SmallBizResource Blog -- Women in Business

Connected-Women Founder Runa Magnusdottir: Wednesday's Woman

Posted by Gayle Kesten Wednesday, May 20, 2009, 09:35 AM ET

I had a list of the questions I planned to ask Runa Magnusdottir, founder of a social networking site for women entrepreneurs that's based in Reykjavik, Iceland. Her story, I knew, would be inspiring and full of takeaways. But you know what I really wanted to know?

Just how (freaking) cold does is get in Iceland?

"It can go to 8 or 9 Celsius [-12/13 Fahrenheit]. The average temperature is 0 Celius [32 degrees], though north or east of the center where nobody lives it can be -10/15 Celsius [-23/26 Fahrenheit]," Magnusdottir generously informed me (along with the fact that Iceland is the size of Kentucky, with 300,000 inhabitants and an economy in as great a shape as ours). "Actually I lived in Wisconsin for one year, and that was the coldest winter in my life!"

Like so many of our Wednesday's Women -- Magnusdottir, who's 48 and a mom of three, reinvented her career years after working in seemingly unrelated areas that ultimately bought her to where she is right now: a business coach and founder of Connected-Women.com, which (as its name says) is connecting women all around the globe. To date, Connected-Women represents entrepreneurs from more than 60 countries, with the United States accounting for 40 percent of membership, Magnusdottir said. "The site is in two languages: Icelandic and English," she said. "It's the same database with two difference interfaces. However, we have discussions going on offered in five languages: English, Spanish, French, German, and Icelandic."

Weather aside, Magnusdottir had plenty of insight to share, including what women entrepreneurs all have in common no matter which country they hail from, how search-engine optimization (SEO) is a huge part of the way she markets her site, and the promising power of trust. Also, make sure you see the photo near the end of the interview. Magnusdottir took it especially for us.

SBR: What were your original career aspirations?
RM: My intention was to become an interior designer or architect, but things changed quickly. One of my first jobs after school was as the private secretary for the minister, which gave me access into the political world in Iceland. Following that for 18 years I ran an interior design-related business that my mom had started importing products into Iceland, so I was involved in international trading. I eventually bought the company and ran it solo until 2006, when the opportunity to sell arose. You feel like you're selling your child, but I realized it more a bit later how really ready I was.

SBR: What did you intend to do next?
RM: I looked at myself in the mirror and thought, "Oh my God, what are you going to do when you grow up?" That's when I gave myself some time to do some studying. I took courses in project management, marketing, and coaching. When I was being coached in a coaching session and wondering where to go, I found a growing passion for women entrepreneurs.

SBR: What specifically stood out for you?
RM: Women are a powerful force, but we are holding ourselves back, afraid to make mistakes. If we all acted on impulses, there'd be a lot more productivity going on. There's an automatic system inside of us that says, "I don't have the know-how. I don't have the equipment. I don't have the funds." We talk ourselves down. Men do it, too, but women are better. While running my own import company, going to various women conferences around the world…I noticed it didn't matter where women came from -- Africa, Asia, America, or Europe. We are all struggling with similar things. [This led me to want to build a] platform for women entrepreneurs worldwide where they could share their thoughts and ideas, leading to a stronger network. Women entrepreneurs want to do everything, but you can't be good at everything. How can an artist who knows how to produce a product be good at finance or marketing? Or put up a Web site? This is the basic idea behind Connected-Women.

SBR: Did you have any prior tech know-how?
RM: Before working with my mom and her company, I had also worked for a computer company in Iceland, teaching people how to use computers and databases. That background knowledge gave me the idea of the power of a database and the power of the Internet. And as a working mom constantly being told you have to build up your network, attend breakfast meetings with chambers of commerce, and be seen while you're trying to prioritize your time and have your children and family, I thought, wow, how wonderful if you could do that once everyone was settled down, connecting to build up your business in an easy, relaxing environment.

SBR: Have you noticed any cultural differences among women's comfort with using social media?
RM: The Western world is more comfortable with the Internet and security than the Eastern world. Women from South America have been networking openly, less afraid, while women I talk to in Asia, India, and China are a little bit skeptical. When I post something, I'm not thinking it's going to be there for the rest of my life. Different cultures are more afraid, but it's something we're all dealing with -- building trust. For some people it takes a little longer.

SBR: What makes your site different from others aimed at women entrepreneurs?
RM: That it's global. That's the difference. So many of the others -- and I participate in quite a lot -- are very localized for a city or group in special field. Here I'm dealing with a lot larger of an environment than I do in Iceland. I haven't seen a site with woman from so many cultures. [As a result], we are part of a project to provide women entrepreneurs with the online tools to connect worldwide through Connected-Women.com for FCEM [Les Femmes Chefs d'Enterprises Modiales, the world association of women entrepreneurs].

SBR: How do you make money from Connected-Women?
RM: From paid membership and advertisements. We started our first year totally free, with everything open, and then last summer started to offer a Gold membership. That gives you more space [and more capabilities].

SBR: How do you market your site?
RM: Through word-of-mouth a great deal. It's fun to watch a new country come in [to Connected-Women]. You know something is going on -- someone has been talking. Also being a speaker, and I'm engaged with a PR agency. [In addition], from the beginning we worked the site so it's search-engine friendly. Seventy percent of our visits come from Google and Yahoo. We consulted with a SEO expert from the ground up. You can't just make a Website and wait for results.

SBR: What other social networks do you use?
RM: Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. LinkedIn for me is a network for professional networking, and Facebook is for my friends, though my list of friends is getting larger than just friends. I use Twitter to see what's going on in the world, what women are, in general, talking about it, and as a PR [channel] for Connected-Women to let followers know what's going on.

SBR: Who inspires you?
RM: Whenever I see a person who is generally herself and authentic, who has really grown and is working on growing others, those are qualities that inspire me. I'm inspired by people who listen with an open mind and are not judgmental or think they know everything best. [The Swedish word for a smarty pants like that, Runa taught me, is besservisser.]

SBR: How do you strike a balance between your personal and professional lives?
RM: I look at it more as I'm creating, not working. I'm creating a world that I want to be part of. But to find balance, I take my bichon frise for a daily walk (see photo, right). I live close to the sea. We walk on the coastline, with the breeze from the North Pole in my face. I feel connected with Mother Nature, and my own nature and self.

SBR: Here's a question for you that was asked of your community: What does the world look like when women have finally shattered the glass ceiling?
RM: Because we are in a time of big changes, now is the opportunity to build up the world we want to live in. Now's the time to change something in our own minds. More women began working out of the home following World War II, in a place made my men. And we adapted. A full-time job is eight hour a day. It has always been that way, but who said that's the only way?

SBR: Good point. What do you propose?
RM: I don't have a solution. We have to open up the discussion and figure that out together. We have to show people we trust. In The Speed of Trust, Steven Colby writes about a hot dog stand in New York. During lunch hour, the lines were long and the owner was losing business because of the time it was taking him to make change. So he put out a bucket of change, trusted people to take change, and gets more people for that hour selling hot dogs. They don't want to cheat him because they think, "He trusts me." I want to be ignorant enough to be in that world and push this way of thinking forward.

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