You’ve finally mustered up the courage to wave goodbye to your boss and are now going solo. Surely you didn’t think this would be easy, did you?

As a matter of fact, many who have made the same choice know that this is just the beginning.

This is the time for a series of decisions to be made. You can take comfort in the fact that once your company formation is in place, each step along the way will be easier.

A key decision to be made when starting your own business, or becoming self-employed for the first time, is to decide what type of business structure you want to follow.

There are a number of options, all of which have their merits and differ in legal and taxation terms – but your four key options are as follows:

• Sole trader
• Partnership
• Limited liability partnership (LLP)
• Limited company

Simon Renshaw, director of AABRS, explains what you need to know about each.

On your own as a sole trader

By opting for the sole trader route, you and your business are effectively one and the same – from both a tax and legal perspective.

This means that you are personally responsible for the business – and any debts it incurs.

The profits you make, which are sales minus costs, until April 5 of each year are declared on your tax return and classed as your personal income that year – even if it is not paid out as salary or into to your personal bank account.

Just be aware of changes with Making Tax Digital. Businesses with a taxable turnover over the VAT threshold (£85,000) must follow MTD rules. This means keeping digital records and using specific software to submit your VAT returns. Businesses with a taxable turnover below £85,000 will be expected to follow the rules for their first return on or after April 2022.

You need to follow the requirements for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax if you are self-employed or a landlord from:

• April 6, 2026 if you have an annual business or property income of more than £50,000
• April 2027 if you have an annual business or property income of more than £30,000

There are benefits associated with operating as a sole trader. They include:

• Simple set up and administration. One of the main advantages of operating as a sole trader is how easy it is to set up and run. You have to be VAT-compliant, deduct and pay PAYE and National Insurance to HMRC if you have employees and file a self-assessment tax return, but that’s where your obligations end. Bear in mind that Class 4 National Insurance Contributions (NICs) will be reduced from 9 per cent to 8 per cent and Class 2 NICs will be scrapped. Both changes come into play from April 6, 2024.
• There are fewer financial restrictions. It’s much easier to take money out a sole trader than a limited company. You can take money out of the business as and when it’s needed. That’s because your personal finances and the business’ finances are one and the same.
• There’s greater privacy. Certain information about limited companies has to be made public. Being a sole trader is different. All the details about the business can be kept private. That provides greater anonymity (for example, if you are running the business in your free time while being employed) and reduces the costs associated with filing annual accounts.
• The business is easier to close down. Closing down a limited company takes time and can be costly, particularly if it has debts. Winding up a sole trader is a relatively simple affair, although if there are debts you cannot repay then it can be problematic.

“I started my company in 2007 as a sole trader. This was the easiest of the choices at the time and meant very little work to set it up,” said Graeme Thomas, owner of Johnny F Designs. “I simply called HMRC, told them I wanted to start trading under Johnny F Designs as a sole trader, and that was it.”

A partnership: It takes two to tango

A partnership arrangement is similar to that of a sole trader but differs in that it has more than one owner.

All partners own a specified percentage of the profits, and the liabilities, so they must pay tax on that percentage.

As with a sole trader, each partner’s share of the profits is treated as their income.

There are benefits associated with running a partnership, both when compared to a sole trader and a limited company:

• Shared responsibility. Having more business owners allows the financial and operational responsibility for running the business to be shared. Tasks can be assigned according to skills and the individual workload can be reduced.
• Flexibility. Conventional partnerships are easier to form than LLPs. The internal structure is also versatile as changes can be made to the legal rights and responsibilities of partners and even to their profit-sharing ratios.
• Decision-making. Partners share the decision making which can be a beneficial as there are more brains to pick. However, it can also be problematic if not everyone agrees.

Limited liability partnership (LLP)

In a nutshell, this type of structure has some of the same characteristics of a conventional partnership, such as the internal management, tax liability and the distribution of profits, but it also provides the limited liability of an incorporated company.

Limited liability partnerships tend to be used by professional services firms such as solicitors and architects. The benefits include:

• Tax transparency. LLPs are generally not taxed as corporations, so they do not need to pay corporation tax. Instead, each member is taxed through self-assessment as a self-employed individual.
• Flexibility. The internal structure of an LLP is just as versatile as a conventional partnership, so changes can be made to the rights and responsibilities as necessary.
• Professional standing. Limited liability can enhance the professional standing of a business over and above a conventional partnership. This can be advantageous when trying to win high-value contracts.
• It’s easy to appoint new members. Unlike an LTD, there’s no share capital in an LLP. That means new members can be appointed without having to issue new shares.
• National insurance savings. An LLP do not have to register as an employer if the only people working for the company are members. That can lead to significant national insurance savings.
• Easier to make decisions. There aren’t any requirements for those involved in LLPs to make decisions by resolution or to hold board meetings or general meetings as is the case in LTDs.

Limited Company (LTD)

In the case of a limited company, the business becomes a separate legal entity entirely. This means that the company must be formed, or incorporated, and registered at Companies House.

It will also have to have certain standard legal documents that govern what it can do and what business it operates in.

The company will be owned and controlled by those who own its shares and you can allocate shares to any number of people when the company is incorporated.

You could keep all the shares for yourself, allocate some to a spouse, or sell them (‘equity’) to raise funds.

This does however require more administration, for example annual accounts being filed at Companies House and an annual corporation tax return, but these can be taken care of simply and quickly by an accountant.

Having a limited company comes with significant benefits, which include:

• Tax efficiency – due to the ability to receive income in the form of both salary and dividends
• Reduced risk – liabilities (debts) of the business are separate from that of the owner(s), reducing the risk if things go wrong
• Image – they tend to convey a more professional image of the business
• Flexibility – since equity can be sold, limited companies are easier and more flexible when it comes to raising investment and funding.

“The company was set up as a limited company so that if the business was to incur debt and go bust, my personal situation would not be impacted negatively,” said Brian Lonsdale, managing director of Smarter Digital Marketing. “I also chose this option as it allowed me to bring in another director and divide company shares up. It allows room for expansion and growth in the future.”

So now is the time to ask yourself what exactly is holding you back, and why. If you’ve already thought about it, and have spent five minutes reading this article, you must be considering this seriously.

Just weigh up the options, crunch the numbers and get on the ‘entrepreneurship’ bandwagon.

WXY is a Manchester-based social media and experiential PR agency founded by Gemma Wieczorek and Marc A Young (pictured). Created in 2018, the pair decided to form a limited company over the other options. 

Gemma: There are a number of options to choose from when setting up a business and, of course, no one-size-fits-all solution. Neither Marc or I hail from a finance background, with any discussion around money focused on clients.

We found that partnering with an accountancy firm allowed us to start having conversations around how we want to be paid and our tax obligations.

When you start a business, you just want to get cracking. However, setting up as a limited company allowed us to take a step back and sort out fundamentals. There’s certainly an element of ‘it feels more real’ when we see it black and white on Companies House, not to mention some of the key financial benefits of doing so.

I’d recommend anyone in the early stages of a business to find a great accountancy partner who will guide you through the process of setting up a limited company.

Marc: Before we formed WXY, Gemma and I worked together at an independent agency. For us, setting up as a limited company installed legitimacy into our business venture.

More paperwork might sound like a drag but for me it has driven me to ensure everything’s up-to-date as it has played on my need to be organised, which is essential.

It was an additional job that we had to do and allowed us to work together on something that wasn’t part of our previous work relationship. It also allowed us to have open and honest discussions about money, forecasting and choosing preferred suppliers.

Further reading on company structure

Setting up a business: Sole trader vs limited company – Emily Coltman of Freeagent discusses the main differences between registering as a sole trader and as a limited company

6 examples of sole traders – What jobs are best if you want to go self-employed? We look at what it takes to become a personal trainer, a gardener, a hairdresser, a private chef, a photographer or a dog walker

Checklist for going self-employed – a Small Business guide – Deciding to go self-employed is a big step for anyone. Follow this guide to going self-employed and be confident. We’ve got your back

The post Should I go sole trader, partnership or limited company? appeared first on Small Business UK.

One of the most important decisions you’ll have to contend with is the structure and legal status your business will use moving forward: will you operate as a sole trader or as a limited company?

The structure you choose can have an impact on almost every aspect of your business, including how much tax you will pay, what earnings you can make, and even what happens should your company get into difficulty. What might work for one company will not necessarily work for another. So, it’s vital that you weigh up the pros and cons of both and make an informed decision.

In this article, I’ll be discussing the advantages and disadvantages of being a sole trader or a limited company, so you can decide which business model will serve the needs of your company as it develops. Keep reading to learn more.

The fundamental differences between sole traders and limited companies

A sole trader is a self-employed person with full ownership of their business: it does not have a separate legal identity from that of the owner. That means that a sole trader takes full liability. To become a sole trader, you must register using the government portal within three months of founding your business.

A limited liability company is one which is legally distinct from the identity of the owner. It has a unique company identity, which must be registered (for a small fee) with Companies House. Because of this, there may be more than one owner or director, and they will have limited liability — meaning their personal finances won’t be affected should the business struggle financially.

Sole trading vs limited companies: Which is right for your business?

For many smaller businesses or self-employed tradespeople, being a sole trader offers a few financial advantages, but it also brings an increased level of risk. Becoming a limited company can protect owners from these risks by giving them limited liability, but it can also mean a lot more admin and fiduciary duties for the directors.

In this section, we’ll discuss the benefits and negatives of different aspects of both models, including earnings potential, tax efficiency, and liability.

Earnings

Sole traders keep all of their earnings after tax, which is paid via the self-assessment system. This means that your earnings are entirely dependent on your performance that year — so while there’s the potential for large profits, there’s also the risk that you won’t make enough money to earn a decent salary.

The owners of a limited company draw their earnings in the form of a salary, which is taxed at standard PAYE rates. They can also draw their earnings in the form of bonuses and dividends, subject to overall performance. In the last few years, the government has been reducing the tax-free allowance for dividends (from £5,000 in 2017 down to £1,000 in 2023/4 and £500 in the 2024/25 tax year) — meaning that limited company directors have faced a reduction in tax-free earnings from these additional sources of income.

Tax

Because limited companies are registered at Companies House, they must pay corporation tax. For large companies, the rate of corporation tax is actually lower than it is for sole traders — meaning it’s often a far more tax-efficient model for businesses with high turnovers and big profits.

Unlike limited companies, sole traders are not legally obliged to pay corporation tax. Instead, sole traders are required to pay income tax at the standard rate and make National Insurance contributions on all profits: these are set at Class 2 rate if your profits are ££12,570 or more (for tax year 2023/24), and Class 4 if your profits are over £12,570 (for tax year 2023/24). Any business expenses are tax-deductible, meaning only your profits will be taxed. From the 2024/25 tax year, Class 4 National Insurance for the self-employed will go from 9 per cent to 8 per cent with no Class 2 NICs to worry about.

While this form of taxation may be efficient for smaller traders with lower incomes, they’re often less so for higher earners — especially if you begin earning £25,000 or more. So, should your earnings reach a higher income bracket, then you might find that registering as a limited company and paying yourself a salary is a more tax-efficient solution.

Sole traders must fill out a self-assessment tax return and register as self-employed with HMRC, but as a general rule their tax obligations are much less complex than those of a limited company.

However, because they have full liability, they can be held to account for any fines or penalties that result from a late return or making an error in their paperwork.

Responsibilities and personal liability

Being a sole trader allows you complete control of your business, and there’s generally much less admin to deal with, but this comes at the cost of an increased level of personal risk.

Under UK law, there is no legal distinction between your assets and those of the company, so if you run up debts, creditors have the right to claim your personal assets (including any property you own) to balance the books. If a client or customer decides to sue you or take you to court, you could be liable to pay any costs yourself.

Because directors in a limited company have limited liability, it’s very unlikely they’ll be held to account for debts or lawsuits incurred by the business (with the possible exception of criminal activity or negligence). While a sole trader could be made bankrupt if their enterprise fails, directors of a limited company cannot: their personal assets will be protected, while the company goes in to liquidation.

For this reason, it’s vital that sole traders have professional indemnity or public liability insurance in place to offer them some protection. These sorts of policies can be costly, so you should factor this into your decision: it may be a matter of deciding whether the simplicity that sole trading offers is worth the increased risk and insurance costs.

Summary

When it comes down to choosing sole trader or a limited company, the legal model you want to decide on for your company ultimately depends on what sort of company you want to start.

Small enterprises and self-employed tradespeople may prefer the simplicity and control over earnings offered by sole trading, while those with ambitions of starting a larger company with lots of employees might be tempted by the security that registering as a limited company offers, particularly in terms of liability. It all boils down to your individual business model and goals for the future.

Limited Company or Sole Trader - Key comparisons

Mart Abramov is the CEO of digital tax accountancy, TaxScouts

Further resources

• How to become a sole trader
• Can two people run a sole trader business?
• What is the definition of a sole trader and being self-employed
• Tax advantages of a limited company versus sole trader

The post Should you register as a sole trader or a limited company? appeared first on Small Business UK.

You will find that a lot of guides to writing a marketing plan are heavily laden with marketing jargon; buzzwords that may sound impressive, but upon closer inspection mean very little. This guide offers practical advice on how to write a marketing plan using plain English.

Why write a marketing plan?

Put simply, the aim of developing a marketing plan is to map out how you can gain more customers for your business, which strategies or tactics are right for your business, and how and when you are going to use them.

It should detail who you intend to sell to, how you will sell to them and how you will let them know about your business.

The marketing plan may form part of your overall business plan as a complement to investor presentations, or you may want to write a marketing plan as a separate document.

The focus should be on gaining new customers, persuading current customers to buy more often and getting inactive customers to return. They’re also useful for establishing what your strengths and weaknesses are as a business, who your key competitors are and what campaigns they’re running.

We’ll be looking at what you should be doing before you write up your marketing plan, how to write one, and examples of common elements you’ll find in a marketing plan.

Before you write a marketing plan

You need to identify the target audience you are aiming your product or service at, or indeed clarify whether there even is one.

Too many small businesses fail because they haven’t done enough market research. Don’t just rely on what your friends and family say, as they may not be the most objective observers.

>See also: Guidelines for conducting market research for small businesses

A market from which you can profit will be made up of people who need your product, or at least have a perceived need, and who will be willing to pay for it. Understanding your customers will allow you to identify the best way to sell to them.

Think about your product or service and who is likely to spend money on it. Remember, if you aim to sell to absolutely everyone, you will be less successful than if you can narrow down your market focus. A product or service aimed at everybody is one aimed at nobody.

Conduct face-to-face interviews

If appropriate, get out there and conduct some market research face-to-face. Ask people in the street if they can see the need for your type of business in the area and how much they would be willing to pay.

Survey the market

Identify who your competitors are and try to spot any weaknesses in their strategy. Can you capitalise on this? Is there a lot of competition in that area or will you be filling a gap? If not, could you find somewhere else more suitable?

How to write a marketing plan

Your marketing plan should consist of two halves: the brand proposition and the communication plan. The brand proposition defines your reason for being and why you answer a need, while the communication plan explains how you’re going to get the message out there.

Know your brand proposition

You need to spell out the thinking behind the brand you want to establish. Why should people care? A clear brand proposition will contain some form of:

Purpose of the brand: the purpose should define what you do – we exist to….? If you find that difficult, try defining what you don’t do – sometimes that marks businesses out from the competition. For example, “We are a locally produced soap product that only uses vegan ingredients not tested on animals.”

A purpose doesn’t need to be a perfectly crafted strapline, nor it is it likely to be seen by the public, but it should reflect what your business stands for.

Who your target customer is: who you think should notice and care about what you are offering – and why. The more focused this is, the better. If you have several focused customer groups then there should be a sense of priorities, possibly distinguishing between their value and the order in which you’ll go after them – these are not always the same.

When thinking about your target customer, try not to think in terms of demographics, such as “Young mums aged between 25 to 34” and more in terms of values, such as, “Environmentally aware women supportive of local independent businesses”.

Pro tip: Visualise your perfect customer and sketch out how they spend their day to tap into their mindset, attitudes and behaviours. Are they cost conscious? Then explain how a bar of more expensive vegan soap is better value than cheap shower gel. Creating this pen portrait may also help you figure out the best time of day to communicate with them.

What is unique about you? What makes your business better than the competition; some use the term unique selling point (USP) but really, it’s what makes you stand out from the crowd. You need to demonstrate what it is about your product, service or business model that will give consumers the reason to believe you.

What is behind the name: If this is not perfectly obvious (usually a good place to be with a name) then what is the story behind your company name? Is there an anecdote you can use in marketing or a press release?

>See also: Britain’s funniest business names

Tone of voice: This is important. The way you want to show up in front of your potential customers, the kind of language you would use, your house style, must be consistent. If you are setting yourself up as a financial adviser, for example, you would want to reassure and be patrician. A novelty kid’s product might be zany. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream still has a Sixties counterculture vibe, even though it’s owned by Unilever.

Pro tip: Create a mood board to illustrate the tone of voice, other brands or services which have the same kind of ethos to yours.

Communication plan

If the brand proposition is to get everybody excited, the communication plan is how you get the message across. Again, this will be defined by your target audience. Marketing channels to consider include:

• Direct marketing – either through mail or hand-delivered flyers
• Social media – where does you target audience like to go? Instagram, TikTok or if it’s an older demographic, Facebook
• Out of home advertising – the cost of renting space on a digital billboard can be less than you think. Digital screens typically cost £1,000 a week, according to 75Media.
• Events and trade shows – best for B2B businesses where you can meet potential customers

Make it short, concise and easy for the rest of your team to understand

Indeed, you may have to pass this on to other members of your team – or other parts of the business altogether – so keep it clear and accessible.

“I think that a marketing-centric business needs to have something that someone who isn’t marketing trained can read through and be like, ‘Yeah, okay, I get that. I know where we’re headed,’” said Rachael Dines, founder of Shake it Up Creative, a marketing firm that helps small businesses write their marketing plans.

Dines has developed her own template, ensuring that it’s very bright and that it’s got clear sections for each of the different areas discussed with her clients. “People could update either one or more sections or the whole thing if they need to over time,” she told Small Business.

Setting a budget

You also need to think about cost. Setting a budget is important and will help keep your advertising spend in check. Consider which of these marketing strategies will give the best return on investment.

“The question I always get asked is, ‘Well, how much budget should I have?’ And that’s not always a set percentage,” said Dines. “But I think you have to look at spending it very wisely. Of course, we know that marketing is a bit experimental. But reviewing it regularly is very important.”

To measure your return on investment (ROI), look at anything that you can track digitally, such as unique tracking codes that can be used, utilising analytics to see where visitors are coming from and whether the specific campaigns that’s utilising all the social media platform insights to get that engagement data, any kind of sales figures that align with marketing activities and marketing, said Dines.

“It can be hard to track because sometimes it takes people a few goes of seeing something before they start to interact with it. It’s never completely accurate, but give yourself a good idea. It’s using a mix of tools, not just relying on one thing.” This could be looking at email open rate, pay per click (PPC), web traffic or video engagement.

You could even ask similar businesses in another area how they go about advertising. You would be surprised how generous people are with their time. Speak to people in a similar situation, but preferably not the businesses against which you will be competing directly.

Get the message across

Having clearly defined goals will allow you to keep an eye on how you are progressing over a set period of time.

Does the message you are putting across need to be short and sharp, or will you customers be willing to spend more time learning about what you have to offer? Either way, there are some key points to consider, which should be included in your marketing material to make it more persuasive:

• Explain the problem facing your customer and identify a need for your product or service
• Emphasise that it is important to solve that problem
• Explain what makes your company different and why it will benefit people to buy through you
• If you have them, give examples of satisfied customers and their comments
• Explain prices and how to pay clearly and concisely
• If you can, give some sort of guarantee as to the quality of your work or product, or offer incentives or discounts for responding within a set time period.

Set targets and review progress

Having clearly defined goals will allow you to keep an eye on how you are progressing over a set period of time. Use SMART targets as a useful way of approaching this area. SMART means that your targets should be:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Realistic
• Time-specific

You could include sales targets and the amount of profit you are looking to achieve, targets for enquiry levels and so on.

Once a month, you should conduct a short review of progress to see how you are getting on and whether these targets need to be adjusted. However, don’t jump to re-adjust targets immediately if you aren’t hitting them. There may be something else in your marketing strategy that could be changed and will allow you to achieve more.

“When I do a plan, I generally go through who the target market is, what the products are, pricing and the process and timings,” said Dines.

Detail is key here. “Normally, it’s that people have things they want to achieve, but they don’t put a time on it. They’re not specific enough. Some of them will just say, ‘Oh, we would like to do X, but there isn’t a time on there.’ There’s no drive or endpoint for them to work to. And they won’t know how long to do their activities for, how much budget would apply to it, etc. That’s the fundamental mistake.”

As mentioned, reviewing the plan can also help you learn from any mistakes and help you adjust. When you write your marketing plan always bear in mind your desired results. The plan is therefore an important tool to help you author your business future.

Dines says that marketing plans don’t tend to be published and are kept internally. However, you might find examples online from larger companies or templates from marketing businesses.

Most are online or in print, but there are exceptions. Coca-Cola did part of their 2020 marketing plan in the form of a video:

The one thing to remember is that the following examples should be used as guides, so don’t rigidly follow them. Each marketing plan will look slightly different depending on the needs, audience and aesthetic of your business.

Bear in mind that a lot of the examples below are stylised too. You can just create Word docs or Excel spreadsheets if that works for you.

Here are said examples. Your marketing plan could be made up of any or all of these things.

Executive summary

This is a rundown of your business and what it does. It also includes a bit of information on market need, target customer and what’s coming up of the firm.

Source: Shopify

Target customers

Source: Venngage

USP

Your unique selling point (USP) sets you apart from your competitors and re-establishes market need.

Source: Shopify

SWOT analysis

You may have come across SWOT analyses before. They look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for your marketing to help drive your plan forward.

Source: Zapier

Competitor analysis

This can also help to drive your plan based on what your competitors are doing. Either filling in for their shortcomings or taking inspiration from what they do well.

Source: Venngage

Action programmes

This can be seen as an outline for what’s coming up, sometimes driven by your SWOT analysis. It’s generally one year up to five years, though it still needs to be reviewed regularly.

Source: Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurs

Budgets

This will give you an idea of how to get your plan into action and where you can move some money around.

Source: Smartsheet

There may even be sections that aren’t here that you feel are more fitting to your business and its marketing goals.

If you’re still flummoxed by the whole thing, then don’t worry – help is out there!

“There are lots of organisations and support that is available either at county level, or sometimes via various partnerships, like Enterprise Nation or your Chamber of Commerce,” said Dines. “There will always be someone nearby that you could maybe have a power hour with or get a grant to work with.”

Further reading

E-marketing made easy

The post How to write a marketing plan appeared first on Small Business UK.

You’re not alone if you’re thinking about becoming a driving instructor.

Due to the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, there are now more learner drivers looking for instructors than ever. According to research conducted earlier this year by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), there are so many individuals wishing to learn to drive that the waiting list for tests has remained over half a million since June 2021 and was 551,271 in May 2023.

What’s more, the 2023 Annual UK Driving Instructor Review revealed that 40% of driving
instructors are now achieving gross weekly earnings of £1000 or more.

The pandemic has encouraged people to rely on themselves for an income – and becoming a driving instructor could be a good way to do that. We’ll go through the pros and cons of being a driving instructor, how the process works and whether you should go with a franchise or become an independent driving instructor.

How long does it take to become a driving instructor?

Normally, it can take between six and 12 months to become a driving instructor. However, waiting times for tests is an issue at present.

“The training can actually be done. If you really wanted to downsize it, technically you can do the training in a week or two,” said Michael Sargent, founder of Nayland Driving School. He suggested studying for the advanced theory in your own time. The training for the advanced driving test usually takes about eight to ten hours, polishing up on bad habits.

“You could deliver that in a couple of days, but you might not get a test for two months,” he said. “We’re getting people to book the test, then about a month before the exam, we’re starting the training, seeing them a couple of hours a week.” From there, you can also do a couple of hours in your own car, giving you a week to practice. Doing the same for another couple of hours, a week to practice and then another couple of hours. “Then when we get to the final exam, that’s 40 hours’ training,” he said.

After passing the second part of the test, you have the option to apply for a trainee licence which is valid for six months. You’ll either need to:

• Be supervised for 20 per cent of all lessons you give while you have your trainee licence
• Do at least 20 hours of extra training while you have your trainee licence

How much can I earn as a driving instructor?

This will vary depending on whether you’re independent or part of a franchise, then there’s variety within that. However, as demand has grown, so have the prices of lessons, and the 2023 Annual UK Driving Instructor Review survey indicates that instructors are now earning more than £30 per hour on average for the first time on record. More on that in a minute.

Am I eligible to become a driving instructor?

To become a driving instructor, you need to be at least 21 years old and have had a full driving licence for over three years.

The government says that your application may be rejected if you’ve had a driving ban, have five points or more on your licence or have been convicted of any non-motoring offences. This will be decided on case-by-case basis by the ADI Registrar. Your application is likely to be rejected if you’ve been banned from working with children or have sexual assault, violence or drug-related crime offences.

You must get a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check to begin your driving instructor application, even if you already have one. A basic DBS check costs £10.

Normally you’d need to have a manual car because tests are carried out in manual vehicles. If you have a disability and want to become an automatic instructor, then you can have an automatic vehicle.

“If someone is curious about becoming a driving instructor, I quite often spend an hour on the phone, or an hour having a coffee with them,” said Sargent. “It’s genuinely quite a big decision.”

He said that being friendly, approachable and reliable are key qualities for a driving instructor. A clean car is also essential. “These are sort of things that students notice. The teaching stuff, they don’t notice so much. Even if you’re struggling with the teaching, in the early stages, they naturally always assume it’s them. If they can’t grasp something, they won’t for one minute think it’s your teaching, because they can’t drive.”

What are the pros and cons of being a driving instructor?

As we’ve established, there’s plenty of work out there, meaning more money for instructors. Driving instructors have increased their prices since the pandemic and are now earning £33.41 an hour on average, compared to the average of £27.60 an hour in 2020 (The 2023 Annual UK Driving Instructor Review, 2023).

The same survey revealed that, for the most part, driving instructors also have a high level of satisfaction when it comes to work, with 92% claiming to be at least ‘satisfied’ and 42% reporting ‘very high feelings of satisfaction.

>See also: Tips on how to achieve work-life balance

However, something to consider when becoming a driving instructor is that you will be, in most cases, self-employed. And, while there are many perks to self-employment, there are some drawbacks, including a lack of stability. “I think the main reason [instructors have left], from my point of view, is a lot of them weren’t entitled to anything during lockdowns. They’re self-employed, but they hadn’t been self-employed three years and couldn’t show three work three years’ worth of books,” said Sargent. “From the people I speak to, more than anything, they’ve left because they didn’t have a choice.”

What does the test consist of?

It’s made up of three qualifying tests.

Test one – ADI test part one (advanced theory)

Cost: £81

This is similar to the standard learner’s theory test in that there’s a multiple choice and hazard perception element.

Take your photocard licence to the test. If you don’t have one – you should bring your passport along with your paper licence. If you don’t have a passport, you will need a photocard licence.

Depending on where you’re doing your test, you may have to wear a face covering. In England it’s your choice to wear a face covering but in Scotland and Wales it’s compulsory unless you’re exempt.

Test two – ADI test part two (advanced driving)

Cost: £111

The second test is a driving ability test – otherwise known as a practical test. If you pass the second ADI test, you have the option to apply for a six-month trainee licence so that you can experience teaching students. It costs £140 to apply for a trainee instructor licence.

Test three – driving instructor test

Cost: £111

Part three of the test measures your ability to teach students. Your instructor will call you a few days before and ask you where you want to start the test – it can either be the driving test centre or within five minutes of the test centre. Note that it works differently in Northern Ireland.

Driving instructor training is also available if you want help before the test.

For this test, you’ll need your licence, a suitable car and a pupil. You should also bring a log book with you that details the training that you’ve been doing to qualify as an approved driving instructor.    

The driving examiner will watch you give a 45-minute lesson where your pupil must be driving for at least 40 minutes of the lesson. You must discuss the goals of the lesson and risk at the beginning. At the end of the lesson, give your pupil no longer than three minutes to reflect on the performance in their lesson.

Your pupil can be a partly trained learner, a fully trained learner or a full licence holder. However, they cannot be someone who has just started learning to drive or an approved ADI or someone looking to take their ADI test.

You can retake if you fail the third test once or twice, but if you fail three times, you need to take the ADI 1 and 2 again. You must wait until two years after you originally passed your ADI 1 test before sitting it again. You can also appeal if you fail your ADI 3 and you feel your examiner didn’t adhere to the law during the test.

If you pass you must apply for your ADI licence within 12 months or sit the three qualifying tests again. It costs £300 to register for your ADI certificate. When you have this certificate, you can start charging for lessons.

Should I join a franchise or be an independent driving instructor?

This is arguably the biggest decision you make once you become a driving instructor. You can either set up as a sole trader with your own business or be an instructor with a driving school. You’ll still be classed as self-employed whatever you decide.

>See also: How to become a sole trader

If you’re with a brand, you get support with finding pupils, marketing and other essentials. The flipside is that you’re not in control of everything. Introductory lessons are often charged at a reduced rate, for example, which is out of your control. The cost of lessons will be determined by the cost of living where you’re teaching.

If you’re independent, you’ll have more control of your schedule and your clients. It is more time-consuming taking care of admin and repairs, though.

Sargent said that most people will recommend joining a local franchise. If you take the trainee licence option mentioned above, you don’t really have much choice because you need a sponsor for supervision. “There are some ways around it,” he said. “If you know a good driving instructor down the road, you might be able to get them to sponsor you. Generally, you’ll join a school and the school is going to become your sponsor.”

That’s not to say that once you make the decision on independent vs franchise, you can’t switch. It’s especially true of joining a franchise, which some see as a first step to becoming independent.

“I think quite commonly, we see people stay with a franchise for two, three years,” said Sargent. “Once they start getting a good reputation, getting the phone call saying, Oh, you know, we you taught my brother, you taught my sister, my friend, whatever, that’s when they start thinking, ‘Yeah, but you know what? I think I can make a go of this now.’”

“If you’re going to go independent, now’s the time. There’s so much work around.”

What insurance do driving instructors need?

To become a driving instructor, you’ll need to consider the insurance you need. 

Numerous policies could benefit your business, but not all of them are legally required. So, let’s split your options into two categories.

Legally required policies

As a driving instructor, you’re legally required to take out ‘Driving instructor insurance’. This policy is much like a standard motor insurance policy, except it has additional coverage due to the risks associated with learner drivers taking to the roads. 

Additionally, if you employ anyone, you’re required by law to take out ‘Employers liability insurance’. This policy protects you financially if any of your employees make a legal claim against you.

Highly recommended policies

Not all policies are required by law, but that’s not to say you should go without them. Insuring yourself against potential damage to your vehicle and breakdowns could not only save you hassle but a lot of money too. 

Here are some policies you might want to consider:

Scratch and dent for taxi drivers and driving instructors – nothing makes a car look more unprofessional than visible scratches and dents. With this policy, you’ll be covered financially for repairs.

Motor GAP insurance for driving instructors – as a driving instructor, your vehicle is more liable to significant damage. Motor GAP insurance covers the financial discrepancy if your car is written off and your motor insurance policy won’t pay out the full amount you paid for the vehicle.

Motor breakdown insurance for driving instructors – there’s never a convenient time to break down, but when your car is your livelihood, getting it back up and running ASAP is essential. And motor breakdown insurance will help you do just that. 

Atia Farooqi is a driving instructor with RED Driving School and is based in Manchester.

How long have you been with your franchise?

Since 2018. I’d been working in a call centre at another company.

I did my training. I passed my part one and part two. Then I signed up with RED to do part three, because you need to have the 40 hours training. I did my training while working full-time. I probably knew it was going to be hard because I’ve got a family as well. But I knew in the end, it’d be better for them. Once I completed everything, got my training licence and did my business seminar (you have to do a two-day business seminar with them), then I left my full-time job and started in the January as a full franchisee.

What made you choose a franchise over going solo?

I chose the full franchise because I’m somebody that’s never been self-employed. I’ve always been employed, so I don’t have to worry about anything. I just go to work, do my work and I get paid at the end of the month. It was more probably for the support and to help me kind of wean myself into it. There was going to be somebody there to help me.

What kind of support do driving schools provide?

They provide you help with doing your taxes and stuff. They also provide business support as in advertisements, your social media, they’ll help you get started with that. Social media, in this day and age, is how everything kind of works. Whenever I had any question about the actual job, because I’d never done it before, they were there. I used to be a teaching assistant. The teaching aspects were okay, but it was a new subject. So any help I needed with things like that, I’d ring up my trainer and he’s like, ‘Yeah, no, try this way’ or ‘Look at this’. When you first start up, throughout your training and they give you a lot of stuff to help you – with the guidance of how you should be doing things, what kind of things you need to know, how you can teach it and adapt it to different people. You can’t teach the same thing to everybody. You have to be able to adapt to your customers and they’re helping you with things like what to look out for, how you can approach them in different ways and so on.

Do you utilise your own personal social media or do they provide some channels for you that you can use?

They didn’t do it for me. They will just tell you that one of the best ways to get out there is social media. They encourage you to create your own Facebook page, what kind of things you can put on it, what kinds of things you should stay away from, things like that. The more likes you get and the more people that are on it, the more recommendations you get. Honestly, Facebook has been great. I asked one student that just tagged me in everything for help, so it’s a good tool, especially for people that don’t use it or haven’t used it before.

I can imagine that a franchise will give you continued support with things like legal changes, changes to how to conduct driving lessons, especially during Covid – they would have kept you up to date with that kind of thing, giving guidance and so on.

If I’m really honest, and I’m not just saying it, they’ve been absolutely brilliant throughout Covid. They have kept us up to date with everything that’s going on. We got weekly videos when we were sitting at home in lockdown. When you get that insight, you think, ‘Right, a bit of hope that it’s going to get better. We are going to get back to work.’

They do keep me up to date with everything that’s going on – DVSA announcements, any changes. I don’t know about other companies that have not worked for the company’s driving schools, but I do know a few people that are independent. They didn’t get support like that because they’re independent.

Why do you like being a franchise driving instructor rather than an independent?

Being independent, I suppose you do a lot more yourself and I wouldn’t have the support, I would need to be my own support. I would have to go and find out all these things that RED would quite happily share with me, like car maintenance.

Or I’ll book it into Renault or Quickfit, or wherever. I just send a quick email rather than phone and they’ll respond, let me know what I need to do. So that is the big thing, because we need the car every day to work.

Students know that I’m a driving instructor. People took lessons with me, not because of me, it was because of RED. It was because of the brand. That’s it. I’ve been doing it a while, so now I’ve got word of mouth. I’ve got one girl that passed a couple of years ago and I taught her older brother. I do lessons with her younger brother and her sister-in-law now.

My sister is an independent driving instructor and she has been doing it for about 20 years. I don’t have any intentions of becoming independent at the moment, but she goes on at me all the time, ‘I’m an independent, come join me!’ I like the way RED treat me and the way they look after me. I have a good relationship with them. They gave me the support that I want when I need help. I can go to them.

How has the role of your job changed since the pandemic hit? There are backlogs and long test waiting times. How have you adapted to that and how has being with a franchise helped?

I think, speaking for all driving instructors in our schools, there is a huge demand at the moment. There’s the normal backlog, the normal people that just come in and want to learn how to drive, but even more people in lockdown that wanted to do it now want to do it. When I first went back after the first lockdown, I was really busy. Don’t forget that the pandemic changed things for everybody. When I was really busy, I thought to myself, ‘Okay, I’ve had all this time off, and I really enjoyed it.’ I wanted to go to work, but I did enjoy being at home. I thought, ‘Okay, I’m going to take my time with everything. I’m not going to work every hour, doing whatever.’

If I’m honest, work has been busy. But the whole point of doing this, and I can’t forget it, is I have got more time at home with my kids. My youngest is growing up quick and I didn’t want to miss out on that time. It lets me take her to football training. I’ve also started doing my functional skills for math because the whole point was, I need flexibility, because I’ve always wanted to be a midwife. I’ve done my level one over this last year, In the pandemic, and I’ll be going to do my level two in September, but this can give me the flexibility. Even though we’re really busy, I can still take time out to do what I need to do.

You don’t feel pressure to take on extra pupils?

No, not at all. The good thing is, if I feel like, ‘Well, I’ve got a bit of spare time’, I can just easily let them know and pop another student in my diary. I’ve only opened my diary once since we went back in April, because I had students waiting from before Christmas time.

Do you feel there are advantages to being a female driving instructor?

Yes. Because I’ve had students make comments before. As we’re in 2021, I didn’t think people still felt like that. Some females, not all of them, they say to me that women are a lot softer. They are a lot more understanding. I’m not saying male instructors aren’t, but some of the students prefer women.

Chester Dent was part of a franchise before deciding to become an independent driving instructor in Guildford.

You used to be with a franchise and you’ve since gone independent. When did you go independent?

I started in the middle of June this year. I needed to give the franchise three months’ notice before I left. I started with the franchise in March 2009.  

What was it that made you go independent?

I wanted more control of my time. The franchise website was giving offers. I had to do the first session half price, for example. I realised that around here, it’s not a price-sensitive market. If anything, it’s supposed to be a bit more expensive – it’s reassuringly expensive to the parents. I realised that I was actually at the bottom of the market with that franchise. They were based in Essex and I’m based in Surrey. The rates were substantially lower than the going rate round here. I realised that, when the driving instructor who lives around the corner asked if I could fill in for him and then he said that he could only do that on the basis that I matched his prices. That’s 30 per cent more than I was charging at the time. I had to negotiate that I had a separate rate that was different for my area. They had to upgrade their website at the franchise and it’s all a bit complicated, but in the end, the main reason I went independent was my time.

What other limitations did you find with a franchise?

They manage your diary, take a phone call, when you’re driving your car. In theory, they are helping you to manage your time. In practice, all they really do is give you the first session with somebody, so you’ve committed to whoever that person is without speaking to them, whenever that person wants. I found myself restricting my diary to blocking out practically all the time, so that I could predict when I was going to get a new person.

The other reason is that I wanted to go from two-hour lessons to 90-minute lessons. I realised that after about an hour and a half, I was losing the will to live. An hour and a half is more than enough time. Also, when I was raising my rate, it didn’t seem so bad to give six lessons, instead of a package of five. Although they’re shorter, I think people get more benefit from having an extra lesson.

I think the franchise fee was £80 a week and I negotiated that down a bit.

Have you been a business owner before?

Yeah. I don’t consider myself to know anything about business, but I have had other small companies in the past.

I’ve been a sole trader and I’ve had another limited company and I have another business. I started working as a driving instructor because we had a baby in 2016. I had to have a change my lifestyle, spend more time at home while I was running another business without the other work I did before that.

Do you have any marketing tips for anybody reading who might want to be an independent?

I made my own website and got on Google and started getting people in and got repeat business from other family members and that kind of thing. Now I’ve got more people than I can cope with. I did a bit of website design in a different incarnation years ago, so I didn’t find that part difficult. I used Google Ads for two or three months. I don’t pay them anymore.

I took quite a long time to decide quite how I was going to pitch myself and I’m not sure if I quite got this right. I think it’s how you make people feel, rather than something technical. I tried to make my website about selling a good feeling. Calm, reassuring, easy going.

What was it like when you first transitioned from franchise to independent?

It was fairly seamless. By the time I left, I had everything in place. I was putting myself out there.

The most time-consuming thing about it is arranging when the lessons are going to be, where you’re going to be so that you’re not having to travel too far between people, creating a sort of bearable schedule. I work nine until six and then I probably do another hour and a half to two hours of just arranging things and pencilling in lessons, getting everything paid in advance. Then keeping everything up to date. Knowing who I’m going to see and what my day is going to be like, how long I have to drive between people, I’d rather be in control of all that.

The only thing that made all this really come together is on an app that I use. It helps organise my day. It connects to my website too, so I can pay with Stripe, PayPal or credit cards directly on the website. Most of my time is either spent on driving, or spending hours on the app, working on the diary and the finances. By the time I’d left the franchise, I was using the app intensively and basically running my own business anyway.

For somebody who is training to become a driving instructor, would you recommend they go with a franchise before going independent?

Oh yeah, absolutely. The franchise I joined was very supportive.  I’d say that without doing the job, you can’t really learn it. I think just putting the hours in is really important. It took me quite a long time to qualify.

First of all, legally, you have to be trained and belong to a driving school before you qualify. In theory, you could pass your part three and go independent. But I would recommend it – you need that supportive environment and you need time to find your feet and realise what it is you need.

I don’t have the experience of a big franchise, but my experience with smaller franchise. I think they had only nine instructors when I joined. They’re reasonable, you can talk to the boss. I felt very good and I felt a loyalty to them, which I might not have done with a larger franchise.

Read more

What is a franchise? Advice for small businesses

The post How to become a driving instructor appeared first on Small Business UK.

Self-employment is still a valid route, despite a drop in the number of people going into their own business post-pandemic. Indeed, three quarters of all British businesses have no other employees. At the beginning of 2021, 4.2m of the UK’s 5.6m small businesses had no employees apart from themselves.

And the number of self-employed businesses has grown by 77 per cent since 2000.

Jobs for life tend to be a rarity these days, and this uncertainty has led to many people moving towards having more control over their own lives and finances.

Can you have a company car if you’re self-employed? – Mike Parkes of GoSimpleTax explains the must-know info about owning a company car when you’re self-employed

Different types of self-employment

It’s important to define which is best for you before you start a business. It can affect things such as the tax rates you need to pay, how you are able to take money from the company, and your responsibilities and liabilities in the event of a loss, as well as which paperwork needs to be completed.

Sole trader

A sole trader is more straightforward self-employment. It can mean some extra risk to the business because you are personally responsible for all your business debts if it fails.

It can also make you more personally accountable in the event of a lawsuit. As a limited company, it is the company which is being sued but, as a sole trader, you yourself could be in the dock.

However, if it’s a low-cost business that is unlikely to incur any debts or cause any personal or financial damage to another party, then a sole trader might be the right choice for you.

But if you’re likely to incur any significant debts or legal risks, the financial protection offered by becoming incorporated and forming a limited company would be advisable.

Sole traders get to keep all their business profits after tax has been paid on them.

Best mobile phone payment for self-employed – Payment devices you carry around with you have revolutionised how customers pay. We look at six of the best mobile card readers

Setting up as a sole trader

Setting up as a sole trader is relatively straightforward. Go ahead and register for self-assessment with HMRC. To become a sole trader, you must register using the government portal within three months of founding your business.

Technically speaking, you don’t need to register as a sole trader unless the income you earn from self-employment is more than the tax-free allowance, which currently stands at £1,000.

For example, if you’re in full-time employment, but do paid-for gardening on the side, you won’t need to tell HMRC, providing your self-employed earnings are less than £1,000.

If you think you’ll earn more than this, the deadline to register for self-assessment is October 5 in your second tax year of trading.

Tax-free allowance

Your personal allowance for tax-free income in 2023 is £12,570. Anything above this will be subject to corporation tax (20 per cent on anything between £12,570 and £45,000).

National Insurance contributions

If you’re a sole trader in self-employment, you must also pay National Insurance (NI) contributions if you have profits above £12,570 or more a year. If this applies, you’ll pay Class 2 NI contributions at a flat rate of £3.45 per week. If your profits are over £12,570 for the year, you’ll also pay Class 4 NI contributions at a rate of 9 per cent of the profits you make up to between £45,000 and £50,270 (and a further 2 per cent on any more profits over that).

Partnership

A partnership is when a business is owned by more than one person, where they are all responsible for the growth of the company.

These partners are also liable for any losses made by the company, as well as bills for anything the company owes money on.

Profits are shared out between all partners and individual tax and NI is paid by each partner. Partners can be people or companies.

One person is nominated for the responsibility of accountancy for the partnership.

Setting up as a partnership

The person who was nominated for the responsibility of accountancy will have to register the partnership with the HMRC.

All partners will need to register for self-assessment, so that they can pay NI and tax on their portions of the profits.

You will need to register your partnership within the same time frame as a sole trader.

Limited company

A limited company is a form of business that separates the people that own and run a business from the business itself, making it its own entity.

With a limited company, shares are held by the individuals and profits are owned by the company itself after the company pays corporation tax.

These profits are then shared out with the shareholders. Shares in the company can be bought and sold.

The term limited comes from the idea that the company is “limited” by its shares. At formation, a company might issue 100 shares at £1 each and these shares are paid for in full by four shareholders at 25 shares each.

However, if these 25 shares each aren’t paid for in full and the company goes bust, the company directors are only responsible for paying the value of its remaining unpaid shares.

Usually, directors own shares in a limited company but this isn’t necessary. Directors are responsible for running a limited company and this can be anyone.

Providing the law has not been broken, company directors aren’t made responsible for the business debts if the company makes a loss.

Setting up a limited company

The limited company must register itself at Companies House and give HMRC a date for when the business officially starts running. If the company expects to take more than £85,000 per year it must also register for VAT.

Every year the company must also provide statutory accounts to HMRC that comply with either UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice or International Financial Reporting Standards.

An annual return must be sent to Companies House and HMRC must receive a Company Tax Return.

Directors must fill in a self-assessment tax return and, if a salary is paid, pay NI and tax through PAYE.

Limited liability partnerships

Partners in limited liability partnerships aren’t personally liable for debts incurred. As with limited companies, their liability is limited to the money invested into the business at the business in the beginning.

Limited partnerships

Liability for debts is split into two categories. The debts of “general” partners and the debts of “limited” partners.

General partners are liable for all debts incurred whereas limited partners only need to pay the amount initially invested in the business, just like with limited companies.

Setting it up

Visit this Companies House link to find out more about setting up this kind of partnership company.

Which kind of self-employment is right for you?

Choosing the right legal status for your company is important to get right. There are pros and cons to all of them.

Some structures may seem more dynamic and flexible than others. Some will offer more protection than others. Some will come with more bureaucracy and other headaches.

If you’re unsure, in some cases it may be best to start off as a sole trader and, when things start getting serious, you can incorporate your business.

The reality of self-employment

Last year more than 40 per cent of those in self-employment earned less than £12,000 a year, according to the London School of Economics.

The truth of self-employment is that, unlike being an employee, you never really switch off. Running your own business means that you are captain of your own ship and not answerable to anybody. That is a huge psychological freedom compared to being stuck in a job you hate.

More on self-employment

Becoming self-employed – Becoming self-employed could mean less income, more responsibility and working longer hours. But freedom and independence cannot be underestimated, says Margaret Wood

The post A small business guide to self employment appeared first on Small Business UK.

The way we dine out has been transformed in the last decade with independent cafes and restaurants opening on every corner and food stalls booming throughout multiple UK cities.

As an entrepreneur who is thinking of opening a restaurant, it is important to consider the time, money, legalities and commitment needed to start a food business. However, many of these considerations are often forgotten.

Many food businesses that start as an idea and quickly grow into a brick and mortar venue without sufficient planning can often face hurdles in the future, such as cash flow problems and even liquidation.

It’s frustrating for any business owner to see their hard work dissolve, so by seeking professional advice and investing in time to set up your business properly, you have a better chance of running an effective and profitable restaurant.

Small Business Pro is the ideal tool for you when you’re starting your business. It will help with the heavy lifting of managing customers, taking payments, insurance, finance and HR, plus you’ll get a host of personal wellbeing benefits.

You can find out more about Small Business Pro here.

Here are 11 ingredients for a profitable restaurant start-up, from Bobby Kalar, managing director of Yu Energy.

1. Deciding on a concept

You may have an idea already in mind or you may still be at the drawing board, but choosing what type of restaurant you want to offer, your target audience and its unique selling point are important to think about when creating a restaurant concept.

Dev Biswal, owner of The Ambrette restaurants in Kent and Sussex, explains why it is important to decide on your restaurant’s ‘voice’.

‘The voice of your restaurant, which encompasses its values and aims, will differentiate it from the competition; it’s your USP.

‘It’s essential that entrepreneurs establish their restaurant’s character early in the process and then ensure that this ‘voice’ is present in the dishes, the menus, the marketing and that it is conveyed by the staff.

‘At our restaurant we design our menus with the aim of challenging perceptions and educating diners about the food in front of them.

For example, our recent detox tasting menu showcased the nutritional benefits of spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg and I took the time to explain this to diners in the hope that they leave my restaurant knowing how to boost their well-being using these store cupboard ingredients.’

2. Market research: Competitor analysis

Having an idea for a business is all well and good, but without sufficient research you could be opening a restaurant that your target market has no interest in, there’s no guarantee that you will receive a return on your investment.

Regardless of your chosen industry, it is important for anyone with a business concept to research their competition, customers, funding options and profitability as a business prior to investing hard work and time into an idea that may already be out there or isn’t profitable.

Primary research taken from customers in your region can be far more accurate than sourcing secondary information because while data may be insightful, it might not apply to your unique concept.

For example, a survey taken in Manchester about the number of people who would visit a new gourmet burger restaurant could collect a very different opinions to an identical survey of Birmingham residents. Therefore it is valuable to conduct your own, real research on potentially new customers in your area.

3. Business plan

Business plans are essential for structuring your business model, clarifying direction, attracting financing and team members, as well as being a document that you are able to refer back to during the everyday management of your restaurant.

Many entrepreneurs are often daunted by the thought of creating a business plan to support their idea, however there are plenty of resources out there that are helpful to read when writing a business plan.

What’s more, a business plan doesn’t need to be excessively long; it is acceptable to write just a few pages if it includes everything yourself, your employees and your investors would need to know about your concept, finance and marketplace.

4. Funding a restaurant start-up

Finding the funding to get your food business off the ground can be difficult. In 2012 a study by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) found that 42 per cent of small businesses that applied for a loan were turned down.

Since then, there has been a rise in successful funding initiatives for startups, including The Prince’s Trust, Funding Circle, and increased government grants for small businesses.

Related: Sources of funding to open a restaurant

Rob Martyniak, co-owner of Meatcure talks about the financial challenges entrepreneurs typically face when opening a restaurant.

‘One of the main challenges you’ll face when opening a restaurant is the financials to fund your business. The financial investment is often why so many great ideas never become a reality.

An entrepreneur is simply someone willing to take the steps to crafting their dreams when others aren’t, or are, intimidated by the financial commitment. However the financial injection you put into your business idea doesn’t need to be excessive.

‘At Meatcure we build, design and create everything in-house ourselves. We have invested time into learning our craft independently, from installing the toilets, building the bar to creating the perfect patty and brioche marriage.’

5. Premises

Finding the perfect premises for your business can be a challenge as it’s dependent on many factors: where you want your restaurant to be, the type of building you want your restaurant to be in, where your customers are mostly likely to be based and how much money you have to purchase or rent.

Choosing a property based on your business concept and ethic is a sensible method of ensuring your restaurant will please your own objectives and your customers’ expectations.

If your brand is passionate about energy saving, you may opt for somewhere with a high EPC rating or is completely powered by renewable energy.

If the purpose of your food business is to offer fast, healthy and easily accessible meals to workers at lunchtime, it would be sensible to find premises in a city centre where your target market is likely to be.

6. Utilities

Utilities were the second cause for rising business costs in 2015, with labour taking first place, in a recent study carried out by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).

With running costs, including electricity and gas, being one of the biggest overheads for restaurant start-ups, it’s important to choose the correct supplier for your business.

There are so many utility providers out there that it can be difficult for businesses to understand what they want from their supplier.

The ‘Big Six’ are a popular choice for most due to their existing client base and fairly good introductory offers. However what the ‘Big Six’ stand out in popularity, they often lack in customer service and reliability.

Choosing to opt for an independent utility provider is proving a popular and wise choice for many start-up businesses, who are benefitting from the unrivalled customer service provided by flexible suppliers, often at a considerably lower price than leading electricity and gas giants.

Restaurant owners increasingly say that finding a supplier that offers flexible energy contracts to suit their individual needs is more important to them than sticking with a well-known company because they think it’s easier not to switch.

Apathy is the enemy of any successful business, and this applies to utility bills too. If an owner doesn’t get the deal they deserve from the start then they’re setting themselves up for difficulty later down the line. They need to talk with their feet and take control of their own energy from day one.

7. Equipment installation and maintenance

To run an efficient restaurant business you need equipment that you can depend on. Investing in good-quality apparatus at the start will ensure that maintenance and repairs are kept to a minimum in the long term.

Choosing the most appropriate supplier to service your appliances can often be something that many restaurants forget about. Alex Wrethman, owner of Charlotte’s Group expands on this point.

‘The biggest challenge for someone opening a restaurant has to be building a list of contacts and suppliers that are invaluable to your business. For someone who isn’t already in the restaurant industry, it can be difficult to build a network you can work with and trust.

‘The relationship you have with your suppliers is most important; knowing that you are only a phone call away from a reliable electrician or food supplier is valuable for any restaurant.

‘When choosing suppliers, customer service should be your main deciding factor. Being able to put a name to a face is such an important part of having reputable suppliers for your business. Knowing your restaurant is cared for by your suppliers is something that is priceless to any business.’

8. Regulations and licenses

There are several licenses that you may require to start your restaurant business. These include:

• PRS for Music license: If you, or anyone else, plays music for customers, visitors or staff, you need legal permission from the relevant copyright owners. This license can be obtained from PRS For Music.
• Alcohol license: An on-license must be granted for an establishment to sell alcohol that must be consumed at point of sale. This license can be obtained through your local government website.
• Food hygiene certificate: This certificate proves that you are aware of and operate under the appropriate food hygiene and health and safety regulations.
• Public liability insurance: This protects you if your customers suffer personal injury or property damage because of your business. Public Liability Insurance covers legal expenses or compensation claims and is essential for businesses that interact regularly with customers.
• Building permit: If you intend to construct your premises or add to your existing structures, you will require a construction permit.
• Food premises approval – If your restaurant handles meat, fish, egg or dairy products, you must be inspected and approved by your local council. You can apply for this license through the government website.

9. Staff

Working as a team is an important part of any hospitality business. Restaurants can often spend a third or more of their revenue on staffing, recruitment and training, so it is important to factor in these expenses when thinking about opening a restaurant.

Recruitment can be a difficult part of starting your own business because you are competing against bigger, more reputable brands for the best staff.

However, this problem can be resolved by ensuring your job descriptions are transparent and include that you are a newly-opened restaurant. Applicants are often intrigued by the growth prospect of working for a start-up, so it can beneficial to explain your vision as a small business to your potential staff members.

10. Promotion

Similar to competing for staff, you are also against other restaurants when it comes to promoting your brand. It can be difficult as a new business, without the reputation and authority that your competitors already have, to stand out from the crowd.

It’s important to remember that as a small, startup food business, you’re speaking to an interested audience! In a recent survey carried out ahead of Small Business Saturday, a quarter of people (26 per cent) said they were more likely to shop at local, small businesses than five years ago.

This increasing figure shows that consumers are willing to visit independent businesses, including restaurants: by communicating the passion and ethic of your brand through your marketing materials, you can draw them in your direction.

11. Go digital

Recent years have seen some excellent developments in software and systems designed to optimise the management of hospitality businesses, including some specifically for restaurants (of all types – from fast food establishments to formal dining).

A good EPoS system should help you manage all aspects of your restaurant and the data that is generated give you a useful overview of how your business is performing. Typical elements POS software is designed to help with include: reservations, taking and assigning orders, inventory management (stock levels and usage to reduce wastage), ordering management, staff scheduling and performance, tracking labour costs, taking payments, customer engagement and marketing, kitchen management, and business analytics and reporting.

There are a good number of EPoS suppliers in the market to choose from and as mentioned earlier, some are specialists in the hospitality sector, tailoring their offer by restaurant type.

EPOS Systems for Restaurants

Development is still ongoing, so look for a supplier that is updating its software and hardware configurations on a regular basis. One of the latest advances we have seen is from JeM that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to forecast sales using trend analysis.

See also: Best restaurant booking systems for independent businesses

Once these eleven steps are all this in place, you can concentrate on the part you know best – the food.

List of useful resources on starting a restaurant

• Starting up a restaurant: The considerations
• Menu tips 1: How to write great menu descriptions
• Menu tips 2: What to consider when writing a menu
• Kitchen equipment: A ‘Top 20 checklist’ of the essentials for a modern commercial kitchen
• Wholesale food suppliers: Some useful tips on choosing the right suppliers for your type of restaurant
• Restaurant franchises: A selection of UK franchise opportunities. Not all of them are strictly restaurants (does ‘Wendy’s’ really count as a restaurant?) but there are more typical restaurant style businesses available (e.g. Cafe Rouge, Bella Italia etc.)

UK Food & Drink Shows

For those still brave enough to start a new restaurant we recommend you see our article: How to reopen your restaurant, pub or hotel post-lockdown. It contains lots of useful advice that would also pertain to anyone opening a restaurant.

Most importantly, the article lists out the new specific operating guidelines from the UK government, as well as the draft recommendations from trade association UKHospitality.

The post Opening a restaurant: The key ingredients to start-up success appeared first on Small Business UK.

Starting a dog walking business sounds appealing: fresh air, loads of pups, socialising with other dog owners.

Could it be for you? Let’s find out.

Why should I start a dog walking business?

If you love dogs, there’s nothing more idyllic than spending your day with them while getting to know lots of other doggos (and their owners) in the neighbourhood.

It’s great for fitness too. Walks tend to be 60 minutes long and with around three or four walks a day, that’s a fair amount of ground covered, plus a cracking workout.

As you can call your own hours, a dog walking business is easy to fit into your schedule if you have a part-time job, are a student or have caring responsibilities. What’s more, it can add a sense of purpose to your life, doing something that you love.

>See also: 6 best small business ideas for 2023

Any drawbacks?

Though you can set your own hours, you’re likely to have to work around your clients’ schedules which could mean some early morning starts as well as evenings.

It’s a lot of exercise, but that means you need to be in decent shape from the off. Depending on how many walks you do and how long they are, they could be more demanding than you think.

How much can I earn with a dog walking business?

Directline research says you could earn £22,044 a year but if you’re reasonably busy you can earn as much as £26,000 a year.

As for how much you should charge for an average walk, take a look at what others in your area are charging. It can be £25 per walk in affluent areas, but more likely £5-£25 in a town or city. All in all, it’ll sit somewhere around the £11 mark.

Small Business Pro is the ideal tool for you when you’re starting your business. It will help with the heavy lifting of managing customers, taking payments, insurance, finance and HR, plus you’ll get a host of personal wellbeing benefits.

You can find out more about Small Business Pro here.

What do I need?

Registering your business with HMRC is essential, of course. Find out more at the Government website. If you haven’t already, sort out your branding first. Create a memorable name and logo.

You don’t need any formal qualifications to be a dog walker, but there are courses you can do to build confidence in your clientele and potentially charge them more.  

In England, City and Guilds delivers the following courses:

• Level 2 Certificate of Technical Competence in Dog Walking
• Level 2 Certificate of Technical Competence in Pet Sitting
• Level 2 Certificate of Technical Competence in Animal Health, Husbandry and Handling
• Level 3 Certificate of Technical Competence in Animal Nutrition

There are no equivalents in Scotland and Wales, but the National Association of Pet Sitters & Dog Owners (Narps) has some of its own courses. Even becoming a member can help boost the credibility of your business.   

It’s worth learning animal first aid and going more in-depth to learn about dog behaviour to make life easier on the job.

On top of that, a Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check will give clients some relief about your background and reassure them that you’re trustworthy. Some organisations include a DBS check as part of their membership and, if the time ever comes to hire employees, it’s worth doing a DBS check for them.

Of course, a lot of experience with dogs is essential. If you need to build up your confidence, offer to walk dogs in your neighbourhood for free. This could even begin laying the foundations for your business.

What kind of services should I offer?

Decide on your terms of service. This could mean what dog breeds you’re going to walk, the lengths of walk and how much you’ll charge per hour/walk. You might decide to offer additional services for some extra income, such as dog sitting and dog boarding. Note that dog boarding businesses will need a licence from their local council.  

Make your decision on breeds based on your strength, confidence, fitness and physical ability.

Now, how do you differ from your competitors? If there are already a lot of dog walkers in your area, consider offering dog running or dog training to fill that gap. Alternatively, you could specialise by breed, taking on larger dogs that need more exercise, for example. Even complaints about other dog walkers (poor customer service, lateness) could drive your unique selling proposition.

Needless to say, legalities matter when deciding what services to offer. Keep up with your local council recommendations when it comes to number of dogs walked. Lambeth Council in London has a professional dog walking licence. It protects dog walkers, and other people using parks, in-line with other traders who use the space such as cafés and personal trainers. Licences are priced per number of dogs, up to six, and you’ll need a licence for each employee.

Make yourself aware of temporary restrictions. For example, beaches in Essex, Devon and Lincolnshire have dog walking bans during the summer. It’s vital that you abide by nationwide laws including picking up dog poo, keeping dogs on a lead and dogs frightening livestock.

On to contracts – are you going to write them or is a solicitor going to? Though you fork out upfront, asking a solicitor to write it could save you trouble from a dispute further down the line. As for you, be aware of laws protecting customers data and for admin purposes, keep track of which dogs you’ve walked and when and payments being made.

What insurance do I need for my dog walking business?   

Public liability insurance is a must but you should consider all of the products listed below.

Care, custody and control insurance: Covers your vet bills if an animal becomes injured or dies in your care. However, it doesn’t cover dogs with pre-existing conditions or disabilities.

Employers liability: If a member of staff becomes injured or ill because of the business.

Equipment cover: Allows you to claim for items like leads, harnesses and muzzles.

Loss of keys cover: Covers you in case you lose a client’s keys.

Non-negligent cover: Protects you if an animal gets injured and it’s not your fault.

Public liability: In case your business injures or harms a member of the public or it causes damage to their personal property.

Specialist dog walking insurance also exists if you want all of the above.

>See also: Business insurance: Everything you need to know

Marketing your dog walking business

A website is a must for a dog walking business. It should list information about your business and what services you offer along with your contact details as a minimum. Having a blog will boost your presence on search engines as well as giving customers and dog lovers vital information about dogs, canine care and walking tips. Make sure that your content is optimised for maximum visibility. Having a forum on your website encourages users to not only create an account on your site, but also comment and share with other members.

Be present on social media – and link to and from your website. A social media strategy is essential so that you can build an audience and keep them engaged without overloading them. Mix up salesy posts with informative articles about dogs and dog walking from your blog.

>See also: 8 steps to creating a social media strategy for your small business

Facebook is good for creating business pages where posts and videos can act as mini promotions. Users can become a community and leave reviews.

Don’t forget to create a Google My Business widget. This is the box you see come up on the right-hand side if you’re searching for a particular business.  

Then you’ve got your non-digital marketing. If you see a lot of dogs in your neighbourhood, consider popping flyers through doors. For larger towns and cities, advertising on noticeboards and shop windows could also be a good shout to get your name and brand out there.

What are the costs of starting a dog walking business?  

Based on what’s been mentioned in this article, here’s a rundown of the key costs. Prices will vary quite considerably so use this as a rough guide.

Membership to Narps: £12-£25 a month (various joining fees may apply).

Starter gear (hi-vis outerwear, harnesses, leads): £30-£35  

A hardy pair of walking shoes: £70

Specialist dog walking insurance: £5.41 a month (Protectivity)

Standard DBS check (per person): £18

City & Guilds level 2 dog walking certificate: £29.40

Dog walking licence (Lambeth): Up to two dogs: £55.40; up to four dogs: £111.21; up to six dogs: £332.62. First licence paid in full, 20 per cent discount for licences issued thereafter.  

Read more

How to start a dropshipping business – What is dropshipping, what are the advantages and how do you start a dropshipping business?

How to start a taxi business – Driving a minicab or a taxi has many benefits. You can work the hours you want to and supplement another career, whether you are a creative, a tradesman or even a teacher. But the biggest benefit could be the sense of performing a service for the vulnerable

What to know before starting your own cleaning business – We give some pointers on starting your own business in the cleaning sector, including costs, insurance and building your customer base

The post How to start a dog walking business appeared first on Small Business UK.

If you are thinking about setting up your own cleaning business, there are a few things you need to consider before doing so.

First of all, you need to make sure that this type of business is the right one for you. In order to be a cleaner you need to have good physical health because cleaning can be hard and strenuous work. You will also need to have good customer relation skills as you are required to deal with clients on a regular basis.

You’re going to need to have a clear vision of where you are planning to place your cleaning business.

What you do need to know is that the cleaning industry is split into three:

• Domestic: Consists primarily of residential or household cleaning
• Commercial: Commercial cleaning is dominated by janitorial services, where they provide a much wider range of services over domestic cleaning. They tend to serve businesses rather than individual consumers/homes
• Specialist: Specialist cleaning comes into play if it’s something more germinated or higher-risk to clean

Research all aspects of the cleaning service business world, from advertising to customer services, taxes, insurance, employees and how much you are going to charge. The following sections will enable you to nail down those details.

Skills such as bookkeeping will serve you well no matter what type of cleaning business you decide to run, while managing staff and marketing are useful for growing businesses. Read more in our Running a business section.

Find your customers and niche

Next, and as we always say when you’re starting any kind of business, is to define your unique selling point. “We’ve got the experience for quite a wide range of work, right through from a domestic one-off clean of a flat, right through to a large, regular office contracts,” said Andy Duncan, business manager at Easy Cleaners. “We’ll easily cover the whole city. If we’ve got a job over in Walsall, over in the northwest, then that’s a long way to then get over to Solihull, which is right over in the south east.”

These days the market is pretty crowded when it comes to cleaning services, so you want to create a niche for yourself and ensure that your particular business stands out. This could be window cleaning, pressure washing, public toilets or something even more niche.

Your customers will be hiding in different places, depending on what services you offer. Duncan said that word of mouth is the best way of finding commercial clients. “If you do a good job, great, but if your individual cleaner is not doing a good job, no matter how much you dress it up, then it’s noticed. The worst thing is that if that word gets back to the office manager,” he said. “If we’re doing it in multi-let buildings, they’ll maybe talk about you to other businesses, maybe the landlord and the agent and stuff. The decision is often made higher up the tree.”

The website, which Duncan works on, brings in customers through its web form too.

If you’re a specialist, people will often seek out your niche service so make sure your online presence is SEO-optimised. That applies to your website, your email marketing and your social media. For example, ‘public toilet cleaner in [city]’. 

Joining a professional cleaning body will prove your legitimacy and build trust with potential customers. The British Cleaning Council, Federation of Master Cleaners and the Domestic Cleaning Alliance are three to consider.

Small Business Pro is the ideal tool for you when you’re starting your business. It will help with the heavy lifting of managing customers, taking payments, insurance, finance and HR, plus you’ll get a host of personal wellbeing benefits.

You can find out more about Small Business Pro here.

Decide on your business structure

Again, a lot of this comes down to you being a domestic business, a commercial business or a specialist business.

Domestic businesses and commercial cleaning businesses can be run as sole trader firms if they’re run by you alone. Otherwise, you should set up as a limited company. Find out more at Setting up a business: Sole trader vs limited company.

Now it’s time to think about your opening hours – ideally, they suit the needs of your business as well as you and your staff.  “We only work school hours,” said Bianca Roberts, founder of domestic cleaner, Cymru Cleaning. This fits the needs of her and her staff, who are local mums.

Easy Cleaners has a domestic and commercial arm to the business. “With a commercial cleaning business, to track it, you’ve just got to be a lot more organised. It’s often a lot more routine,” said Duncan. “On the domestic, it’s fairly straightforward. You go to the house, you’re doing it for X amount of time, you go on to the next job. It’s flexible.”

Of course, there are the all-important charges. On the commercial side, regular cleans can be decided on a fixed hourly rate. But for one-off cleans – say an end of tenancy or moving in after a refurbishment – that’ll be a one-off cost. Think about how many employees you need to do the job, what time of day it’s at and whether you’ll need a minimum booking timeslot to make the job worthwhile. “The problem often is if businesses want less than two hours, so if they wanted to get one hour sometimes, but it’s just not to worth the cleaner time. They get in the car and they drive there for a one-hour clean,” said Duncan.

If you are unsure how much you should be charging, then research what other cleaning companies in your area are charging to get an idea – though it’s best to go lower when you’re starting out so that you can be competitive. Duncan points out that people aren’t necessarily just paying for the cleaner either – they might be paying for senior staff to supervise or problem-solve on a particular job. Factor that in when you’re tallying up your charges.

Of course, franchise is another option if you don’t want some of the risks that come with launching as an independent cleaning business. UK firms such as Fantastic Services and Molly Maid offer franchising opportunities. Read more at What is a franchise? Advice for small businesses.

>See also: Starting a window cleaning business: A franchise case study

Take your own costs into account

Whatever kind of cleaning business you are, you’ll need to factor in fuel and/or transport costs.

Domestic, as you’d expect, has smaller but no less significant costs. “I’ve had a website built. So that cost £670,” said Roberts. “You need hoovers as well, your mops and buckets. My Henry [Hoovers] were £130 each. I use a really good brand for buckets – Vileda. They aren’t cheap. I think the mop and bucket together are just short of £20 now, with the cost of everything going up.”

She added that cleaning products can range anywhere from £10-£20, with uniform costing around £170. At this point, you should have already decided whether, as a domestic business, you are charging for cleaning products or using your clients’ products.

Commercial businesses will have extra insurance cover (more on that in a minute) to consider as well as fuel/transport and cleaning supplies.

Specialist businesses will, as you can imagine, need specialist equipment such as harnesses for window cleaning or higher specialised cleaning agents for particularly difficult jobs.   

What insurance will I need for my cleaning business?

Professional indemnity insurance is required in all businesses. This will cover unpaid client bills, costs involved to correct mistakes, dishonest staff, defamation, infringement of intellectual property rights, negligent misrepresentation and lost documents or data.

Similarly, you’ll all need public liability insurance. This will provide protection in the event that your business causes death or injury to someone or it damages their personal property.

Employer’s liability will be needed if you have staff, in case they get injured or unwell as a result of the business.

Vans need van insurance, covering the vehicle(s) and the professional and personal possessions inside them.  

Once you’ve figured out what insurance cover you need, the amount that you need cover for comes into question. With larger and higher-risk operations, the coverage will need to be higher. “What you might find is that the domestic can be at a lower level, so you’re insured for less – it might be £1m or £2m. But if you’re trying to go for the commercial stuff, then the actual cover is, I think £5m, might even go up to £10m,” said Duncan.

“The insurance is there for a reason,” he added. With this in mind, it’s worth considering whether an employee might be vulnerable, say they’re working on their own at an office late at night. Factor that into insurance too.  

>See also: Business insurance: Everything you need to know

Hiring staff

Again, finding your staff will depend on what kind of cleaning business you are and where you are based.

You’ll probably be on your own (or more likely with friends and family) when you’re starting out, especially if you’re running a domestic cleaning business.  

“I had a really good friend helping me out. Otherwise, I would have needed to employ someone within the first month,” said Roberts. “I managed to build it with my friend and then take on someone to work with me. I didn’t think I would have been as successful as I am now had I not had my friends and family.”

At about three months into her business, Roberts decided to go down the social media route as well as advertising for staff on Indeed. “I just did a summary of what I was looking for, what the job entailed and pay. They’re subcontracting to me because I’m not in a position to be able to employ anyone as of yet. I do hope to one day.”

A subcontractor is an individual or business who signs a contract to take on part or all of the obligations of another’s contract. They have fewer rights and entitlements than an employee.

If you’re doing commercial cleaning, you’re more likely to need a team from the off. “It’s more experience [than training] so that they learn the ropes. The main training tends to come at the start of the job,” said Duncan. This can include learning the alarm code on out-of-hours buildings, where they take the rubbish and how the cleaners themselves get out of the building.

Duncan said it’s been a challenge to get good cleaners on board because people’s circumstances change or they relocate. “In this business it’s difficult to find the good staff that will be committed to it rather than disappearing in a few months’ time.” The company tends to look to job boards or specialist platforms for staff.   

Market yourself in the right way for your cleaning business

Your marketing will be word of mouth to begin with, online or in real life. That’s why schemes like referrals and asking customers to leave a review on Google are crucial when you’re starting out. Offering customers (and/or their friends) discounted services can help boost your reputation at first. But remember that different marketing methods will appeal to different clientele.

“I decided on Facebook because everything’s on Facebook nowadays. I also have a TikTok account. I haven’t done Instagram yet, but I do plan to,” said Roberts. “It’s all social media. I’ve done leaflet dropping, and that’s got nowhere.”

But would should you do with your social media? “Just be authentic and stand out from everyone else,” said Roberts. “We talk about the ins and outs of cleaning. We don’t want to sound commercialised – you need to make it your own. Clientele love to see before and after pictures.”

Social media isn’t such a winner for Easy Cleaners, however. “You’ve got to be at it all the time. And someone who’s genuinely into it, who doesn’t just post up once or twice a week. I think with commercial stuff, LinkedIn would be better,” said Duncan. Roberts shares the same opinion on consistency. “I do aim to at least post three times a week. I think that’s a good start. You don’t want to over-post and bore people either.”

Instead, Easy Cleaners prefer Google AdWords (though it is getting more expensive and competitive for commercial cleaners) as well as organic SEO through the company website. The key to their strategy is seizing the opportunity at the right moment: “There’s often a certain trigger point. You’re just waiting for that problem, somewhere someone’s looking for a cleaner or they’re moving office and need a cleaner, or they’re thinking, “Let’s just go and Google ‘office cleaner in Birmingham’”. From there, they’ll send in a message via the website and often it is that they urgently need a cleaner. Easy Cleaners will set it up so that they can respond as soon as possible and go and have a look the next day. “That’s your golden opportunity,” said Duncan.

He also suggested getting to know some of the local businesses. “Maybe go along and offer them a free trial almost or say, ‘Look, what we’re going to offer you a free one-off clean, to show you what we can do’”.

What do you do if you offer more than one type of cleaning? Easy Cleaners started off as two separate businesses – one for domestic, one for commercial. The businesses each had a website too, but Duncan thought it best to streamline them. “On the marketing side, it’s helped to keep it funnelled in one business, but we’re very clear that we’re covering both ends of that spectrum,” he said.

Building a customer base

It’s not just about finding customers – it’s about keeping them happy. “I offer a five-star service and I haven’t had any bad reviews or anything like that. But you do get clients that aren’t happy that I’ve had to go at five o’clock, six o’clock in the evening if they’re unhappy about something go and sort that out,” said Roberts.

Be prepared for last-minute client cancellations, disgruntled clients and your regulars no longer being able to afford your cleaners due to circumstances like the cost of living crisis. “Just be patient and obviously polite. The customer knows best,” said Roberts. “You never want to make them feel like they don’t know what they’re talking about.”

In any case, patience is paramount when it comes to building a customer base. “I’d say it takes a good six months. They are the hardest,” said Roberts. “Just don’t give up. You’ve got to be constantly on it, promoting yourself and the business all the time to be able to build it. It doesn’t just happen overnight. I think that’s what some people hope for. You’ve got to be consistent.

“Don’t be disheartened when you don’t get calls. I felt like that and then all of a sudden, within a week, it all came in at once.”

Read more

How to start a dropshipping business

The post What to know before starting your own cleaning business appeared first on Small Business UK.

The answer to this question is, it depends; on what your existing company is, what your plans for your new subsidiary company are, and how quickly you think the idea will get out of the starting blocks.  

In short, there is no definitive right or wrong approach, but a series of trade-offs to navigate when it comes to the best route for your business.  

That said, there are definitely factors that make it easier to decide the which approach is right for you.

>See also: Setting up a business: Sole trader vs limited company

Setting up a new company 

Setting up a new company based on your new idea can be a sound decision. It makes it a lot easier to keep the new project at arm’s length from your current activity. It also separates the liabilities so that if your new company has any financial issues, your existing business will not be impacted and forced to carry them. The advantages of starting a business as a company – as opposed to a subsidiary offshoot – are that there is more credibility associated with having your own company. If it is its own company, it is far easier to raise large sums of money for the business or sell part of the business.  

Depending on the size on structure of your company, you may also be able to benefit from entrepreneurs’ relief if you sell the company. This comes back to the question of what is your endgame of this business? If you are looking to grow something to sell, a separate company could be the right way to go. 

Downsides of setting up a new company 

The main downsides to setting up a new company are cost and complexity. The cost element is straightforward, an extra company means extra running costs, extra accountancy fees, extra business admin costs, and far more complexity when it comes to both day-to-day running and annual returns.

>See also: The complete checklist on starting a business the simple way  

Tax and legal implications 

Although you as the owner are the link between the two, there are now barriers in place which can make cash flow and transferring assets between the companies an issue. Intellectual property is a good example. If IP being transferred between companies is deemed to have a monetary value, it incurs a tax bill. It isn’t necessarily an issue, but if the IP for your new idea is held by your existing company, it is worth considering the legal and tax implications when deciding the timeline for setting up your new company. 

What is a subsidiary company? 

A subsidiary company is a company owned or controlled by a holding or parent company.  

In the UK, the parent company holds a majority interest in the subsidiary company. It controls more than 50 per cent of the subsidiary’s stock and has the majority of voting rights. Subsidiaries can be formed when one company buys another or is formed by the parent or holding company. A subsidiary company is a separate legal entity from its parent for the purpose of tax, regulation and liability. Therefore, the subsidiary company is exposed to most of the risk of being sued and is a separate legal entity from the parent company.  

Benefits of a subsidiary company 

First and foremost, it limits the parent company’s liability, which won’t be responsible for incurred costs such as legal fees or financial compensation. While the parent company still has majority control over the subsidiary business, it is not liable for the businesses losses, which provides a safety net for the parent company and allows losses and other issues to be contained and managed efficiently. 

New company versus subsidiary 

Deciding what your end game is crucial to working out if and when setting up a subsidiary is the right route for you and your company. 

The benefits of keeping your new idea within the current business are that it can be a low-risk test bed to see if your idea has legs.  

You can work on a prototype to see if there is an MVP in your idea ahead of investing the time and effort into setting up a new company. It all depends on your vision for the project, if it is a long-term complementary product or an added service for your existing business, and whether you aren’t planning to sell or raise investment for it. Creating a sub-brand within your company may be the most cost-effective route forward. 

Starting a subsidiary company 

The most common form of company for a UK subsidiary is the private limited company (ltd), and setting up an ltd company involves going through the standard UK company registration process and applying to Companies House for incorporation. 

Incorporation is the process by which a new or existing business is formed as a company. A company formation agent, solicitor, accountant or chartered secretary can, for a fee, carry out the process. Alternatively, a limited company can be registered online using Companies House web incorporation service. 

There will be a considerable amount of documentation required regarding shareholders and the director, which, once submitted, will be reviewed by Companies House, and a decision will be made as to the subsidiary’s incorporation. 

The company will need at least one named director and a registered office address within the subsidiary’s country. This means that if you are setting up a subsidiary in the UK, but the parent or holding company is registered overseas, you will need a valid office address in the UK for the subsidiary. 

All UK limited companies must prepare and file annual accounts. If the company is over a certain size – if its turnover exceeds £10.2 million or its balance sheet exceeds £5.1m or it has more than 50 employees on average – it must also have an annual independent audit. 

Directors are personally responsible for submitting yearly accounts and the company’s annual return to the Registrar of Companies. Penalties are payable in the event of non-compliance. 

Upon registration of a new company, Companies House will pass on the details to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The company will also need to contact its local HMRC office within three months of formation.  

Further reading

6 best small business ideas for 2023

The post Starting a subsidiary company appeared first on Small Business UK.

A new year tends to be the most motivating time to shake off worn-out excuses and in the encouraging words of a sportswear brand, “just do it”. For business ideas that look a safe bet in 2023, here are six to consider.

And the opportunity is out there.

This year can be summed up as post-pandemic, climate-conscious and amid a recession. That amount of change and uncertainty is the test tube in which innovative ideas come to life, so you may already have an idea which is completely unique. One venture capital investor told me recently that this environment is when the best investments are made.

6 best small business ideas for 2023

#1 Elderly care services

It’s worth looking at recession-proof industries, and this one exists on the streets you walk, drive past and live in. Plus your job won’t be displaced by artificial intelligence. Any job to do with touch is a safe bet.

The country is getting older and lonelier.

There are more older people now than ever before in the UK, with almost one in five of the UK population over the age of 65. More than 40 per cent of these retirees consider the television to be their main companion.

Some new businesses have sprung up this year to help solve the loneliness problem, like The Joy Club, a community-based platform which helps retirees discover events, hobbies and make friendships.

There are numerous ways you can help the older population, though. 

What services are needed?

The elderly do not always have family or friends to rely on, so home services such as window and gutter cleaning, technical help with electronics and gardening are all viable examples of businesses that could be in demand in 2023.

There is also demand on the medical side such as physiotherapy. Medical care or medical tech such as digital therapy platforms can help reduce the workload on the NHS, which is facing all-time high waiting lists.

How do I become a geriatric physiotherapist?

As a geriatric physiotherapist, you can be responsible for managing arthritis, osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s, hip replacements and co-ordination problems.

Day-to-day assessments will involve going out and evaluating a patient in their home setting. The individual’s routine, habits and social life are all considerations before making recommendations to maximise the individual’s independence. 

The primary qualification you’ll need is a BSc degree in physiotherapy or geriatric physiotherapy which is approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Full-time courses take three years, while part-time courses take six years to complete.   

To be self-employed, you’ll then need to register with the HCPC and it’s worth registering with the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) to update your skills and training.

You’ll need a permanent base to work from, so it’s worth looking to see if you are able to work with a local health centre or physiotherapy clinic. Get a website up and start advertising.

How much can I expect to earn?

The average salary for a geriatric physiotherapist in the UK is between £34,000 and £41,000. As self-employed, this will vary and can rise steeply from that figure depending on experience, reputation, location, how much you charge and any specialist skills.

Hours per week tend to be 37.5 and can involve working weekends.

>See also: 6 best small business ideas for 2022

#2 Online tutor

Being an online tutor now is not just the norm – it’s got a huge future in the metaverse.

Several institutions have already entered this virtual realm, like the Neoma Business School in France.

This digital world of avatar students, digital lecture halls and virtual campuses may still seem a long way off, it is one which is set to grow substantially over the next five years – and you can be part of it.

How do I become an online tutor?

Strategies to consider that will put you in good stead for bagging a role as an online tutor include getting or utilising a master’s degree or PhD in the subject field you wish to teach.

“With better qualifications you can charge higher rates and you will tend to find it easier to secure clients,” Sebastian Weiss of The Geography Tutor says. “A university degree and if you have a teaching qualification like PGCE, even better.

“You don’t have to register with any bodies, I am not myself. Equipment needed is a laptop, headphones and a good internet connection. Some tutors like to use online whiteboards, myself included.”

You may also need to get qualified teacher status (QTS) or partake in a postgraduate teacher training course at university.

According to Gov.uk, entry requirements tend to be 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) for a level 3 course and you’ll need to be DBS checked.

“I would say you really need to be an expert in your field, exam requirements and exam technique,” Weiss adds. “My lessons are very exam focused and this has worked well in terms of grades.

“In terms of getting students, it will take time and you have to start with a lower rate, then rely on word of mouth, which takes time and good feedback. I would advise to work with several good agencies to start with and consider giving short free trial lessons.”

Like all these on the list, you’ll then have to register as self-employed to HMRC – which means completing a self-assessment every year.

How much can I expect to earn?

As a virtual tutor, you can expect to work 37 to 39 hours a week and earn in the region of £36,000 according to Glassdoor. Hourly rates can vary from £30 to £50, depending on subject matter, experience level and level of tuition.

>See also: 5 best ideas to start a small business post coronavirus

#3 Repairer

Furniture, upholstery, clothing, even computers. The opportunity of making money in repair work is the result of the need for more sustainable living. The circular economy has come full circle from the days of make do and mend.

There has also been the success of The Repair Shop to get us reaching for the work apron.

Let’s take upholstery as an example. 

How do I become an upholsterer?

There are two avenues you can go down to break into the industry: an apprenticeship or a course. As you’ll be looking to self-employed, it’s worth looking at the latter.

A course in upholstery typically takes 36 weeks. Courses include:

• Level 2 Certificate in Upholstery
• Level 2 or 3 Diploma in Furnishings – Traditional Upholstery
• Level 2 or 3 Diploma in Furnishings – Modern Upholstery

Once you’ve completed one of those, it’s good to find your own workshop, but sometimes you could work at the client’s home.

Your day job will be planning work, advising on fabrics and cutting fabrics to the correct length.

As well as home furniture, you could also work on vehicle and aircraft interiors.

How much can I expect to earn?

The average salary for an upholsterer in the UK is £20,240 with the average hours per week at 34. For a self-employed upholsterer, that salary can rise to £52,000, however.

#4 Videographer

Videography is widely sort after by marketing departments as a way of showcasing their company, product or service on websites and social media. It’s a powerful tool as Google starts ranking videos highly – so companies are becoming increasingly interested in the skill.

It’s a versatile career path, too. Not only can you be a commercial videographer, you can film weddings as more newlyweds are choosing video in addition to photography to capture their special day.

How do I become a videographer?

A formal qualification isn’t required to have a career as videography, and many videographers are self-taught. However, a media studies degree can be a good option to get to grips with the basics, foundations of how to hone your style and understand how to use video editing software.

It is also worth looking for apprenticeships or shadowing a professional videographer by helping carry equipment, so you can start understanding the processes and gain knowledge.

Videography can be a solitary job, so there’s nothing stopping you from building your own portfolio by doing small gigs yourself when starting out or practising on your own – something Sam Charlesworth at The Camera Guys advises.

“You can get really good cameras now, starting at around £400, combine that with a couple of prime lenses, some good sound gear and a relatively good computer to be able to edit the footage, you’re looking at £1,800 to £2,100 to get into the industry,” he tells me.

“Do a lot of research first. Watch a lot of videos like the Wedding Film School on YouTube. Contact some videography companies – some will be willing to train you up.

“Most of my job – 80 to 90 per cent – is working from home, whether that’s admin or editing. When I am out and about, it’s all over the country, sometimes abroad and it’s different every day so it’s interesting.”

How much can I expect to earn?

The average salary for a videographer in London is £42,000 and you can expect to work around 37.5 hours per week. It is worth noting, however, that some days can be long when shooting – sometimes up to 12 hours – so it’s good to be physically fit. On other days, you may be glued to a chair editing from that day.

#5 Tattoo artist

Café shops and tattoo parlours are taking over more empty shopfronts on our highstreets, according to recent reports, which sends a clear signal that now could be a good time to think ink.

It is estimated that one in five adults in the UK has a tattoo, with that figure rising to one in three for young adults.

How do I become a tattoo artist?

The two main avenues to go down before you start with the ink is to get a licence and work as an assistant at a tattoo parlour or body piercing studio.

You can undertake a course at institutions like the UK Official Tattoo Academy. This is a 10-day intensive course over two weeks, consisting of drawing designs, colouring techniques, and understanding the difference between needles. Courses tend to cost in the region of £3,000.

Once you’re qualified, you can look to start up your own studio.

How much can I expect to earn?

Working hours can range between 30 and 40 hours a week and you can expect to be taking home in the region of £37,000 once fully established, according to Indeed. Go self-employed, and you can expect to take home anything from £20,000 to £60,000 a year.

#6 Freelance programmer

If we’re looking at industry trends alone, coding is big business. There’s plenty of demand with a shortage of developers worldwide and the promise of an attractive salary makes this one venture to consider in 2023.

How do I become a self-employed coder?

A degree in computer science is the widely accepted path into the industry and you should look to build up your own programming portfolio on the side of your current job first.

It is then beneficial to sign up to a developer course if you don’t already have a background in the industry. There are also courses specifically to help get more women into the coding industry, such as Code First Girls.

There are various specialisms in the coding sphere. Web developing, UX designing, software engineering and data science are just a few.

Once qualified, you can get yourself listed on a freelance marketplace like Upwork or Fiverr and you could find yourself working from home, in a shared workspace or at clients’ offices.

“I’ve been a freelance programmer for over 10 years; it’s allowed me to be flexible and fluid with my time and take control of my life and finances,” Ryan Gittings says. “It’s also gratifying to make decisions and deal with clients directly.

“My advice is to be careful with time management – log off at 5pm! – and create a workspace environment to shut the door at the end of the day and finish work.”

How much can I expect to earn?

The current average salary in the UK for a freelance coder is £45,000 and this will only go up once you’ve got plenty of experience under your belt.

Further reading

How to start a dog walking business – For those who love pooches and want to set up a dog walking business, check out this guide to learn more about how to do it

How to start a dropshipping business – What is dropshipping, what are the advantages and how do you start a dropshipping business?

How to start a taxi business – Driving a minicab or a taxi has many benefits. You can work the hours you want to and supplement another career, whether you are a creative, a tradesman or even a teacher. But the biggest benefit could be the sense of performing a service for the vulnerable

The post 6 best small business ideas for 2023 appeared first on Small Business UK.

The internet has given wings to global entrepreneurial dreams. Ground-breaking digital platforms have found their beginnings in humble garages, bedrooms and home offices. Armed with no more than a vision and a computer, ambitious professionals are transforming their pioneering online business ideas into profitable firms.

There is no reason why you too cannot be one of those entrepreneurs who run a successful start-up from the comfort of their couch.

The most bankable online businesses have high demand, a proven record of success and long-term revenue prospects. Here are five such hot ideas that you can implement today.

1. E-commerce

Do you enjoy designing clothes, baking delicacies, crafting accessories, or building furniture? Dial E for e-commerce.

Government trade figures show that 82 per cent of the UK population bought at least one product online in 2021. Recent figures from Statista showed ecommerce revenue totalling £810bn, with fashion being the leading sector.  

The best part? You don’t require coding expertise to create profitable virtual establishments. Many website builders work by drag and drop so you can place elements where you please.

>See also: Advantages of a merchant account for your e-commerce business

Affordable e-commerce platforms like Shopify have slashed the barriers of e-commerce entry by easing the process of designing moneymaking (and stunning) storefronts. Use templates to get you started and build a theme, with the ability to broaden functionality through apps. They’re mobile-friendly to reach more of your customers.

You don’t even need a physical (or digital) product to become an online merchant.

Source: Oberlo

Dropshipping allows you to sell products, at desirable profit margins, without stocking them.

Simply import your preferred goods from a products marketplace such as Oberlo into your online store and start selling instantly. The suppliers take care of the logistics and the marketplace pretty much automates your store.

Find out more about dropshipping by reading Five successful small business ideas for 2021.

The e-commerce industry is only going to get bigger and better. Grab your slice of this pie and make money sharing your incredible skills with the world.

2. Website design

Where do prospective customers go to check out an online business? Their website. This first impression better be the best impression.

When done right, the business’s website offers a significant competitive advantage. It can also become one of a small business’ most profitable marketing channels.

Source: 2020 Small Business Marketing Report

Discerning users demand easy navigation, clean designs, personalised copy, mobile responsiveness and fast loading times.

According to CloudFlare:

• Pages loading in 2.4 seconds lead to a 1.9 per cent conversion rate
• A 3.3 second loading speed leads to a 1.5 per cent conversion rate
• A 4.2 second loading speed leads to a <1 per cent conversion rate
• A 5.7 second loading speed leads to a <0.6 per cent conversion rate

What’s more, COOK increased conversions by 7 per cent when they reduced page loading time by 0.85 seconds.

Websites that don’t measure up lose traffic, trust, search rankings and sales. This is why businesses are eager to expand their web design budgets and pay good money to recruit the best in the field.

If you are an intuitive designer who knows how to create a customer-centric, clean and high-converting website, this could be a fulfilling and fruitful full-time business.

>See also: Your guide to starting an online business

3. Freelance content services

There are around 4.2m self-employed workers in the UK who fulfil a variety of roles across a variety of industries. The solo self-employed contributed an estimated £303bn to the economy last year, according to data from IPSE.

The freelance content services business, in particular, is a goldmine.

Studies indicate that prospects consume between 3-5 pieces of content, on an average, before making any decision.

Creating relevant, informative, beneficial and credible content is critical to business success. Businesses are thirsty for – and willing to reward – freelance content providers who excel at crafting such persuasive (written, visual or audio) material, including articles, infographics, videos, podcasts and newsletters.

Outsourcing content creation results in a steady stream of unique material with half the effort for businesses. The result is strengthened customer trust, search ranking and revenue.

If you thrive on creativity, providing freelance content services can be your ticket to a prosperous career.

>See also: How do I build a website for my small business?

4. Business coaching

People are different, but their desires are universal.

We all yearn for better health, less stress, more willpower, greater success and increased happiness.

Business coaches offer an outside perspective and objective guidance to enhance ‘individual performance in a business context‘.

They help release limiting beliefs, build leadership skills, set SMART goals, provide clarity, manage distractions, reinforce professional relationships and improve finances.

The most effective coaches undergo rigorous training; in some cases, 125 hours or more, to get certified in their chosen area of expertise (see below for common specialties/niches).

Source: 2016 ICF Global Coaching Study

Business coaching is growing in stature and there is an ever-increasing demand for knowledgeable, eager and ethical coaches.

So why not monetise your passion for helping others to succeed?

>See also: Top social media tips for small businesses

5. Affiliate marketing

Would you like to make a living endorsing products you love? Then set up shop as an affiliate marketer.

Affiliate marketing spend in UK grew by seven per cent per cent in 2021, according to Dentsu.

The premise is straightforward. Advertisers provide a unique affiliate code for marketers to place on their website. When visitors to the affiliate marketer’s site click on this code, they get redirected to the advertiser’s website.

If the referral link leads to a purchase (or other desired action), the referrer gets paid. In this way, affiliate marketers secure ‘a piece of profit for each sale‘.

You don’t need to pay upfront fees, store or ship products, or provide customer support to get started in affiliate marketing. All you need is a pertinent platform to broadcast your voice.

The key to success is selecting the right advertising partnerships. You are staking your reputation with every product you promote, so choose wisely.

Diligently research market needs and only pick products that align with your brand. Constantly test and fine-tune your campaigns to keep the money flowing into your bank.

Further reading

What’s the best website builder for my small business?

Want more online business ideas?

This list barely grazes the surface of online business ideas. Peruse some more by checking out 6 best small business ideas for 2022 and Five business ideas that are bound to click.

Sign up to receive content on how to start your own business

The post Top five online businesses you can start today appeared first on Small Business UK.

With e-commerce growing by 14 per cent year-on-year in the UK and online shopping at an all-time high (estimated at over £750 billion in the UK as of 2022), there has never been a better time to think about starting an online business. Whether you are feeling the strain of your current job or simply considering other options available, you are not alone in wanting to explore e-commerce opportunities. Research from online payment service provider PayPoint.net shows that as many as 50 per cent of Britain’s office workers are frustrated entrepreneurs, who have considered setting up their own business, with the most popular choice of a business start-up being an online venture.

Many would-be entrepreneurs can face a range of obstacles when trying to join the e-commerce revolution and some fail to understand the number of steps which need to be completed before an online business is ready to start trading. It can often feel overwhelming, which discourages them from pursuing the venture. However, knowing what processes are involved is generally half the battle.

Small Business Pro allows you to build your own sales pipelines with our tool which has been specially tailored for small businesses – all at a fraction of the cost of other CRMs.

It will also help with the heavy lifting of taking payments, insurance, finance and HR, plus you’ll get a host of personal wellbeing benefits.

You can find out more about Small Business Pro here.

Fortunately, there are a few simple steps, which if followed correctly, can ensure that setting up an online business is easy and hassle free:

1. Register a company
2. Write your business plan
3. Register a domain name
4. Create your website (and make it secure!)
5. Set up an Internet Merchant Account (IMA)
6. Start your online and offline marketing to drive traffic to your site

The following advice is designed to keep any budding entrepreneurs on the right track and on your way to trading online as quickly as possible:

Step 1: Registering a company

Firstly, you will need to set up a legal entity which is required if you want to trade online. Happily, registering your company and getting a company registration number is relatively straightforward in the UK. You can start the process by visiting the .gov.uk web portal.

Your other option is to use a Company Formation Agent; the cost of this starts from about £15, or for a full package that takes away all the admin, up to £90 (and can even be arranged on the same day if required.)

Related: Registering as a company limited by guarantee

Step 2: Write your business plan

Writing your business plan enables you to be prepared for every eventuality. Ask yourself questions such as:

• Who is your target audience?
• What are your sales forecasts?
• What are your future plans for the company and how are you going to get there?
• How much is it going to cost you to set up and run your online business?

Related: Writing a business plan: The basics

Step 3: Register a domain name

Once all of the basics have been covered, you will need to begin setting up your online presence. The first step is to choose and then register your domain name:

• Select your web address carefully as a good name or brand will help you drive traffic to your site
• If possible, try to get a TLD (top level domain) like a dot com – but if you intend to only sell in the UK then a .co.uk is perfectly fine (or even the super-short, and hence easy to remember domain ‘.uk’).
• Registering your domain name is relatively easy and costs £3-£25 depending on the type you require

Related: Nominet’s domain look up tool – The WHOIS lookup tool will return domain information for .uk, .co.uk, .org.uk, .me.uk, .sch.uk, .plc.uk, .ltd.uk, .cymru and .wales – more advice also available here.

Step 4: Create your website

You have two main options here: either get a pro in or DIY. Working with a web developer will ensure that you get a bespoke site that meets your business needs. However, there are a now a number of excellent website builder software platforms on the market that can help you get a functioning and reasonably good looking website up and running.

NB: To ensure your start-up online business has the best chance of succeeding your website absolutely must be ‘Mobile friendly’ and ‘Secure’ (https). Do not skip these steps when building the site.

Related: Find the best Website Builder Software for your business.

Step 5: Set up an Internet Merchant Account (IMA)

You will need to open an online merchant account – often referred to as an internet merchant account (IMA). This is separate to your business bank account and is required specifically for online trading. It can take up to several weeks to set this up, but there are faster services available.

Services are available to help new online businesses set up an IMA and start trading within 24 hours. To ensure your IMA application is accepted you will need to:

• Provide a business plan and an accurate account of your previous business experience
• Supply personal documentation to prove you are who you say you are
• Decide how you want to accept payments, whether its over the web, phone or a combination of the two and if a multi-currency platform is needed.
• Make sure that you are PCI compliant. This is the security standard that applies to any business that handles or stores card details and was mandated by Visa and MasterCard. Failure to be compliant can cost your business severely with daily fines and even suspension of your processing facilities from the card schemes in the event of a security breach
• Be aware of the security risks associated with trading online. Fraud is a major issue for online retailers and can cost merchants valuable income, therefore it is vital to select a risk management platform that reduces the risks associated with ID theft and allows you to safely and quickly accept online payments
• Finally, be available. Many accounts lie dormant for longer than necessary while waiting for documentation and signatures. So make sure that you are easily contactable as it will speed up the approval process.

Related: Choosing the right merchant service for your small business

Step 6: Start marketing to drive traffic to your site

Onsite you should make sure you have a basic analytics package running so you you can analyse your visitor stats. Try to plan a structured content strategy that focuses on publishing useful and informative pages. Use compelling headlines and focus on benefits in your copy. Make sure to include testimonials and any relevant credentials that will build a trust with your potential customers.

Offsite, you might want to look at PPC (pay-per-click) advertising with Google AdWords and Microsoft Advertising. They both have introductory offers for new websites but beware of bidding too high initially. Make sure you create accounts with all the main social media sites and link them to your website. If your are selling products rather than services highlight your pictures and images – particularly good for Instagram and Pinterest. And be sure to brand all your offline marketing materials with your website details.

Related: Video: Best practice website marketing tips

While there are a number of hurdles that would-be entrepreneurs have to overcome when starting a new online business, the process should be exciting and not painful. To ensure that the new online business is given the best possible opportunity for success it’s vital that you understand the basic operational requirements and know where to turn for advice when it’s needed.

This article was contributed by Michael Norton

Further Resources

• Top five online businesses you can start today – The most bankable online businesses have high demand, a proven record of success, and long-term revenue prospects.
• Buying and selling an online business – What to be aware of.
• eCommerce: Becoming a true online business – Download a free guide from our business partner Yell
• E-commerce in the United Kingdom (UK) – Statistics & facts

Starting an e-commerce business – what to know

Chloe Thomas, founder of marketing agency Digital Gearbox, discusses the key considerations entrepreneurs need to make before embarking on an e-commerce venture.

Despite the now traditional news stories of retail businesses going into administration, starting an e-commerce business can be a great way to build for your future.

For every retail failure there are many stellar success stories, and even more of comfortable survival. If you want to start out in e-commerce there’s a few things you need to think about before putting any money where your mouth is!

One of the problems with e-commerce is that getting started is way too easy – find some stuff to sell, buy a website in a box (or just create an eBay account), upload your logo and you are live. What you have is a website – not an eCommerce business.

Whilst launching a successful e-commerce business includes all of that, it requires much more. Before you do anything more than putting pen to paper you need to decide on three things:

1. What your e-commerce business structure will be (where you’re going to sell)
2. What your product range scope will be (what you’re going to sell)
3. What your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) will be (why customers should buy from you).

Those three decisions will influence everything else you do. So outlining them will help you decide if your business idea is worth investing time and effort in. There are seven e-commerce business structures, defined by how customers can buy your products. Three of these are structures that can work well for start-ups:

• Online only, you have your own website
• Boutique bricks and clicks, you have one or two physical shops and a website
• PiggyBacking, instead of having a website you use eBay, Amazon, Etsy etc to host your online store.

If your idea requires a business structure more complex than those, it’s going to be harder to build success, so it might be time to look for another idea.

The product range scope is about how varied your product selection is, not how many products you are selling. Right now the most successful online businesses are those at either end of the product range scope – either department stores (see Amazon) or the very, very niche (see theperfumeshop.com). Very few businesses can launch successfully outside the niche end. So if your product range contains a wide variety of product types (lamps, and beds, and towels) then you would be well-advised to re-think.

A niche product range scope gives you lots of benefits; your money won’t be spread across so much stock; you will do better in the search engines because your website will focused on certain keywords; your blog will be easier to write; and (most importantly) customers will “get” your business quicker – if they don’t understand they won’t buy.

The third thing you need to identify is your USP (unique selling proposition). What is it that makes you different? Customer service? Product? Price? Branding? Whatever it is, you need to become the best at that in your marketplace – can you? If you’re going to be truly successful then you need to avoid a USP of price – being the cheapest just erodes your margin, and due to economies of scale it is much easier for the companies with the biggest turnover to compete in this area.

I’d suggest you need to create a USP on customer service (making it so easy for the customer they just keep coming back), product (if they want welly boots you’re the only place to go), or knowledge and information (if they want to understand what camera tripod to buy you have everything they need to know). The last will also help you a lot with your marketing because having lots of great content will help win you traffic from the search engines.

Measuring each of your e-commerce business ideas against these three areas will help you work out which idea is the best. It is also a great way to stress test an idea – how easy is it to identify the e-commerce business structure, the USP, the product range scope? If you’re struggling then the idea isn’t solid enough to become a business.

Once you’ve got the idea that’s passed the tests, it’s time to move onto building a business plan. The key areas within this will be:

• Website – costs and plans
• Marketing – costs and plans
• Products – costs and plans.

You need all three of these to work together to make sure your business will be a success.

See also: Our whole section dedicated to Getting your Business Going

The post Starting up your online business appeared first on Small Business UK.

Having worked with over 250 SMEs for the past decade, I’ve identified 10 key areas of business that are vital to success. If any of these areas are overlooked or neglected, they cause businesses and business owners to experience slower progress, delays, stress and problems.

The first one of my 10 key areas is a business’ direction

What goes into setting your business’ direction?

There are four components that contribute to your business’ direction:

#1 – Purpose. This is the starting why. It asks the important question, “Other than profit for the owners, why does the business exist, what are we trying to achieve and why does it matter that our aim is achieved?”.

Taking UK Growth Coach as an example, our purpose is:

• To simplify the business of business for company owners in order to close the gap between their “potential” and “real world performance”
• To be the positive catalyst that drives meaningful personal change, business growth, and life results

The outcome of our efforts will be…

• Fewer company failures, and more business successes
• Greater enjoyment and happiness for the owners, their teams, their clients, and others they influence

#2 – Vision. This is what you intend your business to look like when it is finished. What size will it be? How will it be spoken about by your target market? Where will it be positioned in the marketplace?

Taking UK Growth Coach again as an example, our vision is to have more than 100 business coaches across the UK, positively impacting the performance and results of more than 2,000 business owners and their companies every week.

#3 – Mission. If you Google “mission statement” you will find many different versions and interpretations of what that term means.

My personal take on this is that a better term would be “service mission statement”, if we have done a good job with the purpose statement and the finished business vision. For me, a “service mission statement” tells the intended experience of working with, and for, your business.

An example “service mission statement” might be what you intend future client testimonials to say about their experience of working with you, but before you have gone and done that. It acts as a statement for customer experience intention, and a benchmark against which team members and service experience can be assessed meaningfully.

#4 – Values. The values or ethics are about how you are going to deliver the above elements. They state the way in which you will do business and how you are going to think and behave.

Again, taking UK Growth Coach as an example, we have five core service values:

1. Educate to unlock potential
2. Provide accountability
3. Support and lift-up
4. Speak the necessary truth
5. Emotionally invest in the success of your business

Why does having a clear business direction and vision matter?

It is easy to see how these items could become a tick box activity, to satisfy the needs of a business plan. When done properly, however, and with the right intention they are one of the most valuable tools for empowering business growth.

Here is why:

Clarity – they offer much needed clarity to everyone in and out of the business as to the direction, conduct, behaviours and ambition of the business.

The purpose and vision show the direction of travel, which makes the journey considerably easier and also eliminates surprises on the way, which can be unsettling and confusing.

Expectations – the service mission and values set expectations of the client/customer experience, how the business will operate and the behaviours and progress your team should be making.

With clear expectations, if anyone steps out from that, you’ve a clear recourse to bring them back in line.

Recruitment – Alongside people management, recruitment is one of the biggest frustrations and time-consuming roles business owners have.

By having a clear purpose, vision, service mission, and values, it gives you a framework for recruiting employees with the right attitude who buy-in to your business and ambition.

This is why a non-monetary purpose is particularly important, as your employees are not likely to be motivated by generating more money for the business owner.

Motivation – for you and your employees to know what the next steps and ambitions are. This is especially crucial during tough times, and we’ve all had a few those over recent years. Being motivated and seeing where you are going will keep the enthusiasm and commitment levels up.

There has been a lot written about how money is not a motivator, it’s a core need, but it rarely makes someone go above and beyond, generate loyalty or passion.

Our top tips for creating your business vision

#1 – Don’t get hung up on the terminology – we may have just defined the difference between vision, mission, purpose and values, but you will find others who name these things slightly differently.

The terminology doesn’t matter, what matters is that you have these bases covered; that you have something which covers what the business’ direction is, why it matters, how you are going to achieve it, and what success looks like.

Critically, these need to be understood by all of the relevant audiences: your team, employees and customers alike.

#2 – Ensure everything is connected – your purpose should be clearly linked to your vision, and your mission to your values. If they don’t seamlessly and clearly connect, they won’t be achievable by the team.

The team are the ones demonstrating and living those values, and delivering these outcomes, so if the various aspects of your business direction don’t match and connect up, your team can’t do it!

#3 – Review your progress against the vision and review your performance against your values – all too often these business direction statements are vanity pieces or are only ever remembered during business strategy sessions. In fact, they really ought to be used on a regular, if not daily, basis to review progress against.

When you come to reviewing your business’ performance, look at how it’s been achieved against your values; and when looking at the overall progress of your business, how does it compare with your vision?

Why having a clear vision is important

When you are embarking on a long journey to somewhere you’ve not been to before, do you undertake a detailed analysis of a map, get a vague set of directions, plug it into the SatNav and trust it to get you there, or do you do nothing at all and just go?

Every scenario, except for the first, will lead to some degree of stress, wrong turns, uncertainties and perhaps even missing the end destination altogether. This is precisely how having a clear vision and direction avoids that happening to you and your business.

Business coach Tim Rylatt is co-founder of UK Growth Coach, which provides business owners with coaching to help them simplify the business of business.

Tim’s coaching background comes from working with the world’s largest business coaching firm for over a decade, and since then, from running his own profitable coaching enterprises. He has worked with around 250 companies throughout his career and is a published author on the subject. Alongside being a co-founder of UK Growth Coach, he is also a Director of two award-winning marketing agencies and has real-world experience of being a business owner too.

Further reading

Nine mindset changes that will turn you from employee to entrepreneur

The post Top tips for creating a clear vision for your business appeared first on Small Business UK.

Many entrepreneurs start up their own businesses because they are relative experts in their industry/profession. Most want to achieve greater financial and personal control by “going it alone”. In many cases, these people have also identified ways in which they can do things differently and better to the industry norm and want to do just that.

What none of these motivations automatically address is the requirement to transition from an employee mindset to a business owner mindset.

This is a vital shift to understand and act on early as the remit of a business owner is much broader. Being a business owner includes multiple roles, competing priorities and skillsets, all of which to be mastered or managed in order to become truly successful.

Four mindsets to your finances

Rich Dad, Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki has defined the difference between an employee’s mindset and that of an entrepreneur and business owner, based on their attitudes towards finance.

The four personas he described were:

• Employee persona – focused on exchanging their time for an employer’s money. They spent almost all of what they earned as their income rarely exceeded their cost of living.
• Self-employed persona – this is where a person employs themselves within a business structure that they own. Their rate per hour is slightly better than a true employee but they also adopt the risks and stresses of running a micro or small business.
• Business owner persona – Here, the person is not only paid their direct wage, but they also employ others, and benefit financially from selling those employees’ time to their customers. The systemisation and scalability of this business structure means wealth can begin to be accumulated.
• Investor Persona – At this stage, the individual can invest their extra capital, and therefore “make money from money”. The investment activity is often managed by third party experts, and therefore time is also freed up for these people.

>See also: Ten ways to rewire your mindset for business success

Financial mindset to SME business reality

When you think about Mr Kiyosaki’s categories, it is easy to see why a dramatic shift in mindset is needed to move from an employee to becoming a thriving business owner.

To shift between those mindsets, we need to take a rounder look at the reality of business ownership. Finances are important, but they are not the only aspect or mindset shift required when becoming a business owner.

I’ve refined Kiyosaki’s model to better reflect the reality of specifically becoming an SME owner and entrepreneur, and how mindset relates to business progression phases.

• Start-up – When businesses are in the start-up phase, they are volatile, highly at risk, and often experiencing an almost constant flux of ideas, systems, clients, and more. There is inconsistency in what marketing is done, how sales are achieved, how services are provided or what products are delivered, turnover and profit levels and much more. It is a rapidly changing, evolving animal which takes serious effort to control.
• Basically functional – This is where you work for yourself, and make some money, but the business is totally dependent upon you. In most cases, the business owner works long hours, has many hats to wear, and makes modest earnings not dissimilar to those of an employee in a similar situation, except for the fact that as a business owner you carry much more risk and experience much more stress.
• Growth and scaling – this requires a refinement to the business model as well as the “business owner mindset”. It is about looking at how the 10 core elements of a business can work better and more efficiently together. Although growth is relatively straightforward, the ability to scale a business up is often less so.
• Independence – Achieving independence is about systemisation, processes and developing staff, so the business can have a “change of pilot” should you wish there to be. The key aim of this stage is reduction or eradication of reliance on the owners – in essence, changing from having a required direct involvement to being independent and the company becoming an autonomous asset.
• Exit – This stage is about preparation of the business for maximum valuation or easy succession. There is work to be done to attract investors and deliver the business’s value proposition as an investment.

Each business stage comes with its own challenges and opportunities, as well as specific advice and support requirements. There are some common themes though across all of these progress stages which separate the truly excellent from the mediocre.

The nine actions you can take to help your business ownership skills:

#1 – Recognise what you don’t know – you can’t be an expert at everything. Figure out where you need help with running a business, whether that’s systems, recruitment, finances, HR, leadership, strategy etc and get the support or education you need!

#2 – Be prepared to invest in yourself – it’s very tempting to do everything yourself or use a “free guide” to plug the gaps you have in your knowledge and skills. Your performance directly impacts the success of your business, so be prepared to spend money to improve your own outcomes.

#3 – Plan the future of your business – knowing where you are going and why, makes the journey a whole lot easier. Business planning is often something SMEs put off doing because the plans aren’t useful to them, rather they are for a bank, an accountant or investor and then gather dust on a shelf. Instead, why not make a plan that inspires you, and gives you the blueprint to how to progress your business.

>See also: 3 lessons you can learn from BBC’s The Apprentice

#4 – Plan a future business that can work without you – as scary as that sounds, at some point your priorities will shift and you won’t want to or be able to work as much as you do currently on your business. So plan the roles needed in your business, not the people, and work towards that in recruitment, systemisation and training. This gives you the option to work where, and for how long, you want in your business.

#5 – Work on your business, not for your business – business owners wear many hats; from CEO, finance, HR, supervisor, sales, marketing, IT, premises manager and more. It is incredibly easy to focus your time on the demands in the here and now – they tend to shout loudest and often will fall within your comfort zone. But is that where you add the greatest value to your business? I guarantee the answer is no! So schedule your time based on the different roles you perform and make sure you have time to work on the business’ future.

#6 – Ask yourself the hard questions – being complacent, staying in your comfort zone or just thinking that you know it all is a dangerous place for a business owner to be. We guarantee there will be a competitor who isn’t doing this, and your consumers won’t be either! Ask yourself the hard questions and give honest answers; you are only lying to yourself and damaging your business otherwise. This is one of the most valued aspects of having a business coach – someone to ask you these questions but who has the right intentions – to make you and your business better.

#7 – Not everything needs to be done perfectly – it is very tempting to focus on one aspect of your business and get that working perfectly, before working on the next. In actual fact, the compound benefit of improving all aspects of your supply chain, sales process, operation etc by just a couple of % points, will give you a far greater return on your investment. It’s also a lot more achievable.

#8 – Hold yourself to account – if you are going it alone, it’s again easy to let yourself off the hook and come up with excuses. Entrepreneurs with successful and growing businesses do not do this. They hold themselves to account and take responsibility for their actions, and inaction. Having an external, trusted advisor, such as a business coach is a great tool for this.

#9 – Do not learn from trial and error – as an employee I doubt you simply were left to it on day one and allowed to get on with things unsupervised. Would a plumber or solicitor be expected to give things a try and see how it pans out for them? Of course not. Just because you are transitioning to being a business owner, doesn’t mean that the support network ought to disappear. My final point is to actually maintain that structural aspect of being an employee – by making sure you have the education, training, support around you which you need. The fundamental rule here is, give yourself the best chance of success and develop your business owner skills from those who can help you, rather than choosing to learn through trial and error. The cost of failure and the errors is too great to risk that approach.

Business coach Tim Rylatt is co-founder of UK Growth Coach, which provides business owners with coaching to help them simplify the business of business.

Tim’s coaching background comes from working with the world’s largest business coaching firm for over a decade, and since then, from running his own profitable coaching enterprises. He has worked with around 250 companies throughout his career and is a published author on the subject. Alongside being a co-founder of UK Growth Coach, he is also a Director of two award-winning marketing agencies and has real-world experience of being a business owner too.

Further reading

Sally Gunnell: ‘It’s about being the best version of yourself’

The post Nine mindset changes that will turn you from employee to entrepreneur appeared first on Small Business UK.