Category Archives: Blog

RIM, now renamed “Blackberry” after its flagship product, launched its long-awaited Blackberry 10 phones this morning. From the sounds of things, it matches the strengths of Apple’s iPhone and android devices. But matching won’t be enough to regain the millions of lost customers. What it does offer that they don’t is the level of security…

I just came back from a fabulous few days in warm(ish) Victoria, B.C., where I had the privilege of interviewing several fascinating entrepreneurs. It is soooo much easier to get good sound on a podcast when you can be in the same room as the person you are interviewing! Today’s interview is with Stephen Harris,…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 36:36 — 33.5MB)

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Jay El-Kaake, the baby-faced CEO of Sweet Tooth Rewards, of Waterloo, Ontario, may not need to shave yet, but while still a student he managed to land $2.3 million in venture capital. His company, started three years ago, now has 3,000 clients all over the world, and is about to make a major technical leap…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 20:52 — 19.1MB)

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I attended an excellent presentation last night by Krista LaRiviere, co-founder and CEO of gShift Labs and Ontario Chair of SEMPO Canada (the professional association for search engine marketing professionals). She argues that pay-per-click (ppc) search engine marketing is a waste of money that would be better spent improving your company’s (or client’s) organic search…

Internet security alert: Sounds like you really do need to disable Java from all your Internet browsers. (There are some pretty serious security risks to your personal information, and, as of now, there is no known way to keep your data safe with Java on.) Here’s an article explaining how to do it. It is…

Yes, Virginia, you can sell through your own online store while also selling through retailers. But it’s a tightrope walk. In today’s episode, Lorex Technology’s Director eCommerce and digital services, Sufi Khan Sulaiman discusses the techniques his company has used to sell its products online and through retailers at the same time. Key Takeaways Strategies to minimize…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 25:22 — 23.2MB)

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Grant Meadows, founder of Optimum Energy Products Ltd., of Calgary, Alberta, discusses his company’s path to steady growth and profitability by creating effective e-commerce sites and automated systems that help them deliver consistent, excellent customer service. Their websites have become so successful that they no longer have any outside sales staff.   Key Takeaways Invest…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 49:32 — 45.3MB)

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One of my biggest frustrations since getting into the world of the Internet back in the mid 1990s has been trying to figure out who to hire when I need technical help. I’ve been burned because I didn’t know what questions to ask, and naively believed what I was told by programmers and other IT…

Mark Evans worked as a business journalist for years before the start-up bug bit him. After trying a couple of start-ups of his own, he now owns Mark Evans Tech and consults to other start-ups. Key Takeaways You must really, really understand what your business offers that is of value to customers. Until you get…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 27:37 — 25.3MB)

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After her wedding, Frances Ho realized her collection of unused gift cards had grown to the point where it was worth thousands of dollars. But how to get the cash out of them so she could spend it where she wanted to? It was to solve that problem that she created Cardswap.ca: a place for…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 25:20 — 11.6MB)

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