Starting Small 2021: Event sessions now on demand

It’s no secret that the retail landscape and e-commerce market has dramatically changed in the past year. Whether you quickly transitioned online, modified your marketing strategy or shifted your delivery model, you had to adapt. Now what?

Watch the sessions from our recent event, Starting Small, now as on-demand videos. You’ll discover how to survive and thrive in the evolving market as a brick-and-mortar, e-commerce or multi-channel business. We hope you will put these small business growth best practices to work for you.

Mix up your marketing

Crafting a strong marketing message is essential to your success – but it’s only half the battle. How you share your story and connect with your customers, or potential customers, will impact their response.

This session is your guide to starting to build or improving your marketing strategy. Tristan Lee of Google Canada dives into the importance of sharing your story to define your brand, how to find and target your ideal customers and optimizing your social and digital marketing presence.

Turn e-commerce into commerce

Adopting and embracing e-commerce may have always been on your to-do list, but over the past year it was likely prioritized quickly. You may have recently started selling online, are in the process of setting up your e-commerce store or were already selling online. Regardless of the scenario, e-commerce will likely continue to be a key selling channel for your business moving forward.

With a focus on Canadian e-commerce, this session explores how e-commerce can be a successful revenue stream for your small business. David Nagy, Founder of eCommerce Canada, will teach you how to maximize profit, overcome common challenges and how your online store can complement your physical location.

Optimize your shipping process

Meeting the expectations of your customers could mean the difference between keeping and losing them. Shipping and delivery are an extension of your customer experience. Once a customer clicks ‘buy’, you must fulfill, ship and deliver their purchase through a seamless end- to- end experience.

This session is your crash course in shipping optimization. Jeff Gopaul, from the E-commerce Solutions Integration team at Canada Post, explores how to manage orders as your business starts out and grows in volume. You’ll also learn about how to choose packaging with sustainability in mind, the value of providing your customers with options and the importance of a clear returns strategy.

Transform your business for success (panel discussion)

Hear from industry experts as they share insights, strategic considerations and tips to help you transform your plan into a sustainable business model. Learn how to benefit from change, overcome growing pains, build on what you have and prepare your business for the road ahead.