March 4, 2010
Filed under: Business Advice, Business Tools, Marketing, Small business — admin @ 11:27 am
Daryl Willcox Publishing, has released a useful free guide to help small businesses and startups with DIY marketing and PR.
The guide is aimed at businesses who promote themselves in the press. It defines why PR is beneficial, provides a step by step ‘how to’ guide to writing a press release and details how small businesses should go about contacting members of the media with their news.
Additionally, the guide describes how companies can apply social media strategies and use other PR tools such as blogging to connect with customers. It also shows how to use audio and visual formats to present messages in different ways.
The free PR for Small Businesses Guide is available here.
February 5, 2010
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 4:54 am
Suspending VAT increases and freezing NICS (National Insurance Contributors) may be the best way for the Government to help small firms advance out from under the recession according to the Federation of Small Business’ (FSB) 2010 Manifesto.
The launch of the Manifesto is set to correlate with the general election and includes many recommendations which the FSB believes will help small firms get better access to finance, set up new business, and create more jobs.
One of the vital proposals found within the Manifesto is a major overhaul of the current tax regime for payrolls that includes offering a tax rebate for firms that hire new staff members over the coming two years and a freeze on NICS.
A spokesperson for the FSB said that two areas that small firms need to concentrate on are access to finance and job creation opportunities. The spokesperson continued to say that small businesses hold the answer to ending the rising numbers of unemployment but NICS is a detriment that stops small firms from hiring more employers.
Additionally, the FSB also asked that finance be opened up to small firms from other atypical funding sources such as banks run by local councils. The need for such an institution is high according to the FSB since too many SMEs are still being refused proper funding and the banking sector needs more competition.
In response to the proposals, an official from the BIS (Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills) stated that the Government is aware of the importance of SMEs in economic recovery and that they will continue to support the small business sector.
January 18, 2010
Filed under: Business Advice, Small business — admin @ 6:25 pm
New rules intended to simplify electricity and gas contracts for businesses have created confusion and a ‘spaghetti junction of red tape’, according to business price comparison service Make It Cheaper.
From today (18.1.10) – following a two year investigation by Ofgem – two million businesses should be benefitting from greater consumer protection in relation to their electricity and gas contracts. However not only does each supplier have a different ‘interpretation’ of the new rules but they only have to apply them to business energy contracts entered into from today. Whilst one of the Big 6 suppliers has indicated that it will apply the rules retrospectively on all existing contracts, this still, leaves the vast majority of business energy customers at the mercy of their existing terms and conditions.
Business energy suppliers each have different T&Cs that can run to over 10,000 words in length and only allow customers to serve notice in narrow renewal windows that quietly open and close with months left to run on the contract. Anyone missing the renewal window is automatically denied the right to switch to the cheapest electricity supplier for at least another year. Our research shows that this ‘rollover’ technique catches out over 80% of businesses and is commonly used by energy suppliers to lock customers into much higher rates than those available to new customers/switchers.
A further area of confusion is the size of business to which the new rules are restricted, should they wish to compare electricity prices. Ofgem uses the description ‘microbusiness’ but then offers several definitions. These include: businesses employing fewer than ten people, with an annual turnover of less than 2 million euros, or energy use of less than 200,000 kWh of gas a year or 55,000 kWh of electricity a year. Again, some suppliers are rigidly applying these definitions whilst others will consider SMEs of all shapes and sizes as qualifying for the new rules.
Jonathan Elliott, managing director of Make It Cheaper, commented: “As a price comparison and switching service specifically for businesses, it is our job to understand the market inside out and make sure that our customers are eligible for the prices we quote from the 11,000 tariffs we have in our system. We are getting very mixed responses from suppliers, many of whom are still trying to fathom out the new rules themselves. It would be so much simpler if, rather than just guidelines, these new rules were set out more clearly and more strictly imposed.”
Business electricity prices currently range threefold from around 7p/kWh to 21p/kWh and 2p/kWh to 6p/kWh for business gas prices but anyone looking to stay on the lowest prices has to be prepared to switch regularly. For a free and independent downloadable guide to finding the cheapest electricity suplpiers for your business see http://www.makeitcheaper.com/media/13832212/mic-printable-gu… – or register for Make It Cheaper’s ‘Business Energy Contract Checking Service’ by calling 0800 970 0077. One quick phone call is all it takes to take advantage of this free, no-obligation service, which will tell you earliest switching dates and the cheapest gas prices or cheapest electricity prices available.
January 15, 2010
Filed under: Business Advice, IT, Small business — admin @ 1:29 pm
Over half (58%) of senior decision makers in small businesses in Britain admit their business suffered as a result of the winter weather last week, despite 78% saying they thought their company was prepared to cope with the snow chaos, according to a survey of over 500 senior decision makers in small businesses, commissioned by Citrix GoToMyPC and carried out by YouGov.
Some small businesses did take steps to combat the weather conditions and ensure business as usual though, by enabling more staff to work from home (25%) and holding more online meetings (10%). The research does suggest however some small businesses could have done more to prepare for the unexpected, as only 42% said they have a business continuity plan in place.
The impact on small businesses has been widespread, with businesses across Britain reporting problems. A quarter of small businesses decision makers say some staff were late into work, while 26% reported that some staff couldn’t make it into the workplace at all. In addition, 21% found that key suppliers and contacts were not available and 26% had to cancel or postpone business meetings.
However, small businesses also suffered as a result of unexpected disruption caused by widespread school closures and a lack of road salt, with the Federation of Small Business (FSB) this week claiming the government could have helped by being better prepared for the conditions. As many as 74% of British workers were affected by last week’s winter conditions, with 8% forced to stay home due to school closures and 12% not able to work at all, according to a related GoToMyPC study of more than 2,000 adults. When asked about the most annoying aspects of the winter weather, a massive 71% voiced the lack of grit on roads as by far the biggest issue.
For the week beginning 4th January 2009, almost a quarter (24%) of British workers claimed they lost more than five working hours, with the survey showing that as much as 124 million working hours could have been lost last week alone as a result of the weather. This equals £1.35bn in lost productivity.
Andrew Millard, Director of eCommerce, EMEA for Citrix Online’s GoToMyPC, said: “The weather in the first week of 2010 has had a catastrophic effect on UK business, with the FSB estimating the cost to the UK economy to be at least £600m a day. Many businesses thought they were sufficiently prepared to handle the snow, but the sheer scale of the disruption and a lack of planning from the government has taken its toll. With more snow on the way, now is the time to revisit or put in place business continuity plans, but it remains to be seen whether the government will be able to act to protect smaller businesses should the bad weather continue.”
Top Tips
Andrew Millard of Citrix GoToMyPC sets out his top five tips for businesses to stand them in good stead for handling the unexpected:
1. Communicate clearly in advance – with your workers so that they know what they need to do if they can’t get into the office.
2. Equip employees with remote access and Web conferencing technology – which will help them to remain productive even if they can’t get into the office.
3. Communicate with your customers – Phone redirects and remote access software will allow you to work productively away from the office. But if clients or customers are likely to be affected, let them know as early as possible and keep communication channels open.
4. Consider alternatives – Travel to the office or to client meetings may be impossible, but instead of cancelling, conduct the meetings online instead.
5. Put in place a business continuity leader – if the unexpected happens, it’s wise to have one person in your organisation responsible for coordinating efforts and informing all staff of the potential impacts and company policies.
Citrix Online is offering businesses and individuals a 30-day free trial for GoToMyPC, which enables fast, easy and secure access to a desktop from any remote location: www.gotomypc.co.uk ; and a 30-day trial for GoToMeeting, to host online meetings anywhere, anytime: www.gotomeeting.co.uk . Just visit the websites and enter SNOW in the promo code option.
January 14, 2010
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 6:53 am
According to a leading employer’s organization in Britain, it will take a long time for British manufacturers to recover with a silent and painfully slow comeback expected to begin this year.
The EFF which includes members of technology, engineering, and manufacturing companies predicts that there will only be about a 1.2% growth this year among its members even though the pound has fallen slightly which should be an advantage.
Additionally, the EFF expects to see Britain’s GDP increase by .9% due to the effects of the global slowdown which will hinder British companies from full recovery.
The chief economist of the EFF, Lee Hopley, stated that while some companies will be able to take relief from the fact that the worst has passed other companies will start to feel the chill.
The news of the grim year came at the same time government figures were released that show industrial output is weak. In November manufacturing stats showed a decline of about 5% compared with a year ago in November of 2008. The largest fall was reflected in machinery and equipment which saw a loss of about 17%.
Economist at Barclays Capital, Simon Hayes, stated that the high cost of trying to keep jobs in the face of the economic downturn may be one reason why exporters are feeling pressure which in turn has reduced the profitability of the companies.
Hayes continued to say that companies may have held onto their employees due to the belief that demand will rise again.
January 5, 2010
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 6:55 am
Leaders of many of Britain’s small companies have stated that the national insurance rate increase attacks jobs and will hinder the growth rate of Britain as it comes out of the recession.
The FSB or Federation of Small Businesses stated that Chancellor Alistair Darling has effectively taken away with the same hand he gave out after he deferred a one pence increase on SMEs corporate tax, but then hiked the contributions of small businesses to national insurance by about half a percent.
The move to defer the corporation tax will help out about 850,000 SMEs, but the move to increase national insurance will hurt companies and increase the rate of unemployment since companies will not be able to afford new or possibly current employees.
Chairman of the FSB, John Wright, stated that the new tax will hurt the UK’s employment rate and that since the unemployment is on the rise it is not excusable for the government to use national insurance tax hikes as a way to get revenue. Instead, Wright stated that SMEs should have been rewarded for hiring new employees to encourage job creation.
The new point hike is on top of a previous rate increase from 2008 that affects all SMEs, their staff, and those who are self employed in Britain. Workers who earn less than twenty thousand pounds a year will be exempt from the tax hike however.
Darling also announced in his pre-Budget report that the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme will be offered for another year.
January 2, 2010
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 5:42 am
Chairman of the FSB (Federation of Small Businesses), John Wright, said that small firms will continue to need aid in the coming year as they launch their recovery plans which will be dependent largely on help from banks.
Wright stated that Britain’s 5m SMEs will have a large role in bringing the UK out of the recession but that they need help in order to get there. Among the aid they will need from the Government, according to the chairman, are measures that will make it easier to hire employees and set up businesses.
He suggested that every jobcentre should have a business manager and systems should be enacted that would help place graduates with small businesses that need qualified employees.
In his New Year message Wright also said that banks need to be more competitive in offering finance options to small businesses. He stated that with the proper confidence and aid the SMEs will in return help provide jobs to those in need which will help boost recovery efforts throughout the UK.
A spokesman for the Department of Business stated that small business will help recovery and the Government has pledged to help the sector out which is why they lengthened the Enterprise Finance Guarantee for another year so that banks will continue to lend to smaller businesses.
Additionally the spokesman said that they are working with the FSB to pair 10,000 graduates with internships at SMEs.
December 10, 2009
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 2:35 am
VAT registered SMEs throughout the UK are missing out on a quarter of VAT reclaims due to their messy business practices, according to fuelGenie research which is the first fuel card that can be used at many supermarket forecourts.
Warwick Business School professor Stephen Ropper of the Centre for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises stated that SMEs are missing their reclaims of about £1.2b in VAT, because their records are not properly kept.
fuelGenie’s Sarah Keane stated that petrol is the largest expense that SME employees can claim but around one out of every four SMEs reports their fuel use without a receipt to show for it. She continued to state that SME owners need to fix their attitudes because they are risking the loss of major cash returns at a time when businesses do not have any profit to spare.
The calculations from fuelGenie show that the average VAT business that has at least five cars could get back about £1000 of petrol each year but are missing out on about £250 of savings due to their lousy record keeping.
By region, Scotland SME employees had the highest incidence rate of lost receipts with around 40% of employers never submitting a receipt. The South West and South East followed closely behind with 32% and 31.8 respectively.
The top SMEs were found in Northern Ireland where an impressive 100% of all VAT SME’s submitted a receipt.
December 5, 2009
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 7:51 am
When it comes to distribution the SME sector is still the European golden child based on new figures that were released from the GTDC (Global Technology Distribution Council).
Although the GTDC reported that revenue levels are low when compared to the same time periods last year in both Europe and the USA, members of the organization stated that some specific industries are faring better.
The SME market in particular has seen improvement in just the last few weeks and has started to stabilize again when its performance is compared to the larger business market, which is taking more time to recover.
The sales reported by GDTC were tracked by several different firms including Context SalesWatch in Europe and by NPD Group’s Distributor Track in the United States.
Both of these tracking centres showed that in the third quarter of 2009 the sales improved by a two percent increase in Europe and by about 11% in the US. This is the first time that improvement has been seen two Q’s in a row since the close of 2008.
Chief executive of GTDC, Tim Curran, stated that although it is too early to say that businesses are out of danger due to the fact that it will take some time for the tech industry to recover, the figures are encouraging particularly in the regions of distribution and the SME market.
The report also showed that certain technology industries are helping to drive recovery including cloud computing, mobile solutions, storage, wireless networking, PoS, and security.
December 4, 2009
Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 5:17 am
RBS and NatWest are taking new measures to increase the support they are able to offer their million customers by introducing a new customer charter for SMEs.
The new charter will not only offer support to businesses, but also will help extend the initiatives that are available now to help customers grow their businesses as well as sustain them.
Chairman of the Small Business department Peter Ibbetson said that over the past year they have been hard at work listening to what customers want and are going through, so that they could develop initiatives that will make an impact and help guide customers through the recession.
The new charters are created to be aligned with customer needs and as part of a wider commitment they hope to increase their transparency and openness.
To fulfil these goals key industry bodies and customers will be consulted on within the charter and any issues that come up along the way will be immediately addressed. The progress of each of these commitments will be kept track of regularly.
Over the past twelve months RBS and NatWest have already implemented several new initiatives that have successfully helped businesses trade even in the midst of the recession’s fallout.
They also proved their commitment during the first few months of the credit crisis when they were the first companies to offer both a price promise and overdraft protection to abet the fears of businesses that their credit would be affected.
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