We are very proud to feature our Wonderful Web Radio Rising Star interview. In this segment, we speak with Vanessa Jeny.Vanessa is the founder of MenorcaBlue.com, an online guide to the Spanish Mediterranean island of Menorca. She helps connect the top tourist services on the island with discerning travelers looking for authentic local experiences on holiday. Leaving behind her former career in special events and concert touring, Vanessa moved to Spain from Sydney Australia to renovate her grandparent’s house on the island. Six years later, she loves living the Mediterranean lifestyle with her trilingual Menorcan family. Menorca Blue was created to share the best of Menorca from the perspective of someone who has come to know and love the island as an outsider, but been privileged to experience life as a local. The site provides information and advice about all aspects of life in Menorca relevant to both residents and visitors, with the aim to support the community, environment and local economy. Visit MenorcaBlue.com to take a peek inside paradise and live the local lifestyle.
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Transcript of the Interview
Jane: Hello everyone and welcome to this weeks episode of Rising Star Radio. I’m your host Jane Hinchey and you can find me at www.janehinchey.com. Today I’m delighted to be speaking with Vanessa Jeny. Welcome Vanessa.
Vanessa: Hi Jane, thanks for inviting me on the show.
Jane: Thanks for joining us. Now to get us started, why don’t you share with us who it is you serve and how you serve them?
Vanessa: Ok, just to give you a little bit of a background story. I’m an Australian who lives on the island of Menorca which is one of the Spanish Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean. I left my career in concert touring in London and moved to Menorca six years ago and my current business project is in the niche of destination marketing for the island’s tourism. I’m the founder of ‘MenorcaBlue.com – Peak Inside Paradise and Live the Local Lifestyle’ which is an online guide on how to enjoy the best of Menorca by discovering the quality of life that the island has to offer. I am working on helping connect the top tourist services on the island with discerning travelers looking for authentic local experiences on holiday. My idea for this came because a lot of us, when we go on holiday, we particularly like to go somewhere where we know somebody who actually lives there; who can show us around and the idea with my website is that it developed from the perspective of somebody who has came to know and love the islands as an outsider but lives the life of a local and knows all of the secret spots to go.
My vision for the website is to present the island authentically, support local businesses and persuade visitors to try the local products and services during their stay.
If anybody would like to find out more, they can visit www.menorcablue.com or stop by my Facebook page which is also called Menorcablue.
Jane: Very good. Did you have a background in tourism before this Vanessa?
Vanessa: No, when I moved to Menorca, I had to leave my career behind. I was working in special event management and concert touring but most of the island’s job opportunities revolve around providing goods and services for residents or for tourists. I like the idea of working for myself; from home and via the internet, and also contributing to the local community if I could because it’s a lovely place.
Jane: It is, it’s gorgeous. Now of course, you are a member of the Wonderful Web Women Community, can you tell us what program or product that you have purchased, that you have taken action on?
Vanessa: Yes, sure. My journey into the internet business; I’ve been here six years but I started looking into it to starting my own business about just over two years ago and Janet was one of the first people I found online. I was actually on her list for a couple of years before I became a Gold Member. I received all her marketing and I attended the free seminars that she releases because they were always excellent content, so she was always on my radar, and then I joined as a Gold Member for about six months which means that I was receiving a monthly module targeting specific areas of internet business and marketing. When the Shine Online program launched at the end of last year, I jumped at the chance to work with Janet more closely as I really like her style of teaching. I think she is very intuitive and she breaks down different sections of internet business and marketing into very manageable steps for people so they can understand and implement it, and I think she is also really committed to helping you find the right path to success for your business, so depending on what your business is, I think she is really great at putting herself in your shoes and helping you fulfill that vision.
Jane: Absolutely. I’ve been with Janet for a while as well and totally agree. Now what did you learn from Shine Online or just being part of the Gold Membership that led you to taking action and what was that action that you took?
Vanessa: Ok, personally, starting with the Gold Membership because that was my first experience as a customer with Janet and Wonderful Web Women, with the Gold membership first of al,l I really like the idea of addressing just one aspect of business or marketing per month. Because I think, especially when you are starting out, but I’m sure, as an established business owner as well, there is just so much that you need to do. You’ve got so many paths that you need to get through and I really like the idea of having ‘right, this month we’re going to address this topic and then show how to implement this strategy, or better, or make your business more effective’. So with a Gold Membership it’s manageable and can be consumed and applied to your business very quickly and effectively and you can work it in with all the other tasks that you have to do. I like the format of the Gold Membership because they are short coffee break learning videos as Janet calls them and you can fit the learning in between other things if you just want to take a break from what you are doing; but also with the modules from the Gold Membership, she provides longer audios and I’m a big fan of that as well because I can listen to all the audios as well while I’m driving to work or walking the dog or doing other things. I like short videos and long audios, that works really well for me and then to tie it all together, she provides a written step by step action plan; so once you’ve listened to it, you’ve absorbed it, you know exactly where to start implementing it into your business, so for me and I’m sure for many other people, these delivery methods are perfect for busy people and also the price of the Gold Membership is really great, that’s just really affordable.
With the Shine Online program, the difference is the modules are sequential, so you can work through from module one at your own pace and just go at your own speed and fit that in again, around your other paths. I have learned quite a bit in my two years about internet business and all the different pieces of the puzzle. So my knowledge was quite good but it wasn’t complete, so I skipped over some foundation steps at the beginning and then Shine Online; Janet starts at the very beginning with what your strengths are, your interests, your goals and your big motivation – what’s your Why? as to why you want to do this business and from those foundation steps, she moves you through each step in building the business online, so you don’t miss anything out, I really like that. It makes for a really strong foundation, it’s also excellent value and it ensures that you also have all the pieces in place for a long term profitable business which is most important.
Jane: Yes, absolutely, it’s really important and, as you said, we can tend to skip over the foundation stuff, because you think you have it in place but it’s not quite right, and you need that solid foundation to build on.
Vanessa: Yeah, I think it’s just really good. I think sometimes we get so carried away with our ideas, especially if you’ve got the natural entrepreneur drive, you can always see the big picture, you can always see the end step, I’m great at running before I can walk and sometimes you just need to slow down, go back to the start and actually have that strong foundation in place. Using the house analogy, if you don’t have the strong foundation in place, then your house will fall down at some stage, so really important to start from scratch. I think you’re motivation is really important, you’ve got your big reason why you want to do it for yourself, why you want to do it for your family, why you want to do it for your community. I think if you’ve got that there all the time then it makes it really easy to perhaps tackle parts of building the business that don’t come easily to you; because that passion is always there and your purpose is always there
Jane: Well said. So what changed for you as a result of you taking action through the Shine Online program?
Vanessa: OK, well I have to be honest and say the biggest change for me, because the beauty of doing an internet business is that you can do it from anywhere in the world. I think what has been the biggest change for me and the most surprising factor for me has been the support network I now have. So, most people are familiar with the fact that when we start out, we all start out as one person with a big mission and we’re all trying to learn and do everything ourselves until you kind of feel that you have a good understanding and you’ve got a little bit more cash to be able to bring other people into your team. So everyone starts from the same place and I had purchased other online business development products but the difference is that there was no-one to ask questions, there was no-one to give feedback or the response time was terrible. Also you don’t really know if anyone is having the same experience as you, so you’re studying on your own, learning on your own from your own place but you have no interaction with anybody. So what’s great with the Wonderful Web Women group; there is a Shine Online group which is especially for Shine Online participants and then there is the Wonderful Web group which is also everybody who is one of Janet’s clients and everybody has the same mentality; they are very helpful and supportive, especially with promoting what you are doing and sharing resources as well, everybody has got the same mentality of asking questions, sharing answers, giving feedback and tips. What’s also important is that Janet and her team always respond within 24hours, so you’ve got a really quick answer to any of your questions or if you need help with anything. So even though you’re working through the program at your own pace you’re definitely not alone and once I decided, personally, that I said ‘right I’ve got this opportunity; I’m going to be active in this group, everybody has responded with such generosity’ and for me it’s also been a joy to support others, see what everybody is doing, celebrate their successes, just really inspiring. I think the important thing is to choose to be active and then watch how people reciprocate that with support and generosity.
Jane: Absolutely and I have to agree with you there that Janet’s Facebook groups there are just so supportive and there’s no such thing as a silly question and if you don’t understand something, there’s lots of people there to help and guide you along the way. It’s a wonderful community.
Vanessa: Yes, I’ve just been really surprised. There has been days when I haven’t even been active myself but if I see there is a new message has come up or people are leaving messages, I’ll always just jump on for a couple of minutes just to read the latest messages. I remember there was one day I found out about two websites that I had no idea what they were and I was able to find answers to the sections that I had questions over, not that I’d asked the questions but they were areas of business that I hadn’t explored yet, and I’d found websites that could provide me with the answers straight away, just by checking in and seeing what other people were talking about so that was great.
Jane: Yeah, absolutely. Now are there any tips that you can share with our listeners today that they can take action on themselves?
Vanessa: Yes, I think the most important thing is don’t waste time struggling along on you own, I did that and so many people do.
You’re not sure where to start, you have so much information coming at you and everything sounds really good and you think you need all of it, but my suggestion would be don’t struggle along on your own but do take the time to select a mentor and a program that fits your preferred style of learning and your budget.
So my tips would be to make sure that the program does have an active community where you can meet others virtually who are going through the same experience, that’s really important and you can pool knowledge and resources as well. These other people who you will be interacting with also might have some connections that you can speed up your progress or introduce you to somebody that could have a huge affect on your business so the community is really important.
Since I joined the Wonderful Web Group community my networking connections and supporters has grown exponentially and I’m over here in Spain on my little island and I’ve met people all over the world who are helping me promote my message which is really great and I’m able to reciprocate and do the same and you just get this really incredible momentum behind it. It’s just been wonderful to make new friends and business contacts as well.
The other thing I just wanted to mention is that, through the Wonderful Web Women group, I was able to join a Mastermind Group. Now Mastermind Groups I heard a lot about and they sounded all very fabulous but it was also a bit mysterious as well and I thought ‘how on Earth am I going to join a Mastermind Group if I’m on this island in Spain so far away from everybody else’ and another one of the ladies just put a call out in the Wonderful Web room and said ‘I’d like to join a Mastermind Group’ and I think in the end she got over thirty responses from different people saying they’d like to help her form the group or find people for her or be a part of it and the whole thing came together in a couple of weeks, and now I’m in this wonderful Mastermind Group and we meet once every two weeks via Skype. Everybody is involved in different businesses but going through the same journey and we are able to support each other and share resources, share our successes. You’ve got an ear, a group of people who can listen to you when you need to chat through something. I thought it was amazing, I thought that was going to be so hard but it all just came together so quickly it was lovely.
Jane: That’s really great to hear Vanessa. Now you’ve given us some inspiring information here today. Is there anything else that you’d like to add?
Vanessa: Yes, I think that the main thing I want to say to anyone who’s listening, if I am in a small island, a gorgeous island, but small and very disconnected in the middle of the Mediterranean, and if I can make such rapid progress in four months after trying to put together the pieces of the internet business puzzle on my own for two years, then anybody can make that sort of difference in their own business project just by joining the right group, joining the right program and choosing to be active. Don’t choose to be an observer, because I think when you work at home on the internet you can get into the trap of you just looking at the screen all the time. Make use of the opportunity to meet people even if you can’t physically meet people. Get out there, make friendships; it is so easy now, it makes it so easy for us to be able to do that with the technology. Don’t wait for circumstances to change or for you to be ready, start now. Just make the time to dedicate to your business a priority and get the help you need to support you. Small daily steps is all you need and I think it is always going to be the same unless you choose to change something. Six months from now you’re going to wish you started today anyway, so speed up your progress and get the help you need.
Jane: Outstanding advice. So thank you so much Vanessa for your time today and for sharing your experiences with us. It’s been an honour and a pleasure speaking with you.
Vanessa: Thanks Jane, thanks for giving me the opportunity to share.
Jane: Not a problem. So this has been Jane Hinchey. Thank you for listening and don’t forget to tune in next week for another Rising Star Radio interview.
Would you be all in favour of exchanging links?