Community development in the Petite-Nation, online
Many local businesses in the Petite-Nation are still not online. This is not a criticism; it is where the opportunity lies.
By Robert ScalesBlog · 2025
15 posts published in 2025.
Online payments for small businesses in Canada
Card processors, Interac, buy now pay later: what each option costs a small business, what customers expect, and why checkout length matters most.
By Robert ScalesSelling online from a small town in Quebec
Rural businesses can sell across the province online. The essentials: French first, a simple store, a backup for shipping, and local pickup.
By Robert ScalesSocial media in 2025: what works for local businesses
In a small region, people like, share, and then visit in person. A realistic weekly social media plan for a small local business.
By Robert ScalesAn action plan for a business changing hands
Customers care less about who owns a business than about whether it continues to work. A clear first 100 days plan for taking over a small business.
By Robert ScalesBill 96 and bilingual websites in Quebec
In Quebec, French first is the law, and it is also a matter of courtesy. Here is what that means for a small business website that also wishes to welcome English speakers.
By Robert ScalesTesting a business idea on a small budget
Before signing a lease or placing a large order, a few hundred dollars can establish whether people will pay. Here are inexpensive tests that produce useful answers.
By Robert ScalesMoving to Montpellier, Quebec
From an island village in Indonesia to a village in the Petite-Nation: two places with more in common than one might expect.
By Robert ScalesFour years teaching new entrepreneurs: what we would keep
Four years of teaching a business launch program are coming to an end. What we would keep for anyone starting a business, and what we would set aside.
By Robert ScalesOpenAI Codex and the rise of coding agents
This month, coding agents began working in the background. We explain what Codex does, where it fits, and why its work still needs to be verified.
By Robert ScalesCursor and the AI code editor
The code editor can now answer questions about a project. We explain what Cursor changes for small web projects and the practices that prevent unwanted changes.
By Robert ScalesClaude Code in the terminal
Anthropic released a coding agent for the terminal a month ago. It is fast and capable, and it requires clear instructions. The guardrails we apply.
By Robert ScalesAI shopping agents and the future of online stores
Software that shops on behalf of people has begun to appear. What this means for a small online store, and the low-cost improvements we recommend making first.
By Robert ScalesLovable: from an idea to a web app
Lovable makes the first version of a web app easy to produce. The second version, the one people actually use, still requires careful planning.
By Robert ScalesVibe coding: building software by describing it
Describing software is becoming a way of building it. What vibe coding is useful for, and what still needs to be verified by a person.
By Robert ScalesYour business deserves to be found.
Tell us about your project. We answer in English or French, and we travel anywhere in the MRC de Papineau.