A large number of franchisees and even franchise systems have a lot to learn when it comes to lease negotiations.

"With hundreds of thousands of dollars in rent at stake, personal guarantees and other risks, one cannot afford to gamble," writes The Lease Coach's Dale Willerton in Franchising World magazine.

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Companies fail for a host of reasons. Bad luck plays a role, sure, but disaster usually strikes because of a more fundamental flaw--in the original idea, the strategy, the execution or all of the above.

Forbes.com ponders the 20 most important questions in business, that business owners should continually evaluate.

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From Fresh business thinking.com: The sacking of Steve McClaren as England manager serves as a stark reminder to organisations appointing key personnel to consider what would happen if the relationship goes sour, says law firm DWF.

The firm says that when negotiating the terms of the contract, companies should consider the implications if the individual underperformed and had to be removed from the post.

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From the BBC: Alistair Darling will face the latest tricky engagement of what has been a tough few months when he addresses business leaders.

On Monday, Gordon Brown told the CBI conference that he would continue to "listen and discuss" the thorny issue of capital gains tax reform.

Mr Darling plans reforms to the tax that will lead to some people's bills rising from 10% of gains to 18%.

The CBI says that will penalise small businesses and entrepreneurs.

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To be a poet is to lead a life of perpetual inner torment and outer penury.

Not so publisher and wordsmith Felix Dennis: he's worth more than £700m.

Publisher of racy men’s mag Maxim and sensitive poet, millionaire former party-animal and environmentalist – Dennis is a man of extremes.

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From Businessweek: Serial entrepreneurs, lots of broadband, and multilingual style blend to raise a bumper crop of search engines, video sites and other Net companies.

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From BusinessWeek: What one angel investor really wants from entrepreneurs, why deal-worthy Net startups face litigation risk, and more from this week's web round up.

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Women still not encouraged to be entrepreneurial.

Almost half (48%) of owners/managers of UK businesses surveyed believe women are still unfairly represented in UK boardrooms, with more women (62%), than men (39%) commenting that this was the case.

This is according to Sage's latest Heartbeat survey conducted amongst its customers, which also revealed that less than one fifth of respondents (18%) feel that the current business environment in the UK encourages women to start their own business.

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Believing that you must have customers to get customers can be intimidating, but there are strategies that entrepreneurs can follow for making early sales.

Allowing free sampling or deep discounts on products can help maximize exposure and build a customer base, but it will still take persistence to get over the hump when just starting out.

HartfordBusinses.com says getting your first customer is a major hurdle for many new entrepreneurs. Typically that's because they're either afraid of asking for the sale or potential customers are afraid of being the very first to buy.

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From Businessweek: Entrepreneurs who make lucrative buyout deals and try to stay on with their corporate overlords often find they miss their wild and woolly startup days.

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Celebrities including Victoria Beckham and Katie Price along with supermodel, Elle Macpherson, have featured on a new list of the most inspiring celebrity entrepreneurs. 

The late Anita Roddick and JK Rowling topped the recent poll, closely followed by Margaret Thatcher, Jacqueline Gold of Ann Summers fame and Martha Lane Fox.  The research, by everywoman and NatWest, quizzed successful female entrepreneurs about role models and influences for women who want to run their own business.

The research explores the motivating factors for female entrepreneurs and whilst flexibility, work-life balance and being one’s own boss were all cited, 86% of participants agreed that celebrity entrepreneurs play a positive role in encouraging women to set up businesses.  The under 25s were three times more likely to be influenced  by celebrity entrepreneurs over traditional role models (38% v 11%) demonstrating that their influence is shaping the next generation of business owners. 

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Here are Mundays solicitors' top 10 tips for buying a franchise.

1. Get sufficient information (including accounts) before purchasing a franchise. What is the franchisor providing?
 • Equipment, stock and stationery?
 • Advice and assistance in locating and securing business premises?
 • Initial training and assistance in launching the business?
 • Is there an operations manual and can you view it prior to purchase?
 • Have there been any failures in the franchise network, if so how have they been dealt with?

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Going just a couple of pounds over their overdraft limit could have serious ramifications for small business owners.

Overdrafts are an invaluable facility for small business owners, as they give them a safety margin in months of cash flow difficulties, for example when invoices are paid late or one-off purchases add significantly to costs.

Overdraft charges are the subject of a court case between the banks on one side, and the Office of Fair Trading and consumers on the other. The latter think that the penalty charges levied by the banks are punitive, meaning they cover more than the administration costs involved in chasing up an unauthorised overdraft.

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Take a look at these intriguing business opportunities from Ubops.com, the Online Business Opportunities Marketplace.

Wholesale Silver Jewellery
Silver jewellery for export from China. Competitively priced products with gold/rhodium plating and cubic zircon diamonds.

Holiday Homes in France
Two rental properties, both with swimming pools, in a tranquil location. A converted barn serves as family home. Airport and restaurants/bars nearby.

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UK owner managers rate passion over pounds as the number one motivator for running their business.

The latest research from entrepreneur think tank, the Tenon Forum, reveals that 21st Century entrepreneurs are more likely to be motivated by the 'softer' rewards of being their own boss, than the spoils of wealth.  

Eighty-five per cent of SME bosses cite working on something which interests them as their chief motivator to run the company, whereas less than a third (31 per cent) rate escaping the rat race as their key inspiration.

While only a third (31 per cent) of entrepreneurs are driven in their work by the opportunity to spend more time with family and friends, 79 per cent of those questioned are fuelled by working on something they really believe in. 

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Adam Howarth of OMS explains why sophisticated strategies used by multinationals can apply equally, in principle, to any business - and enhance its value.

Small businesses have less complex structures and are less intricate than their global counterparts. However, their core objectives and strategies have much in common. Most businesses, irrespective of size, aim to efficiently provide a product or service that will make a healthy profit.

Businesses invest in developing and implementing systems that streamline their overall operation and utilise capacity. Essentially, the end result is to cost-effectively produce high quality goods or services that will give them the edge over the competition.

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Europe has a north-south divide, UK start-ups lack aspiration while Chinese and US entrepreneurs are the most ambitious, according to the findings of a new study, published today.

International accountancy and advisory group Mazars, in collaboration with the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), today launches the findings of the largest global study of high-growth entrepreneurship ever conducted - (based on interviews with nearly 700,000 people in 53 countries).
 
The research examines the phenomenon of high-expectation entrepreneurship (HEE): start-up firms expecting to employ at least 20 people in five years time.
 
This rare group of entrepreneurs accounts for just 7% of global start-up activity, but makes a disproportionately large contribution to economic prosperity and job creation. A mere 1.7% of all entrepreneurs plan to employ more than 100 people within the next five years, yet this ambitious group will create half of all expected new jobs by start-ups worldwide during this period, according to the report.

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Starting a business needn’t involve getting a huge loan and forgoing a secure salary, if you sell through the internet.

The founder of WeddingInvitationBoutique.co.uk, for instance, still holds down a full-time job, which pays for her mortgage and enables her to reinvest profits back into the business. Overheads are low, because Carly Flanagan handcrafts wedding invitations and runs the website from her Stockport home.

Flanagan, a 26-year-old communications graduate, launched the website in September 2007.

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From Brand Republic: Around three quarters of UK women use the internet every day, with mornings and late evenings the key times for media to reach them, according to research by IPC Media.

The findings come from Women's Space, the latest research from the publisher's 7,500-strong panel of UK women, called the Origin Panel.

This found that 71% of UK women go online every day and the average time spent on the web at any one time is 105 minutes, with an average of nine sites visited each session.

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If you’re not high on Google – you’re nowhere.

That’s the message from an internet marketing specialist, who warns businesses that they risk missing out on a share of the multi-billion pound Christmas shopping market if they don’t optimise their websites to appear high on search engines.

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