Scoot Blog

Annual report Uncovers What Business Owners Really Thought About 2011!

Here at Scoot we work hard to make sure that we can give UK business owners exactly what they need, but we can’t do it alone. Over the last year our partner site Touch Local has been conducted surveys to find out what UK SME’s think about the issues that affect them. From the social media revolution to the relegation of print directories to the back of kitchen cupboards, the polls have provided us with an invaluable insight into the world of UK SME’s.

Did you know?

UK SME’s are one of the major driving forces of the British economy, employing around 14 million people and responsible for nearly half of the total private sector turnover.

Given the important role that the small business community plays, it is vital that business owners have the opportunity to voice their options and share their views on the UK economy. The weekly polls ensured that we were always on top of the major issues and developments in business and economy that affect UK SME’s. The poll results were recently published by Touch Local in their annual report 2011 Local Business Overview and the Road Ahead which provides an in depth summary of the information shared by thousands of small business owners throughout the year. Along with the poll findings, the report also covers the major events that played a significant part in the 2011 business year such as the VAT increase and Budget 2011.

One of the main features of the report is the advertising trends of 2011. The year saw print advertising take a sharp decline and social media rise up to become a valuable asset for businesses, allowing UK SME’s to connect with their customers in a way they never had before.

Did you know?

95% of UK business owners believe that usage of print directories amount people under 50 years of age will drop to zero in 2012

One of the highlights of the report is a survey that Touch Local conducted with over 1,000 UK businesses owners, asking them how they felt about the coming year including how they expect their business to grow in 2012.

Read the full Touch Local Annual Report here

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

Blog your way to a better business

One of the most useful forms of communication for any business is a blog. With over 1 million blog posts written every day, whether you are using your blog to announce new products, keep your customers up-to-date or to just as way to keep in touch, you are definitely not alone! More and more active internet users now read blogs and many businesses now view their blog as their most valuable form of social media. If you have yet to venture in blogging territory why not take a look at our top reasons to start typing.

1. Blogs are now viewed as a mainstream source of communication for businesses and are very search engine friendly! Maintaining a blog is one of the fastest (and cheapest) ways to increase your business’ online exposure.

2. It’s not just customers that you can reach with your blog posts. Research shows that blogs are widely read within the B2B community with even senior management team members visiting company blog sites.

3. More and more companies are replacing monthly email newsletters with regular blog posts as they are easy to create and are instantly interactive. Traditional email newsletters can suffer from low deliverability rates thanks to over cautious spam filters whereas blog posts are easily accessible and sharable!

4. Although blogs don’t tend to draw a large audience, they do attract a highly targeted readership. If your blog contains quality, informative content it will be seen as a valuable resource within your industry.

So what are you waiting for? Start communicating with your business world today!

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

Twitter Poll results

Since its launch in 2006, Twitter has taken the world by storm, providing users with a platform to post information, interact with others and keep up-to-date on the latest news.  With over 200 million users as of 2011, Twitter has established itself as a valuable marketing tool for any business. This week we asked local business owners;*

Do you use Twitter to reach more customers?

The poll showed that 62% of business owners did not use Twitter as a way to reach more customers, whilst 38% were taking advantage of the site as a way to attract new customers to their business.

Of the 38% of business owners that did use Twitter to reach their customer, 90% managed their Twitter accounts themselves, with the remaining 10% either allocating time to employees or using an outside agency. When asked about any challenges they face when using Twitter, it seems that many businesses have embraced the word of tweets and retweets with 41% of business owners finding no challenges what so ever. 15% admitted to understanding how the site works but find it hard to decide just how to make the most of the 140 character limit!

Finding time to Tweet

For many business owners, finding the time to start utilising social media can be one of the biggest reasons why many choose to ignore it. Of the 62% of business owners who did not use Twitter to reach their customers, 44% cited having no time as their biggest reason for not logging in whereas 56% of business owners admitted that they just don’t understand how to use it.  Out of the businesses that do use Twitter to reach their customers, 70% spend less than an hour a day updating their customers on their latest news, products and services whilst just 10% rely on a weekly check up.

From this survey it seems that although more businesses were yet to explore just how Twitter could benefit their business, those that do were able to reach their customers without facing any significant challenges and without it eating up too much of their time.

For the latest hints and tips on how to increase your business’ online exposure follow Scoot on Twitter! @Scoot_IT

*290 respondents. Data source- Touch Local

Is your website turning customers away?

Your company website is one of the first things that your customers will see, so why risk them instantly rushing to click the ‘close’ button? So many companies are guilty of committing at least one of our top ten website turn offs, make sure your business is not one of them!

1. Advert overload

There is nothing wrong with having adverts on your website however there is a not so fine line between carefully selected, relevant adverts and glaring banners offering everything from miracle weight loss cures to cheap holiday deals. When accepting adverts on your site it is important to make sure that they fit in with the tone of the site and do not disrupt the user’s browsing experience.

2. Attack of the pop-up

Is there anything more annoying that clicking onto a webpage only to have your screen bombarded with pop up after pop up? Although most people will (hopefully) have an effective pop up blocker in place, those that do find their browser full of pop up adverts will most probably head for the hills (well the ‘x’ button anyway)

3. Badly written copy

When you are putting together a website it is easy to get carried away with flashy graphics and stylish videos however the most basic aspect of any webpage is what it actually says. If the copy on your website is badly written, this will immediately give your customers a negative view of the company. Spellcheck is definitely your friend when writing content for your site however it helps to double and even triple check for any spelling or grammar errors before you press ‘publish’.

4. Get to the point

Filling your website content with sales jargon and details of all of the awards the company has won may look impressive however what use is telling potential customers that you are a ‘dynamic, innovative, award winning company’ when they don’t know what it is you do? It is easy to get carried away with the synonym tool however this is useless if you omit the most basic information. Ensure that your ‘about me’ page is crystal clear, if in doubt ask an independent party for their opinion.

5. Slow loading

With so many people paying for fast internet, having to wait what can often feel like an age for a webpage to load can have many people instantly reaching for the ‘X’. Experts state that the ideal load time for a webpage should be no longer than 1-2 seconds, if your site is taking longer make sure you take the time to check what is holding it back.

6. Out of date information

Any out of date information on your site could be detrimental to your company. For example, if a customer uses your site to find an address for your store yet you have actually moved premises this will not go down well with the potential customer stood staring into an empty shop window. If your business details change it is vital to update your website as soon as possible. Similarly if you have a special offer or a price section on your site, avoid red faces at the till by keeping them up to date.

7. If you’re not on the list…

If you have ever been stopped on the street and asked for your details to sign up for a catalogue or a charity donation you will understand the frustration of a web user being held back by a ‘registration form’. A web page that requires a user to enter their details before even viewing the home page may gain valuable email data however it will also lose frustrated potential customers.

8. X marks the spot

If you do decide to allow full page adverts on your site, make sure that you do not forget the number one rule! Many companies design their full page adverts to make it as difficult as possible for users to actually close them and see the site that’s hiding underneath. If a customer ends up playing a game of ‘Where’s Wally?’ with the ‘X’ button, chances are they won’t be in a buying frame of mind when they finally get past it.

9. Colour clash

You may think that changing your font colour to neon yellow against a bright white background is ‘cutting edge’ however when your customers have to squint to read about your latest special offers the only thing they will come away with is a headache. Stick with colours and backgrounds that complement each other and are easy to read, there’s a reason why black/white is a classic!

10. Bored now…

Your company could sell self lacing trainers or trees that actually grow £50 notes however if your website is about as interesting as a paper bag your customers will soon lose interest. Keep your content short and snappy, complimenting it with relevant, high quality images. Engage with your customers through a regularly updated blog and communicate with them through your social media profiles.

Your website is your online shop window so clear away the dust, get out the Windolene and make sure your company really shines through!

Tweet Tweet!

It seems like everyone is tweeting nowadays, celebrities, politicians, local authorities and most importantly your customers. If your business has yet to embrace the world of ‘hashtags’ and ‘retweets’ you are missing out on the millions of customers that are already finding local businesses and services through what is fast becoming one of the world’s largest social networks. The value of Twitter for a business of any size is immeasurable, the micro-blogging site enables businesses to interact and engage with customers whilst generating a buzz about the company through 140 character updates. Here at Scoot we absolutely love Twitter and our team are always on hand to help out with anything that you need plus all of the latest news and updates from the world of business.

Join the social media revolution

As a business it has become almost impossible to ignore the impact that social media has had on how we choose to reach our customers. With the whole word seemingly tweeting, liking and now +1(ing) everything from customer service to special offers, viewing social media as a fad is one of the biggest mistakes a business can make. If you have yet to even dip your toe into the world of social media, here are our three top tips to getting started!

1. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail!

Although it may be tempting to set up your profiles and dive headfirst into tweets and status updates, take the time to think about what you want to achieve from social media. If you are looking to increase brand awareness why not research some of the key issues in business and join the conversations about them on Twitter? If you are looking to attract new customers why not advertise an exclusive special offer on your Facebook page or Tweet out a promotional code to your followers. The most basic aspect of social media is sharing so make sure you take the time to share information that your customers will actually want to read. Blog posts, funny viral videos and or even pictures of new products will soon get the ball rolling and the followers pouring in.

2. Keep going!

If after a week or so you haven’t got the 1000’s of followers that you expected, try and resist the temptation to close the laptop and never speak of Twitter or Facebook again. In order to grow successful social media profiles you need to dedicate time and resources. Sharing out the responsibility is a great way to get more of your team interested in social media and will ensure that there is always a steady stream of information being posted.

3. Spread the love

Whether you are Team Twitter of a Facebook fan, one of the most important things to remember about social media is that you need to cover all of your bases. There are programs available that will send a post to all of your social media platforms however it is best to cater different posts for different sites. Utilise #hashtags when using Twitter to get the maximum effect and take advantage of the extended character limits on Facebook to give your customers all of the information that they need.

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.