Check out this great story on ABC Far North blogs: Pat Shears is clearing rainforest tracks covered in fallen trees and overgrown weeds behind Cairns and Townsville. This is a massive job and tough work. Just one of many unsung heroes getting the Cassowary coast region back in shape after cyclone Yasi. Cutting through trees even 30cm thick is tough work but some of these are up to 1 metre. Wow! Read more about what's happening in Cairns at Cairns News Read the full blog post at http://blogs.abc.net.au/queensland/2011/06/one-man-cleans-260kms-of-cyclone-damaged-rainforest.html Excerpt and video below
Cassowary Coast Recovery
One man cleans 260km's of cyclone damaged rainforest
23 June 2011 , 1:31 PM by Philip Staley
Cairns region Rainforest recoveryPat Shears (right) doesn't mind a stroll through the rainforests of Far North Queensland. Especially with a chainsaw.
Since Cyclone Yasi hit Mr Shears, a former Cape York Ranger and now a conservation volunteer for the Australian Wildlife Conservancy has trekked, by his estimations nearly 260km's clearing fallen trees and and clearing weeds from hiking trails in the mountains behind Cairns and Townsville.
His current project is to clear the beautiful bird watching and tourist trail, the 'Ho Chi Minh' trail near Julaten, FNQ. That's about 40km's of trails and for just one bloke to be carving through fallen tree's with a diametre of about 1 metre, that's some hard work. And Pat does it as a volunteer.
Click on the link below to hear Pat's remarkable story and how he lead's ABC Recovery Reporter Phil Staley through the bush about 15km west of Port Douglas.
Cairns Business Directorycan help you reach your customers online. Cairns businesses are facing difficult times, and need all the help they can get to reach more customers locally and globally. Increasingly consumers are shopping online, starting with browsing, researching and comparing their purchases, and seeking feedback from friends, review sites and comparison shopping sites. If your business expects to retain existing customers and attract new prospects, you need to be engaging them online by being visible in search engines and social media. Today, around 80% of people search online before looking in the phone book. This means businesses should budget around 4 times as much money into online marketing as they do for their Yellow Pages entry. Sadly, few businesses do this: as a result many can't be found online, even when searching for their business name and location. In the coming digital age, this is business suicide. These businesses need an online marketing strategy, with local online directory listings as a first step, followed by their own website (which can actually be found on Google) and a wider web presence including social media such as Facebook. The alternative is business suicide. Local business directories are a quick and easy step to getting an online presence. The best known of these are national directories like Truelocal.com, and these are important, but you shouldn't neglect smaller but targetted local business directories like the Cairns Business Directory - inCairns.co.
Cairns Business Directory - inCairns.co
Cairns Business Directory lets you make free listings for your business: not only can this come up in search results with your business details, but if you have a website it can improve the ranking of your site. You can also make paid listings which offer greater benefits. Listing your business can help new customers find you on the front page of Google when they search for your services. If your business doesn't have a website yet (or you have a website but it’s not coming up on the front page of Google), Cairns Business Directory can quickly create a site featuring your business for a very affordable price. They specialise in comprehensive online marketing services to make sure your customers can find you in all the right places: Search Engines, Google Local, Facebook and other social media. The online media revolution is already here: position your business as a market leader with the right online strategy, starting with your free Cairns Business Directory listing at http://incairns.co or complete online solutions at http://seo.incairns.net.au.
Cairns Business Directory is part of the Cairns Information Network (incairns.net.au)
Cairns businesses are facing a range of challenges in 2011, but there are some great opportunities out there for those which succeed in promoting themselves in the emerging new media and social networking landscape. Cairns has had a very tough 2 years and now enters a critical period as we try to get out of the post-GFC/Queensland Floods lull and move forward to a stronger 2011. A proactive and strategic approach to online marking and social media can help Cairns businesses to succeed.
Cairns geographic limitations and future international and social media online business opportunities
Cairns has long been a city governed by geography and weather. These impact our access to resources, industries, jobs and opportunities, yet also bring visitors from around the world to enjoy this truly beautiful part of the world. Cairns weather is absolutely magic at this time of year (June) but can be oppressive in the wet season, meaning we that both our tourist driven economy (with strong flow-on to other business sectors) and also our lifestyles are highly seasonal.
Cairns is remote from most of Australia (much more so than most Australians realise) but is actually very central within Asia/Oceania. As the world economic centre of balance shifts toward Asia, Cairns has the potential to become a major international centre in targetted industries. Some obvious examples where we have already seen great success are tourism, education, environmental resource management and fisheries. As the world hurtles toward an information, online and sustainable future its vital that Cairns industry, government and small businesses get on board.
Cairns arguably has the most to benefit of all Australian cities from an NBN type information network. Our remoteness, international population (both tourists and those who come and stay), and "on the edge of Asia" positions Cairns uniquely to become an international leader in the online world, or to be left seriously behind if we aren't up to speed with the march of technology elsewhere.
A small business in Cairns faces a limited target market, which is often seasonal, is currently economically depressed (but on the repair :-) ). It faces huge threats from online retailing, a soaring Australian dollar, interest rates, and a booming economy around the rest of the nation. It seems like a no-win situation where we are destined to become major losers in the emerging Australian two speed economy.
Online business and social media marketing solutions essential for Cairns businesses
There is a solution though: small business owners can use their skills and resources, industry contacts and buying networks as a basis for building national or international online businesses. There are a thousand and one models for this, and as many tools available to help you succeed. In the last year or two though one overwhelming message has emerged: the future of the internet is social. And this is great news for small business: by their nature social media platforms are very flat: meaning you can have a facebook page or twitter account that can compare with those of the world's leading companies. Even if you don't have a bricks and mortar shop, you can successfully run an online business and boost its reach and credibility with effective social media marketing.
Social media is big news for small businesses
Social media has become the cornerstone for most people's online lives. Gone are the days of surfing the net: now more and more people are spening more and more time on social media sites, like
Facebook: the largest social network with over 500 Million users: 1/2 of whom log on EVERY DAY
Youtube: 2 billion youtube videos are viewed every day, Youtube search is the 3rd largest search Engine
Twitter: over 100 million accounts with 300,000 more added every day.
And thousands of other social media platforms: we just don't know what will be the "new" facebook or twitter in 2012 or 2013. Both these platforms have their strengths and limitations and the entire online business model is under constant review.
Remember AOL? Mosaic? Yahoo as THE site on the net? (Or maybe you aren't that old? that was the 90s) Things are changing very fast.
Cairns Social Media and online marketing
You'd be amazed how much is going on already on social media: check out some Cairns Social media buzz.
Only one thing is certain. Cairns Businesses need to embrace social media if they want to stay visible and relevant to their customers.
Check out this great video on SocialNomics: the economics of social media and how they influence the real economy and our lives more generally. The book of the same name is a great read too.
Read more about Cairns, Australia Cairns Social media and online marketing contact inCairns.net
