June 2010
Features
Rob Mcgrory Photography
Rachel Brown Approach Sales
Nick Hatton Empire Solutions
Novotel
Liverpool Hotel
Proud To Be Sponsored By
CONTENTS 4
Contributions Credits and Contacts
6
Team Talk Written by Mark Brake
NOVOTEL HOTEL
10 Ask Our Experts Richard Dickson, Lisa Madariaga, Pat Cobham Stephanie Davies, Kirwan’s Solicitors, Alan Taylor and Mary Errington
NICK HATTON
42 Tech Haze for Business
RACHEL BROWN
50 Liverpool Networking Scene
Focus On
MANKEY MONKEY
Costco
68 Carrington Catering
Sutten Kersh
Giraffe PR & Marketing
ROB MCGRORY
72 Members Directory and Offers For Readers
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VE MO
N OHE
contributions credits & contacts David Swinburn Writer TechHaze Technology Features http://www.techhaze.com My Networking PA Networking Pictures Liverpool Chamber Networking Pictures Downton in Business Networking Pictures Nugent Care Networking Pictures Lisa Hughes
Magazine Design Andrew Webb Magazine Design Gorilla in a Suit Magazine Design Gavin Sherratt IAW
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TEAM TALK
By
Mark Brake
Please read this section thoroughly, it may well be the longest apology you will ever receive. I’m sure we’ve all heard the expression, “the grass is always greener on the other side”. Why is it that this seems to be inherent in human nature? Take the lottery for example, possibly the ultimate example actually, it is the most absurd gamble that is available to the general public. Nobody puts a pound on the lottery in the hope of winning a tenner, or any other amount other than the jackpot multi million pound prise. Yet the odds of you winning the jackpot are 14 million to 1. You would be far better off throwing darts at a copy of the Racing Post, blindfolded, and putting your pounds on whatever you hit. But we don’t see this.
For me personally, this is all I’ve known. If I’m not taking risks in business, then I don’t feel as though I’m pushing hard enough.
All we see is Bob and Mary Smith smiling with champagne in one hand and huge novelty cheque in the other and think, that should be me! So with great dedication and blind faith, every Wednesday and Saturday we loyally commit our hard earned pounds in the vein hope that this time it is our turn. It’s like this in business too. Most people who are self employed or run small businesses do so because at some point in the past they looked at someone who has been particularly successful and thought, “I can do that”. It’s very easy to look at someone with a big flash car, nice house and all the other usual trappings of success and think, “lucky bugger”. The problem is that there are 2 things that we don’t usually see. Firstly there is the history of this person’s success. They have most likely worked for years with little or no reward, risking everything they own and often much they don’t. There is usually the all too frequent relationship costs, failed marriages, missing children growing up etc and it is more than likely not this persons first attempt, having tried and failed many times in business before.
Here goes. Many of our readers know that starting this ezine was a whirlwind of activity which has been fairly constant since August 2009. Whilst putting each edition of the ezine together takes the efforts of around a dozen people each month, there were actually 3 of us who have been full time on the business, myself, Emma and Craig.
Secondly and possibly more worryingly, for every successful person you see, there are many thousands that just have not got there, the vast majority never getting there. People work for much longer hours, endure far more stress, for little or even no money at all, in the pursuit of the dream, a successful business. The vast majority of entrepreneurs would be far better off getting a job and seeking their risks elsewhere, perhaps doing the lottery.
I relish the doing without and the dealing with the array of problems that appear to pop up on a regular basis and despite my many years of experience, it’s always something you never thought of. This is an education to me, we learn most from adversity. I have had some fantastic successes in my business career and yet more failures and whilst others look on and admire you for what you have achieved, it’s the adversity I cherish, this has been my university. Did I mention this was an apology?
Craig’s responsibility was for the design, layout and all things technical for the ezine. At the end of March, by mutual consent, Craig left. I believed at that time that I could make a seamless transition over to a new designer / techy person. I was wrong. Anyway, as you may gather from the image oposite, myself and Emma are not the most technically minded people you are likely to meet. So we missed our April and May editions whilst we set about resolving our dilemma. We have had some fantastic support from many different sources over the intervening 2 month period, but more importantly, we have learned so much. Through this adversity we now have an opportunity to really build on a much stronger foundation for the ezine and are working on ways to bring even greater benefits to our members. We really have a sense of the Phoenix rising from the ashes, coming back bigger and brighter than before. We are very proud of this club that is Your Business Ezine and we are so looking forward to the future, whatever it may bring. Both myself and Emma would also like to wish Craig the very best of luck with his new venture, he very much deserves it.
The N
experience
OVOTEL G
ood hotels are like life partners extremely hard to find. Sure, there are plenty of them out there, but choosing the right one can be a long and laboured task – even for those blessed with the biggest of bank balances. The right hotel can make or break your visit, whether for business or pleasure, so as with life partners, it’s probably best not to rush into anything. Having said that, the hotel experience is often what you make of it. I once enjoyed a perfectly pleasant stay in a Spanish resort, which was later featured in TV’s Holidays from Hell. Hardly a glowing recommendation, but we all had a jolly good time! But hotels aren’t merely for pleasure of course, they also adopt the role of second-home for those super-busy business men and women
darting round the country flying from meeting to meeting and living out of their suitcases. Their popularity for conferences and meetings, as well as providing a place for exhausted business people to rest their weary heads, has meant that hotels have really had to up their game in recent years. New technologies that are now must-haves for their guests have forced hotels to improve their accommodation tenfold, and the tea making facilities of old are now often replaced with state of the art espresso machines, to sit alongside the many other modern features which we have come to expect, such as iPod docking stations and touch-screen TV’s. The Jetsons would be proud.
As a city with its finger well and truly on the pulse, it was only natural that Liverpool would become a hotspot for some of the country’s most exciting and innovative new hotels. One of the latest additions to the city’s evergrowing list of must-stay hotels is the Hotel Novotel, Liverpool, which is ideally situated on Hanover Street, right in the city centre. Having only opened last November, the hotel has already earned an excellent reputation with the local business community and looks set to go from strength to strength as it continues to expand and improve its high quality service. Construction on the hotel began in early 2007, which you may have missed as the majority of the city centre resembled a building site at that time. Fortunately, the waiting paid off, and by the time last November’s opening took place, the finished product was another easy-on-the-eye addition to the city’s ever-improving city centre. So who are Novotel?
Well, they’re the mid-scale brand within the Accor hotel group, which just so happens to be the third largest hotel chain in the world. Their Liverpool hotel, like the majority of Novotel’s offers a 4 star experience, but the Accor group also includes the 5 star Sofitel, as well as the Mercure, Pullman, Ibis, Suite, Gallery and All Seasons brands. Novotel has almost 400 hotels in over 60 countries, meaning they have over 71, 857 rooms worldwide. We wouldn’t fancy cleaning all of those. As a contemporary and cutting edge brand located in many of the world’s biggest and busiest cities, it’s no surprise that around 61% of Novotel’s guests are there on business, with just 39% visiting for leisure. That’s not to say it’s not a great place for families to stay – they welcomed over 1.9 million children last year, and offer free accommodation for two children under the age of 16, sharing with their parents or grandparents – it’s just that Novotel lends itself perfectly to those in the world of business.
“Excellent customer service is a must for an you’re there for business or leisure, and No
Each Hotel has first-rate meeting facilities, and their Meeting@Novotel option provides clients with a customised meeting organisation service which is available for anything from 10 to 50 participants. The Liverpool hotel is also eager to establish business relationships with the local business community and has recently become the resident home of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce. The hotel’s relaxed atmosphere and creative environment makes it the ideal venue for meetings, while it’s location within Liverpool One mean that although it’s undeniably central, meetings can be held away from the hustle and bustle that plagues many of Liverpool’s other city centre hotels. The Hotel Novotel Liverpool boats a classy but contemporary design in keeping with the brand’s worldwide standards. Each room measures 25m2 and is both modern and comfortable, while you’re also guaranteed that all-important web connection.
Excellent customer service is a must for any self-respecting hotel guest, whether you’re there for business or leisure, and Novotel Liverpool has that all boxed off. Assuring customers that “excellence in service is a way of life”, they stay true to their word in the faultless service that they offer in everything that they do. Notable features guaranteed to provide some well-deserved relaxation include a Bose underwater sound system which makes the rather alluring swimming pool even more of a must-see, and a large number of Apple Mac’s which are available – free of charge – for all guests. There’s also a fitness suite and steam room for those who like to take care of their temple of a body. The hotel’s dedicated conference floor also hosts a wide range of post-meeting treats, including X-Boxes, T.V. dinners and Wii consoles, which are bound to make a business trip to the Novotel Liverpool a truly unforgettable experience all round.
Surroundings are light and airy, and the quality of service is coupled with extremely competitive prices.
ny self-respecting hotel guest, whether ovotel Liverpool has that all boxed off.”
Add to this the fact that its Executive rooms each ingeniously feature an espresso machine for that extra caffeine fix, and you have the perfect location for any business meeting, whether you’re travelling from Timbuktu or Toxteth. Oh, and did we mention that the rooms also feature iPod docking stations, perfect for winding down after a woeful day of work? And as if that wasn’t enough, there’s also a superswish suite with an iPod video screen in place of your run of the mill television set. Amazing. So what about getting fed and watered? As well as being just minutes away from some of the city’s finest eateries, Novotel Liverpool also boasts its very own restaurant – with an impressive menu that’s available anywhere in the hotel. Elements restaurant offers an innovative approach to eating and drinking, with international cuisine served in an environment filled with vibrant décor and contemporary furnishings – whether that’s the restaurant itself or any other corner of the hotel you choose to tickle your taste buds. With 9 meeting rooms on the conference floor, and over 209 bedrooms across 11 floors, Novotel Liverpool is a hub of energy and activity – much like the city itself.
Guests are treated to an hour of complimentary drinks on a Wednesday evening, and can become a club member in order to collect points for air miles or to spend in the hotel – where you can gain a further 15% off food and beverages. All of this means that a stay at the Novotel won’t leave you out of pocket, and you’ll be able to invest the money you saved wisely. Well, Liverpool One is only next door, it’d be rude not to really, wouldn’t it? Novotel Liverpool is a truly unique hotel and a welcome addition to Liverpool’s already impressive line-up of big name hotels. Offering superb value for money, high quality service and an unbeatable location, it’s the perfect venue not only for leisure trips with the family, but for conferences and business meetings which are sure to be brightened up by the hotel’s vibrant and energetic atmosphere, and the numerous services which guarantee a successful and enjoyable visit.
Written By David Swinburn Photographs from Novotel
www.novotel.com
“And with fellow Novotel hotels in the likes of London, Paris and Beijing, Liverpool is in good company - as always.”
Ask The Expert
Ask The Question
Business Coach Life Coach Commercial Solicitor Tax Accountant Humour Expert International Trade Guest Expert
Richard Dickinson Richard started out in his working life in the Navy, were he served for a number of years, travelling around the world learning some fantastic skills and meeting people from many different cultures. After leaving the navy, Richard entered the world of banking and finance, ending up in a role as East Midlands Region Development Manager for a high street bank. Richard then decided he was ready for another challenge, so he left the bank and set up his own national insurance brokerage, which he ran for 5 years, until selling the business in 2005. Given Richards extensive experience over the years in dealingwithbusinessesandmoreimportantly business people, Richard felt he would make a very good business coach. He then trained and was accredited by the Adler School of International Coaching and took on a franchise from Ology Coaching, which gives him the support of a multi national company, whilst at the same time still being able to give a local personal service to his clients. We are very pleased to have Richard on board and are sure you will benefit from his wisdom and experience.
visit the website at: www.ologybusiness.com/richarddickinson/ email your question to: richard.dickinson@yourbusinessezine.com
“I suppose leadership at o but today it means gettin
I
s Gandhi’s comment on the importance of “getting along with people ” in leadership correct? Are good business relationships influencing the bottom line more than ever before? Ask someone who loves their work, who is passionate about what they do. What motivates them to find that extra 5%: what allows them to pay attention to the details which others miss or ignore? Sure, such people mention pay and conditions of employment - these have got to be right - but the real difference is in what they say about their work environment and the people they work with. The Best Companies to work for rank very highly when measured on trust, mutual respect, compassion, supportive colleagues, honest and fair feedback: these are the qualities associated with
Business Coach
one time meant muscles ng along with people” - Mahatma Gandhi
any good relationship, personal or professional. If there was ever a time when such values were needed in business it is now. Put it another way: what are the chances of long term business success when the relationship issues are relegated to 2nd or 3rd place in organisation? Low trust, little respect for opinions of others, dishonesty and so forth. So, here are a few tips on how we can improve our business relationships and so make our workplaces more productive, more pleasant and more profitable!
Get famous for your reliability... deliver on the little as well as the big things; being on time, returning calls, washing your cup on the canteen!
Listen - to a world-class standard... listen and listen again. There is nothing quite like knowing you have been listened to, that your point of view has been heard. If you listen attentively to others you are showing them respect and it also affects what they say.
Be optimistic... optimism, positive thinking and a “can do” attitude is contagious (and so is the reverse). If you are surrounded by negativity don’t just go with the flow - (only dead fish do this) - be the person who brings some cheerfulness and fun. If it’s not already there, are you ready to build a passion for nurturing excellent relationships into your strategy for business and personal success?
Be sincere about listening... don’t pretend to listen - it’s almost impossible to fake.
Cut out the criticism... it’s just a habit that does more harm than good - to you as well as those around you. Ask yourself how you can meet the needs of your work colleagues or your company... it will make you feel great and your colleagues will really appreciate it.
Lisa Madariaga Lisa 4 Coaching Lisa is a life coach of some distinction. She is what you might call one of life’s achievers. Allow me to explain. Lisa is a qualified Barrister and a Chartered Accountant. She has worked around the world for both NYSE and FTSE 100 companies. Then one day, in November 2005, she collapsed in her London office. Not only was she unable to work, but could barely get out of bed for 5 months. As her health slowly improved, she was able to re evaluate her life. Lisa found that with her unique experiences of life, she was able to help others. She re trained and is now also qualified with the Institute of Leadership and Management, (ILM), as a life coach and executive business coach. Lisa is the founder and trainer of the Finance Coaching Academy of RSA, (formerly Royal and Sun Alliance). Soon to publish a self help book for people living with or recovering from ME, we are truly privileged to have Lisa contribute for us. So, don’t be shy, use this fantastic opportunity and ask Lisa some questions and don’t miss her articles, they may just change your life.
visit the website at www.lisa4coaching.com email your question to: lisa.madariaga@yourbusinessezine.com
Inspiratio From H
i! How are you doing? How is your progress on your goals? I have spoken to a few people recently who are beginning to get a bit down hearted and who have not got the high motivation levels that they did have a few months or even weeks ago. This is completely understandable - and all part of the change process. So, I thought maybe some reminders and some inspiration would be a good idea. Firstly then, do you have your goal that you wrote out a few months ago? Do you actually have the original intention in front of you? If not, no problem, we will just re-write or re-define what it was (assuming it is the same - if you have a new one then that is great, the same process applies). I invite you to review what the original intention was, how did you feel in January or February when you originally decided how you wanted to be different by November this year? Was it your weight? Your employment status? Whatever it was, remember it now. Remember how you felt when you decided what your goal was and what made you feel like that, how did things look? What did you see or hear? Could you smell anything at the time? What was going through your mind at that moment? Now that you recall how you felt and what you wanted at that time, write down all you can, all the details about what you wanted and now want to change, how will you look, feel, act or be like in November and write it all down, detail by detail. Spend time on padding out what it was you want and how it will be. The more real it feels to you, the clearer the pictures and sounds of the November you, then the higher the motivation to
Life Coach
Oz
on m
reach your goals. The higher the motivation, the far more likely you are to fulfil your goals, and the faster and easier it will seem to happen. So now to what I see as a truly inspirational story. In November last year, I coached a young woman who was considering her next career move. She came to me in complete confusion. She had been offered a similar role with her current employer. She was also aware of a number of other opportunities with different employers. We sat down and started to chat, it soon became very clear that there was something just not right with
session continued and by the end of it, she had decided that she was going to give serious thought to the Oz move.
“If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right”
I hope that you find this as inspirational as I do. The old saying “Oh that could never happen to me”, well maybe your dream is not to live in Oz, maybe it’s to run a marathon, lose weight, own your home, whatever it is, I do hope this young woman’s story shows you how we can all make our goals come true. Her biggest step was actually identifying that she had the desire to move to Australia in the first place!
my coachee. She mentioned a few times a friend who was moving to Australia and how she felt quite envious of the lifestyle her friend would be enjoying. I focused in on the Oz point and soon my coachee began to glow, her face brightened up and she chatted animatedly about how she had loved Australia when she visited years ago, the fabulous climate, the wonderful people etc... Of course, I let her finish her happy banter, and then when she came back to discussing her options in the UK, the shine she had just faded away, and she became straight-faced again. The coaching
Three months later, she was in Australia, deliriously happy and having a wonderful time. Yes, there was a lot of work and organisation that she had to do between our initial session and where she is now, but she found that once she had decided, everything seemed to fall into place, renting her house out, storage of her possessions, visas, money and job wise.
So, the “it could never happen to me” belief... That is exactly what it is, just a belief. If we say to ourselves enough times “I can’t do it” we will indeed prove that we are right by not doing it, if we say to ourselves “I can do it” then of course, we will prove ourselves right again - as Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company said; “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right” We all have the ability within us to turn our goals into our reality. We are our own empowerers or preventers - it is all down to us. Believe that you can do it and you will!
Pat Cobham Pat Cobham used to be a tax inspector. She has more than 30 years experience in accountancy.Mostlyfromthesideoftheinland revenue. Pat set up Cobhams tax consultants and accounts in 2004 and has not looked back since. With a no nonsense and plain English approach to accountancy, Cobhams is going from strength to strength. You not only get knowledgeable one-to-one advice, but you also get it at a fraction of the cost you would pay a large company. They even go that bit further and offer a one-to-one service out of hours should you require it. With background in the corporate world, they are better placed than most to help you with your corporation tax and whether you’re a sole trader, small business or established company, they will make sure everything is done quickly and efficiently to meet all HMRC deadlines.
visit the website at www.cobhams.co.uk email your question to: pat.cobham@yourbusinessezine.com
Buy To L
ast month I looked at the taxation of rental property and tax deductible expenses. This month I will look at a further expense relating tofurnishedlettingsonly,lossesonalltypesoflettings and the tax situation on selling a rental property. If you have furnished lettings then you have the choice of how you can claim for the furniture. You can either claim what is known as the renewals basis in which case you cannot claim for the first time you put the furniture in the property but can only claim for renewal of the furniture. The other allowance, which generally is more tax efficient, is to claim the 10% wear and tear allowance. This is calculated as 10% of the gross rents less any Council Tax and water rates. This is claimed on an annual basis. Unless your property is furnished to a fairly high standard then this would be more useful than the renewal basis. Note that once you decide to go for one particular allowance you cannot switch to another. What about losses? It is quite common particularly in the first years of renting a property that instead of a profit, losses are made on the rents. This is frequently because of heavy repairs in the first year or so or high costs of arranging finance. If losses are made then apart from very limited circumstances these losses cannot be set off against other income. The losses are carried forward without time limit to be set off against future rental profits. If profits are never made for whatever reason then the losses are simply lost-no pun intended! There has been a very recent change in relation to losses and this is in respect of furnished holiday
Tax Accountant
o Let
part 2
lettings whether UK or abroad. Up until April 2010 losses arising from this source could be offset against other income. However, the EU have said that this is discriminatory so from April 2010 furnished holiday losses will be treated in exactly that same way as unfurnished i.e. carried forward to set-off against future profits. This has opened a small window of opportunity for anybody with losses arising from properties situated abroad. Until the change was decided only losses arising from UK holiday lettings could be offset against other income. Until April 2010 HMRC have said they will allow losses to be offset against other income for non-UK furnished holiday lettings.
What is the situation when the property is sold? When the property is sold this is liable to capital gains tax. Capital gains tax is calculated on the sale proceeds less any selling expenses less the purchase price and any cost of purchase etc. Thus legal fees paid when you purchased the property get the tax deduction here. Likewise any improvement work undertaken that you have not been able to claim as repairs. It is a common misconception that the mortgage on the property reduces the capital gains. This is not so. The amount of the mortgage has absolutely nothing to do with the chargeable capital gains. People frequently remortgage let property to release
the equity and it comes as a shock to them when they come to sell and find that after paying off the mortgage sometimes there are insufficient funds to available to pay the tax. The rate of tax for capital gains is a lot more straightforward than it used to be. Up to a couple of years ago any gains would be added to income and taxed accordingly. In many cases therefore the tax rate would be 40% being the higher rate. However, this has now changed and the rate of tax is the same in all cases i.e. 18%. Note that this tax rate only applies to individuals and not to companies. Individualsalsohaveanannualcapitalgainsexemption whichcurrentlyisÂŁ10,100.Itisadvantageoustherefore for married couples or partners to own properties in joint names to take advantage of the individual exemptions. Note that the exemption only applies to individuals as companies do not have any capital gains exemption. If you have a number of properties then it makes sense to stagger the sale of these over different tax years to utilise the annual exemption. Finally, when it comes to selling the property if at any time it has ever been your main residence then some of the gain will be exempt and in addition there is a further exemption known as the lettings exemption. Expert advice is essential if this is the case. As always the above is very general advice and with tax there are hidden pit falls so when in doubt ask. The above advice is based on current tax legislation. Remember that this changes with every budget.
Stephanie Davies DirectorandFounderofLaughology,Stephanie Davies has over 10 years experience working in the public and private sector which has gained heranunsurpassedreputationfordesigningand deliveringlaughterandhumourinterventionsfor businesses, practitioners, clients, young people andadults.Stephanieisrecognisedasoneofthe UK’s leading voices in laughter and humour. She was recently invited by the University of Chester to develop and deliver the UK’s first MA course in Humour in the Workplace and will soon complete an MA on The Psychological Benefits of Laughter, Humour and Personal Growth. On leaving Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts in 2002 she began performing stand-up comedy, firing her fascination with the power of laughter and humour. After attending Dr Kataria’s Laughter Leader course Stephanie was accepted as a participant in world-renowned, Dr Patch Adams’s Health Care IntensiveTraining in the USA. She worked with Patch exploring the relationship between health, humour, community and the arts. On top of her busy training schedule, Stephanie isoftenaskedtocontributetopopulartelevision programmes, such as Trisha, The Bank of Mum and Dad, BBC’s Heaven & Earth and ITV’s Stand-up Jenny. She is also a regular on BBC Radio visit the website at www.laughology.co.uk email your question to: stephanies.davies@yourbusinessezine.com
I
remember as a child my favourite flower was the daffodil and still is. For me it’s a sign that spring is on its way and gives me hope for warmer weather. Hope in anticipation of ditching the heavy winter coat and wearing lighter brighter clothes, being able to sit and play outside in the sunshine. In many ways it has been hope that has always kept me going in my life. Sometimes hope is there as the driver, the positive incentive that encourages us to carry on. Hope is the belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one’s life. It’s a feeling of what is wanted, can be, had or that things will turn out for the best. It was personified in Greek mythology as Elpis; when Pandora opened “Pandora’s Box”, she let out all the evils except one: hope. Apparently, the Greeks considered hope to be as dangerous as all the world’s evils. But without hope to accompany all their troubles, humanity was filled with despair. It was a great relief when Pandora revisited her box and let out hope as well. This spring I have been made more aware of hope than any other time:
Humour Expert
Bring Me Sunshine “The greatest disability of all is bad attitude” - Scott Hamilton
• Hope of warmer weather with the long cold winter • Hope for better financial times and futures • Hope for positive change in government • Hope for others with sports relief • Hope for hero’s continued campaign
As well as other personal hopes and many more. It has really made me think about the importance of hope and what encourages hope in ourselves and others. One of the Individuals I can think of that encouraged hope was none other than Bob Hope. Many military personnel far from home, not knowing what the future held relied on Bob to bring them hope through the tough time. At a time when many would start to see their hope waiver, he would provide jokes, laughter and entertainment to help keep the morale high. Wayne Bryant, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, who attended Hope’s 1972 show in Thailand as an Air Force staff sergeant said “Hope’s shows brought more than just laughter, they brought a break from
the defence of the nation, and in some cases, a break from fighting and dying and they brought hope”. Hope is such a simple but powerful word and we have all experienced it and used it; on the motorway, hopes for the next service station is close by and hope you can hold on till then, hope the speaker at a conference is on their last slide, hope that your family keeps well and happy and many more hopes we have every day. We can effect hope and make things happen and it’s the hope that kick starts the brain into thinking there is something that can be done, a way out or in, a positive outlook. So what can you do to bring hope to yourself and others? One of the best ways is to be positive, to know that there is always a solution and a smile is sometimes the simple ingredient needed to change attitude and encourage hope. Also know what are your positive triggers are, things that make you feel better, smile and laugh, the simple things that bring hope. Is it sunshine, laughter, daydreaming? Allow yourself these pleasures and your attitude will change, hope will become stronger and with hope you will find a way forward.
“Your Intellect I studied Law at Kings College, London and then went on to study as a barrister at the Inns of Court, London. I have approximately fourteen years of legal experience as a practitioner, ranging from practice as a qualified solicitor to working in house and a short time spent as a barrister (both in chambers and in house). The majority of that time has been spent practising as an IP/Commercial lawyer; dealing with both contentious and non contentious matters, with broad and varied experience. During the past four years I have been closely involved with business development, growth and management at Kirwans Solicitors, which has involved the launch and development of a new Commercial Department at the Liverpool office. Part of my remit has been to develop legal expertise in Intellectual Property and InformationTechnology and Communications. Throughout my time as a practitioner I have worked for many types of businesses, from blue chip companies through to small businesses and individuals. I have on occasions provided pro bono assistance and advice to creators of intellectual property varying from mechanical inventors, photographers, musicians, sculptors and the like. I am a founding member of the Liverpool Inventors Club which was set up in early 2007 in conjunction with Liverpool Library, NIPC Law and John Moores University; this involves monthly pro bono sessions whereupon free advice and assistance is given to local inventors and creators.
visit the website at www.kirwanssolicitors.co.uk email your questions to:
clo@kirwanssolicitors.co.uk
W
hen asked the question “what are your business assets?” people immediately think of tangible assets such as land, buildings, cash, machinery, furniture, tools and equipment. However, your intellectual property is one of your most valuable business assets. If correctly protected, it can give you an edge over your competitors and contribute to the success of your business. Intellectual property assets are often overlooked and consequentially left vulnerable and unprotected because they cannot be seen or touched. People often don’t realise that everyone, even individuals have intellectual property assets. For example, if your business has a name, a logo, a slogan, a colour theme, designs, plans, specialist knowledge and trade secrets, these are all examples of intellectual property assets which your business owns.
What are intellectual property rights? Broadly speaking, they are rights granted to the creators and owners of works that are the result of human intellectual creativity. Intellectual property rights consist of trade marks, patents, copyright and various design rights.
Why should you protect your IP? Protection of your intellectual property rights is important for your business success. If others try to copy anything which you have protected or used without your permission, they are infringing your intellectual property rights. If the correct protection is in place, you can stop the infringement and possibly even seek damages. For example, counterfeiting (production of fake goods) and piracy (illegal copying of property) are prevalent and can destroy a market, goodwill and reputation. Also, intellectual property assets are like all other forms of property. You can therefore buy, sell and license intellectual property. The better the protection of your intellectual property rights, the more valuable they are to your business success.
Patents A patent is protection for an invention, either a new product or a new process of doing something, including a new technical solution to an existing problem. It is a registered right granted by the Patent Office.
Commercial Solicitor
tual Property Rights� Trade Marks A trade mark is a distinctive sign or trading style, which identifies and distinguishes your goods and services from those of other businesses. Trade marks can be used to protect a brand name, words, logos, pictures, three dimensional signs such as the shape and packaging of goods, audible signs that produce musical or vocal sounds, fragrances or colours. Your trade mark is a valuable marketing tool that customers will be able to recognise. Trade marks don’t have to be registered but by registering a trade mark, it is quicker, cheaper and easier to sue for infringement. You can register a trade mark before you start using it so the trade mark of a new product is protected before the product is even launched. There is a public record for trade marks which records both applications and registered trade marks. By registering your trade mark, you will be warning others off. If you do not register your trade mark, you run the risk that someone else will register the same mark and stop you from using it.
Passing Off Passing off is about stopping an infringer from selling his goods or services off the back of your business reputation. The classic case of passing off is where an infringer adopts the mark, sign or other distinguishing feature (such as the appearance of the packaging of the goods) which customers associate with your business. The infringer uses this or something confusingly similar to it for his own business purposes with the result that customers are fooled into thinking that they are buying your product or services.
Copyright Copyright is a right which protects the expression of an idea but not the idea itself. It is a right which prevents copying of the expression of the idea. Copyright protects amongst other things, sound recordings, broadcasts and original artistic, musical, dramatic and literary works as well as software and data. Examples of assets which have copyright protection include websites, photographs, computer programs, books, videos, databases and logos. There is an automatic right, which lasts for 70 years after the death of the author.
Designs Design rights protect the physical appearance of an item or a part of it. There are two types of design rights, registered and unregistered design right. In essence, unregistered design right protects three dimensional shapes, both appealing ones and those that are merely functional, whether visible or not. The purpose of unregistered design right is to protect functional objects. This automatic right lasts for 10 years. Registered design rights protects the external appearance of consumer items which includes, lines, contours, shape, texture and the materials of the product or its ornamentation for up to 25 years from the date of registration.
Confidentiality Whilst the law of confidence is not an intellectual property right in a pure sense, it is important to consider confidential information alongside your intellectual property rights. For example, you may wish to keep your invention secret before submitting a patent application to avoid the destruction of the inventions novelty value. The law of confidential information also protects against disclosure of secret information concerning your business such as know-how, pricing strategies, methodologies, technical information, commercial intelligence and customer lists.
Conclusion Intellectual property is one of your greatest business assets with real financial value. Like any of your other business assets, you can profit by selling or licensing your intellectual property as well as producing a product or providing a service yourself. Therefore, like any of your other business assets, you should seek to protect your intellectual property assets.
For further advice or assistance please call or email clo@kirwanssolicitors.co.uk.
Alan Taylor Alan’s early career was in IT (when this included punch cards and paper tape). He quickly moved from programming into analysis which gave him the opportunity in the mid-1980’s to work for an insurance company in the Bahamas. This gave Alan the bug for travelling and he has managed to cover five continents to date on his travels, South America still eludes him. His career in IT eventually developed into project & business change management and Alan has been involved in a number of large projects of this type. This lead him and his business partner to set up their first business together, a business change consultancy (PSI), in 1993. PSI initially grew in the UK & South East Asia and, once acquired by a FTSE-quoted parent, it subsequently expanded to forty-five people across five continents. He has now been developing businesses both in the UK and Internationally for over sixteen years. During this time he has built a global network of contacts including senior level decision makers. As a seasoned professional Alan is able to help a business to focus on the definition and delivery of its development strategy, ensuring drive & momentum are maintained to achieve the company’s strategic goals. This is non more evident than in his passion for international business development where Alan is able to leverage his global network of contacts to generate significant business development opportunities. An adaptable character, with a pragmatic approach, Alan has an open (if determined) mind and the ability to make a significant contribution to a team delivering a product or service to a clearly defined market. Alan lives on Merseyside with his wife and two children and has recently returned to university part-time where he is studying for a Qualifying LLB Law. Of all of the places he has visited San Francisco (and nearby Sausalito) and Singapore remain his favourites. visit the website at www.ttnp.co.uk email your questions to: alan.taylor@yourbusinessezine.com
NUM8 A
fter a run of long, detailed articles over the last couple of months I thought I would write something much shorter and easier to digest this month so let’s look at some numbers... The latest set of UK International Trade Figures were published recently and in line with the general economic gloom & doom ‘Trade deficit widens to £3.8bn’ was the sort of headline that was being reported in the newspapers. It seems that the UK is continuing to carry on its trend of importing more than it is exporting. Despite the ongoing weakness of the pound exports fell overall by £1.4bn whereas imports over the same period only fell by £0.5bn. Donning my‘International Trade Anorak’I decided to take a look behind the numbers. My original degree was in ‘Applied Statistics & Computing’ and you would have thought that several years of Chi-Squares, t-Tests and Normal Distributions would be enough but, no, such is my dedication to the cause I dived head first into the veritable sea of statistics. Some items are obvious candidates for counting, for example, of the UK’s £6.7bn worth of non-EU exports in the period there were over £268m of‘Aircraft, spacecraft and parts thereof’. No surprises there then. But who exported £77,000 worth of ‘Prepared feathers and down and articles made of feathers or of down: articles of human hair’? I wonder how much of this related to articles of human hair and what form did it take?
International Markets
83R5 On the non-EU Imports side, we imported over £425m of ‘Pharmaceutical products’ which is a lot of pills and medicines, but at the same time we imported over £24m of ‘Miscellaneous edible preparations’. This is a significant amount of imports but what use is such a generic classification, unless you are a company that specialises in ‘Miscellaneous edible preparations’? By the time I reached an analysis of the export of live sheep by the UK to Antarctica, I knew I was perhaps going into a little too much detail? (and, yes, such an analysis is possible). This all begs the question as to what this means to ordinary people like ourselves who are carrying on with our day-to-day business lives? Perhaps not that much. What do we care if the ‘seasonally adjusted non-EU balance of trade in goods’ has increased from £3.4bn in December 2009 to £4.8bn in January 2010? After all, the balance of trade in goods seems to be negative stretching back over many if not all of the months. There are plenty of economists around who would be very happy to explain the pros and cons of running a long-term balance of payments deficit if you are interested to find out. The deficit in goods is mitigated in part by a healthy surplus in the balance of trade in services, which dipped, but only slightly, from £4.4bn in December 2009 to £4.2bn in January 2010.
But, what does this say about our economy overall? A number of things, not least of which is to highlight the fact that without our ability to offer our skills, knowledge and experience to the world in the form of services then we would be even further into the monthly red with our international trading partners. I am not trying to court a political discussion about whether the UK is losing its manufacturing, or whether there is too much reliance on services, but I would like to draw everyone’s attention to the fact that every pound of exports that we generate, goods or services, helps to reduce this balance of trade deficit. If we could grow our manufacturing then all well and good but in the meantime let’s keep pumping our brain-power into the world in the form of our services. The economists suggest that the weak pound will continue to help our exports and will contribute to making our imports more expensive thus putting downward pressure on them. That, unfortunately raises a whole new set of statistics which I think can wait until another day......I saw a quote recently (attributed to a George Burgy) that described statistics as ‘A bunch of numbers running around looking for an argument’ and after my delving into the fascinating world of trade figures I am certainly not going to argue with it as an analogy...
Mary Errington My work as an Image Consultant is about ensuring my clients understand how to make the most of their appearance by choosing clothes that flatter their physical characteristics. I take in to consideration their individual style preferences and also their lifestyle requirements. Having a wardrobe that works for all aspects of their lives means they look fantastic whatever occasion arises. They save time and money as well as benefiting from improved self-confidence and self-esteem. My clients all tell me how many more compliments they receive after putting in to practice the advice they receive from me. I started my business two years ago after completing an Honours degree in Applied Psychology at John Moore’s University in 2005 and then training with First Impressions in Milton Keynes as an Image Consultant. With a long standing and keen interest in fashion and style as well as empathic skills developed firstly from my work with cancer patients as a therapy radiographer in my early career and then later as a mother of 4 children I am confident that I provide a first class service for both my on-to-one clients as well as the groups I work with. I cover all aspects of Image including Colour and Style Analysis, Cosmetics, Wardrobe Management, Personal Shopping, and Business Etiquette. I also run 1 hour style sessions for those who would like help with any specific aspect of Image from accessories to choosing the right coat or suit. My Image and Impact at Interview sessions are designed to help those in the job market or moving up the ladder to get the edge on their competition. To find out more and to book an appointment Call me on 07766466 688 Email me at mary@maryerrington.co.uk Visit my website www.maryerrington.co.uk
Y
ou never get a second chance to make a first impression” A statement I’m sure you will have heard before. In fact when we meet someone for the first time we form an impression of them based 93% on appearance and body language and only 7% on what they say. Obviously the same applies to someone new meeting us for the first time. It takes a further 20 meetings to change that first impression. Make a good first impression and you are well on the road to influencing others to like you and want to do business with you. Have you ever had this happen to you? You leave the house feeling confident about the way you look. As the day progresses you find that people that you don’t even know are talking to you and everyone is smiling at you. It seems everyone wants to please you – you feel like a people magnet! Perhaps you can recall another day when you didn’t feel so good about the way you looked. Maybe you got the dress code for an occasion wrong or you just couldn’t find anything in your wardrobe that looked right on you. I bet on this day your self-confidence was low and you felt selfconscious and awkward, and people didn’t warm to you in the same way. On both occasions you were of course the same person. What was different was your self-perception. The subconscious message you project to others is reflective of how you feel about yourself. The truth is careers can stall or derail over the issue of professional attire. Most of those who fail to appreciate the importance of appropriate dress fall in to one of three categories. They feel that: • They don’t have enough time or money to dress nicely • Appearance is superficial and unimportant • The rules don’t apply to them
Guest Expert Dress to Impress “Just how important is it to your career?” Dressing for success isn’t about having the “right” suit or the “right” watch or the “right” hairstyle. It is about dressing in a way that blends with the people you work with. People like to associate with people like themselves. If you don’t look enough like them in terms of dress, manner or position you will be perceived as an outsider. They may never feel comfortable enough to find out more about you or do business with you. It is true that some people move up the ladder based on merit only with no regard to dress but this is most often in jobs that require little or no public contact. Looking good opens the door and gives you the chance to have your competence and abilities considered. As a guide you should be spending between 10 and 15% of your annual income on your wardrobe. An issue that causes confusion more than any other in the work place is business casual. With the introduction of “dress-down Fridays” there have been some frankly wholly inappropriate clothes worn to work. Part of the problem is that few companies have established dress code policies and have left the interpretation to the staff. Employees tend to “push the envelope” to see how much they can get away with. Anything from shorts, a vest top and flipflops to merely swapping a formal shirt and tie with a casual shirt has been worn. If you are in a position to influence the dress code there are a few things you should consider. While dressing casually boosts staff morale, makes you appear more friendly and approachable, and staff tend to be more at ease with their colleagues, there are some negatives too. A study of over 500 companies by Dr Jeffrey Magee in 1997 reported that • Relaxed attitudes lead to relaxed performance. • An increase in lateness, absenteeism, and leaving work early. • An increase in foul language and inappropriate conversation. • An increase in provocative actions, which lead to more complaints to HR, and consequently to more litigation. • A decrease in polite, good mannered behaviour. • A decrease in productivity and overall quality of work. • A decrease in commitment and company loyalty.
As I mentioned earlier there is a direct correlation between how you dress and how you think, feel and act and how others react or respond to you. If a policy is set at the beginning and in writing with appropriate limits, casual clothing can work in business. • Decide what you want the dress code to say about your business. • Find out how customers expect to see your staff dress. • Ask employees what they consider appropriate. • Be flexible and realistic – in other words consider the different roles of staff. A sales person needs more formal attire than someone in the warehouse for instance. • Publish the dress code along with the consequences of non-compliance. • Try it and see how it works and adjust if necessary. Better to err on the side of conservative in the beginning and relax if necessary rather than attempt to tighten up if the policy is allowing for too casual a look. Accessories are an important part of your overall appearance and should match your dress code. For example sports watches are exactly that and look out of place with corporate attire. On men necklaces, bracelets, and chains that are visible detract from a formal business look. Where women’s jewellery is concerned avoid pieces that clank, make noise or are overly cute when conducting business. Your jewellery should compliment your look rather than be a distraction. In a formal business setting it is always better for women to wear a closed toe shoe style with hosiery rather than open toes and bare legs. It has been shown that women adhering to this are viewed as more credible. For men shoes for formal business should be black leather, or shades of brown for a contemporary or business casual look. A heavier shoe is suitable for daytime especially if there are considerable distances to be walked. Chunky soles, however, should be kept for casual, off-duty wear. Buy the best quality you can afford as they will look better for longer. For business, belts should match shoes in terms of colour and finish – e.g. shiny black shoes with shiny black belt. No rodeo buckles save those for the weekend to wear with your jeans. Brief cases and handbags also should be of the best quality you can afford as a scruffy bag or case can completely undermine an otherwise spotless presentation.
Follow these tips and you will impress with your dress!
Nick Hatton S
tudents of today hey! What are they like? Young smelly layabouts, scrounging off their parents, permanently drunk and to think, they are the future of our country, god help us all.
Actually nothing could be further from the truth. In recent studies it was found that the current generation of students is the least rebellious and most focused on their studies of the modern age.
The 11 to 25 year olds are going to step things up a gear and show the older generations a thing or two when it comes to knowledge and commitment. So what would it be like to be a degree student, young, keen and eager to put your new found knowledge into practice? Starting out in business is always difficult, no matter how much experience you have, but as a 22 year old student, at least there would be plenty of help out there to get you on you’re way, wouldn’t there?
N
ick Hatton is a 22 year old student studying for a degree in Business Information Systems at Liverpool John Moores University. 12 months ago he took the plunge and set up his business, Empire Business Solutions. Quite sensibly, one of the first things Nick tried to do was to secure some funding for his new venture, so he went to Business Link, they couldn’t help but told him to try the Princes Trust, which he did and they couldn’t help either, but they told him to try the NWDA, so he did and guess what, they couldn’t help either. In fact when it came to funding, no one could help Nick get going. Being young and enthusiastic Nick was undeterred. He set up anyway and looked for some advice, which he did get. He got advice from John Moores and Striding Out, which whilst he accepts was good advice, what he would have actually appreciated would have been more of not just what he needed to do, but how he actually went about doing it. In fact Nick said that Nick Preston from Liverpool Chamber of Commerce gave him the most helpful advice throughout his first year, (that’s not the first time we’ve heard that). It does seem incredible that there are so many organisations out there to support new or developing businesses that are being funded either by the government or European money and whilst they must be having some effect, it does appear to be minimal. Surely there is a better balance. For what these places cost to finance, surely some of that money would be better spent on the new businesses themselves. How much of a better chance would a small new business have if they were given a couple of thousand pound’s to help them on their way, which is only what it would cost to give the advice offered to them in the first few months anyway. So, how’s Nick getting on? Actually pretty well. His business model has changed quite considerably since he started, but doesn’t it always. They do say that the first casualty of a war is always the battle plan. In fact Nick says he finds it amusing to look back on his original business plan, which only goes to show how quickly he has moved on and how much knowledge he has gained.
Nick now see’s the business developing into 3 definite sections within the IT sector. Firstly there is the supply of hardware. The likes of building PC’s and other IT products directly to end users. Secondly there is the software and web stuff. Building web sites and process flow software and providing training and support for this. Lastly is something a bit different from most. You see Nick’s parents own a shop and Nick recently wrote a till system with built in stock control for them which has greatly improved efficiency and simplified so many processes at the same time. This is something Nick intends to bring to market and having a fully functioning version not only up and running, but also making a huge difference will stand him in good stead. Nick’s enthusiasm and passion, combined with an incredible ability to organise, simplify and even automate systems is of huge value to many businesses. Despite his many setbacks and lack of financial support he vigorously pushes forward. How much more he could have achieved with some financial assistance we’ll never know, but one thing is for sure, he is heading in the right direction and setting a very high bar for us oldie’s to reach.
To find out more about what nick does why not go to his web site
www.empiresolutions.co.uk Written By Mark Brake Photographs By Rob Mc Grory
H
Have you ever been to Paris? Have you ever walked along the Seine, climbed on the Eiffel tower, have you ever tried to get lost in the Marais? Well, if you haven’t, do not worry. From now on, you can roam Paris from your computer, either with Google Street View, or more recently, with Paris 26 Gigapixel, a single gigantic, huge, monstrous, gargantuous, colossal picture. Of course, it’s not the same as being there, but thanks to the picture’s gigantic size – 26 Gigapixels – you can literally spend a day looking at the city. A gigapixel, in case you’re wondering, equals a billion pixels. The 26 gigapixel image, the largest ever created, could be printed on a 6500 sq.ft support, roughly the size of two football fields, just to put
things into perspective. But the spectacular result is just as impressive as the realization of the project itself, which was executed in three distinct steps.
The Shooting OnSeptember8th2009,theteam,leadbyArnaudFrich one of the most famous panoramic photographers in France, and Martin Loyer a photographer specialized in cityscapes, gathered at the tour St. Sulpice, in the 6th arrondissement. With them, two Canon 5D Mark II (21.1 MP each), mounted on a custom-made panoramic head. They chose to use two cameras as to reduce shooting time, and were set as follows:
300mm f4.0 with a 2x tele-converter (equivalent 600mm f8.0) Manual focus with Live View (zoom and pan) to get a very precise focus control. Priority aperture F13 (to have a bigger depth of field) ISO 800 Speed 1/800 in order to reduce the heat haze Recording in RAW Compact Flash 16GB Triggering by motorized heads. It was decided that the images would overlap by 30%, and that there would be 138 columns and 17 rows, which totals is 2346 images. The total shooting time was about 5 hours, which was much longer than the 2:30 hours they originally planned: one of the cameras failed, slowing everything down. Once all the pictures were gathered and saved, they proceeded to the next step.
The Stitching Arnaud Frich explains: “The stitching itself remains a bit complicated with a project of that size. Even if the use of a motorized panorama head helps a lot during the shooting, the stitching still doesn’t give perfect results because of certain points : first, robustness of the motorized panorama head (we had a break after each row to manually correct the focus) and second, because of the repeating patterns in some buildings.”
perfect because of some bad links remaining in the editor. And it’s easy to guess why: repeating patterns in a urban landscape are really common; there is nothing more similar than a window and the one just nearby. This can lead to alignment issues in detected control points between neighbor images and that’s what we can see in the following screenshot [...].”
Not only this, but they also found that they missed a few shots: “We could notice a shift in the rows. It comes from a shooting issue: we missed 3 images during the shooting at the edge of one row and at the beginning of the next one. It’s the kind of stuff you don’t notice live [...], but only when you come back
“This screenshot shows a standard detection without using the Clauss plugin of Autopano Giga. You can see a lot of red zones where all false links have been found. In practice, coping with these false links is quite quick. What was far longer is to cope with outof-focus zones (for example with the top of the roof
at the office. By the way: it was really a nightmare to figure out which images were missing as they were not named after the actual shooting order. Our luck was that the missing images were at the edges of the panorama so that the consequences were really low. We cropped that zone on the left part of the panorama. Yes! We could have 2 more columns in that panorama because we used only 136 out of 138 shot columns.” This could have been a 27 gigapixel image. “The first optimization of the project with all the images was quite good but not
of St-Sulpice tower). No miracle here, you need to manually move around the images with the move mode in the editor. A full day of work was needed to do that because even if each operation was really easy to do, it took time for each move operation to happen on a panorama of that size. [...] But we still need to cope with color correction. The lighting of the scene has changed a lot during such a long shooting so we needed to be careful about that. By the way: yes, if you look accurately in the image, you can see that shadows moved in that picture.” The final raw image was 354159 x 75570 = 26,763,795,630 pixels big. Once every detail was fixed and taken care of, the photographers proceeded to the last step.
The Rendering Is the last step before publishing the image on the web. Basically, it’s the process of merging all the images into one by following the stitching instructions discussed above. Two years ago, a 13 gigapixel image of Harlem took 48h hours to render. So how long did it take to render an image twice as big? The answer is 3 hours and 14 minutes, an incredible time which was achieved thanks to borrowed hardware: an SR2600UR Intel Server System that included 2 Intel Xeon processors 5500 series ans 6 SSD hard drives of 160 GB each (16 cores, 24 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD). Yes, this thing could run Crysis.
remember, the shooting took more than 5 hours, a time-frame during which light can change dramatically.
You can read more about this in the case study written by Intel. But that was the easy part: because of legal reasons, they had to mask all privacy invading sights in the picture (we’re talking about Paris, after all), and tweak the colors a little bit:
The website is nice by the way, you have the choice between a flash and HD version, an automated tour, information regarding the monuments, and the music from “Amelie Poulain” in the background, unfortunately.
Because photoshop only supports images up to 300,000 by 300,000 pixels, they had to re-slice the pictures using an internally developed tool that will soon become commercially available, edit them, and then re-stitch them. The final task was to upload everything onto the servers, which wasn’t easy: their website is made of more than 600,000 files!
Conclusion This is the kind of project I’m fascinated about. If you think about it, this is absolutely pointless, right? So much work for a single, ridiculously big picture. Why? Because we can. You’ll see, one day point and shoot cameras will have a native resolution of 50 gigapixels. I hope you like the picture. It’s not so much art as it is an incredible technical achievement. Oh, and if you have time to kill, why don’t you try to find the 10 surprises that the photographers have hidden in the picture? I already found the U.F.O.s. By Florian Wardell La Cathedrale Notre Dame
Rachel Approach Sales Services Ltd W
hat business are you in? Or should I say what business do you think you’re in? I strongly suspect it’s the same one as me. Regardless of what we are or do, we all have one thing in common, one thing that every one of our businesses can’t do without. It doesn’t matter what your product or service is, for example you could be a furniture manufacturer, you could be the best furniture manufacturer in the world, this is by no means any guarantee of success, you see if you never sell a piece of furniture, you’ll fail. You can even not make any furniture yourself, but have it made elsewhere, so long as you sell it, then this is what makes a business successful. You see were all in the business of sales, but a few people are in the sales business.
Happy Birthday Approach Sales Services, one year old as of 1st April, but let me tell you, Rachel Brown, founder and Managing Director of Approach Sales Services is no fool. Rachel has always been in sales, in fact she says she was born into it. Rachel said she began negotiating when she was just 4 years old, “just to let you know Mum, I’m not going to eat my Broccolli today, but I will have an extra piece of cake instead”, and once she started, she didn’t stop. Throughout her working career Rachel has actually kept allot of other businesses in business. “I love doing what I do, but setting up on my own was a big step for me, I wasn’t particularly business minded so I began researching what I had to do from the previous September. For the following 8 months I was like a sponge, absorbing information I needed to know, actually I think I still am”. After the 1st April 09 launch Rachel describes her feelings on her first day as PANIC. Despite being desperately short of space, she decided that working from home would be the best, or possibly the safest option, So work became a dressing table on her landing. On that first day Rachel made 150 calls to generate business for herself. At 10-30am she got her first appointment for 3-30pm that same day and began work for that client the very next day. When your business is generating business for other people, then you don’t really have a problem generating business for yourself, well, not if you’re any good anyway!
So Rachel finds herself in the envious position of being able to pick and choose who she will work with. In fact she turned down a 12 month contract with a company because it didn’t fit with her business model, she then covered the entire value of that project in the subsequent 3 months. One of the key’s to her success is actually not doing what you would expect, she doesn’t make sales calls. When Rachel calls people she is merely one business person speaking to another to see if there is any synergy and beyond that, she actually goes for a no. Rachel is one of those people that have to be busy all of the time, she struggles to do nothing. In her business plan she had estimated moving into office premises in 2 to 3 years, but she actually moved in to her office in Liverpool almost 2 years ahead of schedule. Needless to say she has re written her business plan. Moving into Liverpool offices has been a great move for Rachel, “it really makes the larger companies feel more comfortable”. Being in offices also gives her the flexibility to build a team, which will subsequently allow her to develop the business, not only taking on more and bigger clients, but also to develop the training side of her business. As Rachel says, “there is a real need for this, whilst there are many sales training courses out there, my approach is VERY unique”.
Approach Sales Services Ltd offer a wide range of products to their customers. All of which have the ultimate aim of achieving more sales. The Telemarketing and Appointment Setting are fairly obvious ones, as is the Training and Development in order that you are able to achieve better results yourself. Data cleansing is perhaps a little less obvious, although a valuable service in itself, communicating with your data base in order to keep it up to date is a great way to get back in touch with all of those people you’ve not spoken to in such a long time. How about Event Follow Up? This is something which is so often overlooked, or done badly. To follow up after an event is a fantastic opportunity to get feedback from potential clients and start a dialogue with them that you may not otherwise have been able to. As I said earlier, we all have to be sales people, but to do nothing else and to do it well, you need to have great organisational skills and to portray an air of confidence and being a bit of a character can also help. Rachel has all of these, in spades. She has very definite views about life and very clear values. Rachel is very into 50’s and 60’s Britain, in fact everything in her house is British and mostly from this period. The only things that aren’t are her TV, her laptop and her Italian scooter. Yes her scooter. Rachel has been a member of the A57 Scooter Club in Prescot for many years now and has actually rebuilt many scooters herself. She is very into 60’s Psychodelia music and generally likes all things retro, besides her many cats. Things Rachel own tend to be Pink. She likes pink. “I like stuff from the 50’s and 60’s because this is a time when the country was thriving. Britain was well into rebuilding itself after the war and their seemed to be an air of optimism and confidence. Also the values they held mean so much to me”. Rachel also needs to be busy. Besides running a young and successful business, a household with children and cats, she is also the community govener of a local special needs school. She always seems to be doing more than one thing at once......well. So if Approach Sales Services Ltd is 2 years ahead of schedule in its first 12 months, I can’t wait to see what the next 12 months hold!
Written By Mark Brake
www.approach-uk.com
BOGOF! Buy One Get One Free Two Icons For The Price Of One
Alex Corina’s art includes a one-off Mona Lennon Lamb Banana (Superlambanana). Why don’t you bid in Alex’s silent auction and get 2 icons for the price of one. Pop down to STUDIO2 33 -45 Parr Street Liverpool and see what we mean! A great party piece/talking point. Would look great in an office reception or other public spaces or a present for someone who’s got everything. There is a reserve price for further information contact Alex on 07763388509 (if interested can hand bid into in a sealed envelope into STUDIO 2 reception to Mona lennon lamb banana auction)
Liverpool Networking Scene
BNI Liverpool Chamber of Commerce Nugent Care Business For Breakfast Business Scene Juice
My Networking PA Downtown in Business Networking In The City Focus On
Out
Networking
Please send your pictures to events@yourbusinessezine.com
My Networking PA @ Coffee Republic
My Networking PA Curry Club @ Mayur
www.networkinginthecity.co.uk
Focus On Networking Ltd has emerged from the BSB Networking Club which was set up in 2008 by Paul Ashbury and Geoffrey Prince. Geoffrey retired in 2009 due to ill health.
They teach members how to show the benefits of doing business with them. This is a very powerful selling point– something many business people do not understand.
Paul assumed sole ownership and in February this year re-launched the company as Focus On Networking. The re-brand was to give the networking organisation a fresh new look and a new identity.
Paul and the members like the meetings to be informal and relaxed and there isn’t the weekly pressure to pass referrals.
With so many groups popping up, it is very important to be different. This is hard, however, Focus On have managed it – in more ways than one. There are currently 3 groups; Liverpool, Chester and on the Wirral, although there are plans to expand further. The format of each group is a breakfast meeting every fortnight with members and visitors giving their 1 minute personal presentation about their business and a member giving a more detailed 10 minute showcase of their products or services. A Learning spot is given by one of the qualified business coaches in the group to help the members and visitors with ideas to help them run their business.
In fact, there are many ways members and visitors can contribute to the meetings, such as giving a tip, a lead, a recommendation, an introduction, requesting a one to one meeting, or indeed a referral. In fact if anyone stands up at one of the meetings and utters those immortal words we hear so often at breakfast events, “nothing this week”, they are fined £1. The intention was for the money raised by these fines to go to charity, but unfortunately for the charity, it appears that by simply having this rule in place is enough to prevent this from ever happening. The only emphasis on referrals is the members writing a referral for themselves! On the back of the Focus On referral slips there is a section were you can write who you would like to meet, if you fill this in, then Paul and the team will circulate your request to the rest of the members and will endeavour to find those contacts for you.
This simple feature has a 35% success rate in connecting people and businesses. The emphasis at Focus On events is very much on quality over quantity.
Joining Focus On couldn’t be easier. There is no annual fee; you simply pay £95 for the first month and then £40 per month there after by standing order.
Paul says that the whole philosophy behind the events is that everyone can get business through networking, provided they do it effectively. “Business can be hard, but something most people don’t realise is that you have to be a buyer as well as a seller”.
This includes your membership and your breakfasts. It’s not about paying the money as much as making the commitment, so if you can’t make a meeting you send a substitute and that way you are still represented.
This is quite true, if you think about it, if everyone only goes along to any networking event with the sole intention of selling, how does anyone sell? Someone must at some point buy something. Every 3 months Paul runs a morning Networking Skills Workshop for members. Here you learn the ethics of Networking and how to make the most of your time at networking meetings. However you also learn many other aspects of running a successful business. These meetings are invaluable and they come at no extra cost to members. Paul has becomes a networking evangelist and has written a practical guide to business networking called, “How To Be A Networking Star”, which has been published and is currently in its second print.
Visitors are always welcome and simply pay a £12 attendance fee, which again includes breakfast. It’s great to see a structured breakfast meeting that is flexible and informative. After all, it’s their members that they Focus On.
Written By Mark Brake
www.focusonnetworking.co.uk
Liverpool Leaders Debate \/ \/ \/
DIB Chairmans Dinner /\ /\ /\
Nugent Care Networking @ Andersons Bar with Phil Thompson
Juice is a networking club that brings a fresh and vibrant flavour to blending different people together, in order to help businesses to grow and prosper. Juice has a friendly, professional and unique approach whereby there are NO rules. Just one simple request which is that each member attends the meetings with a zest to demonstrate commitment.
Juice is about creating fresh opportunities... It’s about sowing the seeds and reaping the rewards.
www.juicenetworking.com
www.business-scene.com
Business for Breakfast is a business club whose key aim is to help its members significantly grow their businesses through relationship marketing and the passing of qualified referrals. We run fortnightly meetings at locations in Liverpool and Wirral. Business for Breakfast only allows one person per industry sector to join a forum. This effectively prevents any of your competitors from participating - so all the referral business for your particular industry is yours. Why not take a look at the opportunities and benefits that your Business for Breakfast membership offers?
Business For Breakfast
Benefits of Business Networking It is the most cost effective way of attracting new clients and generating new orders. It provides you with invaluable contacts that gives your company a dramatic boost, regardless of size or turnover. It frees up your time, reduces your overheads and opens doors to great success. Guest Membership We welcome guest members regularly to our meetings. It is the perfect opportunity to come along to chat to our members and listen to their real experiences. It only costs ÂŁ10 to come along and we usually indulge in a great breakfast to start the day!! Find out more about events and venues or please visit
www.bforb.co.uk
MA
ANKEY
MONKEY A
fter a number of years spent having something of an identity crisis, Liverpool has finally established itself as a city recognised for its ever-increasing passion for art and culture. The way in which the people of Liverpool have responded to a number of world-class public art projects in recent years has proved any doubters wrong, and shown that there’s much more to scousers than the tired clichÊ of being Beatle-loving bores. Projects such as the world-famous Superlambananas and more recently the Go Penguins have ignited a real sense of passion and pride in locals, who may never have expressed an interest in the often misunderstood world of the arts until now.
M
ankey Monkey is the latest addition to the list of home grown public art projects that the people of Liverpool have taken to their hearts.
Devised by husband and wife duo David and Eirin Hallangen-Lake in October 2009, it was an unprecedented charity endeavour that raised over our target of £10,000 so far for Alder Hey’s Imagine Appeal, through the sale of the cheekiest chaps to hit Liverpool since the Hollyoaks boys’ works night out. A joint venture between David and Eirin’s Hallangen Art company, It’s About Websites and our good selves here at Your Business Ezine, Mankey Monkey saw 101 3ft monkey statues adopted by over 100 businesses across Liverpool and the Wirral – where they were enjoyed by everyone from school kids to pensioners capturing the real spirit of fun and warmth behind the project. And the project certainly did help others. The Mankey Monkey Grand Charity Auction, which was kindly hosted by Sefton Park’s Palm House – free of charge – on Thursday 29th April, raised over £10,000 for Alder Hey’s Imagine appeal, insuring that the 3ft statues weren’t the only cheeky monkeys with smiles on their faces.
Over 150 people attended the event, where they were treated to a mouth-watering selection of canapés and champagne courtesy of Carringtons Caterers and Costco, before enjoying the excitement of the highly-anticipated auction itself. T4’s Matt Littler and Darren Jeffries compered the evening, unleashing the unique brand of cheeky chappy humour that has made the former Hollyoaks stars two of Britain’s most exciting young talents, while celebrity auctioneer Andrew Binstock, of Sutton Kersh, ensured that the auction was an exciting and engaging success. The 50 monkeys up for auction were each sold to bidders eager to take home their very own primate, while the majority of the remaining 51 monkeys (who hadn’t been included in the auction) were sold to keen crowd members, desperate to take home a little piece of Liverpool history, and help the children of Alder Hey in the process.
Eirin Hallangen-Lake, self-appointed Chief Monkey WAG, and the lady who painstakingly designed and created each of the monkeys along with her husband David and a small team of local artists, says that the auction night summed up the entire Mankey Monkey project perfectly, “Loads of fun, open to everyone, businesses and people from all walks of life coming together to support a great cause, and of course Monkeys all over the place!” she enthused, “We’d like to thank all of the people who have supported us and helped make Mankey Monkey such a huge success. Liverpool should be very proud of itself!”. She’s quite right, too. Not only did the sale of the monkeys raise an incredible amount for Alder Hey’s Imagine appeal, but a further £600 was raised through a raffle that boasted prizes including a two-night stay in the luxurious Merchants Quarter serviced apartments courtesy of L3 Living, tickets to the Laughter house Comedy Club and a much sought after signed Everton shirt – which was eventually auctioned off after a very kind Liverpool F.C. fan decided that his raffle prize was probably best suited to an actual supporter of the rival team – a gesture which raised yet more money for a truly worthy cause. “We are delighted that the Mankey Monkey auction was such a huge success, raising much needed funds for Alder Hey Imagine Appeal,” explains Christine Done, from Alder Hey. “It’s been fantastic to be the beneficiary of this wonderful project and it was lovely to see so many people managing to secure their favourite monkey on the evening. We are extremely grateful for the Mankey Monkey team for all the hard work and dedication in support of Alder Hey Imagine Appeal,” she added. And so, after months of hard work and entirely voluntary, non-profit making monkey business, the Mankey Monkey story comes to an end. Fortunately, we’re sure those talented folks at Hallangen Art have plenty more tricks up their sleeves, and we’re sure it’s only a matter of time before we have another brilliant and bold public art project to unite the people of Liverpool once more. The only question is, which animal will we be falling in love with next?
Written By Mark Brake Photographs By Robert Edge
www.mankeymonkey.com
Team Mankey Monkey would very much like to thank Costco Liverpool for their support with our Grand Charity Auction evening in Sefton Park’s Palm House. Thanks to their generosity our 200+ guests were treated to some lovely bubbly, not only on arrival, but throughout the evening.
Costco are also very active in the local business community. Besides exhibiting at local business fairs, taking along those lovely muffins for all to sample, they also attend many local networking events and have even hosted events in store, partnering with Business Scene and putting on a fantastic spread.
For those of you that don’t know, Costco is a members only warehouse and the Liverpool branch is based just off Great Howard Street, just on the outskirts of the city centre.
If you’re not already a member of Costco then you don’t know what your missing. Joining couldn’t be easier, they have a choice of private or trade membership and all you have to do is simply pop in store with a few forms of ID fill in a simple form and pay a very nominal annual fee.
They sell a huge array of products from clothing to DVD’s, from TV’s to kitchen equipment and white goods, garden furniture, tools, toys and food, lots of food. The list goes on and on. Actually they are probably most famous for their muffins. Costco muffins are legendary and like so much more from their food halls, they are made on site.
For more information, or to find your nearest store, check out their web site.
www.costco.co.uk
C
atering companies are ten a penny these days, but finding one that provides the highest quality service at an affordable price is a much trickier task. Fortunately, we stumbled across Lancashire-based Carringtons Catering, who specialise in providing restaurant quality fine dining for everything from business lunches to wedding and bar mitzvahs, at a price that won’t leave you out of pocket. Having recently provided the hugely popular canapés at the Grand Mankey Monkey Auction that we were so proud to be involved with, we have first hand experience of the delights that Carringtons has to offer. Their huge range of menus – which ranges from cold finger buffets to wedding banquets – offers an impressive selection of high quality food that has us salivating at the mere thought of it. What’s more, the team are more than happy to meet with you and discuss your wants and needs in a private consultation when you’ll also have the option of a private tasting session – meaning that you’ll know exactly what to expect when your business’s big event comes around.
As you’d expect, Carringtons really are experts in their field - and co-director Darren Wynn is a bonafide Master Chef of Britain, with over 25 years experience at the likes of the Gleneagles Hotel Auchterarder, Bath Spa hotel Bath, and the two Michelin starred Chez Nico. After leading the Highmoor Restaurant to the much sought after Restaurant of the year title, be decided to bring his much-loved restaurant meals to outside catering events. Teaming up with future wife Helen Wynn – the talented duo have seen their business go from strength to strength, as word of their efficient, smooth-running organisation and high quality food and service began to spread. They soon found themselves catering for everyone from the Tate gallery to Southport flower show – a real testament to the excellent service that they offer. Carringtons’ ability to provide unbeatable bespoke fine dining at competitive prices puts them head and shoulders above their rivals, and its their years of experience that make Darren, Helen and their team the perfect choice whatever the occasion. Now move along, that free tasting session won’t order itself!
Written By David Swinburn
www.carringtons-catering.co.uk
So much more than just selling house The Sutton Kersh Group has provided property related services in both the commercial and residential markets throughout Merseyside for over 35 years. The addition of Thomson and Moulton to the Group in 2007 further increased capacity, experience and expertise within the business and they are now recognised as Liverpool’s largest independent multi-discipline property firm. Since starting out as a family business in 1974, the firm has achieved huge success and now boasts one of Liverpool’s largest and best performing estate agency chains, the leading property auction house in Merseyside and the most active commercial agency in Merseyside. Sutton Kersh has six newly refurbished offices in Liverpool’s major district centres including the City Centre, Allerton, West Derby and Walton. Each is well resourced with its own professional and experienced team of Chartered Surveyors, valuers, sales negotiators and qualified mortgage advisors. Through a blend of professionalism, effective marketing and dynamic selling, the firm has achieved a phenomenal sales record and has a prolific presence across Merseyside. Its portfolio of property is one of the largest and most diverse in the city and covers most Liverpool postcodes. Every property is displayed on their award winning website that achieves on average over 400,000 page views and almost 30,000 unique visitors every month as well as many other leading property portals.
es‌. The Group also offers a broad range of professional property services that cover all of the integral components required for any type of property transaction including surveys, valuations, mortgages, building surveying and EPC provider. For investors and vendors that are in need of a quick sale, Sutton Kersh has an auction department, which last year sold more properties than all of their Liverpool competitors combined. This marked their fourth year as the best performing auction house in Merseyside based on the best results, largest catalogues and highest attendances. They also provide commercial property solutions and specialise in the disposal of retail, office, industrial and land development sites. The director-led department recently won the Estates Gazette Merseyside Deals Award for completing more deals than any other Merseyside agent over the last twelve months. Sutton Kersh’s comprehensive service offering, combined with its decades of experience and well respected reputation as a reliable service provider makes them the ideal choice for property buyers, sellers, investors and developers alike. * Sutton Kersh Auctions is now accepting instructions for their next auction on the 15th July and has an entry offer on of just £200. Their lettings department is also offering a free EPC with all new lettings instructions for a limited period only.
Contact details: Sutton Kersh Residential 0151 236 2332 Sutton Kersh Lettings & Property Management 0151 207 5923 Sutton Kersh Auctions 0151 207 6315 Sutton Kersh Commercial 0151 207 9339 Sutton Kersh Surveys 0151 207 9966 Sutton Kersh Mortgages 0151 280 0407 Written By Emmeline Goulden
www.suttonkersh.co.uk
Giraffe PR & Marketing provides affordable public relations and copywriting services for small to medium sized businesses. An effective public relations (PR) campaign is invaluable to any business and should form a crucial part of your positioning strategy by generating public awareness of activities that add value and credibility to your brand. We develop, execute and manage effective campaigns that tie in with your broader marketing and business strategies. Through a blend of creative ideas and intelligent pitching, we are able to help you maintain a regular presence in the media. There are so many media opportunities out there for you to take advantage of. It is our job to maximise these opportunities and ensure you reap all of the benefits on offer. Whether it’s the launch of a new product or service, the opening of a new office, charity fundraising activities, a new appointment or raising a current employee’s profile, there are both column inches and other media opportunities to be seized. Even when you don’t have any news within your organisation, there is bound to be something going on in the broader market that we can put you forward as an expert to comment on. We leave no stone unturned in our efforts to identify and exploit media opportunities and with our professional guidance you can make sure that your brand is continuously pushed through these influential communication channels. Giraffe PR & Marketing provides affordable public relations and copywriting services for small to medium sized businesses. Remember you need to be talking to the right people about the right things in the right way. The copy you write may be ok, but we all know that ok just isn’t good enough in today’s highly competitive markets. We communicate the essential marketing messages in a writing style that is both dynamic and engaging, we ensure you stand out from the merely bland and make a lasting impression on your audience.
“Reaching fur
For an efficient and professional company that has a reputation for delivering quality work, on time and to budget then you need to contact Giraffe PR & Marketing. Remember: you need to be talking to the right people, about the right things, in the right way. Contact Emmeline Goulden (partner) on 07814 106 907 mailto:emmelineg@giraffeprmarketing.co.uk
www.giraffeprmarketing.co.uk
rther - Achieving more�
H H
ere at Your Business Ezine we like photography, in fact we like it a lot. It’s a good job really, given the amount of images used within the ezine. As I’m sure your aware there are many different types of photography and even more styles of photographer. We have been very fortunate here at the ezine to have worked with some amazing photographers that really push the boundaries. In this day and age it is very simple for anyone to pick up a modern digital compact camera, which usually have pretty amazing resolution these days and just snap away. But put that camera in the hands of a photographic artist and the results are very different. Then change that compact for a modern DSLR camera and what you get can be phenomenal.
Take the work of Rob McGrory. Rob actually shot all of the images for the team talk section of this ezine. If you look at the cover image which is also repeated on this page, you will see what I mean about taking things to a whole new level. This is not a water affect dress that was made in Photoshop, the dress is actually made up of thousands of separate images of water that Rob painstakingly threw in all different ways and then over a great deal of time, stitched them all together in order to form the dress. I think you will agree that the results are stunning. You can see some more examples of Rob’s work over the next few pages and find out how you could get involved and become a work of art yourself!
R
ob McGrory is appealing for volunteers to come down to his photographic studio and have a 30 minute shoot done for an exhibition he is putting together. He is not looking for models, he simply wants people of all ages, gender, size, race, shape and style. In his words, he is looking for “real people with real emotions and connections to come along to the studio and just have fun”. Each person will get a minimum of one image, (but probably more), fully retouched by way of a thank you for getting involved.
The main bulk of the work will be fully clothed and shot in Rob’s fashion style of photography, but for the more adventurous of you who may want to try something a bit out of the norm in the name of art, he is holding weekend naked shoots for the same exhibition. To get involved simply click on the link to his web site and email him expressing your interest.
www.mcgrory.info
Rob’s reputation in the world of fashion and advertising photography is growing stronger on an almost daily basis. He has worked with some amazing clients, just look at the list below!
You can contact Rob McGrory at mail@mcgrory.info or why not just take a look at his website, you never know, you may just get inspired to become a work of art yourself.
So if you’re looking to do an edgy photo shoot for your next ad campaign, or to really stand out with your corporate image.
Website Address
www.mcgrory.info Written By Mark Brake
Bebe
CL8
Probe
Volvic
Impact
B&Q
Range Rovers
Blu Snapper
CL3
Tattler Magazine
Front Magazine
Uniform
Girls Aloud
Leg Avenue
Fashion
Refinery
Elevator Studios
Diesel J
JoJo Maman
Creative Match
Corsetr
House of Fraser
The Drum
Korovia
Fuse Magazine
Liverpool Too
British J
Tapastry
We Destroy Clothing
Anothe
Design Week
Fortyeight LTD
Night M
m
n UK
Jeans
ry Coulture
an Magazine
Journal of Photography
er Late
Magazine
The Trading Room This eZine is not all about saving a tree. It’s about saving you time, money, and effort.
Find great deals, promotional offers and more exclusive to Your Business eZine readers.
Click any website link to see the company’s website or click the emaill address to send them a message.
Don’t forget to tell them you read their advert in the eZine to get their exclusive offer.
Ocean Creative As an Ocean client you qualify to take advantage of their Marketing Workshops which are FREE to Ocean clients. If your monthly print spend is at a certain level then all the Workshops and Training events held at Ocean are FREE of charge to any member of staff within your business, what better incentive is there to move your print requirements from your existing supplier to Ocean Creative!
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Pride In Liverpool This project open to everyone. No qualifications or exclusions. It’s about our city – all the neighbourhoods! It is fun, it brings happiness – you learn about your city. Let’s bring back that community spirit!
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Its About Websites It’s About Websites the the Liverpool based digital media agency would like to offer all Your Business Ezine members a 5% charitable donation to a registered charity of their choice to the value of all work commissioned, From our Website design, Online Marketing and our It’s About Video multi platform video production services. *Subject to payment terms.
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