Just Good Business 🍁

It’s May, and while in many parts of Canada we had a milder than usual winter, it seems Spring is taking its time getting started, but it’s here now. That means the start of tourist season.

So how can your business take full advantage of this year’s tourist season? What can we expect after a few years of rising numbers out of the pandemic? Is there still room for more growth?

Al welcomes Joe Passarelli from Discover Global Network to talk about what to expect from the upcoming tourist season and what advice he might have for businesses in tourist areas.

Also in this episode:

• Niyati Budhiraja, Blog Content Specialist at Moneris cohosts.
• Sean McCormick, Director Business Development at Moneris shares consumer spending data around tourist season.
• Sydney Lupton, Digital Marketing Intern presents the final instalment of Merchant Journey
• Daniel Stranges, Senior Events & Sponsorship Specialist talks about May’s events calendar

Links of Interest:

• Starry-Eyed Spending: The 2024 Total Eclipse doubles consumer spending in Niagara Falls and Hamilton
• Discover Global Network
• Discover Signage
• Saving Graze

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:02:34 - Andrew Vergalito on The Effects Of The Solar Eclipse On His Business
• 00:07:37 - Featured Interview: Joe Passarelli on The Upcoming Tourist Season
• 00:22:03 - Merchant Journey Part 6: The Results
• 00:27:46 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with Tourism Spend Data
• 00:34:12 - Save The Date: Daniel Stranges on May's Events Calendar
• 00:35:47 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

This month we’re talking about the RC Show by Restaurants Canada. It’s Canada’s leading foodservice & hospitality expo. Al talks to Anna Pham, Director of Content & Programming at Restaurants Canada about what to expect at this year’s show and how you can make the most of your visit. Al is also joined by Maryam Saeed, Chief Risk Officer at Visa Canada to talk fraud prevention and what entrepreneurs can do to keep their business safe from fraudsters.

Also in this episode:

• René-Pier Plourde, Content Marketing Manager at UEAT cohosts.
• Sydney Lupton, Digital Marketing Intern presents the fourth instalment of Merchant Journey
• Matt Rovet, Senior Events Producer at Moneris talks about April’s busy events calendar

Links of Interest:

• eCommerce North
• RC Show
• Ecommerce Success Blueprint: Your Ultimate Guide to Marketing and Shipping
• UEAT
• Saving Graze

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:03:06 - Featured Interview: Anna Pham on This Year's Restaurant's Canada Show
• 00:13:17 - Merchant Journey Part 5: The Reveal!
• 00:17:00 - Ask An Expert: Maryam Saeed on Fraud Prevention
• 00:17:00 - Save The Date: Matt Rovet on April's Events Calendar
• 00:27:08 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

This month’s episode is going to have a sport theme, but if you don’t follow sports you may want to listen anyway because it’s about how sporting events affect your business.

Last month a couple of major sporting events took place. One, we cannot legally mention—it involves American football, Taylor Swift and Usher. The other big event was the NHL All-Star Weekend in Toronto.

Whenever there is a bid for a large sporting event, a new sport venue, or even a new team, you’ll hear owners and politicians talk about the positive economic impact it will have on business in the area. This month we’ll share with you some real data showing that impact. Is it real? Listen to find out.

Also in this episode:

• Sean McCormick, Director Business Development at Moneris co-hosts and takes us Behind the Numbers.
• René-Pier Plourde, Content Marketing Manager at UEAT shares restaurant data from last month’s big events.
• Sydney Lupton, Digital Marketing Intern presents the third instalment of Merchant Journey

Links of Interest:

• Saving Graze
• UEAT
• Moneris Data Services

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:06:11 - Merchant Journey Part 4: Setting Up The eCommerce Site
• 00:10:33 - Featured Interview: René-Pier Plourde on Restaurant Data From Last Month's Big Events
• 00:16:38 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with NHL All-Star Weekend Spending Data
• 00:20:28 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

February is the perfect month to show your customers some love! To help you with that, we’re going to share some helpful tips you can use to boost sales leading up to this Valentine’s Day.

We’ll also bring you the second instalment in our Merchant Journey series with Sydney Lupton featuring Saving Graze.

Also in this episode:

• Sam Wong, Marketing Strategy Manager at Moneris co-hosts.
• Kip Macartney, Director of Emerging & Value Add Services/Products at Moneris is our expert on gift cards.
• Sydney Lupton, Digital Marketing Intern presents the second instalment of Merchant Journey
• Amber Lynn, Solution Sales Consultant at Moneris
• Ella Urquhart, Events Manager at Moneris  gives a rundown of February’s events calendar.

Links of Interest:

• Saving Graze
• Valentine’s Day Spending on Significant Others to Reach New Record, NRF Survey Shows
• Is Your Small Business Ready to Win Hearts This Valentine’s Day?

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:03:44 - Merchant Journey Part 2: Speaking With Sales
• 00:11:38 - Ask An Expert: Kip Macartney on Gift Cards
• 00:18:58 - Save The Date: Ella Urquhart on January's Events Calendar
• 00:20:24 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

We hope you had a safe and happy holiday season!

This time of year, many businesses are getting back to normal after a busy holiday retail season, others are just getting back to work after a welcome break.

As we all look ahead to what 2024 may bring, it is common to make resolutions for the coming year. These usually involve some form of self-improvement. Businesses are no different. If their fiscal year lines up with the calendar, right now, they are setting up their resolutions—or goals and targets—for the coming year. What are your business’ resolutions? Don’t have any? Maybe we can help you think of some.

Also in this episode:

• Rick Stephan, Director, Digital Channels co-hosts.
• Sydney Lupton, Digital Marketing Intern presents the first instalment of Merchant Journey

Links of Interest:

• Forbes Article: Five Practical Small Business New Year’s Resolutions For 2024
• Saving Graze

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:04:53 - Merchant Journey Part 1: Introducing Your Saving Graze
• 00:12:09 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

We are now officially in the holiday season, and depending on your business, it can be one of the busiest times of the year. It is also one of the most charitable times of the year and we’d like to focus on that this month.

Al welcomes his featured interview Helen Seibel, Head of Community and Employee Giving at BMO to talk about why it’s important for businesses to give back to their communities. He also welcomes Kat Hamilton and Wayne Henshall from the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) who bring some helpful tips on how you can make your small business more accessible.

Also In This Episode:

• David Litwin, Senior Communications Specialist at Moneris co-hosts.
• Sean McCormick, VP Business Development at Moneris brings the latest consumer spending data from this year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:03:31 - Featured Interview: Helen Seibel on Why It's Important For Business To Give Back
• 00:11:49 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with Spending Data From This Year's Black Friday and Cyber Monday
• 00:17:15 - Featured Interview: Kat Hamilton and Wayne Henshall with Tips On Making Your Business More Accessible
• 00:28:42 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

Having a website without proper Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is like opening a shop in a dark alley in the world’s largest city without proper signage leading customers to your door. Only those who know where to look will find you, everyone else will just walk on by to the next shop with proper signage and brighter lights.

SEO can be daunting without some basic understanding of how search engines work. This month Al is joined by co-host Sheena Lyonnais, Manager Digital Marketing (Web) at Moneris who teaches him some of these basics. Then he goes deeper into it in this month’s feature interview with SEO expert Rob Rapiti, Digital Marketing Consultant at Cansulta.

Al is also joined as always by Sean McCormick, Moneris’ Consumer Spending Data Expert to get a preview of this year’s holiday shopping season.

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:03:06 - Featured Interview: Rob Rapiti on Search Engine Optimization
• 00:13:56 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with A Preview On The Upcoming Holiday Shopping Season
• 00:21:04 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

This year on Small Business Month, we’ve given our podcast a bit of an SEO and branding makeover. Introducing Moneris’ newest podcast bringing small business owners and entrepreneurs the tools, advice and—most importantly—the data you need to start that business or take your business to the next level. It’s just good business! That’s the podcast! It’s Just Good Business.

In this October episode of Al speaks with Anurag Kar, AVP, Money Movement Products at Interac Corp. about the growing trend of Canadians taking on side-hustles and what that means to the workforce and the economy.

Also in this episode:

• Sam Wong, Marketing Strategy Manager at Moneris co-hosts.
• Benoit Maheux, Product Line Manager with UEAT is our expert on restaurant kiosks
• Sean McCormick, Director, Business Development at Moneris shares some consumer spending data from Canada’s largest cities
• Daniel Stranges, Senior Events & Sponsorship Specialist at Moneris talks about the upcoming events for Small Business Month.

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:02:54 - Featured Interview: Anurag Kar on Side-Hustles
• 00:14:41 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with Consumer Spending Data From Canada's Largest Cities
• 00:18:37 - Ask An Expert: Benoit Maheux on Restaurant Kiosks
• 00:24:00 - Save The Date: Daniel Stranges with October's Events Calendar
• 00:26:25 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

September is all about the Elevate Festival 2023 in Toronto. Al dives into the 3-day technology and innovation festival with Alex Rayment, Senior Director Partnerships & Key Accounts at Elevate and Vithu Vijayaratnam, Manager Innovation Programs at Elevate. They talk about all the reasons entrepreneurs should attend this festival from world-class speakers, to cutting-edge content tracks, to next-level networking.

Al also speaks with Shawna Miller, VP of Marketing and Communications at Mastercard. They’re a founding sponsor of the Elevate Festival.

Also in this episode:

• Sydney Lupton, Marketing Intern at Moneris co-hosts.
• Sean McCormick, Director, Business Development at Moneris shares some of our recent joint research with Angus Reid
• Matt Rovet, Senior Events Producer at Moneris talks about the upcoming Canadian Consumer Behaviour webinar.

Links of Interest:

• Elevate 2023 Festival
• Canadian Consumer Behaviour Webinar

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:02:29 - Featured Interview: Alex Rayment and Vithu Vijayaratnam on Why You Should Attend Elevate Festival
• 00:12:57 - Ask An Expert: Shawna Miller on Elevate Festival
• 00:17:35 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with Angus Reid Research On Consumer Behaviour
• 00:21:42 - Save The Date: Matt Rovet with September's Events Calendar
• 00:23:46 - Outro

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If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.

Al explores the potential of harnessing big data for small businesses and learns about the importance of data-driven decision-making.

He is joined by Brian Ford, VP, ATB Business Solutions and Victoria Clark, AVP, Payment Product at ATB to talk about how they’re supporting business in Alberta.

Also in this episode:

• Tobii Sanwo, Communications Specialist at Moneris co-hosts.
• Sean McCormick, Director, Business Development at Moneris shares some consumer spending data
• Ella Urquhart, Events Manager at Moneris gives a rundown of August’s events calendar.

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:03:04 - Featured Interview: Brian Ford and Victoria Clark on Using Data To Support Small Business In Alberta
• 00:12:57 - By The Numbers: Sean McCormick with Consumer Spending Data
• 00:16:53 - Save The Date: Ella Urquhart with August's Events Calendar
• 00:18:10 - Outro

Subscribe now!

If you have a payment-related or business question you’d like to submit to one of our experts, you can email us at [email protected].

Just Good Business is a Moneris podcast production hosted by Al Grego.