[Coworking] Fiber High - is it incubation or coworking??
They say fools rush in where angels fear to tread...we were so sure there was a market for our high speed internet that we just went ahead and opened Fiber High last spring without a lot of market research. We called it an incubator. Guess what, folks -- we still have lots of space and we're now doing drop in coworking along side our cubicle rental. The bottom falling out of the office rental market has created a glut of enclosed offices stock on the San Francisco Peninsula which doesn't make our bullpen layout look so attractive -- except to co- workers. Are any of the rest of you having this experience? I'm still convinced there is a lot of enthusiasm for low cost-high speed space to work from but I don't seem to be very good at spreading the word. How are you reaching your potential clientele? There seem to be a lot of postings about new coworking spaces opening. Is that because existing spaces are filling up or are we breaking new ground? Personally, I had what we would now call a coworking retail space in Cotati CA in 1970 so the new ground isn't exactly new to me except that we '70s hippies were self-consciously low tech. But individual stalls with lots of collaborative common area is an ancient idea. I'm glad it's back. Looking forward to your comments about attracting attracting workers to your co-locations -- Liza Loop www.fiberhigh.com l...@fiberhigh.com --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: tamales, coworking, and economies of scale
Good questions, Rogelio. Some of the coworking postings make me feel really OLD. I often like to work in privacy with lots of resources around me. And I don't want to carry all of it around with me. That means I'd like a desk in a cubicle or quiet corner with a lockable cabinet. Sure, having lots of creative people around when I want to take a break is important but I don't want to have to "go home" to get work done. We designed Fiber High in Palo Alto with this more individual work style in mind. There's space for group collaboration but it isn't the only modality. Anybody else out there feel the same way I do? What are the resources you want to pay a premium for in a coworking environment? Liza On Wed, Apr 1, 2009 at 10:07 PM, Rogelio wrote: > > When I worked in San Diego (Sorrento Valley), we had a lady who'd come > to our office and sell the most kickass tamales you could imagine. For > weeks we bought from her individually until one of us suggested that we > pool our orders. One bigass order each week meant that (a) the tamale > lady had to break fewer bills, (b) we got a few extra tamales in each > order, and (c) only one of us had to go order. Before long, she'd even > bring us new recipes that she was working on, and if we paid her in > advance, we always got a little something extra (hot sauce, salsa, > champurrado, etc). > > I don't really see that dynamic in coworking (or, at least, not as much > as I'd like to). > > I live in Orange County CA and travel about 50% of the time, and when I > travel, I am willing to pay a premium for office amenities in a > coworking sort of environment (I would easily spend that in Starbucks > hanging out to use their wifi). However, when I am home I have all I > need, and the "extra stuff" I might pay for tends not to be offered in > coworking environments. > > While I appreciate the camaradery and relaxed atmosphere, these sorts of > amenities are getting harder to justify in this sort of economy. (I do > systems/network engineering, and so my economies of scale are things > like shared rack space in a datacenter, referrals, cross training, > mindshare, etc.) > > I'd be curious to know what cost benefits others here get from > coworking. Personally, I don't quite see it unless people work in a very > similar industry. > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Springwise featuring...deskgenie, RIP Regis Cupertino
Hi David - Regus coworking may be dead but Fiber High is not. We've taken the opposite financial route. Most of our furniture and wall panels are hand-me-downs. We've done the remodeling ourselves. Our rent is relatively low so we can pass on low costs to our members/clients/tenants. Our biggest asset is our connection to the Palo Alto fiber ring, not the decor. Drop by at 989 Commercial St. in Palo Alto - we're ten minutes by train or freeway from Cupertino. (The walk from the train is 20 to 30 minutes.) The web site is www.fiberhigh.com Cheers, Liza (l...@fiberhigh.com, 650 964 5623) On Wed, Apr 1, 2009 at 11:43 PM, David J. Kordsmeier wrote: > > Folks, > > thought some would like to read about a new idea on springwise around > a marketplace for desk space: > http://www.springwise.com/marketing_advertising/deskspacegenie/ > Pulled from the latest newsletter, with tons of great ideas: > http://springwise.com/weekly/2009-04-01.htm > > Also, noticed the Regus Cupertino (Co-working meets office suites), > which looked to be a something akin to an airport lounge, has > officially been closed. I believe they closed at the beginning of the > year, after only being open about a year. It is a shame. I think > they had a nice clean facility, the best conference rooms I have seen, > and friendly staff. The downside to their approach: wrong location > (was an old plumbing store, in SV suburbia), unfamiliar concept (Regus > is famous around the world for hosting office suites, but co-work is a > bit of a niche idea for many), not rooted with any community, and no > marketing. They might have had a chance in downtown SJ or SF, but in > the new economy I guess they decided to pull out and sublease the > space (my estimates they put up 100K + to rennovate, another 50K on > furniture and computers, and probably ran another 5-8K in rent, plus 2 > FT staff so were easily burning 10K+ per month. > > - > David > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Who Do You Exclude?
At the Hacker Dojo meeting yesterday this question came up. The ED decided that we didn't want potentially "dangerous" activities such as welding or lab chemistry at the Dojo during our start up period. Most of the current participants are web oriented coders although my knitting was welcome! Liza www.fiberhigh.com On Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 7:46 AM, ourspacefortwa...@gmail.com wrote: > > While coworking spaces allow for a multiple number of individuals from > graphic designers to coders to dog walkers to work away from home, are > there any certain segments of workers that you exclude from your > sites, i.e. massage therapist, painters, etc.? > > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Motivation for Coworking space
Dear Chris, Here are some answers from one of the Fiber High partners, myself. 1. We have not been able to rent our cubicles during the last 6 months. Although we had not been familiar with the term "coworking" when we started we believe it is compatible with the intent of our facility. 2. The coworking folks seem to have a vibrant network we are tapping into. 3. Many "coworkers" have extensive experience on university campuses and in creative companies. When they go out on their own, either voluntarily or because they are pushed, they miss having colleagues to collaborate with close at hand. Coworking may fill in this gap (depending on who else shows up at the facility). 4. Many digital natives (as compared with us older digital immigrants) enjoy working in noisy, somewhat chaotic venues. They understand how to work without paper and can, therefore, be quite productive with just their brains, their laptops and some ingestable stimulants. The rest of us benefit from the restricted visual and auditory field created by cubicle or office walls. We need our desks full of pens, paper and filing cabinets. Although we may be unhappy with the enforced isolation of working at home, coworking at a commons table in a large room doesn't appeal either. 5. As an educator, I am especially interested in how to create environments that support learning for a wide variety of folks, both young and old. For me, a coworking space is a laboratory for observation of learning within a population of geeks. Hope this is helpful to you. Cheers, Liza Loop On Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 1:46 PM, Chris Conrey wrote: > I'm doing some writing research here and I'm curious as to why those of you > who have started/are starting coworking spaces are motivated to do so? > Some high level motivations would be great for my article. > Thanks, > Chris Conrey > chrisconrey.com > Human->Geek Relations at Integrum > Outspoken Voice at Gangplank > @conrey on Twitter > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: how do you treat "guests"?
You might try charging a high price for coffee and snacks while giving the members a steep discount. That way, if you do get a reputation as an internet cafe, it will pay for itself nicely. On Fri, Apr 24, 2009 at 4:49 AM, Nia wrote: > > Hi, everyone! > My name is Nia and I am writing a business plan for a coworking place > in Istanbul. > In my discussions with potential partners, we stumbled over the > question of how to deal with guests of the members. We plan on having > a lounge area that will serve coffee and snacks. We cannot agree on > whether > 1) if a member invites a friend over for a chat but has not booked a > conference room, we should charge the guest at the daily rate (or an > hourly rate, or a guest rate, etc...) OR > 2) guests should be allowed in for free as long as they are invited by > a member, only sit in the lounge and do not use the internet. > > Because the lounge is meant for the members, we do not want to get the > reputation of a cafe with internet that is open to everyone, but on > the other hand, we do not want to restrict members from inviting > people for informal meetings. > > What is the policy of your respective coworking places? What do you > think makes most sense in the context of a coworking place? > > Thanks a lot! > > Best, > Nia > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Calling all SF Bay Area, Sacramento and Tracy Co-workers: Help moving desparately needed
Did you know that the Vintage Computer Festival (VintageTech) has one of the largest collections of historic computers and ephemera in the world? That collection is threatened by a need to move from Livermore to Stockton ASAP!!! Please volunteer your time and muscle if you possibly can. Email Sellam (sel...@vintavetech.com) to let him know when you can come and get directions. Bring along friends, family, acquaintances, anyone who can pack, lift or unpack. Here's the letter I just received from VCF's fearless leader. Dear VCF Fans, The move of the VCF Archives has gone a little slower than hoped for, but all the pieces are now in place to up the throughput from 56K to a full T1. We have a forklift on both ends and a 26' moving van with a liftgate that can accomodate a small house. We'll also be getting another tractor trailor dropped off, probably early this coming week. So if you missed out on all the fun over the past two weeks, here's another opportunity to be involved in the toil, torture and torment that is entailed by a move of 200 tons of vintage computing stuff and its supporting infrastructure. As I'm a week into June already the landlord at the old place is breathing down my neck. And believe me, the guy's breath stinks. So any and all help you might provide in getting me out of this place would be greatly appreciated. I only send out these pleas when I'm desperate, and I only get desperate when the deck is stacked against me, and this is one of those times :) If you're able to help, even if for an hour, please call or e-mail to coordinate. My warmest regards, Sellam Ismail Schlepper (running on fumes) Vintage Computer Festival Thanks so much for your help, Liza Loop Co-Working Palo Alto at Fiber High --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Overusing Space for Personal Storage?
The question of overusing space brings up a number of issues... 1) What is your current agreement with members? Do the desks "belong" to individuals or are they all communal? If individual, do you have a written agreement with each "tenant". If not, make one right away. Since you have two members you can involve them in the formation of the agreement if you want to. Bring up the question of personal storage and make sure you discuss the impact on future members. Fiber High does not permit personal items in the co-working space. Drop-ins and monthly members take all their belongings when they leave. Those who want to store stuff have to rent a cubicle and stay within it.If they need more space they can rent a second cube or a bigger one. Of course, we, the partners, are the biggest offenders of overflow. However, since we pay for all the unrented cubes we don't feel too guilty. 2) How have you set up governance, policy making and policing? When I ran a retail cooperative arcade space almost 40 years ago we had monthly meetings with required attendance of each shop owner. Decisions were made by universal consensus with a "consent with a heavy heart" provision that I learned from Quaker meeting. This means that you keep discussing the problem until everyone either agrees to the solution or agrees to abide by the groups decision (consents with a heavy heart). The meetings were long and torturous but did succeed in building a tight community consistent with our hippy culture. If you decide on some kind of group governance like this, be sure that you make it clear that the meetings are for business, not group therapy or Alcoholics Anonymous-like. You need to be able to confront non-conformers openly and critically. It's easier to have a group bad- guy than to carry that role alone but you won't survive if nobody take on the bad-guy role. 3) Under what conditions can you ask someone to leave or ban them from using the space? This is a situation we all hope never comes up but often can't be avoided. For example, we had one guy who wanted to bring his dog to his shop but the dog barked at the customers. Since the dog didn't actually bite anyone, the guy thought this was ok. The other members decided to ban the dog. The dog problem was easy compared to a person with criminal intent or a mental illness. Sad to say, every society has people who cannot fit into a communal setting. It's better to have rules and customs in place from the early stages of your operation than to have to make them up when an unpleasant situation arises. I have many more ideas...let me know if these are helpful and you want more. And best of luck with your venture. Liza Loop Fiber High, Palo Alto, CA www.fiberhigh.com On Jun 18, 5:41 am, Franklen wrote: > Our new space is just getting started and is very informal at the > present. We have one person who regularly uses a desk, but also > regularly uses another empty desk or two as well as some extra floor > space for storing personal items, or maneuvering their own stuff > around. > > I don' want to be a bad guy but I think I need to nip this in the > bud. If nothing else I think it would be better to have the place > neat and orderly when others come to visit or look at the space. But > other than that, what kind of policies of resources do you have for > storage of personal and/or business stuff on site? --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking
Hello Jimmy,
Our biggest challenge has been letting people know our coworking site
is available. Neither I nor my partner are natural publicists.
After watching these postings for about 6 months I'm beginning to
believe this is a common but under-discussed problem. We hear a lot
from the groups that are having well attended events but those that
are having difficulty bringing people in are quiet about it.
Does anyone else out there get this impression?
Liza Loop
Fiber High,
989 Commercial St.
Palo Alto, CA
On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 7:49 AM, Jimmy wrote:
>
> Hi folks,
>
> My name is Jimmy Thrasher, and I live near Mebane, NC ("Mebbin", 10K-
> ish people). My interest in coworking is mainly from the working
> side, but to that end I and a friend are evaluating setting up a light-
> weight "mobile coworking" space that can be dropped into any of the
> number of empty office spaces in downtown Mebane. There are enough
> telecommuters and long-distance commuters that I think it could fly
> but haven't proven it to myself yet.
>
> I really just want to be able to cycle to work.
>
> If anybody here has set up something like this, I'd be interested to
> hear your experiences. I'm envisioning:
> - a big room
> - with two tables
> - free (included) wifi
> - free-ish coffee
> - nice chairs
>
> Jimmy
>
> >
>
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[Coworking] Re: Creating new space - SF
Are there already several SOMA spaces? Do they have enough members to survive? How large is the potential market? How long can your space survive if subscription doesn't meet your projections? These are the questions we are facing in Palo Alto so I'd expect them to be similar for you. Good luck in contacting your collaborators/competitors. Liza Loop Fiber High, LLC 989 Commercial St. Palo Alto, CA 94303 www.fiberhigh.com On Wed, Jul 8, 2009 at 8:13 PM, Marko Gargenta wrote: > > > Hi, > > I own an office space in San Francisco Soma district. My tenant is > leaving and I'm thinking of using this opportunity to convert it into > a coworking environment. I've had an idea how I want to do it for a > while but this is first time when I'm actually going to pull a plug > and go from renting a space to one tenant to creating a community. > > I'm looking for other space owner's experiences making this > transition. The space is about 1000sf and furnished for 6 people. > While I love the space, my tech business is in another space so I > wouldn't be present day-to-day. > > Cheers, > Marko > ...from SomaRental.com to SomaOffice.com, trying to figure out the > transition... > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: An angel investor for coworking?
Hi Yan, For starters, make sure YOU understand your business well. And then find out what your angel wants to get out of her investment. She may just believe that having a coworking space is a valuable investment in her community and not ever expect to see the money again. On the other hand, she may view your organization as an opportunity for net income in excess of expenses (profit). When working in Russia I met many people from a communist background who didn't understand the difference between gross revenue and profit. Of course, China has a lot of capitalist experience by now. Still, I suggest you have a serious talk with your potential benefactor before you accept her money. Good luck with your venture/adventure. Liza 2009/7/1 Liu Yan : > Oh man, what a hilarious first day yesterday! > > An angel investor (who used to work for us as a happy volunteer during the > preparation phase) proposed to us with her money. I am not sure if she > really understands our business well, but she told us she had great trust on > us and wants to get involved in our biz more than just a volunteer. We were > quite shocked as you could imagine, not by her unknown wealthy family > background, but by this extra starting capital emerged fallen from the sky. > I know there are many many tech-related entrepreneurs out here, I am sure > you guys have a lt more experience on how to cope with an angel investor > like this. Please do help! > > best, > > > Yan > > Liu Yan刘妍 > (+86) 135 2429 5509 > Xindanwei Coworking Playce > Xindanwei China Coworking Network > @theliuyan > @xindanwei > http://xindanwei.com > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
[Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking
Hi Mike,
We're having the same problem. Our location is in a light industrial
area, off the beaten path for pedestrians. It's ideal for quiet
cubicle residents but since the bottom has fallen out of the office
market folks can get an enclosed office for what we have to charge for
a cubicle.
We thought our fiber optic connectivity and collocation facility would
be a sufficient draw for people who need a big web pipe but so far our
expectations haven't been realized. The tenants we do have are
struggling as much as we are.
Lookers are great but they don't pay the bills. 3 or 4 who don't
actually join the club are tantalizing. We can survive for another
couple of months but without some serious support it will be curtains
for Fiber High. Our other IT business, GoQuiet, has been subsidizing
Fiber High for almost a year and we're getting very hungry.
We're trying out a series of free Up 'n Down Load-a-thons to give
folks a free taste of our high speed network (the next one is July
28th, 3-11 pm). Hopefully it will be addictive. But we're not waiting
for miracles. Rather, we're exploring other business models to provide
additional income. Any suggestions are more than welcome.
I hope that we haven't created a co-working bubble by sharing our
enthusiam online with each other and miss judged the market.
Cheers (slightly damped),m
Liza Loop
On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 11:41 AM, Mike Pihlman wrote:
>
> Liza:
>
> I'm finding it difficult to get folks in here. But, I have a steady
> dribble of 3 or 4 lookers per week and am encouraged by that. I am only
> 2 months into itso I think / hope there is time. Maybe when school
> starts up again there will be more lookers (especially for the tutoring
> part).
>
> I take heart in all the success storiesso please keep them coming! :-)
>
> Mike
>
>
>
> Liza Loop wrote:
>> Hello Jimmy,
>>
>> Our biggest challenge has been letting people know our coworking site
>> is available. Neither I nor my partner are natural publicists.
>>
>> After watching these postings for about 6 months I'm beginning to
>> believe this is a common but under-discussed problem. We hear a lot
>> from the groups that are having well attended events but those that
>> are having difficulty bringing people in are quiet about it.
>>
>> Does anyone else out there get this impression?
>>
>> Liza Loop
>> Fiber High,
>> 989 Commercial St.
>> Palo Alto, CA
>>
>> On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 7:49 AM, Jimmy wrote:
>>
>>> Hi folks,
>>>
>>> My name is Jimmy Thrasher, and I live near Mebane, NC ("Mebbin", 10K-
>>> ish people). My interest in coworking is mainly from the working
>>> side, but to that end I and a friend are evaluating setting up a light-
>>> weight "mobile coworking" space that can be dropped into any of the
>>> number of empty office spaces in downtown Mebane. There are enough
>>> telecommuters and long-distance commuters that I think it could fly
>>> but haven't proven it to myself yet.
>>>
>>> I really just want to be able to cycle to work.
>>>
>>> If anybody here has set up something like this, I'd be interested to
>>> hear your experiences. I'm envisioning:
>>> - a big room
>>> - with two tables
>>> - free (included) wifi
>>> - free-ish coffee
>>> - nice chairs
>>>
>>> Jimmy
>>>
>>>
>>
>> >
>>
>>
>
> --
> Mike Pihlman
> TracyVirtualOffice
> "A Coworking Community"
> 95 W. 11th Street, Suite 203
> Tracy, CA 95376
> Mobile: 209-608-4340
> Web: TracyVirtualOffice.com
> Twitter: @TracyVirtOffice
>
>
>
> >
>
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[Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking
Thanks for your ideas, Mike and Jimmy. Yes I have tried Meet-ups. I'm not any better at publicizing them than I am at promoting Fiber High as a whole. Participating in this group is another strategy I'm using although it may be preaching to the choir. Several people have told me that repetition is key to getting traffic through the space. I interpret that to mean "don't give up!" We held a "Free Up 'n Down Load-a-thon" on Tuesday and only 2 new people showed up so we're trying it again on Tuesday, July 28th (my 64th birthday!). So send your friends around to this event as a birthday present to me. I'm also looking at hosting a NetSquared Tuesday Meeting (http://groups.drupal.org/node/4385) that same evening. Keep the ideas coming. We never know which one will turn the trick. Liza On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 7:37 PM, Mike Pihlman wrote: > > > Mike: Thats is a great idea. Thanks. :-) > > Liza: That is why I started tutoring now that I am a real teacher. 5 > students (I have 1 and it's summer) and 5 coworkers (I have 3) and I'm > breaking even. Tracy is low cost compared to your location, I'm sure. > > With all your BWI will talk to you off-line about some ideas. > > Mike > > > > --- On Thu, 7/9/09, mikeschin...@newclarity.net > wrote: > >> From: mikeschin...@newclarity.net >> Subject: [Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking >> To: "coworking@googlegroups.com" >> Date: Thursday, July 9, 2009, 7:27 PM >> >> Have you contacted local organizers on Meetup.com and >> offered them to >> hold their meetups in your facility for free in the >> evenings? This >> could get a lot of traffic through your space. If there are >> not local >> meetups for your target demographic consider organizing >> them yourself. >> JMTCW. >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> On Jul 9, 2009, at 9:40 PM, Liza Loop >> wrote: >> >> > >> > Hi Mike, >> > >> > We're having the same problem. Our location is in a >> light industrial >> > area, off the beaten path for pedestrians. It's ideal >> for quiet >> > cubicle residents but since the bottom has fallen out >> of the office >> > market folks can get an enclosed office for what we >> have to charge for >> > a cubicle. >> > >> > We thought our fiber optic connectivity and >> collocation facility would >> > be a sufficient draw for people who need a big web >> pipe but so far our >> > expectations haven't been realized. The tenants we do >> have are >> > struggling as much as we are. >> > >> > Lookers are great but they don't pay the bills. 3 or 4 >> who don't >> > actually join the club are tantalizing. We can survive >> for another >> > couple of months but without some serious support it >> will be curtains >> > for Fiber High. Our other IT business, GoQuiet, has >> been subsidizing >> > Fiber High for almost a year and we're getting very >> hungry. >> > >> > We're trying out a series of free Up 'n Down >> Load-a-thons to give >> > folks a free taste of our high speed network (the next >> one is July >> > 28th, 3-11 pm). Hopefully it will be addictive. But >> we're not waiting >> > for miracles. Rather, we're exploring other business >> models to provide >> > additional income. Any suggestions are more than >> welcome. >> > >> > I hope that we haven't created a co-working bubble by >> sharing our >> > enthusiam online with each other and miss judged the >> market. >> > >> > Cheers (slightly damped),m >> > >> > Liza Loop >> > >> > On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 11:41 AM, Mike Pihlman> >> > > wrote: >> >> >> >> Liza: >> >> >> >> I'm finding it difficult to get folks in >> here. But, I have a steady >> >> dribble of 3 or 4 lookers per week and am >> encouraged by that. I am >> >> only >> >> 2 months into itso I think / hope there is >> time. Maybe when >> >> school >> >> starts up again there will be more lookers >> (especially for the >> >> tutoring >> >> part). >> >> >> >> I take heart in all the success storiesso >> please keep them >> >> coming! :-) >> >> >> >> Mike >> >> >> >> >> >>
[Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking
Thanks, Anca, for your comments. Sometimes I think I'm entirely in the wrong business because I start thinks but rarely get them polished. The web site is a good example. Will get on it. On Fri, Jul 10, 2009 at 3:37 PM, Anca | Tech Liminal wrote: > > Hi Liza, > > With your fat interet pipe, you could try to focus some of your > efforts into audio/video streaming. Being able to host an event or > meeting or live videocast where people can take advantage of bandwidth > to get better quality audio or video for their webcast might be > useful. I considered this for my space but am not able to afford it > yet. Also, finding someone who does broadcasting to use your space > might generate some good marketing results, since it will expose your > space to their audience. > > Also, as Mike points out below, you also need to finish you web site. > Make sure that people know what the space looks like. > > Your competitors websites look much more slick and polished, and your > customers are liable to do a bit of web-based research before they > decide to drop by and see what you have to offer, especially if you > are out of the way. > > Anyway, I hope these ideas are helpful. I just joined the group > today, but it looks like a lot of good discussions are going on. > > Cheers, > > Anca. > -=-=-=-=-=- > Anca Mosoiu > a...@techliminal.com > > On Jul 9, 7:59 pm, Liza Loop wrote: >> Thanks for your ideas, Mike and Jimmy. Yes I have tried Meet-ups. I'm >> not any better at publicizing them than I am at promoting Fiber High >> as a whole. Participating in this group is another strategy I'm using >> although it may be preaching to the choir. >> >> Several people have told me that repetition is key to getting traffic >> through the space. I interpret that to mean "don't give up!" >> >> We held a "Free Up 'n Down Load-a-thon" on Tuesday and only 2 new >> people showed up so we're trying it again on Tuesday, July 28th (my >> 64th birthday!). So send your friends around to this event as a >> birthday present to me. >> >> I'm also looking at hosting a NetSquared Tuesday Meeting >> (http://groups.drupal.org/node/4385) that same evening. >> >> Keep the ideas coming. We never know which one will turn the trick. >> >> Liza >> >> On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 7:37 PM, Mike Pihlman >> wrote: >> >> > Mike: Thats is a great idea. Thanks. :-) >> >> > Liza: That is why I started tutoring now that I am a real teacher. 5 >> > students (I have 1 and it's summer) and 5 coworkers (I have 3) and I'm >> > breaking even. Tracy is low cost compared to your location, I'm sure. >> >> > With all your BWI will talk to you off-line about some ideas. >> >> > Mike >> >> > --- On Thu, 7/9/09, mikeschin...@newclarity.net >> > wrote: >> >> >> From: mikeschin...@newclarity.net >> >> Subject: [Coworking] Re: Introduction/Mobile Coworking >> >> To: "coworking@googlegroups.com" >> >> Date: Thursday, July 9, 2009, 7:27 PM >> >> >> Have you contacted local organizers on Meetup.com and >> >> offered them to >> >> hold their meetups in your facility for free in the >> >> evenings? This >> >> could get a lot of traffic through your space. If there are >> >> not local >> >> meetups for your target demographic consider organizing >> >> them yourself. >> >> JMTCW. >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> >> On Jul 9, 2009, at 9:40 PM, Liza Loop >> >> wrote: >> >> >> > Hi Mike, >> >> >> > We're having the same problem. Our location is in a >> >> light industrial >> >> > area, off the beaten path for pedestrians. It's ideal >> >> for quiet >> >> > cubicle residents but since the bottom has fallen out >> >> of the office >> >> > market folks can get an enclosed office for what we >> >> have to charge for >> >> > a cubicle. >> >> >> > We thought our fiber optic connectivity and >> >> collocation facility would >> >> > be a sufficient draw for people who need a big web >> >> pipe but so far our >> >> > expectations haven't been realized. The tenants we do >> >> have are >> >> > struggling as much as we are. >> >> >> > Lookers are great but they don't pay t
[Coworking] Re: Hi
Hi Brandy, Great idea. You might consider partnering with an existing day care center since a good kid environment may be harder to create than a good coworking space. Keep us posted on your progress. Liza On Wed, Jul 22, 2009 at 6:25 PM, ForceDotMom wrote: > > Hi, > > I am not coworking yet. Actually - I just had the idea to open a > space the other day, and I didn't even know that 'coworking' was a > thing. But here you all are. > > My thought was that it would be nice to have a coworking space that > would incorporate childcare of some kind. I know that some > corporations have on site daycare for working parents. I think it > would be so great to have something like that for people (like me) who > work at a home office and have kids to care for. > > Would love to hear any thoughts or input from the group. > > I look forward to learning more here. > > -Brandy > > > > > --~--~-~--~~~---~--~~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to coworking@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en -~--~~~~--~~--~--~---
