Searchlight - The Entrepreneurs Journey

We all know that successful Sales and Marketing is a lynchpin for the success of any business, but should we be thinking about Sales and Marketing one single process, or are they in reality two different things? In this edition we will be looking at the differences between, and differing perceptions of, sales versus marketing. Should these be regarded as one process, or two closely linked but different things? Does a good marketing person necessarily make a good sales person, and vice versa? Why does marketing attract so much attention, while sales is often regarded as a less glamorous process? Joining hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan to help answer this question and also tell us about their own Entrepreneurial Journeys are; Vu Tran - Co-Founder of on-line e-learning platform Go1 Mark Jones - MD of digital marketing agency Your Digital Solution Matt Holme - CEO & Founder at Fintech/Ecommerce startup YouPay

In this program we will be taking a look at that most popular of startup activities, the investment pitch. We will be asking the question ‘To pitch or not to pitch?’. Is doing a pitch to get investors the only way to get your startup funded, or are there other options available? Joining hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan to help answer this question and also tell us about their own Entrepreneurial Journeys will be; Steve Baxter – TV 'Shark', Partner at TEN13, CEO of Transition Level Investments and former Queensland Chief Entrepreneur Pauline Fetaui – General Manager of Brisbane Tech Innovation hub River City Labs and founder of CheeHoo Karyn Owen – from Owen Custom Products, a Redlands based designer and manufacturer of specialist mining equipment control products. Sandra (de Jesus) Ebbott – Founder and CEO of Mizzie The Kangaroo a successful Brisbane based children’s toy product

For this program our topic is “Understanding the numbers”. There is a whole range of numbers that startup founders need to make sure they are across, and we are not just talking about accounting numbers! Joining co-hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan are; Anthony Owen from OnMarket the equity crowdfunding platform. Anthony has 25+ years’ experience across local and global digital media and technology companies. Warren Maris from Magnus Business Advisers joins us to consider looking at the numbers from the accounting perspective. Leisa Papa founder of Little Kids Business, a local on-line store startup, shares her journey as a 'mumpreneur' and talks about the numbers she monitors every day. Ian Parke founder and CEO of FIN-PAY FX shares his entrepreneurs journey into the world of fintech and how an understanding of key business metrics has aided his success.

Our topic for this show is one that’s critical for many startups, Intellectual Property – What it is and how to protect it. Joining co-hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan are; Gail Bray and Craig Charlton of Lock Jaw Ladder Grip - World Class Ladder Safety Device, a patented ladder safety accessory that helps people stay safe on ladders and prevent injuries. Now being exported worldwide. Mark Metzeling Special Council at Macpherson Kelley, in addition to being a qualified Solicitor Mark also has a Masters of Intellectual Property Law. Rob Johnson from Agtecnic, a Redlands based startup who aims to enable the smarts of self-driving technology to be retro fitted to existing agricultural vehicles. Jeff Jaraved & Taryn Syratt from Logan based CAASie App, an online app that lets you advertise on digital billboards.

For the August 3rd edition of Searchlight Entrepreneurs Journey we take a look at why speed to market is so critical and important for Startups and exploring the thinking behind the concept of the ‘Minimum Viable Product’. Joining co-hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan are guests; Llew Jury, founder and MD of Sprint Ventures. Llew has also founded several other successful startups including Advancer and digital marketing group Reload Media. Llew is also the Entrepreneur in Residence at Brisbane’s River City Labs. Colin Kinner, founder and CEO of Startup Onramp, the training and mentoring program for startup founders. Phil West, co-founder of Siren Cameras, a line attached dual-facing camera for fishing. Trish Mackie-Smith, CEO of Inndox the digital property logbook, designed to speed and ease the property handover process for builders. Inndox replaces a mass of bound documents with an on-line property log book for units, houses and commercial properties.

This month, we turn the spotlight towards considering the importance of having the right business structure in place and also looking at the ‘Solo / Co-founder’ conundrum. Do startups fare better with a solo founder or with co-founders at the helm? Joining co-hosts John Burkett and Sharyn Doolan are; Daryl Pattemore of Pattemores Meats. Alex hills based Pattemore’s Meats is a name synonymous with quality meat products, and with the Redlands. Cathy Young of The Local Business Network, Redlands City  - Cathy, along with husband Geoff, share their accumulated business knowledge and experience though their coaching and mentoring work. Nicholas Robertson, Founder of SwapU - Nic wanted to help people to swap and share, so he developed SwapU, an app that helps people swap (pretty much) anything and everything. Robert Buehrig Founder of Cogniom - A not great experience with a relative in hospital convinced Robert that organisations need to better understand workflows and efficiently prioritise improvement projects by their return on investment potential.

For our June program we take a look at understanding your business model and how that links to the importance of having a clearly defined value proposition.   Joining co-hosts Sharyn Doolan of Bay FM and John Burkett of Startup Redlands & Advicepoint Business Consulting are guests; Mike O’Hagan – Best known locally as the founder of Brisbane success story Mini Movers, Mike is an international serial entrepreneur. Mike shares with us his Entrepreneurs Journey and his thoughts on the essentials of what makes a great entrepreneur. Donna Stone - Donna is a local Redlands based business coach who helps business owners to achieve their goals through business education, support, guidance and accountability. Donna shares with us some of the common themes she’s seen with customers over the Covid-19 crisis along with her thoughts on our key topics. Steve Lambourne – Steve tells us how his business SS Signs has evolved from a local signage company to being Brisbane’s leader in LED digital signage and about how their business model had changed on that journey. Steve also shares with us some of his vision for the new Hub58 precinct he has played a key role in establishing at the old Rural Press site at Ormiston. Amanda White – Amanda is the GM of Capalaba based Freelance Robotics. Amanda tells about how their business model has transitioned in response to customer needs and also sheds light on precisely what the ‘Industry 4.0 revolution’ means for businesses in the Redlands, and the whole of Australia.

This month we continue looking at the world of Startups and consider how it’s necessary to deal with the ‘What problem are you solving’ question. We also look at this idea can be applicable to any business dealing with the effects of the COVID-19 emergency.  Joining co-hosts Sharyn Doolan of Bay FM and John Burkett of Startup Redlands & Advicepoint Business Consulting are guests; Jeff McEvoy of Salads Made Fresh -  Jeff tells us about his Entrepreneurial journey and also outlines what Salads Made Fresh have done to pivot into home delivery in the COVID-19 world. Warren Maris of Magnus Business Advisers and Accountants – In a follow up to last month’s program, Warren provides an update on the range of financial business support programs available to businesses affected by COVID-19. Colin Kinner of Startup Onramp - Colin gives us some useful insights into how Startups, or for that matter, any business, could and should address the ‘What problem are you solving’ question. Andrew Curnow of Miit – Our featured startup this month, Andrew tells us about Miit.co and the need for a ‘Social Utility’ to combat social isolation and loneliness as opposed to yet another social media platform.

In a change to our usual focus on Startups, we will be looking at the impact of the COVID-19 emergency on our local business community and exploring ideas and inspiration to keep our business community thriving. Joining co-hosts Sharyn Doolan of Bay FM and John Burkett of Startup Redlands are a fantastic selection of guests; - Rodney Winkleman of Elysium Restaurant & Bar will tell us his Entrepreneurs Story and offer some tips for those in the hospitality sector. - Steve Baxter our local 'shark' and former QLD Chief Entrepreneur will give is his thoughts and ideas. - Warren Maris - Business Adviser with some specific info on the government support programs available. - Mark Jones of Your Digital Solution will be looking at things from the marketing perspective. - Innovation Ecosystem expert Tony Wheeler will be telling us about some different COVID-19 response programs he has underway. - Our featured local startup will be Way We Do with co-founder Jacqui Jones.

Each month we explore what it takes and what it means to be an entrepreneur. This month with a fantastic panel of women we ask - What kind of mindset does an entrepreneur need?