…and so little time to soak it all in. Yeah, it’s been a busy few weeks.

First, I was able to teach a class about Online Marketing to a group of 10 farmers. I hope they gleaned some useful tools from it. Since they all work in different types of business models, I tried to include several different tactics for using social media and websites to reach customers. Sometimes they apply and sometimes they don’t. Here are a couple I’ve seen:

• Food truck tweeting: I wrote about how food trucks are communicating with their audiences in an earlier posting. Farmers can use this model to remind their customers that they should stop by the farm.
• Web Sites for Everyone: By using templates, many companies are offering inexpensive, quickly set-up, convenient web sites for small businesses. They include GoDaddy, Intuit, and my lastest fun find, Vistaprint, which offers a whole range of services.

So, then I was off to the Mother Earth News Fair, to discover the latest in sustainable living. I saw Dan from Earthineer again and got to see some of the new things he’s doing with the community. The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy had information on some interesting draft horse breeds. There were quite a few farmers showing their heritage breeds, including goats, sheep, and cows. (Chickens were simply everywhere!) A fun new visitor was the group from the town of Hope in British Columbia, introducing us to their lovely place in Canada.

I met John Ivanko and Lisa Kivirist and chatted with them about their book, “ECOpreneuring“, which I really enjoyed reading. It’s one of the first “how-to” manuals I’ve seen that addresses the financial side of a sustainable business. I’ll write more about it later.

When you meet an accomplished actor, director, and producer like Ed Begley, Jr., what do you talk about? Why, sanitation, of course. (Sometimes, I am a bit dorky.)  We chatted briefly about Envirolet composting toilets and how they can be used in guest cottages, outbuildings, and other places where plumbing doesn’t necessarily reach.

I came home with seeds, plants, goodies for the puppy, some new contacts, and tons of new ideas. I think I need to go plant something now.