24th April 2007 - Business in Berkshire News: www.businessinberkshire.co.uk/240407.html

UPDATE YOUR PROFILE
If you would like to change the profile of the newsletters you receive from us then please
Update Your Profile

   

Good morning

Yesterday we held our first networking event of 2007 and it went extremely well. Opportunity came the way of those who took part. We'll collate the net impact for each and every attendee and report back in a measured systematic way for those who were thinking "I'd like the sound of that but I'll wait and see what happens."

Question? How can you see what happens if you are not at the event? Get yourself along to our next gig and join in, coming to a venue near you soon. We'll be running events around the county on a monthly basis so if you're in the events business and would like help to increase your profile, say hello.

Check out our St George's Day Bronze Membership offer. Two for the price of one! All accounts ordered this week come with a FREE special feature worth £180 + Vat.

Yesterday was also an extra super special day with brass knobs on for Ant, our designer. He was the lucky recipient of one baby daughter. How did this happen? Because he was at his own special event approx 9 months ago! Congratulations my boy... please excuse us if our graphics are not to their usually high standard this week as he'll be taking the week off to practice getting 2 hours sleep a night!

Enjoy today's news but please don't read it on the mobile while driving, have you seen the latest stats? My guess, if it isn't already the case, is that drivers of the future will be done for manslaughter if they crash while on the phone... just turn it off in the car unless you have the right kit...

Meanwhile it's my lovely wife's birthday so hopefully we'll be out to lunch!

Enjoy...

 

Today's Featured News

   

St George's Day Bronze Membership

St George's Day Bronze Membership
Double the value on St George's Day... a little something extra... our journalist will write you a story and our designer, create that launch pdf... worth £180... offer open for St George's Day and the following 4 business days only

Business in Berkshire Bronze Membership
Bronze membership gives you FULL membership rights and provides you with your own website within the Business in Berkshire community complete with news and events pages.

St George's Day Bronze Membership

   

Pursuit NHA Conference Centre

If you are looking for off site facilities to hold anything from a small meeting to a fully serviced conference or event, Pursuit NHA's new Conference Suite at Waltham Court could meet your needs.

The fully air conditioned conference suite includes a Conference Room, Meeting Rooms and Café (all with natural daylight) and is available for you to hire for your events.

Pursuit NHA Conference Centre

   

Drivers Ignore Phone Ban

Drivers Ignore Phone Ban

A recent survey* suggested one million people in the UK were flouting the law at any one time by using a mobile phone while driving.

The figures speak for themselves: in 2005, 13 deaths and 400 injuries were blamed on drivers using hand-held mobile phones. Nearly 69,000 people were given fixed-penalty notices for this in 2004 and the figure has dramatically risen to nearly 132,000 in 2006.

Drivers Ignore Phone Ban

   

European Commission 7th Framework Funding for R&D

FOR CHIEF EXECUTIVES, HEADS OF R&D AND TECHNICAL DIRECTORS
European Commission 7th Framework Funding for R&D
Wednesday 16 May 9.45am - 4.30pm

OBJECTIVE OF EVENT:
To give companies, who would benefit from Commission support, an understanding of the funding opportunities and the tools to make a successful bid
The workshop includes input from...

European Commission 7th Framework Funding for R&D

   

New rights for low-income borrowers

New rights for 'low income borrowers'

People on low salaries are set to benefit from a new law which will regulate how lenders sell loans to borrowers, states Mondaq.

Under the new rules, borrowers will be able to question any unfair aspects of the relationship which arise between themselves and the money lender, reports the BBC.

Critics hope that the new regulations will dampen the prospect of banks taking advantage of those who have most difficulty paying money back.

New rights for low-income borrowers

   

Carbon Monoxide Warning

Part of our work involves undertaking inspections and audits; this involves verifying that gas appliances, such as cookers and boilers have been correctly maintained. Carbon Monoxide (CO) is known as the silent killer, it can kill almost instantly in great quantities and in smaller long term quantities cause you be lethargic, feel absolutely rotten and lousy and can lead to brain damage as it slowly poisons you...

Carbon Monoxide Warning

   

Help them to help you!

Most of the business community would agree that editoral space is worth its weight in gold. But, says Tessa Harris, editor of Berkshire Life, the glossy lifestyle magazine that's the only paid-for title in the county,some people just don't help themselves when given the opportunity.

Regular advertisers in the magazine are often asked if they would like to supply images or information about their products and services, but many of them are ill-prepared to respond says Tessa, who has more than 20 years experience on national and regional titles.

Help them to help you!

   

Government Announces Internet Fraud Statistics

According to recent research by the Government's Get Safe Online project, around 12% of internet users fell prey to fraudsters in 2006, a figure that equates to around 3.5 million people. The report, entitled 'Internet Safety: The State of the Nation', found that on average fraud victims lost £875 as a result.

Additionally the survey found that, of the UK's 29 million adult internet users, 6% had experienced fraud when shopping online, 5% had experienced general online fraud, and 4% had suffered fraud involving their bank account or credit cards as a result of online activity.

Government Announces Internet Fraud Statistics

   

Savill Garden

Windsor residents can enjoy one of the finest established woodland gardens right on their own doorstep: Savill Gardens in Windsor Great Park. Along with the Valley Gardens and Virginia Water, locals have access to around a thousand acres of landscaped gardens, lakes, and woodland.

The Savill Garden itself is one of Britain's greatest ornamental gardens. Neither a botanical garden, nor a kitchen garden, it is a garden created for garden's sake and its 35 acres of charming contemporary and classical styled gardens are enjoyed by horticulturalists and enthusiasts alike.

Savill Garden

   

FREE Small Business Review

Practical Help with Immediate Results for Berkshire Businesses

Ever spent sleepless nights puzzling over what is holding your business back or how you could make more money for less time and effort?

With external experts reviewing your situation from a fresh perspective, adding tangible value to your business in the process, the new, FREE Small Business Review service from Business Link.

FREE Small Business Review

   

Other News

Planning Permission secured for 9 houses in Reading
Jim Bailey appeared as an expert witness at a public inquiry in March 2007 at Reading Town Hall on behalf of T A Fisher and Sons to argue that a scheme of 9 houses at 2-4 All Hallows Road, Caversham should be granted planning permission by a Government Inspector.

Graham Lamont becomes Chair of the Learning and Skills Council
Graham is a well known figure in Cumbria, particularly in the business community...

HTML Emails in Outlook 2007
The recent launch of Microsoft Vista and the updated email programme Outlook 2007 has thrown up some serious challenges for web designers and email marketers. Why? Because the new version of Outlook no longer supports many of the features commonly found in HTML emails.

Marketing Analysis
In business it is essential to constantly ask ourselves questions. The answers we receive to these questions affect where our business is going and the results we are going to achieve. Marketing expert Steve Mills discusses some of the marketing questions business owners need to be able to answer.

Chinese Car Market Overtakes Japan
The market for private cars in China has seen astronomical growth in recent years. 10 years ago, there were hardly any privately-owned vehicles in the country. Today there are more brands available in China than the US, and car production has recently exceeded that of Japan. This makes China the second largest producer of cars in the world after the US.

Retail Sales Up
High Street retail sales for February bounced back at their strongest in years according to a study by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). February, although stronger than January, has traditionally been a relatively slow month following the Christmas rush. This year retail sales rose at their fastest for more than 2 years.

Diversity of Email Marketing
According to a recent study by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the world of email marketing is far more diverse than expected. The study measured results from marketers, service providers, B2B, B2C, and asked participants to rate their relative level of email marketing expertise : beginner, intermediate, or advanced.

Office Gossip - Good or Bad?
Love it or hate it, office gossip is as popular as it's ever been. Company bosses scowl when they discover time spent gossiping in the office costs the economy an amazing £43 billion every year. Which is no surprise when you consider the average office worker devotes more than three hours per week to the serious business of gossip and banter. But is there a positive side to all this chit-chat?

Getting Ready for the Smoking Ban
With the ban on smoking in public places less than 100 days away, are businesses prepared for the change in the law? According to Public Health Minister Caroline Flint, 25% of UK businesses were unaware of the ban which takes effect on 1st July. A similar ban was introduced in Wales this week.

Mobile Calls Get Cheaper
Thanks to new controls introduced by telecoms regulator Ofcom, mobile phone customers could soon be reaping the benefits of around £400-500 million in savings over the next few years. The controls will regulate the amount network operators can charge phone companies for connecting through their networks.

Plan to be financially secure in 10 years
What sort of future are you building for yourself? Can you see that in ten years time you will be financially independent? Will you have enough spare cash to spend on the finer things in life? These are the kind of questions that we all ask ourselves at one time or another - but the key is to do something about it, and do it now!

Google Patents In-Game Advertising
Targeted advertising reaches new heights as Google files a patent for in-game advertising that could lead to gamers receiving advertising messages tailored to their specific interests and choices.

Facial aesthetics...
Make the most of your first impression with the help of...

Muscle relaxants - which cause your lines to soften or even fade away by relaxing your muscles (always reversible). Usually used for frown lines.

   

Bronze Membership

Bronze membership now gives you FULL membership rights and provides you with your own website within the Business in Berkshire community complete with news and events pages.

Your Membership gives you:

  1. FREE daily business newsletters.
  2. A Business in Berkshire website which can contain 100+ pages of information relating to your business.
  3. The ability to add news & events to your account which are then published in our daily newsletters for FREE.
  4. The opportunity to see your news flying high on the search engines. Of all the articles we ran in January, 88% of the story titles can be found on page one of Google!
  5. Annual Membership to one of the most recognised business networks in Berkshire.
  6. We provide an online training manual and offline training workshops.
  7. All for just £180 + Vat, payable online, right here, right now!
  8. Once payment had been made your account manager will talk you through the set up process.

Become a Member TODAY

   

Account Management

If you have a Business in Berkshire account. Please login via the main website home page.

User Name:

You should have your password... if not you can request it via the login.

Keep changing / adding your information and Google will keep coming back to see what you have to say... do nothing and that's what will happen!

Log on here | Help Document

   

Thank for reading today's Directors Update

Have you been considering getting your news out via Business in Berkshire?

Bronze membership now gives you FULL membership rights for 12 months and provides you with your own website within the Business in Berkshire community complete with news and events pages.

All for just £180 + Vat, payable online, right here, right now!

Marketing & PR companies can resell our bronze accounts to their clients, adding value by providing the content, they just need to be Silver Members. There's something for everyone...

Enjoy today's news!

Jon Davey

Editor
01753 852904
www.liaiseonline.co.uk
Producers of www.businessinberkshire.co.uk

Portrait by John Welburn

   

Created and managed by LiaiseOnline Limited, 1 Clewer Hill Road Windsor, Berkshire SL4 4BU
Tel: 01753 852904
Company no 4625218 registered in England and Wales.
Registered office: Claremont House, Alma Road, Windsor SL4 3EZ.
Vat registration no. 697 8409 64
'BusinessinBerkshire.co.uk' is a trading name of LiaiseOnline Limited.

   

To unsubscribe please click here.