Your business with Bernadette
Bernadette Barrow Assistant General Manager, SME National Commercial Bank
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omen play a vital role in the development of Jamaica’s economy. Undoubtedly, many women own and operate businesses across the island, contributing significantly to the country’s GDP. In a bid to strengthen their positions in business, we partnered with Women’s Business Owners Jamaica Ltd, to finance a 12-week training programme as part of the WBO’s Strengthening and Empowerment of Women Entrepreneurs Project, funded by the the Inter-American Development Bank and National Commercial Bank Jamaica Ltd. The women were exposed to best practices in managing cash flow, maximising profitability and how to incorporate information communication technologies (ICTs), traditional and new media marketing tools into their operations. This is especially important because communication technologies and social media have significantly changed the way businesses interact with their customers. To be successful, they must be on the cutting edge, adapting to changes in the business world.
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Recognising this trend, we have also included specific tips on how to make your business more sociable and the benefits of social media to small businesses, especially as it relates to referrals by satisfied customers. Social media is instant and pervasive; therefore, if used correctly, you will begin to see the impact on your business. We’ve also focused on how coupons and discounts can boost your profits. To put things into context, we have highlighted the successes enjoyed by internationally known companies Groupon and LivingSocial. After all, maximising sales should be the aim of every business, small or large. If you have any comments or questions, email me at barrowbd@jncb.com or call me at 935-2065. I look forward to hearing from you!
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Yaneek Page on empowering female business owners
(L-R) Stuart Reid, Assistant General Manager, NCB; Audrey Tugwell Henry, NCB’s Senior General Manager, Retail Banking; Yaneek Page, president of Women Business Owners Jamaica Ltd; Bernadette Barrow, NCB’s Assistant General Manager, SME; WBO vice president Andrea Cowan and graduate Michelle Smith, CEO of Chocolate Dreams.
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y all accounts, Yaneek Page had a stellar 2011. In July, her pioneering litigant support company, Future Services International Ltd was a regional winner in the NCB Nation Builder Awards, in the ‘Women in Business’ category. In September, she was chosen by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) to represent the country in the US Department of State’s prestigious International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP), focusing on entrepreneurship and small business development. Just a month later, she was specially invited to a women’s entrepreneurial network event hosted by Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. To crown her successful year, Page was elected president of Women Business Owners Jamaica Ltd, succeeding Dorothea Gordon-Smith. The first item on her agenda is to oversee the continuation of the Strengthening and Promoting Women Entrepreneurs in Jamaica Project, funded by the Inter-American
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Development Bank (IDB). The project, Gordon-Smith’s brainchild, aims to assist 300 female entrepreneurs in strengthening and expanding their businesses through training and mentorship. The project includes two 12-week training sessions with 150 women in each series. The first group of 149 women graduated from the programme earlier this month while the second group began training on January 14 – they will graduate at the end of April and the programme will wrap up in December. “This has never been done before in Jamaica. Participants who have completed the training all have glowing reviews and those about to start are already empowered,” said Page. “We’re hoping that given the success of the project so far, we’ll be able to continue. We want to make it a sustainable programme.”
Top left-right: Former WBO president Dr Blossom O’Meally-Nelson delivers the vote of thanks; Immediate past president of the WBO Dorothea Gordon-Smith addresses the graduates; Project graduate Michelle Smith of Chocolate Dreams makes a presentation to keynote speaker Audrey Tugwell Henry. Middle: Current WBO president Yaneek Page makes a presentation to IDB representative Wayne Beecher; Bernadette Barrow, Audrey Tugwell Henry, Stuart Reid and Andrea Cowan chat after the ceremony. Bottom: Project facilitator Stella Rosen makes a presentation to Bernadette Barrow; Keynote speaker Audrey Tugwell Henry delivers an inspiring address.
The 300 women participating in the project were selected from five awareness sessions held across the island. They filled out forms that determined their needs and this information was then used to assist in designing the training programme. The first module focused on getting new business using traditional and new marketing tools and the second on controlling and managing the business. For assessment, the women were required to put all their newfound knowledge together and write marketing plans, from which they are to develop business plans to source funds to grow their businesses. “Each participant has had her own small success, either by changing strategy, becoming more informed or confirming her business model,” said strategic planning and business development consultant Stella Rosen, facilitator of the training sessions.
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The first group of graduates is set to commence a mentorship and technical assistance module, done in partnership with Mona School of Business’ Dr Lawrence Nicolson and final year MBA students, with additional coaching from WBO executive members. Page highlighted some of the challenges facing women in business, such as inability to balance their home and work obligations. “And there are still some people who don’t see women as fit business owners. They say women are too sensitive and emotional. The old boys’ club is still there. Changing that will take some time,” she said, adding that the women must identify these challenges and turn them into opportunities and learn from the WBO’s diverse membership.
149 female entrepreneurs complete NCB-sponsored business training
The graduates pose with members of the WBO executive, project facilitator Stella Rosen and members of the NCB team.
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ne hundred and forty-nine female entrepreneurs representing sectors such as health and wellness, communications, beauty and fashion, recently graduated from a training programme implemented by Women Business Owners (WBO) Jamaica Ltd. The programme, financed by National Commercial Bank’s SME Unit, was part of the three-year Strengthening and Promoting Women Entrepreneurs in Jamaica Project, which is funded by the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB). The three-year project, spearheaded by the WBO’s immediate past president in 2009, aims to assist 300 female entrepreneurs to strengthen their businesses through training and mentoring. During her keynote address, NCB’s Senior General Manager, Retail Banking, Audrey Tugwell Henry, commended the women on their achievement, amidst the challenges of raising families, working and attending sessions simultaneously. Tugwell Henry encouraged the women to keep developing and growing their businesses, drawing on the examples of successful women like Oprah Winfrey, Maxine Clark of Build-A-Bear fame, Doris Christopher of The Pampered Chef and Joan Duncan, who founded Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB). “NCB is very, very pleased to be a part of the programme. We have for a very long time been associated with small businesses and when it was not even fashionable to be focused on small businesses, NCB took that leap. We took the leap because we recognised that we’re a local bank, we’re about building a better Jamaica,” said Tugwell Henry. “We do as well as our customers do and we recognised the importance of the small business sector, and then we went further by being partners with the WBO because we know that women have played a very significant role in this country for a very long time. We signed on last March and went into this 6
programme with a lot of enthusiasm and we’re very proud to be a part of the conclusion of the first phase,” she added. Over the course of 12 weeks, the women were trained in accessing capital, managing cash flow, traditional and new media marketing tools, maximising profitability and integrating ICTs into their businesses. The final session required the women to combine all they had learned to write marketing plans. These can now be expanded into viable business plans, which should help them source funds for growth. Graduate Ivel Grant, owner of plus-size retail store Great Fashions and Things in Westmoreland, said she was already seeing small changes in her business. “It taught us how to manage our businesses... They taught us about Twitter and Facebook and blogs, which we started. Whatever I learned in the 12 weeks, I’m going to use it and see how best my business can grow,” she said. Now that the first batch of entrepreneurs has successfully completed training, they have turned their attention to finetuning their business plans and seeking financial assistance. The second group of 150 beneficiaries started training on January 14 and will complete their module at the end of April. Alongside the training and mentorship aspects of the project, the WBO is also writing case studies on five of its business executives: Gordon-Smith (Garbage Disposal & Sanitation Systems Ltd), Lorna Green (Digital Transtec Ltd), Shirley Carby (Carlong Publishers Ltd), Eleanor Jones (Environmental Solutions) and Rita Humphrey (Barita Investments Ltd). The studies will be given to selected tertiary institutions to be used in their business curriculum. The training programme and several of the participants’ experiences are being recorded on video and documented for posterity.
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foursquare 101: making your business more sociable
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he world is changing so fast that five- and 10year plans are becoming relics of the past. Today’s technology-driven work environment is all about the here and now. You can’t afford to rely on static plans; you have to utilise all the resources that are available to you as part of your right-now plan. One such resource is foursquare. foursquare lets users log their destinations by ‘checking in’ at various locations. This allows their friends on social networks like Twitter to see where they are or have been. The company, formed in March 2009 by Dennis Crowley and Naveen Selvadurai in New York, is changing how the world does business. Before you write it off as a passing fancy, remember that people used to think that Facebook was a mere meeting 8
place for teens and college students with too much time on their hands. Today, companies of all sizes and descriptions have pages where they interact with both existing and potential customers. Bosses use Facebook as a recruiting tool as well. Today, individuals are checking in at restaurants, banks, corporate offices, the dentist, even at the bus stop. Businesses can benefit from foursquare every time their destination pops up in their friends’ feeds (free advertising) and they can also use it to reward customers (free gift with every five check-ins). So go ahead. ‘Claim’ your business location and get up and running. Visit foursquare.com and follow the instructions!
Customer referrals for small businesses
the social media way
experience on Twitter and mentions how pleased he is with the service and recommends it to his circle. Whether John has 2,000 followers or only 100, you advertise your product to an additional 100 to 2,000 individuals just by treating one customer well. Another way is to tell John that if he brings 10 friends to your coffee house this week, coffee will be free the next morning. John, if he loves your coffee, will recommend it to his friends. He might still bring his friends even if your coffee isn’t all that great, but it still means more customers for you and free coffee for John. Finally, you can ask John to fill out a simple feedback form telling others how he feels about the coffee house.
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ho’s better to talk about your product than a satisfied customer? You’ve probably heard if before, but word of mouth is the best advertisement. When customers are satisfied they will tell others about your product or service whether in person or through their online social networks, and their friends will likely come to see for themselves. According to a recent Harvard Business Review study, from among the 10,000 accounts in a German bank, customers obtained through referrals were found to be more loyal than regular customers. BUILD A STRONG REFERRAL SYSTEM You want to make it easy for existing customers to spread the word about your great business, but be careful to build a referral system that provides results. A good referral system encourages current customers to speak about their experience with your business and recommend it to members of their circle or even people they don’t know. Create a system where John enters your coffee shop and feels so good about how your server treats him that he shares his
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UTILISE SOCIAL NETWORKS It is vital to utilise the social networks as a means of customer referrals. Use foursquare, a location-based social network to encourage individuals to leave a tip when they check in so that others can read their thoughts about your business. Encourage staff members to tweet about the company’s products or services, using specified hashtags (#OurCoffeeHouse, for instance) to help spread the word. That way, you can see both positive and negative feedback about your company that will help you to improve your product and keep customers. GENERATE MORE CUSTOMERS AT LOWER COST Profit margins from customer referrals are higher because it costs the company far less in advertising. Having the right customer referral system is extremely beneficial for a small business that doesn’t have the big bucks to spend on advertising in traditional media and even social media. HERE ARE A FEW THINGS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN SETTING UP A REFERRAL SYSTEM: t %P * OFFE B SFGFSSBM TZTUFN t 8IBU SFGFSSBM TZTUFN TUSJLFT UIF CFTU CBMBODF t 8IBU UZQFT PG DVTUPNFST BSF NPSF MJLFMZ UP CSJOH IJHIMZ MVDSBUJWF SFGFSSBMT t )PX EP * SFXBSE SFGFSSBMT
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Maximise sales on slow days:
Applying the Groupon concept in your business
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sing discounts to attract or reward customers is standard operating procedure for many businesses. Today, this practice has gone beyond individual businesses with the advent of companies like (SPVQPO and -JWJOH4PDJBM, which have turned discounts and coupons into a worldwide billion-dollar industry. Groupon is a deal-of-the-day website that features discounted gift certificates redeemable at local or national companies. Groupon was started with seed capital of US$1 million and is currently valued at US$2.3 billion. LivingSocial offers the same service and is considered as one of the leaders in the market also, after raising more than US$400m in funding. These companies have generated billions of dollars in sales from companies across the world. What does this mean for your business in Jamaica? Offering regular discounts is a great way to bring in new customers and keep them coming back for more. For instance, Gary operates a restaurant. His best nights are normally Fridays and Saturdays, when customers are lined up at the door, waiting for seats to become available. His worst nights are usually Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when the restaurant isn’t even half full. Gary still has to pay the electricity bills and he still has to pay his staff. Yes, there might be a few cost-cutting measures on these slow days, but he can complement this by offering special discounts and deals on some of his meals. This will entice customers to come out for the special rates and offers, enabling him to get more customers and generate more revenues for the business, even when things slow down. HOW TO GET UP AND RUNNING WITH A DEAL COMPONENT
There are various ways to get started, from the least expensive to the more pricey options. It is best to start with a simple process that informs your existing customers about deals on specific days and also draws in potential customers.
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WHAT CAN YOU IMPLEMENT TO GET CUSTOMERS IN ON SLOW DAYS? t 4UBSU XJUI B TJNQMF TZTUFN TVDI BT TFOEJOH PVU F NBJMT UP ZPVS DVTUPNFS EBUBCBTF JOGPSNJOH UIFN BCPVU EBJMZ PS XFFLMZ EFBMT t 0ĂłFS JODFOUJWF CBTFE EJTDPVOUT TVDI BT USJWJB DPOUFTUT t 4FU VQ BO F DPNNFSDF TZTUFN UIBU HJWFT JOEJWJEVBMT UIF PQUJPO PG QBZJOH GPS UIF EFBM JOTUBOUMZ BOE SFDFJWJOH UIF SFEFNQUJPO WPVDIFS UP UVSO JO PO BSSJWBM t $SFBUF NPCJMF BQQT UIBU TFOE EFBMT UP DVTUPNFST TNBSUQIPOFT PO B SFHVMBS CBTJT t *U JT CFTU UP HFU QFS DFOU PG SBUIFS UIBO OP NPOFZ BU BMM 5SZ JU PVU BOE UFMM VT ZPVS TUPSZ
Four tools to manage your social media presence
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It can be hard to get a handle on the ever-expanding social media landscape, especially if you’re just beginning to figure out what exactly the term ‘social media’ means. The field is currently dominated by Facebook and Twitter, which can be used as great marketing tools, helping you connect with your clientele in real time.
Depending on the nature of your business, for instance, whether it is technology-based or customer service oriented, you should maintain at least one profile on each network. However, it can become a bit difficult managing your accounts simultaneously, so here are some tools to help you streamline your social media presence:
Twitterfall Twitter is a lot like the market on Saturdays, so you’ll need some help wading through the constant chatter to find those mentioning your company. Twitterfall tracks mentions of your brand, offering useful information that can help with your social media marketing efforts. It has a long list of features which, for instance, allow you to curate your tweets or those mentioning your brand, block spam, find details behind trending topics and map where your mentions are coming from.
Hootsuite Hootsuite also lets you manage multiple profiles, but it goes beyond the basics to let you schedule messages, manage multiple users and assign tasks, as well as monitor your social media impact with analytics reports. Hootsuite has a free basic version, but you have to pay for the more advanced features.
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TweetDeck This free platform lets you manage your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, foursquare and other profiles from one simple interface. You can see updates across feeds at once, tweet more than 140 characters and post links which are automatically shortened.
Seesmic Manage unlimited Twitter accounts as well as Facebook, LinkedIn, foursquare and Google Buzz accounts from a simple dashboard. Seesmic, another free tool, also publishes trending topics, making it easy to join popular conversations.
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