Business Advice

How has your marketing and messaging changed in the lead up to Christmas 2020?

Brains Trust

Gautam Mishra, Dean Salakas and Justin Moran

27 November 2020

This week, Gautam Mishra, Dean Salakas and Justin Moran share how their teams have adjusted their Christmas marketing strategies.

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that businesses often operate in a landscape of uncertainty. So how can business owners and startup founders keep investing in their companies, taking risks and moving forward, when they don’t know what is around the corner?

Brains Trust

Ruwin Perera, Winitha Bonney, Gautam Mishra, Renae Bunster, Michelle Akhidenor, Adam Schwab, Terri Vinson and Justine Alter

16 November 2020

"While all this external uncertainty creates more problems, it also creates more opportunities," says :Different co-founder Ruwin Perera.

Since COVID-19 hit, most businesses have trialled working from home. What have you learnt from managing a remote workforce, and working remotely yourself? And how will you take these lessons with you?

Brains Trust

Renae Bunster, Andrea Gardiner, Adam Schwab, Justine Alter, John Batistich, Lucy Liu and Chris Dodds

9 November 2020

"It means we can find the best employee for the job, not just the best person who applied in our local area," says Renae Bunster.

The Ethical Advantage, a report by Deloitte, reveals ethical business practices boost return on assets by 7%. When has your business behaved ethically and made a profit because of it?

Brains Trust

Michelle Akhidenor, Andrea Gardiner, Gautam Mishra and Adam Schwab

2 November 2020

Michelle Akhidenor, Andrea Gardiner, Gautam Mishra and Adam Schwab reflect on when ethical business practices boosted their bottom line.

How should entrepreneurs approach networking during a pandemic? How do you make new connections and soft intros when you can’t go to events and meet people by accident?

Brains Trust

Gautam Mishra, Winitha Bonney, Hema Kangeson, Kate Dinon, Justine Alter and Terri Vinson

26 October 2020

"This may seem counterintuitive, but I've actually found networking much easier during the pandemic," says Inkl chief Gautam Mishra.

Should the corporate tax rate be cut? What about income tax? How should the government spend taxpayer dollars? We asked our Brains Trust

Brains Trust

Justine Alter, Vu Tran, Mark Rubbo and Adam Schwab

6 October 2020

In this budget-themed Brains Trust, we asked 'do you think bringing forward income tax cuts would give the economy a much-needed boost?'

Australia’s COVID-19 restrictions are affecting people in different ways. So what can business owners and managers do if members of a team have varying levels of motivation?

Brains Trust

Sarah Cotton, Adam Schwab, Jessica Ruhfus, Lucy Liu and Vu Tran

21 September 2020

"There's an opportunity for managers to individualise working arrangements for employees," says Collabosaurus' Jessica Ruhfus.

Twitter is labelling Trump’s tweets and big and small businesses alike are taking stances on black violence. So, in this increasingly connected world, is it possible for businesses to remain apolitical? And perhaps more importantly, should they?

Brains Trust

Kate Dinon, Daniel Petre, John Batistich, Joanne Painter, Adam Schwab and Ian Whitworth

5 June 2020

"Is it possible for businesses to remain apolitical? Yes, of course. Businesses can remain silent," writes Kate Dinon. "The question is, at what cost?"

Twenty-five times less expensive: Why now is the time to go all in on collaboration marketing

Brains Trust

Jessica Ruhfus

16 April 2020

Businesses need to tap into collaboration marketing as a strategy, now more than ever, because of the ability to leverage ‘currencies other than cash'.

Many small businesses and startups are pivoting in an attempt to tap into new revenue streams in the face of the pandemic. So how do you identify a worthy pivot? And are all risks worth taking?

Brains Trust

Troy Douglas, Joanne Painter, Adam Schwab, Terri Vinson, Vu Tran and Lucy Liu

14 April 2020

Does your business need to pivot due to the uncertainty created by COVID-19? If so, how do you go about it? We asked SmartCompany's Brains Trust to weigh in.