It seems to me that business owners often think that their high street accountant is a business guru of some description who should be trusted with their most sensitive financial information and knows how to run a fantastic business.
The reality is that high street accountants are often average business men that "fell" into the profession after realising that there was little hope for them out in the real commercial world. These guys have never run "real businesses" and that is the issue. Don't get me wrong there are some good ones out there - but how often do they ever given great quality commercial advice? The point is that other than a bit of taxation structuring (and most of them are not very good at that!) it is a compliance service and a compliance service only that they should be used for.
To get quality Finance input - i.e. to make you more profit and get more cash in your bank - every business needs a quality go to person as their FD. A quality FD will more than pay for himself by helping steer the MD along the route of quality profitable business (i.e. making more Gross Profit!) and keeping Overheads down (the difference between Gross Profit and Net Profit!)
So if you are sitting there and you don't know the difference between Gross Profit and Net Profit and worse still your accountant hasn't explained this to you then be scared....be very scared... and then pick up the phone and call Yellow Brick Road (08447 706320).
Quality FD skill is available at a fraction of the cost of full time resource so why not bring one into your business for one day a month to see what they can do for you! www.yellowbrickroadconsulting.co.uk
Sunday, 23 August 2009
Monday, 20 July 2009
A bit of market research....feel free to join in! (July 09)
Dear blog reader
Your very kind help is requested to complete the piece of research attached on the following link. I would not normally send a mass e-mail for this type of thing but having read the content I believe it could lead to an additional work stream for blog readers (always welcome I hear you say!). My client has specifically asked that I obtain the views of blog readers given their unique and distinct position in the market place.
There is also a chance of winning the charity draw of GBP 50 which can be donated to the winners designated charity!
http://www.keysurvey.co.uk/survey/265743/15fe/
Should take a maximum of 3 minutes!
Many Thanks
Alex
Your very kind help is requested to complete the piece of research attached on the following link. I would not normally send a mass e-mail for this type of thing but having read the content I believe it could lead to an additional work stream for blog readers (always welcome I hear you say!). My client has specifically asked that I obtain the views of blog readers given their unique and distinct position in the market place.
There is also a chance of winning the charity draw of GBP 50 which can be donated to the winners designated charity!
http://www.keysurvey.co.uk/survey/265743/15fe/
Should take a maximum of 3 minutes!
Many Thanks
Alex
Saturday, 20 June 2009
Do you have a great business idea? (June 09)
It seems to me that the current economic climate is potentially a great time for new businesses to spring up and evolve.
Firstly less people are working for an employer (i.e. their minds are no longer restrained by the system). This allows people to let their minds think about things that they do not usually think about! Out of this can come great business ideas. The issue is though is that often these people have no structured method of getting their ideas of the ground - this may be due to lack of knowledge or route to market or funding.
I also think that at the moment there is a whole set of people wiling to put the effort in to make these business ideas evolve - yet they do not have the idea in the first place.
Now if I could only get these people together.......
Firstly less people are working for an employer (i.e. their minds are no longer restrained by the system). This allows people to let their minds think about things that they do not usually think about! Out of this can come great business ideas. The issue is though is that often these people have no structured method of getting their ideas of the ground - this may be due to lack of knowledge or route to market or funding.
I also think that at the moment there is a whole set of people wiling to put the effort in to make these business ideas evolve - yet they do not have the idea in the first place.
Now if I could only get these people together.......
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
4 networking Farnham - the best new 4networking Group in the country!! (May 09)
Well I couldn't believe it either - 4networking Farnham has been heralded as the best new 4networking group in the UK!
In fact we were the 3rd best attended in the whole of the UK just behind Taunton and Bristol which both started about 3 years ago.
We have a really good group of people at Farnham and it is an honour to be the team leader - people come and enjoy themselves and do a bit of business too.
It is a formula that has worked very nicely so far and put Yellow Brick Road at the heart of the Farnham business community!
In fact we were the 3rd best attended in the whole of the UK just behind Taunton and Bristol which both started about 3 years ago.
We have a really good group of people at Farnham and it is an honour to be the team leader - people come and enjoy themselves and do a bit of business too.
It is a formula that has worked very nicely so far and put Yellow Brick Road at the heart of the Farnham business community!
Monday, 27 April 2009
The Marathon is complete!! (April 09)
So the boy can run. The London Marathon is complete - just over 4 hours so not too bad!
It was a hot hot day on April 26th - but I loved every minute. We also raised a great deal of money for the British Heart Foundation which was magical.
Thank you so much to all my sponsors - you all deserve a special pat on the back!
It was a hot hot day on April 26th - but I loved every minute. We also raised a great deal of money for the British Heart Foundation which was magical.
Thank you so much to all my sponsors - you all deserve a special pat on the back!
Monday, 16 March 2009
4Networking follows the Yellow Brick Road to Farnham!! (March 09)
On 25th March 2009 at Farnham Golf Club the business networking phenomenon that is 4Networking arrives in Farnham. With 193 vibrant breakfast groups across the UK and nearly 15,000 members, online and face to face, it really is a different way of doing things.
4Networking prides itself on allowing business people to be themselves with a relaxed informal style that is structured for efficient and effective use of your business time.
The breakfast club is bought to Farnham by Alex Warren of Yellow Brick Road who commented “I decided to bring 4networking to Farnham as I saw the need for a business breakfast club that was 50% social and 50% business. People go there because they want to be there not because they have to. There’s no pressure to refer business to each other as it’s all about doing business with people that you know, like and trust. Oh and getting 3 guaranteed business appointments at every meeting is always useful!”
To register for the event call Alex Warren of Yellow Brick Road on 08447 706320 or click on the 4Networking website www.4networking.biz .
4Networking prides itself on allowing business people to be themselves with a relaxed informal style that is structured for efficient and effective use of your business time.
The breakfast club is bought to Farnham by Alex Warren of Yellow Brick Road who commented “I decided to bring 4networking to Farnham as I saw the need for a business breakfast club that was 50% social and 50% business. People go there because they want to be there not because they have to. There’s no pressure to refer business to each other as it’s all about doing business with people that you know, like and trust. Oh and getting 3 guaranteed business appointments at every meeting is always useful!”
To register for the event call Alex Warren of Yellow Brick Road on 08447 706320 or click on the 4Networking website www.4networking.biz .
Sunday, 1 February 2009
You gotta make some noise!
IN BUSINESS, you’ve GOT to make some noise!
Recently, I heard about two people who have become experts in marketing.
One is a man who has attended all the‘boot camps’, read the books and taken seminars from the best marketing gurus around. The other is a woman who told me her personal library of marketing and business books cost over £100,000 in the past ten years.
Unfortunately, neither of them has applied what they know and their businesses have not grown.
These are classic examples of ‘analysis paralysis’. They have studied their market and learned the techniques. They know how to write sales letters and they know the latest in online marketing techniques. They know about using endorsements, about using graphics and colours, about ‘reversing risk’ and identifying their target demographics.
What they don’t know is how to make noise.
They’ve not taken enough action! One business leader recently told me her greatest fear is “making a mistake!” Like, get over it already!
If you’re going to be in business, you’re going to make mistakes. (I suspect that’s true in life; I know it’s true in business.)
The key to building your business is taking action. Of course, it’s good to know what you’re doing. Sure, it’s good to put the odds in your favour as much as you can. But in the end, you’ve got to take a chance and make some noise!
If you want your business to grow, think about what you’ll do differently. What will you expand or contract? How much will you spend on advertising? What new products or services will you offer? Which ones will you cancel?
In the end, growing a business is about taking action. It’s about making the best judgments you can and then taking the plunge.
If you’d like help with this, consider hiring a business coach. Being an entrepreneur means the responsibility is on your shoulders and that can be a lonely thing, so build your team! Get help. Get advice, get support, get someone to (figuratively) ‘kick your butt’ and get you into action.
Recently, I heard about two people who have become experts in marketing.
One is a man who has attended all the‘boot camps’, read the books and taken seminars from the best marketing gurus around. The other is a woman who told me her personal library of marketing and business books cost over £100,000 in the past ten years.
Unfortunately, neither of them has applied what they know and their businesses have not grown.
These are classic examples of ‘analysis paralysis’. They have studied their market and learned the techniques. They know how to write sales letters and they know the latest in online marketing techniques. They know about using endorsements, about using graphics and colours, about ‘reversing risk’ and identifying their target demographics.
What they don’t know is how to make noise.
They’ve not taken enough action! One business leader recently told me her greatest fear is “making a mistake!” Like, get over it already!
If you’re going to be in business, you’re going to make mistakes. (I suspect that’s true in life; I know it’s true in business.)
The key to building your business is taking action. Of course, it’s good to know what you’re doing. Sure, it’s good to put the odds in your favour as much as you can. But in the end, you’ve got to take a chance and make some noise!
If you want your business to grow, think about what you’ll do differently. What will you expand or contract? How much will you spend on advertising? What new products or services will you offer? Which ones will you cancel?
In the end, growing a business is about taking action. It’s about making the best judgments you can and then taking the plunge.
If you’d like help with this, consider hiring a business coach. Being an entrepreneur means the responsibility is on your shoulders and that can be a lonely thing, so build your team! Get help. Get advice, get support, get someone to (figuratively) ‘kick your butt’ and get you into action.
Monday, 26 January 2009
All you have to do is believe and ask!!
When Tulane University Professor Jeffrey Barach ran for a seat in the U.S. Congress, he asked a noted political consultant what it took to run a successful campaign.
The consultant replied, “One word: ask!”
Candidates must have the ability to ask for money, votes and help. “So, also, with leadership,” adds Barach. “Commanding is a form of asking. When a leader personalises a vision, he or she is asking others to share it.”
Yet, asking is hard for many people. For example, some sales people fear asking for an order.
How is the fear of asking overcome? A successful college fund-raiser once advised Barach that people cannot ask for donations if they think the would-be donors are doing them a favour.
Of course, in a sense they are and fund-raisers should be grateful and solicitous. But they also should recognise they’re offering donors an opportunity to do something for themselves.
“The solicitor has to believe that the donors’ gift solves a problem for them,” Barach maintains, “or the tone of voice will not be right.”
The same principle applies to selling anything. A student in one of Barach’s summer courses sold knives, mostly to college girls as part of their hope chest.
His classmates criticised him for hawking expensive knives to young women with low incomes.
He countered that they were great knives,and the smaller sets were a good value, although he agreed that he shouldn’t sell them his big ticket ($200) sets.
Later in the summer, however, that student told the class that he had come to believe that the larger sets of knives also were a good value,that his customers would appreciate them in the long run.
What amazed him, he added, was that as soon as he came to that conviction, his sales of the larger sets increased radically.
The consultant replied, “One word: ask!”
Candidates must have the ability to ask for money, votes and help. “So, also, with leadership,” adds Barach. “Commanding is a form of asking. When a leader personalises a vision, he or she is asking others to share it.”
Yet, asking is hard for many people. For example, some sales people fear asking for an order.
How is the fear of asking overcome? A successful college fund-raiser once advised Barach that people cannot ask for donations if they think the would-be donors are doing them a favour.
Of course, in a sense they are and fund-raisers should be grateful and solicitous. But they also should recognise they’re offering donors an opportunity to do something for themselves.
“The solicitor has to believe that the donors’ gift solves a problem for them,” Barach maintains, “or the tone of voice will not be right.”
The same principle applies to selling anything. A student in one of Barach’s summer courses sold knives, mostly to college girls as part of their hope chest.
His classmates criticised him for hawking expensive knives to young women with low incomes.
He countered that they were great knives,and the smaller sets were a good value, although he agreed that he shouldn’t sell them his big ticket ($200) sets.
Later in the summer, however, that student told the class that he had come to believe that the larger sets of knives also were a good value,that his customers would appreciate them in the long run.
What amazed him, he added, was that as soon as he came to that conviction, his sales of the larger sets increased radically.
Saturday, 10 January 2009
Re: Use or Lose your local businesses -Farnham Herald - Friday 9th January
I have a huge amount of empathy for those retail businesses of Farnham who are struggling to make ends meet. Walking through the Woolmead today I noted that over 1/3rd of the retail units were empty. As a Farnham man that hurts – I want to see Farnham businesses doing better and trading strongly.
The logical question to ask is why has this happened? You could blame the commercial landlord for not being more flexible as regards rent payments – probably set at a time when trade was booming – but contracts are a two way thing and the retailer knew the value and timing of the payments when they signed the lease.
Unfortunately it is more than likely that it is the business planning that has gone astray. One of three things can have happened here. Either the business failed to plan, or it made a plan but set assumptions that were too bullish for the current economic climate, or perhaps it failed to monitor adequately their trading situation against a well constructed initial plan.
It then begs the question what kind of advice are these businesses getting? From my experience business owners need good advice from someone they can trust and perhaps the current professional advisors were just not up to scratch or were not listened to. Perhaps the business owner did not even ask for advice on the assumption that “they knew best” or they were too frightened to ask.
Now is the time to make a business as efficient as possible with a robust plan to beat the downturn. If a business gets the basics right now it will emerge a much stronger beast on the way back up. And guess what the best way of getting the business basics right is… getting some good advice!
Alex Warren – Yellow Brick Road Consulting Limited
The logical question to ask is why has this happened? You could blame the commercial landlord for not being more flexible as regards rent payments – probably set at a time when trade was booming – but contracts are a two way thing and the retailer knew the value and timing of the payments when they signed the lease.
Unfortunately it is more than likely that it is the business planning that has gone astray. One of three things can have happened here. Either the business failed to plan, or it made a plan but set assumptions that were too bullish for the current economic climate, or perhaps it failed to monitor adequately their trading situation against a well constructed initial plan.
It then begs the question what kind of advice are these businesses getting? From my experience business owners need good advice from someone they can trust and perhaps the current professional advisors were just not up to scratch or were not listened to. Perhaps the business owner did not even ask for advice on the assumption that “they knew best” or they were too frightened to ask.
Now is the time to make a business as efficient as possible with a robust plan to beat the downturn. If a business gets the basics right now it will emerge a much stronger beast on the way back up. And guess what the best way of getting the business basics right is… getting some good advice!
Alex Warren – Yellow Brick Road Consulting Limited
Monday, 5 January 2009
Credit Insurance for the New Year?
What is Credit Insurance?
The consequences of one of your customers becoming insolvent and you suffering a bad debt can have serious financial impact on your business. Credit insurance companies not only advise you on who it is safe to deal with on credit terms and up to what level, but also in the event of your customer becoming insolvent, or you suffering protracted non-payment , they typically indemnify you for 90% to 95% of the amount of loss, depending on the cause of that loss, but this percentage is negotiable in many cases as you can chose to take on more of the risk.
Other Benefits of Credit Insurance
There are numerous other benefits of taking Credit Insurance from one of the many Credit Insurance Companies amongst Yellow Brick Roads' connections. One of our providers has 160 offices in 40 countries and 4,000 experts in all aspect s of credit management. This global network has constantly updated information on over 52 million companies worldwide. Their expert risk underwriters, who will be based in or near your customer’s home country use that information to establish an advisable line of credit and to alert you to any changes that may affect that cover.
Many Credit Insurance companies also seek to recover the amount of your loss, and contribute to the cost of that recovery in proportion to their liability for the loss. To help recover the loss the major Credit Insurers have a worldwide network of collectors, lawyers and insolvency practitioners each well versed in local law.
What does Credit Insurance cost?
This will vary widely on a case by case basis. For ballpark figures you can expect to pay between 0.1% to 0.6% but these figures will change with the economic situation.
Why use Yellow Brick Road?
Yellow Brick Road works effortlessly for its clients. It has connections within leading Credit Insurance Companies as well as specialist brokers.
Yellow Brick Road Consulting Limited
13 Jubilee Lane
Farnham
Surrey
Surrey
GU10 4SZ
08447 706320
http://www.yellowbrickroadconsulting.co.uk/
http://www.yellowbrickroadconsulting.co.uk/
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