Highlights of March 2022
Fast-Tracking Your Online Growth
Fast-Tracking Your Online Growth was a practical ecommerce webinar presented by Claudia North from with Small Business. At the end of the webinar, participants walked away with a list of ecommerce best practices for business owners.
Over the course of March, two of these webinars were delivered, with 317 small businesses registered to attend. The feedback was amazing with 91% of survey respondents giving the webinar an 8 or more out of 10.
Digital Marketing for Beginners
This webinar, by Wil Brown, was aimed at business owners new to online marketing. Participants learned about finding their audience, defining a niche and target market, top digital marketing strategies and an introduction to a fundamental sales funnel.
The 63 attendees were given a template to help create their first buyer persona. This educational webinar was engaging, with many taking part in a Q&A at the end.
Small Business Summit 2022
Sutherland Shire Council hosted its fourth annual Small Business Month Summit focusing on reflecting, connecting, adapting and learning. There were three inspirational speakers: Psychologist, Nic Sullivan; Futurist, Michael McQueen, and; Leading small business marketing podcast host, Tim Reid.
One small business attendee from SP Screens, said the event was ‘absolutely fantastic – loved the event especially listening to and meeting with the speakers’.
Branding and Marketing Ideas from Meta and Sans Drinks
Manly Business Chamber hosted an event with Meta marketing boss Alexandra Sloane and Balgowah local and business powerhouse Irene Falcone of Sans Drinks where they shared their business insights on marketing and branding.
With 190 registrants, this in person dinner and panel session was a great success with participants given the opportunity to learn and network.
International Women’s Day Lunch Event
The Sydney Hills Business Chamber put on a lunch event to coincide with International Women’s Day on the 8th March. The guest speaker was Olympian and entrepreneur, Melissa Wu.
Eighty people registered for this in person lunch event which was a great turnout and acknowledged the important contribution women make to the success of small businesses in the region.
Right Person Right Job: Maintaining and Recruiting Employees
This breakfast event held by Griffith Business Chamber looked at how to find what personnel skills already exist within a business and how to harness those opportunities. It also provided information on what incentives, resources and programs are available to assist with recruiting the right people.
Amanda from Marketing Solutions, one of thirty attendees, said ‘The presentation was helpful. I picked up on some tips and tricks to assist when dealing with the retention of staff’.
Networking Breakfast – Digital trends to inform effective business strategy
Snowy Valleys Council in collaboration with the Tumbarumba Chamber of Commerce held a networking breakfast for 28 local small businesses. The event featured two presentations on digital trends to inform effective business strategy, one by Strengthening Business NSW Digital Solutions Specialist Antonella Lopez and the other by BEC Business Advice advisor Deborah Wakeling.
One small business participant from The Pickled Parrot Providore learnt about how to schedule posts on Facebook and then track the demographic of those that engaged with the content.
Cultivating and Nurturing Great Retailers
Bathurst Regional Council ran a workshop for retail businesses followed by one-on-one sessions with Retail Life. Participants were part of an interactive workshop focusing on how to create a showstopping first impression through store window activations and building a successful retail business in the changing retail landscape.
Thirty four small businesses attended the session and walked away with a renewed energy to make the most of their bricks and mortar store and tips and tricks to maximise their space.
Building Better Business Luncheon
The Iris Foundation held a luncheon seminar on the Central Coast for 60 business women. Working off the theme Rebuild, Recharge, Renew, the luncheon speakers focused on mental wellness and resilience, connections and collaborations, and adapting in times of change.
Participants received a resource kit on the day on creating a mentally healthy workplace. Pods4Pets small business owner took a lot from the session on resilience and was able to expand her connections with other like-minded women.
Business Workshops for Creatives
Arts Northern Rivers worked with Creative Plus Business to deliver two targeted creative business workshops across four different LGAs in the Northern Rivers. One workshop focused on business skills for creative freelancers while the other named ‘I Hate Networking’ encouraged participants to learn the skills of networking while having fun.
Nearly 50 participants joined these sessions and gained valuable practical skills for their creative businesses.
Supply Chain Planning and Forecasting for SME Manufacturers
Central Coast Industry Connect held a webinar for 22 manufacturing small businesses on simplifying supply chains. They looked at key elements of the planning process and how to forecast to deliver better customer service and manage incoming material supply and finished goods inventory.
A participant from East Coast Foods and Beverages was able to see how the forecasting sheet resources used in the session could be applied to his own business to refine their process.
South West Sydney – Open for Business
Liverpool Chamber of Commerce and Industry held a dinner event with key speakers talking about the future of small businesses in South West Sydney post-pandemic and opportunities in the region moving forward.
Over 150 small businesses attended and were able to hear from Ned Mannoun Liverpool Mayor, David Borger from Business Western Sydney, Patrick Verlaine from Australian Business Growth Fund and Miranda MP Eleni Petinos, Minister for Small Business and Fair Trading.
Get Connected – Smart Ideas for Small Business
The City of Ryde and Macquarie Park Ryde Business Chamber collaborated to deliver an exciting small business networking event for 150 small businesses. Upon arriving participants could get a free professional headshot to use in their business.
There were two keynote speakers on the night: Therese Tarlinton, author of SWAP Marketing without Money and Marketing and Communications Manager of CSR, and; Thomas O’Connor, Google’s Growth Strategist.
Business Leaders Breakfast
The Rotary Club of Norwest Sunrise delivered two online webinars to 11 people focused on developing inspiring leaders and supporting workers, and one face-to-face breakfast event on mental resilience to 38 people.
One attendee of the breakfast event said it was well run and enjoyed the opportunity to network with other local business owners.
How to Niche your Regional Business, Find your Ideal Client and Uncover your Unique Selling Point
This four-hour workshop delivered by Taylah Hudson and hosted by Dungog District Chamber of Commerce looked at identifying target markets and maximising the benefits of running a small business in a rural setting.
Liz from the Magpie Shop in Dungog was one of 15 attendees. She found the experience valuable and said the main takeaways were the importance of visibility on social media, having the right tools to identify her ideal market and the importance of having a point of difference for her business.
Trade and Construction Breakfast
Eurobodalla Shire Council ran three trade and construction breakfasts throughout March. The first breakfast was held in Bateman’s Bay with 68 attendees, the second in Moruya with 92 attendees and the third in Narooma with 43 attendees.
Tradies could drop in, grab something to eat and network with each other, local council and SafeWork NSW. These events provided an informal opportunity to chat about local issues and opportunities in the industry.
Boardroom Lunch – How to integrate sustainability, environmental protection and small business
Port Macquarie Chamber of Commerce and Greater Port Macquarie Tourism Association collaborated to deliver a boardroom lunch featuring guest speaker Jon Dee, co-founder of Planet Ark.
Forty small businesses attended this event where they heard from Jon about how to define sustainability from a business perspective, why this is important to small businesses and what opportunities there are in the region. Participants left with advice on how to implement these ideas into their small business.
Enhance Workplace Diversity: Partner with Aboriginal Business on the NSW Central Coast
Bara Barang Corporation, an Aboriginal community-controlled training and employment service, held a networking evening to highlight the benefits of partnering with Aboriginal business. Seventy people attended this networking session.
Participants also heard from Bara Barang about Indigenous entrepreneurship, the synergy created when mainstream organisations engage with Aboriginal businesses and how connection to culture allows Aboriginal employees to thrive in the workplace.
Highlights from previous years
Take a look at some of our activities from NSW Small Business Month 2020.