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Your business with Bernadette

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he Nation Builder Awards are a tremendous source of pride for us here at National Commercial Bank. Through this programme, we are able to

recognise and celebrate the outstanding achievements of Jamaica’s small and medium-sized enterprises, not only for operating successful businesses, but for their commitment to giving back to their communities and doing their part to help develop the country.

Over the five-year history of the awards, we have rewarded the work of a number of outstanding SME companies and, since last year, with our Impact award, the accomplishments of an equally exceptional non-profit organisation, the Mustard Seed Communities. This year will be no di!erent as a new crop of winners takes centre stage. We are proud to celebrate the SME sector and encourage its growth and development, since this is the engine that drives the Jamaican economy.

In this issue of clickSME, we profile the winner of last year’s Nation Builder Award, Jamaica Standard Products

Company. The business was launched in 1942 as a trader in produce such as goat skin, cola nut (bissy), sarsaparilla, pimento, ginger and honey. Over the years, it has grown to become the single largest growers and processors of co!ee in Jamaica, exporting its premium products to markets in Europe, United States, Japan and China.

We hope this outstanding success story spurs you to keep developing your own business.

Applications for this year’s NCB Nation Builder Awards close on July 31. There is still time for your business to be among this year’s winners.

If you have any comments or questions, email me at barrowbd@jncb.com or call me at 935-2065.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Bernadette BarrowAssistant General Manager, SMENational Commercial Bank

T

ational Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCB) recently launched the fifth staging of its annual Nation Builder Awards (NBA), which recognises the achievements of its

small and medium-sized business clients. Applications are now being accepted at all NCB branches island wide. The deadline for submissions is July 31.

Ten nominees each will compete in six categories for the highly coveted awards. The categories are: Nation Builder, Innovation, Start-up, Women in Business, NCB Impact and NCB Vision. The nominees will be selected by an expert panel of judges, who will then choose the national winner in each category. Winners will be announced at the Nation Builder Awards Ceremony later this year.

Each national awardee will receive a combination of cash, products and services from NCB and its partners, technical and capacity-building training, financial consultation, scholarships and/or marketing support.

The theme for this year’s awards is Entrepreneurs Building Communities…Building Jamaica, and will again celebrate SME customers that not only demonstrate outstanding entrepreneurial performance but strong community involvement as well. The NBA programme is supported by partners who give recognition and assistance to the nominees and help them to develop their businesses throughout the programme.

The partners for the 2012 awards are The Gleaner Company, LIME Jamaica, Fujitsu Caribbean ( Jamaica), the Private Sector Organization of Jamaica, Women Business Owners, the Lions Club of New Kingston, the University of the West Indies, HEART Trust NTA and the Jamaica Business Development Centre.

“Twenty twelve is an important year for NCB as we mark the 175th anniversary of the bank. We take particular pride in the Nation Builder Awards, which is steeped in the principle of not only doing well, but doing good,” said Bernadette Barrow, assistant general manager, Small and Medium Enterprises. “This programme has grown over the five years through, among other things, the introduction of new categories such as the Impact and Vision Awards and we look forward to another exciting year when we will unveil outstanding entrepreneurs who have made their mark in their various areas of business.”

The 2011 Nation Builder Award was given to Jamaica Standard Products Company. The Innovation award went to Spatial Innovision Limited, while the Start-Up awardee was DDB Island 1962 Company Limited. The Women in Business award went to Rondel Village, with Natalie Fletcher and Candace Carby copping the Vision award. Mustard Seed Communities received the Impact Award.

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1-888-NCB-FIRST | www.jncb.com

Your success defined!

Let NCB give your business the recognition that you have earned.

The NCB Nation Builder Awardsrecognize small and medium enterprises that demonstrate outstanding business performance and clear contribution to community development and nation building.

Applications are now open for the 2012 NCB Nation Builder Awards in the following categories:

· Nation Builder · Start Up · Innovation · Women Business Owners · Impact · Vision

Visit the nearest NCB branch or www.jncb.com to apply or nominate an individual or business.

Application deadline: July 31, 2012

NCB Capital Markets Limited | NCB Insurance Company Limited

Partners

Applications now open for the 5th NCB Nation Builder Awards

1-888-NCB-FIRST | www.jncb.com

Your success defined!

Let NCB give your business the recognition that you have earned.

The NCB Nation Builder Awardsrecognize small and medium enterprises that demonstrate outstanding business performance and clear contribution to community development and nation building.

Applications are now open for the 2012 NCB Nation Builder Awards in the following categories:

· Nation Builder · Start Up · Innovation · Women Business Owners · Impact · Vision

Visit the nearest NCB branch or www.jncb.com to apply or nominate an individual or business.

Application deadline: July 31, 2012

NCB Capital Markets Limited | NCB Insurance Company Limited

Partners

The coffee connoisseurs:

ast year, Jamaica Standard Products Company ( JSP) celebrated 69 years of successful existence by win-

ning the titular 2011 National Commercial Bank’s Nation Builder Award. The company, launched in 1942, was reward-ed for its outstanding business performance over the years as well as its strong record of community involvement.

The business started out as a trader in produce such as goat skin, cola nut (bissy), sarsaparilla, pimento, ginger and honey. Today, it is the largest single growers and processors of cof-fee in the country, exporting three premium brands to mar-kets in Europe, United States, Japan and China: Wallenford Blue Jamaica Blue Mountain Co!ee, Baronhall Estate Jamai-can Gourmet Co!ee and flagship brand, Jamaica High Moun-tain Co!ee.

Managing Director Jackie Minott is still feeling “on top of the world” about the award, which he believes will give JSP a boost in publicity. He is especially proud that a “country

business” won the top award. “Kingston seems to get a fair amount of publicity and I was happy that I was able to bring some amount of [joy] to us in the country,” he said.

JSP, based in Manchester, is headed by Jackie and his son, John, with a team of more than 150 permanent employees and in excess of 500 seasonal pickers. Over its 70-year his-tory, JSP has had a number of accomplishments, including the distinction of being the only co!ee company in the country to be awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification, which means the company meets the high quality management standards.

Jamaica Standard Products Company rewarded for 70 years of excellence

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Top left: John O ‘Jackie’ Minott, Man-aging Director of Jamaica Standard Products Company Ltd.

Top right: Minott (centre) receives the 2011 Nation Builder Award from Michael Lee Chin (left) and Patrick Hylton, NCB Group Managing Di-rector (right).

Centre: Minott (right) with son John and daughter-in-law Kerry at the 2011 Nation Builder Awards.

“[The award is] very important. It means that you are the top person in the field. People who get the Nation Builder Award have to be competent and it just shows that we are a competent company.”

For Minott, receiving the coveted Nation Builder Award means recognition that the company is doing something right. “[The award is] very important. It means that you are the top person in the field. People who get the Nation Build-er Award have to be competent and it just shows that we are a competent company,” he said. “We will be 70 years old this year and I suppose it is a family tradition. My late father would be turning over in his grave in happiness to know that after 70 years, this is what we have done for the company.”

In addition to running a ‘competent’ business, Minott believes JSP stood out to the judges because of its history of com-munity involvement. One of the company’s major supported events is the High Mountain 5k and 10k road races, which are held every last Sunday in January. Many residents sell goods to the hundreds of people who descend on the community for the race. “They have told me that it is the biggest event that is

held in the parish and say to me that they do more business on our race day than they do on Grand Market,” he said.

Going forward, JSP is looking to expand its 70-acre Blue Baron Farm in the Blue Mountains by 40 acres. “Then we would be top dog in both Blue Mountain and High Mountain,” he said. “In addition to this, we are investigating the possibility of setting up an instant plant in Jamaica, which I think will be beneficial to us, but it takes a lot of money. Therefore, if we can find the right partners, we would be happy to get ourselves involved.”

JSP has faced a few challenges over the years, especially during the recent global recession, but Minott commended NCB for standing by the company. “Sometimes you’re up and some-times you’re down and you have to accept that every day can’t be like Christmas. You have to accept the bad and the good. That is how business operates in any country,” he said. “We think that better days are around the corner.”

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Top left: Minott (2nd right) chats with entertainers Queen Ifrica and Tony Rebel and former Prime Minister PJ Patterson after last year’s High Mountain 5k and 10k road race event.

Bottom left: Minott talks with William Shagoury after an appreciation dinner held in his honour by the Manchester Parish Development Committee in 2010.

Top right: Minott and Sharon J Clarke, Human Resource Manager at JSP.

Bottom right: Minott (centre) with Anthony Bell and Doreen Frankson at an EXIM Bank function in 2010.

would encourage entrepreneurs to enter their busi-nesses for the National Commercial Bank’s National Builder Awards as I believe the programme o!ers an

opportunity for greater awareness of the intricacies of operat-ing a business and an avenue for greater public awareness of the products and services being o!ered,” said Jackie Minott, Managing Director of Jamaica Standard Products Company Limited. His company was declared the overall winner of the NCB Nation Builder Award (NBA) 2011, at a gala ceremony held at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel.

Minott’s comments came as he reflected on the decision to enter his company in the Award programme last year.

“We need many more nation builders in Jamaica, especially in these economically challenging times, so I would encourage as many businesses and volunteers across the island to enter this prestigious programme. As the overall winner, it also provides an opportunity to win a scholarship for an employee of your company,” he continued. National Commercial Bank Jamaica Ltd, in partnership with the Department of Management Stud-ies at the University of the West Indies, Mona o!ers a se-lected member of sta! of the Nation Builder Award-winning company a three-year Management Studies scholarship to the institution. Carolyn Wright, General Manager of Rondel Village, the 2011 NBA Women in Business Awardee, said: “I have a framed photo of the trophy presentation which was sent to me by

NCB on display, together with the trophy, in the lobby of our hotel and the guests are excited when they see it. The award has really given our property good publicity, which our small business would not have been able to a!ord otherwise.”

2011 Impact Award (Individual) winner, Giuseppe Ma!essanti said: “The $200,000 that I received as the cash prize has helped a number of students at the Montego Bay Community College and a couple of basic schools. And on a personal note, it was a great experience to have been honoured in such a wonderful way by NCB. It is really a great programme.”

Law student and prospective entrepreneur, Natalie Fletcher, and Master’s degree student Candice Carby, were recipients of the 2011 NCB Vision Award. They both considered the award to be a great financial investment from a caring bank. They look forward to starting the businesses at the end of their current studies.

Applications for the 2012 NCB Nation Builder Awards are now open until July 31. Forms are available at any NCB branch island wide and can also be downloaded from the website.

The NCB Nation Builder Awards programme was established to celebrate small and medium businesses, which demonstrate outstanding entrepreneurial performance and strong commu-nity impact. NCB also recognises the work of Jamaica’s com-munity builders and encourages the development of business ideas through these awards.

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Lauded by 2011 recipientsNational Commercial Bank’s Nation Builder Awards

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Left: Giuseppe Mafessanti accepts a donation from the NCB Foundation from Brian Boothe, Senior Assistant General Manager of Corporate Banking Division – Western Region, earlier this month.

Right: John Minott, (3rd left), Managing Director of Jamaica Standard Products Company Ltd - overall winner of the NCB Nation Builder Award 2011 - receives a Mitel Voice and Internet solution telephony system from Vaughn Powell (left), SME Sales Representative, LIME and Vennis Williamson (2nd left), Head of Department, SME Business Sales, LIME; while Mervyn Eyre (second right), President & CEO of Fuijitsu hands over a Notebook, assisted by Bernadette Barrow (right), Assistant General Manager, Small and Medium Enterprises, NCB.

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n a world where cash is king, how can a small business survive if it has limited funds? One simple answer is bar-ter, the system of trade many of us learned about in high

school history where parties swapped or exchanged what they had for what they wanted.

Although bartering has largely been replaced by buying since the advent of monetary units, it has not completely faded from the picture. Many companies, large and small, still practise bar-

tering in some form.Let’s say you operate a small boutique ho-tel and you want to get some publicity but lack the big bucks. Luckily, an advertising and marketing agency is planning to have its sta! retreat at your property. It wouldn’t be out of the way to strike a deal with the agency where you o!er the group a discounted rate in exchange for assistance with an ad cam-paign.

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to help your business growUsing barter

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1. Make a list of businesses you can trade services with. Examine your needs then carefully match them with the companies that can help you to achieve them before making your pitch.

2. Make a list of what you have to o"er. Bartering is a two-way street, so ensure what you’re bringing to the table matches up with what you want others to give you.

3. Spell it out. Be specific so there is no question as to what you have and what you want. Don’t just say you are o!ering the ad agency sta! a discount in exchange for help with your publicity campaign – you are o!ering a 30 per cent cut rate and you want the agency to craft

an electronic media campaign for a similar 30 per cent discount.

4. Calculate the terms of the deal. To make sure the trade is fair for both parties involved, figure out the cost of the goods or services being traded. You don’t want to be trading $50,000 worth of your hotel’s amenities for a $20,000 discount. Make sure the monetary values are in the same ballpark.

5. Get it in writing. No matter how ‘small’ the trade-o! may seem, you’re running a business, so ensure that everything is laid out in writing. Even a simple email detailing the terms will do. For larger, big-budget trade-o!s, you should ensure you have proper documentation.

HERE ARE SOME TIPS TO CONSIDER WHEN BARTERING:

Three bold tips to boost growth

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cursory drive down any street in a major business district in Jamaica will show

the aftermath of a struggling economy – closed shops or, for those that val-iantly fight to stay open, very few cus-tomers wandering about.

It has been hard to sustain small busi-nesses in the wake of the global reces-sion as consumers’ spending power diminished severely. Still, many busi-nesses have survived as owners buck-led down and came up with winning strategies that have seen them not only hang on for dear life, but thrive.

If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you will keep getting what you’ve always got, so here are three ways to shake up the old routine and help boost your company’s bottom line:

But how can dropping customers help my busi-ness, you ask? If they’re not paying, they are draining you of your already scarce financial resources to cover their debts, so force them to pay up or cut your losses – literally. Go on an aggressive collections campaign; threaten late fees or repossession (if it applies) or even legal action, if the debt is out of control. The thought of paying more than they have to or being embarrassed when the repo van pulls up will spur those lagging in their payments to find the cash and pay up.

At the same time, define your ideal cus-tomer and retool your marketing plans, products and/or services towards at-tracting buyers of that ilk.

No, you did not read that incorrectly. It might seem counterproductive, but a price hike will weed out problem clients. Of course, you have to justify the increase to your loyal (paying) customers, so up the stan-dard of your customer service, throw in

extras (free installation/servicing, spe-cial discounts for bulk purchases) and reward those who consistently do busi-ness with you. A happy customer is a great advertisement for your company.

Don’t spread yourself and your resources too thin trying to attract every potential customer out there. Examine your ac-counts and see where the majority of your sales come from, whether by local-ity or industry. Focus your attention on retaining this core clientele. Approach potential clients in your redefined area and rebuild from there.

Alternatively, you can redefine your niche by focusing on the service you provide that no one else does, and move from being a Jack-of-all-trades to a master of one. This gives you ‘expert’ status and that makes your current cus-tomers trust you more and compels them to recommend you to others.

A

f you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times: in business, it is not always about what you know, but who. More often than not, knowing or be-

ing somehow connected to the right person is the di!erence between getting your company’s project o! the ground or having to put it on hold.

Much networking takes place informally, at after-work happy hours or through casual introductions after meetings, but in today’s tech-driven marketplace, meaningful connections are also being made online. Social sites like Facebook, Twit-ter and Google+ put you in contact with everyone, from old schoolmates to famous stars. Another major network, LinkedIn, was created exclusively for business purposes, but many are not fully aware of how to use the site and how it can help them.

LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional online network, putting you in touch with your trusted contacts and the peo-ple they know, while allowing you to connect with a broader network with a variety of tools.

Here are four ways to make LinkedIn work for you:

This is your o"cial introduction to potential investors, contractors or clients, so ensure that you grab their attention. Use power words that speak specifically to your skills and experiences, and what

you (your company) have to o!er. Don’t just say you are in marketing – so are about 100 others. Do you do social media marketing? Marketing for non-profits? Being specific allows you to stand out and increases the chances of being seen by the people who matter.

  You would be surprised at the doors that can be opened by sharing a common interest. You can join groups according to industry, education, hobbies, in-terests, religion and many more. Being part of a group allows you to connect with other members who may even be in di!erent countries. And don’t just join to be there. Engage in the discussions that are taking place. You never know who is paying attention.

 You can ask your connections to write testimonials, reviews, recommendations and referrals so that others will get a more rounded view of what you bring to the table. It might be daunting to ask your connections to put in a word for you, but don’t be. And be sure to do the same for connections who ask you to vouch for them.

  LinkedIn allows you to add your company’s website and/or blog as well as personal sites, as well as post and share stories and information related to your business or industry. You can add polls, share events notification, presentations and portfolios or share and track collaborative projects with your connections. 

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networking with LinkedInThe power of

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National Commercial Bank Limited32 Trafalgar Road, Kingston 10

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