It's the start of July, and as usual, there are lots of networking events at the beginning of the month. I saw this event in Barnsley, a place I have rarely visited, which was networking plus 5 tech talks.
Barnsley is a 90-minute drive away from my house, but the event was put on by Stephen Farr, a friend of mine, and one of the presentations was by another friend of mine. In addition, all the advertised speakers sounded interesting, and it was hosted in Barnsley's new council-run tech hub, which I have been interested in visiting for a while.
Co-Working Morning
The talks started at 1 pm so there was no morning rush but I was able to take advantage of the Reef app and book some co-working space at the hub for the morning, with an added benefit that I was able to catch up and do a little work with a good friend of mine (Kathryn from https://www.hypnogirl.co.uk) who was also attending the event.
The co-working space was great. Very spacious, with lots of plugs (Electric points, USB A & C), fast internet and tea and coffee on tap (literally)
Once the morning was over, we took a short walk over to another building within the hub where the event was taking place.
Session 1 - Stephen Farr
The first session was an event introduction and a talk by Stephen Farr from IDARN.com, talking about how he can help you get found online, be introduced at events and improve your productivity with the help of some great AI Tools.
This was A great talk as always from Stephen, he gave an introduction to his IDARN service, where he talked about his mission and passion to bring small businesses and entrepreneurs together and help with the business process as much as he can. He also showed his IDARN directory, which contains company information and links for local businesses (And yes, you'll find YorkshireTechy on there)
Stephen is a friend of mine, so I can only apologise for the photo, it's the only one I got of his talk. You can find him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenifarr/
Session 2 - Louise Mason
Louise was next with a talk on 3 Ways to Grow Your Business (with or without tech). The talk focused on increasing your AOV (Average Order Value) and getting repeat customers, so that when you do attract more customers, you have a system/process in place to maximise revenue.
This was a great talk and included so many handy tips on bringing in more customers and revenue, and more importantly, making sure your customers come back and spend more. Her framework focused on traditional marketing methods, showing how your marketing and promotion could work regardless of the tech involved.
You can find Louise at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louisemasonmarketing/
Session 3 - Sam Cox
I was really looking forward to this talk, Sam is a friend of mine and we have worked together before as well. Sam is a Digital Analytics specialist who works with companies to make the best use of data and insights to create an ongoing marketing strategy.
Sam did a great talk on the importance of data, and making sure you collect the right data legally to understand exactly what your customers' wants and needs are.
A great talk introducing his company and what data can do for your business. You can find Sam at:
Session 4 - James Coughlan
James is the CEO and founder of the Reef app. I personally use this app, which is a great system for booking a workspace away from my home office. If I am visiting a town or a city, I can just log on to the app and book a space with wifi, refreshments and electric points.
James introduced the company and went through a history of how and why it exists, as well as showing a sneak peek of the new version which will be launched in early July 2025
You can find James at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrjamescoughlan/
Session 5 - Phil Farey
The last session was a talk on cyber security by Phil Farey. Phil is the owner of Flyford, an IT Support and Security company. The talk centred around cybersecurity, including cyber essentials for businesses as well as what you can do to secure your own computers and devices. Phil had so much great information for those unaware of what is available on your computers in terms of firewalls and security software, as well as a discussion about password managers and good password practices.
There was so much info in this talk that most people can take home and implement. It was definitely food for thought for most of the audience. A great talk!
Phil can be found at https://www.linkedin.com/in/philfarey/
Networking
After the sessions, there was more time for a coffee and networking. I find that you always find something of use from these days, and today was no exception. I met some great people, heard some great talks and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Keep an eye out on Stephen's LinkedIn profile for more days like this, well worth the day out!
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