Nifnex sep oct 2014

*R egi st er free onl i ne t oday to avo i d t he $20 onsi te c o ver c harge. www.yourbusi nessexpo .c o m . au

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MESSAGE from the CEO

GOALS & MINDSET

Zeeshan Pasha - CEO, Nifnex

page 05

Linkedin: http://au.linkedin.com/in/zeeshanpasha Twitter: https://twitter.com/zeeshanpasha As the Small Business Development Corporation article in this edition suggests, small businesses are showing more confidence & have plans to grow.

That's exactly what I have been finding as I interact with businesses all over Perth.

I must thank all our supporters, well wishers, advertisers and my team including our Writers' Club for assisting us in our journey to take out the Small Business of the Year at the Central Eastern Business Awards last month.

We had an exceptionally successful speed business networking event in August, City of Perth with massive support from the business community.

Our sponsors, Telstra Business Centre Morley, Department of Industry Business (formerly AusIndustry), MBE & Ze Photography (Along with Coocoo Productions) made this event possible.

Thank you to The Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi for her presence and inspiring speech. Our MCs' Alida Cubbage, Sylvia Marina, Melinda Brennan & Elicia Petit did an outstanding job keeping the event flowing. My team Elaine Goh, Lauren Bettridge, Radha

C O N TA C T

16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

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Deepchand, Leela G & Jeeva were exceptional.

Special mention to Roisin & her team from Alpha Models, Neil Forbes from Black Pearl Oyster Shucking & Wilfred Raphael from Xpresso Delight who kept the attendees caffeinated and enthusiastic.

This edition has four very interesting panel discussion summaries with videos available through QR code and all four are extremely relevant to the current state of the market.

The next few weeks have some exceptional events lined up in Perth which in my opinion every small business owner and aspiring business owners should attend. Fire Walking, Your Business Expo, John Assaraf is in town, Multicultural Expo, Belmont Awards, Stirling Business Association Awards, Malaga & Districts Business Association (MDBA) Awards and not to mention our own Panel discussions on the 3rd Oct emphasizing the fact that it's time to make it happen with only 3 months left to Christmas.

Can I please request you to send me any feedback you have about this edition as we constantly look at meeting your needs & expectations.

Advertising Enquiries and Media Relations Email: nifnex@nifnex.com.au Tel: 1300 643 639

Alicia Menkveld

Hament Chavda

Brett Patten

Chee Wong

Douglas Lim

Dominique Engelter

Rueben Taylor

Diann Bates

Jamie Vine

Rajab Karume

Sue Findlay

TECHNOLOGY & PRODUCTIVITY page 07

SLOGANS & INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY page 11

CROWDFUNDING & INVESTORS page 13

Address: 45 St Georges Tce, Perth WA 6000 Postal Address: PO Box 1186 Technology Park, Bentley DC, WA 6983

Distribution: Monthly editions are distributed to 150 locations around Perth business suburbs. Cafes, Business Centres, Office Lobbies, business associations etc. Online: This edition is also emailed to the entire database and available on social media. Estimated Online and print Readership of over 44,000.

Disclaimer: All articles, advertising, contributions and material supplied to Nifnex are opinions of the advertiser, contributor and author of the article/material. No responsibility is taken by Nifnex. Opinions published are not necessarily those of the editor.

Congratulations to Zeeshan Pasha and his team at NIFNEX, winners of the Central Eastern Business Association 2014 Small Business of the Year.

business world were recognised, I am particularly pleased that NIFNEX has taken out the prestigious 2014 CEBA Small Business of the Year award.

As one of 6 category winners (Best Marketing Initiative ), NIFNEX emerged the big winner, edging out the other five contenders. In the presence of the Minister for Small Business, and 140 guests, Zeeshan accepted the award and spoke of his passion for the business and the drivers of its success.

Greg Pound

On a night when the high achievers of our

Conrad Francis

CEBA President Please visit www.ceba.com.au for future events and networking opportunities.

16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

When looking at the homegrown success of small and medium businesses in WA, it is hard to ignore the human story behind each journey. WA retail icon Rick Hart credits his employees and a loyal customer base for the success of his brand today; Laila Gampfer's award winning business Rawsome was born out of the frustration from the limited gluten-free treats there were on the market; the

Why is it that so many new business owners fail and have to close their business?

Many people think it's a lack of money, intelligence or knowledge, and although those are important factors in growing a business, they are secondary factors. The real cause of most business failures fall into one of two categories, fear and lack of persistence.

When someone is afraid they might fail, their fear circuits shut down the motivational centres in their brain which causes them to procrastinate and in many cases freeze into doing menial tasks versus the highly important tasks. This causes them to be less than optimally productive and they end up running out of time,

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40Under40 rising star Dr Marcus Tan wears the hat of a medical director and a seasoned entrepreneur in the tech start-up eco-system. The pool of talent in WA is enormous, contributing to the growing economy of the State with their skills, backgrounds and ideas.

engaging investors, delivering a business plan, hiring talents, complying with legal requirements, keeping abreast with technology innovation and market trends, executing marketing strategy, building a franchise-ready business and maintaining a work-life balance are just a few business The journey of developing and imperatives to keep SME owners managing a business can be busy 24/7. personal, rewarding and daunting at the same time. Business Insights Australia Creating a business concept, (BIA) has partnered with Telstra

hope and money to get their business growing as fast and as big as possible.

Why is clarity and focus so critical in growing a business?

Our brains have their own GPS system that helps us find exactly what we are looking for. The clearer we are, the easier it is for our brain to help us locate and stay focused on what we want and need. Many business owners don't lack passion. They lack the ability to stay focused on the highest income or highest impact producing activities and waste enormous amounts of time doing the wrong things.

Business owners must practice the art of being mindful, centred and focused on the critical things that MUST be done, versus the trivial things that need to be done. This

one skill requires practice and constant effort until it becomes a habit. The most successful business owners aren't the smartest. They are the most aware of what they should be doing and then doing it.

What do habits have to do with growing a successful business?

Every adult has developed habits of thought, emotions and behaviours. Some are positive and constructive, some are not. The most successful entrepreneurs have somehow developed the right combination of these that allows them to think and act unconsciously in ways that are very successful. The great news is that we now understand the neuroscience and anatomy of habit creation and habit elimination.

One of the most important aspects

in an effort to gather influential business leaders to share their success stories, current thinking and the next big thing with WA's SME owners. Telstra Your Business Expo will feature a twoday exhibition and seminar helping attendees to improve, grow and develop their businesses.

Keynote speakers David Eaton (Small Business Commissioner), Rick Hart (Kitchen HQ), Laila Gampfer (Rawsome), Dr Marcus Tan (HealthEngine), Paul Heatley

to creating a new positive habit is to choose one habit that you know will help you grow your business faster, like doing 10 sales calls a day. Then start slow by doing only 2 a day for 2 weeks, then 3 a day for 3 weeks and so forth. By starting slow and building the habit, the new pattern becomes engrained in your brain and automatic. Then you can add more time or frequency to it. The key is to be consistent in creating the automatic internal pattern that is sustainable.

Is there a magic formula to growing a successful business?

I'm not sure it's a magic formula, but there is a formula just like there is a recipe to baking a cake.

First you have to have the right attitude and mindset. Next you must have the beliefs that you can achieve it and that you are willing

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(The Wealth Designer), David Coventry (Telstra) and other SME champions from major organisations in WA will share their insights on the seminar stage.

This event will take place on October 16 & 17 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. Register free online today to avoid the $20 onsite cover charge. For more information and to register online now, visit http://www.yourbusinessexpo.com.au

to do whatever it takes to make it happen. You have to be extremely resourceful and learn the right blend of strategies (what to do) and tactics (how specifically) and then you must take inspired action daily. You must also learn to focus on your strengths and find help to get the things done that you should not or cannot do.

Being ready for the emotional roller coaster ride requires learning how to master your emotions. Fears, doubt, anger, embarrassment, shame, uncertainty and a lack of confidence will show up at times.

You must learn how to feel all these emotions and forge forward no matter what.

John is a serial entrepreneur, brain researcher, and CEO of PraxisNow, a brain-research company that creates some of the most powerful evidence-based brain retraining tools and programs in the world. Thousands of companies, entrepreneurs and individuals worldwide are currently using PraxisNow programs to develop unstoppable confidence, certainty, and the personal power needed for achieving their goals and vision.

In the last 25 years, John has grown 5 multi-million dollar companies in real estate, Internet software, brain research and life and business coaching and consulting. He's the author of 2 New York Times best-selling books, 'Having It All' and 'The Answer'. John has appeared on major TV programs such Larry King Live, Anderson Cooper 360 and The Ellen Degeneres Show, and was featured in the blockbuster movie and book “The Secret” and in the special documentary “Quest for Success” with the Dali Lama and Sir Richard Branson. Today, John researches, writes and presents extensively around the world on the neuroscience of success and achieving maximum performance. To see John LIVE in Australia in October visit www.winningthegameof.com.au/nifnex

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16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

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Borgioli is a luxury bespoke menswear brand (the only one of its kind in WA), offering hand crafted suits, shirts, ties and footwear using the finest quality materials from around the world.

Terence, congratulation!!!

Please tell us what inspired you to start Borgioli?

The complaints from so many that it was near enough impossible to find top quality clothing that fit properly. The answer?

Bespoke (design and made according to each individual client's measurements) Every new business has challenges, what obstacles came your way?

I encountered a lot of obstacles along the way.

Negativity was a large one and people's comments often raising the issue of failure and questioning if there was really a market in Perth for my product.

This meant I had to remain positive and true to my goal.

Sure there were times where I'd question if what I was doing was right, however perseverance paid off. There were of course more practical obstacles in regards to where my product is made (Italy, England, Spain, New Zealand) including freight costs and logistics, production and delivery timelines and of course operating in different time zones.

What did you do to overcome these challenges?

It was really a matter of looking at the business and business operations as a whole and evaluating each obstacle, then

working out how best to mitigate against these. Some were far more straightforward resolutions, however others were matters of trial and error (some costly, but that's part of business).

What initially gave you an indication of success around the corner?

A high profile property mogul taking an interest in me and the brand at a very early stage and becoming still the highest spending client to date.

Tell us about your support systems, inspiration source, people who stood by you, and what did you do to stay positive?

They often say it's lonely at the top. I do find the entrepreneur's path to sometimes be lonely therefore it's a daily search for inspiration and surrounding

yourself with like minded, positive and driven people. I've been very fortunate to have a close circle of friends who are all very successful young entrepreneurs who stood by and encouraged me from day one.

We share our successes together and motivate and inspire one another. I also looked within to remain positive and draw comfort from the fact that I had achieved something against considerable odds in a tough market which ultimately ended up being very well received and has gone from strength to strength in just over 18 months.

It is important for us entrepreneurs to celebrate every success, how do you celebrate?

Everything from popping a bottle of champagne, to crying tears of joy.

What does success looks like to you?

Success to me isn't about having material possessions and a huge bank account. To me, these are

byproducts of following your dream and vocation in life, never giving up and always remaining true to your core values. Success is quite simply being able to spend every day doing something you love, then monetise it. These are pretty simple rules to follow and so many entrepreneurs I know, now enjoy wealth, through first realising the fundamentals of success.

Where to from here?

Up, up and up! The label will be transitioning over to offering luxury ready-to-wear clothing, footwear and accessories which involves opening a luxury mens' boutique in the CBD and growing brand exposure from there. This will be used as the test case to then experience all of the obstacles again with phase 2 of the brand expansion, iron these out and commence down the path of a national brand roll out.

To f i n d o u t m o r e , v i s i t http://borgioli.com.au/

Borgioli is the winner of Nifnex Online voting competition. For your chance to be featured in next edition, send your nomination to louis@nifnex.com.au for one of the for below categories: Entrepreneur Interview I Business Model I Smart Phone App Review I Product / Service Review - References from your business bank - Utilities and gas companies - Credit card companies - Landlords - Overseas companies If you're a small business, obtaining a number of credible trade references can go a long way to ensuring you can acquire credit when needed. While it may seem cumbersome to acquire a valid reference, it's always handy to know you have access to credit. A trade reference is part credit rating and part reference so it's important to understand how they work.

Times you need a trade reference According to Dunn & Bradstreet, “A trade reference is the payment experience information provided by a supplier on its customer.� In other words, a trade reference is evidence of your past ability to pay

your bills in a timely manner.

They are extremely helpful to your business during certain times or events such as: - When you're first starting - If you want to expand your business - Seasonal demand for extra stock - Temporary downturn in your market - Unexpected damage or repairs needed to your property What a trade reference provides Before a supplier will grant you credit, they're likely to ask for trade references to prove you're a good risk. It's important you provide references that show you in a favourable light. Some of the questions the supplier will want to know include: - How long you've had an account

- Average outstanding balance of your credit line - History of late payments - Current credit balance owed - Repayment history - Credit terms - Whether you've been a satisfactory customer What doesn't qualify as a trade reference Potential creditors can be particular about what they will accept as a trade reference.

Businesses know certain accounts are always given priority and, therefore, don't consider them a good indicator in a risk assessment. These creditors may include one or all of the following: - Future payments - Payments to businesses that are owned by the same people as your business

How do you get a trade reference If you're just starting out, it may seem like an impossible task to obtain a qualified trade reference. The best way to go about cultivating references is to work with local companies and start small. Even if you have cash, put your supplies on credit and pay your account in full every month. Be mindful of the due date and make sure you never have a late payment. Over time, you can increase the size of your account and the number of places you trade.

Think of a trade reference as a seal of approval for the health of your business. When you can demonstrate a history of good credit habits, you open the door to more opportunity for your business. In addition, it's a way of future-proofing your cash

flow in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Not only is a trade reference a recommendation about your ability to repay debt, it's also an indication your know how to run a successful business.

About Blitz Credit Management Blitz Credit Management is an innovative and technology driven debt collection agency. Formed in 2010, the company has grown rapidly to become one of Australia's leading debt collection agencies. Blitz Credit Management provides commercial and consumer debt collection and credit management services to businesses across Australia.

For more information, visit www.blitzcredit.com.au or c a l l N a t a l i e Wa l k e r , Managing Director, on (08) 6140 2584.

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To watch the whole video and to get more insight into this case study, visit http://youtu.be/iBPEKisylEo

Conrad Francis

Alicia Menkveld

Hament Chavda

08 9301 2631 www.inspiredmoney.com.au Inspired Money

0425 177 897 alicia@designerlifetech.com Radical Consulting

1300262241 www.coach26.com.au Coach 26

Small businesses face several different challenges, and one of the challenges we have on an ongoing basis is 'Goal Setting'. Our panel that discussed this topic comprises of a Financial Planner who is also a basketball coach (Conrad Francis), a Transformation Coach (Hament Chavda), and a Courage Ambassador (Alicia Menkveld).

believe you can accomplish it. As an ambassador for courage and an inspirational speaker, Alicia shared a few vital steps needed to build the courage to conquer your goal.

practical exercises to breakthrough your limiting beliefs.

Conrad Francis; Inspired Money Conrad shared his own life experience as a successful financial planner and a basketball coach. Conrad explained that goal setting requires mapping out the journey to get to the final destination. Using processes to guide and reflect on are necessary.

Measurable and concise goals are important in the short-term, Medium and long-term in terms of business/financing and sports.

“When you look at successful businesses and entrepreneurs and the likes or individuals, I think they share a lot of similar characteristics as successful teams and athletes. A lot of it is potential and talent…”

Conrad added that one big thing he utilized in both office and sports is accountability. Write the goals and share them as well, because people understand what you are going through and might help you achieve it.

She agreed that goals have to be specific, measurable and concise.

You must have a vision for your business or your life. If you do not have a goal, then you need to think about what you want to have and what you want to achieve by a specific time in the near future.

The goal doesn't have to be big for a start, begin with small goals.

Think about the goals and write them down.

Courage is the key here, and the vision you have for your business and your life. Ask what you would do if you knew you couldn't fail and if you had money to get what you want.

“For me, courage and commitment is the magic force that will give you the success that you want in your goal setting. And it's the courage to go for those big, hairy, audacious goals, okay.”

Alicia agreed with Conrad that accountability is important and surrounding yourself with people you trust and can share your thoughts with is very important.

All goals are interconnected, so you need to ask why you are there, why you want to achieve the goal and questions like these.

Hament Chavda; Coach26 Alicia Menkveld; Radical Consulting According to Alicia, it takes courage to set a goal, accept it and

Hament specializes in High Performance Business Culture Transformation through personal growth. He shared some amazing

According to him, goal achievement needs changing your life's setting in many ways, which involves many steps. You need courage to admit the goal you have set and to overcome the element of fear to achieve the goal you've set.

Hament shared the secrets achieving success with goal setting saying that:

“Have you ever lost something, and then suddenly you are looking for something. Then while looking for your keys, you find your sunglasses and then you are like 'Ah, there they are.” In the same way, when you set your journey, you find something else, that's the beauty of the journey (goal setting).”

Who you become in the pursuit of the goal is what's important; this is the primary objective not just achieving the goal, that too without suffering your relationships, your mind and body.

Those who never take the spiritual dimension, never truly heal.

Getting there in your pursuit brings a holistic perspective to things involved in the journey of goal setting and achieving it.

You have to be firm about your intention and ignore negative comments along the path to your goal. Hanging around negative people will make you change your mind set and then guilt comes in.

This can distract you from the actual goal.

Send us your business challenges & we will get them addressed by an expert panel. nifnex@nifnex.com.au

Work smart - call today on 1300 235 879 or visit libertyoffices.com.au

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16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

Read online www.nifnexreview.com.au all your other work and tax documents so your business can become paperless. The system is cloud based so your records are safely stored not only fulfilling tax requirements as well as giving you the convenience of being able to access your information on all your devices, anywhere.

Most people go into business to do something they are skilled at and hopefully enjoy. However, running a business also includes bookkeeping and tax compliance. These are areas people are usually not trained in and are generally overwhelmed with what is necessary to comply and who or what they should use to give them the records they legally need to keep.

Faced with the alternatives of costly outsourcing or using an accounting product that is too complex and time consuming, many micro business owners delay taking control of their record keeping. A shoebox comes to mind. For many, this can lead to unfriendly letters from the Tax Department or worse still, the downfall of their dream business.

Hard Hat Bookkeeper has been designed to be quick and easy and to be used on the go. No tax or bookkeeping training required. It has been specifically programmed for contractors and sole-traders in Australia to be able to record work related income and expenses in line with GST and income tax regulations.

GST figures for a Cash Basis Business Activity Statement (BAS) and income tax ready reports are calculated automatically.

It works by 1. taking a photo of a receipt, invoice or document via the App – filing done !

2. select from a preset category and add a $ amount – data entry done !

3. submit record to the website where the reports are generated automatically.

It also has the capability to store

The Journey: Donna Vincent, the founder and designer of Hard Hat Bookkeeper has been a bookkeeper for over 30 years and has seen bookkeeping disasters far too often. Believing that technology should make the process easier, not harder, she worked with programmers for a year to produce a system that was easy enough for anyone to use but still gave professional comprehensive reports. Her focus was to keep it simple, make it mobile, get rid of the paper and filing, produce a BAS automatically and be income tax ready.

Target market: Who will benefit from this App The app is most suited to sole operators. It is great for start up businesses, instilling good practices and helping them to understand the running of their business as a whole. If you can use a smart phone or tablet, you can use Hard Hat Bookkeeper.

The app is not industry specific and is presently being used by tradies, hairdressers, photographers, personal organisers through to contract engineers and a lawyer.

The categories are generic and adaptable to most types of

businesses and are inline with Australian tax reporting requirements.

that gives them information that can assist in making good business decisions.

Not only do you save money because you DIY, you will maximise your tax deductible expenses and never pay fines for late lodgment because you're always up to date.

The next update of the app, due around mid October 2014 will enable users to set a percentage of work related use to each category and have this calculate automatically for GST and income tax.

Accessibility: Where and how can people download this app.

Users are required to sign up (www.hardhatbookkeeper.com. au/sign-up) first on the website and the first month is free to trial.

Contact Details: https://hardhatbookkeeper.com.au Email: contact@hardhatbookkeeper.com.au

Phone: (08) 9330 6855 or 0427 083 737

The app is available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play.

The same log in is used for all your devices which all sync via the internet.

There are two versions: Subscription to GST Reporting version is $18 per month or $198 per year Subscription to No GST Reporting version is $12 per month or $132 per year.

Goals: Where to from here?

Our biggest challenge is to get people to just give it a try.

Bookkeeping and tax compliance is not a sexy subject, in fact it's just the opposite, it's a cold shower and not a subject that people want discuss.

Our goal is to eradicate the perception that record keeping for startups and sole-traders is a nightmare and too difficult for someone to do themselves. With the Hard Hatter App, the process can be unintimidating and a task

Hard Hat App is the winner of Nifnex Online voting competition. For your chance to be featured in next edition, send your nomination to louis@nifnex.com.au for one of the for below categories: Entrepreneur Interview I Business Model I Smart Phone App Review I Product / Service Review

Alicia Menkveld Alicia Menkveld is an international, inspirational speaker and courage-builder who helps people and companies to be more courageous. She's an entrepreneur and coauthored a book called “In the Spirit of Abundance” with world class leaders such as Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen.

Join her FREE Program to Build More Courage + Confidence: www.66daysofcourage.com Keynotes and Training: Contact Alicia on 0425 177 897 or alicia@radicalconsulting.com.au

Courageous leaders are always in high demand and short supply because progress requires courage to make a decision and to take action.

Being a courageous leader requires you to push beyond the norm, be willing to take risks and to quit being a wimp. It's about confronting your fears head-on.

Leadership courage can be about having an uncomfortable conversation, communicating when you don't have all the answers or making a decision to move ahead on a new project even if it's scary.

It's this kind of behaviour that builds a culture of courage in your team and company. Start by modelling the courageous action you want to see in your staff.

Six Tips for Building a Culture of Courage in Your Company: 1. Ditch Rose-tinted Glasses Face reality and work with facts to determine the current state of your business and team. If you know where you are, you can uncover the gaps and lead your business to a better place.

2. Encourage Different Opinions Two heads are better than one when brainstorming marketing ideas, coming up with client solutions and improving internal processes. Many leaders feel pressure to have all the answers.

Put your ego aside and encourage constructive feedback and healthy debate to get the best solution that will benefit your customers, your team and your business.

3. Engage to Lead Change In fear-based environments, it's about protecting the status quo.

Create a larger vision for your company and approach it with determination and an open mind.

Change is messy. Prepare for mid-course correction and engage your people to create l a s t i n g c h a n g e .

4. Pass The Credit Great leaders and business owners take the blame and pass the credit to their teams. They mostly use 'we' instead of 'me'

and make a habit of 'taking one for the team' when dealing with customers. This shows a united front and allows your team to thrive.

5. Hold Staff (and Yourself) Accountable Expect people to perform and deliver on their commitments and have the courage to call them out when they don't follow through. Accountability starts with you, so always do what you say you're going to do.

6. Progress Requires a Decision and Action During times of intense change, it will feel unsafe to commit to a decision and move ahead. Avoid 'analysis paralysis' and make a decision based on facts. Any movement is better than being stuck in the same place. Expect to win and jump to fly.

16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

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To watch the whole video and to get more insight into this case study, visit http://youtu.be/xIefO2MFR_U

Brett Patten

Chee Wong

Douglas Lim

08 9275 7451 Brett.Patten@vitagroup.com.au Telstra Business Centre; Morley

0423 267 517 chee.wong@expertmessaging.com.au Expert Messaging Australia

08 9200 4429 douglas.lim@alyka.com.au Alyka

Does technology make life in business better? Does technology better productivity, or does it tend to be not as productive? What is available for small and medium businesses to improve productivity? Let us see what our panel of experts has to say about this.

Chee Wong; Expert Messaging As a productivity coach, Chee has even experimented using a nonsmart phone during a workday. He shared his experience in the video and gave a tip on productivity.

Douglas Lim; Alyka Douglas is the opposite of Chee and for him having apps on his phone helps him connect with people worldwide through Facebook and Twitter.

Chee said, using devices and latest technology in a smarter way is more important. Does it mean productivity was bad before technology came about? It does not seem quite so. Sometimes technology can put you into a chaotic work style. Use technology, because it is great, but people should use it responsibly.

Social media is an important component of business; however, with 65% of time spent on Social media a lot happens on mobile devices. Doug shared how he manages his social media on his mobile device without it taking over his life in the video.

Brett Patten; Telstra Business Centre Morley Brett shared information about the latest applications available, and he shared how he uses technology to stay productive. He talked about business owners using 'Office 365? which is a Microsoft product to help them with time management and flexibility, without compromising work in any way while they are on the go.

“75% of small businesses customers do not regret using technology, they're happy to be as they are ... They've accidentally fallen into being a business owner or operator. The 25% that do want to grow, and those that want to grow quickly seem to want to grow quite fast.”

He explained that there is one focus across all business owners, CEO, and managers, and it all has to do with an old phrase in business that says that you could never get away from a business or time management, so it is always an issue. However, Office 356 is a way forward.

Brett's Tip: - You do not need to turn of notification on Office 365, embrace technology because it does give you time to handle business messages at your convenience.

More and more businesses come forward with productivity issues, and Expert Messaging helps them overcome these issues. There are psychological researches underway to understand how to make more people use social media as a habit.

Chee explained his views saying: “What I found in the three months during a bit of an experiment was that because we can do all these things on the go, we tend to use it a little bit more than we used to before we got a mobile phone…”

People can do business on the go, but that is really the question, should they do it on the go? Is it good for productivity? Based on his experiment, Chee feels he gets more done without social media apps; he is calmer and more productive. However, he insists that everyone is different and if it works for you then there is nothing wrong.

Chee's Tip: - Turn off email notifications because they can be very distracting and look at mails when you have time.

According to his observation, some people do not respond on the call, but respond to social media messages within three minutes.

Social media offers multiple ways of connecting with people; it gives a lot of leads. He said that: “I do have a lot of my apps on my cell, but I had to discipline myself, and if you can't do that, then I will recommend Chee's method – (laughs) just remove it. If you were to track the time, you will find that you spend hours of your time on social media.”

Douglas said that since social media is an important marketing and connecting tool, and using devices and latest technology is probably the best thing for social media.

Douglas's Tip: - Turn off notifications, but leave it on only for important messages - Check up on your updates at specific times - You do need discipline, if you cannot handle it and improve productivity, and then get rid of technology.

Send us your business challenges & we will get them addressed by an expert panel. nifnex@nifnex.com.au

DIAL-AN-ANGEL Perth will discount your September booking by 10% when you mention the CODE Birthday

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16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

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Whealth Clubs WA was founded 1st July 2014 by Allan Connolly to galvanise the community into shopping locally and creating 1000's of local jobs and opportunities.

The model pumps millions of dollars back into the local community ecosystem and drive our sole and single parent friendly employment initiatives. It creates liquidity for Whealth Clubs WA and the Community to start owning and operating cash flow producing businesses and assets.

This Business Model is sustainable long term and will create Jobs and Opportunity in local communities that would otherwise not have been created which would then have ended up leading to the Wealth Gap getting bigger and bigger for working and self-employed Australians. http://youtu.be/GvYyTvtUoo Consumer Driven Marketing now dominates the marketplace as

consumers are well educated via the web and social media about products and services. Being well informed about what they want to buy consumers are then focused on who they are going to buy from i.e. Who is going to give them the best customer e x p e r i e n c e .

Mr. Connolly explains, "Our preferred suppliers have contracted with us to bring them motivated buyers who are looking to pay a fair price for a good customer experience which we locate via all forms of online and offline marketing. We do not expect them to discount their prices to get the business, but do expect exceptional customer service in return for not trying to force them to give us the lowest possible price on individual sales."

Consumers also have the choice to become a VIP member and/or a subscriber to the Bulk Buying Service. VIP membership is a once off $27 which we quite frequently offer a promotional code for giving a $27 Instant Cash Back Bonus.

Subscription is by nomination

Frances Williams – Supporter and WA Co-Founder Zoho and CRM Specialist Dean Keating – Deal Maker and WA Co-Founder. 30 Years background in Business Development specializing in Sales.

Lita Squibb – Accumulator and WA Co-Founder Bookkeeper and Director at Midas B o o k k e e p i n g .

Lorraine Garvie – Mechanic and WA Co-Founder Successful Business Coach, Director at Business Reboot

every three years and has a $36 nomination fee which W h e a l t h C l u b s WA q u i t e frequently offer a promotional code for giving a 25% ($9) Instant Cash Back Bonus.

Subscriptions are $100 per Calendar month and in return for a Subscribers loyalty, we offer a 110% Cash Back Bonus on a subscriber's monthly subscription on/or before the 13th monthly payment.

Along with Co-Owners of local businesses and assets, this model closes the flow of money circle and leverages the local dollar to its absolute full potential with the Consumer paying the Local Supplier, The Local Supplier paying their staff and themselves and then paying Whealth Clubs WA who pay themselves and their staff and to repay the 110% subscription fee…. A win/win/win/win.

Whealth Clubs are looking for preferred suppliers such as: H o u s e h o l d a n d Ve h i c l e Insurances, Mortgage Interest Rates, Credit Card Interest Rates, Real Estate Fee's, Vehicles, Home Improvements, Rents, White and Brown Goods, Travel, Legal and Accounting Services, Health Funds, Health Services, Designer Clothing, Gym Memberships, Groceries and Fuel.

What problem is Whealth Clubs aspiring to solve?

To stop the multi-national giants from taking as much as 40c in every retail dollar spent out of the local community as this results in high probability of small business failure and the erosion in the standard of living in working class Australians. To utilize the local amenities so they do not fall into dis-repair and to purchase any amenity that is profitable and valuable to the community.

Success Rate and goals – the big picture The 16 Districts will produce significant Revenue and Cash

flow allowing the business to negotiate Bulk Buying Deals from a minimum average of 100 Preferred Suppliers.

Contact Whealth Clubs WA T: 1300 55 22 93 E: al@thewhealthgroup.com W: www.whealthclubs.com.au

Each District will be Co-Owned

by Whealth Clubs WA and 4 other Co-owners/Directors who have completed Roger Hamilton's Wealth Dynamics profiling and have complimentary skills with the other 4 Co-Owners.

Big Al Connolly – Creator and F o u n d e r. H e a r t C e n t e r e d Entrepreneur and Specialist in Direct Marketing, Sales and Distribution

Whealth Clubs WA is the winner of Nifnex Online voting competition. For your chance to be featured in next edition, send your nomination to louis@nifnex.com.au for one of the for below categories: Entrepreneur Interview I Business Model I Smart Phone App Review I Product / Service Review

In the modern era, we see four generations working together - traditionalists, baby boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y (Gen Y). While traditional offices are rigidly designed, Gen Y, a growing presence in the business world, demands for a workspace that is both flexible and functional.

Combining traditional workplaces with the new age concept of 'office-withoutwalls', the serviced office approach has become a mainstream occupancy option, allowing four generations to work together.

Gen Y, comprising about 17% of the world's population, will make up the largest part of the workforce within a decade. They are highly-educated, mobile and technology savvy, with a strong desire for freedom and flexibility in the workplace. Recent market research, conducted by Johnson Controls Inc., suggests that 41% of Gen Y would prefer a teambased working environment, while 32% would prefer breakout spaces over conventional meeting rooms.

This contrasts to earlier generations, who prioritised structure, hierarchy and security.

“Without question, Gen Y is a growing force in business; they are a multi-tasking workforce which demands for spatial flexibility and functionality.

Urban, flexible, collaborative and unconventional workplaces are perfect for Gen Y," said Yvonne Lim, Regional Director – Australia, Singapore & Jakarta of The Executive Centre.

Yvonne Lim believes there are two elements in successfully evolving serviced office space.

"The first is to offer users physical flexibility, tailoring the space to their needs. The second is to always listen to the

customers, striking a balance between catering to the demands of Gen Y while supporting business efficiency."

Traditionalists: born before 1946 Baby Boomers: 1946 - 1963 Generation X: 1963 - 1979 Generation Y: 1979 - 2002

Yvonne Lim Yvonne Lim is the Regional Head – Australia, Singapore & Jakarta of The Executive Centre, overseeing the management & operations of these cities. With a proven track record of fifteen years' experience in the real estate and hospitality sectors; she holds the key element in identifying & maximising optimum sales revenue, business development, centre opening and maintaining service standards.

T +61 (8) 6557 8888 E: yvonne_lim@executivecentre.com

16 SEP – 15 OCT 2014

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More than 850 small businesses

per cent) felt their employees were

respondents have a corporate

across WA have been surveyed to

either at the required standard or

website and just over a third (35.3

gauge the current state of small

substantially above that standard.”

per cent) are using social media,

business – and the positive news is that more than half (55 per cent)

this is not necessarily translating in Other survey results included:

sales,” Mr Eaton said.

• Small businesses are becoming

“These results may indicate that

more customer-focused: 81.6 per

small businesses are not fully

cent have strategies in place to

realising the potential e-commerce

attract new and retain existing

could unlock for them.

have plans to grow and improve in the future.

First conducted by the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC) in 2012, the annual State of Small Business

customers – an increase of 6.1 per cent from 2013.

unsuccessfully for a few years and

Survey is designed to monitor a series of key business indicators so services and initiatives can be developed to meet the specific needs of WA small businesses.

Small Business Commissioner

• More than half (59.3 per cent) of

deciding online sales don't work for

survey respondents reported

them or not understanding how to

using advertising to attract and

do it properly.

retain customers while 30.5 per cent increased their product

“The SBDC has just launched two

range and 26.5 per cent offered

new workshops covering website

discounts.

basics and online marketing to help

David Eaton said the survey

small businesses better understand

provided a valuable insight into the

• Of those who felt they needed

sector, which accounts for nearly 97

training, the area they considered

per cent of all businesses in the

would be of most benefit was

The State of Small Business Survey

State.

online marketing, followed by

was conducted by the SBDC during

business planning.

April 2014 and included non-

these areas.”

employing businesses and those

“Confidence was highest among businesses involved in

• The number of businesses not

employing up to 49 staff. The

manufacturing and information,

generating any sales through

sample included regional and

media and telecommunications, as

online channels increased by 27

metropolitan small businesses

well as newer businesses and those

per cent from 2013 to 67.5 per

across all 20 Australian and New

based in the Perth metropolitan

cent.

Zealand Standard Industrial Classifications (ANZSIC).

area,” he said.

• However, businesses that are “The survey also found small

selling goods online are

businesses are becoming

becoming more confident that

increasingly confident in their

their systems and processes can

business acumen with 20 per cent

manage the logistics of online

fewer stating that they required

sales (60.8 per cent, an increase

training compared to 2012.

of 27.2 per cent from 2013).

“A majority of respondents (77.1

Did you know that 90%1 of Smartphone users search for local information on their mobile device? As a local business owner that creates the perfect opportunity for you to tap into more customers.

So what does your website look like on a mobile device? If it's hard to read and it's hard to find your contact details, then you can be sure you are losing customers to your competitors!

Here's what a device-friendly

“This could be a result of trialling it

website should do: - Work on all devices – including Tablets, Mobiles & the new generation of Phablets - Be easy to read with contact details found easily - Keep visitors on your website for longer - Entice customers to return to your website - Create a positive experience with your brand - Improve your Google rankings, and

“Even though 68.3 per cent of

- Improve your chance of sale!

1. Google's Mobile Planet May 2013, p21

Take the 90 Day Free Reach Local Mobile Challenge now.

Visit www.nifnexreview.com/mobilechallenge

10

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The business began offering services that were 100% online and mobile, driven from a small administration office and many hours on the road. We have since opened the doors to a new store in East Victoria Park where we now have the opportunity to provide products and service both in-store and online with pick-up or delivery options. office delivery to all clients.

Avoid the inconvenient nature of foreign currency exchange – long queues and having to take time away from work to present with ID at the bank during business hours.

We had the pleasure of interviewing the Founders of the business; Laura Turner & Cassy Pearson.

Laura & Cassy, please tell us about how & why you set up Mobile FX Solutions?

Whilst overseas, all travellers have one thing in common – the need to access their money safely and cost-effectively.

Mobile FX Solutions is an independent foreign currency exchange business based in East Victoria Park and can provide products and services that will benefit all types of travellers going to an overseas destination.

Primarily helping businesses, individual and group leisure travellers with solutions for accessing their funds overseas, provide them with access to a combination of the essentials; foreign currency cash and leading travel card products.

This savvy business is also the only provider to offer a mobile service in Perth including information presentations to group travellers and home or

Mobile FX Solutions came to life in 2012, based on a few raw opportunities that became impossible to ignore. We have a mixed background including ex ten s iv e r etail f o r eig n currency experience, language studies and a natural passion for creativity and all things travel.

Drawing on our prior experience in the industry, we set to revitalising retail foreign currency exchange and creating a business that would result in convenient services for all types of travellers - and most importantly back this innovation with a gold standard

Being the only provider currently to offer a mobile service, tell us about the success you have had so far.

Our biggest success has come from our school group foreign currency exchange service; a service we designed and that is unique to Mobile FX Solutions.

Perth high schools are increasingly giving their students the opportunity to further their learning on overseas tours relevant to their subject of study and all age groups from 12 to 17 are taking advantage of these learning experiences.

Each of the travelling student's parents are left to organise all aspects of their son or daughter's travel essentials including the sometimes confusing matter of foreign currency exchange; the main question being, how is my child going to access their funds safely overseas? The only available option was for each parent to take their child to a bank or bureau de change which resulted in the entire group taking care of their money exchange separately, each

paying a fee and ending up with different products with differing benefits.

We tailored our service to tackle the above mentioned expenses and inconveniences with our tailored school group service and we have succeeded in becoming the foreign exchange provider of choice for many Perth high school groups, including St Hilda's Anglican School for Girls, Shenton College, John Wollaston Anglican College, Irene McCormack Catholic College, Mercedes College and many more.

We also just won the Best Retail/Service Based Business at the Central Eastern Business Association (CEBA) Awards.

We are not far off the launch of an exciting new project, so watch this space!

Anything else you would like to add?

A large part of our business comes from mutually beneficial partnerships with businesses in the travel industry and we are always looking for partnership opportunities with businesses in the Perth area. If foreign currency exchange would be of benefit to your business or customers, we would love to hear from you to talk more about how we could work together.

Contact Mobile FX Solutions: P: (08) 9456 4436 E: info@mobilefxsolutions.com.au

MobileFX Solutons is the winner of Nifnex Online voting competition. For your chance to be featured in next edition, send your nomination to louis@nifnex.com.au for one of the for below categories: Entrepreneur Interview I Business Model I Smart Phone App Review I Product / Service Review

The loss of a key person through illness or accident can have a disastrous impact on the ongoing management and productivity of a business, clients, suppliers, and place enormous stress on partners, staff and resources.

To help soften the blow the loss of key staff can have on a business a business can insure itself via ensuring they have an effective contingency in place to protect the business, its shareholders and employees.

Protection for business shareholders is imperative to ensure that in the event of death or serious illness the remaining shareholders have the funds available and legal

agreements in place.

This provides a seamless transition for all stakeholders in the business.

The usual term for this type of protection is Key Person or Business insurance (also called Key Man Insurance) and is a Corporate-owned life insurance policy which insures an employer against the death or incapacitation of a deemed key employee within the business or company, usually an executive or partner.

It is used by both large companies and small partnerships alike.

An employer may take out a Key Person insurance policy on the

life or health of any employee whose knowledge, work, or overall contribution is considered uniquely valuable to the company. The employer does this to offset the costs (such as hiring temporary help or recruiting a successor) and losses (such as a decreased ability to transact business until successors are trained) which the employer may suffer in the event of the loss of a key person.

The key person may be an executive, principal shareholder, a senior scientist, or a particularly effective salesperson.

Smaller companies with partners may use it to protect each partner. For example, if a partner

of a firm passes away, usually the other partner or partners need to purchase the shares in the business from the family of the deceased. Having insurance permits this to be more easily facilitated where the correct Buy/Sell Agreements are in place. Buy/Sell Agreements are a written agreement the business enters into to determine each stakeholders' plans should any of them unexpectedly suffer a major illness, injury or death.

The cover required is usually determined by the size of the business and the person that is to be insured. The sum insured can range between $500,000 and $10 million of cover or sometimes higher upon special negotiation.

Conrad Francis For a detailed and customized financial planning solution, contact Conrad Francis from Inspired Money at : 08 9301 2631 www.inspiredmoney.com.au License No: 234665

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To watch the whole video and to get more insight into this case study, visit http://youtu.be/RL96Xo3M0JA

Dominique Engelter

08 9481 2040 www.whlaw.com.au William + Hughes Commercial & Litigation Lawyers

Rueben Taylor

Diann Bates

08 9468 0200 08 9355 0600 www.BusinessWealthEducators.com.au www.creativefruition.com.au Creative Fruition Business Wealth Educators

One of the first things businesses after naming a business is to create a logo. Many also go on to creating a tagline/slogan which defines the purpose of the business. Below is an interesting panel discussion whether you can trademark the slogan. We invited discussion and opinion from a legal, creative and return on investment point of view.

Watch the interesting video discussion on YouTube or continue reading below to understand the criticalities of slogans and logos involved in marketing and branding.

Dominique Engelter; William + Hughes As a leading legal practitioner, Dominique explained the pros and cons of trade marking a tagline or slogan.

Dominique explained that branding is important and distinguishing your brand from competitors is important as well.

You need to register your trademark, so that there is no identity theft and it enhances commercial edge. The use of slogans is mostly to develop an emotional attachment with products, and is an effective marketing tool. You cannot copyright slogans and taglines but you can copyright it.

“What are the pros of trying to register your trademark? Well look… it is a fairly simple process where you've got a trademark as opposed to then later relying upon bringing some sort of court action saying 'hey someone else is trying to pass themselves off as their business or someone else is engaging in misconduct by trying

to associate themselves with goods and products that we sell…”

Adding a comma here or there can make a huge difference in the logo.

When you register a logo, you need to make sure it is creative and unique even if it is a product other brands market. People cannot oppose the logo if it is different on paper. Every competitor wants to have a commercial edge, which makes registering your trademark important.

Rueben Taylor; Business Wealth Educators As one of the most successful business coaches and educators, Rueben shared his opinion on slogans and taglines and the importance it plays in marketing.

Rueben believes that marketing should produce returns from investment, and branding, logos and slogans are important. The question is how to communicate the key points of difference to that makes your business stand out from competitors.

“Having a professional logo is important. When building a brand, what's important is, what is unique about the business and how do you communicates that against your competition…what are the key points of difference?”

Your brand is everything; it associates your website, the product and everything you do.

Your logo and slogan offers the audience a chance to have confidence in you, by establishing trust that you actually deliver what you promise to deliver.

Diann Bates; Creative Fruition As a person who is extremely passionate on delivering creative solutions to her customers and government, Diann shared her ideas on how to leverage your business through a slogan or tagline from a visual and design perspective.

Diann said, slogans help own a piece in the customer's heart. It is an integral part of your brand. It's your promise to your customers and an extension of your purpose, which people remember while they do business with you.

Businesses should look at their product or services from the perspective of their customers as well.

“Your logo is the face of your business, the brand is the personality of your business, and the slogan is the heart and the soul and the purpose of your business that you try resonate with your present or potential customers.”

A logo wraps your purpose, brand and objective into one, telling the public about your personality and what your personality is. The tagline and slogan should identify the target market is, the problems they have, the solutions you have and the benefits you are offering.

The position of the slogan is secondary, but the primary objective should be why you are using the tagline.

You need to choose images, type of paper and features carefully because they should be easy to remember and identify with you for the audience.

Send us your business challenges & we will get them addressed by an expert panel. nifnex@nifnex.com.au

12

What do you say to an Australian business (restrictively tagged SME or start-up) that is seeking to grow but unable, due to no fault of their own, to access institutional sources of funding? "She'll be alright", can be one of the answers.

Fat Hen, an Australian headquartered capital venture fund, is offering an alternate answer. Fat Hen aims to bridge the gap between personal and institutional sources of funding.

"We are a full service venture capital company powered by the crowd." explains Jeff Broun CEO at Fat Hen.

According to the Australian Bureau of statistics, nearly 3/4 of business in Australia fall under the SME category and over 50% of the business revenue generated comes from

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this category. At the same time, other figures show that 60% of lending by the Australian banks, credit societies and credit unions is geared in the direction of personal loans.

“Let's put aside profits for a second, cash flow is where the SME's or promising start-ups with big plans, bear the brunt" explains Rajab Karume CMO at Fat Hen. "When you juxtapose the ABS figures on the economic contribution by the SME sector against the current lending focus of the major banks, the capital raising picture of SMEs becomes somewhat clearer."

In other news, Fat Hen has recently announced a strategic partnership with The Entourage, one of Australia's leading private education institution for entrepreneurs, enabling businessmen and women across the country to achieve their personal and financial goals through the growth of their businesses.

Fat Hen is now seeking projects and expressions of interest from potential investors. For more details got to www.fathen.vc

Fat Hen will be working with both start-ups and established businesses in facilitating access to capital from the "crowd" through the proprietary Fat Hen on-line platform. Fat Hen seeks to be an Australian first in providing opportunities for vetted businesses to reach their fan base and beyond for funding.

Richard Branson says: "If you look after your staff, they'll look after your customers. It's that simple."

Clearly there is a link between a happy, productive team and satisfied clients and customers.

If one of the globe's most successful entrepreneurs places such value on content

employees – then so should every other company focussed on success.

At Liberty Executive Offices we believe this is the cornerstone of our success.

Liberty began three years ago with a mission to deliver a new alternative to the business community and establishing an enduring and productive organisational culture has been crucial to our success.

We have a 90 percent staff retention rate – three times better than the industry average of 30 percent. This corresponds to exceptional customer service performance indicators.

simply doing a job.

- Develop a system of open and d i r e c t communication.

- Ensure your team is aware of ( a n d ideally involved in) the organisational strategy and objectives.

- Where possible recruit externally for entry level roles – a n d promote internally for more senior positions.

- Build team cohesiveness through work and in social settings.

Jamie Vine To find out more about them c l i c k t h i s l i n k : http://www.aliveandkicking.co m.au/ Liberty has been in operation for three years – and we've got a lot to be proud of. In celebration of this milestone we are offering every third person who registers one of three prizes:

- Share success and challenges.

- $300 meeting room credit at a Liberty facility - A 3 month free virtual office valued at $750

- The Liberty team in a more social setting.

To provide the broader WA business community with some useful insights in how to strengthen your own team and organisational culture Liberty will be hosting a free seminar on 22 October at 5:30pm – specifically on how to create a positive organisational culture and retain a productive team.

- Give your team responsibility – n o t just tasks. They're more likely to be empowered when they are directly contributing to a bigger goal than

The seminar will be delivered by Liberty's experienced training provider Alive and Kicking Solutions.

Cleary happy staff means happy customers but how do you make this happen? At liberty we empower our team to be a part of our direct success rather than simply an employee. So our top tips for developing and nurturing a strong organisational culture include:

- 3 months free in our coworking space values at $1500 To get involved for what promises an exceptional and productive event, RSVP 'via the l i n k b e l o w ' : http://nifnexevent22october.eventbrite.com.au

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To watch the whole video and to get more insight into this case study, visit http://youtu.be/T0WFI7-lbQQ

Jamie Vine

Rajab Karume

Sue Findlay

08 6141 3100 jcv@libertyoffices.com.au Liberty Executive Offices

0434586087 RajabK@NeedlenHay.com Needle 'n' Hay

0417920149 Suzanne.findlay@bidbuddy.net.au Bid Buddy

How to track investors and Crowdfunding is a new but not so new concept in businesses today.

Our panel comprised of Jamie Vine who addressed the pros and cons of Crowdfunding and investors, Sue Findley who addressed the benefits and principles of getting investors and Rajab addressed Crowdfunding from an online business perspective.

understand what it would be like, whom you interact with, and how things will work at every different level in the market.

You have to look at the market in terms of demand and supply.

the public (retailers) and the business owners (entrepreneurs).

Jamie Vine; Liberty Executive offices Jamie shared essential his personal story before addressing the pros and cons of getting investors for a project. You can watch the video for more on this. He has many years of experience and deals with a n u m b e r o f n e w businesses/projects that hatch out of Liberty Executive offices.

His personal view was that there are pros and cons of getting investors. Some cons are that you give away an element of control, you lose control of the business, and you have a boss once investors get involved. However, you need investments when funding is out of reach.

A pro of having investors onboard is that you secure funding. Jamie shared some important steps you can take to start your business's funding.

He said: “We (Liberty Executive Offices) don't get too much exposure to clients, because they have already been funded, but we see businesses demonstrate their grand plan to us, where they take a one-man office with plans to make them into an eight men's' office.”

He also said that there is no better feelings than seeing a business grow, and knowing that we helped them is a good feeling. It is important to maintain the business model to make it work, there has to be proper record keeping and transparency. You have to understand the market to

The financial module and financial source seals the success of a business, which is why; investors play an important role in businesses today. Your growth story and exit strategy is what usually attracts investors, because they want to see profits and growth.

Rajab Karume; Needle'n'Hay As an advisor to some of the new investor and crowd funding digital platforms, Rajab talked about the essential information that every entrepreneur needs to know before they launch into crowd funding.

Crowdfunding is a newbie in financing avenue. It does not replace the current means of financing; it serves as an alternative to what already exists.

During the discussion, he said: “What I think is that the reason for the growth of Crowdfunding has been, basically, the ubiquitous mobile devices. The interconnectivity between people around the globe so that an idea can be shared in a flash of a moment…”

The feedback from the target market is very important, and when you receive a positive feedback, it is fantastic. You need to make logical assumptions using the latest platforms like social media as well to know where your business is heading. How to present the product to the market is very important and this is what businesses do to get Crowdfunding, which is a platform to create awareness of a product using a business plan.

Crowdfunding allows you to experiment with strategies to use because you have the investors and target audience. It has three elements to it, the funders (crowd),

Typically, you need a business plan and strategies to make sure your business is a success at the end. So all these come together in a nutshell.

Sue Findlay; BidBuddy As an expert tenders & proposals advisor, in the video, Sue shared the evergreen components of an investor proposal that will satisfy & impress your potential investors.

The principles of sales document is the same regardless of whatever the product is. If you are pitching your product to win funding, first, you need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the product and what problems the product solves. Without this, you cannot win investors because they need to know their investment will be a success. The pitch should be crisp, clear, tangible, and catchy so that it can arouse interest in potential buyers.

Sue said: “The other aspect that you need to understand very clearly is what your market is looking for and that varies depending on the nature of your sale. So, in the case of pitching your business idea to an investor, you need to be clear of what they are looking for. What they are looking for is not a technically beautify solution.

What they are looking for is money!”

It's important that you do not sell the product, but you need to sell the 'benefits the product brings.'

Remember that you have less than a minute to get the attention of the prospective buyer. So make the most of this limited time to offer them what is interesting enough to anchor them to the spot, arouse interest and excitement to buy it.

The best way to do this is by generating an understanding of the solution using the right pitch.

Send us your business challenges & we will get them addressed by an expert panel. nifnex@nifnex.com.au

14

As I write this article I'm sitting on an airplane returning from my road trip to Sydney after seeing Anthony Robbins with 10 amazing friends. It has been 10 years since I first attended this seminar in 2003. How do you write up 4 days and 50 hours of emotional light bulbs in a few hundred words?

Lets go back to the first event in 2003, before which I was 'successful' running 3 businesses yet emotionally drained. I thought I had everything I ever wanted yet felt unfulfilled. “ Success without fulfillment is failure,”Anthony Robbins declares as I sit in the audience of over 10,000 participants in London. I was skeptical and literally verbally forced by friends to attend. I had a 'toilet roll' of to do's!! I mean how is this giant American going to help me?

As the day progressed I started to open up to the idea that the quality of our actions was determined by the quality of our state. What actions do we take in a stressed state?

Tony kept referring to the concept of being in a peak state. I didn't quite understand experientially what a 'peak' state was until later that evening. I now remember why it was I didn't initially want to attend the seminar, there was a fire walk on the first night and I was scared out of my mind!

Why would I want to walk on hot coals? And what did that have to do with my life?

Oprah had a similar experience, the Huffington

As a business owner, did you know you must, by law, guarantee the products or services you sell?

Did you know that your customers have the right to ask for a repair, replacement or refund if the products you sell are faulty, unsafe or don't work as intended?

These rights are called consumer guarantees and they exist under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

But it's more than just an

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Post reported, “Oprah expected to only stay for two hours but got caught up in the energy and experience and stayed for 12 hours instead, completely surprising herself by being inspired to undertake the fire walk exercise, something Oprah had clearly stated early on there was no way she was going to do, later saying "This was one of the most incredible experiences of my life."

I started to realise I had slowly transitioned from this young energetic vibrant person to a stressed unfulfilled individual. I had loaded up my emotional luggage, sometimes to a point when the bag wouldn't even close so others had to pick up my garbage. As the days of the seminar progressed I started the process of letting go of the rubbish, recalibrating and believing again in possibilities.

“The past does not equal the future unless you live there e m o t i o n a l l y. ” - A n t h o n y Robbins As business owners we often make time for everyone else except ourselves. Even as a coach it's easy to get caught up, in between attending this seminar my wife and myself are part of the Robbins Senior Leadership team supporting Tony at his events. We know that to serve others better we must keep check on our emotional state and vitality.

positive attitude Stress is an energy zapper. Stress is the code word for fear.

There are many contributors of stress.

Body: Stress from what we eat and drink (i.e. relying on caffeine), lack of sleep (perhaps due to too much caffeine or worry), lack of movement, lack o f o x y g en f r o m s h all o w breathing, reduced water intake.

Relationships: Stressful relationships at home and work.

Mind: Disempowering habits and negative emotions.

Consistent negative self talk.

Work: Taking on more then we can handle with limited support from our team. Working for money versus being inspired by a purpose and the money is a reward for doing what we love.

2.The quality of our actions is determined by our emotions.

Our emotions are determined by the state we condition of ourselves to consistently be in.

It's never a matter of resources, time, money, education, people we know - it's a matter of resourceful emotions such as courage and gratitude.

Why is it I can't get my team to do what I want?

Why are people always complaining?

Why are people not interested in my product or service?

Empowering questions: What else is possible?

What three things can I do now to overcome this challenge?

How else can I show my customers the value of our products and services?

Who else can support me to exceed our sales?

How can I inspire the team to deliver wow amazing customer service? c. Our words: When you attach a word to an experience it becomes the experience. The words we select control our emotions. Use your words; don't let your words use you.

3.The quality of our life is d i re c t l y re l a t e d t o t h e expectations of our peer group.

We often lower our standards to connect to people and not upset them or keep things comfortable.

How often do you raise your standards so that you and others in your team grow?

There are three statements I will make straight up as my key reminders from this road trip.

Three factors determine our emotional state. a. Our physiology: What's your pattern of physiology? How do you use your physical body?

How do you breath? Are you moving often or sitting all day? b. Our Focus: What we focus on affects our physiology. If you think about all the 'to do's' how does that make you feel? How do you breath when you are overwhelmed? How do you stand when you're focusing on the things you can't control?

The quality of our questions also determines our focus.

Everybody needs to raise his or her standards.

1.With Energy anything is possible Energy is a state of vibrancy and

Disempowering questions: Why me?

Not another bill to pay?

”Good timber does not grow with ease, the stronger the wind the stronger the trees” - JW Marriot.

obligation. Each year, failure to comply with these obligations causes Australian businesses to incur significant costs in spin-off effects which can include decreasing sales, a decline in return business and damage to a business reputation.

reasonable time, and suppliers and manufacturers must comply with any warranty covering the product.

includes repairing or replacing the product, providing a refund or fixing the problem with the service.

Services must be delivered with due care and skill, and completed within a reasonable time if no set timeframe is agreed.

It is also important to note that manufacturers' warranties and extended warranties apply in addition to, but do not replace, consumer guarantees.

'Personal development is a consistent rehearsal you who to become for the rest of your life'Joseph McClendon III

Broadly, consumer guarantees state that all goods sold in Australia must be of acceptable quality, be fit for the purpose they are intended and match the description given.

Repair facilities and spare parts must be available for a

The key part of the provisions requires businesses that sell, lease, make or import most household, personal, automotive products and services to provide appropriate remedies for anything that does not meet the consumer guarantees. That

Growth = progress = happiness Everything in life is either growing or stagnant. Unless you grow your competitors will grow beyond your comfort zone.

When we add more value then anyone expects we keep growing and customers keep coming.

When we stop adding value, someone else will add more value and customers will go there.

Extended warranties are optional. Usually consumers are offered the chance to buy an extended warranty.

When selling extended warranties, suppliers should explain to the consumer what an extended

Hament Chavda Transformation Coach: Hament Chavda Since arriving in Australia in 2010, Hament has coauthored the best seller You Can Live the Life of Your Dreams, founded Coach 26 (Personal and Business Transformation) and Perth's premier 'fire walking event' Unleash Your Greatest P o t e n t i a l (Firewalkingperth.com.au) and has recently with his partner and Soul mate, Sonal, acquired and transformed the long established health store Natures Harvest into a holistic Health Destination.

He has reached thousands of people through business training workshops, personal coaching and breakthrough events. The mission to bring to light the magnificence in people one person at time and the vision to positively impact over 20 million people by 2020.

Growth is movement. Growth is T.E.A.M. synergy.

My definition of synergy–the trust, respect and integrity to recognise each other's strengths and move in unison.

In a sentence: Raise your standards, turn your 'should' into 'musts' and take massive determined action!

warranty provides, over and above the consumer's rights under the consumer guarantees.

A supplier must not pressure consumers to buy an extended warranty.

For further information see: www.accc.gov.au or take advantage of the free small business online education programme at www.ccaeducationprograms.org.

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to do business, job, collaborate etc). You might need to segment this into further levels if needed.

2) Keep in touch – You see synergies but can't do much right now and want to keep in touch.

Let's admit it, we say the above line many times every day/week to people you meet or were introduced to? But what do we do? Very few of us act on it. I have a couple of pointers below on categorising them and an email template to action it.

Whilst, some go on to putting these contacts on a mailing list or sales list to hound them with newsletters or to sell them something, I believe that's not such a bad thing after all. It's better than leaving the business card on your desk or top drawer and forgetting about it.

We at Nifnex had the pleasure of hosting a speed business networking event last week (8th Aug 2014) and was an attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Records.

There were approximately 10,000 conversations that took place if not more within a few hours.

So, what's next? What do you do with those cards and brief conversations?

I know some people opened up their phone calendars and scheduled appointments straight away. What about the others?

I would suggest the below: Firstly, Look through the cards individually with an open mind. Do not judge / presume the synergy of that contact based on the card, person, industry, name, location etc. Have an open mind.

Ideally, you have some CRM (Customer relationship management) software like ZOHO, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, InfusionSoft . Some of them are free softwares and cloud based so you can action them on the go.

I generally try to sort out the cards daily only because I meet so many people every day and I would recommend you do the below almost daily too.

Also, I try not to sort/dispose/categorise my cards based on whether the contact falls into my target market or not. I have a practical approach below that works.

Most cards you have picked up will fall into one of the four categories: 1) Immediate Synergy - You see immediately how & why you need to contact (for any reason,

3) Refer – This is something not many of us do. The contact may not fall into our industry/target market etc and we don't capitalise on the opportunity of referring them to someone we feel will benefit. This can be an associate, friend, family, a different division within your company, sister company etc. Of course, you will need to cover yourself as referral is such a powerful thing. The email template below has a couple of pointers how to do this.

4) Card Box / Dispose / Stay away pile (Its funny but I have seen it) - Any card that you know that doesn't fall into the above categories still has a potential to be placed on your mailing list (see template below). I generally don't bin any cards. They may not always get filed but they at least go into my card box. (which is currently a nice looking pack & store box from officeworks, simply because of the sheer volume) The categories may vary depending on what you do, your industry etc but I hope you get the general idea of categories.

Now that you have categories, I would suggest you make a phonecall to Category 1 or if you prefer email, then have templates for each category.

Your CRM may also be set up to action an automatic email based on categories.

Customise an email as you see fit but the below templates will give you an idea of what to say: Category 1. Immediate Synergy Hi (first name), great to meet/see you (remind them when and where you met).

I see potential synergy in our businesses (or the reason you are making contact).

Are you available (next week) at (1PM on Wed) or (4PM Thursday) for a coffee/skype call to discuss (provide a strong winwin reason).

[Remember to provide a reason, not everyone will see the opportunity in the same light as you do. Also, if you don't give a potential time, it will be hanging]

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Have a great day.

Regards, Category 2. Keep in Touch Hi (first name), great to meet/see you (remind them when and where you met).

I would like to keep in touch with you as I see a potential opportunity to (reason).

Is it ok for me to keep in touch via my monthly (frequency) newsletter as it has ( state how the newsletter can benefit them).

If you for some reason don't see the benefit from it, feel free to unsubscribe and no offence will be taken.

Again, great to meet you. Have a great day.

Regards, Category 3. Refer Hi (first name), great to meet/see you (remind them when and where you met).

I would like to introduce you to a ( b u s i n e s s associate/colleague/relationship to you) because (provide a reason why you think they should meet).

[You could copy the person into this email and in which case us the below] I just happened to meet/come across, (first name) and felt the both of you should meet because (reason) [A potentially good way to cover yourself if you don't know the person very well but would like to introduce them to your contact] [They may even benefit from being on your mailing list so you can ask the question- use the line from Category 2 email] Category 4 - Store/Dispose Well, no real reason to email, but there may be potential to say hi and still keep in touch less frequently if you see a benefit for both of you.

There is no right or wrong way but one of you has to take the conversation to next level if you believe it has wings. Either way, nothing wrong in keeping in touch. You just don't know who they know.

Feel free to share this article if you believe it will benefit your connections.

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Remember, everything you do reflect on your personal brand. Check out my article on personal brand and 8 things to do after a conference / seminar to grow your personal brand on my linkedin.

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Email : nifnex@nifnex.com.au Or Visit www.nifnexreview.com.au Call 1300 643 639