According to Statistics Canada, there were more than 2.3 million small businesses and 2.5 million self-employed Canadians in 2006. UPS recognizes that small businesses play a vital role in the health of the Canadian economy and commissioned the UPS Business MonitorSM Canada to ask Canadian business owners what their outlook is on the future of the economy, future growth for their business, employment issues and other topics.

Conducted by TNS Canadian Facts research group in spring 2007, the survey results showed Canadian small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are hesitant to enter the global market. More than a third believed they had enough business in Canada alone, while just under a fifth said they felt they should grow their business domestically before looking to enter the global arena. Only a mere three percent intended to expand internationally.

“This is disconcerting when one considers that SMBs make up 98 percent of Canadian businesses,”said Mike Tierney, President of UPS Canada. “Canada runs the risk of being left behind in the increasingly competitive global market unless there is a shift in the practices of our entrepreneurs to capitalize on the international trade opportunities available to them.”

Business owners identified a number of reasons they were hesitant to expand internationally. Finding suppliers and distributors they could trust was at the top of the list, followed by complex trade barriers and tax structures. However, the study found that companies conducting business internationally are expected to grow at a faster rate than those operating exclusively within Canada.

Despite a reluctance to enter the international market, most Canadian entrepreneurs anticipate significant growth for the Canadian economy and view globalization positively. Only 15 percent of entrepreneurs surveyed viewed globalization negatively, while more than a third considered it to be a positive step. To view the entire UPS Business Monitor, visit www.ups.com/cbm.

Expanding beyond Canadian borders will be the key to success for many small businesses, and finding the right business partners will be a cornerstone in their strategy. UPS has developed products and services designed specifically for businesses working internationally. UPS prides itself on being a trusted and reliable partner for small and medium-sized businesses and offers shipping and customs solutions that make global shipping easier.

VISIT NAVIGATA (BOOTH 321) AT THE MASSIVE TECHNOLOGY SHOW APRIL 1!  Get $100 off your SBC service.

It might not be on any mission statements, but many major communications service providers seem to have taken Newton’s third law as gospel. When things are operating smoothly, you can’t escape the barrage of flyers and emails reminding you of new products or “crucial” upgrades. Should things begin to go south however, you’re looking at hours of navigating tech support phone menus and listening to on-hold elevator music, praying for real human contact.

Navigata, a SaskTel company, has built a reputation by combining customized data, voice and Internet solutions with superior support from real live experts, and they’ve challenged Sir Isaac to a showdown in the interest of frustrated business owners everywhere. The mission? To share seamless, customized communications solutions and support, allowing businesses to save time and money, and focus on what they do best. The ammo? The Small Business Complete (SBC) system.

A full-service communications provider headquartered in North Vancouver, Navigata has been at the forefront of the industry for over fifty years. With Small Business Complete, they’ve created a dynamic and scalable system that provides solutions for small- to medium-sized businesses tired of running the technological gauntlet forced upon them by other major providers.

Tailored specifically to each business, SBC combines secure data networking with economical Voice-over-IP. Other features like secure access, reinforced network security, instant addition of services and devices, and automatic/transparent software upgrades and configuration backups can nearly eliminate once-inevitable downtime and improve productivity.

If you’d like a taste of what Small Business Complete has to offer, check out their booth at the Massive Technology Show, taking place April 1^st under the sails of Vancouver’s Canada Place.  Test-drive the SBC system with a free phone call to anywhere. If you like what you hear, just ask and you could get an extra $100 off your SBC service. That’s on top of their current promotion of free installation for new customers.

For more information on Navigata Small Business Complete and promotions, visit their tradeshow booth (#321), or check them out online at: www.navigata.ca/tradeshow.

How would you like to be part of Canada’s largest business-to-business technology show? By entering Massive Events Co.’s Make Your Business Massive Contest, you may just have the chance.

The competition, which runs from February 11 to March 10, 2008, inclusive, is open to all Canadian small businesses who have introduced a new technological product or service to the marketplace within the last 13 months. Six winners, three from Vancouver and three from Toronto, will each receive a Massive Marketing campaign prize valued at $5000.00 which includes a ten foot by ten foot display area at the show.

Winners will also receive a mention at the Massive kick-off reception, as well as logo placement and company bio on the Massive Technology Show website and logo placement in all email marketing campaigns leading up to the shows which are scheduled to take place in Vancouver on April 1, 2008 and in Toronto on April 30, 2008.

To enter, Massive producers are asking small businesses (defined as those having 20 employees or less) to submit 500 words describing their business and the technological product or service that they have developed. Submissions must include examples of the technology and wherever possible, qualitative and/or quantitative supporting information.

Please submit your entries to smallbusiness@massivetechshow.com. For questions please contact Christie at 604-622-7479 ext. 208. Winners will be notified the week of March 10, 2008.

The Expert: Warren Frey, Technology Blogger, techvibes.com

Definition of Web 3.0: Web 1.0 consisted of simple static pages. Web 2.0 brought dynamic applications, rich media and subscription to RSS feeds to the browser. Web 3.0 is so new that no-one has really nailed down a clear definition, but every indication is that it will transform the World Wide Web into a smarter, faster, and more intuitive platform for information and interaction.

Elaborate: For some, Web 3.0 is the “semantic web,” where ordinary language can be used for complex searches. Other versions of Web 3.0 link “real world” geography to the web, or try to integrate the 2D web with 3D graphics. Web 3.0 probably will consist of parts of all these innovations, but far more likely is a turn in a direction we never could have predicted. But every one of these changes will present new challenges and opportunities for web users and businesses.

How it will affect business: Web 3.0 is presently a buzzword that hasn’t yet gained traction in the business world, because no-one can actually agree on what it means. But just as Web 2.0 defined this generation of tech start-ups and influenced the decisions of goliaths like Yahoo and Google, the coming of Web 3.0 will also mean new features for business to wrap its head around and eventually monetize, or they’ll be left behind in the next tech boom.

The Expert: Duane Nickull, Technical Evangelist, Adobe Systems Inc.

Definition of Web 3.0: Wikipedia notes that Web 3.0 has been defined as various technologies coupled with Web 2.0 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_3.0), including semantics, geo-spatial and database type functionality. Given all of this exists in the current web and the internet evolves continually, I favour not using the term “Web 3.0”.

Knowledge of what has been referred to as “Web 2.0” is can be distinctly captured as a series of design and architectural patterns and as new patterns (such as semantic tagging) are added, there is no need to increment the numerical suffix.

How it will affect business: The business community has already noted that web 2.0 patterns have resulted in several successes that have disrupted the status quo. As media companies have witnessed revolutions from MySpace, Flickr, Facebook and YouTube causing them to rise to some of the most visible assets in the world, they have struggled to understand the patterns behind the rise to duplicate in their own domains. Businesses cannot ignore the evolutions in their industries and have got to understand what these patterns can do before their competition locks in their customers to their own platform.

Elaborate: Businesses were greatly affected by the first internet adoption and that trend continues today. Businesses can not longer rely on customer loyalty, patience and history if they are in competitive fields. If a competitor rises with a new business model and innovation in web presence, customers might leave to become customers of the competitor. This constant force should not be labeled Web 3.0. It is instead a concept of the constant beta, a pattern in which continual innovation exists. Other concepts and trends like trusting your users and harnessing collective intelligence can propel a business to the top of their field if done correctly. Those who neglect the potential disruptive innovations may soon find themselves buried within their industries.

Peer 1 launches ad campaign geared for web only. Watch and enjoy!

Get Connected TV Show’s archived segments from season 2 are now available on You Tube. The show features cool gadgets, software and hardware for staying connected. Lindsay Smith, Massive’s CEO,  recently joined AJ Vickery and Mike Agergo as a co-host for the show.  Click here to check out the segments

During the week of Nov. 26th the Massive team travelled across Canada to launch it’s newest event series: Mini Massive Networking Events. These high energy events drew people from both tech and general business for an evening of great discussions and relationship building. Photos from the event are posted on Flicker.

Lindsay Smith spoke at the most recent Ladies Who Launch event in Vancouver this past week. The event was targeted at women who in the initial start-up phase of their business. The topic of the panel discussion was Setting up a web presence for your new business.  Other panelists also included Le Petit Spa Owner, Nancy Mudford and Blue Muse Media, Rachel Thompson. The event was held at Exhibit Creative, owned by Biljana Vasiljevic.

To keep up with its national expansion plans, Massive Events Co. has hired advertising and marketing veteran Christie Mann to oversee the company’s rapid growth. Ms. Mann adds over 7 years experience to the team. Prior to joining Massive, she ran her own marketing company in Toronto which boasted clients such as McDonald’s Canada and the Downtown Younge Business Improvement Association.  The press release can be downloaded here.