Hutzpah, That's What You Need!

Well, it's been a busy week!
My advert has finally been printed in the local magazine, and is currently circulating throughout the County, and hopefully raising some interest among the local parents. No calls yet, but it's only been 3 days since it went into circulation... There's still a HUGE amount of hope that orders will begin to trickle in and, as we all know, a trickle can lead to a flood!

Hutzpah is my word of the day! Confidence, Conviction, Presence, Personality and a 'Go-for-it' attitude will work wonders I'm sure.

Today I have 'cold-called' a couple of libraries to see whether they may want to have me come and do a workshop (or several) with the local youngsters over the school holidays (on science communication and writing, poetry relating to science, or science-based craft activities). I'm waiting for calls back and am convinced that when I get them, I will be able to make some valuable connections, which will certainly be beneficial in the longer-term, if not immediately.

When you operate a small business, or are a sole trader (as in my case), your personnel are your goldmine or your downfall. Attitude is everything, and having a positive can-do attitude, and a pleasant demeanour when dealing with people is an absolute must! Understanding the needs of the customer is absolutely paramount.

One of the main reasons for having branched out on my own was to avoid the cynical, corporate, money-grabbing desperation which was endemic in my previous place of employment. You cannot take pleasure in your work, and rejoice in what you do, if you are driven by management who are purely driven by profit without regard for their staff or their customers.

I hope that every budding entrepreneur out there finds their Hutzpah / Mojo or whatever you want to call it, and goes for their dream!

Shalom! and Happy Science-ing / Writing / Business-ing!

The Waiting Game

Well, the wheels are in motion, and all I can do now is wait...

Actually, hold on, no it isn't!
I can get back to focussing on my writing.

I'm not one to sit on my back-side (Arse or Ass, depending on which side of the Atlantic you hail from) and do nothing. Time is money but, at present, I still have more time that actual cash, so I will be investing my time productively by returning to some of the other areas which I began looking into many months ago, and have neglected due to my pre-occupation with advertising Dr D's.

Over the next few weeks, I will be chasing up some leads, and attempting to promote myself as a science writer. Effective communication is the crux of education, and if that happens to be at a distance, at least I will still be reaching out to people who want to learn, or who want to enhance their ability to teach others.

Busy times ahead!

Promotion and Advertising - Reaching Out to Potential Customers

The Dr D's Science Days web site is finally up and running, and can be found here!
After some assistance from a 'techie' friend of mine, and at no extra cost (other than a couple of beers, which thinking about it I should have got a receipt for, as they could be classed as a tax deductible business expense!) the basic outline of the site was reorganised, and I have now filled it with content detailing how wonderful my business is, and the great activities and services which I can offer to eager young minds!

I have also taken the plunge, and designed a simple advert for Bailgate Independent magazine, which looks like this:

The magazine distributes 10,000 copies each month, so I am hoping that I will get at least a couple of enquiries from parents about parties for their children as a result. There is also the possibility that it may be spotted by local teachers, who will check out the web-site and learn about the in-school activities that I'm offering as well.

Also, my Dr D's Facebook page has already attracted 21 'likes' from friends, who I hope will be kind enough to point any of their friends with children in my direction!

Things are definitely looking up! All I need to do now is sit back and wait for the bookings to come rolling in!

Positive movements!

The long awaited (by me at least) website should be up and running in the next day or so!
A link will be posted ASAP.
Also, in recent good news, two of my articles have been featured, and I'm now a leading contributor to the Homeschool Science section of Suite 101.
They say good things come in threes, I wonder what will be next!?

Business Expansion - Capturing New Markets.

Well, the summer holidays are upon us, all the schools are shut, and as a result my entire customer base has vanished for the next six weeks.
Many would see this as a problem, but a Wandering Scientist is not so easily dissuaded!
I have looked at the looming cloud from every angle, and have identified its silver lining.
The activities offered through Dr D's Science Days are all aimed at primary school children (aged 5 to 11), and are intended to be fun, engaging, sometimes messy, and sneakily educational (children learn best when they think they're just having a great time!).
The children may not be in school over the summer, but that does not mean that they have vanished. They are at home with their parents... Parents who may well be looking for exciting activities to keep their little ones occupied over the long weeks ahead, and what better way to do that than a visit from Dr D, the Wandering Scientist?
My marketing campaign should, admittedly, have started a little earlier in order to build some momentum and capture a wider audience through word of mouth, but with a little lateral thinking, and some well placed advertising, I'm optimistic that I can get a few bookings for my services over the summer break and beyond.
So far, I have started a marketing campaign by setting up a business facebook page, and have placed flyers in local shops, pubs, and doctors' surgeries (people will pick up and read pretty much anything while sitting in a waiting room!). The next step will be to go door to door, posting flyers to houses within the more affluent areas, and targeting large family homes with lots of children's toys in the gardens. I am also going to 'speculate to accumulate' by placing an advert in a local glossy magazine with a wide distribution covering many villages which are popular with families.
Who knows, by branching out into children's parties, I may even gain a positive reputation with parents and teachers who have influence within the local schools... That could be a golden lining to my cloud!

Publishing, Publishers and Percentages.

My first publisher, ZigZag Education, has recently sent me an email, requesting that I post links to their website from my own personal website or blog in order to increase their sales. ARE THEY JOKING??
I have suspected for a couple of years (well, since I signed up with them really) that the meagre percentage that they pay me in royalties was a joke, and their latest communications have really confirmed that.
They claim that they take the majority of the income from my resource to cover their advertising costs, and yet it is only now that they have realised that social networking and SEO are important, and they have the gall to ask their writers to publicise their site for them!
I THINK NOT!
I spoke to an editor about a year ago, and have had written confirmation that I can publish my original content through other avenues. I have approached another publisher, but am currently of a mind to self-publish, and sell through my activity days in schools, or through my own web site (once it's up to scratch!).
My resource: Poems and Puzzles for Key Stage 3 Science, received great reviews from teachers, and has been well received by the majority of my own students with whom I trialled the poems and associated worksheets. Despite this, ZigZag have managed to get me a total of 9 (Yes, Nine) sales in two years.
NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!
Maybe I should just publish the poems as an e-book, and be done with it. I certainly couldn't earn a lot less money in royalties that at present!

The Return from London - A Science Geek's Heaven!

So, I've not posted anything for a while... I've been a bit busy (mainly getting married, and going for a short break in London on honeymoon!).
Apologies for the short intermission, but I'm now back in business!

London is known for a lot of things: The Queen, Buckingham Palace, The Tower of London, London Bridge, thousands of tourists, innumerable stalls selling Union Jack adorned just-about-anythings... the list just goes on and on, but amid all of the more internationally recognisable tourist attractions are some places of absolute wonder for the scientifically minded. I suppose, for this post, I am a Wondering Scientist, as well as a Wandering Scientist!

First on the 'to-do' list was Kew Gardens as I had never had the chance to visit before. More officially known as 'The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew', this was a place that I had wanted to visit for many years, and it did not disappoint. Acre upon acre of botanical specimens is enough to entertain for hours, with beautiful vistas, striking architectural features and follies, not to mention the hot-houses. The canopy walk-way (which is not recommended to vertigo sufferers!) offers fantastic views across the grounds of Kew, and towards the heart of London.
At every turn there was something of educational benefit, with plaques and sculptures, and the new Evolution House, tracing the origin of plants from simple single celled photosynthetic bacteria and algae through ferns to higher flowering plants. Sir Joseph Banks, who has a conservatory named in his honour in Lincoln, contributed a great deal the collection, but any influence of his in the hot-houses was, in my opinion, overshadowed by the magnificent heritage trees (which did a good job of overshadowing a lot of things literally as well!). Trees who's life span makes us mere humans seem insignificant. Trees with personality, history, and unique stories to tell. Trees which made me feel small in more ways than one.

Second on the agenda was the Natural History Museum, a place which I have visited on many occasions in the past, but which always offers something new. Unfortunately we were greeted by a sign informing us the "The dinosaurs are on holiday" due to regular cleaning and maintenance. No matter - we still had barely enough time in the day to fit everything in. By the time we had covered the minerals and meteorites we barely had time left to find the Kirk's Dik-dik (which belongs to the antelope family, but is only a few centimetres tall) in the mammal hall, next to larger relatives including the skeleton of a blue whale, before closing time.

The next day took us to the Science Museum, formerly part of the Victoria and Albert Museum (which we, sadly, didn't have time to visit). The exhibits on early medicine, and the developments of accurate time-keeping were a real revelation. To have seen a pocket watch made and used in the early 1600's is a thing of wonder indeed. Then there was the kids area... One word... CHAOS! There were so many cool, hands-on gadgets and gizmos that I felt like joining in with the general jostling, and pushing small children out of the way (as the bigger children were quite merrily doing) to have a look, but grown-up-ness got the better of me, and instead we retired to a nearby pub for a spot of lunch before beginning the afternoon assault. The afternoon brought us a 3D experience of flying with the Red Arrows display team (actually 4D if you include the moving seats!), who are close to my heart, as they are based just outside my home city of Lincoln. We also saw the Apollo 10 Command module, and most impressive of all, from a personal level, but very mediocre on a 'visual impact' level was the original Watson & Crick model of the DNA double helix... Their original, with their handwriting on it! What an amazing and wonderful end to the scientific wanderings around the sights of London!