Alphablogs

Here we are again, friends, with Canada 9-5, the showcase for Canadian – well, what kind of Canadian blogs? Business blogs, corporate blogs, blogs by non-profit organizations, blogs about the life of the citizenry. Or, if you’d like a reverse definition: non-cat blogs (which doesn’t mean they’re dog blogs), blogs that aren’t about celebrities or personal experiences, about baby pictures or games or iPhones.

As of this writing, it appears that Canada 9-5 is still the only place where these blogs are showcased on a regular basis. That probably means that we are well on our way to fame …

Let’s see what we one the menu today.

Life balance for lawyers
Laurie Mapp, who runs Halo Secretarial Services somewhere in central Alberta, talks about work-life balance

I think balance is an elusive but achievable goal - it just takes having an open mind to doing things a different way. This is the part law firms struggle with I think - there is often a tendency to do things as they have always been done, since it has worked for so long. But there is a long list of ways to give your employees some flexibility while still achieving the firm’s goals and providing results for the client.

Corporate recruiters: Paying attention to details
Kate Baggott is a recruiter. Her article For the Price of a Cup of Coffee points out that even small details about how recruiters do business can turn an impressive candidate on or off. Read about how one company lost a potential hire over the price of a cup of coffee.

Vancouver online newspaper: Women in jail
The Vancouver Observer is a newspaper done in blog style. It has the feel of a community newspaper (reminds me a bit of the South Vancouver Revue, for which I used to write an environmental column way back when) and thus talks about every topic under the sun. I liked this little interview with Betty Krawzyck, a B.C. senior who had become famous for going to jail for her environmental activism. Here’s an excerpt where Betty talks about her new book:

I also try to illuminate the lives of women in jail. Most women are there because of conditions and abuse that we really cannot imagine – most of us that is. Poverty is the underlying condition that sends a woman into the penal system and of course, when one discusses poverty, one has to speak about the disproportionate number of First Nations women there are in prisons – on average at least 60% - and you have to discern why this occurs.

Green interior design
Next is an interior designer who writes about greening your home. It’s interesting that environmental consciousness has taken such a leap in the last few years; it all happened after Al Gore’s video. From what I hear, his home isn’t very green; I’m willing to bet Betty Krawcyck’s is, though! At any rate, here are some ideas from a list of 10. I think I’m going to go out and get myself an aloe plant, and am going to check into what exactly an organic bed is.

3. Change the light bulbs in your house to compact fluorescents, but as they require replacing, begin to use LED bulbs, which consume very little energy and do not contain mercury, so disposal is less of a concern.

7. Unplug all unnecessary electrical devices when not in use or not needed, including televisions, computers, microwaves, clocks, stereos and lighting. Electrical devices which are instant on use power all the time, even when turned off. For easy on/off operation plug as much as you can into a power bar and turn it off when not in use.

8. Use green plants to clean the indoor air. Aloe Vera, English ivy, corn plant, golden pothos, peace lily and weeping fig are all excellent choices to remove formaldehyde and benzene.

9. Buy an organic bed. A good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed that emits absolutely no toxins is paramount to green living. After all, it is where we spend most of our time at home.

Books on money
Let’s take a sharp right here and go to Canadian Capitalist, one of the top Canadian finance blogs according to The Globe and Mail. Here’s a list of the Capitalist’s top ten money books. These two look interesting to me:

Your Money & Your Brain by Jason Zweig. What happens inside our brains when we think about money? (Full Review)
Unconventional Success by David Swensen. A guide to constructing a portfolio for individual investors.

Communication – or, in this case: miscommunication
Heath Slawner has a blog about persuasion. I’d like to find out a bit more about Heath; it seems to me that someone who clearly uses his blog as a part of his business would do well to tell a bit about himself on his blog. I presume he’s a salesperson – maybe he’ll see this article and will enlighten us. Heath offers a post on the cost of misunderstanding

Have you ever wondered how much a misunderstanding costs? According to a recent report by UK-based consulting firm Cognisco , misunderstandings and miscommunication among workers are costing companies US$37-billion a year.

Masterminds
We’ve had Evan Carmichael from Toronto here before, in our February edition. He has a section on his blog that exclusively discusses Mastermind Groups. What are mastermind groups?

A mastermind group offers a combination of masterminding, peer brainstorming and support in a group setting. The beauty of mastermind groups is that participants raise the bar by challenging each other to create and implement goals, brainstorm ideas, and support each other with total honesty, respect and compassion. Mastermind group members act as catalysts for growth, devil’s advocates and supportive colleagues. This is the essence and value of mastermind groups.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Hueina Su, one of my blogging friends from Change Therapy, is writing a series of articles here. Having been part of similar success groups myself, this one really spoke to me, about the necessity for commitment in such groups

Some of the members started to miss quite a few meetings, due to other activities and commitments. Others started to question whether they are committed to our mastermind group and see it as a priority. Overall, we were unhappy that some members kept missing our meetings, and it’s a sign of lack of commitment and respect.

Scrape!
Let’s round this off with something amusing. Rob Cottingham from Social Signal, a blog for a Vancouver company that “builds online community with real life impact” (they started the credit union VanCity’s Change Everything site) just wrote a series of articles on blog scrapers. He set a funny little trap for them – well, you have to see for yourself.

That’s it for this time around. The next edition of Canada 9-5 will come out on August 8. If you have or know of a Canadian business or non-profit blog, submit it here so that we can include it!

Welcome to Canada 9-5 – still the best place to find out about Canadian blogs that talk about work and business. For our May 2008 edition, we go right across the board again, from finance to ethical manufacturing and healing, and we even throw in a bit of IT, although that’s not our main focus here. Tech blogs are easy to find; what we here at Alphablogs are doing is to dig up business owners, professionals and non-profits who are smart enough to realize that blogging isn’t just for techies – it’s a great way to connect with your clients.

Finance
The Four Pillars blog is one I found through my blogging friend Nancy. It has great down-to-earth financial advice, and even has a category called 9-5! (And I just found out that it made it into the Globe & Mail’s best Canadian financial blogs. Good on you, Mike!) A good analysis of where to concentrate one’s financial effort is here, in Labour vs. Investment Income.

Some PF bloggers spend tons of time analyzing stocks and devising sophisticated strategies that incorporate geopolitical issues and long term forecasts of economics trends. Then you read that their portfolio is worth $24,000. Any benefit from their work is going to be minimal, simply because they have so little to work with. If they were to go out and earn minimum wage from their time, they’d be far further ahead than trying to “juice” the returns on a small investment.

Ethical Manufacturing
You got to think of our children is the title of the latest post on Mountain Equipment Co-Op’s blog. I think this is a fabulous example of using blogs to stay in touch with customer community. To those of you outside of Canada, MEC is Canada’s leading retailer of outdoor clothing and equipment, providing quality products and services for self-propelled activities like hiking, climbing and skiing. MEC has more than 2.5 million members; they are part owners, with a real voice in how MEC is run. MEC is a force for positive social and environmental change. They are committed to sustainability, from reducing the ecological footprint of their business to providing support to Canadian conservation and outdoor recreation groups. True to its mission, MEC’s blog focuses on ethical sourcing of its material.

“You got to think of our children” is how Mr. Anbukani, the proprietor of our organic wovens factory in India, rationalized his dedication to his community and environment. Mr. Abukani is one of three brothers who own and operate a handful of factories in Southern India. Together, they manufacture apparel for MEC, premium European brands and the French military.

What sets the Anbukani clan apart from other factories I’ve visited is its commitment to the community and environment.

Books
Monique Trottier’s So Misguided is mostly about books – but about all kinds of other things, too: product reviews, “tap dancing, technology, and the other amusements of Monique Trottier.” That’s one of the things I like about blogging. You want to be somewhat focused but then – well, we’re human and we’re interested in all kinds of things, no?

I like this little post because it’s short and sweet – and yet it needs little more than a quick question – “what are you reading right now?” - to interest Monique’s readership.

Healing
Reiki In The News is a post by Astrid Lee, North Vancouver Reiki Master, who says

Reiki is a modality of energy healing that is nearly effortless and mindful. Reiki helps the recipient relax and balance, emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually. My blog says it all, but now also the Vancouver press is getting tuned in: Mind Body Soul, Georgia Straight has featured my work. Hurray!

IT
In a highly competitive market, Jimson Lee, a Vancouver-based CRM Analyst blog reviews another BC based CRM on-demand software company, here at Simple Sales Tracking - Simplicity at its Core: Sales!

Management
Lastly, we have something by Phil For Humanity who I think is Canadian. He talks about different types of managers.

***

That’s it for the May 2008 edition! Please submit your Canadian business blog here for the next edition on June 28. If you have or know of any interesting Canadian blogs that talk about work or business, send them in – you can use this form.

It’s April 8 and it’s time for Canada 9-5, the showcase for Canadian Business Blogs and generally, Canadian blogs that talk about work. We’re happy to report, by the way, that when googling for “Canadian Business Blogs”, Canada 9-5 shows up on first place!

Blogging is still new for most business owners. The ones you see here are pioneers. And here they are:

Life and Business Coaching For Women
Self-Care Enchantments
Zoey Ryan is a “Coach . Catalyst. Shakti Sage” right here in Vancouver. She helps women become POW – Positively Outrageous Women. Her series of “Inrageous/Outrageous Self-Care Enchantments” include

1. “Let go; let yourself be absorbed by life itself”. Practice living in the moment and for this week, suspend planning, goal setting and striving and simply float on your inner tube down the “river of life”
And/or
2. “Un-do, break down, mix it up”. Do something totally uncharacteristic this week!
3. “Expect breakthroughs to look like breakdowns”!

Library Blog
A Librarian Talks About Twitter
On Twitter, Connie Crosby uses what she calls “guerilla librarianship” – she nudges people towards library services who might not otherwise think of them. She sometimes answers questions as if they were reference questions, and also promotes critical thinking about web sources–all the while pointing out in the public forum of Twitter how librarians can help.

Real Estate in BC
Healthy Cities
Vancouver realtor Matthew Collinge talks about an award that says Vancouver is Canada’s healthiest city:

To come up with their findings they looked at 16 different areas of health and “went beyond the typical mortality stats to measure the comprehensiveness of smoking bans, the availability of OB/GYNs and mammography, and other issues uniquely important to Canadian women.” We even did well for number of available doctors.

Vancouver News
Car Insurance Fraud
EZ Vancouver is the blog by Vancouver web developer Frederic Desjardines. He frolicks all over the place, with themes that include Vancouver news, technology, futurism, oddities, gadgets, privacy, Disney and politics. Talk about eclectic! Among Vancouver / BC news, he dishes up the story of our car insurance company scandal: Fraud: ICBC Managers keep good cars while selling you the crappy ones.

Canadian Beauty
MTV and Body Shop Pair Up For Aids
Canadian Beauty talks about beauty trends as they move from the runway to the street and vice versa.

MTV and The Body Shop have paired up yet again to create a product that’s original and the proceeds of which will benefit AIDS prevention. Remember last year? They made that perfume in a pink bottle; this year it’s a lip butter.

Marketing
Apple’s Design Principles
Canuckflack is a blog about marketing and public relations, but really doesn’t follow a lot of “inside baseball” themes. Instead, you’ll find thoughts, snippets and blurbs on PR, marketing, corporate communications, retail, promotion, crisis communications and media relations. Colin McKay works in communications for the Government of Canada in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Here, Colin praises Apple’s design principles:

Take a look Apple provides for developers working on the iPhone, like Principles and Guidelines for Creating Great iPhone Content:
As you design the flow of your content and its user interface, follow these guidelines to build in simplicity and ease of use:
· Make it obvious how to use your content.
· Avoid clutter, unused blank space, and busy backgrounds.
· Minimize required user input.
· Express essential information succinctly.
· Provide a fingertip-sized target area for all links and controls.
· Avoid unnecessary interactivity.

Sports
Using a blog to raise money
An interesting experiment: In Speedendurance.com Mission Statement, we find that a Vancouver, BC, based track team uses a blog to raise money for travel expenses towards Beijing 2008 and Vancouver-Whistler 2010.

The mission statement of Speedendurance.com is to provide athletes of all levels the information required to better themselves, legally and drug free. Ordinary folks trying to get in shape or lose a few pounds can also benefit from this site. Like a true Buddhist, we never turn anyone away from a lack of funds … All the information on this site is free of charge. In return, ads are in place to raise money.

Snow Angel Maker
Network Marketing
Yup, Rob Moshe bills himself, among others, as a snow angel maker. If you want to know what else he does, you’ll have to go here. In 8 Steps To Success In Network Marketing, he shares his thoughts on how to be successful in MLM despite all the many pitfalls – for example:

Ask a successful Direct Marketer how much of their down-line are family and closest friends, and you will find that none of the successful marketers have more than a handful if any. You will have to find prospects (read ‘people you don’t know’) or you wont build your business. I strongly recommend against annoying friends and family to get into any business, I am also against becoming a walking infomercial whenever someone comes within your two square feet. Think of the last five social gatherings you were at, other than network marketers, how many people tried to get you into their business? Unless you are a multimillionaire, I am going to guess none. Yes, you should have an Elevator Pitch, you should have the tools at hand to get a prospect interested in your business, but you should use it ONLY when you have a qualified prospect.

Self Improvement and Motivation
Frederic Premji offers Tips For Home Based Business Owners, for example this one that I know works really well:

No pajamas at this office! Even if you are working from home, dress the part of a business owner. Staying in your pajamas or dressing too casual will affect your behavior, trust me. It’s much more motivating to be dressed up well and feeling good. This is your business, your creation, so treat it with as much respect as possible. If you are dressed like success, your mind will follow soon enough.

***

Okay folks, that’s it for this edition! Please submit your Canadian business blog here for the next edition on May 18. If you have or know of any interesting Canadian blogs that talk about work or business, send them in – you can use this form.

Heeeeere it comes!

The February edition of Canada 9-5. Canada 9-5 presents the crème de la crème of Canadian business bloggers, people who use the power of blogging to showcase their professional and business expertise and to better get to know their customers and clients. We’re concentrating on non-IT bloggers; for IT people, blogging is second nature - it’s people whose business isn’t in IT already who, we think, need some help seeing the magic of blogging.

Today we have a virtual assistant, an expressive arts facilitator, a blog that helps with bankruptcy issues, a foodie blog, a small business blogger, and a personal coach right here from Vancouver.

Take it away!

Virtual Assistant Looks At Iceberg
I like the 30 Days of Resources project by Business Services Etc., a company of virtual assistants. In this project, BSETC features 30 products that will make the life of any business person easier. This one is about Icebrrg

Have you ever been wanting to add custom forms to your website or blog but weren’t sure where to find one or how to program them just so? Fear no more. I have found you a service that resonates well with me because (a) it’s easy and (b) it’s name reminds me of the snowy part of the planet I currently live on.

Introducing Icebrrg… The instant (and easy) form creator. It’s a wonderful little web-based program that you sign up for (they have a free account) and once registered, you just follow the prompts to create your web form. It also generates the HTML code for you to place on your blog or site.

I like it! I think I’ll try it out. This blog is a great example of showcasing expertise and paying it forward by providing the reader with valuable information.

Bankruptcy In Canada – What’s A Consumer Proposal?

Are you:
· Having trouble paying all your bills, even though you have a good job?
· Thinking about filing bankruptcy, but not really wanting to?
· Simply looking for more information about ways to deal with your debt?

That’s where a consumer proposal might be a good solution. What’s a consumer proposal? Bankruptcy Canada explains it in this three-part discussion. Part 1 is entitled How a consumer proposal might be right for you. There’s also a video you can watch.

A Foodie Blog – Buying Local
As an avid CBC radio listener, I’m quite familiar with Don Genova, a journalist and broadcaster who used to regale West Coast listeners with yummy tidbits of BC food stories. I remember once he listed all the goat cheeses to be had from Saltspring Island. So this here is his blog. (The things you can learn from a blog: Apparently, until the end of last year he was in Parma – yes, the home of Parmesan cheese – where he studied for a Masters of Food Culture at the University of Gastronomic Sciences. What an intriguing field of studies!)

The entry we’re sampling here is about buying local food

a visit to a Culinary Tourism Conference yielded some interesting info on companies and individuals trying to make it easier for consumers, chefs and other food service operators to get access to local produce and value-added products. … Most of these programs match you up with a farmer who will deliver a box of goods from their gardens throughout their growing season. … Don’t forget farmers markets. Some run year round, others will start in the spring.
You can listen to the 6 minute documentary by going to Don’s blog.

Dancing, Drumming and Children
Barbara Karmazyn’s site is a repository of information and images about the expressive arts. Dancing, drumming, storytelling, singing, crafts – all these are things Barbara brings to children, teachers, parents, seniors as she draws them together in magical circles of joy and creativity.

Barbara Karmazyn uses blogging mostly as a content management system; it looks more like a “normal” web site than a blog. Most of her material is on static pages, like this one about personal development playshops.

Small Business – Email and Customer Service
Selling to Small Business is a blog by Torontonian Evan Carmichael. This post here reminds us that we ignore email at our own peril. Love the title: Killing Your Brand Softly.

Personal Development – What Happens When we Get Sick?
One Man Can is the blog of a personal coach here in Vancouver. I like his open, honest voice; he’s not one of those coaches who continually tell people what to do. Example:

periods of stress that affect the physical body often lead to short bursts of illness. So, watching the signals from the body sooner can allow corrective action sooner. Myself, I like to think I’m invulnerable sometimes and let things get the better of me. Just took a temperature of 102…. oops.

Back to bed.

That’s from his post, Illness of the Body.

***

And that’s it for this edition of Canada 9-5. If you have or know of any interesting Canadian blogs that talk about work or business, send them in – you can use this form.

The next edition will come out April 8, 2008.

Good night and good luck!

Hello everyone! Here we go – our Canada 9-5 blog carnival is officially in year two. Well, in calendar year two – but who’s counting!

Canada 9-5 is something we’re very excited about. What we have on offer here is once again the crème de la crème of Canadian business bloggers, people who use the power of blogging to showcase their professional and business expertise and to better get to know their customers and clients. We’re concentrating on non-IT bloggers; for IT people, blogging is second nature - it’s people whose business isn’t in IT already who, we think, need some help seeing the magic of blogging.

We even have a badge for it now (yup, we’re working on our blogging goals). I’ll let Carol have the word here for a sec, explain why we thought it would be important to do this:

We are really keen to see Canada 9-5 get going strong this year, and we’ve been calling 2008: The Year of the Business Blog.

Here’s our badge - feel free to use it to link back to us.

So here is our line-up for this month:

Small Business Owners - How tough to you want to get?
Our first article is by someone we already met – welcome back, Vahid! To Succeed As a Business Owner, You Have to Be Tough is a post on his blog, Work at Home Business Solutions. It talks about the drawbacks of being tough – burnout, for example – and how to deal with it.

Divorce Help - All the way from the East Coast to BC
Divorce Online is a good resource for people all over Canada who have decided they need to part ways with their spouses but want to go for an uncontested divorce. What I like about this blog is that it looks at both Federal and the various Provincial laws. Lately, they’ve had a few posts on spousal support – this one, for example.

Coaching - The poetry of search engine statistics
Lee Down is a coach here in Vancouver. His background is actually quite similar to mine – a quirky mix of IT, spirituality, community development, writing and human services. This post here about the deeper usefulness of search engine statistics shows his personality in a wonderful way. That’s exactly what blogs do – they help your clients get to know you better.

Fashion - Stories from a “petite activist”
Cynthia C is a writer and petite activist from Toronto. She has recently published her first book, Aspirations, which can be found online (Amazon, Chapters/Indigo, Borders, etc) and in bookstores everywhere. I have to confess, I’ve never heard of petite activists before – but it makes perfect sense! I have two friends who are very short and always complain of how difficult it is to find pants (and reach cupboards and find your friends in a mass of people when everyone is at least a foot taller and and and …)

Really enjoyed this article – I always find little historical bits like this one here fascinating:

The inventor of petite sizes, Hannah Troy, died almost 15 years ago at the age of 93. Mrs. Troy thought up the petite size when she noticed that many women were pulling on shoulders and waists, making them fit their figures properly. And yes, like many of us petites who know from experience, Mrs. Troy knew that alterations can “spoil the design.”

Community banking - What’s a blog bar?
Gene Blishen runs a small credit union; his blog is a bit about that and a bit about all kinds of things. He’s a great example of what we talked about in an earlier article, Blogging for business – letting your hair down. In the article we’re showcasing, Gene talks about the idea of consumers letting their hair down: In blog bars, customers (or clients, or consumers, whatever you want to call them) can let you know online right away what they think. These “blog bars” are installed on location. A very interesting idea – we’re coming full-circle: from online to on-site.

This concludes this edition of Canada 9-5. The next edition will come out on February 28. Got any articles to submit? If it’s a Canadian blog that talks about work or business, bring it on – here’s the submission form.

Welcome to the 4th Canada 9-5 Carnival, the last one for this year. This carnival collects the diverse voices of Canadians who blog about their work and public affairs – from small business to corporations to not-for-profits of all stripes.

Many of our neighbours to the South have latched onto the power of Web 2.0, a truly connected internet, but here in Canada, business and work related blogging is still something that happens very rarely. The blogs you find here are truly pioneers.

Construction Marketing
Construction Marketing Ideas is a blog that understands the power of blogging to disseminate ideas quickly and easily. It’s chock full of marketing tips that are useful not just for the construction industry but for all business owners.

Don’t you hate it when you get a marketing call and the person on the other end just reads from a script, no matter what you say? In an article on cold calling, there are some very useful suggestions for connecting with strangers in a respectful way:

For Successful Phone Calls:
* Plan, but don’t memorize, your calls. Think about what you’ll cover and how. Have a specific objective in mind like getting an appointment or determining the extent of any upcoming construction program.
* Don ‘t start with the trite “how are you?” Instead, say, Hello, my name is….”
* Concisely cover vital information in the first several seconds of the call. Explain who you are, who you believe the other person is, why you’re calling, how you heard about this project, what possibility you see for working together and how long this should take.
* Assess how the other person sounds. Ask if this is a convenient time. If not, suggest that you call back at a specific time. Showing respect for a prospect’s time builds your credibility.
* Establish what the other person knows about you. (”Perhaps you heard Bob talk about me, I’d like to tell you more”).
* Help people visualize you, (”I’m calling from Vancouver”).

Blogging
Lincoln McCardle has a neat idea – he thinks every blog should have a theme song. I find that intriguing. On the one hand, I have to admit it bugs me when I go to a site and it assaults with with some awful muzak – but if it’s good, like here, for example (great site if you like philosophy and Chopin), it’s a real joy.

Foodies
Notes from the Vegan Feast Kitchen is the kitchen journal of Bryanna Clark Grogan, a vegan food writer. It contains “ideas and recipes I am working on; culinary flights of fancy; opinions; passions; discoveries; and more.” In Cranberries, and a short rant she asks why people dish out huge amounts of money for exotic juices when they can have the same effects from home-grown fruit, like the cranberry.

Civic affairs – Vancouver: The mayor
This is the blog of Vancouver’s mayor Sam Sullivan, of all the blogs here definitely the most “corporate” one. This just shows the wide variety of uses a blog can be put to. Sam Sullivan’s blog has the format of what one might call an “interactive press release”. Discussion and deep interaction - a la Liz Strauss’ Open Mic for example - is probably not what is sought here. Rather, I would say that this blog is meant to spread information, to solidify the idea of Vancouver being leading edge, and to give citizens an opportunity to voice their opinions. The Millennium Line Survey is a good example of that.

Civic affairs – Montreal: The UN?
Spacing Montreal chronicles what happens in Montreal, for example, in this article about the possibility of the UN moving its headquarters:

Last week, La Presse reported quite breathlessly that the federal government, which owns the Port of Montreal and much of the land along its waterfront, has been lobbying the United Nations to move its headquarters from New York to Montreal. The rationale, apparently, is that the UN’s current headquarters, housed in an iconic complex built in 1949 along the East River, needs nearly $2 billion worth of renovations over the next couple of decades. It would cost a lot less to simply pack up and move to Montreal, where a state-of-the-art new headquarters would be waiting on the site of the Silo No. 5 and on adjacent piers.
You have to admit, as outlandish an idea as this may be, it would be pretty cool to have the United Nations in Montreal.

Civic affairs – British Columbia: A NAFTA superhighway conspiracy?
C.I. Bennett, erstwhile leader of the Green Party of British Columbia, has candid thoughts, green political ideas and new leadership thinking on his Victoria Bound | Green Political Ideas by C.I. Bennett. Here he presents rumours of a plan to build a superhighway:

You’ve heard the rumours for months. Most have chalked this up to a stupid conspiracy theory with no truth to it. Yet yesterday, 2351 people ‘dug’ this story on digg.com. A secret NAFTA Superhighway being built between the US and Canada.

That’s all, folks! Join us again next year, on January 18, for the next edition of Canada 9-5. Anything written by a Canadian blogger that’s work-related is fair game. Have a blog post you want to submit? Click here.

Welcome to this edition of Canada 9-5!

Canada 9-5 showcases blogs by Canadian professionals, workers, businesses and associations. There are many such blogs by internet technology specialists but very few that use the amazing technology of blogging. The blogs you see here are literally pioneers of Canadian business blogging.

Book Publishing in Vancouver
In a post on client confidentiality, our own Carol Sill says

So often we have good ideas that we feel are unique, only to find someone else is also incubating the same thought, or one so similar it is hard to believe there wasn’t some kind of “security breach”. I have had several cases of two potential clients showing me plans for projects that were remarkably similar, and both within the same week! This kind of synchronicity always amazes me, but still I keep the two projects separate in my mind, and do not disclose them to one another, let alone to the outside world.

Entrepreneurial Smarts from Toronto
Canadian Entrepreneur is the blog by Rick Spence: business writer, speaker and content marketer, and former editor/publisher of PROFIT Magazine. He hails from “Toronto and Afghanistan”. Canadian Entrepreneur has a very interesting guest article by Toronto-based marketer extraordinaire Michael Hepworth, the “Streetsmart Marketer”. 10 ways to build your credibility contains some reminders that are practically blueprints for article series for any business blogger, for example

• Educate them on how to buy your product or service. Help customers understand what their buying criteria should be.
• Be sincere. Sincerity is being believable and presenting the facts in a way prospects understand.
• Provide testimonials. Few people like to be the first to use a product or service.
• Establish yourself as an authority. Write and speak on your specialty.
• Support your sales with editorial and articles. PR is important in building your credibility.
• Tell prospects why. If you are offering a discount or a special deal, give a reason for it.
• Point out a non-fatal flaw in your product. This gives special promotions more credibility.

Branding Reflections - Vancouver
Robert Park, “Catalyst” at Vancouver business incubator The Network Hub relates a tale of caution: How to destroy your brand equity: JPG Magazine screwed up.

In the past, corporations held a lot of power as to how to treat their customers. Several factors contributed to this: lack of choice, lack of clear information, and lack of consumer power. Things have been changing over the past few years. Thanks to new social technologies on the Internet, people are a lot more organized and coordinated. They share information with each other and work together. And if you want to sell them something, or utilize their collaboration to create some sort of value, you better understand them well. Or else, they’ll ditch you. And your reputation could get ruined in the process.

Creativity in Ontario
Ken, a creativity coach, talks about perfectionism in The Upside Of Perfect. He quotes Mary-Elaine Jacobsen who shows the positive side of much-maligned perfectionism ..

there is quite a distinction between unhealthy and healthy forms of perfectionism, the latter being present in many gifted individuals…In fact, fulfillment and pleasure may well be linked to painstaking effort and unconstrained use of one’s gifted abilities.

Real Estate in Vancouver
Coal Harbour Vancouver: Living on the Urban Waterfront is a good example of a niche blog. Coal Harbour is a small but very affluent, up-and-coming and beautiful area of Vancouver. This real estate blog talks about real estate and investment opportunities but also about some other tidbits, like this post. Checking Out the Neighbourhood – By Plane shows how a vast country like Canada uses planes like other countries use taxis.

Other contributions include
How to own a house or apartment for free
10 Questions to Ask When Writing Hypnotic Posts (Blog Marketing Tip #17)
Fall TSM Travel Writing Contest: Win $125!

Thanks for all the submissions! Our next carnival will be on December 8. If you want to appear on this carnival, please submit your post here.

(this article can be found in the All Women Blogging carnival)

Welcome to our second edition of Canada 9-5, a stroll through some interesting Canadian business blogs.

Instigator
First we have Instigatorblog by Ben Yoskovitz, an entrepreneur specializing in turning ideas into thriving businesses. He hails from Montreal. In We’re Not All Ready To Be Media Outlets, But So What? he talks about the media noise that’s all around us and that we’re often encouraged to produce. He says,

Not all content is created equal. We know that. But there is an audience out there for almost everything. People like all sorts of stuff. Take country music for example. I could live without it, but millions of raving fans would not be too pleased.

Athletic Coach
Next there is 10 Reasons Why I Love Google at Speedendurance.com. Jimson Lee, Masters Athlete, Coach and President of the Metro Athletic Club based in Vancouver, BC. tells us this article is about “How we used Google for our non-profit Canadian Track & Field and Bobsled team for our web hosting, email, and other apps, all for free. Free is good.”

Accountant
Neil McIntyre is a professional accountant at a mid-size firm in Toronto and a graduate of Brock University’s Accounting program. Here he talks about his own experience: Pay off debt, then start saving and investing:

I took the plunge this weekend and expunged my debts to the depths of the hell from whence they came. It was a tough move for some reason, even for a cold, calculating accountant. Subconsciously, I held on to the debt in order to keep my asset balances high. Artificially high.

Commercial Pilot
Cockpit Conversation is a blog that “traces the Adventures of an Aviatrix, in which a pilot travels the skies and the treacherous career path of Canadian commercial aviation, gaining knowledge and experience without losing her step, her licence, or her sense of humour.” In My Job she opens our eyes a bit:

I am a commercial pilot, but probably not the sort of commercial pilot that comes to mind when I say those words. I’m not a clean cut male strolling briskly through the main passenger terminal, rolling bag in tow, and I don’t wear a crisp white shirt with little stripes on the shoulders, or a captain’s hat. “Commercial pilot” means simply that I am paid to fly aircraft. You’ve probably never heard of the company that employs me. I do in fact have a flight case and one of those rolling suitcases, but you’ll only see me in the passenger terminal if I’m commuting to a job where the airplane is already on site. I work in t-shirts, work pants and sturdy boots. Add a sweater and parka as necessary for the climate.

Gardener
Doug Green is a writer and gardener who works and lives out on an island in the 1000 Islands region of Lake Ontario. He’s a great example of someone using a blog to let people know about what he does. He freely shares information from his vast store of knowledge. If you love plants, then his tip on how to increase the length of time you have Amaryllis bulbs blooming indoors is timely - they’ll soon be blossoming in our homes when it gets cold and windy outside.

Real Estate
Finally, there is Maggie Chandler from Kitsilano, a lovely neighbourhood in Vancouver. On her blog My Kitsilano, she shows many images of lovely houses from this great Vancouver neighbourhood, such as this one on Cornwall Street, right close to the beach.

*****

As we mentioned in our previous edition, Canada doesn’t do much business blogging yet. There are quite a few technology blogs but very, very few business people who work in other areas.

These here on Canada 9-5 are the pioneers.

So - if you have or know of a Canadian business blog, let us know here. The next edition of Canada 9-5 will come out on October 28.

Welcome to the first edition of Canada 9-5 – a blog carnival that presents you with Canadian blogs that talk about work and business. Mostly we’ll be featuring blogs by small business owners. However, we’re also interested in other topics, such as people blogging about their work, blogs published by associations, and probably all sorts of other topics that we haven’t even thought of yet.

So here we go – our first edition!

Becoming a Successful Consultant
Consultant Journal by Vancouver marketing consultant Andrea Coutu takes advantage of a specific niche: not only does she know about marketing, but she takes it one step further, by sharing her knowledge about how to market consultants of all striped. And even there she specializes: Writing sales proposals is something that she discusses frequently in her blog.

Home-Based Businesses
Barbra Sundquist from Vancouver Island is someone who I’ve come across quite a bit here in the blogosphere. She obviously knows how to get her name out. Her specialty is home businesses. On her blog, HomeBusinessWiz, the article How One Woman Went from Olympic Champion to Motivational Speaker tells the story of how Lori-Ann Muenzer, a Canadian cycling record holder, two-time Olympian, and gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics became a professional speaker.

Money Coach
Nancy Zimmerman is a money coach here in Vancouver. She has fabulous, down-to-earth tips on turning your financial life from worried drudgery to confident prosperity. And she practices what she preaches.

Real Estate
I like the tone of the Saskatoon Real Estate Centre Resource Blog - fresh, with pictures, interesting and entertaining topics, such as Dude, where’s my house? Winnipeg man charged with theft after house disappears.

Canada doesn’t do much business blogging yet. It’s not easy to find business blogs that are not directly related to technology.

I think that needs to change.

Not that we don’t want to feature technology bloggers – but we’re not going to concentrate on them, mostly because there are already lots of other avenues that do that, and there are many tech bloggers. We’re interested in who else is blogging.

If you have or know of a Canadian business blog, let us know here. The next edition will come out on September 8.

technorati tags: blog+carnivals, canada, canadian+blogs, canadian+business+blogs, small+business, corporate+blogging