Business link's key to success

Jan 4 2007 Hot 100

WHETHER yours is a fast-growth company now, or whether it has the potential to be one in the future, all businesses need support at some point in their lifetime.
 
From advice on turning a great idea into a thriving business, or help taking a successful business to the next level, it helps to have somebody to turn to with the experience and knowledge you need.
 
Fortunately, more than 10,000 businesses across Liverpool, Wirral, Halton, Knowsley, Sefton and St Helens take advantage of just such a resource every year.
 
Depending on the stage of business growth, some need assistance breaking into new markets while others may require support simply getting off the ground.
 
That's why Business Link has an approved panel of more than 200 consultants in and around Merseyside and access to more than 200 trade teams across the world.
 
But across the board, companies from all sectors of the region's economy, and at all stages of growth, have discovered that Business Link is the organisation which delivers results.
 
So much so that businesses which have been helped by Business Link find that the support they receive delivers an average annual growth in turnover of between 10 and 12%.

Gateway to the world 

For rapid-growth businesses, some of the greatest opportunities for future expansion lie a little further afield than in and around Merseyside.
 
For those businesses seeking to reach foreign markets, the International Trade Centre for Greater Merseyside (ITC) is their gateway to the world.
 
Drawing on the services of teams based in no fewer than 200 of Britain's consulates and embassies around the world, and working closely with Business Link, the Euro Info Centre North West and the Chambers of Commerce, the ITC can deliver a wide range of international trade activities to help both current and aspiring exporters find new markets.
 
"Many firms are intimidated by the prospect of doing business abroad, but we can help them overcome whatever doubts they may have," says director, Colin Gardner.
 
"We can assist with conducting research, offer a wide and varied trade mission programme and run a series of workshops and seminars to raise awareness of the opportunities available."

Giving hot firms flying starts

Even with Merseyside's reputation for enterprise, there are times when even exceptional ideas and hard work are not enough to turn an idea into a viable business.
 
For those with the ideas, Business Link has its Enterprise Development team providing insight and assistance to give their dream the best chance of becoming a Hot 100 of the future.
 
And, recognising the wider benefits provided by assisting startups, it's for their benefit that the Government recently extended Business Link's Business Start programme to 2008.
 
"We can help all sorts of firms put the foundations in place," says director, Jo Bowen-Jones. "We can assist with the things new businessmen and women need to consider, such as constructing a business plan, banking and tax.
 
"We can also ensure that a business gets access to the sort of sales and marketing back-up which is right for that company, whatever it does."
 
For more information on how Business Link can help your business, call 0845 330 0151 or log on to www.bl4gm.co.uk.