Off the Ground Blog
Try These Four E-Commerce Tips to Boost Your Online Sales—Video Content Roundup
The past decade has seen e-commerce occupy a greater role in our everyday lives. As startups continue to explore options outside the brick-and-mortar way of doing business, web channels are increasingly used to sell everything from music to groceries to various oddities. It’s easy to see why: if you’re never more than a click away from your customers, you maximize your potential to reach them no matter where they are or what they might be doing.
Adopting Digital Technology (Part 2 of 5): WEC Guest Blog on Low-Cost Strategies for Going Online
To continue the series on adopting digital technologies for small businesses in Canada, our friends at the Women’s Enterprise Centre highlight low-cost ways to create an online presence. This post was originally published on the Women’s Enterprise Centre blog on June 11, 2014.
Four Crucial Tips for Cash-Strapped Startups Looking to Hire—Video Content Roundup
It’s a common problem that just about every fledgling startup comes upon sooner or later: how do you assemble a diverse team of skilled individuals without breaking the bank? With a limited amount of funds in your hands, you need to be strategic about bringing new talent into the fold. Finding the right balance between people who will do the job well and people who will do the job for less competitive salaries can be tricky, but it’s something you need to pull off if you want to achieve success. To learn more about hiring on a startup budget, check out the tips below.
Adopting Digital Technology (Part 1 of 5): The Conference Board of Canada's 6 Best Practices
In Canada as well as other places in the developed world, there is a strong shift towards reliance on digital technologies to streamline business practices.However, there is a significant lag in Canadian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to adopt these technologies.
Four Tips to Turn Your Next Business Pitch into a Home Run—Video Content Roundup
It’s no secret that pitching a business can put a mammoth load of stress on an entrepreneur’s shoulders. You can craft an air-tight business model, but it won’t mean much unless you effectively communicate your vision to others—whether they might be investors, employees, customers or somebody else. These people are looking to be inspired as much as they’re looking to be informed, so you need to pitch in such a way that you capture their imaginations along with their minds. The stakes are high and the rewards are even higher, which is why it’s crucial for entrepreneurs to master this skill.
Anti-Spam Legislation Recap: Another CASL Headline before the Deadline
As the end of the month approaches, the beginning of a new era in Canadian advertising begins with the official implementation of the Canadian Anti-spam Legislation (CASL). Overwhelmed? There are an enormous amount of resources out there and it’s enough to make you want to stop electronic marketing altogether. After taking a few deep breaths, one minute of your time watching this short video from the Government of Canada can give you a simple overview to bring it back to the basics after reviewing all of the literature:
Planning for Success: Aboriginal Small Business Success Starts with a Business Plan
June marks a time in Canada to remember the contributions and assets of the Aboriginal community to Canada’s history, economy and enriching culture. As we approach National Aboriginal Day being officially observed Saturday, June 21st, we wanted to offer an overview of a distinct measure of success among our Aboriginal businesses – the business plan.
Learning Initiatives for Rural and Northern BC: 2014 - Apply Now!
Learning Initiatives for Rural and Northern BC (LIRN BC) is a collaborative approach to building on the capacities of rural, remote and Northern British Columbian communities. The Irving K. Barber Learning Centre is proud to partner with government and non-government organizations to provide and facilitate workshops to promote community learning and collaboration in rural and northern communities.
Concierge Service Guest Blog: a new service provided by the National Research Council of Canada
The Government of Canada offers a rich amount of resources to support the abundant sector of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It offers so many programs, in fact, that it can become overwhelming and tricky to navigate. Guest blogging for SBA is Erik Kaas, our local British Columbia advisor for the National Research Council Canada to introduce the Concierge Service to our readers.
Supercharge Your Startup With These Killer Customer Interview Secrets—Video Content Roundup
You’ve defined the problem. You’ve created some hypotheses. You’ve looked over more industry research and market data than any sane person should ever read in a lifetime. Now that you’ve finished the necessary groundwork, all you need to do at this point is throw your thoughts on paper and you’ll have a viable business plan that will take the world by storm, right? Not quite.