Local Enterprise Partnerships: New world, same old confusion?</h1> <article> <h1>Local Enterprise Partnerships: New world, same old confusion?</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 16:49:11 +0100</p> <p>Next Monday, 6 September, is a big day for small businesses in England. No, it's not because home-based entrepreneurs can finally get some work done as their kids go back to school but because it's the deadline for submissions from councils for the creation of the government's new Local Enterprise Partnerships.</p> <p>LEPs are the coalition's replacement for the much derided Regional Development Agencies and ministers promise they will be much cheaper to run and will have greater involvement from local authorities on the ground and businesses themselves in the form of groups like chambers of commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses. </p> <p>The move is a welcome one as for two long small business owners seeking support and guidance have been confused by a myriad of schemes and initiatives run by all sorts of groups and associations. Then of course there is the millions of pounds of government money which has been used to fund the RDAs which critics say has generated little value for money with the fact that only nine regional bodies exist means that some areas have lacked support.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/dan-martin/dan-martin-editor039s-blog/local-enterprise-partnerships-new-world-same-old-confusi">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Company Name</h1> <p>Ashley Williams — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:30:59 +0100</p> <p>Could anyone advise me please.</p> <p>I have noticed that a number of sole traders operate under their own name, but with Associates added - usually if they are active in a professional/advisory capacity.</p> <p>If I wanted to trade under the name Ashley Williams Associates would I need to register this or would it constitute a personal name used for trade that does not require such regulation?</p> <p>Thank You.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Setting Goals for Success</h1> <p>PowerHour — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 13:57:28 +0100</p> <p> I've just finished an enforced break (well, reduced workload) thanks to the school holidays, and I'm keen to get stuck back in. Any small business owner would feel the same - we are NOT a work-shy crowd by any stretch of the imagination.</p> <p>But, although I'm itching to back into the thick of it, I've made a decision to suspend my full-blown return to work for a (short) period of reflection and actual goal setting. All the business gurus tell us to have clear goals, and indeed you probably set one when you started business. But what happens when your business is up and running? Are you too busy dealing with day-to-day decisions and and actually DOING business? When was the last time you reviewed your goals? Are you still on course? Are they still relevant? Do you need new ones?</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/powerhour/get-power-your-hour/setting-goals-success">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Observational marketing: What business owners can learn from Peter Kay</h1> <p>Gina Dyer — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:51:05 +0100</p> <p><em>Good marketing isn’t about spending huge amounts of money on advertising – it’s about recognising the great ideas all around you, explains Geoff Ramm, an observational marketing specialist and speaker at this year’s <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sageworld2010.co.uk/"><strong>Sage World</strong></a> small business conference. </em></p> <p>Geoff has been described as the 'Peter Kay of marketing' – but what do comedians and marketers have in common? Quite a lot, according to Geoff. Just as the TV funnyman draws inspiration from his surroundings to create their material and entertain the crowds, business owners should look to their every day experiences to find the hook that will get their business talked about and customers through the door, says Geoff. </p> <p><strong>Q: What is observational marketing?</strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/marketing-pr/observational-marketing-what-business-owners-can-learn-peter-kay/30409">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Free pitching masterclass at Peter Jones' Enterprise Academy: Win a ticket worth £375 to a boot camp with ex-Dragon Doug Richard</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 16:23:35 +0100</p> <p><em><strong>BusinessZone.co.uk </strong></em><em><strong>and </strong></em><a target="_blank" style="color: rgb(11, 98, 161); text-decoration: none; " href="http://www.thebusinessfactory.co.uk/pitch-2010"><em><strong>The Pitch 2010</strong></em></a><strong> </strong><em><strong>is giving you the chance to pitch your business to successful entrepreneurs Wilfred Emmanuel Jones, the man behind The Black Farmer food brand and social entrepreneur Karen Darby as well as a real life investor in Sheffield at 3pm on 9 September. </strong></em></p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/business-trends/free-event-pitch-your-business-black-farmer/30274">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Start-ups in most deprived areas exempt from deprivation-fighting NIC scheme</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:44:25 +0100</p> <p><em>New companies in many of the UK's most deprived areas will not benefit from the government's National Insurance exemption scheme which is aimed at helping such businesses, accountants have claimed.</em></p> <p>Announced <a target="_blank" href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/staff/emergency-budget-2010-chancellor-confirms-national-insurance-exemption-start-ups/28766"><strong>during the Emergency Budge</strong>t</a>, new businesses set up between June 22 2010 and September 5 2013 outside Greater London, the South East and Eastern England will qualify for the scheme which allows them to not pay National Insurance for their first 10 employees hired during the first 12 months of business.</p> <p>But according to UHY Hacker Young, many of the most deprived local authorities are actually located within Greater London, the South East and the East meaning that the initiative will fail to provide support to areas that need it the most.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/business-trends/start-ups-deprived-areas-exempt-deprivation-fighting-nic-scheme/30380">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>How to boost referrals and increase your business sales</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:45:54 +0100</p> <p><i>Marcus Cauchi uncovers how businesses can generate faster sales by boosting the number and quality of their referrals. </i></p> <p>Systematic referral marketing works, networking doesn’t. If referrals are always a surprise instead of strategic and planned, chances are your networking is more akin to a social life than a business generation activity.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/sales/how-boost-referrals-and-drive-your-business-sales/30259">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Social media etiquette: The dos and don'ts</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:38:50 +0100</p> <div style="color: rgb(73, 73, 73); font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; "><em>Simon Quance examines how businesses should and shouldn't behave on social media platforms with specific advice for using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.</em></div> <div style="color: rgb(73, 73, 73); font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; "> </div> <div style="color: rgb(73, 73, 73); font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; "> With the advent of consumer websites, watchdog organisations and the ongoing proliferation of new social media using more and more mobile and connected technology, customers are beginning to recognise that they wield more power over brands and organisations than ever before. They increasingly have the power to make their voice heard; they can make waves and, most importantly, they can play their part in making or breaking a brand through word of mouth.</div> <div style="color: rgb(73, 73, 73); font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; "> </div> <div style="color: rgb(73, 73, 73); font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; ">With their reputations at stake, businesses need to raise their game in terms of how they interact with consumers.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/marketing-pr/social-media-etiquette-dos-and-dont/29932">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Steely determination: Sheffield celebrates entrepreneurship - big style!</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:41:34 +0100</p> <p>If you've been to the Edinburgh festival, you'll know just how huge a buzz it creates around the Scottish capital. From the smallest high street shop to the largest auditorium, the whole city is taken over by a fabulous atmosphere of mirth and merriment as Edinburgh's population doubles in size from 500,000 to one million every August.</p> <p>It's with that spirit in mind that <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.madefestival.com">MADE: The Entrepreneur Festival</a></strong> has been created. Taking place in venues all around Sheffield from 8-11 September, the Yorkshire city will celebrate all that's good about enterprise and the entrepreneurs behind it. A little bit of the Edinburgh festival itself will even be in town as Sunday Times enterprise editor Rachel Bridge stages her one-woman show 'How to Make a Million Before Lunch' which she performed in Scotland this year. </p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/dan-martin/dan-martin-editor039s-blog/steely-determination-sheffield-celebrates-entrepreneursh">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Lessons in business risk from the poker table</h1> <p>Gina Dyer — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:25:49 +0100</p> <p><em>Caspar Berry, a former professional poker player and speaker at this year’s <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sageworld2010.co.uk/"><strong>Sage World</strong></a> small business conference, explains how entrepreneurs can harness poker techniques to help them make more effective business decisions.</em></p> <p>As a former professional poker player and having founded his own company, Twenty First Century Media, in 2002 (which he subsequently sold to Bob Geldof’s Ten Alps company), Caspar Berry knows a thing or two about taking calculated risks. Today, he spends his working life teaching business owners to embrace risk taking as part of their long-term strategy and imparts the wisdom he picked up in the casinos of Las Vegas about how to ensure you always play your best hand when it comes to running your business.</p> <p><strong>Q: What did poker teach you about running a successful business?</strong><br /><strong>Caspar:</strong> What sits at the heart of poker – and of business – is decision making. Poker is about how to embrace calculated risk and how to differentiate this from a gamble.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/business-trends/lessons-business-risk-poker-table/30361">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Time Management: 3 tips on managing your time to be more successful</h1> <p>adrianswinscoe — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:59:42 +0100</p> <p>One of the things that I often hear when speaking at events, working with clients or out networking with business colleagues is…..</p> <p>‘That’s all well and good, Adrian, but where am I going to find the time to do all that?”</p> <p>People often complain that they do not have enough time. But the fact of the matter is that they have the same amount of time as anyone else, whether rich or poor, successful or waiting to be found. It’s what you do with it that matters not how much you have.</p> <p>Being a master of your time is one of the greatest skills that you can develop and one of the most powerful things that you can teach your team to help them improve their performance and productivity.</p> <p>Here’s a set of 3 big tips from some of the biggest known names in the time management, peak performance and productivity industry that have helped me along the way. I hope they help you.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/adrianswinscoe/adrian-ideas-business-growth/time-management-3-tips-managing-your-time-be-more-">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Hey Tweeters - Are You Tracking Keywords?</h1> <p>michellecarvillcreative — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 08:26:33 +0100</p> <p> Tweeters are you tracking your keywords? <p>So, you've jumped on the social media bandwagon and set up a Twitter account, perhaps have a Facebook page and are active on Linked-In... however, are you really ‘getting’ social media?</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/michellecarvillcreative/carvill-marketing/hey-tweeters-are-you-tracking-keywords">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Have you the patience of a saint?</h1> <p>hj_townsend — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:25:43 +0100</p> <p> I recently blogged about a characteristic, and how to build it, that all successful entrepreneurs must have bucket loads of – resilience. It occurred to me today, that another characteristic that all successful entrepreneurs must gain quickly is patience. Let’s face it the opposite of patience is ‘hasty’ and ‘impetuous’ some character traits more normally associated with entrepreneurs. Let me let you into a little secret.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/hjtownsend/thoughts-and-ideas-efficiency-coach/have-you-patience-saint">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Starting a business: The key questions you need to answer</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 09:21:19 +0100</p> <p><em>Business coach Julia McDaid poses some fundamental questions for those who want to start their own business. </em></p> <p>When someone decides to set up and run their own business, what does it really mean to them? There's a lot to think about: the impact on lifestyle, the time devoted to it and what they want to achieve.</p> <p>Do entrepreneurs really know? I hear from quite a few people who have decided to run their own business or work from home but don't actually know what business they want to be in. If this is you don't worry – you're not alone. Some 80% of new businesses don't survive. So how to you give yourself the best chance? In the box below are some of the key questions you need to ask to clarify your objectives and get you started. Once you know what you want to do and why, you've got a better chance of getting it right.</p> <div class="greyBoxRight"> <p><strong>Starting out: Key questions</strong><br /><strong><br /></strong><strong>● </strong>What do you enjoy doing?</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/business-trends/starting-business-key-questions-you-need-answer/30074">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>No easy ride: Why PR takes time, commitment and a lot of hard work</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 09:11:50 +0100</p> <p><em>Many entrepreneurs believe getting their business covered by the media is the easy solution to all their problems but in reality it takes time, commitment and a lot of hard work. PR agency director Jenna Gould examines the realities behind running successful PR campaigns.</em><br /><b><br /></b> I have lost count of the amount of times I've had clients come to me and say things like, ‘I want to try PR for a month and gauge the results to see if I'm getting the right ROI on it’, or ‘I've not got the budget but the money I'll get from speaker gigs generated by the PR you do for me will more than cover the costs of the publicity’. But when it happens that their return on investment figures don't stack up after just four weeks or they haven't bagged a £3,000 speaking gig in the first three months, is it really because the PR isn't working or the supplier isn't up to scratch?</p> <p> <b>Reality check</b> </p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/marketing-pr/no-easy-ride-why-pr-takes-time-commitment-and-lot-hard-work/30194">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Audio: How to dominate your market and expand overseas</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 21:42:12 +0100</p> <p><em>In an exclusive audio podcast, two experts explain how entrepreneurs can dominate their market and use international trade to drive business growth.</em></p> <p>According to the new research by the European Business Awards, four out of five European SMEs are positive about future growth with half forecasting minimum expansion of 10% by the end of 2011. </p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/finances/audio-how-dominate-your-market-and-expand-overseas/30286">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Getting the Formula for Success</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:58:41 +0100</p> <p>I am a massive fan of motorsport, especially F1 which is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of motor racing. For me it’s the combination of individual skill, team dynamics and technology that make these supercharged go-karts so exciting.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/benjamin-dyer/rumblings-world-it-and-e-commerce/getting-formula-success">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Retail sales are up, but still disappoint</h1> <p>Robert Viney — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 13:52:39 +0100</p> <p><strong>Retail sales are up, but still disappoint</strong></p> <p>The CBI reports that retail sales for August are the best for three years since April 2007. This follows good results for July, too.</p> <p>But the retail industry was expecting more, and for this reason, the results disappoints.</p> <p>It is a view that many in the retail industry are being too optimistic and being involved in retail, ourselves, take the view that growth is gradual and really the best that can be expected, in the light of the continuing slump and all the talk of austerity.</p> <p>Also, in our view, the recent good weather has a had a positive effect on sales and has possibly nullified some of the negatives, that are around at the moment. As we go into the winter, adverse weather could affect sales, as they did last January.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/robert-viney/are-you-ready-dip/retail-sales-are-still-disappoint">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Is Sir Philip Green the ‘Topman’ for the job?</h1> <p>Dan Martin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:35:35 +0100</p> <p><em>Does the government really need another ‘celebrity’ telling it how to spend our tax money?</em></p> <p>Sir Philip Green has been announced as the latest ‘celebrity’ entrepreneur to join the government’s stable of advisers, but ministers are now calling for his own tax affairs to be investigated.</p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/gina-dyer/gina039s-blog/sir-philip-green-topman-job">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Is Government right to warn banks over small business lending?</h1> <p>CCDR — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:32:56 +0100</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>News emerged recently that the Business secretary Vince Cable stated that </strong><strong>UK</strong><strong> banks should be 'very, very self-conscious' about how they reward staff and investors” in respect of the half year results in which most banks had posted healthy returns to profit.</strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/ccdr/ccdr-corporate-credit-debt-recovery-ltd/government-right-warn-banks-over-small-business-l">read more</a></p> </article> </main></body></html>