Alex's Story: Stardust With Belly Buttons. Why Rejection Built Her Business.

She walked into rooms nobody invited her to. Cold called every single day selling a technology most people had never seen. Heard no more times than she can count. And kept going anyway.

Alex Graham is the founder of Me-Tour, a Hamilton company building 3D virtual tours for businesses, schools, and healthcare spaces. Think Google Street View, but for the inside of a building. She started it during COVID with no marketing background, no social media, and no blueprint. Just a stubborn belief that this technology mattered and that accessibility is a standard, not a feature.

She auditioned for Dragon’s Den, two days after catching the stomach flu from her toddler, and kept going when it didn’t pan out. Then she landed Mohawk College. All four campuses. With a popped rib.

We talk about what it actually takes to sell something nobody understands yet, why she cold calls every single day, and what she told a room full of business owners about networking that I haven’t stopped thinking about since.

Find Alex at @me_tour_inc and me-tour.ca.

Because your story matters. 🎙️

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

You're listening to The Lowdown. I'm Cassidy Lowen, Real Conversations with Small Business Owners in Hamilton. The version they tell their best friends, not the one they post. Because your story matters. So let's get into it. Hi, and welcome back to The Lowdown. I'm your host, Cassidy, and today we have Alex from MeTour. Welcome, Alex.

SPEAKER_01 0:29

Hello, and thank you so much. Thank you for having me. I'm so excited.

SPEAKER_00 0:33

I've been really excited all week to have you on. So thanks for being on here. Yeah, no worries. Alex, can you give our listeners like a 60-second summary of what MeToour is?

SPEAKER_01 0:46

Absolutely. So what we do is build virtual infrastructure for different buildings. So basically, it's Google Street View, but for inside of spaces. So it's a really fun way of being able to show a space, but it's also really helpful for businesses to increase their accessibility and increase their reach and help customers feel confident before they ever set foot in a space.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

I love the example of Google. It is, it's exactly like Google Maps, but on the inside. And so also you have the tagline Arrive Already Decided. Can you tell us a little bit more about how you came to that tagline?

SPEAKER_01 1:24

Yeah, so I was trying to figure out like what is the best way of being able to explain what the benefit is of having a virtual tour. And it's really customer confidence because right now I feel like ever since after COVID, people are so selective of where they spend their time and their money, right? Like we don't want to go anywhere that we're not 100% sure that it's what we want. So having a virtual tour is how people arrive already decided.

SPEAKER_00 1:52

Amazing. Well, and you know what, that's a good point. Because I think from COVID, it gave us all anxiety leaving the house. And so it's not just accessibility if someone has a disability, it's also to help the rest of us as well.

SPEAKER_01 2:06

Exactly. Yeah. And I've had a lot of people tell me that they find virtual tours so helpful for that reason of they might be nervous going to a new space, but in so many different walks of life as well, right? Think of like if somebody's going on a first date, or if they're going to a new appointment for the first time and they're not sure what the layout looks like, this can be really overwhelming and daunting in already busy lives. So it just makes things simpler for everybody.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

Yeah, you know what? The when I worked in an office, often we would get asked all the time, how many steps do you have? So how you know what is the distance? Because if someone had a hip replacement or they have arthritis or anything like that, it can be difficult. Yeah. So even to look at the layout and be able to look at the steps. That's true. I was surprised when I was looking at some of the stats. So one in five Canadians live with a disability. So that's 6.2 million people. So the virtual tour lets someone check if a space actually works for them before they ever leave the home.

SPEAKER_01 3:01

Correct.

SPEAKER_00 3:02

So and accessibility is the core pillar of me tour, not just a feature. Where does that come from for you personally?

SPEAKER_01 3:08

So a lot of people, and I can give credit to my friend Anthony Frazino, who is a huge advocate for disability in Hamilton and surrounding area. So a lot of people think of accessible features. They use the language of features. And accessibility isn't a feature. Accessibility is a standard that we should have, right? So I could get into this for a day in itself, but basically there is something called the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act that was supposed to be rolled out and perfected by January 1st, 2025, and it didn't happen. So a lot of places still don't have accessibility, like full accessibility. And if a space isn't fully accessible, then it's not really accessible. So what we are trying to help with, because since it wasn't done, we need people in the community to do it for us, right? So a big part of my mission is to make spaces more accessible for people. So really being able to show them what is around in that space, if it is something that they can navigate themselves, if they're going to need support going in, really get people to have a sense of understanding before they go. So that's how we can help make it accessible. And that means in so many different industries as well. So restaurants or first appointments or schools, which is something that we're focusing on too. So a lot of different places where people have the same types of questions about accessibility.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

Okay, and you've done a couple of schools lately too. What are one of the schools that you did?

SPEAKER_01 4:48

Well, completely I have done Mohawk College, and that was incredible. So that was done last summer, and it was all four of their campuses. So they have a campus by the Hamilton Airport, and that is a really, really cool campus with a giant airplane hangar in it where it has a lot of like helicopters and different planes. And then they also have one at McMaster. It's the health sciences department. And what else do they have? Sorry, I heard your cat.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

I know, I know. Sorry. This is the first one she's been an issue for. Oh, she's not an issue. She's welcome. She can be loud.

SPEAKER_01 5:32

She can be really loud. Sorry. I thought it was a phone. Like, like uh, that's so funny. I thought it was a ringtone. I was like, that's so cute. And then I'm like, wait a second, I don't think so.

SPEAKER_00 5:43

Yeah, that's awesome. It's really high-pitched. But I didn't even know that Mohawk had a campus right by the airport. Yeah. That sounds that sounds cool.

SPEAKER_01 5:52

I didn't either. I didn't know that they had four campuses. So they have that one, and then they have the one at McMaster, which is the um Applied Health Sciences campus, and then they have a Stony Creek campus for trades, and then they have their original campus at Fennel.

SPEAKER_00 6:10

Okay. And so you got to go to all four of these then.

SPEAKER_01 6:13

I did, I did. And I I got to immerse myself in them as well, like wearing uh steel-toed boots and a hard hat in some areas where I needed to, safety glasses, because there are a lot of woodworking labs. So the really cool thing about Mohawk is that it's so hands-on, right? The students are going, and I I went to Mohawk as well. I went to Brock and Mohawk. So I can say firsthand that I loved my experience because, well, I was in concurrent disorders, so it's mental health and substance use issues, but I did a lot of first-hand counseling practices and labs. They have so many different types of labs for different students going into different industries and trades. So it was really cool to see what is coming out of Mohawk and to be able to help to show it to people not only here, but around the world as well.

SPEAKER_00 7:01

Yeah, well, I mean, and you think about international students too. So the parents can take a look at where their kids are going to, the international students can take a look at if someone's going across the province or coming in from a different province, they're able to look ahead at their post-second secondary education. Super cool. Oh, that's really cool. That's really cool, Alex. What is your favorite place that you've done so far? Would you say it was Mohawk?

SPEAKER_01 7:25

Oh my goodness. That is a really great question. So I would say Mohawk for how complex it was and how much it challenged me. So yeah, I would have to say Mohawk because it by the time I was done that project, I was a new version of myself. Like really. I have never been so close to wanting to throw the towel in on anything I've ever done. And that was something that because I was injured while I was doing it, it made it so difficult to continue. And I thought, you know what? I have no choice. I am going to finish this. Even though I have a rib that's popped out of place, I'm going to finish this. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:08

Yeah, it was wild. Wow. Well, and you and you did it. And you can look back and say, I did that. That's incredible. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 8:16

Oh, well, I'm glad you didn't give up. Thanks. Me too. I'm glad I didn't give up because now this will open doors to other giant spaces like that that are so in need of an immersive virtual experience. It's just, I know that 10, 15 years down the line, every big brick and mortar space is going to have a virtual tour. It just makes sense. It's one of those things that you kind of wonder, why hasn't it already happened yet? And the reason is people haven't done it yet. So that's all.

SPEAKER_00 8:49

And that's something I was actually thinking about. I was thinking, you know, how do you how do you sell this to businesses that don't understand? Because in a way, it's kind of if you think about before websites were a thing back in the like the 1980s and 90s, and someone's trying to sell it, like, oh, you need a website for your business, and you know, people can't even comprehend it, whereas now it's every day.

SPEAKER_01 9:10

Exactly. So that's an amazing point that you brought up because that is what I always talk about too. So like 1996 to 98 was when people started to be introduced to just the household computer, but before that, people didn't really have that type of technology around, right? So then in the late 90s, early 2000s, when people are having their first big serious websites, how was it sold to business owners who were like, I think that my page in the phone book is absolutely fine. Why, why do I need this? So we're kind of at that stage again when it comes to virtual tours. We're selling the thing that is still unknown and a lot of people don't have a lot of education on yet, and they're skeptical, right? They they don't know why they need it if they've always done something a certain way. So my job is to educate as many people as possible and to find the early adopters. So, in the way that sales go of any product, you start with early adopters, and then eventually you're going to get to the general population, and then the the stragglers at the end. So I'm still in the early adopter phase, but I've got some heavy hitters who are behind me who you know support what we're doing and are amazing examples in all industries. So I just know it's a matter of time. It's just still plugging away at it and educating as many people as possible and being so confident about what I do that it's easy to answer any questions that they have.

SPEAKER_00 10:41

Yes. I mean, anytime that we spoke about your business, you present yourself so well, and I think you're very straightforward. And I mean, at the end of the day, like you said, it's accessibility. So it's exactly it's really like you said, it's a requirement.

unknown 10:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:56

Yeah. And so so how do you find those early adopters?

SPEAKER_01 11:00

Through trial and error, through putting myself out there and not being afraid to hear no. Really, that's what it is. So I have literally gone door to door and I have um done cold calling. I do cold calling like every day. Yeah, yeah. And I make videos and I really just try to get in front of people that I have never been in front of before. And that is the way that I find people. It's there's no easy way to do it. It's as difficult as it sounds.

SPEAKER_00 11:33

Do you find it gets easier? Like when you're doing the cold calls every day. Does it get easier or does it still kind of get hard if someone hangs up on you?

SPEAKER_01 11:40

Or so it gets easier if you're later in the day and you've been doing it for a while because you kind of get into a rhythm and there's kind of a an equation to it. I love to watch like a bunch of sales guru people, and that's how I learned because this isn't my background whatsoever, right? But I'm like, okay, if we have this awesome product, I need to be able to sell it and I need to be able to market it. So I kind of do it all. And I've been teaching myself on the side how to do these things. So it does get easier during the day, but if you take a day or two off and then you go back into it, it's hard. Like it is not a natural ability of mine to be able to sell over a phone. In person is easier, but even then, you are just going in expecting a no, because humans are hardwired to say no for safety. And it's yeah, sometimes you get a yes. And yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:39

Yeah, I can I can't imagine. I have a few friends that I, you know, they do they do the door-to-do. And will you go back to the same places? Like if you will have gone to one and you've had a positive reaction, will you kind of go back a few months later? Or you do a follow-up email, or absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 12:57

It's how you close sales, right? You have to go back because sometimes people don't not respond because they're not interested, they get busy. Life is busy, so you kind of have to go back and remind them, hey, you know, you seemed interested about this. Do you want to explore this further? Or if it's yeah, in an email, you would do the same type of thing. But I really like to get people on the phone or get in person and have a conversation with them because I find that that is the easiest way to understand what their pain points are and show them how I can help.

SPEAKER_00 13:27

Okay. And then it gives you a chance to really explain versus an email, they might have questions and the answers aren't there, so they're not necessarily going to respond.

SPEAKER_01 13:35

And sometimes I don't even know if the email goes to them or if it just goes out in space because I like I'm not sure if it's going to the right inbox, you know. So if I don't hear back, I don't take it as a no. I just take it as a okay, I need to try again.

SPEAKER_00 13:50

Yes. Well, and I'm sure there's a huge learning curve. Like you've probably learned, okay, it works better if I say A instead of B or B instead of C and that kind of thing as well.

SPEAKER_01 14:00

So that is another important point about not just doing one a day. Like give yourself time to have those iterations throughout your day because you're learning every single time that you're feeling some type of rejection in the words that people are saying, you're learning what's working and what's not. So by the end of the day, I guarantee you you will be so smooth at it that it will feel second nature for that moment.

SPEAKER_00 14:27

Yes. Let's go back to the first day that you did cold calling. Were you practicing a script before?

SPEAKER_01 14:33

So let me tell you, the first day was back in COVID times, right? So what I would do, I kind of had written out a little, a little script for myself, but it was really through Instagram that I was building things. So I was back in COVID times, a lot of business owners were on their Instagram for the first time ever. Before they might have not been paying that much attention to it, but then Instagram became everything during COVID for business owners, right? So I had the ex uh opportunity to speak to a lot of business owners directly, and that was helpful for me. And then I would go in person as well. And even, you know, with the mask and everything, I was still able to have that one-on-one interaction with them, and that was helpful too.

SPEAKER_00 15:18

Yeah, yeah. Well, I mean, probably post-COVID, that was a good time where their store might not have been back to its regular fullest because people are still tentative to go outside and and you're going in saying, Hey, I can come and rescue you. I can exactly take a tour of the whole inside.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

Yeah, you know, people aren't able to physically be in your space right now, so let's show them what you've got because a lot of people have such gorgeous spaces, and they're just not getting out in front of the right people, like not getting out in front of enough people to be able to see them and then plan, hey, this looks like a space that I'm going to go visit next weekend with my friend. You know, people make plans like that based on the atmosphere, and and I don't think that pictures do them a service. Like it's not enough anymore. It's not enough of a representation of what a space feels like. So that's why people love the virtual tours.

SPEAKER_00 16:08

Yeah, you gotta, I guess you get the insight for the vibe of the place. Yeah. Is it cold? Is it friendly? Is it what we're looking for? Okay, well, that that's awesome. So speaking of selling, selling to people, you auditioned for Dragon Style.

SPEAKER_01 16:22

I sure did.

SPEAKER_00 16:23

When you decided to go for it, what did that feel like?

SPEAKER_01 16:26

Okay, so this is a really good story. It's just one of those stories of just go with the flow because we all don't even know what we're doing here. So just just go with it, right? So I was invited to an event at Lime Ridge Mall. It was the opening of Hilbergen Burke. It's uh a beautiful jewelry chain. So I was invited to this grand opening, and the owner, Rachel Milkey, was there, and we got to talking throughout the night, and she said that she had been on Dragon's Den. And I was like, oh wow, that's so cool. Like, that's something that I would love to try one day. One day. And then she's like, Don't say one day, like just go for it. And she's like, What's the worst that could happen? And I'm like, Hmm, you know, you're right. What is the worst that can happen? Nothing really. Like, I'm still just in the same spot. So that night I really got to thinking, and then the next day I applied, and it was send a 30-second pitch, basically. So I was just walking around my kitchen being like, hey, I'm Alex Graham from Meteor Inc. and blah blah blah blah blah. And then I think less than a week later, I heard back saying, We're holding auditions in March, I think it was. So will you will you come audition? So I was like, oh, okay, this is amazing. So I wouldn't have even had that opportunity had it not been for that conversation that I had, where Rachel Milky, somebody who was on Dragon's 10, encouraged me to apply. So yeah, the actual process of auditioning was really interesting as well. I had to practice and practice and practice what my pitch was going to be. And during the time that I was practicing, I was standing at my kitchen island the one day, and I was like, whoa, am I nervous? I don't feel well. And I'm like, that's weird. So I'm standing there, and then I had to run to the washroom and like throw up because I had the stomach flu and I caught it from my daughter. So of course, of course, right? So naturally, naturally, that's what happens. So two days before the audition, I was sick, like really sick, and I lost time practicing my audition. But yeah, I went and I did as good of a job as I possibly humanly could. I just think, and when I reached out to them and asked, because I figured at that point that it wasn't happening, and they were like, Yeah, we decided to go another direction. I totally get it. You know, it's my company is service-based. They look for something that's more of a product that's marketable that they can sell. So fully understand it was an awesome experience, regardless.

SPEAKER_00 19:20

Well, and I mean, like you said earlier, what's the worst case that could happen? They say no. And I'm sure it it really put a focus on okay, what exactly is my business model? And what exactly am I trying to portray?

SPEAKER_01 19:33

Well, so what it did for me was actually help me really solidify things in my business because I had to refine everything. I had to refine my my why, my what. I had to think of all of these, the forecasting. Like I had to think of so many things that I hadn't thought about in a while. So it really made me buff up my actual business plan. So I'm grateful for that. It was a great exercise for me. And it was just one of those moments. Like, I I don't look at rejection as a bad thing in business. I honestly feel that if you're not doing something that's uncomfortable, you're not growing. So every day that's why I do things that are uncomfortable in my business because I know that that's the only way that I'm going to grow. You know, some people are okay with staying where they are, like it works for them, and that's awesome. But for me, I know that in order to grow this business, I have to put myself into moments that make me want to crawl out of my own skin. And yeah, come out still alive and unscathed. And that's that's the main point.

SPEAKER_00 20:36

Yeah, no, a hundred percent. I I agree with you. It's what are you doing if you're not challenging yourself? And so what's what's one thing that made you uncomfortable in the beginning that now you are comfortable with?

SPEAKER_01 20:50

Oh, networking.

unknown 20:52

Networking.

SPEAKER_01 20:53

Yeah, yeah. Networking was something that was so hard for me in the beginning. And now I'm totally okay with it.

SPEAKER_00 20:59

Do you have a line that you usually use when you meet someone at networking events?

SPEAKER_01 21:04

Ooh, no, I don't think I have an actual line, but I just so I met somebody yesterday at a networking event, and it ended up being an awesome connection. But I was overhearing another conversation that she was having, and I actually heard it wrong. I thought that she said that she worked at the Hamilton Detention Center where I have a friend who works there, but she said Hamilton Convention Center. So very different.

SPEAKER_00 21:31

These are very different things.

SPEAKER_01 21:33

Very different things, but I still made a great connection out of it.

SPEAKER_00 21:36

Yeah, well, and a virtual tour of a convention center would always be a cool. Wouldn't it?

SPEAKER_01 21:42

I know.

SPEAKER_00 21:42

Yeah. For anyone who any business owners that have not been to networking events, what advice would you have for them to get them to come out?

SPEAKER_01 21:49

I would tell them to remember that we are all just stardust with belly buttons floating through space, and nobody's Better than anybody else. Nobody knows what they're doing fully. So why not go out there? The fear of judgment from other people is so unnecessary if you really think about it. They have not lived a single day in your life. They don't know the obstacles, the hurdles that you've been through. They don't know the iceberg of life that has happened under the point that they see you. So why would you give them any ability to control how you feel? Is how I think. So, really, if you're going out to a networking event, remember that you're a human, they're a human, none of us know what we're doing at the end of the day. Just connect with them, be yourself for real. Like just, you know, let yourself be as natural as possible because the second that you're not feeling natural, you're going to get uncomfortable.

unknown 22:50

That's it.

SPEAKER_00 22:51

Oh, that's great. I think that's great advice. Okay, Alex. So you told us a lot, you got it, gave us some good advice for cold calls, as well as when you come into a room. Tell us a little bit more about how small businesses they could focus on just being themselves.

SPEAKER_01 23:06

Absolutely. So the part of you that you're vulnerable about is the thing that people will think is so interesting about you. And it's the thing that is seriously your superpower when you go into a room or when you're writing a post and you want something to be authentic. Those things that you feel vulnerable about are the ones that connect you to every single other human, and connection is the way that you're going to sell anything. So sales are just a transference of confidence, really, at the end of the day, right? So you're wanting to build those relationships, and the only way that you can build that trust is by being yourself. So please remember that the next time that you're writing a post, do not use Chat GPT.

SPEAKER_00 23:53

It's very noticeable.

SPEAKER_01 23:55

It is very noticeable. And people, we have such a BS scanner at this point that people really want the authentic you. That's what is entertaining. That's why they're looking through social media in the first place. So give them what they want, be yourself, and you'll see what happens anytime that you're feeling a little bit uncomfortable, like, oh, should I have posted that? Should I have not? Likely you will discover growth from that moment.

SPEAKER_00 24:22

Yeah, you know what? I I love I love everything that you're saying because it's be yourself. Yourself is the brand. Whether it's service-based or not, you, your personality is the brand. And like you said before, the worst thing that happens is someone says no.

SPEAKER_01 24:36

Exactly. And what comes of that? You're still alive. You know, nothing else happened. They don't say no, and then suddenly your entire life crumbles. They just say no. And that no, usually just take it as a no, not yet, is how I see it anyway. So I never take a no as a full no. And I think that that's the reason that I've been successful in my business as well, because I have had so many no's. I've had more no's than yeses, but the yeses that I have had have been so valuable, and it's because of the thick skin that I've built up by not caring what other people think and taking those no's as a moment to learn.

SPEAKER_00 25:15

Yeah, so they're they're learning moments. Those no's are learning moments. What can I change? Or was the person just having a bad day? Like so you know, just let it bounce off.

SPEAKER_01 25:27

It's so true. So when it comes to sales, a really important thing to remember is that when people have some type of objection, it's usually something that they already object all the time in their lives. So, because maybe they've been burned before. Again, we don't know what anybody else has gone through, right? We're all our own little icebergs walking around. So if somebody's saying no to you, it might be because they've been burned in a sim similar situation before. So you need to be able to build that confidence with them, but don't be shaken by that no. You just need a little bit more understanding as to why that no is happening.

SPEAKER_00 26:04

Yes. I you know what? I love that that you're you're saying that. There no has nothing to do with you. It probably has something to do in their life or or what has happened to them. That's great. Well, Alex, thank you so much for coming on. Before we wrap up, can you tell our listeners how they can find you?

SPEAKER_01 26:22

Sure. So I am on Instagram a whole lot. I love the Instagram community that I have built over the last six years. So you can find me at at me underscore tour underscore ink. And if you wanted to email me as well to get some information, it's service at me-tour.ca. And then our website is me-tour.ca.

SPEAKER_00 26:47

Amazing. And I have one last question for you. What do you want to be recognized for in your community?

SPEAKER_01 26:53

I want to be recognized as somebody who is approachable, who can mentor other people, can listen to other people, who can be a person who builds community, not just in person, but then also somebody who is building up our community virtually for the rest of the world to see, because I think that Hamilton, Ontario, is a phenomenal place that has so many gems that I'm excited every single time that I scan a new space so that other people can see it too.

SPEAKER_00 27:26

Amazing. Well, you're doing amazing things, Alex. And thank you for taking the time to come on. I've been looking forward to this.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

My pleasure. I've been looking forward to it too. I love what you're doing. So thank you so much. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 27:39

That's the lowdown for this week. If something in this conversation landed for you, send it to one person who needs to hear it. That's how we build this. One story at a time. I'm Kasti Loewen, and we'll see you in the next episode.