Small Business: Stronger than you think!

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

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?

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

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

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

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...

"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!

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

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

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)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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"

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.

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!

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.