With so much advice available, just where does a business start?
Since 2008 the banks have clearly shown how inept they are at running their own businesses yet they still make the decisions when it comes to whether or not someone else has a sound business plan and whether it has credibility!!
How can this be justified bearing in mind they so clearly got their own sums so incredibly wrong?
- In hindsight wouldn’t the Government have been better setting up a specific ring fenced fund for businesses instead of bailing out the banks?
- Shouldn’t decisions relating to funding businesses be made by a combination of experts in their fields rather than bankers alone?
- How can an industry that effectively brought the West to its knees be allowed to judge what works in the business world?
Look at what one of the high street banks has to say:
“Personal service and expert advice when you need it.” They go on to say: “Our Business Managers are at the heart of our Business Banking service. They’re here to help you organise your finances and save you time. They’ll also help to make your money work harder for you”.
Ironically banks are usually the first port of call for any budding entrepreneur, yet what is misleading with the above statement is that it inadvertently suggests that their “Business Managers” are going to give ”expert advice” but this is only when it comes to money, hence the term “they will make your money work harder”. Of course in banking terms this means you need to earn more to pay for their charges, cynical but true!!
Perhaps they should use the term “Business account managers” instead and should not be stretching the truth when it comes to business knowledge.
What do their business managers know about the various types of marketing available for instance? Aren’t they simply there to offer us investments to generate them more revenue? What is their knowledge in dealing with landlords, licence agreements, leasing arrangements etc? How about dealing with suppliers, distributors or planning departments for example. And what do they know about franchising for example or business networking? More importantly any business manager worth their salt should be asking searching questions about sales forecasts.
They can also advise on or recommend a suitable accountant but speaking from experience it’s usually just a case that they either know them personally or they’re already in the accountants’ networking circle!
Sales, or the lack of them are the most important factor in whether you will have a business or not, without them the business will not survive and with it can follow bankruptcy etc. Sales skills training could be very useful to every new business, but do the banks’ business managers advise you on this important topic? Do I really need to answer this?
The advice any budding entreprenuer needs to take from this has to be that if you want help look to other successful business people first rather than the local bank. After all if any business adviser is worth their salt they would be running a business already, right?!
Personally, do I like banks or not? Yes, I think they’re fine if you want to finance something etc. Do I trust them to advise me on my business? Not likely! I honestly believe the less you get involved with them in this respect – the better your business has of surviving…
