Only as solo as necessary

Entrepreneurs are famed for being solo achievers, pursuing singular visions. In reality, however, successful entrepreneurs operate only as "solo" as necessary.

My most recent column in the National Post stemmed from a discussion with an entrepreneur whose idea of business development was spending way too much time doing research solo on his computer instead of talking to players in his market.

My rant continued...

"Google is an unmatched business reference tool. But there’s a limit to the help you can get from other people’s websites. Sean should spend less time on the computer, and more time seeking help from real live business people in his market who can answer his questions.



I’ve met lots of entrepreneurs like Sean, filled with passion for their business ideas, but hesitant to bounce them off other people. That’s exactly the wrong attitude. Keeping a great idea to yourself is like buying a beautiful bouquet of roses and locking it in a closet. Ideas are made to be poked, prodded and improved. Get them out in the open. Like flowers, they shrivel and decay in the dark..."

You can read the rest of the column here....

What City is That, Anyway?

For the rest of May 2012, this blog will be headed up by a photo of the dynamic skyline of a certain Canadian city. As often happens, it's on my itinerary for this month.
Can you guess what city it is? If so, please share in the comments.

May 18 Update: Time to put you out of your mystery. The city is not Edmonton, not Richmond Hill, but..


Windsor, Ontario!

Readers offer marketing suggestions for iconic clothing supplier

How do you build a brand in a category that no one knows exists?

That was the challenge I put to National Post readers two weeks ago. And in my column this week, the readers strike back, offering their suggestions for how adaptive-clothing producer Silvert’s can grow not just its business, but consumers’ awareness of the entire category of east-to-wear clothing for infirm seniors.

My challenge drew lots of responses, and some great new ideas – many of which could be applied to businesses in other industries. Maybe even yours. Here’s a sample of the advice received:

“Susan Yates of Richmond Hill, Ont., recommends Silvert’s 'galvanize' caregivers into a sales force, through a representative-sales model such as Avon’s. 'Put the catalogues into the hands of the caregivers and incent them with a commission on sales.' (She suggests caregivers sell to the seniors’ adult children, not their charges directly.) Yates also suggests Silvert’s get its products into other catalogues, through retailers such as Sears.”

Click here to read the full story.

Or click here to read the previous week’s profile of Silvert’s.

Think Small, Dream Big

A friend recently discovered Seth Godin's classic 2005 blogpost on "Small is the New Big" and loved it. In this rant, Godin traces the growth of "big business" and why size is no longer an advantage.

"Big used to matter. Big meant economies of scale. (You never hear about “economies of tiny” do you?) People, usually guys, often ex-Marines, wanted to be CEO of a big company. The Fortune 500 is where people went to make… a fortune.

"There was a good reason for this. Value was added in ways that big organizations were good at. Value was added with efficient manufacturing, widespread distribution and very large R&D staffs. Value came from hundreds of operators standing by and from nine-figure TV ad budgets. Value came from a huge sales force."

Then the world changed. Technology empowered individuals and small teams, and consumers came to value the merits of service, function, originality and discovery over the low, predictable costs of mass production and mega-retail.

So Seth goes on:

"Small is the new big because small gives you the flexibility to change the business model when your competition changes theirs.
"Small means you can tell the truth on your blog.
"Small means that you can answer email from your customers.
"Small means that you will outsource the boring, low-impact stuff like manufacturing and shipping and billing and packing to others, while you keep the power because you invent the remarkable and tell stories to people who want to hear them.
"A small law firm or accounting firm or ad agency is succeeding because they’re good, not because they’re big. So smart small companies are happy to hire them."

My friend, who has newly entered the world of entrepreneurship, asked my thoughts on this essay. Here is what I told her:

I think Seth is exactly right. Although I don't think he has explored the concept of "bigness" enough - both its advantages and disadvantages.

Capital starts with risk and ends with rigidity. As the decision-making gets farther from the consumer, and more insulated from the market, it gets confused. Management no longer knows what the right thing is to do, so they become more and more dependent on "big" solutions such as consultant recommendations (which are usually ill-informed), restructuring, massive consolidation/integration projects (so they can measure results better, but reduce those same results by demotivating front-line people), and wholesale acquisitions and divestitures (which rarely pay off).

With few exceptions, I think big businesses are ultimately dysfunctional, which is why so many are replaced or taken over by new companies (ABC by Disney, Motorola by BlackBerry, Apple & Android... And of course in retail, K Mart by Walmart, Sears by Target, and all of them by Amazon). Occasionally big companies can still be winners (I think Disney, Apple, Home Depot are still well run and doing right), but I think that's the exception, and it depends on keeping a laser-like "founder's focus" on the overall business. Steve Jobs was a terrible CEO (to some) because he always acted like a monomaniacal entrepreneur - but that's exactly why he was so successful.

I agree totally on the benefits of small. The freedom to act on opportunities, to interact daily with customers, to leverage the best part of a growing market by focusing on one niche: it's what makes small business beautiful. Imagination and great execution are more important now than capital, and that's why Wall Street and Bay Street are so irrelevant to so much of business today. And it's a mighty good thing.

Seth said it best and first: "It's no longer about access to cash. Now it's about choosing the right model and being remarkable."

You can enjoy Godin's original post here.

The Future is Now

Have you considered how lucky we are to be alive at this time, when so much is being done to advance the fields of human knowledge, exploration, communications, medicine and global diplomacy? A time when consumer goods have never been less expensive, nor services (wireless, facebook, e-commerce, couriers, tele-medicine) more plentiful.

These are heady times to be in business – or even just alive. When else were so many frontiers falling to human curiosity – or did opportunities so abound?

As one observer points out: “At no point of the world’s history has life been so full of interest, and of possibilities of excitement and enjoyment.”

If you look around, he writes, you can see around you “the play of vaster forces than have ever before been exerted, working, half blindly, half under control, to bring about immeasurable results.”

What a wonderfully evocative description of the pace, and power, of innovation today.

That bold, enthused observer?

Theodore Roosevelt. In 1894.

The End of RIM?

From the Huffington Post, here is one of those cool infographics tracing the decline and fall of Research in Motion.

Most people believe RiM was done in by its own short-sightedness. It's a sad verdict for such visionary entrepreneurs. I continue to hold out hope that the company will survive. But I always thought it was a takeover candidate - though not at $13.

Click here to see the infograph of broken dreams.

Meet B.C.'s top innovators

BC Business magazine has just released its 2012 list of British Columbia’s 20 Most Innovative Companies - organizations that have put new ideas into practice that have had a profound impact in their field.
It’s a terrific list. Check out who made it:

BroadbandTV Corp.
Helping content owners unlock the value of their online videos.

Saltworks Technologies Inc.
Turning saltwater and wastewater into potable H2O.

Tsawwassen First Nation
Setting a new precedent in First Nations governance.

SendtoNews Video Inc.
Changing the way newsrooms connect with content.

Awesense Wireless Inc.
Helping Canadian utility companies isolate and correct losses in the electrical distribution grid.

Brookside Foods Ltd.
Patented candy-making technology that caught the eye of Hershey Co.

Summify
Two "hacker entrepreneurs" take on the curation of social-media data.

Cascadia Windows Ltd.
Doubling buildings' insulation efficiency with one little clip.

Idea Rebel Interactive Inc.
A cost-saving environmental agenda and a new way to empower clients.

Adbusters Media Foundation
The “buy nothing” magazine that sparked the “Occupy” movement.

Wow-1day! Painting Inc.
Overturning the prevailing and inefficient house-painting model.

Endurance Wind Power Inc.
The quietest and most efficient small wind turbines.

Blenz Coffee Ltd.
Doing more for customers than stimulating their taste buds.

Debrand Services Inc.
Tapping a plump vein in the world of branded corporate waste.

Wifarer Inc.
Bringing wayfinding inside with interactive building maps on your smartphone.

Hire the World Enterprises
Taking crowd-sourcing to a new level.

Pure Freedom YYoga Wellness Inc.
Bringing rigorous business principles to a 5,000-year-old practice.

Canada Metal (Pacific) Ltd.
An environmentally friendly solution for boaters worldwide.

Curious Mind Productions Inc.
A "book club on steroids" for the 21st century.

EnWave Corp.
A faster, greener and more economical dehydration alternative.

For more info on the magazine's Innovators program, click here: http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/innovations/2012-innovators-panel-methodology

How to stay in touch with Rick

I continue to get people asking me if I have a newsletter. The answer is, sort of.

I send out a weekly "RickAlert" connecting people to my weekly National Post column, as well as six links a year to my PROFIT column, or to the occasional asture blogpost here, on PROFITguide or at Financial Post Entrepreneur.

It's free, there's no advertising, you can cancel any time. I'm all about the customer service.

If you would like to stay in touch, this is the best way. Just send me an email and I'll sign you up. Rick (at) RickSpence.ca

Or just follow me on Twitter (@RickSpence).
I'd really like to have more followers than Portsmouth.

New Dragon Named

A new dragon has been selected to replace Robert Herjavec on CBC TV's Dragons' Den.

David Chilton, author and publisher of the multi-million selling Wealthy Barber books, will bring his common sense approach to judging investment proposals from Canadian entrepreneurs seeking help from the Dragons.

"David Chilton embodies Canadian entrepreneurial success, and through his terrific books he has shared his financial advice for the benefit of everyone," said Julie Bristow, executive director of studio and unscripted programming.

I've met David, and he's a very smart guy. He's more than an author, he's the creator of one of the most successful brands in Canadian publishing. He cuts through bombast and mebellishment with a knife. Plus, he's got a great sense of humour. So, should be an interesting season. (Season 7 starts taping in just a few weeks!)

By the way, auditions continue for entrepreneurs and innovators to pitch their ideas on the show next season. With 20+ new episodes planned, the producers really want and need quality pitches.

You can apply online at http://dragonsdenauditions.cbc.ca/. Or attend one of the remaining open auditions, listed below, scheduled over the next 10 days. Calgary, Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto residents (not to mention Kamloops, Collingwood, Windsor and Sarnia) still have a chance to strut their stuff! (For more info visit http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/auditions/#cities)

Thursday Mar. 22 2012	Collingwood ON	11AM-6PM	Royal Canadian Legion Branch 63 490 Ontario St. Collingwood, ON
Thursday Mar. 22 2012	Kamloops BC	11AM-6PM	TRU Residence & Conference Centre (Multimedia Room) 900 McGill Road Kamloops BC
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Calgary AB	10AM-5PM	University of Calgary Dinning Centre 2500 University Dr. NW Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Montreal QC	10AM-5PM	Concordia University Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Complex 1515 Ste. Catherine St. West, EV Atrium Montréal, Quebec (York Amphitheater)
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Vancouver BC	10AM-5PM	Morris J Wosk Centre for Dailogue 580 West Hastings Street Vancouver, BC, V6B 1L6 (Enter via Seymour Street courtyard entrance)
Monday Mar. 26 2012	Abbotsford BC	11AM-6PM	BEST WESTERN PLUS Regency Inn & Conference Centre 32110 Marshall Rd Abbotsford, BC V2T 1A1 (Conference Centre)
Thursday Mar. 29 2012	Windsor ON	11AM-6PM	Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce 2575 Ouellette Place Windsor, ON N8X 1L9
Friday Mar. 30 2012	Sarnia ON	10AM-5PM	The University of Western Ontario Research Park Sarnia-Lambton Campus 1086 Modeland Rd. Sarnia, ON Main Reception
Saturday Mar. 31 2012	Toronto ON	11AM-5PM	CBC Toronto 250 Front St. Toronto, ON (Atrium)

Your Marketing is Your Product

Every day, marketing expert Seth Godin posts amazing insights on his blog. Short, pithy essays that make you think, "so that's how it works." And then you realize you almost knew that, but just hadn't put it all together yet.

If you're not reading Seth's Blog a few times a week, get over there now:

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/

On March 19, he posted a few thoughts about how marketing has changed since the 1960s heyday of "Men Men." In doing so, he summed up the challenge we all face in these Post-Mad times:

"In the Mad Men era, we added marketing last. Marketing and advertising were the same thing, and the job was to promote what was made.

"In the connection era, the marketing is the product, the service and most of all the conversations it causes and the connections it makes.

"Marketing is the first thing we do, not the last. Build virality and connection and remarkability into your product or service from the start and then the end gets a lot easier. Build it into your app, your book, your movie, your insurance policy, and the red soles of your shoes."

You can read Seth's original post here.

Robert Herjavec Exits Dragons' Den

Robert Herjavec is leaving Dragons' Den.

The young immigrant tech entrepreneur from a poor Croatian family - so many good storylines - won the hearts and minds of Canadians in his career on Dragons' Den. Now he says it's time for a change.

This evening Robert reported on Twitter:

"thanks everyone for great comments -nothing but wonderful things to say about #cbcdragonsden - fantastic experience for me - chnaged my life"   (sic)

Pressed by me (and perhaps other Tweeters) for details, he Tweeted once more:

"its true-time to move on-most grateful for the opportunity 2 inspire others (in some small way) but mostly to be inspired by them in return."

Gracious, but not very informative.

My first clue was a Tweet earlier this evening from former dragon Brett Wilson, who noted Robert's decision and asked, with a wink, if this means he can get his old chair back.

The announcement upstaged the new Dargons' Den spinoff show, CBC's "The Big Decision." This week's episode featured tall dragon Jim Treliving's decision to invest in one of two flailing family businesses. It wasn't scintillating. In fact, Robert's announcement made Twitter more interesting during that hour than our National Public Network.

(The dullness wasn't Jim's fault. The companies - a fence producer and an icewine producer - were not very interesting, and both had made so many mistakes that viewers might well question either company's right to still be in business.)

Robert will be missed on Dragons' Den. Go to http://www.twitter.com/ and do a search for #robertherjavec), and you'll see how upset Canadians are. "I am also going to miss your gorgeous blue eyes and stanfields," tweeted one loyal fan.

I've seen in the analytics for this blog how popular Robert is. A lot of people search for info on him by typing in "Robert Herjavec married?".

I'm sure Robert will stay in the public eye. But we will miss the warmth, wit and sense of fun he brought to Dragons' Den.

(So far, Robert seems not to be responding to questions about whether he is leaving the U.S. version of the show, Shark Tank.)

Robert's 4 Monday night Tweets - saying goodbye. (Click pic to read)

UPDATE: The day after this post, in an email to the Toronto Sun, Herjavec said his move would have "no impact" on Shark Tank.

Score one for Hollywood.

The Good, the Bad, and the Well Above Average

From time I do some high-level consulting for small businesses, aimed at helping them identify some of their problems and hopefully even suggesting some solutions.

In my “Way Forward” package, I spend a few hours with the entrepreneur and ask a lot of questions. Together we identify what’s working and not. I usually write up a short report based on that conversation and a bit of extra thinking, and the entrepreneur is then free to act on my observations – or not.

The good news is that the entrepreneur I met with today really has his act together. For the first time in the five years that I've been doing these fixed-price sessions, there were more things he is doing right than doing wrong.

I won't be too specific here, but I was impressed with his vision, the way his company innovates at all parts of the better service/better product/lower price continuum, and with his ability to execute. He seems particularly good at hiring great people and giving the tools and processes they need to succeed.

The weak spots we discussed are the same ones that businesses face: the need to better articulate his value proposition; opportunities to overhaul the pricing model (and that doesn't necessarily mean lowering prices!); improving marketing communications; and redesigning the website. He may not be able to fix all those things at once, but he now has a roadmap for moving forward and some ideas how to do it.

In the end, we spent most of the conversation talking about the weak spots in his business plan. But I made sure he got positive feedback that he is doing a lot of things right. It was a real pleasure for me to deliver that opinion.

Startup Canada: The Start of Something Big

Startup Canada is launching in March 2012 with one clear message:
"Entrepreneurship empowers everyone. But it is more than just a message; it’s a MOVEMENT!"

The Not Very Shy Victoria Lennox

I'm really looking forward to see what Startup Canada can do. Founded by indefatigable entrepreneur Victoria Lennox, the association is bringing together entrepreneurs and support groups to celebrate and promote the power of entrepreneurship - and clear away some the barriers that prevent entrepreneurs from flourishing in Canada.

Lennox has signed up an amazing roster of supporters, sponsors, provincial ambassadors, contributors, patrons and governors. The founding chairman is Ottawa-based Adam Chowaniec, founder of Tundra Semiconductor and former president or CEO of a host of Canadian technology companies, and one of the developers (several millennia ago) of the Amiga personal computer.

Patrons include Heather Reisman of Indigo, former Dragon W. Brett Wilson, Canada Goose’s Dani Reiss, and James Temerty, chairman of Northland Power, Canada’s entrepreneur of the year in 2010.

The support from the corporate sector has been a bit disappointing. Microsoft and Gowlings are in as platinum sponsors, but the gold and silver sponsor categories are still sadly vacant. Where are the banks, brokers, wireless carriers, insurers, suppliers, couriers, automakers and real-estate companies who have made so much money from this sector for so long?

Startup Canada has done its homework. Look at all the community partners, from Accelerate Okanagan to Newfoundland’s Genesis Centre, who have already joined the crusade: http://www.startupcan.ca/who-is-involved/community-partners/

Startup Canada is planning a national launch tour to focus all Canadians on the power of entrepreneurship. It kicks off in Halifax on March 19 and winds up in B.C. in September. More details here: http://www.startupcan.ca/tour/

The tour will culminate in creation of a white paper on entrepreneurship to be delivered to the Prime Minister Stephen Harper. We'll see how that works out.

In the meantime, it’s empowering to see such widespread entrepreneurial passions focusing on entrepreneurship itself in this country. I think this is the start of something big.


Disclosure: I’m signed on as an “external advisor” to Startup Canada. Not sure what that means yet, but I know it will be great.

50 Ways to Save Money in Your Business

Entrepreneur.com has a great cost-cutting article on “50 Ways to Save Money in Your Business.” It’s chock full of practical, useful ways to cut expenses. You’ll find ideas for saving money on advertising and marketing, real estate, payroll, office supplies,  shipping, purchasing and financial services.

I have cited this story before, but they changed the link, so click here for 50 ways to Save Money.

I like these three tactics in particular. I think they can really make a difference:

“40. Form a buying alliance. Join with another business or a trade association for bulk purchasing discounts.”

“43. Query your consultants. Ask your insurance agent, accountant or attorney how you can cut back on their costs. You'd be surprised at the suggestions they might offer on ways to cut your premiums, reduce billable hours or avoid huge retainers."

“50. Seek at least three bids on everything. Even mundane purchases merit shopping around. If you quote a competitor's lower price, a supplier or vendor will often match that price to win your business.”

How are you cutting costs in your business?

This post provided by Allstream, Canada's all-business communications provider.

Now offering SIP Trunking on a single IP backbone.

The Dragons are Coming For You!

It's that time of year again: CBC's roving gang of Deputy Dragons are searching the country for entrepreneurs to appear on next season's show!
 
Becoming a "pitcher" on Dragons' Den is a tremendous experience. If nothing else, you'll get some great lessons in how to communicate the investment value of your product or business. And if you're actually chosen to pitch to the Dragons, you'll get some good coaching, and you have the chance to appear on TV. Or even get an investment from Kevin O'Leary.

It's all good.

Auditions are already underway. Here's the impressive schedule of what's coming up. For more information, hit http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/auditions/index.html

Thursday Feb. 23 2012	Kelowna BC	11AM-6PM	Okanagan College - Student Services Building 1000 K.L.O. Road Kelowna, BC V1Y 4X8 250-762-5445
Thursday Feb. 23 2012	Saint John NB	11AM-6PM	Delta Brunswick (Saint John Hotel) 39 King Street Saint John New Brunswick, E2L 4W
Thursday Feb. 23 2012	Port Hardy BC	10AM-1PM	Quarterdeck Inn & Marina Resort 6555 Hardy Bay Road Po Box 910 Port Hardy BC V0N 2P0
Saturday Feb. 25 2012	Calgary AB	10AM-5PM	University of Calgary Dinning Centre 2500 University Dr. NW Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N
Saturday Feb. 25 2012	Sydney NS	10AM-5PM	Cape Breton University Student Culture and Heritage Building (Great Hall) 1250 Grand Lake Rd Sydney NS B1P 6L2
Wednesday Feb. 29 2012	Quebec City QC	Noon-5PM	Hilton Quebec 1100 Boulevard Rene-Levesque Est. Quebec, QC (Beauport Room)
Thursday Mar. 1 2012	Barrie ON	11AM-6PM	Georgian College One Georgian Drive Barrie, Ontario L4M 3X9
Friday Mar. 2 2012	Sherbrooke QC	11AM-6PM	Delta Sherbrooke 2685 King ouest, Sherbrooke,QC, J1L 1C1
Saturday Mar. 3 2012	Burlington/Hamilton ON	10AM-5PM	Ron Joyce Centre DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University 4350 South Service Road Burlington, ON L7L 5R8 905-525-9140 ext. 20536 (Great Hall, Room 132)
Saturday Mar. 3 2012	Montreal QC	10AM-5PM	TBA
Saturday Mar. 3 2012	Ottawa ON	10AM-5PM	Courtyard by Marriott Ottawa 350 Dalhousie Street Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 7E9
Thursday Mar. 8 2012	Saskatoon SK	11AM-6PM	University of Saskatchewan Edwards School of Business 25 Campus Drive Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A7 Reading Room (Room 244)
Saturday Mar. 10 2012	St. John's NL	10AM-5PM	TBA
Saturday Mar. 10 2012	Winnipeg MB	10AM-5PM	CBC Manitoba 541 Portage Ave. Winnipeg, MB R3B 2G1 (Studio 41)
Tuesday Mar. 13 2012	Whitehorse YT	11AM-6PM	TBA
Wednesday Mar. 14 2012	Oshawa ON	11AM-6PM	TBA
Thursday Mar. 15 2012	Charlottetown PEI	11AM-6PM	CBC PEI 430 University Avenue Charlottetown, P.E.I. C1A 8B9 (Lobby)
Thursday Mar. 15 2012	Dawson City YT	11AM-6PM	TBA
Thursday Mar. 15 2012	Timmins ON	11AM-6PM	Northern College Porcupine Campus 4715 Highway 101 East South Porcupine, ON P0N 1H0 705-235-3211
Friday Mar. 16 2012	Waterloo ON	11AM-6PM	Conrad Centre for Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology 295 Hagey Blvd., Suite 240 Waterloo, ON N2L 6R5
Saturday Mar. 17 2012	Halifax NS	10AM-5PM	Cambridge Suites Hotel 1583 Brunswick Street Halifax, NS B3J 3P5 (Brunswick/Centennial Room)
Saturday Mar. 17 2012	Sudbury ON	10AM-5PM	Laurentian University TBA
Saturday Mar. 17 2012	Victoria BC	10AM-5PM	Inn at Laurel Point 680 Montreal Street Victoria, BC V8V 1Z8 (250) 386-8721
Sunday Mar. 18 2012	Nanaimo BC	11AM-6PM	Vancouver Island Conference Centre 101 Gordon Street Nanaimo, BC V9R 5J8 (250) 244-4050 (Shaw Auditorium)
Tuesday Mar. 20 2012	Sechelt BC	11AM-6PM	Seaside Centre 5790 Teredo St. Sechelt, BC V0N 3A0
Thursday Mar. 22 2012	Sarnia ON	11AM-6PM	TBA
Thursday Mar. 22 2012	Collingwood ON	11AM-6PM	TBA
Thursday Mar. 22 2012	Kamloops BC	11AM-6PM	TBA
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Windsor ON	10AM-5PM	Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce 2575 Ouellette Place Windsor, ON N8X 1L9
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Calgary AB	10AM-5PM	University of Calgary Dinning Centre 2500 University Dr. NW Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Montreal QC	10AM-5PM	TBA
Saturday Mar. 24 2012	Vancouver BC	10AM-5PM	Morris J Wosk Centre for Dailogue 580 West Hastings Street Vancouver, BC, V6B 1L6 (Enter via Seymour Street courtyard entrance)
Monday Mar. 26 2012	Abbotsford BC	11AM-6PM	BEST WESTERN PLUS Regency Inn & Conference Centre 32110 Marshall Rd Abbotsford, BC V2T 1A1 (Conference Centre)
Saturday Mar. 31 2012	Toronto ON	11AM-5PM	CBC Toronto 250 Front St. Toronto, ON (Atrium)

Pick up the phone and start negotiating

Looking to increase your personal power? You might start with a couple of my recent blogposts on other sites:

For the National Post I recently wrote a rant on the limitations of email, and why you really should pick up the phone and call instead, more often.

Excerpt: Here's just one of the reasons that the phone is better than email.

You get instant feedback. Does your colleague agree with your point? Is he or she going along, but grudgingly? Are you going to have to adjust your sales pitch for when contacting other prospects? The phone can give you instant, invaluable feedback that tells you how things are going and helps you get things back on track fast when they’re going off the rails.

You can read the full story here:
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/02/03/forget-email-make-the-call-instead/

Negoiating is one the most crucial skills an entrepreneur (or anyone, for that matter) can have. Yet I know few people who are good at it. We're so wrapped up in our own needs that we don't look at negotiation as an interpersonal skill, or a highly predictable process that we can all get much better at.

So I wrote a blogpost for PROFIT magazine's website, www.PROFITguide.com, summing up "Six Keys to Negotiating Success," from U.S. entrepeneur Arthur Wylie. He negotiates financial deals for his clients (many of them professional athletes) all the time, so he has a unique outlook on negotiating, and a formula you would do well to learn and adopt (or adapt -- use whatever parts works best for you).

Here's just one of his tips:
• Key #3: Get buy-in for your vision. It’s not always easy to get other people on board with your ideas. A critical step in artful deal-making is to convey your vision of the outcome in such a way that other parties will seek the same outcome. The WIIFM factor (“What’s in it for me?”) must be made crystal clear to the other party as you present your position.

You can get all the tips at http://www.profitguide.com/blog/rickspence/71424--swagger-6-keys-to-negotiating-success

Now grab the phone and start negotiating!

The True Value of Social Media

The following post was originally written as a comment I recently submitted to a LinkedIn group, the Toronto Entrepreneur Alliance. I was responding to another member's request for social media success stories.

(You may have noticed that most companies still don't have a lot of success stories. I think that's because they haven't caught on to what social media is all about.)
So here's my comment:

My belief is that social media is not an add-on to your business. It's an add-back-on.

For centuries, all businesses had personal relationships with their customers. It was only in the 19th-century industrial era (with its breakthroughs in mass production, branding, transportation and distribution) that the producers of products and services became estranged from their immediate users and buyers.

Result: giant, faceless, untrusted corporations; mediocre or lousy products; and frustrated customers (because product information and good service are so hard to come by.)

With social media, companies can now once again communicate on a broad, ongoing basis with their customers. They can listen in as their users compare notes, and engage with customers who have questions and problems. They can learn from their customers' feedback, improve their products, and add new ones that people actually need. Best of all, they in stepping out from behind the curtain of anonymity, companies and brands show themselves to be human once again.

In business as in life, those who do the best job of communicating with their community, and creating greater shared value, will flourish. And those who cannot bear the light of day, and of honest, candid interaction, will slink back into the shadows where they belong.

Getting Toronto to Talk

I had a great time at Metro Hall yesterday doing my “TorontoTalks” presentation. More importantly, the audience seemed to have a great time, too.

My topic was “5 Secrets of Success for Toronto Entrepreneurs.” Normally in a gig like that I do seven or 10 “secrets,” but I have learned over time to go deeper on fewer, in order to really challenge people to see (and seize) the full potential of the opportunities before them.

It also leaves more time for discussion, because entrepreneurs love to talk about the issues they struggle with.

At any rate, last night I tried something different. I put the discussion and comments part first, reminding folks that the event was called “Toronto Talks” – not “Rick Talks” – and that I wanted to hear their secrets of success before I offered mine. We got some great comments – people wanted to talk about having passion for what you do, the need to hire more intelligently, the dangers of overselling. This sparked lively, interactive discussions we might not have had if I had waited till the end to draw people out.

After half an hour of that, a couple of people subtly suggested that they had come out in the dark and the cold to hear from me, so would I get on with it? So I presented my five secrets, which were:

1. Engage with your Customers

2. Create So Much Value, Customers Can't Not Do Business with You!

3. Make More Money from Every Sale

4. Measure Everything You Do

5. Define More Clearly How You Help Your Customers

For point 5, we went back into interactive mode. I asked people to develop one-sentence mission statements to describe themselves and their business, and how they create value for others in just a few words. The template I like to use is this:

I do this (or these things) for this market so they can do this (name a clear, tangible benefit the client/user will derive).

I like this format because the focus is only one-third on what you do, and two thirds on your customers and how they benefit from what your products or services.

My experience is that most people aren’t very good at describing what they do in a way that’s clear, concise, and, most important, interests other people. This template is designed to intrigue people and spur follow-up questions that lead to a profitable conversation.

Whenever I do this exercise I always find someone who's come up with a great mission statement on their own. Last night, William Stratus of Planetcast had the winner, saying: “At Planetcast we create websites and web applications solutions that click, not clunk.”

Click, not clunk. Short, clear and memorable. And now, no longer a secret.

If you need a speaker for your business, startup or entrepreneurial event, let’s talk. rick (at) rickspence.ca  I guarantee click, not clunk.

Rick Live! "5 Secrets of Entrepreneurial Success"

There are a few spots left to hear me speak on Tuesday, Feb. 7, at Metro Hall in downtown Toronto. I’m giving a rare public talk as part of the Toronto Talks series.

I'll be pontificating on "5 Secrets of Entrepreneurial Success."

If time allows, there may even be more than 5!

Location: Metro Hall, 55 John Street, Room 303
Time: 7 pm

Members of certain local business associations may qualify for free admission. Otherwise, it’s $20 at the door. Proceeds go to Camp Oochigeas, a volunteer-based camp providing memorable experiences for children with cancer.

To RSVP, email rsvp@torontotalks.org or phone (416)-783-7526.
Seating is limited.

(That’s their wording, not mine.)

I hope to see you there!

Best. Quote. Ever

DemGen.com is a leading provider of virtual business, marketing, sales and support services for small businesses and entrepreneurs. They send out a daily motivational quote that is often quite thought-provoking.

Today's quote, which was contributed by DemGen's chief  growth ffficer, Gary Evans, sent a shiver down my spine.

"The obstacle is the path."

For me, this Zen proverb perfectly captures the route to success in a crowded marketplace. You will stand out and succeed to the extent that you confront your customers' biggest problems.

By choosing to go where the obstacles are, you will stake out a unique value proposition and make a name for yourself. Like Timothy Eaton with his fixed-price department store in the 19th century, or Apple with its "computer for the rest of us" (or iTunes, for that matter), or FedEx for conquering overnight package delivery.

The mantra for entrepreneurs is to look for problems no one else has solved - and solve them.

The obstacle is the path.

A Pretty Good Joke

I used to print the occasional business joke on this site. Here, following that grand tradition, is the epic story of Accountants vs Engineers.This joke liberated from Bean Counter's site: http://www.dwmbeancounter.com/

Three accountants and three engineers are traveling by train to a conference. At the station, the three engineers each buy tickets and watch as the three accountants buy only a single ticket.
"How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?" asks an engineer.
"Watch and you'll see," answers an accountant.

They all board the train. The engineers take their respective seats but all three accountants cram into a rest room and close the door behind them. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets. He knocks on the rest room door and says, "Ticket, please."
The door opens just a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor takes it and moves on.
The engineers saw this and agreed it was quite a clever idea.

So after the conference, the engineers decide to copy the accountants on the return trip and save some money (knowing that accountants are clever with money) . When they get to the station, they buy a single ticket for the return trip.
To their astonishment, the accountants don't buy a ticket at all. 
"How are you going to travel without a ticket?" says one perplexed engineer.
"Watch and you'll see," answers an accountant.

When they board the train, the three accountants cram into a rest room and the three engineers cram into another one nearby.
The train departs. Shortly afterward, one of the accountants leaves his rest room and walks over to the rest room where the engineers are hiding.
He knocks on the door and says, "Ticket, please."


If you like that joke, click here and scroll down one screen to read "Accountant Story Two."
It's pretty good, too.

The secret of great customer service

The secret of great customer service is not to eliminate mistakes, but to train your staff to make the best of things when bad stuff happens.
At our sister blog, New Management Welcome, you can read a case study of airline ineptitude submitted by blogger Michael Arrington. Despite the ordeal he went through, however, one thing is clear: had the airline's staff acknowledged and commiserated with his problems, they could still have made things right.

Proof once again that it's not what happens to you that matters, but how you handle it.

Read the article here:  http://newmgt.blogspot.com/2012/01/orchestrated-indignities-of-air-travel.html

Avengers fighting X-Men? Why you should care

Looking for new marketing ideas? Here’s are some ideas you could derive from Marvel Comics and its upcoming superhero, “Avengers vs. X-Men.”

In a recent blogpost for the National Post, I wrote about how Marvel is preparing to cash in on its blockbuster movie release in April, The Avengers. Comics are big business, and their marketing has become very sophisticated.

Coolest of all, Marvel is asking retailers to become personally involved. By declaring support for either the Avengers or the X-Men, retailers will receive appropriate promotional materials for decorating their stores based on the team they choose.

Here are a few of the promotional ideas you might consider based on Marvel's mighty marketing:

* Plan a special promotional “event” that highlights the best features of your family of products. (How can you combine your most popular products or services, or even pit them against each other, to create excitement or market tension?);

* Prepare well in advance;

* Develop more eye-catching promotional materials that appeals to customers’ passions as well as their basic needs;

* Offer product samples and previews to selected audiences to create market buzz;

* Encourage retailer or distributors to take sides with your products: how could you include them in your launch and related events? How could your promotion help them develop tighter relationships with their customers?

You can read the full story here:
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/01/06/129630/

How to make your company more intrapreneurial

Thirty years ago this year, companies started talking seriously about adopting more entrepreneurial traits in order to promote innovation and flexibility. Few succeeded.

But now I'm perceiving growing interest in intrapreneurship. In my latest column in the National Post, I ponder what this means, and offer a few tactics (from a recent book on the subject) for those interested in making their organizations more nimble, creative and successful.

Here's an excerpt: "When putting together entrepreneurial teams, make sure they have the right leadership; if necessary, bring in experienced outsiders or advisors. Understand that a promising initiative may require special recruitment and compensation practices, even if it drives the HR department crazy."

You can read the full story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/01/09/intrapreneurship-makes-a-comeback/

Bonus Reading: Here's an article I just found that offers insightful advice on preventing your company from becoming too rigid as it grows: Claudio Feser on "7 Secrets of Serial Innovators." You can read it at http://www.cnbc.com/id/45817288/7_Secrets_of_Serial_Innovators

How to Hire "A Players"

You're trying to grow your business, but you know you need more help than the local labour market can provide. Face it – you need a superstar. Maybe even an American.
But how do you do it? Can you really lure an A player out of the land of the free into the Great White North.?

My column in this week’s National Post looks at how one Vancouver company hired two U.S. hotshots to grow its technical capability and U.S. marketing presence beyond what local talent could do.

The company is Coastal.com, the online eyeglass/contact lens retailer. My article includes interviews with CEO Roger Hardy to explore why Coastal felt it needed U.S. expertise, and with Coastal’s two recent all-star recruits to find out what it took to lure them to B.C. from the U.S.

Excerpt: “Aaron Magness says moving to Canada fulfilled his ambition to work in a more international context; in the United States, he notes, “you can get by very well only looking at the U.S. market.” At first, he says, he wasn’t “overly enthusiastic” about Coastal’s offer, but “as I saw the size of the marketplace and where it could go, I found it very exciting.”

You can read the full story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/01/03/recruiting-talent-from-the-valley/

Bonus read:
My NatPost blogpost about how to think more creatively. To get better results, says author and innocation expert Michael Michalko, stop focussing on the problem itself, and approach it from an outside-the-park point of view.

Excerpt: “Creative thinkers form more novel combinations because they routinely conceptually blend objects, concepts and ideas from two different context or categories that logical thinkers conventionally consider separate,” writes Michalko.

It’s a quick read at: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/01/04/breaking-through-your-creative-blocks/

Your Secret Weapon: Clarity

"Duct Tape Marketing" guru John Jantsch has posted a powerful article on his blog about the importance of "clarity" in business.

Clarity, he says, "is that strong and unwavering sense that our daily choices are grounded in an authentic sense of purpose... Without clarity everything we do is either an attempt to gain it or a stab at the hope that we are moving in the right direction."

Jantsch says every business, including his own, struggles to define clarity and execute on that perfect vision. "Until we are really clear and inspired by why we do what we do, whom we do it for and how to do it with complete and utter honesty – little else matters."

Clarity helps you focus on your core capabilities and passions, and squash nagging essentials that don't maximize your experience and resources. It makes leadership easier and helps clients buy.

Ironically, Jantsch stugles to define exactly what he means by clarity. But here are some of his examples of how it looks in action:

• Clarity is turning purpose to profit
• Clarity is leading with stories
• Clarity is meeting the whole person
• Clarity is amplifying without hype
• Clarity is doing more with less
• Clarity is anticipating needs
• Clarity is measuring one perfect thing
• Clarity is a potent brand promise

Read the full article (and the many enlightening comments that follow) at http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/blog/2012/01/02/the-single-greatest-factor-of-success-in-business/

I particularly like the comment that addresses just how hard clarity is to achieve. As the commenter writes: "The 'fog of war' has nothing on the 'fog of business'."

Quick Reads for the First Long Weekend of 2012

A few quick links to some of my recent Post articles:
The holidays may be fading fast, but did you catch my piece on Ebenezer Scrooge? I asked the question: What happened to Scrooge's business after Dickens turned him into a nice guy?
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/12/19/a-christmas-carol-part-ii/

Here's my year-end quiz, featuring some of the best lessons from my 52 Financial Post columns. How many will you get right?
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/12/27/lessons-learned-2/

Can your company afford bend-over-backwards service? Maybe the better question is, how can it not?
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/12/29/turning-mistakes-into-wow-experiences/

The real rewards of risk management

When the holiday season winds down, it will be time to get serious about improving your business in 2012. There are many areas you can focus on to improve your business, but one of the most lasting fixes will come from getting better at managing risk.

Risk management may sound daunting, but why would you resist a discipline that encourages you to review all the risks your company faces - regarding your market and your products, technology, operations and safety, human-resources, and even environmental and social?

Risk management gives you a holistic view of the threats surrounding your business. You then look for ways to head off or reduce the impact of the most likely risks, a process that will prepare you for most challenges the world tosses your way.

Many big companies today have risk officers who oversee the evaluation and mitigation of risk. Most SMEs won't go to this expense, but that's no excuse for not getting the best handle you can on all your business risks.

Here are just a few benefits of a serious risk-management initiative:

* It empowers you to scrutinize your business to identify blatant risks that are easily managed - for instance, a weak cash-flow position, potential health and safety hazards, or key customers who could be wooed away by the competition. By grappling with these potential problems in advance, you can head off some of these problems and take the rest in stride.

* You can save a lot of workforce headaches. Succession planning is a key part of risk management; by reviewing the risk of having to replace each of your top people, you'll know exactly what to do when your controller retires or your top sales rep turns to the dark side.

* Risk management is good management. It ensures that you always know the defect rate of your products, the lifespan of your equipment, the age of your receivables, and what to do if there's a flood or a flu epidemic. As Holiday Inn used to say, the best surprise is no surprise.

* Your staff will be happier and more confident knowing the business is being well managed. A credible risk-management program will help you retain great people and attract new ones. It also ensures that all your costly talent will spend less time searching for information and more time making informed decisions.

You don't need a risk specialist if you involve your management team. Each member could start tracking appropriate risk areas. For instance, your HR leader could study the risks related to workforce accidents and the loss of key talent, while your production manager looks after equipment, workflow, supply chain and fire prevention, and your controller oversees technology, data and financial risks.
How do you get started? An SME Risk Management Toolkit developed by the U.K.-based Institution of Occupational Safety and Health identifies four stages of risk management.

1. Identification of hazards and evaluation of risk. This means making an initial assessment of all your activities and prioritizing the highest-risk areas for further study;

2. Risk control planning and measures. How can accidents be avoided, or their impacts be mitigated? (Example: to avoid workplace accidents, you might implement safer work practices and better training programs; but you should update your insurance policies, too);

3. Planning for actions to take in the event of an accident, and how to recover;

4. Review risk situations and learn from problems and accidents.

Some entrepreneurs argue there's no point getting involved in risk management,because you can't predict every calamity that can befall your business. Of course that's true. But you can adjust for predictable risks - and thus be stronger when unexpected disaster strikes.

It's rarely one problem that sinks a business, but a combination of setbacks. I know one entrepreneur who closed his business recently because of what he called "a perfect storm" of problems: the weak economy, cutbacks by one customer, another client who simply disappeared, and a key employee who quit just when another got pregnant. Good risk management gives you a plan for each of these eventualities, and a fighting chance to survive even the harshest storm.

This post is brought to you by American Express Canada. Check out their new Amex for Business Canada Facebook Page for more SME news and insights.

Hate Networking?

You say you hate networking? Most people do. That's because meeting business people and sizing up their potential as prospects is a tough job - and may be one of the rarest skills in business.

My column in this week's National Post recounts some of what I learned from attending a full-day session on networking conducted by Ottawa networking guru Michael Hughes. It was hard to compress his technique into 800 words, so I retailed some of his most interesting ideas and tips.

Here's an excerpt:

Hughes defines networking as “the intentional process of creating and developing relationships, from initial contact to ultimate outcome.”

One of his key tenets: You must have a target market. You can’t just go to random events hoping to connect with people who need your products or skills. You have to target groups that are flush with those kinds of people. Then make one group a priority — say, an industry association — and burrow in deep. Attend all the meetings and events you can, and get to know everyone involved.

Read the full story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2011/12/05/how-to-network-by-design-not-by-default/

Best Opportunities for 2012 (and beyond)

Entrepreneurs are always striving to get ahead of the latest and greatest business opportunities. They may get their insights from books, shop talk, or Web-based business resources, but the best tips usually come from experienced entrepreneurs who have already been there and done that.

At a recent SME conference put on by Financial Executives International, I asked a roundtable of veteran business leaders to identify today’s biggest opportunities for entrepreneurs that are hoping to expand their current businesses or start new ones.

Here’s a summary of the exciting opportunities each entrepreneur cited:

Julia N. Dumanian is former president and CEO of Cambridge Memorial Hospital. She was named Canada’s Hospital Leader of the Year in 2007 for her passionate and transformational leadership.

“I think human capital is where it’s at,” said Dumanian. She believes Canada’s secret weapon is the “tremendous young people with great skills” graduating from our colleges and universities. She encourages entrepreneurs to tap their brainpower by setting up internships to get these graduates into your business “and really exploit some of these brilliant minds, especially on the technology side.” Given the tough time many grads have had finding good jobs, she notes, “We can help them help us grow our businesses.”

Murray G. K. Davidson is chair of RHI Investments LLC, with private-equity investments in real estate, utilities and pipeline consulting, and advanced technology. He is a senior partner of three specialty consultancies, focusing on financial services, utilities, and health care.

Davidson sees opportunities in all aspects of health care in Canada, the U.S., and around the world. Given the accelerating changes in technology and demographics, he says, you can't go wrong exploring solutions in “anything related to your health” such as health technologies, health processes, and personal monitoring and management of individual health. He is also bullish on new medical devices, particularly for in-home use, and new approaches for taming out-of-control health-information systems. “Cost improvement, performance improvement, waiting list reduction, capital management – you name it,” he says.

Davidson believes in consumer products, too, especially those targeted to Asia and Latin America. He’s also keen on specialty products aimed at young people, especially personal technologies. He said he’s working with a company on a new device that Apple is considering adding to its “i” family of products (iPad, iPod, etc.). He says it’s specifically aimed at consumers 25 and under.

Tom Enright, president and CEO of the Canadian Investor Relations Institute, is former CEO of CNW Group Ltd. His expertise lies in strategic planning, branding, sales and marketing.

To find opportunities, Enright advises, “look at the places where there are societal pain points”. He cites the debate that preceded the mandatory introduction of automobile seatbelts. “There was a lot of turmoil before we finally got there, then everyone had them.” Now, he notes, “there’s a huge societal issue about whether we can afford the cost of ‘green’ energy, so there’s got to be opportunities there.”

Enright is also high on opportunities with information technology, but especially those related to social media. “No one knows how exactly to use it, so there are great opportunities there.”

Finally, he predicts the next “big” commodity opportunity will be an area Canadians know well: fresh water.

Gerald A. Lokash is an experienced entrepreneur, consultant, and senior insolvency practitioner. He also owns several commercial real-estate companies.

Lokash believes data is the key to future business opportunities. Today’s IT systems allow business owners to measure every aspect of their business, and compare their efficiency to other organizations. “It’s inconceivable how much data has been accumulated about just about everything,” he says. “I think opportunity resides in how you use the data that's available to you in your company and your industry.”

He says companies such as communications giant BCE have expanded exponentially by exhaustively analyzing their own operational data. Lokash believes other companies can grow by understanding every inch of their business and how to achieve more from each asset. “There’s huge opportunity in accessing data in a way that can help you understand and steer your businesses forward.”

The conference buzzed with the optimism entrepreneurs always feel when they think about unmet market needs. How can your business take advantage of these golden opportunities?

“This post brought to you by American Express Canada. Check out their new Small Business Facebook Page here and stay tuned to find out who will soar their business to new heights in the Take Off with American Express Contest.”