Of course you would! Read on for details…

A government programme is helping small businesses gain strategic advice; it will fund up 50% of the fee.

The Growth Vouchers scheme will pay up to £2000 per business.

Advice can cover many areas; finance, human resources, digital technology… and marketing.

It’s definitely worth looking into.




 

What does Strategic Marketing Advice involve?

This funding will pay for strategic advice. This means activities which help create a marketing direction for your business.

For example, the funding would cover:
 

• Analysis of your market, including your competitors, opportunities and threats
• Customer analysis: Who are they? What do they need? How can you reach them?
• Advice on how to satisfy customer needs profitably
• Help to divide your customers into groups and target them effectively
• Advice on how to develop a brand and improve your competitive edge
• Help to innovate around new products and ensure these are marketed to the appropriate audiences
• Help to make your communications planning more effective and integrated across your business
• Analysis of your sales strategy

You can apply for any amount of funding up to £2000. You need to match the amount of funding. If you request £500, you’ll also need to pay £500. Effectively, the funding scheme creates a 50% discount for strategic advice from approved providers. Decisions Marketing is one of these suppliers.

It’s important to note that this funding doesn’t cover nitty-gritty, tactical actions such as copywriting, conducting research or training.

There a few eligibility criteria for you to meet. You must:
 

• Have 249 employees or less (including any employees of companies that own a stake in your business)
• Be registered in England
• Actively sell goods or services
• Be independent (i.e. no more than 25% is owned by other businesses or organisations)
• Have a turnover of less than €50 million

The Growth Vouchers scheme is available until March 2015. Applicants are randomly selected to receive vouchers.

50% funding contribution is rarely available; let’s make the most of it!

Click here to find out more, or contact the team at Decisions Marketing.