11 marketing lessons from canadian small business experts

© Constant Contact 2015

11 Marketing Lessons

From Canadian Small Business Experts

#BeaMarketer

October is Small Business Month

in Canada

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It’s a month dedicated to honoring Canadian entrepreneurs, and celebrating small businesses

for all that you do.

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To celebrate, we wanted to share some of the great

marketing advice we’ve heard from Canadian small

business experts over the years…

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We spoke with owners of…. Marketing Agencies

Financial Offices Furniture Stores

Wine Shops Art Galleries Nonprofits And more…

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All of them have great advice to help you

Be a Marketer with email marketing.

Here’s what they had to say…

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Sue Bedell Owner, Second Bloom Design

Dorchester, Ontario Constant Contact customer since 2010

“It’s always nice to hear someone tell us how much they enjoyed reading our newsletter and thanking us for reminding them to come visit the store or give us a call. The personal touch really makes the difference.”

1. Provide a personal touch

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Rebecca Coleman www.rebeccacoleman.ca

Vancouver, British Columbia Constant Contact customer since 2015

“If you have been following e-newsletter best practices all along, you have nothing to fear from CASL! I’ve only ever added people to my list who had given me permission, so I was super happy when CASL came into effect.”

2. Ask for permission

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“People don’t have the time to read a lot of text. We make sure our emails are informative but also quick and easy to read.”

3. Be clear and concise

Julie Ananny, Owner Wine Station

Ottawa, Ontario Constant Contact customer since 2012

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“In an industry like ours, it can sometimes take a few years before you actually convert a new client. So, we really focus on being consistent and building the relationship any way we can.”

4. Stay consistent

Bahar Saadat Marketing Manager, Davidson &

Company, LLP Vancouver, British Columbia

Constant Contact customer since 2013 #BeaMarketer

“When you help your clients succeed, they’re going to come back time and time again because you’re generating that positive return on their investment.”

5. Focus on client success

Vito Marchese Founder, Whiteboard Studios

Toronto, Ontario Constant Contact Solution Provider since 2011

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“We want to make sure our families are enjoying their experience, so we send out a couple surveys each year — once a semester, one in September and one in January. We ask about their experience, what we can improve on, what they’re enjoying about their lessons. And we found that’s a really great way to get feedback.”

6. Listen to your audience

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Cynthia Lee Community Manager, Dominelli School of Music

Edmonton, Alberta Constant Contact customer since 2009

“At first we only had a sign-up form on our website, but once we realized how well it worked for us we’ve added it to our social media sites and pretty much anywhere else we can possibly add it.”

7. Make it easy to sign up

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Dan Plouffe Co-owner, MyCollingwood.ca

Collingwood, Ontario Constant Contact customer since 2006

“We work closely with every client to understand the challenges they face and the results they want to achieve. We put a plan in place to fit their needs and offer the coaching and support to help them get where they want to go.”

8. Understand your audience

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Brandon Klayman CEO, Conscious Commerce

Calgary, Alberta Constant Contact Solution Provider since 2004

“Email has definitely helped us with web traffic and attendance at our events. I like that after I send an email out, I can go back and see how many people clicked through on which links. That way I can tell people are interacting with our content and click through to our website.”

9. Track your results

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Ally Whittaker, Public Relations Manager, The Local Good

Edmonton, Alberta Constant Contact customer since 2009

“Social media and email really go hand-in-hand. The ultimate goal for all of my social media campaigns is to get people to join my email list. I would rather have one subscriber than 10 followers, because I have direct access to that one subscriber.”

10. Go beyond the inbox

Marc Gordon www.marcgordon.ca

Toronto, Ontario Constant Contact customer since 2007

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“You need to learn, but at some point, just get out and try it. You’ll never know everything about the marketing tactic you want to try, so it’s best to just try it out and see what kind of impact you can get, then adjust accordingly.”

11. Try something new

Lisa Kember Constant Contact Regional Director for Canada

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From all of us here at Constant Contact…

Happy Small Business Month Canada!

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© Constant Contact 2015 #BeaMarketer