It might seem easier to run out to the supermarket or order items online– but think about the impact before choosing national or international businesses over local retailers. Small businesses give back to the community in wages, municipal taxes and purchases from other neighborhood businesses. During an economic downturn, buying goods from neighborhood businesses supports the entire community.
When you visit your locally owned stores you’ll find them to be quirky, stylish or down-home, an irreplaceable element of the urban aesthetic – the face of your community. Local retail doesn’t just liven up neighborhoods with active storefronts; it also boosts the local economy by recirculating income by paying local employees and patronizing nearby suppliers. Independent shops keep money flowing locally.
Advocates of independent merchants also emphasize that local shopping boosts funding for infrastructure and other local services by increasing local and state tax receipts. There is evidence that supports the notion that for every $100 spent in locally owned independent stores, $68 returns to the community through taxes, payroll and other expenditures. If you spend that at national or international chain on about $40 stays in Campbell River.
Besides entertaining the vague notion that you’d like to do more to patronize local shops, what can you do? Here are five ways to help your local favorites, while getting the good value that most of us require these days.
- Visit an independent before heading for a big box
- Patronize local merchants who add value
- Hold the plastic and pay cash
- If your city has a local currency, use it
- Beware “local-washing” or questionable claims of locally produced merchandise
Shopping locally will also not only get you in to some stores with great merchandise, you’ll also get to meet the people who typically are the foundation of your local community – get to know them!
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Welcome to the biggest shift in human capability since the industrial revolution…Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It’s a new modern world…and if you are not taking advantage of the full utility and opportunities of the Web and social media techniques you are really missing out.
eZABU can help. The eZABU platform is designed to manage and care for all your online content, including creating new social media and blog opportunities, and is expert at fully integrating your business message, products and services successfully with the new communities of the World Wide Web. What’s most appealing about eZABU, unlike other marketing and advertising efforts, is the analytics behind every action of eZABU that report the reach and success in real time of how they are working for you.
If the Social Web has taught us anything, it’s that Business win when they not only have a story to tell, but one that people want to interact with and share. We help Business tell these stories. To learn more about eZABU and the social media business services and web solutions we can provide you and your business, visit our website at these locations: eZABU Home Page | eZABU Get Noticed Page | eZABU Our Clients Page.
eZABU is a powerful web-based platform that is able to connect, integrate and manage your complete on-line presence. What this means is that our business solution can develop, design, manage and integrate your online presence with a complete social media network package (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the others!) and produce new interesting dynamic content for your web-presence each and every week.
Ready to take your Business to thousands of people in Campbell River engaged in Social Media? For far less than you think…much, much less than you think!
Contact Us today via eMail or contact Lawrence Lewis directly at 250-203-3787 for all the details.
Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It has taken some time but we finally have acquired the Ripple Rock Pub in Willow Point. Some might call owning two pubs a little crazy, add in building eZABU your local online business and community magazine, and it might just be a little insane for sure. But I do love a challenge and an opportunity – the Ripple Rock Pub will be both these things.
Of course there are few things to do before we open the doors in mid-February (no exact date yet – we’ll see how the renovations are looking at the end of this week). The changes we are making will focus on creating a much more comfortable and warm atmosphere, a better use of space, and of course a new delicious menu. The creation of delicious and appealing food is the most important priority and we will take our time to develop a great, filling and good value dishes that appeal to all your senses.
If you had an experience at the Ripple Rock Pub in the past that you believe would all value and guide us in the development and success to the new Ripple Rock in the future – please pass it along to me!
Over the coming days the new website www.ripplerockpub.ca will be launched and provide you with regular updates and news as we get closer to our opening date…and of course much more beyond that!
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Welcome to the biggest shift in human capability since the industrial revolution…Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It’s a new modern world…and if you are not taking advantage of the full utility and opportunities of the Web and social media techniques you are really missing out.
eZABU can help. The eZABU platform is designed to manage and care for all your online content, including creating new social media and blog opportunities, and is expert at fully integrating your business message, products and services successfully with the new communities of the World Wide Web. What’s most appealing about eZABU, unlike other marketing and advertising efforts, is the analytics behind every action of eZABU that report the reach and success in real time of how they are working for you.
If the Social Web has taught us anything, it’s that Business win when they not only have a story to tell, but one that people want to interact with and share. We help Business tell these stories. To learn more about eZABU and the social media business services and web solutions we can provide you and your business, visit our website at these locations: eZABU Home Page | eZABU Get Noticed Page | eZABU Our Clients Page.
eZABU is a powerful web-based platform that is able to connect, integrate and manage your complete on-line presence. What this means is that our business solution can develop, design, manage and integrate your online presence with a complete social media network package (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the others!) and produce new interesting dynamic content for your web-presence each and every week.
Ready to take your Business to thousands of people in Campbell River engaged in Social Media? For far less than you think…much, much less than you think!
Contact Us today via eMail or contact Lawrence Lewis directly at 250-203-3787 for all the details.
Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
Every business regardless of its size and reach can and will benefit from a properly developed and managed online presence. I am not talking about just a website with your business message/brochure presented, and regardless of how fancy and impressively presented this message is – this is not enough. If your online presence consist of a only a website your business is pretty much wasting internet space and not impacting your business as powerfully as it could or should be.
The modern World Wide Web requires your online business presence to be far more dynamic and interesting. Your online presence should matter to you because if it does not…it won’t matter to the people using the internet either. AND just so you know, over 90% of the people in Canada are connected to the internet and use it for communications on a daily basis. AND, if your are connected to the internet you are 5 times more likely to be using modern social media like Facebook, Twitter and blogging.
The bottom line for your online business presence is that it has to be much more than only a website if you want to meet and connect with the majority of people using the internet today. At the very minimum your online presence should include the integration of these other most commonly used platforms: Facebook, Twitter and blog. Also, your online presence must include weekly (preferably more often) content updates to your web presence. This can take many forms, but should include a blog that tells the story of you, your business, and anything else that is important to you or your business.
The modern World Wide Web also lets you manage and integrate platforms and blogs easily to your present online existence and should not cost you significant amounts of money – beware of the ‘old school’ web developers and designers. The old way of building your web site no longer applies and should be much less expensive. Developing and building your complete online presence today should cost less than it would have cost to build a basic website last year!
If you are thinking about building a new business website or renovating your present website to include a complete fully integrated online presence including Facebook, Twitter and a blog consider contacting eZABU.com. eZABU is Campbell River’s online management service for your business that provides multiple points of access and feeds to your web presence, and works with you to develop weekly content updates including video, pictures, and blogs.
To learn more follow any of the links below…we’d be happy to show you we can help your business online matter.
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Welcome to the biggest shift in human capability since the industrial revolution…Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It’s a new modern world…and if you are not taking advantage of the full utility and opportunities of the Web and social media techniques you are really missing out.
eZABU can help. The eZABU platform is designed to manage and care for all your online content, including creating new social media and blog opportunities, and is expert at fully integrating your business message, products and services successfully with the new communities of the World Wide Web. What’s most appealing about eZABU, unlike other marketing and advertising efforts, is the analytics behind every action of eZABU that report the reach and success in real time of how they are working for you.
If the Social Web has taught us anything, it’s that Business win when they not only have a story to tell, but one that people want to interact with and share. We help Business tell these stories. To learn more about eZABU and the social media business services and web solutions we can provide you and your business, visit our website at these locations: eZABU Home Page | eZABU Get Noticed Page | eZABU Our Clients Page.
eZABU is a powerful web-based platform that is able to connect, integrate and manage your complete on-line presence. What this means is that our business solution can develop, design, manage and integrate your online presence with a complete social media network package (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the others!) and produce new interesting dynamic content for your web-presence each and every week.
Ready to take your Business to thousands of people in Campbell River engaged in Social Media? For far less than you think…much, much less than you think!
Contact Us today via eMail or contact Lawrence Lewis directly at 250-203-3787 for all the details.
Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
The most powerful attribute of Social Media is its ability to connect me with other people. In particular, blogging and social networking sites are wonderful tools and opportunities for me to connect with friends, fans, colleagues, clients and future clients in just a matter of seconds. Modern social media through sites like FaceBook, YouTube and eZABU are quite simply the best way for you to connect with people in Campbell River and the world.
Seth Godin, the guru of internet marketing, understands the power and influence a successful approach to using Social Media can have on your life and the success of whatever business you own or work for. He refers to the prime strategy as the First 1000…“1,000 people voting as a bloc can change local politics forever. 1,000 people willing to try a new restaurant you find for them gives you the ability to make an entrepreneur successful and change the landscape of your town.”
The purpose of the First 1000 is not to simply enroll 1000 readers, fans or emails and start blasting them your product list or your latest promotion. Try that and your foray in to Social Media marketing will be a disappointment and might even turn against you. Remember, the purpose of all Social Media marketing is to develop relationships with your readers and to provide them with solutions to their needs, wants and problems. The Holy Grail is about connecting with people…
You don’t find customers for your products. You find products for your customers.
Here are my Top 3 challenges to implementation of a successful Social Media marketing strategy:
- Skepticism and Resistance. Any radically new approach is often met with skepticism and resistance inside an organization. Social Media is the fastest growing form of communication on the planet and connects more people every second than all other forms of technology based communications combined. Quite simply, if your business is not developing and implementing a Social Media strategy as part of its business model you will be left behind…far behind.
- It Takes Time and Commitment. If you expect that opening a Facebook page and starting a blog are going to immediately generate hugely impressive results and sales…you are going to be disappointed. Social Media is about building and nurturing relationships and this takes time. You also have to stick with it, meaning, you provide regular, new and original content to your online presence. Give people the opportunity to get to know you, tell your business story, be honest, laugh at yourself, and build a client list that will change the course of your life.
- Forget the Hard Sell – It Does Not Work. You may tend to think in terms of generating leads and building databases and announcing your latest promotion rather than building a following and a community. The new way of doing business on line is relating person to person, not about relating impersonally to people as a company. Be prepared to think in new ways…Social Media is community oriented and contributing to one’s community is essential. It’s not enough to just communicate AT customers or to prospects.
The traditional approach to marketing is called “push marketing” because it pushes itself on others, often interrupting what we are doing or enjoying to convey a message, brand and sell something…you know these as commercials and advertising. You and I regard these interruptions generally as irritating and intrusive. When you embark on your Social Media marketing remember this…in the social marketing paradigm information is made available online for discovery and hopefully action, and this process isn’t something that can be forced or pushed on people.
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Welcome to the biggest shift in human capability since the industrial revolution…Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It’s a new modern world…and if you are not taking advantage of the full utility and opportunities of the Web and social media techniques you are really missing out.
eZABU can help. The eZABU platform is designed to manage and care for all your online content, including creating new social media and blog opportunities, and is expert at fully integrating your business message, products and services successfully with the new communities of the World Wide Web. What’s most appealing about eZABU, unlike other marketing and advertising efforts, is the analytics behind every action of eZABU that report the reach and success in real time of how they are working for you.
If the Social Web has taught us anything, it’s that Business win when they not only have a story to tell, but one that people want to interact with and share. We help Business tell these stories. To learn more about eZABU and the social media business services and web solutions we can provide you and your business, visit our website at these locations: eZABU Home Page | eZABU Get Noticed Page | eZABU Our Clients Page.
eZABU is a powerful web-based platform that is able to connect, integrate and manage your complete on-line presence. What this means is that our business solution can develop, design, manage and integrate your online presence with a complete social media network package (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the others!) and produce new interesting dynamic content for your web-presence each and every week.
Ready to take your Business to thousands of people in Campbell River engaged in Social Media? For far less than you think…much, much less than you think!
Contact Us today via eMail or contact Lawrence Lewis directly at 250-203-3787 for all the details.
Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
There is nothing I am about to say to you hear that you do not already know about your business and the need to have a plan for making sure your business has a great web presence. Still some items still warrant a continued discussion on the importance of using the WWW and modern Social Media to build your business – in particularly the importance of building your business locally.
Over the past few years the internet and the utility of using the internet to support, build and enhance your business has grown exponentially. Gone are the days were it costs thousands of dollars to build a basic website, and that was just a basic website with no dynamic connectivity let alone some fancy graphics and maybe some sound and flash. Today, building your web presence is cost effective no matter the size of your business not only because it costs less to do so, but more importantly because you should be getting SO MUCH MORE for every nickel you spend on developing and building your web presence.
When you plan and build your web presence in 2010 make sure that the development process includes a complete and seamless integration of modern social media, a regular content management strategy and easy management tools for you to navigate, update and use.
Let me explain a few key phrases to consider in the development of your 2010 web presence:
Seamless Integration – what this means is that when information is posted at one point in your web presence, for example on your blog site, it is automatically posted to all other points in you web presence. It is posted on our website, your Facebook Fan page and Twitter for example.
Modern Social Media – these are the web-specific communication tools used by your clientele. Do some research and determine which are being used by your clients and potential new customers…however, be sure to incorporate these three most popular social media: Facebook, Twitter and Blogging (consider eZABU.com). If you are not incorporating an integration of social media in to your web presence you are wasting time, resources and money.
Content Management Strategy – make sure that your web presence has updated weekly content to your website at the very least once per week. YES – at least once per week. This process should not be as onerous as you think, and should not require more than 60 minutes once per week – trust me, this is the best investment you will make in your business web presence. New content weekly will drive more and more traffic to your website, increase your site rankings and improve search effectiveness on search engines, and if done consistently drive people to your storefront and in to your sales processes.
Easy Management Tools – if you do not understand how to add content to your site or how your website functions, or the basic administrative details of your web presence – it is too complicated and not in the best interests of your business. Think of it this way…as a business owner you know the importance of knowing the details of all your business operations. Your web presence is no different…and besides, modern web technologies and applications are easy to use and require no special programming or knowledge. If you can type, move a mouse and read…you are good to go.
I hope this provides some insight and guidance in developing your web presence for 2010. Here at eZABU.com we provide a complete web presence management solution including weekly content generation and regular site maintenance for your business. For more information on our services please follow any of the links below.
All the best in 2010!
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Welcome to the biggest shift in human capability since the industrial revolution…Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
It’s a new modern world…and if you are not taking advantage of the full utility and opportunities of the Web and social media techniques you are really missing out.
eZABU can help. The eZABU platform is designed to manage and care for all your online content, including creating new social media and blog opportunities, and is expert at fully integrating your business message, products and services successfully with the new communities of the World Wide Web. What’s most appealing about eZABU, unlike other marketing and advertising efforts, is the analytics behind every action of eZABU that report the reach and success in real time of how they are working for you.
If the Social Web has taught us anything, it’s that Business win when they not only have a story to tell, but one that people want to interact with and share. We help Business tell these stories. To learn more about eZABU and the social media business services and web solutions we can provide you and your business, visit our website at these locations: eZABU Home Page | eZABU Get Noticed Page | eZABU Our Clients Page.
eZABU is a powerful web-based platform that is able to connect, integrate and manage your complete on-line presence. What this means is that our business solution can develop, design, manage and integrate your online presence with a complete social media network package (including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and all the others!) and produce new interesting dynamic content for your web-presence each and every week.
Ready to take your Business to thousands of people in Campbell River engaged in Social Media? For far less than you think…much, much less than you think!
Contact Us today via eMail or contact Lawrence Lewis directly at 250-203-3787 for all the details.
Download Our “Get Found Online” Guide
