Business | People – You say potato and I hear tomato

As the effects of the council elections reverberate around Westminster, party strategists will be asking themselves what message got across to the voters and whether it was the one that they wanted them to hear.

I doubt it.

It seems to me that politics has been reduced below the level of Twitter and has reached the level of titter. Politicians such as the inestimable Margaret Hodge, and media tigers such as the Spoonerist Jim Naughtie were reduced to tittering, when Bill Dodwell, the head of tax at Deloittes, said that Starbucks didn’t make a profit in the UK. “How can you believe this?” they asked disparagingly. Dodwell replied calmly that Vince Cable had reviewed the situation and agreed. He could have added that HMRC had reviewed the situation and agreed it too.21st may1

We seem to be ruled less and less by facts, even simplified ones, and more and more by innuendo and insinuation. At the same time, Governments bemoan the fact that corporations are getting stronger whilst they are getting weaker. Hmm. Maybe these two facts are related? For whilst political parties spend a lot of time saying what they are going to do, and explaining why they haven’t done it or it hasn’t worked, the best companies spend less time saying what they are going to do and concentrate on reporting fully and accurately when they have done it.

But sadly this approach is becoming less common as directors and leaders share a growing belief that their stakeholders’ value rests largely in their Brand, which they promote in many ways. This gives the Twitterers and titterers opportunities to exploit and sometimes similar messages are so mangled that they can apply to either companies or parties.

I have picked up messages from companies which they would prefer that I hadn’t. Maybe they apply to our political parties too?

  • From Google I get “We seem to have all the answers but you may have overlooked our further aims, which are less obvious (and frankly a bit worrying)”.
  • What I have heard from RBS is “We borrowed far too much and messed up. But don’t worry we’re under new management now. And you can borrow again!”.
  • I recall that MG Rover’s message was actually “We were a bit shabby but had some good ideas, like the Mini, worth taking over.”
  • And now the predominant message I hear is “We listened to our customers and they told us to defer any serious decisions for at least five years.” But not from any company. No company would do this and expect to be taken seriously. Maybe the real message isn’t getting through David?

If you enjoyed this post by Malcolm Durham, and would like to get in touch, feel free to send e-mail at: malcolm@fdsolutions.uk.com – or visit his website: http://fdsolutions.uk.com

Business | Social Media – To Tweet or Not to Tweet….?

If William Shakespeare were around today I’m sure this would be one of his quotes!

My love affair with Twitter began about four years ago when I started using it to promote events for Baby Loves Disco @blduk. It was love at first tweet for me as I connected with other like minded businesses and people and found I had a voice in a way that had not been previously possible. I then started tweeting as myself @naomitimperley to build my profile, which I have done very successfully.

Twitter can be a fantastic tool to get your message across about your business, keeping an eye on the competition, networking, customer service, industry news and so much more. I launched a business @enterpriselabuk with two people that I met on Twitter and we have built up our profile for the business very rapidly by using Twitter!

Here are my top tips for making it work for you:

  • If you’re new to Twitter – observe first and listen
  • Look up your competition and see what they are tweeting
  • Don’t be an ‘egg’ – make sure you have a profile picture or logo
  • Have a compelling bio and a website link (or Linkedin profile if you don’t have a website) first impressions count!
  • Follow strategically – people you know, exnetworking contacts, other related businesses, the competition, industry related media, industry peers, related bloggers.
  • Join in conversations.
  • Use appropriate hastags (#)
  • Use # for events/seminars/training
  • If someone mentions you respond to them
  • If someone retweets (RT) you, thank them
  • Listen to what other people have to say.
  • COMMITMENT – DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME UNLESS YOU’RE GOING TO COMMIT TO TWEETING EVERY DAY!
  • If your company is doing the tweets make sure the employee you choose to do it is the most passionate about the business – don’t assume it’s the youngest person in the office!
  • If someone complains about your business respond to it publicly and then take it offline – this is a good sign of customer service.
  • Welcome new followers.
  • Become a guru of what you do online – tweet information that is going to be of interest to your followers
  • DON’T JUST SELL SELL SELL! It’s about building up relationships first and then the sales will come!
  • ENGAGE – listen to what other people are tweeting about and engage with them – this could be the start of a beautiful relationship with a new client!

For more tips, you can read this guide to Twitter from @smartahq http://www.smarta.com/advice/ebooks/smarta-twitter-ebook 

If you want a deeper understanding about how Naomi Timperley thinks and works, or you would like to get in touch with her, feel free to do so here: naomi@enterpriselab.co.uk or visit her website – http://www.enterpriselab.co.uk/

Business | People – They Used to Burn People at the Stake for Saying The World Wasn’t Flat

I am a contrarian thinker.

 
As a way of getting attention when I was growing up, I used to deliberately take the opposing view just to be argumentative. If it wasn’t for my mischievous grin, I would have got into far more trouble that I actually did. You can imagine just how many people found it annoying!flamesweb1

 
What’s great about spending a lifetime of taking the opposing view is the insight it has brought me. I discovered that there are often incredible ideas and opportunities out there, and huge inconsistencies in what is considered to be right and wrong – or correct and incorrect. Children question everything – wanting to understand – and you only have to spend time with a young child to be driven crazy with their persistent questioning ‘why?’

 
As adults we grow more jaded, questioning less and accepting more, although we may still wonder about whether or not what is accepted as ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ actually is the truth. I think everyone suspects this to some extent, but the signals we receive from the world around us, and from our own brain, make it difficult to give it deep thought. Unintentionally, through decades of being obnoxiously argumentative, I have managed to do it.

 
In the same way that white blood cells in the human body attack a donor organ meant to save us, we are wired to be wary of new ideas and situations. Our brain evolved like this to keep us from threats like sabre tooth tigers! In the past, new and novel things were often life threatening.

 
I’ve always played devil’s advocate, keen to ask, ‘But what if…?’ And arising from this lifetime of contrarian thought, I invoke the title of this blog post:

 
“They used to burn people at the stake for saying the world wasn’t flat.”

 
Not much has changed in society since then. A great deal of what is negative in the world is based on what is correct and incorrect. Which is a shame, since given our history, I don’t think that ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in this sense even exists. After all, if we look back just 100 years, how much of what was viewed as ‘correct’ is now considered to be right? It was believed to be impossible to run a mile in under 4 minutes. Fixed thinking reassures us of our ‘rightness’, but it keeps us stagnant.

  • What beliefs do you hold to be ‘right’  that could be tomorrow’s ‘wrong’?
  • What ‘wrongs’ are inside you that could be tomorrow’s ‘rights’?


And yet, the world is changing faster and faster. Look at the speed and impact of technologies on the world, like the internet and mobile phones. Remember what life was like without them? It wasn’t that far back! Think of all the industries that have come and gone as a result of these two technologies alone. In 20 years’ time, imagine all the undreamed-of technologies we’ll be talking about in the same way!

In a world that is speeding up exponentially, just consider every current institution, industry and way of doing things and let’s think of them as ‘flat earth’. Assume, as a default, that everything is probably ‘wrong’ and take it from there.  From experience, I know that this approach reveals far more than if you just accept what you see in front of you as the only truth.


The status quo is not really an option in this Darwinian race, despite what our brain tells us. If you are not thinking about reinventing things to improve them  ten or a hundredfold,  you can be sure that someone else will be. You may not be able to see the answer, but you can assume that it will be there somewhere, and that someone will find it, given enough resources. And with the internet, every individual has access to more and more resources. Think of crowdfunding, the open source movement and even freelance networks. If a share price could reflect what an individual today was technically capable of, it would be rising at a very fast rate. In the past, ideas might have been kept hidden forever, but great ideas can no longer be held back by large companies or governments, and individual brilliance is shining brighter every day, and getting more powerful.

My advice is to get comfortable with not having the answers, but start acting as if they are there somewhere. Holding onto ideas you think are ‘right’, for fear of the sabre tooth tiger, is actually a quick way to become extinct. The irony is that the part of the brain designed to keep us safe and alive is precisely what can deaden us. Come alive! Question everything! 

So my provocation for you is: stop thinking about what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ – or what’s possible or impossible – and start thinking about how you can significantly improve the world around you! Ignore that primeval fear of the sabre tooth tiger, and start listening to – and acting on – what is deep inside you. Even if it doesn’t fit in with what the world around you. Your capability of making those unimaginable ideas a practical reality is increasing every day!
 
Change is going to happen anyway, so you might as well join the party. Today’s ‘crazy’ is tomorrow’s ‘normal’, and the transformation happens much faster than you think.  CLICK TO TWEET
To thrive in this speeding world, start listening to the fantastical ideas inside you (or around you), and start asking ‘why not?’ – and even ‘how?’ The solution or practical application might just be something that you cannot see – yet.

If you want a deeper understanding about how Marc thinks and works, or you would like to get in touch with him, feel free to do so here: getintouch@marcwinn.com or visit his website – http://www.theviewinside.me

Business | Marketing – The Future of Mobile Commerce

The number of mobile purchases are growing rapidly and more online and offline retailers are changing their business strategy to incorporate mCommerce. Mobile Commerce should not be seen as just another sales channel; it is a way to improve product experience and brand presence. So, what can we expect to see in the future?mobile-commerce-uk

To give you an example of how quickly mobile commerce is growing, Paypal had to update their 2012 mobile estimates three times, going from £3.3 to £5.3 then finishing on £6.6 Billion. They also finished on a yearly mobile increase of 150%.

Paypal isn’t the only company showing significant mobile improvements. Amazon and eBay have reported that around 20% of their sales are coming from smartphones or tablets.

We see, on a daily basis how attached people are to their mobile phones. When I travel to work on the underground, around 60% of the people in my carriage are using their smartphone and it would be safe to say that nearly every single person would not travel without their mobile. We, as a country are attached to our phone for personal reasons but now, we like to shop on them too.

The line between the real world in which we live in and the online world is very thin indeed. The growth of interactive content and augmented reality is down to the hype of the online world.

When looking at the mobile customer journey, we will see a lot of businesses developing a separate strategy including the use of QR Codes and Location Based Marketing.

There has been a lot of research taking place on mobile commerce with a strong suggestion that the statistics are going to keep rising, in favour of mCommerce. 80% of smartphone owners use their devices to shop with Amazon being the most popular. 68% (male) and 58% (female) are likely to make a purchase based on mobile ads and by 2016, mobile influence for retailers will increase to £460 billion.

Unfortunately, it has been reported that 86% of sites on the web are not mobile and have received negative feedback on the mobile experience. With mobile online time growing 14x faster than desktop time, you need to optimise your website so that your customers can purchase smoothly when using their smartphone or tablet. A great way to do this is to build your website responsive.

Over the past year, Responsive design has become a hot topic in the web design community. A Responsive design allows you to view a website on your smartphone or tablet/iPad as you would on your desktop. Something that was once so bespoke that only one man could build it, has now gone global. Not only is it being used by millions of websites all over the world, you can now use it as a theme inside of WordPress. Speak to your web designer and optimise your site so that your users can have a smooth journey when purchasing on mobile.

There was an 80% growth in 2011, 105% growth in 2012 and the mCommerce market is expected to generate between £780 million to £665 billion in revenue, worldwide by 2014.

Are you ready for mCommerce to evolve?

If you want a deeper understanding about how Warren Knight thinks and works, or you would like to get in touch with him, feel free to do so here: warren@warrenknight.co.uk or visit his website – www.warrenknight.co.uk

Business | Social Media – 8 Tips for an Attractive LinkedIn Company Profile

LinkedIn has been offering a Company Profile for a while, but not many organizations actually use it to showcase themselves. That’s a pity because they don’t benefit from the (mostly) free visibility a Company Profile provides.

Here are 8 items to take into account when creating a Company Profile.

Overview page (free)

  • Use a banner: spice up [your] corporate branding.
  • Company description: use this field wisely! This is not only the first thing people see when they visit the Company Profile, but the first three lines are also shown in each employee’s profile when someone hovers over the company name or logo. Remember to include specialties, website, HQ, industry, type and address.
  • Recent updates: as on your personal profile you can broadcast updates, but this time for the company. Most often used for new jobs, announcements, blogs, etc.


The advantage on this page is that you only have to set it up once.

Careers page (paid)

  • Jobs: if you post a job on LinkedIn, it will appear on this page as well. In other words, your job listing doesn’t only benefit from being found in the job section, but also on this page.
  • Premium page: for companies that want to take it a step further. You can use video, employee testimonials and other visually attractive features that help to showcase your job openings in a more visual way.
  • If you don’t post a job: only a number of employees will be shown.


Products and Services page (free)

  • Overview page: you can use product/service pictures, feature products and services and use YouTube videos to create your own products/services showcase. You can even create different versions of this page for different profiles of visitors.
  • Products and services page: use a picture, a key list of features, a YouTube video and a promotion for each product or service. LinkedIn makes it very easy to set up a page for each product or service; satisfied customers can even recommend on which to choose.


Remember that LinkedIn is a website with a high Page Rank in Google and other search engines. This means that its pages appear at the top of search results.

Make sure your organization benefits as well by creating an attractive Company Profile!

If you want a deeper understanding about how Michael Clark thinks and works, or you would like to get in touch with him, feel free to do so here: mike@reallylinkedin.co.uk or visit his website – www.reallylinkedin.co.uk

Business | Marketing – If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life is BS

Louis C.K. is arguably the most successful standup comedian working today. Not just because of his sitcom or standup specials, but because of his do-it-yourself mentality. He famously produced, shot, edited, and distributed his standup special Live at the Beacon Theater.

This smart self-distribution model was quickly adapted by others.

In an interview with the New York Times Louis C.K. asserts that such creative freedom didn’t happen overnight (the bold questions are the Times reporter):lck

Does it matter that what you’ve achieved, with your online special, and your tour, can’t be replicated by other performers who don’t have the visibility or fan base that you do?

Why do you think those people don’t have the same resources that I have, the same visibility or relationship? What’s different between me and them?

You have the platform. You have the level of recognition.

So why do I have the platform and the recognition?

At this point you’ve put in the time.

There you go. There’s no way around that. There’s people that say: “It’s not fair. You have all that stuff.” I wasn’t born with it. It was a horrible process to get to this. It took me my whole life. If you’re new at this — and by “new at it,” I mean 15 years in, or even 20 — you’re just starting to get traction. Young musicians believe they should be able to throw a band together and be famous, and anything that’s in their way is unfair and evil. What are you, in your 20s, you picked up a guitar? Give it a minute.

Notice his use of the phrase “horrible process” in describing his rise. This is exactly what is wrong with telling people, “If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life”. You’re providing them with a flawed description of reality.

Building a business requires a lot of work. Sometimes even “horrible” work.

For me this adds value to my belief that those self help types who tell their clients to “find a job they love” are totally missing the point of having a meaningful career.

The problem with this is the self-serving bias behind it. The New York Times does not interview all the people who are not successful, but put the hours in, who also went through the “horrible process” but in one way or another were not that lucky. Don’t get me wrong: you have to put in the hours to be successful, but it is a necessary and not sufficient condition.

Listen, as entrepreneurs, sometimes we have to do shitty things that we don’t love, or even like, doing.

That’s a reality of being an entrepreneur that few will talk about, but it’s true.

Those people who are lead to believe that “they’ll never work a day in their life if they do what they love” are often the first ones to give in when the going gets tough.

It doesn’t help that self help gurus preach the gospel of being happy all the time and thinking positive.

Don’t get me wrong, a strong mental focus will help, but what helps more is the realisation that the business you’re building will be a pain in the ass sometimes and your source of greatest joy at others.

If you want a deeper understanding about how Nicola Cairncross thinks and works, or you would like to get in touch with her, feel free to do so here: nicola@roarlocal.com or visit her website – http://ROARlocal.com

Business | Social Media – How to Protect Your Brand Reputation

image

It’s no secret that social media can break a brand’s reputation in one single tweet or facebook post. How can YOU make sure you either avoid this or take control of the situation straight away? You need to use a tool which allows you to monitor your businesses mentions on Social Media.

Most people would suggest using Google Alerts for this but there is one huge problem with this. The alerts are not in real time. By this I mean I receive google alerts on my mentions a week later than when I was mentioned. This means it takes me one whole week to react to a mention which isn’t good enough. A tool I have been using for a long time which allows me to see how I, or my business Gloople has been mentioned in real-time is Mention.

Mention was recently nominated as “Startup of the Year” at the TNW French Startup Awards proving it’s worth in the social tool market. This application can be accessed via the web, desktop and even iPhone. You can create alerts for key terms based on your business so you can monitor your industry, brand mentions and competitors.

After setting up my alerts, I found it much easier to track and mute all of the social noise on the world wide web.

As I am a contributor for various sites, I find Mention great to see what has been published and in real time. Without the use of Mention, I would never have found an article written about me byZoneTwo from when I was at Pure London earlier this year. I also found an article written by theTelegraph on Gloople and the SEIS.

One of the reasons why I stand by Mention is the fact that I can use their platform on my mobile. A lot of companies have managed to make the transition from desktop to mobile but not quite made it as user friendly as most consumers would hope but this isn’t the case for Mention. As you can see in the image below, their iPhone and Android app is very easy to use and still works in real time.

mention_mobile-1

If you have enjoyed this post and would like to get in touch, feel free to send e-mail at: warren@warrenknight.co.uk – or visit his website: www.warrenknight.co.uk

Business | People – Three I’s

As we continue to poddle along, statistically speaking, with GDP barely moving (can you feel 0.7% better off? I certainly can’t), the thought leaders and business leaders are still doing their best to get us moving in the right direction. From what I hear, and have experienced, I suggest that we should follow the three I’s: Innovation, Investment and Insistence.

I had heard (from a senior economist) that the UK’s “trend rate of GDP growth” (commonly assumed to be 2.5%) was made up of 1.7% from growth in the labour force and 0.8% from innovation. NESTA’s latest report, Plan 1, concludes that 63% of economic growth from 2000-2008 came from innovation and that innovators grew employment by 4% p.a. whereas non-innovators grew employment by 2% p.a. These theories can be reconciled by concluding thatInnovation fosters employment growth, which leads to economic growth.inventor-300x210blk

Innovation requires Investment:

·         In education so as to pass on current knowledge and ways of advancing it,

·         In development of inventions into economic products and services, and

·         In distribution, persuading buyers and then distributors to acquire the product.

Nesta’s 12 point Plan 1 re-inforces what I have been saying here for over a year now. And a recent review of the construction industry, whose results have been a drag on GDP, shows that education & training are quite well catered for but access to finance, i.e. investment in development and distribution, is one of the industry’s greatest barriers to growth. I believe that investment in this industry (in which I worked for 18 years) is low because Return on Capital Employed, the primary measure of investment, is low and that is, partly, because there are a lot of under-employed assets. There are many directors and senior employees, of all companies in the sector, who spend month after month answering smaller and smaller questions from customers and regulators when they could be working out how to innovate the delivery of the project. So if we innovated our procurement and regulatory procedures in this industry we would produce greater investment.

The only reason they, and others, currently succeed at all is their Insistence. OK a better word is persistence but a headline is a headline right? In 2003 I was FD of a software business which sells a lot of services (consultancy and training) on the back of their product. One of our challenges was financing this working capital. An overdraft is OK but not as flexible, nor as accessible as invoice finance (which, you may recall, is better for a bank’s risk-weighted assets). But I.F. is not available to everyone and in this company’s case, we couldn’t find anyone who would finance the invoices that were raised for services that are to be delivered in the future. Step forward Mike Hodes, its current FD, and a member of our FDs’ Academy, who insisted that it was possible. 10 years after starting the search he has just signed a deal to cover all invoices, for which they get a 60% advance, at a cost of 10%. Not the cheapest deal but an innovation that improves investment in…er innovation.

There is a fourth “I” which links these three together: you! One commentator pointed out that Baroness Thatcher’s legacy is to show that individuals, working in a just system, are more effective (innovative/insistent) than those working in a collective system. When those of us whose innovation and insistence outweighs those that say it can’t be done, or don’t want change, then the bodies corporate, including Government, will start investing again.

All in favour say “Aye”.

If you enjoyed this post by Malcolm Durham, and would like to get in touch, feel free to send e-mail at: malcolm@fdsolutions.uk.com – or visit his website:  http://fdsolutions.uk.com

Business | Success – The Truth Behind Business Plans

Investors and lenders want to buy into your plans but the truth is that most plans are too long, too complicated and they are not written with the target audience in mind.

There are three key things to bear in mind before you start:

1.    Who is the Reader?

Your business plan should always be written with your target audience in mind. A large number of investors and lenders will have run businesses so they know what they are looking for.  Also an experienced plan reader will learn as much about the writer from the content of the plans, so it is imperative that you write the main body of the plan yourself.

2.    Make it easy to understand

You only have a very short time slot to get the attention of the reader. You need to set out the risks and rewards of the proposition in a way that are easily understood. Try to explain it to a colleague or friend in 30 seconds or get them to read you plan and see if they get it! This is normally called your ‘elevator pitch’.

3.    Sell and Persuade

Remember that the objective is to sell you and your business idea. Assume the reader will be cynical and needs persuading

Once you have decided that you are ready to start here are some detailed guidelines you should follow:

a.    Keep it short ( max 15 pages)

b.    Keep the font size to a reasonable size ( font size 11or bigger)

c.    Don’t use jargon unless absolutely necessary

d.    Give an index at the front

e.    Put in your contact details.

Now that you are actually writing the plan you need to consider the content that will be required: We suggest the following main headings:

a.    Executive Summary

This should be at the front of the plan and is the most crucial. It will be used by the reader to decide whether they will read further. Try to keep it to one page but a maximum of two pages.

b.    History and background

This should show when the business was started, current ownership and where it is headed.

c.    Description of the business

This section should describe what the business does and in particular what is unique about it.

d.    The market

This is a crucial section and deals with you customers and your competitors. Remember that everyone has competitors so don’t be tempted to ignore this issue.

e.    People

This is an area of great interest because the decision to invest or lend will be heavily weighed by the assessment of the people behind the business. Put in a short resume of the directors and have CV’s available if requested.

f.     Financial

Present a summary of the financial plans in the plan and put the detailed figured in an appendix. This detailed analysis must include a P & L, Cash Flow, an indication of current borrowing    ( and whether secured) along with a break-even analysis.

g.    What are you looking for

Set out clearly what you want. For example, I want to borrow £100,000 or I want an investor to inject £100,000 in return for 30% of the equity of business.

 

About the author Paul Comyn:I am a mentor with Rockstar Mentoring Group and bring over thirty years of successful business experience with me. There are a wealth of other mentors with a wide range of skills and abilities that work with Rockstar. This includes Jonathan Pfahl,Sir Eric Peaccock, Ian Lancaster, John Davy, Chelsey Baker and Marc Winn to name but a few.  You could get 121 mentoring from the mentor of your choice. You can see them at : http://www.rockstarmentoringlive.com/web/PM_Launch.html or  http://www.rockstargroup.co.uk
If you enjoyed this post by Paul Comyn, and would like to get in touch, feel free to send e-mail at: paul@pitchcom.com– or visit his website: www.pitchcom.com

Business | Social Media – LinkedIn Is Enjoying Its Second Wave

As LinkedIn experts we have seen some changes in the last few years and believe this is the current situation: LinkedIn is in its second wave.
• The first wave comprised people getting to know online networking in general and making a Profile on LinkedIn—the passive phase. We believe that many parts of the world (especially the Western world and India) are over the top of this wave (the late majority, see the Rogers Adoption/Innovation Curve below).
• The second wave requires understanding how LinkedIn works, how, as a tool, it can really benefit us professionally. This is the proactive phase. In parts of the Western World and India we are in the second phase of the curve: the early adopters.

Rogadsers-adoption-innovation-curve

Our belief that LinkedIn is in its second wave is confirmed by the different kind of questions we receive in our LinkedIn training workshops from individuals, and the different requests we get from companies.

In the past, we received requests for workshops and presentations directed toward sales teams and recruiters. Today, we get more and more requests to do presentations for the management teams and boards of companies. This results in a company-wide approach instead of a partial one. Finally, the higher echelons understand that online networks are here to stay and that they need to incorporate them in their organizational strategies.

We also see differences between countries in the way they adopt LinkedIn. For example, the USA and the UK are far ahead of other European countries. As a country, the UK is already in the beginning of the early majority phase of the second wave (being proactive), while Belgium is still at Early Adopters.

If you have enjoyed this post and would like to get in touch, feel free to send e-mail at: mike@reallylinkedin.co.uk – or visit his website: www.reallylinkedin.co.uk