Let’s start by saying we know you’ve probably seen lots of companies providing you with advice on what your marketing strategy should be. We get it. However, what we want to do in this blog is talk about what 6 things we know will work for businesses like the ones based here at St James’ Business Centre. There are many other things you can do to as part of your marketing strategy of course, but we think these are the main points to consider as we reach the end of 2022.
So, if you’re a small business owner, why not give our tips a try? And let us know how you get on afterwards.
Find your audience (and stick with them)
How many times have you heard business owners say ‘everyone’ when asked who their potential customers are? The truth is, it’s almost impossible to appeal to ‘everyone’¬! A better and more focused approach is to look at who your existing customers are and why they’ve chosen you. Once you understand that, you can then understand how to attract more customers. And one way to do this is by creating a buyer persona.
Buyer personas can help you speak to customers in a personalised way, and streamline your marketing and sales process, so you’re only spending time on the leads most likely to convert.
Take a look at the template below and follow the steps to create your buyer persona.
Stay focused
When thinking about marketing campaigns, it’s sometimes easy to get distracted and try to do too many things at once. The problem with this is that you can lose focus on what actually works and brings you the best results.
This means testing, testing and testing again. You need to do your research and look back at which campaigns have worked for you and which haven’t worked so well. Once you’ve created your buyer persona, you’ll be able to see exactly where your target audience spends their time and then focus on campaigns which will reach them directly.
Competitor research also helps. Look at what your competitors do well and where they can improve. Let them do all the hard work for you, so all you have to do is take what works and make it relevant to you.
Data is king
Capturing information about your customers – and potential customers – is perhaps the most important thing you can do for your business. So, when someone visits your website, make sure you have some way of collecting their name and email address. This allows you to target people who’ve previously visited your website and re-engage with your audience.
All you need to do is figure out what you can offer to prospects, so they’re willing to give up their email address to have it. Simple, right?
Optimise for mobile
You know yourself how easy it is to just pick up your smartphone when you want to search for a product or service. Your customers like that convenience too, so make sure your website looks and works as well as it can on mobile devices. Google will appreciate it too and rank your site higher as a result.
Advertise everywhere you can
There are so many ways to advertise you small business nowadays, from a Google My Business profile to sponsoring products on ecommerce sites, like Amazon and Etsy. Other options are pay-per-click (PPC) and Facebook or Instagram ads. Also consider advertising with your local Chamber of Commerce if you have one, as you can usually benefit from great online and social media coverage. And, for a small fee, they often offer lots of networking opportunities with other local businesses.
Plan, plan, and plan some more
It seems obvious, but this is something that isn’t considered at all or not until the last minute. This doesn’t just mean choosing a few dates in your calendar and calling it a day. You should start to plan your business and work events early, so you know exactly when you need to get your marketing campaigns ready.
You’ve defined your target audience. You know which platforms to reach them with. And you know your valuable offering. Now it’s time to plan. By thinking about this in advance, you can plan your 2023 content calendar, for example, so you know what you’ll write about and what keywords you’ll target.
Whatever you do, you must plan ahead. If you want your 2023 small business marketing to be bigger and better, you must think about it now and work on it before the new year arrives, so start building your marketing strategy today.
Reasons why project management can help your small business
With so many things to think about for small business owners, project management might seem like just another one to add to the ever-growing list. However, treating certain tasks within your business as projects and managing them properly could bring your business lots of benefits you might not have thought about.
Many small business owners think project management’s only important to larger companies. However, project management is crucial for any organisation that values achieving its goals on time and on budget.
So, what is project management?
In basic terms, it’s finishing a pre-defined task or objective by a pre-defined deadline. Usually there’s a person or team involved in achieving the task on time and they’ll usually have a budget to stick to. It sounds simple when put like that and you’re probably already doing it without calling it project management.
So, maybe now’s the time to start calling these tasks project management and taking advantage of some of the extra benefits this could bring. But where should you start?
Better budgeting
We mentioned budgeting earlier. It’s a key part of any project, especially for smaller business where things are tighter, so managing it as part of the project can help you stay in control.
Smarter scheduling
This goes hand-in-hand with the previous point. Time is money and money is time, so manage one properly and you’ll manage the other one properly too.
Improved accountability
Having properly defined roles makes accountability much easier. This can help make things run more smoothly and tasks get completed on time. It also stops people blaming each other if things go wrong, as they do from time to time.
Proper insight
One of the most valuable benefits of project management is knowing what needs to happen after the project. This is much easier with full documentation and an understanding of the data and insights. You can also learn for future projects by analysing what went well and not so well.
Improved success
All of these factors can increase your chances of a successful project, which is the outcome everyone desires. You can carefully review the project once it’s finished. Assess the project manager’s performance and look at how the business dealt with obstacles and challenges.
What can I do to help my project management?
The first thing to do is start thinking about what could be considered a project that needs managing in your business. Clearly, some things don’t need to be approached as a project, but once you’ve established which these are, you can then assign the right project manager and/or team for them.
Planning is also crucial once you have the project and people in place. The more planning and preparation you can do in advance, the better your projects will be.
St James Business Centre , leading Warrington business hub the 80,000 square foot hub for SMEs on Wilderspool Causeway in Warrington, enjoyed a spate of new lettings and space up-sizes in Q2.
5% of the building’s space has been snapped up by new and existing tenants as the town’s economy evidently continues to demonstrate its inherent strength. Following data from the influential Centre for Cities thinktank shows Warrington to be one of the north’s most entrepreneurial business locations.
Building Manager at St James Business Centre, Laura Moore, said:
“The breadth of businesses in St James continues to grow and it’s something of an entrepreneurial hot-spot,”
“Our latest lettings show existing tenants expanding and new tenants arriving, both equally solid indicators of the strength of the local economy and the quality of our offer in the building,”
The new deals include:
KN Circet, a leading telecoms network engineering and maintenance provider, which has increased its space to 1,000 square feet
Total Rail, providers of project management solutions for the rail sector – 235 square feet
Local care provider Acute Need – 409 square feet
ABL, which has increased its space to 900 square feet
St James business centre is a part of a joint venture, Wire Regeneration formed by langtree and Warrington Council.
Follow us and experience a day in the life at St James Business Centre, Warrington
The weather was nice today, which is a pleasant change for Warrington, so I decided to walk to the office as it’s only 20-minutes from my house, and my little girl loves riding her bike to nursery.
It’s handy having a nursery enroute to the office as it makes drop-offs and pick-ups much easier.
I sometimes take the car or catch the bus, but when it’s dry and sunny, I like to walk or cycle, so I can get fitter and do my bit for the environment.
Some colleagues like to get the train to Warrington Central or Bank Quay and then walk, as they’re both only 10-minutes away from the head office here at St James.
A good morning hello
After my usual quick hello and wave to the friendly reception staff, I pop into the onsite café (which is super useful) to grab a takeaway Costa coffee.
Is it a bacon sandwich day too? I’ll let you decide that one. Now, it’s off to the office to join the rest of my team.
The Office
The office we have today is slightly different to the one we had when we first moved in. There were only a few of us then, so we didn’t need many desks.
However, since being at St James Business Centre we’ve grown substantially and the office has, of course, grown with us.
As we grew, we decided to switch to a serviced agreement as everything’s done for us.
The conventional option was perfect when we used it too, and it was really straightforward to change over when we needed to.
The building team were really helpful and made sure we had everything covered, so we got exactly what we need from both the building and overall offering.
Our office is on the first floor of the building and is a lovely light and airy space.
Time to get to work
Once I’m at my desk, the first job of the day is usually to check my emails and calendar, review Google alerts, or monitoring reports around keywords and company PR, and any current campaign efforts.
I flag some for sharing on the company social media accounts and pass on any relevant links. Can you guess which department i work in?
Office Perks
Another nice perk of St James is the speed of the wi-fi, we have a managed provision through St James that we utilise and it never lets me down.
I can download documents clients have sent to us easily and send invoices and presentations to them as quickly and securely as you’d expect.
Mid-Morning Adventures
Mid-morning, I need to get everyone together for a team briefing, where I run them through the plans for the week, go over KPIs and next steps to make sure we’re all on track.
We use the on-site meeting and conference rooms for meetings as they come with screens and projectors and we can use the conference phone too, so anyone working from home doesn’t miss out.
With the mid-morning team briefing out of the way, it’s time for another cuppa. I head to the communal kitchen, where I also sneak a quick snack from the fridge.
Then I get my head down for the next few hours working before lunch, going through strategy plans, presentations, and 1-1s with the team.
Talking of lunch, we’re lucky to be able to use the on-site café, rustle something up in the kitchen, or opt for one of the nearby restaurants when hunger strikes. It’s great being situated right by the centre of Warrington, because it’s only a 15-minute walk to the Warrington Food Market with its wide selection of places to eat.
Connections
Once I’ve had my daily lunchtime walk (usually to grab some food), it’s time for a meeting with one of the other tenants.
It’s fantastic having connections with, and access to, an array of like-minded people under the same roof as yourself.
We normally do these meetings in one of the breakout spaces as they’re bright, airy, and informal, so they always make me feel more relaxed and creative.
Energised by my meeting, I attack my afternoon’s work with gusto until I get a message from reception telling me I have a package – the team are brill for signing for packages when we’re in meetings.
This also reminds me to take my own package to be delivered to a client down to reception as I pick the one waiting for me up.
Hometime
As home time looms, I think how lucky I am to have this as my place of work. I can just log off, pack my stuff up, and go home.
When I come in tomorrow, I know the same familiar routine will start again, and I can have another productive day, but it is important to switch up the routine once in awhile to keep me on my toes.
While most people have now returned to work post-Covid, the need for office collaboration is greater than ever.
Over the last two years many of us have successfully transformed parts of our home into temporary offices, however, many have also missed the buzz of the office.
We have all become used to meetings over Zoom or Teams, they have made working from home much easier but simplifying the sharing of documents and projects online.
However, you’d probably agree it doesn’t compare to doing things face-to-face.
The office can play an essential role in influencing and facilitating collaboration and innovation.
It is a place where ideas are shared, solutions found, and relationships are built, which in turn increases productivity, efficiency, motivation, and helps to create a working environment that cannot be replicated at home.
It allows employees to work faster and more effectively, think differently, and learn from others to improve their skills and develop the business.
It’s often said two brains are better than one, and this is never more true when it’s to do with work.
Tricky tasks can be easier to solve together, and creativity can thrive when you’re able to talk directly to someone else who’s working on the same project as you.
It can also save time too, you don’t need to do things by email and the workload can be shared.
Enhanced feedback
Collaboration is a two-way process, where both parties can feel comfortable providing feedback to each other, good and bad.
It’s easier to come up with ideas together and it’s easier to give meaningful feedback face-to-face.
Things like body-language, facial expressions, and getting difficult points across can be more successful on a face-to-face basis.
Improved (head)space
A lot of offices have spaces designed for face-to-face collaboration.
This might be a meeting room, breakout space, or even a section of the office with sofas or beanbags where you can go and meet someone away from your desk.
Areas like this can make you feel more creative and energised – especially if you grab a coffee at the same time and put you in a different headspace to sitting at your desk.
Team building
Another benefit of collaboration in the office is how well it can build teams.
Being in the same location means you can get to know and understand each other well.
Simply seeing and working with someone every day makes forming a relationship much easier, and, of course, team building activities work much better face-to-face in an office than they do online.
A shared purpose
Employees who share a workspace often share a sense of place too. Their office is where they feel at home when they’re away from home.
If they share a sense of place, they’re far more likely to have a shared purpose about the work done at that place too, leading to a willingness to collaborate and work together effectively.
Happy new year! Do you have any new years resolutions planned?
What about a new office? New year can be a great time for change.
Whether you’re looking for something new, lowering your costs, looking for something more convenient or maybe looking for office space with better facilities.
Making change can be a great way to improve your productivity.
A change is as good as a rest
Okay, this old proverb might mean literally changing your job is as good as rest, but it can equally be applied to a change of where you work too.
Having different surroundings can give you meet new people and gain new perspective.
These will all have a positive impact on your mind, body and business.
Clearly, not everyone needs an office full-time or wants to use all the facilities all the time.
If you’ve just started your business or would like a bit of flexibility around when you come into the office, a co-working space could be what you need.
Work in the office as often or as little as you like and take advantage of all the extra services everyone else working here can. That’s the great thing about flexibility – you can make it work for you.
Close to home
A long journey to work isn’t something anyone looks forward to especially on Monday mornings, so why not look for an office closer to home, or convenient to get to?
That doesn’t mean it has to be within walking distance, but close to a motorway junction, train station, or bus stop is ideal.
Less time travelling to and from work means you’ve got more time for yourself to spend with your family, practice your hobbies, or simply doing whatever you like. And what’s not to like about that?
If you’re looking for office space for your business, one of the decisions you might be facing is whether to choose a serviced or leased office. To help you see which one’s right for your business, we’ve put together everything you need to know in this short and helpful guide.
Convenience or freedom
The first thing to consider is which of these is most important to you. Serviced offices are generally more convenient as more or less everything is done for you. All of the important stuff is there, including chairs, desks, and storage. And the essential infrastructure will be in place too. Many serviced offices will have ready-made break out areas, meeting rooms, and cafes or restaurants onsite.
With a leased office, you’ll need to sort out the fixtures and furniture yourself, as well as many of the services. This can take much longer to organise than you might think, so many businesses prefer the convenience of a serviced office. However, you can configure your office space however you like, so you can put your brand stamp on it more than with a serviced office.
Long-term commitment
Leased office spaces are usually a longer-term commitment than serviced office agreements. It can also take time to agree contracts, especially when compared to serviced office agreements. You can usually have more flexibility in the term if you take a serviced office agreement too. This is useful if you’re not sure how long you want to stay in a premises or if you need to move to a larger space as your business grows.
Costs
One advantage of a long lease is that you can sometimes control your overheads, as you can negotiate costs for services, and you know the price of your lease won’t change over the length of its term. With a serviced agreement, you can budget easily as you know what your monthly or annual costs will be, however, you won’t be able to save on overheads as you can with a lease. There’s also no guarantee your costs will be the same if you renew your agreement either.
As with all business decisions, understanding the numbers is vital before you sign anything, so it’s important to make a business plan that includes your projections for the future. This will help you decide which type of office space will suit your needs now and going forward.
The people who work at St James Business Centre are really important to us. Our team come from all sorts of backgrounds and bring their own characters to whatever job they are doing. They’re positive, good organisers, great communicators, real team players and are proud to say ‘we work at St James Business Centre’. Meet Carole Williams, our Assistant Building Manager…
If you could write your own job title that best describes what you do at St James Business Centre, what would it be?
Assistant Building Manager
When did you start at St James Business Centre and what was your first role?
November 2011 was tupe’d over when Langtree bought the building. My first role was Executive Suite Secretary.
What led you to this career and wanting to work at St James Business Centre?
Joined the previous company in 2007 so that I could work closer to home.
Name a work-related accomplishment that you’re really proud of achieving at St James Business Centre?
Promotion to Assistant Building Manager.
Tell us some of your previous experience before working at St James Business Centre?
I was a legal secretary for over 20 years covering all aspects including conveyancing, probate, personal injury, and criminal law.
Sometimes we all need a little bit of advice, what is the best advice you were ever given and who was it from?
Enjoy every day as if it was your last. My mother.
Tell us one thing you saw recently that made you smile?
My grandchildren.
How do you unwind after a busy day or what is your favourite way to unwind at the weekend?
A glass of wine and a good film.
Everyone loves a good movie, what are your top 3 favourite films?
Miss Congeniality – Practical Magic – The Holiday
What’s your favourite place that you’ve ever visited?
Crete.
For any support around the building contact Carole. As assistant building manager Carole is on hand to support you with all your building needs.
St James Business Centre a key asset of town’s Southern Gateway
More than 7,000 sq ft of business space at St James Business Centre – Warrington’s largest hub for small-to-medium enterprises points to the robustness of the town’s economy, say its owners.
Wire Regeneration, the joint venture between Langtree and Warrington Borough Council which operates the St James Business Centre on Wilderspool Causeway, says that the post-pandemic upturn is “real, sustained and indicative of the resilience of local businesses.”
Six new tenants have signed deals at St James Business Centre. The largest deal, for recruitment specialist Lignum, is for almost 3,500 square feet.
“SMEs are the bellwether for any economy and the response of our tenants since the pandemic eased suggests we’re set fair for a period of sustained growth,” says Jayne Furnival, group property director at Langtree.
“An asset like St James is vital to any town wishing to grow a diversified stock of businesses and whatever a firm’s place on its growth curve, we have the office space and lease terms to suit them.”
More than 250 staff now work on site at the thriving centre.
Commenting on their new lease, Sally Dunne of Lignum Group, said:
“We were on the look-out for modern, comfortable space for our growing team that had the benefit of a central location with parking and St James fitted the bill perfectly.
We’re fully geared up to help match employers and candidates as the economy hits its stride.”
The people who work at St James Business Centre are really important to us. Our team come from all sorts of backgrounds and bring their own characters to whatever job they are doing. They’re positive, good organisers, great communicators, real team players and are proud to say ‘we work at St James Business Centre’. Meet Laura Moore, our Building and Facilities Manager…
If you could write your own job title that best describes what you do at St James Business Centre, what would it be?
My role at St James Business Centre is Building and Facilities Manager, the work i do at St James includes looking after the tenants of a multi-let building ensuring all their needs are met. This also includes all soft and hard FM, maintenance, customer service, dealing with all aspects of leases and service charge.
When did you start at St James Business Centre and what was your first role?
My first role at St James Business Centre was Building Manager and i have remained in that role ever since i first began in November 2018.
Why did you want to work at St James Business Centre and what led you to this career?
I began working was at another building service role previously where I had worked my way through and up the company and i felt that it was time to work for a more competitive business who had great knowledge and expertise within the industry i have such a passion for.
Name a work-related accomplishment that you’re really proud of at St James Business Centre?
Refurbishing offices is one of the things i love most about my work and i also enjoy seeing the project through from start to finish.
Being able to see a project through from start to finish provides me with a sense of accomplishment and pride for my work.
Tell us some of your previous experience before working at St James Business Centre?
Before coming to work at St James Business Centre i have previous experience running restaurants in Manchester city centre before i then made the move across to building management which was great fun! I feel i’ve found my passion and i will continue to thrive and grow my career at St James Business Centre where i am able to but myself right at the forefront of the customer journey and support people and businesses alike who come to base themselves at our modern, high-quality space.
What’s the best advice you were ever given and who was it from?
The 6 P’s – Perfect, Planning, Prevents, Pretty, Poor, Performance. I am still an advocate of this today. From my dad.
Tell us one thing you saw recently that made you smile?
My little girl waking up this morning.
What’s your favourite way to unwind after a busy day or at the weekend?
Going for a run.
Everyone loves a good movie, what are your top 3 favourite films?
The Notebook, Shaw Shank Redemption and Cruel intentions for a cheesy chick flick.
What’s your favourite place that you’ve ever visited?
Australia, The Whit Sunday Islands in particular – I would love to live there one day.
For any support around the building contact Laura. As building manager Laura is on hand to support you with all your building needs.
It’s a brilliant location with plentiful parking, easy to reach by road or public transport.
The range of small, medium and large office suites has provided us with the flexibility to tailor the space and cost to meet our requirements without moving away from the building.
As a small business, the convenience of helpful support staff to greet visitors and send a receive mail and parcels is a real bonus, as is the availability of dedicated meeting rooms and available at short notice for customer meetings and product presentations.
A365 LIMITED Tenant at St James Business Centre since 2013
Since moving into St James Business Centre, we have found the team to be extremely friendly, helpful and accommodating. They have supported us on our journey from our start-up phase where we initially needed a small serviced office space through to us moving into our new larger offices. As the business continues to grow, it’s reassuring to know we will be able to remain at the business centre for the long term as Langtree gives us the flexibility to move into larger office space and when we need it.
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