Stylish, upbeat and welcoming - The Living Room has become a legendary institution. It boasts many ingredients that attract regular guests and occasional visitors.

On one hand a vibrant cocktail bar with live music and a Manhattan feel; on the other a sophisticated dining room with an impressive menu selection.

The Living Room is offering an exclusive discount to Chamber members of 20% off your total food bill. This offer is available everyday except after 6pm on Saturdays.

All you have to do is email Pamela Holstein at Liverpool Chamber for a voucher.

From 1st of July it will be against the law to smoke in virtually all enclosed public places and workplaces in England. Public transport and work vehicles used by more than one person will also be required to be smokefree.

Last week, a worrying 42% of businesses who took part  a Chamber survey said that they were not yet ready to go Smokefree.

Here’s a checklist of what you need to do. Employers, managers and those in charge of smokefree premises and vehicles will need to:

• display ‘no smoking’ signs in smokefree premises
• take reasonable steps to ensure that staff, customers/members and visitors are aware that premises and vehicles are legally required to be smokefree
• ensure that no one smokes in smokefree premises or vehicles

You may also want to take these supportive measures:

• remove ashtrays from smokefree areas
• develop a smokefree policy in consultation with staff
• provide your staff and customers with support to quit smoking
• ensure that your staff and customers know where they can smoke if they choose to

The Government has produced a practical guide to help businesses and organisations prepare for the new law as the countdown begins. This guidance will be mailed to all employing, actively trading businesses registered with Companies House in April. You can also download a copy now and free signage from www.smokefreeengland.co.uk/resources.

In Scotland, where a ban was introduced a year ago, research has shown that it stimulated an increase in people seeking help to quit smoking.

Chamber members Renewu offer a non-invasive, drug-free and totally painless therapy called Bioresonance which claims a 90% success rate, for further information visit www.renewu.co.uk or call 0151 702 9000.

Your successful international growth means your accounting team now needs to process hundreds of foreign payables and receivables each month. There must be an easier way.

There is.

This week we begin a two part series on the benefits of taking your FX payments online.

Click ‘more’ to read the full article.

Read the rest of this entry »

Chamber members will shortly get their chance to take advantage of a unique new scheme to get the best out of Liverpool life.

We are sending the combined LiveOne20 lifestyle and Chamber Membership card to the principal contact at each of our member companies, free of charge. Keep a look out for them arriving on your desks within the next week.

The LiveOne20 scheme has been created by the Chamber in conjunction with Livesmart to enable members and their employees to benefit from fantastic deals with some of Liverpool’s premier names in leisure, entertainment, travel, food and retail.

EU directives tell us that there are 120 hours of free time each week in which to take it easy. We are sure that business owners have less time to spare but we’d like you to make the most of it and discover what makes the city such a great place to live and work.

The scheme is only open to Chamber members and means cardholders can make savings of up to £200 every quarter with exclusive discounts from some of the city’s biggest names. And there’ll be many more to follow as we bring you a preferential taste of Liverpool life - day and night!

Member companies can purchase additional cards at minimal cost as a great way of giving rewards, incentives and offers to employees.

To find out more information, contact either Jenny Stewart, Head of Membership, by e-mail at liveone20@liverpoolchamber.org.uk or by telephone on 0151 227 1234 or Livesmart’s account manager Daniel White by phone (0870 055 3472) or e-mail: liveone20@livesmart.biz.

Keeping your customers happy is an important part of doing business. Not only should they be satisfied with your goods or services, you should also do your best to ensure they feel happy in dealing with and being associated with your business. Here’s a couple of top tips to keep your customers’ custom.

Packaging
This may work more effectively for your product when it expresses a widely held value, such as care for the environment, or serves a practical purpose, such as returning the empty container such as Ink Jet cartridges.

Delivery
Think convenience to the customer. Provide them with the narrowest possible delivery time window in advance. Call ahead if it’s a large delivery so the customer can prepare to receive the goods.

24/7
Office hours are a thing of the past. The increasing numbers of businesses operating from home and want to be able to access information round the clock. First Direct led the way in this area as they where one of the first companies to offer 24 hour access to a call centre.

User Instructions
Invite a panel of target users to write the instructions. Invite ‘Crystal mark’ to approve your paperwork for plain English. Include foreign language versions where appropriate.

Help Line
Use a customer help line to find out whether there’s anything else the customer needs. Use people instead of automated machines, they’ll tell you more and the personal service will be appreciated.

Thanks to Gordon Jones. For more marketing guidance visit http://www.successfulmarketing.co.uk/