Follow the links for "the story so far" in our series on the recession... Yes, times will be tough for a while but you shouldn't assume the sky is falling. It makes no sense to sacrifice your business and market reputation to survive the short term challenge. Instead you may need to pull your horns in and find ways to prosper while others decline. A good place to start is by analysing your budget and business model, and we have a spreadsheet to help with that. Most people react to the threat of declining sales by saying, "I've gotta cut my costs". Everyone needs to work out their own figures, To View More >>

I posted the other day about this being a great time to consider whether any of your business policies and touch points aggravate your customers, and if so fix them. I included a PS saying we know we’re not perfect, and "if you reckon this is the pot calling the kettle black, please leave a comment or email us". I was glad I did because Mark went to some trouble to leave a lengthy comment detailing his frustration with us. My point here is not so much to talk about his particular issues (we've been in touch, of course, and we  pretty much have to take what he says on the chin, and fix the To View More >>

More feedback on my email, Your next album company It's hard to compete ... We've seen a massive influx of photographers from Eastern Europe charging very low prices and supplying reasonable products.I understood the impact of this EU "migration" in British hotels and restaurants, but I honestly hadn't thought about the impact on photographers (Jo and Kirsten will be shaking their heads!). Even so I feel that this kind of competition is always with us ... in one form or other. The purpose of outstanding presentation is to add value to your photography. That's why,whoever you use, your albums must To View More >>

More feedback on my email, Your next album supplier Changing to Queensberry is like changing my Ford Focus for a top range Audi ... Not sure many people are going to cope with that. Depends what you mean by "many". But certainly we never expect most people to choose Queensberry. Products that differentiate need to be aspirational (ie more people want them than can have them). That applies to your own "products" too, of course. In business, rather than ask how much something costs, it's useful sometimes to ask how much it's worth. And how it positions you in your market. There were 42 album companies To View More >>

Prompted by the unfortunate demise of Spicer Hallfield, which was once the UK’s foremost album manufacturer, I emailed our list in the UK yesterday. The gist of my message was that their ex customers should think twice before choosing a replacement supplier – especially if their gut reaction was to look for someone offering a similar product at a similar price. My email generated quite a lot of enquiries for Sonya's team, plus some feedback that I thought I'd discuss over the next few days. But let me start with the tough one... Someone called my email an "unbelievable bit of ambulance chasing". To View More >>