Grow Your Business through Build, Grow, Learn

Word Cloud of terms related to business growth and strategy.

Grow Your Business Through Build, Grow, Learn

John Newhoff April 20, 2024 Claris Connect, Events, FileMaker, FM BetterForms, Marketing Comments (0)

The Good Fortune of Attending Build, Grow, Learn

Last week I had the good fortune to attend the Build, Grow, Learn conference in Greenville, SC. The conference was put on by long-time FileMaker community members at Beyond The Chaos, The Scarpetta Group, and Kalos Consulting, but focused in a little bit different direction than the traditionally tech-oriented FileMaker conferences. Build, Grow, Learn was focused more on how to manage and grow your business, and FileMaker folks were only about a quarter of the attendees.

Build, Grow, Learn: This conference is for Entrepreneurs, Small Business Owners, as well as Software Developers/Consultants aspiring to create a business.
Build. Grow. Learn.

Downtown Greenville, SC, Was Delightful

The conference was held in downtown Greenville and this trip was my first visit to the area. We had great weather and it was a pleasure to get a feel for the community. I enjoy the brick architecture common in smaller cities in the south and it’s quite a beautiful area with slightly rolling hills, many trees, and rivers.

Photo of Cedar Falls and dam in Greenville, South Carolina. — Cedar Falls and dam

Photo of downtown Greenville, South Carolina, and the falls on the Reedy River — Cedar Falls and dam

The Variety of Sessions Was Appreciated

I attended sessions on sales and lead management, team building, project scoping, managing your online presence, business operating systems, and managing customer relations, which all need focus in order to grow your business. The only technology session I attended was a technical overview of Claris Connect.

As is usual for me and conferences, I came away with a lengthy set of notes to follow up on. Several of the speakers brought books related to their topic and I ended up with a couple about business operating systems. I’m going to start with reading Traction by Gino Wickman.

Photo of a presentation at the Build, Grow, Learn conference, focused on growing your business. — Inspirational Keynote speaker Mike Snively: The Oppenheimer Effect and How to Expand Your Connections

Photo of the book called Traction, by Gino Wickman, focused on growing your business. — Inspirational Keynote speaker Mike Snively: The Oppenheimer Effect and How to Expand Your Connections

I Enjoyed Interacting with People I Usually Only Know Via Zoom

For me, often the most important part of conferences is the chance to talk to people I usually only know via Zoom meetings. The relatively small size of this conference made interacting with folks a little easier.

I enjoyed speaking with Charles Delfs at FM Betterforms, about an FM BetterForms marketing push we’re doing soon, as well as Lyndsey Smith from Claris, plus a number of people who run their own FileMaker consulting businesses.

All in all, I really enjoyed Build, Grow, Learn!

About the Author

John Newhoff’s business background and years of database design, computer, and network configuration, and troubleshooting experience allow him to see beyond the immediate problem to the long-term solution. John is the business manager of Portage Bay and our lead 4th Dimension developer, creating sophisticated cross-platform solutions.