• In 1999 Cheeze Ltd. was formed.

• A digital direct marketing agency

founded by Jamie Riddell &

Katherine Riddell.

• The investment was a £5,000

overdraft.

• In 2007, the agency was acquired

by Digital Marketing Group plc.

For £10,000,000.

• The founders and key staff owned

100% of the agency at the time of acquisition.

• We grew the agency with no investment.

• Everything we achieved was through hard work and reinvestment of profits as they came.

• Here we offer 10 tips that may help guide you on the same path.

• Good Luck!

• Starting and growing a business

with no investments requires

commitment and sacrifice.

• The big salaries and fast cars

must be an aspiration not an initial

requirement.

• Seek partners with complimentary

skills – what are you weak on,

what skills can you benefit from?

• If you start a business the buck

will stop with you.

• Making the tea, answering the

‟phone, chasing the business,

chasing the invoices – you will

have to do them all.

• To succeed nothing can be

beneath you, nothing can be too

much.

• A business is usually borne from a great idea.

• A business plan will need to plan those great ideas.

• It will also need focus on the worst case scenarios.

- What happens if we don‟t get paid?

- What is the minimum rent

commitment?

- What happens if a client goes bust?

• It is easy to spend time on the positive things.

• Spend time on the negatives, they will save you in the long run.

• There is a chance someone else has a similar business or proposition.

• With a new company you will have no business reputation (maybe personal reputation) – so how will you immediately and obviously differentiate?

• Enter awards, no matter how small. You too could be „award winning‟.

• Seek external endorsement – can you register somewhere to get a badge?As seen on..?

• Endorsements help when you are young, they could also make the difference between you and a close competitor later in your business growth.

• Cash flow can be the biggest killer to new businesses.

• You can borrow money or factor invoices but that will eat into your bottom line.

• Seek ways to gain up front payment – inventiviseprepayment.

• “It‟s better than keeping it in the bank.”

• Positive cash flow can earn you money, loans can cost you money.

• If you are working for money, you need a contract.

• Not a cheap web template contract, but a bespoke contract for your business.

• This should form the basis for working with customers or clients.

• It sets out who is commitments, expectations and requirements.

• It will save you a lot of pain.

• Pay attention to every invoice.

• Is the detail correct?

• Don‟t pay invoices that aren‟t correct.

• Communicate with the invoice originator, get it fixed.

• Don‟t sit on invoices, just pay the ones that are correct and

fix the others.

• Always projected a positive and

successful image.

• This doesn‟t need to cost anything.

• If you need others to believe

in your business, you need to

believe in it.

• No matter how bad the day is!

• Twitter, Scribd, Slideshare,

Facebook, Linkedin, Blogs…

• These are all free opportunities for

you to share your knowledge.

• How can you promote your

business?

A white paper? A blog?

• Share your knowledge and others

will pay attention.

• Possibly the best advice we ever received.

• Is your business reliant on time and hours income?

• Can you create additional goods or services that will generate revenue 24/7?

• Apps? White Papers? Guides?

• This can grow your income

without growing your costs.

• It can be lonely running a business on your own – even with partners.

• A mentor can be a „business friend or a more formal associate director.

• They can help gain perspective and experience without head count expense.

• You have set up a business because you have a great idea.

• Sometimes you will wonder why? It becomes so hard.

• Keep going! It is still a good idea, just may take a while to seem that way!

Contact details are on the site

+ extended article covering the

points raised in this presentation.