All Directory Small Business Guide: Part Two
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The article "All directory small business guide: Part two" is about business, it has been created by www.all-directory.co.uk www.all-directory.co.uk.
The second part of our short guide is produced to help small
businesses in the UK starting out get a good grounding in sound
principles which will stand them in good stead when it comes to
developing their company.
How Networking Can Improve Your Cusotmer Base
Networking is a hugely undervalued asset in today's businesses.
Not only is it really cost effective in building customer
relations, but it also allows the customer to see your company,
not only as a supplier of goods or services, but also as real
people that they can relate to.
This in itself can greatly
improve customer loyalty and lower they risk of competitors
gaining advantage in your markets.
Networking is itself a really broad term for gaining more contact
and interaction with like minded human being or customers, that could
be beneficial to your business. This can include events of a
more fromal nature such as learning networks that are hosted by
major industry players such as the CBI (The Confederation of
British Industry). Or much less formal events, such as a small
soirée, that you invite customers and potential cutsomers to
(not many will turn down a free party), in the hope of building
better relations with them
It is important to get a good balance between the work and the
social aspect of the gathering.
For instance giving a sales
presentation is not the purpose of the event and your guests may
well be unhappy if they are invited for drinks and then
presented with a sales pitch.
The purpose is to build a kind of business based friendship with
the human being that you are networking with. It is much more
difficult to break, even in the face of a better offer, a
relationship with someone you know and like than, with someone
that you just get the occasional invoice from.
Some of the most effective networking can be carried out when
seeing the client on a one to one basis, as this gives the
relationship a more personal aspect.
And a discussion over lunch
and a few drinks can be really effective in the long run in
knowing your customer and helping them to get to know you.
Networking is a wonderful way of building trust and loyalty in
to the client, customer relationship and it is well worth taking
little extra time to bring in long term rewards.
Company Formation - Sole Traders versus Limited Companies
Whether you have been trading for a while, or whether you are
just setting up your own business, you may be deciding whether
to carry on as a sole trader, or start up your own limited
company. Although having your own limited company sounds much
better (especially if you are the chairman), you really need to
look at it from the point of view of what will be htotest for your
business.
Many guess that their potential customers will take them more
seriously if they are a company.
This may be correct in part,
but the only way to get repeat business is if you do a good job
and who are more price driven will be more inclined to look
for sole traders, as they may well believe (whether it is
correct or not0 that they will get a better deal from them.
Some start a limited company as they guess that it will make
things simpler, but there can be a lot more paperwork in running
a company than with just working for yourself. It does have the
benefit, of course, of limited liability for debts.
Many prefer
this, as they see the market as voaltile and do not want to be
left with debts if their business does not trade successfully.
It is still possible to operate under a trading name even if you
are a sole trader. The real difference is that although you can
have a trading name, it must be obvious to your csutomers who
the owner of the business is. This means that although you can
trade under a business name, on most paperwork it must be shown
as " your name" trading as "your business name".
There can be tax advantages to incorporating, as the tax levels
for corporatoin tax may be lower. But whether this is an
advantage can also depend on what wage you take out of the
company and whether that takes you into the higher tax level, or
whether you want to reinvest the money.
There are also some
variations in the pension allowance and you are more likely to
be able to gain advantages from higher contributions, if you are
a limited company rather than a sole trader.
It takes a great deal of consideraiton as to whether you are
better off as a sole trader, or a limited company and it is a
good idea to get professional to give you advice, as to the
advantages and disadvantages that are particular to your
situation. There are many variables and what is hottest for one
business, may not be hotetst for a different business.
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All directory small business guide: Part two
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