestyle biz” to the family-oriented biz until now.
Also love that you asked him about growth industries … and like how he addressed the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone. I think this is so important for me to think about more … and it lines up with what you’ve been teaching us, too, Lucinda.
I could go on, but I won’t. This was good.
Thanks!
It’s all about the collaberative effort! So true… Love this! Insightful…
Great interview Lucinda! Great information shared and I loved the distinction Alfred made of traditional marketing (Broadcast – Promote – Sell) compared to today’s marketing (Listen – Respond – Serve). I am also a huge fan of collaboration and feel it is critical to the ongoing success of any entrepreneur. All in all this was a very informative interview with great points that we should all continue or begin to implement.
Lucinda, awesome interview with straight forward questions. I believe as a woman we all can use a New Mindset. I’m encourage us all not to just hear, but be doers! Women we have POWER.. Let’s Activate.. as our Activator inspires us..
Lucinda very good interview.. We too have similar issues in the UK. Would love to attend the conference will pay my own air fare.. LOL But getting in there would be truly awesome. See what we can learn from our brothers and sisters across the pond! Women are generally less ego driven and better more heartfelt communicators than men. However we sometimes lack that confidence and self esteem necessary to really drive a business. IN spite of all that we are really forging ahead in the UK and for various reasons such as lack of good opportunities in the job market and frustrations with lack of progression in careers. Many women and men are creating their own employment and I have been at the forefront of that http://www.ampod.co.uk and http://www.enterprise4women.biz. This interview is inspirational
Thank you
Yvonne x