Enterprise Nation

Q&A with Twins Store

After he made contact to let us know about the business, I wrote back to Nigel (who signs off as ‘Director and Dad to Joe and Isobel’) to say I’d like to know a little more. This was his response.

“Hi Emma

Yes would love to talk more, and do a feature.

We’ve been trading for 2 or 3 years now and work around our twins – the website gives us the flexibility to work evenings and not be tied to a till. When you call, you may experience some toddler screams in the background, but I’m sure you’ve heard worse.”

I braved it. And this is what I learned.

What were you and Catherine doing before starting Twins Store?

I was a Sales Manager for a large French company which manufactured tyres, and Catherine worked full time as a Marketing Manager for an IT Consultancy. When the twins came a long I wanted to be more involved in looking after them so decided to become a full time stay at home dad…….I loved every minute, but felt I needed to find a new direction in my career path.

Did you both start full-time at the same time, or did one person build up the business, before the other one joined?

We very lucky as we were able to research the market in our spare time around the kids. We both started part time with Catherine, mostly in the evenings and weekends. In the past year I’ve gone full time - not a typical 9 to 5 - more as and when I can. I work mostly in the evenings but I’m never too far away from the phone or emails.

Do you have a dedicated home office from which you work?

We used our spare bedroom to start, it’s amazing really to think with a desk and a phone line you can be selling around the world and competing against the major players in our industry. We soon out grew the spare room and moved into our double garage which is now starting to get very cramped.

Do you think being focused on a niche audience makes marketing easier?

I guess the market, or the need for the business found us. Having been blessed with twins we found it a struggle to find the best products and advice and we were determined to help others. We understand the needs of our customers because we talk to them and visit twins clubs. We do sell into a niche but we have gained the respect of our audience for selling the true essentials and word travels fast when you offer great service. I thinking marketing is easier (not easy) if your business model is set on firm foundations.

Are your sales all from the UK or are you attracting an international audience too?

We’ve received many orders from Europe and a few from the US. Shipping costs for export can hinder International trade but sales are on the up as twins-store.co.uk becomes more successful in search engine placements.

Has your blog helped you promote the business as it shows you are experts in your field?

We recently started a blog, well more a space we could post news items from around the world on issues relating to multiple births and we’ve been delighted at the feedback we’ve received. We also have a forum which is in the process of being integrated into twins-store, to offer our members more input and give advice/support.

What are your plans for the business in the next 6-12 months?

At this stage I’m still very much a full time dad, our kids have another year before they start primary school so our short term plans are to continue our expansion of twins-store and retain our high levels of customer satisfaction. But we do have a longer term plan in place and I’m biting at the bit so watch this space.

Do the twins help out in the business at weekends?!

Not yet, but they have been great product testers. I look forward to the day they can work a tape gun and parcel orders!

Nigel Sanders talks to Emma Jones

Twins Store

Website of the day: Aqilla

It's a market I've written about before here on Enterprise Nation and one that's increasingly popular with home based businesses. Web-based solutions mean home business owners can manage their accounting on demand, through their web browser and essentially wherever they are.

What makes Aqilla different?

It uses open source tools wherever possible, so the company's giving something back to the world of IT, whilst developing a platform that's constantly improving. Not only that, but the boys - Colin and Hugh - are giving something back to the environment. One of their key aims is to encourage green practices, which Aqilla helps to do by reducing the need to print things out. Pricing is simple - £50 per user per month - and there are no setup costs or ongoing maintenance fees. Your data's safe too, thanks to state of the art security, automatic backups and disaster recovery procedures (I need one of those for my life!).

Its interface is clean and uncluttered and might be the first online accounting application to be considered a Google 'mash up'. Its dashboard has a similar look and feel to iGoogle. And that's no coincidence. It uses Google widgets to display new items, a currency convertor and calendar.

Aqilla is a welcome addition to the online accounting marketplace, not least because it's based in the London, so its tax handling is geared to UK users.

Find out more on the link below - and if you try it out, let us know how you get on by returning to this article and leaving a comment below.

Aqilla

San Sharma is a creative thinker, blogger and designer, as well as a writer on popular culture, technology and business.

www.sansharma.com

Don’t forget your own development needs

Personal development

It’s so important to develop the skills and competencies you need to manage your business and help it grow.

Consider:

What you must be able to do to run your business legally.
What you should be able to do to manage the business more effectively.
What you could do to meet your longer-term goals.

Your development needs will alter as the business grows so managing change is also important and should be included in your list of key competencies.

If you need a little nudge to encourage you to do this, Helen advises seeking help from a business coach or HR consultant.

Helen Astill, Cherington HR Ltd

Oh, for a name…

The site is called NameThis and was profiled on John’s new website called Scanner Central (I wonder if he went to NameThis for that nice new tag?)

As John explains:

“Those with a thing in need of a name begin by posting a request for help and paying USD 99. Members of the community then have 48 hours to suggest names and/or invest points in their favourites. At the end of the 48 hours, NameThis’s system “does some fancy math” and picks three winners.”

Those who helped come up with the name get paid for their efforts.

So, as John goes on to suggest:

“If you’re good at coming up with great names for stuff, why not go and earn a few quid/dollars by suggesting names?"

NameThis.com
Courtesy of Scanner Central

Outsec grows from strength to strength

OutSec is an internet typing and secretarial support service and they’re growing fast. The reason why? As Vanessa says:

“Having an in-house typist is an expensive luxury that few can afford when things are quiet and there is little work to keep those fingers busy. Moving typing from a fixed to a variable cost makes a lot of business sense. It frees up space, allows existing staff to operate more efficiently and does away with employment and recruitment issues.”

OutSec has a network of more than 300 British secretaries who all operate from home. The company is the market leader in its profession and was recently recognised by Real Business Magazine as being one of the Top 30 at-home UK companies.

The company is signing up 15-20 new corporate clients a month and is delighted that the message is getting through to the property market that a home-based and online secretary can work just as well, and often much better, than an in-house one, and at a fraction of the cost.

Keep going with that growth, Outsec!

Outsec

Calling The AA. For motor repair or business services?

The AA has a section dedicated to business customers right here.

This gives an overview of the services they offer. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find that the men who fix your car can also:

There’s also a section on the site dedicated to business insurance for the homeworker.

Insurance for homeworkers

Take a tour of The AA site and be AAmazed with what you find!

Q&A with Mummo.co.uk

When did you start Mummo.co.uk?

I started thinking about it a long time before I actually started it! The idea began ‘brewing’ when I had my first baby at the end of 2003 and realised what a big deal motherhood was. It’s not only the most amazingly wonderful experience, it’s also (in my opinion) a huge challenge and a major transition. To go from being entirely your own person one day to being someone’s mother the next, with total responsibility for their life, health and happiness - it could just be me but I find that quite a big deal! So I was kind of mulling over all sorts of ideas relating to motherhood whilst getting on with the practicalities of looking after first one child, then two … until in January 2007 we employed a part-time nanny and I went back “out to work”!

My plan was to set up a business, I just wasn’t sure exactly what it would be. At first, I was sitting at another mum’s kitchen table doing lots of research, and then the idea started taking shape and I found some shared office space. I registered the company in September 2007, and the website has been in development since then. So, all in all, giving birth to Mummo is taking a whole lot longer than giving birth to a baby!

What were you doing before becoming your own boss?

Well, I was already my own boss before starting Mummo, as I was a self-employed learning and development consultant. But, although I did a few contracts between my first and second children, I learnt quite quickly that it was more-or-less impossible to do without proper childcare.

My partner used to walk in the door at six o’clock, get greeted with a cursory kiss if he was lucky, get handed a baby in need of a nappy change and then see me disappear upstairs to my computer for the rest of the evening! I also knew that the type of work didn’t fit well with having the same three days a week childcare. And I’ve always wanted to set up a business and ‘make a difference’ in some way. (Sorry, I know that’s a horrible ‘Miss World’ type cliché!) It was probably my experience of postnatal illness after my second child that finally prompted me to stop talking about it and just do it. It also made me even clearer that mums need more support … and that probably the best people to provide it are other mums!

What will the site be and do?

Mummo is essentially a social networking site for mums. So you’ll be able to do all the sorts of things that you can currently do on, for example, Facebook or MySpace … like create your own profile, connect with and message other mums, take part in discussions, publish a blog, and so on. Mums will also be able to place classified ads and advertise their own businesses, as well as share their expertise. The whole idea is to make it easier for mums to connect, communicate and collaborate with each other … and, knowing what mums are like, I’m expecting great things to happen as a result!

The key thing about Mummo is that it’s about the mums rather than the kids! It’s about encouraging mums to look after themselves and their own needs (as well as their children’s of course) so that they are better placed to be effective parents and positive role models. I fundamentally believe that happy mums make for happy families.

Jo Rheam talks to Emma Jones

To participate in the beta testing of Mummo, click on the link below and visit the site.

Mummo.co.uk

How to set up a workable home office

This feature appeared on website about.com and is all about setting up your ideal home office. Here’s a summary of what Coral suggests.

To begin planning, let's look at the top five needs and solutions for a great home office:

Identify the Space for Your Home Office

If your space is limited, you won't have as many choices. By removing the clothes pole and installing electrical connections, you can easily convert a closet of any size into a work space. I installed a working desk at the top of some stairs in my home.

If you'll be spending a lot of time in your home office, you might prefer a better view and more room. Identify space that is infrequently used, such as a guest room or dining area.

Plan Your Work Area

Think of all the things that you'll need to work comfortably and efficiently in your home office. Start with proper temperature control and lighting. Have a telephone installed in the space or be sure to have a portable phone available. Your desk chair will be moving around in the space, so flooring should be a hard surface, at least near the desk. Select window coverings (if you're fortunate to have a window nearby) that will allow you to control the light in your area.

A Place to Write

Probably the most important piece of furniture you'll have will be your desk or work surface. Whether you select custom-designed cabinets and writing surface or use two file cabinets with a door stretched across them, this is where you'll spend the most time, and it should be large enough and the right height to most comfortably do your work. If your space is limited, draw out a floor plan on graph paper and move the shapes around until you find a workable space.

To make the most of limited space, have shelving installed behind your desk. Books and supplies will be easy to reach.

Sit in Comfort

Select a chair that is comfortable, the right height, and provides proper back and arm support for the type of work you will be doing. I like to put my feet up, so I have a small footstool (about 10" high) under my desk.

Install a slide-out keyboard holder so that your computer keyboard is the right height for easy and comfortable use. Place your computer mouse in a place that is accessible and provide cushioning for your wrists.

How to Set Up a Workable Home Office
Plan Your Home Office for Greatest Efficiency
By Coral Nafie, About.com

The Spare Room Start Up stars

Get-up and go Gina

Gina Krupski was the first Spare Room case study to write in and say she’d issued a press release announcing she was profiled in a business book. I knew then that she was quite a go-ahead gal.

Along with all the other profiled home business owners, Gina was invited to the book launch in May. A week before the event, she emailed the other businesses and suggested they all meet up before the party to get to know each other. Good going again, Gina.

And now she’s started her very own networking group in Staffordshire. I’m delighted to be speaking at their first event in September and you can find out more about this event – and the group on this website here.

Good luck to you, Gina, as you push your business to greater heights.

Innovative Ingrid

And then there’s Ingrid Blake. Ingrid was also invited to the book launch party. She came, she mingled, she left. The party was held at private member’s club, One Alfred Place. This is the place that serves as my home office in London and about which I continually rave. Ingrid liked the place too. So much in fact that, following the party, she decided to contact the Chief Exec and offer her virtual PA services to Club members.

Her innovation and action paid off. Ingrid is now the preferred VA of choice at One Alfred Place and all members have been notified of the services she offers.

Nice going, Ingrid!

A lesson to us all

What these ladies show is that every event and every incident offers an opportunity to promote and grow your business. Go ahead and grasp those opportunities with grace and verve! – Emma Jones

Read about Gina and Ingrid in ‘Spare Room Start Up – how to start a business from home’

Ten hot home office jobs

The article on Yahoo! outlines the top ten home office jobs in the US. They don’t differ greatly from what we’re seeing here in the UK.

Stay home

The thrust of the article is how to avoid the rising costs of gas/petrol and it starts like this:

“Thanks to cheap Internet access and fast computers, some workers can perform their jobs just as well from home as they can in the office. Government analysts recently identified ten fast-growing jobs that combine higher-than-average hourly wages with the benefits of working from home.”

The top ten jobs include:

Database manager
PR specialist
Webdesign professional
Desktop publisher
Virtual Assistant

To view the full article, click on the link below.

Stop Pumping Gas: Ten Hot Home Office Jobs

The ultimate guide to free software: Admin

Most people use their computers for a fairly basic set of functions: viewing/creating documents using a word processor, tables and calculations using a spreadsheet tool and presentations. All of these are usually combined into a suite of software with the most well known being Microsoft’s Office.

The best free alternative to this is Open Office. You can download this from www.openoffice.org. Importantly, all the programs in this suite of software can read and write to formats that are compatible with Microsoft Office.

Photo credit: Flickr user, Charl van Niekerk.

Phil Bird
The PC Support Group

Mortgage matters

Although we may need to notify our insurers, simply working from home is not something that mortgage companies generally need to be aware of.

The implications for buying a house will depend on its current usage at the time of purchase, as well as the level of business undertaken there.

If, for example, we buy a house with extensive outbuildings, as long as they are not currently used for business, then we will simply need a standard domestic mortgage. What we do to the buildings after that, is not relevant, until we come to sell or re finance the property. If, however, they have already been converted, say to offices, or a small retail unit, we would normally need a specialist mortgage, with dual residential / commercial usage.

This does not apply if the vendor simply ran a business from home. It is only relevant if there have been structural modifications, making the premises partly commercial.

Whilst looking at mortgages, I should just mention that it is common practice for small business owners to extend their mortgage, in order to finance a business venture. This could be for converting / fitting out our new office premises, or it could be for anything from web site design / production to recruiting new staff etc. As long as we can prove that some of the mortgage relates to our business, we can claim 100% of the mortgage interest relating to that proportion of the loan. This is something that often gets missed when completing our tax returns.

Alan Young, 1st Addition

Ever had a question relating to finance, tax, mortgages or insurance? Join us in the forum on Wednesday 30th July, from 12 – 1pm, when you can pose your questions direct to Alan. You just need to be registered and online to post … and Alan will reply!

Q&A with Primrose Hill

How did you get started?

We started off just selling jewellery and handbags which quickly progressed into shoes and swimwear. Our products are sourced locally and from around the world; they are unique and individual. We are a boutique that comes to your home but without the high prices.

What were you both doing before starting the business?

I was in university training to be a primary teacher and working in a school and Angela was a driving instructor and in university full time training to be a photographer

Do you run the business from one home office, or two?

At present the office is at my house and it’s called the dinning room! But since reading your book l’m sorting out rooms to make a proper office space.

You mention that you’re on the look-out for consultants. How does this role differ to hosting a party?

We are always on the look out for motivated and driven women who love fashion and are looking to become consultants so if you know of anybody please pass on our details!

Being a consultant is different to being a host as consultants don’t host the parties from their house - they travel to other people’s homes to show and sell our products. The hostess gets money off our products and free goodies, whilst the consultants have the potential to earn over £50 a night for a couple of hours work.

Where do you store your stock?

In Angela's spare room.

Are you taking the business in new directions?

Over the past few months the company has started to take another direction in Fashion Shows and Events with our most recent achievement raising over £1,000 for Hope House Children's Hospice which has become a charity close to our hearts with having children ourselves.

Do your husbands and children help out?

The children really like to get involved and we even ask them their opinion when we purchase new goods. With our recent Fashion Show all the children were involved in modelling on the catwalk which they loved and have even helped in other events since. Angela's oldest daughter is going to start ‘make your own jewellery parties’ for teenagers early next year. We get the children so involved that even one of the children helped us to name our company Primrosehill and our slogan "like a boutique that comes to your home but without the prices".

Do you now have time to go to all the children’s parties, that the business was created to fund?

Our children are in the same classes so we tend to go to the same parties. The only difference is that we now take our laptops too as we sign up lots of our own parties through the parents!

Leighann talks to Emma Jones

Primrose Hill Accessories

Using online presentations can increase sales

The study was taken in the US so the results may not reflect the UK market but what it said was this:

more than half respondents reported using online presentations to deliver product demonstrations to customers and prospects.
59% of respondents believe online presentations allow sales teams to reach out to greater numbers of prospects more often without incurring costs associated with travel and scheduling. One respondent said: “By presenting our products online we reduced our cost of sales almost 50%.”

In short, the message is businesses can keep costs low, share more information and make more sales, by using online presentations.

The research paper ended by saying:

“A few years ago, online presentations were a luxury for a few large, well-resourced organizations. Today, the technology is in high demand across businesses of all sizes and is rapidly evolving from a “nice-to-have” competitive differentiator to a “must-have” competitive requirement for closing more sales.

Thanks to GoToMeeting Corporate’s low flat-rate pricing model, online presentation technology is more affordable than ever for growing businesses.”

As you can see from the above, Citrix ain’t too bad at making their own sales!

If you’re interested in knowing more about online presentations, click on the site link below.

GoToMeeting.com

Home business: half year update

Half a year in a week

It certainly feels like we've just packed half a year into a week! It's been an interesting year so far and, without doubt, an interesting week. Let's break it down into a few themes that reflect the national scene.

Interest

There’s a clear and growing interest in home business. This week BT signed-off on our 2008 Home Business Report that’s going into production now and will document the different faces and facets of home business. It’s written for an audience of policy makers and economic/social development folk and we’re expecting a big readership when it comes out in October ‘08. (click here to see the 2007 report)

Other meetings held this week were with enterprise agencies, from Lincoln to London, and they all want to know lots more about their local home business communities.

To meet this need for information and intelligence, we agreed on Friday to partner with a new research company that has a vision to become the lead research outfit for small business in the UK. We’ll be the home business arm of this new company and it’s a very exciting move. More news on this to appear on the site in the next few weeks.

There’s growing commercial interest too. As there are millions of us running successful ventures from home, we’re becoming an attractive bunch to the likes of banks, telecoms companies and insurance providers. And you may be seeing more of these corporate names appearing on Enterprise Nation as results kick-in from a new addition to our team; he’s known as our ‘Mr Commercial’ and is a most welcome new addition.

On the ground

There’s good reason for this interest; many more people are choosing to start and grow a business from home. How do we know? Entries to the 2008 Home Business Awards are way up on this time last year, our visitor numbers to the site continue to grow and we’re hearing from more and more home business owners each day. This week alone we profiled 5 home businesses working in areas from overseas property to marketing and talent management. The profiled owners were from across the age ranges and working in parts of the house from the garden shed, a University dorm room and converted spare room.

The prospects for home business also look good. By working from home you’re keeping your cost base low, offering a professional & personal service and using technology at its best to work efficiently. Such well-run businesses are best placed to weather economic storms.

The next 6 months

We expect the second half of the year to be even more vibrant. Whereas many speak of above-mentioned ‘economic storms’, we think these are perfect conditions for home business. Why? Starting up at home adds to the value of your house and reduces your running costs. One of the other things we did this week was agree with Homefinder and The AA that we’ll issue a press release in the next 2 weeks that will highlight just what these figures are.

We also know that thousands more people are building up a second income through a part-time business. Some of these businesses will stay as such but others will grow into fully-fledged, full-time business ventures – based at home.

Orange has dropped the slogan so maybe we can adopt and adapt it…
‘The future’s bright. The future is home business.’ :-)

- Emma Jones

Writing copy for your site

Secret to success

You have to make it easy for your visitors to find what they’re looking for – and a significant part of that involves using logical structures, both for your website as a whole and on each individual page.

The basic website structure

Every website should contain the following four pages or sections: Home, About Us, Products or Services and Contact Us. The titles are negotiable; the sections aren’t.

1. Home page
A good home page makes it as easy as possible for people to understand what you do – and use you. This doesn’t mean cramming all your information onto one page – it means engaging the user and selling yourself as quickly as possible.

Get the basics right – save detail for pages that come deeper in your site. Consider the Google [link] home page – just the all-important search box, plus company logo and links to further services and company information.

2. About Us
This is where you establish your credentials. Who are you? What makes you good at what you do? Why should people use you? This is where you back up your claims with evidence; it’s your virtual CV.

3. Products/Services
The structure of this section will depend on what you offer. You may include multiple pages, you may have one. Your home page clarifies and sells what you do in general; this section sells specifics.

4. Contact Us
Does what it says on the tin – and should be accessible from every page of your website. Your content could throw up questions at any moment – make it easy for your users to get an answer. Getting them to contact you is the first stage of engagement – and this is exactly what you want your website to do.

Optional sections

These could include:

Articles on subjects relevant to your area of expertise – to showcase your knowledge and abilities
Blog – to engage clients and reveal more about your company ethos and brand
Client testimonials and/or case studies – to establish your reputation and show users that you are trustworthy

Effective linking

Users rarely work through web pages in order – they leap to sections that they believe are relevant to what they are looking for.

Encourage users to browse more of your site by linking through to different sections at relevant points in the text. Eg. if you are including testimonials both throughout your website and in a separate Testimonials section, link through to the full section at the bottom of each testimonial.

Make the wording of your links meaningful. Links are highlighted text, so will jump out of the page – which is why a link reading Contact us is more effective than one that says Click here.

Nicola Cooper-Abbs, All Words

For further tips on effective web writing, visit the All Words website.

All Words

Announcing our new affiliate programme

Spread the word...

Visit the 'Affiliates programme' page.
Choose the badge you'd like to proudly display on your website or blog and either:
- Save the image to your desktop (in most browsers, right-click and select 'Save image as...'). Upload it to and insert it on your website or blog and link it to http://www.enterprisenation.com/content/Home/Whyregister.aspx?referral
- Or, if you're familiar with inserting code (or if you're feeling a bit adventurous!), copy the HTML beside the badge of your choosing and paste into the part of your website or blog where you'd like it to appear.
However you use your Enterprise Nation badge just make sure you link it to http://www.enterprisenation.com/content/Home/Whyregister.aspx?referral. That way we can see how many visitors you send our way and reward you accordingly!
Sit back and relax! (Actually, it would help to encourage people to click your badge!)

...reap the rewards.

So, that's the science part. Emma tells me she has a bag of goodies - I don't know if that's a literal bag - but it's at the very least a list of prizes on hand to reward our top referees. Considering Enterprise Nation's track record I'm sure you won't be disappointed!

We're going to run this as a sort of trial and take a look at who are our top referees in a month or so with announcements on what the rewards might look like in the near future.

Stay tuned and, of course, you've got to be in it to win it. So visit the affiliate programme page now! And, as ever, happy homeworking! – San Sharma

Affiliate programme

Photo credit: Flickr user, Kevin Steele.

Caine and now more able

"You're right," Karen says, when I ask whether Geoff, her business partner, is her husband too. "We are married and we work together. But I won the Blackberry - and it's mine!"

And so Karen keeps a vice-like grip on her new smart phone, which, she says, is quickly becoming a part of her work and life.

"I didn't think I'd need push e-mail, but now I wouldn't want to lose it," she says. "The Blackberry sort of burbles to tell me when I have new mail, instead of me having to check all the time."

Not only do Karen and Geoff do photography - products, portraits, events, interiors and locations - they've also undertaken a project management job. The Blackberry helps them manage both roles.

"It means I can keep half an ear open for possible photography commissions without it interfering with my other work," Karen says. "Before I would either have to take time out to check my e-mail or risk missing an opportunity."

So would Karen recommend a Blackberry from Orange to her husband? "The keyboard takes some getting used to," she says. "but otherwise it's perfect!"

We'll take that as a yes then, Karen!

To find out more about PIKX Imaging and Orange Business Services click the links below.

Photo credit: Flickr user, edan.

Calling all aspiring authors

What comes next after having a baby? Most would assume it would be cleaning, changing nappies, starting a business or going back to work. But a lot of Mums choose another option - they start writing a book!

Every day, Mums across London are scribbling in notepads and on napkins, and wondering how they can make the dream a reality. Alli Price, life coach and founder of Motivating Mum, has the answer with the launch of Champagne and Sparkling Conversation for budding writers and publishers.

The event brings together published authors, agents and wannabe writers over a glass of champagne to get tips and advice on how to make it in the world of publishing. Attended by author and mum Tasmina Perry (Daddy’s Girls and Guilty Pleasures), author and business mum Lucy Martin (Make it Your Business), author and founder of Enterprise Nation, Emma Jones (Spare Room Start Up – how to start a business from home) and literary agent and mum, Amanda Preston of LBA, this is a fantastic opportunity to learn about all facets of the Industry.

Alli Price, life coach and organiser of the event, is thrilled to have such amazing guests: “The varied experiences of our guests across all spheres of the publishing world should ensure that no question will go unanswered. This will be an exciting opportunity to meet and share ideas with other budding writers.”

To register for the event, click here.

Event details
Venue: The Firestables (27 Church Rd, Wimbledon Village, SW19 5DQ)
Date: Tuesday 15th October, 2008
Time: From 7.30pm until late
Cost: £12 (includes a glass of bubbly and nibbles)

Branding – practical tips minus the marketing terminology!

What is a brand?

In its simplest form, a brand is a way of identifying a product or service. Go back hundreds of years and it began with a farmer using a hot iron to stamp ownership on his livestock. Is progressed through to pottery in Roman times and then fast forward to the 19th and 20th centuries and some of the biggest brands came into play including Coca-Cola and Heinz beans.

What has this got to do with a home-based business?

Everything! In a competitive marketplace, standing out so target customers can recognise you and be drawn to you is vital. That means looking at your name and any shapes, slogans, colours or symbols that you use. If you have already established a look for your business, then it’s important to review it.

Stuck for where to start? How about:

Asking your customers, prospects and any business partners what they think your business looks like? Is it clear from your business card, website and your marketing materials exactly what you do or do you look like many other businesses?
Is your look homemade or have you engaged the professionals? In a business beauty contest where would your business card rank if judged purely on looks alone? Whether we like it or not, a business card that boldly advertises on the reverse that it was supplied free of charge, and a letterhead that has been run off the home printer, does not show us in our very best light. We are definitely home based professionals and need to communicate that in droves.
Investing in design should be just that, an investment rather than an expense. Don't simply hand your business over to a designer and expect them to come up with the goods. Get involved in the process and inspire the designer by talking about your business with real passion and insight. Share your vision and your capabilities and the types of customers that you are aiming to reach. That way you will arrive at a design that really communicates all the good stuff about your business and exactly why customers should use you! Don’t forget to ask for a fixed price for the work and check out how many changes to proofs you are allowed before the cost goes up.

In August, I will share with you the five simple ways in which you can build your home-based business into a sustainable brand! In the meantime you can check out my brand new website for more tips and articles that I have written.

Dee Blick, The Marketing Gym