Archive for March, 2009

Media has been all abuzz about online social networking in the past couple of years. While it has been around in some form or another since the early 90s, it wasn’t until sites like MySpace hit that people really started to take notice. Now you can find social networking sites everywhere – and most people you meet will belong to at least one social networking site, if not more.

But how can social networking help your business?

Social networking is just that – networking. It allows you the opportunity to connect with people. People who may be in need of your products or services. People who may have something that you need. People who may be able to work with you for the benefit of you both. People who can introduce you to other people who need your products/services, have products/services you need, or can work with you. Maybe not right at this point; maybe you will have to wait a few years. But at some point, each of these people could offer something that you could benefit from in some way.

Keep in mind that social networking sites only work if you actually USE them. Sure, signing up and creating a profile is great, but unless you actually use it to connect to other people who may become potential customers, partners or suppliers, then you’ll find that you aren’t getting any results from it.

What social networking sites should you use?

Facebook allows you to create “Pages” (profiles for your company) – usually this allows people to sign up as “a fan” of your business. While this works for some companies in certain industries, it may not work for everyone. Pages can contain discussion boards, photo albums, videos, and any other number of applications. This could definitely be beneficial to you if you have a unique product, or a very dedicated customer base. I’ve seen it work very well for fabric designers, publishing companies and home accessories, and others.

LinkedIn is a social networking site for business professionals. You can create a network of people you know, which allows you to connect to the contacts of people in your network. There are also groups relating to specific regions, industries, or types of businesses that you can join.

Twitter seems to be one of the most popular social networking sites at the moment. It’s a microblogging site, that allows you to post updates that are up to 140 characters, and keep updated on what the people in your network on Twitter are posting about. This is useful if you are looking for continuous communication at all times with people in your industry, or with current or potential customers.

Then there are always the social networking sites that are dedicated to specific industries in certain regions (such as the Waterloo Manufacturing Innovation Network). These sites are definitely some of the most useful – you get connected to businesses that are closest to you in proximity, or that are most likely to relate to you.

What social networking tools do you use to promote your business?

The Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters association has just released their March survey. Each month they survey over 700 companies on business conditions. The results for the month of March? Canadian manufacturers are more optimistic about the coming quarter than they had been about the previous portion of this year.

According to the CME group,

exactly 49 per cent of firms expect orders to decrease between March and June, down seven percentage points from February’s figure of 56 per cent. And there’s some good news for job seekers – 13 per cent of companies expect to increase employment over the next three months, up from 11 per cent in February. The number of firms who are planning lay-offs also shrunk over the past month, decreasing from 45 to 42 per cent.
Source

Read the full survey here.

The proposed 2009 Ontario provincial budget, released March 26th, 2009, puts forward new tax measures intended to build on the government’s “5 point” economic plan. Understandably there is much controversy about the spending plans, and many Ontarians are expressing concern over the Sales Tax Harmonization, and how it will affect the individual.

On a positive note, there are a few bright spots for Ontario’s diverse technology sector. Most importantly, to our readers, are the changes to the Ontario Innovation Tax Credit (OITC), a tax relief measure for businesses to encourage technological development and new innovations.

Dalton McGuinty and Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan (right), in Toronto on Thursday.

Ontario Innovation Tax Credit

The OITC is a 10% return for small to medium sized enterprises who perform qualifying SR&ED activities (Scientific Research & Experimental Development) in Ontario. The new budget proposes to extend the taxable income phase-out range from the current $400,000 – $700,000 to $500,000 – $800,000.  This measure will parallel the changes and enhancements to the Federal Investment Tax Credit for SR&ED claims, proposed in the 2009 Federal budget.

Sustaining and Promoting Research and New Technology

Ontario’s technological advancements require continuous support.  The new provincial budget is proposing more than $110 million in additional tax relief for 2009 and 2010, and $715 million in investments supporting partnerships in innovation, encouraging businesses to develop their new products, services, and processes.

These new investments are in addition to the $3 billion already to be provided by the Ministry of Research and Innovation.  They will include:

• $300 million in capital funds over six years for research infrastructure, to leverage funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation

• $100 million in extra operating funds over four years for research in the biomedical field. This funding, as well as aforementioned funds for the research infrastructure, will be delivered via the Ontario Research Fund.

• $250 million over five years for a new Emerging Technologies Fund that will put focus on clean technologies and clean energy, health and life sciences, and information and communication technologies (including digital media).

• $10 million over three years to the Colleges Ontario Network for Industry Innovation, to assist small to medium sized enterprises with applied research, technology and commercialization.

Quote for March 27th, 2009:

“The most terrifying words in the English langauge are: I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”
- Ronald Reagan