AUGUST: Tips to Grow Your Canadian Small Business Online

About This Column

This monthly column is intended to inspire action. You know digital transformation is critical to growing your business, but there are so many moving parts and so much to learn! It’s easier to navigate if someone points you in the right direction so you can take the first steps. You don’t have to master anything right now, you only need to move forward and learn as you go.

If one growth tip doesn’t work for your business, pick another one and try that. If you do that over a course of a year, you may be surprised at how much your business has grown and how clear your path is to further growth. A custom strategy will naturally emerge from your efforts, all from trying something new every month.

Content for this column will vary from month to month. We’ll cover what’s trending, motivation, tools, diversification, funding, actionable Canadian data, expert quotes, and how & where to grow your business online over the following month. New posts will be announced in our newsletter, so sign up to ensure you don’t miss a single month of growth.

Grow Your Canadian Small Business Online in August

[DISCLOSURE: We may receive compensation for links to products on this website.]

TIP 1: Back to School Growth

Canadian kids are heading back to school where they’ll grow physically, intellectually, and socially. Your company can grow with them, while also preparing for the lucrative 4th quarter.

A recent Staples study found:

• Parents are looking to accomplish their back to school mission quickly and efficiently, rather than making it a family moment: 88 percent agree they want to do it quickly and efficiently and 70 percent agree it usually ends up being a chore. Note: This mindset drives parents to shop online, even if they prefer shopping in-store.

• Canadians will hunt for savings on tech as it tops affordability challenges: 59 percent of parents report tech among the top three biggest affordability challenges, placing a greater emphasis on deal seeking, promotions and financing options for this category.

Few would argue that one of the best ways to reach younger generations is through online influencers. A recent IZEA report found 67% of 18-to-29-year-olds in Canada have made influencer-inspired purchases.

Your product can target small children online, but your marketing should target their parents. You can find young children watching video online, but otherwise their parents hold the steering wheel in the digital world.

Here are 20 Ways Canadian Online Retailers Can Win Back-To-School Sales.

TIP 2: Funding & Competitions

AGE-WELL invites Canadian startups to pitch their technology-based solutions for healthy aging. You could win $25,000 in cash, plus in-kind prizes.

TIP 3: Best Practices for Landing Pages

Online sales rely heavily on landing pages, but make sure you’re using the right landing page for the right stage in the buyer’s journey or funnel.

One of the biggest mistakes I see in affiliate program management, for example, is sending affiliate link clicks directly to a sign up form. Most people who click on affiliate links aren’t ready to fill out that form. They still need more information and probably more convincing. Their landing page should either be the main page of the website or the specific product page, which should already be set up to convince and convert. You can still designate a landing page to target specific groups if you prefer, but it shouldn’t lead with a form at this stage.

Here are 20+ landing page best practices every creator needs to know.

TIP 4: Growth by Acquisition

Many companies buy up other companies for a number of reasons, but it usually revolves around growth in one form or another. It can also give you a jump start if you’re interested in becoming a digital entrepreneur but don’t want to start from scratch.

To determine if an online business is a wise investment, you’ll have to perform the same due diligence as you would for purchasing an offline business.

Some standard pre-purchase questions you might ask are:

  • Is it viable and feasible for you?
  • Is there an existing business license, trademark or patent?
  • Is the logo and branding in place?
  • Is it profitable? How much does it earn annually? Is it growing?
  • What expenses do they have? What is the cost of customer acquisition?
  • Is there any debt or overdue taxes?
  • What’s included? Inventory, contacts, apps, and so on.
  • What kind of reviews does it have? Does it have a BBB rating?
  • Do you have ideas to improve and grow the business?

Read How to Find, Evaluate & Buy an Existing Online Business for further guidance.

TIP 5: August Content

Grow your traffic, grow your business! Timely content can differentiate your business while generating traffic that converts.

Note: We post a list of holidays & observances (monthly, weekly and daily) for marketers in the Online Business Canada Facebook group. There’s a lot of them! You’re bound to find some that are a perfect fit for you business.

Here are just a few August holidays & observances with promotion potential:

Home Business Month
Back to School Month
Family Fun Month
Canning Month
Foot Health Month
Wellness Month
Shop Online for Groceries Month
Motorsports Awareness Month

August content themes and slants can include summer, recreation, landscaping, heat safety, fire safety, water safety, travel, and time with family. Canadian civic holidays on August 5th include NT, Nunavut, and Ontario, along with Saskatchewan Day, New Brunswick Day, British Columbia Day, Heritage Day (Alberta), and Natal Day (Nova Scotia). Terry Fox Day is observed in Manitoba.

TIP 6: Business Books Worth Reading

Here we share quick quotes from business books we’re reading.

Note: Tenancy Placements, or Tenancies, are fixed fees paid to influencers. They can be charged separately for individual campaigns, or be combined with affiliate program commissions.

“Top publishers may ask for tenancies or publish media packs listing coverage that they provide for an extra cost. Tenancies can be a shortcut to receiving extra coverage and can drive a lot of sales. Remember, though, that you are paying for coverage and traffic, not guaranteed results. You are responsible for making sure any exposure you secure converts into sales.”

~ Affiliate Management for Self-Managed Programs: Unlock the Power of Affiliate Marketing for your Business by Steven Lownds

Incremental Change

Changes spread out over the year will combine into powerful results. When growth based on technology overwhelms us, we can make small changes to continue growing and develop further as we feel our way through it.

How will you grow your online business in August? Please share your ideas or questions in the comments below, or join us in the Online Business Canada Facebook group.

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Melody McKinnon
Digital Business & Marketing Manager at  | Website |  + posts

Melody McKinnon is an internet entrepreneur with 25 years of experience in a wide range of online business models, backed by a formal business/marketing education and enhanced by training and mentorship. She has owned or managed both educational and ecommerce websites. Her book, 7 Recession Proof Online Businesses to Start From Home, is available from all major ebook retailers.

Melody has worked with many businesses in a multitude of capacities. She can often be found on CanadianDigitalMedia.com, CanadiansInternet.com, CanadianFamily.net, and AllNaturalPetCare.com, as well as other quality digital publications. Her content has earned reference links from highly-respected websites, magazines and university textbooks.

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Prof Parker

Believe it or not I’m getting ready for Christmas! In retail time it’s almost here! I’ll watch carefully for next month and hope to see holiday season tips for growing. This month I’m lining up influencers for gift guides.

Annabelle Bell

I wish we could call them all family days instead of remembering what everything is called on the fifth haha but it’s worth it for the marketing opportunities. These tips were a little longer than usually and I get a lot from them. I admit I only tried one growth tips so far but I promise to do better!