Photographer?
DO YOU KNOW
Want to show case your work or make some $ from it? Page 11.
You can become a guest contributor? Page 5.
MONTHLY
August 2014 Volume 5. The CONNECT SMALL BUSINESS NETWORK - NETWORK . PROMOTE . EXPAND.
Absolute Success Equation - by John Laurenson, Page 16
Education Based Conference? - September 30th, Page 7
“It’s the market, no one is spending money” Really? - by Trevor Russell, Page 8
The importance of identifying your USP and niche market - by Claire Kelly, Page 14
Get published and establish yo u r s e l f a s an expert in your field! - CSBN, Page 5
LOOK WHAT’S COVERED IN THIS MONTHS
EDITION 3. Editor in Cheif Ben Mackie - Networking
16. Absolute success equation
5. Want to get published?
18. looking for more CSBN team members
6. I choose to be connected - hitting the wall
19. Power quote
7. CSBN - education based conference
20. An easy method small business owners are using to reach their goals
8. “It’s the market, no one is spending money” Really? 12. Calling all photographers 14. The importance of identifying your USP and niche market
24. Neon Digital for professional quality video 25. Meet the CSBN Team
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EDITOR IN C H I E F
BEN Mackie
NETWORKING
Just recently, I read an article from Rossco Paddison about the different types of people you meet networking: http://www.rosscopaddison.com/8-types-of-networkers/ I smiled to myself as I read it and reflected on my own experiences across a range of business networking meetings- the breakfasts, luncheons or evening events, the people I have come into contact with, the guests I’ve seen speak, the audience participation activities, the great ideas that have been shared with me right when I least expected it that made the whole event worth the time/ money- so many times I have left a networking event with new contacts, business cards, opportunities or ideas that have filled me with such a buzz of gratitude and relief that I turned up! Yet there have been other occasions where I’ve left a networking event and wondered if I should have just stayed home? Either I met no new contacts or felt like the only person in the room who wasn’t already tight with least 3 people there. As a result I’d feel like an interloper, watching on as people closed ranks and chatted in their comfortable circles. “You’re a business person?” I’d think to myself as I stood there. “You can’t even go up and talk to these people- who are you kidding?” But faced with a room full of strangers who all (on the surface) are completely engrossed in chatter, it’s a daunting prospect to just go up, poke your head in and interject uninvitedthen try and establish some kind of a professional relationship
with those people. I’m not even somebody who dreads networking or public speaking- if the person speaking at an event handed me the microphone and told me to ad lib for 5 minutes straight, I’d step up without it feeling like that dream where you turn up to school naked! Yet even for myself, the idea of starting on the back-foot as a stranger interrupting a pleasant conversation between friends or colleagues, could make me feel like I was 13 again and at the school social. I’m watching the pretty girls on the floor and I would love to dance with them, but the thought of going directly up to them and asking paralyses me with fear. “What if she turns me down? Everybody will see me get rejected and laugh!” Except the modern equivalent is: “What if these people are so offended by my interjecting that my name and reputation is tarnished forever and people won’t want to connect with me because they think I’m naturally rude/ pushy?” Networking is vital for your business, whether you love it, tolerate it or dread it. If you’re in the first group then chances are that at least one of the following three points is already second nature to you- in which case, well done! If you fall into the other two categories (or
4 appearance is tidy and your clothes are clean, don’t be afraid to stand out from the crowd if that’s what feels natural for you. Not only will you feel more composed and relaxed on a subconscious level, but daring to show your individuality in a crowded room could be just the thing that makes people notice you- and want to introduce themselves!
you’re always scouting for new tips/ ideas) read on as I share with you the 3 biggest things I’ve learnt that make the most difference to my success (and enjoyment) of networking events, big or small: 1) Relax. Networking is an investment, not an instant sell. There’s no need to do the hard-sell. Soon enough, the people you speak to will know who you are and what it is you do. They may even realise within a minute of talking that somebody with your abilities or contacts, is exactly the person they hoped to meet. The beauty of networking events is that it gives you the chance to put a face and a personal identity to your business- even if the person in question doesn’t have a job for you right now, if they remember what your specialty is and they enjoy talking to YOU (the person, not the salesperson) there is always the chance that they will seek to include you in their plans or projects at a future date. 2) Relax. This is not a job interview- so don’t dress like it is. Sure, many people “suit up” for their job, but if you’re not one to don business attire of a daily basis in your professional life, don’t suddenly feel the pressure to do so because you’re going to a networking event. While being neatly presented (clean teeth, nails, hair, shoes etc.) should still be on your checklist before heading to an event, don’t be afraid to bring your own individual sense of flair or taste when it comes to dressing for the occasion. I was recently talking to a business partner of mine, and she observed how people often change their behaviour when they “suit up”. It’s as if there’s an invisible, external behavioural standard that comes into play just from changing their wardrobe! Provided your
3) Relax. Listening is just as important as speaking. It can be easy to overthink, to worry about saying the “right” thing or perfecting your “spiel”. While it’s a great idea to prepare how you “sell” your product or expertise, remember that listening to the other person is just as important. Take note of as much information as you can while other people are speaking to you at an event. Perhaps there’s something about their business that you are just the person to help them with and they haven’t realised it? You may go on to suggest working with that person and the offer may not go any further than mere talk, but at least that person will go away feeling as if you actually listened to them, as opposed to just doing the “hard sell” and viewing them as another potential sale without bothering to listen to them or try and understand their business. Most importantly, avoid the temptation of feeling like a failure if you leave a networking event without signing anybody up/ selling your wares/ selling your services. Focus most of all on establishing and maintaining relationships. Relationships are one commodity that every single person depends on, whether professional or personal. No man (or woman) is an island. Even if the people you speak to have no need for your services or your products, there’s every chance they will know somebody who does- and why wouldn’t they recommend an intelligent, understanding person like yourself? They will give you a glowing recommendation because while you didn’t successfully sell your business to them, you sold YOURSELF. All your success as a networking businessperson follows on from that point alone. Get this right, relax, and the seeds you sow will begin to grow! Do you have any other great tips that have worked for you? Feel free to share them with us and we will share them with our reader community! Author - Ben Mackie
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Want to get
published?
“ Did you know that by becoming a guest contributor you have the chance to share your knowledge and expertise with fellow readers- and this also provides an effective form of free advertising for you and your business? By submitting an article and having it published you are not only sharing useful, interesting information but you are also creating a new outlet to promote your particular area of specialised knowledge and get your name out there before a growing audience! ” to anything to do with your particular business, skillset or area of expertise. What do you find particularly interesting? What are some of the most important things you have learned? What’s great advice you’ve been given that’s proven successful for you? Sharing your knowledge and becoming a guest contributor isn’t just of great benefit our readers, it also has great flow-on effects for your professional reputation and (as a result) your business and expertise.
There are other ways to promote your business and your area of expertise in CSBN Monthly besides advertising or having a feature article written about you. We are currently on the lookout for guest contributors to provide our magazine with articles each month, so if you have articles written or are keen to pen one from scratch, now is a better time than ever to submit them to us! We are looking for articles between 1-2 pages long, relating
So whether you already have folders full of articles to choose from or if it’s time to sit down and start writing, CSBN Monthly is eager for you to share with us! Plus, for a limited time, all authors who have an article published will also receive a complimentary half-page ad in the upcoming issue. With free promotion like that, there’s no better time than now to start sharing your work! Deadlines for the next edition is the last day of each month, 12 midday. For more information, see Submissions Guides and Requirements on our website. Contact Ben Mackie on 0405 526 351 or send an email through to Ben@CSBN.com.au. Author - Ben Mackie
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FOUND E R & M A N AG E R
CAMILLE Scott “ Networking is the KEY to your business success. ”
HITTING THE WALL We’ve all done it, at one time or another. SO what do you do when you‘ve lost your mojo? I’ve no idea when it started, or what triggered it, but I know I’ve got it. For the last week or so I’ve had the proverbial wall squished right up in my face! Needless to say, it’s not a good feeling and it’s easy to get lost in the negative self talk and mind set. But it’s just as easy to escape from. I work hard 7 days a week. I’m lucky if I take 6 hours off each week to chill out, watch a movie or go shoot something (with my camera of course). This is not good or wise, but being a small business owner, I feel it’s my only option. You know the saying about “It’s great to work for yourself, you get to choose which 18 hours a day you will work”. Well, it’s also a whole lot more than just that. My amazing business coach, John Laurenson (see page 16 for the Absolute Success Equation) has recently pointed out to me that, like most of us, I exist in the ‘technician’ phase. The Technician does all the work IN the business which can get quite exhausting. There is also the entrepreneur (what I thought I was being) and the Manager (which is currently being sadly neglected). So. What to do? My first thought was to work harder, find more hours in the days and push myself to get over this
‘hump’. Tried it, didn’t work. Just pushed that damn wall further into my face, so much so that I couldn’t see past it. What I finally realised was that I needed time out doing something totally removed from all things business and I needed to trust that if I took a few days off for myself, my world would not end. I utilised my time wisely by spending most of it lying on the couch watching episodes 1 and 2 of Yukon Men. Awesome!! I have been planning to go to Alaska for a year long photo shoot for a while now and so watching the hardship and constant struggle to survive in internal Alaska was perfect! It served to re-motivate me in my business because my business will be paying for me to go do my dream. And I leant that it’s ok, even beneficial to ‘step out’ for a while and relax. Nice! Camille Scott is the owner and manager of CSBN. She has run her own businesses for over 13 years, choosing to work from home where she can raise and be present for her young son. She created the CSBN with the sole aim of supporting other small businesses to grow and succeed, while enjoying the process and opportunities. “I developed the CSBN (Connect! Small Business Network) to specifically help small business owners like myself looking to grow and expand their business.” Author - Camille Scott
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EDUCATION BASED
CONFRENCE
need more clients & cash?
In this “More Clients And More Cash� education based conference, we will literally walk you through, step by step, exactly how to develop 3 crucial methods, absolutely unique to your business and brand, that you can take with you and use immediately in your business to generate more clients and more cash NOW! When: Where: Cost: What to Expect:
Saturdayday 20th September, Registration 8:30am, 9:00am, start. Bulimba, central to Brisbane with public transport. $52 pp. (Look for the half price specials on FB and our website!) Benefit from our step by step guide through 3 powerful methods, each unique to your business and brand, that you take with you and can use immediately in your business to attract more clients and cash!
CLICK HERE to visit the CSBN website for more information today!
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“It’s the market, no one is spending
MONEY”
Really?
This Q&A is designed to provide you with a list of the most important and critical areas, if you can and will focus on and embrace over time in your business or corporation.
Have you heard yourself say this statement or someone you know? ‘It’s the market, no one is spending’. And I would respond, with… really? Whatever business you’re in, let’s determine if it’s the market or what can be somewhat confronting to discover that it’s most definitely likely, you and your team ways of thinking, being and doing that is determining your level of success in business and the ability to generate high profits, or failure!
Bitter medicine to swallow, however if you’re courageous enough to take a look, you will be pleased to hear and see that it can all change, if you’re committed to do what it takes. Let me ask you these questions which are listed below and all you need to do is go through and tick which one’s you embrace and apply in your business. If you do them sometimes but not consistently, tick sometimes.
I am 100% clear will have you double your sales in 90 days or less. What you will gain from doing this quick exercise is that it’s easy to complain about what seems like the reasons for our lack of success in life and business, but when we get down to it, 90% of the time, what it really comes down to people’s ability to focus on and work on and with the fundamental disciplines that bring us the results and success we want in our lives.
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Business and Sales Success Diagnosis Q&A
So, how did you go with this exercise and what showed up for you here? These are key areas that if focused on over time, will transform your business performance and overall sales results and lift your team and company to a whole new level success. If, that is, if you can find the focus to work them and do them over time! Yes I know there is a lot in each area to consider and do, however can you if you focus on the key areas to achieve sales success, well will it come down to so much more than it just being, oh it’s the market. Which is what we really want to explore here right?
From asking yourself these questions, if you’re really serious about doubling your sales in 90 days or less, take some time to reflect on these questions you’ve answered.
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Where do you fill the gaps in your sales plan? If you are going to be successful in your efforts to enrol your ideal clients into wanting to buy your products and service, you need to understand your sales pathway and determine if there are any gaps that need addressing and rectifying. It’s also an opportunity for you to give yourself a pat on the back for a job well done. This list of successful selling areas is a powerful new learning or reminder of the priority areas that will have you win in the game of sales. I am sure this is a help to your ongoing business and team success. Best wishes Trevor Russell
Scoring your areas of selling & enrolment success
This is a very simple and easy process assess your level of satisfaction and results, start off by giving a gut-feel score from 1 out of 10 for each of these areas. Go through the list below and complete this simple Q&A as best as you can. We can use this list to determine your strong and weak points as a gauge for what and how we need to work to improve results.
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CALL I N G A L L P H OTO G R A P H E RS.. Stock Photography.
Stock photography is readily available, but can cost an arm and a leg for that perfect image to compliment your message. The Team at CSBN has decided to include a new section to our monthly magazine aimed specifically at photographers who would like to show case, sell and receive recognition for their work. While this will add a valuable and visually impacting addition to our magazine, it will also serve to promote those who would like to promote and benefit their work, and generate more people looking to use their images for marketing and
promotion. The selling and buying for now will be between the photographer and the client, but we are working hard to have a powerful feature on our website to showcase your images while automatically taking care of the selling and buying, quickly and easily. Our aim is to provide some unique images at affordable prices that can be “The Team at CSBN has decided to include a new section aimed specifically at photographers who want to show case their work!”
used for commercial purposes by small business owners, as well as help you promote your images while generating an income from them. You might be just getting started, or be an old hand with a DSLR - it doesn’t matter. If your work is clear and sharp, has impact and clarity, and of a specific resolution, we want to see it and publish it here. Send your files through to
admin@csbn.com.au with a brief description of who you are and why you love photography,
13 and we will be in touch. Just a note, in order to protect your work, please watermark it. You can do this in almost any free program. Need more help? Google it. There are heaps of great articles and tutorials on watermarking.
Cu r r e n t i n - h o u s e p h otographer - Camille Scot t. N e e d a ny w o r k d o n e ? call me on 0414 19 33 55.
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The importance of
id e n t i f y i n g yo u r U S P and niche market
15 Every business has a unique selling point (USP). It might be the staff are more engaging/friendly, the service is better, higher quality products... It is essential to identify early on in your business what your USP is so money and time isn’t wasted marketing to the wrong people. In previous corporate consultations, I used to ask small business owners first what made them so special compared to their competitors. I would ask them where would they find their target market, what did they look like, where did they shop or hang out... Quite often the marketing was very generic. ‘We sell to everyone’. Owners weren’t clear on their point of difference or what made them stand out - especially when compared to their perhaps better perceived opposition. The more you can identify your business’s strengths the easier it is to get the message across in your materials. The more you know where your prospects are likely to be, the more you can target those areas or people with your advertising campaigns. If you know where your ideal customer or prospect ‘hangs out’, you also no longer waste hours of your precious time at deadend networking events. My business coach recently asked me why I was going to young entrepreneur functions once or twice a week. Most of my current clients are divorced/single females between the ages of 22 and 60 - part time working or full time mothers. It simply didn’t make SENSE for me to be spending time networking with other business owners who were in stable relationships. Sure they might know a few people who may have relationship troubles, however if I attended woman’s support groups for those coming through relationship issues I’d have a much higher success rate. Time is a precious commodity and you don’t know how much of it you have to waste on unsuccessful marketing. Ask yourself a few basic questions to identify your niche market. 1) What do my clients value? The more you can connect to their highest values the better chance you have of ‘selling’ to them. 2) How much money do they have to spend? If it’s not much and you have a premium product, you may need to
identify another niche market. 3) Where do they hang out/ what are their interests? 4) What is the most effective medium or channel to reach this audience? 5) If my brand was a drink what ingredients would I put in it? (A bit creative however it helps you identify what your strongest business aspects are). Once you have clearly identified your target market, you then need to get across your point of difference in all of your marketing channels and materials.path to sustainable health and freedom.
By Freelance writer / former brand PR consultant - Claire Kelly
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Absolute Success Equation
John Laurenson
People are successful because they planned to be successful. They didn’t show up to work each day with their lunch and then suddenly one day they became successful, although making your own lunch does help with expenses. Successful people, from the outset, make clear goals and focus on the one goal they can leverage off to create the kind of lifestyle most people only dream about. The key to this equation is “clarity” and absolute clarity can bring about absolute success. By studying and taking action on the ingredients of this equation you too can be as successful as you like. Let’s have a look at the absolute success equation and what each of the ingredients are.
X=10
S = (C + P + E) +- I X=0
S = Success (on a scale of effectiveness from 0 to 10) X = Effectiveness scale (where 0 is not effective and 10 is absolutely effective) C = Clarity of Goal P = Planning E = Execution I = Interference
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Clarity of Goal 1.
Depends on whether or not the goal is yours and not coming under influence of someone else.
2.
Depends on your reasons why you are motivated or inspired to achieve this goal.
3.
Depends on the language you use to clearly describe your goal and how easily it can be communicated with clarity.
1.
Includes chunking down the sub tasks, order of activity and allocating time, money and resources to achieve this goal.
2.
Includes conditions and parameters set for achieving this goal like risk mitigation, contingency and margins of error.
Planning
3. Includes the measures of control set to manage time spent, expenditure and who is responsible to manage the quality of your outcome.
Execution
1. Depends on the prior knowledge and experience you have to manage a project to completion successfully including interactions with others. 2. Depends on the level of responsibility you take for achieving the goal, the outcomes along the way and how you correct for any variations thrown up contrary to the plan. 3.
Depends on the style of control you use to manage the completion of all facets of the implementation of your project.
Interference 1. Can depend on global, government or environmental influences that change conditions for everyone. 2. Can depend on business partners or family members support, resistance or events to your goal being achieved. 3. Can depend on outside organisation or individual behaviour that are in competition or direct opposition to you achieving your goal.
Inside the Plan and Outside the Plan Constraints Prior to planning, there are no constraints to your ideas for accomplishment – you are only limited by your imagination. Planning is where you set limits and constraints on how you expect things to pan out but it is not too late to change the plan and adjust various items to suit expected conditions you may be faced with. Once your plan has been constructed and work has started the constraints bite in quite hard and the parameters and budget/time milestones dictate progress.
Author - John Laurenson Website - www.goalsprojectssystems.com Email - John@goalsprojectssystems.com
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Looking for more...
CSBN Team Members! Yup, we have worked so hard, and expanded in a most awesome way, that we now require two more team members to come on board! This is an exciting and rare opportunity for the right person. It doesn’t matter if you have your own business, and need some paid time to make ends meet, or if you are a parent looking to LOOK get back into the workforce. As long as you have at least 10 hours a week AND at some of the skills we need, you are most welcome to apply for a position. You will need to be a FINISHER! This is a person who can see a task through to the end, not just come up with the idea... You will need to be CONFIDENT! We will train you up in areas where required... you’ll love adding your new skill set to your resume, And, it would be great if you had some experience/knowledge in the following areas:
• Accounting/Book Keeping • InDesign
development. If you have any of the above listed skills, we want to meet with you! Quite simply, if you are a business owner, no matter what field, your business will benefit from marketing and promotion, simply from being a part of our team! We are a tight team of successful business owners with WHAT’S COVERED IN THISothers MONTHS the united goal of benefiting like ourselves, while promoting, expanding and marketing our own businesses. You MUST: •
Have high attention to detail.
•
Be highly motivated.
•
Be relieble, trustworthy and loyal.
If this sounds like you, AND something you would be interested in being a part of, please click here
to access our online application form. I look forward to hearing from you, and meeting with you, and welcoming another amazing person to our highly functioning and successful team!
• Excel • Word • HTML & or CSS • Joomla • Illustrator • Video Editing • and more... let us know what else you have to offer! We don’t expect you to have all of these skills, but we hope you have some and are open and receptive to training and further
Founder and CEO - Camille Scott
The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that’s power. Because they control the minds of the masses. Malcolm X Suggested by - Camille Scott
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Here’s an easy method
Small Business Owners
are using to reach their goals Your goals might be anything from getting more clients to getting more cash in your business. You are in one place and your goals seem so far away. So much LOOK work to reach them, right? This is the constant bane of any size business owner. So the question is, “how do you get from where you are to where your goal is?” The answer is really easy once you know it. Let me ask you a quick question. Who do you hang out with? For example, when I hang out with my gamer buddies, I play games. ‘When I hang out with movie buffs (you guessed it), I watch movies. And I love it! But! (and here is the secret), when I hang out with people who are where I want to be, I start to do what they do. When you align yourself with people with the same goals as you, you start to do what they do and begin on the elusive path of achieving your own goals! I’m NOT saying stop hanging out with your friends doing what you enjoy. What I am saying is start to allocate just a couple of
hours each week to spend time with people who are already where you want to be. The power of this is just amazing.
WHAT’S COVERED IN THIS MONTHS
Don’t know anyone? That’s ok. It’s hard for many people to step into a new group. Keep reminding yourself that these people are just like you, and like you, are smart enough and motivated enough to spend time with like minded people. They already understand the benefits of doing so and are happy to meet more people. The more you do this, the more comfortable you will become in walking up to someone and introducing yourself. Don’t know where to start? There are plenty of groups already established, bursting with the types of people you want to meet, and they are easy to locate and join, and often free. They are friendly and welcoming, and consist of people just like you. To make it even easier for you, I have made up a list of both networking groups and facebook pages that I have found to be of value for both myself and other small business owners I’ve spoken to over the years. To grab your free copy of my list, simply click here. If you know of a group or page that you would like to see added to my list, just let me know. I’ll check it out and if my team agrees, I’ll add it to this list. Our biggest barrier to our success is ourselves. Once we do what we fear most, we start to free ourselves to achieve our goals and dreams. I encourage each and every one of you with goals and dreams that are valued to start by aligning yourself with those who have already achieved theirs, or who are well on their way. I promise, you will be impressed with the results if you stick with it.
Author - Camille Scott
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C A M I L L E S C OT T CSBN owner & manager Camille Scott, owner & manager, came upon the idea for the Connect! Small Business Network through her contact with the amazing NEIS small business course, it’s staff and mentors. By seeking new avenues through which to market my website services, and to outsource required work, I quickly realised that I had no clear and easy access to fellow NEIS participants.
“I truely hope the CSBN will benefit small and start up business owners across Australia to grow and reach the level the dream of”
meet the
“I truly hope the CSBN will benefit NEIS participants, both past and present as well as other business owners across Australia by providing a networking platform, from which we can all connect and benefit from our unique business experiences, services and products. Because I believe in the NEIS Small Business course, its standards, people and mentors, NEIS participants are the people I most want to do business with. I look forward to connecting with you soon.”
CSBN team
B E N M AC K I E CSBN editor in c h i e f Ben Mackie, CSBN Editor in Chief, also manages his own business (Scribe Copywriting). Through frequent involvement in business networking, Ben understands first hand how important it is for business (large or small) not just to make stronger connections with their target market and their existing client base, but also with other businesses. “Starting out in business is like planting seeds with the intention of growing a big tree. You can plant the seeds in healthy soil in a spot where they are exposed to enough sunlight to grow. But it’s not an instant process, the seeds and the soil need constant maintenance, attention and care to grow. Patience is also necessary. CSBN is where we connect people from all different fields- those sowing their seeds to those who have experience tending to their seeds and want to share their knowledge of what it takes to grow your business into a mighty tree.”
“CSBN is where we connect people from all different fields - those sowing their seeds to those who have experience tending to their seeds and want to share their knowledge of what it takes to grow a business into a mighty tree.”
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JOHN L AU R E N S O N CSBN business coac h John Laurenson, CSBN Business Coach, also manages his own business “Goals Systems Projects”. With over 40 years experience, John is an absolute wealth of knowledge and drive in solving problems, developing and implimenting highly efficient systems, and taking any business from woe to GO in no time at all. “If I said systems was the most important I would not be wrong but having said that you need vision / direction to head towards and a business model that is profitable. I help you focus with clarity and where you want to go and help you break down the phases of your business so you can clearly develop systems that work toward achieving your long term aims. Take 30 minutes out of your day to call me and have a conversation and discover if we are a match.”
“What is the most important thing you need to do in business?”
BUSINESS SUCCESS
Feedback | Suggestions please send them through to:
admin@CSBN.com.au We’d love to hear from you!
CSBN
The Connect! Small Business Network can help you grow and expand your business. Enjoy the benefits of networking with like-minded people and the resulting success. and enjoyment. It’s easier than you think when you meet up and connect with the right kind of people, just like you!