Archive April 2010

Businesses ignore Social Media at their peril

29/04/2010 in Press Room

There is little doubt businesses in Reading, and SMEs(small and medium enterprises) in particular, should be really embracing social networking sites according to local company, Macbeth Chartered Insurance Brokers.

Social media can reach out to huge audiences, which the average business would never be able to reach, and Macbeth believes that is their real potential. The number of people a business can connect with and the number of people it can start to build relationships with online. And for little or no cost. Social media in the US has changed many customers‟ needs and businesses there have had to adapt to ensure they do not fall behind. In the UK, social media is also growing at an incredibly fast pace and Macbeth believes UK businesses will also have to adapt, especially as new generations of consumers are already using social media as part of their everyday lives.

Facebook alone currently has over 400 million active users worldwide and each user has an average 130 friends on the site (source Facebook). The viral potential is considerable as groups overlap with other groups and then onto other social networking sites and beyond.

However, these sites should not always be viewed for direct selling. For Macbeth, the use of social media is regarded as a slow-burn process. It is very much an additional brand builder and an opportunity to create a reputation.

Managing Director, Paul Macbeth says “If businesses in Reading ignore the possibilities of social media then they do so at their peril as they will potentially lose touch with their customers. Like any good, long standing relationship, it takes time to establish a rapport and trust – this rule applies as much with social networking sites. Social networking has to be worked at and be committed to. Nobody should think that sending out a few tweets here and there will generate business. It just doesn’t work like that.

“We are using social media to enhance our brand and build awareness. In my view, the key to it lies in becoming a trusted source of information and advice. Then we hope that the next time people within our network think about professional indemnity or personal high net worth insurance, they will think about us.”

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What is meant by Business Continuity Planning?

07/04/2010 in Management Liability Insurance

Disaster management, business interuption call it what you like, effective Buisness Continutiy Planning is now a major issue for Insurance companies.

Business continuity planning is a holistic management process that identifies impacts that threaten a company and provides a plan for building resilience and capabilities for an effective response that safeguards the interests of its key stakeholders, reputation, brand and value creating activities.

Primarily, it is a management process that identifies potential threats that will impact on a business’ ability to provide its customers with its products or services and the actions needed to ensure the immediate future following any major disruption. Or causes your business ‘interuption’. How long can your company survive and ‘interuption’ before you start to lose money, your place in the market or your reputation?

Everyone involved in business has a duty of care in respect of the hazards it may cause to anyone. To take it one stage further a business needs to be able to demonstrate that it is able to meet its service levels and will cope with disasters competently because it has planned to do so.

If you would like more information on business continuity planning contact
Tony Gibbs on 0118 9452944.