10. Survey said… Base: All setting up/running business and living/working/setting up business in London (155) Q1. What was your reason for using the Business and IP Centre Reading Room today?
11. Survey said… Base: All setting up/running business and living/working/setting up business in London (155) Q2b Have you used, or do you expect to use any of the following material today?
24. Success stories “ I had no background in food and drink, so I spent six months in the Library researching the market..” Adam Pritchard Founder & MD, Pomegreat
25. Facebook group 2,600 members Startup Tube channel (new) 700 views LinkedIn group 730 members Blogs 3,000 views pm Twitter 1,100 followers E-courses on IP 200 registrations pm Inspiring Entrepreneurs webcasts 480 views pm cmypitch, Unltdworld, Smarta, Business Zone , etc. E-newsletter 16,000 subscribers YouTube channel 64,000 video plays Business & IP Centre Online presence Ongoing Google Adwords campaign www.bl.uk/bipc 40,000 views pm
28. Information professionals: old and new Gatekeeper Collaborator Online searcher Trainer Custodian of collections Facilitator Service provider Information advisors Information gatherer Problem solver Library process Business process Inward looking Networker Old New Source: Lesley Robinson, Lesley Robinson Consultancy Services Ltd, www.lesleyrobinson.co.uk
Here are couple of scenarios I want you to picture in your heads. Me to client: Why did you decide to start a business with your father? Client: Well you need to understand that when I was growing up my father was an alcoholic and I had to be the man of the family. Now that I have my degree and accountancy qualification and my father has been made redundant, I want to get him back on his feet again. Here is another. Me to client: So what brought you here from Ghana? Client: My father was a senior civil servant but got the wrong side of those in power and was killed. My 5 brothers and sisters all had to leave the country for our own safety. These are both situations I encountered soon after offering one to one business advice clinics the Business & IP Centre.
What we are looking at first of all is desk research. I will look at some principles to apply when carrying out desk research Cover the main types of information source. Give some examples of how these can be used to look a specific business sectors. An informal session.
- How many of you here are planning to start or run your own business one day - How many know about the BIPC? The BL is FREE for anyone to use. We have 150 million items and access to electronic information covering the arts and science and most importantly business and intellectual property information. Our world class information and expertise supports enterprise and innovation in London and beyond. Since 2006 the Business & IP Centre has helped over 35,000 small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs. Collection is vast – around 150 million items – over 600 kilometres of shelving. It covers every written language. 3.5 million sound recordings – from the earliest wax cylinder to the latest chart topper 4.5 million maps – from 15th century to latest Ordinance Survey digital sheets. 7 million manuscripts – from the Magna Carta to Beatles lyrics on the back of an envelope 8 million stamps – including a unique Gold Coast: 1883 (May) 1d on 4d magenta 13 million books – including the earliest dated printed book, the Diamond Sutra 56 million patents 58 million newspapers and journals – dating from 1603 to the latest issue of your local paper Through Legal Deposit we receive 600,000 new items a year – an entitlement that dates back to 1662. In addition we spend some £16 million a year on new acquisitions. Some unexpected items Recent acquisitions include a box of gunpowder, allegedly left by one… Guy Fawkes
We learnt from our customers that providing access to information was not enough. So we had to develop a range of new services. The more we added the more were wanted. Currently moving from my team giving regular workshops to become accredited business advisors.
Information The heart of our offering Free business and intellectual property information on UK & Overseas companies, products and markets Thousands of printed reports, directories & journals and access to over 40 online databases worth £500,000 Impartial information experts guiding you to the information you need – in the Centre elsewhere in the British Library and beyond. Business & IP Information Advice Clinics You can book a 1 hour Information Advice Clinic with one of our experts, who can guide you to the relevant information and discuss your ideas in a confidential setting. Example – You have invented a revolutionary new toothbrush 100507
Talk about why M.R is important. Eg knowing demand for a product/service Test business idea. Check existing customer satisfaction. Analyse competitors Know your market sector, volume, demand. Have information for all of the above. Good business decisions based on good intelligence, you can minimise risk. Perhaps the jewel in our crown within the Business & IP Centre is our collection of 7,000 market research reports which we calculate would cost in the region of £7m to purchase. Here is a small selection of our publishers. Each has its own specialised area of research. Talk about different market sectors, eg retail, research & development etc
I consider our collection of 3,500 trade directories to be the Cinderella of our resources. Despite their unexciting name for many business areas they are a unique and unrivalled source of information on suppliers, competitors and potential partners.
- How do you compete back? - 1. Price – not sustainable in the long term - 2. Uniqueness develop new services to keep ahead of competitors - 3. Move up the value chain - Examples o Starbucks – coffee plus environment with comfy chairs and music. o Amazon – books plus reviews, look-inside, recommendations based on previous purchases, what other people bought
At BIPC it was easy to identify where to add value as our customers were asking for additional services. - Download information to memory sticks - Workshops explaining what information we hold - Workshops covering all aspects of business start-up from using market research to writing a business plan to social media marketing to managing your work and life - One to one advice sessions on what information we have to help - One to one advice sessions on customers business idea or invention (SFEDI accreditation). - One to one advice sessions with an industry expert on inventing, marketing, social enterprise or legal aspects of intellectual property.
Working with 17 partners to add to our range of activities Our partners are vital as they provide training and events which we could not do from our skills base.
2. Workshops – run by the British Library on how to use our information, and by partners around business advice. * A workshops programme –run by our information experts on using our information, eg Developing a Mailing list, Researching your business, and patents searching, and run by our partners – who include Business Link London, the UK IPO and the London Business Support Service, amongst many - eg Writing a Business plan, Developing a Business Idea and so on. Ask An Expert sessions with ‘celebrity’ entrepreneurs, eg in the past with Dame Anita Roddick and Tim Campbell. As you can imagine, there was overwhelming demand. We currently offer sessions for inventors with our Inventor in Residence, Mark Sheahan. 100507
Our IT training room allows hands on training on our range of databases. You can access our databases for free. Hands on search
Ask An Expert 1-to-1 sessions with experienced entrepreneurs. We now have a fantastic array of experts as you can see: Mark Sheahan Are you an inventor with an idea in need of a patent, or in search of the right licensing agreement? Meet with our Inventor in Residence, Mark Sheahan. Mark specialises in easy-open, child-resistant dispensing closures for the packaging industry. Rachel Elnaugh Looking to expand your business but concerned about achieving sustainable growth? Learn from the experiences of Rachel Elnaugh. At 24 Rachel developed the experiences brand Red Letter Days and went on to generate over £100million in turnover.
This is how the profession needs to change if it is to survive. (more or less detail depending on timing) What next? Can’t afford to stand still = moving backwards - mentoring - role out model to city libraries across the UK - build stronger relationships with partners