Jingle Bells

I wish I had brought a video camera this morning! Some things will stay in your mind for a long time. The sight of 18 adults - never mind Business Owners/Execs!! - shaking Jingle Bells & singing is one of those.

What a laugh we had - well it is Christmas week.

Here is a sample of what went on.

This photo reminds me of a character from Dr Suess book :)

Twas the week before Christmas

- my version of a very famous story we all know!

Thanks to Everyone for getting in the Spirit

& a great big TY to Maestro Louise for supplying the Jingle Bells
and leading the singing

(see the previous post for the 12 Days of Christmas)

& TY to Joan too for bringing the camera!

MERRY CHRISTMAS Everyone

See you on Jan 2nd

12 Days of Christmas

On the 12th day of Christmas, I got from BBC:

12 Children Dancing;
11 Coaching Sessions;
10 Mutual Funds;
9 Hands-on Healers;
8 Cakes & Cosmetics;
7 Day Cruises;
6 Framed Photos;
5 Handymen;
4 Smiling Dogs;
3 Fridge Friends;
2 Laker Ads;

and a Lawyer for my Morgaged New Home!!!!!!

Many Thanks to Louise for coming up with this little Gem!

Ever wanted to be some else?

Some weeks we pull a card and give someone else's Elevator Speech . . . . sort of like pretending to be someone else, but for good reason. Recently someone asked if anyone could present on Identity Theft (pretending to be someone else for all the wrong reasons!!) . . . . which gave way to an interesting comment from Dee - if you have a Facebook account take your birth date off!

So, this week Steve Boyce gave an interesting overview of that topic. Unfortunately I had to leave early so I missed it, but I have heard it generated quite a discussion.

So, if anyone would like to fill in a little more info for those of us who missed it, please email me and I will update this week's piece.

BBC Fall River Christmas Party

The Hostess with the Most-esst!! Thanks Catherine for hosting a great Party!

Music MAESTRO! Louise kept the party going for a while with many Christmas tunes - including a very different version of the 12 Days of Christmas - yes, Louise is quite the Entertainer.

What a handsome bunch - Blar (Lori's hubby); VJ (Louise's hubby); Jeff (Smiledog) and Bill (Advantage Frame)

For some reason the fourth seat seemed to be The Hot Seat -

Jonathan (Elle's hubby)'s turn . . .

Paul Butler was there too - I missed that shot.

And even the dogs got in on the act :)

Anybody else get any photos they want to share - send them to me and I will upload them.

Comments, anyone?

Network Meeting

This week's regular meeting was cancelled due to the Network Meeting @ Holiday Inn, hosted by the Halifax Club. Thnaks to Cory & co for putting on a Christmas themed event and getting us thinking about the "Worst Christmas Gift we ever got" - an interesting way to remember people!

Certificate in Small Business Creation

Louise asked for this information to be forwarded - Louise attended this program before starting up Kindermusik and is a wonderful testament to the course.


Dalhousie University College of Continuing Education is pleased to announce its new small business program – “The Certificate in Small Business Creation.” This innovative program is a comprehensive introduction to the field for those who wish to gain expertise in operating a small business.

Since 1993, through the Self Employment Program, the College has helped over 1,600 Service Canada clients successfully fulfill the dream of owning their own business.

Contact:

Dawne Walker, Program Manager @ College of Continuing Education, Dalhousie University Small Business Programs - (902) 494-8837 - www.dal.ca/cce

Ideal Customer

It was a quiet meeting this morning, partly due to the fact that some of the group were Net-ing (networking without the work!) at the Please Take My Card Event last night which Lori & the team at AMI hosted. An excellent concept and a great turn-out for their first event in Halifax. Great job, Lori!

This morning, as part of our Elevator Speeches, people were asked to tell us about their Ideal Customer.

The responses were as follows:

• Stephanie's ideal customer is someone who wants to be helped ie is willing to be actively involved in their rehabilitation, not expecting someone else to do all the work for them!

• Jeff told us about a new customer - a Government department, to his surprise! Jeff's ideal is a company that already has a receptionist but who is dealing with other tasks also. Smiledog can deal with the overflow, cover lunch or simply free up a bit of time for the receptionist to get other work done also.

• Jerry's ideal is someone with a wheelbarrow full of money that wants to buy tomorrow! He likes customers who are proactive and want to get things done.

• Steve likes customers who are unsure of what they are doing . . . . as he likes the hands-on approach and enjoys helping people, for example first-time buyers; those who do not know about Wills; have no Estate Planning etc.

• Marybeth's ideal customer is one with a disability/injury, indicating more than a one-off approach. MB would like to be able to develop a relationship over time to be more effective.

• Deborah is looking for people with an upcoming event who want something different and no fixed idea as she enjoys the creative aspect of her job and putting ideas across.

• Paul was very specific about his ideal - 6 feet tall, good-looking lady with lots of money. Now there's a man who knows what he is looking for :)

• Liz wants customers with a need for photography on an on-going basis. She also showed us a picture she recently created - a very subtle photographic collage -a beautiful piece of art. More creativity being shown there.

• Bill is looking for customers who are interested in the final product more so than the cost of it - the treasures of yesterday that can be preserved for tomorrow. Remember the christening robe shadow-box Bill showed us recently?

• Angela's ideal is someone who is open to new ideas, who allows her the flexibility to be creative in getting their message out to the public.

• Dolores is looking for people who want to look and feel good - men & women - as Dolores was this week's Speaker, she showed us some of the MK range including the new men's range. . . . something for everyone there - Ladies, Men & Teens.

• Eleanor's ideal customer is Business Owners/Managers who are interested in learning new skills or improving existing ones to help develop their business as she will be running a series of workshops starting on November 30th.
  

Hopefully that gives us all a little more information about each other's customers & prospects. If we recognise them when we are out & about, we can bring in some quality referrals for each other. It may also get you thinking . . . . do you know who your Ideal Customer is?

That's about it for this week - don't forget there is no meeting next week (the 22nd) because of the Network event at Holiday Inn, Kearney Lake. See you there.

Lessons Learned

Some Words of Wisdom this week came from . . .

Steve who advised us to Always read the Contract . . . . Steve told a story about a client who didn't read the contract and paid the price!

Bill's Lesson was Patience Pays - especially where customers are concerned. . . . . A recent visitor to Advantage seemed unimpressed at the time yet returned with a number of items for framing, based on the patience & kindness of the staff (Joyce!).

Jeff's lesson was Persistence Pays . . . . . After smiling and shaking hands with many people at a recent event, Jeff was ready yo give up but decided to keep on going . . . the last person he smiled at and shook hands with was the one that paid off. He got a lead.

Other news this week
Joan is very excited to be an Official Travel Idol Partner! Joan did sent out an invite to all to so click here for a chance to win an All Inclusive Trip for two to Mexico or tickets to a Canadian Idol Concert - there is one here in Halifax this month on Nov. 20th.!

Happy Birthday Louise. Louise is turning 30 and doesn't look a day over 21 - must be the kids she hangs outwith that keep her looking & feeling young:)


We did not have a Speaker this week as Lynn was lined up for it but she has defected to the Halifax group! We miss you, Lynn!


Book of the Week ~ The E-Myth by Michael Gerber, dispels the myths surrounding starting your own business and shows how commonplace assumptions can get in the way of running a business. He walks you through the steps in the life of a business from entrepreneurial infancy, through adolescent growing pains, to the mature entrepreneurial perspective, the guiding light of all businesses that succeed. Available at Chapters and Amazon.com

Christmas Party

BBC Fall River Christmas Pot Luck Supper

@ Catherine Fitzsimmon's Place!

Saturday December 1st

More details to follow via email.

RSVPs would be appreciated

Celtic New Year

Announcements/News This Week
Yes, some of you were warm when I posed the question, "Did anyone know what was special about November 1st?" It was in fact Celtic New Year, so HNY to you all!

Jeff was on form this morning as he showed off his Selling skills and his cool new Funky Wrap - if you weren't there, you missed a good show!

Angela and her team at The Laker are very proud of the fact that the ratings are in and their circulation figures are up - I didn't catch the actual figure, Angela, so let me know if you want it published.

Louise was in Halloween form but didn't sing her Bat song this week - saving it for the kids.

Janet picked up the All Saints/Souls theme and told us that Adelaide is the Patron Saint of Parents - a very fitting name for her establishment.

Marybeth explained to us how she has been helping kids in schools - just one more aspect of her target market.

Lori reminded us all to register for the Please Take My Card Event - remember you can't just turn up, you need to pre-register. All you have to do is ask a question.

Eleanor will be promoting her workshops very soon - thanks to all of you who returned the questionnaire.

Catherine wants us all to know she can pre-approve people for mortgages, so if you know anyone thinking of buying, they can lock in for 90 days with Catherine.

Stephanie brought copies of the latest Fall River Chiropractic newsletter - hot off the press with news about the clinic, sports tips and exercises.

Lynn will be 'visiting' the Halifax (BBC) Club for a few weeks and may be defecting - I mean moving - there. Lynn, we will miss you but we won't forget you - and we will save you a seat at the Christmas Party table.

Speaking of Christmas Party - Catherine Fitzsimmons has offered to host it. Thank You Catherine. We do have to pick a date though. Very hard to find one that suits everyone, so Friday November 30th is planned, but not confirmed. Please let me know if you can make it on the 30th, if not we are considering Dec 1st, 7th or 8th. If you have a preference, let me know asap.


This week's Speaker was Bill Munden (I got it right this week :)).
In addition to learning a little more about Bill himself and how he ended up here in Fall River; we learned about the services Bill & Joyce offer at Advantage Frame & Mirror. In addition to Custom Framing and Shadow Boxing (Bill brought along a few examples of both), Advantage F&M will be showcasing local artists starting in January. An excellent example of Joint Venturing. If you haven't already done so, drop in and Say Hi.

As usual, the benefit of learning about someone's business is so that we can bring in leads for people around the table, so make an effort to tell someone you know about Bill's business and bring in a referral next week.


Book(s) Of the Week
Check out Money, Meaning & Beyond - a great book just in print - excellent ideas for marketing your biz!

The 100 Year Lifestyle Bill mentioned that he wants to live to be 100. I believe this book is an excellent read if you are planning on doing the same - or anywhere near it!

Network Event
Anyone who has not let me know about their plans to attend (or not) the Network Event on November 21st, please do so asap. A simple 'Yay or Nay' is all that's requested!