What I learned at SXSW 2009

2009 April 21
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sxsw2009Nathan T. Wright, Andy Brudtkuhl, James Eliason, Karri Wells, Rich Drake, Andrew Roger and Hillary Brown will be presenting at Impromptu Studio for What I Learned at South by Southwest 2009. For those who were not able to attend SXSW you will get to  hear about everything they learned.

Like most of our great events, there will be a keg of beer from Olde Main and snacks on hand donated by Technology Association of Iowa.

RSVP today, tickets are limited.

TownHall Recap: Impromptu Studio 2.0

2009 March 31
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Wednesday March 25th, Impromptu Studio held a town hall meeting inviting the community to join our discussion about the future of Impromptu Studio.

Andy Brudtkuhl, 48Web and Doug Mitchell, CreateWow media talked about how they use the space, their current projects, and the opportunities that have been presented to them by working from Impromptu Studio.

sxsw2009iaNathan Wright, Lava Row, spoke a little bit about SXSW and announced that he and several others that attended SXSW will be putting on a presentation to share with us all the fantastic new things he learned while there. He also talked a little about the WhatNow? Lunch and Learns that he and Andy Brudtkuhl have been putting on and how nice it is that we are around to use as a location for all of the cool events and presentations that he has been able to put on.

Daniel ShiptonDan also wanted to show that we are not the only space in the area that is around trying to make Central Iowa a better place. So we had Brian Anderson of Ames CoLab speak to us a little about the coworking space that they are opening in Ames and how we plan to work together to offer member reciprocity for both spaces. Scott Kubie of Market Street Media Foundry also got up and spoke about their new space which specifically caters more to Artists and and creative media fields.

Dan announced a few of Impromptu Studio’s membership goals and a membership drive, which he asked the community to help us with. With those goal Dan announced an event series that he would like to get started entitled cultivate:dsm which as we meet our goals we will begin implementing.cultivatedsm-v11

We will be talking more about these items in separate blog posts to cover them more in depth. We hope everyone who attended our town hall had a great time. There are some great things happening at Impromptu Studio we want all of you to be a part of it. Stay Tuned . . . .

Townhall: Coworking Information, Special Announcements, and Opportunities

2009 March 23

Impromptu Studio StageOur big Townhall meeting is just two days away!  If you haven’t figured out what our meeting will be about, look no further.

The Townhall meeting is aimed at three types of people and part of the meeting will address each:

  1. Those who want to learn more about coworking and Impromptu Studio.
  2. Those who interested in finding out what big announcements, including upcoming events, and changes Impromptu Studio has in store for it’s community.
  3. Those who are interested in lending a helping hand to make Impromptu Studio better than they found it.

The Townhall is a meeting where you can bring your questions and suggestions about coworking or Impromptu Studio. This is an open invitation to shape the way Des Moines works!

For those that are curious about who you might see at the Townhall…. some of the speakers that will be either talking about coworking, Impromptu Studio, or making an announcement include:

We hope to see you there!  During the Townhall meeting we will also be collecting video testimonials in our green screen room.

If you like, RSVP on Upcoming.

Audio and Video Shared Studio Made Reality via CreateWowMedia!

2009 January 29
Doug Mitchell and J. Michael McCoy in the studio.

Doug Mitchell and J. Michael McCoy in the studio.

Impromptu Studio is excited and to announce that we now have a full audio and video recording studio. Our most recent additions to the space are Doug Mitchell and Paul Gratton of CreateWow Media who made the new studio a possibility. Doug Mitchell and Andy Brudtkuhl along with the help of Paul Gratton as producer will be putting out a weekly podcast from the new studio. We want to invite those of you thinking about starting a video blog or podcast, or even looking to try out a new studio,  to stop in a take a look at our facilities.  More pictures coming soon!

Lava Row and 48Web Present: What Now? a six-part entrepreneur survival guide

2009 January 22

whatnowlogoWhat Now? a six-part entrepreneur survival guide is a six-part educational series for recent entrepreneurs, layoff casualties looking for a networking edge, and anyone who thinking about ditching “The Man” and starting their own business. For each conversation, we’ve paired up two really smart people from here in Des Moines to share their personal experiences. Highs, lows – everything. What Now? a six-part entrepreneur survival guide is brought to you by Lava Row and 48Web and hosted at Impromptu Studio. All proceeds will from the series will go towards keeping Impromptu Studio a low cost option for entrepreneurs and a hub for the technology community in Des Moines. Ten tickets for each part will go up for grabs the week before the respective part via a random Twitter announcement from @nathantwright or @abrudtkuhl. Make sure you follow them to catch the announcement!

Note: Lunch will be provided. Network and eat from 11:30-12pm. Speakers start their conversations at 12pm and go until 1pm.


Making the Jump: Mistakes and Hurdles

Friday, January 30 – 11:30am-1pm

Join Liza Kindred (Lullabot) and Brian Hemesath (Diligent ISCatchwind) as they discuss common pitfalls and mistakes made when forming a business, and how to overcome various logistical and emotional obstacles.

Networking: Get out there!

Friday, February 13 - 11:30am-1pm

Andy Drish (Principal Financial Group) and Justin Brady (Test of Time Design) will share various methods of getting out there and networking yourself socially and digitally – whether you’re looking to start your own biz right now or a few years down the road.

Avoiding the Day-to-Day: Staying Inspired & Motivated

Friday, February 27 - 11:30am-1pm

Ron Wagner (comic book & storyboard artist) and Teri TeBockhorst (serial entrepreneur & former owner of East Village Books) join forces to talk about the emotional side of being in business for yourself: how to stay motivated, how to avoid depression, and how to constantly reinvent yourself.

Running Cheap & Lean: Bootstrapping 101

Friday, March 6 - 11:30am-1pm

Jason Walsmith (The Nadas, Authentic Records) and Doug Mitchell (CreateWOWmedia) Gabriel Glynn (Asset Protection Specialists) share success stories (and horror stories) of how they bootstrapped their respective businesses.

Character: Don’t be an @$$hole

Friday, March 20 - 11:30am-1pm

Brett Trout (Law Offices of Brett Trout) and Adam Steen (25 Connections) talk about the importance of character in business relationships, and how it can affect your reputation, referral network and bottom line.

Marketing: How to get creative in a tight economy

Friday, April 3 - 11:30am-1pm

Mike Ferrari (SmartyPig.com) and Mike Wagner (White Rabbit Group) share various ways in which they’ve creatively (and inexpensively) marketed their businesses in a tight economy.