The Alliance of Chambers in East Sussex

ACES is the Alliance of Chambers in East Sussex linking 4,000 business members across the county.

If you are a member of ACES, this means that you can share your Company news through SBT in print and online – without charge. Just email your news item to your local Chamber with a high resolution picture and they will pass it on to the ACES press office.

Alternatively, if you would like to network with progressive business people from across the county, you can attend one of the varied ACES events or the BEST4Biz Conference in October 2015.

Also, ACES has a strong voice with local policy makers and can lobby on your behalf to remove barriers to business. Just call ACES on 01323 641144 or check www.acesalliance.org to see how they can help.

ACES Member Advice

Is your website mobile responsive? And if not, why not?

According to an Ofcom study in 2014, while 83% of UK adults now go on line regularly, a massive 62% of adults are now using a smartphone.

Julian Perrott, Managing Director of Barkweb, says: “Any website design company worth their salt will tell you that they have seen an exponential rise of mobile access to the internet, to the point where half a typical website’s traffic is from mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets. It is therefore vital that your website should automatically alter its configuration to the device that is accessing your site. “

Not only is responsive design best practice from a User Experience perspective, helping the user to navigate and interact with the site easily, but it also serves an SEO purpose because Google now uses responsive design as a ranking factor for searches made on mobile devices. This means that you can improve the performance of your site in search engines by improving the mobile-friendliness of your website.

The SEO benefit of responsive design is not anything new. In 2013, Google announced that they would penalise sites in mobile search results that weren’t configured for smartphones, and the developments in late 2014 mean that Google take this one step further and now reward sites for being mobile-friendly (with an icon next to search results that indicates a mobile friendly site), so users can select from search results sites that provide a better mobile experience.

BarkWeb design all-new websites with responsive design so that they work perfectly on tablet and mobile. A recent shift in their process is that now, during concept creation, they actually design from a ‘mobile-first’ perspective and retrospectively unfold the design to fit to desktop, so that it looks great on both.

Barkweb specialise in creating the latest mobile-friendly responsive-design technology and will ensure your website looks its best on any device. Check out their website from your smart phone at www.barkweb.co.uk or call them at 01323 735800.

Financial protection

Protection is the underpin of most good financial planning. Life insurance puts money in the hands of those who need it when a person dies. There are many reasons why this money might be needed: paying off a mortgage if a borrower dies; protecting a family against the early death of a spouse, partner or parent; or paying inheritance tax (IHT). The life assurance needed to cover a loan is relatively simple to assess, and most people also need insurance cover to replace their income if they were to die.

You can arrange for life cover to pay out an annual amount over a set period, which is a simple approach, or you can have cover that pays out a lump sum. The best way to ensure that the proceeds of a life policy are paid to the people you intend to benefit is to arrange for the policy to be in a trust. This arrangement should save inheritance tax and speed up the payment to the beneficiaries.

By contrast, the purpose of health insurance is to provide some money if you fall seriously ill or have an accident, potentially affecting you for many years. State benefits would be relatively low and unlikely to provide sufficient income to meet your needs, especially if you have substantial rent or mortgage payments to make. You might also need capital, for example to make adaptations to your home or to pay off loans or other liabilities. Income protection pays a monthly income if you cannot work because of illness or disability.

In the UK, there are over 11 million people with a limiting long-term illness, impairment or disability, and 1 in 7 working-age adults suffer from a disability (Taxbriefs, May 2014).

Critical illness insurance pays a lump sum if you are diagnosed as suffering from a specified illness. This can allow you to make rapid adjustments to your lifestyle and pay off loans. People often take out critical illness insurance to cover a mortgage or other loan. Insurers are constantly looking at new ways to meet people’s needs, and it is important to seek the assistance of a trusted advisor.

To receive a complimentary guide covering Wealth Management, Retirement Planning or Inheritance Tax Planning, contact Simon Hoadley Wealth Management on 01323 431938 mobile 07710 271028.

ACES Member News

Sanders Property Management Grows Across East Sussex – Tea at the Top

Over 50 business associates and clients of Sanders Property Management enjoyed a Champagne afternoon tea at the View Hotel in Eastbourne. The event was part of the company’s 10 year celebrations and was held as a thank you to the Directors of the various blocks and estates for their help and assistance over the years.

Peter Sanders, Managing Director of Sanders Property Management, was delighted this year to be celebrating the milestone 10 years in the property management business in Eastbourne. He said: “This event enabled the company to show the clients how much they are appreciated. Some of our guests here today are the original first clients that came on board when we started the business”.

The company was borne out of Peter Sanders’ frustration with the service provided by the industry of managing agents. As a result, he purchased a freehold on a block of flats in April 2005, with the intention of, “Setting new standards in Residential Block Management”.

Over the last decade, the business has seen a recession and property crash, but this family firm has grown year on year to the point now where it is one of the leading independent block management companies in the area. This growth has seen expansion into surrounding towns, such as Bexhill, Hastings, Seaford, Newhaven and Hove.

Sanders are proud to be working with the original clients that employed them when the business first started up, and most of the business nowadays comes from recommendation – a true testament to the hard work of the team at Sanders.

Peter Sanders has been involved in the property industry since 1992, and Lisa Sanders since 2001. Together with their dedicated property team, they offer a wholly reliable and professional service with a focus on personal attention.

As an independent company, Sanders are able to offer a more flexible service than many managing agents. So, if you are looking to instruct a new block or estate management company, or simply want to know more about Sanders, call them on (01323) 736442.

ActionMAN Strikes Again

Andy Camfield, Managing Director of 6 Steps Limited of Eastbourne Sussex, won an ActionMAN Award at the European Business Excellence Forum and ActionCOACH EMEA Region Conference. The conference was hosted at The Troia Design Hotel Conference Centre, Grandola, Portugal in April.

Andy earned this award thanks to the powerful work he has done with his clients throughout Sussex over the course of the past year, including coaching businesses in market growth, the recruitment of great people, increased efficiency, and the improved quality of products and services with great profit increases.

ActionCOACH Founder & Chairman, Brad Sugars, presented the award.

A delighted Andy Camfield said: “It has been a great year of growth and learning within our business. This has been achieved by a strong team performance. The benefit of a solid team, locally, nationally and globally, gives us all the ability to drive excellence in service and brilliance in results.

As an ActionCOACH business owner, Andy takes the most pride in the success of his clients and the fact that most of his clients have had their best trading performances ever during the last 12 months.

ActionCOACH, the world’s largest business coaching firm, was established and founded in Brisbane, Australia by Brad Sugars in 1993, when the concept of business coaching was still in its infancy. Since franchising the company in 1997, Sugars has helped business coaching become more mainstream and has grown the company to more than 1,000 business coaches operating in 55 countries. ActionCOACH specialises in coaching small- to medium-sized businesses, as well as executive teams and group coaching.

To learn more about Andy Camfield, go to www.andycamfield.com

To learn more about ActionCOACH, go to http://www.actioncoachGB.com/ or www.actioncoach-franchise.co.uk