Does anyone know how I can find out new companies in my area??

[Flex Accounting Services]

I was wondering if anyone knows how I can find out new start up companies in a particular geographic area?

I know that you can pay companies to find this info, but as a fairly new business myself the less money I shell out the better !

:p

[Chris Power]

I was sent this the other day...

"How many Entrepreneurs live near you?
Have you ever considered how many other Entrepreneurs live in your area, or more importantly how new businesses start up in your same area?
More often than not people who use the free search on my new website http://www.newstartdata.co.uk/ are shocked to see exactly how many businesses start up each month near them. Give it a try yourself.
Obviously this is a business so this how I make a crust from this website.
Once you have done that, why not go a step further and consider how to market your company services to them all. Just by clicking Continue once you have done a search to see how little it costs to get your message to them. If you like what you see please sign up, it only takes a minute and I can be sending you the contact details for all these companies daily - the day after they have been formed. Getting your message to them quicker than anyone else, and at a small premium we can give you the director names so your can personalise your messages to them. You'll see you wont need to convert many of the leads we send you to cover the costs.
I hope you find the free search really interesting, and I hope you find it interesting enough to subscribe to receive the details daily. "

Chris

[Flex Accounting Services]

Hi Chris, wow very quick repsonse !! very grateful.

I will go onto the website that you suggested right now and have a look

Thank you:D

[Chris Power]

I haven't used the service yet, so let me know what it's like.

C.

[Flex Accounting Services]

Hi Chris,

I've had a look at your website, take it I cant see the new companies unless I pay for it ??

[Flex Accounting Services]

sorry Chris, misunderstanding on my part - I thought it was your website.

I have just called them to get some clarification and am waiting for someone to call me back.
I was on the understanding that it was free to see the new companies and you only had to pay if you wanted your company to be advertised to them straight away.

I will let you know how my conversation goes when they call me back

[Chris Power]

Blimey - £5,000!

Sorry. It's not my website, but it was emailed to me a month ago. I kept it thinking it would be useful.

I do apologise.

[Shaun_Pearce]

Bore Da!

I've got some great contacts for leads and prospecting. I'm not involved in prospecting neither data generation however my sources are respected business people.

Should you be interested, drop me a quick PM with your contact details and you can screen them yourself

Adios!

[SusanP]

If you attend a Business Link event for start-up businesses, they usually give all participants a list of all those attending. Also, they usually have a system on such evenings whereby people can leave business cards for for other attendees. Perhaps your local Business Link will supply previous guest lists.

What about running a special offer eg free brochure/guide for new businesses or free one-to-one session, which your local paper might publicise? If you think you might be inundated, make it a competition eg 10 names will be drawn to receive a one-on-one audit. You will have lots of names and addresses that way.

[SmilePrint]

Try selectabase

I used them for a while last year, 100 leads/month in my area cost £60 or so.

However the way the data is generated isn't always new starts, sometimes its an existing business adding a new telephone line, or moving premises. Whilst I understand the difficulties, it wasn't always new enough for me, 8 weeks- 12 weeks old, no business needed my services at that stage. Accounting is perhaps different.

I do know an accounting service who uses the same data (maybe from a different seller?) ongoing, so I'm thinking it works for accounting or they have deep pockets!!

You can buy UK wide data lists for a few hundred pounds, but that doesn't show you new additions.

Thompsons had an online subscribed version also I believe.

Even though there's little money in your business now, I'd suggest its a good investment. An Introductory letter, a follow up email & phone call would lead to enough open doors to make it worthwhile.

Do, record your data, store it in a CRM system and keep in touch with everyone. Your data is the raw material you turn into sales.

There is always the local newspaper who run the just started in business adverts, the local small business incubation centre, the attendants of any " Start a Business" government programs, or maybe your local business link office might hold some relevant data.

Hope this helps

Regards

[Shaun_Pearce]

I second what Brendan has just pointed out. Selectabase (http://www.selectabase.co.uk/) are good. Ask for David Larkins (david.larkins@selectabase.co.uk) as he can generally do the best deal ;)

He came to me by way of referal form several marketing and data managment companies one being Firestorm Marking (http://www.firestormmarketing.co.uk/). So he must be good.

I have just got off the phone (http://www.selectabase.co.uk/contact/) to him and he sounds like a cracking bloke (http://http://www.lamag.com/uploadedImages/LA_Mag/articles/2008/april/funnyMan0408.jpg).

[Blackberry]

Have you tried making contact with your local banks?

new businesses nearly always need a bank account. If you can get in with the small business manager this can be a great source of new business.

[garyk]

Companies house provide a monthly CD which I think used to be about £30 which has all businesses listed where I think you can select by area, date of incorporation. Or startups.co.uk or startups plus (cant remember the name) do this on a monthly basis also.

[Flex Accounting Services]

Thank you so much to everyone that has contrubuting to my thread.
i have come away with lots of new tips and ideas to generate business from new companies.

Once again, many thanks:)