Speaking at Wales’ first Festival of Seaweed, Dr Alex Newnes – co-founder and COO at PlantSea – explained how seaweed can replace plastic packaging to tackle microplastics, reduce carbon and contribute to a resilient green economy. PlantSea is an award-winning start-up based in St Asaph. The founders, Alex Newnes, Gianmarco Sanfratello and Rhiannon Rees met at university of Aberystwyth, where they pioneered a seaweed-based flexible film that holds both liquids and dry products. The film is 100 per cent biodegradable and can be used as a replacement for plastic laundry pods. Newnes said: “Some estimates suggest there could be one…
Author: sme-admin
In digital marketing every click counts. The click-through rate (CTR) for organic search results typically decreases as you move away from the first position in Google’s search results. Backlinko’s study in 2023 on Google’s organic CTR found that the first organic result garnered a CTR of roughly 39.8%, while the second and third positions received CTRs of around 18.7% and 10.2% respectively. Thus, mastering search engine optimisation (SEO) is the key to unlocking those clicks and online success. But, SEO can feel like a maze filled with obstacles. Fear not! In this guide, Berkshire marketing agency, Protean Inbound, breaks down the barriers,…
A new survey from small business credit card company Capital on Tap reveals how much it costs small business owners in the UK to set up their businesses, the most unexpected costs they face and how they tend to raise capital. Capital on Tap reveals it costs on average £21,193 to start your own business in the UK. From stock, to equipment and software, the industry you decide to set up a business in has its own requirements that need to be taken into consideration. Rank Industry Average cost to set up a business 1 Real Estate £60,375 2 Hospitality £55,571 3…
For companies who lack the technology expertise and resources to support their business, outsourcing IT operations can be a streamlined solution to facilitate growth. An agile IT infrastructure is a cornerstone of success, and businesses are constantly seeking innovative strategies to fuel their technology expansion. However, dedicating IT resources and employees’ time, and even increasing your workforce to accommodate this, can be a time-intensive and costly endeavour. Outsourcing is one strategy to maintain a competitive edge without depleting the time that valuable people resources can dedicate to the business. It allows businesses to delegate specific IT tasks to external providers…
A recent 2024 report from Marketing Week* highlighted a significant issue—a lack of understanding about the importance of brand management in marketing. Shockingly, almost half (46%) of workers feel that brand management is neglected in their work. In light of this, Carol Howley, Chief Marketing Officer at Exclaimer, the leading email signature management platform, discusses how marketers can utilise email signatures to define their image and increase customer engagement. Brand identity and consumer engagement Exclaimer’s survey, based on a poll of over 1,700 UK consumers and 101 senior marketers, showed that a staggering 41% of consumers simply stop engaging with an email…
Research has found that 75% of Gen Z want to launch their own business, but with a noticeable absence in the curriculum when it comes to entrepreneurship, UK digital PR agency Reboot Online, have launched the dream job for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to learn on their feet. As a CEO of Reboot Online, Shai Aharony, offers some insights into the program as well as useful skills for aspiring entrepreneurs to have under their belt. What does the Be a CEO for a Week initiative entail? “As a business that started at home and now offers services across SEO, content, paid media, and social media, we…
Responding to the National Audit Office (NAO)’s report on HMRC’s customer service levels, Tina McKenzie, Policy Chair, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), said: “The finding by the NAO that nearly half of all calls to HMRC go unanswered says a lot. Tax compliance is a huge headache for small firms, who spend on average 52 hours a year trying to sort out how much they need to pay, at a collective cost to small firms of £25 billion, an eyewatering sum. “The long delays, troubles getting through, and struggle to speak to someone who can actually help rather than read from a…
New research has revealed the jobs with the most full-time employees in the UK. There are now more people working full-time as programmers and software development professionals than any other occupation type, according to a new study by HR software provider Ciphr based on the ONS’ latest Annual Population Survey estimates. In the year to December 2023, there was a 14% increase in the number of programmers and software development professionals – an umbrella term that includes over 120 job titles, such as software engineer, machine learning engineer, app developer, games designer, computer programmer, IT analyst and software architect – employed in…
According to the latest research, more than a quarter of UK employees battling cancer say they feel unable to talk about their illness at work, leading to many taking prolonged absences and even considering resignation. The research, which was commissioned by Reframe among 500 UK adults who have worked with cancer, found that 28 per cent avoid talking about their illness with colleagues. Men especially find it a tough conversation, as almost half (49 per cent) said they don’t feel comfortable talking openly about cancer with their peers. And 60 per cent of employees aged over 55 agree. But they…
With moving home widely acknowledged as one of life’s most stressful events, pioneering new digital ecosystem Home is set to revolutionise the moving process, for the first time allowing movers to connect in real time to their agent, conveyancer, broker and move services through one digital platform. Free to use for consumers, Home gives movers visibility and control of every step of their move by connecting all parties involved in a transaction in real-time. With an easy-to-use app, Home consolidates every aspect of the home buying and selling process in one place with clearly defined transaction stages, real time support and guidance,…