Renowned entrepreneur and business speaker Donald Cooper is promising an insightful and compelling presentation for those seeking to boost their business efforts in the Battlefords.
Cooper will be the star attraction leading the Battlefords Chamber of Commerce Business Event of the Year, the Accelerate your Business Boot Camp. The event starts at 8:30 a.m. Oct. 20, to be held at the Gold Ridge Centre in North Battleford.
It is one of a number of events Cooper has planned for Saskatchewan. He was in Saskatoon on the weekend and plans to be in Regina next week, and says he will be practically "a Saskatchewan native" by the time it is over. "I will certainly be a Roughriders fan," said Cooper.
The event is billed as one where participants can, in one day, learn how to "sell more, manage smarter, grow your bottom line and have a life."
"That is the checklist for every business person," said Cooper told the News-Optimist Thursday.
It's a presentation that is based in large part on his real-life experiences in his various business careers, first as an owner of Cooper Canada, known as a leader in hockey equipment.
That company was known as "the best in the world at what we did," said Cooper, expanding from a tiny company of 11 personnel to one of 2,800 employees.
The brand became a Canadian icon. "Everyone who grew up playing sports in Canada had the Cooper name on some part of their body." he said. The business was sold in 1987. Cooper later transitioned to a successful career as a retailer of women's fashions, which led to an unexpected speaking career.
He works now in 40 different industries around the world to help clients grow their businesses. Next month he plans some projects working on cruise ships in the Caribbean. "That's not a bad gig," Cooper said.
What he offers participants is a real-word from-the-trenches perspective, as he puts it. He notes many other business speakers have never actually had run a business.
"They've never actually been in the trenches," said Cooper. "What I've found is that people like to hear from folks like me who have actually been in the trenches and are real about the thing. We know, we've been there, it's not some theoretical or academic exercise. I'm a real world type of guy."
There are a number of tips and participants can expect to take away from the event. The first item will be discussing how to create compelling value and customer experiences, and then how to "effectively communicate that in a crowded and cynical marketplace so that we stand out."
He has what he calls a five-second course on advertising. "Advertising is creative bragging," said Cooper.
So many businesses think they have an advertising problem, he says, but what they actually have is "a fundamental marketing problem. They aren't doing anything worth bragging about."
It starts by creating compelling experiences with customers. "First we get good, and then we brag," said Cooper.
Then Cooper plans to look at how to manage smarter, such as how to create clarity in the business and "how we manage ourselves and our team and how we define and create a more extraordinary and manageable future for our business."
He also plans to take a look at what he describes as the "math of profitability" and what makes a business profitable. He says many business people don't understand "math of profitability."
"To increase sales by five per cent could increase our bottom line by 30 to 40 per cent," said Cooper. "Reduced expenses by five per cent could increase our bottom line by 20 to 25 per cent. So there is huge leverage - just small improvements in our business can have a dramatic impact on our bottom line."
Cooper also plans to cover what it takes to attract, lead and keep a team of top performing personnel.
It means employers will have to put in an extra effort, said Cooper, to be a better boss and find ways to thank and engage and reward people and make them understand they play an important role in business.
"The best people have to work for somebody - you just have to deserve them," said Cooper.
While Cooper is known to charge big bucks, up to $10,000 a day to help grow businesses, the event at Gold Ridge Centre is being offered at a comparative discount prices of $129 for Chamber members and $169 for general admission.
