business – Page 2 – Sunwapta Solutions

2 May 2017

Change or Die: Thriving In Turbulent Times

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-02T00:37:18-06:00May 2nd, 2017|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Oilfield Pulse, Working on the Business|Tags: Boom and Bust, business, business advice, Business Culture, Change Management, Corporate Culture, Entrepreneurship, Incremental Improvements, James Bond, Mark Watney, Miracle Max, Oil and Gas, Princess Bride, Slash and Burn, Systems and Processes, The Martian, Working on the Business|

The oil and gas industry is notorious for riding the boom and bust cycles inefficiently. When oil is over $80 a barrel, the profits are large enough companies choose to ignore innovation and spend on growth instead. The problems compound the faster you grow until you can’t survive below $70 per barrel.

When prices are low, there is a slash and burn reaction because the company was never set up to be efficient. Now, the money and resources are not there to support creating efficiencies. […]

24 Apr 2017

Small Potatoes, Time, and Inbound Marketing

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-27T18:48:22-06:00April 24th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing, Working on the Business|Tags: business, business advice, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, estimating time, inbound marketing, marketing, planning, project management, time management, Work, Working on the Business|

When you make mistakes, it is best to learn the lessons they teach you. Sometimes the lessons are about something else entirely – like time management and inbound marketing.

Counting Potatoes

It all started when I was making my supper. I was a bit hungry and grabbed some baby potatoes to roast. I would usually eat one large potato or two medium ones. Baby potatoes are much smaller. Obviously, one large potato is the equivalent of about 50 baby potatoes.

Having made this mistake before, and being considerate of […]

20 Apr 2017

Show Your Humanity to Engage More on Social Media

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-20T17:30:44-06:00April 20th, 2017|Categories: Branding, Current Events, Doug's Blog, Marketing|Tags: authentic, brand, business, business advice, Carrie Wilkerson, Celtic Music, Fiddle, Get Reel, Guitar, Humanity, marketing, Personality, Richard Branson, small business, small business owner, social media, Social Media Engagement, Sound, The Barefoot Executive, Video, Video Recording Studio, Virgin Group, YouTube|

There are two main camps in online marketing: business is business and business is personal. The first camp paints itself as impersonal, professional, and aloof. The second acknowledges that people do business with people. When done right, letting your humanity shine through your marketing messages increases social media engagement – without losing the professional touch.

3 Examples

Virgin is Human

If you are considering any of the companies in the Virgin Group, you will probably find the personality of […]

13 Apr 2017

Daraja – Raising Chickens and Developing Business Skills

By Doug Wagner|2017-05-26T17:44:19-06:00April 13th, 2017|Categories: Current Events, Doug's Blog, Non-Profits and Community|Tags: Arsheen Dhalla, business, business skills, case study, Chicken Farm, Daraja, Daraja Foundation, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, non-profit, orphanage, school, Zanzibar|

Arsheen Dhalla is busy doing remarkable work in Zanzibar through the Daraja Foundation. Daraja means bridge in Swahili. During one of her infrequent visits to Calgary, I had the pleasure to sit down with her and listen to her story. There are many stories to tell. For this first video in the series, we decided to focus on the development of life and business skills.

The Chicken Farm Club

Initially when Arsheen traveled to Zanzibar in this capacity, her work primarily centered on an orphanage and a local […]

12 Apr 2017

5 Powerful Exercises to Rehab Your Business

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-12T16:44:29-06:00April 12th, 2017|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Oilfield Pulse, Working on the Business|Tags: business, business advice, business strategy, Creating Value, Ideal Clients, Increasing Sales, innovation, marketing, O&G, Oil and Gas, Oil and Gas Industry, Oil and Gas Service Company, sales, strategy|

In rehab, you engage with experts and specialists to get through the first few stages of recovery. You can also speed it along by outsourcing to clinics outside of the public health care system.

At some point, you have to do some of the work on your own. If the exercises are too complicated or time-consuming, most people won’t do them.

So here are some simple but powerful exercises you can do to rehab your business. You will get stronger faster, by pushing the exercises […]

29 Mar 2017

If Marketing Is a Growing Asset, Would You Invest More?

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-12T11:10:41-06:00March 29th, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing, Oilfield Pulse, Sales|Tags: business, inbound marketing, marketing, Marketing Assets, Marketing Services, Marketing Strategy, Oil and Gas, sales, small business|

For most Oil and Gas (O&G) service companies, marketing works like this. You put money into it, and if it works, you get some leads. Marketing is an ongoing expense instead of an asset. Stop spending, and you stop getting results.

Sales Assets

Sales work much the same way. The biggest difference is it is primarily composed of people. If customers are spending somewhere and you want more sales, you either motivate your sales team a little more or hire additional sales people.

There are two common types of sales people everyone talks […]

22 Feb 2017

To Win, Understand Your Buyers Better Than Anyone Else

By Doug Wagner|2017-06-21T16:33:38-06:00February 22nd, 2017|Categories: Doug's Blog, Marketing, Oilfield Pulse, Sales|Tags: adding value, Brand Strategy, business, business strategy, Buyer, Buyer's Journey, inbound marketing, inbound sales, marketing, Marketing Results, Marketing Strategy, sales, sales process, small business, Steps in Buyer's Journey, Vendor, Working on the Business|

Ultimately buyers are responsible for making wise purchases. However, they usually need help. That is your opportunity to guide them through the buyer’s journey.

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Buyer’s Perspective

When buyers don’t know how to differentiate their vendors or the solutions they provide, they focus on price.

It is easy to blame vendors for not making things clear in their marketing and sales literature. How many buyers know what questions to ask a supplier, so the important differences are evident?

To get […]

3 Nov 2016

Fear, the Sounds of Silence, and Some Marketing Strategies

By Doug Wagner|2017-06-12T14:25:51-06:00November 3rd, 2016|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Oilfield Pulse, Sales|Tags: alberta, business, communication, economy, fear tactics, government, marketing, marketing solutions, ndp, Paul Simon, politics|

Like many people, I’ve been following the U.S. election. It has become nasty and full of hate. The Internet, the media, and social media are amplifying the effect. A year ago, we watched the Conservative Party try a few...

6 Sep 2016

How Does Your Value Stack Up In A New Market?

By Doug Wagner|2017-07-12T19:42:21-06:00September 6th, 2016|Categories: Branding, Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Oilfield Pulse|Tags: adding value, Brand Strategy, business, business strategy, Creating Value, Entering a New Market, Existing Market, Expansion, Finding Clients, Market, Market Opportunity Assessment, marketing, Marketing Strategy, New Market, Oilfield Hub, Oilfield Pulse, perceived value, Products, Retail, Services, Target, Target Canada|

If you are unprepared or desperate, entering a new market can kill your business. Deep pockets won’t always save you either.

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Remember Target expanding into Canada back in 2013? They had deep pockets and resources. Then after a series of missteps, they pulled out roughly two years later, incurring financial losses in the billions.

Target Canada made a lot of mistakes starting with […]

27 Jun 2016

Who is the Hero In Your Story?

By Doug Wagner|2017-04-03T11:09:16-06:00June 27th, 2016|Categories: Business Strategy, Doug's Blog, Marketing, Sales, The Good Men Project|Tags: advice, business, business advice, business success, changing roles, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, everyday heroes, happiness, leadership, manhood, marketing, masculinity, Steve Jobs, Storytelling, success, Work|

Who Is The Hero in Your Story

Great leaders and businesses have a story to tell. The best understand who the hero should be.

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Many men have lost their place in the bigger story. We bought into one narrative that has not worked out and are now struggling to find a new one as the world rapidly shifts underneath us. Some are looking for a hero, and some are seeking to become one again. We […]