Small Business and Entrepreneurship Experts, Tips and Advice

Legal Traps for the Unwary Immigrant Business Owner

by admin on May 16, 2012 · 0 comments

Many immigrants come to Canada with a dream of one day being their own boss. Running a business is a great way to get ahead in your new homeland, but there are big risks that you may not be aware of. The concepts of profit and loss are the same the world over, but the laws that apply to your business can be very different from other cities and countries depending on where your business is located.

Understanding Canadian commercial law is complicated for many business owners, but if you are new to the country, what you don’t know about the law could have very negative consequences for your business. We’ve all heard stories of people who have lost their business licences because of accidental violations; landlords who terminated longstanding commercial leases with minimal notice; partnerships gone bad after tremendous success or devastating failure; and of course the everyday challenges of business people who can’t get paid by their customers. These are the sorts of problems that can be devastating to your business, but they are entirely avoidable with legal advice.

Before you invest your savings in launching a business, here are some basic legal questions you should be able to answer:

1. Do I know what type of business structure I want to set up (ie, corporation, partnership or sole proprietorship);

2. Do I know what permits and licenses are needed to run my business legally;

3. Does my place of business comply with all municipal, zoning, health, fire, transportation and environmental requirements;

4. Do my business contracts protect me and my business as much as possible; and

5. Do I really understand my lease, financing agreements, partnership agreements and other material business contracts?

Conclusion: Answering these questions will significantly boost your chances of building a successful and legally protected business. If you are unsure about your answers to these questions, your business should consider seeking legal advice.

Connect Legal is a registered charity that provides free legal advice and education to low-resource small business owners in the immigrant community who cannot afford a lawyer in Ontario. Connect Legal’s Free Lawyer Matching Service provides free commercial legal advice for small businesses and Connect Legal’s legal workshops educate owners on running a small business.

Over the past two years, Connect Legal has helped over 300 low-resource immigrant entrepreneurs through interactive workshops covering important commercial law topics on running a small business, and through Connect Legal’s Pro-Bono Lawyer Matching Service, which connects entrepreneurs with free volunteer lawyers to meet a specific legal need for their business.

For more information about Connect Legal’s services and how to apply for assistance, please visit http://www.connectlegal.ca or e-mail Connect Legal at info@connectlegal.ca.

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Understanding the New Facebook Timeline for Businesses

by Susan Payton on May 14, 2012 · 0 comments

If you’ve been on Facebook for personal use in the last few months, the Timeline version of the profile is familiar to you. Within the last few weeks, all Business Pages have also been converted to the Timeline format. Now the look and feel of a business’s Page on Facebook is similar to what a profile looks like, with a few key differences. Just like with every iteration Facebook has, not everyone is a fan, but for the most part the new rollout has been met with positive feedback. Let’s look at what’s better on the new Pages.

It’s Visually More Appealing

At the top of each business page is now a large, horizontal image. This gives brands the unique opportunity to create visual appeal for visitors. The game Castleville uses this property to display an image of its game’s characters, and Apple displays (what else?) its new iPad. Small businesses find this provides them a great opportunity to show off their products, people or places right at the top of the page.

An Historical Record

The Timeline version, true to its name, displays posts and milestones in chronological order. So a business could post its founding date, as well as other key points in its history, making for a storytelling opportunity.

Better Activity Tracking

One of the best things about the new Pages Timeline is that when you visit your Page, you are presented with an admin panel that shows the people who have recently liked your Page, as well as notifications of recent comments by visitors, and your usual Facebook Insights. It makes it easy to quickly see what activity has happened on your page since your last login.

Highlight What You Love

Another feature I like is the ability to highlight a blog post or status update. You just pin it, and it remains at the top of your page for a week. It’s a great way to drive more traffic to a given blog post or website.

Getting Started

If you haven’t played around with the new Pages format, it’s worth spending an hour or two to familiarize yourself with the new changes. Make sure you’re making the most of your virtual real estate; put an image that best visually represents your brand at the top (and know that Facebook forbids blatant promotion in that image). Forbes has more tips on what you need to know about the new Timeline for Pages, so check that out too.

Susan Payton is the President of Egg Marketing & Communications, an internet marketing firm specializing in marketing communications, copywriting and blog posts. She’s written two books: 101 Entrepreneur Tips and Internet Marketing Strategies for Entrepreneurs, and has blogged for several sites, including The Marketing Eggspert Blog, as well as Mashable, Small Business Trends, FutureSimple, and Lead411. Follow her on Twitter @eggmarketing.

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Financing Options for Small Businesses & Startups

by Susan Payton on May 7, 2012 · 1 comment

If you’re considering expanding or launching a business, but lack the funds to do so, you’ve got several options when it comes to financing it. Let’s take a look.

1. Bank Loan

If you’ve got good credit, and if your business can show profitability, you might opt for a small business loan. The Canada Small Business Financing Loan, which is offered through various banks throughout the country, can provide up to $500,000 in funding to qualified companies. Your company qualifies if it has gross revenues less than $5 million. The loan can be used for:

Real estate
Equipment
Leasehold improvements

2. Venture Capital

If you’re a startup–meaning you are on a short trajectory to profitability or exit–consider pitching a venture capitalist for funds to expand your business. Many VCs work in specific industries, such as technology or healthcare, because they have the expertise to help these companies succeed. And while getting a VC to sign on to funding your company is immensely difficult, the benefits you reap are twofold: first, you have the money, but you also have the key to their contacts and expertise, and that is invaluable.

Venture capital is best if you’re looking for larger quantities of money, over $500,000. Keep in mind you will have to give some equity to your venture capitalist, and that he usually wants to see your company’s exit strategy executed in about 7 years.

3. Angel Investors

Angels are also hard to convince of your brand’s value, simply because there is a flood of startup companies clamoring for the cash. The money is less than that with VCs, and they’ll take 5-25% equity in your company. Angel investors may be more vested in your company’s success, as they are typically self-made millionaires looking to mentor startups and make more money.

4. Bootstrap

If possible, bootstrapping your business is always best. By taking money you have saved, you don’t have to give up equity to investors, and you don’t have to pay back a loan. It’s not an option for everyone, but if it is, take advantage of it.

5. Credit Cards

Credit cards are rarely the best option for small business financing, but sometimes they can’t be avoided. If you have a zero percent rate on your card, or a promotion, take advantage of the extra cash you can secure with no loan application or pitch deck. But keep in mind that the promotional rate may not be forever, so make it a goal to pay off the credit card as soon as possible.

Photo: 401k on Flickr.

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Tips For New Canadians Who Want Their Own Businesses

by admin on April 30, 2012 · 0 comments

Kapila Spa owner Candida Layman shares her story:

“I came to Canada and opened my salon ten years ago. It was a real adjustment. I am still adapting.” Those are the thoughts of Candida Layman, owner of Kapila Salon and Day Spa in Windsor, Ontario. “In the Dominican, where I am from, going to the spa is part of life, not something reserved for weddings and graduations.”

Finding adequate resources was also a challenge for Layman. “There just weren’t that many resources, especially for us women, to get a business started. I was bringing what I knew from my own country and that didn’t work. In the Dominican, the customer is everything. It is all about customer service. In Canada, you get more of a ‘service isn’t my department’ approach. It is very hard to get used to.”
“I love what I do,” Layman continues, “in three hours I can transform a person. And it costs a lot less and is less invasive than plastic surgery.”

Layman, who has years of experience in the hospitality industry in the Dominican Republic admits she found changing professions and countries a bit challenging. And now, she has the additional responsibilities of being a wife and mother to two young children. “It is difficult to juggle everything.”

Tips for immigrant women wanting their own businesses

1. Be clear about what you want

2. Have a well crafted marketing plan

3. Set your goals based on what you know you are capable of achieving

4. Watch the response of your market

Things won’t be exactly the same as at home. You have to be able to be flexible in what you offer. Without a market willing to buy what you are selling, even the best plans have to be changed

5. Be prepared to do it on your own

Layman provides salon and spa services as well as keeps her facility immaculate, then manages the business, markets the business, and coordinates her family’s activities

6. Be true to yourself

7. Be very organized

It will help a lot when you are challenged by everything coming at you

8. Be willing to continue to develop your skills

Candida attends four trade shows per year and participates in at least six days of professional spa and styling development to ensure she is bringing new trends to her clients

9. Customers are your number one priority

Candida brings the same styles and products to her small city clients as those who have salons in New York, Chicago, and Europe

10. Accept that each country has its own way of doing business and if you bring the best of what your country offers, you will have your niche.

Candida Layman runs Kapila Salon and Day Spa http://www.kapilasalonanddayspa.com/index.php

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Why It’s Imperative That Your Company Blog

by Susan Payton on April 30, 2012 · 1 comment

Blogging? My company’s not the type to blog.

We have nothing to blog about.

Our customers don’t want to read blogs.

No matter what the excuse, I’ve already heard it. You’re resistant to starting a company blog, primarily because the idea scares you, and you don’t know where to begin. The problem with blogs (or social media, or any marketing tool that requires a tiny bit of technical expertise) is that many business owners are afraid of it and reject using it simply because they don’t understand it. But if your customers are reading blogs (or visiting social sites), you’ve got to get over that fear and dive in.

Why Blogs Matter

These days, people are online searching for answers to their problems. Many times, they find the solutions they’re looking for on blogs. Let’s say you sell pool filters. If someone is searching “how often should I change my pool filter,” some of the results are from blogs. That could be yours. So this searcher clicks on a blog that addresses her question and ends up buying the filter from the company who writes the blog. That could be you. You get my point.

Blogs provide you with the opportunity to display your industry expertise, and to provide solutions to your potential customers.

Getting Started

Blogs literally take minutes to set up. You can create a free account at WordPress, pick a design theme you like, and you’re off and running. Of course, if you invest in a customizable design and tweak it for your specific needs, you’ll see better results, but don’t let that extra effort scare you from getting started.

What to Write About

The biggest mental obstacle business owners have about blogs is knowing what to write. It can be daunting to consider that you’ll need to provide content into perpetuity, but there really are thousands of topics you can cover, such as:

benefits of your products
how to use your products
news in your industry
frequently asked questions (like the pool filter example)
videos
interviews
book reviews
your thoughts on another blogger’s post
announcements
company news
events
webinars

The list goes on and on. I like to create a spreadsheet with topic ideas that I can refer back to when I’m stuck for something to write about. I also search Google to get inspiration from other blogs and news sites.

Setting Up a Schedule

The key to your blog generating traffic is consistent posting. A blog that hasn’t been updated in months isn’t likely to get repeat visitors, which you need. At a bare minimum, post once a week. Two to three times a week is best.

Remember that as the business owner, you don’t have to be the one to blog if you’re not proficient and don’t have the time. Your marketing personnel, or a freelance writer or company can create the content for you.

After a few months, you’ll start to see traffic to your site coming in from your blog, as well as new sales!

Photo: svilen001 on stock.xchng

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Your Go-To Basic Hiring Guide

by Andrew Patricio on April 25, 2012 · 0 comments

When it’s time to start staffing your small business, you may be a little out of your league. While you’ve been interviewed more times than you can count, you’ve never been the one conducting the conversation. Who you hire is critical to your business’s success, so it’s important that you do it right the first time around. Use this as a guide for your hiring process.

“Entrepreneurs must boil down their staffing plan to a handful of people who can get the company’s product or service to market.” – WallStreetJournal.com

Hiring Checklist

Before you begin the hiring process, it’s important that you lay out exactly what you want and what you can give. This will help you to run productive interviews, and be able to assess them quickly and easily. Your hiring checklist will be referred to, and most likely edited, multiple times during this process.

You want it to be specific and realistic.

• Positions: What positions do you need filled? What can you do without for now?

• Expectations: What do you expect from each position? List specific job duties, necessary knowledge, experience levels etc.

• Pay rates: This is when it’s critical that you are realistic. How much can you actually pay?

• Medical Benefits: Some companies don’t offer them – as it has become more common place, you can decide whether that is something you can provide at this time or not.

• Social Environment: Startups have a reputation for being an exciting and social work environment. What does your company offer – Happy hour on Fridays? Catered lunches once a week? Flexible hours?

Finding Employees

This will be the tough part – finding employees you can trust with the life of your small business. However, when you’re clear in what you want, you can be sure to find the right people. To do this, you can turn to a variety of sources

• Referral: Ask close relatives, friends and old co-workers. “According to a recent Mercer survey, more than 70% of HR professionals and recruiters believe that employee referral is the most effective method of recruiting.” – inc.com

• Networking: Were you impressed by co-workers in the past? Did you meet a promising young business person at that last networking event? Get communications flowing with anyone you think might be the right fit.

• Niche Sites: Post on sites that recruit for your business niche. This ensures you’ll get applicants that are truly interested in the positions.

Interview Process

Once you’ve found your applicants, it’s time to get talking. This process is critical to deciding whether or not the candidates will be a good fit for your business. To be successful, you should go into the interview knowing what you want to come out of with.

• Your expectations: What do you want to get out of it? This way you’ll know how the candidate stacks up to what you want.

• Start with general questions: Get to know the person. They should be a fit for the job both on their resume and in personality.

• Job related: These questions will vary from person to person, but remember to be specific.

Post Interview Assessments

Upon completing your interviews, you’ll need to assess and refer to other sources.

• Background check: Consider running background checks, depending on the candidate and your personal beliefs.

• Second opinions: If you have a business partner, bring potential candidates in for a second interview to get another opinion.

It’s important to remember that hiring is a long process, which can take several weeks. But, knowing what you want for each position will significantly cut down on time spent interviewing. Plan accordingly, be specific, and you’ll be fully staffed in no time.

Bio: Jessica Sanders is an avid small business writer touching on topics from social media to telemarketing services. She writes for an online resource that gives advice on topics including payroll processing for lead generation resource, Resource Nation.

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10 Ways to Find Customers With Social Media Today

by Susan Payton on April 23, 2012 · 1 comment

Looking for more business? Social media might just be your ticket to more sales and an increase in customers. Here are 10 strategies you can start using today for better results.

1. Start Blogging

Having a business blog can establish you or your company as an expert in your field. If your blog posts are well-written, provide value and are useful, they will drive traffic to both your blog, and then to your site. Read your competitors’ blogs to get ideas about what kind of content works best in your field. Set up a regular schedule of content so that visitors have a reason to come back and read more.

You can write posts on:

How to use your products
Industry news
Your take on trends and news
Piggyback posts on other blogs (provide your own commentary and link to the post)
Basic 101 information
Interviews
Book reviews

2. Answer Questions

Sites like Quora and Focus give you the opportunity to become better known as an industry expert. People often read through the answers to find experts to consult or otherwise hire, so this can be a great resource for new business.

3. Listen on Social Media

Customers and potential customers are talking about your brand and your competitors’ brands on sites like Twitter and Facebook. By paying attention, you have the opportunity to be there when someone’s looking for a product like yours, or to help if someone has an issue with your product. By publicly addressing customer service issues, you build a level of trust with potential and existing customers.

4. Ask for a Recommendation

Word of mouth has always been an amazing source of new business for many companies. With social tools like Yelp, you can reach even more new business through the recommendation of a few customers. After a transaction, send your customers an email with a link to your Yelp page, and invite them to leave feedback on their experience.

5. Be Everywhere Your Customers are

LinkedIn. Google +. Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest. Blogs. Depending on who your audience is, they’re likely in one or more of these places. It behooves your company to be there too. Keep all your profiles updated and interact directly with visitors to your page.

6. Follow Hashtags

On Twitter, groups of people with common interests use specific hashtags (like #journchat) to connect with likeminded Tweeters. Hashtags are also used for Twitter events. Find hashtags that your customers are using, and participate in the conversation.

7. Get Visual on Pinterest

Pinterest is still new, but we’re seeing brands that have visually appealing products getting great referral traffic back to their sites. Share images that interest your audience, as well as images of your products.

8. Guest Post

Another great way to find customers is to contribute blog content on other blogs. Ask to include a bio and link back to your site; no need to be too self-promotional, but you do want to help readers find you.

9. Offer Ways to Connect

Your website should have icons for all the social channels you participate on. Make it easy for visitors to connect with you on all platforms.

10. Keep Innovating

Social media changes, and new tools are being added each year. Stay on top of trends, and experiment to find the ones that work best for you.

For more ways to find new customers online, please attend our free webinar, Using Social Media to Find New Customers, April 24, 2012, at 2 pm Eastern.

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Cloud Computing Rocks – Especially for Small Business

by admin on April 19, 2012 · 0 comments

Technology seems to move at a faster pace by the day. For many small businesses harnessing the latest technology means the ability to access services previously only accessible for much larger firms. Not only do the latest advances in technology offer this benefit, they can also make life much more straightforward and reduce the workload of those running their own business. Cloud computing is a key tool that offers some basic but essential benefits to small businesses. It’s a tool I’ve been using for a while and it has, on more than one occasion, saved me from some fairly major disasters.

So What Is It?

For those not already in the know, cloud computing uses the internet to access software applications that would, in the past, have been installed on your computer. You can also use cloud computing tools to back up and store data and files via the internet. Hotmail or Gmail are familiar tools to most people – these are essentially the original form of cloud computing. The rapid growth of fixed and mobile broadband and its increasing reliability now means that a whole range of software and applications can be accessed in this manner.

And Why Does It Rock?

Unfortunately, or fortunately, I can give you a personal example from just the last week. While innocently researching on a topic for a set of articles I was the victim of a ‘drive by’ virus attack. The virus was basically designed to disable my computer and then encourage me to buy software to remove said virus. Nice trick. Not so nice if you are facing the sharp end of a deadline and just happen to have pretty much the whole of your business records and files on the computer! However, my files are also backed up on a rather nifty little cloud drive, which meant I was able to switch computers and as the well-known saying goes “Keep Calm and Carry On”. Later in the day when I had the time I was able to restore my ailing computer and remove the culprit. In what could have been a devastating loss of data I actually only lost half an article and one set of edits on another. So, as far I’m concerned, cloud computing rocks.

Don’t Fence Me In

As, like many small businesses, my own is a one person operation, the ability to access this kind of IT back up would have been an impossibility just a few years ago. In fact I’ve only been using it for about six months. The second reason it rocks is that it completely removes the need for me to be in one place in order to complete my work. Armed with a mobile broadband Wi-Fi connection and access to any of my files from anywhere with a computer, I’m free to roam wherever and whenever I want. Full access to my files via the internet does away with the need for flash drives and means that when I get back to the office my own file system is up to date the moment I switch the computer on. This allows me combine the demands of caring for elderly relatives with fulltime work. Not every business person may need to work in this way, but those of us with families of any kind will see the opportunities it can offer.

Money Matters

Online accounting software is the next big investment I’m looking at – although big is probably the wrong word. Cloud solutions for your accounting needs are relatively affordable some from just a few dollars a month. Until now it’s not been absolutely essential, but as the business grows my paper based system is beginning to trouble me – mainly because it’s time consuming and I have to travel 30 miles to get to the accountant when she needs the stuff. With online accounting software not only will my records be available anywhere – I can allow the accountant to access them which saves her time and money for me! I’m going to have to say it again – cloud computing really does rock. If you haven’t tried it for yourself – other than the Hotmail variety – now is very definitely the time and I can strongly recommend it.

Author bio:
Carlo Pandian is a freelance writer and blogs about business, entrepreneurs and technology covering everything from QuickBooks essentials to social media management tools. He loves reading great entrepreneurs biographies and speaking at conferences about how the internet can help small businesses.

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Getting Your Business Noticed

by admin on April 19, 2012 · 1 comment

In today’s media-saturated world, it can be hard for your business to stand out. The secret to getting more exposure is to use a mix of traditional and new media marketing to attract prospects in many different ways. Combining your approaches should help drive more traffic to your door, and convert more prospects into customers.

Traditional Tactics

Create a referral program Your existing customers are your best marketing program and your best salespeople. Their positive word of mouth can drive more business to you than any other tool. While we will discuss new media tactics to help them briefly, one of the key things that you can do is to set up a referral program that rewards them for sending customers to your business. This does two things for you. First, it lets them know that you appreciate them and increases their loyalty. Second, creating a program and reminding them of it helps to keep you at the top of their mind, making it more likely that they will remember to recommend you.

Update your signageMany businesses design a sign when they open and continue using it forever. This is foolish since a good sign can draw customers in with no incremental effort or cost. Design styles and signage technology have evolved over the years. Furthermore, we know more about how to make a sign not only eye-catching but also “sticky” than we have in the past. For this reason, you should hire a firm that specializes in designing business signs and custom signs to review and, as appropriate, modify your business’s signage.

New Media Tactics

Redesign your website. Just as you used a professional business signs and custom signs designer for your company’s real-world face, hire a professional designer to update your company’s face on the internet. While social networks are important in building your online identity, a well-designed website lets customers connect with you and get information on your products in a medium that you control.

Harness Facebook and Twitter. Facebook and Twitter let you have a two-way conversation with customers and prospects in a public forum. Use them to let people know about new promotions or new services. Many businesspeople create special contests and sales just for Twitter and Facebook users. These incentivize people to “like” you online and consent to receiving your marketing messages.

Create a blog. A blog is a great place for you to share your passion for your business. You can post on just about anything, but keeping it related to your company will concentrate its value. Consider making posts on such things as new products, developments in your industry, tips and tricks on how to use what you sell, and related things. You can also share your posts on your Facebook and Twitter pages, as well as getting links from similar blogs and from directories of similar blogs.
Although there are more businesses than ever before clamoring for your customer’s attention, there has been an even greater explosion in the number of channels to communicate with consumers. Crafting a customer contact strategy that leverages both traditional and new media communication tools is the first part of success. The second part is to engage in communication with your customers in multiple ways, keeping yourself in their minds by providing valuable content. Doing this will help you to outperform your competition and achieve a new level of success for your business.

Brandon Serna is a writer for FASTSIGNS, a leading signage company that specializes in business signs, traffic signs, custom car wraps, vehicle wraps and many other visual communication services.

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What’s the Big Deal About Pinterest?

by Susan Payton on April 16, 2012 · 0 comments

I know what you’re thinking: not another social media platform! Just what we need!

But Pinterest, which had 10.4 million users in February 2012, is unlike any other social media tool. Rather than share updates with friends, you share images. It’s essentially a virtual visual board, where you can view what your friends have “pinned” (that means they like an image enough to keep a copy of it on their profiles), and you can repin what you like.

That’s all fun and games for people with time on their hands, but what does that have to do with your business?

Here’s the thing: Pinterest is a huge referrer of web traffic. As of January 2012, Pinterest’s referral traffic was 3.6%, rivaling Twitter (3.61%) and beating out LinkedIn (.20%) and Google + (.22%). Because a link is attached to a pinned image, people are clicking on the links and visiting blogs and company websites as a result.

How to Use Pinterest

Say for example you sell high-end dog clothes. By setting up a Pinterest account, you can share images of your latest designs with your followers. When they like your images, they will repin them to their profiles. Then their friends see them and repin them as well. You might include info on the product and price in the comment box. Now anyone who’s interested can click the link and buy the product…all because they were wasting spending time on Pinterest!

But sharing your products isn’t the only way to get followers. In fact, mixing in your products with other images has proven to be more effective. Birchbox, a company that sells subscriptions for makeup samples, has more than 5,000 followers on Pinterest. In addition to pinning the products it offers, the company also pins media mentions of the brand, celebrity events, and fashion-inspired images. It’s all about sharing photos that appeal to your target audience.

Should You Dive In?

Pinterest isn’t for everyone. I’m still having trouble making the case for business services (or just services in general) getting much out of it, although there are blog posts with suggestions on doing so. If you sell visually appealing products, Pinterest is a shoe-in. Here are some tips for getting the most out of Pinterest:

Take high-quality images of your products
Link to the image so that your website link is included with the pin
Follow others who pin related images
Connect your Pinterest account to your Facebook account to increase exposure
Be creative! Create boards like “Inspiration” and pin visually engaging photos and designs

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Practical advice for entrepreneurs and small business owners