Webmojo Web Design and SEO

I mention this because a long time ago I had a friend who announced that he had gone into business and was going to be the next big web entrepreneur. He borrowed 50k off of his parents which he promptly blew on hosting parties and hiring out night clubs under the guise of PR and marketing , the business folded quite promptly leaving his parents with a second mortgage on there home and him with no way of repaying them

I would like an Aston Martin but all I need is a car. I tend to look at the business process as assets and liabilities. A small economical second hand car will cost me around 1,200 a year to run , a flash new car will cost me considerably more without providing any more benefit and will in-fact become a liability to my fledgling business.

When starting a small business there is a tendency to want a plush office with state of the art technology even if its a spare room you want it to be top notch (see point 1) you don’t need fancy tools or super fast computers to write letters or do your accounts, get real, buy sensibly or borrow if you can.

Don’t go and buy or rent office space unless there is no other low cost / free alternative I myself only use a small corner of a bedroom to run a web design business and this is more then enough. If you run a trade business where you need to keep tools, secure storage will be more then adequate.

I know this sounds like a sweeping statement but most advertising does not make a return in investment . You may need to advertise in Yellow pages and the Thomson local directories ( the major directories in the UK) but a word of warning when buying directory advertising, I have never met anyone who has had the number of enquirers that the directory sales people suggest that they would get. Work out how many job’s / sales you will need to make your advertising payments a month if it is not at least one tenth of the predicted amount of enquirers don’t do it.

When I talk networking I’m not talking TCIP or computers, I’m talking business relationship building there are many business networking organizations the major one in the UK being the British Chamber of Commerce but you have a good many other’s such as BNI BRE this may be an expense but good networking can increase business many fold, the better you get at networking the more business you will get.

I once read a book called the luck factor by Dr. Richard Wiseman and one of the contributing factors to lucky people was being out going. My take on this is that without getting out and meeting people your not going to see or hear of opportunities. I for one, if I hear of someone needing a service that one of my business colleges can supply I will put there name forward as a personal recommendation.

Offer free advice to start up businesses like yourself. When you first start up you may need to prove how credible you are and nothing makes you look like an expert in your field then a few bit’s of freely given expert advice. Look at it as free marketing, once your tips help someone they could be spreading your name like flu

No company that wants to trade with any form of credibility can do without a website. Even if it is not used for marketing, prospective clients need reassurance that you are a permanent reliable company. Nothing gives that reassurance then a website. Websites can start from as little as one hundred pounds.

Giving good service is a golden rule in most businesses what really causes problems is if you ignore genuine complaints. If you screwed up make it right if you can a sorry can go a long way.

On the other hand in this sue you, sue me climate make sure,if you are in any trade where you can be sued for something, you have insurance

How often do you see a business start up spend loads of money on this and that and within six months there closed. Be prepared to ask for help in this current economic climate the government wants you to succeed so there are lots of free business advice and training available. Business link have very experienced advisor’s that will advise you as well as allowing you to bounce ideas around .