Submit the 2010 Best Communities for Business Questionnaire

March 10, 2010 – 9:23 pm Source of Post: joyceb
In its June issue, Alberta Venture magazine will feature its third annual report on the best communities in the province for business.
By joyceb | Posted in Alberta Business | Tagged , | Comments Off

Why did you give me your business card?

March 10, 2010 – 6:10 pm Source of Post: Stuart R. Crawford

Has this ever happened to you?  You go to your Chamber of Commerce luncheon or networking event and out of the blue some guy in a slick and shiny suit gives you their business card for no reason at all telling you to call them if you need to buy whatever they have to push.  I have to ask, why are you giving me your card and what makes you think I will do business with you in the first place?

I have been following some of the networking tips shared by Bob Burg over the past little while about networking etiquette and what is acceptable bahaviour when it comes to handing out your business card at events, lunches etc.  Well, according to all the experts and networking gurus they state “never give out your card until someone asks for it”.  Good advice in my opinion.

This same approach can spill over to the online world.  Especially one of my favourite business to business sites, LinkedIn.  Why do some people reach out to you when you really have no relationship?  There are legitimate people out there looking for help or advice, great this is what social networking is all about.  Some maybe looking to sell to you, this is what social networking is not about.

Therefore, if you are reaching out to sell something using online social technologies, don’t.  If you are looking at linking up with some to build a network, share experiences, share client needs or seek help or advice….make sure you state that in your request.  You will have a better chance of successfully building your online and face-to-face networks.

Don’t through your card in someone’s face…wait for them to ask for it.

By Stuart R. Crawford | Posted in Alberta Business | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Excuse me…I don’t want to link with you!

March 10, 2010 – 12:00 am Source of Post: Stuart R. Crawford

Some old-fashioned techniques just never seem to go away when they should just curl up in a ball and disappear.

Yep, the number of emails I get daily now since I made the move from a Calgary Small Business Computer Consultant to my new gig working with the business community in Calgary helping many small to midsize corporations with online marketing, social media strategies and search engine optimization have drastically increased.

So no, I don’t want to exchange your garbage links with you! Just because my clients have great page rank doesn’t allow you to spam me asking to exchange links.  That is so 1999 of you.  It simply never works out to be a fair trade anyways.

Go out there and earn your links the right way.  Offer real information that people would love to share, blog about or retweet…but don’t email me asking for a link from my website to yours.  The answer is NO, if you even get an answer from me.

By Stuart R. Crawford | Posted in Marketing, Online Marketing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Do you want to do business in Asia?

March 9, 2010 – 7:53 pm Source of Post: Stuart R. Crawford

SaaS Opportunities are opening up in Asia

Calgary International Trade Broker, AvGlobe had just successfully obtained a mandate to provide 100 to 200 software providers using software as a service – cloud computing in Singapore as part of Singapore’s drive to be a IT Hub of southeast Asia. This initiative is supported by the various business chambers and associations in Singapore.

Currently, the cloud computing platform had consistent supporters of around 3000+ small / medium businesses. The softwares of interests would be any customisable business associated software such as accounting, invoicing, payroll, sales/lead generation, customer resource management, supply chain management, remote desktop, process management, project planning and management and much more.

For more information contact Alan Tay from AvGlobe Consulting Inc.

By Stuart R. Crawford | Posted in Alberta Business | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Does a real leader need to be in the front of the room?

March 9, 2010 – 4:30 pm Source of Post: Stuart R. Crawford

Life has a funny way of coming around eh?

I used to think in order to be a real leader you needed to be in front of the room, the one leading the group, being in charge, organizing the events and so on…

Boy was I wrong!

Sometimes a real leader comes from the back of the room, the quiet one, the one that when they speak they have something to say…and so on.  The real leader is the one who is there for you when you don’t need them, but also when you do.  The real leader understands the importance of the big picture, a real leader doesn’t scoff with smart ass comments but digs deep to see the relevance of the big picture.

Thanks for the wake up this morning!

By Stuart R. Crawford | Posted in Alberta Business | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off

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