5 Reasons Why You Should Be Networking

Many business professionals, educational institutions and other agents of commerce continually stress the importance of networking. This is quite possibly because they foresee, witness, and experience the tremendous benefits that derive from opportunities of connection. Networking is like a good pair of shoes that never goes out of style. Whether you’re just stepping into the field of entrepreneurship or you have been running your business for a long while, it is still the perfect fit that will get you to that next step.  No matter where you are on the spectrum of entrepreneurship and business ownership, you have something to gain from connecting with likeminded individuals. Below are our five reasons why you should be networking. Take advantage of them.

Information

           

Networking is an outlet for information. People attend to both talk and listen. We suggest that while it is imperative that you speak and promote your business in these kind of forums, it is fundamental that you use networking opportunities to soak up as much information as you possibly can. Listen for what’s working in your industry and what pitches and approaches have been unsuccessful. What are the current trends? Which individuals should you be speaking with? What more can you learn? Who is your competition? How can you stand out? There is no limit to the information you can gather at a networking event. At the very least, it is a soundboard to reassure you of your progress, setbacks or need for a little positive and negative information is useful to a growing business.

Increase business/referrals

As a business owner, it is your job to promote your company and increase your clientele. Networking events facilitate this in a way that is less formal and stuffy.  There’s no Powerpoint presentation, no folders, and no necessary major pitch. You simply speak about your business and hand out your business cards. It is your key opportunity to be as real as possible without feeling the pressure of having to book a client. You go at your own pace, choose the people you want to talk to, and keep the conversations lighthearted.  Entrepreneurs tend to excel at networking due to the natural flow of the conversations. Additionally, you can be more creative in your approach to draw people to you. For example, wear a statement piece (jewelry, shoes, etc.) that is guaranteed to strike up a conversation. Although most networking events are less pressure-filled, it is crucial however, to maintain an objective standard of professionalism as you are still representing your company.

 Making connections

Let’s face it; every business needs resources to contribute to the growth and acceleration of business. Networking provides such opportunities. You are exposed to different individuals who are experts in subjects that you are less familiar with. They may also have capital that your business may benefit from or perhaps you’ve heard they invest in certain kinds of businesses. Your attendance significantly increases your connection potential. Use that opportunity to build and grow.  Once you have exposed your business to likeminded individuals who believe in your company and your vision, it can secure a connection that may transform your business for the better.

Tackle unanswered questions

Networking is your “Q and A” forum. If you’re feeling uncertain about your business or perhaps your next step, use networking to share ideas, receive feedback, and alleviate your uncertainty. Additionally, speak specifically with individuals who know more that you and pick their brain.

           

Building your profile and confidence

Finally, networking is your runway. It is where you strut your stuff so that your colleagues can put a face to your name and you can build your profile. It is always where you go to gain your confidence. Most of the people you are intimidated by are just like you.  Find comfort in that. Believe in your ability, believe in your business and be confident.  

Getting The Most Out Of Focus Groups

Large organizations, including corporations, academic institutions, and government agencies, have recruited focus groups for decades to help them gain insight into the wants, needs, and behaviour of the public. For businesses, it’s useful to ascertain what current and potential customers and clients are looking for, and the focus group can be a cost-effective and highly revelatory source of information.

Consider the following points when you’re planning to recruit focus groups, so that you can separate the signal from the noise and ultimately derive useful data from the sessions.

The overall composition of the groups should accurately reflect your target demographic.

While this principle seems like common sense, its importance is difficult to overstate. A series of focus groups whose composition substantially differs from that of the target demographic won’t necessarily yield helpful data.

What age are your prospective clients or customers? Gender? Marital circumstances? Ethnicity, or mix of ethnicities? What language(s) do they speak? Where and in what circumstances do they live?

The better you can form a mental picture of your customer/client base before you begin recruitment, the more informative your focus group sessions are likely to be.

Stay on track.

One the of purposes of a focus group is to enable participants to share their own thoughts and feelings in an open, accepting environment, and in relative spontaneity. But whenever you gather strangers or acquaintances together and encourage them to converse spontaneously, the discussion is likely to wander off topic. This is where the skill set of a competent moderator becomes essential.

Attributes you should look for in a moderator include patience, firmness, articulacy, strong organization skills, the ability to appear neutral and impartial over the course of the discussion, and ideally some credible previous experience in the field. A moderator will also occasionally need to call on participants who haven’t said anything in a while, to encourage their input.

Would Goldilocks approve of the size of your group?

A focus group that is too small will tend to be stilted and fail to generate rich discussion. On the other hand, when the group is overly large, it will tend to segment into several smaller cliques, or a core group will form that excludes participants on the periphery.

Ideally, the scale of your group should be six to 10—not too big, not too small, but just the right size to facilitate an inclusive, respectful, productive exchange of ideas.

Ask the right questions.

To design effective questions for a focus group, you must begin by posing one to yourself: What exactly do you want to know? Until you can narrow down what you’re looking for, you’ll find it difficult to design questions that are specific enough to meet your needs.

You’ll also want to limit the number of questions to a manageable level. A good rule of thumb is that the number of questions (except for clarifying queries that the moderator may inject once in a while) should be roughly equal to the number of participants.

One of the main advantages of a focus group over a survey is the opportunity for participants to modify their views during the discussion. It’s common for a focus group participant to end the session with an opinion significantly different from the one s/he started with.

Conduct at least three or four unique group sessions.

This is likely the minimum you’ll require in order to generate valid, applicable results.

Each session should last anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes. Beyond that point, group productivity tends to stall, and you’ll probably have covered all of your questions anyway.

You’ll know when you’ve reached the “saturation point”.

When new focus group sessions aren’t generating many new ideas, you’ve probably retrieved about as much data as you can reasonably expect from the focus group endeavour. It’s time to wrap up and analyze what you’ve collected.

10 Ways to Protect Yourself and Your Business from Fraud

As the old saying goes, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This is true for keeping colds at bay and for preventing personal and business fraud. When you consider that most business fraud can be attributed to a lack of proper control over information and assets, then you can instantly see the importance of prevention. It doesn’t matter if you are a small business or a vast conglomerate; there is a demonstrable benefit to be found through being diligent in protecting yourself from fraudulent activities. The following are the top ten ways to protect yourself and your business from fraud.

1.      Upgrade Onsite Security: 

A thief who breaks into your company offices or warehouse could not only steal property but also valuable information. That information can include credit card account numbers, computer passwords and all other forms of sensitive information. Once those numbers are obtained, the criminal could go on a virtual buying spree before you can make it into work the next day. This is why upgrading your on site security in the form of proper locks, alarms and security gates are crucial for preventing theft.

2.      Properly Secure Business Records:

Even with the extra alarms, there might be personnel who will be tempted to access important business information. That is why it should always be kept under lock and key after business. While it is convenient to have a list of all your account passwords handy, you really want to make sure that “prying eyes” won’t get a peek.   

3.     Add Shredding To Your Routine:

A shrewd identity thief will know right where to find the information they need and it’s not always in your office, but in your dumpster. Any paper that is being thrown out with any kind of company information should be shredded first. This is especially true for a small business that might not have secure dumpsters.  

4.     Don’t Divulge Over the Phone:

The natural instinct for anyone answering a company phone inquiry is to be helpful and courteous. That “help” might extend too far towards a potential identity thief who is trolling for information through a random “customer” call. Unless you initiate a call, don’t give out any vital company information over the phone to a stranger. 

5.      Lock Down Your Computers:

You might think it is easy to keep track of people who come through your office on a regular basis. However, when you consider all the messengers, delivery men, service technicians, sales persons and custodians you can see that the stream of outside workers, even in a small business, can be enormous. This is why your computers should have password protection. They should also be shut down when you are away from your desk.

6.      Install Computer Firewalls:

The protection from your computer needs to extend throughout the internet through updated firewall security measures. You need to protect your network systems from potential hackers who troll for businesses to steal from. If you have an IT professional who takes care of your IT network and systems, ask them for their recommendations. 

7.      Establish Strong Anti-Fraud Policies:

Your employees are going to be your best line of defense to prevent fraud. However, they can also become your weakest link. This is why you need to establish clear policies with regard to sharing company information. A rep from your company shouldn’t be out in the world broadcasting sensitive information. It could be unintentional, but that won’t matter if a fraud occurs from using this information.

8.      Set Up a Fraud Hotline:

Sometimes an employee could witness an act of fraud but they don’t want to directly report this incident to a manager. Setting up a fraud hotline or email address can provide staff members with the opportunity to share any knowledge of fraud. This type of hotline also tells anyone who might be thinking about a fraud scheme that they are being watched by their co-workers.

9.      Take Immediate Action:

The moment there is a report of a suspected fraud incident you should begin a thorough investigation. By taking immediate action you’ll let your staff know this type of behavior won’t be tolerated.

10.  Sever Ties With Ex-Employees:

When renting a new apartment, you should request that new locks be installed. This is also a smart policy with regard to ex-employees, especially those who were fired under undesirable circumstances. You need to make sure any previous access these employees had to sensitive information be changed. This could be swapping out passwords, canceling company credit cards and yes, in extreme cases, changing the locks.

The Top 10 Small Business Resources Online

Entrepreneurs can never have too many outlets to get questions answered, industry information and basic tips on all things business-related. That’s why we like to keep our blog up-to-date on information that can benefit you, the small business owner.

But there are tons more great resources out there to find all the information you need from just a click of the mouse. Below is a list of our top 10 favourite blogs and websites dedicated to the small business owner.

Canada Business Network

A Government of Canada blog dedicated to a wide range of business related topics, including insight into government programs, advancements, and events.

Young Entrepreneur

YE provides open forum for entrepreneurs, mentors and investors alike to ask questions, network, and create discussion while getting regular tips and information on the YE blog.

Canadian Federation of Independent Business

CFIB provides business owners support by lobbying on behalf of members on issues that affect Canadian business. Their website has a wealth of regularly updated information on current political issues and legislation as well as general information and tips to help your business grow.

Canadian Entrepreneur

Written by Rick Spence, a leading consultant on entrepreneurship and business growth in Canada, the Canadian Entrepreneur blog not only gives business owners great tips and ideas but also provides interesting anecdotes that make for a great read. He’s a regular contributor on the National Post blog as well.

How’s Business?

Staples is well known as the place to go for anything office related in Canada, but they also have a great business insights! The Staples blog has posts on a wide range of topics to appeal to business owners at any stage. The blog includes great recommendations on resources as well as highlighting successful Canadian entrepreneurs.

Small Business: Canada

Susan Ward’s “Small Business: Canada” section on the About.com website is a gold mine of information on any topic you can think of regarding Canadian business. Her posts are well written and easy to read, making even the most confusing concepts clear and understandable.

Small Business Trends

Though this is an American blog, there are many good tidbits of information on Small Business Trends that can apply to any business.  

The Daily Dose

Entrepreneur.com’s “The Daily Dose” provides excellent coverage of the latest information on all business related matters. It’s a great read to keep on top of current news and trends that may affect your business.

The Frugal Entrepreneur

Everybody wants to save a buck – especially small business owners! The Frugal Entrepreneur is dedicated to helping small business owners and entrepreneurs do just that. With cool tips and tricks to help you maximize your business on a minimized budget, this blog is a great read with great tips.

Canada One

Not only does CanadaOne.com provide business and event listing services, it also has a wealth of information for business owners. Get expert advice, business guides and book reviews all in one place and all dedicated to helping your business grow.

Do you have a go-to blog or website for small business information? Let us know in the comments!