entrepreneur Archives – Page 2 of 3

28 Jul 2017

Bicycles – How to Create Business Skills for Life

By Doug Wagner|2017-07-28T20:38:13-06:00July 28th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Non-Profits and Community|Tags: Arsheen Dhalla, Bicycle Shop, business advice, business skills, business strategy, Community, Daraja, Daraja Foundation, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, non-profit, small business, strategy, Students, success, Working on the Business|

Bicycle Shop Students - Creating Business Skills

Arsheen Dhalla has been busy doing remarkable work in Zanzibar through the Daraja Foundation. Daraja means bridge in Swahili. During one of her infrequent visits to Calgary, I had the pleasure to sit down with her and listen to her story. There are many stories to tell. For the third video in the series, we decided to focus on business skills and the bicycle empowerment center.

The first time Arsheen traveled to Zanzibar in this volunteer capacity, her work primarily focused on an orphanage and a local […]

11 Jul 2017

5 Powerful Moments on the Path to Get More Clients

By Doug Wagner|2017-07-12T16:20:31-06:00July 11th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Go-Giver Coach, HubSpot Agency Partner, Marketing, Sales|Tags: adding value, Bill Ellis, Bob Burg, business, business advice, business strategy, business success, Certified Go-Giver Coach, Chet Holmes, Clients, Dan Tyre, digital marketing, Dixie Gillaspie, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, Get More Clients, HubSpot, HubSpot Agency Partner, Ideal Client, Ideal Clients, inbound marketing, Inbound Prospecting, inbound sales, John David Mann, marketing, Marketing Strategy, Online Marketing, Perfect Client, sales, sales process, small business, small business owner, The Go-Giver, The Ultimate Sales Machine, Working on the Business|

Most small businesses start with someone who has an innovative idea, or at least the desire to build a business around what they do. In most cases, these entrepreneurs fall into sales out of necessity. You either figure out how to get more clients, or you fail.

—

Our story started this way. Early successes led us to underestimate the power of mastering marketing and sales, both the skills and the […]

15 Jun 2017

Be Interesting – How to Win Leads at Trade Shows

By Doug Wagner|2017-06-16T19:08:29-06:00June 15th, 2017|Categories: Branding, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales|Tags: AI, Brand Strategy, business, business strategy, Creative, Drones, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, geomatics, Green Technology, innovation, Interesting, Lead Generation, Logistics, marketing, Networking, O&G, Oil and Gas, Online Marketing, Robotics, sales, small business, success, Trade Show, Win Leads, Working on the Business|

Most businesses seem to hit trade shows as if they are a necessary evil for lead generation. They do what is needed, but don’t try to stand out. At a time when budgets are tight and trade show attendance is dropping, is this approach wise?

—

As I was walking through the Global Petroleum Show here in Calgary on Tuesday, I was struck by a few insights.

Fitting In – The 80/20 Rule

The […]

26 May 2017

Sharing a Cultural Experience – Amina’s Business Start-Up

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-26T18:49:46-06:00May 26th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Non-Profits and Community|Tags: Arsheen Dhalla, business, business advice, business success, Daraja, Daraja Foundation, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, leadership, small business, small business owner|

Arsheen Dhalla has been busy doing remarkable work in Zanzibar through the Daraja Foundation. Daraja means bridge in Swahili. During one of her infrequent visits to Calgary, I had the pleasure to sit down with her and listen to her story. There are many stories to tell. For the second video in the series, we decided to focus on Amina’s business story.

The first time Arsheen traveled to Zanzibar in this capacity, her […]

25 May 2017

Do You Know What Makes You Successful At Sales?

By Doug Wagner|2020-07-02T16:19:19-06:00May 25th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales, Working on the Business|Tags: adding value, business, business advice, business systems, Challenger Sales, entrepreneur, inbound marketing, marketing, Marketing Strategy, sales, sales process, small business, small business owner, Steps of the Sale, Working on the Business|

Most small and mid-sized businesses cannot clearly define the process they use for successful sales. This lack of clarity severely limits the growth potential of an SMB. Here’s why.

—

I didn’t say YOU can’t sell. If you’ve been in business or sales for a few years and are still around, you’ve probably figured something out that works for you.

In fact, I haven’t met very many business owners who don’t think they can sell or at least have someone on […]

24 May 2017

There is Only One Headline That Matters

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-26T15:31:59-06:00May 24th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing|Tags: blogging, content, entrepreneur, Getting Clicks, Headline, Headlines, Ideal Clients, inbound marketing, marketing, Marketing Results, Online Marketing, small business, social media|

When creating any online content, the first thing most people read is the headline. It either entices them to read it, or it doesn’t.

Your headline gets displayed on search results pages, social media shares, and in blog listings. In social sharing, posts with well-chosen images have several times the engagement and click through ratios if the headline is compelling.

The third factor is the text that introduces the article. This text description can originate from the meta description or the first part of the article […]

19 May 2017

3 Questions To Ask Before Cutting The Marketing Budget

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-19T12:49:17-06:00May 19th, 2017|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing|Tags: business, business advice, business growth, business strategy, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, marketing, Marketing Budget, Marketing Results, Marketing ROI, Marketing Strategy, Online Marketing, Working on the Business|

Most starting and early growth entrepreneurs are focused on costs. Shifting your mindset about marketing budget can change your results dramatically. These 3 questions help you do that.

The First Questions People Normally Ask

If you own a business and someone says you should use some powerful integrated marketing software that costs $800 per month – what is your first thought?

If an online marketing firm comes to you with a proposal to increase traffic and lead generation from your website and it will cost $4,000 a month […]

24 Apr 2017

Small Potatoes, Time, and Inbound Marketing

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-27T18:48:22-06:00April 24th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing, Working on the Business|Tags: business, business advice, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, estimating time, inbound marketing, marketing, planning, project management, time management, Work, Working on the Business|

When you make mistakes, it is best to learn the lessons they teach you. Sometimes the lessons are about something else entirely – like time management and inbound marketing.

Counting Potatoes

It all started when I was making my supper. I was a bit hungry and grabbed some baby potatoes to roast. I would usually eat one large potato or two medium ones. Baby potatoes are much smaller. Obviously, one large potato is the equivalent of about 50 baby potatoes.

Having made this mistake before, and being considerate of […]

13 Apr 2017

Daraja – Raising Chickens and Developing Business Skills

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-26T17:44:19-06:00April 13th, 2017|Categories: Current Events, Doug's Blog, Non-Profits and Community|Tags: Arsheen Dhalla, business, business skills, case study, Chicken Farm, Daraja, Daraja Foundation, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, non-profit, orphanage, school, Zanzibar|

Arsheen Dhalla is busy doing remarkable work in Zanzibar through the Daraja Foundation. Daraja means bridge in Swahili. During one of her infrequent visits to Calgary, I had the pleasure to sit down with her and listen to her story. There are many stories to tell. For this first video in the series, we decided to focus on the development of life and business skills.

The Chicken Farm Club

Initially when Arsheen traveled to Zanzibar in this capacity, her work primarily centered on an orphanage and a local […]

27 Jun 2016

Who is the Hero In Your Story?

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:09:16-06:00June 27th, 2016|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales, The Good Men Project|Tags: advice, business, business advice, business success, changing roles, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, everyday heroes, happiness, leadership, manhood, marketing, masculinity, Steve Jobs, Storytelling, success, Work|

Who Is The Hero in Your Story

Great leaders and businesses have a story to tell. The best understand who the hero should be.

—

Many men have lost their place in the bigger story. We bought into one narrative that has not worked out and are now struggling to find a new one as the world rapidly shifts underneath us. Some are looking for a hero, and some are seeking to become one again. We […]