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Your EnterQuest Bulletin - Issue 250
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| Thought for the week: "I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure, which is: Try to please everybody." Herbert B. Swope |
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In this week's issue:
How to be a business failure
There's no disputing the fact that the majority of new business start ups will fail within three years, with half of those failures inside the first six months.
Just look at this Sunday Times article on lessons learned from business failure. It says that one in three start ups will go under. A sobering thought.
So we thought we'd encourage a few more business failures by republishing an EnterQuest article from November 2004. It's a checklist to help you start up a new business that will end up on the scrapheap sooner rather than later.
1) Pursue the first idea that comes into your head.
Imperative. Once you've thought up a business idea or concept, don't waste a second. Get it started without further ado. Why not start up a business you know absolutely nothing about, or even better look for those 'here today - gone tomorrow' business fads and ensure your new venture is gone tomorrow as well.
2) Avoid market research at all costs.
Essential to guarantee failure. Listen, nobody knows the market better than you, and what's a market anyway? You've spotted the business opportunity and you'll only get rich quick if you get on with it and sell it to everybody you can. Otherwise, you'll just end up getting bogged down looking for a market niche with genuine needs and demands that you could offer a service to. Who needs that?!
3) Run a business that doesn't need any marketing.
This is what it's all about. Your own brilliant ideas and keeping your friends impressed. Marketing's just a textbook term anyway, isn't it? Why start broadcasting the reasons why your service is so good or offers such an affordable solution to a particular group of people, when all that will happen is that you end up giving your competitors a chance to copy all your ideas? Why would anyone want to do that? Start up a business that will promote itself, and where none of your competitors will have a clue what you're up to.
4) Beat your competitors by selling at rock bottom prices.
Running a competitive business is just too easy. It doesn't matter how many competitors you've got, just make sure your prices are much lower than everyone else's. And don't worry about all that costing your product rubbish. If you sell enough at ridiculously low prices you will be the customer champion in no time at all, which is the fast track to profit-making. Isn't it?
5) Don't worry about the cash.
This is the best one. Everyone keeps telling you never to take your eye off your cash flow, but why bother with that when you've got the services of a good accountant and a sympathetic bank manager? They'll keep your finances straight, and let you know when there's no cash left. You just need to concentrate on being the overnight success you've always deserved to be.
6) Get advice from people who know nothing about running a business.
There are plenty of "experts" out there who'll gladly give you the benefit of advice that they've probably read about somewhere. Or even better, there are those serial business failures who'll give you even more tips like the ones we've given you here to make your new venture a thoroughly spectacular failure.
It's a sad fact that some of you reading this bulletin will already be practising these tried and tested methods to guarantee failure of your business.
Does that set any alarm bells ringing? If so, maybe it's time to wise up and find other entrepreneurs who can tell you about their own business experiences. To do this, you need to get out there and network, perhaps even find a business mentor. Listen to what they say, even if you don't like what you're hearing. Their advice might just make you sit up and take notice of where and how your business is failing.
Dealing with a client when you're blamed for their mistakes
Inevitably things go wrong sometimes, we all make mistakes. But that doesn't mean we make all the mistakes. Working with a client on a project is one instance where the blame game can be played again and again.
For instance, you may have worked to a brief, but they might think you didn't stick to it. Or perhaps they didn't listen to you, and went ahead with their own ideas, but they didn't work out so they're looking for someone else to blame.
How do you avoid a sorry situation where both parties are unhappy? Here are some pointers:
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Never go outside your expertise. Even if the client is desperate, refer them to a specialist in that area. If you tackle such a request yourself, your mistakes could be held against you, even if you told the client of your misgivings in the first place, or did the job well.
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Never promise more than you can deliver. But always deliver more than you promised. The former will destroy your client's trust but the latter will enhance your reputation.
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Get the client to sign off all stages. This includes final acceptance of your output.
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Understand the brief. It's your responsibility to ensure you understand the brief, timescales and budgets and sign them off with your client.
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Tell them what you're not doing. This is particularly important if you're doing a cut-price job. Say 'In order to this at the price you specify I can't offer my normal full service to you and must ask you to be responsible for ...' This makes it clear what you are leaving out so they know and won't expect it.
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Keep a copy of all documents. You may need them to show that 'mistakes' occurred after you handed over or finished your work.
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The client knows best. If they want to overrule your professional and expert judgement during a project, stop and get them to sign off any changes before proceeding any further with the project.
- Insure, insure, insure. Check you have adequate professional liability and indemnity insurance. A client may turn round and sue you for the costs of correcting your 'errors'. These costs could be higher than the cost of the original work you were hired to do.
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To receive regular tips, articles and how-to guides like these to help you run your business more effectively you can subscribe to BETTER business magazine.
To receive a free copy of BETTER business magazine simply send us your name and address to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com, putting 'EQ magazine offer' in the subject box. |
Each week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business ideas in the UK and elsewhere around the world.
- Device track-back services. TrackItBack is an example of a business which provides a track-back service for owners of lost mobile devices, such as mobile phones and laptops. Users of the service buy unique ID numbers for their mobile devices. The devices are registered and if they get lost, the finder can contact TrackItBack and the device can be returned to the owner. TrackItBack offers $50 worth of ID tags as an incentive for finders to return the devices.
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 the meaning of the word 'parlous'?
a) talkative
b) dangerous
c) comparable
d) compatible
Answer at the end of the Bulletin.
The following topical business issues have been recently reported in the media. Did your radar pick them up?
1) A survey on behalf of software firm HTK has revealed that 74% of SMEs have problems with their management of and marketing to customers. According to the results just 14% of businesses used which type of tool to help them with customer management and marketing?
a) a CRM package
b) Google Analytics
c) customer satisfaction surveys
d) online feedback forms
2) Research by analysts at the British Retail Consortium has revealed that retail growth looks set to slow over the next ten years. Meanwhile, researchers at Verdict say that retailers are expected to close unprofitable stores to help stem the squeeze on margins. But why is there currently more doom and gloom in the retail sector?
a) inflation has risen to 2.2%
b) the big four supermarkets have announced plans for expansion
c) there is to be more red tape for small retailers
d) leasing rates will increase
3) Small businesses say that the Internet has made running a business harder, not easier, according to new research by the Cranfield School of Management. Researchers found that 62% of small business owners believed the Internet had increased competition from which type of trader?
a) web 2.0 marketers
b) international traders
c) online auctioneers
d) UK-based traders
Answers at the end of the Bulletin.
Keyword tools from SEOBook
SEOBook has a free keyword generator which can help you create Pay-Per-Click advertisements. You can generate a number of keyword phrases based on the way in which you order your keywords. The site includes a video of how it works.
Country profiles to help exporters
The Federation of International Trade Associations has loads of useful information on its website to help small business owners secure import and export opportunities. It has a selection of country profiles spanning various locations around the globe. The information in the profiles ranges from economic indicators to practical information on business hours and transport networks.
Tips on SEO copywriting
copyblogger is full of practical hints and tips to help you beef up your copywriting skills and abilities. There's a handy tutorial on search engine optimisation (SEO) copywriting which will help you get to grips with writing fresh, exciting web content that performs well in search engines.
One-stop shop for small businesses in Europe
The European Commission has announced the launch of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN). EEN will help small firms expand into other European countries and is made up of research institutes, universities, technology centres and business development agencies. It operates in 40 countries including the 27 European Union (EU) member states.
Win an OKI A3 colour laser printer worth £1,500
EnterQuest has teamed up with OKI Printing Solutions to give readers the chance to win the C8800, top-of-the-range, A3 colour laser printer worth nearly £1,500.
With the C8800, which is both Mac and Windows-compatible, businesses can save money and build a competitive edge by producing high-quality, colour documents quickly and efficiently. The printer can print the first colour page in just 10 seconds and delivers up to 26 colour pages per minute (ppm) in A4 and 15ppm in A3.
To enter this competition, simply answer the following question:
Q. How many A3 sheets can the OKI C8800 print in one minute?
a) 15
b) 20
c) 25
E-mail your answer, together with your name, address and daytime telephone number, using "OKI laser competition" as the e-mail subject line, to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
All entries must be received by February 29. EnterQuest and OKI will use the information you provide for their own marketing purposes only and your details will never be shared with any third parties (except to arrange delivery of the prize).
This book focuses on eight practical skills that will help you bring success to your business if you master them. The skills reviewed are: positioning, detecting patterns, managing the social system, selecting people, management leadership, setting goals, setting priorities, and dealing with external parties. Check out:
Just one word answer
The answer is b).
Parlous means dangerous.
The business owner's finances were in a parlous state. |
How's your business radar? The answers
1) The answer is a). Just 14% of businesses used a CRM package to help them manage their customers. The majority of businesses said that CRM software and other supporting software was too expensive.
2) The answer is a). Inflation rose to 2.2%, causing more heartache for retailers already suffering from low sales.
3) The answer is b). ITPRO reports that the Internet has levelled market entry boosted competition not just nationally but to international proportions, so much so that 62% of businesses are aware of this fact. |
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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. |
