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KNOCKING AT DEBT’S DOOR What rights do you have when the bailiffs come calling?

WINTER IS COMING Learning from Game of Thrones’ marketing success

VIVE LA RÉVOLOUISTION Former France International and ex-Man United footballer, Louis Saha reveals how his new business is revolutionising the game off the field

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OPENER STRATEGY 47 The election selection

inside

Rich With explains the power of branding for politcal campaigns

49 Get your fix How to fix your subscriptionbased business in just 90 days

WIN AN ETIQUS

WATCH

52 Make it your nature to nurture Nurturing your relationships with journalists and PR agencies

11 12 15

WORTH £299 PAGE 90

55 Working 9 to five, not a way to make a living 57 Is the price right?

Editor’s letter Contributors News & events

Chris Merrington investigates whether now is the time to increase your prices

60 Travel turmoil

18

How to protect employees when they are in foreign lands

107 There is no easy way MARKETING 63 Stark lessons Kim Davis on how Game of Thrones conquered its audience through marketing

67 So simple, so social SUCCESS 18 Vivé la revolouistion Former France and Man Utd footballer, Louis Saha, reveals how he’s changing the game off the field

24 Find your fortune

A beginners’ guide to Twitter

70 Put your stamp on the world VP of Shutterstock, Gerd Mittmann, explains branding’s 3 golden rules

75 Make your PR purr 79 Playing the emotional puppet master Is ‘on-emotion’ the new ‘on-message’

Discover the TV show that will transform your business

81 Spring clean your brand Overhauling your company image

29 Lessons learned Dom Raban reveals his seven business lessons in hindsight

Dragon’s Den’s Piers Linney gives his tips for start-up success

108 Searching for top spot Practical guide to keeping your web content Google friendly

112 Tech review The Gadget Show’s Ortis Deley

115 Keep yourself connected Should you strip your staff of their smartphones?

119 I’ve got an app for that

FRANCHISE 122 Franchise news 127 Jumping on the bandwagon Dynamis’ Nicky Tatley looks at the hottest 5 franchise sectors to invest in right now

PEOPLE

33 Up and Coming Tom Hatten of RefMe

TECHNOLOGY

83 Could an MBA make you an MVP?

35 Book reviews

Leadership expert Deborah Benson

85 Slain by the Dragons FINANCE

5 worst Dragon’s den pitches and what you can learn from them

88 The unhappy customer

37 Don’t bank on it Funding expert, Julian Smith

39 Natural Selection Dai Rees looks at the booming short-term finance market

42 All for one and some for all? Are Labour plans for profitsharing actually viable?

How to deal with public complaints

90 Secret diary of an entrepreneur Gary Butler of ETIQUS watches

93 When two tribes go to war 95 Golden Oldies Lee McQueen

45 Knocking at debt’s door Talk Money’s Adam Aiken discusses what your rights are when the bailiffs come calling

63

ADVICE 133 Sales Doctor Your questions answered

134 Building business branding success 137 Legally speaking Wright Hassell tackle recovering goods after a supplier goes bust

138 When the credit manager comes calling How to prepare for the allimportant loan meeting

141 The credit card conundrum 142 Directory

LIFESTYLE 97 We love... Top tech 98 Hotspots: Dover Locations for business stays, meets, and eats

100 Ready, Jet, go! Get away lightly with the best cabin baggage for short breaks

103 On the road: Bentley Flying Spur V8 Mulliner

OPINION 145 Question of the month: Is PDA ever acceptable in the workplace?

146 Trash talk Readers discuss the business phrases that annoy them most

Oliver Hammond’s car review

104 Far from the office party Holiday Hypermarket talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 9

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LUKE GARNER EDITOR Luke Garner luke.garner@talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk

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WEB DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

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Circulation/subscriptions: UK £40, EUROPE £60, REST OF WORLD £95 Circulation enquiries: Aston Greenlake Publishing Ltd T: 0203 617 4681 Talk Business is published 12 times a year by Aston Greenlake Publishing Limited William Robinson Buildings, 3 Woodfield Terrace, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, CM24 8AJ © Copyright 2015. All rights reserved. No part of Talk Business may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written consent of the editor. Talk Business will make every effort to return picture material, but it is sent at owner’s risk. Due to the nature of the printing process, images can be subject to a variation of up to 15 per cent, therefore Aston Greenlake Publishing Limited cannot be held responsible for such variation. The opinions expressed by guests in this magazine are not necessarily the views held by Talk Business magazine, its publishers and its owners.

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veryone loves an underdog. And when someone is being taken advantage of by those with more money, or those with unfair leverage, or those with specialist knowledge, people will usually root for the victim to succeed. However, when that victim is a sportsman being paid hundreds of thousands of pounds each week, the public’s sympathy for that victim evaporates quicker than a Lib Dem promise not to increase tuition fees. However, there is a real underlying problem with professional sports people being taken advantage of at all levels of competition, particularly by clubs and agents where money is involved, and they deserve protection as much as anyone. Thankfully, having been on the wrong end of those bad experiences during his career, our cover star this month, former French international footballer, Louis Saha is standing up against the bullies who seek to take advantage of hard-working athletes. He provides an inspiring lesson that, no matter how big your opponent, there’s always a way to win if you work hard enough and believe in what you’re trying to achieve. With the shocking statistic that 50% of sports pros will one day declare bankruptcy - often due to being badly advised financially - let’s hope he can succeed on his quest to clean up the game that made his name. Find out how he plans to do so on page 18. Elsewhere this month, as the sun is shining it seems strange to be told that ‘Winter is Coming’. But with the advent of season five, we hop onto the Game of Thrones bandwagon to discover just how the blockbuster TV show has become so successful. Kim Davies examines the expert marketing techniques they employ (and what you can learn from them) on page 63. There are always ups and downs in any industry, and it is unlikely your business journey will be without issues, especially of a financial nature. That’s why Talk Money’s Adam Aiken takes a look at what rights you have when the bailiffs come calling, on page 45. Although the situation is never going to be an ideal one, he shows that there is a way to deal with such problems, and a light at the end of the tunnel. Finally this month, get your hands on a fantastic watch from British timepiece manufacturer ETIQUS, perfect for golf aficionados and valued at £299. Flick to page 90 to read about founder, Gary Butlers’ busy schedule as owner, and details on how to enter.

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The experts

12 May 2015

GERD MITTMANN

RICH WITH

TONY MORRIS

With customers in more than 150 countries, Gerd leads Shutterstock’s international team overseeing Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia Pacific. Easily clocking the most frequent flier miles of any Shutterstock employee, Gerd joined the team in 2011, and leads its international efforts. He previously worked as VP, international for WeightWatchers. com, and started his career in publishing at IDG Communications. When he’s not travelling the globe, or visiting Shutterstock’s New York headquarters, Gerd enjoys hiking, skiing, and absolutely everything about Italy. He received a degree in English and Geography from the University of Augsburg, Germany, and was raised in a small Bavarian town.

Rich has worked in a design environment since leaving college. After spending time in editorial, print, and web design, he began freelancing at agencies in London and the Caribbean. He set up his own studio - Hoot Creative - last year. Based near Southend, he works with MDs of established businesses and start-up SMEs, who have a problem getting noticed in an overcrowded market. Rich likes Massive Attack, Jeff Buckley, smoothies, photography and wine-gums. He is not fond of Brussels sprouts. You can follow him on Twitter @RichGrowCo

Tony is a sales trainer and co-founder of The Sales Doctor. He has more than 14 years’ experience in sales, both B2B and B2C, and has trained more than 1,500 sales professionals in a variety of industries. Alongside his business partner, Tony set up The Sales Doctor in May 2006. He started by cold calling to generate appointments, and within the first year, The Sales Doctor had 56 clients; this has continued to grow year on year. Tony’s ethos: you can sell any product or service with the right attitude and a well planned call structure.

GERD ADVISES HOW TO ACHIEVE CONSISTENT BRANDING ON PAGE

RICH TALKS ENGAGING YOUR CUSTOMERS ON TWITTER ON PAGE

READ TONY’S SALES DOCTOR ADVICE ON PAGE

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news SMEs warned not to fall into currency trap ahead of the election Sterling set to become more volatile, affecting international payments

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mall businesses, which plan to make international payments and transfers around the time of the election, may be in for a shock, foreign exchange expert, FAIRFX has warned, saying that sterling could become increasingly volatile in the days up to and after the 2015 election. New analysis of the 2010 election and the 2014 Scottish referendum has highlighted the impact major political events, combined with an uncertain outcome, can have on sterling. Accordingly, SMEs across the country are being urged to plan

ahead to prevent unnecessary costs to the business. FAIRFX currency expert, Darren Kilner explains: “If we look back at the currency markets in the three weeks leading up to the 2010 election, and the three weeks after, there were high levels of volatility. Our analysis shows that sterling moved over 8% against USD within the election period alone, and did not regain its pre-election strength until three months after the coalition was formed.For businesses making international payments, a £10,000 transfer into US Dollars could have

63% of entrepreneurs set to abandon London Rising property prices are driving innovators out of the capital

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wo-thirds (63%) of small business owners in London and the South East are considering leaving Central London over the next five years, according to new research by Sussex Innovation at the University of Sussex. This rises to 78% for technology start-ups, calling into question the sustainability of East London’s ‘silicon roundabout’. The poll, which quizzed the bosses of businesses in London and the South East of England, found that the key factors pushing entrepreneurs out are rising property prices (78.5%), difficulties accessing funding and investment (26.6%), and securing top talent (24.1%). The majority (64.3%) of those thinking about leaving the capital

cost them £790 extra due to this 8% drop in sterling, in one transaction alone. And for businesses making several transactions a month, this would really impact operational costs.” “With the election just around the corner, and the Conservatives and Labour currently on similar levels in the polls, there are expectations of another hung parliament, which has every likelihood of creating currency volatility similar to the previous election.” Contact: www.fairfx.com would consider relocating to the South East as an alternative. Average rental prices in areas such as Shoreditch and Clerkenwell were up 5% in 2014 to £52.50 per sq ft, and are predicted to rise by another 9% in 2015. Commenting on the research findings, Mike Herd, executive director of Sussex Innovation, said: “With office rental costs soaring in London, it’s no surprise that entrepreneurs are looking to move out of the capital. At the same time, we’ve seen local businesses moving away from areas like Croydon, due to a lack of flexible facilities designed to support businesses during rapid growth. Incubator hubs, such as Sussex Innovation - Croydon are being established to tackle both of these issues head on, and to help the next generation of entrepreneurs.” Contact: www.sussex.ac.uk

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news One in five salespeople lie to close a sale

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he world hates a liar, and yet the shocking fact is that around 22% of salespeople openly confess to bending the truth to close a sale. It’s a number that, quite ironically, could be a lot higher if the real truth were to be told, but what is for sure is that fudging facts is a practise that completely undermines the credibility not only of the salesperson but of the sales profession, as Doug Tucker, managing director of Sales Commando, explains: “White lie, fib, exaggeration; there are a hundred ways to excuse an untruth, but it all comes down to one word - lying. And lying is a cancer that kills sales,” he said. “Sales is all

SMEs warned to beware of damage to their reputation

about credibility. The best sales pros are credible, trustworthy, open, and honest. The rewards of committing to this policy far outstrip the pitfalls of lying.” So what are the lies that are being told? Tucker says; “In a sales context, it’s all about the persuasive power of numbers. Every product and service has its competitor. “Under pressure, it’s all too easy to inflate statistic X, and over promise on performance Y, to beat the claims of the competition. “The reality is that as soon as a prospect picks up the scent of snake oil, they’re off, business is lost, and so is the opportunity to go back for a second try.” Contact: www.sales-commando.com

DATES FOR THE DIARY Business Junction Networking Events 7 May Verve Bar, 1 Upper St. Martin’s Lane, Covent Garden, London, WC2H 9NY 13 May London Capital Club, 15 Abchurch Lane, London, EC4N 7BW 21 May The Gable, 25 Moorgate, London, EC2R 6AR 27 May Minster Exchange, Minster Pavement, Mincing Lane, London, EC3R 7PP www.businessjunction.co.uk

16 May 2015

Sterling Integrity 2 July - Gloucester Kingsholm Rugby Stadium 24 September - Bristol Future Inns Bristol www.sterlingintegrity.co.uk

The Business Show 13-14 May ExCel London www.greatbritishbusinessshow.co.uk Sales Innovation Expo 2015 13-14 May ExCel, London www.salesinnovationexpo.co.uk

The CIPD learning and development show 13 -14 May Olympia National, London www.cipd.co.uk

IP Expo 20-21 May Manchester Central www.ipexpomanchester.com

BIBA 2015 13-14 May Manchester Central www.biba.org.uk

3D Printshow London 21-23 May The Old Truman Brewery www.3dprintshow.com

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SUCCESS

n the pitch he scored 121 goals in front of millions of adoring fans. Now off of it, away from the bright lights of the Premier League, he’s assisting other fter his own glittering career came to an end, former French international Louis Saha couldn’t help but notice that many of his fellow colleagues in the rgotten by the game that they’d given so much to over the years. And it wasn’t just those ending their careers that were having difficulties – many with med with his business partner Patrice Arnera, he decided to do something about this travesty. Alarmingly, 50% of sportspeople go bankrupt at some point, either during or after their playing days, which is way too high a number,” explained Louis. dvice.” he Frenchman, whose family originate from Guadeloupe, founded the company after he himself was given bad advice. He lost a sizeable amount of mon invested in a scheme that was giving back some taxes,” he explained. “I, along with many other players were badly advised. We invested and it went w During my playing days there were also a few stories based around my contract. Players sometimes don’t understand a lot of the technical jargon, they’r o fix these issues, Axis Stars boasts an exclusive social network for elite sports professionals (sportsmen, agents, clubs and sponsors) coupled with a po lected for the whole professional sports industry - such as reputable contract management and insurance brokers. It also provides a place for players to rofessionals who have been in similar situations – be it financially or contractually - a kind of opinion crowdsourcing. For young players, the financial education and communication is not there. Axis Stars helps to look after them and gives them somewhere to seek advic e continued; “In contrast, those that are retiring often fall victim to the shock of going from a large salary to one that doesn’t compare, and they get int oday, although the business has only been up and running since September 2014, it boasts names such as footballer Didier Drogba, tennis ace Gael Mon illions, of professional sportspeople in the world, and they need help just as much - if not more - than the household names. f you want to enforce change and work in a new eco-system, you need to involve everyone from young players to ex-players,” said the always jovial coe best in the game to make sure everyone gets treated fairly.” think I’m ideally placed to succeed in business because of who I am; I am a competitor, I’ve had to be in order to reach the levels I did. I really want to 4/7 on Axis Stars to succeed - it’s just in my nature,” he smiled. hat fighting spirit is something that has shown itself during a career blessed with highs and plagued with lows. As a professional footballer, Louis was p sheartening, he now believes that it makes him ideally placed to advise others going through the same types of problems. Frankly, the injuries really pissed me off. I didn’t understand why it kept happening to me, but now it is a good experience as it means I can relate to cur There were of course some memorable moments too. I was in the squad for the World Cup Final in 2006, which was truly amazing. Getting to represen way from his new venture, Louis has actually been trying his hand on the pitch once again – albeit just for one game. He recently took part in the annu ith, with more style and class than anyone”. The match, which featured the likes of Didier Drogba, Brazilian Ronaldo, and Liverpool legend Vladimir Sm or now though he’ll focus his energies on helping those who have yet to make the star-studded stage to get to the highest level of their profession - and

Alarmingly, 50% of sportspeople go bankrupt at some point. It’s often because, when you’re young and you’re in this bubble, you don’t see the danger, and you’re given misleading or bad ƬQDQFLDO DGYLFH

18 May 2015

SUCCESS

r sportsmen and women so they can achieve their goals instead. industry were left stranded and forgotten about the moment their careers ended too. They were often left out in the cold to fend for themselves, hin football and other professional sports were being given bad advice and led astray by conmen, especially when it came to financial dealings. So,

. “It’s often because when you’re young and you’re in this bubble, you don’t see the danger, and often because you’re given misleading or bad financial

ney when encouraged to invest in a tax scheme that went awry. wrong. I want to stop that happening to others.” re always in a rush and get pushed to sign, so it is hard for them to make the right decision.” owerful contract management solution. The platform acts like a virtual department store offering exclusive, professional and luxury services carefully o discuss topics of a financial nature (though the platform is 100% secure so no chance of details being leaked elsewhere), and get advice from other

VIVE LA RÉVOLOUISTION

ce that they know is impartial and in their best interests.” o monetary difficulties. They’ve never worked in a ‘normal’ field, so it is a different type of assistance we offer, to aid them to make the transition.” nfils, and rugby powerhouse Frederic Michalak as supporters and members. But it isn’t just about the high-profile names, there are thousands, perhaps

founder. “I really hope that one day we can be the vehicle for all sports industries to be more efficient. Ten years from now I’d love to be working with win and help - and I will fight anyone who thinks we’re here for anything else. Many people will just put their name to something, but I’m working rolific, notching goals for Manchester United, Everton, and Fulham at his peak. However, he was often beset by injuries and, while at the time it was

rrent players going through the same thought-processes and experiences. I can let them know that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.” nt your country is a special moment, especially when you see the look on the faces of your friends and family,” beamed the entrepreneur. al ‘Match against With poverty’, hosted by friend and French footballing Zinedine Zidanesports - someone who hewill describes “the best player I ever played the shocking statistic that 50% oficon, ex-professional players face as bankruptcy micer, raised funds aid thepoint, Ebola recovery in Africa. (You can too at www.undp.org) attosome formerprogramme France international andhelp Premier League star, Louis Saha, is on a secure their futures while they’re there.

mission to clean up the corrupt sport that helped make his name

O

n the pitch he scored 121 goals in front of millions of adoring fans. Now off of it, away from the bright lights of the Premier League, he’s assisting other sportsmen and women so they can achieve their goals instead. After his own glittering career came to an end, former French international footballer, Louis Saha couldn’t help but notice that many of his fellow colleagues were left stranded and forgotten about the moment their careers ended. They were often left out in the cold to fend for themselves, forgotten by the game that they’d given so much to over the years. And it wasn’t just those ending their careers that were having difficulties - many within football, and other professional sports, were being given bad advice and led astray by con men, especially when it came to financial dealings. So, with his business partner, Patrice Arnera, he decided to do something about this travesty. “Alarmingly, 50% of sportspeople go bankrupt at some point, either during or after their playing days, which is way too high a number,”

explained Louis. “It’s often because, when you’re young and you’re in this bubble, you don’t see the danger, and often because you’re given misleading or bad financial advice.” The Frenchman, whose family originate from Guadeloupe, founded the company after he was given bad advice. He lost a sizeable amount of money when encouraged to invest in a tax scheme that went awry.

“I invested in a scheme that was giving back some taxes,” he explained. “I, along with many other players, were badly advised. We invested and it went wrong. I want to stop that happening to others.” “During my playing days, there were also a few stories based around my contract. Players sometimes don’t understand a lot of the technical jargon, they’re always in a rush, and get pushed to sign, so it is hard for them to make the right decision.” To fix these issues, Axis Stars boasts an exclusive social network for elite sports professionals (sportspeople, agents, clubs, and sponsors), coupled with a powerful contract management solution. The platform acts like a virtual department store, offering exclusive, professional, and luxury services carefully selected for the whole professional sports industry - such as reputable contract management, and insurance brokers. It also provides a place for players to discuss topics of a financial nature (the platform is 100% secure, so there’s no chance of details being leaked elsewhere), and get advice from other professionals who have been

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 19

SUCCESS

Although the n the pitch he scored 121 goals in front of millions of adoring fans. Now off of it, away from the bright lights of the Premier League, he’s assisting other business has only portsmen and women so they can achieve their goals instead. fter his own glittering came tosince an end, former French international Louis Saha couldn’t help but notice that many of his fellow colleagues in the beencareer running dustry were left stranded and forgotten about the moment their careers ended too. They were often left out in the cold to fend for themselves, forgotte given so much to over y the game that they’d September 2014, it the years. And it wasn’t just those ending their careers that were having difficulties – many within footbal nd other professional sports were being given bad advice and led astray by conmen, especially when it came to financial dealings. So, armed with his names suchto do something about this travesty. usiness partner boasts Patrice Arnera, he decided Alarmingly, 50% of sportspeople go bankrupt at some point, either during or after their playing days, which is way too high a number,â€? explained Louis. aswhen footballer, Didier you’re young and you’re in this bubble, you don’t see the danger, and often because you’re given misleading or bad financial t’s often because dvice.â€? Drogba, tennis ace he Frenchman, whose family originate from Guadeloupe, founded the company after he himself was given bad advice. He lost a sizeable amount of oney when encouraged to invest in a tax scheme that went awry. *DHO 0RQĆŹOV DQG invested in a scheme that was giving back some taxes,â€? he explained. “I, along with many other players were badly advised. We invested and it went rong. I want to stop that happening to others.â€? rugby powerhouse, During my playing days there were also a few stories based around my contract. Players sometimes don’t understand a lot of the technical jargon, they’r Frederic get pushed Michalak to sign, so it is hard for them to make the right decision.â€? ways in a rush and o fix these issues, Axis Stars boasts an exclusive social network for elite sports professionals (sportsmen, agents, clubs and sponsors) coupled with a as supporters owerful contract management solution. The platform acts like a virtual department store offering exclusive, professional and luxury services carefully

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Axis Stars helps to look aftercareers, them and gives them somewhere to seek advic sports stars to manage their or contractually - a kind of opinion at they know is impartial and in their best interests.â€? ďŹ nances, and contractual negotiations crowdsourcing. e continued; “In contrast, those that are retiring often fall victim to the September shock of going2014 from a large salary to one that doesn’t compare, and they get int Founded: “For young players, the financial onetary difficulties. They’ve never worked in a ‘normal’ field, so it is a different type of assistance we offer, to aid them to make the transition.â€? education and communication is not Career games: 405 oday, although the business has only been up and running since September 2014, it boasts names such as footballer Didier Drogba, tennis ace Gael there. Axis Stars helps to look after Career goals: 121 onfils, and rugbythem, powerhouse Frederic Michalak as supporters and members. But it isn’t just about the high-profile names, there are thousands, perhap and gives them somewhere sportspeople in the world, and they need help just as much if not more - than the household names. illions, of professional to seek advice that they know is f you want to enforce change workbest in ainterests.â€? new eco-system, you need to involve everyone from young players “There were,toofex-players,â€? course somesaid the always jovial coeveryone gets treated fairly.â€? impartial and and in their that one day we can be the vehicle for all sports industries to be more efficient. Ten years from love under. “I really hope too. I’d I was in to thebe working with th “I think I’m ideally placed to succeed memorable momentsnow He continued; “In contrast, those make sure everyone gets treated fairly.â€? est in the game tothat squad for the World Cup Final in 2006, in business because of who I am; I am are retiring often fall victim to think I’m ideallythe placed in business who I am; II’ve am had a competitor, I’vetohad to be inwas order toamazing. reach theGetting levels Itodid. I really want to which truly a competitor, to be in order shocktoofsucceed going from a large because salary of in and help - andtoI one will that fightdoesn’t anyonecompare, who thinks we’re here for anything else. Many people will just put their name to something, but I’m working 24/7 represent your country is a special reach the levels I did. I really want to and n Axis Stars to succeed it’s just in my nature,â€? he smiled. moment, especially when you see the win and help - and I will fight anyone they get into monetary difficulties. hat fighting spiritThey’ve is something has in shown itself during a career blessed with and plagued with As aofprofessional Louis was look on lows. the faces your friendsfootballer, and who thinks we’re here forhighs anything never that worked a ‘normal’ rolific, notching goals for Manchester United, Everton, and Fulham at his peak. However, he was often beset by injuries and, while at the time it was family,â€? beamed the entrepreneur. else. Many people will just put their field, so it is a different type of sheartening, he assistance now believes it to makes him ideally placed others through the same types ofhis problems. Away from new venture, Louis nameto to advise something, butgoing I’m working we that offer, aid them to Frankly, the injuries really pissed me off. I didn’t understand it kept happening to -me, but now it actually is a goodbeen experience as it means I can relate to has trying his hand 24/7why on Axis Stars to succeed it’s just make the transition.â€? urrent players going through the same thought-processes and experiences. I can let them know that there is always a light at the end on the pitch once again albeit just of the tunnel.â€? in my nature,â€? he smiled. Today, although the business has There were of course memorable moments in thefighting squad for theisWorld Cup Final in whichHe wasrecently truly amazing. for2006, one game. took Getting to represen spirit something only some been up and running since too. I was That moment, when you seethat the has lookshown on theitself facesduring of your friends and family,â€? the entrepreneur. our country is a special part in thebeamed annual ‘match against a career September 2014,especially it boasts names way from his new venture, Louis has actually been trying his hand on the pitch once again – albeit just for one game. He recently took part in the annu poverty’, hosted by friend and French blessed with highs, and plagued with such as footballer, Didier Drogba, Match against poverty’, hosted by friend and French footballing icon, Zinedine Zidane someone who he describes as “the best player footballing icon, Zinedine Zidane - I ever played with lows. As a professional footballer, tennis ace, Gael Monfils, and rugby class than anyoneâ€?. The match, which featured the likes of Didier Drogba, Brazilian Ronaldo, anddescribes Liverpool ith more style and someone who he aslegend “the Vladimir Smicer, Louis was prolific, notching goals powerhouse, Frederic Michalak ised funds to aidasthe Ebola recovery programme can helpUnited, too at www.undp.org) best player I ever played with, with for(You Manchester Everton, and supporters and members. But in Africa. or now though he’ll focus energies on helping haveatyet makeHowever, the star-studded to style get toand theclass highest level of their profession - and more than anyoneâ€?. Fulham histopeak. he was stage it isn’t justhis about the high profile those who cure their futures while they’re there. The match, which featured the likes often beset by injuries and, while at names, there are thousands, perhaps millions of professional sportspeople in the world, and they need help just as much - if not more - than the household names. “If you want to enforce change and work in a new eco-system, you need to involve everyone from young players to ex-players,â€? said the always-jovial co-founder. “I really hope that one day we can be the vehicle for all sports industries to be more efficient. Ten years from now, I’d love to be working with the best in the game to make sure

20 May 2015

the time it was disheartening, he now believes that it makes him ideally placed to advise others going through the same type of problems. “Frankly, the injuries really pissed me off. I didn’t understand why it kept happening to me, but now it is a good experience, as it means I can relate to current players going through the same thought processes and experiences. I can let them know that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.�

of Didier Drogba, Brazilian, Ronaldo, and Liverpool legend, Vladimir Smicer, raised funds to aid the Ebola recovery programme in Africa (you can help too at www.undp.org). For now though, he’ll focus his energies on helping those who have yet to make the star-studded stage get to the highest level - and secure their futures while they’re there. Contact: www.axisstars.com

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SUCCESS

Find your fortune A television programme dedicated to helping you, the hardworking SME owners and entrepreneurs of Britain, is ďŹ nally here, assisting you to grow your business (or potential one) into your dream vision. Editor, Luke Garner, chats with the show’s host, best-selling author Lyndon Wood, about his exciting new venture, and why you should tune in

24 May 2015

SUCCESS

E

very entrepreneur sets out with a dream - and more often than not it is ultimately to make millions, achieve success, and retire filthy rich to a desert island somewhere with your very own personal monkey butler. (Disclaimer - other dreams are available). Whether that applies to you or not (you may simply love being your own boss, or the freedom of setting your own hours), it is likely that you’ll have hit a bump in the road, or struggled with some aspect of your business venture, and turned to someone for help - only to find that there was none there.

decisions, mentoring (why you should have many mentors, not just one), and much more. One of the important things we cover as well, which you won’t find in any book or costly training seminar, is the notion that theory doesn’t work in real life. It’s a real eye-opener for many.” Lyndon himself is no stranger to success, but it hasn’t come easy. His journey started out when he set up his first business at the tender age of 19 in August 1990, at the start of the big recession, with zero capital and no qualifications after leaving school at the age of 14. He proceeded to build his insurance businesses, Constructaquote.com and Moorhouse

business after this disaster, I went from £700k net profit to £2.1m in just 18 months, through the selfcreation of micro segmentation. I intend to encourage viewers and give them advice, so they can find ways to achieve such results too.” As we often preach here at Talk Business and online, it is important to understand that it is okay to ask for help, and that you don’t have to be an expert at everything. However, one thing you do have to be the best at, is being yourself, and generating your own self-confidence - something Lyndon wholeheartedly agrees with. “I get asked all the time what the biggest challenge facing SME owners

September 11th happened, capacity shrank, and we lost our facility. It gave me a stern lesson. That’s the beauty of Fortune Hunter - we can teach these lessons to viewers so they don’t have to experience them Well, a new television show on Sky and Freesat could provide the answer. Though we can’t promise that desert island or suave marsupial pal, Fortune Hunter, hosted by bestselling author, Lyndon Wood, is guaranteed to at least get you a little bit closer to achieving your dreams. Based around Lyndon’s best-selling book, Diary of a Fortune Hunter, the programme will feature high-profile guests with top industry insight, such as the CEO of Entrepreneurial Spark, Jim Duffy, and Lyndon will also be drawing on his own experiences to help burgeoning entrepreneurs and SME owners in their endeavours. It’s chock full of hints and tips to help entrepreneurs and SME owners on their journey towards success. “The book and show are based on real-life situations,” explains the author and host. “Nobody tells you what to do when things go wrong, for example, so that’s one of the things we aim to do. We also cover topics such as microsegmentation (maximising profit), how to make

Group, to be a UK top 100 insurance broker specialising in the SME market both online and offline. Lyndon still owns 100% of the business today. There have also been bumps on the road for the self-made entrepreneur, but understanding that you have to ride through both highs and lows that are inevitable in business, is something Lyndon is keen to impress on budding business owners. “I learned the hard way not to put all of your eggs in one basket. I used to be in the insurance industry and generally you need to work through an agency. This meant 95% of our business ended up being through this one agency, which was great for a while, but it always catches up with you. “Then September 11th happened, capacity shrank, and we lost our facility. It was a real ‘oh dear’ moment, and gave me a stern lesson. That’s the beauty of Fortune Hunter though - we can teach these lessons to viewers so they don’t have to go through the pain of making such mistakes. “For example, while fixing my

and wannabe entrepreneurs is today, and I always say the biggest obstacle is yourself, believe it or not. Most people start out with a belief in themselves and their idea, but it gets chipped away at. There’s always someone who will say something negative, and the key is to stay strong and trust your instincts.” With the General Election looming large (though it will likely have been and gone once you read this), the show’s host has some harsh words for the incoming holder of the keys to Number 10, as they could certainly make the path to success a lot easier for many UK businesses. “The Government currently has been hindering SMEs. There isn’t any real support out there for businesses and their owners, whether financial, legal, or whatever, and that’s a huge problem, especially given the quagmire of paperwork that they’re expected to deal with,” explained Lyndon. “Figures suggest that 95% of businesses in the UK are SME-sized, so why isn’t more being done to help

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 25

SUCCESS

The Government has been hindering SMEs. There isn’t any real support out there for businesses and their owners, and that’s a huge problem, especially given the quagmire of paperwork that they’re expected to deal with

them? It is truly baffling! So that is something any new governing party should look to address, pronto!” As previously emphasised, the show is all about using personal experiences as examples, which differ greatly from the assumed knowledge of the plethora of business text books, as real-life situations come in so many varying shapes and sizes, that answers can rarely be found in the words of scholars. One such example is the insistence by many on producing a business plan - something which Lyndon feels is an outdated - and indeed useless - practice. “Business plans are a waste of time. The average person takes five months to create a comprehensive business plan, but more often than not, it is out of date as soon as you finish it. A growth plan is a much better strategy, as it provides you with key actions on how to grow a business, which gives you goals and targets, plus a pathway to follow to achieve them,” stated the author. Whatever you plan to do this year, make sure you tune in to Lyndon, and you’ll be on your way to your fortune. Contact: www.diaryofafortunehunter.com www.constructaquote.com

Fortune Hunter airs every month for 12 months, with regular repeats, on Showcase TV (SKY channel 192), and FREESAT channel 402.

Why not pick up a copy of Lyndon’s book, Diary of a Fortune Hunter, published by Filament Publishing, priced at £15, and available as a paperback and eBook.

26 May 2015

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n the race to secure those all-important seats for the 2015 Election, there was no single policy on the party agenda that would serVe as the delnitiVe deal-Breaker for eVery swing voter. With a diverse demographic to satisfy and each individual nursing different priorities, it’s no wonder £millions was pumped into a multi-pronged plan of attack for the UK’s would-Be leaders to reach out to prospective constituents.

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Making small changes can pay out in the long run!

Whether it was visits to local Businesses and hospital wards, opening charity events or kissing chuBBy-faced BaBies, political promises were Backed By an array of small paparaZZi ploys designed to pull the polls in each party’s favour: as ex-CEO of the 3!3 'roup 3candinavian !irlines *an CarlZon oBserved, h9ou cannot improve one thing By 1000 But you can improve 1000 little things By 1 v.

h)t’s rare to walk into an estaBlished Business and pinpoint one single @proBlem’ that can simply Be lxed and then generate a measuraBle return. )nstead, it’s the day-to-day processes, practical tools and sales methodologies that tend to Be the real culprits costing Businesses prospective sales and revenue.

This @aggregation of marginal gains’ concept, popularised By Team GB cycling Coach Dave Brailsford, is a development strategy that inlltrates all areas of sport, politicsx and Business. The idea that the sum of many small improvements can contriBute to a Big, signilcant performance leap is a key learn for those leaders seeking to drive performance change.

h)t could Be as simple as ensuring your sales people ask Just one more Question or get on the phone Just lve minutes earlier. When you add those singular elements together, the results speak for themselves. However at top management level where strategy is the focus, it’s these tactical elements that get missed. This is where a comprehensive assessment, training and evaluation programme can Be of huge Benelt.v

)magine if you could make each individual salesperson Just 1 more effective in opening up sales calls 1 more successful in getting past the gatekeeper or securing a 1 improvement on sales conversions. -ultiply that numBer across your sales force and those seemingly insignilcant improvements can Quickly stack up to a huge long-term gain otherwise unoBtainaBle through one singular overhaul of company policy. Pareto, the UK’s leading sales recruitment and sales training organisation, supports B2B Businesses worldwide to tap into the spare capacity existing within their sales functions. h)n the current customer-centric Business climate, it’s the small things that ultimately pay dividends,v remarks Pareto Performance Solutions Director, Bryn Thompson.

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SUCCESS

While it’s relatively straightforward to teach new skills, it’s extremely hard to change attitudes and personality, so always look for enthusiasm, cultural ƏW LQWHOOHFWXDO capacity, and communication skills when recruiting

Lessons learned Dom Raban, founder of Corporation Pop, looks at the seven things he’d have done differently when starting his small business, with the beneďŹ t of hindsight

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’ve been creating ‘stuff’ for 30 years - from punk fanzines in the late 1970s, to content for new media platforms now. While the environment we operate in has changed dramatically, the lessons I’ve learned as an entrepreneur, stand the test of time. This list could have been far longer, but here are my ‘lessons learned’: HIRE FOR MINDSET, NOT SKILLSET Recruiting is a headache. It is expensive, it is time consuming, and it is easy to get wrong. I wouldn’t

expect a new recruit to be really productive until they’ve been in post at least three months, so making the right decision is crucial. The most important thing to remember is that while it’s relatively straightforward to teach new skills or develop existing ones, it’s extremely hard to change attitudes and personality. For that reason, no matter what role I’m recruiting for, I always look for enthusiasm, cultural fit, intellectual capacity, and communication skills.

BE AHEAD OF THE CURVE BUT NOT TOO FAR AHEAD! Like in many businesses, innovation is one of our biggest drivers. Providing new and unique services that competitors aren’t (yet) offering enables you to find a niche in a crowded marketplace. In the late 1990s, I evangelised about a new technology called the ‘world wide web’, and built websites for my clients while my competitors were still grappling with email. While this gave me a competitive edge, sometimes

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 29

SUCCESS

my eagerness to adopt new technology has been less immediately successful. Back in 2007, I was convinced that virtual worlds would offer the opportunity to conduct global business virtually. I invested lots of time, effort, and money in a proposition that was unproven, and combined with a looming global banking crisis, there were few orders. Eight years on, this thankfully forms a significant part of our business, but it’s been a long wait. My lesson learned? Sometimes it’s better to be an early adopter than an innovator, as the market can take a heck of a long time to catch up with you. CLIENT RETENTION IS BETTER (AND EASIER) THAN CLIENT WIN If you’re a projectbased business - working flat out on delivering a project, then moving on to the next one - that sales pipeline will need

them the space to co-define their role within the company, and to grow by taking on responsibility for their own actions. Only the best people will thrive in these conditions. It’s the formula for an empowered team that will enthusiastically share a sense of responsibility for the growth of the business. DON’T PUT ALL YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET I learned a long time ago that overreliance on a single, large client is a risky business. For this lesson I can thank one of my early clients - a high profile global media group with a big marketing spend. The work was highly creative and paid well. I was excited, but it didn’t end well. They accounted for more than 70% of sales, so when they suddenly took their business elsewhere, along with half my design team, our future was in

inspired by Google’s ‘20% time’ rule, which gave staff time off to work on side projects. Similarly, my team is given time to work on personal experimental projects, to develop new ideas and skills. Building a working environment where play is encouraged is a great way to motivate your staff, and encourage creativity. These projects don’t have to hold any commercial value in themselves, but the learning outcomes can be invaluable to a business. PROTECT YOUR ASSETS Several years ago, I received one of the worst letters I’ve ever had. It was from a solicitor informing me that, after fourteen years, I would have to change my company name because it was similar to their client’s. We had been trading

0RQLWRU \RXU VDOHV ƏJXUHV WR PDNH VXUH WKDW QR FOLHQW DFFRXQWV IRU PRUH WKDQ RI \RXU VDOHV ,I RQH EHJLQV WR FUHHS RYHU \RX QHHG WR EXLOG LQFRPH ZLWK RWKHU EXVLQHVVHV continuous feeding, usually from new customers. Finding new customers is difficult and unpredictable, but retaining existing ones is much easier. The key to success is building strong relationships with clients and customers, getting under the skin of their businesses and always being on hand to jump in with additional products and services, support, and strategic advice. LEAD FROM THE BACK I’m a firm believer that a team member’s potential is best realised by allowing

30 May 2015

jeopardy. Many new businesses will get similarly excited by a big win, but remember to spread the risk. Monitor your sales figures to make sure that no client accounts for more than 20% of your sales. If one client begins to creep over, it’s a clear sign that you need to build income with other businesses. ENCOURAGE PLAY AT WORK You only need to look at the ‘Top 100’ best places to work lists to see there’s a clear link between happy people and successful business. We were

for roughly the same length of time, we had a higher profile, yet crucially, they had protected their name and we hadn’t. When starting out, it can be easy to overlook protection, as you’re so tied up with getting your new venture off the ground. By dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s, making sure that your company name is protected in all categories within which you trade, you’ll save a lot of heartache further down the line. Contact: www.corporationpop.co.uk

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SUCCESS

I got that reference This month we speak to Tom Hatton, CEO and co-founder of RefME, a tool and app that helps create citations and bibliographies by scanning books and journals

S

hortly after leaving Oxford Brooks University, Tom Hatton set up RefME. Now the 24-year-old can boast more than 700,000 downloads, and was crowned ‘Best British Mobile Startup’ at the Mobile World Congress in March. So how did he move from student to successful businessman in a few short years? WHAT EXACTLY IS YOUR APP AND HOW DOES IT HELP PEOPLE? RefME is a multi-platform referencing tool. We have an app that scans book and journal barcodes, which syncs with RefME. com, allowing users to cite anything online, in a click. RefME allows students and researchers to create citations and bibliographies in a matter of seconds. Users simply scan book and journal barcodes using their smartphone, or use the online search feature to reference anything. It automates citations in 7,000 academic formats, meaning users around the world can use it. It then saves and syncs the reference in the cloud, so students can create, edit, and manage their work across multiple devices from anywhere. WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION TO GET STARTED IN BUSINESS? At one point, I was in a band that very nearly signed with a major record label, however it was not meant to be. I am motivated by achievement so, although I won’t be headlining Glastonbury any time soon, I am building an amazing

product that clearly has a very bright future, and that motivates me more than anything. WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES YOU HAVE FACED, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM? I believe new businesses should be called ‘startups and downs’ because it can be one big rollercoaster. You have to eat, drink, breathe, and sleep your business, otherwise it won’t happen, because there are lots of challenges that come with running your own business. I am 24 years old, and the CEO of a company with 34 full time employees, who have far more experience than me. What’s great is bringing on people who trust and share your vision. It can be hard, but it is also massively rewarding. I’ve found the best way to overcome challenges is to learn from your mistakes and use those learnings to make better decisions going forward. HOW DO YOU EXPECT REFME TO DEVELOP IN THE FUTURE? It has huge potential to disrupt education, publishing and, ultimately, search. RefME learns what students and researchers all around the world discover, and has the power to share this information. We have built a tool that helps validate information and, ultimately, shows where you’ve found knowledge. This is as important to education as it is to the web itself, and that is very compelling. Imagine searching for something and not getting 40,000

results, but a much smaller number of highly relevant results. We are taking the search out of research. At this stage, we are developing a platform first and then the network. That is what I think will put RefME as an invaluable knowledge tool in the future. There are so many exciting features we are working on, and I look forward to sharing them with our users. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO ANYONE WANTING TO START THEIR OWN BUSINESS? Make sure you have a clear road map and surround yourself with the right people. I started with the complete opposite and it took me a long time to get over those mistakes. In particular find good cofounders and a strong, experienced advisory board otherwise you are going to kick yourself later.

What’s great is bringing on people who trust and share your vision. It can be hard but it is also massively rewarding

Contact: www.refme.com

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 33

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SUCCESS

BOOK reviews Disrupt You! Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity & Thrive In the Era of Endless Innovation by Jay Samit Our verdict:

About the author: Jay Samit has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for start-ups, and sold companies to Fortune 500 firms. He is also an adjunct Professor of entrepreneurship at USC Viterbi School of Engineering. We say: In today’s ever-changing business landscape, adaptability and creativity are more crucial than ever. In Disrupt You! Samit shows

The Real Life MBA The no-nonsense guide to winning the game, building a team and growing your career by Jack Welch & Suzy Welch Our verdict:

About the authors: Jack and Suzy Welch have published award-winning business books, including Winning, and have started their own company. Jack has 20 years’ iconic leadership at GE, and Suzy has been editor of Harvard Business Review. We say: You can talk all you want about theories, concepts, and ideologies, but

We’ve got one of each book to give away FREE. Be the first to follow and tweet us, quoting the book name @TalkBusinessMag and we’ll send you a free copy!

how specific disruption strategies that help companies flourish - challenging assumptions, pinpointing your unique value, and identifying weaknesses - can be applied at an individual level. Incorporating stories from his own extensive experience, and anecdotes from other innovators - including Sir Richard Branson and Steve Jobs - he shows how self-disruption can reap entrepreneurial and professional rewards. The book offers clear and empowering advice to anyone looking to break through creative barriers, anyone with a big idea but no idea how to apply it, and anyone worried about being made irrelevant in an era of technological transformation. Disrupt You! is published by Bluebird (Pan Macmillan), priced at £14.99, and is available from 16 July 2015 as a paperback or eBook (£9.99).

when it comes right down to it, winning in business is all about mastering the gritty, inescapable, make-or-break, real-life dilemmas that define the new economy, the old economy, and everything in between; my team lacks enthusiasm; our strategy is outdated; we’re just not growing. The Real Life MBA aims to tackle the most pressing business challenges in the modern world. It is infused with fresh, relevant stories, and equally powerful solutions to help you learn and get through any real life dilemma. It acts as an essential guide for every person in business. The Real Life MBA is published by HarperThorsons, is priced at £20, and is available in hardback.

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 35

FINANCE

Don’t bank on it Funding expert, Julian Smith asks how safe are your savings really?

Many overseas banks operating in the UK do not form part of the UK ĆŹQDQFLDO FRPSHQVDWLRQ VFKHPH VR GRQĆŽW MXVW DVVXPH \RXĆŽUH FRYHUHG

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n Friday 14 September 2007, there were queues down the street outside Northern Rock branches as depositors were in the process of withdrawing £1 billion of savings from their accounts in the first run on a bank in the UK for more than a century. Although all deposits were ultimately guaranteed by the Government as it sought to restore confidence in the banking system, the technical level of protection for a bank account was only £35,000 at the time. One year later, the financial crisis was in full swing with Lehman Brothers’ filing for Chapter 11, triggering a wave of bail outs encompassing HBOS, Lloyds and RBS (amongst others), prompting many individuals and companies to question the safety of their money in the banking system. Since 2008, we’ve continued to witness stress in Europe’s financial system, primarily in the Eurozone’s peripheral markets, like Portugal and Greece. The UK system has been re-capitalised as a result of the bailouts and equity ratios (the amount of equity

held against assets - mostly loans - and acting as a buffer against write-downs in those assets) are stronger than they were back in 2008. The risk of another meltdown of the UK banking system is materially lower now, but the Government has also taken steps to increase the levels of deposit protection. In January 2011, the size of deposit protected by the UK’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme was increased to £85,000 per individual, per authorised institution, with a joint account being protected up to £170,000. While this scheme is primarily designed to protect individuals, it also applies to small businesses and companies. In order to benefit from the protection, a company must qualify as a small company by meeting two out of three criteria set out in section 247 of the Companies Act 1985, or section 382 of the Companies Act 2006, namely: • Turnover must be less than £6.5 million; • The balance sheet total must not be more than £3.26 million; • You must have no more than 50 employees.

Only one deposit is protected per authorised institution, so you need to understand the ownership and regulatory structure of the group, as the bigger banks will own multiple brands under the same regulatory authorisation umbrella. The picture gets more complex when you take into account overseas banks operating in the UK. Many of them do not form part of the UK financial compensation scheme, but will instead belong to their own native scheme in their home market, so it’s important to ensure you know exactly what levels of protection you can expect, rather than assuming the UK scheme applies. Equally importantly, offshore deposits outside the European Economic Area are not covered, including in locations like the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man. While many companies would like to have the problem of having to diversify deposits across different institutions, it’s a conceivable problem, particularly after a fundraise and before a company has deployed the cash proceeds. Contact: www.thefundingexpert.co.uk

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 37

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FINANCE

T

he access to lending crisis has triggered a boom in alternative funding. However, look past the headlines generated by the likes of KickStarter and FundingCircle and you’ll find that a new twist on an old favourite is establishing itself as a significant enabler of growth. Selective invoice finance (sometimes known as single invoice discounting or spot factoring) is an increasingly important tool in generating the

continue as SMEs become more aware of the benefits it offers over traditional forms of finance. UNLOCKING VALUE Put simply, invoice finance bridges the time gap between issuing an invoice and when the customer settles the bill. With average payment terms ranging between 30 and 90 days, securing an advance on the value of a sale is a potent means of boosting cash flow and generating capital for investment.

British Business Bank statistics indicate at least £220 million funding was provided LQ WKH ƬUVW PRQWKV RI GRXEOH WKH amount lent in this way during WKH ZKROH RI cash flow and working capital needed to drive expansion. It’s hard to gauge the exact size of this emerging market, but statistics from the British Business Bank indicated there was at least £220 million funding provided in the first 10 months of 2014 double the amount lent during the whole of 2013. This upward trend is set to

It can help businesses tackle issues caused by extended terms, late payment, and bad debts. But it’s not just about resolving issues. Unlocking capital tied up in outstanding invoices allows a company to invest in new growth opportunities - funding large contracts, managing seasonal peaks, or servicing sales spikes generated by marketing investment.

Natural selection Dai Rees, director of Creative Capital, looks at a form of targeted, short-term finance, which is rapidly becoming the tool of choice for growing SMEs selective invoice financing

LEAVING BEHIND THE PAST Leveraging the value of a sales ledger is nothing new. Factoring and invoice discounting arrived in the UK in the 1980s. It took the best part of two decades to lose its niche status, and shake off perceptions that it was the lender of last resort. It’s now widely understood and considered mainstream, alongside loans and overdrafts. However, traditional invoice finance can be unsuitable for many SMEs. Full book factoring arrangements require a business to enter into a lengthy contract, which sees the provider lend against its entire sales ledger, while also taking control of invoicing, credit control, and cash flow. Although suited to companies with predictable sales, it can prove

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 39

FINANCE

expensive, inefficient and inflexible for those with volatile monthly cash flow - a situation that applies to many, if not most, SMEs. The contracts that underpin wholesale invoice finance facilities have also gained a reputation as being onerous and opaque, sometimes containing hidden administration costs, and often featuring high minimum fees, lengthy notice periods, and punitive exit charges. Something had to change. NATURAL SELECTION What changed is that invoice finance can now be accessed on a short-term, transaction-by-transaction, basis, making it much more targeted, and responsive to specific demands and requirements. Rather than contracts that advance the full value of the sales ledger, it allows businesses to select the specific invoice or set of invoices they’d like to lend against, and to do this whenever funding is required. The money is provided with no setup or final payment charges. Instead, a single fee is calculated, which is essentially a daily interest rate for the time that the debt is outstanding. Good providers don’t set a minimum term, meaning that companies only pay for the days that they need (e.g. if the customer settles within 10 days, then the SME is only charged for 10 days interest). Crucially, this transparency and the certainty it provides around total cost of funding, allows businesses to plan and forecast more accurately. Selective invoice finance’s flexibility puts companies directly in control of their facility. Many SMEs find the ability to turn the funding tap on and off in a tailored manner is aligned to their appetite for taking on any additional debt or risk in the current economic climate. Facilities can also be put in place quickly (24 hours in some instances), which makes it well suited to easing unforeseen cash flow pressures or releasing the funds needed to take on large one-off jobs. RIGHT IN THE MIX The rapid growth of this form of finance is in part due to its ability to sit neatly in the funding mix.

40 May 2015

Facilities can be put in place quickly (24 hours in some instances), making it suited to easing XQIRUHVHHQ FDVK ƭRZ pressures, or releasing the funds needed for ODUJH RQH Rƫ MREV

It’s an important option for businesses declined by traditional high street lenders due to credit rating issues, or because of the sector they operate in. As the provider of selective invoice finance is buying the accounts receivable, the funding decision is based on the strength of the debtor rather than the company itself. This opens up a valuable source of funding for start-ups and recovering SMEs who, while not considered ‘bankable’ themselves, are selling to well-rated customers. It can also act as a tactical top up, which complements other forms of finance. As the business is selling an invoice rather than borrowing, it does not interfere with other lending arrangements. This makes it ideal for companies where existing facilities, such as overdrafts, have reached their limit, or where other forms of secured lending are being used.

BRIGHT FUTURE The latest Federation of Small Business research revealed around 40% of recent loan applications made by its members were rejected, demonstrating that traditional sources of funding remain constrained. Its ability to quickly fund companies that institutions can’t - or won’t - help, has seen selective invoice finance come to the fore, and it’s now playing a vital role in the ongoing recovery. It’s encouraging to see that the UK Government recognises this and, through its Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill, will ensure that companies which are declined by banks are referred quickly to alternative funding sources. After all, it’s vitally important to the economy that SMEs have all the tools they need to get on and grow. Contact: www.creativecapitaluk.com

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FINANCE

All for one and some for all?

What implications would Labour plans to force companies to share their proďŹ ts with staff members have for SMEs? Tim Hayes, solicitor at Bircham Dyson Bell, takes a look at the beneďŹ ts and negatives of these plans

42 May 2015

FINANCE

C

omment on Labour’s suggestion that it could require businesses to share their profits with staff has been remarkably sparse. Given the potentially significant implications the changes could have for the way businesses distribute the fruits of their endeavours, and the money employees receive for their contribution, it’s interesting that the scheme has largely passed under the red-top radar and headed straight for the inside pages of the broadsheets. Perhaps it is because obligatory profit-sharing schemes are merely

implement a similar scheme. Nevertheless, there are other tangible benefits to the John Lewis model besides being able to tell the public how nice it is to its employees. There can be no doubt that the prospect of being able to share in the profits generated by your employer is a significant incentive for productivity and efficiency, and has an undeniably positive effect on employee engagement. Put simply, you’re more likely to care about a business, which shares its wealth with those who had a hand in creating it. On a more ideological level, profitsharing schemes may also go some

statute books, the devil would be in the detail. If the ‘mandatory profit share’ amount is actually something fairly modest (and it is difficult to see how any future government would require businesses to share more than a minimal amount of profit), the benefit of employee engagement becomes more diffuse. Also, in businesses with a large number of employees, such a scheme could become unwieldy and costly to administer. It would seem a

2Q D PRUH LGHRORJLFDO OHYHO SURĆŹW VKDULQJ VFKHPHV PD\ JR VRPH ZD\ WR UHGUHVVLQJ WKH KXJH JDSV ZKLFK KDYH HPHUJHG LQ WKH ODVW GHFDGH EHWZHHQ H[HFXWLYH SD\ DQG SD\ IRU HYHU\RQH HOVH being ‘discussed’ by Labour and, even if it makes it into the manifesto, even in a watered-down format, it’s easy to see a Labour government shying away from enacting it, if Miliband moves into Number 10 on 7 May. The Labour plan would oblige companies with a headcount exceeding 50 to distribute a certain percentage of profits to their employees. The perfect example of such a scheme is the John Lewis Partnership, which has been so successful that the ‘John Lewis model’ has become the byword for employee profit-sharing schemes. The scheme has been a notable public relations hit for the department store giant, a benefit which would of course be lost if all businesses were required to

way to redressing the huge gaps which have emerged, particularly in the last decade, between executive pay and pay for everyone else. A glance at the FTSE indices confirms that the value of British businesses has grown considerably since the downturn, leading in many cases to huge pay rises and bonuses for those at the very top. General wage growth, by contrast, has stalled. Rather than sharing profits, a more direct solution might simply be to understand why businesses have been reluctant to hike wages, and find ways to encourage them to do so. However, profit sharing is at least a way of getting employees and shareholders to sing from the same hymn sheet. Nevertheless, if mandatory profit sharing did ever make it on to the

shame to incur these additional costs when workplace pensions already provide a vehicle, through which corporate profits can be shared, particularly with the onset of autoenrolment. On a more cynical level, businesses obliged to share profits may simply refuse to increase wages, to make up for the increased overheads of operating the scheme. Hence, the prospects for profit sharing schemes becoming mandatory are likely to be remote. More importantly, there are a number of question marks over whether they would actually benefit employees in the long run. Contact: www.bdb-law.co.uk

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 43

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FINANCE

Knocking at debts door If the bailiffs come calling, make sure you know what they - and you - can and cannot do, says Talk Money’s, Adam Aiken

I

f you have bailiffs after you, the chances are that you should have taken action sooner. Of course, mistakes are made, and it’s possible that ‘enforcement agents’ - which is their formal title - have been sent after you in error. But as a rule of thumb, if you think you’re going to get a knock on the door, it helps to be prepared and know what to expect. So what are your rights should these agents come knocking? Well, it depends on the type of debt being chased... A LANDLORD’S ‘RIGHT OF DISTRESS’ If you owe rent to your landlord, they can enter the property with a bailiff. You must, however, be given advance notice of this - they can’t just turn up out of the blue. If your landlord has a key, there’ll be no need for forced entry. OTHER DEBTS This is where things are different compared with personal debts. If you owe money on a personal basis, a bailiff cannot force entry into your home. They can be invited in, or can climb in through an open window, but force is not allowed. “When it comes to business, a bailiff can use reasonable force if armed with a warrant, to collect a debt,” said David Richards, head of the debt-collector service at law firm, Leathes Prior. “The premises must be locked and secured afterwards, but it’s important you know that force can be used to gain entry.”

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO WHEN THE BAILIFF ARRIVES? Make sure you ask for ID, as well as asking for a copy of any court order. The agent will make a list of items of property that they consider fair game to be taken in lieu of payment. Richards said: “Make sure you get a copy of this list, and scrutinise it. In particular, make sure you point out what - if anything - is on hire purchase or belongs to a third party. These cannot be seized.” Perhaps most importantly, try to get a dialogue going. “You can enter into an agreement with the bailiff, so it might be worth trying to negotiate,” said Richards. Even if you don’t get exactly what you want, it’ll probably be a better outcome than simply letting the bailiff seize things at random. WHAT IF YOU DISPUTE THE DEBT? Tell the bailiff that you don’t agree that you owe the money. You’ll need to make an application to court, so the first thing you should do is call a solicitor. However, whether or not the bailiff’s visit is justified, remember that it isn’t the agent’s fault that it has come

to this - the bailiff is simply following instructions. If you are civil and keep your head, you’re more likely to find a resolution than if you get angry and become unreasonable. Finally, bear in mind that it’s a criminal offence to intentionally obstruct an enforcement officer; doing so will only make things worse.

MONEY www.talk-money.co.uk

When it comes to business, it’s important you know WKDW D EDLOLƫ FDQ XVH reasonable force to gain entry if armed with a warrant, to collect a debt

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 45

STRATEGY

The election section

I

t all got interesting just a few weeks ago, when the leaders of the main political parties, plus the other ones, stood awkwardly in an ITV studio in what looked like the worst episode of Take Me Out ever. They argued, harangued, and offended each other (and varying groups of the public) for just under two hours. They then proceeded to spend the next five weeks cruising up and down the country, spouting vague ideas, half-baked theories, and generally thumbing their noses at the slightest comment their opposite number said. David Miliband, Nick Clegg, and David Cameron all make offers that will be impossible to keep; whether it’s related to the NHS, education, or the economy. As business owners, we have to prove our expertise on a daily basis, and yet their only argument is either; “What we’re doing is working - so stick with us”, or “What they’re doing isn’t working, so listen to us now”. There seems to be no effort to convey their expertise, so we can be assured that they really know what they are doing. It seems as if they’ve forgotten that during this election campaign, they need to serve the clients. Nigel Farage - and by extension UKIP - understands the

Rich With examines how some political parties get the power of branding, and others just don’t

power of the brand. It’s brash, unapologetic, and has a clear set of beliefs that they maintain. Its policies are toxic to many, and yet they care little; preaching to those that agree with their ideologies, and championing the cause of their hard-core supporters. Likewise, the other minor parties have always campaigned on alternative, or even fringe, issues. The Greens know which voters to target, as does SNP and Plaid Cymru. All three have a clearer set of beliefs and values that they tend to stick to, which will possibly see them gain a rise in vote share. Politics is often an ideologically black and white area, yet in practice is filled with so many grey areas, and so much compromise, that those manifesto pledges can never be fulfilled as originally intended. Destined to be watered down, or even thrown out when they take office, a huge amount of integrity is lost, and brand values are routinely compromised. All parties could do with a refresher course on how to best serve their customers. We all know that old adage that ‘people

buy from people’. Do we want to buy from people that are out of touch, have some odd character traits, and given half a chance, will lie directly to our face? The truth has become an increasingly transient element, with each side claiming and counter-claiming on the smallest of issues. Are we deliberately

Are we deliberately being manipulated so we stick with what we know, or confused into voting for the opposition? It seems the basic principles of know, like, and trust are being ignored being manipulated so we stick with what we know, or confused into voting for the opposition? It seems the basic principles of know, like, and trust are ignored. We know little, like even less, and as for trust? Having the vote is important. Let’s hope our thoughts count. Contact: www.justgrow.co

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 47

STRATEGY

Get your fix John Warrillow, author, and founder of The Value Builder System, explains how you can fix your subscription business in just 90 days

T

he first 90 days of any new relationship are critical - a Prime Minister has about three months to inspire the electorate and gain the political capital he needs to govern, for example. So how can you turn around a struggling subscription business in just 90 days? THE ONBOARDING WINDOW For a young subscription company, the first 90 days of a customer relationship are vitally important. In doing the research for my book, The Automatic Customer: Creating a Subscription Business In Any Industry, I found that getting a customer to effectively start using your product in the first 90 days has led to an increase in lifetime value of up to 300% for some companies. Take a look at marketing software provider, Constant Contact, which used to struggle with the first 90 days of a new customer relationship. In the old days, Constant Contact took a ‘who, what, when’ approach to on-boarding new customers. ‘Who’ stood for who a customer wanted to send an email campaign to; ‘what’ stood for what the customer wanted to send; and ‘when’ described the timing of the campaign.

After users signed up for its service, they’d ask customers to upload their email database (the ‘who’ in the three-step on-boarding process). This required the new user to upload a customer list, but it required the customer to leave Constant Contact’s site and struggle with exporting a contact list, often from a jury-rigged database kept in Excel or Outlook. The process was awkward, and many new customers stopped using Constant Contact because they hit a barrier before they had a chance to fall in love with the software. WHAT, WHO, WHEN Wanting to stem new customer churn, Constant Contact changed its on-boarding to focus on the ‘what’. Immediately after signing up, new users were encouraged to create their first email campaign. Suddenly, customers were seeing their campaign come to life in front of their eyes. They offered customers a library of stock images that looked more beautiful than anything a business owner had used in the past. Customers could see first hand how professional their company was going to look. Only after the customer had completed the ‘what’ stage and earned the emotional reward of

seeing its first campaign come to life, did Constant Contact switch to the ‘who’ part of creating a campaign. The difference was, by this point, Constant Contact had enough relationship equity with the customer to get it over the hump of uploading its database. This minor re-ordering of the on-boarding flow led to a dramatic reduction in customer churn, which is the death knell of any subscription business. If you can get your customers hooked early, the chance they’ll stay for the long term grow dramatically.

Getting a customer to HƫHFWLYHO\ VWDUW XVLQJ \RXU SURGXFW LQ WKH ƬUVW GD\V OHDGV WR DQ LQFUHDVH LQ OLIHWLPH YDOXH RI XS WR The Automatic Customer: Creating a Subscription Business In Any Industry is published by Portfolio Penguin UK, priced at £14.99.

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 49

SPONSORED ARTICLE

Real Life Examples of SucceSsful Content Marketing

B

y now the majority of businesses are aware they need content, but not everybody knows what will work best, which social media platform to use, what their audience expects, and how often they need to publish. Last month we looked at how ContentNetwork’s Q.U.E.S.T. strategy offers businesses an easy to use 5 step guide to implementing content marketing that will deliver real results. This month we are going to look at some real life examples of how our clients are putting this guide to work in their current and ongoing digital marketing activities. Making a profit is the main goal of the majority of businesses’ content. By allowing ContentNetwork to help you create more content, over time you’ll convince and convert your customers to make profitable interactions with your company. Using our tried and tested unique QUEST checklist, detailed in last month’s issue, we’ll help you get your business along the right path in no time simply by ensuring that all content is:

QUALITATIVE UNIQUE ENGAGING SHAREABLE TRUSTED.

Hopefully the examples below will help you come up with some ideas for your next content marketing campaign! QUALITY To create quality content, you need quality writers. A survey by the BBC revealed that poor spelling and grammar could cut online sales in half. Spelling is crucial to maintaining credibility as just one simple mistake could turn people away from your business. Basic errors give the impression that you’re not serious about your company, that you’re ‘shoddy’ and careless, and haven’t put the time and effort into proofreading and perfecting. The best way to avoid this is to ensure you hire qualified, highly experienced writers who understand your business and present it in a very positive light. At the most basic level they should be providing articles with absolutely no grammatical errors, spelling mistakes or incorrect facts. Today, readers expect more. With 72% of marketers creating more content than they did a year ago, brand competition to make sure they get it is fierce. Solid, regular, researched articles are the best way to make sure your business is at the top of its field, rather than sparse, weakly edited blog updates.

Excellent quality content is the best way to let potential customers know what your business can do, what’s coming next, and why they should buy from you. UNIQUE Original, quality content is the pinnacle of marketing success. In 2015, companies should be spending at least some of their budget on an excellent marketing strategy to ensure they get content exclusive to them. Nowadays we live in a fastpaced, 5-minute-lunch-break society. The majority of savvy Internet users have limited time to look at pages, so you need to make a good impression quickly. Readers are expecting big things from content now, and they like a challenge. Agreeing is good, but making people think is the key to being memorable. Writing fresh, quality content is a skill, and a time-consuming one at that. Due to the amount required to be successful in marketing, it’s better off being outsourced and handled by a specialist in the content marketing field. There is a vast amount of content out there, and people turn to the well-known search engines to filter it for them. They demand the most interesting, valuable content – and you have to give it to them.

SPONSORED ARTICLE

ENGAGING You have around six seconds, on average, to capture the attention of a website visitor. With online content becoming a more prominent area of marketing, a consumer could potentially see hundreds of adverts and brand messages a day. Your content must break through this online clutter and demand the attention it deserves. You must be interesting, engaging, and memorable. Content marketing is no longer only about creating content to attract customers. As content creation specialists, ContentNetwork and their team of over 500 writers have the tools, knowledge and skills to turn marketing for customer acquisition into profitable customer interactions. The longer you hold your reader’s attention, the more likely they are to remember your business, trust your company, and buy from you in the future. It’s imperative that your content is tailored to your readers and potential customers. You need to know who you’re talking to in order to know what to say. Delving into a buyer’s persona allows you to make your content personal, and exactly what they want to read. SHAREABLE If your content is easily accessible, interesting and

relevant, people will want more of it. They’ll share it on social media, discuss it with their friends, and return to read more. If you’re not providing content like this to your audience, why should people be interested in what your business offers? By producing something others find useful and engaging, you have the potential to get multiple shares and likes, thus appearing on thousands of timelines. Like your blog and website, regularly updating your social media accounts is great for your company’s image, and an inexpensive way to showcase your products and expertise. Good content engages; great content gets shared. TRUSTED Reliable content is essential as readers expect trustworthy, thoroughly researched, factually correct material. Trust ultimately enables communication, and it’s vital to build that with potential customers. Companies must have a brilliant reputation, and need to be immediately associated with a great brand and credibility. Content that has been useful, and even valuable, to potential and existing customers will be deemed trustworthy. Out of date content puts people off more than you may realise, as a dormant page can

lead to people thinking you are no longer trading. Or, worse, you are still trading and simply don’t care about your business. It’s critically important to have reliability as a business, and posting regularly helps form a relationship between consumers and companies. ContentNetwork provides a globally–read breaking sports news articles and images multiple times a day, in 8 different languages. Ensuring your content follows these rules can be time consuming, so it’s worth thinking about hiring content specialists to produce and manage the regular updates and articles. The need for semantically relevant, engaging content isn’t going to go away overnight – many businesses can manage this new demand effectively themselves, for those that can’t ContentNetwork offers a costeffective and low risk solution.

www.contentquality.co.uk

Charlie McGhee, Content Network. Charlie works for Content Network, a cloud-based platform that connects clients with a trusted network of over 500 specialist writers able to create custom content in just about any language. To find out more about how they could help kick start your company’s content marketing visit – www. contentquality. co.uk

STRATEGY

Make it your nature to nurture Gemma Guise, founder of Journolink.com, explains how to nurture relationships with journalists and PR agencies so that they’ll promote your brand

52 May 2015

STRATEGY

H

ow do you make friends and keep them in the world of media? It’s quite simple really; do their job for them, or at the very least make it easy for them. So how do we do that? Put yourself in the shoes of the journalist. Their future depends on your news. Put yourself in the shoes of the PR agency. Their future depends on how well they get your news to the journalists. You can of course bypass the PR agency if you want to save money, and have the means of getting your news direct to the journalists, but for the moment let’s treat them as one. The two keys to keeping everyone sweet are timing and content. On timing, you are the best person to know what is going on in your business, and what is going on in your industry. The third piece to focus on is anticipating what is going

to happen in the wider world; for example, when employment numbers are due out. These events dictate what journalists will be writing about and when, and when they will be looking to spokespeople like yourself for relevant news and comment. So the secret is not just to time your press news to coincide with when the journalists will be looking, but to engage with the journalists in advance, so that when they get up in the morning, they know where their content will be coming from. Then maintain contact. Don’t plague them daily, but do keep in touch. Commenting on Twitter on articles written by the journalists will put you on their contact lists too. On content, the simple focus should be on making it compelling. Challenge yourself on whether you would buy a paper to read your news article. No journalist will write or publish an article, which

is effectively an advert for you. It has to be really news worthy for them to be interested. A good news story, an export order, employment growth, or something genuinely interesting and different is what they are looking for. How best to do the nurturing is the next question to consider. There are PR agencies up and down the country willing to take you on, subject to you paying a monthly retainer, or alternatively you can consider working with one of the inexpensive online platforms like Journolink. But there is no substitute for becoming the natural ‘go-to’ spokesperson for your short list of favourite journalists. Which is all about them knowing where you are, them knowing that you understand what makes good copy, and you generally making their jobs easier. Contact: www.journolink.com

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talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 53

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STRATEGY

Just because some people aren’t physically sitting at their desk, it doesn’t mean that they’re not working

Working nine to five,

not a way to make a living Jason Downes, general manager of Powwownow, looks at the changing nature of employees work habits, and how technology can help you to create a flexible work environment

Y

ears ago, working in a business environment was characterised by clocking in at 9am and clocking out at 5pm. The average work day consisted of sitting at your desk, with the occasional boardroom meeting, and perhaps a walk to get coffee. Managers assumed that if you weren’t at your desk, you weren’t working, and working from home was unheard of. This is no longer the case. The reality is, strict nine-tofive working hours no longer exist. Some employers have tried to deny it, but now people are working even when they’re not working. Bit of an oxymoron? Yes, granted, but it’s no longer unheard of for people to work outside the standard working day. Just because some people aren’t physically sitting at their desk, it doesn’t mean that they’re not working. This is not to say that offices have become redundant, but they’re continuing

to evolve and encompass more contemporary ways of working. TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS Changes in technology have been a major influence on the way people work and how flexible they’ve become with their work space. Cloud-based technology and Wi-Fi accessibility at almost any location means people no longer have to be glued to their desk. This improved level of mobility has allowed people to work from a variety of mobile devices, regardless of location and, as a result, more people have chosen to work outdoors, in cafes, and even on flights. These improvements in technology have been an indispensable change as businesses now have greater connectivity, and the channels of communication have grown, both locally and globally. THE MIRACLE OF CONFERENCING One of the biggest criticisms from those who fail to see the value in flexible working, is their inability to communicate with their staff, but the reality is, the majority of businesses have an internal, instant messaging system as well as email. In addition to this, conferencing has enabled meetings to be held when attendees can’t be physically present.

AUDIO CONFERENCING/ CONFERENCE CALLS Conference calls allow people to collaborate at any hour of the day. Whether it be in different cities, countries, or time zones, many businesses have come to realise the value in conferencing as an effective solution for communication. VIDEO CONFERENCING Video conferencing allows participants to hold a meeting as if they were physically in the same room. By adding the visuals, participants can engage with how projects or ideas are being received, by the reaction they create, whilst also improving their channels of communication. WEB CONFERENCING This is great for presentations and group projects because it allows participants to work collaboratively on tasks and present relevant material in meetings. Although some bosses fail to see the worth, others have created a better work culture by placing trust in their staff, which is particularly rewarding for both businesses and their employees, with an improved work-life balance and greater productivity. Contact: www.powwownow.co.uk talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 55

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I

n times of market volatility when accessing finance for your business seems to be non-existent, there is hope, writes BCRS Chief Executive, Paul Kalinauckas.

I believe for a growing business one of the biggest milestones they will reach is the point when they are ready to take it to the next level - expand operations, recruitment, purchasing more equipment or securing new premises. Few small businesses can afford to finance this type of change through working capital alone, but once in place, they know the positive effect it will have on their cash flow and future prospects. This is the moment that business owners need to turn to financing as a way to move their business forward. Fortunately, obtaining finance for a small business does not have to be challenging. No matter the size of your business or its cash flow situation, there are plenty of options for financing your growth. BCRS Business Loans is one of those options! BCRS provides access to finance for businesses through its Business Loan Fund. Set up twelve years ago,

BCRS has helped many businesses grow and prosper. Loans of between £10,000 and £150,000 are available to viable businesses turned down by mainstream lenders. BCRS’s sole purpose is to provide access to finance to enable businesses to grow and prosper. Our loan fund has been especially designed to help businesses. We understand that getting business finance can sometimes be a problem. Lack of track record, unreasonable security arrangements, past financial problems or simply not meeting conventional credit scoring methods may be hindering the process. This is where I believe BCRS comes into its own. There is a lot that my team and I can do to help Midlands based businesses and we are looking to connect with them as their local business loan fund. The BCRS model is of an approachable lender and we assess each individual case on its own merits. We operate very much with a traditional lending ethos rather than impersonal computerised credit scoring. A BCRS loan can be used for a wide variety of projects including working capital, purchasing equipment, recruitment, startups and marketing. We lend into most market sectors including construction, engineering, IT services, manufacturing, service providers and wholesalers.

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STRATEGY

Is the price right? Chris Merrington, author of Why do smart people make such stupid mistakes?, asks if now is the right time to increase your fees and prices?

W

hy don’t we increase fees and prices? The simple answer, typically, is fear. Fear of losing the client, fear of rocking the boat, fear we might pre-empt a competitive review, or fear the client may say ‘no’. My mobile phone operator, my gas and electricity supplier, and my train company increase prices every year; and I pay the increase without a murmur. For many companies, overheads are increasing each year, yet they daren’t increase their prices. It’s hardly surprising that many companies see their profitability declining. So to counteract that, they run faster, think less, and often actually achieve less. Worse still are those companies which reduce their prices each year in order to win business. Dropping your price to win business is generally a fool’s errand, as there is someone else who will always do it cheaper, and price reductions come straight off your bottom line. It’s so easy to come down in price, and so hard to go up.

Today’s price is not simply today’s price. ,WƎOO DOVR LQƭXHQFH KRZ PXFK \RX FDQ FKDUJH QH[W \HDU DQG VR RQ 6HWWLQJ D SULFH WRR ORZ DW WKH VWDUW VHWV SUHFHGHQWV ZKLFK \RX PD\ ODWHU UHJUHW Work by McKinsey and Harvard shows that pricing is the number one way for a company to optimise profitability, far more so that cutting costs, overheads, or selling more. So let’s look at some practical steps towards increasing your fees and prices. These are a small selection from those I cover in my workshops. 1 ASK FIRST, ACT LATER Understand what your client really values by asking them. Don’t assume you know. How well differentiated is your offering? How easily replaceable are you? Ideally, you need to be clearly differentiated with a compelling value proposition that few other businesses can offer.

2 SPEAK TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE Does your client simply see you as a supplier, or as a trusted partner? Are you dealing with a decision maker or someone who reports to the decision maker? Beware of dealing with someone who doesn’t have the authority to say yes. You have to be careful as they can influence the decision maker. The trick is getting access to the decision maker without upsetting the influencer who reports to the decision maker. 3 PRICING IS MORE OF AN ART THAN A SCIENCE Take more time to consider your pricing, options, and positioning. Don’t simply do cost plus a mark-up, talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 57

STRATEGY

or charge the same as everyone else. Think about volume deals, think about ‘meal deals’ like the fast food chains, think about variable pricing depending on workloads and timing like the airlines. Take account of payment terms, and don’t give the best price to poor payers. 4 THINK LONGER TERM Today’s price is not simply today’s price. It’ll also influence how much you can charge next year, and so on. Setting a price too low at the start of a relationship sets precedents, which you may later regret. You will find it hard to increase your price by much in the future. “Ah, but it’s a foot in the door!” you may say. Perhaps - but too often it leads to little else unless you are delivering massive value. 5 CONFIDENCE IS KEY Pricing is closely related to your confidence. Being busy with lots of work from existing clients will build your confidence. Having a robust pipeline of new business will also give you confidence to be more bullish in your pricing. A poor pipeline and a low order book will reduce confidence. 6 DON’T PUT ALL OF YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET Beware of having too much business with any one client. I see this so often where businesses are over-dependent on one or two clients. Sometimes where one client is 50%, 60%, or even 80% of the total revenue. This is so dangerous. No client should be bigger than 10-15%. “But we’ve worked with client X for 10 years,” is what I often hear, as if this is somehow a guarantee you will be working with them for another 10 years. This is deluded, foolish, and irresponsible. “But they keep giving us more business!” I hear you cry. Then the solution is to have a watertight longterm contract. Use some of the profit from this high level of concentrated business to invest in being a business development machine to grow the rest of the client base, or at minimum build up a war chest for that rainy day that will come one day.

58 May 2015

7 AVOID INTRODUCTORY DISCOUNTS A common ploy by clients is to promise lots of future opportunities in exchange for a special introductory price. Beware - first time discounts will typically become permanent discounts. Promises of future work can be a tactic to drive your price down, or could be a great opportunity for lots more business - it’s up to you to assess which it is. 8 DON’T LEAVE PRICING TO JUNIOR PEOPLE The board or owner should take responsibility for pricing. It’s too important to be delegated to someone inexperienced or lacking commercial acumen. Once a low price has been presented to a client, it is very hard to retract it. I have worked with clients where no prices go to customers without the commercial director approving it. Warren Buffett once said, “Price is what you pay, value is what you get”, so take more time to consider your prices - it will be worth the time and effort in the end. Contact: www.chris@spring8020.co.uk

Chris Merrington is the author of Why do smart people make such stupid mistakes?, a practical negotiation guide to more profitable client relationships for marketing and communication agencies, sales teams, and professional service firms. He runs in-house workshops with directors and sales teams in the areas of negotiation, selling as a trusted adviser, and winning new business.

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STRATEGY

60 May 2015

STRATEGY

R

isk is everywhere. Consider how the recent and tragic attacks in Paris, and unprecedented protests in Hong Kong have highlighted that, even cities generally considered safe for business travel, can be subject to unexpected and devastating events that impact traveller safety and business continuity. So what can you do to make sure that your employees stay safe when abroad, and what recourse do you have if the unexpected should happen?

PRIOR PREPARATION Legally, under the UK’s Health & Safety legislation, companies owe a duty of care to their employees, and must take reasonable steps to protect their personnel - from sourcing safe vehicle hire to understanding the employee’s pre-existing illnesses. Completing a risk assessment is the first, and most salient step to compiling a duty of care plan and safeguarding your employees. Hazards exist in every location and vary greatly, so it is important to understand the unique threats and risks associated with each country. While such robust planning can appear daunting at first, effective planning can ensure that you minimise the possible risks on every trip abroad.

WHEN THE WORST HAPPENS Occasionally, as we have seen recently in Paris, even with the most comprehensive policy and practises in place, unexpected incidents can still occur while you have colleagues overseas,

and it’s therefore of paramount importance that you are equipped to respond. The nature of your response will depend on the nature of the incident - if a terrorist attack occurs, it is usually advisable

Travel turmoil Be it flight cancellations, severe weather, or terrorism, there are always pitfalls that can befall travelling employees. Matthew Judge, Group managing director at Anvil, looks at what to do when disaster strikes

As we’ve seen recently in Paris, even with the most comprehensive policy in place, unexpected incidents still occur while you’ve colleagues overseas, and it’s important that you’re equipped to respond

to remove the individual from the affected area as quickly as possible, while if an employee becomes gravely ill, it may be best for them to receive care on location, to minimise further damage to their health. Alongside managing the incident and repatriation of an employee, it is also essential to keep the individual’s family and colleagues informed of their situation. Legally, employers do have responsibility for their employees, and ethically, the media and general public can be unforgiving if they feel that a business has not provided adequate care for their employees. As such, if your employees are subject to serious harm, and you do not have adequate measures in place to protect them, the legal and ethical implications could leave your business liable, not only for damages, but also a drop in value, as well as a shattered reputation.

ENSURING ADEQUATE PROTECTION Many risks can be avoided by taking simple precautions from tracking the employees’ movements to monitoring news channels, and observing updates from the World Health Organisation. Legally, ethically, and morally, businesses should consider whether the practices they have in place are sufficient when it comes to protecting their workforce. And, if they fall short, they should give their improvement urgent attention. Contact: www.anvilgroup.com

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 61

MARKETING

Stark lessons Founder of Sarsaparilla marketing, Kim Davis, takes a look at the meteoric rise of SKY TV’s Game of Thrones, and how it uses marketing successfully

G

ame of Thrones (GoT) has become of the biggest television phenomenon of all time. With the latest release of season five, millions of people, including myself, are finally getting their fix. But it’s not just the gore and gratuitous sex that makes it so popular. Marketing has

Writing seems to be a lost art, but it’s still one that, when done correctly, is recognised, appreciated, and works played a considerable hand in the show’s success. Here are a few of my favourite lessons that SMEs can learn and apply to their own businesses:

1

EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY

The opening credits for the show feature a map of all of the kingdoms from the show. The camera zooms in on each region and the graphics erect the related city, one by one. The technology

that created these graphics was cutting edge when released. Before a single scene was aired, people were already talking about this amazing push forward in technology. Five years later, the producers have upped their game by releasing a 4D virtual experience, featuring the climb to the top of ‘The Wall’. I recently had the opportunity to experience this adventure first hand, at the GoT Exhibition at the O2 Arena. It was so real that I had to tear the headset off for fear of actually falling! Tickets to the event were exclusively available to the Sky customers who were first to register - a great promotion for Sky - but an even bigger promotion for GoT, which received tremendous buzz over the new product. LESSON - By embracing technology and applying it to your business, people will be more inclined to see you as a forerunner in your field. Don’t be afraid of it.

2

REINVENTING THE RULES

Game of Thrones breaks all the conventional rules of storytelling, keeping viewers completely on their toes.

Unlike traditional shows, main character are killed off in nearly every episode, there are hundreds of characters across dozens of intricate plots and subplots, and every episode ends with an ‘OMG’ moment that always keeps you coming back for more. In this ‘need it now’ age, where people are de-sensitised, and attention spans are short, it’s the perfect Kong toy to keep even the most impatient millennial interested for hours. LESSON - Break the boundaries of your industry. How can you stay current? What does the market wants from you? How can you keep your target market interested, and always coming back for more?

3

IT TAKES RISKS

Hollywood has always followed the same formula for success, favouring the young and beautiful while casting all others into supportive or comic roles. GoT has completely changed the rules, and almost goes out of its way to introduce an entirely new breed of hero. These highly intelligent and unlikely leads include a cunning dwarf with a knack for politics, a middle-aged matriarch who is

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 63

MARKETING

Always test your markets DQG ƬQG LQQRYDWLYH ZD\V WR JHW \RXU QDPH LQ WKH SDSHUV 3XEOLFLW\ LV DOZD\V PRUH HƫHFWLYH WKDQ DGYHUWLVLQJ

just as feminine and sexy as any 20-year-old (if not more), and a teenage tomboy who breaks the traditional female barriers without preaching feminism. These characters are daring, bold, and risky choices that have paid off. LESSON - Take risks. Don’t imitate competitors. Find your own path and make it work for you.

4

EXCELLENT WRITING

Writing seems to be a lost art, but it’s still one that, when done correctly, is recognised, appreciated, and works. Few people could ever argue that the writing on GoT isn’t brilliant. Because there are so many characters, there is no time for waffling. Each word has impact, progresses the plot forward, and takes us to the next level. There are no lulls, long-winded speeches, or cheesy one-liners. LESSON - Ensure you communicate clearly and precisely. When you do, you will substantially increase your odds of success, and decrease the time it takes to achieve it.

64 May 2015

5

PR AND TESTING

The first four episodes of Series five were ‘leaked’ online on the same day as the release of the first episode. Coincidence? I think not. With Netflix releasing entire series’ all at once for viewers to enjoy at their own pace, I strongly believe that this could be HBO and SKY’s way of testing the market to see if this is a format that they would like to embrace in the future. If they didn’t do it intentionally, then they can definitely turn a negative into a positive. At the time of writing this article, it is estimated that more than seven million people will have downloaded the episodes illegally - I wouldn’t be surprised if season six is released all at once next year. Not to mention, this ‘leak’ gave the show quite a bit of added press on launch day. It was a win-win situation for GoT. LESSON - Always test your markets and find innovative ways to get your name in the papers. Publicity is always more effective than advertising.

6

BRILLIANT BRANDING

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. GoT proves this with its latest promotional adverts, which are simple, elegant, and extremely exciting. My favourite features ‘the imp’, calmly standing at the front of a boat with his back to us as a dragon emerges from the grey mist of the sea. To one who’s never seen the show, it may be scary. To those who know, it’s the start of a great new journey. There is no need for words. The branding is so strong that we don’t even need to see a character’s face to know it’s GoT. But with the simple message, “Winter Is Coming”, we know GoT is coming as well. LESSON - Always be consistent with your branding. It should be so strong that your audience should not even need to see your logo, or read a longwinded script to know it’s you.

Contact: www.sarsaparillamarketing.com

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MARKETING

So simple, so social

Y

ou’re busy; people to manage, income streams to watch, clients to keep happy, new business to secure. And yet, at the same time, you keep on reading about how you need to spend time you don’t have on Twitter - are they mad? Last month I started a series with the same sentiment - discussing how small businesses which aren’t on Facebook, can make use of it as a marketing and public relations tool. An awful lot of people who don’t use Twitter, tend to be similarly dismissive, a common sentiment heard being, “isn’t it all people gossiping, stoking revolutions in far-flung lands or getting instant news updates?” Actually, it turns out, the use of Twitter that makes the news is almost beside the point. The key to success is knowing the impression your business needs to be making, and who you want to reach, because chances are, they’re on the platform, waiting for you.

WHERE DID TWITTER COME FROM? Twitter as we know it, started as an idea back in 2006 by founder, undergraduate student Jack Dorsey, as a groupbased text message service for exchanging brief updates. ‘Twitter’ meant ‘a short burst of inconsequential information’. Initially it was hard to define a use for it. Twitter wasn’t exactly a social network, and it wasn’t a blog. It felt more like a text message to the world, a kind of status update that was a way of saying what you were doing, or what was going on in your life. It seemed somewhat trivial as a communication medium - until it was opened to the public, that is. Suddenly, from a standing start of around 20,000 global daily tweets in March 2007, later that year it had become 400,000, and by 2008 this had become 100 million. Today it’s in the hundreds of millions. What had changed is that the things that were going on peoples’ lives became the story in parts of the world far away from Silicon

Each month, social media expert, Richard Chapman, founder of Richard Chapman Studios, takes a look at a different social media platform, and examines how you can get the best out of it for your business. This month, he tackles Twitter

Uniquely among social media today, Twitter is useful for every kind of business. The only restrictions are the imagination of the organisation in question, and the time at their disposal

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 67

MARKETING

Valley. Twitter had dramatically moved beyond its origins in idle chat, and become something else: a mouthpiece for news, suppressed voices, or incendiary opinions. Twitter has become a platform for the famous, infamous, momentous, and humble. WHAT SORT OF BUSINESS IS IT USEFUL FOR? Uniquely among social media today, Twitter is useful for every kind of business. The only restrictions are the imagination of the organisation in question, and the time at their disposal. Certainly, any business with a product or service to sell will find it useful as a way to give voice to their work and sales angle. From my perspective, the way businesses can use it most successfully is as a jumping off point - to let customers, old and new find out what they’re up to usually to longer blog articles or new products on their website. But if companies are just telling the world what they are doing on Twitter, of how much interest is this corporate information? Quite a lot: this leads me to an anecdote I was told, about one of the current key growth areas for Twitter being financial and legal services firms. Financial traders love an insiders’ gossipy scoop, and Twitter’s use in city markets has exploded. It turns out that one person’s dry news is another’s waterfall of useful investment advice, or legal opinion.

CAN MY TWEETS RESULT IN HIGHER REVENUE? It’s all about image. There’s a great case study in how Twitter helped sell a product - music. Before joining Twitter, singer James Blunt had a serious image problem, and was widely dismissed in print and online media. He started Tweeting and did the one thing that pop stars aren’t supposed to do - engage with his detractors, and said what he really thought. His self-deprecating comebacks, dry wit, and responses to Twitter ‘trolls’ single-handedly changed his public perception. Today, he has a million followers and his 2013 album, Moon Landing charted in the top ten around the world. If you’re a business owner rather than a pop star, you might wonder what this has to do with you: the answer is all about personality. If other social media is about sharing new products or press releases, Twitter can be the place where you truly engage

with your customer base. To do this, you need a responsible staff member who can take control of that voice and talk about what you’re up to, respond when customers get in touch, and do this with wit and charm. A company which does this particularly well is John Lewis. A quick look at its Twitter replies shows ongoing engagement, consistency of tone of voice, as well as helpful responses and suggestions. It’s a great example of a company which might be perceived as establishment or stuffy, which has embraced Twitter as its official platform for reaching out to customers. It’s a big corporation of course; we might not be, but this principle holds true in every dealing with clients, whether they be old media or new, and Twitter is the current best platform out there for building positive brand perception. Contact: www.convibo.co.uk

If you’re a business owner rather than a pop star, you might wonder what this has to do with you: the answer is all about personality 68 May 2015

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70 May 2015

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MARKETING

The best brands are like old friends; they stay consistent

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MARKETING

Put your stamp on the world Gerd Mittmann, vicepresident, international at Shutterstock, covers the three golden rules of branding

If that’s where you find yourself, here are three cardinal rules of branding that hold true, no matter the size of your company or your niche in the market.

DON’T: THINK TOO SMALL The best brands take into account very business has the future, rather than limiting a a brand. While it’s company’s possibilities. With new tempting to complicate businesses, it can be tempting to what “branding” think of “our brand” as our name means, let’s start with and logo, the stuff we need to print a basic premise: your brand is business cards. But while naming the collection of thoughts and a new company “Whitehall Web feelings customers experience Design” may work today, it could when they think of your business, be a problem should you decide your product, or service. to expand geographically, or offer That brand can be your more comprehensive services company’s most critical a year from now. While such investment. Thus, it makes limitations may not prove fatal, a sense to pay attention to the little branding foresight can make small details that frequently can it easier to adapt and grow your escape notice amid the course business when the opportunity of business. Your logo, a quick presents itself. visual depiction of your brand, matters. So does the imagery, DO: KEEP IT SIMPLE functionality, and quality of Because branding can be your website. So does the story complex, brands often become you tell those with whom you more complicated than they want to do business. ought to be. Keep your logo, For organisations with scads tagline, and messaging direct of money to spend, ad agencies and to the point- with an with global brands of their emphasis on connecting with own can be engaged to polish potential customers at an your best story. Or, like most emotional level. entrepreneurs, you can do your Few families would clamor best on your own time to build to visit ‘a concrete kingdom a brand that adds life to your with rides, cartoon characters, bottom line. and toys’, but Walt Disney

E

World attracts 50 million visitors a year. Why? Because the Disney brand resonates as ‘The Happiest Place on Earth’. This is one example of many where a simple tagline hones in relentlessly on a brand’s key benefit - the connection between what a business has to offer, and what those who use it love and need. DON’T: CHANGE ON A WHIM The best brands stay consistent. They’re like old friends that way, withstanding the test of time, and rarely failing to meet expectations. Nike, Coca Cola, British Airways - these brands may evolve in small ways to reflect the times, but the story at their heart rarely undergoes radical change. Brands that shift direction often deny customers a steady presence with which to connect. Take the time to think through your brand, to uncover something meaningful for you and your would-be customers. Stick with it, trusting your vision of who you are and what you do. There are many more points about branding worth considering, but these three rules are musts to set up your brand for a successful future. Now, in the words of Nike, “just do it.” Contact: www.shutterstock.com

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 71

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MARKETING

Journalists tend to be inundated with invitations to events, so it’s crucial to identify ZKDW LW LV WKDW \RXƎUH RƫHULQJ WKDW ZLOO JLYH WKHP D valid reason to attend

Make your PR purr Shelley Frosdick, PR director at consumer agency, PHA Media, reveals how you can run a successful consumer PR event

P

ress events are an excellent way to raise awareness of a brand or service amongst consumers and key members of the press. If executed well, an event provides an incentive for journalists to leave their desks and interact directly with the brand, which in turn provides a level of exposure and engagement that money can’t buy. Hosting PR events is a common part of agency life and, with all eyes on the brand, it’s crucial that they’re done properly. Enticing the right attendees is only part of the challenge - other key components crucial to the success of an event include encouraging social media engagement, and post-event follow up. So, here are my top ten tips for making your consumer PR event a standout success, and delivering a return on investment that will be seen long after the event has passed. SET YOUR OBJECTIVES AND GOALS It’s crucial that you think clearly about what you want to achieve from an event before you begin planning. Is it to alert press of a new product launch, or to raise

awareness of a campaign? You need to have a clear understanding of the desired outcome in order to deliver a successful event. WHO DO YOU WANT TO REACH? Think carefully about your audience. If it’s not clear-cut for example a beauty product launch for beauty press - you should think openly about who you want to target. Which publications does the event lend itself to, and are you targeting the right people? When it comes to generating widespread interest, it’s also worth considering bloggers, vloggers, and celebrities to create an online and offline buzz around the event. WOW FACTOR Journalists tend to be inundated with invitations to events, so for this reason, it’s crucial to identify what it is that you’re offering, which will give them a valid reason to attend. Whether it’s a live demonstration of a treatment, an unveiling of a new clothing collection, or a performance by the hottest new talent act in town, all successful events must contain a component, which entices journalists to attend above other events. Don’t underestimate the importance of the invitation; be

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MARKETING

creative to make them stand out, and personalise them to appeal to individual journalists - you don’t have to be conventional.

need to factor in an appropriate budget for appearance fees. Hiring a professional photographer is key, as most publications will want strong images to accompany their story. With this in mind, the venue will need to be branded in a way to make the key messages and logos stand out in images - vinyls and posters are a great way of doing this.

TIMING There are certain times of the year, which should be avoided as journalists in the consumer and lifestyle sector are likely to have other commitments. Avoid key dates, such as big award ceremonies and the Fashion Weeks as these are likely to dictate editorial agendas and could detract attention away from your event.

SOCIAL MEDIA The immediacy and accessibility of social channels, such as Twitter and Instagram, make them great vehicles for generating engagement and spreading the word. Establishing a relevant and snappy hashtag can create online conversations, and occasionally hashtags can become a Twitter trend. Sharing strong visuals is also a good way of encouraging people to share and re-post content, so it’s important to make sure that there are ample photo opportunities at your event.

THEME It’s important to have a vision for your event so that you can ensure all marketing material, such as invitations, follow-up press material, and collateral on the day is in sync. This helps to create a streamlined and professional impression from the start. A good theme has the potential to make your brand stand out and enhance its USPs, but it must be relevant to the brand and well thought through. VENUE Based on your theme and time, you should decide on an appropriate venue. If you’re showcasing products, choose somewhere with lots of light, which will make for strong images. The location must also be easy to reach for the attendees; the closer to the newspaper and magazine houses, the better, as this will minimise cancellations on the day. To ensure the event runs smoothly, it’s a good idea to familiarise yourself with the layout of the venue and create a floor plan. Have a vision of how you want the space to look, and communicate this clearly to staff prior to the event. BUDGET AND PREPARATION Have you allocated a realistic budget? Remember; venue, invitations, props, couriers, caterers, and marketing material, all need to be considered. If you’re hoping to have celebrities at your event, you will normally

76 May 2015

It’s important to have a vision for your event so you can ensure all marketing material, such as invitations, follow-up press material, and collateral on the day is in sync

MEDIA MANAGEMENT If celebrities are attending your event, it’s a good idea to send a photo call notice to the picture desks directly. Include the date, time, venue, and names of any celebrities who are confirmed to attend. On the night, have the press got what they need from you to report on your product or event? Have they spoken to the right people? Remember to make a note of every press request so you can follow up in the morning. FOLLOW UP It’s crucial to follow up with journalists - either by email, phone, or in person. Don’t forget to credit your brand, and ensure the messaging is reiterated too. It’s a thoughtful touch to provide a goody bag at the end of the event, which the guests can take home. This shows your appreciation for their attendance, and can include an informative press release as well as nice treats, which will ensure your client’s product is remembered long after the event. Contact: www.pha-media.com

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...and your sales flourish Your business will thrive and grow if you plant the right seeds. ~ 3 ^Tb h^da QaP]S bcP]S ^dc Ua^\ cWT competition? ~ 8b h^da QaP]S P]S \TbbPVX]V consistent across all your communications? ~ 0aT h^d \PgX\XbX]V cWT _^fTa of creativity in your campaigns? ~ 8b h^da R^]cT]c VT]dX]T[h R^\_T[[X]V. ~ 3^ h^d dbT Q^cW SXVXcP[ P]S _aX]c \TSXP to your best advantage? These are just some of the questions you should be asking.... FT WPeT hTPab ^U Tg_TaXT]RT _a^eXSX]V answers to these questions, delivering successful creative communication and STbXV] b^[dcX^]b U^a ^da R[XT]cb 0]S fT will do the same for your business. So if you have a project you are planning QT Xc _aX]c fTQ ^a P QaP]SX]V TgTaRXbT why not call us on 01491 699802.

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MARKETING

Playing the emotional puppet master Simon Calvert, chief strategy, technology, and data officer at gyro, asks whether ‘on-emotion’ is the new ‘on-message’?

Evidence proves that the emotional trumps WKH UDWLRQDO ZKHQ LW FRPHV WR LQƭXHQFLQJ FKDQJH DQG PDNLQJ GHFLVLRQV LQ EXVLQHVV

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e honest, in the last three months, has something changed at work to make you feel worry, annoyance, disappointment, fear, or anger? What about satisfaction, hope, or happiness? If it hasn’t, then you’re one of the tiny minority of people who haven’t reacted emotionally to a recent change in the workplace. Modern marketing is all about change. To make change happen, marketers need to move beyond being ‘on-message’ to being ‘on-emotion’. Why? Evidence proves that the emotional trumps the rational when it comes to influencing change and making decisions in business. A research study conducted by gyro with YouGov in the UK identified that the importance of emotions in decision-making increases when it comes to making change happen. In the last three months, 79% of senior decision makers surveyed in medium and large businesses experienced change in their workplace. These changes triggered a volatile cocktail of 33 emotional responses. Worry, annoyance, disappointment, fear, and anger all featured in the top 10, as did more positive emotions, such as satisfaction, hope, and happiness.

This insight is critical to making change happen. In human beings, sensory inputs get an emotional response much more quickly than a rational response. Reason will always depend on emotion to frame up what’s important to us as individual decision makers. When digging deeper, the research also found notable differences in how decision makers responded according to their sex, region, and the industry that they work in: • Male business decision makers responded differently to female business decision makers. Women saw more displays of negative emotional responses to change in colleagues, business partners, and suppliers than men did. Women also felt fewer positive emotional responses to change than men did. • The north of England responded differently to the south. The north felt more positive emotional responses to change than the south. These differences in emotional responses create opportunity for marketers who view businesses as more than sterile decision-making machines, and embrace the idea of being on-emotion. They will be the marketers that think of businesses as networks of human relationships, and

focus on building strong emotional connections into those networks. There are four steps to turning being on-emotion into a competitive advantage: 1 Identify the tangled web of emotional responses that surrounds the change that you’re trying to sell in. 2 Understand which of those emotional responses slow change down and speed change up. 3 Decide if your brand should be the catalyst or the antidote for the emotional responses that make the biggest difference. 4 Be clear about how to ignite or extinguish the emotional responses that matter. Conventional wisdom has always been that business and emotions don’t mix. However, the evidence clearly shows they do. So, whether the marketing industry feels totally comfortable with it or not, now is the time for modern marketers to move beyond being on-message to being on-emotion. For those that do, there should be less worry, annoyance, disappointment, fear, and anger, and more satisfaction, hope and happiness. Contact: www.gyro.com

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MARKETING

Spring-clean your brand How do you carry out a successful re-brand? Matthew Dick, partner at D Young & Co, gives his top tips

M Although the company name may be changing, think carefully about whether other branding elements should remain unchanged

any businesses see spring as an opportunity to freshen up their brands with a new name or logo. Whilst re-branding can provide a much-needed boost to a company’s fortunes, there are many pitfalls (both commercial and legal) that should be considered before taking the plunge. The last 30 years have seen a number of successful re-brands in the UK. Mr Dog dog food becoming Cesar; Marathon chocolate bars changing to Snickers; Opal Fruits to Starburst; and Jif bathroom cleaner to Cif. History has also seen some expensive re-branding failures. Royal Mail’s change of name to ‘Consignia’ in 2001 lasted only 18 months. Pricewaterhouse Cooper’s was even less successful with its proposed rebranding to ‘Monday’ in 2002, which cost £75 million, and lasted barely a month. The company’s second re-brand to PwC in 2010 has had happier results. Re-branding exercises are often driven by a desire to have global brand cohesion, but this can also generate problems. Cultural/linguistic connotations of a new brand need to be considered in every country where it will be used. Consult an international branding expert to ensure there are no obvious faux pas (NOVA may be a great brand name for cars in the UK; but in Spain and much of South America ‘no va’ means “doesn’t go” - not ideal for a car’s reputation). Once you’ve cleared the linguistic/ cultural issues, trademark searches should be undertaken in every country where it is to be used, to ensure you’re not infringing anyone else’s rights. Additional searches are recommended

to ensure that domain names are not yet taken, and that brand peripherals, such as Twitter and Instagram accounts etc., are all available. The new brand name (and any related logos) should be registered as a trademark for appropriate goods/ services. Although the name may be changing, think carefully about whether other branding elements should remain unchanged. It’s noteworthy that all of the successful re-brands highlighted retained core non-verbal elements, such as colours, fonts, and other branding insignia. Your customers should be educated to see the new brand name as replacing the old. Think carefully how this can be achieved. A tagline such as “Cesar - the new name for Mr Dog” used in advertising campaigns for a few months is one simple and practical option. It’s important to consider what will happen to the old brand. Any unused trade mark registrations will be open to attack after around five years, and in some countries, signed declarations are required confirming that they remain in use - otherwise the registrations will be cancelled. Although residual goodwill in the old brand can be relied on to stop imitators, this can be expensive, and the more time that passes since the old brand was used, the harder it becomes. Re-branding can be expensive if done well. It can be catastrophically expensive if done badly. Speak with the experts (at the very least a trademark specialist, and possibly a branding consultant too) as early in the re-branding process as you can. Contact: www.dyoung.com

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 81

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Could an MBA make you an MVP?

Y

ears ago, leaving work to study for an MBA, folk challenged me; “What a waste of time!” as I was already a manager. However, I had realised there were two things I really needed to understand to succeed in business - ‘the money’ and ‘the market’. It’s not enough just to be good at what you do. Entrepreneurs can easily fall into the trap of basing their business solely on their specialist expertise to produce a visionary new service or product. But where do businesses often fail?

I had realised there were two things I really needed to understand to succeed in business - ‘the money’ and ‘the market’. It’s not enough just to be good at what you do Frequently it’s just as the product is getting really good, but the visionary leader has forgotten to genuinely evaluate the market potential, and how to exploit it. Alternatively, early demand is strong and the business needs its first big capital injection to ramp up production, and the owner

Leadership expert, Dr Deborah Benson explains why she’s in favour of leaders doing an MBA can’t ‘talk the money’ well enough to convince banks and business angels into the critical ‘Stage two’ funding. Inability to manage cash flow alone can kill off a high-potential start-up. Inventors can invent, but someone has to run the business, and that’s where an MBA can benefit those visionary entrepreneurs, not just the corporate high-fliers. MBAs give you a better understanding of logistics, production, finance, marketing, HR, leadership, and more. They lead beyond your great inspirational idea, to financing it, and getting it to a receptive market, how to make the business machine that produces and delivers it tick and tick efficiently. Yes, entrepreneurs may chaff at the academic premise that you can’t have original thought (really?), and all your ideas must be grounded in previous peerreviewed research. And yes, you may never use some of those quirky academic business models ever again, but the concepts will stay with you. You will learn to

speak the language of business, banks, and funders, and you will have a bigger perspective on what it takes to make a business really viable. You will develop the ability to critically appraise what you do, and think more strategically about the future development of your enterprise. You may even become a better leader. MBAs are not without personal cost. The courses are often expensive, and are very demanding of your precious time, and you had better have an understanding family who can cope with effectively losing you to your business and studies for several years! Achieving an MBA and running a business at the same time is very hard graft indeed, and, if you are not academically minded, it may simply not be a route for you. However, the good news is you can always, money permitting, recruit in an MBA and exploit their knowledge of how to ‘follow the money’ and ‘meet the market’. Contact: www.leadersforleadership.co.uk

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SPONSORED ARTICLE

the tip of the

Your brand is not just your logo. Your brand is what people think and feel when they see or hear your name; the reason they do or don’t chose to do business with you.

m

ost people think that a logo is a brand, and that’s it – job done. In reality, a logo is just the tip of the iceberg. Your brand is, in fact, a mixture of colour, typography, imagery, authenticity, messaging, tone of voice, integrity, your history, and the overall company ethos. All of this, in turn, has to be aimed perfectly at your intended target audience.

why is it so important? Branding, when handled correctly, is a potent weapon in your business armoury. It’s a reflection of who you are and who you’re aiming at; the audience you’d like to do business with.

All of this comes together to communicate a clear and concise view of your business, right down to how your staff answer the phone.

out with the old? Much like clothes or interior décor, a brand can start to look old fashioned: a bit tired. It’s important to recognise this, freshen things up, and ensure that your business appears current. This doesn’t mean a complete overhaul of your image, but just a few tweaks, here and there, to bring you bang up to date.

benefits of a refresh

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Breathe new life into the business Reach a new audience Launch new products and services Challenge outdated perceptions Communicate new messaging

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Create marketing opportunities

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It forms an emotional connection between you and that audience, and gives them a reason to use your services over those of your competitors.

getting it right… Given how important your brand is, it’s imperative that you ensure consistency throughout all of your collateral; web content, brochures, press adverts, email sign-offs – the works. This means a whole host of things to consider, such as key messages, use of colours and fonts, tone of voice etc.

Q

when is the time right? Q Q

Q Q

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Is your branding outdated? Have your products and services changed? Are your key messages consistent? Are your key messages being communicated effectively? Has your target audience changed? Is your business preparing for growth?

The m os in your t potent we a b Graem usiness arm pon e ou discus Hall of ifour. ry. ses the co import .uk a of bran ding. nce

The future of branding is here, right now… Millennials (18-34 year olds) are the largest demographic in the country and, being digitally native, they consume media in a totally different way than previous generations. They are no longer interested in traditional brand messaging, and now engage with companies in a far more interactive way: is your brand ready for this?

who wrote this ifour is an innovative design agency with a proven track record and a reputation for delivering intelligent business solutions with inspiration and integrity.

www.ifour.co.uk

PEOPLE

Slain by the Dragons For more than a decade, enterprising businessmen and women have entered the Dragon’s Den looking for funding, but not many have succeeded. The experts at Speakers Corner take a look at the five worst pitches and what we can learn from them

O

n 4 January 2005, the first episode of BBC’s Dragons’ Den was aired and the UK public were invited to watch a host of budding entrepreneurs deliver investment pitches to a panel of wealthy and discerning investors (known as ‘the Dragons’). Since then, the show has become a popular addition to the prime time TV spot, and has provided viewers with a number of entertaining and inspiring examples of how to win over investors with a concise and well delivered pitch. From the Levi Root’s now famous Reggae Reggae Sauce brand, to dance school chain, Razzamatazz, the show has thrown

Having a passion behind your business idea is a great motivator but sometimes you have to rein it in and remain professional up some heart-warming success stories over the years, and has provided entrepreneurs with some useful lessons in public speaking. However, not all pitches go to plan, and the show has had its fair share of meltdowns and disasters.

From nervous stutters to numerical nightmares, we take a look at some of the worst Dragon’s Den pitches, and what we can do to ensure our future pitches and presentations avoid turning out the way these ones did. WHEN THE PRODUCT FAILS: GERARD TOMNAY, THE KNOWLEDGE DIRECTIONS SERVICE When Gerard Tomnay stepped into the den with his premium rate telephone service, it all sounded like it would come off well, until Peter Jones decided to give the service a test. The idea was to use experienced London taxi drivers to provide immediate help to lost tourists

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PEOPLE

who needed directions via a premium rate phone line. However, once Peter actually tried the phone service he was met with no reply, and Gerard’s service suddenly fell flat on its face. What we can learn from Gerard’s failure is simply to ensure you are ready and primed to show off the best of your product or service to potential investors. It’s highly likely they’ll want to test what you’ve got to offer, unless you’ve told them it isn’t ready. The use of early prototypes or example products can be a risk in a pitch, so make sure they are working before you go in. WHEN THE PRODUCT IS SIMPLY LUDICROUS: GILL KIRTLAND AND CLARE SAGAR, TINGATANG JEWELLERY This product is one of the most obscure ideas ever encountered in the den. Gill and Clare arrived to ask for investment in their jewellery business, which produces the single person’s equivalent of a wedding ring for anyone wanting to show off their availability to potential suitors. The women claimed that the reason they were still single was largely down to men not knowing if they were available, and they felt, without these rings, they were missing opportunities to meet new people and build lasting relationships. Unsurprisingly, Gill and Clare’s time with the Dragons was short, and their product was rightly ridiculed and ruthlessly pulled apart by the Dragons. Forbes magazine’s Jacquelyn Smith stated that market research was essential to any successful sales pitch, and it’s clear these entrepreneurs conducted very little before their presentation. The more you can do to demonstrate a need for your product, the more interested investors may be, and the more likely it is you will at least walk away with some kind of positive reinforcement.

86 May 2015

Nerves are a problem for many entrepreneurs, and some believe memorising a pitch is vital to success. Although this works for some people, it can put unnecessary pressure on delivering a pitch perfectly

WHEN THE NERVES TAKE OVER: NICK NETHERCROFT, STEALTH COFFEE TABLE The classic mistake Nick made was learning his pitch by rote. Choosing to memorise a pitch is one way of ensuring you know all your statistics and key points, but if your approach to preparation is too meticulous and you end up stuttering if you miss a word, you’re in trouble. Nick’s nerves meant he struggled to even tell the Dragons what his product was. Nerves are a problem for many entrepreneurs, and many believe memorising a pitch is vital to success. Although this process works for some people, it can lead to disaster with others, and can put unnecessary pressure on delivering a pitch word for word. Speakers Corner’s Paula Mahmassini argues that speeches shouldn’t be word perfect, and key points should just be presented in a natural and inviting way. WHEN ALL YOU DO IS CAUSE OFFENCE: JUDE CAMPLIN AND CHRISSY SHAW, EVE’OLUTION SOLUTIONS Jude and Chrissy wanted to convince the Dragons that their business, which pushed forward women in the construction industry, was a great investment, but all they achieved was a brutal backlash from the Dragons. Speaking flippantly and assuming anything about the investors in front of you is not only rude, but it can turn the whole deal sour - as Jude’s smart

comment on Theo Paphitis’ perceived intelligence of women testified. Having a cause and a passion behind your business idea is a great motivator, but you have to rein it in and remain professional, especially if not doing so means you let loose comments, which may offend the very people you want to open their cheque books. Instead, keep everything driven by the great qualities of your product or service, and don’t bite if you face controversial remarks. To see where Jude and Chrissy went wrong, visit http://bit.ly/1GGMtTX KNOWING YOUR NUMBERS: TIM AND MEENA KALIA, AND TRICIA TIERNEY, RASCAL DOG LITTER BOX It was clear this trio weren’t up to scratch with their numbers from the off, with Tim Kalia even stating ‘I keep getting my figures wrong’. You cannot talk your way through a pitch and simply skate over the numbers. It’s by far the most important aspect of your pitch, and if figures aren’t presented accurately and confidently, it can be the difference between success and failure. Good business opportunities don’t have to be those that are already generating the most money, but they do have to have a sound financial history, and being able to show this, shows you’re a credible entrepreneur and maybe worth taking a chance on. Contact: www.speakerscorner.co.uk

SPONSORED ARTICLE

Building a Sustainable Business

A

sustainable business is one that demonstrates strong financial performance whilst having a positive impact on people and the planet. Sounds good? Sadly, too many businesses fall short of this goal. Rising consumption means that humanity is now using 50% more resources than the Earth can provide. By 2030, we will need the productive capacity of over two planets to sustain us. Climate change, loss of wildlife and depletion of resources will be bad news for everyone. These issues can seem too big and complex for businesses to address. But consider how a more sustainable approach can benefit you directly as well as people and nature. For example: • Risk mitigation: During the horsemeat scandal of 2013 while the likes of Tesco found themselves in the headlines for all the wrong reasons Waitrose saw an 11% boost in sales thanks to its strong sourcing policies and supply chain traceability. • Reducing costs: Through developing a better understanding and management of its energy consumption, transport fuel use and waste, as part of its One Planet Home®

programme, B&Q has reduced its costs in these areas by £115m over the past eight years. • Revenue growth: Ikea reported the sales value of products for greener lifestyles passed €1 billion in FY14: a 58% increase compared with FY13. How can businesses improve their sustainability performance? Whether you are a large retailer, service provider or SME these five steps will help you to develop and implement a programme that’s right for you: 1 Issue identification: start by understanding the key environmental, social and economic issues that could affect your business. Bioregional’s One Planet Living principles can be used to help highlight key areas of impact and influence. 2 Governance: Strong governance and accountability are central to an effective sustainability programme. Senior level support will ensure that those responsible for the delivery can succeed. 3 Action plan: An action plan helps to establish a vision for sustainability and identifies practical steps to realise it through short and longer term actions and targets.

4 Implementation: Time for action! In your first year this may mean a focus on training and engagement with the wider business to create the culture change you need to realise your ambitions. Some quick wins to promote the approach to your board and the wider business will help develop momentum. 5 Monitor and review: Monitoring and evaluating your performance will be key to understanding the successes and barriers to implementing the Action Plan and achieving targets. It’ll help you to continually refine and improve your performance. Bioregional is working with businesses in the building, retail and tourism sectors to help them succeed at sustainability. Our clients and partners include B&Q, John Lewis, Euro Disney, A2Dominion, Crest Nicholson and Cundall. Get in touch to find out how we can help you. Call our business team on 020 8404 4880 or email enquiries@bioregional.com

www.bioregional.com @bioregional

PEOPLE

The unhappy customer Everyone likes a happy customer, but sometimes they are not happy with your service. Bill Akass, chief content officer at complaint resolution website, A Spokesman Said, explains how to deal with public complaints

D

isgruntled consumers made a record 66 million complaints last year regarding second-rate goods and services. Complaints figures almost doubled from 2013, as customers vented their outrage against banks, tradespeople, shops, energy firms, and telecoms companies. With the surge in use of social media and online review sites, where complaints are made public and remain visible indefinitely, start-ups and SME’s feel the impact of these complaints the most. A bad review or complaint can leave your customer numbers dwindling, and in the worst case scenario, even destroy your business altogether. Resolving these complaints can turn the tables for unsatisfied customers and, in turn, the good reputation for customer service you achieve can be a huge boost for your business. A survey carried out by consumer action website, A Spokesman Said found that 86

88 May 2015

per cent of the British public would not use a company they’d complained about again if they failed to resolve their issue. However, more than three quarters (77 per cent) would use a company they’d complained about again - as long as they’d successfully resolved the previous issue. Here, Bill Akass, A Spokesman Said’s chief content officer, gives his top ten tips on how SME’s can effectively handle complaints, protect their reputations and keep their customers happy:

BE REACHABLE If customers are able to reach you easily, they are less likely to take their complaints online. Do away with lengthy online contact forms, and make your contact numbers clear and visible. Make sure you have a human on the end of the phone, putting people on hold will only make them angrier.

RESPOND QUICKLY If the complaint is public, online, or on social media, respond quickly. Even if you

don’t have a solution, let the customer know that you are working on a solution.

BE SPECIFIC ABOUT EXPECTED RESPONSE TIMES Give a clear outline of expected response times (and stick to them), to set the complainant at ease. If you can’t resolve the issue within the allotted time, make sure you update the complainant on the situation, providing a new estimate.

BE UPFRONT A little honesty goes a long way. Customers will rate you for being straight when responding to their complaints. Do not try and palm them off, or redirect them to another forum or service, simply answer their questions on the same forum they have complained to you on. They will thank you for it.

QUALIFY THEIR EXPECTATIONS Find out exactly what the complainant hopes to achieve. Are their expectations realistic? Be honest with them about what solution they are likely to achieve, so both parties know what resolution they are working towards.

PEOPLE

A bad review or complaint can leave your customer numbers dwindling, and in the worst case scenario, even destroy your business altogether

DEDICATE RESOURCE TO CUSTOMER SERVICE Make sure whoever is designated to handle complaints is competent and well trained. Though it might be tempting to get your office assistant to double up as customer service, if they don’t have the right training, they could make the problem worse for you as a business, with situations quickly spiralling out of control.

ADMIT YOUR MISTAKES If you’ve made a mistake, admit it. Everybody’s human. Be honest, apologise, and offer a worthy solution. In our recent survey, the vast majority of the public stated they would use a company they’d complained about again - as long as they’d successfully resolved the previous issue.

DON’T JUST RESPOND, RESOLVE There are many companies which respond quickly to email or online complaints with a generic message, usually ‘phone our customer services line on…’ The customer is then back at square one, being put on hold and speaking to a total stranger with no idea about who they are, or what the issue is. Ask the customer for their contact details and a suitable time to call, and when you do phone them, repeat their problem back to them. This shows you are interested and they won’t get frustrated repeatedly explaining their issue.

BE GENEROUS Don’t be stingy when it comes to giving compensation or free services. If the customer is satisfied, they will come back to you time and again, so it’s worth the investment.

BE PERSONAL Address the customer by their name, learn about the situation and how it’s affected them, and approach the situation with empathy and understanding. As they say, manners cost nothing and can often take the sting out of a situation.

Contact: www.aspokesmansaid.com

If you’ve made a mistake, admit it. Everybody’s human talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 89

PEOPLE

Secret diary of an entrepreneur FORE! This month we catch up with Gary Butler, founder of British timepiece brand, ETIQUS, to find out what a week in the life is like on the links

90 May 2015

DAY ONE: LIE-INS AND LAPTOPS In corporate life the alarm would sound at 5am and I’d be up and away on the long journey southwards from Cheshire, heading for the corporate HQ land that surrounds the M4. The aim was to be in the office no later than 10am, having already spent a few hours on the phone to other automaton execs ready to conquer the world. What a bore! Now I get up when I wake up (which is still pretty early, admittedly) and wander downstairs to check online website traffic, sales, and social media, while drinking the obligatory cup of tea. A few hours later, I’ll realise that I clicked into gear the moment my laptop lit up, and have already reviewed the last week and am planning for the new week. Monday is the day of the team call, which we use to update each other on the latest news and developments, confirm the actions, and set the direction for our activity over the

next 14 days with a ‘heads up’ (oops, corporate speak) on the longer term.

DAY TWO: FROM CLICKS TO CLUBS On the road today. I’ve been contacted by an online watch blogger who wants to review an ETIQUS watch. Unusually, he also plays golf and so it would seem a good opportunity to do so. I agree that he can review any watch in my range providing he’s willing to meet me to hear, first hand, the story of my 12-year journey to bring to market a watch brand exclusively for golfers. Then it’s off to Coalville to meet a golf professional, who also comperes the Manchester Golf Show. We’re exhibiting for the first time and, as usual, I’m keen to meet anyone who may encounter ETIQUS and have any influence on our future. We get on immediately and spend an enjoyable few hours swapping golf stories.

PEOPLE

I’ve already been granted a UK patent on my watch and the US Patent was progressing nicely too, then, completely out of the blue, my US patent claims are rejected

DAY THREE: U.S. OF EH? Big day today. I’ve already been granted a UK patent on my watch and the US Patent was progressing nicely too (albeit very slowly), and then, completely out of the blue, my patent, and all of its claims, are rejected. I’m given options and details about the appeal process, a form to fill in, and the argument to put forward for reconsideration by a certain date. It’s just too bureaucratic. “Let’s just phone the US Patent Office and I’ll tell them they’ve arrived at the wrong decision,” I suggest to my patent lawyer. The call is scheduled for 7pm, with three of us in London, a US Patent attorney in Philadelphia, and the two representatives from the US Patent Office in Virginia. There’s tension, but excitement, in the room, and after formal introductions I start by apologising that we have failed to communicate with them effectively and, as a result, they have concluded rightly that my patent should be rejected. However, now I have the opportunity to ensure that my case is communicated correctly, which should make it easier for them to reach a different conclusion. I make two important points, my lawyers fill in the gaps, add some legal detail, and just seventeen minutes later the US assessor says: “You know Mr Butler, I think you are right!” There’s a lot of silent whooping and smiles break out across the faces of everyone. We close the call and nip round the corner for a celebratory pint!

DAY FOUR: THE NEXT GENERATION GAME I’m on the road once again this morning. First stop is Bolton Golf Club, home of the PGA (Professional Golfers Association) North Region. I’ve agreed to be an associate sponsor of its Order of Merit tournaments for the next two years. There’s the photo call, the interview with their PR lead, and meeting with the Secretary and incoming Captain. They’re great guys, and everyone is positive about ETIQUS. They especially like the fact that I am supporting the future of golf by making donations to the Golf Foundation, which promotes the game and the life skills it has to offer to youngsters. I couldn’t afford to play golf when I was a kid, and only got into it through the generosity of the parents of one of my school friends. I think I’ve benefitted greatly from it be it social, health, or from a business perspective - and it’s been an important part of my family life too. My wife is also a golfer, and we live in a house that backs onto a Cheshire golf course. It’s a great view each morning when the bedroom curtains are pulled back.

DAY FIVE: VISION OF PERECTION This morning I take time to catch up with the TK, the real watch man. My watches are made to my designs by the largest independent UK watch manufacturer. They bring the manufacturing expertise and know how.

The watch blogger has written a very positive review, but in amongst it he’s identified two minor imperfections. I don’t do imperfect, and we review them as well as a new model range for 2016. Bringing to life a product from a vision in my head is highly satisfying - while any financial reward is some way off, I’m sure we’ll come though over the next few years. In my former corporate life, my Friday night would be a long drive north, often camped on the M6 in another traffic snarl up. Friday night is now an ‘early doors’ in the village pub with some mates, the neighbours, and the missus. After 30 years in the corporate jungle, it’s great to have some semblance of a life back. Contact: www.etiqus.co.uk

WIN AN ETIQUS

WATCH Get your hands (or should that be wrists?) on a gorgeous ETIQUS Sport PRO watch with stainless steel bracelet - perfect for any golfer or discerning fashion aficionado. Valued at £299, all you have to do for a chance to win is visit www.bit.ly/etiqusgolf and follow the instructions on screen.

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 91

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PEOPLE

What do you do when an ex-employee submits a tribunal claim? HR Insight’s Richard Cummings finds out

When two tribes go to war

H

aving an employment tribunal claim land on your desk is an unpleasant experience. Business owners will be aware that legal proceedings are a strain on finances, time, resources, and the emotions. Once the shock and surprise at the audacity of your former employee has waned, you’ll need to think about the best way to move forward. Should you tackle things yourself or is expert legal help required? What are the costs likely to be? What should you do first?

QUICK RESOLUTIONS Changes in legislation in April 2014 now mean that the first you will know about a potential tribunal claim is a telephone call from the Arbitration, Conciliation and Advisory Service (ACAS), explaining that you may be receiving an employment tribunal claim, and giving you the opportunity to resolve the dispute before proceedings are commenced. ACAS conciliates on potential claims around unfair dismissal, discrimination, redundancy payments, deduction from wages, or unpaid notice/holiday pay, rights to time off, flexible working, or equal pay. At this point, you’ll be given some information about the potential claim.

COMMERCIAL DECISION? Ways of resolving the dispute at this stage can be fairly imaginative, and can include hearing a grievance or a late internal appeal hearing, consideration of re-instatement in a dismissal claim, payment of a sum of money, and/or potentially a reference to end the dispute. To some extent this depends on what your former employer is after.

If you decide not to settle straight away, there are always opportunities to compromise throughout the life of the case You may feel that getting embroiled in a protracted dispute, however unmeritorious, is not worth your time or energy when you have a business to run, and that settlement on a commercial basis is the best way forward. If you feel there aren’t any grounds for the

claim, or that you’re able to defend it successfully, you might want to consider rejecting the offer to settle at this stage. The employee has to pay to bring an employment tribunal claim, so you might want to see whether they are prepared to put their money where their mouth is before settling. The initial fees are £250, and then further fees of between £950 and £1,200. If you decide not to settle straight away, there are always opportunities to compromise throughout the life of the case. If the claim is not settled now, you can expect to receive the ET1 form providing a written outline of the employee’s case. There’s a strict timetable to respond, and if you overlook the date or fail to respond, a decision will be made against you. It’s vitally important to comply with tribunal deadlines, because delay can be a costly mistake. This might be the time to consider taking legal advice to prepare your defence, advise whether to settle the case, and assess the value of the case. It’s important, where possible, to get the best advice available. Legal insurance can be a life saver in these situations. Contact: www.hrinsight.co.uk

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 93

PEOPLE

Golden oldies Lee McQueen, founder of the Raw Talent Academy and season-four winner of BBC’s The Apprentice, argues the age of potential employees should be no barrier

R

egular readers of this column will know by now that I’m a great advocate of employing people based on their ability, rather than on any other factor. This is particularly true when it comes to age. I’m a firm believer that, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough. I recently spoke to a client who told me he wanted someone with ‘life experience’. He was not worried about age - he just wanted someone who could come on board, use initiative, and get on and do it. When it comes to my own business, I am the oldest person there, but that’s because, at Raw Talent Academy, we practise what we preach - we look for ‘raw talent’. We tend not to employ older people, but not because that’s part of the criteria for us. The types of people who come to us tend to be in their early to mid-20s and looking for entry-level jobs and salaries. But if someone’s good enough, that’s all that matters, and speaking more generally, it’s important for employers to look at what someone can bring to their business, rather than their age. If someone who is older wants to retrain with us, we’d be delighted to find him or her a role, as long as they have the relevant skills. It’s a complete myth that today’s business environment is suitable only for younger employees. The idea that older workers don’t understand computers, apps, or social media, for example, is complete rubbish.

Take a mother who has had 15 years off to raise her family but who now wants to return to the workforce. Sure, she might need to retrain, but just because she’s been out of the loop for 15 years, it doesn’t mean she can’t do the job. A little bit of retraining should see her back to her best in no time. In fact, someone who has taken time off to bring up a family will have all sorts of life skills that others won’t. It’s the same with people who have served in the armed forces, and who join civvy street later on; they’ll have various skills that they can transfer to your business. They’ll be used to working in a team environment, being disciplined and organised, and being creative problem-solvers. When I was on The Apprentice, there was an ex-military guy there called Simon Smith. Operationally, he was outstanding - he managed the project and ran the show. It was clear that his military background had stood him in good stead. Not everyone has brought up a family or served in the forces, of course, but these are just examples. There are so many people out there who might be a little older than those starting out in the world of work, but who can bring valuable skills to the party.

It’s a complete myth that today’s business environment is suitable only for younger employees. The idea that older workers don’t understand computers, apps, or social media is complete rubbish

Contact: www.rawtalentacademy.com

talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 95

LIFESTYLE

HP PAVILION X360

Each month we bring you a selection of gadgets, gizmos, and gifts that we’re going crazy about. This month, we’re exploring top tech with innovative design

Get productive on a notebook, rotate into a stand for entertainment, and convert to a tablet when you’re on the go. This innovative convertible PC has the flexibility to keep up with all your needs. As convertible laptops become more popular, HP has made a foray into the market with this affordable effort. Named the 360, as you can rotate the screen 360-degrees so it functions as a tablet, it arrives equipped with the Intel Celeron N2840 processor, giving you fast computing with mobile agility. Coming in at just £329, it boasts an impressive eighthour battery life, along with a vibrant 1080p HD display and 4GB DDR 3 memory, in addition to 500GB SATA storage. There’s also a treat for lovers of music and film - Beats audio comes as standard. PRICE: £329 AVAILABLE FROM: www.store.hp.com

PEARPEEL DUAL PHONE CASE

SAMSUNG UHD UD970

Got two phones - one for work and one for your personal life? Always fed up having to cart them around in your pocket, or losing one of them? Well, the PearPeel is the first phone case in the world designed for two phones at once, meaning you don’t have to deal with the hassle of finding, using, and transporting multiple phones separately any longer. Made from fine leather, there are 18 case designs, and six matching wallets to choose from, so there’s an option whatever your style. It also incorporates a number of card slots, so you can use it as a wallet as well as a phone case, plus it adds a level of protection for your phone against spills and damage. PRICE: £45 AVAILABLE FROM: www.pearpeel.com

With a super sleek minimalist design that makes it a work of art on any desk, the crisp ultra HD output makes this an ideal monitor for those working in the digital or design industry. The UD970 has two DisplayPort connectors, one HDMI, one DVI, a 3.5mm speaker or headphone jack, and a USB port, allowing you to input from a variety of devices. The picture is excellent, boasting rich accurate colours and deep blacks, outputting photo-like quality when viewing 4K content. A downside. however is up-scaling, the quality drop is noticeable, but then again you would be crazy to spend money on a UHD monitor without viewing 4K content. Definitely worth clearing half of your desk for! PRICE: £1200 AVAILABLE FROM: www.samsung.com

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LIFESTYLE

hotspots This month we head towards the famous white cliffs to discover some of the best places to eat, greet, and lay your head, in Dover and the surrounding area

AWAY ON BUSINESS THE MARQUIS WHERE? Alkham, Kent WHY? Nestled among the fairytale stone-clad cottages and rolling green hills of the Kent countryside, sits the rustic The Marquis, in the sleepy village of Alkham. Don’t let the exterior fool you though - for all of its rural charm, the interior possesses a luxurious feel that is befitting of its AA status. Rooms are decorated to the highest standard, with plush bed linens, and decadent accessories that evoke images of the boudoir of an Elizabethan monarch, rather than the farmyard cottage that you’d perhaps expect in such surroundings. All of the modern finishings are present, with wide-screen television, temperature-controlled rooms, bath and shower, as well as a Nespresso coffee maker for those of you with a caffeine addiction - vital for getting you out of bed in the morning (and you’ll need all the help you can get to find the willpower to escape the exquisitely comfy beds). WiFi is, of course complimentary for all guests, but if you get tired of working, you may perhaps want to simply spend some time whiling away the hours by enjoying the gorgeously picturesque views from your bedroom window. Alternatively, and rather uniquely, there is also a DVD player in each room, with classic and modern films available to borrow from reception. CONTACT: www.themarquisatalkham.co.uk

98 May 2015

LIFESTYLE

MEET AND EAT THE MARQUIS WHERE? Alkham, Kent WHY? Usually we’d reserve this spot for something other than a restaurant of the hotel in this article, but we’d be remiss not to give The Marquis, featured in the Michelin Guide, it’s due - it truly is that impressive! Where to start? The list of accolades the restaurant has received is seemingly endless - a double AA Rosette and a Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence winner, to mention but a few - and once you tuck into the contemporary menu you can certainly see why. The quaint melodies that are piped into the dining room set the tone for a relaxing, hearty meal of local fare and British tastes. From the fine pan-roasted duck breast to succulent scallops, The Marquis blends fresh flavours with imagination, while still staying true to its local roots - and all at a great price, proving you don’t have to break the bank to provide quality. Staying overnight? The first meal of the day is always the most important, and the breakfasts do not disappoint either, having been awarded double AA Rosettes. There’s lots of choice, from the usual continental offering to belly-filling hot breakfasts with crispy, crackling bacon, sure to rouse you from your morning slumber. The five-star Kent restaurant is perfectly positioned for exploring Dover castle and the white cliffs, and is an ideal pit stop if you are using the Dover port or Eurotunnel to visit the continent. Its location also provides the opportunity to enjoy a warm summer day (if and when they actually occur), as you can relax and gaze across the lush green fields that surround the restaurant, and indulge in everything Kent has to offer from the comfort of your table. CONTACT: www.themarquisatalkham.co.uk

EVENTS, GATHERINGS & HUBS BEST WESTERN PLUS DOVER MARINA HOTEL & SPA WHERE? Dover WHY? Located on the seafront, the Best Western Plus Dover Marina Hotel & Spa’s range of well-appointed meeting and conference rooms are ideal for meetings, training courses, or even private dinners. The versatility of the rooms means they can accommodate up to 110 attendees for whatever you need. With competitive rates starting from just £35 per delegate, the location is what makes this venue stand out. Just 600 metres from the ferry port, and a short 10-minute drive to the Eurotunnel, attendees from overseas will have no trouble and no hassle in making their way to the venue. The Best Western Plus Dover Dover Marina Hotel & Spa is also an active member of the Kent Conference Bureau, so you know you’re in good hands. CONTACT: www.themarquisatalkham.co.uk

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LIFESTYLE

Ready, jet, go! SAMSONITE B3-LITE Price: £135 Available from: www.samsonite.co.uk Weighing in at just 2kg, the B3-LITE from quality luggage maker Samsonite, also features a TSA security code lock built into the case, which is compatible with airport security procedures across the world, including the US.

MICHAEL KORS SMALL JET SET TRAVEL TOTE Price: £195 Available from: www.harrods.com For the fashion-conscious who really like to travel light, Michael Kors’ Jet Set small travel tote is a perfectly roomy, eye-catching statement for fashionable girls on the move. Available in rich, textural saffiano leather with striking, polished hardware.

100 May 2015

Planning to get away for some early sunshine? Keep costs down and avoid the queues with these amazing carry-on hand luggage options

IT WORLD’S LIGHTEST 2-WHEEL CABIN CASE Price: £28 Available from: www.tesco.com An extremely lightweight option to allow you to pack the maximum amount of luggage, while avoiding those pesky and downright extortionate checkedbaggage fees, the IT World’s Lightest 2-wheel cabin case weighs a miniscule 1.6kg, yet offers a roomy 38-litre capacity, and is appropriately priced for the cost-conscious.

TRIPP HOLIDAY 4 4-WHEEL CABIN SUITCASE Price: £42 Available from: www.tripp.co.uk Tough, secure, and available in a variety of colours, the Tripp Holiday 4 4-wheel cabin suitcase weighs in at 2.9kg, and is now reduced in price from £100 to just £42.

JOHN LEWIS MADISON CANVAS FLIGHT BAG Price: £89 Available from: www.johnlewis.com Ideal for short city breaks and weekends away, John Lewis’ Madison flight bag offers great style, hand in hand with ample storage for all your travel essentials, a padded laptop pocket, and has been made to cabin baggage dimensions.

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LIFESTYLE

On the road IN THE SPOTLIGHT: BENTLEY FLYING SPUR V8 MULLINER PRICE: FROM £136,000

Whether you’re looking to get from A to B, or arrive in style, your car is part of your business image. So each month, motoring expert, Oliver Hammond checks out the latest in executive travel, helping you to decipher the market for business drivers

WWW.BENTLEYMOTORS.COM

PHOTOGRAPHY: ISABEL CARTER

T

he land to which we, as a nation of tea drinkers, owe our gratitude and from where paper, silk, acupuncture, and spring rolls originate, is partly responsible for influencing the new Flying Spur. If China didn’t punitively tax enginesabove four litres, and wasn’t Bentley’s second largest market, maybe the W12 would stand ever alone. Developed with Volkswagen Group relatives, Audi, and with peak outputs of 500bhp and 660Nm, the V8 Flying Spur is 116bhp and 140Nm down on the 12-cylinder stalwart, but is hardly a pansy - being only half a second slower to 60mph. You won’t be able to brag 200mph club membership, but frankly, such figures are academic. Stepping into the stately and imposing limousine immediately reminded me that Bentley interiors are jointly the world’s finest, alongside sole rival Rolls Royce.

Lesser marques may have sumptuously soft leather and tasteful chrome, but not the exquisite, handcrafted details found in a Bentley, which ooze heritage. It’s just a shame a few buttons felt harsh, the touchscreen sat-nav often responded slowly, and the paddle and stalk positions took getting used to. If you’re anything like China’s youthful entrepreneurs, and expect Wi-Fi and internet browsing in the back of your chauffeur-driven chariot, the Flying Spur delivers. The touchscreen remote lets occupants control the climate, window blinds, internet, and independent DVD screens in the rear, the audio and sat nav systems up front, plus access vehicle trip data. A sunglasses case, fridge, 64GB hard drive, Breitling clock, and electricallyreclining rear seats complete the lavish Mulliner interior, which is smothered in beautiful stitching, and cocooned from the outside world through obsessive

This stately car is primarily for wafting, but much fun can still be had

soundproofing. Compared to the latest S-Class et al, the Bentley lacks cutting edge safety technology and driver aids, but wins on presence and detail. The V8 is more than capable of ensuing this gargantuan 2.5-tonne saloon can pick up its skirt and reach exhilarating speeds uncannily briskly. Whether you prefer a V8 burble or the ‘woofle’ of the W12 is personal preference, and the engines themselves excite differently. The eight-speed gearbox takes a moment to comply, but once it does, the twin-turbo engine and four-wheel drive systems sing in unison, and the result is suitably smirk inducing. The air suspension makes mincemeat of speed bumps, but the ride on 20-inch wheels is, surprisingly, a little firm and fidgety, the comfort and sport settings making little difference. This stately car is primarily for wafting, but much fun can still be had. Curiously, the base V8 only costs around £10,000 less than the W12, is 50kg lighter and probably won’t be bought on the merits of the clever engine’s cylinder deactivation and reduced CO2 emissions. What may swing it though, are 26mpg combined, and a fuel range 150 miles longer than a W12. Contact: www.oliver@petroleumvitae.com

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Far from the office party Want a break from the usual? Why not try some S&M? (Get your mind out of the gutter - we mean sombreros and music). Ian Crawford, travel expert at Holiday Hypermarket takes an alternative view of some popular holiday destinations - Malta and Mexico - for the partygoer in you

MALTA

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his little Mediterranean island is justly famous for its beaches and relaxed atmosphere, but lately the island has gained a reputation as the best place to party away hot summer nights. Radio 1 DJ, Annie Mac is presenting the first ever Lost and Found festival in Malta this year. The event promises daytime pool parties, night-time open-air raves, and much more. But if you can’t get a ticket for the event don’t worry, because once again the music channel, MTV has chosen Malta as its base for the Isle of MTV party in July, a free concert for 50,000 that attendees don’t even need to book. Headline acts for this year include superstar DJ and producer, Martin Garrix, and the event always attracts massive names. Boat parties and club nights on the island are always popular too, so if you’re a party person, you can plan your entire holiday around some great nights out. But don’t waste your days just nursing your hangover. Malta, and neighbouring island, Gozo have lots to explore, including seven ancient temples, flea markets, and

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even horse races. And don’t worry if you’re feeling delicate, organised tours are available to whisk you off in air conditioned coaches, so you don’t have the hassle of planning. If a sedate boat trip is more your style, take a gentle tour of the famed Blue Grotto and other sea caverns of Malta, travelling along the coastline to see the eerie underwater phosphorescence. Alternatively, how about a spot of diving to see the caverns and sea life up close? The warm water is perfect for scuba diving, and natural rock shelves offer dives for everyone from total beginners to the most advanced, allowing you to safely experience the spectacular underwater rock formations and colourful fish. If a boat trip makes you feel queasy, and a diving trip is too much effort, Malta is great for walking tours or strolls, and features some stunning animals and fauna. Hundreds of wildflowers cover the hills in spring, and unusual butterflies and lizards can be spotted. So, from parties at night to a great time during the day, what could be a better holiday destination this summer than Malta?

LIFESTYLE

Boat parties and club nights on the island are always popular too, so if you’re a party person, you can plan your entire holiday around some great nights out

MEXICO

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exican festivals are amazing - Day of the Dead is a joyous celebration, and Mexican carnivals are some of the best in the world. But wait! It’s not these age-old parties that are catching people’s attention these days, but rather some newer festivals in town. The popular BPM electronic music festival, held in Mexico’s Playa del Carmen, recently finished in January after an eigth triumphant year. Next up for spring break is the Inception festival. However, if dancing all day isn’t enough for you, may we suggest interspersing your revelry with a touch of culture, food ,or enjoyment of nature? Mexico is a stunning choice for those wanting to get closer to nature. From deserts and mountain forests to stunning waterfalls and fabulous beaches, the 31 Mexican states have something for everyone. If you’re interested in flowers, there are around a thousand species of orchids alone to be found, and 30,000 kinds of flowers altogether,

some of which will likely be utterly unfamiliar to you. There are also birds in abundance, and if you’ve ever wanted to spot a hummingbird, there are fifty species of them here. As far as culture is concerned, you’ll most likely have heard of the ancient Mayan temples. These are scattered throughout southern Mexico, so now’s an ideal time to visit. And if you’re looking for food, Mexican street food is hot, fresh, and tasty. If you’ve ever had tacos at a Mexican restaurant in the UK, take the experience and multiply it by 100 in the delicious stakes. And, of course, don’t forget to wash it all down with a healthy dose of the local tequila. After all, following those delightful diversions, it’s the perfect way to get that party started!

WWW.HOLIDAYHYPERMARKET.CO.UK

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There is no easy way This month, Dragons’ Den star and CEO of Outsourcery, Piers Linney examines what it takes to achieve start up success

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reating a successful start-up and building a business is a significant challenge. It is hard work and involves a high risk of failure. Success involves planning, grit, long hours, sacrifice, failures, ambition, holding a team together (or downsizing it) through the good and bad, and dedication to a vision that others may not be able to see, while making the most of limited resources. Looking back to when I first started out as an entrepreneur, it has become easier for those who are aspiring to establish a business due to the support and advice available. There are many resources, programmes and incubators for startups, and initiatives such as Tech City UK, and the Government’s Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) has provided entrepreneurs and SME leaders with advice and support that they need. Also, start-ups now have access to almost limitless cloud-based computing power and storage, as well as powerful software applications, removing the need to own any IT or communications infrastructure. Fixed costs are a huge risk to start-ups, and now almost all costs, apart from people, have become variable ones that flex with business needs and growth. Essentially, when it comes to growing a start-up into a successful business, the potential for success lies in the underlying business proposition, its potential for scale and, most importantly, how it is going to add value to customers. It is then a question of communicating and demonstrating the value proposition to gain traction. However, despite all of that, it is the drive and capability of the founders that is key to success. When I’m investing in a company, provided the business proposition has potential, it’s the management team that I focus on. Knowing when to cut your losses in

terms of projects, products, and sometimes even people and potential customers at the correct time is key, because holding on to dead weight can lead you and your business into a spiralling downturn. This is especially the case when start-ups engage with very large enterprises, as the opportunity may be immense, but engagement can be extremely time consuming and costly. Start-up cycles of decision-making and evolution are measured in hours, days, or weeks, whereas they can be measured in quarters or years in large enterprises. Hiring well is also important and often difficult. Many start-ups hire people they know or people who happen to be valuable, but as the business grows, specialised experience is required, and the business can outgrow members of a young team. It is important to recognise this and act, despite the temptation to ignore such issues. A strong team is key to success and if you can’t afford the people, you will want to consider equity incentives as they also align interests. However, entrepreneurs need to structure equity incentives carefully so that equity can, where appropriate, be retrieved from leavers. From my own experiences in business and as a professional and private investor, failure of projects, products, marketing, partnerships, or even entire businesses is part of the process, and the risks inherent in any start-up are significant. Building a business is not easy, yet the personal and potential financial rewards are high. It is now possible to reduce risks by maximising variable costs and advances in technology, including the availability of cloud-based software and communications solutions, which have levelled the playing field. There has never been a better time to start a business.

Failure of projects, products, marketing, partnerships, or even entire businesses is part of the process

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‘ Mobile e-commerce is growing at three times the rate of computerbased purchase’* ... is your business ready? We are! (ready to help you, that is)

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* source: ‘PayPal & IPSOS Release New Study: Mobile Commerce Growing at Three Times the Rate of Ecommerce’, PayPal Community, 18th February, 2015

TECHNOLOGY

Searching for top spot Lead Generation Websites managing director, Robert Keating brings you a practical guide to keeping your web content Google friendly

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taying on the right side of Google can be a challenge, as it seems to regularly change the SEO rules. While there is no exact science, we can understand the algorithm that Google uses to punish or reward websites, which in turn determines the ranking and traffic to sites. Here are some key factors Google targets to decide whether it thinks you have a high quality website.

QUALITY OF WEBSITE CONTENT The first metric used to calculate how high quality a piece of content is, would be its length. It’s not necessarily the sheer number of words, which determines the true quality, but it’s a useful first filter. If any article is less than, say, 300 words, Google will assume that it’s unlikely to contain that much useful information, and rank it poorly. Imagine you write two articles on business strategy - the first is 150 words long, while the

second is 1,500 words; which is likely to be more helpful and informative to the reader? WHAT SHOULD YOU DO? We recommend having longer, more comprehensive articles on your site. If you have pages on a similar topic, you should combine them to form a single ‘super-page’. Also, your content should be more than mere text. To be as illustrative and engaging as possible, you should include images, videos, slideshows, map embeds, interactive surveys, etc. Therefore you should always add relevant images to your web pages, embed videos and slideshows, and use maps where appropriate and useful. ORIGINALITY OF CONTENT Originality is a golden rule. You shouldn’t get into the habit of duplicating yourself, as Google’s methods of detection may even penalise you for this. If you want Google to value your content, then it must be original. Google uses a technique called ‘chunking’ to scan for duplication, and can

easily check if text content is original or duplicated. Google will not rank your website at all if the content is copied and pasted from elsewhere; it offers no value to the user that they cannot find elsewhere. Through its reverse

If any article on your website is less than, say, 300 words, Google will assume that it’s unlikely to contain that much useful information and rank it poorly image-search, it can also identify the origin of images, even if they have been resized, edited, renamed, saved as a different filetype, or had text over-lain. WHAT SHOULD YOU DO? Admittedly, it’s very difficult to be thoroughly original every time you post something, and anyone can see there’s a lot of

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Ultimately, Google’s decision making is determined by user satisfaction and engagement. A site which is full of ads and does not have useful, multi-media content is unlikely to have visitors hang around for long the same information online. We’re not talking so much about the substance of the content, but more the delivery. If you’re going to say something that’s already been said, say it in your own words. Make sure your content is original - write your own text, or hire a good writer, and take your own photos instead of using stock images. MODALITY OF CONTENT Google likes multi-media content as it provides a better user experience. The user usually prefers it too. Make sure that your website isn’t comprised solely of text, with just a few stock images thrown in as an afterthought. There are many content options you could use, such as infographics, graphs, video, slideshows, PDFs, or podcasts. WHAT SHOULD YOU DO? Video on a web page is always good - it does not even have to

be your own video if you haven’t the time or ability to make them. Go to YouTube and find relevant, insightful videos on the topic you are writing about, and embed them in the page, along with a little commentary. You can do something similar with Slideshare for PowerPoint embeds. For PDFs, you can just take your text content and turn it into a PDF, then upload to Scribd.com and embed on your webpage, or upload to your server and add a download link for anyone who wants to read the article in PDF rather than online. POSITIONING OF CONTENT A common problem that Google often faces is when websites place a lot of their best material down the page, filling the top half with offers, ads, and outbound links. Now Google looks for how much content is ‘above the fold’. One way that it distinguishes between

real content and ads or affiliate offers is by detecting the amount of clickable links and images. If an image is clickable, then it reasons that it is more likely to be an ad. Another way is through Javascript coding. Javascript serves many purposes, one of which is to serve ads. WHAT SHOULD YOU DO? Have as much of the strongest content as possible ‘above the fold’ (that is visible to the user without needing to scroll). When you upload an image to WordPress, do not leave the image in its default linking setting but instead set the ‘Link URL’ to ‘no link’. We’re not saying you shouldn’t have any linked images but, for SEO purposes, it’s better to be sparing. Also use a thinner header on your site. Many sites have ‘thick’ headers, which take up a significant amount of space on the page - by removing as much white space as possible around the header, logo, menu bar, etc., it will allow more content to appear above the fold. Ultimately, Google’s decision making is determined by user satisfaction. A big part of its algorithm is based on user experience and engagement; a site which is full of ads and does not have useful content is unlikely to have visitors hang around for long, and so they will click away - this is called a ‘bounce’. Google records bounce rates and will reward sites that get good click-throughs and low bounce rates. So, if you want to stay on the right side of Google’s Panda, follow the above advice as much as you can. Contact: www.leadgenerationwebsites .co.uk

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Mobile friendly, Google? Keep calm, advertising is all in hand

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he mobile apocalypse is here! Well that’s what some media outlets will have you believe anyway. Last week Google released its latest search algorithm update that ‘officially’ increased the relevancy of mobile friendly websites within mobile Search Engine Results Pages (SERP’s). According to Google, 50% of all searches are now performed on mobile, this statistic reinforces the trend that the industry experts have been predicting for several years. Mobile is here and you better be ready for it. No doubt your own analytics are showing increased engagement with your brand from ‘non-desktop’ sources. Dubbed ‘Mobilegeddon’ by some, the new update rewards sites that not only allow people to find relevant content but also provides them with a good mobile browsing experience i.e. making the content easier to read and interact with on a smaller screen.

So what’s in it for Google? The long and the short of it is revenue opportunity. Over 90% of Google’s revenue is generated via online advertising so it makes sense to capitalise on this by placing more emphasis on mobile engagement. What does it mean to me? Below are the top 7 points extracted from the update: 1 It only effect searches on Mobiles, not searches on Tablets or Desktops. So check your analytics. 2 Mobile friendliness is one ranking factor of Search and it only effect pages (not entire sites, (watch out for the next update though). 3 Principally the page needs to be easy to use on a mobile. 4 Text needs to be readable without double tapping or zooming. 5 Make sure ‘Tap targets’ aren’t too small. 6 Don’t have unplayable content. 7 Avoid horizontal page scrolling.

So how do you find out if you adhere to these new criteria, Google have built an easy to use tool to see how your site performs: https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/ mobile-friendly/ it doesn’t matter if it’s a mobile site or fully responsive, the same rules apply. In conclusion, as more people use mobiles, making sites mobile friendly is not just good for Google, but also consumers and website owners. Making the purchasing decisions and messaging easier for the mobile consumer is surely a good thing for all? I guess only time/analytics will tell as Google continue with the rollout… For more information, visit www.itineris.co.uk or contact us on +44 (0)845 862 5522

TECHNOLOGY

ORTIS DELEY

Tech Review

Each month we give Ortis Deley, from Channel 5’s The Gadget Show, a gorgeous piece of tech to test drive. Whether it’s for business or pleasure, he’ll give you the lowdown on the best gadgets money can buy LG G WATCH R PRICE: £299

LG G3 SMARTPHONE PRICE: £439.99

LG G PAD PRICE: £TBC

ALL ITEMS AVAILABLE FROM: www.lg.com/uk

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was given the opportunity to live with three pieces of LG tech whilst working on the Gadget Show Live. The G Watch R, G3 smartphone and the G Pad. My plan was to ditch my regular tech in favour of these three for the most hectic week in my calendar.

LG G WATCH R This was the item I was most excited about as I’ve stayed very traditional in the type of watches I wear, and tend to shun tech when I’m exercising. This was very much an opportunity to see what I was missing out on. First impressions were a big deal with this watch: I had a lot of people asking about it once they saw I was wearing a smartwatch (the screen would light up every now and again from natural wrist movement). I found myself talking about this gadget more than the other two. I had a few problems initially linking the watch to the phone and almost gave up, but my persistence was eventually rewarded after resetting the device. After this, the watch was a constant invisible umbilical cord to whatever the G3 was experiencing. Retweets, Facebook posts, texts, and phone calls were all routed from phone to watch with a gentle vibration. At one point, some friends who were in the audience texted their whereabouts to me and I was able to read it clearly on the watch face. There’s a built-in

microphone, meaning Google Now on the watch was a novel experience, as was taking/making phone calls. I could just about get away with charging the watch every two nights, but made the mistake of turning it off to save juice and lost all of my fitness data. The pedometer syncs your day’s activities to the cloud and gives feedback on goals achieved, but staying up and walking about beyond midnight appeared to confuse it and after an epic 16,000-plus step day, there was no record of it or the previous days’ tallies. This was a pain as I had become somewhat obsessed with how many steps I could achieve running around the ‘Live Super Theatre’ all day.

VERDICT: Overall, I enjoyed being kept in the loop without the embarrassment of constantly having to take out, or look at my phone, but I felt the watch was too temperamental, unreliable, and had to be fastened pulse-stoppingly tight to get an accurate heart rate reading.

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TECHNOLOGY

THE LG G3 Of the three devices, this was by far the winning piece. This smartphone was one of the three that have really blown me away over the past 12 months (the other two being the HTC One M8 and the Motorola Moto X 2014). There are a good few talking points on this handset, not least its form factor, and the positioning of the power button and volume controls. There’s the removable back cover, which is such a rarity on high-end devices now (meaning you can exchange batteries and upgrade the storage), and that gorgeous 5.5” Quad HD 2K screen. This phone comes with a quad-core processor, which means a few tasks can be performed at the same time (dual-screen for

example), and a very capable 13MP camera with laser autofocus, which took some great on-stage pics. Small things like night mode, tapping the screen to wake up, spell correct, and the drop-down reminders widget, helped elevate this smartphone above all others I’d tested, and indeed owned, over the past year. The customisable keyboard - size as well as keys - plus a numbered top row, was another nice touch. All these features were quietly nudged into my conscious; I didn’t have to Google them or have them passed on to me by someone else. I only realised late on that it didn’t have Lollipop. I love Lollipop. The G3 is that good.

VERDICT: Absolutely brilliant! Powerful, great 2K screen, innovative take on the Android OS, and a sleek design that allows for further customisation of both the soft and hardware. I can’t wait to see what they’ll do with the G4!

Small things like night mode, tapping the screen to wake up, spell correct, and the drop-down reminders widget, helped elevate this smartphone above all others I’d tested, and indeed owned, over the past year

THE LG G PAD The G Pad is not that much larger than the G3, and so still fits reasonably comfortably in one hand. It comes with a 7” IPS display and Lollipop. It can be linked to the G3 using LG’s proprietary Qpair connectivity, and has a 5MP rear-facing and 1.2MP front-facing camera). Qpair allowed seamless, tandem linking between phone and pad, but I felt the full potential of all three devices working in sync was limited by the monoconnective nature of Bluetooth. I found that linking the watch to the phone, and the pad to my headphones worked best.

VERDICT: Truth be told, I didn’t use the tablet that much during the week, as the phone covered everything I needed and was only a tad smaller. That said, it’s a very capable tablet and very portable.

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www.microsec.co.uk Call 023 9251 8250

Mobile Apps for Business: BEYOND THE APPSTORE

By James Lavery, Microsec Ltd

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ne of the most common Google search terms around business mobile applications that we’ve PKLU[PÄLK OLYL H[ 4PJYVZLJ PZ ¸ILZ[ business apps”. There are certainly lots to choose from, and each selfJVU[HPULK HWW KVLZ H ]LY` ZWLJPÄJ task: mileage calculator, receipt tracker, business card scanner, credit checker, etc.. In fact, TalkBusiness ran a feature on their own Top 10 off-the-shelf business apps. These types of apps have a big part to play in removing admin overhead and nuisance value from the everyday SPML VM [OL :4, I\[ [OL` HYLU»[ HPTLK at changing the way businesses work. That’s what the rest of this article is about – going beyond the pre-built, AppStore applications to re-think how you work with your customers and prospects.

IDENTIFY YOUR OWN APPS – FREE OF CHARGE If, like most companies, you have a desktop software package that underpins your key business activities - likely built out from a central accounting module ¶ P[ JHU IL KPMÄJ\S[ [V ZLL [OL ILULÄ[ VM developing your own unique business mobile apps, and how and where they ^V\SK ¸Ä[¹ HSVUNZPKL LZ[HISPZOLK Z`Z[LTZ ;OL RL` PZ [V ÄUK V\[ ^OLYL HUK OV^

mobile working could make a difference. This is especially important as building apps unique to your business isn’t cheap, so you have to be sure that there’s a real Return VU 0U]LZ[TLU[ 4PJYVZLJ Y\UZ HU PUP[PHS UV VISPNH[PVU 4VIPSL 6WWVY[\UP[` >VYRZOVW MVY I\ZPULZZLZ PU ^OPJO ^L SVVR ÄYZ[ MVY [OL potential business improvement that will follow from the technology. Since we also build entire custom software systems from end-to-end, it’s always been our approach that any proposed mobile element is treated as a potential core business process, and PM ^L JHU»[ ÄUK [OL 960 PU [OL KL]LSVWTLU[ ^L»YL [OL ÄYZ[ [V ZH` WHAT DO UNIQUE APPS COST? This is perhaps the wrong question – rather ^L ZOV\SK HZR ¸>OLYL PZ [OLPY ]HS\L&¹ ;OL ]HS\L MVY 4PJYVZLJ JSPLU[ (YI7YV offering a management system for tree contractors, emerged when a critical driver of business, i.e., face-to-face customer contact, was transformed by a unique mobile app. Surveyors can UV^ ZWLUK HSS KH` PU [OL ÄLSK ]PZ\HSPZPUN and estimating new work, and crucially, closing more business and immediately scheduling teams, all without having to JVTL PU[V [OL VMÄJL HU` TVYL A similar order of return was enabled at Autoforms, a business services company, when we built a Cloud-based

tablet application that dramatically PTWYV]LK LMÄJPLUJPLZ HUK [OYV\NOW\[ PU commercial property inspection. THE BEST APP MIGHT NOT BE ON YOUR OWN DEVICE From a slightly counter-intuitive viewpoint, it’s possible that the app that makes a difference might not actually be for you, but for your customer. This alternative thinking, pioneered by pharmaceuticals companies, can now be found at local level where, e.g., accountants could distribute an app to their clients to allow them to submit their book-keeping, and so transform annual accounting procedures. These customer-oriented apps can do wonders for relationships, but come with a caution on compatibility with customers’ different mobile platforms. Finally, it is worth reminding ourselves that smart devices - smartly used – really HYL H ¸NHTL JOHUNLY¹ HUK H ZOYL^KS` assembled portfolio of mobile apps should be among the strategic priorities of businesses. To discuss the no-obligation Mobile Opportunity Workshop for Talk Business readers, or if you have a requirement for bespoke software development, get in touch via www. microsec.co.uk or call 023 9251 8250 quoting “Talk Business May”.

PLEASE CONTACT US ON 023 9251 8250 FOR ANY CUSTOM SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

TECHNOLOGY

Keep yourself connected? Employees have been described as the “weakest link in the security chain”, Martin Sugden, MD of Boldon James, discusses whether removing employees’ access to mobile devices is the best option

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here’s no doubt that employees are a big risk for organisations, we are all human - indeed, the ICO believes that human error is responsible for 50 per cent of data breaches. Considering this, and the fact that according to Forrester, smartphones will account for 50% of all mobile phones by 2017, organisations must clearly put some measures in place to help reduce the increasing level of risk.

Whilst findings from a recent Bloor Research survey on ‘Practices For Enhancing Data Security’ indicate that malicious breaches are of more concern to respondents than accidental breaches by their staff, Bloor acknowledges that insider mistakes can be the most damaging, since those internal to the organisation have access to the most sensitive information. Too often, organisations focus too heavily on protecting their perimeters from hostile threats, which

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leads to them ignoring the security risks presented by their own staff. The use of mobile devices in the workplace, particularly where there is a BYOD (bring your own device) policy, presents a greater risk of the mobile devices being lost or misused in a way that compromises data security. The most critical risk is when business data

device over which they may have little or no control. However, if organisations were to strip employees of access to mobile devices, they risk losing out on the benefits that the latest mobile technologies can bring in terms of productivity, collaboration, and flexibility. As long as security travels with the data, organisations can control who has access to

available on mobile devices or accessible from inappropriate locations, or at least ensure that your mobile device management solution can control access and delete the data should it be lost. All of which will go some way to preventing malicious misuse of data. Through the implementation of effective information governance strategies,

Insider mistakes can be the most damaging since those internal to the organisation have access to the most sensitive information

is mixed with personal data on non-corporate devices. Whilst mobile data security is often solely focused on the significant risks associated with the loss or theft of these devices, many organisations are failing to address the additional risk to sensitive data resulting from corporate data being accessed, changed, or disseminated from a

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what, on which device, and in what location. One way to achieve this is to implement data classification policies and tools, across all systems and devices, which will allow all data to be classified according to its sensitivity and importance to the organisation. Doing this will enable you to prevent sensitive data being

such as data classification, which identify and facilitate the securing of sensitive data wherever it travels, organisations can reduce the level of risk employees pose to the organisation, and eliminate any need to strip access to mobile devices. Contact: www.boldonjames.com

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TECHNOLOGY

I’ve got an app for that Each month we bring you a selection of our favourite apps for business or pleasure. This month, we look at two of the most handy travel apps, and both do what it says on the tin, Car Locator and Mileage Tracker

CAR LOCATOR

MILEAGE TRACKER

PRICE: £2.99 COMPATABILITY: Android THE GIST: We have all been there; you have just left a business meeting in an unfamiliar location, you step out of the building, and all you want to do is get back to your office. You look around, and nothing looks familiar. So where have you parked the car? Car Locator solves that problem. Before you leave your car, open the app and ‘Save Location’. On your return, the app will be able to navigate you back using radar, map, or split view. The green dot indicates your current location and orientation, the red dot shows the location of your car. It is as simple as that. DOWNLOADABLE FROM: www.play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com. edwardkim.android.carlocatorfull&hl=en

PRICE: £1.97 COMPATABILITY: Android THE GIST: In the modern age, not many people go very far without their smartphones. This makes the phone the perfect way to track all of your movements. So why not use it for your business travels as well? Mileage Tracker is a great way to keep track of all your business mileage without much fuss. The app tracks your movements through the GPS in your phone, and creates an automatic itinerary of your journey. You can even use it for multiple vehicles and create reports to be sent via Dropbox or Google Docs. It really is an all-in-one app for all your business mileage needs. DOWNLOADABLE FROM: www.play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com. softmimo.android.mileagetracker&hl=en

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STEAK ’N SHAKE Passionate About Our Customers…

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t Steak ‘n Shake we are passionate about giving all our customers quality food, made from premium ingredients; our attention to detail focuses on high quality ingredients for all our food and the unique recipes which are specific to Steak ‘n Shake: • Our 100% certified premium Steakburgers are made from the finest meat available, with no preservatives, hormones or antibiotics. • Our hand-scooped ice-cream is low in butter fat. • Our milkshakes use premium quality milk whole fruits and high end quality natural fruit puree. • Steak ‘n Shake sauces are custom made to our own recipe with the finest ingredients

• Only fresh lemons are squeezed daily for our lemonade • Our hand-cut fries are cut fresh daily from only the best potatoes • The guacamole is home-made from whole fresh avocado • We grill (not fry) our hand chopped mushrooms and our onions • Our burger buns are made to our own recipe The company attention to the ingredients selection and processing methods is paramount allowing the Steak ’n Shake offer to be a guarantee of quality and true value for all its costumers. The combination of the right qualitative ingredients brings out unique flavours that can only be found in Steak ‘n Shake burgers and recipes. Founded in 1934 by Gus

Belt, a pioneer in the American restaurant business, his formula was simple: provide the best quality burger in the business and cook it in sight of the customer. Steak ‘n Shake is a classic American brand offering premium steak burgers and milkshakes. The hand-cut fries are thin, crisp, never frozen and made to order from only the freshest potatoes, and now, all this and our award-winning, hand-dipped milkshakes, is headed to the UK as part of our international expansion. We have over 530 restaurants and more than 20,000 employees in the USA, where Steak ‘n Shake is already a massive success; we fully intend to replicate this success in the UK and on the international stage.

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GROWING & SUCCESSFUL Over eight decades later, Steak ‘n Shake is one of the most recognised and loyal restaurant brands with over 114 million Steakburgers and in excess of 66 million shakes served annually. The Steak ‘n Shake brand still means freshness and quality. 2008: The company was purchased by Biglari Holdings, and immediately experienced dynamic growth in sales, and earnings in the midst of a longterm global economic recession. 2013: We established a dedicated European office and have opened key units in Cannes, Marseille and Ibiza, and currently have more than 120 International units committed for development in Europe and the Middle East We have built operational capabilities to ensure fast learning and rapid success by providing

support in all the key areas during the expansion process.

investment. (*Subject to financial

WHO ARE WE LOOKING FOR? We are actively seeking ambitious people to partner with the brand and help to develop the UK and European markets. Potential partners will need to be as passionate about our mission as we are: “To constantly serve our patrons the highest quality burgers and shakes along with extending them great service at the lowest possible prices.”

WHAT ARE WE OFFERING? As a Steak ‘n Shake Franchise owner and you will receive all the support and expertise you need for success including; • Full Support & Training • Proven Supply Chain • Operational Support • Flexibility In Design & Construction • A Set-Up Consultant • Full Marketing Expertise

A SOLID FINANCIAL BACKGROUND The investment required will vary depending on factors like size and location. (The total investment would be from between £550,000 and £1,172,000). A personal investment starting from circa. £240,000 is required in order to qualify for a bank loan* that would cover the full

‘STEAK’ YOUR CLAIM IN THE BURGER REVOLUTION ‘N ‘SHAKE’ THINGS UP! This is your opportunity to capitalise on the evergrowing worldwide hunger for premium, hand-made burgers and milkshakes as a highly successful, classic American brand expands in the UK & Europe.

checks and status)

Contact us TODAY via email UKFranchise@steaknshake.mc for more information, or to arrange a meeting, or apply directly via the website www.steaknshakefranchise.eu

FRANCHISE

Franchise

NEWS

Shortlist announced for bfa Franchise Awards The Zipyard and TaxAssist among those in running for top honours

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he British Franchise Association (bfa) has announced 19 finalists for the 2015 bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year Awards, supported by Express Newspapers. Established in 1989 and the highest honours available to brands in the sector, the awards recognise the UK’s most exceptional franchisors in a range of categories, for their business growth and development, service excellence, and commitment to

plans to raise wages for employees at McDonald’s company-owned stores. The company is also changing its menu, eliminating certain items, and adding higher-end options. Franchise owners were particularly upset with the wage hike. Even though it only applies to workers at company-owned restaurants, franchisees worry that they will be pressured to raise wages too. These changes are yet to be implemented in the UK, but could very well make their way across the pond shortly. In its defence, McDonald’s notes that the survey only reports a very small sample size of the approximately 3,100 franchisees across the US.

ethical franchising practice. The finalists are: BFA HSBC FRANCHISOR OF THE YEAR 2015 • Agency Express • Auditel • Card Connection • Driver Hire • Expense Reduction Analysts • Little Kickers • TaxAssist Accountants • Water Babies EMERGING FRANCHISOR OF THE YEAR (FIVE YEARS OR LESS IN FRANCHISING) • One Stop • The ZipYard FRANCHISEE RECRUITMENT AWARD • Cafe2U • Dream Doors • Marston’s AWARD FOR INNOVATION • Barking Mad • Dyno Rod • Pitman Training CUSTOMER FOCUS AWARD • Home Instead Senior Care • McDonald’s • Revive! Finalists will present to a judging panel of industry experts in London on 20-21 May, with winners announced at a black-tie dinner on 25 June at the ICC, Birmingham. Andy Brattesani, UK head of franchising for HSBC, said: “Thanks to the calibre of entries, we’ve arrived at a list of businesses that really highlights the diversity found in modern franchising. The finalists, a strong combination of established and newer franchisors, should be very proud to have been shortlisted for their dedication to exceptional business practices. We look forward to hearing more about their success at the judging.”

Contact: www.janney.com

Contact: www.thebfa.org

McDonald’s franchisees not lovin’ it Settawatt Udom/shutterstock.com

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survey in the US of McDonald’s franchise owners has revealed a negative outlook for the fast-food chain. Franchise owners say the outlook for business is somewhere between poor and fair, according to the latest survey by Mark Kalinowski, an analyst who covers the restaurant industry at Janney Capital Markets. The grim assessment translates to a score of 1.81 out of 5 on Kalinowski’s scale, the lowest rating in the 11-year history of the quarterly survey. It represents the views of 32 franchisees, who own a combined 215 McDonald’s restaurants. It appears that the source for much of the chagrin of franchise owners is with newly-appointed CEO, Steve Easterbrook’s planned changes. Easterbrook recently announced

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US franchisee survey mirrors concerns elsewhere across the globe

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Unprecedented Success Proven Remedies for Thames Valley Expo For Business Growth

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rowth is a key concept for the true entrepreneur. Real entrepreneurs are not satisfied with a life-style business that runs them more than they run it, but aim to grow their business into something that can stand on its own feet and eventually thrive on its own. Business Doctors is a national business support network dedicated to helping small and medium sized businesses achieve their growth vision.

From strategies for sales and boosting profits to advice for effective people management, accessing finance and acquiring other businesses, Business Doctors delivers business support with a difference, all geared towards achieving controlled and sustained growth. Unlike traditional consultants, every single Business Doctor is

a no-nonsense, commerciallyminded doer, who is committed to helping businesses up their game, no matter what sector they are in. Demand for business support is at an all-time high as businesses that have weathered the recession are now looking to grow and are seeking help. Every hour of every day there are important decisions to be made and opportunities to explore that make the best of a company’s people and its commercial prospects. Those who are capable of making the right calls for the right reasons will see their businesses thrive – and enjoy the ride. And those who don’t, very probably won’t. Business Doctors do things differently, turning the focus firmly on you, the leader in the hot seat. If they can truly help you, they know the business will thrive. It’s a belief and principle that guided Matthew Levington and Rod Davies when they founded Business Doctors back in 2004 and it still guides them today. Business Doctors has experienced steady growth over the past 10 years and during this time they have helped transform hundreds of businesses. Businesses seeking support can now benefit from the vast experience and insights of more than 40 Business Doctors

throughout the UK. Experience that has been captured in their new book, Breaking Big, published by Wiley and launched last year. GREY MATTER EYES 40% GROWTH An example of the way Business Doctors works is typified by The Grey Matter Group. Incorporated in 2007, The Grey Matter Group provides web-based solutions enabling organisations that specialise in health and social care to improve staff development and performance. By 2010 the business had grown already to a three strong management team, with two parttime employees and was ready to diversify into new offers and really grow as a business. But before embarking on this next stage, the founders knew they had to make sure the business was strong enough to take on such rapid growth. So far their focus had primarily been on delivering brilliant results for clients, but they now recognised a need to strengthen and document processes to enable The Grey Matter Group to expand. An ex-colleague working at the Sector Skills Council, Skills for Care, recommended the GrowthAccelerator service, which introduced them to their local Business Doctor, Martin Vessey.

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As one of over forty Business Group is a much more structured Doctors operating throughout the business. Managing director Alex UK, Martin Vessey runs Business Knapp says: “We have a strong Doctors Thames Valley. Martin business plan in place, with set to work, unlocking the doors financial and sales reporting at to growth for the business, not our core. Martin also supported us only in terms of understanding in separating job roles within the what they needed to do, but also leadership team. We were aware challenging the team to think in a that we all had different skills and different way. mind-sets and particularly as a With Martin’s advice, the husband and wife team, it was business was able to achieve an sometimes tricky to negotiate a immediate benefit by accessing path forward. Martin guided us tax credits for research and and gave neutral, constructive development. Martin suggested advice and vastly strengthened that the business seek advice our ability to direct and lead a from a tax specialist about this business in a more objective way.” and they discovered they were With Martin’s help, the business able to reclaim some of the has #TVExpo ensured that it is fit and ready corporation tax that they had for its ambitious growth plans. already paid. This cash injection The team are looking to instantly improved the business’s continue to increase their profile cash flow enabling them to benefit in the market and solidify their www.thamesvalleyexpo.co.uk from the GrowthAccelerator position as a leader in their field matched funded Leadership of assessment and evidencing and Management training, competence. The team has which helped fund Martin’s acquired an e-Learning business further work. This was vital in and developed a training helping the company to develop booking system with one of their own skills for high growth their customers and plan to opportunities and helped them continue their innovative and to set in place more formal pioneering approach to delivering reporting, meeting and forecasting improvements to existing and new structures. They also benefited customers. They have taken on from sales training which has four additional staff and appointed helped develop a more focused a Director of Programmes and approach to key accounts and Projects to strengthen their Board sales and marketing strategies. and are on track to reach a further As a result, The Grey Matter 40% growth by the end of the year.

EXPERIENCE COUNTS Business Doctors’ success is built on only taking on the most experienced individuals to operate in its territories throughout the UK. Simon Offord, for instance, opened Business Doctors Gloucester in late 2014. Having previously developed his own business from grass roots level to a successful and profitable company, he is well placed to offer support and advice based on personal experience, as well as Business Doctors’ proven methodologies. He said: “My own career path has taught me about the highs and lows of running a company and I am keen to support others to realise the potential of their businesses across a broad range of sectors.”

@thamesvalleyexp

To find out more about how Business Doctors could help your business grow, or if you think you might have what it takes to become a Business Doctor yourself, go to www.businessdoctors.co.uk for more information.

FRANCHISE

Jumping on the bandwagon Looking to quit the nine-to-five humdrum? Dynamis’ franchising expert, Nicky Tatley takes a look at the hottest five franchise sectors to invest in right now

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s the economy slowly recovers, some sectors in the UK franchise industry, which currently enjoys an annual turnover of £13.7 billion, are flourishing. So what’s hot in franchising right now - and worth giving up the day job for?

PROPERTY HOME CARE An ever-increasing elderly population has meant that demand for care has rocketed in the UK. However, many have found the expense of care homes prohibitive, and home care is proving a popular alternative. Instead of moving an individual, the care can be delivered to the customer’s home instead. There are two main types of home care provision: medical and non-medical. Quite rightly, there is high regulation in the home care market, meaning that it’s essential to keep up to date with new methods, legislation, and applications. Being part of a franchise will make this much easier. Financially, home care franchises that provide clinical care can be very successful, due to the multiple revenue streams available. Kare Plus is just such a franchise, offering both nursing and domiciliary care. Its franchisees provide qualified nurses and healthcare staff to hospitals and nursing homes as well as offering non-medical care to people in their own homes. A non-medical care franchise, such as Home Instead Senior Care, however, is less of a risk in terms of possible litigation. The UK franchise network is part of a highly successful global business, which is based on delivering task-based care, the focus being on what the client wants, in a timeframe that suits them. It may be anything from help with housework, taking the dog for a walk - or simply offering a little companionship. Considering there are currently three million UK residents aged 80 or over, and that’s set to reach a staggering eight million by 2050, care franchising seems a pretty solid bet.

Regardless of the fluctuations in the property market, demand will remain strong in the UK as the population grows. Investing in a property franchise poses less risk than setting up an estate agency, by providing an instant, established network and support in the form training and help with marketing and admin. Furthermore, there are a variety of property franchise types to invest in. Estate agency franchises are involved in both the lettings and the sales aspects of property. Current market leaders include Century 21 and Martin & Co. Lettings agency franchises usually offer either let-only or full management agreement services. The former involves completing paperwork, tenant screening, securing a deposit and first rental payment collection. As a result, the agent would receive around 10% of the annual rental. The latter is more all inclusive, and would comprise collecting all rents and daily property management. On average, the agent would receive 15% of the annual rental. A strong lettings market generates a parallel demand for inventory management services. The main priority of an inventory management franchise is to protect the landlord and tenant by providing legally binding inventories. Independent reports constructed by the franchise aim to settle issues with the return-deposit when a tenancy is being closed. Property insurance franchises essentially deal with property damage. According to property insurance franchise, Aspray Property Services, this high profile claims management role demands an individual of high personal integrity, who can display financial acumen and be relied on to adopt a strong self-employed mentality.

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FRANCHISE

BUSINESS SERVICES

SPORTS AND FITNESS The ever-increasing demands of modern living - be it workload, screen-time, or the rigours of raising a well-rounded brood of kids - means there is little time for exercise. Growing UK obesity levels, alongside fitness fever created by the 2012 Olympics, has pushed the issue of exercise into the limelight. Recent research by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) revealed the worrying fact that almost two-thirds of UK residents are overweight. Fitness franchises appeal to this growing demographic of expanding, strung-out individuals, as they offer a quick-fix in a scheduled timeframe. Additionally, they also solve the problems of what to do with the kids after school, and how to tear them away from their smartphones. There are now not only gym franchises (such as Énergie and Snap Fitness, which offer an affordable alternative to regular gyms) but football, yoga, martial arts, and even street dance.

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FOOD DELIVERY We’ve seen that workaholics, the health conscious, and the elderly are becoming an increasingly large part of society, which brings us nicely on to our next hot franchise investment: food delivery. As more people look to have their food arrive on their doorstep, delivery franchises are coming into their own. Organic produce supplier, Riverford has a dedicated network of 70 franchisees delivering to around 50,000 home a week. It offers fresh, seasonal, organic fruit and veg, alongside RSPCA awardwinning organic meat, cheese, and pickles. Riverford produces the food, while the franchisees market and deliver it. An offshoot trend of this type of delivery is recipe ingredient boxes - where only the exact amounts of produce needed for specific meals comes packaged up with a weekly recipe card. Riverford is the only franchise so far to have introduced the service, but with the growing success of companies such as Gousto and Hello Fresh, franchise opportunities are only a matter of time.

As SMEs become increasingly wise to the power and benefits of outsourcing, so franchises that offer business services will become hot property. Almost anything can be contracted out now, including marketing, web design, and financial services. David Walsh, entrepreneur and author of The Outsource Solution agrees, saying: “Progressive entrepreneurs realise the unstoppable power of outsourcing to handle aspects of their business that are essential, but simply don’t make sense for them to deal with personally. Small business, augmented by a global pool of human capital, can compete directly with the biggest players in their space, and win.” There are numerous franchises in the industry, from those that take on tax and accountancy work such as TaxAssist, to business mentors and coaches like Business Doctors, to website building franchises like SpotOn.net.

With the growing success of companies such as Gousto and Hello Fresh, recipe ingredient delivery franchise opportunities are only a matter of time

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Unprecedented Success For Thames Valley Expo

From ShipYard to ZipYards

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here is a latent desire in British people, particularly in unsettled times, to create jobs rather than tackle the employment market from the outside. Franchising gives people the opportunity to work for themselves, reducing the risk but at the same time it brings all the benefits of running your own business. It also acts as a springboard into markets and alleviates the laborious aspects of disrupting them; probably one of the most daunting prospects of going at it alone. Nigel Toplis, Managing Director of The Bardon Group, says: “Where you have a good franchise system, you really

have a marriage, whereby you have a proven business system, collateral, support and training from the franchisor, and you have the dynamism, the ambition, the drive and the skillset of the franchisee. “Put them together and you really have a husband and wife; two people with two distinct set of skills, but one distinct objective.” ZipYard is one such success story. After a botched tailoring job, two entrepreneurs saw a gap in the market and used an empty shop opposite Belfast ship yard to set up their own business, which duly inspired the name. “From there they decided to franchise the concept in

Northern Ireland, then master licence in Southern Ireland and then we took the Master Licence from them to run Great Britain and we started trading in 2011,” Toplis says. ‘ZipYard has an ‘open kitchen’ approach, in that the store is open plan and workers are very much out in the open, rather than confined in a back room. There is also fitting rooms on site and an automated processing service, where the garment are tracked by barcode throughout the process and a text message is delivered to the customer upon completion’. Toplis believes it has “professionalised the industry”, adding an extra element of

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Experienced in Sales and marketing, Graeme Mulheron took the decision to buy the ZipYard franchise for Bedford in summer 2014 and hasn’t looked back since. By the time local Mayor Dave Hodgson unzipped a six foot giant zip to declare the specialist garment alterations and repair centre officially open, the business was trading at almost full capacity and recruitment was underway to add a third seamstress to the team. Graeme is no stranger to the franchising business model. authority to an already He was previously an award talented workforce. winning Cash Generator owner “We’ve very much made it running multiple branches. a professional, open, high “The time was right to move street operation,” Toplis adds, on and give my career a new which explains growth of 15 direction. I was proud of the new centres in the last two #TVExpo Cash Generator businesses that years and an expectation of I had built up. but as a marketer, getting 50 Centres open I am always on the look out for within three years. innovative ideas and the ZipYard model ticked all of the boxes.” Richard McConnell opened www.thamesvalleyexpo.co.uk The Bedford ZipYard is ideally The ZipYard in Altrincham located in the town centre and in September 2011 and in 2013 was a finalist in the bfa Franchise of the Year awards At the time of writing there – having won numerous local are 16 ZipYard Centres in the business accolades. UK and a plan to have 50 within From a turnover of £174,000 three years. ZipYard Centres in his first year to £270,000 carry distinctive yellow and plus in his second, growth has black branding and offer a top been exceptional and such quality garment alterations has been the progress of the and repairs to members of the business that this one-time public as well as local retailers, driving instructor has opened businesses with uniformed staff, a second Centre (Wilmslow) – hire and bridal shops and even which is also doing very well. schools in a clean and purpose

within days of opening its doors, customers began flocking in. He said: “ I had read about the ZipYard’s arrival in the UK and was vaguely interested, but it wasn’t until I had to get a suit altered to go to a business awards dinner that I realised just how much the local area needed a top quality alterations and repair service “I searched high and low for someone to carry out the repair and eventually ended up in the middle of an indoor market at a stall having the alterations pinned in full view of other shoppers’’ It dawned on me that there must be lots of other people out there just like me with clothes needing altered and nowhere to take them so I decided bring the ZipYard to Bedford. “I have been extremely pleased by the success of our ZipYard store so far. As with any business if you can combine excellence in service with excellence of products you @thamesvalleyexp have a winning formula and we certainly have that here at the ZipYard Bedford.” designed retail environment with on-site seamstresses and private changing rooms. Territories are being snapped up fast but there are still opportunities available for the right candidates. Contact: Emma Downes T: 01530 513307 E: info@thezipyard.co.uk W: www.thezipyard.co.uk

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ADVICE

The sales DOCTOR This month sales Doctor, Tony Morris advises a business owner whose business is stagnating because he can’t get his sales staff to explore new leads Dear Sales Doctor, My sales staff seem reluctant to cold call companies, and prefer to stick to clients they already know as they’ve more chance of making a sale. However, if they keep this up, I’ll never expand the business. How can I encourage them to expand their horizons?

T

he first thing is to get your team to understand it’s not a cold call, as this gives the impression they are choosing a random company from the phone book with no understanding of what they do, and calling them to try and make an appointment or a sale. They should only be making smart calls, which means they know exactly the type of business they wish to target, they know the key decision maker to speak with and, most importantly, they have a planned opening statement to share in the first 15 seconds to engage them, and create interest. I agree with you entirely, the second they rely on generating more sales from existing clients only is the day you’ll go backwards. The saying “don’t put all your eggs in one basket” is so true; if you wish to be a growing business, you need to proactively generate new customers. In my new book, The Perfect Sales Call, I teach people every step required to achieve that perfect

call. Your sales team are already in an advantageous position, as they have achieved success with other companies. They now need to target similar companies, and communicate how they’ve helped them to achieve results. When making a smart call to your target company, the key message is ‘don’t talk about what you do, talk about what you’ve done’. Talk results only. Once your team can communicate this message in the first 15 seconds, they’re then able to engage the contact and create interest. Most people dread making sales calls to generate new customers, as they don’t have the skills and techniques to achieve results. To overcome this, you could look at the training they are receiving when they join. If you don’t have either the time, resources, or the expertise to conduct this yourself, then why not look at booking them some sales training from a specialist, specifically aimed at making smart calls? I know an incredible

When making a smart call to your target company, the key message is ‘don’t talk about what you do, talk about what you’ve done’. Talk results only sales training company called www.salesdoctors.co.uk, whose training is 100% practical, and everything they teach can be immediately implemented to achieve great results. They’ll carry out live calls in training with your team to demonstrate exactly how it’s done, so they don’t they just ‘talk the talk’. I say this with absolute confidence, as I’m the managing director of the Sales Doctors! Contact: www.salesdoctors.co.uk

NEED A DIAGNOSIS? Send your sales problems to the editor, marked ’FAO the sales doctor’: editor@talk businessmagazine.co.uk

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ADVICE

Be beautiful on the outside Five essential tips for achieving the perfect branding, from graphic design marketplace, 99designs

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ow, more than ever, branding has become a critical part of building a successful business, and understandably so. In today’s business climate, where the internet, social media, and technology create a lot of static, it’s crucial to develop a clear voice and brand message that will cut through the noise and deliver directly to your target market. It’s important to create a well thought out brand strategy that connects your customers to your product or service on a deeper level. Branding your business can be an expensive and lengthy process - but it doesn’t have to be. Here are five essential steps to ensure your business branding success:

1 BE CLEAR AND CONSISTENT Your brand strategy should be clear and compelling to everyone who comes in contact with your product. Remember, a memorable logo design and brand identity will attract new customers and build brand loyalty. Your brand should be represented clearly and consistently in your online and offline marketing activities, as well as in your social media presence. It is imperative that your brand messaging is consistent, from letterheads to web design, to your social media covers.

134 May 2015

2 GET TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE Knowing your target market inside out will help you to fully understand how to evoke the right emotions in your brand design. This is where your brand expertise may need to come into play. Your brand identity will be based upon the concerns, needs, preferences, and lifestyle of your target audience. Therefore, find your niche and focus on it, and don’t try to be everything to everyone. Do your homework, pay attention to the data, and grow your brand accordingly. Understanding buying trends and opportunities in your industry will be invaluable to your business. Take time to analyse your target market and tailor your design, sales, and marketing activities to your audience to ensure success. Logo design, business cards and marketing materials that speak to your target audience directly will result in the greatest returns for your business.

3 DEFINE YOUR STORY A brand story is more than content and a narrative. The story goes beyond what’s written in the copy on a website, the text in a brochure, or the presentation used to pitch to investors or customers. Your story isn’t just what you tell people, it’s also what they believe about you, based on the signals your brand sends. The foundations of any compelling brand story lay firmly in your company’s mission,

vision, and values. What are the core competencies of your product or service, and how are they going to change your target market’s daily lives? Define your story and keep it relevant. Stay positive, and always make sure your product rationale highlights the benefits of your business to your new-found community.

4 BUILD YOUR BRAND Your brand is the public face of your business. Whether the primary point of contact between you and the consumer is through bricks-and-mortar locations or via the web, maintenance of a consistent brand identity is essential. Your brand’s design is arguably the most important factor of your business’ initial success as it provides a visual identity and helps to evoke a positive connection with your target consumer. With so much graphic design talent available online today, reaching your target customer with a new or updated logo has never been more achievable. Get to know your designer(s) and provide them with feedback to achieve the very best design for your business brand.

ADVICE

Your brand strategy should be clear and compelling to everyone who comes in contact with your product. Remember, a memorable logo design will attract new customers and build loyalty

5 INTEGRATION IS EVERYTHING Now that you have a logo, design, and brand identity that communicate your business’ core competencies, it is time to integrate your new look into every aspect of your business. The stronger your brand is, the greater your customer loyalty. Ensure full integration of your brand identity on every company letterhead, web page, or t-shirt in order to demand reputation, loyalty, and awareness amongst your target audience. Treat every opportunity as a golden one for promoting your brand and standing out from the crowd.

Your logo is the face of your brand and the heart of your identity. Visit us today to get started. Contact: www.99designs.co.uk

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ADVICE

Legally speaking Each month an expert from solicitor’s, Wright Hassall, takes a look at a different dilemma for small businesses from a legal perspective. This month, Andrew Harris tackles the issues when dealing with insolvent companies

Q A

A retail distributor I was dealing with has gone bust with no warning. That’s left me out of pocket. What can I do, and can I get any of my goods or money back?

Act as soon as you’re aware that your customer is insolvent - or facing insolvency. The onus is on you to provide sufficient evidence to enforce any valid claims, and not the insolvency practitioner (although you need to let them know about your claim as soon as possible). You’ll need to furnish the IP with any supporting evidence of your terms and conditions (T&Cs), such as a signed credit application form, confirmation of order forms, delivery notes, and invoices. Ask the IP to facilitate a visit to your customer’s premises as soon as possible, and identify and list all your goods stored there. Arrange for them to be stored in one identifiable location, and ask the IP’s assistant to countersign an inventory listing your goods. The IP might allow you to take possession of your goods, or may agree to pay you for them, particularly if they need to use your goods to continue trading. If you can’t resolve matters quickly, and the IP won’t allow you to remove your goods, you will need to obtain a court order so you can be compensated for your loss.

BOLT THE STABLE DOOR BEFOREHAND First, you need to ensure that you’ve contracts with all your suppliers, incorporating a provision whereby you reserve title (reservation of title clause) to all your goods. This stops title passing to the buyers on delivery, which will enable you to recover any goods still in possession of the buyer, or obtain payment for them in due course. Terms and conditions should also contain a clause granting you a licence to enter the buyer’s property so that you can identify and, if necessary, recover any goods not paid for. TERMS AND CONDITIONS Too many people rely on standard contracts drawn up by their customers, which often give scant protection if something goes wrong. It’s important to ensure that your T&Cs are incorporated into the contract for supply of goods, if you’re to stand a chance of retrieving your goods. Beware printing your T&Cs on the reverse of delivery notes, invoices etc - they might be treated as post-contractual documents and

Too many people rely on standard contracts drawn up by their customers, which often give scant protection if something goes wrong thus not be effective in enabling you to enforce your reservation of title clauses. WHAT IF YOUR DISTRIBUTOR HAS ALREADY SOLD YOUR STOCK BEFORE GOING BUST? You’ll be unlikely to get anything back unless your distributor sold on the items with an effective reservation of title clause, and had not yet received payment for the goods sold. However, you might be able to press a claim for suffering unfair prejudice, and so urgent legal advice should be sought. Contact: www.wrighthassall.co.uk Got a question you want answered by the legal team? Email editor@ talkbusinessmagazine. co.uk with the subject line “Legally speaking”

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ADVICE

When the credit manager comes calling Philip Knight, of Asset Advantage, takes a look at how to prepare and manage for that all important meeting with the credit manager

S

o your bank or finance company has received your request for a loan or some asset finance. You or your financial director have just taken a call from your account manager (or broker) telling you that somebody from their credit team wants to come and visit. Rather than panic, what can you do to prepare, and ensure you get the right result? First and foremost, you should consider this as a positive move by the finance company. At Asset

should be to establish the agenda of the meeting. On the face of it, the meeting is just about the specific finance request you’ve submitted, but it is worth checking, especially when it’s your bank, if the meeting has a broader agenda; say a review of all your facilities. You should ask if there is anything specific that the credit staff want to talk about, as they may have prepared some questions. It is preferable to get these in advance so that you can prepare a proper, written response. You may also get a feel for the type

if you can address every single question at the meeting. If you are the financial director, consider if you are in fact, the best person to present the business. Sure, attend the meeting, but perhaps the managing director or sales director is better equipped to run a presentation? I’ve attended many meetings with financial directors who are very good at talking about the accounts, but know nothing about the industry sector, or the history of the business. Next, check that you know who

,I \RX ZDQW WR JHW D FUHGLW YLVLW Rƍ WR D EDG VWDUW WKH EHVW WKLQJ WR GR LV WR PDNH \RXU VLWH GLƎFXOW WR ƏQG DQG OHDYH YLVLWRUV ZLWK QRZKHUH WR SDUN Advantage, we endeavour to get our credit managers out as much as possible, but a lot of lenders prefer to keep their credit staff away from customers. There are various reasons for this. Firstly, they want to ensure that the credit decision process is as dispassionate as possible, and untainted by, say a nice Danish pastry. Unless you are a complete sociopath, it’s actually fairly hard to decline a deal for somebody you have shared cakes with. Secondly, credit staff are a fairly expensive resource to haul around the country, and so a day trip to see you represents quite a commitment of time and money. Your first bit of preparation

138 May 2015

of questioning that you are going to face. For example, is this going to be a forensic analysis of your balance sheet, or a more general chat about your industry sector? You should try to ensure that you are able to cover all aspects of the business at the meeting. So if you are new to the business, then it makes sense to have somebody there who can give a brief outline of the history. Even if you do know it all, it can also look better if the knowledge within the business is spread about a bit. While not knowing an answer to a technical question about the accounts or your product isn’t a disaster, consider how much more impressive it is

is attending from the finance company, including their job titles and their role in the credit decision process. Then you need to let the finance company know who from your side is attending. This will help manage their expectations. If, for example, your financial director can’t attend because they’re on holiday, it’s better that the finance company know up front rather than be surprised - and disappointed when they get to the meeting. Also, if you hadn’t intended having them there, but the company does, they can tell you. Don’t assume that your broker has told the credit manager where

ADVICE

,ĆŽYH DWWHQGHG PDQ\ PHHWLQJV ZLWK ĆŹQDQFLDO GLUHFWRUV ZKR DUH YHU\ JRRG DW WDONLQJ DERXW WKH DFFRXQWV EXW NQRZ QRWKLQJ DERXW WKH LQGXVWU\ VHFWRU VR FRQVLGHU LI WKH PDQDJLQJ GLUHFWRU LV EHWWHU HTXLSSHG WR UXQ D SUHVHQWDWLRQ your offices are, or about the parking arrangements. If you’ve prepared properly and know the attendees contact details, you can send them your standard ‘how to find us’ email and pdf map (you do have those, don’t you?). Remember that credit staff aren’t out on the road much and so won’t be too familiar with the various chaotic parking arrangements at your offices. If you want to get a credit visit off to a bad start, the best thing to do is to make your site difficult to find and leave visitors with nowhere to park! In terms of information at the meeting, irrespective of the agenda presented to you, you should aim to address: a brief history of the business; an outline of your business model; a few

words on your competitors; your physical infrastructure (e.g. how many sites you operate from, staff etc.); and finally, something on current trading. Don’t make any assumptions about what your account manager or broker has told the credit manager, or what they might or might not, have read up about you. If you give a Powerpoint presentation, then either have a hard copy on hand for your visitors to take away, or email them one. Preferably do both, and do it whether they ask for it or not. Make sure that all your staff have business cards to hand out too. Given the low cost of these bits of cardboard and the short time it takes to get them printed, there really isn’t any excuse for

anybody not having them. What else to think about? If appropriate, consider a tour of your premises. If you produce marketing collateral, then hand some brochures out. If you produce a physical product and it is practical to do so, then have some in the meeting room. You need to show your visitors how great your business is. Last, but by no means least, ask what the next stage in the process is, so that you have some idea of when a decision will be made, and can chase if necessary. Oh, and I nearly forgot - great coffee never goes amiss‌ or a nice Danish pastry! Contact: www.assetadvantage.co.uk

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ADVICE

The credit card conundrum Many SMEs have found that credit cards can be a viable financing tool. David T Banfield, president of The Interface Financial Group, explores credit cards and other options for SMEs when financing their company

C Most SMEs never really progress beyond their bank, but banks are turning away their small business accounts on a regular basis

orporate credit cards have higher spending limits than personal credit cards. While this seems to be a good thing, corporate credit card users should note that some card issuers report their corporate credit activity together with their personal activity, thus distorting their personal credit picture. Another potential credit card ‘trap’ is it becomes too easy to use the card and run up debt in the company. If the business is growing rapidly, there’s usually little opportunity to pay down credit card debt as the ongoing growth requires more working capital to fuel growth. The good news is that there are other options, such as purchase order finance facilities, factoring arrangements, equity investors, equipment financing, asset-based lending, invoice discounting, government assistance programs, and many more. However, most SMEs never really progress beyond their bank, but banks are turning away their small business accounts on a regular basis, and enterprising entrepreneurs who have to look beyond the conventional options will find they’ll also often come up empty handed. A new business with a limited track record and few assets to pledge will have a difficult time attracting capital. Banks tend to be primarily equity lenders - their interest is in the strength of the business, what profits and equity have been built up over the years.

Other groups of lenders tend be more concerned with specific assets and offer financing known as asset-based lending. Assets that might be used could range from land and buildings to plant and machinery; from accounts receivable to future orders. So, few of these options fit the new and small business owner’s need. The fact that the business is fairly new, though healthy and expanding, will highlight that they haven’t acquired a substantial asset base, which in turn translates into a lack of a collateral base for borrowing purposes. Assets that virtually all companies will have are accounts receivable. Goods have been sold or services rendered, invoices have been created, and the supplier of those goods or services is now waiting to be paid. Because the standard terms of trade give most buyers at least thirty days to pay, it automatically places a financing burden on the supplier of product. The more business you do, the greater your accounts receivable, and the greater the working capital needed to finance that growth. How then can accounts receivable be used to finance the growth of the company? Companies that have substantial accounts receivable can avail themselves of invoice discounting, also known as spot factoring. As with most of the financing options mentioned, there’s always an entry

level requirement, usually geared to longevity or size. Fortunately, some providers will offer services specifically tailored to smaller companies. These finance providers are often found in the invoice discounting/spot factoring marketplace. The company buys single invoices or groups of invoices from the supplier company at a small discount, and then holds them to maturity. This puts instant cash into the hands of the small business; cash that can be used to create even more sales. Growth will always demand more capital - the successful entrepreneur is the one who finds that all-important cash without going into debt, or being constrained with burdensome service contracts. Invoice discounting may be the winner over credit cards. Contact: www.interfacefinancial.com

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ADVICE

Here at Business Hands, we believe that high quality marketing services should not just be the preserve of larger organisations with big budgets. We’re committed to working exclusively with small and mid-sized organisations, providing affordable, fixed price, monthly packages to help your business raise its game and stay ahead of the competition. T: 0208 458 4788 E: info@businesshands.co.uk

Clothes2order.com is a leading online supplier of printed and embroidered clothing offering quality, flexibility and speed since 2002 T: 08456 522 655 W: www.clothes2order.com

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Building Fabulous Business Relationships Learn techniques to develop meaningful partnerships with your clients Book now at http://www.businesshelpforyou.co.uk/ fabulouslifeladder.php T: 020 7863 7977 E: support@businesshelpforyou.co.uk W: www.businesshelpforyou.co.uk

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Solicitors for you, your business and your family with our offices on Fleet Street plus locations around Essex. Working with an innovative, flexible approach, we always put your business first. T: 0845 543 5700 E: Info@fjg.co.uk W: www.fjg.co.uk

Need more sales? Through expertly managed Pay per Click and digital marketing services we capture demand and drive profitable growth. We’re a trusted Google Partner with a pedigree for success. T: 0333 344 7771 E: action@midasclick.co.uk W: www.midasclick.co.uk

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Enghouse Interactive develops and supplies the widest range of customer contact solutions on the market. Through our extensive network of reseller partners, we are helping thousands of organisations of all sizes, industries and complexity across the world to improve their service, productivity and operational efficiency. T: 0118 943 9200 W: www.enghouseinteractive.co.uk

FranchiseSales.com is a directory of over 1,000 franchises, containing everything need to get into business through investing in a franchise. W: www.franchisesales.com

A leader in innovation, esl works with many of the best known UK companies, providing more than just a payroll service. Our expertise is in understanding our clients’ objectives and providing sustainable processes through our Payroll and HR solutions. T: 01628 526304 E: marketing@employerservices.co.uk W: www.employerservices.co.uk

ADVICE

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With some 50 Centre Owners Kall Kwik is the UK’s leading business print and design franchise and has been delivering business services on the high street since 1979. Now through the introduction of a new high street concept with multiple income streams we are looking to double the estate over the next few years. T: 01530 513300 E: edownes@kallkwik.co.uk W: www.kallkwik.co.uk

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Basepoint has 30 centres offering high quality workspaces with flexible terms, meeting rooms, virtual office space, free membership and more. T: 01753 853515 E: hq@basepoint.co.uk W: www.basepoint.co.uk f: facebook.com/basepointbusinesscentres t: twitter.com/@Basepoint_Cntrs

Through working in partnership with you, and by understanding your business and providing bespoke support, we add value and provide commercial HR solutions that contribute to your bottom-line. T: 07973 958149 or 01604 688757 W: www.hrbespokesolutions.co.uk E: phil@hrbespokesolutions.co.uk

VMhosts VMware Cloud Iaas Platform. Multiple UK based Data Centre locations powered by Flexiant T: 020 3397 1233 W: www.vmhosts.co.uk

In business since 1979 supplying branded merchandise to businesses. Our 50 franchisees provide everything from personalised badges to signage; Staff awards to business gifts and promotional products to a wide range of leisure clothing and work wear. T: 01530 513300 E: edownes@recognition-express.com W: www.recognition-express.com

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ComputerXplorers is the leading provider of quality technology education for children from the ages of 3 to 13.The clubs and classes we deliver are engaging, educational and fun, and are run in a variety of settings, such as after school clubs, pre-school and nurseries, summer camps and in-curriculum time classes. T: 01530 513300 E: edownes@recognition-express.com W: www. computerxplorers.co.uk

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The ZipYard is the UK’s most successful and fastest growing garment alteration franchise in the UK. Established in Ireland since 2005 ZipYard Centres are now springing up on High Streets across the UK. T: 01530 513300 E: edownes@recognition-express.com W: www.thezipyard.com

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IF VITAMIN WERE AN ACTOR IT WOULD BE SHIA LABEOUF WHEN HE LOST HIS S**T

A PROGRESSIVE DIGITAL AGENCY

WE DO: WEBSITES | APPS | SOFTWARE AND SEXY DANCING

OPINION

Hot topics

? Q

Is PDA (a Public Display of Affection) ever acceptable in the workplace?

THE NUMBERS GAME HERE’S WHAT THE REST OF YOU THOUGHT:

YES

29% NO

71%

Each month we ask a selection of business leaders for their views on an aspect of business. This month, we’re discussing the issue of showing love in the office

LINDA JODRELL, HR DIRECTOR AT CITATION No. If there is a personal relationship there it can make others feel uncomfortable and they will always - rightly or wrongly assume there is favouritism. Where there isn’t a relationship there, the receiver could reciprocate the PDA with a public display of annoyance by submitting a harassment claim. You can show you care and spread the love by just being nice (but not creepy) to all colleagues without touching them. LYNDON WOOD, CEO OF WWW.CONSTRUCTAQUOTE. COM AND HOST OF TV SHOW ‘FORTUNE HUNTER’ When you run a business with a substantial amount of employees, it is inevitable that somewhere along the line you will encounter romantic partnerships forming within the office environment. Personally I see no problem with allowing these relationships to continue while both individuals work together, so long as they keep any personal issues at the door. A peck on the lips or cheek is not a problem but a big groping session in the middle of the workplace should really be left for the bedroom. That being said, I have seen many a HR dispute and internal complications arise out of a work relationship that’s gone kaput, leaving fellow co-workers in extremely awkward situations that can jeopardise their job satisfaction and as a business lose good people. Bring the love and care! ALISON PEASGOOD, CO-DIRECTOR OF OMS Some organisations frown upon personal relationships between co-workers, especially where relationships cross hierarchical boundaries or where there might be sensitive security issues, but as long as it does not impact on the work, it should be tolerated. Of course, there are many successful husband and wife teams running companies where the relationship strengthens the business partnership because both parties share the same goals. Our business, OMS, is an example of that. Just as it is inappropriate to have a ‘domestic’ at work, public displays of affection are not suitable behaviour in the workplaces, and should be discouraged. It can be unsettling or annoying for co-workers, and it is unprofessional. SARA TEIGER, FREELANCE PR No it’s not ever acceptable. I’ve had several workplace relationships and we always did the decent thing and sneaked off somewhere private to get it on!

WHAT DO YOU THINK? TELL US YOUR THOUGHTS ON TWITTER @TALKBUSINESSMAG *Talk Business magazine and its staff are in no way linked to, condone, or agree with, any opinions expressed in this article. Opinions are solely those of the named individuals.

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OPINION

Trash talk Each month we ask a different business man or woman the everyday phrases that ‘drive them up the wall’ in the business world, and why

I don’t see why this has become a staple buzzword, as it is often used in conjunction with dehumanising terms like ‘leveraging resources’ MY MOST HATED BUSINESS JARGON

Oren Greenberg Kurve

LEVERAGE: A way of saying that you can use something to create a better situation for yourself or your business. I don’t see why this has become a staple buzzword, as it is often used in conjunction with dehumanising terms like ‘leveraging resources’; which equates to asking people to do things. It seems like a very mercenary term to me, as it implies the end result is the goal above all others.

Job Title: Managing director The business: Oren founded Kurve in 2012, and since then has had year-on-year successes as a digital marketing company based in east London. Kurve has worked with brands, big and small, during the last few years, including Wonga, Madison Hill, Nutmeg, and Everline. It produces creative content for clients, and generates results through original ideas and data driven processes. Contact: www.kurve.co.uk

GAME CHANGING: This is a way of saying that something is completely new and will be drastically different to how it was done before. Needless to say, the chances of this being true are almost zero, so all this phrase does is offer meaningless hyperbole that actually makes people less excited about the project. EXIT STRATEGY: A fancy way of saying what you should do if things go wrong. Not only is this term inherently negative, because it refers to pulling out of a project, but it also seems very unnecessary. I associate this with people who have watched too many movies, and equate pulling the plug on a project to evacuating a war zone. DUCKS IN A ROW: A bizarre phrase that references getting organised and coming up with an effective plan. Not only is this phrase completely unnecessary, it actually takes longer to say than ‘make a plan’, or ‘get organised’. It also has the added benefit of confusing people who have never heard the phrase before. I would definitely avoid it at all costs. WANT THE CHANCE TO GET YOUR FRUSTRATIONS OUT?

Tell us the insane phrases that wind you up, and you could feature here - simply email editor@talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk with the subject line ‘trash talk’.

146 May 2015

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