If you ask your team how many would love to be able to work somewhere other than the office over the next few weeks?  What can you do to help them achieve this while keeping your business running smoothly and your customers happy?

Avoiding commuting and fewer distractions such as unnecessary meetings etc when combined with the right tech, can actually increase productivity within your business.  Let’s look at what you need to make this happen.

Equipping your team to work remotely

Employee will need the right technology solutions in place. They cannot work unless they can get to the network, send and receive emails and access the internet. Let’s look at what they will need:

1.       Network Access

Network access needs to be controlled to ensure your data is secure, but that doesn’t mean you cannot give remote access and remote working capability to your team.

If they are going to work remotely frequently, the simple choice is to give them a laptop instead of a desktop. Depending on your network setup, there are a number of tools you can use to connect your team to your network without compromising security:

·         Office365 means your data lives in the Cloud and can easily be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection. Generally, more suited to smaller businesses, but being adopted by more and more.

·         VPN technologies, often with two-factor authentication, are declining in popularity, but if you still have a local server infrastructure, this belt and braces approach may be the right one for you.

If they are working from home, they will use their home internet connection. Make sure they have unlimited data packages so they don’t incur any big bills whilst working.  If they are on the move, tethering to their phones and using the data packages is simple. 4G, and currently rolling out 5G, mean connection speeds are no longer an issue and dramatically increases the number of places they can work from. Local free WiFi provision, such as coffee shops and pubs, can provide that connectivity, but may be a security risk, so are best avoided.

2.       Security

Absolutely vital in today’s world. Skimping on your IT security is a very dangerous thing to do. The proliferation of ransomware and other nasties means you would simply be running a risk that doesn’t make sense.

Endpoint protection from companies such as Sophos and ESET (https://www.eset.com) make it easy to secure any device that is connecting to your network, whether that is laptops, mobiles or even an employee’s personal machine. Many will allow you to wipe data in the event of a potential security breach too.

3.       Communication

If communication is simply between staff, mobiles will often be sufficient. If clients need to talk to remote workers, and they need to talk to clients, you may need something a little better.

Most VoIP telephone solutions have multiple ways to connect your clients and employees:

·         Mobile agents: an app on the mobile that converts the mobile to a desktop during the call, using the internet as the call carrier. This can sometimes work over the GSM network but will use the 4G when that employee is out and about.

·         Softphones: if your employee is simply sat in front of the laptop, whilst working from home, a softphone app may be better. The laptop becomes the phone and the employee uses a headset

·         Divert the calls: re-routing calls to and from mobiles can be done on most VoIP solutions. The number dialled by the client (and presented to them if the employee calls them) is the DDI or your company number rather than the mobile number.

4.       Productivity

Project management and collaboration tools have been around for years now and continue to improve.  Products such as Slack or Trello are probably the most well-known, allowing your teams to share information, instant message and allocate tasks with ease. Microsoft is fairly late to the party, with Microsoft Teams, but is rapidly capturing market share, particularly amongst Microsoft fans.

Remote working without one of these tools is significantly more difficult.

Being able to enjoy the rest of the summer may well involve some flexible hours. Employees may get up early to do it, or they may work into the evening. Unless they have, for example, a customer-facing role, when the work gets done shouldn’t matter.  You have the opportunity to help them get the most from the rest of this summer and be all setup for next year as well.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Young is Director of independent telecoms brokerage Equinox. Gary works with companies, charities and other organisations to help them choose the right telecoms packages for their needs and thereby reduce their costs. He is particularly knowledgeable on the integration of IT and telecoms in business. www.equinoxcomms.co.uk

Twitter: @CommsEquinox

After years of innovation stagnation, every traditional category of spirit has evolved in the past 15 years. Consumers are demanding higher quality and more interesting flavour profiles.

Over a 15-year period, while my business partner and I started to create our new spirit, the question became: How do we create something that is truly unique?

In this article, I explore our approach to this question and provide thoughts on bringing a unique spirit to market…

1. Inspiration

For many years, I spent a lot of time writing a novel that takes place in Venice. Our new spirit, Cadello, was born from the question: “What spirit would wealthy 18^th century Venetian merchants have served at their lavish masked balls?”

A product that created from your passions will ensure that what you create is truly individual and unique. It will provide a starting point for a spirit and brand that is unequivocally yours.

2. Flavour

When creating something that doesn’t yet exist in the market, it is important to experiment, test, taste and solicit relevant independent feedback (over and over and over again). It is also necessary to push the boundaries and try every conceivable combination of ingredients and flavours imaginable. Once we found the right distillation partner in Italy, we spent 3 years working together to find the highest quality, natural ingredients in the right combination to create a flavour profile that was completely unique, smooth and complex.

Today, it is vital for new spirits to be truly different from anything else available. It is obviously also essential to use the highest quality ingredients and the appropriate extraction method for each ingredient to achieve the optimal result.

3. Production

For 18 months, we met with twenty to thirty distilleries in Italy before selecting our partner: Distilleria Pisoni.

Distilleria Pisoni is a 150 year-old family-owned distillery that employed its vast experience to work with us for three years to create a truly unique production process and recipe. Their contributions were invaluable to Cadello.

Whether you produce in-house or partner with a third party distiller, it goes without saying that having people with the right experience, expertise and passion will ultimately make the difference between producing a good product or a great product.

4. Business Relationships

Producing a spirit, like any product, requires many steps and many external partners. You need to source ingredients, distil your spirit, bottle it, add well-designed labels and export, distribute, market and sell to different countries.

To ensure the smoothest and most reliable supply chain, it is highly recommended to choose each of your partners and suppliers wisely. We insist that our partners adhere to the following three criteria:

1.         Do they possess the best possible experience and expertise?

2.         Are they passionate about our business?

3.         Could we develop a friendship with them?

While the first two are critical (and obvious), for us, the third element is equally important. You want to know that the people you are dealing with are people you like and trust. Our partnership with the Pisoni family has developed into a close friendship. When issues arise, we discuss them as friends, knowing that we  will always find a mutually agreeable solution.

5. Branding

Getting your branding right is critical. What do you want to evoke as your customers drink your product? How does that feed into the packaging and label? Make sure everything communicates your brand in a consistent and appealing way.

We wanted every aspect of the Cadello experience to connect back to 18th century Venetian masked balls.

The name ‘Cadello’ is a derivation of sorts. In Venice, casa is abbreviated to ‘ca. We wanted to name our new spirit after a Venetian palace where grand masked balls would have been held. Hence… Ca’ Dello… Cadello.

Our logo is a “Ferro Dragon”. The head of the logo is a dragon, representing China (several of our ingredients come from the old Silk Route). The tail of the logo is a ‘ferro’ (the distinct prow of a Venetian gondola) which represents Italy.

The ‘88’ on our bottle represents the fact that we have 8 ingredients and, in Chinese culture, 88 is the luckiest number. We added a mask in the background to represent the masked balls of 18^th century Venice.

Start from basic principles: Why did you create your spirit and for whom? Then consider your brand as a whole, including your brand name, before drilling down into the specifics like the bottle and label design.

6. Test the Market

We believe that it’s important to test your spirit before launching it on the market.

We tested Cadello in Switzerland for 7 months. While Switzerland was never intended to be a core market, we wanted to gauge reactions before we formally launched Cadello in the UK in Sept 2018.

You should be prepared to take on board feedback and develop your product or brand accordingly. It may feel like a sacrifice, but you’ll end up with a better product for it.

The market for high quality products has been growing perhaps faster than ever – and there is demand for more. To make a genuine success out of your creations, however, it takes more than a nice tasting spirit. You need a well-developed brand and story behind it. Good luck!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Matt Dunn is co-founder of Cadello,a new, category-defining spirit produced by a 150year-old family-owned distillery in Italy. A unique flavour combining eight ingredients, Cadello is perfect served neat or in cocktails.

Web: www.cadello88.com

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/cadello88

 Crowdcube: https://www.crowdcube.com/companies/cadello/pitches/qQX6wb

It can be tough for small businesses in a competitive sector such as food and drink.  After all they simply don’t have the resources of their large established competitors. 

So, the questions are: How does a new food or drinks brand get products onto the shelves of big supermarkets without a proven track record?  How do they compete with the marketing clout of popular high street brands with little money?  Or to put it another way how can a small brand punch above its weight and succeed in getting listed?

Despite the many hurdles, small businesses, young brands, and new products can make an impact. I’ve been successful myself with a number of once-unknown brands and products. Let me share some tips based on what I’ve learned in the process.

Be bold

When you’re leading a small company, it’s understandable to think, for example, that supermarkets won’t be interested in stocking your new brand. You might be surprised! The only way to find out is to engage them with a strong pitch and an open mind.

When I wrote to Jason Gissing, one of the founders of Ocado, to introduce Gusto. I was a little surprised when he agreed to meet so I could show him the range. It turned out that he loved our brand and ethos and helped us.

As a small brand it’s easy to get lost in the noise. Finding influential advocates really helps. LinkedIn is a goldmine for key industry contacts, as are in-person networking events. Finding one open-minded person who’s influential in the organisation, could help you enormously.

Follow the retail seasons

The popularity of many food and drink products has seasonal fluctuations. We launched three drinks last April in preparation for summer and learned the hard way that the summer buying window starts around September/October and extends as far as March.

It’s crucial to know all the cut-off dates for retail seasons and offer your products e.g.to retail and restaurant chains well ahead of the cut-off date. Ideally, you’ll have decided your seasonal ranges a year in advance so you can also get a head start on marketing.

Prepare for launch

To succeed, your new product obviously needs to taste good, look appealing, and be sold effectively. All three must be up to scratch. Better to delay a launch rather than push a product with bland packaging, a hastily pulled together sales strategy, or a taste that isn’t quite perfect.

A misjudged sales strategy will scupper your crucial launch and the first stage of growth, putting off potential retailers, investors, and partners who may doubt your abilities and your product’s mass appeal. Getting the taste, texture, or appearance of your product wrong, or indeed using poor branding, will be hard to recover from.

Make sure you get all three aspects ready and as you want them to be.

Work to your vision

If you design a product you feel is simply missing from the market, it’s best to create it in your vision. Chances are that if you love it, many others will too.

We created Gusto because there were no natural, organic, and Fairtrade drinks out there, and we wanted one to drink regularly! So, rather than using focus groups or flavour houses, we set out to make the taste we wanted, by using only the ingredients we wanted to consume. Likewise, we made sure the design and branding resonated with us. Thankfully, it’s struck a chord with many others.

Sticking to your guns is also the best way to bring out a genuinely new and unique product. And if you really love your idea, you won’t get tired of trying to share it widely. This will make your advertising more genuine and enthuse customers.

Make sure you’re truly happy with your products and brand from the get-go.

Act with patience

Good opportunities can often take a frustratingly long time to come to fruition. We’ve had plenty of conversations with retailers and restaurants that have lasted more than a year before they agreed to stock Gusto. It was certainly worth the effort though. If you think the opportunity is an important one and the retailer hasn’t closed the door, don’t throw in the towel.

In general, strong sustainable brands with a broad customer base take time to build. So, seek to win over one shop, one café, one bar at a time. There is no silver bullet, just time and persistence.

Clarify your brand values

Every business is faced with an array of decisions, some of which can also challenge your ethics and values. Having clearly defined brand values helps a brand navigate their decisions and remain consistent. So, it’s best to incorporate your own ethos into your brand and stay true to it. Will you choose cheap or Fairtrade ingredients? Go organic or not? Will you add sugar and preservatives or tweak the recipe? Will your packaging be recyclable?

Clearly big businesses have advantages over small and new would-be competitors. However, if you act boldly and use these tips you might be pleasantly surprised by your success.  I wish you all good fortune.

About the Authors

Craig Sams and William Fugard are co-founders of Gusto, the world’s first natural, organic, and Fairtrade energy drink.

Craig Sams is also the co-founder of Green & Black’s luxury chocolate, and Whole Earth Foods.

Gusto is available from over 600 outlets, sold in eight countries and distributed by 20 UK Wholesalers. Gusto is stocked by Ocado, Whole Foods Market, The Waldorf Hilton, Sourced Market, Eat17, Tate Modern, SKY TV head offices & Chiquito restaurants.  Gusto Organic was the official soft drinks sponsor for 2018 & 2019 Tour of Britain Pro Cycle race, and we directly market with Craft Clubs through their 28,000 monthly Gin subscription boxes.

Gusto Organic: https://drinkgusto.com/

Crowdfunding: https://www.crowdcube.com/companies/gusto-organic/pitches/Z1n13b  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GustoOrganic/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gustoorganic/

If you have and product idea or are already developing a product that is perfect for the restaurant business what do you need to do to sell in?  If you know it will fill a gap in the market you need to take steps to convince restaurant owners that your product is just the thing for their business.

Where do you begin? Here are some ideas based on our experience of building a successful company in this sector.

Who do you approach first? You should absolutely aim as high as possible when approaching restaurants – go for the big names and large chains. A good place to start is businesses you feel have brand or culture alignment with your product. If you are a match, they will find it hard to ignore you.

It can be harder to break into restaurant chains as they tend to work in different ways, with long term trusted suppliers, so don’t be surprised if you need to diversify, working with distributors to sell your products to larger restaurant brands.

Aiming high doesn’t just mean going big – you should also target quality small independent establishments. These businesses can be very influential in the long run, enabling you to build a solid local reputation that will help you take your business nationwide.

Reach out to your existing network. We have been fortunate enough to generate inbound interest at Gozney; you either want a stone oven or you don’t. Use your existing network, and avoid blanket networking events, as these can be a waste of time if your product only targets a particular type of food establishment. A good name in the industry, through happy customers, is also essential as they do the talking for you. We have also reached out through social platforms to up and coming brands we feel are essential to work with. Look who you are already connected to – and if they are the right fit, reach out to them.

Maintain a client-focused mindset. it’s important to relate to the people you are talking to as a human and a business owner yourself; offer them something they need (or didn’t know they wanted). When it comes to following up and trying to secure a meeting or product demonstrations, be efficient: check in, but don’t be overly persistent, as you don’t want to become a nuisance.

When talking to restaurants, it’s important to keep the focus on them. Seek out what your customer needs and approach that first. Don’t over-promise or pretend to be something you are not: It’s important never to be too salesy, especially in early communications. You should start by listening and gaining a sense of what the restaurant owner is looking for, and show how your product can provide the solution, or fulfil objectives in ways they may not have thought of.

We really believe our products do the talking, so we often share places where you can find our products in action/ We also invite people to meet the team and sample pizza from our ovens.

Remember to think like a restaurant owner e.g. when are their busiest times of the day? In other words, when would they least appreciate a call or drop in! Show that you understand their day-to-day challenges and they will want to work with you.

Demonstrate confidence. Confidence in your product goes a long way, and that is conveyed through your brand identity. A strong brand conveys quality, vision and professionalism. Of course, you have to have the balance right – it doesn’t send a good message if your branding has all the bells and whistles but your product, or knowledge of your product capability, is found lacking. Take some time to ensure that your brand materials and marketing showcase your product, that they tell the story of how you got here and portray your business as aspirational and going places.

Invest in relationships for repeat business. Getting your product into restaurants goes a long way beyond just closing a deal. Once you have an agreement, you need to keep working to ensure the product is operating as it should be and continues to fulfil the restaurant owner’s evolving needs over time.

It goes without saying, that you should look after the small independents as much as your larger clients. When smaller or newer restaurants become more established they can have as much of a platform to shout about your product (or more) than your larger chains. Everyone respects the care and attention that independents give to sourcing their products, so keeping them happy is vital. Again, the focus is on the individual, not simply the brand or size of the business – keep the conversation channels open, ensure the product is performing as promised, and be sure to invest in your customer service as you grow.

Start developing your strategy for selling to restaurants as soon as you can. Whatever stage you are at in your commercial product development and entrepreneurial journey, you should always be thinking ahead.  If you do so all the hard work you’ve put into researching, making contacts etc. will result in long-term customers who appreciate what you provide and who will support your business. 

About the Author:

Laura Gozney is co-founder of Gozney, makers of commercial and residential stone fire pizza ovens. Gozney’s latest innovation is Roccbox – the only professional standard portable wood and gas stone oven that can cook a pizza in under 90 seconds.

https://www.gozney.com/uk/

Even if you only are only a small business, you may have some outside space.  Perhaps you’ve a studio in the back garden, or maybe you hire an office in a block and have a balcony. If you can use that space for summer parties, you could well save expensive venue costs.

If when you say ‘summer party’ your immediate thoughts turn to the barbecue, you are not alone. It always seems like a great idea, until you remember that the grill needs cleaning, and then there’s all the smoke, and how long it takes to get the charcoal fired up…

So the traditional barbecue is feeling a bit passé. However, there are lots of attractive, elegant, innovative and affordable products available now that allow you turn even the smallest outdoor area into the perfect summer party venue.

Here are a few ideas to help you wow your staff and your clients:

Provide Warmth with a Gas Fire Pit

Fire pits, units and chimineas aren’t exactly new, but they are developing into new more innovative and creative designs. Gas powered fire pits are becoming increasingly popular as a more convenient and cleaner alternative to the standard wood or coal heating solutions. A gas fire can be built-in or purchased as a standalone unit to add warmth and style to your seating area. Gas Fire Pit tables are sleek, high-end designs, but there are options out there to suit any budget. It is recommended that you always get a professional to install your fire.

https://www.modafurnishings.co.uk/gas-fire-pit-dining-8-seat-round-180cm-diameter-h-65cm-table-only-3316

Shake it up with a Tiki Bar

If you like to whip up exotic cocktails for your guests, an outdoor bar is a must. You could complete the experience with a tiki bar: Tiki culture started in California in the 1930s with idealised exotically decorated bars and restaurants catering to an escapist longing for travel to tropical regions.

You can create your own holiday-at-work vibe over Mai Tais and Singapore Slings. John Lewis sells a fantastically authentic looking rattan bar and stool set that will set the tone for some bar theatrics worthy of a South Pacific island beach party.

https://www.johnlewis.com/kaemingk-rattan-bar-stool-set/p3834494

Create an Outdoor Kitchen Space

An outdoor kitchen area is a convenient and enjoyable way to cook and dine al fresco.  

Depending on your space and budget you can go for a complete kitchen installed in a sheltered seating area. Alternatively, many outdoor living companies sell modular kitchen units for more flexibility to build your own custom space – sinks, fitted barbecue cookers, and even outdoor fridges can create an ideal inside-out gathering spot.

Check out these modular kitchens units from Landscaping.co.uk for some inspiration. https://www.landscaping.co.uk/kitchen-in-the-garden-en/outdoor-kitchens/modular-outdoor-kitchens/

Deliver with a Portable Pizza Oven

Portable outdoor ovens have come a long way – now you can get professional specialist quality cooking with new innovations such as the Roccbox. Created by Gozney, Roccbox is a professional standard compact stone fire pizza oven that can provide delicious stone fired pizza in little over a minute. And it doesn’t have to be pizza – the dry heat that can only be got from a stone oven can make meat, fish and vegetables even more delicious. You can choose either wood or gas burner for traditional fire or changeable heat for a range of cooking techniques.

https://www.gozney.com/eu/products/home-ovens/roccbox/

Get Cosy in an Arctic Cabin

If you do have a large enough space (and a decent budget) – then why not go a step further with an arctic cabin, complete with inbuilt barbecue? An arctic cabin can provide a moment of escape on chilly morning, is ideal for private meetings, and perfect for parties – anytime of year. Arctic Cabins Ltd are the only manufacturer and supplier of the traditional sloping wall cabin design in the UK – a typical cabin seats around 15 people (and can sleep three).

14m2 BBQ Cabin

Now you’ve decided on what new features to add, here are a few final tips to enhance your summer get-together:

• Safety – The last and most important point is when using cooking equipment, fires and electrical lighting, ensure that everything is installed and used according to manufacturer instructions. Check for any trip hazards relating to wires (hang or tape them out of harm’s way) and encourage caution around heat sources. 
• The playlist – A little background music can make a real difference, so choose music that sets the tone for the evening. And keep speakers and volume to a minimum – both your guests and your neighbours will not appreciate being sound blasted!
• Lighting – If you are entertaining late into the evening, or have sheltered and shadowy spaces for sitting, make use of small solar lights to brighten the mood and create an ambience worthy of your favourite city pub garden.

Author Bio:

Laura Gozney is co-founder of Gozney, makers of commercial and residential stone fire pizza ovens. Gozney’s latest innovation is Roccbox – the only professional standard portable wood and gas stone oven that can cook a pizza in under 90 seconds.

https://www.gozney.com/uk/

Terms and Conditions (T&Cs) are the clauses in a contract that set out the rights and obligations that both parties should be aware of when they enter into a contract.

It’s crucial for a business that your customers know clearly what they are purchasing and what your terms of business are.  It’s particularly pertinent for online businesses.

So, what should you be considering when drafting your businesses’ T&Cs?

1. Avoiding the usual mistake

A big mistakes that businesses have made in the past is believing that if they hide their terms from the customer, and the customer signs the contract, that these terms can be relied upon. In other words, if the terms of the contract are part of the ‘small print’, the belief is that once the customer signs the contract, whether or not they have seen or read the terms, that they will be bound. 

So, is that true? Can the terms forming part of the ‘small print’ be relied upon? In general, the answer is no!

• Making sure the box is ticked

If the business specifically draws attention to the T&Cs and asks the customer to tick a box to state that they have read and agreed to be bound them, that’s a different story.

It may be as simple as creating a tick box for the customer to check before signing anything. That tick box may state that ‘I the undersigned have read the terms and conditions and am happy to proceed’, and if online, then a link to the T&Cs on the website will ensure compliance.

• Receipt versus contract

Right back in 1940, there was a landmark case in the courts about whether a local authority could rely on a disclaimer (against personal injury) on the back of a ticket given to a customer who hired a deck chair. The courts made the point that in order to rely on this, such a disclaimer would have to be brought to the customer’s notice at the time the contract was being made. In this case it wasn’t, since the customer only received the ticket after he paid over the money. Therefore, it was a receipt, and consequently, the disclaimer could not be relied on since it had not been brought to the customer’s notice before the contract was made, enabling him to pull out if he wanted. One of the Judges in that case commented that if the attendant had mentioned the disclaimer to the deck-chair hirer, before he handed over the money, then possibly the disclaimer would have been activated and could be relied on.

It’s the same with regard to T&Cs. They must be brought to the customer’s attention before anything is signed, and the only way to do this is to ensure that they are clear and available to be read and, in addition, they should be highlighted.

• Effective wording

It is essential to draft T&Cs that reflect the business requirements, and there should be no ambiguity. If badly drafted, customers may interpret them in a different way than intended.  It is a matter of being precise and succinct so that there can be no misunderstandings.

The best advice is to be simple with terminology and not use legal jargon. The more the language is complicated, the more likely that an individual will not bother to read it and this may encourage them not to proceed. On the other hand, if there is a tick box to say they agree to them, and they tick the box, then it may well be legally binding whether or not they have actually read them.

Some terms may be general, for example, confidentiality, intellectual property, disclaimers or limiting liability – and in such cases, precedent clauses (i.e. pre-written, ‘off-the-shelf’ wording) can be used.  Other, more specific terms and conditions can be tailored to fit a particular website or business – you can write these yourself, look at other T&Cs online, or you may want to engage expert legal help from a solicitor or paralegal.

• Complaints about your T&Cs

Should a customer complain that they were unaware of a term in the contract but they have ticked a box to state that they have read the T&Cs and agree to them, then unless the term relied upon is legally unenforceable or ‘unreasonable’, the customer will not have much recourse. If they decide to pursue the point, then the burden will be on the customer to provide evidence that it’s unenforceable or unreasonable in the circumstances. Every business should have a complaints procedure available online, and the first step that a customer should take is to follow this.

From a business perspective, it’s always best to try to resolve the customer’s issues before it’s taken further. Once a complaint is made, for the sake of business reputation, it should be adequately dealt with at this early stage.

Regardless of whether the business decides to acquiesce to the wishes of the customer, it may be advisable to consider whether or not there is grounds for the complaint. For example, maybe the reason for complaint is indeed because the term in question is ambiguous and could be misinterpreted. If so, this is a good opportunity to revisit the T&Cs and tighten them up.

• Ensuring your T&Cs are legally binding

So, every business should have clear, unambiguous T&Cs, that have been drafted to reflect the specific requirements of the company. They should also be considered ‘reasonable’ – and they must be made clear to the purchaser before they buy. By following these simple rules, businesses can protect themselves with T&Cs that are legally binding.

If legal expertise is required to cast an eye over the T&Cs, then it may be a good idea to use the services of a specialist paralegal who can offer advice and assistance at a reasonable cost.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amanda Hamilton is Chief Executive of the National Association of Licenced Paralegals (NALP), a non-profit Membership Body and the only Paralegal body that is recognised as an awarding organisation by Ofqual (the regulator of qualifications in England). Through its training arm, NALP Training, trading as National Paralegal College, accredited recognised professional paralegal qualifications are offered for a career as a paralegal professional. 

See: http://www.nationalparalegals.co.uk and https://www.nalptraining.co.uk/

Twitter: @NALP_UK

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NationalAssocationsofLicensedParalegals/

LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-hamilton-llb-hons-840a6a16/

For most businesses developing your social media presence and increasing your followers is an important part of your marketing and brand development.

However, making entertaining or informative content people want to return to is a time-consuming activity.

One approach to developing, and maintaining control over, your business brand is by publishing a book and offering content and off-line experiences that fit alongside it.

Here are my top tips for getting a book written and published and monetising your followers from this process.

1) Write for you, not for someone else

Publishing a book gives you the opportunity to control the narrative so you can keep your work true to who you are. But you’ll need to find a publisher who shares your vision or publish the book yourself.

Finding a publisher is much easier said than done. The likelihood is that you’ve built your following by offering your audience something that mainstream popular culture has missed. Traditional publishing is designed around maximising the chances of producing bestsellers, which means they look back into the past to try to emulate something that has already been done. It breeds a kind of unconscious conformity, which is not usually a place suited to the wild creative spirit that exists online.

Publishing the book yourself might seem the best route. Afterall it takes a lot of time to tout your book around the publishers. You may feel that this time could be better spent doing it yourself and maintaining control of your work. However, publishing a book costs a lot of money.

2) Crowdfund your book

The obvious solution to this problem is to crowdfund your book. By crowdfunding your book, you will retain complete creative control over your work. You can produce something you care about, which in turn will appeal to your followers.

Traditional publishing is also limited by the public expectation of what a book should cost – typically up to £10 for a paperback and £20 for a hardback. However, by crowdfunding your book, you can sell additional experiences and merchandise around it. For example, video games influencer, Dan Hardcastle, raised over £300k for his book, Fuck Yeah, Video Games, on Unbound.

What’s interesting is that 80 per cent of the money he raised came from non-traditional book sales, unique experiences and greater access to Dan such as signed copies, exclusive illustrations and personalised videos. This is nearly £250k in revenue that he might not have received if he’d simply published through a traditional publisher. Such is the power a crowdfunded book can bring to an influencer.

3) Write something they’re keen to hear about

Writing a book for your followers sounds simple, but what should it be about? Only you know the answer to that. The key is to be as authentic to yourself and your audience as you can. Don’t try and write what you think someone else wants to read. Or even what you think will sell. Write the book you care most about and tell your audience what that is. They will back you if they believe this is core to who you are.

At Unbound, we’ve developed a machine learning algorithm that helps us to predict, with a high degree of accuracy, how much a book is likely to raise before an author crowdfunds it. By using data such as the size of the author’s following and the topic of the book, we can predict with around 80 per cent accuracy precisely how much a book will raise within 90 days of accepting pledges / pre-orders.

However, you don’t need to have a degree in data science to decide what to write about. You’ve got plenty of followers, so run a poll. Crowdsource your book idea and they’re more likely to buy it.

4) Be imaginative with offers

There’s a fairly simple rule to follow when offering rewards to followers: the more creative the offering, the greater the value. And make sure what you offer is authentic to who you are and what you do.

Never has this been so aptly demonstrated than with popular YouTube comedian, Stuart Ashen, when he offered a ‘box of mystery tat’ as part of his crowdfunding campaign for his book Attack of the Flickering Skeletons. He sold three boxes of junk at £250 a piece. But of course it wasn’t really ‘junk’, each was a hilarious collection of unique things Stuart’s fans would recognise and value because they love what he does and they trusted him to deliver something to them that was suitably extraordinary.

5) Engage your top fans

Within any given audience, you’re bound to have a select few avid supporters who will pay a significant premium for exclusive access to you or your ideas. This is a fact traditional publishing simply cannot capitalise on. However, the digital economy has created untold new opportunities for authors to engage with their most passionate fans.

Dan Hardcastle created a reward level at £2,500 for Fuck Yeah, Video Games, which allowed a supporter to choose the video game for an entire chapter of his book. This was clearly only targeted towards the superfan. In some respects it didn’t even matter if someone bought it – it mainly served to demonstrate the depths of his accessibility and creativity, and to act as something that grabbed the attention of his followers. However, as a bonus, it did actually work and he sold out this reward level.

You would have to sell 312 copies of a traditional paperback to match this one purchase from a superfan. Every high level reward like this is bought by people who are die-hard supporters of what you do. They want the opportunity to have something unique. To connect with the creative people they most admire. You.

The other great thing about superfans is that there’s a direct correlation between the quality and passion of an influencer’s audience and the amount of money they’re likely to be able to raise from them. What encapsulates your offering to your followers? What can you offer them that’s unique to you?

Many businesses are succeeding in creating sizeable follower numbers, and publishing is just one of the industries that has the potential to embrace this new paradigm. Find the cross-over in the Venn diagram of the interesting ideas and information you want to authentically talk about as a business and what your audience wants to hear about.  Then your book that will attract eager buyers from your follower base.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dan Kieran is the co-founder and CEO of Unbound, a crowdfunding publisher that combines data science and an award-winning publishing brand with an online marketplace. Readers pre-order books through pledging, Unbound publishes and sells them, giving authors a 50/50 profit split and access to an engaged community.

The publisher’s 200k users from 195 countries have pledged £7m+ to fund 436 books to-date, including bestsellers like Letters of Note and The Good Immigrant.

By predicting future trends, Unbound funds books more quickly and reaches instant, data-driven acquisition decisions.

Website: https://unbound.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/unbounders

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Unbound/

Crowdcube: https://www.crowdcube.com/companies/unbound/pitches/b6ALPZ

Citations

Video Games influencer, Dan Hardcastle, raised over £300k for his book on Unbound: https://unbound.com/books/nerdcubed/

Stuart Ashen sold three boxes of ‘mystery tat’ at £250 a piece during his book’s crowdfunding campaign: https://unbound.com/books/moreashens/