A. Hopkins Insurance & Financial Services

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  • How to write an engaging caption on social media for your business

    How to write an engaging caption on social media for your business

    “Discomfort is always a necessary part of the process of enlightenment”

    -Pearl Cleage

    There are many reasons to spend time writing quality social media posts for your business. Whether you choose to wield your own words, or borrow someone else’s, as in the above quote, a great caption can take your audience to great places, get them thinking, spark an interesting conversation around one of your products, or engage your audience in a way that says something about your brand, and who stands behind it. Your audience wants to believe and know you are thinking about something other than your bottom line.

    One post or caption with accompanying video or photo can be all it takes for someone to engage, buy, call you, return for more, or pass on a good word.

    Even though it’s not a lot of content, a short phrase or sentence, a good caption or post takes some thought.

    To start, ask questions such as:

    Am I giving my audience a reason to engage?
    Am I inspiring them to think outside their own comfort zone, their own life bubble or sphere of influence?
    Am I informing them about something that I think will help them in their life or their business?
    Am I revealing something honest and real about my company/brand values that others can resonate with?

    To begin writing:

    Start with an intention. What are you wanting to accomplish with the caption—is this an introduction to your brand? Do you want to tell people what you do? Do you want them to start their own conversation on what you have presented? Do you want them to share?

    If you ask a question, make it open ended. When was the last time you walked away from the spa and felt like a new person? What would your revenue look if your equipment maintenance could be finished a day earlier than promised? What is the best thing about a Friday in November? Spur people’s curiosity with a question they can’t help but think about, or scroll on.

    Get to the point. If it’s too long, you risk losing and boring your audience. We all know this. Pay attention to what grabs your attention in your own social media activity and behaviours and work towards maximum engagement. If it’s a sponsored post, don’t forget to add a call to action.

    Raise the stakes. If the audience doesn’t engage, what will they miss out on? A chance at a one-time promotion or sale, a chance to realize something about their own life or self-growth?
    
    Support your caption with an accompanying image or video. As we all know, visuals are essential. They are what draw people in, prompt them to pause, watch, if only for a few short seconds.

    360PSG also recommends keeping it short. They recommend, “Don’t make them click to see more…someone casually browsing Instagram is likely to keep scrolling when a lengthy caption takes them out of their flow.”

    Something else that can go a long way is giving the caption a “clean” visual. 360PSG recommends burying the hashtags in the comments rather than in the caption.

    Social media is a creative medium. Don’t bore your audience or turn them away with something too conservative. One thing to consider before you begin writing a caption—when you feel the impulse to screen shot something so you don’t lose it in the stream of your social media feed, pay attention to those moments. What caught your attention and inspired you?

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

  • What the Canada-US-Mexico Free Trade Agreement means to you & your business

    What the Canada-US-Mexico Free Trade Agreement means to you & your business

    Nearly three years in the making, the revamped NAFTA agreement came into effect on Canada Day, July 1, 2020.

    Our federal government calls it the Canada-United States-Mexico Free Trade Agreement (CUSMA), while U.S. president Donald Trump refers to it as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The lack of agreement on the name of the agreement nicely sums up the bumpy road that got us here.

    Getting the U.S. out of the North American Free Trade Agreement was a Trump campaign promise, but the agreement itself was an idea Ronald Regan came up with in 1980. It was negotiated by U.S. president George Bush, Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney and Mexican president Carlos Salinas de Gortari in 1992, and became law in 1994. It’s a monumental document; free trade between the three NAFTA members was valued at nearly $1.5 trillion in 2018.

    With a new deal that took almost the entirety of Trump’s first term to reach, what do the latest changes mean for Canadian businesses?

    Cheaper online shopping. Canadians no longer pay duties to have online purchases worth less than $150 shipped across the border.  Good news for shoppers but not so good for Canadian retailers, who argue that the change encourages Canadians to shop online in the U.S. or Mexico instead of buying Canadian at bricks and mortar stores. (It’s worth noting that the COVID-19 pandemic changed shopping habits and more consumers are now shopping online.)

    Protections for copyright and digital content. The revised agreement will extend copyright protection from Canada’s current 50 years to 70 years past an author’s death, aligning with laws in the U.S. As well, internet platforms are now protected from liability related to third-party information they publish, and consumers will no longer be charged customs and other charges on digital products like music, games, videos and e-books.

    More opportunities for auto parts manufacturers. All vehicles must now include 70 per cent North American steel and aluminum, and 40 per cent of passenger vehicles must be made of materials, parts and labour produced or carried out by workers in a plant where the average wage is at least US$16. The downside for consumers is that vehicles may cost more to purchase as the cost to produce them go up.

    Even with the new agreement finally in place, it’s still not entirely smooth sailing for Canada-U.S. trade relations. Just as CUSMA eases what has been a couple of years of volatility (in response to U.S. imposed tariffs on steel about a year ago, Canada put tariffs on a variety of U.S. products, including quiche, mayonnaise and toilet paper) the U.S. is once again talking about increasing tariffs on Canada’s aluminum.

    It’s a threat that puzzles the Canadian government. According to Prime Minister Trudeau, the U.S. does “not produce enough, nowhere near enough” aluminum to fill domestic manufacturing needs, and especially now, with the requirement for a higher ration of North American aluminum to be used in auto productions. Increasing tariffs on Canadian aluminum, which the U.S. has to buy anyways, will increase costs for U.S. consumers. The decision on tariffs could be made within weeks.

    How long will we agree?

    After nearly three years of discussions, do we finally have a trilateral agreement all three countries can live with? CUSMA is good for 16 years, but mandates a joint review be conducted within the first six years to determine if all three countries want to extend the agreement for another 16 years. It also includes the option for a country to opt out of the deal with six months’ notice. This option was part of the previous NAFTA and was taken up by the U.S. when Trump tore up the agreement after taking office.

    So…in a world where anything can happen, anything could happen.

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

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  • Fostering Resilience in the Workplace

    Fostering Resilience in the Workplace

    True resilience is more than simply bouncing back from a setback or challenge. We’re not spring-loaded, impenetrable orbs after all. Some of the most transformative self-awareness and personal growth comes from processing challenges or failure. Resilience is what prepares us so we can withstand adversity and come out of it stronger and better.

    Building resilience is like winter-proofing your garden. Making an effort to systematically nurture, insulate, and protect yourself is the best way to weather even the bitterest winter season.

    Like most skills, developing resilience is not something that happens overnight. It takes time and dedicated practice to develop and continuously improve our ability to respond with resilience. By adopting a few simple techniques, we can build up our personal winter-proofing so we can activate resilience when we need it the most.

    What does resilience look like?

    From years of studying workplace and organizational behaviour, researchers have found several common factors that contribute to resilience in the workplace.

    • Optimism – Never underestimate the power of positivity. Everything is easier with a can-do attitude. While some people seem like ‘born optimists,’ if we acknowledge responsibility for the tone and message of our thoughts and actions, we can start to frame everything from a much more optimistic perspective.
    • Ability to manage emotional balance – Managing balance in our emotions helps us resist the urge to catastrophize. By getting in front of your thoughts, emotions, and reactions, you’re in a better position to sidestep an emotional response and focus on purposeful action.
    • A sense of safety – Facing change or responding to a setback is difficult because it disrupts the routines and systems that we’ve found comfort in and success with in the past. Encouraging resilience starts with facilitating a strong support system where teams can share their feelings and fears, with access to the resources they need to navigate the challenge ahead.

    Tips to strengthen resilience

    Take time to reset throughout the workday

    The better we are at managing regular stress and avoiding burnout, the better prepared we will be to manage bigger challenges and setbacks.

    In his digital article for HBR , Rich Fernandez suggests “detachment breaks” to help promote greater energy, mental clarity, creativity, and focus. Basically all of the building blocks of resilience. Based on the idea that our ultradian (hourly) as opposed to circadian (daily) rhythms demarcate the “peaks and valleys of energy and productivity that we all experience,” regular breaks throughout the day help reset focus and improve our capacity for resilience in the long-term. High-focus, high-clarity cycles typically last 90-120 minutes, so schedule regular breaks, even if only a few minutes at a time, to reset yourself.

    Train for mental toughness and flexibility

    This is how resilient people build the emotional balance they need to be responsive rather than reactive. According to Fernandez, developing mental agility “hinges on the ability to mentally ‘decenter’ stressors in order to effectively manage them. ‘Decentering’ stress is not denying or suppressing the fact that we feel stressed — rather, it is the process of being able to pause, to observe the experience from a neutral standpoint, and then to try to solve the problem.”

    Instead of being overcome by ‘stinking thinking,’ step back from the immediacy of the moment and work through what you’re thinking and how you’re feeling. Recognize the thoughts and emotions that will not serve you and look for opportunities where you do have some control or influence in the situation. “We often tell our children who are upset to ‘use your words,’ for example, and it turns out that stopping and labeling emotions has the effect of activating the thinking center of our brains, rather than the emotional center — a valuable skill in demanding, high-performance workplaces everywhere,” Fernandez explains.

    Practice regular self-care

    Lawyer and positive psychologist Paula Davis-Laack knows firsthand the importance of managing stress and avoiding burnout. “A critical part of resilience is self-care and recovery, and resilient employees know how they spend their energy each day and they take time to re-fill their tank,” she explains.

    Detachment breaks are important for mini-resets, but longer breaks provide an opportunity for truly restorative recovery. Start by designating ‘off hours’ when you stop answering calls or emails and take vacation time regularly. Even if you don’t go anywhere, it’s incredibly beneficial to invest in the time you need to fully recharge. Opportunities for self-care include exercise, meditation, reading, or socializing.

    Grow your grit

    According to Davis-Laack, another element that resilient employees share is grit — “the passion and perseverance to pursue your long-term goals.” Grit and resilience go hand-in-hand. And you can’t have grit without having goals.

    On the road to reaching those goals, you’ll encounter success and setbacks along the way. “Working on truly challenging goals means you’re going to experience obstacles, and you won’t be able to bounce back from them or get grittier without resilience,” Davis-Laack explains.

    Cultivate value and meaning beyond the paycheck

    Stress and burnout are common threats to our resilience, but some of the greatest challenges are variables beyond our control. Economic volatility, natural disasters, and market changes are forces that the average business-owner has no control over. If you get caught up in the grind and churn of it all, staying motivated will be next to impossible.

    Finding meaning in your work beyond surviving the grind and earning a wage builds engagement and, ultimately, resilience. “The most successful and resilient people I have worked with are there for more than a paycheck because they see how their work has value and impact,” says Davis-Laack. Seeing how your role contributes to something that is fundamentally important to you will motivate and inspire you to persevere.

    More than ever, workplace resilience is an important measure of organizational effectiveness and success. When the toughest winters test our mettle to the extreme, resilience is what helps us emerge better and stronger when spring finally arrives.

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

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  • Innovative ways businesses keep going during COVID-19

    Innovative ways businesses keep going during COVID-19

    As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Montreal distiller Paul Cirka decided to take his own spin on this old adage when life – or more accurately, his supplier – gave him corn. Instead of turning corn into gin, he made hand sanitizer.

    Cirka Distilleries is one of many businesses finding innovative ways to keep the doors open during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s not an easy task. As the federal and provincial governments take measures to combat the virus, more than a million Canadians lost their jobs in March and by mid-April more than five million people had applied for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

    Over the last month, many businesses have been declared non-essential. Many have closed their doors, hopefully temporarily, as they ride out the pandemic. Others have turned to alternative ways to carry on. Restaurants are doing takeout and delivery, for example, and fitness facilities and yoga studios are putting classes online.

    Some businesses have become even more innovative. Fortunately for companies like Cirka Distilleries, COVID-weary Canadians need a drink more than ever and businesses that make and sell alcohol continue to operate. Cirka saw a need even greater than gin and vodka, however, and using a recipe approved by the World Health Organization, the business has joined distilleries around the world to produce much-needed hand sanitizer. Since March, Cirka’s employees have been working around the clock to develop the antiseptic, which requires a much higher form of alcohol than the usual 40 proof Cirka uses to make its vodka and gin.

    Other businesses are also straying from “business as usual”. Bauer Hockey, one of North America’s top producers of hockey equipment, has changed its focus to make another product currently in high demand: masks. Bauer is using hockey visor materials to manufacture full medical face shields, which are meant to protect the wearer from being infected by respiratory droplets that carry the virus. Organizations can request a minimum of 100 face shields directly through Bauer’s website.

    Bauer’s venture into medical face masks is a welcome contribution in a time when frontline workers are in dire need of personal protective equipment…and when employees of businesses deemed non-essential would otherwise be unemployed. The switch from hockey gear to hospital gear is keeping 20 people working in Quebec and another 12 working in New York.

    Peregrine Retail Design Manufacturing’s in Burnaby normally creates elegant front counter designs for high end clients including Lululemon, CIBC and Starbucks. But when many of its clients were forced to temporarily shut their (undoubtedly fancy) doors, work came to a halt and Peregrine had to lay off 30 per cent of its 85 person staff. Seeing a need in the retail sector determined to still be essential – grocery stores, pet stores and (as we determined earlier) liquor stores, Peregrine quickly turned its sights to manufacturing a product slightly less high end but ultimately more critical in keeping retail workers safe – plexiglass shields.

    There’s no word yet on when life will get back to normal. But while the future remains uncertain for many small businesses in this most unprecedented time, one thing we can likely count on is that more business owners will embrace innovation, and find new ways to stay afloat, meet a need and keep their workers working.

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

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  • Start a New Decade with These 5 Noteworthy Lessons from Small Business Owners

    Start a New Decade with These 5 Noteworthy Lessons from Small Business Owners

    Entrepreneurs, in particular small business operators and owners, are not strangers to trial and error and misstep. What is important is what we learn and take away to fuel our next move. Here are a few lessons from small business owners to lead us into a new decade!

    Hiring Key People. Susan Guillory, President of Egg Marketing & Communications, and contributor to Forbes says finding success is easier when you have the right people on your team. She admits to designing her own logo when she started her company 13 years ago and that it was a big mistake. “I can tell you that this DIY strategy is not effective as your business grows,” she says. She encourages all business owners to, in the very least, find one person who can support you.

    Take action on new projects. Neal Schaffer is a social business coach and author of Maximize your Social. His advice is to push new projects forward. “Sometimes if means simply turning down things that we used to accept or deciding to simply unplug from other activities,” he shares. What does unplugging, or disengaging from usual practices look like for you and your business in 2020?

    Collect your own data. How do you examine your own customers’ behaviours? Their spending patterns? Their aversions? What questions do they frequently ask? No one knows your business better than you do. Or rather…no one should know your business better than you do. But we are not always great at tracking our own data—that is customer demographics, how they found you, their likes and dislikes, etc. For Larry Kim, founder of Wordstream and CEO of MobileMonkey he believes the key to success is to “fail slightly less often by using more data rather than gut feel in project planning phases…”

    How do you plan on gathering more of your own business’ data in 2020?

    Tune out the noise and follow your instinct. Instinct—we know it’s there, and yet, we don’t always listen. Sometimes it’s because there is A LOT of noise to break through, but, also, listening to our instincts actually takes practice. Not only is it tricky to pin down that initial feeling we had about a certain business move or hire, but to ignore the other pressures that exist in business environment or society in general can be difficult. Caroline Ghosn, co-founder and CEO of Levo League, says there are always warning signs. “As an entrepreneur, the latitude of failure and of success is directly correlated to people. I am growing more and more attentive to my first instincts, even if I can’t justify them, as they apply to people.”

    Keep it simple.

    That’s Neil Patel’s simple advice. He is an entrepreneur, investor, advisor and well-known blogger, with expertise in online metrics and analytics. He admits to having many of his start-ups fail. “Typically the failure wasn’t due to the idea. Instead the solution was complicated and hard to use.”

    Wishing you every success for your business ventures in 2020!

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

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  • Local Marketing Tips: Benefits of Event Sponsorship

    Local Marketing Tips: Benefits of Event Sponsorship

    Sponsoring a local event — like a fun run or a festival — is a great way to boost exposure for your small business and connect directly with potential customers, while also contributing to your local community.

    To maximize the benefits of event sponsorship, you’ll want to do it right. Learn how hosting or sponsoring events can be an effective part of your local marketing plan and find out how to make the most of the event for your business.

    Sponsor events that align with your brand

    As with any marketing plan, efforts should be specifically tailored to your target audience. Sponsoring an event is no exception. The most important decision will be choosing the right event. For the partnership to have the most impact, it needs to be a good fit for your brand.

    Consider Lululemon. The athletic apparel giant hosts immensely popular running events in cities across Canada including Vancouver, Edmonton, and Toronto. More than just a running race, these are full-scale events often with entertainment, pop-up shops, food vendors and, of course, premium post-race swag and goodies. Co-sponsors include brands that appeal to Lululemon’s target demographic — mainly women between the ages of 25-40 — like Saje, a natural wellness retailer, or Flow alkaline water, which comes in fully recyclable packing.

    While any brand might jump at the chance to market itself to thousands of people riding the post-run adrenaline high, Lululemon and its sponsoring partners, as well as the vendors selling product on site, are aligned value-wise with a focus on health, overall wellness, and eco-consciousness.

    Not only is it in Lululemon’s best interests to ensure that sponsoring partners reflect their brand’s values, but sponsors also benefit from access to the perfect audience for their products. It’s a symbiotic relationship that works on all levels. The right partnership ensures that your brand makes the right impression with the right audience.

    Don’t feel obligated to say yes to every sponsorship request

    Be selective about the events that your business sponsors. It might be difficult to say no when someone knocks on your door, but realistically, both parties will get the most benefit by investing in partnerships that share a similar brand and audience.

    Having said that, it’s important to give back — even in a small way — to the local community that supports your business. You shouldn’t expect a huge ROI especially when supporting non-profit or charity events, but giving back and fostering goodwill in the greater community is incredibly important too.

    How to get involved in sponsoring local events

    So, what is actually expected of you as an event sponsor? Generally speaking, an event sponsor is a business or company that provides support, usually funding, to help with the planning and execution of an event in exchange for marketing exposure. Other ways to get involved may include contributing product (for a raffle or silent auction) or providing venue space to host the event. There are plenty of ways to lend your support to help get an event off the ground.

    And in return, there are many ways you can leverage the partnership to gain important exposure for your company. Depending on the event, maybe you can set up a booth onsite, deliver a presentation onstage, or hand out prizes. The best results will involve more than simply having your logo appear somewhere on the website.

    Promote the event on your social channels

    It will also be important for both your business and the event organizer to effectively market the event on all appropriate channels — to not only promote the partnership, but to also ensure the event is well attended.

    Don’t forget to post an event followup on social media. If your company installed a free furnace to a family in need, write a blog about it on your website. If you sponsored a charity gala by providing a silent auction item, post a photo with the recipient on Instagram. Consumers increasingly expect that businesses will be active in their community and give back in meaningful ways. People want to see those partnerships in action and see the real ways in which your business contributes to the betterment of the community.

    Event sponsorships provide value not only to the event organizers who rely on extra funds or gifts to make their event a success, but also to the sponsors who benefit from local marketing efforts and, if nothing else, some good community mojo. Get out there and work with local partners that reflect your brand’s values and make it a regular event! It will go a long way in securing your position as a business that is committed to contributing positively to the local community.

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

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  • How to Choose a Business Structure: Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, or Corporation?

    How to Choose a Business Structure: Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, or Corporation?

    Whether you’re thinking about starting a side hustle for extra income or making the leap to becoming your own boss, there’s a lot to consider when starting a small business. One of the first decisions to make is the type of business structure you need. In Canada, your business can operate as a sole proprietorship, a partnership, or a corporation.

    There are pros and cons to each option, but important differences in terms of startup costs, liability, tax rates, and estate planning should be considered before making a decision. Understanding the key differences between proprietorship, partnership, and incorporation can help ensure your small business starts off on the right foot.

    Sole proprietorship

    In a sole proprietorship, one person operates a business without forming a partnership or corporation. Any income earned from the business is considered self-employment income and is taxed at personal income tax rates on the business owner’s personal income tax return.

    Benefits of a sole proprietorship:

    – Simple, inexpensive registration process

    – Fairly minimal reporting requirements include:

    – Annual personal tax return

    – Payroll remittances and filings for any employees

    – Can deduct losses from your personal income

    – Can deduct expenses including prorated amounts for office and vehicle costs

    – Proprietor controls all decision making and receives all profits

    Disadvantages of a sole proprietorship

    – As sole proprietor, you are personally liable for all debts and any other business liabilities — creditors may make claims against any business or personal assets to pay off debts

    – Fewer funding opportunities and may be more challenging to raise capital to help build and grow the business

    – Not easily transferable or inheritable in the event of the proprietor’s death

    Partnership

    Similar to a proprietorship, a partnership is unincorporated but two or more entities are partners in the business, and business decisions are agreed upon together. A partnership agreement will outline the terms of the partnership and how any disagreements or dissolution will be resolved. In the absence of such an agreement, provincial or territorial laws will determine the terms of the partnership.

    Benefits of a partnership

    – Partnerships enjoy many of the same advantages as a sole proprietorship including relatively low setup costs, expense deductions, minimal reporting requirements, and ability to deduct losses from personal income

    – A more experienced business partner can provide valuable guidance and mentorship to a less experienced business owner

    – Startup costs are shared among partners

    Disadvantages of a partnership

    – Consensus is required for all business decisions

    – Like a proprietorship, partnerships are subject to unlimited liability — all personal and business assets can be targeted by creditors

    – A partner’s liability does not end even after death or retirement for debts and obligations of the partnership that were incurred prior to the death or retirement

    Corporation

    Unlike a proprietorship or partnership, a corporation is a legal entity that is separate from its shareholders. As such, a corporation pays corporate income tax, which is calculated separately from the shareholders’ personal income tax.

    Benefits of a corporation

    – Shareholders are not personally liable for debts or obligations of the corporation

    – More government funding options to help build and grow your business

    – Can write off certain business expenses and may also benefit from additional tax advantages

    – A corporation exists in perpetuity and ownership is transferable

    Disadvantages of a corporation

    – Higher startup fees which may include legal fees for articles of incorporation, federal and provincial incorporation fees

    – Higher accounting fees for filing an annual corporate income tax return and any additional bookkeeping or tax planning consultancy

    – Additional reporting requirements include:

    – Corporate records which must be held for six years

    – An annual corporate income tax return including detailed financial statements

    – Payroll remittances and filings for any employees

    No matter which type of business structure you choose, some common rules apply. Firstly, there’s no escaping the Canada Revenue Agency. Whether you end up paying personal tax rates or corporate tax rates, tax happens! Also, if your revenue exceeds $30,000, you will need to register for GST/HST and track all sales tax paid and collected.

    Each business situation is unique and choosing between a sole proprietorship or a corporation can be a difficult decision. While tax savings, limited liability, and greater capital-raising opportunities make incorporating an appealing option, higher administrative costs, additional compliance burden, and more complex reporting requirements might lean in the favour of sole proprietorship particularly if your small business has a relatively low operating risk and a net income under $50,000.

    Consulting with an accountant and/or lawyer before launching your business is a wise choice and can save you money and frustration in the long haul. A good corporate lawyer and a professional accountant that specializes in tax planning services can be valuable members of your small business team.

    Author: ChamberPlan.ca

    Read the original article here.