Don't skimp on advertising

LIKE a fringe, or perhaps a hedge, some things are meant to be trimmed. However, as a business, cutting back on advertising and marketing budgets even when times are hard could damage your long-term prosperity.

Small firms pay around £1,500 a year on average in promoting their brand and yet the need to cut corners in a downturn can include discarding that marketing plan you proposed. Trends are indicating this may not be the best plan of action though and those who manage actively to promote their business can steal a march on competitors and send out a message of confidence to customers.

There are things that can be done cheaply, too. Ask what your customers want by way of market research, carry business cards, attend networking events, and exploit the internet's full potential by emailing customer newsletters, or researching search engine optimisation to put your brand at the top of Google.

That way, you could be one of the many businesses who are more than upbeat about the outlook for their future. In fact, around half of the 3,000 small firms recently surveyed by Barclays are even looking to expand in the next 12 months.

There is light at the end of that tunnel, it seems. So, if possible, help make sure you are one of the businesses making it out into the open.