Enterprise Nation

Memories of Wigtown

‘Spare Room Start Up’ travels to the Wigtown Book Festival

Thanks again to the Bestels for providing the warmest of hospitality. Check out images of their house and ‘The Hut’ at Reading Lasses where we spent an hour talking books and home business. Lovely!

Q&A with Building Beginnings

When did you start Building Beginnings?

I started Building Beginnings in April 2006 so am halfway through my third year in business.

What were you doing before becoming your own boss?

I was a senior manager in a Cambridge software house for ten years before moving to Shropshire in 2001 when I took a year out to study local history via a distance learning course at Oxford University. I then did some contract work using my business and management experience and got my first taste of working for myself. The seed was sown!

How did you come up with the idea for the business?

I started networking and discovered all these people with a passion for their business and realised that's what was missing from my first foray into self-employment. I picked up a book called How to Get a Job You'll Love by John Lees and by the time I'd finished it I was a passionate house historian! I realised that deep down I wanted to pursue my love of historical research, social history and domestic architecture but just needed the confidence to turn my knowledge and skills into a business. Lunch with a networking friend convinced me I should go for it!

How did you secure your first client?

This is where the power of networking really cuts in. I announced my new business at a network group I had been attending for the previous year and secured my first client. I can't describe the joy and excitement I felt on the drive home! I realised they were putting their faith in me as a new business and was determined not to let them down. I found a great story which got me 15 minutes on prime-time TV - not bad for my first client!

What have you found to be the most effective marketing activity?

Networking. It's a fantastic way to spread the word about your business, tell people what you're doing, learn about other products and services you might want to use - and make friends. All the people you network with know what you do and can help you market your business. I also exhibit at county shows to give people an opportunity to look at my work and talk to me. I'm always hoarse by the end of the day!

Are any of your family involved in the business?

My partner is also self-employed in a completely different field. He's my number one supporter. It's great that we can both work from home and it means we have company when we want it.

Which room serves as your home office? Do you know what that room used to be?!

My office started off as a guest room and now has a sofa bed for when we have extra guests. Plus I have somewhere comfy to sit when I've got some tricky house detective work to do!

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

I'm always looking for ways to improve my service and have lots of ideas! I'm attending a study weekend to develop my historical research skills, I've commissioned a fellow home-worker to redesign my house history reports to make them really shine, plus I'm working with a local bookbinder to produce a deluxe option. I'm looking at new markets for my business and additional services I can offer my clients.

Jill Ming talks to Emma Jones

BuildingBeginnings.co.uk

How to write email newsletters that turn subscribers into paying clients

Your questions

Are you afraid of losing subscribers if you try to sell anything in your newsletter?

Do you want to get started with an email newsletter but don't know what to actually write?

Do you write an email newsletter religiously every month but feel like you are about to give up because you are just not seeing any new clients or sales from it?

If so, Karen’s Kick-Ass TeleForum could be your answer.

Karen’s answers

On the "How to write Email Newsletters that Turn Subscribers into Paying Clients" TeleForum, Karen will explain:

What the real difference is between sales letters and email newsletters
How you can still sell your products and services in your email newsletter without feeling like a spammer
How to understand what content will make your subscribers not only read your newsletter but actually act on it, as well
What offers to make in your email newsletters (and what offers you shouldn't be making)
How to actually make the offer without having to use a high-pressurised American format that could be off-putting for your subscribers
Where to put your offer in your newsletter to get the most effective results

Details

Here’s the details you need to know…

Date: Wednesday 15th October
Time: 8.30pm until 9.30pm
Access: You can either dial in on a specified phone number which you will receive after you have registered or if you can't join Karen live on the day, you can wait for the recording to be sent through to you and listen in on your own time.

Cost: £37
Registration: happens here.

Or visit Karen’s website for more information.

The BlackBerry Rap

A poem for an entry

With mobile Internet, the freedom to roam,
The berry I'd pick, would be a smart phone.

Time is an asset you never get back,
So I'd make sure that berry, be Black.

It’s the best package you could ever own,
A true bonus to my business home!

So Emma I'd like a Blackberry please:-)
Make my surfing a Blackberry Breeze!

It’s going to be a hard decision and a tough job but we’ll announce the lucky winners every day next week. – Emma Jones

How to use Twitter for Marketing and PR

Webinar outline

Rachael received an e-shot from online marketing company, Hub Spot that went like this:

“There's a lot of buzz around Twitter but many marketers don't know how to translate that buzz into a worthwhile marketing tool for their business. Most people's first reaction to the social media "micro-blogging" tool is that it is a waste of time, but as Twitter becomes more and more mainstream, businesses are now using Twitter to engage with customers, reach the media directly, and further establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry. Attend this free webinar to learn all the basics of how to use Twitter to market your business.”

Rachael has booked her seat. Will you be joining her? Registration details on the link below.

Webinar registration
Image courtesy of problogger.net

On the home business Christmas wish list

Damaged in transit

I cannot be the only travelling home business owner who has a laptop that looks like it’s done 3 rounds with Mike Tyson. My Sony Vaio is my faithful friend – and keeps me in touch with everything when away from the office – but it is looking battered and bruised.

So what better gift than a laptop sleeve or bag to protect it’s tender chrome exterior.

We came across the Bag Crazy site – and, in particular, the laptop range – courtesy of the always very excellent e-news from Antonia Chitty.

After a visit to bagcrazy.co.uk my personal favourites are the spotty bag and the green ‘you'll definitely be seen coming from a distance’ laptop sleeve.

The site is well worth a visit as it’s crammed with other good looking stuff. – Emma Jones

Something to address

Please write to me at …

Why not ‘rent’ an address. This is a really simple procedure & is the ideal solution. The benefits of this are:-

A real street address not a PO Box, without paying ‘high street’ rentals
A professional image for your business
Secure 365 day access where your post stays safe and confidential
Secure post forwarding service
Ensures business post remains separate from personal post
Your post is received from Royal Mail and packages can be signed for from carriers
When you are on holiday, your post is not stacking up behind your front door!

If you’d like to find out more about how such a service could work for you, contact Kerryn, the Enterprise Nation Office Diva!

Kerryn Greatrix

Website of the day: ask500people.com

Do you believe in true love?

This was the question to which I was instantly drawn. Want to know the results?

139 people voted
87% responded ‘yes’
13% responded ‘no’
The percentage of women responding ‘yes’ was higher than the percentage of men!

Okay, so back to business – how can this site help you and your business?

Back to business

I posted a question .. can you guess what it was about .. something along the lines of ‘have you ever thought of starting a business from home’ (some people say I’m getting way too predictable!) but within seconds of it being posted, an online voter had said ‘yes.’

I can’t help thinking that this is a great market research tool. Would you like to know if people prefer white or brown bread? Where do they like to buy their clothes? And how are they thinking of spending their next weekend break?

Want to know? Ask away by signing up for free at www.ask500people.com

You can also promote your question on your site or blog as they provide you with a customisable Widget.

Now here’s a question for Peter Bestel … will you let us know about more sites like this? - Emma Jones :-)

Ask500people.com

Q&A with Dreamtime Film

When did you start Dream Time Film?

I'd been working freelance for years but decided to set up as a Limited Company in May 2007 to pursue my own projects. I still do film work for clients on a freelance basis, and those relationships continue. In 2007 I directed a short film for North West Vision and UK Film Council and riding that wave I wanted to apply for funding for another project. In order to do so I needed to be a limited company which was the kick-start I needed to set up as Dreamtime Film.

Have you always been your own boss?

After graduating from film school, I spent a couple of years as runner and assistant editor working on 35mm commercials for a film editor in Soho, and after completing a masters in Creative Technology I spent a year as Camera Assistant at Cosgrove Hall Films in Manchester, but apart from that, I’ve always been freelance. That doesn't mean to say I have always been my own boss as I have worked under many Creative Directors, but I have always been in control of my own time.

Why did you choose to work in a swanky shed in Windermere?

It was a very conscious decision to leave the rat race of London and look for a different quality of life. Having left London, another door opened in Cumbria when I inherited some land and a herd of semi-feral Fell ponies. This was the change I was looking for, and after a couple of years getting that side of my life in order, I realised that though I didn't want to be stuck in the city, I still had ambitions in the film world, and so set about getting up to speed with the digital revolution, commuting 2 days a week to Leeds to gain my MSc.

The film work started to pick up (the digital revolution came at a good time for me) and the reality was that I could now be doing on a laptop in my shed what was only a few years earlier costing £600 an hour in a post production facility. With the arrival of my daughter, moving my workplace from the kitchen table to a shed in the garden was an obvious choice.

Do you have any issues working there?

Initially it was a problem getting insurance cover for computer equipment as it is a wooden structure, but I now have a shipping container for all the valuable kit. I managed to get a phone line and broadband which made a massive difference.

I do find myself slipping into the shed to do late night changes to edits, and can find myself making changes to pitches or treatments late at night, but that can also be a very positive thing, being able to access my work at all hours.

Also on a positive note, clients are always keen to get out of their office and come to me to view rough edits.

Do your surroundings stimulate your creativity?

Absolutely! I have freedom. I look out of my window onto my horses, the Cumbrian fells, green trees and an un-interrupted skyline. I hear buzzards curlews and nightjars and breathe clean fresh air. How can that not stimulate creativity. That is not to say the city can't be inspirational, in fact I love the buzz and complexity of city life, but it is a different kind of inspiration.

What kind of work are you doing at the moment?

I usually have a few projects on the go at any one time. I recently had a film shortlisted for the Think Sync Film competition. Described to me as "half documentary, half cinematic essay", it shows the freedom of a life on the road with horses in an English Summer. That got picked up by Radar Music Videos who are about to syndicate it through their network to all the major portals into the internet.

I've got 2 other projects in development and the corporate side of things is also going well - it's the bread and butter of the business.

What are your plans for the future?

I am always looking for the next project and am pitching a couple of treatments to various commissioning schemes. Having worked with actors for the first time on Supercasino last year and got a taste for it, I'd like to do more.

I'm trying to maintain a balance between the corporate work and producing my own projects, and I'm always looking to move my business up to the next level, whether that is corporate, documentary or fiction.

What is the one thing you most enjoy about running your business from home?

I get to look out of the window and see my daughter running around in the garden. That helps me keep everything else in perspective!

Tom Lloyd talks to Emma Jones

Dreamtime Film

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.
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?