This Site has Moved to SonOfFiveRivers.com
Click Here to Vist NEW Site: www.SonOfFiveRivers.com
I’ve been blogging for several months now and I’m glad to have recieved the feedback I have. I’ve enjoyed the experince and for that reason I’ve decided to take blogging to another level. I’ll be self hosting my blog and that means you’ll see a lot more creativity in the design, functionality and layout of the new blog.
Check it out: www.SONofFIVErivers.com
Cheers
Selling to Governments (Reasons of Failure)
I’m subscribed to Canada Export a newsletter released by the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, in it I came across the below article and thought it could be beneficial to those businesses trying to win government contract bids. I had previously hosted a seminar around selling to the government which included presenters who were purchasers and buyers all the way from SAP to the Provincial Government. It covered some of the in’s and out’s of the bid process and I think this article touches briefly on some of the issues businesses face.
………………….
1. Entrepreneurs set unrealistic expectations.
“There is a myth out there that to win a government contract, all you have to do is follow the instructions,” says Judy Bradt, a former trade commissioner who is now Principal and CEO of Summit Insight, a firm that has guided over 5,000 clients to over $200 million in U.S. government contracts.
“Thousands of business owners have discovered that when they follow the instructions on websites like FedBizOpps [the U.S. federal government site that publishes opportunities], diligently hunt down bid notices and pump out proposals, the process does not usually reward their hard work” says Bradt. “They get frustrated by failures, especially when the contracts always seem wired for somebody else. Success takes a lot more than just writing proposals.”
The fix:
Companies that consistently win contracts research those opportunities a long time before competitions begin. They take the time to build relationships with buyers, influencers and partners. They adapt products or services for government buyers, and collaborate with those buyers to develop the specifications that will be published. They create targeted marketing campaigns and tactics to attract these new buyers, says Bradt.
This also applies if you’re a supplier or subcontractor to a bigger company that holds the prime contract with the government. Be sure that investment of time and money fits your risk threshold as well as your plans to grow your company.
Before your next proposal, understand every part of the government business development cycle that your competitors had to master to win their contracts. Decide if you’re ready for that investment. If so, then approach government contracts as a long-haul effort with your eyes wide open and your team ready to learn what winners have already figured out.
2. Businesses pursue opportunities on a shoestring budget.
“If your business is struggling, going after government contracts can hurt more than it helps,” says Bradt. Cash-flow horizons are longer in the public sector than in the private sector, both to develop business and to get paid for your work. Typically, government buyers are risk-averse and cautious about trying new vendors and ideas.
Runaway success in the first year is rare, says Bradt. Expect to spend 18 to 24 months investing money and time to develop relationships, find opportunities and partners, and prepare proposals before you turn a consistent profit. “Many managers rightly decide that it takes too much time and risk to develop a new market. And, unlike in the private sector, most government contracts don’t pay you up front. Unless you negotiate progress payments, you need enough funds to survive until after you do the work, invoice and get paid. That big contract can put you out of business.”
The fix:
First, explore alternate forms of financing. Your current line of credit is often not enough to pursue the contract, win it and finish the project. Even healthy companies are shocked to find that their bankers do not simply extend that line to finance a signed government contract. Asset-based financing is your cheapest money, but takes time to arrange. Alternative financing (aka “last-minute money”) is always more expensive and will evaporate your profits.
Bradt recommends that entrepreneurs forge a closer relationship with their banker. “If you’ve decided to pursue government contracts, and have revised your marketing budget to support that pursuit, review your access to working capital and financing. Then visit your banker to find out about financing options before you launch your campaign.”
3. Resist the temptation to use shotgun tactics.
“Too often, entrepreneurs go to FedBizOpps and pump out proposals for anything that appears relevant,” she says. The result is that most of their efforts are just as scattered and not much reaches the target. “If you go after everything, you might win something but most of your resources will be wasted and nobody has that kind of time and money to spare.”
The fix:
Focus. “When you want to win government contracts, you have to research and focus tightly to win,” says Bradt. Otherwise, you’ll go broke trying, she says. Savvy companies scope out the competition and possible partners in order to position themselves to win the projects that really fit them long before they put serious resources into pursuing those opportunities.
Free websites offer extraordinary amounts of federal contract market intelligence. Look into USAspending.gov, Central Contractor Registration, GSA Advantage, and Schedule Sales Query. These are all good sources if you’re testing the waters and not ready for a big investment yet.
Looking ahead
U.S. federal contract spending in 2009 topped a record $550 billion. And Bradt expects 2010 to look much the same. “The U.S. government has set a goal of spending 70% of the stimulus money by fall of 2010. Twelve months out, almost 47% had been allocated for specific purposes. Of that, only 16% has been spent. That means there’s a very stimulating year ahead—if you’re developing opportunities long before the competition begins.”
For more information, visit the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service in the United States.
Retro & Vintage Design
So I woke up pretty early this morning (5:30am) and thought lets work on a project that I’ve been postponing for a while… So I collected some vintage and retro art design for this long overdue project and thought some people might find it inspiring. I enjoy the branding side of business and I think this look can help a business stand out by giving it a unique and distinct flavor.
As an individual whos all about requirements gathering I find it very difficult to sit with a designer and just explain what I need. I’ve about diagrams, charts, brief statements, pictures etc. So this collection should help me with that process and also provide me with a single place to store all these pictures. Hope its useful for whatever you need it for, enjoy!
Some of these pics came came from http://www.smashingmagazine.com, an online magazine dedicated to designers and developers.
- illustrations from old posters, movies, newspapers, CDs, vinyls, ads;
- old-style typography (e.g. Roman typefaces);
- script fonts and handwriting;
- old radio devices;
- old TV devices;
- old cars;
- old packaging;
- old photos;
- vibrant rainbow colors (high contrast, neon-style);
- torn, used paper with stains (often yellowish paper);
- dark, dirty colors (brown, dark red, dark blue) and textures (e.g. paper);
- scrapbooks;
- pop-art elements (see also Pop Art Is Alive: Classics and Modern Artworks);
- retro illustrations;
- old-style signs;
- vintage and retro are often combined with a hand-drawing style and grunge style.
~ The Statement ~ The Official Blog of The Old State
ISO50 – The Visual Work of Scott Hansen
The Ernest Hemingway Collection
The Dollar Dreadful Family Library
Renaissance-Designs
Google Strikes Back at Rupert Murdoch!
Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, strikes back at Rupert Murdoch in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal (which is owned by Rupert Murdock by the way). Before we get to the good stuff I’ll quickly explain who Rupert Murdoch is for those who don’t know. He owns lots of media outlets (Newspapers, Magazines, Radio Stations, TV Networks, Cable & Internet Companies etc.) He is the founder, a major shareholder, chairman and managing director of News Corporation (News Corp). He’s been in the news lately because he wants to ban Google from searching his sites and has been trying to make an agreement with Bing (Microsoft). I don’t think he should be able to control the message people can and cannot hear. I think and I hope he loses big on this!
With dwindling revenue and diminished resources, frustrated newspaper executives are looking for someone to blame. Much of their anger is currently directed at Google, whom many executives view as getting all the benefit from the business relationship without giving much in return. The facts, I believe, suggest otherwise.
Google is a great source of promotion. We send online news publishers a billion clicks a month from Google News and more than three billion extra visits from our other services, such as Web Search and iGoogle. That is 100,000 opportunities a minute to win loyal readers and generate revenue—for free. In terms of copyright, another bone of contention, we only show a headline and a couple of lines from each story. If readers want to read on they have to click through to the newspaper’s Web site. (The exception are stories we host through a licensing agreement with news services.) And if they wish, publishers can remove their content from our search index, or from Google News.
here’s even better stuff:
It’s understandable to look to find someone else to blame. But as Rupert Murdoch has said, it is complacency caused by past monopolies, not technology, that has been the real threat to the news industry.
Kudos to the WSJ for running the piece—assuming some editor didn’t lose his or her job for doing this. I just can’t wait to watch Google and News Corp go at it.
10 Questions Businesses Should Never Stop Asking
Here are the 10 questions businesses should have asked when starting and they are the very questions that any business owner should continue to ask, year in and year out:
What is our purpose for existing?
Who is our target customer? and why?
Why does anyone need what we’re selling?
If there is a need, is it enough to support a profitable business?
What are our competitors up to?
Can you reduce expenses–without harming the product?
Do the company have the right leadership?
Do we have the right employees?
How will we continue to drive revenue?
How are your employees holding up?
Please add any suggestions:
Keeping Bees at Fairmont Hotel, Vancouver
Graeme Evans, director of housekeeping at Vancouver’s Fairmont Waterfront hotel, opens a hive last week to show off the bees and their honey to guests. A beekeeper, Evans keeps beehives on a deck at the hotel. And no, he doesn’t wear protective gear. Photograph by Gerry Kahrmann, The Province
Bees cause buzz at Fairmont hotel
Three hives on third-floor deck provide kitchen with honey, guests with stories
Graeme Evans is undoubtedly Vancouver’s nattiest – and most hospitable – beekeeper.
You won’t catch Evans in one of those bulky, netted helmets and spacesuits that most of his colleagues don when tending their hives. He looks after his trio of nests while wearing a dapper, crisply pressed suit. And tie.
Then again, Evans is director of housekeeping for the posh downtown Fairmont Waterfront hotel.
And beekeeping is just part of his busy day ensuring that guest facilities pass muster.
Those facilities grew to include the hives, and a lush, bee-friendly garden surrounding them, several years ago when the international hotel chain decided to adopt a signature environmental program for each of its facilities.
Evans thought immediately of beekeeping, given what he knew of the massive threats faced by the world’s bee populations and their key role in agriculture everywhere.
The hotel liked the idea and set up the hives in what was once a pretty but nectar-free stretch of ivy bed on the north side of the hotel’s third floor above the busy downtown streets.
The hives, just metres from the spa’s outdoor pool and just across the roof from the hotel’s kitchen garden, are thriving.
And Evans’ idea has caught fire with the hotel chain. Toronto’s Royal York and New York’s Algonquin hotels both host bees now, too. So do the chain’s hotels in Dallas and Singapore, he says.
Locally, it’s meant heavier pollination of plants within a six-kilometre radius, including Stanley Park. Ultra-locally, it’s meant the hotel kitchen gardens bear massive loads of everything from apples to pumpkins.
By Christina Montgomery,
The Province Newspaper
June 7, 2009
The $10 Price Scannig Code (Free?)
Links: Retail Council of Canada & Competition Bureau of Canada
Code of Practice: Scanner Price Accuracy Voluntary Code
If it’s Scanned Wrong Its Free or its $10 Off
STATEMENT OF INTENT
Canadian retailers are committed to accurate scanner pricing. Incorrect prices can result in poor customer relations and legal sanctions. Consequently many retailers are now implementing a variety of procedures that were developed to help achieve and maintain accurate scanner pricing.
The Scanner Price Accuracy Voluntary Code (“the Code”) evolved from the collaborative efforts of Retail Council of Canada (RCC), the Canadian Association of Chain Drug Stores (CACDS), the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers (CFIG), and the Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors (CCGD). These associations are composed of national, regional and local retailers selling a wide assortment of general merchandise, as well as pharmaceutical and food products.
This diversity in the Canadian retail environment underscores the advisability of a voluntary code that can be widely used.
The Scanner Price Accuracy Voluntary Code has been endorsed by the Competition Bureau.
PURPOSE
The purpose of the Code is to:
- Visibly demonstrate retailer commitment to scanner price accuracy;
- Provide retailers with a consistent national framework for dealing with scanner price accuracy issues; and
- Provide the retail industry with a mechanism for consumer redress in scanner price accuracy cases, to be managed by the industry through an industry committee.
SCOPE
The Code applies to all scanned Universal Product Code (UPC), bar coded, and/or Price Look Up (PLU) merchandise sold in stores, with the exception of goods not easily accessible to the public (e.g. prescription drugs and behind-the-counter cosmetics), and individually price-ticketed items.
The Code does not apply in provinces or territories where existing legislation or regulation covers these concerns.
A retailer adopting the Code must abide by the policies outlined below.
1. THE ITEM FREE SCANNER POLICY
Retailers will implement an Item Free Scanner Policy as follows:
1.1 On a claim being presented by the customer, where the scanned price of a product at checkout is higher than the price displayed in the store or than advertised by the store, the lower price will be honoured; and(a) if the correct price of the product is $10 or less, the retailer will give the product to the customer free of charge; or
(b) if the correct price of the product is higher than $10, the retailer will give the customer a discount of $10 off the corrected price.
1.2 Where the same error recurs in scanning multiple units of a given product during a given transaction, the retailer will correct the scanning error in respect of each unit of the given product purchased, but is obliged to apply the policy set out in 1.1 (a) and (b) in respect of only one of the units.
1.3 Paragraph 1.1 only applies after the final sale price of the purchased item has been displayed at the checkout, including relevant rebate, discount or promotional coupons.
1.4 To be eligible for the Item Free Scanner Policy, the product must match the product description on the corresponding shelf tag.
1.5 The Item Free Scanner Policy does not apply if the barcode or shelf label for a given product has been tampered with.
1.6 The Item Free Scanner Policy does not apply to a product where, in respect of that product, the law:
| Signatories to Scanner Accuracy |
| CACDS Supporting Companies: Shoppers Drug Mart The Groupe Jean Coutu (NB and Ont only) Lawton Drug Stores London Drugs Lovell Drugs Pharma-save (BC and Sask) Pharma PlusCCGD Supporting Companies: Canada Safeway Limited The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company of Canada Limited Loblaw Companies Limited Sobeys Inc. Metro Inc. Thrifty Foods Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. Co-op Atlantic Federated Co-operatives LimitedRCC Supporting Companies: Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. The Home Depot Canada Canadian Tire Corporation Ltd. Toys r Us Rona Wal*Mart Canada Corp. Giant Tiger Stores Ltd. The North West Company Best Buy/Future Shop 2 Home Hardware franchisees CFIG Supporting Companies: Thrifty Foods Overwaitea Food Group The Harry Watson Group Longos Brothers Fruit Markets + 1374 independent locations |
- (a) establishes a minimum price (or specified price); or
(b) does not permit the retailer to offer a discount or a rebate.
2. CORRECTION OF ERRORS
2.1 Once a scanner pricing error is brought to the attention of the retailer, appropriate steps should be taken as quickly as possible to correct the source of the error.
2.2 When a retailer cannot immediately correct a scanning error in respect of a product, it will post a correction notice in a conspicuous place. Once such a notice has been posted, the Item Free Scanner Policy is no longer in effect in respect of the relevant product.
3. RETAILERS’ RESPONSIBILITIES
3.1 Retailers will apply the Code, both in letter and in spirit.
3.2 Retailers will establish appropriate internal policies and procedures for maintaining a high level of scanner price accuracy.
3.3 Retailers will display the sign attached hereto as Attachment 1 at all store entrances or in a conspicuous location near the store entrances. Retailers will display the sign attached hereto as Attachment 2 at each checkout station within their stores.
3.4 Retailers will train staff on the Code generally and the Item Free Scanner Policy in particular.
3.5 Retailers will have copies of their current advertising material (e.g. flyers, etc.) available and readily accessible for customer reference.
4. SHELF LABELS
4.1 For those products that are not individually price-ticketed, a clear and legible label must be affixed to the shelf next to the product.
4.2 The shelf label (peg label, basket label) must contain an accurate description of the item and shall include the price of the item or, where the item is sold at a price based on a unit of measurement, the price per unit of measurement.
4.3 The price on the shelf label must be in at least 28-point bold type print, and product description in at least 10-point type print.
4.4 A sign for a given product within the retailer’s premises which is not displayed with that product (i.e., is displayed elsewhere within the retailer’s premises), shall comply with the minimum requirements described above and be at least 38.71 sq. cm in size.
5. CUSTOMER RECEIPTS
5.1 The cash register receipt provided to the customer for a transaction must contain, at a minimum, the following information:
- the retailer’s name;
- the date of the transaction;
- the nature of each item purchased and/or any distinguishing mark (subject to the system’s limitations); and
- the price and description of each purchased item
6. CODE MAINTENANCE AND ADMINISTRATION
6.1 A Scanner Price Accuracy Committee (“the Committee”) will be created to review the Code on an annual basis and to recommend required amendments. The Committee should be composed of representatives of CACDS, CFIG, CCGD, RCC and the Consumers’ Association of Canada (CAC).
6.2 The Committee should be responsible for keeping the Code up to date.
6.3 The Committee should meet at least twice a year in order to supervise national implementation of the Code and consider any recommended changes to it.
6.4 The Committee should create sector specific panels (i.e. Grocery, Drug or General Merchandise). Each panel should:
- (a) be composed of representatives of the respective trade associations and the CAC;
(b) review any outstanding complaints arising from the Item Free Scanner Policy; and
(c) recommend ways of resolving the complaint and provide relevant direction to the appropriate contact person.
6.5 The Committee shall prepare an annual report for the Competition Bureau concerning the number of complaints received and their resolution.
7. CONSUMER COMPLAINT PROCESS
7.1 When a scanner price error occurs, the cashier will be authorized to implement the Item Free Scanner Policy.
7.2 A customer dissatisfied with the cashier’s decision will be directed to the store manager or supervisor.
7.3 If the store manager or supervisor cannot resolve the dispute, the customer should be directed to a designated company representative.
7.4 The time period for considering a particular complaint should be left to the discretion of the retailer. However, generally complaints should be resolved as expeditiously as possible and, in any event, no later than one month after the error is alleged to have occurred.
7.5 In the event that the dispute between the retailer and the consumer cannot be resolved:
- (a) either party may refer the complaint to the Scanner Price Accuracy Committee; and
(b) if the dispute remains unresolved it may, at the request of either party, be referred to a designated arbitrator on a cost recovery basis.
2007, Retail Council of Canada — The Voice of Retail
Online Resources for Small Business
Trendtracking
- http://www.smallbiztrends.com/
Trends affecting small business - http://www.springspotters.com/springspotters/
A vibrant mix of cool hunting, new business ideas and trend spotting - http://trendwatching.com/
Trendwatching.com’s 8,000+ trendspotters scan the globe for emerging trends. - http://www.worldchanging.com/
The tools, models and ideas for building a better future - http://edopter.com/
Discover and share new trends - http://www.trendrr.com/home
Track, compare and share trends
Government Resources
- Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
- Business Development Bank of Canada
- Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions
- Community Economic Development offices across Canada
- Export Development Canada
- Industry Canada
- Small Business Quarterly Newsletter – Strategis Canada
- Industrial Research Assistance Program
- Western Economic Diversification Canada
Entrepreneur Advocates, Blogs and Magazines
- Alberta Venture
- Atlantic Business
- BC Business
- Canadian Entrepreneur: Growth Tips, Tactics and Ideas From Business Writer Rick Spence
- Canadian Federation of Independent Business
- Enterprise
- Evan Carmichael’s Motivation and Strategies for Entrepreneurs
- Evan Carmichael’s Entrepreneur Inspiration Page
- Make It Business – profiles businesses in Southern BC.
- Mompreneur Magazine
a national, free magazine for women balancing motherhood & entrepreneurship. - Profit Magazine
- TiE Ottawa
A not-for-profit organization created for the advancement of entrepreneurship in the Greater Ottawa Area. - TiE Toronto
- TiE Vancouver
- CanadaOne
Entrepreneur Resources for Women
- Canadian Association of Women Executives and Entrepreneurs
- Company of Women, networking and support group in Toronto
- CWBN
A national online network for women to market their businesses. - ENTREWOMAN
Career information, learning opportunities and networking connections related to women entrepreneurs. - Women Business Owners of Manitoba – WBOM
- Women’s Enterprise Centre. Western Economic Diversification Canada
- Womensenterprise.ca
BC resource offering skills development, business loans, free business guidance, business resources, mentoring, networking and events! - Women’s Enterprise Centre of Manitoba
- Women Entrepreneurs of Canada
- Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan
- Women’s Enterprise Skills Training
- Women in a Home Office
Entrepreneur Resources for Specific Groups
- Entrepreneurs with Disabilities
- Aboriginal International Development Group
- Afghan Canadian Business Association
- Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs
- Black Business Initiative (BBI)
- The Black Business & Professional Association
- Canada-Arab Business Council
- Canada Eurasia Russia Business Association
- Canada-Sri Lanka Business Council
- Canada-Peru Chamber of Commerce
- Canadian Association of Family Enterprise
- Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business
- Canadian-Italian Business and Professional Association of Toronto
- Canadian Netherlands Business and Professional Association
- Federation of Portuguese Canadian Business and Professionals
- German-Canadian Business and Professional Association
- Indo Canadian Business Association
- Maltese-Canadian Professional and Business Association
- Ontario Society of Pakistani Canadian Professionals and Academics
- Montréal Association of Black Business Persons And Professionals
- North American Association of Asian Professionals – Toronto
- National Association of Asian American Professionals Vancouver
- Swedish-Canadian Chamber of Commerce
- Taiwan Entrepreneurs Society Taipei – Toronto
- Ukranian-Canadian Professional and Business Association
Entrepreneur Resources for Youth
Pushing the Limits with Viral Marketing! Institute for Human Continuity & Sony’s 2012 Movie
If you haven’t seen or heard of it yet keep yours eyes open for an organization calling itself the The Institute for Human Continuity (The IHC), “they” are airing commercials stating the world will come to an end on December 12th 2012 (12, 12, 12,) which is the end of the Mayan Calender. This Group, The IHC say they were established in 1978 by leading businessman, scientist and countries across the world to help prepare for 2012 and the Post 1212 World. They say they finally decided to go public this year and run a lottery for people across the world to sign up and get a space in their bunkers they’ve established all over the world. You have to give your information and all your families information as well and you can also run for leader of this post 2012 world.
If you haven’t check out the website check it out. It’s amazing, it has to be one of the best websites I’ve ever seen, it’s very well done.
But here’s the kicker… I did a WhoIs search to find out who owns the domain (aka website)…. and It’s owned by Sony Pictures… So Sony Pictures owns the Institute of Human Continuity.org
It’s kind of funny how they have a film called 2012 that was supposed to come out November of 2009 but they postponed the launch a full year?
This is amazing viral marketing… I don’t know how ethical it is… but my goodness, they taken things to another level!
Resources for Small Business
I’ve compiled some resources for people wanting to start a business in Canada. British Columbia seems to be leading the way when it comes to small business as they make up 98% of the Business Sector and employ almost 50% of the people who live in the Province. The list below focuses on Business in BC, if your looking for other provinces I suggest you google these words; “Small Business & Economic Deveopment Ontario” (or whatever province your looking for)
Statistics related to small business are available at:
Statistics related to small business
553 Superior St.
Box 9410 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria, B.C. V8W 9V1
Telephone: 250 387-0327
Internet: www.bcstats.gov.bc.ca
Information on provincial government programs and services can be found at:
Ministry of Small Business and Revenue, Small Business Branch
Box 9805 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria, B.C. V8W 9W1
Telephone: 250 387-4699
Internet: www.sbr.gov.bc.ca
Information on federal government programs and services can be found at:
Western Economic Diversification Canada
Suite 700 – 333 Seymour St.
Vancouver, B.C. V6B 5G9
Telephone: 604 666-6256
Toll Free: 1 888 338-9378
Internet: www.wd.gc.ca
The Government of Canada’s main site for business information
Canada Business
1 888 576-4444
Online tool to help quickly and easily identify permit and licensing requirements for business activities
BizPaL Business Permits and Licences
bizpal@gov.bc.ca
Business counselling and assistance for new and existing businesses in rural British Columbia.
Community Futures Development Corporation of British Columbia
1 604 685 2332
www.communityfutures.ca/provincial/bc/
e-business information resources for small and medium-sized businesses
eBC eBusiness Connection
1 604 775-7532
Online business registration and change of business address
Online business registration and change of business address
1 877 822-6727
Province-wide access to government services including key government transactions for business
Service BC
1 800 663-7867 (Enquiry BC) to be transferred to the
nearest Service BC Contact Centre
Comprehensive business information and business planning resources for starting and growing a business in British Columbia
Small Business BC
1 800 667-2272
Business information counselling and skills training for women entrepreneurs
Women’s Enterprise Centre
1 800 643-7014
About Me
TSon of Five Rivers
THIS SITE HAS MOVED:
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www.SONofFIVErivers.com
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