Jun 26
What’s affecting me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.
CONFIDENCE FALLS, EXCEPT ON WALL STREET Confidence among small businesses falls to an eight-month low in May, dampened by a deteriorating outlook for sales and hiring, according to a National Federation of Independent Business survey. Gallup also says economic confidence plunged. Builder confidence declines, too. An economist says there’s a 99 percent chance of recession in the United States by next year. The director of the Congressional Budget Office says there’s a great deal of pain ahead, but he’s “heartened by the fact that households have de-leveraged, businesses are sitting on cash, and anything that increases individual and business confidence could prompt new spending.” Seventy-seven percent of venture capital executives are optimistic about their industry. Calculated Risk says the slowdown may be temporary.
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Tags: Business, Small Business
Jun 25
If you have started your own business you could probably tell the rest of us what marketing is all about as you have already made the jump into territory demanding passion, insight and sheer bloody courage.
What are you selling and why will people want to buy it?
This is the big, and probably the only question that really matters. Strangely many people misunderstand what they are selling. They think they are selling insurance when they are actually selling peace of mind. They think people will buy it because of its price when they’ll actually buy it because they trust the supplier.
Think about what makes you, you the owner or the leader, special and different; about your achievements and your interests; most importantly about the way you behave; about what your friends think about you; about why you really started this business. Do not underestimate or suppress your own personality in creating your marketing. Remember Ben and Jerry.
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Tags: Business
Jun 25
AIRBUS ended the Paris Air Show on a high yesterday by announcing an £11.4bn order – its biggest ever.
Malaysian low-cost carrier AirAsia signed for 200 A320neo medium-haul aircraft.
The deal is a record for the European manufacturer in terms of aircraft and the third-largest in value.
It eclipsed a £10bn order for 180 aircraft from India’s Indigo signed on Wednesday.
AirAsia chief executive officer Tony Fernandes flew into Paris to sign-off the deal and wraps up a frenetic event which sent industry records clattering.
Yesterday alone, Airbus announced orders for 274 new aircraft. In addition to the AirAsia order, Indian airline GoAir signed a deal for 72 A320neo and Japanese airline Skymark ordered two more A380 super jumbos.
John Leahy, Airbus chief commercial officer, also said an unidentified airline had ordered 10 A380 super jumbos.
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Tags: 200 A320neo, A320neo
Jun 23
Executives at Ireland’s biggest high street bank were forced to dodge eggs and a barrage of abuse at what could be the institution’s last annual meeting under private ownership.
In a sign that anger is far from diminishing, Bank of Ireland’s chairman, Pat Molloy, and chief executive, Richie Boucher, were subjected to three-hour verbal onslaught from shareholders, including an attack by Gary Keogh, 67, who was escorted away after throwing two eggs at the executives.
He missed, but described them as “lower than bottom-pond insects” and said the incident did wonders for his blood pressure. He said he had invested €5,000 (£4,400) in the bank in 2007 and his shares were now worth just €40.
The cash-strapped bank is trying to raise €4.2bn to recapitalise in a bid to stop the government – which currently holds a 36% share – taking virtual full control.
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Tags: Eggs
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