You Can Only FOOL Your Customers Once!

As you know, earlier in the month we had April Fool’s Day. Practical jokes are played out all over the world during the morning hours of April 1st.

That got me thinking… I wonder what some of the best-ever April Fool’s jokes to have been orchestrated, that fooled thousands of people, include. Here’s my top 3 (keep reading to the end, there is a business lesson here too)…

1. Edison’s food creator, 1878

American newspaper The Daily Graphic published, in 1878, news of a technological breakthrough: Thomas Edison had invented “the Food Creator... a machine that will feed the human race!” How, exactly, was unclear, but it would be able to manufacture meat, vegetables, wine and biscuits using only air, water and “common earth”. A final paragraph in the April article revealed that “the Food Creator” did not in fact exist; but not every reader got that far, and Thomas Edison received “a flood of letters from all parts of the country”, as he wrote to tell the Graphic’s editor. “Very ingenious,” he said.
 

2. Alaska’s volcano, 1974

In Sitka, Alaska, the volcano Mount Edgecumbe had been dormant for around 9,000 years when, one morning in 1974, residents noticed dark smoke spooling from its top. When a coastguard helicopter flew in to investigate, the pilot saw that 100 tyres had been doused in cooking fuel and set alight in the volcano’s crater.
Meanwhile, around the rim, someone  had  spray-painted April Fool”  in 50ft letters. It was the careful work of a local joker, Oliver Bickar, who’d been planning the prank for four years. ...and my favourite…
 

3. Left-handed burger, 1998

Burger King’s 1998 unveiling of a “left-handed Whopper” – a normal burger, with “the condiments rotated 180 degrees” – fooled thousands in the US and UK with left-handers going out of their way to order one, and righties making it clear they’d prefer the original version. That’s funny!

So what’s all this got to do with you and your business? Well, it concerns your customers and makes sure you OVER-deliver on your promises. Your customers won’t be fooled into buying from you a second time. You owe it to them and to your own business to under-promise and over-deliver. I know that’s a cliché, but it really is a truism in today’s highly competitive market and with highly demanding customers!

4 Tips to Get More Out Of Your Networking!

While satisfied customers may be your best sales force, they are not the only sales force. There are lots of other people out there who can send business your way if you make the effort to network with them and make it worth their while.

The concept of networking and word-of-mouth marketing is a very hot topic in business today for one simple reason: lots of people are starting small businesses that need to find other businesses they can work with for mutual benefit.

Your networking time needs to be marketing time. This means putting yourself in front of customers or people who will send customers your way. With that in mind, 4 important tips to help you to get more out of your networking:

Competitors can be a networking opportunity

Just because you go head to head with other businesses does not mean that you can’t work together sometimes (for mutual gain). Airlines have an agreement whereby they book business for each other in return for a fee. You may find it useful to work out such an agreement with some of your competitors. On the other hand, you may have an informal agreement whereby you refer one of your competitors to customers for no fee in the hope that they might reciprocate.

Businesses that complement yours

If you put an accountant, a surveyor and a lawyer in the same room – you may have people who can refer clients to each other. When a customer buys from you, what other products and services is he/she likely to want or need? These businesses are the ones that you should consider networking with in order to build reciprocal referral links.

Prepare in advance

Before going to any networking function, make sure that you are prepared. Have business cards, prepare your elevator pitch and read through the attendee list before you go. Try to identify at least 3 people on the list that you want to network with. After the event, make sure to follow up with your new contacts.

Ask for referrals

That is why you are there. After describing your business to someone, ask, "who do you know who might need my services?" Take the time to describe your typical customer. Follow-up on leads as quickly as you can. Where possible, send business to your referrers. Reciprocity is the basis for all good relationships and it is especially true in business. When someone sends a customer to you, acknowledge it with at least a thank you. Keep in touch with your contacts and where possible, send them a referral.

Tax Diary of Main Events for the Months of April & May 2015!

Tax Diary of Main Events for the Months of April & May 2015!

Date	What’s Due
1 April	Corporation tax for year to 30/6/14
6 April	2015/16 Tax year begins
19 April	Final RTI FPS due by this date. Indicate that this is Final Submission for the Tax Year but note that the end of employer questionnaire is not included this year
19 April	PAYE & NIC deductions, and CIS return and tax, for month to 5/4/15 (due 22 April  if you pay electronically)
1 May	Corporation tax for year to 31/7/14
19 May	PAYE & NIC deductions, and CIS return and tax, for month to 5/5/15 (due 22 May if you pay electronically)

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The Key Points From Budget 2015

The Chancellor’s Budget March 2015 was clearly aimed at winning the votes of savers and pensioners in the May General Election.

However, it was not the usual pre-election giveaway as the Chancellor stressed his prudence in concentrating on debt repayment and the importance of “mending the roof while the sun shines”, something that he accused the previous Government of failing to attend to.

 Personal Allowances

As already announced the basic personal allowance for 2015/16 will be £10,600. The Budget on 18 March announced that there will be a further above inflation increase to £10,800 for 2016/17 and £11,000 in 2017/18. Those aged 75 and over will continue to receive a personal allowance of £10,660 for 2015/16 and by 2016/17 they will receive the basic personal allowance. Note that if your adjusted net income exceeds £100,000, the personal allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 over £100,000 giving an effective rate of 60% on income between £100,000 and £121,200 for 2015/16. 

Contact us for advice on planning to avoid this 60% rate.

Income Tax Bands

The 20% basic rate band is £31,785 for 2015/16 and will be £31,900 for 2016/17. This means that you pay 40% tax if your taxable income exceeds £42,385 for 2015/16 and £42,700 for 2016/17. It is proposed that the higher rate tax threshold will increase to £43,300 for 2017/18.  The 45% top rate continues to apply to taxable income over £150,000 for 2015/16.

Further Changes To ISAs

The current £15,000 ISA limit is to be increased to £15,240 from 6 April 2015. Remember that the 50% cash ISA restriction was abolished from 1 July 2014 so that any combination of cash and stocks and shares can be held within the ISA wrapper up to the overall £15,240 limit. The Junior ISA limit increases to £4,080 from 6 April 2015.

In the 2015/16 tax year individuals will be able to take money out of their ISA and put it back in within the same year, without losing their ISA tax benefits as long as the repayment is made in the same financial year as the withdrawal.

Zero Tax Rate On Savings 2015/16

As announced last year there will be a zero rate on the first £5,000 of savings income from 2015/16 onwards. Note however that this will only provide full benefit to those with taxable income between the basic rate band £10,600 and £15,600.

£1,000 Interest Income Tax Free 2016/17

From April 2016, a tax-free allowance of £1,000 (or £500 for higher rate taxpayers) will be introduced for the interest that people earn on savings. If they are a basic rate taxpayer and have a total income up to £42,700 a year, they will be eligible for the £1,000 tax-free savings allowance.
If they are a higher rate taxpayer and earn between £42,701 and £150,000, they’ll be eligible for a £500 tax-free savings allowance, but those with income in excess of £150,000 a year will be taxed in full on their interest income.

New Help To Buy ISA

These new accounts to help first time buyers save for a deposit to buy their first home will be available from Autumn 2015.  First time buyers  over 16 will be able to open these special  ISAs, make an initial deposit of up to £1,000 and then save up to £200 a month, and the Government will boost it by 25%. That’s a £50 bonus for every £200 saved, up to £3,000 in total topping up their £12,000 savings to £15,000.

Further Pension Flexibility

The Government will bring in new legislation from 6 April 2016 to allow people who are already receiving income from an annuity to agree with their provider to assign their annuity income to a third party in exchange for a lump sum or an alternative retirement product. Currently such action would give rise to a 55% charge, but this is to be abolished. This change will allow those who are already in receipt of a pension annuity to access the new flexible pension rules.

Pension Fund Lifetime Allowance Reduced

From 6 April 2016 the pension fund lifetime allowance will be reduced from £1.25million to £1million. Transitional protection for pension rights already over £1million will be introduced alongside this reduction to ensure the change is not retrospective. The lifetime allowance will then be indexed annually in line with CPI from 6 April 2018.

Capital Taxes

It had already been announced that the CGT annual exempt amount would increase to £11,100 for 2015/16. With a top CGT rate of 28% this allowance potentially saves £3,108 a year, or £6,216 for a married couple.

There has been no change in the inheritance tax nil rate band which remains at £325,000 until 2018.  There are a number of changes to the inheritance tax treatment of trusts.  Please contact us if you wish to discuss these or any other capital tax planning matters.

Further Restrictions To CGT Entrepreneurs’ Relief

You may recall that in the 2014 Autumn Statement it was announced that it is no longer possible to claim CGT entrepreneurs’ relief against the gains arising on the sale on or after 3 December 2014 of goodwill by a sole trader or partnership to a limited company in which they have a controlling interest.

It has now been announced that from 18 March 2015 CGT entrepreneurs’ relief will be restricted on certain “associated disposals”. The 10% CGT rate will no longer be available on the disposal of personal assets used in a business carried on by a company or a partnership unless they are disposed of in connection with a disposal of at least a 5% shareholding in the company or a 5% share in the partnership assets.

Tax Relief On Small Donations To Charity Increased To £8,000

The Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS) allows charities to treat small donations such as those in collecting boxes as if Gift Aided.

With effect from 6 April 2016 the maximum annual donation amount which can be claimed through GASDS will be increased from £5,000 to £8,000 allowing charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs to claim Gift Aid style top-up payments of up to £2,000 a year.

Single 20% Corporation Tax Rate

A single corporation tax rate of 20% will apply from 1 April 2015 whatever the level of your company’s profits.

As already announced in the 2014 Autumn Statement there will be a new 25% rate of tax on profits artificially diverted by multi-national companies away from the United Kingdom, being labelled “Google Tax”.

Annual Investment Allowance

The Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) provides a 100% tax write off for the cost of most plant and machinery acquired by businesses, a notable exception being motor cars. In Budget 2014 the Chancellor announced that the allowance would be increased to £500,000 per annum for expenditure incurred between 1 April 2014 and 31 December 2015 (from 6 April 2014 for unincorporated businesses).

This generous allowance was due to fall to just £25,000 from 1 January 2016 and the Chancellor acknowledged that such a level would be too low. However, the new limit will not be announced until later this year. Remember that the AIA is available for assets bought on hire purchase as well as those bought for cash. It can also be claimed in respect of fixtures and fittings within buildings. Contact us to help you maximise tax relief for capital expenditure as the timing of expenditure can be critical.

R&D Tax Credit Rate Increased

As already announced  in the 2014 Autumn Statement, companies  that are Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) carrying out qualifying Research and Development can currently claim a corporation tax deduction of 225% of their qualifying spend. This relief is being increased to 230% with effect from 1 April 2015. In order to improve the cash flow of loss making SMEs the tax rules allow the company to surrender the loss attributable to the enhanced R&D spend for a tax refund. The current tax refund rate is 14.5% of the loss attributable to the enhanced expenditure.  Contact us if you would like to discuss whether your company could qualify for R&D tax relief.

VAT Registration Limit £82,000

The VAT registration limit has been increased by £1,000 to £82,000 from 1 April 2015. The de-registration limit also increased by £1,000 to £80,000.

The End Of Tax Returns?

The Government proposes to transform the tax system over the next Parliament by introducing online tax accounts to remove the need for individuals and small businesses to complete annual tax returns.  These online accounts will show details of how much tax has been paid and how much is owed and will be pre-populated with information such as employment and pension income provided by RTI. This may work for individual taxpayers with straightforward affairs, but many accountants will have concerns, based on past experience, about the accuracy of the data and the calculations.
 

Taxpayers will still need to provide any details HMRC does not have and will be responsible for checking that the information is correct.

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Using Social Media To Grow Your Business!

The stats, for once, don’t lie…

 Digital marketing giant eMarketer estimates that social media platforms boast over 1.73 billion users worldwide. A number that’s expected to climb to 2.55 billion by the year 2017.

What’s more, according to a recent Nielson study, 46% of consumers turn to social media to help with purchasing decisions. This means that your prospects are most certainly out there, and they’re relying on the social aspect of the web more and more to help them decide who to do business with. So how can you tap into this incredible opportunity to gain more leads for your own business? Let’s take a look.

· 93% of businesses are using at least one social media platform (Forbes)

· 86% of SMEs state that social media is vital to their business (Social Media Today)

· 43% of businesses state that their social media is ineffective due to poor knowledge of each platform (Harvard Business Review)

· 46% of SMEs state that social media is their key marketing strategy (HBR)

· 13% of businesses don’t use social media because they can’t find the right staff (HBR)

· 54% of businesses acquired a client through social media in 2013 (Social Media Today)

· 92% of companies that blogged and updated content every day acquired at least one customer per month (hubspot)

· 53% of social media marketers don’t track their performance on social media

· 72% of social media users are aged 25-49

· Fastest growing demographic on social media is the 45-54 age range

· Worldwide there are over 189 million Facebook users

· Every second, 2 people join LinkedIn

· Over 1 billion people now use some form of social media

Like all stats, you can take them two ways but what’s undeniable is that YOUR clients and potential clients use social media. This means you can REACH them there.

The challenge, though, for the business owner is obvious…

Wikipedia reports that there are 343 social networking sites but there are likely to be at least double or treble this amount. So how do you know which ones to focus on?

This was our challenge over a year ago when we started testing social media. With so many sites to choose from, which ones work best? Not surprisingly, we’ve found the ‘BIG’ players to be the most successful in terms of engaging with and acquiring subscribers and members.

You should only focus your time and energy on the following sites…

· Facebook

· Twitter

· LinkedIn

· Google+

· YouTube

windows)  and ultimately the your efforts. But it’s in respect to the ‘effort’ where social media has its big drawback. 

You see, the whole point of social media is being ‘current’ and ‘timely’. Posting once a month or once a week just isn’t enough. You have to do it daily (5 days a week), otherwise your social media won’t build.

But that’s the challenge. Posting 5 times a week just isn’t easy.

However, with careful planning you can do it.

As I said earlier, for the last 12 months we’ve been testing what works with social media and what doesn’t. All this testing has enabled us to create a 5-stage plan we call ‘SWARM’. These are the 5 things you need to do to build a highly targeted fan base (clients and potential clients) which in turn will help you acquire more fees. You’ll see none of this is rocket science, but as with everything—you have to put the effort in to get the rewards…

Strategy:

The first thing you need to do is think about your objectives. This will help you develop your social media strategy. Like everything I talk about in GMC, your objective needs to be hinged around retaining clients, increasing fees  from clients and acquiring new clients. Your social media objective is no different.

Winning Design & Set-Up:

The next stage is to get your relevant pages in Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Google+ designed professionally. This is very important.

It is key that you have a consistent ‘look and feel’ across your social media sites. DON’T DO THIS YOURSELF. Get a designer to come up with the designs—it should only cost you a few hundred pounds/dollars.

Accumulate:

Now you know the objective of your social media and you’ve got your pages all looking great, you can start to build your fan base. This needs to be centred around existing clients AND prospective clients.

Set yourself a goal to increase your fan base by X per week/month. For example, with Twitter you might set your target to follow 10 people each week—which in turn will get you between 7 and 9 followers yourself (most people will follow you back).

This simple approach will result in a perpetual and ongoing increase in followers, likes and shares, etc.

Relationship:

By posting on each of your social media sites 5 times a week, you’ll be encouraging your fan base to interact with you, which is the key to social media success.

This constant activity will help your growing fan base…

· To share your information

· Refer you to friends

· Write positive reviews

· Provide recommendations

· Increase engagement and interaction

Of course, this interaction means you’ll also need to reply and respond back, so factor in time each day to do that.

As an important aside, we’ve noticed that adding images, diagrams and pictures to your content does make a big positive difference to your results, so search www.istockphoto.com for interesting images.

You’ll also want to search and share relevant industry-specific news articles periodically and create questions and polls relevant to your business.

Measurement & Optimisation:

As a subscriber of GMC, you know that it’s vital you measure everything you’re doing.

It’s no different when it comes to your social media. You need to measure, analyse and manage every social media post and activity across the breadth of your social media sites.

This is arguably the most time-intensive part of your social media plan, but it will give you the insights you need to keep building your ‘SWARM’ (fan base).

For example, you need to analyse which posts get the most engagement, who are your main demographics, when your customers/potential buyers are logging on to their social media and how many times they have clicked onto your website, etc.

Detailed analysis allows you to continually optimise your social media sites so they are performing to their maximum.

Like I said earlier, none of this is difficult. It’s just time-consuming. But having a social media platform is now just too important to neglect.

However, if you need any help getting your social media to really work for you, contact us.