It looks as if we are looking not at the beginning of the end but at least the end of the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK. The government has slightly relaxed lock-down and hopefully will further relax things as the infection rate and number of deaths continues to fall.
There is no doubt that the UK government has thrown a vast sum of money supporting businesses with the aim of helping them survive coronavirus and ensure that they are able to restart and ramp up.
However, nobody knows how the economy will recover. There’s been talk of a quick return to business normality in a V shaped return.
However wise minds think it could be a U shape with the economy bobbing along the bottom until things pick up, a W shaped return should there be another peak of infection or even an L shaped recovery, which would be no recovery at all.
With over 20 years of supporting small businesses I have been through a number of recessions and know that businesses that really WANT to trade, and even increase their market, can do so provided their business is fit and well and ready to return to the fray.
What I do know is this, there will a lot of companies hunting for new business but a lot of them will have just re-opened and be hoping that what worked before lock-down will work post lock-down.
You have an opportunity to pull ahead of your competition
And it’s not difficult. You can take advantage of one of the government support packages to give your marketing activity a boot. The coronavirus Bounce Back loan is perfect for this.
If you are a small to medium sized business that has been effected by the pandemic then it is highly likely that you will be eligible. You must be
- is based in the UK
- established before 1 March 2020
- adversely impacted by the coronavirus
And that’s it. The loan is 100% backed by the government and so the ultimate risk to lenders is negligible.*
You can borrow between £2,000 and 25% of your turnover, to a maximum loan of £50,000
And here come the best bits
There is nothing to pay for 12 months, and the loan attracts no interest either
Then you pay the balance back over up to 5 years at an extremely attractive interest rate of just 2.5%
What could you use the loan for
- You could use the loan to play for a completely new website
- You could use the loan to fund some training
- You could use the loan to pay for professional support and consultancy
- You could use the loan to pay for your SEO
- You could use the loan to fund a Pay per Click campaign such as Google Ads, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads etc
- IT could be used to pay for a complete rebrand
- Printing of marketing collateral
- Running a mail shot campaign
- etc.
You could could mix and match any from the above – as the following example demonstrates
- New website – £3,000
- 12 months SEO support – £2,160
- Google Ads campaign – £500/month -£6,000 for a year
- 12 months Social Media management – £2,880
- 12 months email marketing support – £2,160
- Total £16,200 + VAT
You would pay nothing for the first 12 months
Then just £303.75 per month for 60 months bringing your total borrowing in at £17,229.38 – a loan cost of just £1,029.38*
That’s just £14.30 in interest per month, over the lifetime of the loan
If you wanted/needed less, here’s what £10,000 and £5,000 loans look like
£10,000 loan
- Monthly Cost – £187.50
- Total Cost – £10,635.42
- Total Interest – £635.42
- Monthly interest equivalent – £8.83
£5,000 loan
- Monthly Cost – £93.75
- Total Cost £5,317.71
- Total Interest £317.71
- Monthly interest equivalent £4.41
Don’t delay, start today
But I wouldn’t put it off. Only the government knows when the loans will need and your competitors may already be seizing this opportunity and as more companies take advantage the waiting list for your chosen professionals will be growing
Note that you are only eligible for one Bounce Back Loan so please make sure you have every eventuality covered.
Shameless Self-Promotion
I am yet to hit peak capacity but I’ve already had a couple of client take advantage of the Bounce Back Loan and have asked me to ramp up the marketing and coaching work that I do for them
So, don’t miss out – plan what you want to do. Get in touch for a quote, apply for your loan and then we can get started
Get in touch for an informal chat by email (andy@enterprise-oms.co.uk) by phone (01793 238020) or ask me on Social Media – Linkedin or Twitter and I’ll be only too happy to talk. Thanks for reading and I hope you stay well
Ring Me: 01793 238020 07966 547146
Email Me: andy@enterprise-oms.co.uk
Find Me: Linkedin Twitter
Visit Me: Bowman House, Whitehill Lane, Royal Wootton Bassett, Wilts, SN4 7DB
*I am not a financial adviser and you should take expert advice from your accountant, business adviser or other professional before proceeding. My figures come from the Lloyds Bank Bounce Back Loan Calculator
Enterprise Online Marketing Solutions accept no responsibility for any action that you might take after reading this post.