Cover -- Contents -- A Note to the User -- Contributors -- Foreword -- Assess Yourself -- Acknowledgments -- Actionlists: Planning -- Deciding Whether to Start a Business -- Assessing Your Entrepreneurial Profile: Do You Have What It Takes? -- Identifying the Purpose of a Business -- Coming Up with a Business Idea -- Networking and Marketing Yourself -- Refining and Protecting Your Idea -- Developing and Protecting an Invention -- An Introduction to Intellectual Property -- Applying for a Patent -- Using Copyright to Protect Your Work -- Complying with the Copyright of Others -- Registering a Trade Mark -- Setting Up or Acquiring a Business -- Understanding Business Models -- Running a Family Business -- Setting Up Your Franchise -- Understanding the Pros and Cons of a Mail Order Business -- Evaluating an Existing Business -- A Guide to Business Regulations When Starting Up -- Setting Up a Business as a Private Limited Company -- Setting Up a Business as a Non-profit Organisation -- Setting Up a Co-operative Business -- Starting a Business While Under 18 -- Choosing and Registering a Business Name -- Finding Premises -- Renting a Business Property -- Buying a Business Property -- Choosing and Using an Architect -- Obtaining Planning Permission -- Insuring a Business -- A Guide to Health and Safety at Work -- Complying with Fire Safety Regulations -- Ergonomics at Work -- Setting Up and Maintaining Your Home Office -- Drawing Boundaries: How to Manage Working at Home -- Figuring it Out -- Financing a New Business -- Understanding the Role of the Bank -- Understanding Loan Finance -- Preparing a Successful Business Plan -- Applying for Grants and Funding -- Controlling a Budget -- Controlling Costs -- Drawing Up a Budget -- Getting to Grips with Income Tax -- Getting to Grips with National Insurance -- Getting to Grips with Corporation Tax.

Getting to Grips with VAT (Value Added Tax) -- Completing a VAT Return and Making Payments -- Getting to Grips with Benefits in Kind -- Repaying Employees' Student Loans -- Managing Creditors and Debtors -- Coping with Cash-flow Problems -- Issuing Invoices and Collecting Debts -- Understanding the Role of Price -- Setting Prices -- Creating a Balance Sheet -- Reading a Balance Sheet -- Creating a Profit and Loss Account -- Reading a Profit and Loss Account -- Reading a Cash-flow Statement -- Creating a Cash-flow Statement -- Calculating Accounts Receivable Turnover -- Calculating Acid-test Ratio -- Calculating Amortisation -- Calculating Annual Percentage Rate -- Calculating Asset Turnover -- Calculating Asset Utilisation -- Calculating Contribution Margin -- Calculating Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) -- Calculating Creditor and Debtor Days -- Calculating Current Ratio -- Calculating Days Sales Outstanding Ratio -- Calculating Depreciation -- Calculating EBITDA -- Calculating Economic Value Added -- Calculating Elasticity -- Calculating Interest Cover -- Calculating Marginal Cost -- Calculating Payback Period -- Calculating Return on Assets -- Calculating Return on Investment -- Calculating Return on Sales -- Calculating Working Capital Productivity -- Defining Assets -- Marketing Your Idea -- Profiling Your Target Market -- Choosing Your Marketing Strategy -- Researching the Size of Your Market -- Focus On: Planning Marketing -- Focus On: Marketing-The Importance of Being First -- Profiling Your Competitors -- Benefiting from 'Green' Marketing -- Working with Customers -- Looking for Work When You Go Self-employed -- Carrying Out Market Research -- Getting More Feedback from Customers -- Involving Customers in Product or Service Development -- Converting Leads into Sales -- Retaining Existing Customers -- Extending a Product with Service.

Handling Customer Enquiries -- Handling Customer Problems -- Increasing Customer Lifetime Value -- Getting a Better Return from Customer Events -- Managing Key Accounts -- Communicating with Your Customers -- Perfecting Your Pitch: Prepare Presentations -- Perfecting Your Pitch: Deliver Presentations -- Writing a Sales Letter -- Selling by Mail Order -- Telemarketing -- Complying with Data Protection Legislation -- Raising Awareness of Your Brand -- Planning a Cost-effective Direct Marketing Campaign -- Creating Impressive Direct Mail Material -- Improving the Response to Direct Mail -- Producing Press Material -- Setting Advertising Objectives -- Planning an Advertising Campaign-The Eight Steps -- Selecting and Working with an Advertising Agency -- Preparing an Advertising Brief -- Working with Your Local Community -- Growing Your Business -- Marketing Your Products or Services and Increasing Sales -- Surviving a Downturn -- Analysing Your Business's Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats -- Identifying Opportunities for Your Business -- Closing the Gap Between Lead Generation and Sales -- Taking the Decision to Diversify -- Franchising Your Business -- Understanding the Effects of Growth -- Encouraging an 'Innovation Culture' in Your Business -- Understanding the Role of Partnerships for Small Business -- Timing the Decision to Export -- Exporting-Methods of Market Entry -- Exporting for the First Time -- Export Documentation -- Importing for the First Time -- Working Online -- Setting Up a Basic Website -- Outsourcing Your IT and Website Operations -- Keeping on Top of E-mail -- Coping with Computer Viruses and Spyware -- Understanding the Key Principles of Internet Marketing -- Promoting Your Website Effectively -- Writing Well for the Web -- Using E-mail Marketing Effectively -- Applying a Viral Marketing Approach on the Internet.

Delivering the Benefits of Affiliate Marketing on the Web -- Getting the Best from E-marketplaces -- Getting the Best from Loyalty Programmes on the Web -- Building Loyalty Through Online Communities and Blogs -- Raising Your Company's Profile with a Blog -- Podcasting for Business -- Updating Your Website As Your Business Grows -- Selling Online -- Managing Payments Online -- Making Your Website Secure -- Collecting Consumer Data on the Internet -- Understanding Legal Issues in E-commerce -- Managing Yourself and Others -- Making Decisions Effectively -- Problem-Solving Efficiently -- Developing Your Skills and Improving Your Effectiveness -- Managing Your Time in a Small Business -- Managing Pressure -- Delegating without Guilt -- Staff Planning -- Focus On: Finding and Keeping Top Talent -- Understanding Key Elements of Employment Law -- Conducting Interviews and Making Job Offers -- Running a Payroll System -- Complying with the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 -- Setting up Job Shares -- Employing People with Disabilities -- Understanding the Working Time Regulations 1998 -- Developing Leadership Skills -- Focus On: Win-win Appraisals -- Focus On: Mentoring -- Focus On: Building Great Teams -- Delivering Difficult or Bad News -- Handling Resignations -- Motivating Others During Difficult Times -- Retreating with Dignity -- Deciding to Move On -- Succession Planning -- Deciding Whether to Sell Your Business -- Knowing When and How to Liquidate a Business -- Knowing the Value of Your Business -- Finding Potential Buyers for Your Business -- Selling Shares -- Understanding the Legal Ramifications of Winding Up a Business -- Breaking the News about Redundancy -- ESSENTIAL INFORMATION DIRECTORY -- Small and Growing Businesses -- Accounting -- Advertising -- Bankruptcy and Business Failure -- Budgeting -- Business Plans and Planning.

Computers, Information Technology, and E-commerce -- Direct Marketing -- Employment Law -- Entrepreneurs -- Exporting -- Franchising -- Importing -- Intellectual Property -- Marketing Management -- Market Research and Competitor Intelligence -- Negotiation -- New Product Development -- Outsourcing -- Packaging -- Presentation and Speaking -- Pricing -- Product and Brand Management -- Project Management -- Public Relations -- Recruitment and Selection -- Selling and Salesmanship -- Taxation -- Venture Capital -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- Y.