| May
2006 - Issue 48 |
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Does your product need a permit for export
out of Canada?
If it's controlled by the Canadian Government,
being exported to a country on the Area Controls List,
or manufactured in the US, it does.
Export Controls Division at International
Trade Canada has simplified the application process
by automating it. Export Controls On-Line (EXCOL), is
a user friendly web-based application that is now available.
Exporters will be able to submit applications for export
permits and certificates, as well as request amendments.
More details are found here.
For additional information, please contact The
Business Link's Export Link at 1-888-811-1119.
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Having a business blog can be a great
way to promote your business. Traditional web marketing
techniques such as search engine optimization, easy
to spell URLs ,and including your blog URL on your business
cards, letterhead and email signature are all effective.
However, new blog specific traffic driving
techniques are becoming more popular. Lesser known methods
to increase traffic to a blog are: comment on other
sites industry related blogs, have a Really Simple Syndication
(RSS) feed, and use trackback links.
Constructive, useful comments will profile
your knowledge and expertise and allow you to leave
your name, companies name and URL. RSS feeds,
a method of informing that there is new content in your
blog, is an efficient way to keep your subscribers up-to-date.
Using trackback links, a method for referring
to blog articles, will increase your blog's exposure
and increase your company's reputation as a source of
expertise.
Click on RSS
to gain an in-depth understanding of how it can
be used. Click on
trackback to read more about what trackback links
are and how they can benefit your e-business blog.
For more information on this topic, please visit the
website of The Business Link's E-Future
Centre at http://www.e-future.ca/alberta/.
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Did you know The Business Link Library now offers approximately 70 books and other
items on the subjects of family business and business
succession planning?
According to statistics from the Canadian Federation
of Independent Business in 2005, despite the fact that
40% of Canadian SME owners plan to exit their business
in the next 5 years, and 30% plan to exit in the next
6 to 10 years, only 7% of these business owners have
a clearly defined business succession plan in place
at present.
In the demographic shift that will impact the business
community in the immediate future, an unprecedented
number of family-owned businesses will be changing hands,
as well as changing in other ways. The key to managing
all the upcoming change is qualified and practical information
on the various problems, questions and possibilities
that present themselves.
Including our latest addition of the 21 volume Family
Business Leadership Series, The Business Link Library offers you the information you need to deal
with business succession successfully.
For more information, you can contact The Business
Link's library by calling 1-800-272-9675.
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Cliquez ici pour accéder, ou vous abonner à
ce bulletin électronique en français. |
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With the aging population and the low unemployment
rate in Alberta, it is becoming increasingly challenging
for employers to attract and maintain quality
employees.
Has your business already experienced difficulties
in employee hiring and retention?
You're not alone. In order to be successful in
attracting and retaining employees that you want
to stay with your business long term, you need
to ask yourself some key questions.
1. What type of employee would be the best fit
for your business (younger, older)?
2. What kind of creative benefit would assist
in attracting and retaining this employee?
3. In terms of unique employee benefits, what
type would your business be able to offer?
Once you've answered the above questions, you
will be on your way to implementing unique employee
retention strategies.
Here are some examples of creative benefits
that might appeal to a younger employee:
- free food and beverage availability
- casual dress days - every day
- "cool" work environment
- gift certificates and cash awards
- tuition reimbursement
On the other hand, different benefits could attract
a more mature employee:
- elder care
- free financial planning programs
- money toward vacations
- wellness programs
- stock options and matching RRSP contributions
In order for your business to become more appealing
to those in search of employment, you need to
develop strategies to increase your attractiveness.
The Business Link's Library has
a variety of resources on this topic, including
the source of this article, Best practices
: employee retention / John Meyer, and you
can contact the library staff at 1-800-272-9675.
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If you're starting or expanding a business
and looking for direction, you can't afford to miss
these excellent May training sessions designed to
save you time and money.
The art of sales and marketing is difficult for many;
the worry of target markets, demographics, and environmental
influences is just a few of the many aspects that
need to be incorporated in your sales and marketing
strategy. If you're not sure of how to reach that
desired audience or how to motivate them to use your
product or service, then the "Power Selling"
Brown Bag is for you! This entertaining presentation
introduces the six foundations of influence and demonstrates
through examples how you can easily influence, motivate,
and persuade anyone! Please come and join us at The Business Link 100-10237 104 Street, on
Tuesday, May 16, 2006 at 12:00 p.m. for a 1 hour presentation,
there is no fee for this session.
If you are interested in attending any Brown Bag session
or afternoon seminar and you are not near the Edmonton
area, please contact us and we can locate the nearest
centre offering this session via video conference;
you can also access this information through the Entrepreneurship
Learning Centre (ELC) website.
For more information or to register, contact The
Business Link at 1-800-272-9675 or http://www.cbsc.org/alberta/tbl.cfm?fn=infosess.
REGISTER NOW FOR SEMINARS! |
 Video-Conferenced Event |
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Thinking about exporting? Are you already selling
your products and services outside Canada?
Learn from export experts and fellow exporters about:
- currency risks
- emerging markets
- customs documentation
- market entry
- finding partners
- selling to the U.S.
- and much more!
The Guest Advisor Program officially wrapped
up for the season on April 28. We would like to thank
all the guest advisors who participated this season
for sharing their expertise with Alberta small business
owners.
The Guest Advisor Program will be available again
in the Fall. If you are looking for information while
the program is on hiatus, you can call 1-800-272-9675
and speak to one of our business officers.
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This year, the Business Development Bank of Canada
is once again acknowledging the achievements of
young Canadian business owners through the Young
Entrepreneur Awards (YEA). Young entrepreneurs who
are Canadian citizens between the ages of 19 and
35, with at least 2 years experience as an entrepreneur,
will receive these awards to recognize their accomplishments.
In addition to the Export Achievement and the Creative
Mind Awards, there will also be a new category for
2006 called the Ongoing Achievement Award for Business
Ownership Transition.
Entrepreneurs can submit their own nomination
for the award, or can be nominated by someone
else, an association, an organization, or a provincial
or municipal government. The awards deadline for
this year is June 8, 2006.
For more information on the awards, visit the
Awards website at www.bdc.ca/yea.
The Business First Technology Incubator has been
established specifically to nurture and grow entrepreneurial
software development companies. The unique environment
provides guidance and support during the early
stage growth phase, before companies graduate
into the local business community in Medicine
Hat and South Eastern Alberta.
This project is the result of a partnership between
the provincial government and public and private
sector employers. Auto~Star has committed to providing
Business First Technology Incubator clients with
administrative, marketing and technical expertise
during their first six months of involvement in
the project.
The Business First Technology Incubator project
aims to increase the growth rate and the survival
of new and early-stage software development companies
and thereby increase employment opportunities,
economic development and community prosperity
in South Eastern Alberta.
The Business First Technology Incubator project
is currently seeking software developers/entrepreneurs
who would like to shape and grow their business
by accessing expertise and mentoring in SE Alberta.
If you are a developer or have a software development
project idea, you might benefit by learning more
about the Business First Technology Incubator.
For more information, please contact Sean Blewett
at sean@businessfirst.ca or 403-866-3688. |
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There are many resources available for Aboriginal
entrepreneurs on The Business Link’s
Alberta Aboriginal Business Service Network
(ABSN) website.
One of the resources you will find is the
Online Small Business Workshop (which is
also available on the main Business
Link site.) This unique online tool
can be used by any entrepreneur to explore
basic business start-up information.
There are 6 sessions in total that can
be discovered in the Online Small Business
Workshop. You can start at Session 1, and
progress through the individual topics,
or simply click on topics that interest
you, depending on your needs.
For more information, please visit the Online
Small Business Workshop. |
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Forever is a long time in business. The
day will come when you're going to want
to either exit your business or transfer
ownership to someone else.
Starting to plan for succession early
will give you more time to identify and
choose your options. You'll be able to
objectively determine the value of your
business, strategically plan for future
financial security, and avoid making last-minute
decisions that may not work in your favour
when it's time to exit the business.
Although there is no "standard template"
for the "succession plan", many
sources suggest that the plan should cover
items such as setting financial and personal
goals (including retirement and estate
planning), identifying legal requirements
and tax implications, determining the
value of the business, identifying potential
successors, and preparing the successors
for the transition.
There are many resources available to
you as you start preparing the succession
plan for your unique situation. Here's
just a small sampling of online resources
that have information on succession planning
(check your own financial institution
for their information on business succession):
Business Development Bank of Canada
http://www.bdc.ca/en/my_project/Projects/growth/succession_planning.htm
Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses
http://www.cfib.ca/success/
BDO Dunwoody LLP
http://www.bdo.ca/en/library/publications/familybusinesspub/successionplanning.cfm
RBC Royal Bank
http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/succession/index.html
Be sure to contact The Business
Link and/or your regional Community
Futures organization for general business
planning information and advice. (Have
a look at the references mentioned in
this month's "Info Nuggets"
article as well.)
Note: The Business Link is working with several Community Futures
Development Corporations and other organizations
to centralize information and resources
pertaining to business succession planning.
Stay tuned…
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- Use only a few font sizes.
- Use a limited number of fonts types.
- Keep text in small scannable blocks.
- Choose a font that is easy to read (i.e.
Sans
serif)
- Use a dark font on a light backgound.
- Less "stuff" on a page makes it easier
to read.
- Write using clear efficient language (i.e.
avoid industry jargon).
- Use headers (i.e. bold headings).
- Use a font size that is large enough to read.
- Use correct spelling
For more resources on effective web site design
visit the Info-Guide
and
library search sections of the Alberta E-Future
Centre web site. |
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