- "In the last 20 years our business has changed considerably…and as the focus of our business has changed, Bird Luckin have moved with us."
Alex Tanner, George Tanner (Shalford) Ltd - "Bird Luckin has looked after us incredibly well for over 60 years, they are pro-active and innovational - meeting all our needs to help us achieve our aims."
Richard Stubbings, Cliffords Limited - "I can honestly say that Bird Luckin are the best firm of accountants and auditors I have ever dealt with - and I don't say that lightly!"
Colin Webb, Walthamstow Stadium - "It's important for us to know that we will always be able to contact the right people to give us the right advice and support."
Jane Bennett, Bennetts Funeral Directors - "Although we deal mainly with one Partner … we also know that if we need to contact someone else who is a specialist in another area, we can get the advice we need quickly and easily"
Jeremy Ruggles, J.S. Wright & Sons Ltd - "Bird Luckin got us to a stage which would have taken us months - if not years - to reach on our own, and they got us there in a matter of weeks"
Matthew Sullivan, SNC Ltd - "You can be a good accountant, but if you don't have an understanding of the industry it can be very difficult. "There are two or three people we have regular contact with at Bird Luckin who know our business well, and it makes a difference.""
Robert Church, W A Church (Bures) Ltd - "The work which Bird Luckin has done for Boddingtons over the past few months has helped shape our future direction for the better."
John Warner, Chief Executive, Boddingtons Ltd - "Bird Luckin has acted for us since our inception 10 years ago. They have a very 'can do' yet highly professional attitude - we are very appreciative of their support and advice over the years."
Marlon Fox, Outlook Property Ltd
Growing the top line with a marketing audit
A marketing audit enables you to review your company's strengths and weaknesses, priorities and market segments, internal make up and personality as a basis for developing a successful marketing strategy for the future.
The best way to conduct a marketing audit is to ask all your key employees to complete an independent review along the following lines:
- Profile of the company
What is your understanding of the nature of the company, its situation, and its mission? - Personal profile
What is your role in the company and why do you like working here? - Trends that affect the company
What is happening in the business environment that can affect the company? - The customer base
Who is the company serving and how? What do our customers want? - Trends that affect the customers
What will our customers want in the future and how might this differ from what they want right now? - Competition
What is the competition and what are they doing to meet customers' needs? - Customer service
What is good customer service and how can we improve it? - Key customers
Typically, a large proportion of our income comes from a relatively small number of customers. How did we acquire them, how profitable are they, and what are we doing to retain them? - Current marketing activities
What customers are we currently targeting and how? - Recruiting and training
What kind of people does the company need to meet the challenges of tomorrow? - E-commerce
How should we plan to develop our marketing to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the net? - And finally...
If there were one thing you would do differently in marketing, what would it be?
Once the separate reviews are completed you can collate the returns and try to understand what implications they have for your future marketing strategy. If our experience with clients is anything to go by you will be pleasantly surprised by the insights of your employees, and the pointers they provide for your future direction.