The article we reviewed on Monday is just one of many reports that help to showcase Canada’s strong economic rebounding skills. Promising news has continued to pour in this week, as on Tuesday, QMI Agency reported that Canadians are looking past the woes of the recession and are living life fairly normally.

In fact, a new BMO poll has determined that nearly two-thirds of Canadians still plan on taking a vacation either this fall or winter. According to the poll, 61 per cent plan on taking a holiday while 79 per cent took a vacation this past summer. It also found that 20 per cent of those traveling intend on taking advantage of the strong Canadian dollar while on their trips.

The post popular destination, however, is the United States. So it doesn’t seem like many Canadians plan on traveling too far from home. According to QMI: “Younger Canadians were twice as likely to travel outside the country than those over 44 years old, the poll found. Almost a fifth of the under-44s were planning to head to the U.S.”

It is notable that the recent economic downturn has not grounded us Canucks. Somehow, our nation’s citizens have found a way to make it through the recession in better shape than their American counterparts. In fact, only 13 per cent of those polled indicated that they would need to use their reward points to lower their vacation costs.

In another interesting find, 19 per cent of those with incomes more than $100,000 said that they would use reward points to economize. Evidently, those with money know how to use it wisely! This concept, of course, rings close to home with our funding specialists who are always assisting business owners with ideas on how to use money to make money!

Su McVey, the vice-president of customer communications and marketing at BMO, would agree. Said McVey: “In today’s economic environment, I would encourage every Canadian vacationer to take full advantage of their travel-related rewards to reduce their holiday expenses.”

In his special to QMI Agency, Ellis lists a few ideas about how to have a happy haunting experience without forking out the big bucks. His first tip is simply to “shop early to avoid last-minute crowds and craziness.” At this point, that means getting to the stores this week as the end of the month is fast approaching!

Set a budget and decide in advance how much you want to spend on a costume, says Ellis. This is always an important part of making sure your money is used wisely. In fact, it’s not much different than the conversations our licensed funding specialists have with our clients. When you plan out exactly what you want to use your money for, your desired outcome will be within closer reach.

“Combine new and used items for an original look at the best price,” recommends Ellis. Going back to some of his suggestions from yesterday’s blog, Ellis notes that, to save money, buying a costume may mean picking and choosing from a number of different, inexpensive items to create an original and unique look that is easy on the wallet.

“Look in different departments,” he says, “you never know what you might find.” In other words, you don’t even have to be shopping for a Halloween costume to create one. For all you know, the perfect superhero cape could be a table cloth you find in the houseware section of a department store!

“Bring a picture for inspiration and so you won’t forget details when shopping,” says Ellis. If you know exactly what type of look you’re going for, your shopping experience will be that much easier. You may even want to draw your ideas so that you can match your concepts to the items you find that most closely resemble them.

And finally, “check back often if you don’t find the piece or costume you’re looking for to complete your costume.” According Sara Gaugl, the marketing manager for Value Village, “100,000 pieces are on the floor of each Value Village store at any given time and 5,000 are added each day.”

However, as Jim Ellis explained this morning, in his special to QMI Agency, celebrating Halloween does not have to be an expensive activity. In fact, you can find a number of inexpensive ways to both decorate and dress up by visiting local thrift stores. He writes that Value Village is a great place to find cost-effective costumes.

One of the reasons for this, is that the store employs “costume consultants” in preparation for the big, scary celebration on October 31st. These friendly employees – all decked out in “holiday drag” – provide assistance to those looking to get all spooky without emptying their wallets.

The best way to do this, writes Ellis, is to DIY. You know, “Do-It-Yourself”? In other words, you can always create your own costume by using a variety of different supplies. Even creating your own original pirates, superheroes, vampires and zombies can be done with just a little bit of imagination.

Sara Gaugl, the marketing manager for Value Village, advises shoppers to pair up the store’s previously-owned pieces with goods from accessory kits or even their wig department! Among the most popular costume ideas this year? According to Gaugl, pop sensations Lady Gaga and Katy Perry are definitely in.

Movies such as Black Swan and The Smurfs are also inspiring a lot of costume ideas this year. And believe it or not, Value Village is even offering online makeup tutorials so that shoppers can get the looks right. “Browse every department,” recommends Gaugl, who is sure that enough mixing and matching will make the perfect Halloween costume.

Of course, you don’t have to visit a thrift store to get all of the pieces necessary for a great Halloween costume. You just may have all of the right ingredients lying around the house! In tomorrow’s blog, we’ll take a look at a number of Ellis’ tips on how to DIY instead of buying your costume this year.

Perhaps, their reputation with helping Canada to strengthen its economy is one reason that Canadians are so willing to support local retailers. According to an article posted by QMI Agency earlier today, a new study to coincide with Small Business Week found that Canadian shoppers are actually willing to go out of their way to support smaller local shops.

According to Scotiabank and Harris/Decima, 63 per cent of Canadian shoppers would either walk or drive farther to support a small business. 43 per cent of respondents said that they would also be willing to pay more to “help the little guy”, while 85 per cent revealed that they would spread the word about their favourite small businesses.

Said Scotiabank’s director of small business, David Wilton: “As Small Business Week kicks off, we want to acknowledge the value small businesses provide to all Canadians. Small businesses are the backbone of our communities, and when they succeed, we all benefit from their innovation, growth and the employment they create.”

This is all good news for our excellent clients. Perhaps, we had it the other way around at the beginning of this blog. Maybe the reason that small businesses are so significant to Canada’s economic growth is because of the support they receive from the great people of this nation!

The QMI Agency report makes clear that the majority of Canadians feel that that small businesses help to improve access to products and services. In addition, they create jobs while providing leadership in the community. The Scotiabank and Harris/Decima study did, however, point out a few spots where small businesses could improve.

According to the article, “Shoppers polled also said they’d like to see more personalized service (21%), increased advertising (20%) and more competitive prices (19%) from their local businesses.” As always, Synergy Merchant Services offers its innovative merchant cash advance program as a solution to helping small business owners put their plans to improve into action. Give us a call to find out how!

In fact, Statistics Canada reports a growth of 61,000 jobs last month, with nearly all of them being full-time positions. This has lowered the national unemployment rate from 7.3 per cent to 7.1. As well, these findings have helped to lessen what appeared to be growing tension across Canada, that the country would soon be falling on hard economic times.

In both the United States and Europe, there is still a stress on the economy and jobs are becoming harder and harder to come by. Thankfully, there is cause for some optimism on the home front as Canada continues to demonstrate its prowess in bouncing back from the recession of a couple years ago.

According to Finance Minister, Jim Flaherty: “September’s job growth shows Canada is on the right track for steady, modest job creation and economic growth. But too many Canadians are still looking for work and the fragile global recovery – especially in Europe and the United States – will continue to have an impact on Canada.”

Naturally, when a country falls on hard times financially, the primary concern of its citizens is the loss of jobs. Especially with the holiday season fast approaching, the necessity of having a steady income is at its highest point for people all over the country. Thankfully, as Dunn points out, the current unemployment rate in Canada is the best it has been since 2008.

This is thanks, in part, to the province of British Columbia, which led the nation with 32,000 new jobs being created last month. The west coast province was followed by Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island as leaders in job growth, while Ontario, Alberta and Quebec remained even.

Not all Canadians are bound to view this recent finding with optimism, however. But, at least, it shows some promise. This is the sentiment felt by Craig Wright, Royal Bank’s chief economist. Said Wright: “Our view is one of cautious optimism. We see an uncertain, uneven and underwhelming recovery, but a recovery nonetheless.”

The sold-out MTS Centre was all abuzz yesterday afternoon, as the Jets marked their official start of their newly acquired life in professional hockey. After having the previous Jets leave Winnipeg to become the Phoenix Coyotes back in 1996, the NHL is back with a vengeance in the capital of Manitoba.

At Synergy Merchant Services, there are many hockey fans. But it is not lost on these forward-thinking individuals that the new Winnipeg Jets present a bit of a dilemma in the current National Hockey League. “They’re going to have to come up with a new division alignment,” insisted one of our reps last week.

Just like the funding specialist that he is, this member of our staff, is always thinking about ways to improve, move forward and build a better brand. This, of course, is his job daily, as the merchant cash advances he provides for his clients all come with the intention of having that business owner make changes to his or her business that will help it to grow.

“The Jets used to be the Atlanta Thrashers of the Southeast Division,” he pointed out, “They share a division with Florida, Tampa Bay, Washington and Carolina. It only makes sense that since the team moved to Winnipeg, they share a division with Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. It’ll make for great rivalries.”

So we decided to put our specialist’s mind to work. How would you reconfigure the NHL divisions to make sense of the Thrashers moving from Atlanta to become the Jets in Winnipeg? Our associate smiled, revealing that he had already thought all of this through and was prepared with an answer.

“Division alignment, as you know, is based on geographical location,” he began, “so it makes sense for the Jets to play in the Northwest Division. This should bump the Minnesota Wild out of that division to play in the Central Division. That should bump the Columbus Blue Jackets out of that division to take the Jets’ place in the Southeast. Simple!”

Well done, we think. But we’ll have to wait for next year’s NHL season to kick off to see how accurate our specialist is with his realignment suggestions. In the meantime, we are confident that he’ll help you make plans to bring your business to the next level. Give us a call to figure out how. And oh yeah…Go Jets Go!

And while we, here at Synergy, do not wish to publicly endorse any specific candidate, we definitely wish to endorse your right to vote. It’s important to keep in mind that, as a Canadian (and in this case, Ontarian), your ability to vote is a privilege. Not voting indicates that you have no voice – which is certainly not the case.

Canada made its collective voice loud and clear this past May during the federal election which saw Stephen Harper’s Progressive Conservatives earn a majority government. Meanwhile, the late Jack Layton’s NDP became the official opposition for the first time in the nation’s history. It is yet to be seen if the weakening support for the Liberal party will have an affect on Premier McGuinty’s campaign.

Earlier this week, Terry Davidson of The Toronto Sun reported that the Liberal party was actually gaining support based on a recent Abacus Data poll. He wrote that the poll’s numbers indicated that McGuinty had 37 per cent of the vote from decided voters compared to 34 per cent for Hudak.

When it came to undecided voters, 40 per cent said that they would “very likely” vote Liberal while 35 per cent favoured the vote for the PC. On television, campaign ads for Tim Hudak strongly challenged McGuinty’s position on taxes, highlighting that that the current premier has broken promises to not raise or introduce new taxes.

David Coletto, the CEO of Abacus Data, questions if the PC campaign is working. Said Coletto: “Over the last few days, people’s attitudes have shifted or firmed up. There’s a general sense that even though McGuinty probably has some faults, he’s a better alternative than Tim Hudak. People didn’t trust (Hudak) enough…(He) hasn’t inspired that many people to get on board their train.”

Today, however, Ontarians will take to the polls to cast their official votes to determine who should be in charge of running the province. Be sure to make your voice heard by voting for the candidate that you feel would best serve Ontario’s best interests. By tomorrow, we will all know how that person will be.

We are proud to say that we live and work in a country where our entrepreneurs are hard-working, determined individuals who seem to be constantly striving for success. Just yesterday, further proof came out that seems to prove this point of view. A QMI Agency report revealed that Forbes magazine has declared that “Canada is the world’s best place to do business”!

Knocking the former champion, Denmark, out of first place, the magazine’s recent annual ranking of global economies has placed Canada in its top spot. Among the factors leading to Canada’s worldwide dominance as the “best place to do business” are improvements to the nation’s tax system, a lack of red tape and strong investor protection.

QMI also notes that Forbes has placed Canada in 9th place when comparing tax systems in countries across the world. This is a significant jump from the nation’s previous holding of 23rd in this category in last year’s study. Formally 4th place in the world, Canada’s new number one spot places it right in front of New Zealand and Hong Kong who round out the top three in that order.

There are some Canadians who may disagree with the idea that the nation’s tax system is one to celebrate. The recently-introduced and widely-hated Harmonized Sales Tax is one reason that many might feel that way. However, QMI points out that Canada has made cuts to employee and corporate tax rates as well as the HST in Ontario and British Columbia.

The United States, by the way, just made it into the top 10 by claiming the tenth spot. According to Forbes, “While the U.S. is paralyzed by fears of a double-dip recession and Europe struggles with sovereign debt issues, Canada’s economy has held up better than most. The $1.6 trillion economy is the ninth biggest in the world and grew 3.1% last year. It is expected to expand 2.4% in 2011, according to the Royal Bank of Canada.”

The worst countries in the world to do business in? According to Forbes magazine, that would be Burundi, Zimbabwe and Chad. So congratulations Canada! Especially to you business owners who work tirelessly to provide optimum services and products that have helped our country become recognized around the world as the best place to do business.

When a cashier accepts credit and debit cards, it allows for the merchant to open his or her store up to more opportunities to make sales. One way that some merchants have continued to give themselves chances to process more sales is by having automated, self-serve check outs.

The Metro grocery store – formerly Dominion – is just one example of a store that allows for these types of do-it-yourself transactions. At these checkouts, customers may use Visa, MasterCard, Interac and even cash to pay for products without the assistance of a cashier. Seems pretty innovative, right?

Well, according to The Toronto Star business reporter, Francine Kopun, in an article published earlier this week, the innovative self-serve checkouts may soon become things of the past. Kopun writes that recent surveys have determined that the cashier-less checkouts may be presenting more problems than they are solutions.

She reveals that “an internal study by Big Y found delays in its self-service lines caused by problems such as customer confusion over coupons, payments, and intentional and accidental theft, including misidentifying produce and baked goods as less-expensive varieties.”

As far as Canadians go, they seem to be split when it comes to their opinions of self-serve checkouts. An online poll conducted by The Star found that just 42 per cent of respondents loved the automated checkouts, while 39 per cent hated them. 18 per cent of those surveyed claimed to be indifferent.

Either way, it seems as if a number of stores will be phasing out their automated checkouts, including Wal-Mart. The huge retail chain recently removed the self-serve checkouts at a Scarborough, Ontario location although they have not announced plans to do the same throughout the rest of their locations in Canada.

Felicia Feffer, a spokeswoman for Wal-Mart Canada remarked that “they definitely make sense in certain stores. But we look at it on a store-to-store basis.” IKEA‘s President and CEO, Anthony Longo added that the rising trend of using bar code-reading smartphones is likely to change things for supermarket shopping over time.

It should go without saying that rude employees do not make for a well-respected company. But it’s important to note that even when employees are displaying rudeness towards each other, customers may still take offence. Taylor notes that a recent study published by the Journal of Service Research confirms this.

She writes that the research found that “a staggering 92 per cent of customers who see rudeness in a store, restaurant or service industry will tell their friends and family…And most of those people said they would stop shopping at a store or eating at a restaurant as a result.”

The types of business where rudeness was most commonly noticed was restaurants. Gyms were the least likely place of business where one would experience rudeness. Taylor notes that the study also found that even when customers overhear back room arguments, they are likely to think less of the company.

Christine Porath teaches at Georgetown University. Her own research has found that customer dissatisfaction has been growing over the past decade or so. And a lot this unfortunate trend revolves around witnessing employee rudeness. Some of it has to do with the way they treat customers, and some of it has to do with how the employees treat each other.

Said Porath: “I don’t think people realize sometimes how they come across…People claim it’s the worst in academia. Attorneys have a reputation for it. The entertainment industry is just brutal.” Evidently, much change is needed in industries that involve dealing with the public.

Taylor notes that the researchers in her article suggest that companies develop programs that better train their employees in managing civility. Getting along with co-workers and being able to treat customers with respect is of prime importance. Remember, it’s all about the customer experience. Better make it a good one!

After all, making sure that you get as many customers as possible is a key to being successful. What is a business without customers, right? Considering that, it’s always important to note that it is not just your products that make people visit your place of business. It’s also not just the type of advertising you do.

Customer service, as we all know, is at the top of the list when it comes to things that people consider when choosing where to shop. Treating your customers as valued and appreciated individuals is imperative, especially considering how much competition is out there in each respective marketplace.

Remember that, for most people, the customer experience – not just the product being purchased – is what brings customers back into your store for repeat visits and continued business relationships. The slightest bit of a bad experience could mean the end of those relationships for good.

Earlier today, The Toronto Star‘s Lesley Ciarula Taylor published an article discussing the importance of maintaining optimum customer service levels to encourage repeat business. In fact, Taylor noted that many customers are willing to stop shopping at a store where they experience any type of rudeness.

According to Georgetown University’s Christine Porath, the occurrences of customers experiencing uncivil employee behaviour is growing. Taylor notes that Porath’s studies of this matter have determined that between 1998 and 2005, the percentage of employees who were targeted by rudeness jumped from 20 to 48.

Said Porath: “There is a moral argument against employees being uncivil…From a customer standpoint, it isn’t just about how you’re being treated. The fact is that you don’t like to witness this kind of behaviour.” Clearly, it doesn’t pay to be rude to either customers or co-workers!

We will explore this topic a bit more in tomorrow’s blog.

Halloween

As QMI Agency’s Stefania Moretti reported late last week, both summer and back-to-school sales were slower than expected this year. Store owners across Canada are hoping for somewhat of a boost this fall. With the fall season about to officially start in a little over a week from now, retailers are hoping the boost comes soon.

This way of thinking has made Halloween an even more important occasion than ever. Never considered an official holiday, the spooky fall tradition is one that brings about a lot of thrilling events for people of all ages. As always, it’s important for business owners to cash in on the excitement. And this true now more than ever.

John Torella certainly feels this way. He is a retail consultant at J.C. Williams who, when interviewed by QMI Agency, insisted that “Halloween continues to grow more and more important.” And since a recent Value Village shopping survey found that 90 per cent of adults polled won’t be reusing last year’s Halloween decorations, Torella feels that merchants need to “get in, in a big way.”

In other words, going all out to “spook up” your store with Halloween decorations is certainly the way to go, especially when selling Halloween-based items. The Value Village survey also found that the average Canadian plans on spending upwards of $300 on Halloween this year. Many retailers may be unaware of just how big the annual celebrations of thrills and chills really is.

Said Ken Alterman, the president and chief executive of Value Village: “Halloween is one of our biggest times of year at Value Village, and it keeps getting bigger. In fact, over the last five years we’ve seen Halloween sales increase more than 35%. It’s a holiday where you can escape from everyday worries, alter your ego and just have fun celebrating with friends and family. People love that.”

Canadian Tire certainly agrees. Moretti writes that Halloween has become the store’s third most important season category behind Christmas and “summer backyard living”. The retailer, known mainly for auto and home supplies, plans on bringing in over 40 different Halloween costumes for sale this fall.

And imagine, the day after Halloween will practically be Christmas for most retailers! Aren’t we still officially in summer? For business owners across Canada, summer is long gone and fall is already here. So if you haven’t yet, it’s time to get your store ready for the festivities that mark the new season.

By participating in Synergy’s merchant cash advance program, restaurant owners from all over Canada have had a much easier go at securing the extra capital needed for such large expenditures as new kitchen equipment and renovations. In Synergy’s home province of Ontario, however, things can still be tough for the restaurant industry.

Yesterday, The Toronto Star‘s business reporter Dana Flavelle wrote of the Ontario restaurant industry’s current issues with inflated energy costs, wages, red tape and sales tax. With a new provincial election on the way, restaurant owners are hoping that the next provincial government will take a stand and do something about it.

As members of the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association, we here at Synergy, have long been aware of the organization’s dedication to assisting its members with such matters at various levels of government. Undoubtedly, the CRFA will be working to have the province tackle the obstacles that exist within the restaurant industry.

Garth Whyte is the president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association. Said Whyte: “The restaurant industry presents a huge opportunity for Ontario to create jobs, drive tourism and build vibrant communities…I’d like to see a blue ribbon group focused on our sector to develop an integrated plan for the restaurant industry.”

Flavelle points out that Ontario restaurants have lost 10,000 jobs over the past three years and that the industry’s profitability level in the province is at 4.4 per cent. This is significantly below the national average of 7.1 per cent. Meanwhile, Ontario’s restaurant industry generates upwards of $23 billion yearly and is the province’s fourth largest employer.

One of the major dilemmas faced by the industry is the Harmonized Sales Tax which took effect last year. As a result, restaurateurs have to pay more for such items as cheese. Up to 30 per cent more, writes Flavelle. As well, “licensed restaurants pay just as much as consumers for alcohol purchased from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario or The Beer Store as there is no wholesale pricing model for those products.”

Have you ever noticed that when you are watching television and the show that you are watching goes to break, that the commercials seem louder than the program? This may not be true in all cases, but the “loudness” of T.V. commercials has caused quite a stir in recent years.

As a result, regulators are now insisting that advertisers turn the volume down on their commercials when they go to air! According to QMI Agency, who released a report on this subject yesterday, Canadian broadcasters will be forced to lower the volume on commercials. That way, viewers should no longer have to reach for their remotes to turn the sound down during breaks.

You will have to wait an entire year, however, to take advantage of this new privilege. The QMI report notes that starting on September 1st of next year, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission‘s ruling will take effect. Essentially, it means that “broadcasters will have to ensure that both programs and ads are transmitted at the same volume”.

Konrad von Finckenstein is the CRTC’s chairman. Said von Finckenstein: “Over the years, we have seen a steady increase in consumer complaints about loud ads. Broadcasters have allowed ear-splitting ads to disturb viewers and have left us little choice but to set out clear rules that will put an end to excessively loud ads. The technology exists, let’s use it.”

Although this new law will make its way into regulating Canadian television next year, similar laws have already been passed in Europe and the United States. Apparently, complaints about loud ads in these two parts of the world have been coming in abundantly for a very long time.

QMI reveals that, as a result, “in 2009, the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC), the internationally recognized technical standards body for digital TV, set a standard for measuring and controlling TV signals in order to minimize fluctuations in volume between programming and commercials.”

We have kept our eye on a number of reports, over the past year or so, that have highlighted the various achievements of businesses across Canada and their roles in rebuilding the economy. And just yesterday, QMI Agency released a report naming one province the country’s leader in this area.

Congratulations go out to Saskatchewan! Reported to be “the fastest-growing Canadian province this year thanks to its potash and agricultural products, expanding at almost twice the national rate” by the Royal Bank of Canada, the prairie province’s economy is expected to expand by 4.3 per cent this year and 4.1 per cent next year.

Craig Wright is RBC’s chief economist and senior vice-president. Said Wright: “2011 is shaping up to be a golden age for Saskatchewan’s economy as it rides the tidal wave created by strong global demand for its various natural resources. We expect to see a positive ripple effect on incomes and capital spending in the province.”

Known on maps as a giant rectangular land mass in the middle of Canada, the province of Saskatchewan is still a relatively small place when you think about it. It’s 588,276 square kilometres is home to just over one million people, according to Wikipedia. That’s approximately a fifth of the population of the Greater Toronto Area.

Nevertheless, Saskatchewan has the strongest financial outlook in the country. QMI notes that the outlook for the rest of Canada is uncertain even though economists are optimistic that the nation will not soon face another economic downturn. Growth is still expected throughout the country in the coming year.

QMI Agency also reveals that the RBC report found that “after Saskatchewan, Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador will be the next best performers.” At the bottom of the pack, however, are Quebec and the Atlantic provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.