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Suzy Pelta is the latest entrepreneur to feature in one of our success stories. Suzy from SuzyPeltaBakes is a business woman, a recipe book writer and demo chef. After winning Lorraine’s Cake Club, Suzy transformed her life and took advantage of opportunities that came her way. She discusses juggling being a parent and being a business owner as well as the importance of social media.
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To start a business whilst studying may seem incredibly daunting, you may feel like it’s not the right time or that you’re not ready. However, having access to your student resources could be hugely beneficial for starting up your business and to the success of it. So if you have a dream of starting your own business, then why wait around? Get started on building your future today.

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Starting a company is a risky business. In the early stages, there is a significant chance of failure. One in five small businesses do not last beyond their first year.  Thirty per cent of small business fail in their second year, 50% fail after five years, and 70% fail in their tenth year in operation.

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If you’re an introvert, delivering talks may not be your first choice of how to apply your skills. However, as a business owner, you’ll need to present to your teams, clients or investors whether you like it or not.

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Owners of small businesses know that overcoming obstacles is part of the job. You simply don’t have the resources that your long-established large competitors have or their market dominance.

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Many small businesses start with a product idea.  It could be a practical product you’ve taken months, or possibly years to develop.  Perhaps you have spotted a gap in the market and now have a top-of-the-range product for the food industry that you know is needed. If so, it’s time to get out there and starting convincing restaurant owners that your product is just the thing for their business.

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Sharing your IT expertise could pave the way to a profitable IT consultancy. However, to compete with larger companies, you will have to progress past the constraints of a start-up in its first year. There are a few methods of doing this that will help you to build up your IT company and attract more potential clients.

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A business needs to increase its customers in order to grow. One of the most obvious ways to do this is through advertising. But advertising comes at a cost and doesn’t always guarantee results. With that risk in mind, is there such a thing as free advertising and can you use it to grow your business?

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What is the difference between a good public speaker and a great one? What makes people want to know more about one person, and tune another one out? Although content, of course, has a lot to do with who listens to whom, something else that can make someone particularly successful at public speaking is confidence. Without it, talks can be impersonal, boring, flat, and uninspired, and all because the person giving the talk has no confidence in themselves, and what they are saying. To be a powerful public speaker, confidence is key.

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We are bombarded every day by the lives successful people lead through the media – where do they live, what car do they drive, when do they wake up, what do they eat, etc. But what do we know about the habits that have made them into successful financially successful entrepreneurs? If you’re trying to develop your business into a successful one you know that it’s a tough road to take. It requires a lot of knowledge, drive, and dedication in order to manage your money right and achieve financial security and independence. Of course, it is possible, but it would be much easier with some insight from the people who already achieved that. That’s why Dean Willcocks Advisory have put together a list of financial habits that have taken them to success.

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We’re often told that to be a successful leader we need to be able to establish a clear vision, share that vision with others in a clear and compelling way, provide others with the resources to realise that vision, and co-ordinate the sometimes conflicting interests of all stakeholders. But there is one more trait that every leader needs; flexibility. For example a business with its back against the wall requires a different style to one which is enjoying a profitable, steady state. Flexible leadership skills make a more effective business leader.
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The British Franchise Association (BFA) together with HSBC UK have launched another year of Franchise Awards, celebrating the success of franchisees and franchisors. The entries for the 2018 franchise awards are now open and all franchisors and franchisees in the UK are encouraged to get involved, and take part in the prestigious industry event.

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In business we need to give successful presentations and pitches. I’ve realised through experience that focusing on content alone leads to failure. I’ve learned the hard way. Over the years I’ve given countless presentations to business audiences small and large and also spoken to ten thousand. As a result I now have my own methodology which I will outline for you here, writes Bret Freeman from Toastmasters International.
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“Take care of the pennies, and the pounds will look after themselves” — advice often given to people looking to grow financially and develop financial security. Being financially prepared is the cornerstone of developing a successful and profitable business, and should be a core priority from the moment you begin developing your business strategy and remain at the heart of your operation throughout your business’ growth.

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Starting a business is possibly one of the biggest challenges you will ever face in your life. It is a difficult task and the difficulty increases if you struggle to ask for help. You may feel you are not able to ask help from those around you because you are the boss, and you are expected to have all the answers. However you can get advice and help elsewhere, as there are experienced individuals who are willing support and guide business owners on their entrepreneurial journey.
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When it comes to promoting your start up sometimes the smallest methods can have the biggest impacts on the success of your business. Most methods don’t require a lot of budget however you should invest some time to make sure you see the maximum benefit. You need to make sure you spend some time understanding your market and industry so you know what will work best for your brand!
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