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Women fear failure in starting a business

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A new study has recently revealed that a significant majority of women feel that they do not have the right skills needed in order to start their own business.

The survey, which was conducted by Domino’s Pizza, showed that 74 per cent of women have never tried to turn their ideas into a business because of the belief that they lack the abilities needed to start a business.

About 50 per cent of woman said that they fear will fail in their endeavor, while over a third of the respondents admitted that they feared making mistakes.

The study showed that many of the barriers that women face in starting up a business are psychological, some of the worries are quite real too.
According to Domino’s, about 80 per cent of new businesses failed within their first five years. But franchises offered greater security – with only five per cent of new franchisees closing down.

Domino’s executives said that franchising carries less risk, it can give a quicker return on your investments and it ensures the freedom of working for yourself while also reaping the benefits from an already recognizable brand name (you don’t have to work as much to gain publicity for the brand), support network and business model. It is also considered a safer route to business ownership.

Company formation and business solutions experts say that the diverse business opportunities that are open to women might further encourage them to reach beyond their fears and try their hand in starting a business on their own.

“Stress” fears deter would-be entrepreneurs

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Young Londoners are apparently not too keen on starting up their own businesses even if it could mean more financial freedom if they succeed.

Based on a new survey done by YouGov, it revealed that the majority of London’s residents would much rather not start up their own businesses and run them because of fears about the stress that it would cause them.

The study also showed that the capital’s young people are more afraid of stress and its effects than their elders.

According to the survey report, two-thirds of the respondents questioned said that the pressures associated with running their own business and assuming the responsibility for bringing a business idea into reality on their own would put them off actually doing it on their own. Some of the reasons that the respondents as “turn-offs” in running a business include the fear of failure, working long hours, and managing finances.

It also reported that respondents aged between 18 and 24 feared stress the most and those over the age of 55 were the least worried about stress.

The survey results followed the recently released research by Barclays Bank that showed that the number of small business start-ups in the country fell by 10 per cent in the firs quarter of 2005. That is 116,300 businesses compared to 129,500 reported business during the same period last year.

This possible correlation between the fear of stress and the business start-up fall-off has made certain government agencies aware of the possible detrimental effects of stress on the economy and has urged that the effects of stress (which is thought of as a national health problem) be addressed immediately.

Small businesses warned about new scam

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Business Buzz, a business network based in Scotland, has recently issued a warning to business owners to be more aware about the new “phishing” scam that has been targeting small businesses.

“Phishing” is a term that refers to gaining access to sensitive details such as passwords and bank account details. This practice has been happening more frequently ever since the advent of online banking.

The latest phishing scam usually involves an email entitled “Photo approval”. The email would allegedly come from a publication that would claim to have been sent a photograph of the recipient and that they would like to use the photo in a future article. A supposed copy of the said photo is attached to the email but if the recipient clicks on it the attachment will release a virus that would allow the sender of the email to access the passwords and other vital information that is stored inside the computer.

Company formation and business solutions experts have urged business owners to take precautions in order to protect their businesses from this kind of scam:

Refrain from clicking on links that are embedded in emails. Be naturally suspicious even if the email comes from a well known company.

Don’t open attachments if the email itself looks dubious. Don’t open attachments from sources that you don’t know to reduce your risk of exposure.

Use a spam filter. Try to use an anti-spam software to help sort out possibly fraudulent email.

Make sure that the definition files for your anti-virus application is up to date. When you have up to date definition files your PC has a better chance of catching any virus in case you or any person unwittingly opens a suspect email.

More entrepreneurs see the value of sound advice

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More and more prospective entrepreneurs are becoming more conscientious and prudent by asking for enterprise help before they take the plunge and start up their own company.

According to a nationwide poll made of over 7000 surveyed small and medium-sized firms, it was found out that about 70 per cent had asked for business advice before eventually making the decision to start a business on their own.

The number of self-employed individuals that have sought the advise of others to ensure future success has risen nine per cent compared to the results of the last survey done in 2003, the DTI’s Small Business Survey indicates.

The actual numbers of self-employed consulting top tips for future success has risen nine per cent since the last reading in 2003, the DTI’s Small Business Survey shows.
Additionally, a lesser number of small businesses has cited red tape as a crucial obstacle in running their business. The decline has been marginal though, about one per cent over the last year.

A source of optimism though is the survey result that showed a growing number of entrepreneurs who feel that the Government is exerting more efforts for small businesses than it has done in previous years.

Also, over half of the respondents said that they expect their respective companies to grow within the next three years. The remainder of respondents insists that they prefer their micro status and will still maintain their small size. They also unanimously agreed that the biggest problem of starting a company is in accessing finance for their business.

The Government has acknowledged the problem and has pointed to the changes in the Small Firms Loan Guarantee as a way of addressing it.

Government to probe cheque clearing

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The amount of time it takes for cheques to clear could possibly be shortened following a declaration that the Office of Fair Trading
(OFT) will investigate to find out the demand for cutting the three-day process.

The probe will involve banks, building societies, consumer group and trade groups with the aim to determine whether there is a clamor and significant benefits for businesses and individuals if the cheque clearance time is hastened.

Although paper-based payments has been steadily declining in recent years, cheque payments still remain a popular mode of payment by and from small businesses for the transaction of goods and services.

The UK payments association APACS has confirmed the lowered cheque volumes because of the increased use of plastic cards, direct debits and e-payments. But the association also said that cheques still remain popular among the enterprise sector for paying suppliers. Consumers also still use their cheque books to pay for one in six regular bills.

All over Europe, the growing acceptance of debit cards followed by credit cards has further decreased the market share of cheque payments. The drop has been most notable in Germany where only one per cent of the population prefer cashless payments.

France and the UK have remained dominant issuers but both countries have been suffering from marked declines. The Netherlands, Spain and Portugal are also experiencing a slump in paper payments.

Company formation and business solutions experts hope that with the OFT’s investigation any changes in the system will only benefit the country’s entrepreneurs and businessmen.