Look for a Microsoft Certified Small Business Specialist.

You might trust your neighbour to give you advice on buying a car and your partner on what colour shirt to buy. But who would you trust when it comes to asking about IT and whether or not you actually need to invest in a technology solution? Microsoft Small Business Specialists have worked hard to earn their SBSC badge, it’s not just a ‘giveaway’ from Microsoft, and they really are skilled in evaluating the needs of small businesses. Here are 5 very good reasons why, if you’re thinking about upgrading or extending your IT, you should consult an SBSC specialist.

• You can trust your IT is in good hands


• They’ll save you from costly and time-consuming mistakes


• They specialise in small businesses (and no business is too small)


• They have access to specific resources for small businesses


• They do what they do best, so you can do what you do best

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Just published (literally about 20 minutes ago) is our new SB+ page on the Microsoft Small Business Centre site. Resources here are designed to help with business matters that fall outside of IT, so we’ll be covering tax, finance, HR, interesting articles and business advice, as well as featuring special offers. Previously, visitors to SB+ were required to sign in with a Windows Live-ID to access this premium content, but we feel that the subjects covered are worthy of a wider audience. We’ll be developing this section of the site over the forthcoming months and would be happy to receive any comments or suggestions on what content you’d like to see included. You can either respond with a comment, or email the UK team at sbcuk@microsoft.com, with SB+ in the subject line.

Today, you’ll find the following:

• Special offers from MS Store


• My worst business mistakes


• Ten tips for managing work and motherhood


• Free HR advice and guidance


• A list of advisory business organisations


• True Business blog feed


• SME news feed


• Advice on buying or franchising a business

Explore and enjoy!

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Need some business advice? (Who doesn’t!) MSN Money has some free guides available to order:

• Guide to beating the recession - 50 ways to save money


• Falling interest rates; an investor’s action plan


• Guide to making sense of the markets


• Guide to wealth management in uncertain times


• Guide to investing for children


• Guide to SIPPs


• Guide to investing for income

My colleague at True Business Blog - real life for small businesses - had some useful advice on cash flow, funding business, and general finances last week. Read his post ‘The death of saving’ and see if you agree.

Related post: Free financial advice for small businesses

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Shamelessly copied from the BBC website is the following extract from the PR on Panorama tonight (BBC 1 at 8.30pm). This has to be essential viewing for anyone managing a small business.  

With more than 4.5 million small businesses in the UK providing 13 million jobs, kick-starting the banks into renewed lending to them is vital to the economy.

More than 100 small businesses are shutting up shop each day, according to the Federation of Small Businesses, which predicts some 30,000 firms will have gone bust by the end of this year.

In an attempt to turn the tide, the government has come up with proposals including the £1.3bn Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme to throw small businesses a lifeline.

However, while welcoming the scheme, organisations representing business - big and small - say positive impact from government initiatives has been slow to materialise, and times are tighter then ever.

In Panorama: Credit Where It’s Due, business guru and Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis, who has been running his own businesses for 26 years, examines whether the banks are doing enough to support small businesses.

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Whatever you decide to call them, having someone to act as a commercial reality check in your business is invaluable. Finding someone with business experience who is prepared to meet and make you accountable could make the difference between meeting or missing your targets.

Benefits

So how can a commercial coach/non-exec type person help your business? Here are a few of the benefits you’ll reap:

• Outlining your business aims and objectives to someone not involved in the detail helps you to get things straight in your own mind


• A fresh pair of eyes looking at the business can make suggestions that may not have occurred to you


• A commercial person will inject discipline in to the business and have you reporting on a monthly basis as to whether you have met sales and marketing targets


• Knowing someone will be on your back if you don’t deliver motivates you to win that new customer/ seal that long-running deal etc etc

Mr or Mrs Right

How do you go about choosing the person to fill this role? It may take a while to find the perfect person (what’s that phrase about having to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince) and as the business develops, you may need to look for a person with different attributes. As a general outline, go for someone who:

• you trust


• preferably know (or know through a shared contact)  


• has experience in an area that applies to your business


• and, critically, someone you respect

As a business owner, it can be a little unsettling at first to have someone question your business model and approach. After all, you are the boss, you know how to run your business, you won’t be told what to do. Right? Well, maybe. But it’s worth taking advice at the right time, and from the right kind of person.

Two hours with this person can have you walking away feeling great about the business and clear on the way forward. It may also mean doing some homework but then again, that’s what professional naggers are for!

Emma Jones is Founder of Enterprise Nation [www.enterprisenation.com] and author of ‘Spare Room Start Up - how to start a business from home’

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Cash is king – a business mantra that is sometimes not understood until it’s too late. Without cash your company is vulnerable – as many businesses have discovered to their cost over the past six months or so. Prompt invoicing, meticulous tracking and chasing of payments due, measuring quotes against actual costs – these are just some of the steps you can take to improve your cashflow. We’ve produced a new guide on how to improve cash flow and cut costs, specifically for small businesses. You can either download if off the Small Business home page (Business Goals section), or grab it here. (It’s only 272 KB, so it’s not going to tie up your PC.)

Source: Microsoft Small Business

I blogged about the Conficker worm (WORM attack: is your PC secure?) at the end of January - hopefully everyone who doesn’t have automatic updates configured on their PCs will have downloaded the patch now. There are still rumblings in the press though, because as soon as you resolve one issue another arises so in response to customer queries Microsoft has put together an advisory support site for anyone who’s at all concerned about viruses, spam, Trojans, malware - whatever their type. Specifically for the UK, both consumers and businesses can get free advice and support, including how to recognise phishing and scamming here.  (Note to self (ie Microsoft), ….think we need to develop a ‘children’s version’ of the site so all those on Build-a-bear, Club Penguin et al this half-term can also read and understand…..)

Scams awareness month

February is officially ‘Scams awareness month’, and various organisations are uniting in getting the message across to unsuspecting consumers - both business and home - about potential scams. Visit Consumer Direct for information on the latest work-at-home schemes, weight loss plans, miracle cures, phishing and foreign lotteries.

Get Safe Online (The Blog) also has more info on online rip-offs and advance fee frauds, plus tips on how to avoid falling victim to one of the many scams out there at the moment. 

Source: Microsoft Small Business

I’m trying to get in a joke here about Jim’ll Fix It but struggling, so I’ve given up and will play this one straight. To help Windows and PC users, Microsoft is trying out the idea of a ‘Fix it‘ button on web-based support pages, detailing the most common problems and steps needed to fix the problem or bug. The button helps Windows users fix common problems, such as restoring the Internet Explorer icon to the desktop and enabling a DVD library in Vista’s media centre.

Using the tool is not mandatory and people will be able to follow the steps outlined in support articles themselves, rather than rely on the scripted fix.

Microsoft has kicked off a project to trawl through the thousands of pages in its support system to find problems that can be fixed by the quick fix tool. Microsoft is also planning to extend the quick fix system to its bug reporting system, so it comes to life after a crash or other software problem. In the future, rather than simply report a problem, Windows users will get the chance to fix it.

NB: For all our younger readers, Wiki has a good explanation of ‘Jim’ll Fix It’.

Source: Microsoft Small Business

To support the Comic Relief BT Red Nose Climb, BT Business have launched a fundraising pack to encourage small businesses in the UK to be involved in the campaign.  The pack offers guidance and advice on how SMEs can be part of the campaign that will see a team of famous faces scale Africa’s highest mountain. Climbers include Gary Barlow, Chris Moyles, Kimberly Walsh, and Cheryl Cole.

The UK’s 4.6 million small businesses are being encouraged by BT Business to use their entrepreneurial spirit to support the campaign and raise funds for Comic Relief and the projects it supports at home and abroad.

To help small businesses rise to the challenge BT Business has developed a fundraising pack to offer guidance and is offering a range of exciting prizes to the businesses that raise the most funds.

“Fundraising is a great opportunity to motivate staff, increase your brand presence with customers and clients, raise the company profile within the local community and show support to a worthwhile cause,” said Bill Murphy, Managing Director, BT Business.

To find out more about the BT Red Nose Day Climb, download the fundraising pack or set-up a business fundraising page visit www.bt.com/comicrelief/business.

Source: Microsoft Small Business

Microsoft is offering free training to UK developers who want to upgrade their .NET skills. This training, delivered by Microsoft Gold Certified partner InnerWorkings, uses task-based coding challenges that allow you to gain new skills at your own pace.

The first 400 UK developers to register here can choose from any of the following free InnerWorkings training bundles (terms and conditions apply):

1. Object-Oriented Design & Development (Visual Basic & Visual C# 2005/2008)


2. ASP.NET Web Development (Visual Basic & Visual C# 2005/2008)


3. Programming WPF and Silverlight (Visual Basic & Visual C# 2008)

Here’s how it works:

InnerWorkings provides a task-based learning system that helps you to learn by doing, gaining practical .NET skills and experience directly in Visual Studio. The benefits are numerous:

• Take .NET training that’s 100% practice-based


• Gain skills by solving problems using key .NET techniques


• Work at your own pace in a realistic learning environment


• Get feedback as you learn from our code-checking engine


• Enjoy smart, engaging, and effective .NET learning


• Get support from online references and a dedicated Personal Tutor


• How do I get started?


• Register today as spaces are limited to the first 400 UK developers who sign up. To access your free training, click the orange Register Now button on this page so that we can setup your account and activate your free .NET training bundle. Happy coding!

More developer goodies for you…

In addition to free training from InnerWorkings, Microsoft is offering to give all UK developers who sign up for this offer a 40% discount on any books purchased from the Microsoft Press Shop. Check it out today!

Source: Microsoft Small Business