The startGBC Entrepreneur Discovery Summer Camp is a two-week intensive bootcamp for early-stage entrepreneurs looking to strengthen their knowledge on how to effectively run a business. This bootcamp will run twelve workshops facilitated by experienced professionals within each area of knowledge, and will include a trip to multiple entrepreneurial hubs within the Toronto ecosystem.
Workshop sessions:
Ideation – Generating A Business Idea
This workshop will focus on:
- How to identify and recognize a business opportunity
- How to generate a business idea by creating a better solution from what already exists
- How to create a business that provides value.
Identifying A Path To Achieving A Minimum Viable Product (MVP) & Problem Solving
This workshop will focus on:
- Problem solving
- Developing techniques to think critically and creatively about the nature of business opportunities
- Identifying the critical path to achieving a MVP
- Creating a road-map for bringing your product or service to market successfully.
Business Model Canvas (BMC)
This workshop will focus on:
- Ideating, describing, evaluating and discussing a business model using the BMC
- Understanding your business type and how to evaluate critical activities, resources and partnerships within that context;
- Developing a hands-on understanding of how to use the BMC as a framework and storyboard to assess the effectiveness of customer relationships and channels.
Market Validation & Research
This workshop will focus on:
- Identifying competitors, sales channels, and legal requirements around offering
- Developing the strategy and tactics of market validation
- Take a deep dive into the target market using primary research techniques to develop a product with unique features that are compelling to your target audience
Building Brand Success
This workshop will focus on:
- The essentials of developing a marketing strategy and marketing campaigns
- Developing a brand identity, brand awareness and consistent branding guidelines
- Developing a social media engagement strategy
- Nurturing and maintaining brand loyalty
Effective Business Networking and Promotion
This workshop will focus on:
- Developing business networking etiquette
- Learning how to work a room with increased self-confidence
- Learning the critical elements of planning and preparation for any/all business networking events
- identifying primary business contacts
- Learning how to follow-up with potential contacts
The Art of Effective Sales
This workshop will focus on:
- analyzing sales opportunities, clarifying prospects, and closing the sale
- Evaluating the role and function of the salesperson
- Exploring different types of sales presentations and how to develop a sales pitch that will satisfy target customer needs and wants
- Pre-selling activities, techniques and procedures to use during the sales interaction and post sales activity
Public Speaking/Investor Pitching
This workshop will focus on:
- Creating a strong pitch with the 10/20/30 pitch deck slide guideline
- Understanding and practicing all the stages of the speech-making process (focusing on a topic, developing main points and evidence, using transitions, organising, drafting, revising, editing, and delivering etc.)
- Evaluating content on both verbal and non-verbal criteria
- Developing the art of good storytelling
- Understanding the importance of knowing your audience. Virtual reality training apps and headsets will be used and available for participants to test and perfect their techniques
Financial Literacy
This workshop will focus on:
- Understanding financial statements and terminology to be able to track and forecast sales, profit and loss, and tax implications
- Giving participants the knowledge to be able to ask informed questions of their financial professionals
- Promoting the use of financial management tools to evaluate the business journey and to ensure competent budget creation, monitoring, cash management, product/division/customer analysis, planning/forecasting and trend analysis
Business/Regulatory Requirements & Talent Acquisition
This workshop will focus on:
- Company structures and registration
- Business permits and compliance
- Company tax obligations and HST basics
- Legally required insurance coverage, business permits etc.
- Legally required terms and conditions for personnel
- Tools to help identify talent acquisition
Getting Money: What Lenders and Investors Want
This workshop will focus on:
- Understanding what banks or investors are looking for when evaluating your business
- This workshop will also include presentations by funders within the Toronto ecosystem
Technology Adoption Boot Camp
This workshop will focus on:
- Exploring technology as a resource
- How to create a dynamic web presence
- Increasing website traffic and understanding search engine optimisation
- E-Commerce, including purchasing and selling online
- Open source software
- Cloud computing
- Legal and privacy regulations
- Online marketing
- Social media integration
- Knowledge on software resources for entrepreneurs such as Hubspot, MailChimp, WordPress, Hootsuite, Trello, Eventbrite, Doodle, Slack and others
APPLICATION DEADLINE: July 19, 2018
startGBC Entrepreneur Discovery Summer Camp Application Form