THE BUSINESS RESEARCHER
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVESJune 25, 2001 Volume 4, Number 6
CONTENTS
* Introduction - Editor's Comments
* What's New at www.gdsourcing.ca
* Statistics Canada releases
* Target your sales
* Where do we go from here
* Small Business Stats Facts
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TO ARCHIVES
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INTRODUCTION - EDITOR'S COMMENTS
Hello,
Welcome to this issue of the BR Newsletter.
Summer has finally arrived! Hurrah! We will give it a few weeks before
we start complaining about the heat and humidity! Just kidding.
The response to the latest issue of Researching a Small Business 2001
has been phenomenal especially from Business Development Centres across
the country. We would like to thank everyone who patiently waited until we
got our paper copies back from the printers. All orders will now be
shipped within two business days. Of course on-line copies can be
downloaded immediately. The cost for all 676 pages is only $35.00
electronic and $65.00 paper. For more information or to place an order
please see our web site: https://www.gdsourcing.ca/gdstart.htm
The Statistics Canada publication we are featuring over the next few
weeks is:
Annual Demographic Statistics - 2000 (including estimates &
projections)
This publication provides the most recent population estimates and
projections to 2005 by age group and sex, plus data on births, deaths,
migrations and other demographic components. The data is grouped by
province and territory, census metropolitan area and census division.
It is the authoritative source on demographic projections in Canada.
Included with the publication is a CD-ROM which contains historical
information and projections. These time series can be easily manipulated
to create customized demographic analysis in any spreadsheet program. The
population figures can be used to calculate per-capita rates for market
research, quantitative analysis and planning.
This publication was released April 2001
We are currently offering a 20% discount off the cover price.
Statistics Canada Price: $125.00
GDSourcing Price: $100.00
To place an order fax us at 905-332-3740 or order from our home page:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca
We offer a 15% discount on all other Statistics Canada publications and
a 10% on electronic products. Contact us for details on other
publications. ([email protected])
Finally, we are conducting a readership poll (see article below). After
four years we think it is time to take stock of the newsletter. Let us
know what you would like to see in the BR Newsletter. The short survey (7
questions) is available on-line at: https://www.gdsourcing.ca/survey.htm
Thank you for your subscription.
I hope you find this issue helpful.
John White
Editor, BRN
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WHAT'S NEW AT www.gdsourcing.ca - TRUCK
ACCIDENTS, HEALTH COSTS & CHARITIES
The following web sites were added to the GDSourcing index over the
last three weeks. GDSourcing is a reference point for free Canadian
statistics on-line.
CRASH - CANADIANS FOR RESPONSIBLE AND SAFE HIGHWAYS
http://www.web.net/~crash/
GDSourcing Site Summary:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca/works/CRASH.htm
- CRASH Facts on Truck Safety and Bigger Trucks
- Canadian safety blitzes find 23% of big trucks with defects
- Angus Reid Poll on Canadian attitudes towards trucking
INSTITUTE OF HEALTH ECONOMICS
http://www.ihe.ca/
GDSourcing Site Summary:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca/works/HealthEconomics.htm
- Drug Cost List (Provides a list of costs for specifics drugs by
province. EXCEL format. )
- Strategic Orientation and Benchmarking in the Canadian Pharmaceutical
and Biotechnology Industries
MUTTART FOUNDATION
http://www.muttart.org/
GDSourcing Site Summary:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca/works/Muttart.htm
- Talking About Charities Public opinion results released October 2000.
National and provincial data available.
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STATISTICS CANADA RELEASES
The following statistics were release by Statistics Canada over the
last three weeks. We have listed those releases we feel are of the most
interest to Canadian entrepreneurs.
Very few of these statistics are available on-line. The URL listed is a
direct link to the press release associated with the data. It provides
contact and ordering information.
If you want to purchase any publication or electronic products related
to these releases please contact us. We offer a 15% discount on Stats Can
publications and a 10% discount on Stats Can electronic products. You can
reach us at [email protected]. Put "StatsCan" in the subject line of
your e-mail.
AGRICULTURE
Fruit and vegetable production 2001 and 2000 (revised)
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010615/d010615e.htm
Grain trade of Canada 1999/2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010529/d010529h.htm
Net farm income and farm cash receipts 2000 and first quarter 2001
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010528/d010528a.htm
Per-capita food consumption 2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010614/d010614d.htm
ARTS, CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & RECREATION
International trade in cultural goods and services 2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010620/d010620f.htm
National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth: Participation in
activities 1998/99
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010530/d010530a.htm
CONSTRUCTION
Housing stock - 2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010601/d010601h.htm
Maintenance and repair expenditures in housing
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010619/d010619d.htm
DEMOGRAPHICS
Report on the demographic situation in Canada
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010622/b010622b.htm
ENERGY
Electric power capability and load - 1999
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010608/d010608e.htm
FINANCIAL SERVICES
Deposit-accepting intermediaries: Activities and economic performance -
1999
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010525/d010525a.htm
HEALTH SERVICES
Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey 2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010529/d010529c.htm
Impact of smoking on life expectancy and disability
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010622/d010622a.htm
JUSTICE SERVICES
Youth court statistics 1999/2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010530/d010530c.htm
Problem behaviour and delinquency in children and youth 1996/97
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010612/d010612d.htm
Statistics Profile Series
The objective of these profiles is to provide data analysis on the
experience of various groups as victims and offenders in the
criminal justice system.
http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/85F0033MIE/free.htm
MANUFACTURING
Annual Survey of Manufacturers - 1999
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010601/d010601k.htm
Manufacturing industries of Canada: National and provincial areas -
1998
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010620/d010620g.htm
TRANSPORTATION
Characteristics of international travellers 2000
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010529/d010529b.htm
Direct services for domestic air travel - 1999
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010607/d010607h.htm
Survey of the couriers and local messengers industry 1998 (revised)and
1999 (preliminary)
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010607/d010607g.htm
Trade and aviation passenger transportation 1966-1998
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/010605/d010605a.htm
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TARGET YOUR SALES
Market research is not simply a tool for assessing market size and
potential. More than any other factor, it the most effective way to
maximize a sales campaign.
The key to selling any product or service is recognizing who is going
to buy your product or service TODAY.
You may have a product that every woman in Canada needs but to have a
successful sales campaign you must identify which segment of the female
population will immediately recognize the benefits of your product/service
and have their money in hand ready to make a purchase.
Your sales and marketing materials should not try to convince your
customers they need your product/ service. Your target customers should
already know they need it. Your sales and marketing materials should
merely confirm what your target market already recognizes as the advantage
of making the purchase. They should reassure your customers that by
deciding to buy from you they are making the right decision.
Locating these "target" customers is the challenge. However it is not
enough to simply know who your target market is and where they are
located. Timing in most cases is ever more important than customer type.
You need to not only identify which particular market to target but
exactly when to target it.
For example the average Canadian moves at least three times in their
life. Within this national market there are particular age groups,
occupations and income levels that are more likely to hire moving
companies. However if a moving company is to have a successful sales
campaign they need to not only target a specific demographic niche but at
the exact moment that niche is moving.
We will be moving from our condo into a new house at the end of July.
Our condo was listed on MLS and was sold within 10 days but within 3 days
of this listing we received a telephone call from a moving company. The
timing was perfect. Moving was at the top of our minds (who am I kidding
it was the only thing on our minds). The next day we received a brochure
by mail for another moving company. It was also effective. I read it over
and considered their services.
Then about 3 days later I got 5 more brochures at the same time all of
which I threw out without even looking at them. Now we are certainly not
the optimum market for a moving company (we plan on buying a case of beer,
a pack of hot dogs and shaming friends and relatives into helping us - we
don't have that much stuff… honest!) but it is interesting how the timing
and uniqueness of a marketing campaign greatly influenced how seriously we
considered the message.
Although all the companies used the same source - the MLS listing - to
identify us as potential customers, the first two contacts carried the
power of empathy - companies who recognized our unique needs. However once
the flood of advertisements poured in their effectiveness was completely
undermined. They were suddenly just more junk mail trying to take
advantage of our situation. The line between success and failure in
marketing is a fine one.
Another great example is Buckley's Cough Medicine. They used to
advertise nation-wide during the entire cold season which was an expensive
and oftentimes ineffective strategy. Within the last few years however
they have been using medical surveillance data to target their
advertising. This database is maintained by doctors and is primarily used
by medical researchers to track and identify diseases.
From Buckley's point of view this data could tell them in which cities
colds were particular prevalent and more importantly forecast which cities
would be hit next and when. This way they could target their product to
the right market at exactly the right time and saved considerably on their
advertising costs.
To identify your own target market and the best time to approach it,
first consider the benefits of your product/service. Then decided who is
going to benefit the most from them? And more importantly when are they
most likely to recognize they need it?
Now you need to determine who else might collect information that can
confirm or refocus what you already know. Successful research is a
creative process. Your competition and industry associations are excellent
sources for business information but few of them will provide you with
niche data. You need to find "parallel sources" - organizations that
collect information relevant to your market but not with the intention of
conducting your market research! Consider the examples above: MLS is a
real estate database for agents trying to help their clients find the
perfect home to buy. It just so happens that it also provides current
Canadian movers. Similarly, the Medical Surveillance database is designed
strictly for medical research, not as a forecasting tool for cough syrup
sales.
The best ways to find these "parallel sources" is to conduct
periodical/Internet keyword searches on the benefits of your
product/service and to talk to people in your industry and market. I
realize this advice is not very specific but keep in mind that a business'
research strategy will be as unique as the business itself.
The most important thing is not to give up. Research is a blue chip
investment. The time and money spent on selling to an ill-defined market
can never be recovered but every minute you spend researching your target
market will pay off with increased sales.
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WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE
We have had a number suggestions regarding the format and content of
the BR Newsletter over the last few months so we thought perhaps it was
time to take stock of things and perhaps change the newsletter around. We
have therefore set up an on-line survey for BR newsletter readers:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca/survey.htm
In the world of e-newsletters we have noticed a number of new trends.
First and foremost is in relation to formatting. I personally still use
a very old e-mail program. It allows for HTML formatting but it takes a
while to do it and to be honest, the colour and fonts have very little
impact on whether or not I read a newsletter. If a newsletter is
informative I print it up in draft mode on a black and white printer. If
it is not informative I delete it.
Another approach to improved formatting is to have an on-line version
of a newsletter and use the e-mail component as a table of contents that
links back to the web site. The advantage here is that your e-mail server
space is not filled up with a lengthy newsletter. The disadvantage is that
an extra step is involved to actually view the content and to quickly scan
for relevant articles or information.
We have also noticed that with the proliferation of on-line newsletters
there has not been a similar proliferation of newsletter content. Most act
as a news filter and deliver links or recycled articles. We want to try to
avoid this type of newsletter and continue to provide original material.
We would appreciate any suggestions you might have for future topics.
I realize many people would like to see articles on their specific type
of business. While we love to provide specific advice, we also want to
keep the newsletter of interest to every type of entrepreneur. One option
to address specific business queries is to have a question and answer
section where we provide brief but specific advice to an individual query.
Let us know if you think such a section would be of interest.
We would really like to hear from you. So let please take a moment to
fill out our short on-line survey:
https://www.gdsourcing.ca/survey.htm
Thanks!
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SMALL BUSINESS STATS FACTS
Each Business Researcher Newsletter ends with a collection of five
statistics that every entrepreneur should be aware of.
1. What percentage of Canadians experience a "great deal of stress on
the job"?
Up an astonishing 15 percentage points since February 2000, slightly
more than six in 10 (62%) respondents in the survey, sponsored by
Aventis Pharma Inc., report that they are experiencing "a great deal of
stress" on the job.
At the same time, up nine points from last year, 34 per cent of
Canadians with health benefit plans agree with the statement: "Workplace
stress has been so overwhelming that it has made me physically ill at
times."
In fact, those who say they are experiencing a great deal of stress
at work are five times more likely to say that they have been physically
ill because of stress.
The Aventis Healthcare Survey, Ipsos-Reid (May 2001)
2. Do employers help their employees manage stress?
Forty-one per cent, equal to last year's finding, say their employer
does not do nearly enough to help them manage stress at work.
The Aventis Healthcare Survey, Ipsos-Reid (May 2001)
3. How much time do Canadian office workers spend in meetings each
week?
On average, 5.2 hours each week are spent in meetings.
Workers in larger organizations (500 employees or more) spend much
more time on average in meetings than those in smaller (less than 50
employees) or medium organizations (50-499 employees) -- 6.9 hours
versus 3.8 and 4.6 hours respectively.
Montreal workers spend less time each week in meetings (3.8 hours)
than their counterparts in other major urban centres (5.7 hours).
Ipsos-Reid (June 2001)
4. Do Canadian office workers collaborate on documents or electronic
files?
Most workers (91%) report that they collaborate with others in their
organization on the same documents or electronic files (52% frequently
and 39% sometimes).
Collaboration is even more common among workers in larger
organizations (60% frequently collaborate versus 42% in smaller
organizations and 53% in medium organizations).
Ipsos-Reid (June 2001)
5. Do small business use notebook computers?
In a study of 400 small- and medium-size businesses last year ,
Toronto-based Evans Research Corp., found that although just over 25 per
cent of the companies surveyed had notebook computers, 17 per cent will
purchase at least one 2000/2001.
Although the consumer notebook market exploded through the channel in
1999, with vendors aiming their products at households and students,
that sector has reached a plateau. Small Business is now the target
market for notebooks.
Computer Dealer News v.16(23) N 17'00 pg 29,30
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G D S O U R C I N G - R E S E A R C H & R E T R I E V A L
* www.gdsourcing.ca * [email protected] *
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Copyright 2000, 2001 GDSourcing - Research & Retrieval. All rights
reserved.
You may circulate this newsletter freely as long as GDSourcing is
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