Approximately 20% of businesses fail within their first year. The most common causes are  inadequate management, a faulty business model and unsuccessful marketing techniques, which has paved the way for professionals to use their expertise to advise businesses on how they can grow and expand profits. The Consultancy Bureau, based in West Sussex, strives to help companies get a leg up on their competitors by rejuvenating business practices to create new value within the company and, ultimately, boost profits. They have helped thousands of companies in their endeavours with outstanding results, and I have had the pleasure of interviewing Managing Director, Tony Portelli, on the work of The Consultancy Bureau and how their work impacts the businesses they aid. 

 

 

Tony founded The Consultancy Bureau in 2019, something he had thought about starting for a while. His ambitions were present throughout his career; Tony has over 20 years of outstanding experience in the ever-competitive media sector and worked to help small companies market their businesses effectively, while earning countless awards for his ingenuity in product innovation, revenue and profit growth and customer service excellence. When this work ended, he felt it was the right time to start his own consultancy bureau, and while he admits it was challenging and required research, he took on contracts and started to build the business development empire he has today.

 

 

Tony's main aim is to support SMEs in their desire to grow. He states: “For your business to thrive, it is crucial to be continually innovating and improving. Successful business innovation means finding and marketing new revenue opportunities, optimising existing channels and, ultimately, generating higher profits”. The Consultancy Bureau offers services that look at important factors such as strategy, products and processes to gain a greater understanding of how each business operates. They then look at a company’s wider strategy, which involves how the company presents itself, such as PR, branding and marketing. The Consultancy Bureau also looks at competitors and what companies can change about their strategy to gain an advantage over rivals. 

 

 

Tony believes that, in an environment with so much challenge, it's difficult for businesses to achieve much. A lot of SMEs also don’t have the budget to recruit business developers or marketing professionals full time. Which is why outsourcing business development from The Consultancy Bureau means you receive only the best, most cost-effective options from highly-experienced professionals with decades of experience in their field. 

 

 

Tony identifies a high Google ranking to be a crucial part of generating traffic to your business. However, the algorithm for rankings largely remains a mystery. Tony suggests ensuring keywords for Google searches are in your website in order for your website to appear on the front page when potential customers search for the services and products they want. Its recommended you carry out research into what keywords for your sector generates the most traffic; that way SMEs can generate larger amounts of visitors to their web page, thus increasing the likelihood of increasing their sales and outreach. Tony also suggests using backlinks, linking your website on other high ranking sites, as an effective method of increasing your chance of a high Google ranking. Good blog posts and content can also create awareness about your brand and intrigue readers about what products and services you offer.

 

 

Tony’s advice to start-ups is to follow your passions when starting a business. This means you'll be more enthusiastic about conducting research into your field and will be more likely to succeed in your aims. An extremely important factor in starting a business is to do market research into your demographic and use techniques such as keywords to advertise your business. It is vital you understand exactly what market you are getting into and your competitors so you can create strategies that show how you differ from them. Looking for gaps in the market and creating something that fills that gap is an excellent way to show that your company provides a unique service or product that sets you apart from your competitors. Start-ups can use simple tools such as Google searches or social media to conduct market research and identify how you can use certain techniques in marketing or product development that gives you an advantage over competitors.

 

 

Starting a business can be a rollercoaster ride, however utilising the expertise businesses such as The Consultancy Bureau provides means you receive tailored assistance in changing your strategies, allowing you to grow your enterprise past its humble beginnings into something bigger and better.