Workshops will aid Argyll enterprises

BUSINESS Gateway Argyll and Bute is encouraging business owners to take advantage of the free skills workshops on offer in Oban and Inveraray over the coming weeks.

The Becoming an Employer workshop running on January 26 is ideal for anyone looking to take on staff for the first time. It covers the legal obligations of an employer and gives practical insight into recruiting staff. It will be delivered by Karen Morrill, a qualified professional in people management through the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

The Funding Your Business workshop in Oban on January 30 will help confirm the funding needs of your business, identify relevant potential sources of external funding (such as loan finance, grant funding or crowd funding), and take you through what your business will need to provide to be able to access the funding. The workshop will be delivered by John Allan of the Roberts Partnership.

Business owners could also benefit from the Marketing Your Business workshop in Inveraray on February 8. This will help review the impact of current activity, better understand markets, customers and competitors, strengthen your unique selling points and develop the right marketing mix for your goals and budget. This workshop will be delivered by Alistair Kennedy of Lornal Ltd.

Aimed at those new to marketing their business, is the Reaching More Customers workshop in Inveraray on February 16. This one- day workshop gives a practical insight into basic marketing tactics and will be delivered by Jack Redpath of Redpath Marketing.

The Get Your Business Noticed – PR on a Budget workshop is in Oban on February 28. This is about getting a business noticed without spending money. It covers how to get featured in newspapers, on radio and television, understanding how the media works, finding the stories that journalists want to tell and understanding how to make contact with them. It will be delivered by Colin Kelly, known for his work as a journalist.

Anyone thinking about launching an enterprise should join the Business Start-up workshop on March 8 and 9 in Oban to help develop their ideas into a practical and effective plan. Run by an experienced Business Gateway adviser, the one-and-a-half- day workshop covers marketing, planning and finance.

To book or to find out more about the workshops, contact the Business Gateway team on 01546 604555 or email business.gateway@argyll-bute.gov.uk.