|
Your EnterQuest Bulletin - 07 September 2005
| Thought for the week:
"No matter how far you have gone
on the wrong road, turn back." Turkish Proverb |
In this week's issue:
Small business answers
If
you have any questions about your business idea or target market,
or need help tracking down a grant, subsidy or business support
in your local area, then send an e-mail with your query to the EnterQuest
information team and we'll do our best to help.
Send
your question to
enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
To
access over 800 factsheets, guides and small business reports, go
to www.scavenger.net.
Weekly stir 
Two
things to do before you write a business plan
Early
one summer evening, two small business owners were having a drink
or two in pub after a networking event they'd attended in central
London. They'd had a good day, met a load of new contacts and were
feeling buoyant about their future.
But
they ended up having a few too many, and when they left the pub
they began to gently stagger their way down the road to catch their
train home.
One
of the entrepreneurs looked up into the sky and slurred, "What
a lovely evening, and doesn't the moon look beautiful?" The
other entrepreneur scoffed back, "Don't be ridiculous, that's
not the moon - it's the sun."
A
friendly argument ensued as the two inebriated business pals each
tried to convince the other that they were right. This continued
for a full half-hour.
In
the end, just as they were passing the Small Business Service (SBS)
headquarters in Victoria Street, they decided to try to settle the
argument. They stopped an SBS employee just as he emerged from his
office onto the street and said to him, "Excuse me sir, but
could you help two small business owners in unfamiliar territory
and tell us whether that's the sun or the moon up there?"
"I'm
sorry," replied the man from the SBS, "I've got no qualifications
or experience to answer questions from business people. Have you
thought about writing a business plan?"
This is a common situation faced by many budding entrepreneurs and
small business owners when they enter an unfamiliar business sector
or activity. They think, or are advised, that writing a business
plan is the first or maybe even the only thing they need to do.
And
then they want to know how, or seek advice about how, to write it.
Which
is ridiculous. How can anyone write a business plan about something
they know nothing or very little about? And how can someone - anyone
- advise a person to write a plan when it's perfectly obvious they
know nothing about the industry or business sector they're going
into?
Before
you try to write a business plan, there are two things you should
do instead. First of all, you should thoroughly research the market
or industry in which you want to operate. And by thoroughly we mean…THOROUGHLY!
- Who
are your customers and where are they located?
- How
many customers or different types of customers are there?
- What
gaps in the market aren't currently being met?
- What
different sales routes or distribution channels are there?
After
that, work out how you're going to get your product or service into
your target market. Your business plan will be taking shape when
you do this research and when you decide on the best market entry
route you are going to take.
If
someone, like your bank manager or another financier, then asks
you for a business plan, you'll find that you've got it about three-quarters
worked out.
A
business plan that has evolved for real through your market research
and working out your market entry strategy will be more likely to
be believed, and subsequently achieved, than one that's just based
on the "I've got a good product and now I'm going to sell it"
approach.
So
think of your business plan more like a marketing plan to begin
with, and make sure your market entry strategy is realistic and
achievable. By doing this, your new business or the business area
you want to develop into will be focused on your market rather than
just on your product, and as a result will be more likely to succeed.
Here's
a link to a practical
factsheet about researching your market to help you get started.
Marketing
tip
An
introduction to pay-per-click advertising
In
pay-per-click (PPC) advertising programmes, businesses pay an advertising
fee that is calculated according to the number of clicks, or visits,
generated by that advert. The advantages are that you can target
a specific audience, and also set your own budget so that you only
spend what you can afford to on the advertising.
PPC
advertising options are now offered by most Internet search engines,
but you don't have to approach them separately. There are a number
of providers, or PPC engines, which sell this type of advertising
space and syndicate it out to the major search engines.
- The
two largest are Google's
Adwords, which displays results on Google, AOL, Ask Jeeves
and some smaller search engines; and Yahoo's
Overture, with results appreaing on Yahoo!, MSN, AltaVista,
Lycos, Freeserve and Infospace.
- MIVA
is a UK-based service giving coverage on Yahoo! UK, Ask Jeeves,
AltaVista and Netscape. WebFinder.com
places adverts on Google and UK search sites such as UpMyStreet
and Thomson Directories.
- There
are a number of free web-based tools you can use to research and
get ideas for relevant keywords for your sector, find out how
popular they are and identify the ones that will be appropriate
for you. Try WordTracker
or visit Google's
Sandbox for two of the best keyword finding tools. Overture's
keyword suggestion tool is another useful resource.
You
can find out more detailed information about organising a PPC advertising
campaign in this
factsheet. And for a unique online resource to enable a complete
novice to set up a website or online business, check out the Small
Business Builder.
Legal
tip
New
fire safety responsibilities explained
There's
good news and bad news if you're responsible for health and safety
in commercial premises. Under the current regulations, businesses
currently have to ask their local fire authorities for a fire certificate
showing that their premises and procedures are up to standard.
The good news is that April 2006 will see this system phased out
and a simpler system brought in. The bad news is that businesses
will have to take responsibility for their own fire safety inspections,
choosing which guidelines apply to them and then putting them into
effect. The new rules will apply in England and Wales, and should
be introduced in Scotland and Northern Ireland later next year.
The security firm Chubb's website has more information
about the new Fire Safety Order.
And
you can find scenarios, frequently asked questions and information
about health and safety obligations, along with every small business
legal situation, on the Red
Tape Buster.
IT
tip
Google
Talk
The latest Google offering is called Google
Talk, which is essentially an instant messenger (IM) similar
to the ones already offered by Microsoft and Yahoo!. This means
you can use it both for voice chat and instant text messages. To
use it, you'll need a free e-mail account from Google.
So what's so great about it that might make you want to sign up?
Google
says that voice quality is particularly good, but early reviews
haven't confirmed this 100%. It is built on open source software,
though, which could eventually be an advantage: at the moment a
Microsoft IM user and a Yahoo! IM user can't talk to each other,
but future IM systems designed using open source software should
be able to avoid this handicap.
New business idea
Each
week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business
ideas in the UK.
Here
is this week's idea:
Just one word
Regularly
improving your vocabulary is not just about learning a new word
and its meaning. It will improve your general knowledge and make
you feel and act smarter in all sorts of personal and business situations.
Do
you know what a 'peccadillo' is?
a)
a minor offence or fault
b) a piece of spyware that logs your keystrokes
c) a blip in a business' balance sheet
d) a wireless device to connect your PC to your car
Answer
at the end of the Bulletin.
Website review
The
Commission for Racial Equality (CRE - www.cre.gov.uk)
The
CRE provides advice and assistance on equal opportunities regulations
for businesses - but how easy to use is the organisation's website?
- Navigation
- too much of the homepage is dominated by a large and rather
pointless graphic, which means the hot topics listed are forced
to the bottom of the page and difficult to see. That said, the
site menu is easy to use and it's clear how to find the various
pieces of information offered.
 
- Accessibility
- with the opportunity to view the page in text only format, Welsh
language options and a range of access keys, different text sizes
and options for users of different browsers, this site takes an
exemplary approach to accessibility.
A
decent score of 13 for the CRE - a revamp of the navigation and
a freshening up of the news section would really improve this score.
Our
rating - 13/20
Did
you know?
Local
shops missing out on web sales
A
new
study by online shopping portal Touch Plaza, part of online
search directory Touch Local, has revealed that two-thirds of people
would prefer to buy everyday goods from local shops, if given the
opportunity to do so online. The study shows that despite most people
preferring local stores to supermarkets, the convenience of buying
online is key. But only 31% of local shops have websites, with only
6% of these offering online payment facilities.
Worth
a visit
Predicting
the future
Trend-watcher
the Future
Foundation has an engaging website that's jam-packed with news,
views and reports about current and future trends in a number of
different sectors. Although its full reports are priced beyond the
grasp of most small businesses, it has an extensive press releases
section where you can get a flavour of its research, and also offers
a free newsletter.
Local
info on your doorstep
Plazes
is an interesting concept that extends the idea of localised information
via GPS positioning. You have to be online to use it, and all you
do is register a name and e-mail address and the system tracks your
location and provides you with relevant local information - from
restaurants to potential business contacts.
Worth
a read
Too
many books about managing people are dry, theory-based tomes with
little practical relevance to running a business. This book is different
- not only does it act as an interactive manual for all your questions
about management, but it also challenges many of those dry theories
en route. It's full of easy to follow questions and checklists,
and highlights key points emphatically by focusing on plain English
and avoiding jargon. Check out:
|
Just one word answer
The answer is a).
A
peccadillo is a minor offence or fault.
|
Visit
www.enterprisequest.com
to access all back issues of the EnterQuest bulletin.
If
you have any feedback or suggestions for us to make this service
more relevant please e-mail your comments to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
If
you wish to discontinue your subscription to EnterQuest please send
a blank e-mail to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com
putting UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject box.
Remember
that we guarantee never to sell or give your e-mail address to anyone
else.
Good
luck
The EnterQuest Team
This information is meant as a starting point only. Whilst all reasonable
efforts have been made, the publisher makes no warranties that the
information is accurate and up-to-date and will not be responsible
for any errors or omissions in the information nor any consequences
of any errors or omissions. Professional advice should be sought
where appropriate.
|
