CORNER BROOK — An information session held Monday for business owners at the Pepsi Centre combined a unique blend of social media with business exporting.
For Chloe Hulan, the session offered just what she needed to further her business.
Hulan operates Clear Angle Communications, a telecommunications company that preforms maintenance and other duties on electrical towers.
With clients such as Bell Aliant, CBC and the RCMP, Hulan has been thinking about expanding to national and international markets.
“When you think about exporting, you think about products,” Hulan said.
That is not necessarily true, said Hulan, who’s business is service-based. Her business has been operating for two years now, and she foresees exporting her services in the next year.
Hulan said, from her research thus far, her product can compare anywhere, especially as the telecommunications industry grows.
She has already used competitors’ websites to evaluate their offerings, and plans to extend her research based on what she learned at the session.
With the social media aspect of the day’s agenda, she learned how to utilize social media platforms to take her research a step further.
Shawn Sieiro of Canadian Manufactures and Exporters, offered the social media presentation, which mostly touched on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
“A lot of businesses want to jump in the social media hype, but they’re not sure how,” Sieiro said.
He suggested businesses take their time, and compared the use of social media to that of a motorcycle.
The company’s marketing plan is a motorcycle moving forward, he said, with the social media aspect as a side car to accompany the plan.
Before engaging in social media, Sieiro suggested using the platforms to first gauge the potential market in other provinces or countries. Such as with Hulan’s business, online media can tell you a lot about the climate of potential markets, he said.
Once a business is committed to participating in online platforms, he suggests following a three-step approach: launch, manage, and evaluate/optimize.
“In business, and what you learn about business,” Hulan said. “(Social media) is the only way to do it.”
As a service-based company, Hulan said transportation will be an obstacle for targeting new markets.
Yet, she is optimistic that many of the companies that attended the session can operate in international markets.
When you reach the bottom line, Hulan said, it’s about bringing this province’s products and services to a national or international level.
The session was offered in partnership with Canadian Manufactures and Exporters Newfoundland and Labrador, the Department of Innovation, Business and Rural Development and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
