Parentpreneur – Why is it so important today?

Currently in British Columbia 60% of businesses are entrepreneurs, people trying to make a living through ingenuity. When taking a long look at research and trends, the future of our economy will have huge dependency on people being able to come up with an idea and turn it into a money-making opportunity. We need teach our future generation, no matter what age, how to be entrepreneurial.

Celebrating 2 years of Bash & Co Cleaning

To my fortune I took the path of home care giver and entrepreneur. I believed it would be easy to do both, raise a child and run a business. It is not.

My child came first which demanded much of my time, and this put a wrench into my business that was also demanding of time. I chose the path of nurturing, as I realized this was literally a once and a lifetime opportunity. My business didn’t die. I kept it alive to keep my skills current and also bring in much-needed money, or at least as much as I could.

As my daughter grew up and started to become a young adult, something hit me and made me a little sick. How can I help her get a good education? I have spent years trying to keep my head above water, to fiscally provide as much as I could. I didn’t know what to do. Then, opportunity struck!

The janitorial service that once cleaned my wife’s office was retiring and they needed a new company to clean the office. They offered the job to my daughter and me. I looked at it as an opportunity for her to learn a work ethic and raise money for education.

Fusion marketing, fusion mind is a methodology I truly believe in. “Like minded people working together for mutual benefit.”

I saw more than just an opportunity for my daughter to work, but to also set up her own business. It was a chance for

Bash & Co Creating the Business

her to learn about the working future, to become entrepreneurially minded. We created Bash & Co Cleaning and now with two clients we have enough business to keep my daughter in the perfect balance of work, play and education.

I realized the importance of being a Parentpreneur. That it is more than just being a parent that is an entrepreneur, but a parent that teaches the importance of having an entrepreneurial mind. I needed to teach my daughter how to able to take care of herself. To show her the path to independence through ingenuity. By being able take a piece of paper and turn it into an opportunity. To truly believe in herself and see the results.

This path goes both ways, for the past 2 years I have learnt to become a better father, parent, leader, business partner, mentor and student. I have grown as a parent while working with my daughter, teaching her that in a company or on your own, having an entrepreneurial work ethic is important.

Today it is more important than ever that we all become Parentpreneurs. We need to nurture our future generation with ingenuity, to embrace a positive work ethic, to turn obstacles in to opportunities, to become teachers and students.

To looking forward to the future!

Welcome to the Future…but wait there will be updates.

A quick note to those who are venturing out into the wonderful world of Digital Marketing, Social Media, Virtual Reality, don’t be in a panic, there will be updates, there will be changes.  To help get yourself through the chaos of technical development, follow these quick 3 steps.

  1. Breath – pick your mantra, then give it your best lung action. You need it, your brain needs it, your body can’t function without it. Clear your head, calm down the concern buttons and relax.
  2.  Research – the early adapters of new technology have their work cut out for them, not only do they have an urgent need to be the first, but they need to record it to prove that they know it, so, this means, what you need to know is out their and the match/motivator to get you going is a search away.
  3. MAP – Create a Marketing Action Plan that tells a story about your business then match it to the benefits and functions of new tech. Manage your time and balance it between learning new tech updates and securing sales conversions.

While your are working on these three steps remember, there will be changes, updates and this requires you to exercise patience.  Use this time to come up with new ideas or update your MAP.

This blog update brought to you by Microsoft – who just updated their system and made things go very crazy for some people…remember your not alone.

To the Future!

The Marketing Crossroads – Time to Evaluate and Plan

From Famous Blues Singers to Mom and Pop we all come to a cross roads in the life of our business.

From Famous Blues Singers to Mom and Pop we all come to a cross roads in the life of our business.

There is a time of year when it is critical to make key decisions about your marketing plan. Now is the time! Every January offers us a critical time to evaluate the past year’s marketing effectiveness. Even if your business year-end doesn’t coincide with the “New Year” it still offers many opportunities for you to improve your marketing efforts.

The “New Year” offers a psychological reboot to the mind of the consumer. There are predictable trends that happen throughout the year, but a collective thought in January is to get into shape. This also applies to businesses: retail is clearing out inventory, tourism is preparing for the next season and manufacturing is constantly preparing for the next seasonal industry purchase.

No matter what state your business is in, start-up or existing, it is important to reflect on the marketing decisions of the past year, compare them to the actual earnings achieved and evaluate the effectiveness of each strategy. This will also help you to be better prepared for the up and coming year and you can improve your Marketing Plan so it will better serve your business.

Too many times when businesses are looking for ways to improve their bottom line, they panic and fret and react to marketing decisions based on pressured or hurried tactics. Many of these businesses do not have a controlled Marketing Plan. By not having control over your marketing or a system to keep it organized a business will end up wasting a lot of time and money.

People are constantly faced with different tools and methods to market their business and at this crossroads there are more choices than ever.

In the past five years there has been a steady increase and change in the opportunities available online. There are now specialists that preach the domination of this media as the new coming messiah of marketing. It is true that there are many new benefits and opportunities with the development of technology but these new systems are only effective when balanced with traditional marketing.

A wise man once said “The more means there are to communicate the more communication needs to have meaning.” –Anonymous

Online technology is growing faster than any other marketing tool and people are finding it hard to keep up. Business owners and marketing managers are constantly being introduced to and “sold” on the latest trend. This is causing a backlog of confusion and fear. People are feeling slightly overwhelmed by the opportunities now available to them and some find that proceeding down a new path can be intimidating and difficult.

The new marketing opportunities available to us and the beginning of the year make this marketing crossroads more important than ever.

To get started, do it yourself, and have an area, department, individual or time allotted each day to review and plan for your marketing future. Some people are naturals at this but they miss out on organizational details such as keeping good notes, having a logical plan that follows a natural flow and focusing on your purpose and goals for each activity.

Some businesses find that they do not have enough time to plan strategically and usually make reactionary marketing decisions that are not cost effective. If you are having time troubles this is a good opportunity to sit down with a professional to get expert advice on the best uses of your marketing time and budget. The key is to find a Marketing Consultant who has a firm grasp of traditional marketing but is also versed in the benefits of new opportunities/technology. In the marketing toolbox there are so many opportunities that it is important to focus and find the best methods for your business, taking into account the distinct characteristics of each industry.

This January is a crucial crossroads for marketing and no matter what marketing you do, you should have a plan. Take the time this month to get organized and gain control of your marketing efforts. The most successful businesses have a very clear plan that balances what they will implement and what type of returns they will receive from their investment.

Chris Holland is a communications speciality with a diverse work history and grounded understanding of the needs of business, residing in Nelson BC he works with his Juggernaut Marketing Communications providing help to business throughout North America. For more information or some much needed help he can be reached at 250.505.5016, chris@juggernautmc.com or check out www.JuggernautMC.com

Back to School Coffee Break – Cowan Office Supplies helps parents get Grounded

Paul and Sasha are giving parents a coffee break this year

Paul and Sasha are giving parents a coffee break this year

Nelson BC – As parents multi-manage the last days of summer with kids and start getting ready for back to school, local businesses Cowan Office Supplies and Grounded Organic Coffee House have created a fun and easy way to get this job done. Presenting the Back to School Coffee Break, when you come do to Cowan’s for your school supplies they will not only have your child’s school list, but while they are filling your order, you get an opportunity to take a break and enjoy a relaxing cup of coffee at Grounded.

Back to school shopping can mean major pressure for parents. Deciding which supplies will be best for their kids to give them the advantage they need and dealing with the hide and seek game of finding the lists, supplies and where they are located can also add more stresses. We know now more than ever that the best start to a person’s life begins with a good education and having the proper tools helps.

Cowan Office Supplies realized that they can help parents with this process by utilizing their greatest features, convenience, customer service, free downtown parking and quality merchandise. Not only will Cowan’s have the exact list that your school / grade require but they can customize your supplies to fit specific needs.

Once Grounded heard about how Cowan’s was out to help parents they wanted to join in by offering them a free cup of coffee while their order gets prepared, thus giving them a well-deserved coffee break.

It didn’t stop there, as plans were being created, other local businesses wanted to help parents and as an example Phoenix Computers offered a contest prize of a new MS Office Home and Student Suite and Diagnostic Computer Review to help someone get the electronic back to school advantage. Cowan’s and Grounded have also offered up some exciting prizes including a new desk chair (need cool chair details) and coffee for a year.

“Any chance that we get to have fun and help the community is our goal” Says Andy Cowan. “We pride ourselves on offering parents and students convenience, customer service and quality.”

Cowan Office Supplies Back to School Coffee Break runs from August 18th to September 5th the contest is open to anyone who drops by. If you have any questions or would like more information please do not hesitate to come on down Cowan’s at 517 Victoria St. or call 250.352.5507 you can also check them out online at www.Cowans.org .

The New Beginning

Chris and Kootenay Lake

For over 25 years I have been working in the marketing industry and have had the pleasure of enjoying every step along the way.  I have had the incredible opportunity to work with some of the greatest minds in the industry and have watched the development of technology seep into our daily existence.

Today is the New Beginning of Juggernaut Marketing Communications as we have re-designed our sense of purpose, updated our education and developed new campaigns for our tool box.

For he past 10 years Juggernaut Marketing Communications has inspired, educated and action-ed marketing campaigns, workshops and presentations to over 400 businesses.  Throughout this journey I have encouraged people to highlight the passion in their work and to keep researching for solutions.

The new voice of Juggernaut is a straight up look at marketing in a fun and educational style that is tailored for the busy entrepreneur, mom &  pop shop or small business.

I have maintained a blog for over 10 years but you will not find any trace of it hear, for with my new voice comes a new beginning.

Welcome to Juggernaut Marketing Communications, as you can see we are still developing our website and it will be fully operational soon.  This site will be a valuable marketing resources with a focus on helping you create a path / plan to follow and reasons to enjoy your efforts.

I look forward to the future.

Chris Holland