A Stranger in a Strange Land

A Stranger in a Strange Land
By Ryan LeClaire

Moving to a new city is intimidating enough. Now multiply that by 10 and that’s how I felt when I moved to Barrie after leaving my job to become self-employed. I was confident that I was good enough at what I do to make a good living at it, but I had no idea where to start.

As I went from networking function to small business meeting to entrepreneurial workshop I kept hearing about someone called “Mr. Bob.” Finally, I met him at an event and asked what exactly he does.

“My passion is working with business owners and getting them to have that light bulb come on,” he said. “My mission is to show that people are so much more in life than they seem when they stand up and describe themselves to a room of strangers.”

He went on to explain that too many small businesses spend big dollars on TV or radio ads that try to catch everyone. He said he meets with business owners as a consultant to help them find their specific niche-market and helps them to attack it with less expensive marketing techniques.

He told me the story of a realtor who came to him to help her stand out. In their first meeting he asked what separates her from everyone else. She pondered the question and responded it was because she offered great customer service – which, unfortunately, is what everyone in her field boasts.

“She made the same mistake that 99% of all the other realtors make. She only talked about what she does. They all use the same words, it’s just different ways of massaging it,” said Mr. Bob.

Mr. Bob worked with her and discovered that she is passionate about animals. She has since established herself as the pet-friendly realtor, who specializes in helping your pets adjust to your new home. There’s the light bulb.

We also talked about Mr. Bob’s Network. Simply put, his network is the google for Barrie’s businesses. “It’s a library of what people are offering,” said Bob. His network lists and organizes Barrie’s best and brightest businesses and helps them interact with each other.

I also spoke with Marshall Driver, a member of Mr. Bob’s network. His business doesn’t have a website, just a listing on Mr. Bob’s Network. He’s seen over 2500 hits in 2 years, which he said is a nice return on investment.

“I haven’t had to pay someone to build it. I just go in and I change what I want to change. Whenever I want to change it. It’s really good that way because it’s very interactive.”

I guess you could call Mr. Bob a business coach and a consultant who draws a map to help you find your customers. No matter what you call him, I’ve asked Mr. Bob to help me ignite my own light bulb and you can look for my listing at www.mrbob.ca.

Tell Mr. Bob you found this on Mr, Bob's Blog.