Business in Berkshire Newsletters
This year we are looking to give each of our daily newsletters a core focus so you can determine the nature of the news you wish to receive. Towards the end of last year we created an opt-in form with various selection boxes, allowing you to select your preferences regarding the key topics you want to hear about.

Looking at the results, we realised the most logical approach was to give each newsletter a specific focus throughout the week as follows:

Graduate Jobs at Hasbro
Hasbro are looking for trainees to join their 2007 commercial graduate programme. They can offer tremendous opportunities for those looking to make an impact in a challenging yet rewarding industry where fun, creativity and passion count.

How Accurate is Your CV?
A recent report has uncovered a staggering statistic: 84% of people in the UK believe that untruthful job applications are commonplace – although 95% of those questioned considered it important for people to be totally honest with the information they provide when applying for jobs. Does this highlight a need for employers to check applicants’ details more thoroughly?

The study carried out by BackgroundChecking.com, suggests many potential employees will either exaggerate or include inaccurate information on their CV and job application.

Photo-Hosting Service is Hot Property
Photo-hosting service Photobucket is now classed as a Top 50 web property according to comScore Media Metrix, the favourite source of Internet audience measurement for advertising agencies and analysts. The Photobucket site hosts graphics and video that users can link to from their blogs or social networking sites.

Photobucket currently enjoys around 70% penetration on MySpace and it seems the rapid rise in popularity of social networking sites generally has played a significant part in the company’s success. Photobucket is currently welcoming over 15 million visitors a month to its site, as well as adding 80,000 new users daily – all keen to use the free video and photo sharing facilities offered on the site.

Technology Takeovers
According to a report published this week by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, takeovers and acquisitions within the technology sector are going through something of a boom, with figures comparable to the peaks of the dot.com era of 2000.

The figures, released on Monday, indicate that mergers and acquisitions within the technology sector topped £65 billion in 2006 worldwide. Industry experts predict the trend to continue through 2007, despite a slight tailing off during the last quarter of 2006.

Slough TNT Depot Contributes to International Award
TNT Express Services' branch in Slough is celebrating after helping the company to secure an important international award.

The business-to-business express delivery company has been awarded the People Development Award at the IFW Freighting Industry Awards, widely regarded to be the most prestigious accolade in the international transport industry.

Stuart Stobie, divisional managing director of TNT Express UK, told the Slough and Windsor Observer that it was a "tremendous achievement".

Berkshire Farmer Secures Waitrose Contract
A West Berkshire farmer is likely to see his sales soar after securing a new supply contract with Waitrose.

Russell Kilvington's Royal Berkshire Pork brand already appears to be going down well at the supermarket, as shoppers happily tucked into his bacon and chipolatas outside the Newbury store on Tuesday (January 23rd).

The sausages sold out within half an hour of first going on sale and Mr Kilvington described the day as "very positive and very exciting".

"I was nervous of whether people would buy them but I've had a constant stream of customers saying how delicious they are," the Brightwalton pig farmer told the Newbury Weekly News.

An Aladdins Cave for Music Lovers
Tucked away in a back street of Langley you’ll find one of the best-known and best-loved music shops in the UK: Langley Guitar Centre. With an amazing range of instruments always in stock, the shop has become a haven for musicians, attracting customers from around the country and even abroad.

Proprietor Antoine Bohdjalian first opened the shop in 1968. “In those days, the premises were so small we had to rearrange the whole shop every time we had a delivery – even if it was just a couple of guitars and an amplifier” says Antoine. Over the years the shop has been extended several times and now features separate areas devoted to keyboards and vintage guitars.

The next 10 business can WIN!
Save 50% on your Business in Berkshire promotion and help Thames Hospicecare at the same time.

For one off promotions we generally charge £180 + Vat.

I have put myself forward to help Thames Hospicecare with their Sunflower Slimathon and am looking to raise at least £1,000 personally. A few people have stepped forward and donated £20 but I want to speed up the process.

The next 10 businesses that step forward to run an advert can have them at half price. Not only that there will be no VAT to pay!

Sales Beyond Technique with R&A Consultancy
There are enjoyable training programmes that struggle to justify their expense and great ones that pay for themselves many times over. 'Beyond Technique' delivers.

R&A has over 20 years experience working with an international client base specialising in delivering programmes that turn good into great. Successful selling is not just about the process that sales people learn, but about persuading, influencing and building sustainable relationships. Today it is imperative to get more from less and delegates will transform their performance through discovering the magic that exists beneath the structure of scripts and processes.

Building a smarter business in 2007!
So how are you going to set about reviewing 2006?

I suggest you start by taking a look at your sales - which customers spent the most, better still which ones generated the most profit for your business?

Similarly, which products or services sold best?

Overall is there a trend, are sales values increasing each month or are they very much feast or famine?

Grab the Top Spot
Currently the top news spot on our homepage is devoted to our latest slice of Business in Berkshire news. But with over 57,000 site visitors enjoying one of the 200,000 pages they visited during December 2006, we’ve decided it’s time we offered this prime position to you – a great opportunity to put your business in the spotlight.

Business in Berkshire had over 50,000 visitors per month through the last 3 months of 2006, a figure that’s been growing steadily. So it really makes sense for us to offer the prime spot on our homepage for sponsorship – it’s on the top right of the page, the ideal place to grab every reader’s attention.