A Christmas gift to you: Part 4

Each week this month we've been giving you a 'virtual' gift. Something that we hope you will find useful in 2011. Something to get you thinking.

This week we're giving you an evening out: an invitation to join us at one of our seminars. An invitation to unlock the value of your brand. We're offering you 21 years experience of working with brands of all shapes and sizes, distilled into 60 minutes (or so).



But don't worry if you can't join us in January. We run one every month. You're invited to join us whenever it suits you (The February date is already set). The seminars are aimed at business owners who are experiencing some kind of change within their business. For some businesses that change is the opportunity to grow their business - launching a new product or service to reach new customers. For others a period of change is time to consolidate their business - to look at what they do well, and what they would like to improve.

Whatever your strategy, this workshop is designed to help you understand how your brand can help to make it a success. If you want to make the most of 2011, and the opportunities it will bring, you should join us.

"If a succinct brand seminar, that runs to time, switches on a few lights and leaves you feeling focused is what your business is looking for - then I'd highly recommend you attend an Alder and Alder event."
Charlotte Quickenden,
Business Development Manager, Bow IT Solutions

If you haven't seen our other gifts this month, you should take a look. There's been a video, a book and an interesting green parcel. We hope you enjoy them!

So while you're making the most of those gifts, and making plans for 2011, we'd like to wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a happy and prosperous New Year.

A Christmas gift to you: Part 3

Every week of December we giving you a Christmas present - something that will help you to take your business forward in 2011. Last week we gave you a book. The week before a video. This week it's a very neat parcel - a treasure trove of information and expertise about sustainable business, courtesy of Guardian Sustainable Business.



If you're already interested in the issue of sustainability, their blog is a great resource. If sustainability is something that doesn't interest you, this is a great place to find out what it could mean for your business. Whether it's predictions on what 2011 has in store for us, learning why some of the world's leading businesses are putting sustainability at the heart of their business, or understanding the impact that energy efficiency could have in your business, this site is dedicated to the business end of sustainability. And the great thing is, if you become a member, they do home delivery - an email summary of the weeks activity to your inbox!

So while we all dream of a white Christmas, why not start planning a green one?

We hope you enjoy this gift, and don't forget to come back next week for the last of them.

Merry Christmas

A Christmas gift to you: Part 2

Last week you we gave you the first of your Christmas presents; a great collection of videos to inspire you in 2011. This week we've got a book for you: Learn how to grow your business … in just two hours.

In the time it will take you to watch a Christmas Day blockbuster on TV, you could pick up some invaluable advice to take your business forward in 2011! You can find it on on the Marketing Wizdom website, courtesy of Robert Clay. (I met him at Like Minds in October). Just scroll down the right hand column and sign up. If you want to invest a couple of hours in your business over the Christmas break I can't think of a better way to do it!

I hope you enjoy your present, and don't forget to come back next week when we'll have another one for you!

Merry Christmas

A Christmas gift to you: Part 1

We firmly believe that in business it is always good to 'give'. And Christmas is the perfect time to do that. So over the next four weeks, we are going to be giving a 'virtual' Christmas present to anyone who visits our blog.

It's been a challenging year. A good one for us, but a real challenge. And it looks like 2011 will be more of the same. So we'd like to give businesses something to help them through the challenges they will face in the next 12 months. So each week we will be giving you a link to a website, which we have found useful. We hope you do to.

Like all presents, we hope it's something you haven't already got, but if you've already seen it: Sorry. Take a look next week and see what we've got for you then.

Our first gift is a video. It's always good to get a video for Christmas, and we'd like to give you loads of them! You will find them at www.dolectures.com. If you haven't come across the Do Lectures before, it's a bit like the TED Talks in a tent in Wales. Here's a short introduction from the founders:
"The Do Lectures were started from a conversation between David and Clare Hieatt (The founders of clothing brand Howies) over the dining table one night. They wanted to know what to Do about the things they cared about. Out of that came the idea that the Doers of the world can inspire the rest of us to go Do something. So a set of talks for Doers was born."



It's an eclectic mix of speakers, and you probably haven't heard of most of them - I hadn't. But it's a fantastic collection of ideas and inspiration. Look at it like a 'Secret Santa' present, or a dip into the Quality Street tin: You're not sure what you're going to get, but it could be a real surprise!

If you're not sure where to start, try Ed Stafford. He took two and a half years walking the length of the Amazon. It's an amazing story. But it closes with a great piece of advice: "Don't be afraid of taking risks... Don't be afraid of failing. If you can visualise the outcome, there's every chance that you can achieve your dreams."

I think that's great advice for every business in 2011. I hope you enjoy it.

Merry Christmas!