I went to a great networking event last night called Ideas on Tap.
Hosted by local companies that included 6S Marketing, the event is the new version of an event that used to happen in Vancouver around 1999 whereby web people would get on a milk crate and pitch their ideas for 60 seconds. The new version of the event, launched last night, wasn't really about looking for funding but more about talking ABOUT great ideas and that is what I found really interesting.
The problem is that I feel this city is full of small marketing type firms that have a few people looking to work for themselves... to live that specific "life". Which means that people are more into themselves and their own thing than really pushing the whole scene forward. Also, I spoke to a number of these small firms that seem to be really industry specific... which is REALLY dangerous. They should really look to diversify more.
Interesting though is that I did get the chance to talk to John Chow briefly, who is famous for making about 30k/month through blogging and affililate marketing. Affiliate marketing is where you agree to sell a firm's products or goods in exchange for commission. John's thing is lead generation so he gets a fee for each lead he generates. I never knew he lived in Vancouver as well.
All in all a fun evening and it was good to get out and be involved in the marketing community in Vancouver. I think I will keep going to these types of events in order to meet more people and expand my network as I can. It's a bit hard in this city as some people aren't overly friendly and sometimes people don't really network as much as they talk to their friends but still, these things are MUST if you are going to move your career forward.
I have a free pass for the Vancouver Board of Trade speaker series... so I am going to go to one of those events soon. Ideally, I really want to expand my network outside marketing and software. I think the scene in Vancouver is small enough that if you really work hard at it, you can really set yourself apart.