entrepreneur Archives - Canadian Small Business Women

Apr 13 2019

Self-Employment: A Reality Check

Self-employment is becoming more and more common, as shifts in the economy make some jobs obsolete, and new technology makes self-employment easier than ever before.

Who hasn’t had the conversation about their dream business? Whether your dream is to open a fly-fishing shop, a cupcake café, or offer virtual assistant services from a home office, you should spend some time on research and planning before your business goes live. Maybe buying a franchisemakes more sense for you as an alternative to starting something from scratch.

Once you’ve considered some of the important preliminaries — what you want to do and what you’d be good at — it’s important that you take a sober look at your strengths and weaknesses and confirm you’re right for entrepreneurship. I often tell clients, “just because you can do something doesn’t mean that you should do it.”

It’s important to be realistic about your strengths and weaknesses. When you’re out on your own, your personality traits, strengths and weaknesses will be magnified. You’ll need to find ways to consistently compensate for your weaknesses and make great use of your strengths. This is something that I always address when working with career coaching clients who are contemplating a career change of any kind.

Are you resourceful and resilient? To be in business, you need to be both. If you have trouble saying no, this is going to cause you real problems when it comes to dealing with customers. If you’re not naturally organized, you can find yourself in real trouble at tax time.

Are you able to supervise and manage staff? If you find you need help in your business, are you going to be comfortable being in charge of people? Friends and family may cheer you on or they may tell you that you’re out of your mind to want to leave your secure job. Either way, some strategic advice can help you bounce ideas around in a constructive, objective way.

Don’t Rush In

Ideally, you’ll have a chance to plan things out and do some thorough research while you still have a steady paycheque. If you can, ease into your business and learn as you go, with what’s being called a “side hustle” these days.

Do your due diligence. Research, research, research. Get out and talk to entrepreneurs. Go to business networking meetings. Find out what it’s really like to be your own boss. For example, if you’ve been an employee for some years, you’ve probably never approached a lender to ask for a small business loan. When ‘Jane Smith’ (a former client) left the federal government to open her own clothing shop, she says she experienced a “rude awakening.”

For one thing, once she wasn’t a civil servant, the credit union that held her mortgage was a lot less friendly. “Once I became self-employed, they had very little time for me. I couldn’t get a small business loan or line of credit because my business was too new. I couldn’t even get overdraft for my business account.”

As for the “freedom” aspect of being your own boss? Jane learned the hard way that self-employment shouldn’t be confused with freedom. “I was going to set my own hours and do things my way. It turned out I worked longer hours than I ever did before, and I had more bosses than ever. Your customers become your bosses. I ended up with hundreds of bosses to please.”

If you’re curious about whether self-employment is right for you or you’re not sure where to start, I invite you to contact me by email, or book a free 15 to 20-minute phone call. If you prefer messaging via social media, then send me a direct message on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

More than career coaching, it’s career psychology®.

I/O Advisory Services – Building Resilient Careers and Organizations.

Apr 06 2019

Financial Flexibility When Life Isn’t So Flexible

As small business owners, especially in the early stages, we are the lifeblood of our businesses. Working hard to make our dreams become reality. Working long hours, and taking on a lot of mental or physical strain.

We’ve taken on this amazing business to build a prosperous future for ourselves and/or our families, and we’re excited!

While we may not be most known for our self-care routines, but more for our work ethic and drive, it’s important that we also take the time to consider some risk management for when situations may be outside of our control.

Sure, we can still dress up and show up for that important meeting even when we’ve got the flu, but what about when things get more serious than that? When situations are outside of our control?

I know of a middle aged single mother of 3 pre-teen kids that runs a small fashion boutique. She unexpectedly was diagnosed with stage-3 breast cancer leaving her unable to work, and having no employees, unable open up shop. As you can imagine, many harsh treatments were required for her recovery that left her physically and emotionally affected, leaving her unable to continue to care for her children as normal. She couldn’t go back to work for nearly 2 years and had to rely on little savings and support from family members. Unfortunately, she had no financial protection so she was left in financial devastation for quite some time as she recovered and thankfully, eventually beat the cancer.

Serious illness doesn’t discriminate by gender, work ethic, social status, etc.

It can happen to anyone, at any time, and even to those we consider to be healthy.

Based on 2017 Canadian Cancer Society Statistics, nearly 1 in 2 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Although, more people are surviving at least five years after being diagnosed, cancer is still the highest cause of death in Canada.

Being a Negative Nancy isn’t my forte, but this is reality. These odds pretty much say that it’ll either be me, or the person beside me. But even without the statistics, I’m certain that most if not all of us know someone that has been diagnosed with cancer or has experienced other serious illnesses such as a heart attack, stroke, etc.  Were they able to keep things going and maintain their lifestyle while they recovered?

I know, I know, that’s enough of the bad news. Well, here’s the good news – we’re surviving these illnesses!

The rate of survival is going up each year with new advancements in treatments and technologies.

And the even better news is that while these illnesses can have significant consequences on our physical, mental and financial health, we can put protection in place to release some financial burden so that we can focus on recovery instead of finances.

What many of us don’t realize is that our most valuable asset is not our home, not our car, not even our precious business. But rather, our most valuable asset is our ability to earn an income. Without the ability to make money, we couldn’t have many of the great things that we value. So don’t you think that’s worth protecting?

This protection is called: Critical Illness Insurance.

Critical Illness Insurance pays out a lump sum of money should you be diagnosed, and gives you the freedom to choose how it’s used!

You may decide to use it for medication, special equipment, traveling to receive treatments, etc. Or you may decide to put it towards the business to keep things running while you recover, or maybe even to keep things running at home.

Whatever you decide, it will help you to keep your financial health from taking a major downfall.

These products vary to where you can choose from various options of how many illnesses you’re covered for, the duration of the coverage and there is even the option to have some of your premiums reimbursed at the end of the contract if you don’t claim or to a beneficiary of your choice should you pass away without any claims.

It’s important as business owners for us to have a solid financial plan beginning with protection. While often times, when we hear the word insurance our minds automatically go to life insurance, the odds of most of us passing away before age 65 is significantly lower than the odds of us contracting a critical illness or becoming disabled (due to illness or accident). If you’re ready to take the next step to building your financial house, I can help you reach your financial goals and make sure you and your business are well protected.

I successfully graduated from the University of Guelph in 2013 with a Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing major), followed by completing the Life License Qualification Program (LLQP) in 2015. This is where I began my career in Financial Services joining my parents who have combined over 50 years of experience in the industry including owning a brokerage.

Rosilda Xavier

Financial Advisor | Business Owner | Speaker | Freedom Chaser

www.rosilda.com

Jul 15 2018

Press Release: Peel Region Small Business Seminar 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

C.S.B.W. HOSTS EXCITING SMALL BUSINESS SEMINAR

THEME: Leadership – The Art of Effectively Leading a Team and Running a Successful Business

Canadian Small Business Women, is proud to host our 12^th Small Business Seminar. This time around, we will be in coming back to home to Mississauga. The Leadership Edition will offer hands-on business building workshops delivered by industry experts with 30+ vendors showcasing their business!

The event is being held on August 22^nd, 2018 at the Mississauga Grand Banquet & Event Centre, 35 Brunel Road, Mississauga Ontario from 9am – 5pm. Admission Tickets are $40.00CDN and entitles you to full entrance of workshops, exhibitor hall and a hot buffet lunch.

Who should attend?

All entrepreneurs (men and women)
Start-ups
People seeking advice on how to grow their businesses

Why should you attend?

Receive business building tips from our experts
Attend workshops to help propel your business
Network with industry leaders
30+ Vendors, showcasing local businesses.
Featured workshops by local experts!

The featured Keynote Speaker is Yvonne Ruke-Akpoveta of OliveBlue Inc and the workshops will feature Adele Spraggon, Peninsula Employment Services Inc, and BDC. Guests will receive full access to all workshops, swag bags (for the first 100), access to door prizes, unforgettable networking opportunities and a hot buffet lunch. Only 150 advance tickets will be sold for this event.

Canadian Small Business Women understands the challenges women entrepreneurs encounter when starting and growing a business. Gaps in access to financing and services for women entrepreneurs have been identified, and Canadian Small Business Women wants to help. We are committed to helping women find the necessary resources to take their businesses from the planning stage to a reality.

“If you cannot reach 100%, start with 10% and build on it until your original dream is realized.” – Dwania Peele, Owner & Executive Director of Canadian Small Business Women.

Established in 2013, Canadian Small Business Women, is a network that aims to provide aspiring small businesswomen a place to find all the resources required to start a business. We provide women with on-line support and advice from industry experts at our seminars and workshops. Our vision is to provide women with the tools and confidence to successfully start and grow their business.

To learn more visit www.canadiansmallwomen.ca , info@canadiansmallbusinesswomen.ca or call us at 1-888-526-9366

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Jun 24 2018

Four Things I Wish I’d Known Before I Started My First Business

In 2013, I learned my federal government job would be moved from Oshawa, where I had a house, to Richmond Hill. I’d been unhappy for a long time in that job. It was scary to give up 11 years of security. But what other people might find comforting, I found restrictive and stultifying.

I had wanted, for years, to have my own business of some kind. I didn’t care what. I just wanted to do something of my own.

In 2012 I started my own retail business. I won’t lie, the financial toll has been much worse than I’d ever have envisioned, but I’m still happier than I had been for many years.

Five years later, I have learned a lot. I have grown a lot. I have some regrets, but mostly I’ve gained insight.

Here are the top four things I would do differently, if I knew then what I know now:

I’d get a line of credit while I still had a good job. This will be obvious to some, but I really under estimated how hard it would be to get credit once I was out on my own. When the loans officer at the credit union in Oshawa found out I was no longer a civil servant, she became a lot less friendly. In fact, once I left the government, my former credit union became downright hostile toward me.

Because I was a new business, I couldn’t get overdraft on my business account. “Come back in a year,” they said. After a year they wouldn’t give me overdraft because I’d had some payments returned NSF – because I was trying to run a business without something as basic as overdraft. The frustration of this circular reasoning probably took ten years off my life.

More importantly, with no line of credit — or even overdraft — to float me over emergencies like overdue hydro bills and being short to cover payroll, life was just pretty damn hard a lot of the time. There were a lot of calls to my parents. This was by far the hardest lesson learned.

If I started again, I’d hire a trained, qualified bookkeeper, who could start me off using Quickbooks or some other automated bookkeeping software. I tried to handle it myself in the beginning. Then I hired a friend of a friend. Her incompetence (she wasn’t actually a bookkeeper, for starters) created a mess with CRA that I am still trying to pay off. There are certifications for bookkeepers. Don’t trust your books to just anyone. Things can get out of control really fast.
Incorporate

There are elements beyond your control. If you’re a sole proprietor and your business fails, you will be left with A LOT of bills. That mess I mentioned earlier wouldn’t be my problem anymore if I had incorporated.

When I started, I was full of optimism. I believed in myself and my business with absolute certainty. There was no way this could go wrong. I was doing something good, for all the right reasons, and because of that, I would succeed. Unfortunately, all the “You-can-do-anything-if-you-just-believe-in-yourself!” messages I got from the cartoons of the 1980s can’t match the effects of, say, the anchor store disappearing from your plaza. Bad stuff happens, no matter how much you don’t think it can.

When you go out on your own, you’re really on your own. There is no one else. Entrepreneurship isn’t for the faint of heart, because you’re it.

There is no IT guy to help with your computer when it dies; there is no payroll clerk to make sure you get paid and make your government deductions.

There is support, such as business development agencies and the Chambers of Commerce, where you can attend workshops and networking meetings. In Durham region, where I live there is the Business Advisory Centre of Durham. Other communities have their own resources for small business owners. Make sure you use those resources. You’ll be surprised at the amazing, free offerings.

Those are the hardest lessons I learned when I opened my first business, a consignment store in Ajax. My current business is freelance writing, which is a bit lonely at times but also much easier as it is what I do best. Find me at www.durhamwritingservices.com.

Stephanie Regan is a writer and editor who gets her husband to hide her laptop at night. Some of her work can be seen at www.durhamwritingservices.com.

Apr 07 2018

It all gets done!

What is the single most troublesome factor for almost any person, any where and at any time? It’s time, or more specifically Time Management. We all struggle with it and not one of us ever claims, emphatically, that we have a handle on it. We all want more time, need more time or wish we had more time. If time is something you struggle with, consider these tips:

Break your day into “Manageable Chunks.”

Tackling your “to do” list all at once can be overwhelming especially when there are 20+ (or more!) things that need to be done and all before the end of the week. So sort your list into “manageable chunks” of activities that can be performed at the same time. This is different from multi-tasking – this is about scheduling yourself blocks of time to complete like-minded tasks.
Do all the work for one client on one day. For me, as a content creator, I might chunk out both the social media posting and social media blogging for each of my clients for the same day and time each week.
When you are self-employed, chunk out a specific time of the week (or month) to do all of your dreaded accounting tasks. Don’t let anything else interrupt you.
Block out time for business related errands that can all be done in a “travel loop” starting at one end of town and finishing up back at home ready to take on your next chunk. Better to set aside one whole afternoon for trips to your local business supply chain store, the post office and banking then to do a little bit each day, risk getting stuck in traffic or sidetracked by a sale and lose three hours of time instead of your scheduled one hour errand.

Doing what makes sense when it makes sense.

Send emails when you can, even if that’s six in the morning or nine at night. Emails can be read by the recipient at any time and unless it’s something requiring urgent attention, focus your work efforts on WORK during the day and send emails before or after the day is over. You can always schedule a “manageable chunk” of time in the middle of your day to deal with urgent inbox items, just don’t get distracted by all the other mail you see sitting there.
Making phone calls DOES need to happen during the business day so make sure you have a chunk of time set aside for that. Mornings are better – before meetings begin, plus it ensures your client has the whole day to return your call.
While we’re at it – everyone needs a break so be sure to schedule time for time off. The self-employed are notorious for working odd hours and eating at their desk and sometimes you have to for sure. BUT, scheduling time for mini-breaks throughout the day will actually make you more productive. Knowing you have break time to look forward to creates laser-like focus on getting work done.

Planning and Goal Setting – it’s Spring….Do a calendar-clearing overhaul.

I get it. At the start of the new year, chances are you opened up that shiny new desk calendar and began writing neatly on each page, planning your month “oh so carefully.” Somewhere around mid-February with the winter blahs settling in and your busy schedule taking over, you suddenly start scribbling notes in the margins, scratching out one “to do” and replacing it with another “more important” one and then adding the original “to do” back onto your list, albeit farther down! Clients call you, priorities shift and before you know it your daily diary is a disaster. Add in family demands and the odd Doctor or Dentist appointment and suddenly your schedule is sketchy at best. Use spring as the excuse to do a calendar-clearing overhaul and re-prioritize your priorities.
You know what else spring is a good excuse for? Practising how to say “No.” As entrepreneurs our temptation is to treat everything as a potential opportunity and you never want to be seen as turning away business but sometimes the absolute best thing you can do for yourself, your family AND your business is just say “NO.” You might also want to consider a family wall calendar where every activity for every member of the household is tracked so anyone can see where anyone else is supposed to be at any given time.
Technology is my Diary. If this is you and writing stuff down is dated and old-fashioned, make sure you are using technology properly. There are a number of planning tools available for both business and personal planning and some great ones like COZI that allows you to plan for the whole family. Every Android and Smartphone device have calendars on them – just be sure you are utilizing all their features to their maximum. Use the notifications and alarms scheduling features frequently if that’s what it takes!

Finally – when all else fails: Take a deep breath and remember – in the end, despite our best efforts to sabotage ourselves – it all gets done!

As Owner and Principal partner of “Writing Right For You” Sheralyn is a Communications Strategist – working together with entrepreneurs to maximize profit through effective use of the written word. Looking for web content that works, blog articles that engage or communications strategies that help you get noticed? Contact Sheralyn today. Sheralyn is also the mother of two children now entering the “terrible and terrific teens” and spends her free time volunteering for several non-profit organizations.

Sheralyn Roman B.A., B.Ed.

Writing Right For You

Communications Strategies that help you GET TO THE POINT!

416-420-9415 Cell/Business

writingrightforyou@gmail.com

#timemanagment, #COZI, #gettingthingsdone, #itallgetsdone, #entrepreneur, #self-employed, #scheduling, #planning, #familytime, “ContentCreator

Apr 05 2018

Are you obsessed with time management?

I think we can all agree that time management is a very good thing, however, there are situations where people tend to take the whole idea of using their time wisely to the extreme. When this happens, the crucial goal of managing your time gets lost in “the busy” and the drive to cram too much into too little time. When it gets to this point, the process of managing your time ceases to be a help and becomes a burden instead. It may be that you can become obsessed with managing your time!

There are several early warning signs that you are may be on the edge of abusing time management rather than use it to your best advantage:

Multitasking is your thing

In today’s world, as women we tend to pride ourselves at being able to multitask our way through the day. It’s not unusual for us to handle more than two or more tasks at a time, and we start to do this without thinking. If the tasks in question can be conducted concurrently without causing a great deal of stress we tend to overlook what’s really going on and work on autopilot by dividing our focus and our talent to get through the day. How often, for example, do we participate on a webinar or conference call while also sending instant messages and email to keep things flowing? Ok, two activities can actually work together without any real difficulty.

Things can get tricky when you attempt to take on two or more labor-intensive tasks at the same time, however. This can lead to a great deal of inner conflict and possibly have a negative impact on the quality applied to each of the tasks involved. In other words, instead of ending up with one task done well, you have two (or more) tasks that may be completed but are barely acceptable.

Some people find they just can’t stop multitasking even when it is not necessary. The idea behind this approach is that the multitasking will make it easier to finish all the action items currently on the agenda and enjoy some well-earned downtime. Unfortunately, when you become obsessed with multitasking to manage your time you’ll never really get around to having any downtime. Instead, you’ll finish one set of projects and immediately start looking for another set to do.

Multitasking as part of time management is fine, provided it’s done wisely. When it becomes an end in and of itself rather than a means to reach a goal, it is time to step back and re-evaluate your approach.

You Feel Guilty If You Are Not Doing Something

Many of us live our lives from the edge of guilt. We worry about doing the right thing, for the right people, at the right time and we often find ourselves agonizing over the way we do things. Guilt can be an effective tool when it comes to keeping us on track, but guilty feelings when there is nothing to feel guilty about is another matter altogether (and we’re very good at finding those matters). When guilt creeps into the time management process, it is usually an indicator that you have begun to believe on some level that unless you’re are not actively engaged in some task, you’re are not managing your time well.

While it is important to take care of necessary tasks in a timely manner, you do need some time to simply relax and recharge. If you look at it from this perspective, failing to include time for rest and recreation is a breach of good time management policies. If you deny your mind and your body of what it needs to be healthy, you are defeating the purpose of time management, and setting yourself up for a fall at some future point.

You become annoyed with others who don’t do as you do

One of the ways people validate their actions is by comparing them with what other people do. After all, if others are using the same approaches and methods to time management that we are, that means we are on the right track. However, when you’re in your zone and people do things differently, we may assume they are wrong and we are right, something has gone wrong with our sense of time management.

We know that everyone brings different talents and abilities to a given task, so taking this to the next level means there are in fact more than one right approach when tackling the same tasks or projects. People who have a balanced view of time management realize this and even welcome the opportunity to learn something new. However, if you assume your way is the only right way you may be on the defensive and find fault with as many aspects of the alternative method as possible.

Again, this negative point of view isn’t really in keeping with true time management principles. Not only does this mindset make it impossible to be exposed to new ways of managing tasks and possibly saving time, it also can create a great deal of stress and friction for everyone concerned. If you are working with a team or delegating responsibilities, having this mindset can upset everyone’s ability to manage time effectively, meaning no one progresses as quickly as they would if all parties could learn from one another and respect individual working styles.

It may be time to check in with yourself and the way you manage your time! The bottom line is that you can become so obsessed with time management that the good you’ve created may start to unravel, putting you in a position where you are more likely to struggle and fail. When this happens, you’ll find your obsession with structured time management may be worse than when you didn’t attempt any time management practices at all.

Barbara Jemmott is the founder and business strategist at Your Entrepreneurial Spirit. Her 4-point YES to Customer Acquisition Program (C.A.P.) allows her to work her passion which is helping entrepreneurial women grow their audiences and income, online. She got here through her 20+ years of experience helping businesses understand and implement systems, strategies and procedures to increase productivity as well as implementing change and streamlining operations. With experience and responsibilities to design, develop and deliver training for small to large technology training initiatives for Fortune 100 companies, she brings “Big Business” expertise to the small business space. Learn more about Your Entrepreneurial Spirit and the YES to Customer Acquisition Program at www.yourentrepreneurialspirit.com

Nov 11 2017

How can entrepreneurs break through the media barrier?

There are 400 million entrepreneurs in the world. That’s a lot of people competing for attention, especially from the media. Whether you’re in the beginning launch stages of your small business, or you have been operating for some time and you’re looking for a brand awareness boost, getting media coverage in the right places can build some serious buzz around your brand. But how do you get the media to notice you among the sea of entrepreneurs?

The answer is simple: Give them something to be interested in.

The three areas to focus on to make sure you stand out among the thousands of media pitches from entrepreneurs are story, strategy, and execution.

1: Story

You need to be about so much more than just your business and what you have to offer. Look beyond the features of your business to see all of the benefits. Once you have identified the benefits, create a human-interest story that relates. Then you can have fun with showcasing the story.

A few ways to showcase your story are:

Social Media: Easily the most accessible means to tell your story to a wide-reaching audience, social media is something you generally have control over when it comes to the messaging. Create a content campaign and engage your audience on each platform.
Public Stunt: While public stunts often require a higher budget and a creative mind to plan something unique, they are meant to be memorable and shareable. Remember, anything that happens in real time can be shared on social media.
VIP Event: A great VIP event can double as a connector with your consumer audience as well as a targeted list of media. When planning your event, make sure the objectives are in line with the story you want to tell. For example, a circus theme might not necessarily create the best atmosphere for a sombre story.

2: Strategy

After your story has been developed, you need to figure out how to get in front of the media and to make yourself heard. Remember that depending on your media contact, they get hundreds of pitches daily. So, before you send that email, make sure you are ready to fight for your story.

Here are three things to consider:

Targeting: Build a smart media list. Your story won’t appeal to every outlet/reporter. Figure out what the best media targets are for you and focus on those. This will be the most important thing you can do to work towards media coverage success.
Timing: It’s always best to start early. You will have to work around their editorial requirements. For some print magazines, that means 6 months in advance! Do your research on individual outlet requirements.
Availability: Don’t pitch the media if you won’t be available for an interview. If you are planning a vacation in a couple of days, wait until you get back. You might be quite upset if your favourite morning show called to have you on air, but you weren’t available!

3: Execution

A great strategy can fall flat if you don’t follow through on it 100%. It might take some time. Keep in mind that the media hasn’t ever heard of you or your business before, so they will need to do some research before getting back to you. That means learning patience and knowing when to pressure and when to back off.

These three things will help you carry through on your strategic media objectives:

The Pitch: It’s important to get your pitch right the first time. Keep it short and to the point, focusing only on important details. And always find a way to tie your story into your contact’s work – that means reading articles they have done previously! If building a targeted list is the most important thing you can do, then this is the second-most important thing you can do. The media wants to know that you are paying attention to what they have to say.
Following up: Don’t be too aggressive with your follow ups, and unless you have a great relationship with your media contact (or you know they prefer otherwise), stick to email. After the initial pitch wait a couple of days before following up, then about a week if you still haven’t heard.
Moving on: While some media will respond to you either way, you may not hear back at all. It can be understandably frustrating, but there are a number of unknown factors you’re up against. You could have just pitched on a really busy day. It’s time to move on. You can regroup and try again with another story angle at a later date.

Candace Huntly is Founder and Partner at SongBird Marketing Communications, an award-winning agency working to take organizational and individual brands to the next level. With a passion for all things related to creativity and strategy, she specializes in business intelligence, marketing & branding, content strategy & development, media & influencer relations, and social media. Basically, if you need to put your brand, product, or cause in the public eye, she will find a way to do it, while making the approach unique to you.

Connect with Candace

Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/email/Website

Nov 11 2016

Why Female Entrepreneurs Need To Stop Apologizing

It’s no secret that women in positions of power often have to get there on a different track than their male peers. In 2011, only 15.5 percent of Canadian small and medium-sized businesses were owned by women. And that number doesn’t include solopreneurs who are trying to make their way on their own. The majority of those female entrepreneurs also have no business growth goals. Even if they do have growth in mind, female-owned businesses in Canada have lower growth rates than male-owned businesses.

Why is that? Well, as female entrepreneurs, we’re constantly having to apologize for appearing too harsh, too soft, too emotional, too masculine, too feminine, too unstable, too… everything. Of course, there are also women who want to own a business while having a family. We are constantly accused of wanting to have it all, but who says we can’t have it all?

As a business owner, I am constantly keeping myself in check, re-reading emails dozens of times before hitting send even if it’s a routine invoice reminder, a quick question about a project I’m working on, and just generally worrying that I would offend someone or, horribly, someone doesn’t like me.

A lesson I am learning on a daily basis as an entrepreneur is that not everyone is going to like you or how you run your business. Rather than dwelling on those people, focus on people who appreciate you. To stand out, female entrepreneurs need to stand up and use our voices. It’s OK to have an opinion. It’s OK to have ideas that are better than those of your peers. And it is definitely OK to talk about why you are so great.

The reality is that all business owners, men and women, should conduct themselves with a certain sense of tact and business etiquette, but stop apologizing for wanting to be a successful, female business owner. Set high goals for yourself and do what you need to do to get there.

Candace Huntly is the Founder and Principal at SongBird Marketing Communications, an award-winning agency working to take organizational and individual brands to the next level. With a passion for all things related to creativity and strategy, she specializes in business intelligence, marketing & branding, content strategy & development, media & influencer relations, and social media. Basically, if you need to put your brand, product, or cause in the public eye, she will find a way to do it, while making the approach unique to you.

Connect with Candace

Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/email/Website

Sep 21 2016

Are you spending your time effectively on Facebook?

Are you spending time looking at the right parts of your Facebook business page? It’s so easy to get distracted by “shiny things” on Facebook, but as a business owner it’s important to stay focused on your goal to connect with your followers. Having a strategy for your social media marketing should also include regular maintenance on your Facebook page to ensure that what you are posting and sharing is actually connecting with the right followers.

Update the “About” tab on your Facebook Business Page regularly. Take a few minutes at least once a month to revisit and revise the fields with important information about your business. In particular, ensure that the Short Description, Long Description and all contact details are up-to-date and accurate.
Review the Insights for your Facebook Business Page often to analyze what posts are reaching your audience and are engaging your followers. The Insights can help you identify the best time to post and can provide you with more demographic information about the people who engage with your Page.
Monitor the interaction on your posts and be sure to reply to all comments quickly! The average social media user expects a reply within 1 hour to a comment that they make on social media. Be considerate of the time someone took to make a comment, and respond in kind, even if just to say Thank You!
Share your involvement in local or online events and be sure to create event listing for events that your business is hosting. Invite your friends and contacts to join your event page for updates and event information. If you are participating in someone else’s event, you can add that event to your page’s event listing without creating a new event. This helps to connect your business page with others, thus increasing your visibility!
Know when to spend money on boosted posts and promotions on Facebook and allocate an appropriate budget for this purpose. Keep in mind that you should first set up target audiences in Facebook Ad Manager before spending any money on promotions. The more time you spend to target the right demographic, the more return you will see on your ad spend.

To learn more about how to maximise the effectiveness of your Facebook marketing efforts, schedule a complimentary consultation with Teach Me Social. Teach Me Social owner Kelly Farrell has been helping empower Canadian Small Business owners through social media for over four years. Teach Me Social offers effective social media services which include training sessions and consulting as well as full-service social media account management.

Sep 12 2016

Women On Top

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about life as an entrepreneur versus life in the corporate world and how it has affected me as a woman. I am thinking in particular about my ceiling in both worlds. How much success can women achieve in both worlds? How far out of reach is the ceiling and have us as women found the magic formula to breaking that glass ceiling?

Let’s start with the corporate world. In my case our corporate structure is that of the “good old boys club”. Senior executives are the picture of corporate with not a woman in sight. Middle management is made up of about 10 percent women. On the bottom of the totem pole, the structure is as expected – a male dominated production group and a female dominated office group. To excel in an environment as this takes a lot of game play and sometimes ruthlessness. You cannot be too tough or else you are labeled as “bitchy” or “moody” and you cannot be overly nice or you can be deemed to office “harlot.” You not only have to play the game, but you also have to continuously prove your knowledge and capabilities to the powers that be. This part has me baffled. Why? I’m sure those powers would not have made you a part of the organization if you were not remotely qualified to do the job or if they didn’t feel you were well suited for the position and the company. How far up the corporate ladder can women get in an environment such as this? It’s a far climb for us and especially rough when obstacles are placed in our way. My feeling is that we are fighting continuously for what we deserve – even when it is earned. Not many of us know how to demand what we have earned. In my case, I have set my goals to what my definition of success would be in the corporate world. Do I want to be President of the company? NO!! What I want is what I have earned – nothing more and definitely nothing less!!

As an entrepreneur I have the opportunity to be the President, Owner, Assistant, Director, coffee runner, pencil sharpener…you name it, I am in charge of it. More women are going down the entrepreneurial path without really understanding how much more work it takes to be successful. As a female entrepreneur, when I attend networking events that are male dominated I get a lot of pats on the back and “good for you”, “you’re a smart girl”, “you did this all on your own” from the male networkers. It is as if I am not perceived of being capable of achieving all that I have or that I have or that it is a surprise that a woman can really be successful in their world. There are also always a few men who are there to be the “saviours” or “messiah.” I remember being told by one man in particular who came to a female dominated networking event that he was there to help the women. Take note, he said HELP not SUPPORT. Now, I will be the first to agree that we all need to support each other, but what I do not like is the notion that women cannot find ways to help each other succeed. We are a resourceful group and we find ways to dig our way out of a hole. There is still that mental and societal influence that makes us feel like being solopreneurs is the pinnacle of success. Why not strive to grow your business into a multinational corporation? Sky is the limit-not the glass ceiling. It truly depends on what your personal goal is.

For me, I enjoy the challenges of both the corporate world and the entrepreneurial world. Women will always have to work extra hard to break that glass ceiling. For most of us, the ceiling is not made by others, but by our personal limiting beliefs. Identifying what is causing these beliefs is the first step towards breaking the ceiling and allowing ourselves to strive for the highest of highs. I know one thing – this woman plans to be on the top when it comes to the entrepreneurial game. I will not stop until my business is where I want it to be – Canada-wide. I will not let being woman be a hindrance. It is not a crutch.

Dwania is the Founder and Executive Director of Canadian Small Business Women Contact Canadian Small Business Women:

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Website

Sep 11 2016

5 Ways to Make Your Audience Love Your Brand

Without an audience, it’s kind of hard to run a business. A growing customer base will drive your business growth. There are a lot of other brands out there, so how do you get your customers to choose you over your competitors? And once you have their attention, how do you build a loyal, long-term relationship with them?

Here are five ways for you to create a strong and loyal relationship with your audience. Five ways to get them to fall in love with you.

Be authentic: If you are constantly selling and trying to put a spin on your sales pitch, you will come across like a pushy and dishonest salesman who will say anything to get the sale. Your brand should have characteristics that are attractive to your audience – values and ethics that show what you stand for. When you communicate with your audience, find ways to make personal connections with them that go beyond selling. Once they are loyal to your brand, the sale is inevitable because what you are offering will be top of mind.
Talk with them, not at them: Many brands get stuck in a rut where they are constantly pumping out content, but they don’t take the time to interact with their audience. It should be about generating meaningful dialogue on your marketing channels, whether more traditional or digital. In many cases, brands could put out less content if they up the engagement factor with their audience. It becomes a case of quality vs. quantity. And if you are a small business owner wearing multiple hats, it’s about finding efficiencies in your marketing strategy that will get you higher returns on your efforts.
Tell them you appreciate them: That feel-good feeling is pretty contagious. If your existing customers are happy, they will tell their friends. Create opportunities to show your appreciation through loyalty programs and content that is directed towards customers. The brands that do well are as grateful for an audience of 500 as they are an audience of 500,000. You will find that once you start appreciating each individual customer they will start multiplying pretty fast.
Create an experience: You should showcase the positive experiences your audience can have with your brand through your blog, social media, and other channels. Take it a step further and create those experiences through public stunts and events where they can’t help but get involved with your brand. Not only will this showcase what you have to offer, but it will generate an emotional connection with your audience because you are making a direct impact on their lives.
Love yourself: Self-hype can be detrimental if you ignore things that should be improved. However, you can’t make someone else love you if you don’t love yourself. You should always start out looking internally, getting to know your brand, and pointing out everything that is great about your brand. This will jumpstart any successful marketing strategy.

Connect with Candace

Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/email/Website

Sep 07 2016

Listen to Hear not to Respond

When I speak to groups of small business owners and entrepreneurs on the topic of communication, my message is consistent. Of the three elements needed for effective communication to take place; listening, writing and speaking, the most important of these is listening. Why? Because it is in the listening that we ensure there is understanding.

Listening isn’t just about opening our ears either. It’s about being open and receptive, in principle, to new ideas, suggestions and considerations. Listening is ACTIVE. We must lean in, participate, nod our heads to encourage continued conversation and we need to ask questions to ensure clarity. Most of all however, we need to listen to HEAR not to RESPOND. What do we mean by this?

Listening to hear is about patience. It concerns the principle that we must be actively engaged in the conversation from the perspective of gaining understanding, not listening for the sole purpose of formulating our own arguments in response to what is being said. Listening to hear is about waiting for the “whole.” Waiting for the speaker to complete his / her thoughts, pausing to think about those words and then responding. Too often we are each of us poised and ready to pounce in response to something we heard at the beginning of a sentence, to the exclusion of all that came after it. That’s not listening, that’s debating. It’s a “point – counterpoint” approach to speaking that suggests a “Who will win this conversation” point of view.

Listening to respond is also about remaining IN the moment. Connected to the speaker and not connected to any of our many devices. Few of us can actually multi-task effectively and most of us are much better off to focus on one task at a time. Active listening means put your phone down. It’s time to be connected, to each other rather than our devices. Finally, from a customer service point of view it’s about listening to what your customer is actually asking for, rather than telling them what you think they need.

Active listening and listening to hear, not to respond, help bridge the gap between you and your intended audience. It is the key to effective communication. Let’s all put our devices down for just a few minutes and practice #beinthemoment. Make it your personal mission, starting today, to actively listen – whether to your kids, co-workers, spouse or customer. Drop the constant need to hashtag your conversations or to answer back in defensive mode. Instead #GiveActiveListeningATry. (Oh the irony…..we just couldn’t resist!)

Sheralyn Roman B.A., B.Ed.

Writing Right For You

Communications Strategies that help you GET TO THE POINT!

416-420-9415 Cell/Business

writingrightforyou@gmail.com

Sep 01 2016

Hanna Guerra: Canadian Small Business Woman of the Month of August 2016

Hanna has a deep and varied skill set in the local and digital marketing arena where she specializes in putting together marketing strategies and implementing and executing lead generation activities for various franchise systems. Hanna is the Founder and CEO of 24/7 Virtual Marketing (www.247virtualmarketing.com), a company that helps entrepreneurs, small to medium sized businesses, franchisors, and franchisees get more leads and convert those leads into sales. Hanna is also a certified Get Clients Now! Facilitator and is excited to launch her Get Clients Now! 28-Day Program in mid to late September 2016.

A couple of years ago when Hanna dove in headlong into the exciting – and sometimes frustrating – world of marketing and business development consultancy, she’s already had years of experience building her own successful brick and mortar business from the ground up. Her early success was due to consistent analysis and adjustment of marketing activities as well as implementation of systems and processes.

While Hanna enjoyed the crazy busy hours of business ownership of a brick and mortar business with high six-figure annual income and double digits monthly expenditures, she felt the pull to change for her growing family. Hanna has a son and a daughter who are growing way too fast! With her current business development and marketing consultancy business, she enjoys flexible hours working in her home office and in a quaint office near Square One, Mississauga.

Though she believes that one can’t truly achieve work and life balance, Hanna is okay with that…as long as she is there for her kids and the kids know that no matter how busy business and life gets, they are her priority. For more information on Hanna’s marketing consultancy and group coaching programs, please visit her site: www.HannaHelps.com.

Our Q & A with Hanna:

*What inspires you?

I am constantly inspired by business owners who show commitment and grit to do what it takes to move their business, their vision, their goals forward.

*As a small business owner, what achievements make you most proud?

The day I started saying “no” to the wrong clients was the day my business started to really move forward!
*What advice would you give to other aspiring small business owners?

Know your strengths, know your weaknesses and find a way to develop processes and systems that address these strengths and weaknesses. And, truly, don’t undermine yourself.

*What new things can we look forward to from your business in the upcoming year?

I am truly excited to launch my group coaching programs as a Get Clients Now! facilitator. My 28-Day lead generation marketing programs for entrepreneurs and small business will truly help them understand what they need to do and develop a consistent way of generating leads for their business.

Aug 28 2016

3 Reasons Self-Reflection Matters In Business

In a life of business, it can become tempting to look forward and outward. You’re always striving for success, dealing with competition, and looking to better yourself, your company, or both. There are external forces at work, and there’s always someplace higher to climb. This is good. It’s a spirit of pursuit that drives some of the most successful people in business! But I’d also argue that it’s important for anyone who hopes to be successful in this kind of environment to learn the value of self-reflection. With so much focus outward and upward, here are three reasons I’d argue looking inward matters, too.

1. You Can Understand Yourself Better

The clearest benefit of self-reflection is that it can help you to gain a better understanding of your own personality or tendencies. This is true both in general and with regard to your performance in business. Self-reflection is the process of asking yourself questions to develop a deeper level of understanding about yourself, as stated in a blog post at a tech communications site. It’s actually one of the more effective definitions out there. You simply get to know yourself better, and you do so in a way that can allow you to better shape yourself as an business owner, employee, or entrepreneur.

2. You Can View Your Own Development

In addition to gaining a better understanding of yourself in a given moment or situation, self-reflection can also help you to better view how you’ve developed over time, and what that development might say about you. At an online coaching platform for MBA applicants, one student discusses the benefit of making sense of previous experiences while writing about himself. This in essence is another way of saying that through self-reflection, this student gained a more thorough understanding of what had driven him to a given point, including successes and failures. Feeling out your own history this way can help you to understand what works and what doesn’t work for you, and it can influence your actions moving forward in a very real way.

3. You Can Increase Your Leadership Capacity

It falls in line with the idea of understanding yourself and your own tendencies. However, an article at LinkedIn pointed out that self-reflection in a business environment can also help you to gain an increased awareness of problematic performance traits, the same way you might look to recognize them in employees or co-workers. With this in mind, you can actually approach self-reflection almost as a kind of performance review for yourself, particularly if you happen to be in a position of leadership. You can recognize problematic traits and address them so as to become a more effective leader and co-worker.

It’s always a good idea to look inside, perhaps particularly so when you’re in the middle of a fast-paced, competitive work environment. With too much focus on external forces and the drive forward, you can easily lose sight of what it is that makes you effective in your job, or what it is you might need to work on. Taking regular time for self-reflection can work wonders.

Patti Conner

Aug 21 2016

When to follow technology trends in social media

There is a big difference between jumping on the bandwagon just because “everyone else is doing it” and adding a new tech trend as part of your overall digital marketing strategy. The rate of change in the world of technology, especially for business, is extremely fast-paced and keeping up with the new apps, website trends and social media features can be a very daunting task. Despite the challenges that come with keeping up, it can be very beneficial to be an early adopter of new technologies and digital shifts.

First come, first serve

The first users on many new platforms, websites or apps are usually privy to special offers and features. On social media, the early arrivals are almost always the first to develop a large following of other early arrivals, who also tend to be more engaged and loyal than new followers later on.

Work out the kinks

Getting on board with a new feature or platform also give you ample time to work out the kinks, a time when making mistakes are part of the game and adds authenticity to your brand. Part of social media is the allure of being able to see behind the curtain of a logo and glimpse the authentic personality driving the message. Working out the kinks and figuring out a new platform with other early adopters also sets you up as a leader and expert when the rest of the crowd follows you.

Staying Current

If your brand stands for ingenuity, creativity or innovation in any way, then getting on board and being part of the initial phase could play a huge role in setting your brand up as a leader in forward thinking. When your brand shares their enthusiasm by joining in on trending topics on social media, it shows your followers that you are current, relevant and engaged.

Beware of shiny things

All that being said, the biggest danger with new technologies is the “shiny things syndrome”! It’s happened to the best of us – like children, we are easily attracted to new things and can get sucked into spending hours playing with new features and testing out new toys.

To avoid getting sucked into new technologies that are not going to see an overall benefit for your small business, you can ask yourself these questions:

Will using this tool attract new customers to my business?
Is my target demographic already using this tool?
Will my business benefit from being part of a trending conversation online?
How much time can I afford to spend daily using a new technology tool?

If you weigh the pros and cons of each new tool, it becomes easier to identify trends that will have a positive impact on your business and ones that may not be worth your time investment. In most cases, it is always a good idea to get advice from an expert or other small business owners. Attending networking events and joining online communities (like Canadian Small Business Women) are great ways to know what other entrepreneurs are doing online and where they are focusing their energy.

Teach Me Social owner Kelly Farrell has been helping empower Canadian Small Business owners through social media for over four years. Teach Me Social now offers services ranging from training sessions for small business owners and their teams to full-service social media account management. Visit teachmesocial.ca to learn more about our service offerings or to book a no obligation consultation, including an audit of your existing social media channels.

Don’t Rush In

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