Instant Website & Hosting Service

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The holiday shopping season just got easier. From now until Christmas, gift certificates printed in their own holiday envelopes can be mailed to your address in time for giving. Lettermail™ shipping included! For priority shipping, add only $10 for Xpresspost™.

The best place to find some really good deals on all things micro business would be checking out www.redflagdeals.com . You can search by deals by store and latest promotions.

While your there stop by their forums, and participate in the community. You can find answers to your lingering questions about how to incorporate your business, order a business phone, and learn about how to take debit payments and more.

Vancity has bankrolled changeverything.ca, a site dedicated to supporting discussions of changes people make in their communities and in their personal lives.

The site offers a place of dialogue and encouragement, and challenges its web visitors to make small changes that have big impacts.

Check them out, and while your there, have a look at my change!

Lifehack has written a great posting on when to decide whether jumping from your day job into full time freelancing is a good idea. Here is a run down:

You have an excellent product or service

If your competitor sold the exact same product and service, right down to the unique benefit you provide, could you say that it is a high-quality product? This question calls attention to bias we have towards our own efforts. We have to not only believe but know through comparison where our products stands in the marketplace.

Your research tells you that there your market is large enough for you to profit

Do you know if your market is growing, stable, or shrinking? A quick way to find out is by identifying who will buy your product, determine what demographic they fit, see how many there are in a geographical area, and place a dollar amount on each prospective client. Divide by the number of companies in the area, estimate the dollars for each employee, and determine the percentage the competitors own. Is there room for all?

You have enough money in the bank

The fear of losing regular, predictable pay cheques can be pretty tough especially when you have a family to support. A mortgage, food, and expenses can place significant stress and can comprise your judgment. Don’t find yourself in a position where you sell your self short (or worse at a loss) only because your depending on making your next payment.

You find that your business is more enjoyable than your job

This is the real clincher. Considering that running your own micro business is both rewarding and risky, one has to find encouragement in the day to day operations. If even the mundane micro business tasks put a smile on your face and cash in your pocket, your ahead of the game!

You are an expert in your niche

Do your customers see that your the go-to guy/gal for all-things widgets? Commit to learning everything within your niche and blog about your ideas. Not only do you gain knowledge in your field, but also you will continue to build brand recognition.

You have a network large enough to support your business

Is your personal and professional network large and dense enough to put you through your business? If not, network like crazy! I don’t mean be the one with business card in hand when first introducing yourself. I’m talking about becoming active in your local community, and pouring time and effort in to getting to know your neighbors.

You have mentors and experts whose expertise you can draw upon

Do you have accountants, other entrepreneurs, or others who can listen to your wins and losses? If not, try your local Chamber of Commerce, local networking groups, or even non-business related associations.

Aviva Directory lists 99 simple ways you can brand your business. My top 5 favorites as it applies to micro business is the following:

“Launch an influential blog”

This is the single most effective and affordable way to build credibility and establish rapport with your audience. And, your audience isn’t just your customers, its also your suppliers, potential customers and the competition. As you build momentum, and develop some lasting and unique content, some measurable results will come from your branding efforts. This includes, referrals, leads, and sales!

“Become part of a community”

Branding is about exposure. But branding isn’t just a passive store-shelf commodity. It’s about practicing your values purposefully. The best way to do this is sign your self up and actively participating in the many forums, blogs, or mailing lists in your niche.

“Leave valuable comments”

Again, participating in community means responding promptly and thoughtfully to others in the community. Remember, that the audience exposure to content isn’t usually linear; people stumble across content written a year ago which rings true for them today. And, if it strikes a chord, its more points towards your branding score card.

“Use consistent style”

I worked at a student union where the mantra from handlers was to remember the “message box:” a carefully crafted idea conveyed to an interviewer at all possible times. This meant that little blurb that nights media was going to report, no matter how edited, the core message would come through.

“Develop a viral link building strategy”

Viral link building is simply the process of capturing those compelled to

a. spread the word about some great web content and
b. decide to take further and link back to the authors website.

One example is our lifetime accounts that we provide for micro businesses.

What branding tactics do you use?

This marks the first day of writing daily posts on everything micro business from emerging technology to business tips. Subscribe to my RSS feed or come back daily for juicy micro business morsels!

Agenda

This short presentation walks you through setting up your affordable website. Participants have full access to a computer lab. Participants receive:

• no-cost hosting subdomain (yourBusinessName.NanaimoMicroBusiness.ca)
• access to a click n’ edit content managements system (CMS) which lets you change text and images easily
• business listing on NanaimoMicroBusiness.ca

About the presenter: Will Alvarez is owner of MicroBusinessSupport.com (a division of) After Hours Services Ltd. He offers an Instant Website and Hosting Service aimed at micro business who need a simple and cost effective way of updating their websites.

Registration is free but seating is limited.

Register Now

Harewood Community Center Cooperative aims to reclaim an abandoned elementary school building in the heart of Harewood. This project reflects our principles of community building and grass roots organizing. We support this project by donating the domain name and service.