RESOURCE CENTRE

Your EnterQuest Bulletin - 30 March 2005

In this week's issue:

• facts about selling that every business owner must understand
• exhibiting at a trade show
• the importance of risk assessments
• de-junking your computer
• the Companies House website reviewed
  

Small business answers

If you have any questions about your business idea, are lacking some basic data about your target market, or simply need help tracking down a grant, subsidy or other source of 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.

Weekly stir

Facts about selling that every business owner must understand

One of the biggest problems affecting small business owners that we've observed over the years is the lack of importance given to selling. Possibly the biggest problem of all, in fact.

So why does this happen and how can you prevent it happening to you?

The main reason, in our humble opinion, is that people genuinely just don't realise how important selling is, and as result even perceive it as a "lesser" business skill.

This is a big, big mistake.

A major contribution to this perception is made by the likes of university and other business schools, and particularly the multitude of two-a-penny MBA programmes that seem to have sprouted up everywhere over the last 10-15 years.

The problem is that these MBAs, and other business management "courses", spread the belief that success in business is down to learning effective management skills.

And this can be a very damaging misconception for a new business owner to hold.

The late, great entrepreneur and business author Mark McCormack made the point perfectly in his classic book What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School.

Here's what he said about this very subject:

"Selling is what they don't teach you at Harvard Business School. Business schools admit that their purpose is to train managers, thereby almost totally overlooking the fact that if there are no sales, there is nothing to manage. This escapes a lot of newly minted MBAs, who in their desire to run a company may find sales, the techniques involved, the ART of selling, beneath them."

Unfortunately this is as true today as it was over twenty years ago when McCormack first made the point.

But what's worse is that this mentality isn't just confined to MBAs. It's an affliction that's suffered by the majority of new business owners, whether they've got a business qualification or not.

So what lesson can we learn from this and what can you do to improve your chances of business survival and success in your new enterprise?

Here are six tips that you should write down in large capitals on a sheet of paper, or print out and stick on the wall next to your desk.

1)	Sales and selling are the small business owner's number one priority. Are they yours?
2)	Selling is not about imposing or intruding on people. It's about persuading and tempting people to buy from you. What do you do - impose or persuade?
3)	Selling involves patience, good timing and knowing exactly when it's time to persuade and tempt your prospects to buy. How good is your timing when prospecting for new business?
4)	When you sell your product or service, make sure you also sell your passion for it. If you passionately and wholeheartedly believe in your business, your customers will clearly get the message.
5)	Experiencing rejection in sales is guaranteed to happen to everyone, so be prepared for regular knock-backs and failure. Just take it on the chin and learn from it for the next time.
6)	The greatest attribute of salesmanship is the ability to listen. To listen to your customers. Listen to what they want, don't want, like and don't like. How much attention do you pay to what your customers and prospects are saying?

We hope we've managed to get this week's point about selling through to you. It's simple and straightforward, really. Thank you and god bless you Mark McCormack.

Marketing tip

Exhibiting at a trade show

The EnterQuest team are heading off to London later in the week to exhibit at the Growing Your Own Business conference, which forms part of the British & International Franchise Exhibition taking place at Olympia on 1 and 2 April.

Not every trade fair, exhibition or convention is worth the time, effort or money it takes to organise a successful stand. But exhibiting at trade shows can help you make a name for yourself in your sector, network with valuable contacts and suppliers, and most importantly, introduce you to thousands of potential new customers who may not have found your business any other way.

Here are some practical tips to consider when thinking about or planning an exhibition for your business.

• Make sure the expected attendance figures are going to make the event worthwhile in terms of the costs involved and time spent planning. Ask the organisers for venue attendance figures for the past few years, and if it's a new event, try to find out as much as you can about the venue and the ways in which the event is being promoted.
  
  
• Try to establish a typical visitor profile so that you're well prepared for the sort of information people will ask you for. Consider whether the event is trade only or open to the public, and think about the venue location and whether it has good parking facilities or access to transport links.
  
  
• Make sure you're clear on exactly what's included in your exhibition contract. Many events are 'space only', which means you must provide your own stand, equipment (computer, printer and so on), furniture, lighting and power. Others are known as 'shell schemes', and offer a basic frame and name fascia, but lighting, an electrical socket and an Internet connection can be costly extras.
  
  
• Arrive early so that you've got plenty of time to set up your stand and check that electrical sockets and lights are working properly.
  
  
• Develop a system for recording the contact details of the potential customers you meet at the exhibition, and stick to it. This could be something as simple as stapling a business card into a blank notebook and scribbling a reminder about the nature of the enquiry. Don't forget to bring plenty of your own business cards!
  
  
• Remember that competitors' stands can be a good source of information. Make some time to wander round analysing other stands for innovative designs and promotional ideas that could be adapted for your own stand.
  
  
• You can find the shows and expos relevant to your sector by browsing UK Exhibitions or the TSNN website. Franchise exhibitions are listed at Franinfo and there are countless other sites listing fairs and shows for different industries - for example, Fresh RM for food and drinks businesses.

As for the Growing Your Own Business show later this week, we'll be on stand GYOB280, so if you're planning on going, please pop along for a chat.

Read more practical marketing ideas in the UK Small Business Marketing Bible, where you can also find hundreds of ideas, tips and techniques for increasing sales.

Legal tip

The importance of risk assessments

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, all businesses must identify potential hazards resulting from their work or premises, and set out a clear strategy for reducing or tackling these hazards.

This process is known as a risk assessment, and doing one can not only protect you and your employees and customers from injury, but also help you prove that you took reasonable measures to reduce risk in the event of an incident.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued guidelines for the above laws, and explains that a risk assessment has five key parts:

• Identify what the hazards are in your business.
  
  
• Decide who might be harmed and how.
  
  
• Assess whether the risk is large or small and decide what could be done to minimise it.
  
  
• Note down the risks and any measures you will take to reduce them.
  
  
• Review and revise according to circumstances.

The full guidelines for carrying out a risk assessment are available from the HSE.

For many businesses, particularly those based in offices, carrying out an assessment following the five steps above is relatively simple. But if you're involved in construction or use machinery, chemicals or dangerous substances, the law is often more specific. For example, there are separate rules on lifting weights, asbestos and noise. And if you use computers, the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 set out the standards you need to follow as regards lighting, seating position and how the computer screen should be positioned.

Many of these specific regulations are explained in the HSE's additional guidelines, and the HSE also provides recommendations for particular sectors.

The UK Red Tape BUSTER has more information on health and safety requirements for all businesses, as well as hundreds of legal factsheets, scenarios and guides.

IT tip

De-junking your computer

Many people try out a variety of programs on their computers - freeware downloads from the Internet, software provided on free disks in newspapers or computer magazines, or the free-trial disks from Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that drop through the letterbox every few months.

Over the months and years, the number of unused programs on your computer can grow, and in the worst cases can end up slowing your computer down.

So how can you get rid of the programs you never use? Bearing in mind you should never delete files unless you're completely sure you want to get rid of them, here's a quick guide to de-junking your computer.

• The simplest method is to press the Start button, go to Settings, then Control Panel, and click on 'Add/Remove Programs'. You'll be offered a list of installed programs, some of which you might not even know existed. Highlight the one you want to dump, and click 'Remove'.
  
  
• In some cases, your computer may say you need to restart it to tidy up the icons and get rid of empty folders. It may also ask if you want to remove 'shared files'. These are files that may be used by other programs as well as the one you're uninstalling. In most cases, it's safe to get rid of them, but if you're in any doubt at all, choose to keep them.
  
  
• Some shareware is unlisted and can't be removed via your Control Panel. In this case, you have to look at the files and folders in My Computer or Windows Explorer and decide which ones you want to delete. Unless you've changed the default folder for installing software, you'll find most of your shareware in the folder called Program Files. To get rid of the programs you don't want, simply highlight each file and click 'Delete'.
  
  
• You might find programs listed in your Start menu even when you've removed them from your computer. If this happens, right-click on the Start button and choose to open your Start Menu. You can then browse the programs that are installed, highlighting the ones you want to delete. Don't forget to do the same for any icons or program shortcuts on your desktop.
  

New business idea

Here is this week's idea:

• Destination Wedding Planner

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 'climate change levy' means?

a) a tax on petrol used by ordinary vehicles
b) a tax on energy used by industry
c) a tax on hot air produced by the Government
d) a tax on carbon emissions by manufacturers

Answer at the end of the Bulletin.

Website review

Companies House (www.companieshouse.gov.uk)

This week we're turning our attention to one of the top Government websites in terms of traffic. As usual, we've considered the navigation, accessibility, content and relevance of the site.

• Navigation - this site's homepage looks truly terrible. From the ghastly purple colour scheme to the busy, disordered appearance of the content, the general look is unprofessional and extremely confusing - the only useful tool is the drop-down lists where you can choose which piece of information or service you want.
  
  
  

• Accessibility - the site is Bobby approved, which means it conforms to the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) generally recognised basic standards of accessibility. It also says it's Plain English approved, which means it uses jargon-free, practical language. But we couldn't find any detailed information about accessibility from the homepage, and there doesn't seem to be the option to translate any of the content into other languages, although the site does explain that a telephone enquiry service is available in minority languages.
  
  
  
  
• Content - using the drop-down lists on the homepage, you can access fairly comprehensive and practical information about topics such as company registration and filing your accounts. We like the way complex words and phrases are explained by a jargon-buster, and the FAQs and document submission checklists are really useful.
  
  
  
  
• Relevance - as with too many Government websites, Companies House's press releases are woefully out of date - there have only been two this year and the latest one is dated 31 January. Although the statistics section is updated monthly, this is difficult to find, and it's appalling that there's no mention yet of the Budget 2005.
  
  

10 out of 20, then, for Companies House - a score which really should be higher given the popularity of the site and its importance for anyone running a limited company.

Our rating - 10/20

Did you know?

The UK's population's getting older

The UK will have more people aged over 65 than children under 16 by 2015, according to a fascinating new report on Social Trends from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The report is packed with all sorts of interesting demographic information relevant to any business that sells to consumers. It reveals growth in the minority ethnic population and rising levels of household income, and also provides information about issues like how many people own cars and what the average household spends its money on.

Small shops should be thinking local

A study by the Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD) is urging small food retailers to stock more local and regional produce to meet growing consumer demand. The study found that 70% of consumers prefer to buy locally-produced goods, and more than a fifth also prefer to buy this sort of produce from local convenience stores. Fruit and vegetables are the most popular items already stocked by retailers, but the report suggests stocking more meats, cheeses, sauces and desserts, as demand for these products is expected to escalate in the coming years.

Worth a visit

Find a business club

UK Business Clubs is a useful site which lists over 850 business clubs in the UK, searchable by region and, thanks to the power of Google, the name of the club. It contains a practical, step-by-step guide about starting your own business club, looking at issues like networking, creating a newsletter and organising meetings and subscriptions. You can even browse club events and participate in the small business discussion forum.

Free import and export information

Free trade data and statistics about UK imports and exports, provided by HM Customs & Excise, is available at UK Tradeinfo. You have to register to access the information, but this doesn't take long and is totally free. You can analyse different markets using trade tables, explore new business opportunities, and get a picture of the strength of local import/export markets by viewing regional data.

Worth a read

This coaching book is packed with practical examples of how you can break bad habits (such as putting things off) and develop positive new ones (such as giving constructive criticism). It explores areas such as making decisions, being influential, staying motivated, thinking creatively and reducing stress. Check out:

If you have any feedback or suggestions for us to make this service more relevant please e-mail your comments to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com

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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.