Just a reminder that seminar 3 is this Thursday. I am working on mentors for those who wish to be paired with them.
Hopefully everyone has started researching market information as we talked about last Thursday. Another thing to think about and research is competition. We will talk more in depth about this during seminar three, but just to get you started...
There is direct competition and indirect competition. For example, if you were to open a movie theater. Direct competitors are other movie theaters. However, there are other ways people may wish to spend there evening rather than watching movies. They could go to the driving range, go carts, horse races, the list goes on. Those may not be the same business as yours, but they are an equally effective way to entertain one's self for an evening. So... you may be the only one with your product or service, but you will always have competitors.
This is important for raising capital. If you say there are no competitors in your field, you may want to rephrase that to there are no direct competitors in your field. If you simply say there are no competitors it tells the people you are making your pitch to that maybe you didn't do your homework well enough.
This is only one topic we will cover next seminar. I hope to see you there.
Showing posts with label Business Plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Business Plan. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Friday, June 15, 2007
Marketing
Many people think that marketing is synonymous with advertising. The truth is advertising is only a small part; a single step in a never ending process.
The American Marketing Association defines marketing as:
"the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives."
This is obviously a very important part of planning your business. Therefore, in our seminars there are two weeks allocated for marketing, the 4 P's (product, price, place, promotion), target markets, SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, 0pportunities, threats) analysis, market potential, product life cycle, etc. All these things are crucial to knowing the environment your business is currently in and planning for "what if" scenario's.
In our seminar last night one of our speakers mentioned statcan.ca. This is a fantastic website to do some research on your market, its potential, and your place in it. There is another government website that I would like to direct your attention to; Industry Canada. It is a website with fantastic resources that goes more in depth about what we were talking about last night and what we will talk about next week.
Specifically, http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/stco-levc.nsf/en/h_qw00016e.html talks about marketing if your still a little hazy. On the right hand side there is a link that takes you to an interactive worksheet that helps you to assess your strength in the market. One thing the government does is make pretty decent websites for the people needing more business information.
There is tons, literally tons, of information on marketing and examples of anything you may want about business plans, online. This wealth of information does come at a cost. Sometimes it is not a reputable site. Just be aware of this fact. Usually government websites are pretty reliable, so they are a great starting place.
Good luck marketing and I hope to see you next week.
The American Marketing Association defines marketing as:
"the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives."
This is obviously a very important part of planning your business. Therefore, in our seminars there are two weeks allocated for marketing, the 4 P's (product, price, place, promotion), target markets, SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, 0pportunities, threats) analysis, market potential, product life cycle, etc. All these things are crucial to knowing the environment your business is currently in and planning for "what if" scenario's.
In our seminar last night one of our speakers mentioned statcan.ca. This is a fantastic website to do some research on your market, its potential, and your place in it. There is another government website that I would like to direct your attention to; Industry Canada. It is a website with fantastic resources that goes more in depth about what we were talking about last night and what we will talk about next week.
Specifically, http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/stco-levc.nsf/en/h_qw00016e.html talks about marketing if your still a little hazy. On the right hand side there is a link that takes you to an interactive worksheet that helps you to assess your strength in the market. One thing the government does is make pretty decent websites for the people needing more business information.
There is tons, literally tons, of information on marketing and examples of anything you may want about business plans, online. This wealth of information does come at a cost. Sometimes it is not a reputable site. Just be aware of this fact. Usually government websites are pretty reliable, so they are a great starting place.
Good luck marketing and I hope to see you next week.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Expansion
Hello,
This is an exciting time for the Chinook Entrepreneur Challenge. Not only are we trying to give away $30 000 in start up capital for new or expanding businesses and $10 000 in in-kind services from businesses that sponsor the Challenge, we are in the process of expanding the area we reach. Previously we were only in the areas of: the City of Lethbridge, the City of Medicine Hat, and the Counties and Municipal Districts of Newell, Vulcan, Cypress, Willow Creek, Pincher Creek, Ranchland, Lethbridge, Cardston, Warner, Taber, Forty Mile, Crowsnest Pass, Waterton, Special Area No. 2, Special Area No. 3, and the MD of Acadia. The special areas stretch up just north of Oyen.
The New area includes The Community Futures Regions of Wild Rose, and Big Country (Strathmore and Drumheller respectively). If you are curious if you are in the area, check out our new 2007 handbook at http://www.chinookchallenge.com/Participant%20documents/Chinook%202007%20Handbook.pdf, or check out the Community Futures network location finder website at http://www.cfnsa.ca/cfna/public/find_cf.html.
Hopefully, next year we will expand further north toward Red Deer area. We will keep you posted. If you are in a new area, or just wondering about the Challenge in general send me an email at info@chinookchallenge.com.
This is an exciting time for the Chinook Entrepreneur Challenge. Not only are we trying to give away $30 000 in start up capital for new or expanding businesses and $10 000 in in-kind services from businesses that sponsor the Challenge, we are in the process of expanding the area we reach. Previously we were only in the areas of: the City of Lethbridge, the City of Medicine Hat, and the Counties and Municipal Districts of Newell, Vulcan, Cypress, Willow Creek, Pincher Creek, Ranchland, Lethbridge, Cardston, Warner, Taber, Forty Mile, Crowsnest Pass, Waterton, Special Area No. 2, Special Area No. 3, and the MD of Acadia. The special areas stretch up just north of Oyen.
The New area includes The Community Futures Regions of Wild Rose, and Big Country (Strathmore and Drumheller respectively). If you are curious if you are in the area, check out our new 2007 handbook at http://www.chinookchallenge.com/Participant%20documents/Chinook%202007%20Handbook.pdf, or check out the Community Futures network location finder website at http://www.cfnsa.ca/cfna/public/find_cf.html.
Hopefully, next year we will expand further north toward Red Deer area. We will keep you posted. If you are in a new area, or just wondering about the Challenge in general send me an email at info@chinookchallenge.com.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Welcome
Hello and welcome to the Chinook Entrepreneur Challenge, the only business planning competition of its kind in Canada to be held in a non-metropolitan setting. Set in Southern Alberta, Canada, this competition is designed to encourage new entrepreneurs, small businesses and start ups to act on their business ideas, their talents, and their energy to produce tomorrow’s leading firms. Through seminars, mentors, and this blog, participants will have guidance and support while preparing their plan. This blog will be the spot to learn of upcoming events, tips for business plans and updates on the competition. To register for this years challenge go to http://www.chinookchallenge.com/ and fill out the online form. Keep checking this blog for updates and helpful links. Good Luck.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
