Small Businesses Eye Growth with New, Free Seminars

From Insider Money Talks:

With around half of small business poised to expand in the next 12 months Barclays is offering an additional 26 free business seminars around the country to support the renewed interest in business growth.

Barclays business seminars, with backing from ACCA and Business Link, are presented by a range of business gurus including Rene Carayol.

The Let's Talk Preparing for Growth is a series of nine new seminars from Barclays focusing on business growth.

In addition, Barclays is offering 17 Let's Talk Bright Marketing and More Profit seminars during the second half of the year.

"The focus for many companies has shifted towards growth," said Steve Cooper, Managing Director for Barclays Local Business.

"Expansion can be a positive move for a company, and there are always opportunities for growth, but the reality is that it's also difficult.

This is a chance for businesses to hear experts speak about growing successfully, and also to ask the questions they need to ask."

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said: "This is an important initiative by Barclays which I hope helps small businesses get the support they need to grow.

"Small firms depend on bank lending to fulfil their potential and any move like this by lenders to help businesses deal with new challenges is encouraging.

"There is plenty of free advice available for small firms to help them succeed, including from Business Link, and it is important that they take advantage of the full range of support on offer."

The Let's Talk seminar programme is developed by Barclays and delivered by leading business gurus who have worked with organisations across diverse sectors and size, helping companies face the challenges of business by implementing strategies and processes that focus on customers and profitability.

Let's Talk Preparing for Growth will help companies to think about whether their business is in the right shape to look at expanding and how to go about it.

Let's Talk Bright Marketing makes businesses re-think how they get and keep customers, helping them focus their marketing activities more effectively and profitably, see their business and products through their customers' eyes, to take control of their sales and marketing activity.

Let's Talk More Profit makes businesses re-think how they make their money giving them tools and techniques to improve profits in their business, improve cashflow and how to make it all happen by getting more customers, more sales, more profits and more cash.

RELEVANT LINKS
Insider Money Talks: - the original article
Let's Talk Preparing for Growth - Barclays webpage
Let's Talk Bright Marketing and More Profit - Directors' Centre webpage
Let's Talk Bright Marketing - webpage
Let's Talk More Profit - webpage