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This article was written by P4D | Parcels for Delivery, who offer heavily discounted courier services to small-medium sized businesses. P4D partners with couriers you know and trust, like City Link, Fedex, DHL and TNT to provide an affordable parcel delivery service for those who send parcels infrequently or in smaller volumes.

There’s an old saying in business: “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. This may sound trite but it’s a good mantra to introduce into any entrepreneurial endeavour. Plan and plan again before execution and you won’t go too far wrong.

What the UK Government defines as micro and small business communities (less than £440,000 turnover and ten or fewer employees) constitute approximately 60 per cent of all companies registered at Companies House, plus there are the tens of thousands of sole traders and partnerships in Britain. So, it is no surprise – and indeed it is good news – that the Government is looking at how it can help small businesses play their part in steering the nation away from an economic abyss.

Find out options for the best business support for IT services. Whether it’s for delivering emails, despatching orders or just chasing unpaid debts. At some point the office technology becomes too important to muddle through problems and businesses look for an IT support service to provide some stability.

Securing significant investment is often crucial for a business’s development and survival. However, entrepreneurs shouldn’t be afraid to hold out for the right deal on the right terms. Even where the broad commercial deal appears favourable, businesses should make sure that the legal language in any transaction documentation doesn’t create long-term problems.

There’s still money to be made in property. With high house prices meaning that buying a home is out of the reach of many, lettings and property management companies are doing very well indeed.

Starting a day nursery is a popular entrepreneurial choice, especially so amongst parents who spot the potential this business offers after bringing up their own children. Working with children can be one of the most rewarding things in the world, although you will need to be highly dedicated and have lots of patience.

Starting a kennels and cattery business is one of the most difficult and time consuming enterprises to start and run – yet it can also be one of the most enjoyable and rewarding. If you’re a dog or cat lover and have always dreamed of working with animals then running a kennels and cattery could provide you with the perfect business…

The Government introduced the Feed in Tariff (FiT) in order to kick-start the solar industry in the UK. Under the original scheme it had just this effect. The desired aim of increased renewable energy, new business and new jobs had been achieved. Yet all this is now in jeopardy following the Government’s announcement on 31 October, bringing forward the assumed deadline of March 2012 and introducing cuts. Libbie Henderson, Energy Partner with Dickinson Dees LLP, explores the ramifications.

Many entrepreneurs will not want to run their business indefinitely. At some point they will want to sell the company and move on to another project, retire, or go back to being an employee. The route to this, involving selling the company, is called an ‘exit strategy.’ There are a variety of different exit strategies. Knowing which one is most suitable for your company can help ensure you get the best possible price and the smoothest sale.

One of the biggest problems for small businesses is getting paid promptly by their customers. Increasingly customers choose either to delay payment to improve their own cashflow or attempt to renegotiate the cost of a product or service once it has been received or performed.

Selling over the internet was, and still can be, a big step for many businesses. But just as ecommerce is now a daily choice for many consumers, the growth of mobile commerce suggests that it too will become as popular. Businesses of all sizes looking to utilise a new way of allowing customers to purchase products will benefit from mobile commerce, which offers a range of advantages to both the business and the purchaser.

Opportunities in the creative sector are broad but it's a very competitive market. These top tips will help you develop the skills and attitude necessary to break into, and succeed within, the creative sector.

There is an increasing number of entrepreneurs in the UK. Research carried out earlier this year revealed that more than half of 14- to 19-year-olds would like to be their own boss. According to a survey by Hiscox Insurance, 25 percent of London undergraduates were either running their own businesses or setting up companies while still at university – in Hull, the proportion was 36 percent, followed by Glasgow (32 percent) and Cardiff (22 percent). Here, we offer 10 top tips for young entrepreneurs who want to either start or develop their own businesses.

As an employer, one of the most irksome realities of commercial life is that, occasionally, employees become ill and unable to attend work or develop non-sickness-related absence habits. This can be troublesome for the employer and frustrating and stressful for the employee.

Online companies face many of the same legal issues as offline companies. However, many online companies seek to streamline the contractual process and provide a seamless online experience for their customers and users. This results in a slightly different approach to the legal documentation. Further the most valuable asset of many online businesses is their intellectual property rights and so the ownership and protection of such rights is a key consideration.