For the second

For the second year running the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) has joined together with Spin Master Ltd., to offer the Spin Master Innovation Fund. The fund which offers financing, mentoring and innovation workshops, is available to ten lucky young innovative entrepreneurs. 

The Prizes

If you are successfully selected as one of the ten winners, you will receive:

• Up to $50,000 in Start-Up Financing 
  Financing will provided by CYBF and Entrepreneur Gateway Canada. All loans will have low interest rates and no principal repayment in the first year
   
• Personally-Matched Mentor 
  You will be personally matched with one of CYBF’s mentors and become part of their world-class mentoring program. As part of the program you will have access to key business leaders for expert advice to help you navigate the challenges of launching and growing your start-up.
   
• Paid Trip to Innovation Launch Pad Workshop 
  The Innovation Launch Pad Workshop takes place in Toronto, over two days in September. The paid trip will include one-on-one meetings with Spin Master executives to get advice, guidance and contacts help you launch or grow your business.
   
• Attend the Acceleration Workshop
  Six months after the Innovation Launch Pad Workshop, you will be invited to attend the Acceleration Workshop to reconnect with experts and peers and discuss your progress so far.

Personal Criteria

To be eligible for this contest you must be:

• Aged 18-34 
• A Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada
• Not a full-time student
• Have experience or training relating to your business idea
• Not have been discharged from bankruptcy for at least 5 years
• Innovative and willing to push boundaries
• Articulate and able to express your vision for your company 

Business Criteria

Your business must also adhere to the following criteria:

• Have a complete and viable business plan that clearly demonstrates how the venture is going to be profitable and how it is innovative in its sector
• Have been operating for less than 12 months, or just starting.
• Must not be sexually exploitive or that feature sexually explicit entertainment, products or services
• Must not be engaged in or associated with illegal activities
• If a partnership or incorporated company, the entrepreneur must own 51% or more of the shares and be involved in the day-to-day management of the business.

How to Apply

To register your interest in participating in the program you must complete the application form on the CYBF website.  Applications must be received by May 10th, 2012.

If selected, you will be invited to pitch your business to a panel of Spin Master executives and industry leaders at ‘The Spin’.

Employment Incentives

Employment Incentives

• Hiring Credits for Small Business: This popular program has been extended for one more year, following an investment of $205 million. As outlined in our previous article by Gabrielle Loren on the program, this credit is available to small businesses who increased their Employment Insurance premiums in 2011 over 2010 and whose premiums were under $10,000.
   
• Summer Company Program: This summer program, which provides financial support to students who start a business while still in school, will be one of the benefactors of the Youth Employment Strategy’s additional funding of $50 million over two years.
   
• Industrial Research and Development Internship: This national internship program, that links Canadian businesses with graduate students for research placements, has been provided $14 million over two years to specifically link science and business graduates with businesses.
   
• Opportunities Fund: If you are a business who employs people with a disability or you are a business owner who has a disability you could receive funding through this labour market opportunities fund. Budget 2012 has pledged to invest $30 million over a three year period. 

Filling the Skills Shortage

To help fill the growing skills shortage, the government signalled that it will support changes to help improve foreign credential recognition.  It will work with provinces and territories to identify the next set of target occupations, and help integrate immigrants in the Canadian labour market. This includes:

 

• Provide further incentives to retain educated and experienced talent through the Canadian Experience Class.
   
• Introduce a new immigration stream to facilitate the entry of skilled tradespersons.
   
• Target, through the Business Immigration Program, more active investment in Canadian growth companies and more innovative entrepreneurs.
   
• Improve the Provincial Nominee Program by focusing on economic immigration streams in order to respond quickly to regional labour market demand.
   
• To meet regional employer demand and improve the responsiveness of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the government has reduced the paper burden on you as the employer and shortened processing times. 

Other Commitments

• Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Program will change from providing indirect support via tax credits, to dedicating $1.1 billion of direct support over the next five years.
   
• Forestry industry will also receive $105 million over the next two years to support innovation and market development.
   
• EI premiums will become more predictable with a pledge to limit rate increases to 5 cents each year.
   
• The pledge to reduce red tape through the “One-for-One” rule and reduce the tax compliance burden for businesses was reinforced.

Directed Funding

On March 29, the government unveiled the 2012 budget, dubbed the Economic Action Plan 2012.

If you are a small business focussed on innovation, there are a number of tax incentives and support programs that you could benefit from over the next five years. Here is an overview summary of what budget 2012 has in store.

Directed Funding for Innovation

There were a number of innovation funds which saw an increase in funds as a result of budget 2012, including:
 

• Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP): Investment has been doubled in the 2012 budget and is now valued at $110 million per year.
   
• National Research Council (NRC): Investment of $67 million for 2012-13 has been pledged to refocus on "business-led, industry-relevant research".
   
• Canadian Innovation Commercialization Program: Piloted in 2011, this program has become permanent with a commitment of $95 million over the next three years. An additional $40 million has then been pledged per year thereafter.

Business Financing

Recognising the impact that venture capital funding has on helping businesses grow in the early stages of their development, the government has pledged $400 million to attract more private sector investors to early-stage risk capital.  Over the coming months, the government will consider how to structure this support, in order to incentivise investors and the management of large-scale venture capital funds.

 

In addition, $100 million has been pledged to the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) to support its venture capital activities, and support the creation of large-scale venture capital funds led by the private sector.

KEY INVESTING 25

4. Not demanding transparent reporting from financial advisers. 

Make sure you are clued in to all the charges you may face from your financial advisor. Many financial product companies don’t clearly disclose their fees which may result in you paying more than you first thought. Opening an account, buying and selling stocks or funds, administering a loan, all could incur fees. Make sure you ask the right questions ahead of time, before you make any decisions.

5. Not maximizing the perks of incorporation. 

If you have an incorporated business there are some innovative solutions you can employ to save more money. For example, you can establish a trust. Costing around $1,500 to set up, this flexible financial planning tool can be used for things such as income splitting with your spouse or low-income retired parents. Tax savings in ideal scenarios for high-net-worth individuals could be significant and efficient; particularly if a business owner uses a trust to get funds from a small-business tax environment (where the tax rates are very low) and into low-income hands without the funds being taxed in the business owner’s hands.  

6. Being an emotional investor. 

While buy, hold and prosper isn’t always the answer, it’s also easy to lean too far the other way. According to the annual Dalbar Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behaviour study, the average investor may have underperformed in equity markets by as much as 5% annually, over the last 16 years, as a result of emotional trading instead of investment decisions. So take time to make sure you invest wisely.

7. Growing without a succession plan. 

You are probably the focus point of your business. And you probably like it that way. But it is important to remember that your business must be built to grow after your involvement has ceased. Whether you are planning to retire or to sell developing a formal succession plan, will help the transition of your business, and will make your financial preparations, a little easier. 

8. Not having sufficient risk protection. 

You rely on your company for income and, in turn, the company often relies on you to operate and thrive. But what will happen to the business   or your family should a tragedy should prevent you or a key partner from working? Make sure you have the right insurance to protect your interests; it is important to understand how being a business owner affects your business and your family.  

9. Separating charitable giving from investment planning. 

If you are in the position to give back to your community, you may not realize that these gifts are a potential investment planning option. Think about implementing structures such as donor-advised accounts as a financial solution that not only lets you give more effectively, but also creates a lasting legacy. 

Building a successful business involves long hours and a lot of equity. Take the time to look at your financial goals and get the right advice, so you avoid these common mistakes and make the right decisions. 

KEY INVESTING

As a small business owner, your relationship with money is likely to be different from when you were a salaried employee. Because your personal income is so closely tied to your business finances, it is important for you to make the most efficient use of your hard-earned dollar. Read on to discover the nine common investing mistakes that all small business owners should avoid:

1. Paying too much tax. 

If you are an incorporated business owner and you make less than $500,000 annually, you can restructure your compensation to pay less tax. By paying yourself in dividends rather than a salary, it will often result in more money in your pocket for investment. It will also allow you to opt out of Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) providing you with further money to play with, should you wish.

2. Not being diversified enough. 

It is important to not reinvest too much of your money back into your business. Strategically shelter your money outside your business, in a tax-efficient account where it can be invested and grow independently. 

 

When you do invest, try not to do it in the same industry in which your work. For example, if you own a jewelry store, you might not want to buy a lot of precious metal funds. If gold goes down, it will mean that both your business and your investments will suffer at the same time, instead of supporting each other. 

3. Following conventional financial-planning strategies. 

With the market continuing to be volatile, traditional financial-planning methods and investment strategies may feel too risky for you. But that does not have to stop you investing full-stop. By creating a highly diversified portfolio made up of cash-flow investments that are not tied to the stock market you will be able to grown your nest egg, without the volatility of stocks and mutual funds. 

Keyword Density

Keyword Density

One of the persistent myths of SEO is about keyword density. Keyword density is the belief that there is a mathematical formula that divides the number of words on a page by the number of instances of a given keyword. It is believed that this number is used by search engines for relevancy and for calculating the ranking of your site.

This myth has been dispelled many times over the years, but still returns again and again.

Although using the right keywords is important, it is also important to use them intelligently and with the reader/user in mind. The value of earning one good link from a site that thinks you have reputable content far outweighs that of including a keyword ten times in a page.

Paid Search Improves SEO Rankings

One of the most common SEO theories is that spending more on pay per click (PPC) advertising will improve your organic SEO rankings. Each of the major players have denied this, claiming that they have effective information barriers in place to prevent conflict of interest, between the search and advertising teams. In fact, many businesses have complained that even after spending millions on AdWords they still cannot get special consideration for search quality or to be removed from spam lists.

That being said, there is still unconfirmed evidence that if you already rank well for a keyword, PPC can help your click through rate.

Reciprocal Links

While the odd reciprocal link ("Link to me and I'll link to you") does not hurt, multiple deep site links (like in your blog or case studies) raise alarm bells that agreements or incentives are in place. 

The problem arose when search engines considered any incoming links as a ‘vote’ for that site. When webmasters realized that they could simply ‘trade’ votes with each other and improve each other's standing in the SERPs, reciprocal links became over used and defeated the purpose of the algorithm.