Connector Weekly News

by Igor Walter on February 9th, 2011

The Connector Team has been incredibly busy in recent months and making lots of new connections and ideas we’d love to share with you!

We have lots of up-coming opportunities and are especially keen to talk to aspiring bloggers and event organizers around Ireland.

Connect with us via our Facebook page.

Connector News

• We have moved to new offices! Now you can find us at the Gateway House (133 Capel Street, Dublin), the former home of the famous dance group Riverdance.
• Did you miss Showcase Ireland? Well then you also missed Conor’s social media seminar “Meet Your Customers in the New Market Place”. You can take a look at it here.
• Check out some of the events our bloggers went to in the past couple of days! For example Annie went to have fun at RAM´s Pocket Radio´s concert while Megan attended the launch of Don Mullan´s new book.

Connector Training

• Social media can be useful for any business and they know that in the Digital Marketing Institute. That’s why they brought Conor in to lead workshops called “Social Media Marketing for Business”.
• We also launched a Social Media eBook which is based on a proven Connector 10 C´s Strategy Model and breaks down the utilization of social media into ten clear steps. Check it out!

Connector Consulting

• Conor is now a mentor of the Dublin City Enterprise Board.
• We have also acquired new clients from the field of interior design and personal transportation.

Connector Top 3 Connections

• John McColgan, Neil Leyden & the Gateway Ireland Team
• Eimear Dunne from Quirc & Dunn Design
• Quentin Ahern from Army of ID

Connector Team

• After months of great work our digital marketing executive Dave Dungan has decided to pursue a web development career in Jason Roe’s company. Thank you Dave for your great work in 2010! We’ll miss you!
• On the other hand new people are now partnering with us on projects – Igor Walter (PR), Graeme Hanna (planning), Greg Fry (training) and Shirleen Flynn (events).

Connector Meetup

• The Connector Team is going to meet up at the Dublin SoundCloud Meetup Day.
• Join us also at the Project Arts Centre where we plan on seeing the hilarious play called Connected. The tickets will be only 12 € so come and join us!
• The Facebook Garage event will be taking place at our new offices – the Gateway House – on Wednesday 9th @ 5pm. Check out more info here.

If you have any interesting news or know of any events taking place around Ireland share them with us via our Facebook page!

How to build your own Personal Brand using social media

by Connector on December 12th, 2010

The following is the presentation Conor Lynch made to the ITAA Skillsnet & the Digital Marketing Institute on Friday at DIT, Cathal Brugha.  Facebook‘s Maggie McPartlin & Julien Muller were the other speakers in an interesting and lively conversation about the role of social media in personal branding.

And if you want to get your name out there and new social media skills, remember you can get blogging experience from the new blogger network @ connector.TV
Personal Branding & Social Media – connector.ie

Idea generation for startups & freelancers @ Connector Brainstorm

by Connector on November 29th, 2010

On Thursday evening we had the first Connector Brainstorm event at the Science Gallery and here are some photos from Kyle Tunney and more here on Facebook.

The idea behind Connector brainstorm is to create a space for small ideas to collide and create BIG ideas.  So we have created a mashup of classic Connector networking mixed with brainstorming!  Each table has a moderator who guides the conversation and keeps the notes on paper or on our mind mapping software.

We have some generic topics for discussion but there are opportunities for startups to have their business brainstormed by 8 people for 30 minutes.

The launch of Connector Brainstorm event provided a fascinating insight into the world of Irish politics, economic and society. A diverse mix of people gathered in the Science Gallery in Trinity College to ask important questions politicians won’t never think to ask themselves.

Conor Lynch, organiser of the Connector Brainstorm said; “Einstein once said ‘We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.’ Age old policies need new age thinking and with this in mind our team of experts came up with some radical suggestions on how the future of Irish politics and economy should be ran.”

Saving Ireland Inc.

One of the first ideas to come to fruition was a way to deal with the thousands of empty properties across the country.  There are an estimated 74 ‘Ghost estates’ in Ireland, due to the oversupply of housing during the boom.  These Ghost estates are now on the verge of being demolished.

Instead of knocking the estates down the group proposed devising a lottery system whereby a lucky winner in the midst of our economic crisis could go on to win a property on one of these derelict estates. The rest of the lotteries proceeds could be put to good use by employing the skill sets of unemployed people on social welfare which will regenerate and finish development on these estates for the people that really need them.

A team of business strategists proposed a radical suggestion which might be considered futuristic to say the least. This approach applies the principles of computer gaming structures to the welfare and taxation system adding value back into society so that public moral is renewed to spend again. As users work hard to progress through the various levels of the game, engaging and gaining rewards they’ve spent time to earn, the same can be applied to real life.

Therefore, it was suggested that people on social welfare could use the skill sets they have to pay-it-forward, clocking up twenty hours per week adding value to a person or a business and this new currency could add credits to each individual through the welfare and taxation system.

Another contributor said; “Another suggestion which was one of topical debate discussed Ireland’s technologically starved politicians. Most of Ireland’s politicians are between the ages of forty to sixty, but a lot of people in our society are between the ages of fifteen to thirty. As we face an uncertain future it’s imperative that our government is up-to-speed on emerging markets rich in technology. At the next election we need a more balanced age profile in Irish politics in order to speak the language of the Irish population and other successful economies.”

In a quirky suggestion the majority also agreed that TD’S should be prohibited from drinking so that they’re heads are clear for tackling the biggest issues Ireland has had to face in political history.

Connector Startups

The Connector Brainstorm event also gave some of Ireland’s most exciting start-ups the opportunity to gain new ideas for their businesses including GoCar.ie, AM Works, Twitter TV, Smart Leads, Pet Photography, Happy Gardening Co. and EggFuel.ie where they were able to share and propose ideas to the different groups and get valuable feedback. 

“The Connector brainstorm event was extremely beneficial to the businesses that were there.  They all left with new ideas for their businesses from some of the top experts in a range of fields.  For businesses to grow and succeed in the current economic climate they have to recognise that they need to think outside the box and gain input from a range of areas and this event will help anyone who is looking to get a new perspective on their business,” Lynch went on to say.

For more information on upcoming Connector Brainstorm and networking events then log on to connector.ie

Connector @ Bar Camp Cork 2010

by Connector on November 28th, 2010

WANTED : Your Topics for the Connector Brainstorm

by graeme on November 22nd, 2010

Connector.ie have proposed 6 exciting topics to kickstart the Connector Brainstorm in the Science Gallery @6pm Thursday 25th November.

1. Saving Ireland Inc : this topic speaks for itself !

2. Cash I$ King : making money

3. Me & We : inter-relationships between individuals & communities

4. 2020 Home & Office : a look at the future of working & living in the year 2020

5. Entertain Us : the future of entertainment

6. Reinventing U : begin again, new careers, the multi-functional professional, leveraging alternative life skills & hobbies

Have you a burning issue for debate or maybe you’re a  start-up seeking new ideas and new connections for your business ? Whatever your topic, we would like to hear from you. Simply complete the form below to submit your topics for discussion.

Space at this event is limited so please REGISTER today to secure your place.

More

Part 3: The video review of the Long Debate – John Handelaar (Speaker)

by malte on November 14th, 2010

John Handelaar in action @ the Long Debate

Part 2: The video review of the Long Debate – Kevin Myers (Moderator)

by malte on November 14th, 2010

Kevin Myers

—————————————————————————————————

Part 1: The video review of the Long Debate – John Collins (Speaker)

by malte on November 14th, 2010

——————————————————————-

John Collins

John Collins

————————————————————————————————-

Kevin Myers

—————————————————————————————————

A short extract from the Long Debate with John Handelaar in action

John Handelaar

Connector Awards & Christmas Party 2010

by graeme on November 9th, 2010

WHO : www.connector.ie – organising “social networking social events” where we bring together diverse on-line & off-line communities to make new social, commercial & business connections.

WHAT : the 2^nd Annual Connector Awards and Christmas Party 2010

Check out our Christmas slide-show …

WHY :  to acknowledge and reward our 2010 Connector and Tribal success stories in the following categories :

Connector of the Year ( Male )

Connector of the Year ( Female )

Tribe of the Year  ( Social)

Tribe of the Year  ( Business )

Tribe of the Year  ( Arts / Cultural )

WHEN : Thursday 9^th December at 7pm (as part of the annual Christmas Connector event.)

WHERE : Krystle Night Club, 21-25 Harcourt Street, Dublin 2 ( strictly over 21’s only & neat dress essential ).

HOW :  This Connector Event is FREE including a complimentary welcome drink, finger-food and late night entry to the Krystle Nightclub. We will, however, be supporting the Irish children’s charity, Barnardos, throughout the evening so all donations will be greatly appreciated.

REGISTER TODAY and keep a look out for updates on the Christmas Connector event such as the guest speakers and the short-list nominations for the Connector Awards.

Final Call: the Long Debate and our speakers – register now!

by malte on November 8th, 2010

In the last week we gave a short introduction to our interesting scholars & speakers who will share their experience, knowledge and expertise about innovation in Ireland at The Long Debate.Speakers from academia, business, politics and media will give their input at this very special Innovation Dublin Festival event. We have 18 speakers and a top moderator in Kevin Myers. Understandably, such profound contributors with this kind of experience are hard to summarize into a short profile so we encourage you to come out and see & meet them for yourself! Register here!

The Speakers:

• Keith Finglas
  Managing Director at Innovation Delivery Limited

• Dr. Mike Wilson
  Mick Wilson is a research leader, educator, artist and writer, and currently the Dean of the Graduate School of Creative Arts & Media, Dublin, Ireland

• Jean Byrne
  Entrepreneur and member of the taskforce

• Dan Crowley Head of Commercial Operations at NDRC (National Digital Research Centre)

• Frederic Herrera
  Enterprise Development Executive & Enterprise Platform Programme Manager at Dun Laoghaire Institute of Arts, Design, and Technology

• Lorna Maxwell
  Senior Executive Officer of the Economic Development Unit in Dublin City Council

• Andrew Mclaughlin
  Programme director for the TCD/IMI Masters in Organizational Behavior

• Theo Lynn
  Director, Industry Engagement at DCU Business School

More