Yesterday we sent an email blast to our client list. It was a reminder of our upcoming Technology Conference. One entrepreneur kindly responded to our email telling us why she wouldn’t be attending. We always tell our clients that customer feedback is important, whether positive or negative, so we were glad to hear from her. She believed that the technology theme was too specific and she preferred a more general offering.

We chose Technology to be our theme this year because it touches on ALL areas of business. It is accounting software that enables a business to measure progress and zero-in on problem performance areas and database management that helps to directly target customer needs and provide customer value. Inventory management saves us time and money, POS systems keep track of the movement of retail goods and affects both customer service and profitability. Electronic marketing focuses specific customers and helps create long-term client relationships and communities of interest.

General knowledge is great but in order to have a successful operation, you need to drill down in certain areas. Your whole business can be positively affected on so many levels by basic knowledge about the technology tools that are available to us.

Posted by Alison Kirkland at 10:55 AM 0 Comments

Tags technology 

Throughout our busy day, as we rush from task to task, focus to focus, goal to goal, we can sometimes lose sight of the fact that every person with whom we interact has the potential to impact our business success. Managing these relationships in a positive and respectful manner will encourage and facilitate repeat interactions that serve to benefit your business profile, and ultimately, success.

Consider your interactions with your external support team, whether it be your business’ team members, courier, building maintenance staff, landlord, child care supports, banker, auto mechanic or a sales representative. A sincere thank you when they do something for you doesn’t cost anything and only takes a moment of time. The potential outcome, however, is to pave the way for future successful interactions.

In closing, thank you for your time today.

Posted by Angela Hilland at 10:27 AM 1 Comments

Tags business interactions  business relationship management  business success 

I noticed this morning that my little red car was the only car ‘of colour’ in our whole parking lot.

A lot of silver cars, black cars, grey cars, one white car. But no red, green, blue, orange, or purple vehicles stained the landscape.

Not that I’m looking for deep meaning here, but it occurs to me that this could be a dangerous trend. Is everyone trying to blend in rather than stand out? As part of an organization that supports entrepreneurship, I have to wonder about that lack of definition and differentiation.

On further reflection and after additional research: lots of colour on used car lots, particularly with less expensive cars; more ‘beige’ (although they are likely to call it ‘champagne’) tones in the higher end new cars. Is this just a Canadian phenomenon? Is it some kind of class distinction?

Maybe the distinctive aspect is how fast the car can go? How big it is? What features it has? Maybe only women actually care what colour it is?

I definitely have to look into this.

Posted by Sandra Altner at 11:52 AM 1 Comments

Do you find the proliferation of social media, web 2, cloud technology references exhausting and vaguely threatening?

As a business owner, you figure you should be at the head of the pack, but the reality is that you don’t have the time or energy to be leading edge. In fact, most days you feel as if you are trailing along, the late adopter, the holdout, the last on your block to get with it.

It seems like the tail wagging the dog; the rest of us chasing after the techie toys, often forgetting that it’s the customer, the client, the target market, that should be directing the show, not the boys from Fast Company.

Take some time to find out if the majority of your customers are on Facebook, use Skype, Twitter hourly. If so, then find an expert to help you utilize those communication tools. If not, concentrate on those interfaces that get results: personal phone calls; customized mailings; special offers that are geared to what your market values.

Technology can be a positive force to help you grow your business. The trick is to find the right way to use it and not get lost chasing after the toys that no one on your customer list wants to play with.

Take it slow, think it through, do it right.

By the way, take some time to learn more about what might work for you and what might not at our Technology in the 21st Century conference on June 1.

Posted by Sandra Altner at 11:34 AM 0 Comments

Tags social media  technology  facebook  Skype  Twitter