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Your EnterQuest Bulletin - Issue 227
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| Thought for the week: "Quality, quality, quality: never waver from it, even when you don't see how you can afford to keep it up. When you compromise, you become a commodity and then you die." Gary Hirshberg |
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In this week's issue:
Dog care need fills niche in market
When Paula McArthur told a friend that she intended taking her dogs to work, her friend asked if she could take hers as well.
That planted the seed of an idea into the former finance manager's head, and the Doggy Days crèche was born.
"I'd been thinking about starting a business for a while, and had all the obvious ideas about opening a café or coffee shop and even a sunbed shop, but none of them had filled me with inspiration," said Paula.
She spent a lot of time carrying out market research for her dog crèche idea, then used redundancy payment to start Doggy Days in Cramlington, Northumberland.
She said: "I'd always owned dogs and had been involved in dog training for 25 years. When I was made redundant it gave me the opportunity to work for myself in a field I enjoyed.
"My market research indicated that there was demand for the facilities of a doggy crèche, rather than traditional kennels, which were the only real alternative available."
Sourcing premises was a major problem for Paula but after an 18-month search, she was able to move into two industrial units at the Hubbway Business Centre, in Cramlington.
"Ideally, I'd have liked to have had an outside area as well, but that is something we can work on in the future," said Paula.
Doggy Days now employs five staff and has more than 800 customers on its books for the crèche and associated grooming salon.
The crèche is open from 7am until 6pm every day, and is operated on the same principles as a children's day nursery. Each dog is assessed before it becomes a customer, as they must all get on with one another.
Paula admits that the business was quite expensive to establish but that was simply because she chose to provide pleasing accommodation for the animals and their owners.
"I didn't want cages for the dogs when they weren't socialising with the others. Each dog has its own eight foot by eight foot apartment."
So what next for Paula?
She hopes one day to be able to afford to buy premises for her business, including the outside area she has always wanted. Future plans may also include the development of boarding facilities.
Ways to use a mailing list
You can use a mailing list to contact potential customers and existing customers about your services. Mailing lists can be used in a number of ways:
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Educate your prospects - Customers often need more information before they make a decision to buy your product or service. To help them make their decision, provide them with articles or case studies via direct mail. Keep them informed about your services by sending out regular newsletters.
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Highlight your USP - You will need to differentiate your product or service from those of your competitors. You can use promotional mailshots to tell your prospects about your business and its unique selling proposition (USP).
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Sell your product - Make sure you convince your prospects of the benefits of buying your product or service.
The Information Commissioner's Office website contains information on the relevant legislation you should comply with if you use a mailing list. This includes the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003.
For more information on using mailshots see our practical factsheet on building and using mailing lists.
Each week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business ideas in the UK and elsewhere around the world.
Best-selling grocery brands in Britain
A TNS Worldpanel survey recently announced the top ten grocery best-sellers in Britain. TNS defined a 'brand' as something with clearly defined branding on the packaging. Here's the latest top ten:
1) Kellogg's
2) Heinz
3) =Walkers Crisps
3) =Cadbury
5) Birds Eye
6) Coca-Cola
7) Muller
8) Warburtons
9) McVitie's
10) Hovis
Brands that reflected UK consumer demand for healthier alternatives performed well over the past year. Read more about the top 10 on the This is Money website.
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 'supercilious'?
a) taking extra care
b) disdainfully arrogant
c) meek, unassuming
d) chirpy or bright
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) The popular and interactive virtual world of Second Life made the news last week. Businesses were warned that they should keep an eye on it for what specific reason?
a) the Second Life currency is up on the British pound
b) in case players breach copyright regulations
c) in case players are using a business owner's identity
d) Second Life players are entitled to tax rebates if they perform well
2) The Confederation of British Industry has reacted to proposals for a new Bank Holiday in November, saying that it will cost the UK economy. What figure did the CBI estimate the extra holiday will cost?
a) £10 million
b) £50 million
c) £2 billion
d) £6 billion
3) The Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) scheme, which offers small businesses loans of up to £250,000 over ten years, is suffering from poor uptake according to new figures. What percentage of businesses reported that they are aware of the scheme?
a) 15%
b) 27%
c) 37%
d) 48%
Answers at the end of the Bulletin.
Business IT guide
This guide aims to help small business owners get to grips with IT. It has a useful self-help section divided into four distinct areas - save money, make money, save time, and avoid problems - to help business owners get the answers they need. Limited access licences are available to users.
Acas course on age discrimination law
Employment arbitration service Acas has launched an online course to help firms understand more about the legislation surrounding age discrimination. The free course, available on the Acas website to registered users, aims to help employers ensure they have a fair workplace free of age discrimination.
Business meeting planner
Ikordo is a free business meeting planner that aims to take the hassle out of planning meetings and events yourself. Once you sign up, simply enter a time period of when the meeting should take place, provide Ikordo with the contact details of your colleagues and it will negotiate a suitable time convenient for everyone.
Small business innovation survey
Henley Management College wants to hear small business owners' views about their innovation practices. The College is conducting a study into small business innovation and businesses that participate will receive a full copy of the report once it is published.
This book is packed with information on how to stay motivated when you hit a low point in your business. According to author Seth Godin, you can either hit a dip or a cul-de-sac during difficult times in your business. Dips can be overcome, cul-de-sacs are hard to get out of. Seth's book aims to educate you on when to give up on something and when to focus on improving during the dips you encounter. Check out:
Just one word answer
The answer is b).
Supercilious means disdainfully arrogant.
The customer complained to the café owner about the waiter's supercilious attitude. |
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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. |
