SMB Summit™ 2007 Feedback from Partners
"Hands down the SMB Summit is the best conference for small business IT
consultants who want to develop their business for the next level. We
are constantly bombarded with noise about how to grow a business;
however this conference is THE place to get the facts without having to
filter through that noise. If you're looking for the venue where
industry leaders come to share their expertise and knowledge-SMB Summit
is the place to find it! SMB Summit is the place that the movers and
shakers in the SMB IT consulting market come to grow.
Stuart R. Crawford
Business Development Representative
"This weekend was very nice, another focused conference with lots of community interaction and chances to learn from one another. I got a chance to help Michael and present Windows Mobile 6 yesterday and do a fairly deep dive into Exchange 2007 today. This one was a little special for me because I got a chance to share some of the corporate training materials that we use internally at OWN; People really seemed to like it. And I have to admit the conference was great – lots of food, fresh content.. same faces but that ought to give you an idea of the value people find in these things and why they keep on coming back."
Vlad Mazek, MCSE
CEO
Own Web Now Corp
"I would like to convey to all the people who help put the past
conference of how much it will change the way I do business. The sales
and marketing aspects were fantastic as well as all the vendors that
were there. The Disney Hotel was the perfect place to have it. The food
was the best I have ever had at a conference. All I can say is thanks
for the great time."
Matt
Matt's Computer Medics
"SMB Summit has been a great experience as it provided a forum to share best practices and learn from other solid performers in the channel. The session content was extremely valuable and on target, but the most important things were learned during the many networking opportunities over lunch and dinner or at breaks in the hallways. The vendor exhibits were very applicable for our company and we were able to get great time with vendor reps in an intimate setting. Certainly a valuable conference for our company to attend and the three of us from HTS are all going home with valuable impact that we can take back and put to work immediately to help grow our company."
Arlin Sorensen
President
Heartland Technology Services
"This week I took 2 work days and a Saturday to attend the SMBTN conference. I am a single owner operator of my business and the encouragement I received this week was worth both days and the conference fee combined.
I work alone and am up to bat all day every day. From the conference I received numerous ideas that I will be trying-on in the next few weeks and months. Just one example is the Microsoft Technology Toolkit. I am a partner but had not taken the time to look at this. It is a great tool that I will begin to use immediately.
Thank you and the other organizers for all the hard work."
Bill Perry
President
PerTel Communications, Inc.
"Mike you certainly added the WOW factor to the SMB conference. The previous two years were great. But this conference was world class. I really appreciated the little things like having Industry labels on the lunch tables, like Medical and Accounting. Having food onsite and easy to get to meant I was able to do so much more networking. And concentrate on the conference and my growth. Not to mention this was the best conference food I've ever had, I really enjoyed it.
The conference was also a big emotional relief to see that I'm not alone. I have been to these conferences before and I always get great value. This year I hesitated until the last minute, just thinking I have seen it all last year. And I thought I was getting all the info I needed from my local technical peer group. Boy was I wrong.
I can't wait for next year."
Eric A. Adkins
President
Adkins Technologies
"SMB Summit provided me the tools I need to move from technician to business owner."
Ken Edwards
President
Maverick Mesa Computer Specialties
"As a 1 person company operating in the SMB computer consulting space for over the last 5 years, I have to evaluate every training/conference expenditure thoroughly due to the possible “loss” of time and the investment of money needed. If the content is not adequate or fitting to what I need, it “costs” twice. I have to say that this year’s SMBTN conference was above and beyond what I needed to hear to move towards higher growth in my company. By the end of the first session I attended, I had already many points to take back and implement immediately – points that would more than pay for what I had spent (time and money) to go to the conference. Having individuals and companies of all sorts and sizes (yet still representing the SMB space) made it easy to find others just like my company. Others still that had been where we were in time past were more than willing to assist in helping to keep us from making the mistakes they had made when they were in early growth stages. I brought back tools and ideas that will make me a better consultant, customer, and business owner. Thanks for your involvement and I look forward to SMBSUMMIT 2008!"
"Thanks for assisting with the SMBSUMMIT 2007 conference.. it was a investment that will pay high dividends for many years to come based on the contacts, ideas, and tools that I received while there. My company will be better for my attendance.. the sessions were “over the top”… Now it’s up to me to go back and execute!!!"
Joel Simpson
Simpson Computing, Inc.
"I appreciate the conference that you and Jim Locke provided and the sessions I attended were of exceptional caliber. I think the main impact is that the people who presented had “Substantial” experience implementing these solutions which means they knew what information was critical. Additionally, a significant “Substance” of this conference were the vendors who are exceptional in the SMB area where I myself feel that we will be doing business with at least two of these vendors. As President of Symcas [(www.symcas.com) which has been a Microsoft Partner since 1991 [Symcas was one of the first Microsoft Alliance Partner] this has been one of the most exceptional conferences to learn from.
As current President of ICCA [Independent Computer Consultant Association] (www.icca.org) which is a GLOBAL organization for Computer Consultants, where we have done conference over 30 years, I want to say this was a relax, fun environment, where many people commented on the food being exceptional, and everyone stayed excited about the conference.
This is a job well done so I congratulate you and your staff for the tenancy, perseverance and dedication it takes to put on a Conference of this magnitude and caliber. Every one of your staff should be proud of what they have accomplished.
It was a GREAT Conference!"
Phil Deatherage
Symcas
"The SMB Summit was a great opportunity to network with my peers and learn from their achievements (and mistakes). I came away with a number of key learnings that I will be implementing in my business."
Dan Hay
President
IS Outsource
"I seriously questioned whether I should go to the SMB Summit in 2007. I already attend several conferences each year and I wasn’t really sure that I needed to go to yet another. What I found happily surprised me.
First, I found that the content was all tightly focused around helping the established technology solution provider grow or improve the operation of his or her business.
Second, the presenters were fantastic. From business owners at the top of their game (and willing to share tips on how they got there and the lessons they learned in doing so) to industry experts with specific tools and methods to make succeeding easier.
Third, the conference really encouraged collaboration and discussion. There were many open panel discussions and numerous opportunities to meet business owners like yourself and compare notes on what works and what doesn’t.
Fourth, I was able to form several strong connections with other business owners like myself that should last into the future.
I truly believe that I came away from the SMB Summit having made some of the strongest business connections, learning more strategic ideas and specific steps that will grow my business next in the next year than I might have found in a dozen books."
Ed Correia
President
Sagacent Technologies, Inc.
