Q. Last year was incredibly tough and I was forced to make a series of redundancies on two separate occasions. While it was necessary in both cases and I explained the reasoning to staff, there has been a well of resentment against the management team. The divide has not been bridged since if what I’m hearing from some of the middle managers is correct. I’m keen to rebuild trust, so how can I go about doing this? What’s more, are there any low-cost ways of raising morale in the workplace? Any ideas would be welcome.

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What’s the point of tweeting?

Q. I started my business 15 years ago and have a number of very strong relationships with clients, many of which have come from referrals and direct mail in our trade magazine. A recent recruit to the marketing team has been espousing the benefits of embracing Twitter. While I have a Facebook page and use it regularly, I’m yet to be convinced about permitting the marketing team to spend time each day on something like Twitter. Generating some new business would be useful, however, and I’m told more openness and two-way communication will only benefit relationships further. Using some tangible examples, can you lay out an argument for tweeting and the likely business outcomes I could achieve?

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Securing venture capital investment

Q. I’ve never raised investment before, but from speaking to a handful of friends and my accountant I’m confident that the progress of my business means that it is ready for venture capital funding and I’m keen to accelerate growth. Without revealing too much about the business, it is in its third year, has a turnover of £2.3m and profits of £600,000. My long-term plan is to roll it out region by region with satellite offices, as most of our clients are in the South East right now. What would you advise me to do with respect to making the business attractive to investors?

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Managing your IT infrastructure

Q. Over the last year, our IT infrastructure has become increasingly pivotal to retaining business. We’ve implemented a number of management tools from different sources, some better than others, but we’re finding that the ‘kitbag’ approach is less than optimal. Some of the tools are basic, they lack integration, and don’t have adequate support. We’d love to adopt a vendor approach to circumvent these issues, but I’ve heard that management tools from the likes of Hewlett Packard, CA and IBM are very expensive to buy and implement. Is there a solution to this problem?

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Agreeing a value for your company

Q. I’ve put a lot of effort and intellectual property into getting my business to its current position, but I now need an investor to provide funding to grow. The problem is that I need about £250,000 and I only want to offer 25% equity. This would value my business at £1m, but it hasn’t yet generated the kind of sales that would justify that. How else can I get a hard-nosed investor to see the value of my efforts so far?

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How to target business customers

Q. I run a games software business, and our products have proved popular with consumers. I’m keen to exploit business-to-business (B2B) interest to provide another revenue stream. What are the key differences in marketing to businesses as opposed to consumers? How should I approach large operators and structure the pricing accordingly?

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How to value a business

Q. I run a firm which supplies equipment to the catering industry and am extremely interested in acquiring a competitor that could increase our geographical spread. I have secured the financial resources to complete the deal but my valuation isn’t matching that of my target. Its owner says the valuation method I’ve used (price/earnings ratio) is simplistic and isn’t illustrative of its true vale. What other valuation methods should I consider to get a realistic picture of the value of my target? I am prepared to move on the price but am not particularly confident about my negotiation skills – should I employ an adviser to act as a go-between?

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How to keep web projects on track

Q. My accountancy firm is considering a website redesign to make us more visible to Google, and equally importantly, to make the site more user-friendly and easier to navigate once customers find us. Friends and contacts who’ve gone through a similar process have often been frustrated with the process and disappointed with the end results. What are the key things I can do to keep the project on track and make sure the end result matches the initial brief?

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How to keep VC backers on side

Q. Last year my technology company successfully attracted the interest of more than one venture capital company. We selected one on the basis that they were prepared to allow us to move quickly in an early stage market that we believe will see good growth but will soon attract competitors as start up costs are not exorbitant. For us, staying one step ahead of the game is essential. However, our VC backers are now dragging their heels on strategic growth and are not as engaged with the company as we would like. How can I get them to engage more and back our plans for faster growth?

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Weighing up expansion through franchising

Q. I'm a co-founder of a web design business which mainly helps micro businesses build simple websites. Growth has been consistent over the last couple of years but a little slow. We've developed some 'out of the box' software which, in theory, allows virtually anyone to use (and sell) our product and we're considering franchising as a route to grow the business. However, my co-founder and I are both concerned about having enough time (as well as authority and confidence) to manage a network of franchisees as well as our core business. What safeguards should I build into our expansion model to make the franchise route successful for us and what are the most common pitfalls to be aware of?

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Measuring pay per click results

Q. My business, which is an equipment supplier for tradespeople, has recently added an e-commerce arm to its website. I’m aware that the success or otherwise of the venture will depend on the amount of traffic the site can generate through well placed organic search listings. However, I’ve recently dropped to page two or under on Google for my main keywords and have been considering investing some money in both SEO activities and pay per click (PPC) campaigns. I don’t really know where to start and need some help in measuring results. How do I go about this?

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Calculating your carbon footprint

Q. My firm is a successful supplier to the public sector. We’ve managed to stay profitable through the downturn, but during tenders recently we’ve come under increasing pressure to demonstrate our green credentials. Frankly, I haven’t a clue what our carbon footprint is. How do I monitor our impact without harming productivity or our bottom line? Can I make the process a cost saving for the business?

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