Sign in
Courtesy navigation
Blog posts in Start up business ideas
What can your business learn from a grocery store in Sedona, Arizona?
May 21, 2012
Why is it that we can look at another small business and see what they are doing right or wrong so easily?
I was looking for a grocery store in Sedona, Arizona. The store in the plaza only has the name on the façade as signage. I could clearly see if they added the word ‘groceries’ to their sign they would get more business from the out-of-state tourists who didn’t recognise the brand name.
But when was the last time I carefully considered the sign on my own building?
So how does the trick work? Easy: As you go about your day, analyse all the businesses you interact with. How did they do at increasing the average transaction value? Did you get up-sold? Did the frontline employee impress you? Then simply apply these ideas to your own business.
Start with the basics. Ask yourself these “self-help business advice” questions:
How does your signage appear? Maybe you have premises or maybe your business is web-based – this question still applies. Do you directly communicate what you do with your potential customers?
Do your frontline employees use systems to give consistently good service? This little trick works well for me as long as I am humble enough to self-reflect. What is your system to ensure your customers or clients are receiving the best service possible?
Please don’t forget to give feedback regarding your observations to the business. In Sedona, Arizona I asked for the manager of the grocery store and shared my thoughts. It turns out there are 120 stores in the chain and all of them in Arizona – the vast majority are located in non-tourist towns where the locals know the brand name very well.
- Visit the Marketing Donut to read advice about customer care.
The Apprentice: Lesson nine - more cheese less wine
May 18, 2012
We’re in another transport hub this week on The Apprentice — and still no sign of an away-day anywhere. Lord Sugar has called the troops together at the champagne bar at St Pancras station. It’s six in the morning. Bit early isn’t it Lord S?
This week’s task is to raise the profile of English sparkling wine. Know-it-all Tom can’t hide his excitement — he’s a wine connoisseur. Ricky, meanwhile, says he’s only had a couple of glasses of wine in his life. “I hate the stuff”, he says.
Guess who the project managers are this week? Yes that’s right. It’s Ricky and Tom— or David and Goliath as Ricky sees it. But will the underdogs win?
The teams get a reshuffle and look like this:
Team Pheonix: Tom, Nick, Adam and Jade
Team Sterling: Ricky, Stephen, Jenna and Gabrielle
Each team has to create a website, produce a TV advert and come up with logos and taglines. Sub-teams are created and the responsibilities are divided up. On team Pheonix, Tom and Adam go off to get drunk (I mean taste wine) and Nick and Jade do some real work designing the website.
The sparkling wine advert calls for a touch of class. But neither team gets anywhere close. Adam and Jade come up with a dinner party scenario. Adam calls himself the “choreographer” but there’s not a dancer in sight. I think he means director. He tells the actors to “just touch each other up a bit” — he’s talking about hair and make-up by the way.
On team Sterling, the brief for the TV ad from Gabrielle was “quality, quality, quality”. But Stephen and Jenna are making an ad that’s more cheesy than an ad for English cheddar. It’s a wedding scene and the bride practically spits out the champagne, calling for English sparkling wine instead.
The judge and jury in this task is a panel of experts at Bibendum restaurant. They like some aspects of the campaigns — especially team Sterling’s tagline, “Less fizz, more sparkle”. But that can’t save them from the car crash that is their advert.
Mind you, Lord Sugar’s not that keen on the other advert either. He calls it, “www dot yawn dot com”.
But team Sterling’s ad is much, much worse. So it’s off to the loser’s café. It’s a grim place, that café. Empty, grey, cold — everyone keeps their coats on — and those awful polystyrene cups of tea. Stephen sums it up: “It was a bad day at the office, it’s as simple as that.”
When they get back to the boardroom, Lord Sugar is still fuming about the ad. “I didn’t tell you to make a carry on boozing movie,” he says. Who is responsible for that “piece of rubbish” he asks.
Gabrielle gives her own version — in some depth it has to be said — with Stephen trying to trip her up by saying, “specifics Gabrielle please”. Be careful what you wish for Stephen.
So who gets the chop? It’s a choice between Ricky, Stephen and Jenna. Somehow, Jenna’s taking all the blame for the ad and slippery Stephen seems to have got away with it. And so it’s Jenna that is the sacrificial lamb this week.
In classic style, Lord Sugar, then turns to Stephen. “You are this close to going outside that door,” he growls. “You’ve thrown the gauntlet down. You are going to project manage next and I expect you to win. You don’t even know what the task is.”
Next week: Stephen gets his toes nibbled by tiny fish. Bring it on.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
Highly recommended: Matt Edmondson’s hilarious Funny Bits video review on the Apprentice website.
Storage Tips for Start Ups
May 16, 2012
Whether you're starting a business or looking to grow an existing one, space is an important factor. And storage is key to ensuring your work area remains clutter-free, whether that’s in your home, premises or another location.
Knowing your storage options – and the benefits/risks – can help you choose the most effective storage solution for your business.
Keep it dry
It's no use storing something if it ends of getting damaged by mould. If you have equipment or products to store at home, make sure that the room is dry (avoid storing things directly on concrete floors can help stop them getting damp). Moisture control products or a humidifier can help eliminate excess humidity too, but however dry your storage space is, check items every now and then to ensure their condition isn’t deteriorating.
Accessibility
This sounds like a no-brainer, but make sure that you have good access to storage space. If pick-ups and deliveries will be made, you need to ensure good vehicular access. And if you're storing heavy items, you could well need a trolley or pallet truck.
If you're storing things at home, accessibility can be even more of an issue, especially if you're receiving deliveries regularly. Drivers will be in a hurry and a pallet of small goods might be bigger and heavier than you imagine.
Also think about having space around whatever you're storing so you can break up bulk stored items for use or redistribution.
Security
The biggest issue when it comes to storage is security. Home storage needs to be as burglar-proof as possible. An alarm, security monitoring system and contents insurance is a good start. For warehouse or industrial units, check to see what security is included in the price.
Drew Davies writes for Big Yellow Self Storage. Start-up businesses can harness the security and flexibility of our industrial units, with 50% off for 8 weeks.
- Read more about how to find, secure and manage start-up premises.
Recruitment tips - the induction plan
May 14, 2012
Do you have a formal induction plan for new recruits? An induction plan will help ensure that the initial impressions on the first day of a new job are positive and that the new employee starts off productively.
Here are some points to consider as you develop an induction plan for your business:
1 Identify key current employees to be ‘buddies’ with, or provide hands-on training to the new recruit. You want to be proactive in freeing up time and resources for the ‘buddy’ to be effective and train the new person to be productive as soon as possible.
2 Have a checklist of items to have ready when they get to work on their first day:
- Computer
- Email account
- Locker
- Phone, stationery
- Clean desk
- Etc
3 Have access to training items, safety rules, passwords and keys ready for what may be applicable.
It may seem like a little thing, but imagine the impression a new employee would have upon arriving for their first day and hearing: “Oh, is today the day you start? Let’s look around and find you a place to work.” Compared that to: “Here is your clean desk, and your email account is set up. Let me introduce you to the team and make sure we give you a great first impression.”
Depending on the significance of the recruit, you might even consider arranging a social event for the team to meet and greet them. When compared to the cost of turnover to replace an employee, the initial investment in making sure the new recruit will become productive quickly is well worth it.
If your business doesn’t have a formal process now for new recruits, consider starting a system for this process. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect at first, but you should review it and tweak it with your team after each hire to make sure the process continues to improve and evolve.
- Would you like to read more information about recruitment?
The Apprentice: Lesson eight - the art of selling
May 11, 2012
The candidates on The Apprentice are going to Waterloo Station this week to hear about the next challenge. They’re obviously hoping for a nice day out somewhere but Lord Sugar, Nick Hewer and Karren Brady are waiting for them in a smelly old railway arch that’s covered in graffiti.
Their mission, should they choose to accept it, is to sell urban art. Of course they accept it, even though Adam claims he had never heard of urban art until now. In sharp contrast, Tom rates himself as a bit of a graffiti guru and is soon voted project leader on team Pheonix (with Laura, Adam and Jade).
On team Sterling, Gabrielle says she has two useful strings to her bow — she has worked with artists and she has catering experience — perfect credentials for schmoozing art buyers. So she’s voted project leader by Ricky, Jenna, Nick and Stephen.
There are three key elements to this task. First they’ve got to find two artists to represent. The teams are in competition, so it’s vital that they make a good impression. Then they’ve got to meet two corporate clients to find out what kind of art they’d be in the market for. And finally they’ve got to sell pieces by their chosen artists in their own pop-up galleries in London’s Brick Lane.
What the Apprentice does brilliantly is show us how not to do things and this week is no exception.
Tom tries to win over the artist Pure Evil by showing off his knowledge of the urban art market and by name-dropping left, right and centre. He hardly says a word about Pure Evil’s art though. Honestly, if you were meeting Beyonce, say, would you babble on about Adele, Madonna and the Pussycat Dolls? Not surprisingly, Pure Evil doesn’t choose team Pheonix to sell his art.
In contrast, Gabrielle’s approach — admittedly somewhat gushing and gurning — wins over Pure Evil. And it really pays off — at the end of the day his art makes team Sterling over £10,000 in sales.
But Gabrielle is hopeless when it comes to the corporate client — Beefeater Gin. She fails to ask them what their budget is. It means team Sterling ends up proposing they buy a painting that costs a few hundred quid when their budget is actually £10,000.
But they don’t get a bean from Beefeater in the end because of the shoddy way Stephen handles these important clients when they turn up at the gallery. He’s all over the place and despite waving his own glass around as he talks to them, he doesn’t offer them a drink for ages. It gets worse. When they say they’d like a gin and tonic, he says, “I wish”. Karren Brady calls it “a masterclass in how not to treat a corporate client.”
When it comes to selling, Adam is the star, yet again. He makes the majority of sales but even his efforts aren’t enough to turn the tide. Team Pheonix fails to rise from the ashes and loses the task.
Tom invites Laura and Jade to face the music with him. There’s lots of analysis of the mistakes Tom has made. When he fails to secure Pure Evil, Tom chooses a high-risk strategy — selecting James Jessop, an artist whose paintings are massive with a hefty price tag to match. Sales came there none.
But you can tell Lord Sugar likes Tom’s gumption and the fact that he “rolled the dice”. So the focus turns to sales. Laura, who has her own wedding dress shop, is totally at sea when it comes to flogging urban art. And so it’s Laura that has to walk the plank this week.
Looking ahead to next week’s task — marketing English wine — I can’t help wondering if Tom has been saved so he can demonstrate his knowledge of fine wines — his real-life business. Then again, when he tried to play the expert with the artists this week, he came unstuck. It should be interesting.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
How (not) to motivate your employees
May 08, 2012
Shocking news for most small-business owners – it’s not about the money. In the discussions I have with the majority (but not all) of small-business owners, there is an assumption that employees are motivated most by money. “If I give them a pay rise, they will work harder”. Unfortunately, I have also heard, “I gave the employee a rise and they didn’t work any harder!”
In his great book Drive, Dan Pink explores the rift between what science says and business does.
The reality is, money is more a satisfier than a motivator. Every person needs enough money for their basic needs and comfort. Until they meet these basic needs, money is a motivator. But in looking to obtain extra efforts or performance improvements, money has been proven in research to produce the opposite results – negative performance improvement!
When you think about any employee bonus plans that you may have had yourself or for your employees, did they ever actually motivate anyone? Was the bonus calculation even tied to activities they had control over? Usually, it is a mystery what the bonus is, right up until they get it.
If an employee makes a complaint about ‘not enough money’, there is another assumption that this is the actual problem. This is a great example of ‘the problem is not the problem’.
A complaint about money is usually a way of saying there is some other unhappiness or unfairness. If an employee feels there is unfairness between pay rates, this could be a result of a number of factors, including a simple misunderstanding. If an employee is unhappy, there is a natural tendency to ask for more money to compensate for the unhappiness. If the employer could explore and determine the cause of the unhappiness, the money problems may disappear.
What are your thoughts? Do your employees care about money more than respect, opportunity for advancement or flexibility? Have you ever had a bonus plan that motivated employees?
- Read more information about managing employees.
The Apprentice: Lesson seven - it's all about margins
May 04, 2012
Lord Sugar is taking the candidates to his old stamping ground on this week’s The Apprentice.
The candidates have to buy stock from an Essex wholesaler and sell it at local shopping centres and markets. It’s a simple task — but it’s guaranteed to reveal just how much business nous each of the remaining candidates actually have.
The trick is to spot the best sellers and flog them for all they are worth. They’ve only got £150 to spend so the idea is that they keep on restocking as they start to sell out. At the end of the day, Lord Sugar will count their assets — stock and cash — to see who has won.
The teams get a reshuffle and look like this:
Team Pheonix: Laura, Tom, Adam and Azhar, with Jade in charge.
Team Sterling: Stephen, Ricky, Jenna, Gabrielle, and leader Nick.
Jade’s team is a bit of a mess. They take ages deciding where to sell the stuff and leave themselves with just ten minutes to actually choose their stock.
Jade calls herself a “born leader”. But you have to question the truth of this statement since she’s the only candidate who has not been a project manager until this point.
At the market, Adam is “totally at home in this environment” and by sheer force of personality sells out of everything, albeit for rock-bottom prices.
But there are rifts in the team. Azhar has no faith in Jade and rings her every five minutes to quiz her about her strategy. Granted, she’s not on top of things, but it’s a blatant attempt to undermine her.
The star on team Sterling is Jenna, who is selling fake tan at a hefty £10 a time to queues of women desperate for a healthy glow. Meanwhile, Ricky and Stephen have transformed themselves into Essex boys. It’s all “lovely jubbly” and “happy chappy”.
But it’s the fake tan that’s the star of the show, with its impressive margins. Unfortunately, Nick leaves it far too late to restock and they end up manning an empty stall for two hours in the middle of the day. But once they’ve got more tan in a can, they’re back to business as usual.
In the boardroom, it’s no surprise that team Sterling has won the task with assets of £955.20. Team Pheonix have managed to amass £838.21.
The post-mortem is clear. Team Sterling bought well, sold well and made good margins. Team Pheonix bought a bit of everything and sold it too cheaply.
Jade is quick to point the finger at Azhar but struggles to find a second contender for the chop. No sooner has she chosen Tom than she is apologising and singing his praises.
So it’s clear that Lord Sugar has to decide between Jade — who is enthusiastic but ineffective — and Azhar, who is probably right but not a team player.
This is a hard one to call. No doubt about it — Jade has stuffed up. But Lord Sugar doesn’t like Azhar’s subversive tactics and in the end, he gets the finger.
Next week: Psst, wanna buy a Banksy? — selling urban art
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
How to be an entrepreneur
April 30, 2012
So you want to be an entrepreneur? Before we figure out the ‘How’ we need clarity on the ‘Why’. One of the ingredients for entrepreneurial success is knowing the passion for what you do. When you have clarity on your ‘Why’ you can be passionate about ‘How’ you run your business.
How #1
Align your business plan with your ‘Why’ so you can be passionate. Make sure and communicate your ‘Why’ to the marketplace.
For example, my own ‘Why’ is to improve the quality of life of my business-owner clients and their families. Since I don’t have children of my own, my contribution to the world is serving business-owners in a way that supports a stronger family so they can focus on raising their children in the best environment.
How #2
Become the ‘conductor of the orchestra’ for your business. This means you have to stop ‘playing your favourite instrument’ and train someone else to play it.
An entrepreneur typically starts out in a business they are technically proficient at. A hairdresser opens a salon or a chef opens a restaurant. Sorry, but if you want to make money as a hairdresser or chef you should work for an entrepreneur, not be one. An entrepreneur is a person who can become ‘the conductor of the orchestra’ as opposed to being someone who plays a particular instrument. The goal is to hire people to play the instruments, so you can conduct.
How #3
Embrace failures as a necessary path to success.
An entrepreneur is by definition a risk-taker. This means you would need to overcome any fears of failure or fears of success. Entrepreneurship requires a mindset of embracing and accepting failure. The key is not to avoid failing, but to fail in the most efficient, controlled and least expensive way! Jim Balsillie, co-founder of Research in Motion (Blackberry) calls this process ‘failing forward’. With each controlled failure you learn and progress forward towards success.
How #4
Be properly capitalised – ‘You need a tenner to make 50 quid’
A large majority of entrepreneurs are chronically undercapitalised. This is not an easy problem to fix, but having enough cash is critical. Without sufficient cash reserves, entrepreneurs cannot make the right long-term strategic decisions and actions. A lack of cash impairs your short-term thinking by keeping focused on the looming cash crunch. A decent cash reserve gives you confidence to make strategic decision and be in business long enough to collect the return on investment.
More reading
The Apprentice: Lesson six - the four Ps
April 27, 2012
Lord Sugar drops in on the candidates at home this week on The Apprentice. They look a bit shocked but they perk up when he tells them they’re taking a trip. They’re off to Edinburgh to make and sell gourmet street food.
Lord Sugar picks the team leaders, clearly trying to get some of the quieter ones to step up. So Jenna is put in charge of team Sterling and Adam gets to lead team Pheonix.
The brief is clear. “No junk” says Lord S. But you can’t take the market trader out of Adam — he wants to keep costs really low by using dried herbs and corned beef in his meatballs. Thankfully, sensible Tom puts a stop to that.
Adam continues to come across as a bit of a male chauvinist pig. He grins lasciviously as he wonders where the “trolley dolly” is on the train. And when Katie and Jade offer their services as marketing experts, he takes them on but puts “good manager” Stephen in charge of them.
Meanwhile on team Sterling, Jenna is confused about Scotland. She’s worried that they’ll struggle to sell to customers that only “speak Scottish”. Scottish Laura is laughing so hard she can’t say anything, in any language. Jenna’s maths is a bit dodgy too. It takes her ages to add up £200 and £68.82. Mathematical genius Ricky has to help out.
This task highlights the importance of the classic marketing mix, the four Ps — product, price, promotion and place. So how do the teams do?
Team Pheonix makes meatballs and pasta. It’s not exactly gourmet. Put it this way, Lord Sugar compares it to elephant droppings.
And it’s way too expensive at £5.99. Especially next to the cheap burgers and chips on offer outside the Hearts football club stadium. “They don’t pay that for a striker there,” says Lord Sugar.
So the price is too steep and their choice of place isn’t great either. What’s more, their branding is bland — Utterly Delicious Meatballs. In short, they manage to get all of the four Ps wrong.
Over on team Sterling, the product is a gourmet beef casserole using Scottish beef, served with haggis mash. It’s a high quality product that tastes delicious and the name is great too — Gourmet Scot Pot.
Their prices are pretty steep though and that’s the main challenge for Jenna and co. Luckily, they park their mobile kitchen in Parliament Square and then Princes Street — where they get lots of passing trade. So, when it comes to the Ps, they do pretty well on all counts.
In the boardroom, the numbers are in. The meatballs are incredibly cheap to make (£90.25) and sales reach £388.29, giving Adam and his team a profit of £294.04. The casserole costs a staggering £268.82 to make but with sales of £588.60, team Sterling makes a profit of £319.78.
The right team wins. The big question is, whose head is going to roll on team Pheonix?
Adam is struggling to pick his victims. He’s obviously tempted to bring back two girls, Katie and Jade. Stephen, who was supposedly in charge of them, has come out unscathed. But then Lord Sugar and co spot quiet Azhar and he comes under fire for under-delivering.
But in the end, it’s a case of three strikes and you’re out for Katie. She’s been here twice before and it’s time she left. So Katie is fired.
We’re down to ten candidates and several of them have yet to make much of an impression — hopefully next week we’ll find out what Jade, Azhar, Nick and Tom are made of.
Next week: Buying and selling wholesale goods in Essex — classic Lord Sugar territory.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
Five no-cost ways to motivate your employees
April 26, 2012
Here are five things a small-business owner can offer to motivate their employees.
1 Flexibility
The old school philosophy is you have to put in long hours because that’s what the boss had to do when he/she was young. Well, the world has changed. The next generation wants flexibility in their schedule and they are willing to work hard to get more freedom to plan their time. I know when I am going on vacation, I get a lot more done the day before I leave. This proves employees will work harder if they are motivated by the flexibility of getting time-off.
2 Leadership
Employees want to be led. They want you to plan for the future of the business, make good strategic decisions and run the business well enough so they don’t have to go looking for a new job. This is why the good leaders communicate their vision of the future with clarity and focus. The team follows easier if they know where they are going.
3 Fun
There is a direct correlation between fun workplaces and productive workplaces. If you can create some fun in your work environment, the result will be happy and productive people.
4 Fairness
If there is a perception of unfairness in the workplace, employee habits may become dysfunctional. A business-owner must make sure he or she is fair to employees. Although perceptions can’t be controlled, the effort to be fair can be.
5 Respect
Respect goes both ways. As the business-owner you have to go first. When you are respectful to others, you typically get respect back. In multiple surveys of employees I’ve done, respect always scores higher than money in importance.
What is the financial cost of providing flexibility, leadership, fun, fairness and respect to your employees? It’s zero, but the benefits are huge!
Paul Foster is founder and CEO of The Business Therapist, an online business coaching resource.
- Get more advice about how to manage employees.
The Apprentice: Lesson five - the importance of listening
April 19, 2012
The gloves are off this week on The Apprentice. The candidates are really starting to spar with each other. So it’s handy that Lord Sugar has gathered them together in the East End’s famous boxing venue, York Hall. Or Your Call as the boys hear it, in a classic bit of fork handles-style comedy.
The challenge, as Lord S reveals, is to develop a “noo fitness programme”. They’ll be trying to sell it under licence to three British gym chains.
There are no changes to the team configuration and so they look like this:
Team Sterling: Ricky, Duane, Nick, Gabrielle, Laura and Jenna.
Team Pheonix: Jade, Katie, Adam, Azhar, Stephen and Tom.
As the candidates bid to be project manager, you have to wonder whose rash promises are going to become famous last words. Stephen, a sales manager for a chain of health clubs, says it’s a “no brainer” that he should lead the task. Meanwhile on team Sterling, wrestler Ricky puts himself forward saying, “you’ll always witness the fitness with Ricky Martin”.
If there is one thing you can rely on in the Apprentice, it’s that the candidates will come up with the most appalling slogans — for themselves. Has no-one mentioned that having your own slogan is deeply naff? Surely that’s what Stuart “the brand” Baggs taught us, if nothing else?
But back to the task. The teams have two days to come up with a new fitness concept, make a promotional video and pitch it to Fitness First, Virgin Active and Pure Gym.
So how do they get on?
Team Sterling comes up with an exercise mash-up — martial arts crossed with dance. Ricky does well. He researches the market, works out the numbers and delivers three very polished pitches. His mistake, though, is to delegate the task of directing the video to Duane. Let’s just say Duane isn’t exactly a team player. He doesn’t want to hear squat from anyone. Laura and Nick try to get their views heard but Duane’s having none of it. By the end of the day, Laura and Duane aren’t speaking to each other.
On Team Pheonix, there’s someone else whose voice isn’t being heard — Tom. Katie has come up with the idea of a retro exercise class using skipping ropes, hoops and space hoppers. It’s lots of fun. But no-one has thought about the cost of the equipment — or how much space all those space hoppers will take up. Except Tom. He spots the flaw in the plan. But his words of caution, delivered too quietly, are quickly dismissed.
At the pitches, Stephen looks shocked when the gym managers question the cost of the kit. To one lot, he offers everything as part of the package — a sure-fire money loser. To another, he plucks some costs from thin air. It looks desperate. Surely, they’ve lost the task.
But no. In the boardroom, it is revealed that Virgin Active are keen to develop the retro idea to appeal to families as a way to get kids involved in exercise classes. It’s not exactly what team Pheonix had in mind, but they’re not complaining.
So team Pheonix generates £12,810 despite rejections from two other gym chains. Team Sterling makes £7,970 from two interested parties but misses out on the Virgin Active deal.
Poor Ricky. He is gutted. He brings back Laura (for reasons that no-one quite understands) and Duane (for stuffing up the video). Lord Sugar questions his decision to let off the team players that contributed the least, the three quieter ones that couldn’t wait to get out of the boardroom — Nick, Gabrielle and Jenna.
With feedback from Karren Brady and Nick Hewer, Lord Sugar makes his final decision. He says, with his usual eloquence, “In summarising, I don’t want any interference. I’m going to give you as I see it.”
He’s mainly talking to Laura, who is one of those candidates that doesn’t know when to shut up in the boardroom. But she keeps schtum and he eventually points his finger of doom at Duane.
Next week: Selling gourmet street food in Edinburgh. What could go wrong?
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
Why cloud computing is ideal for start-ups
April 18, 2012
A recent survey by BestVendor of more than 550 US start-ups found that 57 per cent were using Google Apps for email, 71 per cent were using QuickBooks for accounting, 59 per cent were using Salesforce as customer relationship management and 39 per cent were using Dropbox for storage. All exist ‘in the cloud’ – so what is the appeal of cloud computing?
A major attraction is cost, of course. Some applications are free, and those that aren’t allow businesses to pay monthly. These applications also require no space on your computer, while businesses don’t have the hassle of upgrades or the worry of losing data if their computer should get lost or broken. Let’s face it – many start-up owners don’t want to think about their IT. They just need it to be there – and work – so they can focus on running and growing their business.
Start-ups aren’t alone; established businesses are also making the move toward the clouds, but more slowly and with slightly more anticipation. A recent survey of 511 IT professionals by InformationWeek revealed that 27 per cent said they won’t be moving to cloud computing, while only a third were actually using it.
Why are larger businesses taking their time? Aside from questions about security, they already have their software needs taken care of in-house and although they see a future ‘in the clouds’, the initial transfer is likely to be a huge task.
Start-ups are in the best position. They can start as they mean to go on; they often have little or nothing to transfer, which means they can start quickly and cheaply. Plus, as they grow, they can continue to add additional software and users.
These are the five main reasons why start-ups are reaching for the clouds.
1 No major set up
When a start-up reached a certain size, traditionally they would have considered investing in their own office-based server, which could cost between £500 and £2,500. If they use the cloud, the server is managed by a supplier, which eliminates that large initial outlay.
2 Predictable costs
Another cost benefit for start-ups is there are no surprises. New software can be added when you need it, new users added instantly. And although the monthly payment will rise to reflect the additions, there are no lump sums; it works just like your mobile phone bill and so forecasting can be done easily and accurately.
3 Scalability
Cloud computing allows expansion in line with your business growth. Many start-ups grow quite quickly, but can shrink with equal speed. With the cloud, software and users can be removed as quickly and easily as they can be added and so the bill is reduced accordingly. As soon as you grow, you don’t need to invest in further servers or software, you simply let your provider know and they’ll expand your cloud again.
4 Flexibility
In the early stages, many business-owners work from home. Collaborating with partners, associates, even employees, can be done very easily with the cloud. There is no need to work at the same location. Documents can be shared, computers remotely backed-up, and your software can be accessed anywhere.
5 It’s green
Not all of course, but many start-ups advocate sustainability. Clouds have been proven to be green and so this provides another incentive for start-ups to consider the cloud.
- Want to read more about how to manage your start-up IT needs?
What to do when considering buying a franchise
April 16, 2012
Making the leap into business is a big one and all would-be franchisees should have a good tick-list of what they need to consider before making the leap. Here's what to do when considering buying a franchise:
1. Research the franchise
2. Research the franchisor
3. Research the demographic
4. Crunch the numbers
5. Talk to other members of the franchise
6. Ask to see their figures
7. Get a good business plan
8. Be conservative in your estimations for the first year
9. Read the small print
10. Research the competition
11. Grill the franchisor
The last point is important. This should not just be an interview to see whether you are a suitable franchisee, it should be an interview by you to see if you are able and willing to work with the franchisor.
If your franchisor is not behind you 100 per cent and providing continued support it should ring alarm bells. The best franchisors are the ones who know that you have to succeed for the franchise to succeed and will do their very best to make sure that happens. Happy hunting.
More on franchising
- Watch a short British Franchise Association video about how to become a successful franchisee
- Article about buying a franchise
- Downloadable four-page guide to buying a franchise
The Apprentice: Lesson four - sometimes less is more
April 13, 2012
This week, the challenge for the candidates on The Apprentice is to turn trash into treasure. The teams have to source cheap second hand goods — from auctions, car boot sales, junk shops and house clearances — and sell them from their very own pop-up shop in the uber-trendy Brick Lane in east London.
Lord Sugar mixes up the teams again and this is how they look this week:
Team Sterling: Ricky, Duane, Nick, Gabrielle, Jane and Jenna, with Laura as team leader.
Team Pheonix: Jade, Katie, Adam, Azhar and Stephen, with Tom as team leader.
Like any episode of the Apprentice, a story soon starts to emerge. Laura’s team seems to be firing on all cylinders. They’re buying lots of stock and they’re planning to upcycle them by adding value — painting and reupholstering chairs and creating cute tables from old suitcases. Gabrielle is in charge of the creative efforts, ordering materials and painting union jacks on everything.
Meanwhile, on team Phoenix, Tom is keeping a very tight hold on the purse strings. He doesn’t want to buy much and he’s very particular. His minimalist approach is not going down well with Nick Hewer, who calls it “foolish”. Mind you, Nick describes the typical customer as “the young trendy with the gelled hair” which leaves you wondering how much he really knows about the cool urban crowd that shop on Brick Lane.
Team Sterling continues to look good as they talk about branding the shop and adding cushions and candles to the mix. But then, quite quickly, it goes pear-shaped. It starts with their odd decision to scatter dead leaves around their shop. Then it becomes clear that a bit of paint and a staple gun haven’t turned their trash into treasure. They have actually turned everything into cheap tat. Cheap tat in a sea of dead leaves.
Up the road, though, Tom’s less-is-more approach is reaping rewards. A half-empty shop with a few old bits and bobs is hitting the spot with the Brick Lane shoppers. Nick Hewer actually apologises at this point. “I thought their product selection was poor. What do I know?” he muses.
Back in the boardroom, the numbers are in and Tom’s team Pheonix is streets ahead with a profit of £1063.40, having spent just £360.10. Team Pheonix spent £660.76 (about half of this on materials) and made just £783.49.
It’s abundantly clear that Tom has been incredibly fortunate. His minimalism may have won the day but it was inspired by extreme caution not by some clever insight into the market. This was an accidental win.
Laura and Gabrielle probably had a better grasp of the retro/vintage market than Tom and certainly they put much more effort into the task. But they misunderstood the market and tried to make up for it with some hard selling — quite the wrong approach for the laid-back crowd wandering up and down Brick Lane.
So Laura brings back Gabrielle (for over-ordering materials and painting too many union jacks on the furniture) and Jane (for scaring the customers with her unappealing sales patter — half desperate, half aggressive as Karren Brady points out).
But who goes? It’s never just a numbers game with Lord Sugar. He always goes with his gut instinct. Yes, Laura and Gabrielle made mistakes.
But Lord Sugar says, “I have to judge it on the person that has got the most potential, coming into business with me, yeah?” It’s a bit garbled — like many of Lord Sugar’s sentences — but the message is loud and clear. Jane gets her marching orders.
Next week: The candidates have to come up with a new fitness programme.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
The Apprentice: Lesson three - branding (and spelling) matters
April 05, 2012
There’s always a touch of the Generation Game when the candidates on The Apprentice have to cook something up. This time it’s condiments — table sauces, chutneys, pickles and so on.
You can’t help but think that they’re trying to do a “Reggae Reggae sauce” — the most successful product to come out of the Dragons’ Den.
And, last night, if you stuck around for the Apprentice after-show “You’re Fired” you’d have seen Levi Roots, the entrepreneur behind Reggae Reggae, on the panel. Without wanting to give too much away, let’s just say he doesn’t look like a man who is worried about this new competition. The only time he stops smiling is when he tastes the two concoctions.
But back to the task. Lord Sugar jiggles the teams about a bit. Katie joins the boys on Pheonix, while Duane and Nick head for team Sterling to work with the rest of the girls.
The new arrivals clearly feel like Lord Sugar’s chosen ones and so Katie and Duane both step up to be team leaders. But Adam, bless him, is worried that the task may be “too complicated” for Katie. Women, know your place.
Actually, there’s some sexism on both sides to be fair. Katie has already bragged about her ability to manipulate men. Meanwhile, Ricky reckons it won’t be hard “to influence all her decisions”. But Adam really is the limit with his patronising offers of help that are clearly intended to undermine.
The production stage is a bit of a farce for both teams. Pheonix is making a rival to ketchup but it’s too gloopy to go into the bottles. Thanks to unambitious targets and considerable wastage, they only manage to make 300 bottles.
Sterling is working on a pineapple chutney recipe. But someone has used a very heavy hand with the chilli.
But the production problems are hardly surprising — they’re trying to create a successful recipe in a matter of hours. What they should have got right is the name, the branding and the positioning.
Team Sterling doesn’t do too badly. InFusion is not a bad name for their tangy chutney made from pineapple and ginger. The product and branding impresses the upmarket grocers Partridges and they get an order for 300 jars.
Pheonix, meanwhile, has created “Belissimo” — a spicy table sauce with an Italian twist. Unimaginatively labelled with a picture of a red pepper on a white background, it looks more like a pasta sauce. It’s supposed to have mass-market appeal, but there’s no slogan to explain what it actually is. And, worst of all, the name is spelled incorrectly — a crucial detail that stops Partridges from putting in an order.
And so, team Pheonix fails to rise from the ashes. It makes just £585.56, compared to team Sterling’s sterling effort —£1028.
Incredibly, Stephen — the man responsible for the branding and the spelling mistake — slips under the radar and escapes the scrutiny of the boardroom. Instead, Katie brings back Michael (poor at selling) and Ricky (poor at production).
In the end, Lord Sugar points his famous finger at the person that just doesn’t look like they can hack it — Michael.
Next week: Turning trash into treasure.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
The Apprentice: Lesson two - know your numbers
March 29, 2012
It’s the design task — perhaps one of the most excrutiating challenges on The Apprentice.
Traditionally, this task sees the two teams struggling to agree on the product they should develop. It’s not unusual to see team leaders throw out the results of market research to go with their gut instinct instead. There’s usually a multi-functional aspect to at least one of the designs.
And so it comes to pass.
The challenge is to design a new product for the home. The girls (team Sterling) come up with two ideas for the bathroom led by team leader Jane McEvoy. One is a splash screen to prevent children from flooding the bathroom. The other is a Tap Cosy — a concept that opens up all sorts of possibilities for a previous no-go area — the tap end of the bath. Well, two possibilities anyway — you could lie your head on it or rest your feet on it.
The splash screen is the simpler idea —until the girls throw more uses for it into the mix — it’s a toy, it’s a drawing board, it’s a storage device for both toys. More is more, right?
But what will sell? To find out, Katie Wright leads a sub-team to meet with a mother and toddler group. The splash screen gets mixed reactions, but they love the Tap Cosy.
But Jane is worried about the design — how do you create a product that fits all taps? It’s a fair point but she doesn’t give it much of a chance. The splash screen — Splish Splash — is born.
Meanwhile on team Pheonix, the boys back Azhar Siddique as team leader. They’ve got two ideas up their sleeves as well — Duane Bryan comes up with a bin that compacts food waste. Meanwhile, Adam Corbally has a brainwave — rubber gloves that have sponge scourers attached to them to make washing up easier — Magic Hands. Ta da!
In the focus group at a catering college, the Magic Hands get the thumbs up. But the other boys are having none of it — the bin is the thing.
So it’s on to the pitches, where both teams will present their ideas to Amazon and Lakeland. And it’s the girls’ pitch to Amazon that can only be described as a total car crash.
We’ve all seen Apprentice candidates stuffing up the numbers. This time, they not only flounder and get them wrong but they propose an outlandish deal to the online retailer. They suggest that they buy one million units. One million! At a cost of nine million quid! Words fail me.
Back at the boardroom, the results are in. The girls have sold 7,500 units to Amazon and none to Lakeland. The boys sold 3,000 to Amazon and 10,000 to Lakeland. Lord Sugar is amazed that the girls got anything from Amazon. “They must have felt sorry for you,” he says.
Jane brings back Maria O’Connor (with the crazy purple eyeshadow) and Jenna Whittingham (numbers girl) into the boardroom for a grilling. Their crimes? Maria under-delivered (she fell asleep in the car) and Jenna messed up the numbers while presenting to a prospective client.
Lord Sugar is furious. “This is diabolical,” he says. “Basic business principles went right down the drain on this task,” he fumes. “And the product sucks. I am disappointed with all of you to be honest.”
The girls fight for their survival with Jane even resorting to mentioning her son crying on the phone. Lord Sugar dismisses her “sob stories” but gives her another chance as he points his finger at Maria.
It just goes to show that the biggest mistake a candidate can make on The Apprentice is to do nothing.
Next week: The teams must make and market a new condiment.
Find out more about the candidates on the BBC Apprentice website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/apprentice
The Apprentice: Lesson one - how to get yourself fired
March 22, 2012
Lord Sugar is persistent, I’ll say that for him. Here he is again looking for another apprentice — or what he calls a “so-called entrepreneur” — that can help him make lots of money.
Sixteen Apprentice candidates are lined up in the boardroom. We’ve heard the usual posturing from them about how great they are, but now they’re looking nervous as they listen to the law according to Lord Sugar. “This is my boardroom and by the way this is my money. I’m not looking for a friend. If I wanted a friend, I’d get myself a dog.”
Woof woof.
Lord Sugar also said he’s looking for a “Lennon to his McCartney”, a “Marks to his Spencer”. And it will take 12 weeks of tasks to sort the winner from the wannabes.
This week’s task is simple. Take some unadorned items – t-shirts, bags, teddy bears – and print a design on them. Then sell them for a profit. As usual at this stage in the competition, it’s boys versus girls.
It’s quite telling that none of the boys want to be project manager. You would have thought from their interview tapes that they would all have been clamouring for the job. But no, they all look down like a bunch of schoolboys who haven’t done their homework.
In the end, Nick Holzherr steps forward and with the name Team Pheonix, they start to plan their strategy.
Meanwhile, the girls call themselves Team Sterling and Gabrielle Omar puts herself forward as leader, based on the fact she’s planning to set up a print business.
There is talk of margins on both teams but it’s only the boys that figure them out before they buy the goods. The girls make their order and then try to make the numbers work.
When it comes to print and design, though, the girls are way ahead thanks to the secret weapon that is Jade. She does some lovely animals sketches. Nick Hewer, not one to bandy complements about, says: “Her design is smashing.”
But there’s red ink all over the place where the boys are trying to print pictures of London buses onto bags. There are great blobs of red ink all over the bags – making them only fit for the bin.
So it’s swings and roundabouts until we come to the selling. The boys do well until they have to give a shopkeeper a refund for selling her a bunch of bags that are covered in ink stains.
But there’s another unhappy retailer in London. The girls try and sell their remaining goods to a North London store and practically reduce the shopkeeper to tears. The poor woman says she won’t buy under pressure and still the girls berate her, all talking at once. Eventually, they leave but not before they get a good telling off from a chap that turns up to defend the shopkeeper. Quite right, too. Nick Hewer sums it up: “She couldn’t stand being cornered by a pack of baying hyenas.”
And so to the boardroom where we discover that the boys have blown the girls out of the water. They made a profit of £616.20 while the girls only managed a measly £214.80.
Like many a project manager on The Apprentice, Gabrielle hedges her bets by taking two very different people back into the boardroom with her – quiet Katie Wright and talkative Bilyana Apostolova.
What follows is absolutely fascinating. Bilyana basically fires herself.
She just doesn’t read the room. It’s obvious that Katie is for the chop. Even Lord Sugar says: “the person leaving may not feel they had enough time to show themselves”. Clearly, he means Katie.
But Bilyana will not stop talking. At one point Lord Sugar says “stop” ten times in a row. Moments later he tells her to “listen” nine times. In her attempts to save herself she actually makes Lord Sugar change his mind. He warns her that she’s not doing herself any favours. But she won’t listen. Bilyana is fired.
Find out more about this year’s bunch of Apprentice hopefuls.
Budget 2012 small business coverage on the Donuts
March 21, 2012
Throughout the day Start Up Donut will be covering the key points from Budget 2012 affecting small businesses:
- We’re tweeting about the Budget from the Start Up Donut Twitter account. Tweet along with us and let us know your response to the Chancellor’s announcement.
- We’ll be posting blogs written by small business experts – please add your comments and responses.
- After the Chancellor’s statement we’ll be posting our Budget 2012 summary for small businesses and in our news section we’ll be gauging reaction from small firms and their representatives.
- Join in with your tweets and blog comments to let us know your thoughts about the UK Budget 2012.
- Have your say in our forum post: Budget 2012 – What do you think?
Budget 2012
- Budget 2012 must boost business confidence, say business groups
- Tax changes - can any government get it right?
- Budget 2012 summary - Key points for small businesses
- Small businesses respond to the 2012 Budget
- Budget 2012 doesn’t go far enough to help struggling small firms, say business groups
- ‘Turnover tax’ for smallest firms in “Budget for business”
We’ll update the list above with the latest Donut coverage on Budget 2012 as it goes live.
Should your business offer guarantees?
March 20, 2012
When a potential customer considers purchasing from your business, are there a number of risks to completing the purchase? Will the product or service solve the problem they have? Will it meet the needs or wants of the customer? Will the benefits outweigh the costs?
When you provide a guarantee, you remove the risks to the potential purchaser and make it easier for them to buy from you.
It is reasonable to assume that if you reduce the risks and make it easy to buy, more of your potential customers will convert to actual customers and make the purchase. This is a good thing.
Here are five tips to developing a great guarantee:
1 Position it clearly and boldly to potential customers
The worst guarantee is one that customers don’t know about. This may sound ridiculous, but as a small-business advisor I often discover businesses that have a guarantee but didn’t tell their customers about it at the time of purchase. This means the guarantee was not needed for the purchase. Some of those who didn’t buy might have thought it was too risky to make the purchase without a guarantee – even though they would have got one.
2 The stronger and bolder the guarantee – the better
A watered-down guarantee doesn’t work. Make it big and bold. The idea is to get more customers to buy confidently, so big and bold gets more attention in the marketplace. I often see big resistance to make it bold. This is typically because of the fear the market will take advantage of your guarantee. The reality is that a very small percentage probably will, but the percentage is typically less than 1 per cent. The profits from the other 99 per cent of new customers will be more than the cost of dealing with the unsatisfied 1 per cent.
3 Be specific how you define the “claim”
As the business that is developing the guarantee, you get to determine the rules for a claim. While the guarantee needs to have some meat and be easy to use, you control the details. Make it ‘if this, then that’. For example, ‘If this tree doesn’t live for one year from purchase for any reason, we will replace it for no charge.’ In this example, the claim was not cash but a free replacement, which costs less to the business that a full refund.
4 Test it first
If you are worried about how the guarantee will work and if anyone will abuse it, test it in a controlled manner. You can offer it to a limited group of potential customers to see how it works, then you can tweak it based on how the test works out.
5 Research guarantees in other industries
The design of a great guarantee does not have to come from your industry. There is no need to re-invent the wheel. If you just focus on the current purchase decisions you may be making yourself, you can experience how and if a guarantee affects your risks of making a purchase.
The Apprentice 2012: What are entrepreneurs made of?
March 19, 2012
Yay! The Apprentice is back on Wednesday 21 March on BBC1. Sixteen would-be entrepreneurs are champing at the bit to show Lord Sugar, Karren Brady and Nick Hewer — and us — what they are made of.
And to whet our appetites, the BBC has published short clips of each of the candidates setting out their stall. But the question is — do they sound like Britain’s next big entrepreneur? Here’s a little preview:
Adam Corbally: “I’m a funny guy. I’m a nice guy. I’m a people person. I’m a buyer, I’m a seller, I’m a manager, I’m a planner.”
Bet you’re humming the tune to “I’m a Joker” right now…
Duane Bryan: “I want to be a whole new breed of winner. So what that means is that I have to be harsh, it means I have to be kind. I have to be both sides of the coin.”
Gabrielle Omar: “I will say yes to everything. I do have a competitive streak in me. You don’t need to babysit me. I’m ready now.”
Tom Gearing: “I’d say I’m pretty assured, confident, charismatic and some people say I’m quite good-looking as well.”
Jade Nash: “It’s about status, it’s about money. What I really want is to be able to retire when I’m 45 but really, being a workaholic, I’ll probably carry on until I’m 80.”
Stephen Brady: “I’m a true believer in that if you sit on the fence the only thing you’re going to get is obviously not very comfortable. I’m in my business prime and what I mean by that is I’m somebody now who’s ready to take off.”
Jane McEvoy: “I genuinely believe if you work really hard and you put everything into it then you can win. You don’t have to play any nasty games or lie or cheat.”
Laura Hogg: “I’m definitely not here to make friends. Business is business as far as I’m concerned. I’m going to be one of Scotland’s next big exports and, you know, Lord Sugar is not going to want to miss out on that.”
Michael Copp: “My first rule in business is to make money — loads of it. I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Everything I have got and I’ve achieved I’ve worked damn bloody hard for. In a couple of years’ time I’m going to be a multi-millionaire.”
Bilyana Apostolova: I’m completely self-made. I left Bulgaria when I was 17. My home was a run-down communist block of flats and now I’m on the 27th floor of the Gherkin. I mean wow what a journey. I don’t really tolerate idiots and my strategy with them is just to ignore them.”
Jenna Whittingham: “I’m quite a likeable person. Not a lot of people dislike me. What frightens me is not being successful.”
Katie Wright: “I can be your best friend or your worst enemy. I’m really irritating. You’ve got to be in the right mood to put up with me. I’ve got a fantastic business idea that’s going to make Lord Sugar lots of money if he comes on board. If he doesn’t I’ll just make a lot of money myself.”
Azhar Siddique: “The aim in business for me is to avoid any form of confrontation, the reason being is that it affects your credibility, it affects your reputation in business and more importantly bad news travels a lot further than good does.”
Maria O’Connor: I own my own business and I’m only 20 years old. Most of the other candidates are working in marketing or that sort of thing but I’ve worked in the real world. With Lord Sugar, I could wrap him round my finger, I could make him love me.”
Nick Holzherr: “I do blame others for things going wrong. I’m a technology entrepreneur that has a great idea that I can definitely deliver. My first rule of business is that every business should make a profit. I have experienced failure and success so I know how to run a business well.”
Ricky Martin: “I’m the reflection of perfection because other people look at me and they want to be me. Lord Sugar will probably find my ego a little bit difficult.”
It’s all shaping up nicely. We’ve got the usual mixture of confidence bordering on egomania and competitiveness bordering on aggression.
But the question is, will any of the candidates go on to become the next Lord Sugar or Sir Richard Branson? Is this kind of bravado what running a successful business is all about?
Sure – having self-confidence and determination is crucial. But an entrepreneur must also have a real passion for what they do. They must be able to handle the detail as well as seeing the big picture. They need to be able to take calculated risks and be prepared to learn from failure. Above all, they have to be good with people – employees, partners and customers.
And let’s not forget who won last year. Tom Pellereau, a thoughtful inventor, was hardly the poster boy for brash self-confidence.
The great thing about the Apprentice is that it is a learning experience. It’ll be fascinating to see how the candidates develop over the coming weeks.
Budget 2012 - will it help small businesses?
March 16, 2012
On Wednesday, 21 March, George Osborne will deliver his third Budget as Chancellor. It comes against a backdrop of rising overheads and ongoing tough trading conditions, wider economic woes and depressingly high unemployment, partially a result of deep cuts to public spending as the government seeks to drive down national debt.
Small businesses and their representative groups are desperate to see measures introduced in the 2012 Budget that enable businesses and their customers to feel more confident about the future. Optimism is rare, especially on the high street, with many businesses continuing to go to the wall.
Tax reductions would also be warmly welcomed, of course – and not just to the 50% rate for high-earners. Even modest tax reductions could help ease the cashflow pressures that many small-business owners face and perhaps stimulate investment (and possibly even more jobs).
The Chancellor has already said there will be no large tax giveaways (except perhaps for the high earners?), but it will be interesting to see if he does anything to ease the tax burden small firms face. Organisations such as the Federation of Small Businesses have called for a simplified ‘turnover tax’ for micro businesses.
Both the Forum of Private Business (FPB) and the Institute of Directors have said they want to see the headline-grabbing 50p income tax rate scrapped, arguing that it doesn’t encourage entrepreneurship.
Many business groups have called on the Chancellor to scrap the 3p fuel duty increase that is planned for August, arguing it is yet another burden that businesses throughout the UK simply cannot afford.
It remains to be seen whether the government can keep small businesses happy. Follow the Budget 2012 on the Donuts and find out what happens.
Budget 2012 small business coverage on the Donuts
- We’ll be tweeting about the Budget throughout the day and inviting your comments. Follow us on Twitter.
- We’ll also be posting blogs written by small business experts and you’ll be able to add your comments and responses.
- After the Chancellor’s statement we’ll be posting our Budget 2012 summary for small businesses and in our news section we’ll be gauging reaction from small firms and their representatives.
- Join in with your tweets and blog comments to let us know your thoughts about the UK Budget 2012.
You can also have your say in our forum post: Budget 2012 – What do you think?
More Budget 2012 reading
Is Richard Branson a typical entrepreneur?
January 16, 2012
The London launch of Sir Richard Branson's new book Screw Business As Usual was a very jolly affair. The man himself said all the right things and was ably supported by Jean Oelwang CEO of Virgin Unite, the not-for-profit foundation of the Virgin Group.
The audience included several notable social entrepreneurs, including John Bird, the founder of The Big Issue, whose scene-stealing cameo made my job of running the question and answer session very easy indeed.
The room was also packed with the world's press and media, but I was concerned that some might take a negative view of the proceedings. This was aptly demonstrated by Lucy Kellaway's review of Sir Richard's book in the FT. Her view was that Branson is an attention-seeking egomaniac prone to shameless name-dropping, and the book was unstructured, even if Sir Richard's charisma was undeniable.
Kellaway does have a point. Many of the very successful entrepreneurs I have met and interviewed were prone to attention seeking, name-dropping and the generation of unstructured books. I also think Kellaway's review is unlikely to change anyone's opinion of Branson himself, the Virgin Group or social enterprise, the key premise of the book.
There can be no argument about the general benefits of all three; Branson is successful, the economy needs driven entrepreneurs and social enterprise is now a proven vehicle for running businesses that have an overall benefit to society.
My own take on Screw Business As Usual is that between the anecdotes and name-checking in the book, there are real-life examples of every flavour of social enterprise.
The book explains how companies such as Virgin Atlantic are reducing their carbon footprint and details charitable entities that are bringing people out of poverty, as well as highly successful and profitable businesses that are improving rather than destroying the social fabric of the world.
If you are inspired by Branson and aspire to be a social entrepreneur, you will find a model in his book that suits your purpose. If you cannot stand him, you will probably continue to avoid his various products and services. If you are an entrepreneur in high dudgeon about unsympathetic press coverage, you need to get over it.
Twenty years ago I launched spoof ‘60s rock star Mike Fab-Gere on an unsuspecting public. I was thrilled to secure a major profile in a national newspaper, but incandescent with rage when the journalist, who had nodded sympathetically at my every utterance during the interview, then wrote what I considered to be a negative piece. Their argument was that my belief in 'peace and love' as a viable strategy for a happy and successful life was unrealistic and naïve.
Everyone else who read the piece took a different view, pointing out the number of column inches and the size of my photograph. The article certainly had no adverse effect on my musical or entrepreneurial career over the next twenty years.
As someone who successfully entertains and informs her readers, Kellaway is entitled to her opinion about Screw Business as Usual. I have also resisted the temptation to track down my journalist from twenty years ago and point out the subsequent error of their ways.
As we said in our own book, entrepreneurs are often over-sensitive and prone to insecurities, which can lead to an obsession with appearing on television and a desire for revenge against those who they feel have crossed them.
But as we also pointed out, the best revenge is not "a dish served cold", but "a happy life", and everyone agrees that Sir Richard does seem to be having very good fun indeed.
Screw Business As Usual by Sir Richard Branson is published by Virgin Books.
Originally published in The Financial Times. Copyright ©Mike Southon 2012. All Rights Reserved. Not to be reproduced without permission in writing.
Mike Southon is the co-author of The Beermat Entrepreneur and a business speaker.
10 things you need to know about starting a business
January 10, 2012
1. Starting a business is a popular choice
About half a million people in the UK start a business each year, although this number could be significantly higher in 2012, because of high numbers of redundancies and a shortage of jobs. Most new ventures fail within a year or two, but according to government figures there are about 4.8m businesses in the UK.
2. Starting a business isn’t for everyone
Not everyone is up to the challenge of starting and running a successful business. Although your knowledge and experience will grow, if your new business is to succeed, much will depend on your personal qualities. Do you really have what it takes to run a business – especially when the going gets tough?
3. Setting up a business is straightforward
Don’t believe those who tell you registering a business is difficult. Making it a success is the hard part. Registering as a sole trader is immediate, easy and free. Call the HMRC ‘Helpline for the Newly Self-Employed’ on 0845 915 4515 or register online. Setting up a limited company is simple, too, (especially if a formation agent or accountant does it for you), although it takes up to 10 days and involves paying a fee.
4. Starting a business involves hard work
If you think working for yourself will mean you can take it easy, you’re probably in for a rude awakening. You’ll probably have to work harder. If you want to know what running your own business is like, speak to others who do it. Then answer the crucial question – is running a business really for you?
5. Starting a business involves commitment
As with most meaningful things in life, what you get out of your new business will be determined by what you put in. The only way you’ll be prepared to work hard and overcome the knockbacks is if you’re totally committed. You won’t be able to just walk away.
6. Setting up a business involves cost
You need to minimise your start-up costs and run your business in the same way if you want to maximise profits. Inevitably, starting a business will generate some start-up costs. You might have to invest personal savings. You might need to borrow money from friends or family (but only ever after carefully considering the implications). Calculating your start-up costs should be one of your earliest start-up tasks.
7. Starting a business involves risk
Even if you work hard, are totally committed, have a great business idea and you’re well suited to running a business – success isn’t guaranteed. Many new businesses fail. Even if it doesn’t, it could take years before your business generates profit. But the good news is – many new businesses succeed. You simply need to be aware that there is a risk of failure.
8. Starting a business involves sacrifice
You might have to work long days, nights and weekends, which will impact your relationships. Your social life might also suffer. It might be a while before you earn a livable wage – or any money, so your nearest and dearest might need to cover some or all of your living costs. You might have to cut right back and get used to doing without before you reap the rewards of running your own successful business.
9. Starting a business is enjoyable
Overcoming challenges when starting up is satisfying – especially if it’s the first time you’ve done it. Some tasks are hugely enjoyable, while showcasing abilities you didn’t know you had can also be gratifying. One day, you might look back on your start-up days as among your most enjoyable.
10. Starting a business can make you happier
Although things might not work out as you expect or want, starting your own business can give you a better work-life balance. It can make you wealthier. It can help you to escape the commute, free you from a job you hate or working with/for people you don’t like. It can give you greater job satisfaction. Some days you might regret starting your own business. On others – you’ll think it’s the best thing you’ve ever done.
Start Up Donut editor Mark Williams is a freelance editor, copywriter and journalist
Is it a bad time to start a business?
January 05, 2012
The news has been dominated recently by the Government budget and its spending cuts. Austerity measures appear to be in place for large swathes of the population and growth prospects are poor, set in the context of rising inflation, employment and debts.
With this in mind, is it a bad time to set up a new business or are there good opportunities for savvy business people who are prepared to take a risk and capitalise on new opportunities?
Let's examine the evidence. The Government has revised its growth estimates down to less than 1%, with growth rates of 3% not expected until 2015.
More bad news - public sector pay rises are capped and pensions are under review. Additionally, public sector job losses are likely to top 710,000.
So, there is an environment of low growth and high unemployment, which means that potential entrepreneurs may be forced into starting new businesses rather than walking into new jobs!
Yet, there are rays of light on the business horizon. The budget included a credit easing programme for SMEs and start-ups to access new funding and business financing partnerships are to be put in place nationwide. Apprenticeships and young people will have extra funding, which offers opportunities for potential employers.
So, although the economic outlook is grim, there are positive things to focus on, particularly in terms of start up funding, to plug the gap that banks have left.
New businesses will generally look at finance as their first port of call, using their business plans as a basis for raising start-up cash and investment.
With a good business plan and a viable model, along with persistence and a lot of hard work, successful businesses can still be built and are being started up in droves, as more people lose the security of employment.
If you're looking to set up a new business, speak to a Government sponsored finance provider or a listening bank. You'll need to set up accounts for your initial loans and day-to-day transactions and there are a wide range of business bank accounts to choose from.
Speak to advisers about possible grants, as well as the Government sponsored advice schemes such as the national Business Link. There is a range of localised not-for-profit Government partners and privately run organisations that exist to help businesses start up and grow.
Get a mentor or business angel to help coach you in the early days. Network like crazy and build up contacts. Attend seminars, groups, coaching sessions, skills training and anything to build your experience, abilities and network.
Use technology to make your routes to market quicker, more direct and often cheaper than traditional face-to-face or direct print marketing routes. Look at online advertising and social media usage to generate publicity for your product or service.
Get good staff in. It can be part time or contract if you can't afford full-time, or employ young people and train them up. There's a generation of graduates at risk from becoming 'lost' to the economic downturn and they possess enthusiasm and raw talent, as do young apprentices.
Ultimately, there will never be a perfect time to start a new business. Some industries contract and others expand, even in a downturn. Opportunities will still arise. One other good tip is that if you work full time and don't want to risk giving up your job to start a new venture, build it up in your spare time initially until it's successful enough to go full time!
I'd just like to say...
December 22, 2011
It’s been another memorable year for the Start Up Donut and its sister sites (Marketing, Law, IT and Tax). Time certainly flies. I can’t believe it’s little more than three years since we set out on this road aiming to create genuinely groundbreaking and inspiring websites packed with reliable, real-world information, advice, tools and resources for small businesses – free to use when needed.
Earlier this year, the Donut project reached the notable milestone of attracting its one-millionth site visitor. Since then, hundreds of thousands more users have been drawn to our sites, with many returning regularly for their fix of small-business advice, news and views.
In late August, following many months of research and development, the Tax Donut website was launched. It’s since become a popular destination for small firms in need of sound (yet accessible) advice on tax issues (Moira Stewart’s right – tax doesn’t have to be taxing).
Amazingly, 100-plus syndicated versions of Donut websites have been created for enterprise agencies, chambers of commerce, law firms and other sources of business support (more than half of these are versions of Start Up Donut). Hopefully, there will be many more in 2012.
Thanks must also go to those generous sponsors whose support helps to ensure that you don’t have to pay to benefit from our sites. Thanks also to those who provide our site users with access to special offers.
In 2011 we produced 12 Donut e-newsletters, which are emailed to tens of thousands of registered site users each month (sign up if you haven’t already – there’s no charge). I’ve really enjoyed writing 12 business-owner profiles this year for MyDonut, although personal favourites include Guy Watson of Riverford Organic, Goth accountant Psyche Coderre, Wendy Tan-White of Moonfruit, recession-battling restaurant owner Enzo Baldascino and the irrepressible self-publicist Ling Valentine of Viz and Dragons’ Den fame. I genuinely hope such profiles inspire you and others.
I’ve also enjoyed writing numerous case studies for Start Up Donut, which have made me even more convinced that the best way to learn about starting and running a business is to talk to those who’ve been there and done it.
The Donut project is backed by the knowledge of a small army of business experts. Special thanks to those of their number who went out of their way to assist us this year, especially those who helped us with Q&As or provided blogs. We’ll be recruiting more in 2012, so send us an email if you would like to share your expertise (and raise your profile).
This year, we’ve also built our Donut Twitter following to 30,000-plus souls – 7,500 on the Start Up Donut Twitter page alone. We hope you’ve enjoyed and benefited from reading our tweets this year.
We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the enthusiastic support of our readers – people like you. We value your input on our forums and the kind comments and messages of support you’ve sent us throughout the year.
Have a great Christmas and New Year. See you in 2012…
Start Up Donut editor Mark Williams is a freelance editor, copywriter and journalist
Starting a new business - free advice, tools and resources | Start Up Donut
Copyright © 2009-2012
