Following a highly successful pilot programme, Business Link is running another series of workshops aimed at owner/managers of established small and medium sized enterprises.
The half-day workshops have been designed to provide a range of cost-effective, easy to implement business tools, as well as offering a deeper insight into issues affecting all businesses.
Our workshops are run in small groups to ensure that there is plenty of time for you to discuss individual issues. The workshops are run in the morning and include a buffet lunch. (There are certain restrictions, details of which can be found in the pdf download).
Workshop details:
Marketing Toolbox
Public Relations to promote your business
Understanding Finance
UK businesses are being pitted against each other ‘on the green’ in a game launched this week in the most unlikely of locations – an online golf course.
The Envirowise ‘Putt It Away’ challenge will reveal if the West Midlands knows its bogeys from its birdies, and if the North East is on a ‘par’ with the South West when it comes to the environmental impact of their businesses.
The new game at www.puttitaway.co.uk will invite players to try their luck on either a driving range or 11-hole golf course, and flag-up practical advice on resource efficiency along the way.
Business tips will vary from how to reduce paper or water waste, to topical issues such as packaging waste or cleaner product design. And crucially, a live scoreboard will pit region against region in this nationwide business challenge.
John Barraclough, Envirowise Regional Manager for the West Midlands, says: “UK office workers waste enough printing and writing paper every day to cover a championship golf course over 300 times! Yet improved resource efficiency could save a company up to £250 per employee per year – both a financial and environmental reward.
“This new golfing game is a fun way to help West Midlands businesses understand the sorts of simple steps they can take – and probably reveal a few competitive streaks along the way!”
To find out more and play the game, visit www.puttitaway.co.uk. Further information on resource efficiency can also be found at www.envirowise.gov.uk or by calling the Envirowise Helpline on 0800 585 794.
Business Link has developed a new, free, electronic information service especially designed to keep you up-to-date with the latest business information, ideas and tips for success.
A new website www.businesslinksw.co.uk will form the heart of the service, which will be launched this April.
The site will carry over 5,000 pages of content and more than 400 guides on everything from starting a business to exporting, providing quick and easy access to the very latest business information.
Additional features include:
- 50 plus interactive business tools and checklists
- the ability to browse and save information into one, especially designed and indexed ‘PDF book’ to print off and use for future reference
- VAT and tax calendars
- options to personalise email alerts to keep up to-date with regulation changes a new search tool for easy information access
- a list of local business events.
To complement the website, ‘business i’ will remain a monthly service and will continue to provide the best and most vital information delivered direct to your inbox. This will include the latest legislation changes and other important ‘need to know’ information, all designed to assist business planning and operations. Multimedia podcasts on topical issues, a business blog with a searchable archive of past content, subject categorised articles and an opportunity to express your views and ideas are all further additional features to be found online at www.businessi.info
New telephone number and email address
In addition to the new electronic service, the Business Link Information Centre can be contacted personally to help answer any business related issues on a new telephone number - 0845 600 9 006.
If you would prefer to contact our Information Centre by email, our new address will be enquiry@businesslinksw.co.uk
From April 2007, in line with Business Link’s Brokerage model of impartial business support, the Supplier Matching Service (SMS) will be Business Link’s only source of information on suppliers. We will use this web-based database exclusively to search for the appropriate suppliers for our clients.
Business Link would like to invite you to register on to the Supplier Matching Service (SMS) before April 2007 so that your company will not miss out on the opportunity to be considered for delivery of business support to our clients as soon as the Service goes live.
Business Links in other parts of the country are already using the Supplier Matching Service. It will now be rolled out across all Business Links in the SWRDA (South West of England Regional Development Agency) network - greatly expanding the potential business opportunities for your business*.
For more information on SMS and how to register go to http://www.suppliermatching.co.uk/
Or contact:
Zoe Bartlett - zoe.bartlett@businesswest.co.uk
Peter Weeks - peter.weeks@businesswest.co.uk
* A listing on the SMS database does not guarantee selection of your company for any work brokered out by Business Link.
Publicity is a crucial source of leads and sales for small and growing businesses, yet many make little effort in this area. But it’s too valuable an opportunity to let pass by.
There are many tasks involved in building a successful business, and juggling them all can be a challenge. But there’s no excuse for turning your back on potentially valuable sources of new business. Yet that’s what many small and medium-sized businesses seem to be doing when it comes to publicising themselves.
According to a survey conducted by The Buzz Factory, only 60 per cent of UK SMEs send out press releases in an active attempt to attract media coverage and the increased profile it entails. The remaining two-fifths can’t see the point in sending out press releases, or don’t feel that it’s a priority.
But they seem to be missing out, because 86 per cent of PR-active SMEs said that the publicity they had generated had been beneficial to their businesses. There’s no such thing as a free lunch, but good PR comes close. Not every press release you send out will generate results, but those that do are like free advertising for your business.
If you think your business has been too publicity-shy, The Buzz Factory is running a competition to find the UK business that has let the most newsworthy story slip by without any media attention. For more details, visit www.publicityshybusiness.co.uk
Supporting downloads (requires login/registration):
Effective PR