Pricing incongruities have been around for eons, though they always seem “new” when things are out of whack in industries/sectors. So why are gasoline prices at incredible highs while natural gas is now so inexpensive that producers are practically giving it away for free? Why did our family’s general accountant brag that he had sold [...]
What to do when no one comes to the store?
I’ve had a few (well more than a few) business flops in my life. Great idea, it seems, but no one is buying. This can be frustrating to the ego and certainly expensive to the bottom line, especially if you are in start-up mode. What should you do if this sort of “no one will [...]
Ottawa Renovates magazine: Where the printed media is still effective
We’ve just published the latest version of Ottawa Renovates magazine, a truly successful regional publication which resulted from solid relationships. While the print media has faced quite a bit of pressure from online alternatives (we now publish most things both in print and online format, with an increasing emphasis on the online component, see Canadian [...]
Strategic alliances: The SMPS Marketer article
My SMPS Foundation white paper about strategic alliance best practices for the architectural, engineering and construction community has been excerpted in the SMPS Marketer magazine. SMPS has provided me with a PDF of the article, which I can send to you on request. You can email me at buckshon@cnrgp.com if you would like a copy.
If you are writing responses to RFPs, you should read this book
Matt Handal has written an intriguing and extremely useful e-book, Proposal Development Secrets: Win More, Work Smarter, and Go Home On Time, available through the Amazon.com Kindle store. The book is certainly inexpensive, at $3.99, under normal circumstances, but Handal has gone a step further — if you download it by Tuesday, Feb. 14 2012 [...]
Canadian Design and Construction Report — January 2012 issue
The January 2012 issue of Canadian Design and Construction Report is now online. You can view it at www.cadcr.com and if you wish to order printed copies, request them through magcloud.com. We’re planning some updates to the website, as you can see the progression in the page turning software. This leads to a question? Is [...]
Ottawa Renovates fall 2011 issue published
Ottawa Renovates is an intriguing — and successful — extension of the publishing business associated with this blog. We started publishing the twice-yearly magazine about three years ago at the request of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association Renovators’ Council. The challenge: While we had published the association’s internal newsletter, The GOHBA Impact!, for about [...]
Canadian Design and Construction Report
The latest issue of Canadian Design and Construction Report has been posted. You can request a printed or PDF copy through MagCloud (see sidebar). The printed version is $19.95, the PDF is free. You can also of course visit the publication’s own site at cadcr.com. Content in this issue includes a Canadian-focused report on my [...]
The Frugal Construction Marketer
This year (2012), I’ll be writing my second book: The Frugal Construction Marketer: How to build and promote your architectural, engineering and construction business for less than $5,000 a year. The book will show that you don’t need to spend huge amounts of money to be successful with your marketing if you are creative, understand [...]
Fighting the deadline with “fighting nature”
The price of the print version of How Humans Fight the Laws of Nature — and Lose: Discover How to Thrive in Life and Business, increases by 50 per cent on July 2. You can order the book through the fightingnature.com site (and receive volume 2 free, whether or not you purchase volume 1) but [...]