Atlantic Canada's Small Business Blog

I am "CA" Atreya (PMP, MBA), the author of this blog. I help businesses in Atlantic Canada achieve their BHAG successfully. You may subscribe to this blog using a feed reader (RSS). Note: We have moved the blog to a new domain to better reflect this blog's objectives.

Welcome to yet another edition of the Carnival of Small Business Issues. I must admit, when I first started the Carnival, I was unsure of how well it will be received. Thank you for participating in the Carnival. Your quality submissions make it enjoyable to present it each week.

I have changed the format a bit - hopefully you will like it and participate in the discussion that follows. We do have some really great insights to help small businesses.

Over the course of time that you have blogged, you may have written some classics that you think are still valid in today’s business environment. Submit them for next week’s carnival. Here is the link to the submission page.

Your support and link to the carnival is greatly appreciated.

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Export

• Dan Harris is the co-founder of Harris & Moure, an international law firm catering to small and medium businesses that operate internationally. A road warrior, he travels frequently to China, Korea and Russia. He provides some tips on doing business in China. “Foreign businesses in China must seek to protect their intellectual property in China, particularly since domestic companies has lower cost structures.” Dan also discusses an article in the Chinese Business Review on what small and medium businesses need to consider in determining whether to go into China. China Strategies For SMEs - To Go or Not to Go, That is the Question.“Without the insight that comes from examining the motivations for going into China, management cannot accurately weigh the financial investment, IP exposure, opportunity costs, and other risks of going to China.”

Question: I have a question Dan. One of the reasons China enjoys its growth is its pegged exchange rate. How long do you think this peg will remain? With China’s ever increasing trade surplus, there is bound to be a time when the Renminbi will come under pressure and get attacked by speculators. (the currency is fully convertible on both capital and current accounts, right?) Even the Hong Kong dollar came under attack during the 97 Asian crisis inspite of their economy being strong. What steps, if any, should small businesses take to mitigate this risk?

Marketing

• John Crickett follows his wife’s advice on focusing on just one idea at a time. But he is brimming with ideas and posts them at Business Opportunities and Ideas. So grab an idea and run (though I am not sure of how far you will get if you can’t think up an idea yourself ). John suggests 12 ways for a small business to beat Tesco. O boy, I just checked Tesco’s website. I wonder why they don’t own oil wells! That’s probably the only business there are not in. Or are they?

Comment: Tesco is a Goliath organization. And in order to beat them David’s (read small businesses) need a sling and use Goliath’s own sword to slay him. What I mean to say is, an organization that large depends on efficiency to survive. Low costs are a function of efficiency. Use their size against them. Small businesses are closer to their customers and considerably more agile. Hence, it is easier for small businesses to establish a relationship with their customers. Build trust and rapport. Being so close to the customer, they can easily understand customers’ needs and fulfill them. The marketing goals should be, “How many new relationships did I make this month.”

Finance

• “If someone uses your social security number on a credit application, you might not even find out about it – not even in your credit report.” Caught your attention – didn’t it? “Have fraud, will travel”. That’s how Tracy Coenen describes her work. An entrepreneur at heart, she founded Sequence Inc to help catch the bad boys (and girls). In her post “Have you heard of synthetic identity fraud”, she talks about an article on Bankrate.com about a little known fraud type – synthetic fraud.

Question: What scares me is the ability of collection agencies to come after someone whose social security number was used – even if the name does not match. Are there any reliable services out there that you can recommend for tracking this, Tracy? I thought if you got credit reports from Experian, TransUnion and Equifax, you have pretty much covered all bases.

• What do you do when your small business needs funds? If you have already tapped your friends and family, chances are you will approach your bank. “Loans are a time-tested way of raising capital for your business.” David at guideye.com presents 7 Steps To Get A Loan For Your Business. “We would love to tell you that it is easy as going to the bank and asking for money, but as you probably know by now it is quite the opposite.”

Question: David, do you think it’s a good idea for a bank to ask for information about the company’s board – especially for medium enterprises or for loans greater than some amount, say $100,000? In a public organization or a private organization funded by VCs there is someone to monitor the CEO’s performance. This is not the case with small private organizations.

• Kristine McKinley is the founder of Beacon Financial Advisors, LLC. She focuses on providing financial planning, investment advice and tax preparation to individuals and families. She also focuses on building long-term relationships with her clients based on trust and integrity. If your small business relies on brokers such as eBay or you sell online, then you ought to be concerned about the proposals to tax them. More tax woes for online businesses talks about several tax issues that could affect your business. Subscribe to her blog to keep yourself abreast of the developments.

Question: Will this proposal affect individuals, Kristine? For example; if an individual uses Amazon to sell books occasionally, does that mean he/she has to collect sales tax on that amount?

• It is always a pleasure to receive submissions from The Digirati Life. Down to earth entrepreneurial experiences and advice. If you plan to leave your cushy job for the wild and exciting world of startups and entrepreneurs, 6 Ways We’re Managing Our Finances And Our Emotions While Starting A Business is a must read. “Instead of looking back, we’re keeping our eye on the hopeful prize … any [such] entrepreneurial effort is a team effort involving the entire family … we’ll have something left to show at the end of this experience …”

Comment: If there is one thing I have learnt from entrepreneurs, it is “they do not give up” - sometimes with disastrous consequences. Point #5 is so true. Often times entrepreneurs keep hacking away at the idea even though results tell us it is time to move on.
HR

• When Debra writes, you pay attention. She’s got a number of tips up her sleeve that inspires and motivates. This time around she asks you to Put yourself first. “One of the things I’ve learned as a daily blogger is that it’s impossible for me to sit down and write something that motivates, educates and inspires others until I have first motivated, educated and inspired myself … when I walk into a business and find an unmotivated team, I know that I am going to meet an unmotivated business manager …” You really should read the five ways to motivate yourself.

• Would you like to meet a Death coach? Well … by her own admission, Laura Young is part Death Coach and part Life coach and writes at The Dragon Slayer’s Guide to Life. What’s the rationale for the title, Laura? Just curious. A word of caution before you click any of the links to her submission: “Hanging out at her blog is not for the faint hearted.” With that warning out of our way Laura says, “Most coaches have no idea what they stand for … what is in it for the client to work with them … There’s a difference between coaching and having a coaching business …” Check out If you are considering becoming a coach.

Technology

• Would you pay more for a preferred and a quicker internet service? At initial glance, I would have looked past Surfer Sam online had it not been for the topic. I usually tend to avoid sites that are quite heavy on ads and distracts from content. But when the topic is Net Neutrality for Broadband Internet, you pay attention to what Surfer Sam has to say. “The proposed change would not speed up data from paying sites. [Instead], the change would slow down data from non-paying sites … this slowdown could be accomplished by deliberately losing data packets or rerouting data the long way … it is possible that the spirit of entrepreneurship so characteristic of Internet startups will be thwarted by the extra cost of buying delivery service…”

In a free economy, Sam, market forces decides this. Can we not have the same attitude here too? For example, if the current oligopoly companies raise rates, will it not attract more companies wanting a share of the pie (read larger revenues)? This will in turn increase competition creating a downward pressure on rates. What do you say?

Miscellaneous

• Karen Bryan is a new blogger for the Travel Weekly Blog. I will let her introduce herself at How small businesses can NAB more bookings.

• For those in the textile business, here are some links to Apparel and Textile Associations and Organizations.

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Happy reading!

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