Check out what they had to say about the event:

“I wanted to thank you again for putting together such a great seminar and bringing in amazing speakers! I had a great time and learned a ton. I am still processing all the information, but know I will be able to take a lot of it and apply it to my business.” -Lisa

“I just wanted to thank you IMMENSELY for putting on such an amazing event yesterday.  Each and every speaker had a well prepared, quality presentation with incredibly helpful information. They were all delivered with such passion, compassion, and enthusiasm.  The whole day was really a gift, from the mass amount of knowledge I obtained, to the delicious meals, and the stretch breaks (!!! so great !!!).  

I now have specific actions to take in several areas, to grow and develop my talent and ideas into a thriving business.

Thank you again” -Alicia

“Today was awesome. I just wanted to tell you. I am pretty shy and was so inspired that it made me go up to more people than I probably ever would. Because with so many people in the same place that might be able to help or I might be able to help to, were all in one place”  -Jacinda

“This event exceeded all my expectations.  I didn’t know it was possible to cover SO many areas of marketing a vegan business in such a LIMITED amount of time!  This was time and funds well spent!”  -Monica

“Vegan Professional Marketing Bootcamps… the perfect way to network with vegan vanguards, learn from their success and mistakes, and strategize not only on how your individual veggie brand can become popular and generative, but how veganism can become mainstream!“ -Ashel

“Thank you so much Stephanie and Karine for providing a business platform for entrepreneurs who are in the vegan community. At heart, vegans are committed and passionate about animals, the health of our body and sustainable practices for our planet. Thanks for bringing us together and providing excellent support for our businesses.“ -Rita

“The Vegan Professional Bootcamp was a wonderful kickstarter for marketing my new wellness center. I’ve already begun applying the lessons I learned in my business and am noticing great results. I highly recommend this bootcamp to all Vegan Professionals whether you’re just in the planning phases or have been established for years!” -Katelin

You can also check out the awesome write-up by Vegan Cuts here.

Are you ready to take the leap? Join us at one of our bootcamps!

The post Why people are loving the Bootcamps! appeared first on Events.

By Colleen Holland 

Social media, defined as the use of web and mobile-based technology that turns communication into an interactive dialogue, has become an integral part of building a brand. As vegan companies, we have a long history of working with a passionate, engaged community (whom we love!), and these new channels offer an unparalleled opportunity to connect with customers in a way that helps shape the personality of our companies. A well-planned social media strategy should play a role in every vegan business, and with a low cost of entry, it can bring great results. But this doesn’t mean we can just turn over our social media to an intern or the 11-year-old kid next store: a great plan requires understanding this new form of communication as well as how it can help take our business to the next level (which it can). Here are seven tips I’ve implemented at VegNews that have helped us find our social media sweet spot.

1. Get the right person on the job.

Facebook and Twitter require two very different voices, while Pinterest and Instagram demand someone with a great eye and photography skills. For every social media channel, it’s important to have the right person on the right platform—someone who can write well, has a great online personality, can build and engage their respective communities, and be able to identify content that works. Short on qualified staff? The same person can manage multipe channels but should understand how the audiences and channels differ.

2. Know your magic number.

To get the most out of your social media, figure out the ideal number of daily posts in each channel for your brand. Analyze what your community is doing, how often your competitors are posting, what your industry is doing, who does what well, and where your niche is. When creating your plan, always keep your resources in mind so that your social media strategy is consistent and sustainable. At VegNews, we always emphasize quality over quantity and would rather have fewer, more effective posts than dilluting our message by posting too frequently.

3. Limit the self-promotion.
Obviously, we’re in business to build our brands, but just as nobody wants to go to dinner with someone who talks about themselves the whole time, the same rules apply to social media. Promote the most interesting content from other members of your community along with your own material, and you’ll become a more trusted source of information. At VegNews, we love sharing all of the incredible food being made by vegan bloggers around the web, and our Pinterest page reflects this.

4.  Keep the content clean.

When planning your social media content, it should be taken as seriously as every other part of your business. That means there should be no spelling errors, no grammatical mistakes, no broken links, and it has to be factually accurate. As vegan businesses, we have worked hard to build our brands and don’t want to jeopardize our reputation because of inaccuracies or misspellings in our social media.

5. Follow the metrics.

With the availability of online metrics and instant feedback, there’s no need to play the guessing game with what’s working and what’s not. Numbers don’t lie, so know them, follow them, and repeat what works and stop doing what doesn’t. And don’t forget to share them with your staff so they can become even better social media whizzes. Our team meets on a weekly basis to discuss the top content across every channel we publish, allowing us to continue serving our audience the best way we can. 

6. Engage with the social media community.

Nowadays, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest encompass whole sub-communities, and your social media staffer(s) needs to engage that community on a daily basis. That means they need to answer questions promptly, forward queries they can’t answer to the right staff member, and send links out to anyone mentioned in a post. Social media is a two-way conversation, and we must constantly be part of the dialogue in order for our brands to stand out in today’s digital world.

7. Get creative.
Your community deserves the best content possible, so keep your social media fresh with innovative ideas. Everyting from giveaways, photo galleries, and polls to live chats and live tweeting have worked for us at VegNews. Always look for opportunities to creatively deliver content so that your audience stays interested and engaged. After all, what’s good for your customers is good for your business.

Want to know VegNews’ top social media posts in the last year? Here’s a snapshot:

Facebook: Bat Kitty

Twitter: Animal Testing for Cosmetics Required by Law in China

Instagram: Colleen’s Spring Rolls

Pinterest: Tofu Popcorn Chicken

Tumblr: Vegan Mozzarella Sticks

YouTube: Vegan Maple Bacon Cupcakes

Yep, the VegNews’ audience is obsessed with food and animals. That pretty much sums up the vegan world, and I love being a part of it.

Colleen Holland is the co-founder of VegNews Media and still gets excited every time a new post on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/Tumblr/Pinterest goes live.

The post 7 Tips for Great (Vegan) Social Media By Colleen Holland appeared first on Events.

How did we get to where we are today? A combination of grassroots’ activism, the expert work of national animal advocacy groups, and advances in technology has propelled the vegetarian movement forward like never before. But I would also add a fourth influencer—vegan entrepreneurs. Working tirelessly to create a parallel economy that places ethics over profit, compassionate companies provide vegan products and services that normalize the veg lifestyle, showing that there needs to be no sacrifice when ditching meat and dairy. This force is critical to portraying veganism as accessible, practical, and normal.

So how does one become a vegan entrepreneur? Prepare yourself to work harder than you’ve ever worked before, realize that it may take a couple of years before your business is financially viable, but know that nothing is more rewarding than fusing your livelihood with something as meaningful and vital as veganism. In 2000, when my business partner and I launched VegNews, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. Thirteen years later, our business has taken on a life of its own, and it feels like yesterday when we were holding the very first issue in our hands.

Here are my top five tips for launching a vegan business:

1. Have a great idea.

Most likely, you’re part of the vegan community and have noticed a product or service not being offered—or not being offered to your standards. Discuss your idea with friends and family to gauge their excitement level for your business idea, and carry around a notebook to jot down ideas as they come up. After three months, if your enthusiasm for your business idea is still high, start to create an execution strategy.

2. Secure funding.

There’s no rules about capitalizing a business, as success stories range from launching with $25 to launching with $25 million. After more than a decade in the (vegan) business world, I think it’s prudent to be lean no matter which end of the spectrum you’re on. And often times, a business that starts small and grows organically is far more fluid to changes in the marketplace than one that bursts onto the scene with a big budget and a (seemingly) airtight business plan.

3. Pull together your dream team.

Think about the advantages of bringing in a co-founder, as having someone with complementary skills can be critical to the success of your company. Entrepreneurs often think they can do it all, but specializing in areas where we perform best (with others doing the same) is a great strategy for growing smartly and efficiently. In addition, hire an attorney to form your business entity and partnership agreements; a bookkeeper to set up a financial system; and a social media guru to manage your online marketing.

4. Hire a branding agency.

What may be your most important pre-launch hire is a designer or branding agency. You can have the best idea in the world, but if it doesn’t look credible or desirable, it may not last in today’s competitive marketplace. Standards for packaging and websites have increased dramatically in recent years, and, as a vegan business, it’s even more important to showcase our products and services in a sophisticated and appealing way. Don’t skimp on this part of your business—it will pay for itself again and again.

5. Overdeliver in everything you do.

Whenever we hire new staff at VegNews, I always emphasize the importance of overdelivering on everything we do. Whether it’s providing top-notch service to our subscribers, giving our writers a stellar editing experience, or helping our advertising partners deliver their best campaign ever, I want the VegNews experience to be nothing short of phenominal. This is my mantra, and, for now, it seems to be working.

About The Author: Colleen Holland is the co-founder of VegNews Magazine. Join Colleen (and other vegan business experts) at the first-ever Vegan Professional Bootcamp this Sunday, February 24 in Berkeley. Future bootcamps are scheduled for Washington, DC, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Austin. 

The post Colleen Holland’s Top 5 Tips for Launching a Vegan Business appeared first on Events.

CONGRATS TO ASHEL ELDRIDGE – YOU ARE THE RECIPIENT OF THE SCHOLARSHIP!

Are you ready to launch your veg business, or need help kicking things up a notch but don’t have the necessary funds to attend the Berkeley Bootcamp?

Vegan Mainstream & Karine Brighten Events are offering a scholarship!

These all-day marketing bootcamps are not only a great opportunity to meet like-minded vegan professionals, but they are great opportunities to learn from experts in our community. Each bootcamp will be unique with a local speaker line-up, a dynamic agenda and a local twist that caters the sessions to the attendee’s interest.

All you need to do is answer the following questions: (deadline for applying: Saturday February 16th at 11:59pm)

(We will be offering a scholarship for the other cities as well, more info TBA)

The post Scholarship Fund for Berkeley Bootcamp appeared first on Events.

To be entered for this amazing, business-enhancing opportunity, please share the buzz about our vegan bootcamps by following three easy steps:

Step #1: Share any link about a Vegan Professional Bootcamp on your Facebook page, Google + Account or Twitter Account (Or simply use the Facebook comments section)

Step #2: Tag Vegan Mainstream or Karine Brighten Events in your post. (If you have trouble tagging, don’t worry about it, we appreciate the post

Step #3: Let us know you shared it by commenting on the Vegan Professional Bootcamp blog page or event page – a link to your post will be great!

Winners will be randomly selected at midnight on February, 5th!

The Fine Print:

• Only one consult per person, please!
• Consults can be redeemed via telephone or onsite at any boot camp location. If the individual wants to redeem it at a boot camp location, the consult must we scheduled 7 days before the boot camp date to ensure time is allotted while we are in town.
• You don’t have to be registered for the event to win. We just want your help in getting the word out about our fabulous event (Wait, though, you’re not registered? Are you sure? You don’t want to miss it!).

The post Win Big – One-on-One Consult Giveaway appeared first on Events.

Do any venues come to mind?

Our needs are as follows:

• Reliable Internet connection
• Seating for a minimum of 50 people (classroom style)
• Tables and chairs
• Projector
• Screen

If you have any recommendation or would like to assist us in our search please contact Karine at: Karine@KBrightenEvents.com or leave a comment below.

Thanks!

The post Venue Search in Washington, DC appeared first on Events.

• Oakland, CA (February)
• Washington DC (April)
• Chicago, IL (June)
• New York, NY (August)
• Los Angeles, CA (October)
• Austin, TX (November)

We plan to start with an inital group of cities and based on successful attendence, we will rollout additional locations.

The planning stage has officially begun, so we are securing meeting rooms, working on agendas and finalizing dates. However, we need your help one more time.

We are searching for amazing speakers to feature at each event. We are focused on identifying 2 to 3 local speakers to ensure the agenda for each location includes some unique local and regional perspective.

If you have experience managing or starting a vegan business, we’d love to feature your expertise in one of our roundtable discussions. In addition, we are also looking for experts in public speaking, marketing, business development, product creation, product distribution and technology.

If you know someone that’s would be an amazing speaker, please forward this email.

That’s all the udpates for now, we will keep you posted as the event details continue to develop.

Thanks for your support,

Stephanie & Karine

The post Interested in becoming a Speaker? appeared first on Events.