LIFT Startups

A new way to market and network your local Vancouver Island business!

#WeAreYQQ

LIFT Podcast with Wendy Johnstone and Keystone Eldercare Solutions

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Wendy Johnstone is an entrepreneur in the growing “seniors’ services” sector. She is the owner of Keystone Eldercare Solutions and has a passion for providing quality support for families with ageing parents and grandparents. In this episode of LIFT Podcasts, I ask Wendy about her business, how she got started, her favourite reading as a child, and her favourite places to eat in the world.

You can find out more about Keystone Eldercare Solutions at. keystoneeldercare.com and on Facebook @keystoneeldercare.

Ready to be featured in a LIFT Podcast?

If you’re a LIFT VIP (a LIFT member at the Champ/ Regular, Community Partner, or Solution Sponsor level) and you’re ready to have a podcast interview of your own, please sign up via this link. We’re all about promoting our members!

If you’re a Vancouver Island business ready for LIFT benefits please apply here.

Want to hear more from LIFT Podcasts?

To listen to more LIFT Podcasts please visit liftpodcast.ca or subscribe via iTunes.

 

Talking with Amie Webster about Motif Music Studios – and winning the 2018 #HustleTheHelp Award!

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Amie Webster is a music educator, an entrepreneur, a mother of three young sons, and a social media rockstar. Amie is, in fact, the winner of the #HustleTheHelp Award in 2018, an award that acknowledges the outstanding work she’s done to support other entrepreneurs in LIFT’s Vancouver Island community.

In this podcast we ask Amie about why she is so passionate about supporting other local businesses, and for some tips that others might use to win the award in the coming year.

We also talk to Amie about Motif Music Studios, the business she shares with her husband, Jeff Webster. In the final section we talk about her current reading, favourite places to visit on the Island, and where she likes to eat.

FMI about Amie and Motif Music Studios see:

~ hpm, Founder, LIFT & The Vancouver Island Talent Economy Network

Ps. Ready to get your business LIFTed? Apply now for up to 60 days of free award-winning promotion on the LIFT & The Vancouver Island Talent Economy Network

Keith Ippel’s top 5 tips for your Island business success

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On September 27, 2018 LIFT is hosting its third PitchFest event. This event features six Vancouver Island entrepreneurs pitching for prizes to a panel of four judges, and kicking off with a keynote by Keith Ippel, founder and CEO of global startup school Spring Activator. Afterwards, our #WeAreYQQPartyCrew will be hosting another signature “definitely NOT your Dad’s networking event” party.

I interviewed our keynote, Keith Ippel in 2017. This is a re-post of that interview with some additional notes at the bottom. FMI about PitchFest3 and to get your early bird tickets click this button…

Buy Tickets For This LIFT Event

I’ve asked Keith to keynote because I think his value-focused approach to business will resonate with business owners in our region. He’s a four-time serial entrepreneur, and currently the CEO of Spring Activator, a global startup school based in Vancouver. Over the past 10+ years, he’s been an advisor and a mentor to many startups in tech, non-tech, and non-profit sectors. In three years with Spring Activator he’s helped over 300 aspiring entrepreneurs launch over 150 “impact” (social, environmental) businesses, some of whom have reached $1M in sales in that time.

Top 5 tips for startups success

Keith’s fun to be around. I’ve interviewed him several times over the past few years, and I’m looking forward to working more with him and with Spring in the coming months. LIFT and Spring have put together an agreement where LIFT members (aka LIFT VIPs) get a 30% discount on Spring courses. More on that later. For this interview, I asked Keith about his top five things every entrepreneur needs to do to ensure business success.

1. Speed

That doesn’t mean running around like a chicken with your head cut off. It means having a plan A, plan B, and a plan C – and then moving as fast as possible within the bounds of plan and structure to make sure that you’re ahead of the competition. Every business idea has 16 competitors. Those who execute well will win.

2. Know your strengths, know your weaknesses

As leaders, we need to know where we are strong and passionate. But it’s just as important to know the things that we’re not good at. This enables us to build a team of people who have complementary skills and frees us to focus on the most important things. Sometimes the team is in-house. Sometimes they’re consultants. Sometimes they’re advisors and mentors.

3. Spend as little as possible

Time is money. In our early days, we need to be really tight with our budgets, because we want to maximise the amount of time we have to prove that there’s a market for our product or service. We maximise that time by making our money go further.

4. The five Ms: market, management, money, momentum, magic

We need to know explicitly who our target market is. We need to know how to invest in the team that will grow our business. We need to know how to make and raise money. We need to show traction, both to our customers and to the people we’re working with. And the magic? It’s how we’re unique to customers, how we’re different from everybody around us.

5. Learn about “no”

It’s important to know that “no’s” have different meanings. With customers and partners, we can’t take no for an answer. We’ve got to dig deep, understand why people are saying “no,” so that we can get to a “yes.” On the flip side, we need to learn to say “no” to ourselves. We need to use “no” to protect our time so that we avoid distractions and stay focused.

LIFT Special Events: Free tickets when you’re listed on the Vancouver Island business directory!

If you’re a LIFT member, you get free tickets to most of our Special Events (the exception is our Festive Cheer community fundraiser). To sign up for LIFT membership, list your Vancouver Island business on the Island’s only social media-powered directory at wearevanisl.ca

What are #WeAreYQQ parties all about? Here’s a video sampler from our September 2016 #WeAreYQQ PitchFest & Party by LIFT Community Partner Island Soul Films…

Want more information, ideas, and stories about startup success?

Check out 11 Entrepreneurs Stories – Inspiring People That Found Startup Success.

hpm
@hanspetermeyer on Twitter and Instagram

Old House Law & Notary: A LIFT BizOnDeck Case Study

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Old House Law & Notary is a partnership between Lyle Carlstrom Professional Law Corporation and T. Dale Roberts Notary Corporation. Lawyers and Notaries both practice law (with Notaries restricted to real estate, wills, contracts etc.). Having them work together in the same office creates new efficiencies and legal solutions for clients. Old House Law & Notary one of the first practices in BC providing lawyer and a notary public services.
You can find out more at ohlp.ca

LIFT: What inspired you to start Old House Law & Notary?
Lyle: I wanted to live in the Comox Valley, and from a professional level I wanted to be in business with like-minded individuals and create something new and dynamic. Working with Dale Roberts has led to a multidisciplinary practice that has a lawyer working with – instead of competing with – a notary. Our type of law is non-contentious. We focus on helping people – buying and selling real estate, estate planning. These services are in high demand in the region, and an office that includes both law and notary services, it makes us very competitive.

LIFT: What was your “ask” at your BizOnDeck workshop?
Lyle: We had several asks. We wanted: feedback on what would make us more relevant to the general public, help in branding our business, advice on keeping existing clients loyal to our new brand, suggestions on acquiring new customers who will appreciate the new brand, help on determining the best ways to give back to our clients and community, and direction on spreading the word about the results of the above.

LIFT: What were the three biggest takeaways (and subsequent actions) from your BizOnDeck?
Lyle: We heard that we are generally on the right track with our marketing efforts, but that we need to spend additional time on social media marketing. We also heard that we need to clarify our company vision and mission. As follow up activities we’ve re-engaged our webmaster digital marketer, and we’re planning a management retreat in mid-June

LIFT: Has putting your business “on deck” helped grow your business?
Lyle: The short answer is yes. We found the BizOnDeck process to be very helpful, and vibrant. We got lots of great feedback. We experienced lots of synergies. Since the workshop, we’ve made positive changes to some of what we do, especially with regard to marketing.

 

Last word

Lyle: For a company like ours, the BizOnDeck was a very unique and valuable exercise. Where else would we get this kind of feedback from a room full of entrepreneurs?

 

Contact information

Telephone: 250-871-7737
Website: ohlp.ca
Vancouver Island business directory: old-house-law-and-notary
Alignable: old-house-law-notary-public-t-dale-roberts-notary-public

 

FMI about LIFT & BizOnDeck

LIFT is an award-winning organization* that helps entrepreneurs, small business owners, and non-profits grow on Vancouver Island. We’ve just launched the Vancouver Island business directory to connect and promote entrepreneurs across the Island. To put your business or project “on deck” please fill in the blanks on this form and we’ll start “hustling the help” to grow your business! Or call HPM at 250-792-1408 to get started.

*Awards include:
• Best in BC, Entrepreneur Promotion, Startup Canada Awards, Vancouver May 2018
• Best Social Media Organization, Comox Valley Record Readers’ Choice Awards, 2015 and 2016.

BizOnDeck Case Study: Marshall Property Services

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Marshall Property Services offers property maintenance and moving services, including junk removal and deliveries – and more. Owner Spencer Marshall describes his market as people “looking for someone to give [their] property the care it deserves… We enjoy serving our community with a happiness guarantee because that’s what it’s all about. Coming home to a tended home feels amazing!” Spencer put his business “on deck” in Winter of 2018. Find out more about these services at marshallpropertyservices.ca (for reviews, see the Facebook page).

LIFT: What inspired you to start Marshall Property Services?
Spencer: [There’s a need for quality home and property services in the community. I have the skills and the tools to provide the service. I also believe that running my own business is also a way to get the freedom and flexibility I need to be with my family when it counts, while my kids are young.

LIFT: What was your “ask” at your BizOnDeck workshop?
Spencer: How to make odd jobs a full-time business.

LIFT: What were the three biggest takeaways (and subsequent actions) from your BizOnDeck?
Spencer: Get a content-filled website going, offer special packages and discounts, and know my value!

LIFT: What actions have you taken to follow up on these takeaways?
Spencer: The website is up and under construction (see marshallpropertyservices.ca). We’ve been making and sharing more videos and content. And, in a big step towards business sustainability, the feedback we got on what we’re offering gave us the confidence to raise rates for the spring and summer seasons.

LIFT: Has putting your business “on deck” helped grow your business?
Spencer: Yes. It helped me pop a major comfort bubble that was holding me back. With the encouragement of the participants, I now feel a lot less stress, have better time management, and I am finally out of survival mode!

 

Last word

Spencer: Right now we are deep into spring cleaning. That means getting moss of the roofs, skylights clean, roofs blown off, gutters cleared, soffit/siding hand washed, and the sidewalks and driveways pressure washed. We are also offering exterior/interior painting. Marshall Property Services is a one-stop shop to get your property looking cared for!

FMI about LIFT & BizOnDeck

LIFT helps entrepreneurs, small business owners, and non-profits grow. To put your business or project “on deck” please fill the blanks in this form. Or call HPM at 250-792-1408.

Ready to join a dynamic community of entrepreneurs who are hustling the help to grow businesses on Vancouver Island? Be in touch!

LIFT Podcast: James Flawith talks about Lil Worker Safety Gear – and James Flawith

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In this podcast James Flawith.tells us about Lil Worker Safety Gear. In second part, James answers questions about himself: being an entrepreneur, what he considers to be his smartest choice in life, his favourite books as a kid, what he’d do with $1M to support entrepreneurs, and his favourite place to eat in the whole world.

James has been nominated and selected for several business-related awards in recent years (Comox Valley Chamber of Commerce, Vancouver Island Top 20 Under 40, Startup Canada Awards), for good reason: he’s an inspiration for many of us who are trying to make a difference in our communities. Thanks, James!

FMI about Lil Worker Safety Gear see lilworkersafety.ca. You can also find them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Lil Worker Safety Gear is a LIFT member.

 

More LIFT Podcast about growing your business

You can find more podcasts with Vancouver Island entrepreneurs, and resources to grow your business on the Island on our blog here. You can also subscribe via iTunes.

Ready to grow your business? Join us!