Category Archives: Events

Due to popular demand: we’re back as QBO Show

(Updated 2/22/2016)

Yes, I know, I KNOW.

We said that our last show was in November, and for the most part, it was. The RadioFreeQB/QB Show that you all were familiar with is done. At it IS.

Due to popular demand: we’re back as QBO Show

Here’s the deal.

Just about every week, I’ve received at least one email from an audience member telling us how much they miss the show, and I’ve been gathering some intel about what they liked about the show. Here’s what I’ve found:

1. The podcast format is preferred. Almost all of you have  told us that you loved listening while you’re working. Or at the gym. Being able to subscribe to us on itunes and have the show play in the background was the number 1 request.

2. The original chat format worked best. When we moved to video/google hangouts, we tried a couple of different chat options that just never really worked. Since many of us work from home, and not in a traditional office, the chat room is our happy hour. We can all grab an iced tea, or a glass of wine, and talk about work in that chat room.

3. It was fun. You, our audience, have said that you learn a lot from us – that’s the point of the show – but you also enjoyed the chemistry between us. You liked hearing Dawn order donuts from her car in the drive thru, Woody’s youngest ordering her older siblings around, or my son whispering goodnight.

QBO Show: Thursdays 3pm PST

This is how it’s going to work.

1. We start March 3, 2016. We’ll be on (almost) every Thursday, 3p PST/6p EST. Some weeks we might not have a show, but most of the time we will. Some weeks we might not all be there. Some weeks we might have our friend Seth David as guest host.

2. We’re going back to BlogTalkRadio. One of the reasons we moved to live Hangouts was because of the quality on BTR. I’ve been looking at the service again lately and it’s really improved quite a bit.

3. It will sponsored (for now) by StacyKAcademy.com

4.It’s going to be all QuickBooks Online, Firm of the Future and apps. No desktop. The reason for this is because that’s where the market is going. For those hardcore desktop people, I say: sorrynotsorry.

5. We’ll still have guests. We already have shows scheduled through June, but I know that Tom Palfreyman from Intuit for sure will be on! I’m hoping our friends Kim Amsbaugh, Chris Repetto, David Leary and Matt Rissell will

I think that’s it for now. I am so excited to be spending time with my friends again – not just Dawn and Woody – but all of you that have been with us since we started 5 years ago!

Got a question for us? Submit it here: http://j.mp/SubmitQBOShowQuestion

If you haven’t already done it – sign up to get reminder emails —–>

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Tap into Success at Empowered Northwest May 7-8, 2015

GUEST POST FROM TSHEETS.COM:

For small businesses and accounting professionals, the sky’s the limit, because the cloud is quickly becoming the next new frontier to ramp up productivity and success. So join us in Portland, Oregon May 7-8 for a premier event designed to introduce you to CEOs, thought leaders in the industry plus QuickBooks-compatible, cloud-based technology solutions.

Called Empowered Northwest, this two-day conference is the premier QuickBooks user conference for the entire region. Sponsored by companies you trust—because they sponsor The QB Show too—including TSheets Time Tracking, Fundera and Avalara, this event is a don’t miss. Experience the power of illuminating keynotes from Matt Rissell, Sabrina Parsons, Mike Michalowicz and Mary Scott. Get hands-on education and marketing sessions. Test drive best-of-breed, cloud-based accounting and business solutions that seamlessly sync with QuickBooks. Network with people you’ll really want to know. Even earn up to 12 CPE credits.

It’s geared to get you on the right track, fast. After the general sessions with leading entrepreneurial authorities, you have three different tracks to choose from—the accounting track, the QuickBooks business track or the cloud track—to custom design your experience to match your pursuit of business happiness. Accountants can learn exactly what apps to recommend and implement, even invite their clients along too. Entrepreneurs will find out how they can leverage the cloud to reach goals and rise far above the competition.

It pays to sign up early—30% off, in fact. Early bird registration ends March 15, with discounted tickets only $69. After that, the price goes up to $99. So sign up now at www.empowerednw.com, and we’ll see you in Portland soon.

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Live Blogging the QuickBooks Connect Afternoon Keynote

We’re about to get rolling!

Bill Rancic: Giuliana Rancic is a master negotiator, and he should know 🙂

Giuliana Rancic is taking the stage now

Giuliana Rancic just told the crowd how couldn’t speak English when they moved to the States when she was younder and her teachers couldn’t speak Italian so they spoke to her in Spanish; she learned from watching news anchors on tv.

Giuliana Rancic: “I started my first reporter job and didn’t realize they had hair and make up, so I walked in with my Kaboodle case.” Kickin’ it old skool!

Giuliana Rancic: “I’m me, and bringing my own style”

Giuliana Rancic: “Find a solve a problem in the marketplace”

Martha Stewart is on stage!

Martha Stewart: Her curiosity is what drives her to try new things

Martha Stewart: Working on Wall Street was a good education on how to businesses are run

Martha Stewart: I don’t think of them as obstacles, I think of them as problems to be solved

Martha Stewart: “I’m really good at hard work”

Martha Stewart: As an entrepreneur, find a void and fill it

Martha Stewart: It’s all well and good to work hard, but you need to compensated fairly for that hard work. (Yes!)

Martha Stewart:  “When people tell you that something bad will make you stronger, tell them F – U – C – K you.” HAAAAAAA

Martha Stewart: I wasn’t trying to be an early adopter when I bought my first computer in 1982. I just needed one.

Martha Stewart: Her future involves making sure her brand has a good, long, strong life

Kevin Cleary from Clif Bars is on stage

Kevin Cleary: Entrepreneurs are like runners: every step is a choice between aspiration and activation

Kevin Cleary: The american dream is about executing a Start Up motivation over and over

Arianna Huffington is on the stage!!

Arianna: You can never overestimate the power of complete un-comprehensibility

Arianna: Nothing in business is worth jeopardizing your health over

Arianna: Tip 1 for small businesses owners: get 30 more minutes a sleep a night

Arianna: Tip 2: Remove your electronic devices from your bedroom

Arianna: Tip 3: Simplify. Many projects you can finish by dropping them so focus on the important ones

Arianna: The more present you can be, the more productive you can be

Arianna: If God and the CTO of Cisco can take a day away off, so can she

Arianna: We all get bad calls from the ref in life – the question is: Can we let it go?

Scott Cook is up on stage now 🙂

Scott: “I measure our success by the emotion of our customers”

Marc Andreessen being interviewed by Scott Cook

Marc: Pivot happening now with SaaS and small business will be able to deal with data like large companies, they’re more nimble and can make decisions and switch direction more easily

Marc: Good CEOs succeed with strategy/tactics, tilting into problems, being honest with their employees and themselves, knowing when to stick to or change a plan

Marc: Don’t ever take one person’s advice as the gospel

Marc: The internet is a huge lever that small business can use to compete with big biz

Marc: SearchEngineLand.com is a site every business owner should check out

Marc: Being scared is a part of the emotional roller coaster of being a business owner

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Live Blogging QuickBooks Connect Morning Keynot

Sekou Andrews kicked off the event and was amazing – Intuit CEO Brad Smit just took the stage.

Brad Smith – 4 major trends happening that will affect small biz. 1. Social – companies that win don’t create just products, they create platforms. 2. Cloud – borders have been erased. Customer expect seamless experiences. 3. Mobile – companies that win today have to imagine their products mobile first. 4. Data – opportunity is to capitalize on the data but protect security and integrity.

Brad Smith – We have a simple aspiration: to be the operating system for the small biz. “Software that helps small businesses manage their time and money”

Brad Smith – 6 out of 10 small businesses get turned down for loans. Intuit has facilitated $45 million dollars for small businesses.

Brad Smith – Small businesses are more likely to succeed when they work with accounting professionals.

Bill Rancic just took the stage!

Intuit QuickBooks Connect Hackathon $15k winners: Payments Cloud by Cloud Conversion, Saftety Net by Jobber, Service Titan. Congrats to Method CRM for winning the $55k grand prize!!

Bill Rancic’s first business? Making pancakes for his grandmother’s friends.

Tristan Walker & Debbie Sterling just hit the stage.

Tristan on biggest obstacles: Usually what looks like a bad idea can be a good idea, and what looks like a good idea is a bad idea, because there are probably a lot of other people with that same good idea

Debbie on biggest obstacles: I didn’t have it right first time, or the tenth time, but I learned and fixed what was wrong.

Tristan: Dont’ let lack of context cloud your judgement, you don’t get what you don’t ask for, the trials you go through and the blessings are the exact same things

Debbie: Put yourself out there, be specific and direct when you ask for what you want, surround yourself with great advisors

Charles Best just took the stage – Funny story about getting his start, and his advice? Always check whether it’s reply or forward before sending a smack talking email 🙂

Magic Johnson is up next! Shout our a fellow Michigander!

Magic says find a mentor, and have the courage to say you don’t know business and seek out help

Magic says he overcame fear of failure by believing in himself and his business plan

Magic: Sometimes you need to bring a partner or investor to the deal so they can see it firsthand

Magic: If you know your customer and treat them well, their loyalty will be your best marketing

Magic: Two times each year do a SWOT (assess strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats). Also, reinvest in your biz, have a great team and be ready for growth

Magic: I learned to be successful by having great advisors and people to tell me NO

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Why Connecting With Your Customers is More Tempting than a Cinnabon

Guest Post By: Kelsie Medel

You may be cursing me at the very thought of dismissing a cinnabon. In fact, I wouldn’t blame you for going out and buying one right now to reaffirm their importance (Woody, Dawn and Stacy :).

While a Cinnabon(tm) can be downright tempting (“get in my bell-ey!” – with a thick Scottish accent), the temptation to connect with your customers can be just as strong or stronger, and yet never fully satisfied. Like a carrot at the end of the stick.

If “the carrot” to connect with your customers motivates you (as it should), tune into TheQBShow on September 30th to hear Matt Rissell and Chris Repetto share Four Bulletproof Ways to Connect with Your Customer.

Chris Repetto is the Director of Corporate Communications for Intuit and oversees the communications for small business accounting solutions as well as the connection with Intuit’s prized Accountants and ProAdvisors. He’s a fan of Seinfeld and also likes to play guitar and sing songs in a band.

Matt Rissell is the CEO and co-founder of TSheets.com, the #1 rated time tracking app in the Intuit app center with 593+ 5-star reviews–reviews largely credited to TSheets’ ability to delight and connect with pretty much anyone and everyone. Rumor has it that he’s also quite an accomplished soccer player and just recently got his pilot’s license!

As you’ll hear from Matt and Chris, there is some good news and bad news when it comes to the art of connecting with your customers: the good news is there are some inexpensive ways to delight your customers that will undoubtedly strengthen your connection with them; the bad news is, the extra mile is often the loneliest….

Don’t miss TheQBShow on the 30th to go after this carrot in your business, and don’t miss(!!!!) QBConnect coming up in a few short weeks, October 21st-23rd in San Jose, California – for more great ways to empower and improve your business.

And have no fear, Cinnabons can still hold a treasured place in your heart (or your business) as well. Or in Stacy’s case, we hear there’s nothing quite as treasured on her desk, as a box of Junior Mints. To each their own. 😉

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