The long-term outcome of the prolonged lockdown is positive for many businesses, leaders and families
As summer comes to a close, with the call of September and school and work bearing down on us, the reality that the effects of COVID-19 linger is indisputable. Businesses, workplaces, schools and universities are all searching for ways to balance risk with service levels. The novelty of working remotely is wearing thin for many…
Our guide to ensuring your brand captures who you are and who your customers believe you to be
Branding is an extremely overused word – quickly followed by sentences that include “we need a vision,” “we need a mission” and “we need our values, ASAP!” Of course, businesses need those things. The challenge with these branding pieces happens when leaders don’t understand what they are by definition, over and above inspirational sentences, what…
Taking a real holiday allows you to recharge your batteries, empowers staff and lets you evaluate how effectively systems work in your absence
Rachael and Carmel were a little surprised, and perhaps a little nervous, when I told them I was taking a six-month vacation and that they would be in charge. The business had been open for five years, but the truth was I was making more money renovating and flipping houses than I was from the business.…
Talented, ambitious and resourceful Indigenous people continue to face systemic obstacles to start businesses
A Winnipeg-area Indigenous entrepreneur might hold the key to Indigenous peoples controlling their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. His experience also underscores why it’s so important to unshackle the Indigenous business community and entrepreneurial sector from restrictions imposed by the Indian Act, as well as other non-legislative barriers. Josh Giesbrecht is president and co-founder of…
If you give lip service to treating people well and then treat your team poorly, don’t expect your clients to receive anything different
Like most people (at least 62 per cent, according to a 2019 study by Hello Products), I don’t like going to the dentist. However, this was my week for getting a cavity checked and I headed to the dentist’s office. You know the routine: you get questioned and prodded by the dental assistant as she…
You want to be really clear about what you’re selling, how to buy and what the process is
A landing page is a dedicated page on your website that people are brought directly to from some sort of advertising or offer. This custom page is where you will convert that click on advertising into a customer in your business. When someone visits your landing page, they’re looking to scan and not read a…
Be complimentary, keep it short, provide the questions you want answered, offer a link to your reviews, show the connection and be human
When I work with my clients, one of the things we focus on is reputation management. Reputation management is a really important piece of your online brand. Reputation is what people are saying about your business to other people (who aren’t your customers yet). Google reviews are something you can manage on your own, don’t…
If your business has survived or even thrived during the past few months, you deserve congratulations. According to a recent poll by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, only 58 per cent of businesses have fully opened, with just 23 per cent experiencing the same or better revenue than the same time last year. If…
Implementing systems in a business lets you guide how, when and why things get done. Rules cut costs, reduce waste and minimize injury
Parents have rules for a reason and my daughter Isabel learned the hard way. Jumping up and down on the couch, after she’d been told not to, resulted in a trip to the hospital. Not only was she bleeding but, at the age of three, she lost four of her baby teeth when her face hit…
Four areas you need to tackle to get your business running smoothly in the digital world, and on the path to better profit and efficiency
If you’re not using technology to look after your business’s money, you’re wasting time, spending too much on bookkeeping and probably missing some customers. Imagine if your bookkeeping was already organized. Then it wouldn’t be a big job when it comes time to file taxes or produce reports. There are four areas you need to tackle to successfully go paperless: Cloud-based storage…
Think again. Why showing up with an honest, open mind is where real success lies
“Fake it until you make it.” This is an entrepreneur motto that gets some people motivated, up and out the door (so to speak – COVID-19 protocols and all), and committed until they’ve become the person, business or thing they set out to be. But this sentence makes me cringe every time I hear it.…
The ability to fail, to think critically and to learn from one’s mistakes aren’t generally taught in school
A wise person recently told me, “People don’t care what type of degree I have. They care what mistakes I have made and what I learned from them.” There’s typically a correlation between rising unemployment and increased enrolment in colleges and universities. But this year, due to the move towards closed campuses and increased online…
Don’t worry about vanity metrics and instead worry about engagement metrics. You want the people who are committed to your service
When you start an online social page, a blog, a website, basically anything in the online or digital space, you want online fans. Fans are who you sell your products or services to. Fans tell their friends about you, fans buy your newest gadget or album, fans create hype and give you so much content…
Follow these steps to be sure you're creating content that resonates with your audience, and reflects your brand values and personality
Your brand content is the emotional connection that converts a consumer into a customer. With more than 80 per cent of consumers researching – and shopping – online (Retailing Today, 2014), thinking strategically about how your content positions and reflects your brand personality is key. What is content? Content is the the new advertising. In the heady…
Copy well-performing ads, consider more than search ads, start to use remarketing as part of your strategy
Google announced in late March an US$800-million-plus commitment to support small- and medium-sized businesses, health and government organizations, and health workers on the front line. Part of that initiative is US$340 million in Google Ads credits. To qualify, you must have spent money with Google Ads in the past 10 out of 12 months and…