Enterprise Nation

The basics of a successful website

Good job

For your website to be a success, it needs to be doing its job well.

So what is a website's job?

Generally speaking it is to be a 'shop window' - a place that advertises what you do, shows what makes you different from other businesses and entices customers in to the shop with its well chosen array of appealing delights.

It's a place to give information - quickly, clearly and simply, that tells prospective clients what you can do for them and how it solves their problems. Most importantly, a website's job is to encourage people to get in touch with you, whether by phone or email - the equivalent of entering a shop and telling the shop assistant what they're looking for.

Steps to success

How can you make sure your website does its job?

Step one.

Make your key marketing messages clear - what you do, who your target clients are and how your product or service helps them. If you know that, and can communicate it simply and effectively in a sentence or two on the homepage, then you're halfway there.

Step two..

Ensure the design and layout of the website is easy on the eye and simple to navigate. It's tempting to have reams of information explaining exactly what you do and how you do it, but that's not the information on which a decision to get in touch usually hinges. That's something you can tell clients once they've made contact.

Step three...

Tell prospective clients what to do! A clear call to action, such as 'click here to sign up to my newsletter' or 'please call me on this number to discuss how I can help you' might seem unnecessary, or even pushy, but it's not - it's a navigational aid, helping people find the door to your shop, push it open, and step inside.

The key to creating a website that works is to remember less is more. Keep messages clear, simple and focused and let your website do its job.

Enter a competition and win a mentor

Should I enter?

Do you have a business idea that you know will succeed if only you had the advice and experience on how to launch it? Are you sitting on a potential ‘gold-mine’ business but lack the know-how to take it to the next level? Then this competition is for you.

The closing date for entries is 17th October when ten women will be matched to one of the ten mentors. The mentor panel includes:

Karen Darby, founder of SimplySwitch, sold to the Daily Mail for £22m.
Karen Hanton, Founder and Chief Executive of toptable.co.uk.
Sumerah Ahmad, Co-Founder and Director of Club Asia Radio 963+972AM.
Polly Gowers, Founder Everyclick.com, a search engine that gives half of its revenue to charity
Caroline Plumb, CEO FreshMinds winner of ‘Most Innovative Employer’ at the Market Research Society awards in 2006 and ‘Best Agency' in 2007

How do I enter?

To enter the competition, you just need to submit a short summary about your career, your business or business idea and detail how a mentor could help you achieve your goals and contribute to your success. Log on to www.freshideasevents.com to download an application form.

FreshIdeas Events

Design Diva

Jess

Jess’s colourful designs are inspired by nature as well as mechanical and everyday objects including spacecrafts, tractors, dice and of course sherbet sweets. "I take my inspiration from visiting farms and walking around the North East’s parks and woodlands to gather ideas for both summer and winter collections, but it is the natural shapes which are my signature style."

The product

Sizes for the children’s clothes start from 3 months to 12 years and the bags are for women who want a striking and different label on their arm. All the clothes are 100% cotton which is soft to the child’s skin and most of all breathable.

The photographer

Ian West is the man who takes credit for taking these great photos. We ask him how much it costs for a home business owner to pay for a shoot and promote their business in such a way:

“A typical studio session can range from an hour to a full day's hire. A typical session would be around £70 per hour studio time, with each image around £10 depending on how much digital work needs doing.

For Jess, we had around 2 hours to shoot the images, had a little meeting before hand to discuss what look she was going for and she received around 25 shots. Typically this type of package would cost around £300.”

We’re sure you’ll agree they were well worth the investment.

The future

Jess says:

“Since I was a little girl I had always dreamt of having my own clothing business. I’m aiming to sell the collections all over the world and my long term ambitions are to open a designer boutique which would become a place I could design and make clothes in, as well as bringing the opportunity to promote other young designers.”

Email: mail@sherbetorange.com
Website: www.sherbetorange.com

Ian West: yoursforeverdigital@hotmail.com

Q&A with Peruvian Knitwear

When did you launch Peruvian Knitwear?

I set up the business as I’m married to Manuel, a Peruvian from the capital, Lima. When we had our first child, Felix in 2005, we were given lots of beautiful and bright gifts from relatives – ponchos, chullos (earflap hats) and cardigans.

These were so widely admired and complimented on that I thought why not share this discovery with other mums and indeed everyone here in the UK and it was clear there was a gap in the market for clothing that was different to the high street offer. We launched the business in September 2007 to catch the Christmas gift market as well people buying for the cold weather.

What were you doing before becoming your own boss?

I was working in sales and marketing in London. I left to have my first baby…..and, as is the case with many new mums, I spotted a gap in the market to start a new business!

How do you source your products?

We combined a family visit to Peru with finding suppliers, looking into the logistics of exporting and meeting the local artisans.

One critical issue for me to go ahead with the business was that the goods are ethically produced. I visited the factory and saw the working conditions and I personally confirmed all this as I speak fluent Spanish and chatted with lots of artisans.

The artisans, whose lives are often blighted with problems such as no education, poverty and violence in the family are given these jobs which literally put bread on the table. This was an additional driver for me to set up this business.

For all future suppliers I have the same objective – to source ethically produced items and again I will verify this by personally visiting the factory.

What has been your single most effective marketing activity to date?

I have found that PR has been a fantastic way to introduce my business to the public
We have had some great coverage – journalists love the clothes as well as the story – mum of two sells Peruvian woollies! We have been in regional press including Colchester Gazette and Worcestershire Living and in the nationals, including The Telegraph, Crafts Beautiful, The Independent, Aga Magazine and Style MK.

What is your most popular selling product?

The berets have been the most popular selling product – they were featured in The Independent and sold like hot cakes, plus they were the accessory of the season – they have sold to both kids and adults alike. Another accessory that sells extremely well is the ski hat – or chullo as it’s called in Spanish, and we sell the authentic ones!

Are all sales generated online?

Yes, we are aiming to be an online destination for people buying gifts and clothes for themselves. Last year I sold at quite a few toddler groups, Christmas gift fairs and house parties, but in order to get national coverage the net is the best place to be available. This year I have chosen a select few Christmas fairs (selling online is also easier being a busy mum of two!). We are also doing wholesale orders this year.

Do you store the knitwear at home?

Yes it is stored in huge clear plastic boxes which stack on top of each other, so it cuts down on storage space plus I can easily identify what item is where.

Is Manuel involved in the business?

Yes he is a key advisor!!

What is the one thing in your home office you could not do without?

My computer is key – but the next best item which I love is the laminator - this is great for making signs look really professional – I hate nothing more than seeing tatty dogeared signs up at fairs, so I aim to have a professional looking point of sale at all times!

Amanda Ruiz talks to Emma Jones

Peruvian Knitwear

Planning permission: Lynn’s interpretation

From now, garden-building projects will need planning permission

As new planning regulations come into play this month, Lynn Fotheringham, Director of garden office producer, InsideOut Buildings, anticipates more people will need planning permission to build a garden office, studio or shed. The new legislation is designed to protect neighbours from having to suffer large garden buildings hard up against their fence.

However, the new rules may have some strange repercussions. Outside of Conservation Area and AONB you can build a series of ugly, 20 sq metre, 2.5m tall, flat roofed bunkers in your garden, without needing planning permission!

InsideOut Buildings are expecting to see 85% of clients needing planning permission against a previous average of 75%.

So what do the new regulations mean for people wanting to build a garden annexe?

The fundamental point is that if you want to install a garden office or even a shed more than 2.5m/8ft 4in tall without planning permission, it must be 2 metres or more from any boundary. This will be difficult to achieve in a small, urban garden.

“Check the criteria below,” recommends Lynn. “If your building ticks one or more of the points, you’ll need planning permission. But if you’re proposing a good quality, well-designed building in a sensible, non-intrusive position, you’re very likely to get that permission.”

From October 2008 you’ll need planning permission:

If your garden building will sit forward of the principal elevation of your house, facing onto - and visible from - a highway. In other words, if it’s in the front garden!
If the height of the eaves - where the gutters are - is more than 2.5m, with an overall height of more than 4m for dual pitched roofs and more than 3m for mono-pitched roofs.
If it is higher than 2.5m at the highest point and within 2m of a boundary. All buildings more than 2.5m tall must be at least 2m from the boundary. To avoid planning permission, they’d also have to comply with point 2.
If it covers more than 30 square metres of floor space.
If it covers more than 20 square metres in a garden that’s smaller than 100 square metres.
In National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, if your building covers more than 10 square metres and it is more than 20m from your house.
In designated areas, if your garden building is at the side of your house.
If it is within the boundaries of a listed building.
You will still need planning permission in Conservation areas.
If you want decking more than 30mm above level ground.

But are the new rules causing concern? No - quite the opposite. Lynn explains:

"A planning officer in Oxford recently revealed that because the new rules allow you to build an ugly, flat-roofed bunker less than 2.5m tall, anywhere in your garden without planning permission, a beautiful, eco-friendly wooden building that needs planning permission would be viewed very positively by planners.”

Oh, happy customers!

Hello. How can we help you?

We all like to be dealt with in a welcoming and professional manner and we bet that's just how you treat your customers already. But would you like to go that extra mile to keep and attract customers?

If so, here are some tips that will not only improve your customer service but really make it different from your competitors:

How do you answer the telephone? Try something different - how about "Welcome to Widgets Online" rather than just "Widgets Online"...
If you're on top of your customer service you can cross-promote because you'll be in contact with your customers. Don't miss an opportunity to mention other products and services that you think might be relevant. Amazon is a good example of this - have you noticed how it now provides you with personal "recommendations" each time you return to their website?
Do something out of the ordinary. Telephone your customer and offer them a free gift for being a good customer, or perhaps let them trial your next product for free. They'll remember you next time!
Check your customer service so that you're the first to know if there's a problem. Get a mystery shopper to do this on your behalf and use the results to improve your service or come up with ideas on how to do it differently.
If you have regular customers, offer them a discount card. They should be rewarded for staying with you and this means they'll be more likely to stay with you.
Offer existing customers an incentive to recommend a friend. It's a great way to say thank you and they'll be happy to continue to tell people about you.

How can I get the press talking about my company?

Five steps to media success

Love it or hate it, the media has a huge impact on our lives. Radio, newspapers, trade magazines, pod casts, blogs, on-line news sites, etc, they help direct our thoughts and feelings towards a specific issue, a person or a company and influence our perception.

Small businesses often provide the most interesting content for the media. Why - because they are often more interesting, more ambitious, more entrepreneurial and usually have a good human angle behind them that tells the story of a passionate owner/manager building their business.

So what are the five things you need to know to get yourself talked about by the media:

1. Segmentation

Think of the media you would most like to be in, this process usually begins with the media your potential customers read.

2. Target

Read the media you would like to be in. Look out for regular features that are covered and keep abreast of industry issues. Also note the names of the writers responsible for the sections you’d like to be in.

3. Position

Decide how to position your organisation. Are you an entrepreneurial new start-up, a fast growing ‘one to watch’ for the future or a product innovator? Correctly positioning your organisation in the minds of a reporter is crucial. Once you occupy that position, it is more difficult to change it than create it.

4. Content

Plan the content you would like a reporter to write about. Perhaps you have won a new customer, have created a new product innovation or perhaps ‘you’ are the USP to the business?

5. Approach

You’ve chosen the media you would like to appear within, you have targeted the correct reporter, have positioned your business and have developed the content for the story, the final piece is to approach the reporter. Everyone works differently, but the standard rule is to e-mail first, leave it a day and then call offering something additional to the content of your e-mail. There’s nothing that will infuriate a reporter than a call asking “did you get my e-mail.”

Simon Corbett, Jargon PR

Simon Corbett is managing director of Jargon Public Relations, an independent public relations agency. Jargon Public Relations works with businesses looking to create or maintain their reputation throughout the media from all markets and with all budgets.

Jargon PR

Destination: Wigtown

Event details

Big thanks to Heather and Pete Bestel who not only put ‘Spare Room Start Up’ forward as a book to be profiled at the festival but they’ve also organised tomorrow morning’s event. From their idyllic-looking home office (which I’ll be checking out tonight), they've prepared posters, sent emails and generally done a great job of marketing my session. Thanks to you both!

So, if you’re looking for something to do on Saturday morning, you’ll find us at 10.30am in ‘The Hut’ at Reading Lasses. Booking details are on the Book Festival site/link below.

Having just spotted a forum post it seems that our hospitable Heather is offering everyone who comes a free cuppa’ – I’m liking the sound of Wigtown already! – Emma Jones

Q&A with Sweet Marketing

When did you start Sweet Marketing?

In January 2007, after moving back to Yorkshire from London.

How does it feel setting up back at home in Yorkshire, after 8 years in the London PR world?

Setting up your own business is both exciting and frightening in the same breath, and I think there are a lot of opportunities in Yorkshire which perhaps aren’t recognised by the London crowd. For example, contacts here are really strong and that can help when it comes to finding new business or getting good results for clients.

I went from working for a hugely successful business at Red Bull energy drinks, driving a company car with all the benefits, in a trendy Soho based office to working on my own and starting in rural Yorkshire. The change was massive but the thing is, I’ve never looked back as there’s nothing as motivating as doing it for yourself.

One of the other benefits is that my clients are also entrepreneurs so whilst I give them expert advice and do great work for them, I also get to learn from their own business experiences.

Does your partner also work from home? If not, does he help you out with the business?

No, he works in Leeds in the property world. He’s an invaluable source of good advice when I need a sounding board as he’s also used to working with clients to get results. He’s also extremely honest so I never worry that he’s just saying things to make me happy!

How did you win your first client?

My first client was actually my brother in law who runs an agricultural seed business in Lincolnshire – Phillips Seeds Ltd – and it’s funny how things start to open out once you get the first client – after that I won a new soft drinks company contract which came from contacts at Red Bull. Another client is Sweden’s biggest children’s wear retailer – Polarn O Pyret which means ‘buddy and the little one’ in Swedish. It’s a gorgeous brand and so far we’ve got them rave reviews in The Times, The Daily Telegraph and in the parenting magazines, so it’s been a good start but there are always opportunities to be worked on in this job!

You have a great company name (we can see where it came from!) – do you plan to develop your website as a route to building your own brand?

Thank you – and yes definitely – in fact it’s something that I need to do asap! Online is definitely the way that a lot of consumers and clients like to find out information and the growth of online marketing is massive – I don’t intend to miss out on that area. And as some of my business is helping clients with their own websites, I really must practise what I preach!

What is the one thing you are enjoying most about running your own company?

The freedom to go with my gut instinct. I had an amazing grounding by working in a big PR consultancy and a lot of freedom at Red Bull but I think you can truly come alive when it’s your own concern – it’s all about ownership really.

Rachel Sweeting talks to Emma Jones

Sweet Marketing

Attend Small Business 2.0 for internet inspiration

Small Business 2.0 is for you!

As the promotion materials for this event are just so good, there’s no point in us writing fresh copy. We’ll just tell you what the organizers say as they say it so nicely.

What we did want to say is that a few Enterprise Nation friends and folk will be at the event itself. Emma Jones will be chairing some of the sessions and two of our good friends .. Alex Bellinger of SmallBizPod and Trevor Ginn of Vendlab will be speaking.

If the following text applies to you, we’d love to see you there …

Whether you're a sophisticated net user or a complete novice Small Business 2.0 can help you make a net gain from search engine optimisation, internet marketing, ecommerce and online payments.

Invest just one day and learn how you can unleash the power of the web.

Promote your business cost effectively using search engines, banner advertising and affiliate programmes.
Get tips and advice from expert professionals about improving your website and giving it that critical edge in the world wide web.
Understand and profit from Google, eBay and Amazon.
Employ the power of blogs in communicating your marketing message.
Learn about social networks and what these communities can do for you.
Streamline your eBay operations
Expand into other marketplaces and even find out how you can set up your own webstore.

Small Business 2.0 is THE event for every small business that knows the future is now. Join industry experts, service providers, inspiring speakers, a whole host of exhibitors and get to grips with what the web can do for your business.

Date: Saturday 11th October 2008
Place: New Connaught Rooms, Covent Garden, London
Time: 9-5.30pm

For full details, visit the event website.

Small Business 2.0

Three essentials of networking online

One, two, three

Step 1: Find the sites that suit your business

Go for a combination of general business websites (such as Enterprise Nation, BT Tradespace, Business Scene and startups.co.uk) as well as sites particular to your trade and mix in a few social networking sites like Facebook.

Spend a bit of time on each site to find out how they function and the topics people are talking about in the forums.

Once you feel comfortable, register (if required) write your profile and start posting comments and questions on the site/in the forums.

Step 2: Follow etiquette

When posting, don’t be too pushy! If you only ever post sales messages, other forum members will think you’re just there to sell rather than contribute to the community.

Be helpful and answer people’s questions. After all, that’s the best way to demonstrate your expertise. With give and take, you’ll soon become a trusted member of the online group. That then leads to new business as fellow forum members turn to you for paid-for advice, having seen what you can do and what you have to offer.

Step 3: Visit regularly

Don’t expect immediate results or a sale after just one post or comment. As in the offline world, it takes a few conversations for people to get to know you so try to return to the sites you choose on a regular basis so you’re remembered and pop up in someone’s head when they’re considering choosing a supplier from your line of work.

Do you have any other tips for how to successfully network online?

Q&A with Judith Morgan

You have a wealth of experience in starting and growing your own business – and helping others. Where does your love of business come from?

Hmm, that’s quite tricky to answer. All of my family – mother, father, brother – were employees so I was always the odd one out. However, I have a lovely black and white photograph of my maternal grandparents’ Dorset farm which reminds that, of course, farmers are entrepreneurs. I just feel it in me, I love commerce, money, accounting, profits, business, entrepreneurship and everything to do with business.

What takes up most of your day ie which part of the business gets most of your time?

Marketing and managing teams. Managing all of my different businesses and moving them all forward at the same time. Helping people be more successful in their own businesses.

What one thing would you say to someone considering starting a business?

Don’t give up the day job until you can do something part-time which covers your overheads. Nothing will sabotage you faster than rapidly draining cashflow and money worries.

Do you think coaching/mentoring is a useful tool to help businesses grow?

If you want the fast-track then yes. If you have all the time in the world, then you also have time to make the mistakes and learn from them and, frankly, this is the best way we all learn.

What do you most enjoy about working from home?

No boss, no commuting, working in my pyjamas, hours to suit, being able to enjoy things off peak during the week when others are working – like quiet roads, shops, swimming pools etc. – and, in return, I might often choose to work a Saturday in lieu.

What are your plans for the future? Will you be launching new companies/products?

Always! I can’t help it. I am a Creator profile in Wealth Dynamics and that means I am in my flow when creating. I am a starter, not a finisher, and I love to dream up an idea, work it up, start it and then sell it on.

We’ll now leave Judith to get on with doing just that!

Judith Morgan

What to wear when you work from home

Let’s get the PJ’s out of the way first

It is 10.00am and here I am sitting at my desk in my p.j.’s writing this article. Only kidding. It may be 10.00am but I have never worn pyjamas in my office even though it is only a few steps away from my bedroom.

Like you I am my own boss, I go out to see clients so in theory it does not matter how I dress in my own home, or does it? Unlike jobs that you commute to where there is usually some dress code, when you work from home there isn’t one. As your own boss you make the rules and can choose to dress up or dress down or not get dressed at all. So does it matter what you wear when you are working in your home office - be it the kitchen table, the spare bedroom or the garden shed? For me personally it does and not just because I am an image coach.

Look good. Feel good.

I believe that what you wear has a real impact on how you feel about yourself and when you feel good you are a happier and a more confident person. Take a minute to look at yourself in a full length mirror. Do you look like a successful business owner or someone who is about to paint the kitchen? Wearing your oldest baggiest clothes may be comfortable and you may feel super confident whatever you are wearing but for most of us we need the boost that clothes can give you. Yes you can dress more casually but don’t let comfy mean frumpy.

I suggest you keep a work wardrobe, a few items of clothes that when you put them on you are in work mode. It is a way of telling your brain, ‘Let’s get going.’

And a few final touches

Does what you wear affect the way you work? We are all different and what works for one won’t for another. The only way to find out is to try wearing different types of clothes for a few days. Take time choosing what to wear, think smart casual. If your most important client or customer were to arrive unexpectedly on your doorstep what would you like to be wearing? Then spray on your favourite cologne or perfume to make yourself feel good before you settle down to work and see if your productivity improves, you may be surprised at the results.

My final tip is if you are a woman never under estimate the power of make-up. If you want to look and feel your best then a touch of blusher and some mascara can work wonders for your appearance. Knowing you are looking good will boost your morale and increase your self confidence no end.

Lilian Waud, whatcaniwear.com

Enough already. Just tell us what happened.

Meet Steve? Yes, please!

The invitation came through a few weeks ago. It came from a company called Influencer 50, run by the very capable Duncan Brown.

The invitation was to join Steve Ballmer (worldwide chief of Microsoft) for breakfast and hear his views on technology and small business.

It took me all of 5 seconds to reply. Yes, please, I’d love to come.

Warming up

The action kicked off at 9am with a warm-up act of:

Miles Templeman, Director General, Institute of Directors
Robin Jarvis, Head of Small Business Unit, ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants)
Adam Jackson, head of BERR (Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform)

Miles Templeman was my particular favourite and showed sharp observations that are mentioned below.

This was followed by a Q&A session which was good and framed with a growing feeling of excitement as time came for Steve to enter the room.

Making an entrance

And then there he was. Right in front of me. The real Steve Ballmer. Except there was something slightly unreal about him.. his voice. It was sexily raspy and became incredibly loud at the most unusual moments. There is a video recording of the event which hopefully we’ll link to so you can hear what I mean.

He didn’t speak for long but he did listen to the views of the audience; the audience being representatives from the UK small business community.

My question was:

“With 60% of businesses in the UK being started from home (and 33 million home businesses in the US) do you plan to come to market with a home business product? Because at the moment when I visit Microsoft.com it asks if I’m:

A home user
A business user

But I’m both!"

Steve B said the home business market is very big and important for Microsoft and he took the point. He then took a pen out of his pocket and wrote a note on a little yellow piece of paper. So who knows. Maybe the next time you log on to Microsoft home page it will say “welcome, home business owner.”

Whether it does or not, I’ve now got Steve’s email address. But then again, so does everyone else who was in the room. So much for getting my hair done. – Emma Jones

On a serious note, some serious points of learning from the morning:

The UK economy is moving to a state where big companies are getting bigger, medium sized companies are struggling and niche businesses are thriving (this bodes very well for the home business sector)
Technology is being applied by small businesses in three main ways:
Defensive – to improve operations and productivity
Attack – to spur expansion
Business model – new businesses are being started that depend on technology as a platform in its own right
78% of small businesses are concerned about data security and continuity
“I’m optimistic about the future” .. Miles Templeman, Director General IoD
74% of all businesses in the UK are one person businesses
In 1931 politicians and economists came together and decided that the finance needs of small businesses were not being sufficiently met. Fast forward to 2008. What’s changed?!
Only 0.03% of British companies are quoted on the London Stock Exchange
“Small business is the single largest part of the business IT market yet still the most under-served” , Steve Ballmer, Chief Executive, Microsoft, 1^st October 2008

The VA Business Start Up Course – for the perfect Virtual Assistant

Course content

This is why Kate’s tele-class courses are so well received …

Learn without having to go anywhere - simply dial into the group tele-classes from the comfort of your own home
Get support from fellow participants - build relationships that will last
Be encouraged by your tutor who has created her own VA business to fit her life

The course consists of...

Series of 7 Group Tele-Classes - taking you through the material and helping you create a VA business unique to you
eBook - the course manual taking you step-by-step through the process of setting up and building your business. Includes essential business templates and resources
1-2-1 coaching - 2 x one hour telephone coaching sessions with your course leader
Online community - membership of the Google Group
Expert Tele-Class Series - MP3 recordings of "expert" classes to listen to in your own time.

To join either of the Autumn courses …

- Tuesdays at 1:00pm (commencing 28 October 2008)
- Wednesdays at 7:30pm (commencing 29 October 2008

.. just click on the link below.

Kate Bacon's VA Business Start Up Course

Work from Home with Concept CV

An important job

Did you know that on average a CV will have less than 15 seconds to make an impact? This means a professional, interview-winning CV is a must and possibly the only opportunity for a job seeker to sell themselves to an employer.

Do you have the skills to help candidates with preparing and polishing their CV?

Enter ConceptCV

This is where ConceptCV helps.

The company offers a range of services including professional CV templates, bespoke executive career coaching, interview advice, job board submission and career development.

They also offer franchise opportunities to leading HR and Recruitment Professionals and a number of home based telesales positions.

If you have the relevant experience and would like to run your own professional CV writing and career consultancy from home click on the link below or email Libby.

Ask yourself..

Look into the mirror

Lee Ann Smith knows a thing or two about website design and development. That’s because it’s her business. So she’s written in with some questions that you might like to pose to … you .. CEO of yourbusiness.com.

Ask yourself this:

What do I offer that will make customers want to buy from me?
Is my site easy to use?
Do I have special offers which my competitors don’t have?
Is my product superior to that of my competitors? Does my website promote this?
Does my website make it easy for users to contact me with questions?
Do I offer guarantees?
What is my customer service like?
Does my website give the user confidence to buy from me?

If you’d like to chat to Lee Ann about any of these questions, you’ll find her in the Enterprise Nation forums.

Thanks, Lee Ann for the guidance.

W3designs.co.uk

Website of the day: Justmeet.com

Introducing Justmeet.com

This is how the company was introduced and described in the Telework Association newsletter:

“Jerky images, stilted sound and lengthy downloads are all a thing of the past for online business meetings, thanks to some clever new software. A simple, easy to use and cost-effective solution to businesses and individuals wanting to meet in an online virtual space has arrived in the form of JustMeet.com.

JustMeet.com provides virtual meeting rooms allowing people to log on, book a room and hold a face-to-face meeting with practically no setup time. With no need for special hardware or high bandwidth, people can quite literally just meet. Participants can look around and chat as they would do in a real boardroom, making their meeting a more memorable experience. Another plus: With JustMeet.com you only pay for the room booking, not per-user per-minute.

'Video conferencing is old hat,' says David Parr from JustMeet.com. 'The newest technology is a 3D virtual room which gives people a real sense of being there.'

Parr, who has 15 years experience as a video conferencing specialist, says this is one of the best solutions he has seen. 'Actually being able to look to your right and left at different people makes it much easier to remember the finer points of a meeting. You'll walk away from a meeting able to picture who sat where around the table, helping you remember what they said.'

Unlike many other online meeting solutions, JustMeet.com connects every participant to a single server which handles the mixing of all audio and video, saving network bandwidth. No matter how many people join the meeting room, JustMeet.com does not require extra bandwidth - giving the same great experience for all sizes of meeting.”

Coffee and biscuits are self-serve!

Partners in crime

Joining forces

Enterprise Nation asks Barbara and Karen how their partnership started, what it means for clients and how others can follow in their double footsteps.

Barbara runs Fiery Phoenix
Karen runs PinkCreative

What does Fiery Phoenix do?

We provide a full internet service, which includes website design, consultancy, website development and hosting advice.

We pride ourselves on our friendly yet professional manner. Many start-up companies feel they cannot take advantage of the opportunities the internet can offer due to a fear of the costs involved. Here at Fiery Phoenix we believe we can help many smaller businesses grow by using the internet effectively. We don’t focus on booking orders, but on building successful business relationships with our clients.

What does PinkCreative do?

PinkCreative is a graphic design agency. We offer services from advertising, editorial, photography to logos, stationery and magazines – ‘anything you think you need, think pink!’

How do you know each other?

We went to a networking event in Southend, met during a ‘speed networking’ session, found our businesses complimented each other, swapped business cards, and the rest is history...

Who suggested the idea of a partnership and why?

B: After the initial intro I asked if Karen would be willing to provide graphic work, as this was a weakness in my skill set. I also asked if web creation services were something she would be interested in. As we are both home workers and have a similar low cost methodology so it made sense to work together.

K: I contacted Barbara after the networking event as I had a lot of web based work coming up and the other freelancers I used were getting busy, so I wanted to find out whether she was interested in helping me out and taking some of my web work. I knew that I would be able to work with Barbara the moment I met her.

How do you think the partnership is benefiting your clients?

B: I am able to offer clients a top notch design service that matches the high quality technical services currently provided.

K: I can offer a confident web design/development service, knowing that Barbara is right there behind me, supporting and advising along the way.

How does it work in practice?

We each have our own clients, for example – a PinkCreative client will be offered everything through PinkCreative. We create a joint quotation for presentation to the client and discuss as necessary the more technical aspects with a potential client.

We provide support to each other if a client is particularly demanding, which is invaluable when you are feeling isolated in your kitchen or wherever your home office happens to be. We work quite a distance apart, but with constant emails and phone calls flying about we are always in regular contact.

A typical order would follow the pattern below:

Karen will design the website, with feedback from Barbara and once approved send the design over to Fiery Phoenix to have it built.
Once the website is completed PinkCreative will be invoiced by Fiery Phoenix or vice versa, and then when all the work for the client has been completed they will be invoiced for everything.

One of our clients deals with us both direct knowing that we work together and communicate with each other on a regular basis – they are happy as they get to talk to the right person for the particular job they need doing, plus benefiting from getting the best possible outcome for their business from our two companies combined.

In particular we have been able to land a new client for a considerable amount of work, which will extend over the next two years, due to the fact that we offer a joint technical and graphical approach. This was exactly what this client was looking for. If we had not been working together we would never have been able to even quote for the work.

What do you think are the top 3 factors that ensure a successful partnership?

B: Similar work ethics, working together to support both businesses – not just focussing on your own bottom line and last but definitely not least being able to talk to each other about all aspects of the work and respecting each others strengths and opinions.

K: Guidelines that are set out from the start, equal enthusiasm for the work and most importantly communication!

Barbara Rudlin and Karen Lauenborg talk to Emma Jones

Toniks Teachings

Mike Hollands tells the Toniks story

Taken from an interview with Mike Hollands, these are a few of the key points that came out as defining the company's success to date. They act as useful prompts for home business owners everywhere.

Be patient – Mike and Karen Hollands lived in Brazil for six years running a traditional language school with classrooms and training space. They knew there was a better way to connect linguists with students but the technology to help them do it was not available. They perfected their ideas over these years and waited for the technology to come to market that allowed them to take their idea to market.
Select your team with care – Toniks adopts a rigorous process to find its teachers. This includes online interviews with Mike and Karen, interviews with other teachers and in-depth skills testing. Toniks wants to be sure of only choosing the best talent. Their business depends upon it.
And then treat them well – teachers who work for Toniks are self-employed yet have a feeling of being part of a Toniks family. All teachers are paid the same rate (to ensure transparency) and Toniks HQ is incredibly aware of ensuring a positive work/life balance for their team. This is what Karen Hollands had to say in the entry to the Home Business Awards:
“Toniks’ business model allows considerable flexibility for the tutors we employ too. Examples of the flexibility of our model include Vanda, a Russian tutor based in Sweden who recently had a baby. She has given us her baby’s sleeping patterns during the day, and we now book lessons for her around the baby’s timetable! Another example is Minyi, a Mandarin tutor based in Frankfurt. She had to visit her family in China when a close relative became ill suddenly. During the six weeks she was there Minyi continued providing her regular lessons to Toniks’ students in the UK as if nothing had happened.”
Know your USP – Mike was asked about competition. His reply was confident in claiming there are other companies offering online language tuition but the unique selling point (USP) for Toniks is in the quality of the teachers they use. He knew Toniks place in the market and how the company differentiates itself from others.
Work with big partners but keep overheads small - Mike spoke of the Toniks approach to partnering with big brands yet keeping a sharp eye on driving down the costs of doing business.
Grow at your own pace – possibly the most surprising point (to me) was Mike’s comment that Toniks sees many new opportunities for business growth but right now the company will grow at a manageable pace. This will continue until Mike and Karen’s children are a bit older – freeing up Mum and Dad to dedicate more time to the business and realise the full extent of opportunities. Mike and Karen have the freedom and flexibility to choose the pace at which they grow.
Profile, profile, profile – Mike travelled from Weybridge to Ironbridge to tell people about his business. The company entered the Home Business Awards (and won) to tell people about the business. The company has a partnership with Skype that involves Skype telling people about the business.

It’s the last point but just as important as the rest … it pays to be well profiled.

Thanks to Mike Hollands for taking the time to talk to us. – Emma Jones