Marketing seminar sponsored by Barclays Bank

Free marketing seminar for Leicestershire businesses organised by Barclays Bank

Local businesses are invited to a free marketing seminar to be held in Leicester city centre next month (March). The event will feature a talk by Leicestershire based marketing consultant Alastair Campbell of The Ideal Marketing Company and is sponsored by Barclays Bank which has 13 branches in the Leicester area.

The event is being held on Wednesday March 24th from12.00 pm to 2.00 pm at Mem-Saab Indian restaurant and champagne bar in Highcross Street in the city centre. Alastair will be giving a talk which focuses on the 4 critical marketing activities to grow a business and increase profits.

Monica Mendez, Area Manager for Barclays Business Banking Team in Leicestershire feels that the event is one not to be missed. “Marketing is one of the areas that many business owners forget as often they are so involved in the actual day to day ‘running’ of the business,” she comments. “Alastair will be discussing some simple strategies that businesses can apply, that might just help drive more customers through the door. This event will also provide an opportunity for networking – another invaluable and cost effective way of introducing new business.”

Alastair Campbell is Managing Director of The Ideal Marketing Company and gives talks on low cost marketing solutions for SMEs across the UK. He also runs the Marketing Mentor Programme, a fully funded 18 month support and training course designed for small businesses.

Businesses from across Leicestershire and the surrounding area that are interested in attending should call Pragnesh Sadadiwala from Barclays Bank on 0116 206 2184 or email pragnesh.sadadiwala@barclays.com to reserve a free place for this free marketing seminar in Leicester.

My talk will also cover how business owners can make the most of theMarketing Mentor programme for free.

This year the organisers are thinking about people who have been made redundant as the following news release indicates.

Redundancy need not mean Redundant – say Franchise Show organisers

As more of us begin to revaluate career options with lingering uncertainty in the workplace, starting up your own business – via a franchise – has long been a route considered by individuals looking to re-invest redundancy pay off.

And most franchising companies will tell you that, although a bolt out of the blue, being made redundant can be the making of you. You could well end up happier, and better off, than someone else’s wage slave.

But are those claims slick sales talk from franchise companies who want you to invest in them? Or is there hard evidence to reassure those who do lose their job that using their pay off to fund a business will “pay off”?

Well the organisers of the East Midlands Franchise Show, arriving at Leicester Racecourse in Oadby on June 20th, claim that 9 out of 10 franchisees report profitable business a couple of years into their licence.

And to reinforce the point, the low level of commercial failure is something that the high street banks have picked up on. In this immediate post credit crunch era, some high street banks have even set up specialist franchise teams keen to invest in what the have judged a “safer bet” – and offer preferential banking terms too

So if the worst happens, why not just set up alone? Why not use the capital you would have to pay the franchise fee and instead launch your own copycat idea?

Marcus Remfry, of franchise show organisers Job Done Marketing, gives as good an explanation as any;

“A good franchise will have a good brand, strong national marketing, good support for the new franchisee and most of all – a ready made, proven manual of how to run the business. None of that is there for a stand alone new business.

Those factors make franchising work. It is a far safer bet for the new business owners to succeed – and make their investment work for them

In addition, the clue is in the attitude of High Street banks. Cutting back on almost all forms of lending is in the news constantly, but some have set up specialist franchise teams to invest in, what they see, as a safer business opportunity”

So if you are one of those facing the push from work, it may just be the push you need to succeed. There are five million self employed Britons working today – and in times of economic slowdown, that tally could rise. Considering all career options – including creating your own career in your own company – is one avenue many will consider more and more.

Background:

The East Midlands Franchise Show 2009 takes place on Saturday June 20th at the Leicester Racecourse Conference Centre, Oadby, 4 miles south of Leicester city centre.

The show is free to attend – no tickets required – and there are specialist career and start your own business seminars taking place throughout which are also free to sit in on.

There are 36 exhibitors with full and part time business opportuntites on offer – a list of whom is available online at www.eastmidlandsfranchiseshow.co.uk.

Redundancy need not mean Redundant – say Franchise Show organisers

As more of us begin to revaluate career options with lingering uncertainty in the workplace, starting up your own business – via a franchise – has long been a route considered by individuals looking to re-invest redundancy pay off.

And most franchising companies will tell you that, although a bolt out of the blue, being made redundant can be the making of you. You could well end up happier, and better off, than someone else’s wage slave.

But are those claims slick sales talk from franchise companies who want you to invest in them? Or is there hard evidence to reassure those who do lose their job that using their pay off to fund a business will “pay off”?

Well the organisers of the East Midlands Franchise Show, arriving at Leicester Racecourse in Oadby on June 20th, claim that 9 out of 10 franchisees report profitable business a couple of years into their licence.

And to reinforce the point, the low level of commercial failure is something that the high street banks have picked up on. In this immediate post credit crunch era, some high street banks have even set up specialist franchise teams keen to invest in what the have judged a “safer bet” – and offer preferential banking terms too

So if the worst happens, why not just set up alone? Why not use the capital you would have to pay the franchise fee and instead launch your own copycat idea?

Marcus Remfry, of franchise show organisers Job Done Marketing, gives as good an explanation as any;

“A good franchise will have a good brand, strong national marketing, good support for the new franchisee and most of all – a ready made, proven manual of how to run the business. None of that is there for a stand alone new business.

Those factors make franchising work. It is a far safer bet for the new business owners to succeed – and make their investment work for them

In addition, the clue is in the attitude of High Street banks. Cutting back on almost all forms of lending is in the news constantly, but some have set up specialist franchise teams to invest in, what they see, as a safer business opportunity”

So if you are one of those facing the push from work, it may just be the push you need to succeed. There are five million self employed Britons working today – and in times of economic slowdown, that tally could rise. Considering all career options – including creating your own career in your own company – is one avenue many will consider more and more.

Background:

The East Midlands Franchise Show 2009 takes place on Saturday June 9th at the Leicester Racecourse Conference Centre, Oadby, 4 miles south of Leicester city centre.

The show is free to attend – no tickets required – and there are specialist career and start your own business seminars taking place throughout which are also free to sit in on.

There are 36 exhibitors with full and part time business opportuntites on offer – a list of whom is available online at www.eastmidlandsfranchiseshow.co.uk.

Marketing Seminar Nottingham

Marketing Seminars – thanks to everybody who saw my new seminar on 12 ways to grow your business through generating more leads.  The seminar took place towards the end of East Midlands Live at the Trent FM Nottingham Arena.  Thanks to Tara and all the team who worked so hard to put the event on. If you were there, hope you picked up some useful ideas – but do put them into practice. If you missed it, e-mail me and I’ll let you know when my next Marketing Seminar is on in the area or how you can enroll in the Marketing Mentor programme for free.

marketing seminar

Have you got a ‘shark’s mouth’ approach to marketing?

In my marketing seminars, I sometimes talk about the term a ’shark’s mouth approach to marketing.  What do I mean by this?

After the film ‘Jaws’ was released in 1975, most people who saw it felt at least a little twinge of fear the next time they ventured into the sea. However, despite all the image problems that the shark has, the shark can teach us a couple of useful lessons. It’s certainly not to do with PR – sharks get pretty bad PR in general – it is to do with the principle behind a shark’s mouth and how we can use this idea to our approach to marketing.

A shark’s main weapon in staying alive is its teeth. Most sharks have about 3-5 rows of teeth at any time. The front set does most of the work. The first two rows are used for obtaining, killing and cutting up prey; the other rows rotate into place as they are needed. These sharp pointy teeth will tear open a passing fish, boat or other shark. However during some of these attacks, sharks will often lose a tooth, which may remain embedded in the flesh of its victim.

Losing the odd tooth wouldn’t be a big problem however as it happens quite regularly, and the shark has two ways to overcome this.

First of all it has lots of teeth – a single toothed shark would not be such a terrifying sight if it tried to suck you to death with it’s gums. However many companies are, in effect, a ‘one toothed shark’ as they have only one main way of marketing their business. Over the years they have stopped putting the effort into finding what marketing works for them and now rely on only one or two methods. A shark’s mouth is such an efficient ‘killing machine’ because it has so many sharp teeth in it. How many different marketing channels do you have working for you? Are you in effect a one tooth shark?

Secondly, sharks have the ability to re-grow their teeth. A shark has seven replacement teeth behind its visible tooth. That means when its tooth gets knocked out, there are plenty more waiting to take its place. From a marketing point of view, this is a good lesson in resilience and results. Every time we try a piece of marketing activity – say a direct mail letter – we get a result. It just might not be the result we want. At that point, many people just give up. I once worked for a company that told me ‘direct mail doesn’t work for us’. Within a few months were sending out thousands of direct mail letters each month, and generating hundreds of enquiries. Don’t give up on an area of marketing too early. Your first attempts might not work out, but be prepared to use a few extra ideas that you have in reserve.

Action Points:

1. Look at how many ‘marketing teeth’ you have – actively capturing new clients. Is it time to develop some new ones?

2. Have you given up on a marketing area before giving it a proper chance to work? Could you have some ‘hidden teeth’ which will give the project some bite that lie buried just under the surface?

Book a free place on my next marketing seminar or find out how you can enrol on the complete marketing mentor programme for free by calling 01858 44 55 43 or e-mail charlie@themarketingmentor.co.uk

marketing seminar

The next marketing seminar we are running on April 28th is booking up fast.  Today alone we took 12 bookings for places. We also signed up 6 companies to the Marketing Mentor programme.   The Harborough Mail – our local paper – ran a story about us and this certainly helped, but then I’ve always talked about how useful PR can be!

To book one the remaining places on our next free marketing seminar call 01858 44 55 43 or e-mail charlie@themarketingmentor.co.uk to attend the April 28th evening event.

Marketing seminar at Hothorpe Hall

Free Evening Marketing seminar – Low Cost Marketing Ideas to Weather the Economic Storm

This new seminar gives you practical, low cost ideas on what you can do to keep you existing customers coming back and win more new business – despite the economic storm that is gathering around us.

This event is free to any business owners or people with a marketing function within a company. It is aimed at small businesses with limited marketing budgets who want to make their funds stretch as far as possible – typically employing less than 50 staff.

Date : Tuesday April 28th 2009
Time : 6 for 6.30pm till 8.30pm
Location : Hothorpe Hall, LE17 6QX (near Market Harborough)
Cost : FREE

What will this free marketing seminar cover?

During the seminar I’ll cover 12 of the key main low cost marketing areas to help your business. These ideas cover making the most of existing customers as well as seeking cost effective ways to win new business. Previous slow-downs have shown that companies who cut their advertising lose their share of the market, whilst those who continue to market themselves do far better in the long run BUT only if they undertake the right marketing activity.

Why should I attend?

If you are the owner or manager of a small company, you’ll be only too familiar with these problems -

• Fear of Failure – too many small companies go out of business because they don’t understand how to market themselves. Out of the ones that survive the early years, few rarely go beyond ‘making a living’ for the owners
• Small businesses don’t have big budgets to spend on marketing
• Business owners don’t have enough time to attend lots of courses & seminars
• Lack of ideas and fresh ways to attract customers
• Not enough time to put any existing marketing ideas into place.

This seminar is aimed at companies who want to grow, but don’t know the best way to go about it and have limited marketing budgets to spend.

How will this Marketing Seminar help me?

‘Low Cost Marketing Ideas to Weather the Economic Storm’ will give you lots simple, practical ideas to introduce to your company straight away. You’ll also learn about the Marketing Mentor Programme and how it can give your business:

• Have a clear sense of direction in your business – where it is heading over the next 5 years and how it is going to get there
• Generate enquiries though successful direct mail and e-mail programmes
• Read about the success of your business in the local / trade and national press
• Convert more leads to appointments, and more appointments into sales
• Produce a brochure and leaflets that people read rather than toss in the bin
• Create a website to get noticed by Google, and visited by prospects
• Become the ‘go to’ company within your target markets
• Convert more customers, launch more successful products and keep more customers happy
• Receive more warm leads and find out how to close more sales more easily
• Keep your customers loyal and buying from you again and again
• Increase your profits by creating a simple sales strategy that makes sure even a junior sales person can increase their average order value
• Decrease significantly the chances of losing major contracts and improve the chances of extending the work you do for your best clients
• Make networking work for you and excel at exhibitions
• Have your company and products stand out for the crowd
• Learn how to make your advertising results increase 50 fold
• Ensure your customers stay with you for longer and spend more with you than ever before
• Stay ahead of the competition and maintain the lead in the market place

You will also be told about marketing funding that is currently available from the Government to help with your marketing. If you employ one member of staff or more you are likely to be able to receive this funding for your business.This funding will entitle you to a free place on the Marketing Mentor programme (worth around £3,500) and details will be explained on the night about how to apply and when the next seminar will run.

How do I book a place?

Free places for the marketing seminar are limited, but to check availability please e-mail seminar@idealmarketingcompany.com or call 01858 44 55 43 for more information
You can reserve up to 3 places for yourself and friends / colleagues.

Marketing Seminars Leicestershire

Thank you to Claire from Creative Leicestershire for organising last night’s marketing seminar at Stephenson College. Around 20 companies attended for a talk I did on low cost marketing ideas for smaller business owners. A number of them spoke to me afterwards and I’m pleased to say that all of them appear to have qualified for the Train to Gain grant which will give them a free place on the Marketing Mentor programme. I look forward to seeing them again in a month or so at one of the seminars at Hothorpe Hall.

Find out if you qualify for thr marketing Mentor programme by e-mailing charlie@themarketingmentor.co.uk

This early evening seminar is free to any business owners or people with a marketing function within a company. It is aimed at small businesses with limited marketing budgets who want to make their funds stretch as far as possible – typically employing less than 50 staff.

Date : Monday February 9th 2009
Time : 6 for 6.30pm till 8.30pm
Location : Hothorpe Hall, LE17 6QX (near Market Harborough)
Cost : FREE

There is no catch – the seminar is free and lasts for about 1 and a half hour.  The first 10 people on the night will also be offered the chance to have a free one month trial of the Marketing Mentor programme -again no catch.

The seminar takes place in Leicesteshire and at the moment we have people traveling from London, Watford, Derby, Birmingham, Leicester, Nottinghjam and Northampton to see this new marketing seminar. If you want to claim one of the few remaining places, please have a look at the seminar page of this site for details and then e-mail how many places (up to 3) that you would like to claim.

This marketing seminar on how to market during the difficult times we are facing will give you plenty of practical ideas to take away and use straight away.

Decrease Costs During a Recession