Speaker BIO: Allison Graham
Founder, Elevate Training Seminars + Strategic Development Inc.
Allison Graham is the Author of the book Business Cards to Business Relationships: How to Build the Ultimate Network. Through her company www.ElevateBiz.com she works with some of Canada’s most prominent companies and financial institutions, offering corporate training and keynote speeches on business development strategies and effective networking to grow bigger books of business.
Not so long ago, Allison Graham worked as a receptionist during the day and a bartender at night. Thanks to learning how to network effectively, in a short period of time she changed her life’s direction by creating a huge network and a successful career in the media, politics, business and charitable sectors.
Realizing the power of networking and being forever grateful to the people who showed her the way, Allison Graham has made it her personal mission to help others reach their true potential by teaching them practical networking strategies that actually work!
In addition to writing the Getting Connected column for Sun Media and the London Free Press, Allison Graham has contributed to the Financial Post and been featured in the Globe and Mail, CityLife Magazine, appeared on City TV’s breakfast television, the Michael Coren Show and been interviewed on BNN’s MoneyTalk along with several other media outlets.
Speaker BIO: David Ciccarelli
Co-founder and CEO, Voices.com
A made-in-London success story, Voices.com is the industry-leading company for connecting businesses with professional voice talents. Radio and television stations, advertising agencies and Fortune 500 companies rely upon their award-winning service to search for, audition and hire voice talent.
In the past 2 years, Voices.com has grown by 228% with more than 100,000 customers world-wide and for two years running, has ranked on the Profit Hot 50, the annual ranking of Canada's fasting growing companies. Alongside a number of other prestigious accolades, the company has been recognized for its customer-centric approach to doing business.
As founder and CEO of Voices.com, David Ciccarelli offers management experience as well as a clear vision for the company's future. An honours graduate of the Ontario Institute of Audio Recording Technology, David was nominated for the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the Business Development Bank of Canada.
At Bridges to Better Business 2011, David will share the story of starting Voices.com as a humble 2 person operation in 2003 and building the company into a multi-million dollar organization employing a team of twenty with continued plans for growth and development.
Speaker BIO: Liz Gray
Instructor, Fanshawe College
Liz Gray has created and managed paid search campaigns for organizations in the finance, retail, and service sectors since 2002. She is a faculty member with the Lawrence Kinlin School of Business at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario where she created and now teaches the only dedicated Search Engine Marketing and Google Analytics courses to be offered in Canada by a Community College or University. She is also a Search Campaign Analyst and SEO Specialist with Page Zero Media in Toronto. Gray is an AdWords Qualified Individual, a board member with the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization, and a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business at UWO.
Seminar Info: Your Customers are Online But Can They Find You?
Once you’ve built a great site, how do customers find you? The session will cover the latest tips in executing effective pay-per-click campaigns using Google AdWords and local advertising with Google Places. We’ll also show you quick and easy fixes for your website that will help improve your organic ranking to get free clicks online! You’ll come away with a manageable to-do list that will help you improve your online visibility, conversion rate, and ROI. Register early so that we can incorporate your
website into the presentation and give you specific examples and advice.
Speaker BIO: Laurie Hawkins
Laurie is an energetic, world-class, Certified Business Coach and leader, with an extraordinary range of business expertise to achieve unprecedented performance. Laurie has a results-based approach to selling, marketing, and business development, built on over 20 years of proven corporate experience. With a keen business sense, she helps to restructure organizations and revitalize performance, productivity and profitability.
Seminar Info: The New Sales Paradigm: How to Help Customers Buy
The rules have changed - the market is different and a new economy has emerged! Buyers have responded to these changes quickly and dramatically, but many sales people are attempting to rely on outdated tactics such as aggressive cold calling, canned presentations and manipulative tricks in an attempt to close business. Today's sophisticated buyers are demanding a new approach to sales that puts client results first, builds trust and loyalty, and ensures consistent success and profits for both the buyer and the seller. Have your selling models evolved to profit from this change?
This seminar will explore the following areas with you:
»Make sales natural, fun and more effective
»Learn the top reasons why customers leave and what to do about it
»Create loyalty (and more sales) with attention-getting tools that get inside the client's mind and stay there
»Increase your average sale by moving your clients from satisfied to emotionally connected and loyal
»Develop an understanding of your own behaviour and of the buyer's behaviour, and how it impacts the relationship
Bark Communications is an agency that services its clients with the best ideas, design and communications possible. For over ten years the team at Bark has focused on providing full-service strategic thinking and implementation that builds strong, lasting relationships.
Speaker BIO: Brian Klassen
President
Brian brings over 20 years of advertising and marketing experience to his role at Bark, having managed brands for a number of clients across the globe such as, Bank of Montreal, Dupont, Pfizer, Brock University and Monsanto. Its Brian’s unique mix of creative direction and strategic excellence that help him create strong brands for his clients and make a difference in the global marketplace.
Speaker BIO: Ray Majoran
CEO
Ray has been working in the design and communications field for over ten years throughout Canada and the United States and has established a reputation for building strategic branding initiatives and media solution for over 150 organizations worldwide.
Seminar Info: Making Plans for Brand Success
Your company’s brand should build trust, connect with your target and motivate your customers to buy. But building a great brand doesn’t just happen; it begins with a great plan. But how do you create one? What do you plan for? How does your brand meet your clients’ expectations? These questions and many more will be answered as Brian and Ray share how and what to plan for when it comes to building a strong brand that works for your company.
