Selling to Small Business

A hard-working online ad that knows what it's doing

2011-11-12T00:08:00.003-07:00

Here's a first: I actually found an online ad I like that targets SMEs.

Below are three screen caps from PROFITguide.com for an animated ad from global business bank HSBC.

It's a simple ad, eye-catching and innovative, that incorporates strong words and great graphics. Here's what I like about it:

* The colorful images of the nesting matryoshka dolls stand out nicely against a generous white background. Once you notice them, you can't help but see that they represent a number of cultures - not just the Russian folk costumes you'd expect to see. A very creative concept, well executed.

* As you admire the dolls, the bank tosses us a strong headline: "In the future, there will be no markets left waiting to emerge." It's a great example of thought leadership, getting you thinking about the successful growth of so many markets once called "developing countries." But the cleverness of the line makes you ponder - perhaps for the first time - that there is a limited number of fast-growth emerging nations. So perhaps it's time your business explored those markets.

* The final sell line "HSBC's on-the-ground experience can support your emerging trade needs" does many things. It points to the bank's competitive advantage (its worldwide branch network), and offers a specific benefit (personalizing the message with the all-important word "your"). Finally, it ties the message together by repeating the word "emerging." You rarely see such hard-working copy on the Net.

* Finally, there's a direct appeal to click on the ad "to find out more." Many online marketers fail to include that call to action, although research shows that requesting people to take action significantly increases the chance that they'll actually do so.

Good to see an advertiser that takes their work so seriously.

Never Assume Anything

2010-09-07T00:49:00.001-06:00

You've targeted a group of successful business owners for your sales pitch. You've sent them all the brochures, literature, emails or links promoting your products or services, and you've dangled various benefits and inducements to get them to read all that stuff.

And now you're getting ready to close the deal. But wait! What are the chances they have actually read the material you sent them? The chances are slim.

Business owners are busy people. They have very little spare time – and what time they carve out is rarely spent on their unread ads and solicitations pile. Even if they initially asked you for information, the likelihood that they actually read any of that bumph is very low.

I learned this the hard way. A few years ago I was asked to speak to a “mastermind” group of entrepreneurs in Toronto. These business owners got together once a month to trade war stories and best practices, and occasionally hear guest speakers. They invited me to speak on a certain topic, and I willingly agreed. And when my contact asked for a one-page summary of what I was going to talk about, so the attendees could properly prepare themselves, I willingly passed that along.

On the day of my talk, once all the small talk was done, I launched right into my presentation. Since the dozen entrepreneurs around the table had already received my summary, I skipped my usual introductory remarks and went straight to the heart of the issue.

At which point my audience started squirming. I sensed this unrest, but didn't know what it meant. Until one alpha male interrupted me to say, “So who are you and what are you here to talk about?” I apologized, explained myself briefly, and pointed out that I had provided the appropriate contextual materials in advance. The entrepreneurs looked at each other and smiled wanly. “Never come in here and assume we've read our briefing materials,” said Entrepreneur Alpha. “We’re too busy for that.”

And he was right. I should have realized that not everyone had read my summary.

Meanwhile, alpha male, to prove his point, asked his colleagues around the table, “How many of you read his summary?” Only one person put up his hand – the contact who had asked for my summary and forwarded it to his colleagues. Not wanting to be seen as weak, however, he defended himself by saying, “But I only skimmed it.”

It was an embarrassing lesson for me to learn. Never assume any business owners have read your material, even if it’s in their best interests or they themselves asked for it.

Business owners march to their own drumbeat, and if you want to be accepted by that group, you have to get in line and join the march. And never assume anything.

Bad Ads 2010

2010-04-09T08:06:00.011-06:00

In re-reading a recent issue of PROFIT, I was stunned by the sheer vacuity of some of the ads in the magazine.

Advertising to small business owners isn't easy. You have to catch their eye with a compelling offer or graphic, make an emotional appeal to their needs and problems, and create a forceful case for your sophisticated, best-in-class solutions.

But that’s no excuse for the lousy ads I spotted in the January issue of PROFIT. Banal graphics, tiny understated typography that whispers, “Don't read me!”, and underwhelming messages that leave this entrepreneur unimpressed.

Here are three of those offenders:

KPMG: Devoted to your private company? Yes.
Are we efficient with moving a dolly? Not so much.

You may have seen the TV version of these ads that show people pretending to be KPMG professionals acting like ignorant goofs. This is branding? Humor is a key tool in advertising, but not when the joke is on the people you are trying to promote as world-class pros.

And what’s with the 10-point type at the bottom? Looks like legalese that no one is actually supposed to read. Yet this is their big “sell”!

Looks to me like an organization that doesn't know how to sell its services, and is so noncommittal about its value proposition that they hide it in the corner.

BDO Dunwoody: A high-concept ad looking for a concept.
So a zipper isn't really a zipper, but “an intricate system of wedges, hooks and hollows.” Um, so what? That doesn't matter to someone who just wants to fasten their coat or pants.

Talk about missing the big picture. If BDO professionals are going to overcomplicate something as simple as a zipper, why would I let them and their high hourly rates anywhere near my business?

Plus, the execution of the headline and graphic? So flat. So unexciting.

And again with the tiny type! “Fine print” communicates one message: you're not supposed to read this.

CA: Wouldn't it be nice if decisions were so easy?
I’m a fan of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants’ radio ads that use this theme, especially the one where a business chooses its strategy by spinning a roulette wheel. (“Looks like … a merger!!”) Those ads convey a realistic business atmosphere, and contain great humour.

But this print ad fails on several counts. I guess these are Tarot cards, but being one of the 30 million Canadians who know nothing about obscure mystical fortune-telling rituals, I'm not really sure. And the unholy mix of confusing labels – two adjectives ("Secure" and "Integrated") and a noun ("Holdings") – only adds to my befuddlement.

I have no clue what the message is here. A reminder that my Dungeons and Dragons club meets on Monday nights?

The sell copy, for once, is reasonably strong: “Look to a CA for the talent and integrity to make the right ones” [decisions]. Again, buried at the bottom of the page. Like an afterthought.

And is anyone else bothered that the CICA's new brand is merely “CA”? It looks so unfinished, as if no one wanted to take credit for this ad. But then, would you?

Here’s the final irony. If these ads fail to make the phone ring, the perpetrators will blame print.

(If anyone wishes to defend these ads, I would love to hear from you. Please leave a comment below.)

10 ways big business can help small business

2010-03-17T17:50:00.002-06:00

Many businesses that target the small business market agonize over how carving out a leadership position in the SME space. Some put on awards programs (think of Ernst & Young with its Entrepreneur of the Year program), some put out specialty publications and newsletters (think Visa, some of the banks), some sponsor SME websites and blogs.

I’d like to see these companies think bigger. Instead of creating a new SME medium (e.g., newsletter) and then struggling to create content for it (advertising is easy, content is hard), why not get involved in issues that matter to independent business?

With luck, you can get market exposure and credit for doing the right thing, without having to do all the heavy lifting of actually starting and running a program of your own.

Here are 10 issues in which small business owners would love to see big businesses get involved. You can probably think of more.

1. Encourage coalitions of companies to form one big portal for small business news and advice (instead of all the mediocre competing players that are out there now). Support the site with advertising, sponsorships and even content (when available and relevant).

2. Sponsor programs for startups at the local level, through Community Futures and other regional economic development offices

3. Sponsor and encourage your organization's executives to volunteer with local mentorship programs (e.g. CYBF, local chambers of commerce, etc.)

4. Fund small-business research in universities and colleges

5. Actively promote a “speakers’ bureau” of business experts from your organization (and perhaps others) to speak to students at high schools and colleges. Let impressionable young people know that going into business doesn't mean selling your soul

6. Create transparent processes in your own organization to make sure SMEs are included in procurement, outsourcing, etc.

7. Assist retirees in your organization with starting consulting businesses aimed at SMEs. Their life experience could be a lifesaver to a local entrepreneur. You might also provide occasional meeting spaces for entrepreneurs who don't have their own.

8. Support local social entrepreneurship initiatives. Young people across Canada using business tools to create social change deserve your encouragement.

9. Here’s a toughie: Pay bills from small business more promptly

10. Collaborate to create and fund centres of excellence around key management issues, such as exporting, small business advisory boards, or innovation. A little effort can make a big difference!

You can probably think of more activities. Feel free to leave a comment or email me at Rick (at) rickspence.ca

Selling seminars to small business

2010-01-25T15:15:00.001-07:00

A consultant I know emailed me the other day to ask my opinion of a workshop he is thinking of holding for small business. I figure his success will all depend on how well he markets it: small-business owners are normally hard to draw out to attend seminars. They're just too busy.

Which is one reason I often warn that the SME community is a "heartbreak market"

Here is the text of my reply:

Hi Jim. Great to hear from you.
As for your workshop idea, I don't know what to tell you.

The idea is very worthy, and this service much needed.
But will business sign up for it? I have no idea. A lot of people have lost their shirts putting on information seminars that small and medium enterprises could really benefit from. It's so hard to get this audience to come out. Regarding the entrepreneurs, they are very busy, and resent paying out a nickel if they don't have to. If they can find an excuse not to attend, they will.

If you go ahead with this, you should consider ways to get around this universal roadblock. For instance:

- Could you pitch it not to the business owner themselves, but to their technology, finance, sales or operations leads? Many owners would pay for others to go if it means they don't have to.
- Could you round up some sponsors and put it on for free?
- Could you reduce this to a series of 2- or 3-hour webinars that people could access for free on video or on the Web?

Whatever you decide, you need a robust marketing budget. You have to work hard to get people out, no matter how good the product is.

Hope this helps.

Rick

Please leave a comment below if you think you have a better solution!

Report on Your Business Magazine

2010-01-21T15:59:00.004-07:00

I see the Globe and Mail has renamed its small business magazine “Your Business.”

It’s an improvement over the old name, Report on [Small] Business Magazine. As I have been saying for years, many business owners dislike being called “small business”, even if on a national level they do seem small.

My favorite example is the entrepreneur who described his company as "the second-largest steel fabricator in the Ottawa valley.” Yes, it’s a small business according to most definitions (less than 50 employees), but that's not the way its owner likes to see it. The word “small” may be a handy category for marketers or bureaucrats to use, but it doesn't begin to give business owners the respect they crave.

In fact, since 95% of all businesses are small businesses, the proper synonym for small business is simply “business.” Entrepreneurs themselves refer to “my business,” never “my small business.” Bell Canada and RiM and Imperial Oil aren't just businesses – they're big businesses. My friend’s six-person design shop – now that’s a real business.

So I think the Globe has made a modest improvement by calling their magazine Your Business. In fact, it’s one of the many new titles we considered when I arrived at Small Business magazine 20 years ago and decided to change the name (for the reasons cited above). That's when we decided to rehabilitate the much-maligned word “Profit.”

“Your Business,” we concluded, wasn't a bad name. Just dull.

Too much transparency!

2010-01-14T10:21:00.002-07:00

I found a link recently to a good article on “negotiating with difficult people” at the DaleCarnegie.com site.

As a consultant myself in content marketing, I think it imperative that businesses selling their smarts (AKA “thought leaders”) provide free content such as this to attract prospects’ attention and build respect for their expertise.

But that doesn't mean you broadcast what your intentions are. Letting people know they're just "leads" to you makes people feel they're being manipulated, rather than served.

Carnegie’s mistake? Look at the URL they choose for the page that hosts the story:
http://www.dalecarnegie.com/lead_nurturing/tips/tips.jsp?tipid=250

Maybe most people won't notice the phrase “lead nurturing tips.” Nonetheless, this takes transparency too far. People want to be treated as individuals, not "leads."

Yes, providing relevant content is a marketing tactic. But most businesses use phrases that sound less mercantile. Examples: Free_stuff. Premium_content. Welcoming_wisdom.

Business should make customers and prospects feel they're being valued, and respected. Not hunted.

Cross-posted from www.CanEntrepreneur.com

10 tips for marketing to SMEs

2009-12-03T15:31:00.003-07:00

According to the Toronto-based Executive Council on Small Business (ECSB), small business is already flooded with advertising and product information.

75% of business owners say the amount of marketing material they receive has risen in the past three years. Most don't even read what they get: according to another study, 36% of business owners just scan your copy for key words, while 35% skim it by reading only the bullet points.

So how do you get a business owner to give your marketing the attention it deserves? ECSB senior vice-president Jeff Berry offers his Top 10 Tactics.

Point 1: Entrepreneurs in Canada may be gutsy risk-takers when they launch their businesses, but surveys find them decidedly risk-averse regarding day-to-day operations.

Marketers can leverage that risk aversion by acknowledging the risks or issues that customers may encounter in using their products (e.g., installation or compatibility problems).

Point 2: Reduce perceived risk by offering samples and free trials, refund periods or money-back guarantees.

Points 3 and 4: Entrepreneurs are older than you think, says Berry: 62% of Canadian business owners are between the ages of 46 and 62. Use images in your marketing materials that reflect the faces, fashions and lifestyles of older entrepreneurs. And produce your copy in bigger fonts, to ensure your target market can read your material.

Point 5: Entrepreneurs need to feel they're in control. Provide two or three options in each product category so business owners can choose the item that best fits their needs. (More than three options can get confusing.)

Points 6 and 7: Most business owners are locally oriented. Berry suggests helping entrepreneurs expand their contacts by supporting local groups; in the U.S., for instance, American Express recently sponsored “meetup” groups that enabled its customers to network more formally with local business people.

You can also form your own groups of local customers. Apple Inc. hosts bi-monthly events at its Apple stores for Macintosh-powered entrepreneurs.

Point 8: Respect entrepreneurs’ hectic schedules by creating content that’s easy to read and skim. “If what you sell them isn’t going to save them time,” says Berry, “then make the message ‘faster’ to consume.”

Point 9: Offer service options that work with business owners’ schedules. At ProStores, an e-commerce solutions company, account reps make their calendars viewable so customers can pick their own appointment times.

Point 10: Empower business owners to solve their own problems in a timely manner. ECSB’s research found that 84% of entrepreneurs watch “how-to” videos, and 71% watch videos on corporate web sites.

Any marketer can have a credible product and a fabulous offer. By heeding the new rules of consumability, you might even get your message across.

Fun with Contests that Align with Strategy

2009-11-26T12:31:00.004-07:00

Here’s a great way for a company that prides itself on customer service to promote itself, and the very concept of service as well.

Rackspace.com, the “cloud computing” hosting company that calls itself “The Home of Fanatical Support,” puts customer service first in its own business. But it also holds a contest for its clients to recognize “one of our customers for valuing customer service as much as we do.”

The 2009 Fanati Contest is now underway (for U.S. customers only). Rackspace clients who think they have what it takes have until Dec. 11 to put together a 5-minute video explaining why they deserve to be this year’s winner.

Here are some of the approaches Rackspace suggests to contest entrants:
• Tell us who you are and what your business does.
• Describe what Fanatical Support means to you.
• If you were going to take a thesaurus to the phrase “Fanatical Support” and use that in your company’s business motto, what would your new motto be?
• Tell us about a time you or an employee went above and beyond (fanatically) for a customer or employee.
• Tell us how you’ve continued to enhance your motto to adapt to your business’ changing needs, culture, and/or growth to ensure that customers stay satisfied?

What a great way to align yourself with your customers, promote your brand, and create increased engagement by among customers and their staff. And it costs almost nothing.

Kudos to Rackspace for showing that marketing (in this age of clutter) can still be about good ideas that benefit buyers and sellers alike.

What’s your brand? How could you get customers more excited about it, and promote it to the rest of the world, by organizing a contest of your own?

Quick: What does Small Business want?

2009-11-06T09:14:00.003-07:00

My column in this week’s Financial Post tells about my recent encounter with billionaire Scott Cook, co-founder of Intuit (Quicken, QuickBooks, etc.).

Cook came to Toronto last month to kick off an Intuit Canada campaign to get closer to the small business market by holding information sessions with working entrepreneurs across the country. Cook himself facilitated the first one, asking 14 Toronto business owners about the problems that keep them awake at night.

So my story looks at small business’s most urgent needs today, as well as how one company is getting closer to that market in order to identify the problems it can actually solve.

FYI, here are some of the key issues Cook heard about:

"Growth timing: When to take on extra fixed costs."

"When to expand and why."

"Compliance with tax authorities... Managing cash flow. Seeking investors."

"Work-life balance."

"How to persuade prospects of our value."

"Getting faster responses from customers."

"How to manage the time suck of social media."

"When to cut prices."

"Developing an online presence."

"Partnership and collaboration."

"Finding distribution channels."

"Cutting costs."

"Hiring, training, and when to fire."

After the meeting, I asked Cook if he'd heard any promising ideas. One big one, he said: "Social media as a time suck."
"I don't claim I understand it yet," he said, "but it's given us more to do."

You can read the full story here.

The Value of FREE

2009-10-13T08:10:00.003-06:00

I had an interesting discussion last week with an exhibitor at the SOHO business conference and trade show in Vancouver. Specifically, about the lack of promotional pizzazz being shown by the exhibitors.

My friend’s company was giving away free product to anyone who visited the booth. It offers a service that people may use twice to 20 times a year, and it has extra inventory, so why not? Sampling is a time-honoured technique, good not only for getting prospects used to consuming your product, but also to attract people's attention in any competitive marketplace, such as a trade show.

Ever notice how trade show attendees usually avoid eye contact with any sales people in the booths? That’s because they see no value in initiating any sort of relationship with you. It’s a lack of interest, lack of trust, and unwillingness to explore the ROI they might gain by doing business with you. All because you have not caught their eye by offering any obvious, easy-to-grasp VALUE.

So how do you overcome that? Offer something free! Not just a cheap knickknack for stopping by the booth (“How many free pens do you need?” asked my friend), but a real, knock-their-socks-off FREE offer that presents real value – and an acknowledgement that in today’s ultra-competitive markets, prospects are doing you a big favor by even considering your wares.

They say people are exposed to 3,000 marketing messages a day (or about a million a year). We all feel like the quarry in a fox hunt, being chased through the woods and hounded to death. You have spent a lot of money to be at this trade show: show your prospects a piece of that. Give them an offer (something free, or a whopping introductory discount) that reflects their true value to you.

It’s not just a cost of doing business. It’s the price you pay to be noticed and trusted.

Passion Wanted: Small Business Week 2009

2009-06-25T07:39:00.002-06:00

There are less than four months to go till Small Business Week, which runs from October 18 to 24 this year. The Business Development Bank, which owns the rights to SBW, has selected as its theme, “Your dream, your business, your passion.”

Although Small Business Week seems to be losing steam (I haven't seen much passion around it in recent years), I believe it is still an important event for focussing attention on the needs of Canada’s SMEs. It’s also an opportune time for bigger businesses that sell to small business to show their support for the marketplace, through events, product launches, research studies, etc.

And of course through paid ads, though I am skeptical that they have much influence. Saying that you love and support small business is not quite as credible as demonstrating that you do.

This will be the 30th anniversary Small Business Week, so it could be a good time to get involved.

I have been working up some concepts for projects that would be appropriate to execute in and around Small Business Week. If you are looking for ideas or inspiration, send me an email (rick at rickspence.ca). I’d be delighted to chat with you.

One reason the SMW brand in Canada may be fading is the rise of something called Global Entrepreneurship Week, taking place in more than 60 countries this year from Nov. 16 to 22. It comes out of the UK and the Kansas City-based Kaufman Foundation. Details for this year are still sketchy, but this event is probably only a few sponsors away from turning into something quite exciting.

More details (although not many) at http://www.gewcanada.com/

The Big Question

2008-12-24T01:15:00.005-07:00

You're trying to sell something to an entrepreneur. What's top of mind for him or her?

Himself or herself, of course. (No points for getting that one right.)

I was reminded of this when talking to a Western Canada business owner this week. "What can you do for me?" was his first question. "What else can you do for me?" was his second question. And his third.

This show the importance of the old adage, "Don't sell features, sell benefits." All your target market cares about is, "What can you do for me NOW?"

Cynical and not listening

2008-10-20T13:21:00.003-06:00

Business owners are among the most suspicious, cynical bunch of people you’ll ever market to. They have learned to tune you out. They're so busy heading off impending catastrophes that they rigorously filter out any inputs that don't directly address their problems of the day.

Here’s an embarrassing example. Just before presenting a workshop on personal communication to a group of business owners, I sent the group leader a one-page outline citing my seven strategies. He forwarded the document to the group. So on workshop day I compressed my introductory remarks and jumped right into things. Then one entrepreneur stopped me cold. He asked what I was there to talk about.

I explained, it’s about those seven strategies. And he said, “what strategies?” "It was in the memo you got last week," I said. “Well, I didn't read it,” he said indignantly. “Did anyone else read it?”

He looked around the room. Not one entrepreneur put up their hand. Even the leader said, “I just skimmed it.”

“We’re busy people,” said the first entrepreneur. He made it clear I had erred in assuming this group had read an email addressed to them about a meeting they’d be attending. And he was right. I had violated one of my own cardinal rules of communication. I had assumed my audience knew what I was talking about.

Many marketers make the same mistake. They assume their target market knows what business they're in. They assume their customers know what services they offer. They assume prospects understand the benefits of dealing with them.

Never take any of that for granted. You have to explain yourself, anew, every time. You have to explicitly describe the benefits you offer clients. Because they have no interest in knowing anything about you until you’ve proven you can help them. So they won't be listening until they need you - and when they do, you need to be speaking their language, not yours.

As they say in the shampoo business, "Lather. Rinse. Repeat."

Sleepless in Small Business

2008-07-10T21:57:00.001-06:00

An executive who markets to small business asked me the other day what’s keeping entrepreneurs awake at night. (You have to know your prospects’ problems before you can start marketing effectively to them.)

Unfortunately, I didn't have any amazing insights to offer. Even in the face of recession in the eastern half of Canada, business owners are still grumbling to me about the same old problems:

* The agony of recruiting good help;
* The difficulty of holding on to good people when every other business is trying to lure them away;
* Rising energy costs;
* Trying to make sense of the Internet (before it changes their business forever);
* Finding ways to turn the Succession Boom to their advantage – either by preparing their business for sale, or by buying another business, for strategic or competitive reasons.

My marketer friend and I agreed that the slowing economy has not yet dented the confidence of most entrepreneurs. We decided the Canadian economy has gone through a huge restructuring in the past two decades, and that as a result, fewer businesses seem to be affected so badly by manufacturing’s decline and the slowdown in the U.S.

Of course, it also helps that entrepreneurs get to pick the markets they serve. In the past few years, many small businesses have changed focus and reduced their dependence on automotive companies, mass consumer markets, and other predictably vulnerable sectors. As the Canadian economy switches further to providing services, especially business and professional services to world markets, expect to see more and more entrepreneurs develop their own “Get out of Recession Free” card.

Six More Tips for Selling More

2008-06-05T15:02:00.003-06:00

Continuing from the previous post, here are another six for more powerful personal marketing to small business owners.

1. Emphasize specific benefits. How much money did you save Client A by finding them better equipment? What kind of yacht did Client B buy after you helped them land a big deal?

2. Be free with referrals. If you can't help a particular individual, try to recommend someone who can. They will not forget the favor.

3. Ask for referrals! Once you have established what you do, ask prospects if they know anyone else who might appreciate a call from you to help them with their problems.

4. Find a reason to follow up. Most sales are lost through a failure to follow up in a timely manner. You might want to arrange a meeting, send them a document or an article you’ve read, or arrange an introduction. Your goal is to stay top-of-mind.

5. Ask for the order! As your relationship progresses, suggest a low-risk way to start working together. Offer some incentives, such as a pending deadline or a time-limited discount.

6. Eliminate fears and doubt: Your costs must be clear. Entrepreneurs abhor open-ended contracts and fees. Most people are more motivated by the prospect of losing $5 than by the chance of gaining $20 – so play up the value, minimize the uncertainty and set their minds at ease.

Five Tips for Personal Selling to SB

2008-05-02T20:05:00.004-06:00

How do you as an individual sell to the elusive small-biz market? Get out there and meet them! With entrepreneurs, it's all about the relationship.

Five top tips:

1. Go where the entrepreneurs are. Be seen as part of their community (e.g., through involvement in associations such as CAFE, TEC, EO, CATA, the CofC, etc.) If you don't know what those terms stand for, you have a chunk of catching up to do.

2. At networking functions, know whom you want to meet. Study the membership or guest lists to know who's whom. Arrange an introduction if possible, from a trusted mutual friend. And bring lots of business cards.

3. STOP SELLING! Ask good questions and listen: “Tell me about your business.” “What kinds of problems have you run into?” "What got you through that?"

4. Practice using the phrase, “How can I help you?”

5. When it’s your turn to talk, don’t brag about your expertise and experience. Tell stories that illustrate your experience and demonstrate the results you have achieved for your clients. (Make sure they’re pertinent!) Include vivid images and a happy ending.
Practice these stories in advance to make them as powerful (and as brief) as possible.

Simple as that!

What constitutes "value"?

2008-03-30T11:06:00.003-06:00

Are business owners cheap? Or do they just value “value”?

My customary joke is that entrepreneur is a French word meaning, “I don't have a budget for that.” Which means that while they don't specifically budget money for most purposes, they will still invest in new products, projects or services if they can see the value in it.

In a recent column for Tech Data’s quarterly publication, Tech Times, I wrote about attending a Toronto Raptors game with a friend who runs his own highly successful exporting company. His seats are in the third row.

“Harry” told me that he’d had a chance to move up a row, (where you can see and smell the players better), but he turned it down: “I couldn't justify paying an extra $300 per seat per game.”

I found that remark very telling. In my experience, entrepreneurs don't mind spending money to solve their problems and indulge their wants – they just like to receive value. Harry could afford the better tickets, but he can’t justify the cost. He can't see the value in it.

The good news about selling to business owners is that they rarely need to justify their spending to anyone. There’s no boss to oversee their activity or set spending limits. So the key to selling to business owners is to help them justify the purchase to themselves.

How do you do that? By understanding both the personal and financial issues involved in making these decisions.

For instance, business owners are looking for ways to improve their business – as long as these solutions don't make business more complicated. They adore fast returns on investment, but that’s usually less important than not rocking the boat. New LCD monitors that free up desk space are easy to justify. But a CRM system that will upset employees’ routines and take months to master will look more like a problem than a tool for growth.

Another example: the best entrepreneurs aren't risk-takers, they're risk-minimizers. If you can reduce the risk of their purchase, they’re more likely to buy. You can reverse the risk by offering money-back guarantees, rebates, installation assistance, or free service calls for 30 days. Entrepreneurs tend to be skeptical by nature, so demonstrate your faith in your products by assuming some of the purchase risk.

Finally, business owners are looking for respect. They want to be treated as individuals and as peers. So they like custom solutions, special deals, and being able to negotiate terms. Talk down to them and they’ll squawk. And walk.

Memo to Big Business

2008-03-05T10:52:00.002-07:00

Selling to small business is not just about finding a mailing list and hiring a call centre. It’s about knowing your market.

Case in point: I just got off the phone with Wells Fargo. A cheerful representative with a strong mid-west U.S. accent called to tell me that because of my business’s outstanding “profile” (i.e., they rented a list), I was eligible for a line of credit of up to $100,000. At prime plus 1.5%, which is pretty generous.

But of course they made the usual mistakes. They pretended that I had earned this privilege, when I clearly had not (my business is unincorporated, has no assets and has virtually no capital requirements). Please: if you want to earn my trust, don't start by lying to me.

Plus, they let someone call me who has a grating foreign accent. It was a mild one, to be sure, but why not use a Canadian call centre? We're a proud nation here: why not make it sound more like you actually have a presence in (and thus a commitment to) Canada?

They did some things right, though. When I said that I already have a credit line (from a Canadian bank) and didn't need hers, she was very cool about it. She asked if I would like to note down a web address and an invitation code that would let me take advantage of their offer some other time.

Why don't more people do this? It’s a marketing win-win – it lets the uninterested consumer off the hook quickly, yet it gives them a second chance to think about the offer. So I said, sure.

She then read out five numbers. I wrote them down thinking, "Good for them – they kept this simple." They were respecting my time. But then she read out four more numbers. Then three more. Then three letters. Why? With 15 digits, they have enough codes for everyone on earth, along with everyone who has ever lived on the planet. Plus everyone who ever will.

Moral: Making things easy for business owners is crucial. But you have to do in all ways, not just some.

Ugh! Marketing

2007-12-28T13:17:00.003-07:00

I need a new chair mat. Before I headed out to to buy one, I checked the website of Office Depot Canada to see if they're doing anything special for "Boxing Week." Sadly, the site remains as dull as it is the other 51 weeks of the year.

But check out Office Depot's U.S. site.

It's full of colour, pictures, and discounts. Also known as, reasons to linger and reasons to buy. What have Canadians done to deserve such lacklustre merchandising? Business owners deserve special prices, promotional deals and exciting new products. Where's the pizzazz?

In a recent survey cited at a November Warrillow conference on marketing to small business, Staples Business Depot ranked as one of the top brands for business owners. Too bad Office Depot isn't giving them much competition.

Winning the "Space Race"

2007-11-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

Congrats to Encelium Technologies Inc., winner of the 2007 “Markham Space Race.”

And congratulations to the organizers – Town of Markham, Innovation Synergy Centre in Markham (ISCM), Great West Life Realty Advisors, FIT by Design, and Jim Brown of Colliers International – for creating a contest that promotes small business and actually aims to help promising companies achieve their potential.

Markham-based Encelium develops energy-management systems that help building managers control lighting and other building loads to dramatically reduce energy costs. Last March Encelium made the papers for selling its ECS system to Toronto’s Rogers Centre (SkyDome), which was expecting the system to save it $300,000 a year.

A panel of judges selected Encelium as the Ontario small business “most likely to grow” over the next year, based on its compelling growth strategy. The company wins a $63,100 prize package that includes use of a furnished, 1,000-square-foot Class A office space for a year in the Town of Markham, a telecommunications package from Telus Business Solutions, thousands of dollars in business, legal, accounting, financial and HR consulting services, and printing and furniture moving services.

Maple Lake Ltd. of Markham and Maxxian Integration Inc. of Thornhill placed second and third in the contest.

Telus was the contest's Title Sponsor, with Creechurch International Underwriters, Cushman & Wakefield LePage and PowerStream Inc. as gold sponsors. The Markham Space Race was open to export-focused, entrepreneurial companies in Ontario that have been in business for at least two years and have at least three full-time employees. Participants submitted a growth plan demonstrating how their company is positioned for rapid growth.

This blog rarely quotes press releases, but this next paragraph from the official announcement rings true to me:

"Regardless of the contest’s prizes, [Innovation Synergy Centre CEO Bob] Glandfield emphasizes that every company that participated in the Markham Space Race comes out a winner, just by developing a growth plan – something many small businesses neglect. “Developing a plan that must face the scrutiny of a third party forces a sense of realism into the process. Entrepreneurs tend to overstate the opportunity, and understate the challenges and timelines, when moving to market. Creating and implementing a realistic plan for growth goes a long way in ensuring the future success of a small business,” he said."

Congratulations to the winners and the sponsors for a rare win-win.
(Crossposted to Canadian Entrepreneur.)

Look! Up in the Sky!

2007-10-28T12:43:00.000-06:00

On a warm Friday evening earlier this month, Allstream took an unusual approach to marketing its small business solutions: it flew a UFO over downtown Toronto.

From a distance, the helicopter that towed the huge red Allstream banner was almost invisible, so the ad – which was only intelligible on one side – seemed to be free-floating. My two passengers and I in a car headed downtown took some time to figure out that it wasn't an alien invasion, but merely an ad. Then it took a while longer to realize what the message was.

The big red banner got a lot of attention – but was it the right attention? Does the hard-working target market mill around downtown with time to decipher a hard-to-read mystery ad hovering 2,000 feet up? And even if they do, does a sign that basically promotes your brand name do anything to turn prospects into customers?

I doubt it. I don't think this type of ad shows much respect for the needs of its marketplace.

While I’m generally in favor of marketing innovations, I think this one sends the wrong message. If Allstream (the former AT&T Canada, now owned by Manitoba Telecom) thinks its branding in Toronto is so weak that it needs this kind of aerial extravaganza to sell bundled telecom services, what has it been doing for the past four years?

To learn more about Allstream's small business services, click here.

Go ahead, make me feel small

2007-10-03T11:39:00.000-06:00

I received an interesting phone message today from UPS, which seems to advocating a candid approach to contacting prospects. The caller’s name has been withheld, because it’s not his fault: Who gave this man a telephone?

Here’s the message that followed his name and phone number:

“If you can get back to me I’d appreciate it. I just got your name from a trade show we did and I wanted to know if there was any interest on your end or if you were just dropping by, to close out this potential lead on my screen here. Thank you very much. I look forward to speaking with you.”

If you ask me, that's taking transparency too far.

Memo to marketers: I don't want to know that I'm just a blip on your screen. I want to know that if you're calling me, you really care about my business, and you have a very special deal for me.

Don't expect me to remember what form I may have filled out at a trade show. And don't think I filled it out so that a salesman would call. If I won the door prize, tell me. If I didn't win the draw and you're just following up on a sales lead, make me a compelling offer.

Don't treat me like I’m a chore – or just another item on a checklist you want to finish up by noon.

It's just one more reason why entrepreneurs keep beating big business: because you have to sweat the details.

"Big money in small business"

2007-09-12T08:45:00.000-06:00

Vancouver-based Backbone magazine has a great article on the challenges facing technology vendors selling to the SMB market.

Author Gail Balfour sets the tone by noting that 97% of all firms in Canada are small- and medium-sized businesses. Vendors such as IBM, Dell, HP and Cisco covet the market, but as Balfour notes, for a long time “even the vendor pitches targeting SMBs amounted to little more than a product tweak and a revamped marketing message.”

But this is slowly changing, says Carmi Levy, senior vp, strategic consulting, with Toronto-based AR Communications. “You cannot underestimate the importance of the small- and medium-sized enterprise. Vendors are starting to realize that there’s real money in providing proper support to SMBs.”

Why so much interest in small business? As Levy notes, Internet technologies are making it easier for smaller companies to compete with big competitors, creating a growing market for tech applications. However, big companies have to learn how to service smaller firms.

Among the challenges noted by Chris Ellsay of Ottawa-based Workshift.com:
* SMB customers demand 24/7 tech support, and on a much more intimate level than enterprise clients
* Often they don’t have a dedicated IT person or staff, and are sometimes not very tech savvy.
* SMBs are price sensitive.

Sellers can’t simply downsize a larger product offering and expect SMBs to buy it, says Levy. Vendors need to build packages of products and services from the ground up. Levy says typical SMB customers are driven by “consumer thinking” and emotional impact, not by the “harder-nosed” enterprise attitude.

One more point: Don't think your brand power is going to crack open the SMB vault and keep you there. Changing brands is much easier to do in small biz, says Jayanth Angl of Info-Tech Research Group in London, Ont. “If a [competing] company is going to give them a better solution, [SMBs] are in a much better position to make that shift, whereas in a very large enterprise that is just not as likely.”

That also means that one negative experience can push SMBs to change vendors. “They base the decision more on emotion,” writes Balfour, “and their smaller size allows them to migrate to a new product without much pain or downtime.”

For more on this subject, and how Dell and HP are responding to this market, see the original story at http://www.backbonemag.com/Magazine/SMB_09070702.asp

Why Small Business Isn't Buying From You

2007-08-23T09:00:00.000-06:00

To help computer resellers in Canada sell more to entrepreneurial clients, I write a regular column for Tech Data's Tech Times magazine. "SMB Spotlight" looks at how small business owners think, and what makes them buy - or not.

From my first Tech Times column, published earlier this year, here are four reasons why business owners don't buy.

1) They're too busy. This is the same reason they don't return messages or finish half the projects they begin. They work much harder than the average Canadian. The stats show most entrepreneurs work at least 50 hours a week, compared to 35 to 40 hours for salaried sorts. (That’s a difference of nearly two 8-hour shifts a week.) And PROFIT Magazine’s research finds that the CEOs of top growth firms – the companies most marketers most want to deal with – work more than 60 hours week.

2) They’re not listening. Business owners face more challenges and choices every day than most people face in a year. Do I raise my price? Fire that person? Borrow money? Upgrade my ERP system? If you expect them to put everything on hold to listen to your pitch, you're dreaming.

3) They throw loonies around as if they were silver dollars. Many marketers have noted that business owners tend to be more frugal than most corporate decision-makers. They treat their companies’ money like it was their own. Which makes sense, because it is their own. Business owners are as keen to throw their hard-earned cash at new solutions as you are eager to spend yours.

4) Your offer is too complex. Business owners have too much to do, too much to read, too many problems. They cope by tackling the easiest decisions first. If your solution requires too much thinking, chances are it will be put on hold while the entrepreneur looks at simpler problems with quicker paybacks. Your turn may come tomorrow – unless other more manageable problems surface in the meantime.

These are the primary obstacles facing anyone marketing to small business in Canada today.

Fortunately, overcoming them is easy. You can capture their interest by developing trusted-partner relationships, pressing all the right buttons, crafting simple but compelling product descriptions, advertising more often and effectively, and stressing value, value, value, like a jukebox with just one record.

More excerpts from SMB Spotlight will appear here in future.

Dell's small-biz stumble

2007-07-22T13:11:00.000-06:00

Dell became a huge success by selling no-surprises computers direct to consumers and business. I can’t argue with their success, but I’ve never been a fan of the way they sell to small business. They run ads that only computer geeks understand!

Look at the mess they sent out this month.

When I got this 4-page brochire in the mail a few weeks ago, I thought at first that maybe Dell was catching on to the special needs of the small business market. The cover says boldly: “We believe: Small business deserves computers designed just for small business.”
“And now they are.”

Good start, no? But then they mess it up by showing us two ugly, black computers that look not much different than any other computer on the market. Way down at the bottom, in small print that is white on light green, is the sell line: “Small business customers told us they wanted more from a computer – and more from a computer company. We listened. Dell VOSTRO is a new idea. It is a suite of systems and services designed just for small business... You get advice, software of your choosing… and services tailored to your business.”

So let’s see. Pictures of computers that have no apparent connection to the headline. And overwritten “sell” copy that’s in small, indistinct type that virtually shouts “Don’t read me!”

Most entrepreneurs would have thrown the thing away by now, but I persevered. Turning to the next page, though, didn’t help. It’s a two-page spread of identical ugly computers, with the usual technobable that passes for “features” at Dell: 15.4 WXGA Display with TrueLife (glossy), 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2SDRAM, and so on. They do mention a few benefits, such as finding WiFi hotspots without having to open your computer, or “no trialware,” but they are too weak to fulfill the promise of that headline on Page One.

The back page is better: it promises “support that's as dedicated as you are,” and tools from Dell’s “Small business 360 virtual community.” I would have liked to learn more about this last thing, which sounds pretty novel: “find resources and connect with your peers… to assist and enhance your performance potential.”

But no more details are available – not even a URL to visit to learn more about this community. Instead, Dell launches into 16 lines of fine print. Much of it seems stupid or unnecessary (“Remember to back up your data;” “GB means one billion bytes”).

Worst of all, the most important point is hopelessly buried: the fact that the prices quoted on this brochure are good only from July 10 to 19, 2007.

One of the key tenets of marketing is to give prospects a reason to take action right now. Dell tried to do that – but fails utterly, since its deadline is so underplayed that I’ll bet not one recipient in 100 realized that the advertised prices were only good for 10 days.

So let’s see: Good headline. Bad graphics. Underplayed sell copy. Weak benefits. No (apparent) reason to act. Plus, if you tried to order the products after the 19th, Dell tells you the price has gone up!

I bet they’re still wondering why the Canadian small business market is so unresponsive.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

2007-06-21T08:16:00.000-06:00

Large IT vendors continue to blunder in targeting the small business market.

ConnectIT, an email newsletter for the computer channel community published by Richmond Hill, Ont-based Integrated mar.com, takes IBM to task for not respecting the uniqueness of the SME market. A June 20 story by Paul Weinberg quotes Wayne Kernochan, senior IT analyst at New Hampshire research firm Illuminata Inc., as saying, “I continue to sense that some vendors don't feel the SMB market is worthy of focus."

He noted that IBM has only managed "modest success" in its push with SMB-targeted products and services, because it has concentrated on the upper level of SMB (which includes far fewer firms than the small-business mainstream).

Kernochan also points to IBM’s Informix division, which he says pumped one release of database software “indiscriminately” into the channel without distinguishing between large enterprises and SMBs. As a result, "The SMBs didn't see much value in it."

Neglecting the small truths of the small business market can be expensive. Kernochan says Informix took six months to recognize its error, “but by then the financial damage to the company had already occurred.”

Although big companies say they value the small business market, he urges IT vendors to do more to reach that type of customer. "Vendors have to figure out how to get at that market in a cost-effective way. They tend to focus their innovation efforts on the large enterprise market."

Kernochan urged IT vendors to broaden their channel coverage beyond VARs and resellers, and reach out to SMB-oriented independent software vendors (ISVs) or solution providers.

He says technology products for small business have to be simpler to use and require less administration. And he warns that small business’s dissatisfaction with the IT industry is “getting higher and higher.”

This article suggests that the solution for big companies such as IBM is the same as that for everyone targeting small business. Acknowledge the special characteristics of this market. Don't dumb your products down: just make them easy to sell, easy to understand and easier to use. Recognize that these customers are intelligent professionals, but not specialists.

And understand that no matter how big you are, you only have one chance to prove yourself.

How to really win friends and influence people

2007-06-01T13:30:00.000-06:00

Note: This entry is cross-posted from my other blog, Canadian Entrepreneur.

What do you think when you see the words? “Please help us serve you better.”

You figure they're asking for something that will mainly help them and not you, right?

That's what I thought today when I got an e-mail from Ottawa sales coach Colleen Francis with that cheesy headline. I only read it because I decided not to do whatever it was they wanted me to do.

To my surprise, though, Colleen’s business manager, Casey, had written a very friendly letter explaining how they were upgrading their database. “We currently have 3 databases (UGH!) and we are streamlining them into 1,” wrote Casey. “In order to help us ensure you continue to receive the sales information you want, we would love you to update your profile.”

By using real language (“love”) and a little humour, and by giving us some insight into the human side of their database search, they got me onside.

But then they added the flourish. "Now, you are probably wondering "What's in it for me?" - right? Well - I will tell you. When you update your information I will personally send you a CD! A $79US value for simply filling in 10 little fields.”

You could choose a CD on coommunicating through "gatekeepers" and email, or another on “Turning No into Yes.”

"Once you have completed the form please reply to me with your choice of CD and I will pop it in the mail,” writes Casey. “We do hope you will help us with our spring cleaning.”

Congrats to Casey and Colleen for demonstrating how to turn No into Yes - using positive, informal language and appropriate incentives to motivate and engage people. Which could be why their company is called Engage Selling Solutions.

How could you use these techniques in your next communication with busy business owners?

Canadian Bacon

2007-05-31T11:10:00.000-06:00

I’ve been phoned recently by two banks that want to lend my business money.

Never mind that my business assets consist of two computers, a printer, one-eighth of a car and 12 shelves of books.

TD Canada Trust pre-approved me for a $15,000 loan at 1 percentage point below prime. Of course, it set some harsh conditions. Neither my business’s assets nor its annual revenue may exceed $500,000. (If they do, though, I’m pre-approved for a loan at 1.99% above prime.)

About six weeks after I received the direct-mail piece, which was cleverly designed to look like a personalized cheque, they called me. The telemarketer was very effective. She sounded concerned and genuinely puzzled that I might not take advantage of this cheap money, and asked if there was anything else she could do to help me.

She actually made me feel guilty for not borrowing their money. I was very impressed.

Not so impressive was the guy from Wells Fargo who called the other day to give me a credit line (I think it was for $40,000). The rate: prime plus 1%. I told him I didn't need that much money, and that a competitor in the marketplace is offering me funds at prime minus 1.

No problem, said my mechanical friend. If I didn’t want to open the account today, he said, I could access the offer later on the Wells Fargo website. He then proceeded to spell out a long URL, and then some other long access number, both of which I politely pretended to write down.

A couple of lessons from these interactions:

* Listening is so important. I felt the TD marketer listened to me. She responded creatively and genuinely. Mr. Robot from Wells Fargo had a job to do and did it, whether I wanted him to or not.

* Reputation is key. I know Wells Fargo has been active in the Canadian market for 10 years, but I don't think it has ever been part of the market. I don't see ads from them, I don't know if they have any physical Canadian presence, I don't see their name sponsoring business events. (The pony-express logo on their “Canadian” website certainly doesn't seem to fit the Canadian character. And why no maple leaf on the stagecoach?)

TD we all know. Whether we patronize them or not, we know them as a civil, reasonably positive force in the community. Who would you rather deal with?

* Mixed media work. TD’s letter alone was shrugworthy, but adding the phone followup makes for a very compelling sales pitch.

Occasional “one-off” offers may meet short-term objectives, but thoughtful, integrated campaigns will always bting home the bacon.

They care about their people!

2007-05-02T13:48:00.000-06:00

I had an interesting conversation today with a retired Canadian entrepreneur. They never really retire, you know.

I’ve met this man several times, but not in the year since he left the company he founded. Last month that firm announced a major strategic change, so I called him up to see what he thought about it. He outlined the business case for what they're planning to do, although with little enthusiasm, so I guess he’s onside but not ecstatic about it.

But here’s what he was passionate about.

He complained that he’d heard the news from a friend who used to work for the company. Then he heard about it from a stockbroker. He’s the former CEO, and still a major shareholder, and he obviously feels the company has an obligation to inform them about these things. You can take the entrepreneur of the company, but it sure is hard to get the company out of the entrepreneur.

Here’s the other thing he got hot about. This change will affect a lot of longtime employees. He expressed more regret over what might happen to them than he did about the change to the business as a whole. “It’s a different company now,” he said, but it was clear that he hoped the company would treat the affected employees well.

He also noted hopefully that with the general skills shortage around the country, some employees might be better off, and actually get better jobs.

Clearly, he still retains that entrepreneurial ego, even in retirement, But I was impressed by his concern for his former employees. They’re still his people, and he still cares.

Bottom line: If you’re marketing to business owners, remember their commitment to their teams. If you can make things better for their people, entrepreneurs may just listen to you a little more closely.

Make it Clear

2007-04-20T10:36:00.000-06:00

Marketing Profs, a US site offering marketing advice, takes on the small business market today with a short piece offering three ways to get your message across to business owners. “Get to the point,” they say.

“The vast majority of small business people will respond with interest if you clearly outline what you can do for them.”

* Simplify your pitch. Small business owners don’t want to see your binder filled with charts and graphs. They care about ROI. Demonstrate how your services will pay for themselves.

* Let others pat you on the back. Testimonials from current and former clients provide credibility. They should highlight solutions implemented or problems resolved.

* Put on a good face. If you're selling marketing services, wow prospects with the quality of your Web site and collateral. If you look good, they know you’ll make them look good.

The unnamed profs believe small business owners to be tight with a cheque – a point we have made made here ourselves. To sell them your service, they say, you have to prove its value.

The Quarter of the Canadian Entrepreneur

2007-04-18T10:04:00.000-06:00

Kudos to Roynat, which this year launched a bold initiative called "The Year of the Canadian Entrepreneur." As I understand it, their intent was to build a coalition of marketers interested in reaching small and medium-sized business, and together create events and content that would celebrate Canadian entrepreneurship and help inform and strengthen individual entrepreneurs.

Sadly, Corporate Canada never signed on. Rogers Wireless became a partner, and at least one other organization I know was looking to get in on it. But Roynat had ambitious plans - a monthly mini-magazine called "Essential Guide" in Canadian Business and PROFIT, and a full weekly "Entrepreneur" section in the National Post - and they required deep, deep pockets.

This month, Roynat threw in the towel, and who can blame them?

Congratulations to Roynat (and Rogers) for their vision and market leadership. And to all those organizations that make lots of money off Canadian entrepeneurs and declined to support this worthwhile initiative, may you reap what you sow.

To sell to small businesses, you have to create value for them. Roynat gets that. The rest of the market? Not so much.

Grand & Toy Gets Ambitious

2007-04-03T13:37:00.000-06:00

I love office-supply stores, but I have always had a love-hate relationship with Grand & Toy.

As a kid I remember wandering into their store at Yonge and Eglinton in Toronto and wondering why they didn't have any toys. ("Grand" and "Toy," I learned later, were the company founders .) Later I could never understand why they had two sets of prices -- one for retail customers, and huge discounts for commercial accounts.

When Staples and Office Depot bought big, bright stores and high-tech wizardry to Canada's office-supply market, Grand & Toy seemed to be caught napping. But now G&T, which calls itself Canada's No. 1 source for "complete business solutions," is staking a leadership claim by helping small businesses get online.

According to a release published today, "To show that they understand and support the needs of Canadian small businesses, Grand & Toy has launched Website Design & Hosting services, an easy and affordable way for entrepreneurs and smaller organizations from coast-to-coast to be available 24/7."

"At Grand & Toy we know that time and money are limited for small business owners," said David Addison, General Manager, Services. "But we also know the potential of growing that business with a simple website offering. That is why with our new Website Design & Hosting services, small businesses can have a site that looks as professional as the large corporations at a fraction of the cost."

Costs? G&T offers "an impactful, customized website design" beginning at $499.95. It also offers hosting plans from $12 a month.

Many business owners have trouble knowing what to put on a website or where to find the help they need, so this service appears to meet a huge industry need. The test, of course, is in the details of the pricing, and the quality G&T offers.

Web design for small business is often handled by kids, friends of friends, or networking specialists who know nothing about design, so there is room for a quality, brand-name service.

But I have my doubts that G&T can compete on price, which, in my experience, is the No. 1 concern for most small business owners. Competing with teenagers and students is never easy.

For more information on the new service, click here.

(Bonus note on selling to business owners: Help your customers find information fast. Grand & Toy's press release commits a cardinal error by directing prospects to their home page, www.grandandtoy.com. Any busy entrepreneur who hits that page will look around a few seconds, observe that web design and hosting are mentioned nowhere, and then take off. Never to return.

Don't expect them to persevere and go, "Hmm, should I try clicking under "Home? Technology? Services? G&T Brand? Deals? Customer Service? Heck, I've got all day, I'll click them all!"

Pick an easy URL, (e.g., www.GrandandToy.com/web) and communicate directly.
Never expect entreprenurs to make an effort to find the information you've promised. They ain't that interested.)

Lie Like an Entrepreneur

2007-03-27T18:09:00.000-06:00

I love entrepreneurs. They are some of the most accomplished, most positive and community focused people I have ever met.
But they have one bad habit: They lie a lot.

“Yes, of course we have a business plan.”
“We never looked for any outside financing.”
“We’ve got that problem solved.”
“I think our biggest challenge now is meeting demand.”

I remember telling one of our writers at PROFIT a few years ago that he should enjoy interviewing entrepreneurs. He should do his best to pull revenue figures out of them, he should dig for colorful anecdotes, but he should never forget that the entrepreneur may be lying.

They lie to make their business seem more successful than it is. They lie about the problems they’ve faced, they lie about past accomplishments, and they lie about their future objectives (“Nope, I don’t see myself selling this business ever. I’ll be here till they throw me out”).

The funny thing is, I think many of these entrepreneurs don't mean to lie. Many of them believe what they are saying is true. While a statement may technically be a lie today, that doesn't mean it isn't true in their heads. Some of what they say may become true six months from now.

I believe many entrepreneurs live several months in the future – it’s a key part of how they make their visions come true. So some of them may truly believe the stories they tell are already true.

I discussed this issue last week with a banker over lunch, and she agreed with both parts of my theory: Yes, entrepreneurs lie, and no, they don't really think of it as lying. She put into words the part that I was having trouble with.

“They lie to themselves,” she said.

"I believe what I think"

2007-03-15T06:30:00.000-06:00

Entrepreneurs tend to be tough sells because they consider truth to be sacrosanct. But once you win their trust, it's yours forever (if you don't blow it).

Entrepreneurs may take time to come to conclusions, but when they do, they like to stick with them.

Consider this quote from a Canadian Business interview with K.Y. Ho, founder of innovative chip-maker ATI Technologies Inc.

"Truth is truth; facts are facts. That's why I never considered settling with the OSC. I wanted to fight to the end. I am an entrepreneur; I believe what I think, and I believe what I do."

The Issues that Matter

2007-02-27T16:04:00.000-07:00

Marketers should always know what the stresses are that keep their clients and prospects awake at nights.

Here’s a look at that question from a unique source. BC-based Soho Business Report asked its readers which topics they would like to see covered more often in the magazine.

Here are their answers.

Marketing 72.4%
Networking Opportunities 67.2%
Improving Sales 53.4%
Technology Purchases 43.8%*
Money Management 37.9%
Time Management 34.5%
Home Design/Space Mgmt. 34.4%
Finding Capital 34.1%
Reducing Overhead/Taxes 32.8%
Import/Export Issues 27.6%
Diversifying Products/Service 27.6%
Dealing with Growth 27.6%
Balancing Work/Family 25.9%
Collecting Debts 25.9%
Legal/Regulatory Issues 18.9%
US Business Related Issues 17.2%
Technology Training 12.1%*

If your product addresses an issue these entrepreneurs want to read more about, your solutions should interest them too.

These may primarily be home-based entrepreneurs, and not captains of ambitious, fast-growth companies, but I think their concerns are pretty much the same as those of most other small businesses. (Except maybe for networking. Many entrepreneurs hate it.)

Find more about SBR Magazine and its readers here.

* Sigh. It always saddens me to see so many people interested in more information about technology, but so little interest in investing in learning to use it more effectively.

The Credit Card Rant

2007-02-20T15:09:00.000-07:00

The following rant has nothing to do with selling to entrepreneurs. But it could serve as a heads-up for credit-card holders – and a warning for any business that abuses customers’ trust.

Since I paid my MasterCard bill on time last month, I was surprised to see an interest charge of $40 on my February bill.

So I called BMO for an explanation. After 10 minutes on hold, a helpful customer service rep explained it to me.

Apparently I paid my bill a few days late in December (the usual pre-Christmas bustle, I guess). As a result, MasterCard is now charging interest on all my purchases until I have made two consecutive on-time, in-full payments.

“Since when?” I asked, flabbergasted. “Since June,” she said.

So that’s how it’s going to be: Make one mistake, and your credit card suddenly becomes a high-interest loan. That’s a pretty fundamental change, and while MasterCard might have announced it last spring, I don't remember them making any attempt to draw my attention to it.

(Note: Does this penalty even make sense? Why would BMO actively encourage me to leave my MasterCard at home?)

I had barely opened my mouth to complain when the CSR graciously offered to cancel the $40 charge. Of course I was grateful, but it made me wonder how much flak the bank has received over this charge, since they are so willing to roll it back before it’s even requested.

Luckily, I have two credit cards. Guess which one is staying home for the foreseeable future.

I think there’s a lesson here: consult with your customers when making significant changes. Don't try to slip one over on them. They will find out. And they won’t be happy.

Maybe the banks figure they have all the power. They reserve the right to change the cardholder agreement from time to time. I don't have that right.

But there’s one right I do have. Not to do business with them.

Too much heartbreak leads to divorce

2007-02-15T09:09:00.000-07:00

I’ve often called small business a “heartbreak” market. It’s a tough sector to make a buck in, because so many customers are too busy to listen and thus have trouble telling the right solutions from the wrong ones.

Today I talked to a website consultant who no longer works with business owners. His heart (like mine) is with small business, but he says entrepreneurs were just too frustrating to deal with. “They don't want to think. They just want to do.”

He complained specifically about business owners who get seduced by web designers who want to spend tends of thousands of dollars on spiffy-looking Flash-animated websites, when what business owners need is a straightforward proposition and a small investment in search engine optimization.

He said business owners were reluctant to hire consultants for a day at $150 an hour to help them choose the right strategic course for their website. Instead, they pay more in the long run by using web designers whose concerns are more esthetic than results-focused. That may seem to cost less up-front, but in the long run any site that’s not aligned with your marketing and sales strategy will cost you dearly.

All the more reason, I say, for marketers to develop stronger relationships with business owners before trying to sell to them. You can do that through newsletters, personal calls, blogs, direct mail, invitations to events – anything that sets you up as a trusted partner.

Without that trust, even the best sales proposition will almost always finish second when the business owner has a pre-existing relationship with a competing supplier - whether or not they can do what you do.

As for my friend, he says, “I directed myself a major corporations, so I have no more problems.”

Read the mind of an entrepreneur

2007-02-04T14:59:00.000-07:00

Libby Znaimer does great interview with entrepreneurs for the Weekend Financial Post. She asks not so much about their businesses, but how they get business done.
It’s must reading for marketers who want to know how entrepreneurs operate. How they really think.
Here are some gems from her Jan. 27 interview with Nick Laperle, president of Sonomax Hearing Healthcare Inc. of Montreal, which develops and manufactures hearing aids and earpieces for hearing protection and digital wireless applications.

Note how entrepreneurs’ missions really are their jobs:
"As founding president of Sonomax, I spend most of my time telling people that hearing loss is a global epidemic and that we have a new technology to put hearing on the same plane as vision and dental. I also build strategic alliances with market leaders. We are opening the fourth of many retail stores [within] Wal- Mart stores in Canada."

On carving a personal life out of a 50-hour business week:
"I start at 8:37 a.m., so I can put my six year- old daughter, Emmalyne, on the bus. It's not a lot of time together, but that walk to the bus stop is often the best part of my day."
(Note from Rick: Nick may actually believe that. But in my experience, few entrepreneurs do. They love their families, but they can't wait to get to work.)

Informal work environment:
"If I’m doing investor relations, I wear a suit. At the office, I dress business-casual, usually sweaters… when I met with Sir Richard Branson in September, he told me he saw no need to ever wear a tie, and sweaters were the way to go!"

Big-picture guy:
"I find meetings painful at best, unless there are issues to resolve and all parties can contribute. I'm an entrepreneur, not a details guy."

Marketers who shroud their identity or muddle their message should take special note of Laperle’s pet peeve: “Hidden agendas. I just wish people told it like it is.”

New Small Business Statistics

2007-02-01T15:52:00.000-07:00

Marketers trying to understand the big picture on small business in Canada will be interested in a new set of reports on small biz stats co-ordinated by Industry Canada.

The data include answers to such questions as:

* How many Canadian Entrepreneurs are there, anyhow? (about 2.3 million)

* Who creates more jobs, small biz or big biz? (pretty much a tie – as of the latest stats, 48% [second quarter of 2006])

* How much does small business contribute to Canada’s GDP? (about 22% in 2005, which is down from 27% 10 years earlier. The decline is probably to be expected, given the phenomenal growth of big business and mergers & acquisitions in this country - due to the fact that so much more risk capital is available to big businesses than to small ones).

* How many small businesses use e-commerce? (about 33% have websites, but only 6% actually sell online).

All this and much more is available from Industry Canada’s “Key Small Business Statistics” report, newly updated for January, 2007. See the full report online .
Or download the PDF version here.

Five tips for selling to entrepreneurs

2007-01-27T16:46:00.000-07:00

I had a great lunch yesterday with a guy who’s been selling information and services into the small-business market for many years. Some excellent insights from that meeting:

* If you're selling seminars, beware. Educational seminars have always been a big part of his marketing, but he says it’s becoming harder and harder to get people out. Where he used to get a 3% to 4% response rate from his direct mail, it’s now more like 1% or less. He suspects the technique has been overused, and that entrepreneurs are now seminared-out.

* If you're selling information products, keep in mind that entrepreneurs don't want to be educated. “They want to learn by osmosis,” he says. Turn information into stories, case studies and anecdotes to make it easier to digest and remember.

* Entrepreneurial spirit is not as common in small business as you might think. While most entrepreneurs continue to think freely, weirdly and creatively, very few of their employees are entrepreneurial thinkers. The more employees a company has, he says, the more corporate they are likely to become.

* Don't try and sell features to small-business owners. “Entrepreneurs are driven by pain.” Tell them now what your product or service can do, but how it can solve their most pressing problem now.

* Get in the ground floor with a small-business prospect. Sell a low-cost product or service that will get you in the door. Once an entrepreneur trusts you and your ability to create value, you will find that many of their budget restrictions disappear like magic.

The fifth point is obviously the most important. Despite all the defenses that entrepreneurs put up, they need a few key suppliers with whom to form lasting relationships. And when you scale that wall, it makes you forget all that sweat, all the rejection, and those half-empty seminars rooms.

Small business is always personal

2007-01-25T11:22:00.000-07:00

We've talked in this blog before about what motivates small business owners, but one of the key messages they're looking for is respect. They believe they're doing something special, and they want to see signs that other people believe it too. Especially partners, suppliers and anyone else with whom they spend their hard-earned, well guarded budgets.

Example: the other day I received a lovely email from an award-winning entrepreneur I met a few times when I was editor of PROFIT Magazine.

Here's the edited excerpt:

Hey Rick, you may recall being highly supportive of our company... Well, we made it! It was a long road, but we were acquired by xxxx last year and are now working hard to integrate our work into this remarkable company. It certainly represents a BIG change for our little team!
I just wanted to say thanks for your interest over the years. It provided validation and moral support, sometimes when it was needed more than you can imagine."

It was a touching message that I appreciated very much.

I reproduce it here to remind you that the line between success and failure is often very thin. And that behind even successful businesses is a request for respect. If you as a marketer can honour and reinforce the owners' sense of mission and self-worth, you will get through to them in ways that no others can.

Small business is personal.

Marketing in the New You-niverse

2007-01-23T23:19:00.000-07:00

Kodak - Winds of Change

This is bloody brilliant. It's a Kodak commercial that evidently was produced for internal use. But it proved so popular they let it out.
It's now all over YouTube, so this could be the best Web 2.0 marketing move ever.
"They've got things in their research labs that will make biometrics look like a Happy Meal toy!"

Respect your customer, even when offside

2007-01-23T07:31:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Canada’ s three national credit bureaus not only keep tabs on how much you’ve borrowed and how much you’ve paid back – but on how many times you've been late paying your credit card bills?

I just learned that while researching my column for MoneySense magazine. I looked up my credit reports at TransUnion and Equifax, and there were my late payments – made how many years ago – still on file, still working to make lenders think less of extending credit to me (or charging me more for the privilege). Six years those late payment stay on file!

But I'm here to tell you that it works both ways. Entrepreneurs don't forget, either. And they (okay, we) don’t easily forgive.

As a business owner, about four times a year I get a direct mail from American Express promoting its corporate card for small business.

The letter uses the right language: simple, declarative, flattering. (“As a business owner, it was your idea that opened doors. Your dedication that got customers calling, And your perseverance that keeps them coming back.” And it offers “quarterly management reports” and 200 bonus rewards points a month (whatever those are).

But it will be a cold day in Richmond Hill before I get an Amex card. Why? Because I remember how they treated me when I was late paying off a card one month, 10 years ago. Never mind the exorbitant interest rates (now 30%) they charge – they treat you rudely and dismissively, like a thief in the night. And this on top of the annual fee I (or my employer at the time) was paying.

Entrepreneurs are not always the most organized people. Sometimes they lose track of the trees as they keep their eye on the forest.* If you want to serve them properly, treat them (okay, us) as respectfully when they're offside as when you're first wooing them.

Because power imbalances are temporary. Memories are long.

(*After all, even big businesses slip up. Example: on Jan. 23, 2007, Amex’s website offered this information about the fee for its Small Business Corporate Card: "$30 annual fee ($50 annual fee, effective March 14, 2005).”

Interview with an Entrepreneur

2007-01-13T15:05:00.000-07:00

Every entrepreneur is different, yet they have so much in common. The more time you can spend with them to understand the peculiarly creative and self-absorbed way they view the world, the better you will be able to sell to small business.

And if you can't spend time with them, read interviews with them – especially Q&As, where you get to see how their minds work.

In today’s National Post, Libby Zneimer had a great lifestyle-oriented interview with Sam Chebib, president and CEO of Nightingale Informatix Corp., which sells services and software for the health-care industry. Here are a few revealing tidbits:

Q: What are your key functions?
A: I focus primarily on executing our strategic plans, and spend most of my time with my senior management team and major clients. I am very involved in all of our operations, but work very effectively through my executive team.
Q: How many hours do you work each week and when do you start?
A: I work anywhere between 70 and 80 hours per week and 1 usually start at 7:30 a.m.
Q: How often do you take work home?
A: I always have something under my arm when I leave.
Q: How many phone calls do you get? How often do customers call you directly?
A I get 20 to 30 calls a day, and I'll take about 10 to 20 of those. Of those calls, one or two a day will be from customers, which I always take.
Q: How many meetings do you attend? Do you like meetings?
A: Between four and five per day. I like some of them, for example, those meetings where I can brainstorm ideas with my team and come up with solutions to strategic concerns.
Q: Are you a workaholic?
A: No, I am just trying to get a job done and I happen to enjoy doing it.
Q: Does your family think you work too much?
A: Of course they do. I've never met a family that didn't.
Q: What is the best part of your job?
A: I get to hire and train highly talented people so they can do most of my job for me.
Q: What’s the best perk?
A I can admit when I've made a mistake without fear of being yelled at.
Q: Do you have hobbies, sports or a fitness routine?
A: I love tennis and skiing, but I don't get to do them often enough, and it's getting more difficult all the time.

Themes to think about: his sheer busy-ness; results-focus; work isn't work when you own the company; the barely-concealed feeling of immunity at the top; scarcity of leisure time; customers really do come first.
How would you market to someone like that?

Small Business: Stronger than you think!

2007-01-04T20:16:00.000-07:00

I don't know how many times I’ve heard the statistic that “80% of all small businesses fail in their first five years.”

Put it out of yourhead. I have never seen the source of that statistic, but I’ve always known it's wrong. No one knows how many businesses “fail.”

The best that researchers can do is track companies that go out of business – which means they can't tell the failures from the wind-ups, the retirements, the merged or the acquired.

But even that figure seems overstated, as I've just discovered a statistic that is much more bullish.

In 2005, Statistics Canada reported on the results of a longitudinal study of Canadian businesses that found Canadian firms last longer than most people thought. Sayeth StatsCan:

“Of all firms that were created during the 1990s, roughly one-quarter ceased to operate within the first two years, according to a new report that analyzes the impact of economic developments on business dynamics during the past decade.
"Just over one-third of these firms survived five years or more, and only one-fifth were still in operation after 10 years.”

So the 80% “disparu” rate is for 10 years, not five – which supports the contention that many of these businesses were wound down rather than “failed.” If a business needs 10 years to “fail,” it must have been a success for some of that time!

And never forget: most businesses are small businesses. The study found that as of 2001, “only 0.2% of firms employed 500 or more employees, but they represented 42% of total employment. The vast majority (92%) of companies employed fewer than 20 workers, and they accounted for 21% of total employment.”

You can check the stats yourself at http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/050215/d050215a.htm

The Entrepreneur's Opportunity

2006-12-24T10:10:00.000-07:00

This is an old joke, but I have always loved the way it summarizes the entrepreneur's challenge - by focusing the small business strategy on the simple question of outcompeting.

Two hunters were out in the woods one day when they heard the snarl of a grizzly bear. One hunter began to run, while the second stopped to put on his running shoes. "What's the point of that?" asked the first hunter. "Do you really think you can outrun a grizzly?"

"No," said the second hunter, straightening up. "I only have to outrun you."

On that optimistic note, please accept my best wishes for Christmas and the holidays.

Look for (much) more activity on this blog in the New Year!

Who will be The Canadian Entrepreneur of 2006?

2006-12-08T01:12:00.000-07:00

The end-of-the-year countdown has begun, and I would like YOU to help me choose the first-ever “Canadian Entrepreneur of 2006” Award.

Let me know who you think has been this year’s most inspiring, successful or impactful Canadian entrepreneur. (“Canadian” being broadly defined as any Canadian-born entrepreneur, any Canadian-resident entrepreneur, or any entrepreneur operating mainly in Canada.)

You can submit as many nominations as you'd like. You can submit just their name(s), or you can tell us in your own words why you think this person should be recognized by this blog. To submit, leave a Comment below, or e-mail me at rick (at) rickspence.ca.

The prize? We’ll salute all the nominees, and then choose a winner who will be profiled in this blog and perhaps in a portion of the mainstream media where I have some influence. (That influence is growing, too – watch for an announcement soon!).

Criteria? Winners will be chosen based on their initiative, success, obstacles overcome, and overall impact. Since this blog has readers from sea to sea, I hope we will receive submissions from across the country.

A few examples to get you going: Why not Balsillie and Laziridis of RiM, for their vision, persistence and success in the Blackberry department? Or Kevin O’Leary, the former tech entrepreneur turned angel investor/prince of darkness who made a huge impact this year on TV’s Dragons’ Den?

How about Teresa Cascioli of Lakeport Brewing, for crashing the exclusive beer club with her buck-a-beer brands? Or John Sleeman, who sold the family brewery that he revived single-handedly for big bucks this year?

These are all Ontario examples of the top of my head. I’m hoping outraged readers will send in their own nominations from across this land.

Entry deadline: Dec. 23.

(All nominees will be entered into a draw for a brand new Canadian Entrepreneur mug. It’s a priceless prize, so don't forget to check back after Christmas to see if you've won!)

Days of Whines and Roses

2006-12-01T14:21:00.000-07:00

What makes a successful entrepreneur? Money, perseverance, vision?
How about: whining?

Mark Cuban, the thoughtful founder of Broadcast.com and owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, blogged recently about his tendency to whine. In high school, he whined about not being able to take business classes that were only available to seniors. At university he complained that his classes were too easy, so he snuck into the MBA classes. When he got a job selling software, he whined about having to sweep the floor and asked the owner if he could go out and close sales. “That led to me getting fired, which in turn led to me starting MicroSolutions.”

At MicroSolutions, Cuban whined that there were no companies to hook personal computers together, “so we became one of the first integrators for Novell Share Data Systems, which in turn became the core for our business that grew and grew until I sold it in 1990.”

Identifying problems and turning them into opportunities became the theme of his life. After whining about how he couldn't listen to Indiana basketball games in Dallas, he and a friend started AudioNet, which became Broadcast.com. At a Mavericks game in 1999 he whined that there was no energy in the building, no fun – so he ended up buying the Mavs.

Cuban claims he can’t understand why people think whining is a negative thing. “Whining is the first step towards change. It’s the moment when you realize something is very wrong, and that you have to take the initiative to do something about it.”

Cuban doesn't seem to realize that most people never take that step toward change; they whine, then shrug, then go back to whatever it is they were doing. It’s the rare, focused, passionate type that turns a complaint into an opportunity - or a fortune.

The takeaway for marketers: Many entrepreneurs were never told by their parents to shut up and stop complaining. They learned early on to be impatient and have high expectations.

If you’re selling to entrepreneurs, you may have already encountered those high expectations. Businesses that don't provide quality products and services have trouble keeping entrepreneurial customers; they're never satisfied.

For successful selling, make sure your product or service has exceptional features that make them superior to the competition. And never, ever compromise that edge. Business owners will be your biggest fans, but they will turn on you in a minute if they think they're no longer getting the value they're paying for.

Entrepreneurs are change agents. And they expect no less of partners such as you.
To read Mark Cuban’s original post, click here.

Nortel gets game

2006-11-20T03:44:00.000-07:00

Canadian-based Nortel Networks last week announced it was expanding its nascent small- and midsize-business networking portfolio with two new data products. It also and upgraded its SMB VoIP offering.

Nortel also is adding new sales training and marketing tools for its channel partners targeting small and medium-sized bsinesses.

The announcement follows a major SMB channel push that began with the launch of Nortel’s first SMB data networking products in June.

Richard Solosky, director of product marketing at Nortel, told CRN.com that “The goal here is to try to strengthen our SMB portfolio so we make it easier for the channel and our partners to sell converged SMB solutions."

Congrats to Nortel (from a long-suffering shareholder) for getting into the groove. Their needs may be different from those of enterprise-sized clients, but small and medium-sized businesses account for more than 90% of the prospects out there – and they're not as cheap as you think. When they have a problem, they need it fixed fast.

The Power of Options

2006-11-13T12:53:00.000-07:00

I was talking recently to an insurance agent who specializes in working with high-income professionals and entrepreneurs. He’s quite selective and does very well, making sure that prospects understand his expectations and ways of doing things before he takes them on as clients.

Even so, however, he agrees that entrepreneurs can be a tough sell. He lives by two rules:

1) Full disclosure: He makes sure clients understand what he sells, why he sells them, and where his income comes from. And he makes sure that he personally owns every product that he sells. If it’s not good enough for him, it’s not good enough for his clients.

2) Options: Once he understands his client’s needs, he researches them diligently and presents three or four different ways the entrepreneur can achieve his or her objectives. That gives him a chance to educate his clients by going through the alternatives, and, presumably, gives the entrepreneur a comfortable feeling of having some control in the process.

You can frame the planner’s conclusion:

“To get an entrepreneur to buy anything, you have to have full disclosure and options.”

I'm not saying they're cheap, but...

2006-11-09T00:14:00.000-07:00

"Simply put, an entrepreneur is someone who can (creatively) do with a dollar, what any fool can do with two."
Bruce Firestone, Ottawa
Founder of the Ottawa Senators

This just in: New strategies needed!

2006-10-30T11:18:00.000-07:00

This just in. IT solutions vendors and resellers targeting SMEs need different tactics and messages than those commonly used to sell to big business.

That’s the unsurprising (but always relevant) conclusion of a new report by ConnectITnews.com, which recently published an article on the latest market research from London, Ont.-based Info-Tech Research Group.

After surveying how 4,000 companies buy technology, Info-Tech’s Indaba division found “a shift in the balance of power in terms of who is actually making the decisions," according to Ed Daugevietis, Information-Tech’s senior analyst for network technology.

The firm found that at companies with 200 or more employees, specialized IT executives made 55% of technology purchasing decisions. But below 200 employees, “there was a stark difference in behavior," said Daugevietis. In small firms with fewer than 40 employees, 80% of technology purchasing decisions were made by non-IT executives.

The proportion of decisions made by IT specialists rises with the number of employees. At companies with 41 to 100 employees, 30% of buying decisions are made by IT management; in companies with 101 to 200 employees, IT managers make 45% per cent of decisions to purchase.

At smaller firms, buying decisions tend to be made less by teams and more by individuals. "Not only is IT not making the decisions, but they are not even in the room," said Daugevietis. “They are frozen out.”

To read the whole article, click here.

Does your company know who makes the decisions to buy your product? If it’s an entrepreneur – not formally trained in your industry, and already making way too many decisions every day - are you communicating to them properly?

A few hints for vendors in this category:

* Drop the jargon now. Focus on benefits and problem-solving, not on technological bells and whistles.
* Do your own survey to find out who’s buying your products and services. Once you've analyzed the results, get them into the hands of your marketers, salesfolk and customer service reps fast.
* Invite end-users to a focus group. Get to know how they think. What language do they use to describe your product and the needs it serves? Again, share the results with your field staff, whose job it is to communicate with these people.

How not to create a small business report

2006-10-23T14:34:00.000-06:00

Since I spent so much time last week critiquing the ads in the Financial Post’s Special Report on Small Business, I thought it might be interesting to review the editorial content as well. What does it tell us about the state of small business in Canada today?

Here, according to the Post, are the key issues facing small business:

Pg. 1: Rising fuel prices. Hmm… the story itself says business optimism is nearing all-time highs. It even concludes that high energy prices have “just become part of doing business in today’s global marketplace.” (Yawn-inducing cliché alert.) They put this story on the front page?

Pg 1: Tips for taking advantage of the strong Loonie. Ya gotta love this sentence: “According to one expert, Canadian small businesses tend to be less exposed to currency fluctuations than larger ones because many, particularly service-oriented businesses such as barbershops and snow-removal contractors, do not deal in global markets.”

2. Looking for early-stage “angel” investors. Quote: “The challenge is to maintain the energy, cohesion and motivation that they’ve created while accreting.”

2. Tapping private equity (mainly for entrepreneurs looking to get out).

So far I would say this material would appeal to about 1% of the entrepreneurs in Canada. But let’s keep going.

3. SME survey results indicate entrepreneurs want more startup help from government and feel they spend too much time finding new customers. Plus: few small businesses have document-management strategies!

4. The infamous article on cross-border shipping entitled “Customs broker helps slow border tie-ups.” The bottom line: invest in compliance systems. Who do they think will read this bilge?

5. Managing the dynamics of a family business. An OK story addressing real-life problems many entrepreneurs will identify with. Marred by a reference to a “recent” CFIB study that came out a year and a half ago.

8. “Where to start on IT solutions for your startup.” A random review of business technologies, from integrated information systems to instant messaging and Skype. A conversation starter for absolute newbies.

9. How to keep hackers and computer viruses out of your information systems. This story might have attracted readers if the writer had described the problem before prescribing all these solutions. Journalism is like sales: Pain first, solution second.

10. “Moms make good entrepreneurs.” It’s an American story from the NY Times News Service. Too bad the Post didn’t think it worth talking to Canadian women entrepreneurs for this section.

11. “Don’t stress about time,” a story on time management. This would be very useful if it contained time-management tips. Instead, it’s about how entrepreneurs should manage their time better, but often don't. Another gem from the NY Times News Service.

12. A bootstrap marketing story on networking and word of mouth. A good topic, though too theoretical: don't they know that entrepreneurs want short, punchy ideas they can use?
Note: In the second paragraph a business prof advises entrepreneurs to “fling themselves into a crowd and start making noise.” No wonder (see pg. 3) they're spending too much time finding new customers.

12. A story on international trade courses offered by the Forum for International Trade Training. Useful but dullll.

14. “Making a success of a family affair.” I thought this back-page story might be the exciting profile of a dynamic Canadian entrepreneur that I expect in sections like this. Except that the story was written in New York about a Portland, Oregon company and reprinted from London’s Financial Times.

CONCLUSION: Small business is an exciting, dynamic force in Canada for innovation and growth. The Post's tribute to Small Business Week misses everything.

(Maybe I shouldn’t have been so hard on the advertisers, since the editors themselves were barely trying.)

More small-biz reports, more bad ads

2006-10-18T11:52:00.000-06:00

The Globe and Mail published its “Report on Small Business” today – yet another newspaper supplement designed to cash in on Small Business Week.

What’s interesting is that the Globe also has a quarterly magazine called Report on Small Business. So consistent branding is obviously not a priority for them.

The Globe section contains most of the ads from the National Post supplement that I blogged about yesterday also. But there are some new ones too, so I’ll critique those later on this week. But once again Rogers rules the whole section with its splashy (and well executed) two-page spread.

I feel guilty saying nice things about Rogers since I worked there for a time. But they clearly spotted the opportunity. Perhaps they knew that the banks and tech companies would approach these small business sections with a ho-hum, got-to-be-there-but-don't-want-to-spend-much-time-thinking-about-it attitude. So they spent some money, demonstrated some real energy, and stole the show.

Your takeaway for today: If you're not going to advertise with enthusiasm and creativity, why advertise at all?

Abandon Hope (The Last Post)

2006-10-17T17:28:00.000-06:00

This is part Four of a series of blogposts critiquing the ads in the National Post’s Special Report on Small Business for Oct. 17. Eights ads down (some of them thumbs-down!), and three to go.

On page 12 we find a tall, thin 1/3 page ad for ADP, the payroll and benefits people. The headline offers a classic technique, the rhetorical question: “Isn’t it time you stopped playing Hide & Go Seek with your hidden payroll costs?” But I’m not sure what that means. And I can’t imagine an entrepreneur who would admit to doing that anyway.

I like the body copy much better: “Doing your payroll with an accounting software package can mean unexpected costs. Lost productivity. Expensive technology upgrades. Penalties for late tax remittances...”

Marketers are supposed to identify their prospects’ pains before offering solutions. ADP does that very well – once you get past that head-scratching headline.

Page 13 is a right-hand, full-page ad for Lenovo that poses a much punchier question: “How much is your life worth?” (“Your notebook is your life. Drop it and you could lose everything. That’s why the ThinkPad T60 has a magnesium alloy rollcage…”)

The graphic shows a cool-looking Lenovo laptop (still equipped with the IBM logo, I see) suspended in space – or it could be plunging to the ground. But I’ve seen laptops before. A photo of a business owner looking lost or frantic with his PC in pieces on the floor would make a much more arresting graphic.

The ad goes on to compare two lists of hardware specs. I don't think entrepreneurs read these – they're for geeks. I would have used that space to tell another story.

Finally, page 14 features a half-page HP ad (although the Intel logo at the top of the ad is bigger and more prominent than HP’s). The picture shows something cutting up the face of an analog clock while the headline reads, “Why take hours to configure your servers when you can cut it down to 15 minutes?”

Another of those rhetorical questions you find yourself asking almost every day…

The small print says those Intel Dual-Core processors can get any job done faster. But I doubt many business owners get to the fine print. They have things to do. Between the incoherent graphic and the incomprehensible headline (or was it the other way 'round?), they probably called it a day.

The score: a couple of great messages from Rogers, and some promise by a few of the banks. For the most part, a disappointing array of ads.

And the worst part is that the advertisers will probably blame the Post when they find out their ads have no impact.

Abandon Hope, part trio

2006-10-17T16:16:00.000-06:00

This is Part Three of a series of posts critiquing the ads in the National Post’s Special Report on Small Business for Oct. 17. So far we’ve chronicled good, bad and ugly. What’s next?

How about “confusing?”

I’m a big fan of Mastercard’s long-running “priceless” campaign. (“There are some things money can't buy. For everything else, there's MasterCard.”) But the 1/3 page color ad on page 9 disrupts the usual rhythm and leaves me clueless. It shows a young couple hanging a “Grand Opening” sign over a storefront. The headline reads: “New store: $0. Moving the business out of the basement: priceless.”

What does this mean? Nothing - until you look down to the bottom of the ad and read about MasterCard’s new contest offering you a chance to win a $50,000 “business building fund” every time you use your MC BusinessCard card. (Yes, it really said “BusinessCard card.” Wordsmithing is not dead, it’s merely languishing, starving, in a forgotten storage room on Madison Avenue.)

That’s a pretty compelling benefit. Too bad they played coy. I bet very few people go from the puzzling headline to the explanatory copy; they’ll just shrug and move on.

Why not come out and say “Win $50,000 just for using your MasterCard.” Expecting people to read on when your copy confuses them is like expecting the rain to stop just because you've stepped out without an umbrella. Sorry: the world doesn't wait for you to explain yourself.

Pages 10 and 11 feature a one-third-page CIBC ad staring down TD’s half-page ad. I credit CIBC for trying to tell a story - in logical order, no less!

The head says “Helping your business succeed.” (Not too original, is it?) The photo shows a confident-looking woman standing in front of a shop that says “Beth’s Books,” while a workman teetering on his ladder is trying to add on three more letters: “.com” The benefit line below promises “Smart banking solutions to help you achieve your goals.”

It’s not much of a story. But a chance for readers to build a narrative line with CIBC as the hero.

Two quibbles: does “dot.com” on the end of a business really reflect people’s goals today? That seems very 1999.
And this may just be me, but I bet very few entrepreneurs consider bookstore owners as role models. They know a dying industry when they see it – and that going up against Amazon.com isn't any better than waiting on a street corner for Chapters/Indigo to scrape you off the bottom of their boot.

TD Canada Trust’s ad on the facing page shows an attractive young couple in a retail environment holding a sign that says “Grand Opening.” (Stop me if you've heard this one before.) “Here’s to the big dreams that help small businesses soar,” says the understated headline below. Yawn.

But wait! There are signs of intelligence in the body copy. TD cites its sponsorship of events across the country supporting Small Business Week as proof that it appreciates Canada’s hard-working business owners. It even invites you to a special web page for information on Small Business Week events in your area. Here’s an ad that’s not just about them – it offers a tangible, free benefit to me! Kudos to the TD for offering something that’s not just different, but useful.

Almost done. One post to go.

Abandon Hope, part deux

2006-10-17T15:29:00.000-06:00

This is Part Deux of a series of blogposts critiquing the ads in the National Post’s Special Report on Small Business in today’s paper (Oct. 17). Oh, the humanity! (For Part I, click here.)

On page 5, BMO offers a half-page ad featuring a happy-looking woman in a suit that’s BMO-blue. In her hand she’s “holding” up a check mark. Which probably explains the cryptic headline, “Keep your small business in check.”

Read the copy and you’ll find your business can benefit from BMO banking solutions that are “(check) Simple; (check) Flexible; and (check) Fast.” Routine benefit statement, dumb headline, uninspired concept tying it all together. Do people get paid to make boring advertising?

The ad finishes by saying, “Ask us for details.” Oops.... It offers no phone number, no email, no URL. Maybe they don't really mean it. (The RBC ad on the previous page offered a toll-free number plus a custom URL.)

Page 5-6 is a double-page spread for Rogers wireless email solutions. It’s a great-looking two color ad (just a red border and highlighted text), with a strong picture of a young, somewhat scruffy-looking (but cool) business person and Rogers’ “YOU Unltd” headline. Plus, pix of the hot Blackberry Pearl, the Motorola SLVR, and other to-drool-for gadgets.

With all the space it bought, Rogers jams in a lot of find-the-right-wireless-solution-for-you copy, without ever making the ad look too busy. Rogers even dares to get into pricing - and it shows its knowledge of and respect for this market by noting that its wireless solutions start at $15 a month. (And who knew the Pearl [Blackberry plus camera, MP3 players, etc.] was just $249?)

I feel guilty for being so positive, but god job, Rogers. You spent a lot of money, but you own this supplement.

Now turn the page and you hit another red n white Rogers ad – for its Portable Internet service where you plug your modem into a power outlet. It’s voodoo to me, but a neat product with a stunning benefit line: “Now wherever there’s an outlet, you're in business.” No gimmicks, just genuine innovation that appeals to this audience.

Plus, even the body copy, which other advertisers seem to consider throwaway lines, is creatively writtten and speaks to entrepreneurial attitudes. "Just look around you," concludes Rogers. "Your potential is limitless.")

More in part 3.

Abandon Hope all ye who read SB Week ads

2006-10-17T15:05:00.000-06:00

Small Business Week is almost here, so the media are unleashing their “Special Reports” on small business in order to get ads from guilt-edged advertisers who need to be seen supporting Canada’s entrepreneurs.

(When I was editor of PROFIT Magazine, I used to get frustrated that we couldn't do something similar. But since we covered small business year-round, there was really nothing special for us to say this time of year. As I used to tell people, “At PROFIT, every week is Small Business Week.”)

Anyway, today was the National Post’s turn to release a 14-page supplement on Small Biz, so I thought I’d leaf through the pages and annotate the ads – to spare you the trouble.

Ad 1, on pg 3, is a half-page color ad from RBC with a bad graphic – a giant hand holding a little business card. The business card doesn’t stand out, but if you take the time to read it, it says “Marcus Evans: Small Business Owner, Sales, Marketing, Reception, Bookkeeper, Payroll Manager, Reception.” So the entrepreneur is a multi-tasker? How novel. (Not!)

But the main headline makes up for the intellectual vacuity of the photo. Managing to be knowing, authoritative and caring at the same time, it says: “If you don't have time to talk, it’s probably time to talk.” Kudos for great copy, despite the uninspiring graphic.

Ad 2 is an Intel 1/3 pager on Page 4. I’m not usually sure what Intel is advertising at the best of times, but this is not even a good time. The picture shows a woman reading some book below a big white lamp. The headline is: “with Intel built in, Mission Critical has reassurance built in.” I have no idea what that means.

To figure it out, you have to read some very small type that’s white on black. In other words, you really need to care. But why would you? There’s nothing remotely compelling or relevant about this ad so far.

(Okay, okay. In case you're wondering, the small type at the bottom says: KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON (that would explain the big white lamp in the photo): Thanks to Intel Centrino Duo mobile technology, a small Canadian business like Mission Critical Unmanned Services can survey low-lying power lines where cabling is not an option…zzzzz” (Three more boring sentences deliberately omitted here.)

I’m all for case studies and testimonials in ads, but this reads like a technical manual. Memo to agency: good copywriting is normally a pre-req for getting into this business.

Plus, using a case study doesn't mean that you have to muscle the reader out of the ad. If they can't see themselves in the picture alongside the chosen example, they won’t care what you're advertising. And don't expect busy, self-absorbed people like entrepreneurs to go reading the fine print just to find a reason to like you.

Good news for Intel, though. On the same page the Post offers a headline that is not only dull, but offers an evil double-meaning. It makes Intel’s copy look good by comparison. The offending headline? “Customs broker helps slow border tie-ups.”

This is taking longer than I expected. More in the next post.

Earn their respect

2006-10-13T08:44:00.000-06:00

On my other blog I wrote recently about the day I received two phone calls (and later a letter) from banks offering money to my business. Since my capital needs are few, I saw it as a sign of the apocalypse.

But equally interesting is how it was done.

The first call came from U.S.-based Wells Fargo. Every few years ago it makes a point of trying to skim the Canadian market. But someone should tell them that Canadians aren't impressed by that Oklahoma semi-western twang - it sounds unimpressive and uneducated to our mid-lantic ears.

Here's how the thought process goes: they're calling from outside the country, therefore they don't really know me, therefore they don't really care about me. Why a marketer would bother under these conditions, I don't know.

You might say, they wouldn't be doing this if it didn't work. I agree. The question is, would it work better if they hired people who sounded more local, more informed?

People like to buy from people who are like themselves - or from people they like. The Wells Fargo wagon is leaving the depot with only three wheels.

Then there was CIBC. Nice woman wanted to give me money at prime. That's a lot higher than the 1.99% rate Wells Fargo wanted to give me. The poor woman didn't know what to say when I told her that her rate wasn't very competitive. At first she just ignored it.

When I pressed the point, she finally replied, "But that's an American bank." As if we don't already deal every day with American retailers, American insurers, American clients, American TV.

Memo to CIBC and other folks marketing to small business. Train your people better. Arm them with competitive information. Help them explain WHY we should deal with you. Price isn't everything - especially when your introductory offer can't match others in the market.

The third offer that day came from Amex. It's the third time this year they've sent me a little plastic card to play with. My seven-year-old loved the first two. I guess they think their prospects have elementary-school mentalities: "Ooh, shiny plastic card. Must sign up now."

No wonder telemarketing and direct-mail response rates are so low.

Business owners think they are important people. (I think they're right.) Marketers should treat them as such. Give them offers worthy of their stature, through channels that earn their respect.

Staples gets down to business

2006-10-06T17:56:00.000-06:00

Roger Pierce and Andrew Patricio of Toronto-based BizLaunch have just announced an alliance with Staples Business Depot that will see them holding free small business seminars in Staples stores on weeknights across the GTA.

If they get the turnout they're looking for, Staples and BizLaunch hope to extend the program to more stores across Canada.

Congrats to Andrew and Roger, who have been working very hard to promote small business through their courses for the past few It’s also a good deal for Staples, which is showing it’s serious about helping its customers succeed. Small business owners are eager for information and contacts. But they don't particularly want to get their education from books or extended courses, and they're tired of networking events where they just get hit on from every direction.

“Almost one million Canadians will start a small business during the next year,” says Roger Pierce. “There’s a huge thirst for small business learning and these in-store seminars will make it easy for entrepreneurs to get it.”

BizLaunch's topics include Your Business Plan in 10 Easy Steps, How to Market Your Business on the Internet, and How to Sell Like a Pro. Not brain exactly brain surgery - but it's exactly the solid, practical info most business owners need.

You’ll find the seminar schedule here. Courses start Oct. 10 and run through Nov. 30 on weekday evenings (7-8:30 pm) at 13 GTA Staples stores. Best of all, according to the press release, “Seminar attendees also receive money-saving product offers and a chance to win prizes.”

If you're trying to understand and influence the small business market, check out the schedule And get thee to a Staples store.

Screw the Portage Trail

2006-09-29T08:22:00.000-06:00

For today's key insights into the febrile minds of Canadian entrepreneurs, I present this hard-scrabbling evidence.

These pics come from an online photo album that Toronto entrepreneur Michel Neray (www.EssentialMessage.com) created of his recent canoe trip in the Ottawa Valley. I refer not so much to Brent and Stuart (I don't know them) but to the picture at right.

"Screw the portage trail" could stand as the timeless motto of entrepreneurs across Canada. Sure, the portage trail is likely easier, and undoubtedly safer. But it's also longer, and likely dull. If the point of a canoe trip is to be on the water, entrepreneurs want to spend as much time as they can on the water.

Impatient? Yes - though most entrepreneur would prefer to be labelled focussed.

The natural entrepreneurial inclination is to climb the rock, haul up the canoe, and get on with it. And not just because they like to work. Because they are more goal-focussed than most people. They see the big picture, and are eager to bring it about.

Or as Michel puts it in his album:

For more tripping pictures (you can also see how they lost a paddle and improvised a new one out of sticks, which is of course another another fine entrepreneurial metaphor), click here.

"I'm just a bad employee"

2006-09-26T14:13:00.000-06:00

Nathan Kaiser is Seattle entrepreneur who interviews Internet entrepreneurs for his website, nPost.com. It's a great place to catch up on interviews with young, cutting-edge entrepreneurs and study how they think and act. Tremendous insights to be gained.

Consider these comments from Leonard Brody, the Vancouver-based CEO and Founder of NowPublic. He does one of the best jobs I've seen in explaining how an entrepreneur's life differs from that of a standard corporate manager/employee.

"This is my fifth company. Frankly, there's no divine inspirational moment. I'm just a bad employee. I don't answer to people particularly well and I tend to be a much higher level thinker so where my thoughts are typically fifty thousand feet in the air, it's very difficult I think, when you're working in a larger organization to be creative.

"... Twelve years after starting my first company I realized that have a job is quite luxurious. You show up there's a desk and a phone. There's lunch. You don't have to worry about who is keeping the lights on. You do your job, you work and typically you go home and the stresses of work, while you may carry little bits of task-related things you have to do, the overall direction and strategy and vision is not really in your hands. There is an element of peace of mind you've got that you wouldn't have if you were an entrepreneur.

"The luxury that you trade off for that is having to deal with other people's politics and the organizational problems. It is an intense ride being an entrepreneur. I think most people underestimate that. I think they think it's the easiest thing in the world. It's a wonderful thing to work for yourself and there's no stress. Stress is ten times what it would be in the workforce, but I wouldn't have it any other way."

Read the complete interview here.

What do entrepreneurs want? Help.

2006-09-13T01:07:00.000-06:00

Dave Free thought he had a service that marketing-oriented business owners would kill for: "an inexpensive, do-it-yourself system to collect customer feedback, generate referrals and stay in touch with their customers." It was a way to ensure their customers are happy and get them talking to their friends. And according to Free, testing showed users received substantial benefits, at low cost.

Funny thing, though. "As we've met with business owners in person or attracted them to our website, it has become clear that most of them don't want to be taught how to use the tool. They don't have time. They would much prefer to pay for a service."

Like many marketers before him, Free overestimated business owners' interest in learning new processes - even if it helps them save money. Time is their most precious commodity - and on their endless list of things to do, learning to use your service ranks, oh, somewhere about nowhere.

The ironically-named Free is now revamping his pricing model to cover the additional service his company must provide. "Some small businesses may balk, but I am now convinced that there are more small businesses looking for a fillet on the platter (complete with a wedge of lemon) than those interested in buying a fishing pole--even if it comes with a fly-tying kit."

Very interesting post from the front lines of small business marketing. Read the whole post here.
(Thanks to Dean Jones for the heads-up.)

Keep it Simple!

2006-09-08T14:55:00.000-06:00

I had a fascinating discussion today with a very frustrated vendor who targets small business.

They have a complex but very useful robust service for small business, and it’s very well priced. I can't imagine any business not getting its money’s worth, and much more, from their product.

Unfortunately, the prospects aren’t buying. Even though these services have been carefully targeted to the real needs of small business , the business owners remain skeptical and uninvolved.

I can't say much more due to client confidentiality, but I think there are three problems here, all of which are commonly encountered in selling to small business.

1) The client is trying to do too much. Its offer is bold and feature-rich. It’s like a VCR with too many buttons; I think the average entrepreneur has trouble taking it all in at first glance. And as we’ve said in this space before, even the best offers rarely get a second glance.

2) The client is trying to change behaviors. To take advantage of these services, most small business owners will have to change the way they view many of the functions they normally do. They’ll have to accept new, more sophisticated processes. While most of them need to make these changes, marketers (especially to small business) should never underestimate the difficulty of change.

3) The client is moving too fast. They need to start small and win the market’s trust before they can expect to sell complex integrated services. The solutions they're selling are valid, but they're not on the prospects’ priority list just yet. Keep it simple: Getting a few early wins would go a long way toward creating value for their prospects and thus build the trust needed to move them to the next level.

Entrepreneurs are no dummies. They know successful change is hard to achieve. Unless you make your offer bite-size and (relatively) risk-free, they're likely to take a pass.

That may be a mistake in the long run. But most entrepreneurs have enough on their plate dealing with short-term problems to worry about the long run.

How are entrepreneurs changing society?

2006-08-22T01:32:00.000-06:00

Thinking about this subject on the dock at the cottage this weekend, I came come up with a list of five Canadian entrepreneurs who are changing society today.

In no particular order:

* Former eBay president Jeff Skoll was an early shareholder and the first employee of the online auction giant. Not only did the Montreal-born engineer help change the way the world buys and sells, but his Jeff Skoll Foundation now seeds social-entrepreneurship projects around the world, giving low-income societies the tools and motivation to help themselves.

* Energy Savings Income Fund is probably the largest business in Canada ever founded, built and owned by a woman. Rebecca MacDonald has sweated bullets and survived infuriating government policy reversals to give consumers a new way to save money on utility costs – and provide an exciting new role model for Canadian women.

* Jimmy Pattison, the former Vancouver car dealer, runs a mammoth personal empire that’s involved in advertising and publishing, supermarkets, real estate, transportation distribution – and still owns more than a dozen auto dealerships. It’s Canada’s third largest private corporation, and he says he’s not leaving it to his children – so I suspect he may emerge as one of Canada’s largest philanthropists.

Best of all, when Vancouver’s Expo86 went off the rails more than 20 years ago, Pattison took more than a year away from his business to whip it into shape. At a crucial time, Jimmy Pattison bailed out Canada

* Mike Lazaridis combined his boyhood love of radio and computers and developed the always-on wireless email device now known as the BlackBerry. He’s had a lot of help from his co-CEO, but it was Lazaridis' vision and curiosity that created Research in Motion and changed the way business communicates.

* Moving from BlackBerries to cranberries, there's Martin Le Moine, founder of Quebec-based Fruit d'Or, North America's first large-scale organic cranberry producer. Developed out of a hobby farm intended for Le Moine’s “retirement,” Fruit d'Or supplies dried and frozen cranberries and blueberries to food processors for use in trail mixes, drinks, cereals, granola and nutrition bars. He’s leading awareness of the health benefits of cranberries, and creating jobs in rural areas that need all the employment they can get. "I wanted to do something good," he told PROFIT Magazine this spring when Fruit d’Or was named Canada’s third fastest-growing company, "not just grow cranberries for the sake of growing cranberries."

Why do entrepreneurs matter? They're building Canada’s 21st century economy, they're changing lives and doing good. And their impact has never been greater.

What is an Entrepreneur?

2006-08-11T08:53:00.000-06:00

"An entrepreneur is not necessarily a risk taker, but a risk reducer. Each day at work, the entrepreneur seeks to make decisions to increase the longevity of the business and diminish the risk.

"And yet, herein lies a paradox. For an entrepreneur, lack of growth (and uncertainty) is like death. When things start becoming too predictable, the challenge ebbs away. It is then time for a new dream, a new vision."

Rajesh Jain (founder of India's first portal and its first web services company).

"An entrepreneur to me just means someone who thinks out of the box and they’re on a different beam. 1 + 1 doesn’t equal 2. 1 + 1 equals 5 to them, somehow.”

Michael Crooke, President & CEO, Patagonia, Inc.

No humor please, we're business owners

2006-08-02T12:05:00.000-06:00

I saw this piece of direct mail today from Bell promoting their Sympatico High Speed Unplugged Internet Service. It's not directly targeted at CEOs and entrepreneurs, but at travellers who will pay $45 a month (and up) to connect to the Net from offices, homes and airport lounges across the country.
Which means business owners are a big part of the target market.

In my previous post (below or here), when I advised marketers to "use humour sparingly," I wasn't thinking of animated beavers specifically. But I should have been.

To paraphrase and repeat: When marketing to CEOs, no cartoon beavers.

How to reach the CEO

2006-07-31T23:07:00.000-06:00

I was talking recently with a prospective client who was keen to target CEOs. And while I tend to think of myself as the “entrepreneur” guy, in truth, I have been writing for CEOs for 25 years.

Not only the CEOs of entrepreneurial companies, but of big businesses as well. My education in journalism came at the Financial Times of Canada, the weekly business tabloid that aimed at top corporate decision-makers.

In six years I went from temporary summer replacement to managing editor (the guy who runs the newsroom). The reason? With a lot of patient coaching from terrific editors such as David Tafler, Paul Nowack, Terry Corcoran and Ron Blunn, I figured out what it takes to engage the CEO.

Here’s what I had pounded into my head every week about catching the attention of CEOs:

* Offer them an advantage. Call it a benefit if you must, but these are competitive people. They prefer solutions that do more than just help them – they want products, services and information that put them ahead of the other guys.

* Keep it relevant. You have to be as focused as they are. As soon as you appear to wander or go off track, CEOs will turn the page, change the channel, or start looking at their watch.

* Be timely. When they need you, they need you now. If you get to them a day late, you've lost the sale.

* Be specific. Don’t just say your solution can boost the bottom line. Explain quickly and exactly what your product or service does and how it will help them.

* Use clear and simple examples. Don’t expect them to connect the dots for you or reach the conclusion you want. Spell it out.

* Use humour sparingly. If they don't find it funny, they’ll think you're wasting their time. And there’s no worse sin than that.

(Click here for my tribute to Ron Blunn, one of my editors at the Times, who passed away in June at the age of 56.)

Direct Mail that almost worked

2006-06-27T21:34:00.000-06:00

Direct mail is a lost art. As consumers, we’ve come to recognize time-wasting ad material even when it comes in a sealed envelope, and we automatically file it where it can do the least harm.

But then there’s this DM package that arrived in my mailbox a few weeks ago from Bell Canada. It begged to be opened. When you looked at the transparent back of the envelope, you could see this 5x7" "Open for Business" sign, just like you might find at a quality stationery store.

You tear the envelope open and it’s exactly what you thought – a very cool “Open for Business” sign on heavy, glossy stock. High quality and tough enough to put on your office door or in the front window of your store.

The back of the card offers this pitch: “Visit www.bell.ca/open to log in with your enclosed Preferred Business I.D. now!”

That’s not exactly a strong benefit statement. But the “Open” card is so cool that you're ready to give Bell the benefit of the doubt. So you actually look at the color brochure that came with the sign. Although the headline is vague (“We’re Open for Your Business 24/7!”), the thematic link to the sign is so strong that I went ahead and opened the four-page brochure.

Alas, this is where it all breaks down. You get a two-page spread about – well, something. It has product demos that have something to do with a BlackBerry, it offers opinion polls from Canadian business people, a Solution Generator (“for a customized wireless recommendation”), and BizNews articles that offer “the expert opinion and newsworthy information you want to know.”

So, I guess it’s some sort of website. Does it have a name? A brand? Apparently not.

The marketing bumph calls it, variously, www.bell.ca/open (which strikes me as an address, not a name); “one valuable resource for everything you need” regarding wireless solutions; “one convenient and easily accessible place”; “access to instant information for all aspects of your business”; and, “the site.”

The d-m guys got the concept right. They created a must-open package that arrests the attention of business owners. But boy did the product copywriters let them down.

Still, everyone who got the package also received their very own “Preferred Business I.D.” password that provides “open access” to the site. There’s nothing entrepreneurs like better than feeling like a VIP, so maybe some of them went to the site just to see what preferred benefits were on offer.

But if they did, they were proceeding on curiosity, not in search of a product or benefit. Which means that while Bell might get them to go where it wanted, these visitors are ready to bail at the first sign of a hard sell – or any evidence that they're not as special as they’ve been led to believe.

Will Bell be up to the challenge? Is Donald Trump’s hair colour real? Check out our next post for the gruesome details.

Marketers' biggest mistake

2006-06-21T00:18:00.000-06:00

What's the worst mistake big-business people make when marketing to small business?

Warrillow & Co., a Toronto-based company that researches the small business market on behalf of bigger clients, asked that question of Gary Slack, chairman & "Chief Experience Officer" of Chicago-based Slack Barshinger, an integrated marketing agency focussed on business-to-business. Slack Barshinger was BtoB magazine’s 2006 Midsize Agency of the Year, and the Business Marketing Association’s 2006 Agency of the Year.

Warrillow: "What’s the biggest mistake you see enterprise companies make when they target small businesses?"

Slack: "I think the biggest mistake we see enterprise firms make is assuming they understand the needs, challenges and mindset of their small-business customers and prospects. We still too commonly encounter marketers who try to arrive at the answers to critical questions by arguing them out around conference tables rather than doing the research required to really understand the marketplace.

"On top of that, we also see enterprise companies sometimes make the mistake of assuming that small companies are the same as their own company – for example, large, bureaucratic, territorial and slow to act. They don’t sufficiently appreciate how quickly decisions can be made at a smaller company, assuming you have reached the right person or persons with the right message.

"Last but not least, we’ve also found that enterprise firms sometimes make blanket assumptions about the SMB buying process related to their product or service... assumptions that may prove incorrect. In the chaotic world of SMB life, job descriptions cover a fraction of what an individual actually does, and research is needed to truly understand all the potential players who might be involved in a purchasing decision, what information those individuals will seek, their various pain points, and what steps they will follow in their firm’s buying cycle."

In my opinion, the trouble with researching small business habits is that they're so different. A focus group of 10 people couldn't begin to cover the broad spectrum of possible small business attitudes and behaviours. Yet quantitative research is so limited in terms of covering multiple options and open-ended behaviours and attitudes.

So what's a marketer to do? Cover off multiple options: one-on-one research and experience, small-group interviews, and quantitative surveys. The hard part, though, it to synthesize the information and convey the resulting intelligence and insights to everyone in your marketing, product development and executive teams who needs to understand these markets.

Fortunately, technology has come up with unique new solutions for that. Internal blogs and wikis are great ways of recording, sharing and understanding an ongoing wave of information. And you can control access to any participants you wish.

I know, I know. Something new to research. But don't worry. Blogs and wikis are easy to learn, simple to use and easy to set up, yet cost next to nothing.

And they're a great way to ensure that your hard-earned research gets understood and gets used.

For more of Warrillow's interview with Slack, click here.

Keep it short, Stupid!

2006-06-07T23:15:00.000-06:00

There's a saying in marketing that long copy is better-read than short copy - if its value message is sufficently compelling.

Does this rule apply to small busines owners? Probably not.

Consider the entrepreneur I met with today. We were talking about getting phone and e-mail messages through to business prospects, and his view was this: "I never write or read long e-mails."

I was shocked. He really ignores e-mails of more than a couple of pragraphs? Yep, he said, although he admitted that missives from family and friends might get through his screen - but not business contacts.

And isn't he worried about missing something important? Hasn't this practice come back to bite him? His response to both questions: "No."

But then, he said, most of his e-mail comes from other entrepreneurs and people who are used to working with them. So they follow pretty much the same philosophy as he does.

In small business, brevity is the soul of profit. How quickly does your messgae get across?

Can small business use your site?

2006-05-30T10:39:00.000-06:00

Internet “usabilty” expert Jakob Nielsen is puzzled.

In an e-mail newsletter article today, he writes about business to business websites – and why they're so hard to use.

“User testing shows that business-to-business websites have substantially lower usability than mainstream consumer sites,” says Nielsen. “If they want to convert more prospects into leads, B2B sites should follow more guidelines and make it easier for prospects to research their offerings.”

Nielsen says many B2B sites are “stuck in the 1990s” in their attitude to the user experience. They emphasize internally focused design and fail to answer customers' main questions.

“These sites haven't realized that the Web has reversed the company-customer relationship,” says Nielsen. “Most online interactions are demand-driven: you either give people what they want or watch as they abandon your site for the competition's.”

In Nielsen’s user tests, B2B sites earned a mere 58% success rate (measured as the percentage of that time users accomplished their tasks on a site). Mainstream websites had a success rate of 66%.

Here’s the puzzle. “Considering that there's immensely more money at stake for B2B than for business-to-consumer," says Nielsen, "it's astounding that B2B sites offer a much worse user experience.”

For pete's sake, put the customer first.

For Nielsen's full details, click here.

Interested in usability issues? Canada now has its own usability blogger: Dmitry Buterin of Bonasource. He's actually pretty good (so you'd better hope he doesn't find your site). Click here for his blog, Blinking VCR.

Move your prospects forward, faster

2006-05-26T04:32:00.000-06:00

I have a professional services client in Toronto that is very interested in the entrepreneurial market, so I have been working with them to help them understand better how to identify and work with growth entrepreneurs.

Yesterday we held a session with one of Canada’s top growth leaders as he candidly outlined some of the problems he has faced in his business.

One of his comments should be of immense interest to anyone selling services and systems to small business.

Every entrepreneur in a growing business faces a conflict between trying to develop the staff that has been with the company for a long time, and bringing in more experienced professionals who really know how to do the job. Essentially, the conflict is the business’s need for greater professionalism vs the entrepreneur’s sense of loyalty to the people who have helped the company grow – but may no longer be the best people to help it grow further.

This entrepreneur admitted he was very slow to resolve that conflict. In the end, there was no doubt – without more professional management, his company was doomed. He took the plunge and brought in new people with the skills he needed. Some of his long-serving colleagues accepted reassignment; others accepted severance.

Most services companies targeting small business are selling professionalism. But not all entrepreneurs are ready to buy. Like yesterday’s guest speaker, many put it off for years. This suggests that there is a huge opportunity to sell more professional services to more entrepreneurial companies earlier – if you can help the leaders deal with their natural reluctance to upset the delicate balance of people and skills they have set up in their businesses.

How can you get loyalty-minded entrepreneurs to move forward faster?

Acknowledging their dilemma is one step. Explaining how other entrepreneurial clients have successfully solved this problem would be another. Paint a picture of what success looks like – and why so many more people – staff, customers, other stakeholders – will be better off in the long run.

Review your experience and ransack your client list to identify success stories of how you have helped other entrepreneurial firms grow stronger and faster by establishing more effective processes. Ask satisfied past clients if you can refer prospects to them for a personal discussion on how to manage such tricky transitions.

Entrepreneurs distrust experts who promise them the moon. Like everyone else, they tend to drag their feet when change is painful. But they are willing to listen – and act – if you have compelling evidence and testimonials proving that short-term pain will produce sustained long-term gain.

The client company will be stronger for it. And so will yours.

Entrepreneur Reality Check

2006-05-18T12:51:00.000-06:00

While looking for something else (as always), I ran across a great post on how an entrepreneur’s strengths become weaknesses – written by entrepreneur Thomas J. Leonard for all the long-suffering spouses of entrepreneurs.

It’s a great way to study both the common characteristics of entrepreneurs, as well as their needs (and thus your opportunities to help them).

The post, “The Top 10 Great Qualities of the Entrepreneur that Cause the Most Problems,” dates back to 1996, but it is none the worse for that. The species hasn’t evolved much since then.

Here’s my summary.
1. Can't focus, lots of ideas, runs in circles.
The entrepreneur's currency is ideas, often a flood of ideas. Encourage MORE ideas, don't try to pin them down.
2. Not good with details.
Suggest they give up even trying. Sure, this may create a mess, but challenge the entrepreneur to solve the mess as if the mess was a new business! (Entrepreneurs are like kids; it's good to divert them.)
3. Feel odd, different, alone, strange.
Entrepreneurs are simply wired differently and they SHOULD feel this way, because it's TRUE and there is nothing wrong with it. If you can help the entrepreneur relish their unique, contrary, leading edge ways, you'll help them feel better about themselves, which will increase the flow of ideas and success.
4. Good at starting businesses, bad at running them.
Help the entrepreneur to set a "sell date" right now, so they know they're getting out and when! This relieves some of the pressure and also forces the entrepreneur to create a salable company vs. one that is just a monument to their ego.
5. Chaos reigns in the company.
Creation is messy! A solution is to help the entrepreneur create fully automated and foolproof systems, usually managed by outside contractors or vendors who are not IN the business day to day.
6. They fail. And fail again.
Just as a kid has to fall when learning to ride a bike, so do entrepreneurs fail as they learn how to be successful.
7. They exaggerate and are too optimistic.
Entrepreneurs are so far out in front of the rest of us that they NEED to exaggerate how well things are going, in order to keep the faith -- hey it's lonely out in front (or in left field).
8. Always at the edge financially.
Get the entrepreneur to direct this energy into creating a healthy savings account instead of leveraging so much.
9. Family of the entrepreneur suffers.
You didn't just marry a man or woman, you married an ENTREPRENEUR! Develop your own strong interests and let your husband/wife do their own thing. You'll always be #2 (well, maybe #1 and a half). You can have a great marriage if you get this.
10. Sales dip.
Take this as an invitation for the entrepreneur to get back to selling, where they usually shine.

I agree with most of these, though No. 9 seems excessively harsh. What do you think?

For the original post, see http://topten.org/public/AA/AA3.html

The entrepreneur's favourite knowledge tool

2006-05-15T12:22:00.000-06:00

Enterprise Toronto, the municipal agency dedicated to new business development, recently polled its visitors (most of them are presumably business owners or aspiring so) about their principal sources of small business knowledge.

I was pretty surprised at the one-sided nature of the result. I guess I shouldn't have been, but in blogs one is supposed to be truthful.

The major source of small business knowledge cited by 41.5% of the 106 respondents was…

(a few blank lines to build the tension and give you time to guess)

(a few more blank lines to further build the tension and give you time to change your guess)

The major source of small business knowledge cited by 41.5% of respondents was… the Internet!

I have known for a long time that entrepreneurs are wary of books and magazines and formal instruction, and that they prefer the school-of-hard-knocks wisdom they can derive from discussions with experienced business people. But I was surprised to see the Internet run away with it all.

The actual results:
What is your major source for small business knowledge?

The Internet – 44 (41.5%)
On the Job Experience – 24 (22.6%)
Books - 13 (12.26%)
Seminars – 13 (12.26%)
Other Entrepreneurs – 6 (5.7%)
School – 5 (4.7%)
Audio/Video Programs – 1 (0.94%)

Obviously these aren’t the only sources entrepreneurs use – but merely the distribution of their preferred methods. With just over 100 respondents, this is clearly not a scientific sample. But I think the results are important.

(Although I wish they hadn't included "On the Job Experience" as an option. That's a different kind of knowledge, and it's one which everyone has and gains more of daily, so I think it diminished the results for some of the other sources of info.)

So why did the Net win so big? With the flexibility of Google and other search tools, the Net’s round-the-clock availability, and the sheer depth of (mostly free!) business, management, market and financial information online, the Internet is a tool almost made to order for entrepreneurs. The question is: what are they looking up, and why? **

Follow-Up: How are your customers using the Internet? And how can you use digital technologies to reach them when they are using their favourite mode of business research?

(**Of course, there is also the matter of sample bias. You would expect the results of an online survey to reflect the fact that all respondents, by definition, already use the Net for business purposes. I think the same bias accounts for the relatively high ranking of the fourth result, Seminars, since ET puts on lots of workshops and seminars, for beginners and experienced entrepreneurs alike.)

Luck, or something like it

2006-05-11T23:47:00.000-06:00

I was talking to a Canadian entrepreneur recently who has a fabulous view on luck.

In the past 10 years he has seen one business partnership crumble, then another partner die. His office has been flooded out, at great expense. And as most of his revenues come from U.S. customers, the rise of the Canadian dollar has been nearly lethal.

Yet he still considers himself a lucky man.

Typical entrepreneurial megalomania? Hardly. He’s just figured out where success comes from.

Here’s how he sees it. In baseball, you get three strikes and you're out. But in business you can keep swinging as long as you want – so long as you’re standing at home plate. Take enough pitches and eventually you’ll get one you can hit out of the park.

So despite tragedy, floods and cash-flow crunches (and a nightmare insurance claim), this entrepreneur considers himself lucky because nothing has ever knocked him off home plate for long. That’s why his motto is: “The secret of success in business is staying in business.”

And by the way – he and his company have been hitting a bunch of home runs lately. No one deserves it more.

How to sell to Entrepreneurs, part deux

2006-05-05T12:23:00.000-06:00

Last month I offered five characteristics of growth entrepreneurs, and speculated on what they may mean to marketers. If you haven't read that post, scroll down two posts or click here before reading on.

Growth companies are a huge potential market, fiercely loyal and ready to buy. To help you tap this growing market, here are five more attributes of successful entrepreneurs and growth firms - with a few clues about how you can use that information to sell to them.

6) An abiding personal interest in their products or industry helps most growth entrepreneurs persevere and succeed. Tip: Sell with passion. Entrepreneurs expect you to be as excited about your product as they are about theirs.

7) Growth firms pour most of their profits back into the business. However successful these businesses are, many remain cash-poor for years. Tip: When they question your price they're not being "cheap" - they have legitimate cash-flow concerns. To make the sale, acknowledge those concerns and address this need.

8) Growth firms think and operate globally. For them, borders are opportunities, not obstacles. Result: They need solutions that will work around the world.

9) These firms are keen to keep growing. That means their needs are always changing. And it means your products and services must be able to serve these customers all along their growth path.

10) These companies are on missions. Many of today’s top growth entrepreneurs truly believe their products and services can make the world a better place. Tip: To connect with these entrepreneurs, your business brand should stand for something, too.

If you want to add to this list, or if you have questions about any of these characteristics, please leave a comment below. Or e-mail me at rick(at)rickspence.ca

What do women entrepreneurs want?

2006-05-02T11:09:00.000-06:00

According to a recent survey by RBC Financial Group, personal priorities are more important than money in motivating women to start their own businesses.

Just 23% of women polled said getting wealthy was a prime motivator for owning their own business. The comparable figure for men was 36%.

By contrast, 63% of women said they wanted a more flexible working schedule. (Editor's note: What were they thinking?)

According to Kris Depencier, RBC's national manager for small business, "for a large portion of these women, building a business is not only a labour of love, but also a way to balance work and family obligations."

The survey found other differences between men and women entrepreneurs:

* Currently, more women (73%) were first-time business owners than men (65%);
* Women are more likely to employ a spouse or child in the business (59% of women vs 47% of men).

Men and women described surprisingly similar frustrations when asked about their key problems in launching and running a business. Their three main challenges:

* finding customers (57% women/56% men);
* keeping a steady workload (37% women/38% men);
* and working long hours (34% each). (Editor's note: See previous editor's note.)

In my experience, people who get into their own business to gain more control over their time are like a kid who joins the army to get some peace and quiet.

Marketer's takeaway: How can you help entrepreneurs find more time in their schedules? How can you help them make the most of the spare hours they find to themselves?

Or better still: how can you help them land more customers?
Chant that like a mantra and you will always have the entrepreneur's ear.

How to sell to Entrepreneurs

2006-04-21T01:33:00.000-06:00

My study of the 2005 list of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies, published by PROFIT Magazine, helped me identify 10 common characteristics of fast-growth companies. These commonalities also suggest appropriate tactics for marketing to these firms.

1) These companies are founded on innovation. They present new solutions to their markets, not business as usual. If you are offering products and solutions that are new and improved, they’d better be genuine improvements, because these firms have invested in innovation - and expect you to do so as well.

2) These firms offer real value in the marketplace: new solutions, better service, lower prices. How else does a new business break into today’s crowded markets? Since these emerging companies create so much value for their clients, they expect value from their suppliers in return. They are most receptive to marketers who also put value and customer benefit first.

3) Most of these companies succeed through productive partnerships with other organizations. These companies understand win-win, and they expect you to, too.

4) Their founders have leveraged personal relationships to get where they are today. They are innovative dealmakers. And they expect no less from you.

5) Being an emerging business doesn’t mean you lack experience; many of these entrepreneurs brought years of industry experience to the table. Expect entrepreneurial clients to combine small-biz focus and agility with big-business discipline and toughness.

The next 5 points? Just click here.

The spouse at the centre of the storm

2006-04-18T20:57:00.000-06:00

If you think entrepreneurs are a tough breed to figure out, imagine being married to one.

The life of an entrepreneurial wife (or husband) can be filled with tension, uncertainty, hard work and loneliness. That’s all forgotten when the business succeeds and they start buying the brand-name scotch, but it’s a tiring, roller-coaster ride while it lasts.

Remind me to tell you about the roundtable I held at PROFIT Magazine a few years ago, when we gathered some wives of local young entrepreneurs to spill the beans on what life at the centre of the whirlwind is really like. It’s not as easy as it looks.

In the meantime, Laura Bailey of Crain's Detroit Business magazine wrote a story in November 2003 on the hectic lives of entrepreneurs’ spouses. The story itself is beyond the pay wall here, but it makes some great points:

* Robert Dube, owner of Oak Park-based Image One Corp., and his wife, Emily, are so busy they have to schedule a special weekly lunch to discuss family issues.

* "It's almost like there's a third party in your marriage,'' said Melanie Zauel, whose husband, Brian, co-owns Wixom-based Cornerstone Engineering, a full-service architectural firm that today has 19 employees. "Sometimes all of his energy is used up in work, and there isn't anything left for the rest of the family.''

(Not that she’s complaining. "I wouldn't want to be married to somebody who is miserable because he is working for somebody else,'' she added. )

* Work-life balance is one of the biggest concerns for entrepreneurs, and often it's up to the spouse to keep that harmony.

* Another issue that entrepreneurs grapple with is finances. Money provides ammunition for fights in any marriage, but for entrepreneurs it's worse.

"There's not a person in the (Young Entrepreneurs Organization) that does not have their house and personal assets on the line,'' said Tom Nardone, president of Isdera Corp… YEO is a support group and networking organization for entrepreneurs under age 40 with $1 million or more in annual revenue, and Nardone said work-family balance is the group's biggest issue.

* And don't think the husbands of business owners get off easy. “I maybe do some things (around the house) that some of my friends don't do,'' such as more laundry or evenly dividing the household chores, said David Cattermole, senior design engineer for Troy-based Compunetics Inc. He is married to Laura Cattermole, founder of Farmington-based IT staffing company RemTech Business Solutions. For example, he cooks and she washes or vice versa.
"We're a team,'' says David.

The Entrepreneur’s Family

2006-04-12T23:09:00.000-06:00

I just drove back from Kingston, where I MC’d the second of four regional “Global Traders” events for the Ontario government.

The awards ceremony featured some fantastic comments from the winning entrepreneurs. Spurred on by my challenge to share some of the secrets of their exporting success, they talked a lot (we finished 20 minutes late), but offered great advice and made some memorable points.

I taped them on my handy pocket recorder, so I will blog about them when I have time. But I wanted to share one highlight with you.

This is from memory, so it may not be word for word, but one of the winners simply nailed the paradox of the busy, often selfish life of the typical entrepreneur. “You have to have a really supportive family to back you up,” he said, “or no family at all.”

Ouch!

Stark, but true.

Entrepreneurial paranoia

2006-04-07T15:37:00.000-06:00

I mentioned in my MC remarks at Global Traders yesterday that entrepreneurs can be a suspicious, cynical lot. That’s quite ironic, in a way, since many of them tend to be so idealistic and positive in their everyday outlook.

But it could be a necessary learned defence. Idealistic entrepreneurs realize early on that few other business people are as committed as they are to creating value or building long-term relationships. They learn to view others with suspicion as their default mode.

It may also be tied up with entrepreneurial ego.

Note this recent entry by Waterloo, Ont. entrepreneur Jim Estill in his CEO Blog.

“This brings me to a topic I discuss often - filtering.

“Just because something is in print (or on the Internet) does not make it true. I am very wary of ulterior motives. I am also aware that I need to accept others' opinions just as ideas and filter them. Accept the ones I like and reject or modify the ones I do not.”

So that’s one entrepreneur’s worldview. Listen. Filter. Reject or Modify.
And watch for ulterior motives.

An entrepreneur’s most precious resource

2006-04-06T23:58:00.000-06:00

Why, someone asked me today, do marketers need to pay special attention to the needs of business owners? What makes small business different from standard business markets?

Luckily, I was able to illustrate this need by recounting a conversation I’d had just an hour before.

We were at the Ontario Global Traders awards in Barrie, where I was working my passage as emcee of the luncheon. In the morning, however, I attended the related Export 360 forum, where various speakers offered their advice to prospective global traders. One of them even mentioned an “export-readiness” quiz that rookie exporters could take online to determine whether their company is well enough prepared to sell its goods or services abroad.

“And it only takes 45 minutes,” she said. As if that was a good thing.

That struck me as a long time, so I leaned over to the entrepreneur who was sitting beside me and asked, “Would you spend 45 minutes filling out an online questionnaire?”

I’ve known this man for 10 years. He’s a genial, low-key guy. But his eyes were blazing as he spat out, “Never!”

He went on to note that most entrepreneurs don't have 45 minutes to eat lunch, let alone spend that time filling out an online quiz. He seemed quite offended as he added, “Who do they think their market is?”

I agree with him. Savvy marketers to entrepreneurs would show much more respect for their prospects’ time.

Most entrepreneurs would kill to find a 45-minute hole in their schedule – so they're not about to spend that time taking a quiz. Sure, they might learn something useful about their business and its export-readiness – but that’s a pretty vague payback when you balance it against all the other opportunities entrepreneurs would happily chase if they had more time.

A 45-minute quiz may work for a large organization loaded with expert analysts whose jobs involve acquiring intelligence. But for busy entrepreneurs and their multitasking workforce, this goes to the bottom of the priority list, somewhere ahead of buying new tea towels but just behind alphabetizing their business-card collections.

As my friend sort-of said, “Know your market.” And remember that time is an entrepreneur’s most precious resource.

Centre court, Second row

2006-04-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

I was invited this week to a basketball game with a very successful Canadian entrepreneur who owns season’s tickets to the Raptors. I was flabbergasted when we reached the seats – centre court, second row. We were so close that if this had been a Leafs’ hockey game, our seats would have been on the ice.

My friend is very proud of his seats, but also slightly embarrassed. They cost a lot of money, but he insists they are his only indulgence; there aren't many other things he wants or needs to buy (he drives a Toyota Prius to save money on gas).

In fact, he says he has turned down seats in the front row (apparently they cost $300 more each, per game, than those in Row 2). He couldn’t justify the cost. (Note: He could afford it. Just couldn't justify it.)

I think there are a few instructive notes to take from this experience, for anyone targetting entrepreneurs as a market:

* Entrepreneurs are price sensitive (okay, cheap). They know the cost of everything and the value of everything.

* They don’t hesitate to indulge themselves when they wish to. The sky’s almost the limit.

* Successful entrepreneurs are often embarrassed about their wealth and the things it can buy them. But beyond their homes and one or two indulgences, their needs really are few. To them, business is definitely about competing and winning, but once their basic needs (and highest indulgences) are met, the monetary rewards are secondary.

* If you're marketing to entrepreneurs, they probably don't have a budget (unlike corporate customers) for what you are selling. But if you can convince them they need your product or service, they’ll find the money.

* If they come presold, as my friend with his b-ball tickets, price is not a problem: the sky is almost the limit.

* Few entrepreneurs have to justify their buying decisions to any outsider. But they do have to justify it to themselves.

My friend also commented on the many other entrepreneurs he sees at Raptors games. It’s as if, competitive by nature, the best way for them to wind down is by coming to see other high-level professionals compete. Adrenalin: the best way to finish your day.

(As you might expect, my friend plays recreational basketball. And he hates to lose.)

Small business folks "more motivated and excited" - and frustrated

2006-03-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

Bill Sweetman, a Toronto-based Web marketer who recently became VP of Internet Strategy at MacLaren McCann Direct & Interactive, was interviewed last week on OneDegree.com, a terrific Canadian site for information on the e-economy.

As part of the discussion, he had some interesting insights on the difference between small business clients and big businesses:

One Degree: Who needs a bigger kick in the ass to get on the Net advertising bandwagon - big advertisers or small businesses?

Sweetman: Neither.

The small business folks, God bless them, are more motivated in and excited about advertising online, however they tend to have unrealistic expectations and not enough budget to do things effectively. In the worst cases, they think of Internet marketing as a cheap or free alternative to doing anything else, and then are frustrated when it doesn’t live up to their unrealistic expectations.

The big advertisers, on the other hand, have got plenty of budget and want to “do stuff online” but many are still skittish about re-directing an appropriate portion (based on reach) of their budget to a medium they don’t fully understand.

Small or large, I’m not blaming the advertisers because the responsibility rests with us Internet marketers (whether we are freelancers, at boutiques, or working at large agencies) to help our clients understand and then capitalize on the potential of this medium.”

This fits with a lot of evidence I’ve seen that small businesses are quicker and more eager to innovate than most bigger businesses – even if the entrepreneurs don't have as much available cash with which to explore new media and opportunities.

For the rest of the interview, go here.

Another bad ad

2006-03-28T23:30:00.000-07:00

I’m a big believer in creative flexibility. If you have a great idea, throw out the old rules. But if you don't know what you’re doing, you might as well follow the rules, because your message is likely to get lost otherwise.

For instance, I believe in headlines. Whether you’re designing an ad or a newspaper page, you need headlines to attract easily distracted readers. If you have a big idea and/or an arresting visual (say, the World Trade Center collapsing), maybe you can get away without a headline. But if your main image is like the one at left, better get a good headline. You need all the help you can get.

The ad at left appeared in the March issue of Fast Company. Capital One is targeting small business owners looking to tame their company finances. So where is the dramatic, benefit-oriented headline? It was deemed expendable, probably because the art director was so tickled with the cartoon.

Here’s the 411. Entrepreneurs want solutions. They don't want cartoons. They don't like cartoons. In my experience (and I once published a Dagwood/Mr. Dithers cartoon on the cover of PROFIT Magazine, but only once), business owners view cartons as kids’ stuff, not serious business. Plus, this is a complex cartoon with no central focus and no caption. Only readers with lots of time on their hands are going to sit down and try to figure out what it all means. When’s the last time you heard a busy entrepreneur say, “I’ve got nothing to do. Think I’ll spend an hour analyzing illustrations in this magazine.”

Worse, anyone who does study this cartoon finds the company being depicted is totally inept, its workers unprofessional at best, and likely suicidal. Few entrepreneurs find anything funny about unprofessional behavior. So if Capital One is expecting its prospects to identify with poor Alonzo, I think they're going to be disappointed.

Below the picture is the “sell” copy. It seems to have nothing to do with the cartoon. “Are your business finances turning out to be a big headache?” Alonzo’s problem is that his workers are building a substandard house and killing each other.

I could see this cartoon possibly working for an ad for a skills-training company, but it has no place in a serious financial ad.

The rest of the copy, about online account servicing, free year-end summaries and a rewards program, is good enough, I guess, but flat and uninteresting. It probably doesn't matter, since any entrepreneurs who stuck around to read the copy are going to find their heads hurting from trying to match the pitch with the cartoon, so they’re unlikely to last till the end.

The call to action? Buried at the tail end of a dense paragraph of low-contrast, hard-to-read body copy. No bold type for the URL, not even a “www” to help it stand out as a Web-based resource. Just a mess.

And don't get me started on the branded “Small Business Solutions” tagline. People with big dreams rarely like to be associated with such a demeaning word. (See my Jan. 10 post, Don’t call them “Small Business”.)

Takeaways: If you’re creating ads aimed at business owners, have a clear message. Help entrepreneurs solve their problems. Use headlines to attract attention. Keep your message simple. Don't monkey around with inappropriate humour (your audience takes itself very seriously). Use simple text devices (boldface, anyone?) to make your key messages stand out.

Note how Capital One put its own tagline [What’s in your wallet?] in bold instead of its key pitch, or its URL or phone number. Selling is about the customer’s needs, not yours.

Today's Hottest Buttons

2006-03-23T00:55:00.000-07:00

What problems most bedevil Canada’s entrepreneurs? Here are the results of a recent survey of “mid-cap” business owners by COMPAS, for Roynat Capital, conducted in January 2006.

I’m actually surprised to see these entrepreneurs so concerned about financing. This is an issue that seemed to have gone away for a while; certainly, it is no longer the national political issue it was a few years ago.

This looks like a warning to the banks, especially for when they come back to Ottawa for permission to merge. Plus, it’s a sign that all the new private capital now being directed to buyout funds and mezzanine funding isn't getting where it needs to go.

Meanwhile, there’s lots of food for thought here for marketers trying to make entrepreneurs’ lives easier. How can you help them deal more effectively with staff issues (hiring, training, motivating, retaining)?

How can your products or services level the playing field, and enable entrepreneurial firms to compete with bigger organizations?

And how can you help them sell more?

These are the hot buttons your market will respond to.

(You can find the survey summary here. )

No more pencils, no more books

2006-03-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

School's out next week and the kids are demanding attention.
So Selling to Small Business is going into reruns till March 21.

How do reruns work? Simple. You scroll down and read the posts you haven't seen before.

As always, send your comments or suggestions to rick (a) rickspence.ca

And if you have time, check out our links to the left. Lots of good learning there.

Rick

Segmenting your market

2006-03-09T09:11:00.000-07:00

What keeps entrepreneurs awake at night?

Before answering that question, you have to know which part of the small business market you're targeting. It's Marketing 101: this market is so huge and so variegated that anything you can do to segment your preferred audience (young entreprenurs, female business owners, manufacturers, startups in Manitoba, etc.) will result in finer targeting and produce better results.

Case in point: A January 2006 Industry Canada study of financing for young entrepreneurs.

Here are the "Perceived Obstacles to Business Growth and Development" identified by the study. As you will see, it found significant differences between young entrepreneurs and older ones.

Problems Facing Young Entrepreneurs

Finding Qualified Labour: 40%
Obtaining Financing: 39%
Instability of Demand: 25%
Levels of Taxation: 23%
Low Profitability: 19%
Government Regulations: 19%
Equipment Renewal: 13%
Managerial Skills: 11%

Problems Facing Older Business Owners
Levels of Taxation: 40%
Finding Qualified Labour: 38%
Low Profitability: 34%
Instability of Demand: 33%
Government Regulations: 29%
Obtaining Financing: 23%
Equipment Renewal: 17%
Managerial Skills: 6%

If you're targeting younger entrepreneurs, for instance, you wouldn't worry so much about taxation or high taxes. You might, however, focus on financing solutions. One thing is clear: both demographics are equally concerned about finding good help.

Why do young entrepreneurs matter? Well, apart fom the possibility of them being good customers for the next 30 yars or so, they are stepping up to the plate now and starting or buying businsses as more and more baby-boomer entrepreneurs look for a change or outright retirement. This is a market you need to know.

How tech fails medium-sized business

2006-03-05T16:00:00.000-07:00

Does the tech industry understand the medium-sized business market? Not according to Dan Mclean, editor-in-chief of ITWorldCanada.com, in a story published March 2 in The Globe & Mail.

“When it comes to information technology designed to suit their specific computing needs, mid-sized companies in Canada are on the outside looking in,” Mclean writes.

When businesses with between 100 and 499 employees look for tech solutions, what do they find? “These days they're typically scaled-down versions of large-business IT hardware, software and services, or scaled-up small-business products,” he writes.

The problem, says analyst John Sloan of Info-Tech in London, Ont., is that the IT needs of a mid-sized company can be every bit as complex as those of a much larger firm. But they have fewer people to support and manage it. That means mid-sized firms need products that have big-business function at a small-business price.

According to Sloan, two-thirds of a mid-sized business’s IT spending goes to maintenance and management. Anything that reduces the need for operational support “is likely to get a good hard look by a medium-sized business customer. Gains in efficiency and productivity are golden for customers in the mid-market.”

Medium-sized businesses are big IT spenders. On average, says Mclean, they spend more than $1 million a year on IT.

Lise Dellazizzo, VP of IT for Ipsos Reid Corp., calls medium business "the most significant revenue-generating engine in Canada when it comes to IT spending." Large businesses may spend more per capita, but the mid-sized market has greater volume. Canada has nearly seven times as many mid-sized companies as large companies.

As Mclean concludes, this is a market worth figuring out.

See the original story (until it slips behind the pay curtain) here.

The long drawn-out agony of giving up control

2006-03-01T07:43:00.000-07:00

One of the big problems facing entrepreneurs is control.

When they found their business, entrepreneurs are in complete control. They have to be: they can't allow a free-thinking employee or supplier to undermine thier vision or the standards they are trying to create.

Some people dismiss entrepreneurs as “control freaks,” but they are this way for good reason. Just as a watchful she-bear will fight for her cubs, entrepreneur will take few chances that would endanger their business. When you take your eye off the business, danger is always close by.

(Recall 15 years ago when Magna founder Frank Stronach started dabbling in restaurants and politics -- his auto-parts company started to crumble. It was only when Frank returned to put his personal stamp on the business again that it recovered.)

Over time, then, entrepreneurs must battle hard to find systems that allow them to give up control without sacrificing quality, standards or culture.

In an article written a few years ago for PROFIT Magazine’s website, Markham, Ont. entrepreneur Aaron Moscoe, co-founder of a corporate-giftware firm called The Promotional Specialists, described his efforts to let go. Here are a few excerpts that speak to the difficulty of letting go – and the incredible opportunity that creates for suppliers and other potential partners who can win an entrepreneur’s trust.

"Having built this business personally, [my partner and I] like to have things done our way - and who better to do it exactly that way than ourselves? The problem is that there are too many accounts to manage to allow us the time to plan and manage our business properly. Like many small business entrepreneurs we have tried to just work harder. After a while you learn that there is not too much of this or that, but too few of you.

"Hiring others to do jobs that you handled previously is tough because it means relinquishing some control. (Rick’s note: the suggestion here is that relinquishing control is bad. I am sure Aaron has gotten over that notion now, and recognized that delegating is an essential skill – but it’s a hard concept for many to accept]. While you can train employees, you also need to trust them and to realize the various ways they can add value to your business, even if it is by doing things differently.

"Perhaps the most important way to grow is to realize that you must inevitably rely on others. Whether employees, suppliers, couriers, financiers, or key clients, it is dramatically important to choose those strategic partners carefully.”

You can read the rest of the story here, but here's the main point: When you sell services to entrepreneurs, they may be cautious, skeptical, even hostile, because they are being asked to entrust their business to your systems, your standards.

Once you recognize that pitching your product is much like asking new parents to entrust your baby to their care, you will better understand that your primary job is not to sell your services to entrepreneurs, but to win their trust. If you can do that, the rest gets much easier.

There are no quick wins in this market. As Moscoe concludes, “Partnerships must be mutually beneficial in the long run if they are to last. Accordingly, it is crucial to work with partners who value the contribution that your partnership brings to them.”

If you're listening, that's the sound of an entrepreneur demanding respect.

Countdown to Report on Small Business

2006-02-27T07:23:00.000-07:00

The Globe and Mail plans to publish four issues of its new magazine, Report on Small Business, this year. (I think there were just two last year.)

I have concerns about the title (see previous post), but if you’re interested, there's still time to get in on the first issue. The ad deadline for the April 12 issue is March 7.

Here are the rest of the dates this year (cribbed from the Globe’s site here)

Issue date: June 22 Sales close: May 11
Issue date: Sept. 26 Sales close: Aug. 11
Issue date: Nov. 22 Sales close: Oct. 20

Curiously, the Globe’s website doesn't have much information on this new publication. (They also still refer to it as a “special report” rather than an ongoing magazine.) The editor is Noel Hulsman, a marathon runner who was formerly editor of BC Business.

Small is Beautiful. Powerful, too

2006-02-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

Why should you care about Selling to Small Business? Because small and medium-sized businesses are an important growing force.

According to the government of Canada:

* Small businesses are much more adaptable and adopt new technologies and processes more quickly than large firms

* Businesses with fewer than 50 employees account for 95% of all companies in Canada.

* SMEs generated 43% of Canada’s private sector GDP in 1998.

* The number of self-employed Canadians has nearly doubled since 1980, to 2.4 million.

* In 2002, small businesses (under 100 employees) accounted for 20% of Canada’s total exports.

As they say, there is nothing small about small business.

Feel free to leave a comment or e-mail me if you want more information on any of these factoids.

A bad ad that redeems itself beautifully

2006-02-20T00:13:00.000-07:00

So, what are the results of “Results-Driven Advice?”

Looks to me like you’re left tottering uncertainly, facing almost certain ruin if you tip back even a bit.

But according to this ad from Grant Thornton in the latest issue of PROFIT Magazine, what this picture represents is “Perfect balance… achieved through working hard, having fun and always giving great client service.”

Maybe. But to me balance is a chair with four feet on the ground, not two.

The other problem with this ad is the incredibly tenuous link to the client benefit. The image and the “balance” theme have nothing to do with Grant Thornton.

The payoff line is this: “The financial advisory service that fits us? Grant Thornton. Their insights and guidance help us sit pretty and considering we’re in the office furniture business, that's a very good thing.”

The key, then, is the incredibly lame pun about “sitting pretty.”

One more problem: While it’s a sound idea to use real entrepreneurs and their testimonials in ads (because entrepreneurs only really trust each other), you need to follow through. For instance, while Jim Mills (pictured above) and his company, Office Interiors, seem to be real (and Halifax-based, no less), the URL they provide, www.officeinteriors.ca/, isn’t working. Here is the screen that URL served up on Sunday night.
(Monday night update: The company's website was back in business when I checked again tonight.)

So what redeems this ad? Grant Thornton’s respect for its entrepreneurial prospect – and his or her ego. The action step in the lower text box is to call or e-mail GT’s CEO, Alex MacBeath, through a toll-free number or what appears to be his actual e-mail address.

This is classy. We’re not sending you to a website or an $8-an-hour call centre clerk. Speak to the boss, CEO to CEO. Because you’re worth it.

I bet that’ll do more to make the phone ring than the smug guy in the unsafe stool.

YOUR TAKEAWAY: Treat entrepreneurial clients as important individuals. Because in their world, they're the boss. And they expect to be treated as such.

Weaknesses? Maybe a few.

2006-02-14T12:50:00.000-07:00

Entrepreneurs often have healthy egos, but they can still admit to shortcomings.

Here, courtesy of PROFITguide.com, is a listing of self-diagnosed strengths and weaknesses compiled from entrepreneurs on the 2001 PROFIT100 list of Canada's Fastest-Growing Companies.

I thought it might help you better understand the complex, often contradictory personalities of successful entrepreneurs. You may even detect a few patterns. Enjoy!

1. What do you consider your key personal strength in business?
Thanks to many years of working with some great companies and great bosses, I would suggest that my greatest strength is vision. Put a stake in the ground and shoot for it.
What's your biggest weakness? Lack of attention to detail.

2. STRENGTH: My attention to detail. Plus, I'm paranoid.
WEAKNESS: I'm not sure. That's probably my weakness.

3. STRENGTH: I'm good at vision — what needs to be done — and action-oriented to do it.
WEAKNESS: Impatience.

4. STRENGTH: I hope my key strength is the ability to create and maintain a teamwork environment.
WEAKNESS: Probably the biggest weakness, and something I'm working on very hard, is the ability to delegate more.

5.STRENGTH: The ability to hire good people.
WEAKNESS: I'm probably a bit soft, a bit lax. I don't think I'm a tough enough manager.

6. STRENGTH: Feisty, creative, aware. I'm an opportunist.
WEAKNESS: Inability to say no. No to anything.

7. STRENGTH: Entrepreneurial nature — I find a way to make things work.
WEAKNESS: I don't pay enough attention to fine detail, I'm more attracted to the possibilities than the details of implementation. Luckily, I know that and we hire accordingly.

8. STRENGTH: The ability to keep multiple balls up in the air. The very thing that you were critiqued for in school, which was the fact that you were thinking about 12 things at once, is the very thing that keeps you sharp in business.
WEAKNESS: I'd genuinely like to have better listening skills.

9. STRENGTH: I don't have any. I guess it's it would be delegating. Not thinking I can do it all. Knowing my limitations.
WEAKNESS: My biggest weakness would be probably lack of general business experience.

10. STRENGTH: I have a pretty sound technical knowledge of the field that we're in.
WEAKNESS: I'm not formally educated in business. I had to pick it up on the fly.

11. STRENGTH: Vision.
WEAKNESS: Staying focussed.

12. STRENGTH: I'm left and right brain — I'm good creatively and technically.
WEAKNESS: I'm always looking for compromise. Sometimes I should hit the table with my fist.

What Entrepreneurs Want, part 3

2006-02-11T16:21:00.000-07:00

Some of my posts mentioning the solitude and problems of entrepreneurs - especially the lack of peer contact - might make you conclude that these are needy and vulnerable people. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Entrepreneurs crave respect and understanding like everyone else, but they can go without both for long periods of time, driven by their vision and their instincts for the best way of serving their niche.

But once in a while, they like to be stroked and to have their work confirmed by others.

This was reaffirmed for me again yesterday in two e-mails I received in response to a speech I gave Wednesday night on Lessons from Canada's Emerging Growth Companies (click here for a summary). My presentation to a group called Future Leaders involved analyzing some of the trends in entrepreneurial growth (as divined from PROFIT Magazine's PROFIT 100 research) and documenting some of the unique tactics and strategies that have fuelled their success.

My goal with such presentations is to show entrepreneurs how other companies are striving and succeeding, and give them specific tactics they can put into practice right away. But sometimes I forget how important it is just to be heard talking about success in tough times.

Here's a snippet from one of the unsolicited e-mails I received the other day:

"Just wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know that I really enjoyed your presentation... It was extremely interesting and inspirational."

You might think that entrepreneurs would be the last people to need inspiration. But you'd be wrong.

The other e-mail:

"Thanks for the speech on Wednesday. Some days any encouragement is appreciated. As a manufacturing guy, I really appreciated that I’m not the only one in this province who still thinks making stuff is a good business and finding that you can still manufacture and make the hot [PROFIT 100] list is nice ... despite the money guys telling everyone out there that manufacturing in Ontario is dead and the dumbest possible thing you can do."

I don't believe entrepreneurs are generally insecure. But if they're to put all their energy and resources into a business venture, they certainly need a strong dose of confidence. And confidence is a fragile thing.

Marketer's Takeaway: You can't go wrong by celebrating the instincts and accomplishments of entrepreneurs. It doesn't have to be the major theme of your conversation with this market, but it must underlie everything you say and do.

As the writer said, "Some days any encouragement is appreciated."

RBC's four-star ad

2006-02-08T08:02:00.000-07:00

Regular readers will be pleased to learn that I’ve found an ad targeting small business that I actually like.

The fact that it appears opposite my new column in the Feb.-March issue of MoneySense is just a coincidence.

It’s an ad for RBC Royal Bank, part of its mysterious series of ads whose photos include people standing in front of a shoulder-high billboard with the word “FIRST”. (I always thought “First” was part of Bank of Montreal’s branding, so I am still confused by its use by the Royal.)

The ad starts with a great headline: “After his business burned down, Steve Booy not only found out who his friends were. He discovered who his bank was.”

The body copy goes on to explain that when Steve’s Automotive Repair in Woodstock, Ont., went up in flames, all his financial records were lost. Kindly waiving an immediate loan payment, an RBC account manager sat down with Steve to discuss the future. (“Without financial records,” RBC says, “some banks might not have talked to Steve.”) But RBC “was flexible, finding a financial solution that recognized his specific circumstances.”

The result? “Today, an expanded Steve’s Automotive is a state-of-the-art nine-bay facility,” “well-equipped, Steve says, with fire extinguishers.”

There you have it. An ad that tells a believable, human story. Like all great stories, form the first ancient myths to Star Wars, it comes complete with a problem, a hero (that creative banker) and a happy ending.

Plus, the tale is told simply and efficiently, to match entrepreneurs’ attention spans – using just enough details to make it credible, and even a grin-worthy punch line.

And at the end, of course, comes the call to action that every ad should have (but many don’t): “To find out what RBC Royal Bank can do to put your business first, call 1-800 ROYAL 2-0, or visit www.rbcroyalbank.com/business-first”

Note the subtle reinforcement of the “first” branding, and the ease of the contact tools offered: a toll-free number that’s easy to remember, and a URL that’s easy to type.

The ad itself speaks to the loneliness and vulnerability that applies to most entrepreneurs (and which I have discussed in numerous posts, including the one immediately preceding this one). RBC depicts an entrepreneur at his lowest point, and describes how it stood by him. That kind of security, that kind of relationship, is exactly what most entrepreneurs want.

This ad works because it speaks entrepreneurs’ language, it understands their needs without overstating them, it’s grounded in reality, and it offers a clear and genuine benefit. I give it four stars.

PLUS: In promoting this apparently true story (you can visit http://www.stevesauto.ca), RBC’s ad does one more thing – it raises expectations.

It ups the ante. It dares other bankers – within the Royal or its many competitors – to do for their clients what Steve’s account manager did for him. This could come back to haunt RBC – can its bankers work such magic all the time? (Especially given that many credit-watchers say the banks are set to tighten up on credit as the Canadian economy peaks.)

In the meantime, setting the bar so high makes a great testimonial for RBC – and a nice shot of confidence (and bargaining power) for entrepreneurs across the country.

Full disclosure: I do most of my personal banking at the Royal, mainly because my dad worked there all his life. But if you think that kind of thing influences my writing, you haven’t been reading my stuff very long.

Be a peer, not a pal

2006-02-06T15:22:00.000-07:00

Friends are fine. Families have their place. But there's nothing like people you hardly know.

At least, that’s how my friend Aaron sees it. A seasoned entrepreneur, he is an enthusiastic participant in Entrepreneurs’ Organization, the international forum that allows full-time entrepreneurs to meet monthly with local peers from non-competing organizations to share ideas, contacts and best practices. (And, mainly, to reassure each other that the hell they go through every day is normal.)

“Most entrepreneurs don't know other entrepreneurs, unless they're customers or suppliers, or family or friends,” says Aaron. These are useful, even valuable contacts, but they're not the best people to pour out your heart if you want to talk about the pressure the bank’s putting on you, the new problems with your sales force, or your spouse’s growing resentment of your long hours at work.

That’s why entrepreneurs join groups such as Presidents’ Organization, Entrepreneurs’ Organization, CAFÉ, Innovators Alliance, and so on – to share the burden. Unloading with trusted colleagues who understand what you're going through relieves some of the loneliness and the burden. And chances are good that some of them will have gone through what you're experiencing, and will be able to offer useful advice.

Remember, corporate executives have a ready-made audience of peers, mentors and friends – usually all in the same company - for blowing off steam and seeking counsel. Entrepreneurs are in a different space entirely. Which is why they appreciate marketers who understand their real needs.

Bonus thoughts - Let's consider the implications of the lonely-at-the-top, no-one-to-confide-in life of an entrepreneur:

Nobody to bounce ideas off of: So keep your offers simple. Offer lots of easy-to-read info and context on your website for those who need to dig deep.

Overloaded, working too much: Respect their time. Keep policies and paperwork to a minimum.

Fear of making mistakes: Take away some of the risk. (Offer free trials, extended warranties, money-back guarantees).

Need for solutions: Be a peer, not a pal.

Mars and Venus and Small Business

2006-02-02T16:58:00.000-07:00

A few posts back (on January 10, if you want to look it up in the “January” archives on the right) I blogged about the phrase “small business.” I suggested that while it is a useful description of a category, you should not use it when addressing people who run small businesses – because one of the meanings of “small” is inconsequential. I even went back to my experience 15 years ago at PROFIT magazine, which we renamed from the previous title, Small Business, for that reason.

As you may know, another magazine recently went through a similar name change. In 2004, Small Business Canada renamed itself Enterprise – probably for the same reason we changed Small Business. Because many readers don’t identify with the term, and few advertisers like to pay to reach markets that are apparently inconsequential.

Anyway, a friend of mine who is familiar with that magazine was saying yesterday that she thought the name change was a good idea: “Because men will never buy anything with the word ‘small’ in it.”

I hadn’t realized this phenomenon was gender-based, but maybe it is. “Call it, ‘Huge Business,’” advised my friend. “Or ‘Fast-Growing Business’. Men will buy anything that’s big.”

It’s a different perspective from mine, but the result is pretty much the same. Keep “small business” for internal use. “Business owners” sounds much more flattering.

Even consequential.