An engineer, an editor, and a teacher go into a bar - make that a coffee shop - and the barista says, "What'll you have?" Their answer: "Art of place."

The engineer: Mike Abbott, chairman of the New River Writers Project. The editor: Chris Winston, vice chairman. The teacher: Jeanine Maddox, secretary.  These three founding members of the New River Writers Project of Virginia join Molly Morikawa Selznick, Donna Alvis Banks, and Michael J. Garvin to make up the rest of the board.  Their vision: To become the region's leading promoter of "art of place."

According to Mike Abbott, the goal is to “improve awareness of our shared culture, strengthen our educational system, and build communities within this region we call home.”

Inspired by the success of the Hub City Writers Project in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the New River Writers Project strives to build a vibrant, active community of writers, create educational outreach programs to engage youth in reading and writing, and to publish works by local writers. The first group publishing project is slated for 2010 and will be the “New River Anthology, Volume I,” a collection of personal essays and memoirs written by established authors influenced or inspired by life in the region.

Their first event will be a "Writers 'focus' group," open to writers of any genre, at Easy Chair Coffee Shop, located at University Mall in Blacksburg, Virginia, on Monday, August 3, 2009 at 7:30 pm.

According to the New River Writers Project Facebook page, “We are looking for area writers of fiction and nonfiction, poetry and prose, to gather for a few minutes to discuss what they are looking for in a local writers group.”  

“We look forward to the cross pollination of ideas, between genres of literary arts, and between backgrounds of the people involved,” Abbot said.

***

Z. Kelly Queijo writes about business and technology, people and their passions.  She is a frequent contributor to Handshake 2.0. You're invited to follow her on Twitter at @zkellyq.

Handshake 2.0 brings you edition #36 of Connecting People in the RNR with Stuart Mease.

Stuart Mease describes nine reasons to live in the RNR - the Roanoke and New River Valleys of Virginia.

In his video show, Stuart Mease refers to the Summer 2009 issue of Verve from Carilion Clinic and Moving to the Area from the NewVa Corridor Technology Council, the NCTC.

Stuart Mease was a finalist for the NCTC NewVa Leadership Award 2009.

Stuart Mease writes the blog Connecting People.  You can connect with Stuart in myriad ways both off-line and online, including on Twitter @stuartmease.  Stuart Mease is an organizer of the Roanoke Creative Communities Leadership Project (CCLP) in Virginia.  You can follow the program on Twitter @roanokecreative.  You're invited to read more about Stuart Mease on Handshake 2.0.

Connecting People in the RNR
a video show by Stuart Mease for Handshake 2.0  

The opinions expressed by Stuart Mease or of those he interviews are solely their own and are not necessarily shared by Handshake 2.0 or its clients, sponsors, or advertisers.

Event coordinators, conference planners, and anyone involved in recruiting or managing speakers for an event know the importance of saying “thank you” to those generous souls willing to stand before an audience to entertain and inform.

How thanks are given to speakers can range from simple thank-you cards to more elaborate gifts. Heidi VanDerVoorn, conference planner and National Account Manager for Conference Direct, encourages giving regional gifts related to the business or location. Having organized an annual software conference for nearly a decade in Oregon, she favors sending gift baskets from local supplier Made in Oregon.  She recommends sending gifts to clients before they have their “big day.” “It lets them know that they are appreciated and that we are thinking of them.”

Michael Quonce, Public Relations & Advertising Manager for The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center and The Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center, concurs. “While not every conference, event or meeting will give amenities, it's always a gracious welcome to send...a gift.”

The Hotel Roanoke offers a guest room "Amenities" book featuring 15 packages and a widely popular customizable option with items that range from plush Steiff Teddy Bears, chocolates, gourmet lollipops, snacks, and wine, to books, commemorative spoons/mugs/ornaments, Hokie paraphernalia, complimentary movies and games. Michael notes a recent increase in bookings for in-room spa services that can include facials and massages.

The Inn at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg offers six pre-packaged amenity items as well as custom-made packages. The three top sellers include:

• The Around Towner, a snack arrangement with keepsake coffee mug and hotel sparkling water, sparkling apple cider, and red or white Virginia Tech labeled wine.
• All About Virginia, a collection of snacks and drinks produced in Virginia delivered in a basket shaped like the state of Virginia.
• The popular Go Hokies! Package designed for the sports enthusiast. It includes snacks, plus two souvenir pompoms, two Virginia Tech beverage tumblers and a 10-inch round metal beverage tub.

Having been both a weary traveler and a nervous conference speaker, finding truffles and liqueur along with a note from the association director waiting for me in my room was an uplifting surprise which, of course, now makes it my turn to say thank you.

***

Z. Kelly Queijo writes about business and technology, people and their passions.  She is a frequent contributor to Handshake 2.0. You're invited to follow her on Twitter at @zkellyq.

Connecting you through wine

The unspoken truth in business is this:  Your technical skills will get you hired, but your people skills determine your fate.  Quite simply, regardless of your adequate technical aptitude, poor personal skills can bring you down, while excellent people skills will likely get you promoted.

The Papio Merlot 2006 carries the technical qualities of a good Merlot - a medium bodied wine, with ample berry flavors. On a relational level, it has a soft mouth feel and a silky, relaxed style that elevates it above other similar California vintages.

Practice your people skills with friends and Papio Merlot.

***

Guest columnists Rik and Melissa Obiso, co-owners of Eclipse Winery, LLC, a new winery located in the New River Valley of Virginia, write Today's Eclipse, a weekly wine recommendation for Handshake 2.0.  Eclipse Winery, LLC plans to open to the public as early as 2012.  The Eclipse Winery story, Couple hope grapes will yield dream business was featured in The Roanoke Times.  You're invited to read all the Today's Eclipse recommendations, more about Eclipse Winery, and about Rik Obiso on Handshake 2.0.  You can follow Eclipse Winery on Twitter @eclipsewinery.

Henry Bass, President of Automation Creations, Inc., was deployed on Sunday, October 5, 2008 for a 13-month tour in Iraq.  Lisa Bass is his wife.  The Roanoke Times reported on his story on 10/3/08. 

Henry Bass writes Henry's Blog.

Automation Creations is on Twitter at @aciwebs.

"Love and work…work and love. That’s all there is."
- attributed to Sigmund Freud

On day one of Handshake 2.0’s second year, I am pondering Z. Kelly Queijo’s post, A Tree Grows in Blacksburg, and her contemplation of an entrepreneur’s determination, and the post by Jim Flowers stating, “It's not that I don't believe in the possibility of a four hour work week.  It's that I wouldn't want one."  Flowers quotes Jonathan Mead:  “Work is sacred.”

I was asked last night at Handshake 2.0’s anniversary celebration, “How has your company done so well in just one year?”

To me, the number one reason for the successful first year of Handshake 2.0 is context.

We operated in a context of expertise through the advisory network at VT KnowledgeWorks, the collegiality offered by Presidents’ Council, the collective expertise of a burgeoning local technology and entrepreneurship initiative, the financial resources of friends and family (Thanks, Mom and Dad!), and the individual resources of gifted people.  Writer Z. Kelly Queijo comes to mind.

“Yes, Anne, but what about you? How’d you do this?”

I consider myself an entrepreneur - I’ve started a high-growth company, not a lifestyle business - and I can attribute our development towards being a high impact company with “extraordinary revenue growth plus expanding employment” to the context in which the company was born and lives.

Me?  Yes, I am determined.  Yes, I’m probably a believer in work being sacred and in work and love being the essence of who I am and why I do what I do.

But if I had do identify my part? 

I show up.

Over and over and over again, I show up.

As I’ve mentioned previously, I do sprint triathlons and frequently come in near the end.  Why am I fourth in the standings - in our state in my age group - in rankings that weight consistency?  Because I keep showing up.

I know a guy who’s been retired for ten years and sets his alarm clock for 6:10 AM each day. Weekends, too. He shows up each day, early, for what work and love and life can offer.

I guess I do, too.

From Daryl Scott, Founder, President, CEO, Attaain, Inc.:

I hate to see business information going to waste.

Handshake 2.0 asked me what led to the development of Attaain Inc./AttaainCI.  I guess you could say I have a recurring habit of taking emerging technologies and applying them to business problems in need of a solution.

Prior to founding Attaain Inc., I applied a wide range of technology platforms to create a wide range of business solutions.

My underlying formula in all of these applications:

Latest computing platform + under-utilized data +
business need = unique business information solution

In a nutshell, my technology/application chronology goes something like this:

• 1976: TI-59 programmable calculator: statistical applications
• 1977-1979: TRS-80: Marketing applications
• 1980-1983: Apple II+/Apple IIe: Marketing applications
• 1984-1993: Macintosh/Windows: Sales/marketing/advertising and mapping/geographic information systems (GIS) applications
• 1993-1996: Apple Newton: applications for “mobile professionals”
• 1996-1998: Windows CE: general mobile computing business applications
• 1999-2001: Windows/Windows CE: client/server field force automation and data collection applications
• 2001-Present: Internet/Web Browser: business/company/market intelligence software-as-a-service (SaaS)

AttaainCI was born of the latest need arising from the intersection of emerging technologies, information and business. On the technology front, the growth of widespread high-speed internet connectivity combined with the explosion of business-related information available via the internet, plus the advent of the Software–as-a-Service (SaaS) business model created a perfect storm of opportunity in my mind.

The vast amount of strategic decision-making information now available via online sources can lead to a severe case of “information overload” when attempting to manually process and analyze all of this information in a timely and cost-effective manner. As a result, crucial company and market information often goes overlooked and under-utilized.

This led to the development of AttaainCI as a web-based framework (hosted on Rackspace servers, naturally!) for researching, analyzing and tracking this flow of real-time intelligence about companies, people and markets. Clients rely on these company and market insights to gain strategic advantage in their business development, sales prospecting, marketing/competitive intelligence and other key business activities.

So, substituting back into my time-tested formula above:

Internet/Web Browser + under-utilized real-time business intelligence + the need to gain cost-effective competitive advantage in business development/sales/marketing = AttaainCI

End of business information going to waste.

***

Attaain Inc. delivers “active intelligence for strategic advantage” with AttaainCI, the comprehensive web-based solution for researching, analyzing and real-time tracking of competitive business intelligence and market intelligence on key companies, people and markets. Attaain received the 2009 Innovation Award from the NewVa Corridor Technology Council.  Daryl Scott generously shares his knowledge and experience with Handshake 2.0. Feel free to read more about Attaain on Handshake 2.0.

***

Like what you read about tech companies in the Blacksburg, Virginia area?  Rackspace Email and Apps has openings for developers.

***

The Rackspace Tech Showcase is sponsored by Rackspace (R) Hosting.  Rackspace Email and Apps is a division of Rackspace located in Blacksburg, Virginia. 

About Rackspace
As the leader and specialist in hosting services, Rackspace(R) Hosting is changing the way businesses worldwide buy IT. Rackspace delivers computing-as-a-service, integrating the industry's best technologies into a flexible service offering, making computing more reliable and affordable. A trusted partner to companies of all sizes, Rackspace enables IT departments to be more effective. Rackspace is distinguished by its award-winning Fanatical Support(R), furthering the company's mission to be one of the world's greatest service companies. Rackspace is recognized as one of FORTUNE Magazine's 100 Best companies to work for in the US, ranking number 43 on the list. Rackspace's portfolio of hosted IT services includes managed hosting (www.rackspace.com), email hosting (www.rackspace.com/apps) and cloud hosting (www.mosso.com). For more information on Rackspace Hosting, please visit www.rackspace.com.

For one year of joy and excitement - from our launch on July 28, 2008, to today, July 28, 2009 - Handshake 2.0 gives grateful thanks to its clients, visitors, partners, supporters, advisors, writers, interns, commenters...O, the number of people who helped create something from nothing!  In the world of "It's still who you know," we are so glad to know you!  Thank you, thank you!

***

"I'm thrilled to be able to say 'Happy 1st Birthday' to Handshake 2.0!  What a novel concept - a business that takes the time to focus and extol the value of other local businesses in the New River Valley!  Everyone at Handshake 2.0 is focused night and day on that one central idea, and everyone in the New River Valley - not just the business community - is better for it.  A very enthusiastic high-five to the Handshake folks, and best wishes for many more to come!"
- Jeremy Hart, Coldwell Banker, Townside, NRVLiving.com

"I've been working with Handshake 2.0 for about five months.  I've know Anne Clelland for much longer and admired her drive and enthusiasm, but I did not relate what she did with social media and public relations to my business.  Later, over lunch one day we discussed my business and she offered, 'Let's just try HandShake 2.0 for a month or two for your business.' I'm glad I did.  I've made contacts in my industry I would not have made, there is more 'churn' in the market relative to our service, and our website traffic is up 14%.  Thanks H20!"
- Barry Welch, Internet Databases, FurnishWEB

"Handshake 2.0 has been like a partner to 88Owls and a lot of the PR we have received has been largely due to their passion for helping companies, their knowledge of social media, and their exceptional writing skill.  Handshake 2.0 is a stand out."
- Allan Tsang, 88Owls

"Where do I go to stay up-to-date on local and regional news? Handshake 2.0, of course! Congratulations on a truly successful year, Anne. I know I speak on behalf of many when I say you have branded Handshake 2.0 as THE GO-TO website showcasing the successes, talent and news of the region."
- Lindsey Eversole, VT KnowledgeWorks

"I do enjoy Handshake and promote the site to folks throughout the region as the place to go for the latest in technology blogs.  You are a welcome dynamo in our area."
- Sam English, CIE Partners

"Depending one whose statistics you look at, between 20% and 90% of businesses fail in the first year.  Wherever the actual number is, there’s no denying it is tough to survive the first year, and Handshake 2.0’s passing this mark is a testament to both the relevance of its content and the vision and persistence of its founder. The need for a thoughtful Web 2.0 presence is of growing importance in today’s marketplace, as customers and users demand more interaction and updated, useful information.  While helping its customers navigate this new world, Handshake 2.0 also manages to capture a timeless truth – that even in the Web 2.0 environment, it is the relationship that is of ultimate importance.  This is where Handshake 2.0 excels, and why it has succeeded."
- Ken Maready, Venture Counsel

"If not for Handshake2.0, I would never have met Tyson Daniel of LimbGear!"
- Wade Hammes, FITnoke, fiveFORTY Marketing and Design Group

"Congratulations on year one. You’re certainly a mover and 'shaker.'"
- Tom Field, Valley Business FRONT

"Anne's vision - every business blogs - has the potential to transform our community by creating a sticky online presence, while reinforcing the offline image of our area being the most wired small community in the U.S. Her site is an example of a hybrid media company equivalent to a local version of TechCrunch.com, a Chamber of Commerce, and the newspaper. She is our region's technology reporter and Handshake 2.0 is the community where it all comes together.”
- Stuart Mease, host of Connecting People in the RNR, the Handshake 2.0 video series

"In only a year, Handshake 2.0 has established itself as a first-class blog, ranked in the top 0.3% of blogs tracked by Technorati. In addition, Anne Clelland is now the acknowledged regional expert on social media. Very few start-ups achieve that level of market success in their first year."
- Jim Flowers, VT KnowledgeWorks

***

Photo credit: Z. Kelly Queijo. Camera:  Olympus Stylus Tough 6000 on loan to blogger Z. Kelly Queijo. 

It's the morning after my first #blogchat on Twitter where over 120 people engaged in a dialogue with more than 1000 tweets on the topic of how to increase leads and sales through your blog. The 2.5 hour Twitter event was hosted by social media strategist, Mack Collier, and featured Amy Africa, head of Eight by Eight, a highly successful ecommerce marketing solutions consulting firm.

As with any late night party, coffee is a must on the morning after. Having learned last night that a site needs variety in delivery, the take-aways I'm serving come in several flavors:

The Espresso - a quick shot to get you going: Location-Location-Location. Ask-Ask-Ask. Where your “call to action” message lives on your site/blog is critical and needs to live in at least three places, so you can make the call multiple times.

The Morning Cup - tasty, necessary, but not too filling. Eleven take-aways. Just the right amount to get the day started.

1. Average users makes all their decisions based on the first screen (not page) they see.
2. Users see things in pictures, not in text. You need visuals on your blog.
3. After the second page, the user will only look down the middle column (on a 3-column layout).
4. When you look at getting action on a blog, think BUTTONS, not just links. Buttons are graphical. Links are not.
5. Short surveys and polls are an excellent tool for bloggers. Do them often to see if your audience is changing.
6. Blogs should have a clear way to e-mail you and NOT just a form. If you use a form only, you will lose 1/4 of the people.
7. Navigation accounts for over half the success of any blog (more so on ecommerce sites). "You get what I give you."
8. I hate pop-ups. I hate video. I hate noisy sites and I use all of them. Why? Because I am not my customer.
9. We look to the left when we need help. We look to the right when we are going to leave. Puts things in perspective.
10. The more they stay, the more they pay. How are you going to get them to stay longer?
11. Make sure the stuff that's important has graphics. A newsletter sign-up with a visual gets 8x+ sign-ups.

And for the Lovers of Latte Grandes - the full transcript. Click here now (see I learned something, too)!

Z. Kelly Queijo writes about business and technology, people and their passions.  She is a frequent contributor to Handshake 2.0.  Follow her on Twitter, @zkellyq.

Every time I interview an entrepreneur, the one characteristic that stands out among them is their unflappable determination to succeed. Though their definitions of success vary, they all share a singular spirit and drive...it's called "Moxie" according to Jim Flowers.

When I saw this little pine tree seedling attempting to make its mark in the world against seemingly impossible odds, I thought of those men and women entrepreneurs and their determination to grow their businesses no matter how rocky the road ahead.

Blacksburg, Virginia, is home to a great number of entrepreneurs who are growing businesses from their homes, at VT Knowledgeworks located at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, or from storefronts throughout the town.

This small college town, home to Virginia Tech, has been ranked on lots of lists as to why it's a good place to live, work, and grow. Its home state of Virginia is ranked in the top 5 "Best States to Start a Business" by US News and World Report.

***

Z. Kelly Queijo writes about business and technology, people and their passions.  She is a frequent contributor to Handshake 2.0.  You can follow her on Twitter, @zkellyq.