It is important in difficult times not to loose track of how crucial a solid marketing plan is for your business to survive. All of us business owners and managers have to make adjustments and cut backs…but your advertising and marketing is more important these days than ever before. The competition will be fiercer for that expendable dollar in a consumer’s pocket. Buying habits are going to change. This is the time to make sure your business card stands out, your website is fabulous and your advertising jumps out of the pages at your potential customer.

Survival is going to be for the business with the best planned marketing, the best execution of marketing materials, and the best advertising campaigns. Here is something I found in Toronto Life:

“Recessions can provide a perfect opportunity. They clearly reward the aggressive advertiser and penalize the timid one. Many studies with the same conclusion; 80 years of well-documented research shows that companies that invest in marketing during a down economy come out ahead. Whether it’s sales, profits, market share, return on capital or market value, the spenders end up better off than the cutters”.

Here some very quick tips re things you should consider:

• -Maintain unparalleled customer service.
• -Try marketing and advertising ideas you have not tried before.
• -Partner with complimentary businesses to reach more customers.
• -Negotiate or renegotiate everything.
• -Go back to old customers and contacts and work them.
• -Take this time to build your brand – both corporate and personal via social networking. Make contacts, write something, start a blog get connected through as many avenues as possible in person and on the web.
• -Make sure your marketing materials stand out from the rest and ensure your website offers a customer-friendly experience.

Stay focused and keep in mind that this is the time to be more diligent about your marketing efforts with a plan that is assertive, hard hitting and uncompromising.

Harness social media, says web marketer – it works!

DURHAM REGION, ON JAN. 10, 2009: When web marketing expert Sue Sutcliffe prepared for her annual Christmas shutdown, she decided to try an experiment with Facebook. She simply updated her status line on the social networking site: “Sue is working our “The 12 Days of Christmas Special”. Anyone interested in donating a prize?” 

The speed and magnitude of the results astounded her. From that 16-word appeal, her Facebook friends pledged five prize offers within an hour, and nine within one business day. In the same time span, traditional methods – talking to people – brought in only two donations, but required substantially greater time and effort. 

Sutcliffe runs aWEBthatWORKS.com, a Bowmanville-based “one-stop web shoppe.” She conceived of the contest as a way to sustain interest in daily entries to her web marketing blog, to keep her company name top of mind, and to stimulate business, but she also wanted to demonstrate the power of social media. She created a blog post for the each of the Twelve Days of Christmas, and a Facebook group that displayed the prizes, the sponsors and links to their websites. She generated community among them and leveraged their contact databases as well as her own to communicate her message. In a matter of days, the group grew to 69 members.

“What’s remarkable about this contest is that, other than two contacts, it was produced strictly through social marketing. Social marketing promoted my blog, and my associates who donated prizes. And what did it cost me?” asks the canny entrepreneur. “Nothing.”

“And it was a wicked prize pack.” She grins, rhyming it all off: “Dinner for two at the Cedar Beach Grill, a bottle of wine from Life in Clarington, a $50 gift card from Sector 57 Paintball, non-alcoholic beverages from Tracy Donnelly. David Cohen pitched in an hour of business coaching. Cleaning supplies & service from Turner Clean, a winter warm-up gift set from Inspired Imprints, a teleclass called “The Branded Business Funnel” from Essential Message. A free consultation from RMA Spencer Group, 10% off labour from Gary’s Home Improvements, 25% off video production from Modern Media Perspectives. And a free website starter kit from aWEBthatWORKS.” 

Doug Wentzel, owner of Rise ‘n’ Shine Blinds (www.risenshine.ca), was the lucky contest winner. The 62-year-old businessman admits he hasn’t been on Facebook for long. He was delighted to learn that the prize was his. “What a great way to start 2009 off — I think it’s a sign of good things to come.”

“Social media is the new craze – it’s the new Internet,” says Sutcliffe. “Facebook has a hundred and twenty million users – isn’t that amazing?” she muses.

Sites like Facebook are no longer limited to the very young. At a time when businesses are practising restraint and the “R” word prompts worried frowns, social media is escalating into a promising — and economical — business tool to reach a burgeoning client base.

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Public speaker and entrepreneur Sue Sutcliffe is a recognized Internet pioneer and web-marketing guru. Her company, A Web That Works (www.AWEBthatWORKS.com), has been helping organizations market their products and services on the web since 1993. Her business offers a full line of website marketing services including website design, hosting and promotion. Sue is a leader in her industry, the business world and her community.

MEDIA CONTACTS: 
Sue Sutcliffe
aWEBthatWORKS
(905) 263-2666, (800) 579-9253

Every year the Durham Business Times runs a contest to recognize outstanding Durham based businesses. If you would like to recognize companies you believe are deserving of recognition I invite you to simply go to the vote site by clicking on http://readerschoicedurham.com/VOTE/biztimes.html.

Do your fellow business a favor and recognize their efforts this past year and vote for the businesses of your choice. Naturally if you felt the team at aWEBthatWORKS was deserving we would not turn down your vote for best web designer.

Deadline for contest is December 12, 2008.

We are pleased to have worked with “Feed The Need Durham” to launch a web initiative to help them help food banks in Durham Region keep bellies full! Check out their website (www.ftndurham.ca) by clicking on the screen shot (below) and just a reminder… now more than ever it’s important to drop food off at food banks and there is a complete list of them on this website too.

Note the site is an excellent example about using GOOGLE MAPS technology to use also.

Feed the Need in Durham (FTND) is a not-for-profit organization seeking to improve the collection and distribution of food and available resources to emergency food providers in Durham Region. This effort is not meant to replace existing food programs but to supplement and provide assistance with resource collection, volunteer recruiting, marketing and to provide a collaboration of efforts to seek out new resource opportunities. FTND does not supply food directly to individuals in our community.

But last night he went too far with his derogatory referral to “Canadian Women” and increasingly unreal plots – have writers changed, or are they simply taking a good thing too far?. Shame, this was my favourite show until last night, and I made ever effort to catch it. Now I’m thinking I’ll be scheduling other things in to distract me until the addiction passes.

Most people who have succeeded in big business, have done so after hitting rock bottom – complete and utter failure. Why?  Because they didn’t retreat when adversity hit. Rather, they made lemonade out of the lemons and worked smarter rather than harder, always on the outlook for new opportunities, alliances and ideas.  They leveraged small businesses biggest advantage – the ability to change on a dime.

I am a dedicated lifelong learner, and attend conferences regularly, as most successful business people do, because I know that although I must give up a day working “in” my business, it’s important to work “on” my business.  I always come away with:

1. IDEAS I can put to use in my business right away
2. PROSPECTS I can work on later
3. ALLIANCES that will help me grow
4. ENERGY that can only be gained from being surrounded by like-minded people

Business In Motion (www.BusinessInMotion.info) is a one-day conference being held in Oshawa on October 22, 2008. My conference partners (Susan Scott and David Cohen) and I designed it to specifically meet the unique needs of Small Businesses in these turbulent times. As well as networking breakfast/lunch/apres, we were fortunate enough to land powerhouse speaker Rick Spence of Profit Magazine, along with six other amazing presentators, myself included:

1. RICK SPENCE – “Success stories from Profit’s 100 fastest growing companies.”
2. JENNIFER HOUGH – “Effortless marketing”
3. SUE SUTCLIFFE “Leveraging popular social networking sites”
4. SUSAN SCOTT – “Branding: Building a business brand for the long term”
5. DAVID COHEN -“Be unstoppable: 8 rules to success”
6. TIFFANY ST-GERMAIN – “Power of joint ventures” and “Finding hidden resources within your business”
7. PETER CLUFF - “Easiest ways to manage our business risks”

Please check your calendar.  I’d love for you to attend the first annual Business In Motion Conference, and I am confident that you will be glad you did.  If you can’t be there in person, why not contribute a door prize, share the news with a friend, or share an idea you’d like to see for next year’s conference. As usual, I’m always looking for feedback… the good, the bad and the ugly.  Just click on the ‘comment’ link below.

Sue

DURHAM REGION, ON OCT. 22, 2008: Every successful small business tells a story, if you only care to ask, says Rick Spence of Profit Magazine. Spence shares these fascinating success stories at the Business in Motion conference October 22nd at the Oshawa Golf and Country Club. These thriving companies earned a spot on Profit’s 100 fastest-growing companies and Spence outlines the creative management ideas, brilliant tactics, and clever sales strategies that got them there.

“These ideas aren’t written down anywhere — you only hear them when you sit and talk with these guys, and most people don’t get a chance to do that. These companies have made a huge impact in their marketplaces very quickly; they’ve managed to grow and yet still hold together. It’s all new, it’s all Canadian, it’s all current and it’s all relevant.”

“Rick Spence has more business knowledge in his little finger than most people gain in a lifetime,” says Sue Sutcliffe, one of six high-powered business experts that share the stage with Spence at the one-day event. Sutcliffe, an engaging professional speaker, promises there will be plenty to learn and lots of innovative ideas to take away.

“I love giving business owners new ideas, and challenging them to sift through and find the ones will work for them,” says Spence. But it doesn’t end with gathering new ideas: “Then I challenge them to execute. It’s too easy to go back to the office and get back into the grind. Nothing ever changes; you lose that initiative. I’m going to challenge them to overcome that.”

Media personality David Cohen notes that one such idea can be worth the price of admission. The much-loved business coach and sales guru kicks off the day with a lesson in how to be unstoppable. Susan Scott of Full Circle Communications talks about powering up your business with strong branding. Sutcliffe, an expert in Internet marketing, reveals how mixing business with pleasure on social networking sites like Facebook can boost your business quotient.

In the afternoon, best-selling author Jennifer Hough takes the podium to coach effortless marketing techniques. Business consultant Peter Cluff counsels safe risk management. Tiffany St-Germain, of Shop Aware Inc., exposes the hidden business resources you didn’t even know you had.

The day promises to fire up your business and shift it into overdrive. Get in the driver’s seat and go! The Business in Motion conference runs from 8 am.-5 pm. It includes breakfast, lunch and time to network. Passports are $179, with an early bird price of $149 before October 7. Visit www.businessinmotion.info for more information and to register, or call 1-866-926-6378. Sponsored by Canada Post Venture One, The Green Thumb Florist , Small Business Big Ideas, aWEBthatWORKS.com, Full Circle Communications, Durham Region, Avanzar Computer & Office Supplies, Clarington Pro Sound, Zsuzanna Porter of Royal LePage Conect Realty.

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Rick Spence and the other speakers are available to speak to the media upon request. Speaker bios and topic descriptions are available at www.BusinessInMotion.info.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Susan M. Scott
FULL CIRCLE COMMUNICATIONS
905-720-1647

David Cohen
SMALL BUSINESS BIG IDEAS
416-630-3527

Sue Sutcliffe, The Web Coach
aWEBthatWORKS.com
1-800-579-9253

On October 22nd, 2008…put your business into “Overdrive” and plan to attend the Business In Motion Conference…6 cutting edge speakers, lunch, breakfast, networking and more…it’s about moving forward with “Velocity” Small Business Owners face some staggering challenges.

The October 22nd Business in Motion Conference will provide ideas, strategies and knowledge that will inspire and ignite those that attend.

Statistics show that 96% of all companies fail within 10 years and even more staggering is that a corporation fails every 3 minutes. How can we help stem the tides? In an economy where there are more challenges coming at us than ever before?  There are 26,000 new products introduced each year…consumers change brand loyalty up to 30 percent more easily from just one night of watching commercials on TV and 74 per cent of consumers are buying outside their preferred brands. These are just a few challenges that small business owners face each day. Gone are the days of brand loyalty and worse traditional advertising methods may not be cutting it…if you want to manage your business and roll through the days of increasing-competition, rising costs then you want to plan to attend the Business in Motion conference on October 22nd.  

Position your business as a market leader.

Sponsors get to…and connect one-on-one with the decision makers…Business In Motion Is a one-day event for Durham and East Toronto Small Business Owners to learn, achieve, communicate and bring forth new ideas and energy into their life’s work and businesses.  It’s one compelling day of learning, activation and networking. 

Business in Motion 2008… “Put it into overdrive” 
Learning sessions with some of the best in business.  

On October 22nd, 2008…put your business into “Overdrive” and plan to attend the Business In Motion Conference…6 cutting edge speakers, lunch, breakfast, networking and more…it’s about moving forward with “Velocity”

Rick Spence from Profit  Magazine will speak about lessons learned from Canada’s 100 top entrepreneurs.

From one of the leading E-Commerce websites “Shop Aware dot com” Tiffany St. Germain will talk about forming joint ventures and synergistic relationships.

Sue Sutcliffe of aWEBthatWORKS.com will talk about the power of online social marketing and the 101 free web sources you can use to market your business. 

Management Expert Peter Cluff from Critical Path Consulting…will talk about managing risk in your business. 

Plus From the Vital You…Jennifer Hough will talk about Effortless Marketing…using the “law of attraction” to help drive business to you. 

Susan M. Scott from Full Circle Communications will talk about Branding and will have a real life case study to help showcase how building a brand can help position your business.   

David Cohen from the Small Business Big Ideas Radio Show will be your MC for the day and show you how to be unstoppable in eight easy steps.

On October 22nd, 2008…put your business into “Overdrive” and plan to attend the Business In Motion Conference…6 cutting edge speakers, lunch, breakfast, networking and more…it’s about moving forward with “Velocity”

Are you ready to talk sponsorship?  Sponsorship has its rewards:

For more information about sponsorship, visit www.BusinessInMotion.info

Photographer Neil Newton and his wife, Dianne Hopkins, were given a warm welcome at the Tyrone Community Centre on April 26th. Newton was revisiting his legendary prints which have been house there, since 1975. Folks from near and far to rekindle friendships and share stories of years gone by. Warm memories were brought back of those who have since passed. It was truly a magical evening.

Newton was born in Montreal in 1933 and raised in ontario. He studied at St. Martins School of Art in London England and began his illustrious career at McMichael Studio where he learned portrait, commercial and industrial photography. He worked for CHUM Radio taking shots of D.Js and visiting bands (notably the Beatles on their first trip to Toronto in 64.

Around 1970, moved to 57 / Conc 7. He took a series of photographs documenting rural life the Tyrone, Enniskillen, Haydon and Hampton areas. The prints perfectly captured the characters and life in the area at that time. They toured Canada as part of a joint project by Art Gallery of Ontario, Robert McLauglin Gallery and Canada Council. Some then journeyed to England and Sweden. One of the series is now housed in the National Gallery collection in Ottawa.

The Tyrone Community Centre purchased the prints in 1975 and they have graced it’s walls of the Community Centre since then. These beautiful and important prints have unfortunately begun to deteriorate. Fundraising efforts are under way to have them restored and reframed so that they can be enjoyed by generations to come.

If you can contribute in any way, they would love to hear from you! Tyrone Community Centre (905) 263-8647