Board of Directors

BBB President and CEO: 
Lynda Pasacreta, Better Business Bureau

 

Chairperson: 

Robert Vincent, Brighter Mechanical


Vice Chair: 

Barry Sharp, AMA Management Ltd.


Treasurer: 

Gary Hutton, Pacific Newspaper Group


Secretary: 

Bailey Jung, Silver Bullet Shredding

 

Past Chairperson: 

Tom Siba, BIV Media Group


Directors:

James Carter, Carter Chevrolet Northshore

Joy Chanda, Papa Plumbing, Heating & Drainage Ltd.

Ron Harvie, Vancouver Management Ltd.

Cori Maedel, The Jouta Performance Group

Lindsay Matthews, ICBC

Mike Ng, Vancity Savings Credit Union

Jim Scott, Vancouver Police Department

Marv Steier, Tenant Verification Services

Andrew Turner, Telus

Mary O'Sullivan Anderson, Williams Moving and Storage (BC) Ltd.


Governors:

David Crawford, Edgemont Moving & Storage

Elaine Hay, Campbell Edgar Inc

John Friswell, CCI Renovations
John Vickerstaff, Network Bonding & Insurance Services Inc.

 

Legal Counsel:

 

Doug Hopkins, Boughton Law Corporation
BBB Fact: Better Business Bureau serving Mainland British Columbia had 1,164,688 Business Reviews accessed by the public in 2011 and we handled 10,736 complaints.

Lynda's Message:
Advancing Trust Together for 100 years
2012 marks the 100 year anniversary of the Better Business Bureau internationally. Learn about our history and how we will be looking forward to a big celebration in 2012Read more 

Connect with us on Trust Tuesdays starting January 17
We are encouraging consumers to go online to Twitter.com every Tuesday to tweet about great experiences with businesses. Encourage your customers to share their story on Twitter with #TrustTuesday @BBB_BC. We will highlight those stories on our website mbc.bbb.org.



Welcome To Our Newly Accredited Businesses!
The following is a list of new BBB Accredited Businesses whose applications for accreditation have been approved by our Board of Directors in December 2011. Read more

Welcome back: Accredited Business Renewals
The following companies renewed their commitment to your BBB in December 2011. Read more




TOP 10 INQUIRIES DECEMBER 2011 TOP 10 COMPLAINTS DECEMBER 2011
1) Other Retail Stores/Shops/Co.s 1) Cellular Telephones
2) Plumbers 2) Automobile Dealers
3) Contractors-Alteration & Renovation 3) Telephone Service-Local
4) Movers 4) Stereo Systems - Dealer
5) Roofing Contractors 5) Other Retail Stores/Shops/Co.s
6) Automobile Dealers-Used Cars 6) Movers
7) Automobile Repairing & Service 7) Home Decor, Accessories & Gifts - Online Retailer
8) Heating Contractors 8) Cable TV, Internet & Telephone Installation Svc.
9) Automobile Dealers-New Cars 9) Furniture Dealers-Retail
10) Contractors-General 10) Parking Lots & Garages

I Spy a BBB Logo
We regularly see Accredited Businesses showing their BBB colours on their vehicles, at their place of business and in ads. This column celebrates those who took advantage of the BBB Trust-brand. Read more






BBB Green Scene: Your Office - From Chaos to Clarity

The Green Scene this month has a guest article from Ranka Burzan from Solutions Organizing Simple that delves into how to reduce the clutter in your office so you can be more productive and take up less space while doing so.  Read more



Good Advice:
Malicious Complaint Email Claiming It’s From BBB
We decided to re-run this tip due to the high volume of calls we receive about the issue. Better Business Bureau is issuing an urgent SCAM alert cautioning businesses and consumers about an email that is purporting to be from a bbb.org email address and references the Council of Better Business Bureaus in Arlington, VA., about a recently filed complaint. Read more




Join our Facebook fan page and follow us on
Twitter
The Better Business Bureau is always looking for ways to bring businesses and customers together. Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Read more



Good Neighbours
BBB in your community: 

BBB, Inner-City Schools and Our Next Generation – Empowering children, empowering families, empowering society

BBB walked into a meeting with a local, inner-city school with the intention to build a playground and later came out realizing there’s much, much more we could do. Read More 



Trouble: Revocations/Non-response to complaints/Logo misuse 
>>Companies that did not respond to BBB complaints in November and December 2011. Read more
>>Advertising Review case studies from 2011. Read more
>>Companies using the BBB logo/name without authorization.
 
Read more



BBB Calendar
A listing of BBB events that are happening in communities across British Columbia.

January 24th, 7:30am – 9:00am

BBB Table Talk, Marketing Series

Find out what other companies are doing to market their business and share your own experience. January’s Table Talk will be facilitated by BBB President and CEO, Lynda Pasacreta. Amberlie Denny from BBB Accredited Business Guaranteed SEO will be on hand to share her expertise and answer any questions you may have.

BBB Table Talks are free and exclusive to BBB Accredited Businesses

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

For more info and to register: Susan Hooper 604-681-0312 ext 316 or email susan@mbc.bbb.org

 

January 26, 11:30am – 1:00pm

BBB Seminar – Marketing over Lunch: Getting value from your BBB Accreditation

Want to see more traffic to your Business Review and website? Mark Fernandes, BBB Communications & Marketing Specialist, explores how to build brand awareness and loyalty in your marketing through use of the BBB brand. This seminar covers how to optimize your BBB Business Review for the web, including how to leverage your BBB Accreditation in social media, and ways you can implement the BBB trust branding in to your marketing strategy.

Presenter: Mark Fernandes, BBB Communications & Marketing Specialist

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

Cost: BBB Accredited Business $25, Non BBB Accredited Business $35 (includes light lunch)

Register online: www.eplyevents.com/BBBSeminarJan

If you are having trouble connecting with the above link, try cutting and pasting or retyping the address into your browser


February 7th, 11:30am – 1:00pm

BBB Seminar – How to Build a World Class Brand with Low Cost Marketing

Find out why building a world class brand is imperative for all businesses & how to do it using specific examples from successful, well known brands. Learn low-cost, effective marketing tactics that can turn your brand into sales.

Presenter: Paddi Rice, President, Executive Search Dating Inc.

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

Cost: BBB Accredited Business $25, Non BBB Accredited Business $35 (includes light lunch)

Register online: www.eplyevents.com/BBBSeminarFeb7

If you are having trouble connecting with the above link, try cutting and pasting or retyping the address into your browser

 

March 1st, 11:30am – 1:30pm

BBB Seminar - Everything You Wanted to Know about Having a Website

A website may be essential for your business, but the process can be difficult to understand. This seminar provides the essentials of what you need to know about having a website; how to get one, what it should cost, how to promote it for search engines, how to update it and how to get other people interested in it. Presented in simple, non-technical language, the seminar offers professional advice about choosing between a traditional, Wordpress or other CMS site and provides a wealth of tips. Topics include working with a developer, information architecture, search engine optimization (SEO), designing for mobile visitors, and marketing your site. The seminar is suitable for people who already have a website and those who are considering one.

Presenter: Dr. Mia Johnson, Kits Media

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

Cost: BBB Accredited Business $25, Non BBB Accredited Business $35 (includes light lunch)

Register online: www.eplyevents.com/BBBSeminarMar1

If you have trouble connecting with the above link, try cutting and pasting or retyping the address into your browser

 

March 20th, 11:30am – 1:00pm

BBB Seminar – 3 Key Components Necessary for Success On-Line

In an age where there are more websites than people, it is becoming more and more important for your business to have an effective website. Much like traditional business strategies, you need to start with a strong foundation which in the case of the internet is your website. Learn how to maximize your website’s potential with compelling design, engaging content and aggressive internet marketing tips from Naveed Hajee, Business Development Manager from Snaptech Marketing Group.

Presenter: Naveed Hajee, Business Development, Snaptech Marketing

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

Cost: BBB Accredited Business $25, Non BBB Accredited Business $35 (includes light lunch)

Register online: www.eplyevents.com/BBBSeminarMar20

If you have trouble connecting with the above link, try cutting and pasting or retyping the address into your browser

 

April 12th, 11:30am – 1:00pm

BBB Seminar – Social Media for Local Business

Small businesses do the majority of their work with local customers. Do you know how to engage with geographically relevant clients using the latest social media tools? Learn how local businesses can use social media to engage with geographically relevant customers, as well as which social media tools are most effective.

Presenter: Amberlie Denny, Social Media Marketing Specialist, Guaranteed SEO

Location: BBB Boardroom, 417 – 788 Beatty St, Vancouver

Cost: BBB Accredited Business $25, Non BBB Accredited Business $35 (includes light lunch)

Register online: www.eplyevents.com/BBBSeminarApr12

If you have trouble connecting with the above link, try cutting and pasting or retyping the address into your browser

More info: Susan Hooper 604-681-0312 ext 316 or email susan@mbc.bbb.org

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/BBB_BC
Find us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com

Find us on LinkedIn (BBB members-only): http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1323147
BBB Sandbox (BBB members-only): www.mbc.bbb.org/sandbox

Learn about our BBB events: http://mbc.bbb.org/calendar

 

BizSmart News

BBB serving Mainland BC
Suite 404, 788 Beatty Street
Vancouver, B.C. V6B 2M1

Editor:
Mark Fernandes

Contributors:
Lynda Pasacreta
Simone Lis
Joanna Li 
Susan Hooper


Tel: 604-488-8701
Fax: 604-681-1544
Email:
newsletter@mbc.bbb.org