| Competing
with ‘big box’ possible: strategist
Sabeen Ahmad, Didsbury Review
September 30, 2008
Local business owners got some tips last
week on thriving in a Big Box retail world from a well-known
Canadian marketing strategist, Roy Prevost.
For a rainy Monday night, it was filled with laughter, lessons
and networking as local business owners gathered at the 5-O
Club to listen to Roy Prevost discuss "How to thrive
in the Big Box Retail World" - a presentation hosted
by the Didsbury Chamber of Commerce.
Based in Burnaby, B.C., Prevost was in Didsbury to go over
several methods for small business owners to maintain or boost
their business through customer service skills, networking
and supporting other local businesses.
In an almost three-hour interactive session, Prevost shared
many personal experiences with businesses that illustrated
the good and bad of customer service and where businesses
can go wrong and lose their business.
Prevost referred to small businesses in small communities
as "The blessing and the curse. The blessing is that
you know everybody. The curse is that you know everybody."
Encouraging confidence in the crowd, he said "if your
vision isn’t being the best business you can be in business,
then you probably shouldn’t be in business."
Prevost motivated business owners to support each other in
the community and to consider them as colleagues.
He emphasized to not have a ‘lone-ranger mentality’
meaning to only focus on their business and not care about
the others in the community. He mentioned that referring customers
to local businesses would help sustain businesses in small
communities.
Prevost stated that there were only two things a small business
owner had to think about "Thank you for doing business
with me. I would love to do business with you."
According to Prevost, "20 per cent of people will support
local businesses. They will support local businesses because
they either have a connection to that person or that person
is connected to the community or because you are part of the
community."
"The connection you have with your
customers is gold."
Prevost also stressed the use of businesses cards as being
the best advertisement for self and business.
Margo Ward, president of the Didsbury Chamber of Commerce,
admitted that even though she was not a business owner she
took away many things from the talk and it had enabled her
to "now think outside the box".
She was pleased with how Prevost’s
discussion was around "teaching you good business ethics
... with the stressing on service of course ... that’s
important in any business."
Ward was quick to mention that Prevost was not brought into
Didsbury in fear that businesses were not doing well.
"Our businesses, I think, are doing
very well competing with the big box store because most of
our businesses in town have the service."
Ward said that after hearing Prevost’s talks on a number
of occasions she felt it would be great to bring him to give
the town a little boost.
"The chamber is here to promote business…and
that’s really why we brought him in."
Though there was not as big a mix of a crowd as at previous
lectures he has given, Ward was still pleased with the variety
in the crowd pointing out that everyone was invited including
those in surrounding areas such as Sundre, Carstairs, and
Red Deer.
"The more small business that we can
help, the better."
Ward stressed that more members were needed in the chamber
to help provide support to the chamber and town events they
take on. She also had hope to get as many retailers as members
of the chamber and have a ‘retail committee’ for
them to still be able to be free to do whatever they want.
The chamber provides members with event insurance, any advantage
that is provided through the Alberta Chamber, programs on
Visa, MasterCard and debit cards as well as the advantage
of special events including Small Business Gala and Country
Christmas.
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