Scoot Blog

Send Customers Straight To Your Door

It’s all well and good offering discounts and announcing sales to entice customers to your door, but if your online details are incorrect, just whose door will your customers end up at? The rise of online directories has unsurprisingly coincided with the decline in print directory usage, with more people choosing to hide their bulky paper directories at the back of cupboard in favour of a quick internet search for a local business. One thing that IS surprising is the number of UK businesses that have yet to realise just how important it is to make sure that their details are correct and up-to-date across the web, with a staggering 40% of all online business information either incorrect or incomplete.

Appearing in the local search results is an important goal for any business; however incorrect details could result in a loss of potential business. When listing your business on a directory site it is important to remember that the devil really is in the detail. Whether you have yet to list your business, or you are planning an online spring clean, make sure you follow our top tips.

CHECK YOUR OWN WEBSITE

If you’re about to add your details to a business directory the first thing to do is make a quick pit stop at your own business website. Note down the physical address, phone number, URL and even the full name of the business. Ensuring that all directory listings contain exactly the same data is incredibly important and helps promote a business within the search engines. It is easy to make a simple typo but if that typo leads customers to 10 High Street instead of 100 High Street, it could soon prove costly!

DOUBLE CHECK ALL THE ADVERTS YOU HAVE SET UP

The shift from print to online advertising has brought with it several benefits to business, one of which is the ability to press that all important edit button to rectify a mistake. Spending money on an paper based advert is all well and good but when you realise that your phone number is missing an all important digit there’s nothing that you can do. On the other hand, a mistake made on an online listing can be swiftly rectified as long as you take the time to check and double check your listing once it is live!

KEEP CHECKING BACK

Once your online directory listings are live it is important to keep on top of them, make a note of which directories you have submitted your information to and either check yourself or allocate the responsibility to a member of staff. It is rare that all business information will stay the same forever therefore if you do move premises or switch phone numbers, make sure you make the necessary changes as soon as you can. If you don’t have the time to keep track of all of your directory listings NetTrackz is a fantastic way to view and amend all of your listings in one place.

GET SOCIAL

The rise of social media is also playing an important role in making sure that your online directory presence is as strong as possible. If you spend a lot of time tweeting and sharing information on Facebook make sure you check to see if any of your online directory listings include a space to post your profile URL or username. Scoot offers a handy social tab that provides customers with an up-to-date Twitter feed and a Facebook profile view.

Online directories are already proving to be a valuable starting point for anyone looking to search the web for a local business, and are fast becoming a vital asset for small business owners wishing to increase their web presence. With 96% of business owners agreeing that 2012 will see print directory usage among under 50’s plummet to zero*, what better time to get a head start with its online counterpart?

For more information on how to get the most out of online directories why not follow Scoot on Twitter for daily news, hints and tips?

*Touch Local Business Poll 2011

Get involved now and receive a £50 voucher!

It’s safe to say that paper business directories are still proving their worth across the UK. Can’t reach the tops of those dusty kitchen shelves? Simply stand on top of a directory and hey presto, dust be gone! Can’t bring yourself to pick up that spider that’s been tormenting the household for a week? Your paper directory just became your number one weapon. There are countless other ways for people to really get the most out of these once invaluable marketing sources but unfortunately quickly searching for a local business just isn’t one of them.

The decline of print directory usage is in stark contrast to the rise of online directories. In today’s world people want instant information and with more people finding themselves attached to a monitor or mobile phone screen, the internet is the most popular place to find it. As well as being a quicker and more efficient way of searching for a local product or service, online directories provide businesses themselves with a clearer view of their return on investment. It’s almost impossible for a business to find out just how many people have viewed their advert in a magazine or newspaper however an internet campaign enables advertisers to track and measure the success of their ad.
Time and money aside, think about how many chunky directories you have had squeezed through your letterbox or left behind your plant pot over the years. Here is what the print of 75 million phonebooks in the UK costs:

• 680,000 barrels of oil (not including the wasted petrol used for their delivery)
• 2 billion litres of water
• Enough energy to power 112,000 3 bedroom houses for one year

If you have already spent part of your marketing budget on print media advertising do not despair! We’ve decided to make sure that businesses finally get something out of their print media advertising by holiday our first advert amnesty. Simply find your advert in a paper directory, newspaper or magazine, take a picture of it and send it to us via email, Facebook or Twitter. If you prefer you can even rip out your advert and post it to us! In return we will send you a voucher for £50 worth of Scoot advertising*, as one of the leading UK directories Scoot is the perfect platform to really make sure your business gets the attention it deserves!

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Email: Kathryn@scoot.co.uk

Post:
Scoot Marketing
Scoot House
19 Falcon Court
Preston Farm Industrial Estate
Stockton-On-Tees
Cleveland
TS18 3TU

*Voucher redemption is subject to a minimum spend of £100.

Can your business be found 24/7?

Over the last few weeks it has been hard to ignore the fact that iPhone fever has swept the country. After the sad news of the passing of innovative Apple CEO Steve Jobs, interest in the new Apple release sky rocketed. Apple fans were rewarded for their persistence, with many camping outside of Apple stores across the world to be one of the first to own the brand new iPhone 4s. Here at Scoot we know exactly how hard it is to try and prise an iPhone out of someone’s hand which is why we have developed the Scoot app for the iPhone and iPad, to ensure that your customers can find your business without having to take their eyes of the screen!
There’s an app for that!

Apps are designed to offer users a quick, efficient and useful service and the Scoot app is no exception. Whether on the move or just too far away from a computer, the app allows people to search for local businesses and lists contact details and a link to the business website. The app also provides users with directions to the business, so whether they are looking for a local taxi service, a great place to grab a meal or the nearest car garage, they don’t need to look too far!

With more and more people turning to the internet to search for local products and services, it is important to make sure that your business is always there to be found. Click for more information on the Scoot iPhone app

Data Management Scoot Survey Results

Maintaining an accurate and up-to-date online profile can often be an arduous task for businesses however if you are looking to attract new customers, it is also a vital one! In our latest poll we asked business owners;

Do you regularly update your latest information and check your data on the internet and business search websites?

The results show that 65% of business owners do keep their business details up-to-date whereas 35% don’t check their data on a regular basis. Those that do stay on top of their online business data were asked whether or not they did this themselves or if they allocated the responsibility to another employee or an agency. A massive 89% of business owners took responsibility for updating their profiles whilst just 11% let someone else manage their data.

Business owners who did not keep up-to-date with their online information were asked just what was stopping them from maintaining an accurate online profile. Over half admitted that they just did not have the time to post their latest updates or check that their data profiles are up-to-date. 30% of business owners believed that they did not need to put any work into their online data management as it is ‘fine as it is’ whilst just 14% believe that it is just not important!

Utilising platforms such as social media and directory services enables you to keep you customers up-to-date with your latest news and information whilst also increasing brand awareness and bringing new customers to your door. With more and more people turning to the internet to search for local businesses, there has never been a better time to take control of your online presence!

The new agency worker rules, is your business prepared?

The new shake up of agency worker rights and regulations will come into force from the 1st October, but are you clued up on the changes? With over 1.4 million agency workers in the UK alone, it is vital that business owners know exactly what they need to be doing to comply with these new rules.
Some of the changes include;

• After 12 weeks of service in comparable work, agency workers will gain similar rights to full time members of staff, this includes pay, shift allowances, holiday pay, overtime and any bonuses not connected to individual performance.
• From the first day of employment agency workers will be able to use some of the same facilities as staff. This includes canteens, transport and childcare facilities.
• Agency staff will be entitled to any information on internal job vacancies and can apply for them.

The new regulations have been introduced after a survey of agency workers found that they were unhappy about missing out on overtime payments and holiday pay. After long negotiations between the government and unions, the new rules will hopefully create better working conditions for agency workers.

For more information on the new regulations head to the Department for Business Innovation and Skills

Effective marketing has always been considered as the growth engine of a business. But do UK SMEs also share the same opinion?

Touch Local carried out a poll amongst a sample of UK small business owners, to find out if they had set a marketing budget for 2011, and what forms of marketing do they consider to be the most effective.

The Survey

Does your business have a set Marketing budget for 2011?

The Results

*Total responses: 852

Summary

More than a third (38%) of business owners who took the survey, confirmed that they have a marketing budget for 2011. Many of them also specified that the budget was limited, due to the fact that they do not have any excess in their capital to dedicate to marketing.
Most of the respondents (62%) stated that they did not have a set marketing budget for 2011.

More information acquired from business owners who have a set marketing budget:

- In the current “challenging” economic climate, it’s not surprising that 65% of UK SMEs have an annual marketing budget of less than £5,000. Only 2% of the respondent stated that they are planning to spend more than £100,000 on marketing activities in 2011.
- Overall, it seems that there is a definite shift towards online advertising:
- 80% of business owners felt that investing in a website had a high priority when allocating their marketing budget
- One in 3 of the respondents placed high importance on advertising in online business directories, versus only 1 in 10 for print directories. What’s more, 60% of small business owners stated that they were not planning to spend any of their marketing budget on print directory advertising
- Nearly half of the survey respondents are placing high priority on search engine marketing and 1 in 3 on email marketing
- When it comes to advertising in newspapers and through leaflets, 23% consider it to be a high priority and 16% are not planning to spend any marketing budget on these in 2011.
- Other type of advertising, such as video, direct mail and telemarketing have predominantly low to medium priority

More information acquired from business owners who do not have a set marketing budget:

- Even though 62% of SMEs have no marketing budget for 2011 most of them could end up squeezing their budgets for marketing or advertising.
- However there is major shift in the approach of advertising with majority of the respondents willing to invest in their company website (61%), followed by SEO (27%), email (23%).
- When it comes to advertising on business directories, 18% of businesses would invest in online business directories compared to only 10% in print directories which is more or less as expected.
- Interestingly, 53% of the respondents will not advertise using Video, reasons being the high production and distribution costs.
- Only 1 in 8 of respondents would advertise through Social Media, citing lack of time and resource as a reason.
- Other types of advertising like direct mail pay per call services and telemarketing was low in priority.

Reviewing the entire survey, we realize that regardless of having a marketing budget or not, SMEs throughout UK share the same outlook and are investing in a more modern channel rather than the traditional method of marketing. They acknowledge that the difficulty to quantify the effectiveness has forced them to the shift away from the more traditional forms of marketing towards web based marketing mediums as it is seen to attain better returns.

Some of the comments from the respondents:

I’m a sole trader and I keep my overheads down to the absolute minimum. Word of mouth has also worked very well for me.

The ‘marketing industry’ has become so large, complex and full of spam that it is now impossible to quantify effects of many of these so-called marketing campaigns.

I have in 40 plus years of running my business & always spent around 3% to 4% of turnover on advertising. I would spend more on good leads that generate profitable business.

SEO has now been made a dominant factor in website success that many of us use our websites to direct our existing customers rather than seek out new ones.

Over the past 5 years of trading we know where we get the better results from our efforts and pursue those. Regular monitoring of incoming trade means we adjust our budgets accordingly.

From experience printed advertising is a dying medium. Our best returns have come from promoting our own website and SEO work.

Due to the current climate, we do not have any excess capital to spend on advertising of any kind.

Making marketing a priority and putting it on our wish list does not necessarily mean that funding will become available whilst high street sales are still struggling.

Due to very poor levels of business we don’t have much money to spare for this at the moment. The recession is still hitting us hard.

Paper advertising hardly works for me anymore, and is too expensive, our website is Key.

Over the years I have found most advertising to be a waste of money. I have tried everything from cards in supermarkets, directories, charity posters, but none even cover the cost of the advertising. Website and word of mouth are the only functional methods for my business.

I find the cost of advertising very high in most publications with little or no reward. I would welcome information on how to use email marketing.

Networking is another valuable marketing avenue. I am a member of a national networking group and I’m hoping this will be useful in 2011.

For more information about Touch Local, please contact anju.palleeri@touchlocal.com or call 020 7840 4313

The Royal Wedding is estimated to have boosted the UK economy by £2bn, but what was its impact on the small business industry? Touch Local carried out a poll amongst a sample of UK small business owners, to find out whether they benefited from the event, or on the contrary, did they actually suffer losses?

The Survey

What kind of an effect do you consider the Royal Wedding to have had on your business?

The Results

*Total responses:            956

Summary

Nearly half (48%) of the small business owners who participated in this survey claimed that the Royal Wedding had no effect on their business. On the whole, they stated to have not noticed any significant change in the output or revenue of their business.

On the other hand, 41% of respondents believe that their businesses have been affected negatively, with many stating that the extra long weekend had a noticeable impact on their revenue.

Only 11% believe the Royal Wedding to have had a positive impact on their business, many of them saying that the boost in customer and employee morale, resulting from the Royal Wedding, has influenced their revenue positively.

Some of the comments from the respondents:

The boost in employee and customer morale is bound to be good.

Courier service disruption has resulted in customer dissatisfaction.

The Prime Minister purchased my Anglesey Books as his personal gift to the Royal Couple and it has resulted in huge exposure and increased sales.

With clients closed for the day, there was no demand for support, which would in turn pay staff costs.

As the government had decided to declare the day to be a bank holiday and our contract terms state that staff are allowed 21 days plus bank holidays, this day cost us a considerable amount of money, which we are unable to recoup.

In the current economic climate, I believe this wedding to be a shameful waste of time and money.

The Royal Wedding and the resulting long weekend has had a significantly negative impact on our revenue.

Friday is normally a very busy day but it was quiet because people thought we were closed.

Delays in receipt of ordered supplies (also due to other holidays at Easter and May day)

It was not just the wedding, but the number of holidays meant that clients weren’t making decisions, starting projects, etc.

The Company had to virtually shut down, as either our employees took additional days holiday, or our customers did.

According to the manufacturer’s organisation the EEF, the availability of finance for small businesses is improving, but at an increasingly prohibitive cost. Touch Local carried out a poll amongst a sample of UK SMEs registered on our directory to find out if small business owners had experienced greater costs when seeking finance.

The Survey

As a small business owner, have you experienced greater costs when seeking finance?

The Results

Yes: 266 (49%)

No: 155 (28%)

Don’t Know: 123 (23%)

Total responses: 544

Summary

Just under half of small business respondents (49%) have experienced greater cost when seeking finance this quarter, with many unable to take our loans as a result. Others felt that bank lending had not improved at all, and were subsequently forced to look elsewhere for financial assistance. Over a quarter of respondents (28%) stated they were not experiencing higher costs when seeking finance. However, it is clear from the comments that several small business owners were looking for help from family and friends, and not professional financiers. 23% of respondents did not know their situation with regards to increasing costs, with the majority of these businesses requiring no financial assistance this quarter.

Some of the comments from the respondents:

I have not seen any improvement in the finance available to small business for us or my fellow SME businesses.

I have found big banks are willing to lend but at ridiculous cost

I am in the fortunate position of not needing to seek finance so this issue has not affected me.

High Street banks are simply not lending, in my experience. One is, therefore, at the mercy of more independent financiers, who charge exorbitant rates of interest. The banks need to make things easier for small business. If there is a good business plan, or an existing business that is clearly working, they should be open to lending. They are not.

I managed to borrow from family instead.

Being self employed, Banks and Lenders do make it difficult to get loans when in actual fact most self employed people are more secure than those employees working for a company.

We’ve had difficulty getting finance but when we have, it’s been at a higher rate of interest.

Do you have a question for UK businesses? Email kris.lea@touchlocal.com to submit your suggestion.

This week the Prime Minister blasted the civil service for loading costs and red tape regulations onto businesses. Touch Local carried out a poll amongst a sample of UK SMEs registered on our directory to find out if small business owners believed that red tape regulations are holding back growth for SME’s.

The Survey

As a small business owner, do you believe red tape regulations are holding back growth for SME’s?

The Results

Yes: 646 (80%)

No: 99 (12%)

Don’t Know: 68 (8%)

Total responses: 811

Summary

More than three quarters of small business respondents (80%) agree with the Prime Minister’s belief that businesses suffering from red tape regulations ‘frankly cannot take it any more’. The majority of these believe that the administrative cost and time spent on red tape is stifling the growth of their business, and fear that under the new Government things will not improve. Only 12% of small business owners do not believe that red tape is affecting the growth of SME’s. Of these, many note other legislations that are having a detrimental effect on small businesses, whilst others indicate that some industries such as banking rely heavily on red tape. 8% of respondents did not know whether red tape is affecting small businesses.

Some of the comments from the respondents:

Certain business sectors such as banking need much more red tape – without sufficient regulation, business will be forced to develop unsustainably and eventually crash.

You deal with more red tape than doing business.

The banks are holding us back by not spending, not the red tape.

I’m too scared to employ anyone – particularly women who may get pregnant. As a woman myself I am horrified by my response, but paying maternity leave could bankrupt my company. And employment law is such that it is practically impossible to get rid of someone who isn’t good enough. That too could destroy my company and I’m not prepared to risk something that has taken me years to build.

Whilst I am unaffected by red tape, I do know of many SME’s who are affected.

It’s not been a problem for me personally so far, but I know it is for many small businesses.

I have stayed self-employed not taken anyone on as there is too much red tape.

All the red tape and lack of assistance is stifling small businesses and growth in this country.

SME’s rarely have the manpower to trawl through legislation

I am a small business owner and I sub-contract all my work. If there was less red tape I would consider employing people directly.

Do you have a question for UK businesses? Email kris.lea@touchlocal.com to submit your suggestion.

This month the Government is publishing its second budget. Touch Local carried out a poll amongst a sample of UK SMEs registered on our directory to find out if small business owners are confident that the Chancellor will set up plans to help the economy grow.

The Survey

As a small business owner do you think the forthcoming budget will set up plans to help the economy grow?

The Results

Yes: 217 (24%)

No: 475 (53%)

Don’t Know: 212 (23%)

Total responses: 904

Summary

More than half of small business respondents (53%) are not confident in the upcoming budget announcement and the Government’s ability to drive the economy forward. Many of these business owners believe that the increase in VAT and the proposed Interest rate rise will harm the spending power of the country and leave people with less money to spend and little room in which to manoeuvre. Others believe that the Government have largely disregarded small businesses, and are not confident that the new budget will propose anything to the contrary. Less than a quarter of respondents (24%) are optimistic in the upcoming budget, with the view that the new Government is making the right strides to reinvigorate the economy. 23% of respondents were unsure whether the forthcoming budget will set up plans to help the economy grow.

Some of the comments from the respondents:

It’s difficult to see such a cut-back focus helping growth in the economy and therefore I’m not optimistic of good news in the budget for small businesses.

With so many cut backs, it is difficult to make the economy grow!

The constant change of tack breeds uncertainty. You are doing nothing to promote growth, investment, confidence and as a government lack the vision and resource to get us out of this.

Not helping small business at all!

You have to believe

Lower taxation and government expenditure

The tax on banks is a joke why not tax them the same amount as they pay in bonuses. Interest rates are at a record low try telling the banks this when trying to get a loan

The rate of interest should remain low and the Government should lobby the Bank of England to ensure that it does. The current factors that are causing the inflation rate to rise are individual items and not a trend.

I believe Osborne knows the importance of small business and the importance of getting rid of red tape and get banks lending. However what he does still depends on big business, the markets and the ‘ruling classes’. The danger is he will make great headline attracting statements, yet noting will come of them. If that happens then the country is sunk.

Do you have a question for UK businesses? Email kris.lea@touchlocal.com to submit your suggestion.