This week I’m delighted to announce Finsbury Media became one of the lucky 6 winners of the Small Business Sunday competition, organised by Theo Paphitis, the renowned retail magnate and entrepreneur.

As the owner of the stationery chain Ryman, homewares specialist Robert Dyas and lingerie retailer Boux Avenue he knows a thing or two about business –  his twitter profile humorously lists him as ‘Shopkeeper.’

Theo has been an inspiration to me over the years, I always enjoyed his appearances on Dragons Den on the BBC, and his no-nonsense approach to business is refreshing.

One of his quotes is

‘There are three reasons to be in business. To make money, to have fun – and to make money.’

It’s a very cool and fun competition – each week between 5 pm and 7.30 pm business’s are invited (after following his twitter accounts) to tweet Theo with their details and why they shine…and he chooses his 6 favourites (retweeting the ones he likes best on Monday evening.)

Those lucky winners are now members of #SBS.

Hundred’s of companies take part each week – and I was keen that Finsbury Media had a chance to win.

As a new business that is just 3 years old, Finsbury Media has suffered many of the pains and challenges that a startup would expect – and from 2 staff we now employ over 20.

Based in our HQ in Jeffries passage in Guildford, we help our clients be found online with our cutting edge SEO tactics – but it is our unique Adwords optimisation we are best known for – our tech is amazing.

Many people have used AdWords – maybe they tried to do it themselves, had unrealistic expectations – or maybe they just didn’t know what the campaign ACTUALLY generated them.

We’ve changed all that, and we don’t have the ‘fluff’ that some people have had from marketing agencies.

We were awarded Google Premier Partner status as a testament to our success. We record everything (even calls) and our super clever algorithm will actively increase and lower bids based on results (an email, form or call) and not just a click!

Finsbury Media live and die by our results. No lengthy contract.

If what we do works – you’ll stay with us. The only companies that tend to tie you into a lengthy annual contract typically deliver poor service (and yes – mobile phone and satellite tv providers – that’s probably you!)

We have a diverse portfolio of clients – from new home builders, professional service, e-commerce and even a chimney sweep! All our clients get the same no-nonsense service and most importantly …increase in business.

This is what Theo says about the SBS competition on the official website.

“I admire people who have passion and energy. If you cannot bore your friends to death about your own small business then something is seriously wrong. I was struck by the number of business owners on Twitter who wanted to tell me about their new products and services. Small Business Sunday was born so that people have a specific time slot to tweet and can pitch their ‘sell’ directly to me.

All my businesses are privately owned and entrepreneurial in spirit. My stationery firm Ryman has thousands of small business customers, which is why they are now kindly sponsoring #SBS. I want to offer benefits to #SBS winners, past and present and the link with the stationery retailer allows me to do this, so thank you CEO Kypros Kyprianou and Co.

My vision is that everyone who has ever won an #SBS re-tweet from me becomes part of a friendly club. Like-minded individuals can share successes and learnings. This website will give a valuable profile to the winners chosen to date and should help those who have not yet won but want some tips on how to do so. You will find news about the latest winners plus events and activities of interest.

I know I have been lucky in business and I am keen now to spread goodwill to others, of course not forgetting that very often, you make your own luck by making use of every opportunity

Theo Paphitis”

I think using  SBS is a great way to let people know what your business does – so if YOU want a great way to increase exposure, engage potential customers and market your small business you should definitely give it a try.

Remember  – you will need to be diligent and keep trying. I decided to use humour with our office Frenchie and a poem – here’s our winning tweet.

Winning SBS is a great way to increase your exposure and I applaud Theo and his team for running it. I entered the competition every week, changing the tweet and message,  let your personality and passion shine through and be persistent.

And don’t give up!

You can find out more about SBS here – and best of luck!

Paulie x