Welcome to #MakerBizChat, the only weekly chat on Instagram! #MakerBizChat is a peer-to-peer networking and mentoring event where Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs come together to learn, share, grow, and meet other like-minded small business owners. #MakerBizChat takes place on Wednesdays from 8-8:30pm ET, and all you need to participate is your mobile phone open to @IndieBusiness on Instagram.
Every Wednesday for thirty minutes starting at 8pm ET, we will interview a guest with experience and expertise in an area of critical importance to small business owners. The questions flow from the @IndieBusiness Instagram account, and are posed in an eye-catching graphic featuring a picture of our guest. The guest types their numbered answers to the question in the comments under the graphic. Other Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs double tap the graphic, tag their friends, and join the conversation by sharing their experiences, comments and questions using the #MakerBizChat hash tag. It's that easy. More details are below!
How #MakerBizChat Works
To participate, the first thing you need is an Instragram account. To open one, log onto Instgram with your mobile phone. Click “Sign Up”and follow the prompts. (If you are a small business owner, it's best to choose our brand name as your Instagram handle.) Edit your profile to include a picture, a bio, and a link to your website.
Once you have an account, use the magnifying glass search tool in the bottom navigation to search for @indiebusiness, and click “follow” to follow our posts there.
At 8pm ET on Wednesday, join us at @indiebusiness for the world's only Instagram chat — #MakerBizChat! You can learn from our guest, share your own experiences and questions, and meet new and exciting people to connect and collaborate with.
In the last few minutes of every #MakerBizChat, all participants are invited to share a blurb about their business and what they have to offer.
Here are few examples of how #MakerBizChat looks on Instagram:
Our chat with Little Farm Media about using Instagram to tell your brand story
Our chat with me about the Personal Care Products Safety Act of 2015
Note that there can be over 100 comments during a chat, so there is no shortage of great questions, ideas and strategies flying around. The other things you'll note is that is is easier to participate in #MakerBizChat from your mobile device because Instagram seems to cause the conversation to show up better on a mobile device than on a laptop.
How to be a Guest on #MakerBizChat
To apply to be a guest on #MakerBizChat, complete and submit this form.
We would love to have you as a guest to share your experience and expertise in an area of critical importance to small business owners on #MakerBizChat. Areas of special interest include: social media, public relations, online marketing, blogging, product photography, networking and relationship building, increasing sales, personal development, branding, graphic design, and just about anything you know that could help other Makers be successful.
You do not have to be an “expert,” just someone who has excelled in a particular area of business, and a willingness to share what you have learned with others.
Our goal not so much to have “experts” share as it is to have other like-minded and similarly situated small business owners share. The peer-to-peer learning experience is amazing, and #MakerBizChat makes it fun and convenient for you to learn wherever you are in your busy life.
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Donna Maria, Indie Business Network
How Can I Get The Information if I Arrive Late or Cannot Attend #MakerBizChat Live?
On the Thursday following #MakerBizChat, we will post a summary here at the blog.
You can also find the posts and discussion at @IndieBusiness on Instagram.
See You On MakerBizChat!!
Cannot wait to see you this Wednesday at 8pm ET on #MakerBizChat!
