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Welcome to Bizland News - Edition 14
 December 2002

The other morning I was lying half asleep with one eye open, watching my husband finish off his morning routine with the usual tie tying before putting on his suit jacket. It got me wondering - why does he still have to wear what has been referred to as a "noose" every morning, when he rarely deals with clients? I know many companies have started to do away with the formal suit and tie, however the accounting profession seems to be the last to adhere to this traditional way of dress (no wonder they live with the description of "little grey men"!). I understand that when dealing with a client one has to look respectable but often these accountants end up doing audits in the back offices of fish factories or chicken processing plants... sitting in sweltering warehouses in a wrinkled suit slowly melting away. I personally prefer my hubby's casual day attire - a crisp shirt, open at the neck, with a fresh pair of khaki chino's - he just looks so much more comfortable - more suited (no pun intended) to our tropical climate!

Anyway it got me wondering where the tie originated, so I did a little research... The modern tie can be traced to the 17th-century cravat, a style developed by Croatian mercenaries honored by Louis XIV, and is therefore military in origin. It was only in the 1900's that young boys started to wear ties, although this was more widely accepted in the 1920's. Ties were popularised by famous English figures, such as Lord Byron, Charles Dickens and Edward VII, who all wore their cravats either in a loose knot or held together with a ring, defying conformity of the time. Ties have since undergone many transformations, but the standard today is 3.25 inches wide and 52 to 58 inches long, and should be worn with the outside bit just reaching the trouser waistband. If you would like to read up more on the tie, click here. Now you know!

Cleaning up your shop window - the importance of effective business writing
by Chris Curwen, Founder, Curwen Communications Corporation

Have you ever stopped to think what it is that makes you go into a particular shop to buy something? What is it that catches your eye? The answer, of course, is the display in the shop window. If the display isn't appealing, doesn't contain the products you are looking for, or doesn't display prices, you'll probably walk straight past. Your impression of the shop comes, firstly, from that shop window. If your impression is a poor one, you are unlikely to become a customer. Remember, first impressions are usually lasting impressions, and often they may be the only impressions you have.

You are probably wondering what shop-window displays have to do with business writing. The answer is: plenty. For many businesses, a written document is their only shop window. That document may take many different forms - from a website, newsletter, memo, letter, e-mail, or fax, to a complex technical report, or even a simple quotation. That document, like the shop window, may be the first, and often the only, impression that people have of you and your business. You therefore need to ensure that your documents create a positive image of you and your products or services - first time.

There are many things you need to do in order to achieve this. Firstly, ensure that your documents convey a pleasant, dignified, and modern image. Think carefully about such things as:

White Space
One of the most important tools you should use to improve the readability and appearance of your pages is to use plenty of white space - the margins around your text and the spacing between the paragraphs. For documents typed on standard A4 (210 x 297 mm) pages, you should have margins of at least 25 millimetres all round your text, increasing to 30 millimetres in the binding margin. Ensure that you keep at least one clear line between your paragraphs - this you can do either by using a double carriage return at the end of each paragraph, or by setting your paragraph spacing to at least equal the size of type you are using.

Typeface (Font)
Your choice of typeface and its size, affects both the appearance of and the readability of your documents. There are hundreds of different fonts to choose from, falling into two main categories - Serif and Sans Serif. Most word-processing and desktop-publishing systems have a Serif font - Times Roman - as default, an old-fashioned and difficult to read font. Change your default to a more modern, and easier to read Sans Serif font, such as Arial, Helvetica, or Univers. To see the difference this will make to your documents, compare the following two examples (both set in 12-point type for a fair comparison):

"This piece of text is set in Times New Roman."
"This piece of text is set in Arial."

Another point - never play around with fonts. I know some people who love spending time going through their font library to see how many different designs they can find. They then use as many different fonts and sizes as possible - the result is an absolute mess. As a general rule, you should never use more than two fonts in any document, preferably only one.

Having decided on the font, you then have to decide on its size. For most of your documents, I recommend that you standardise on 12-point for the body text to allow for easy reading. Unfortunately, most word-processing and desktop-publishing systems have 10-point set as the default, which is far too small for easy reading, and the lines of type will have too many characters on them. For easy reading, lines of type should be between 40 and 65 characters in length. This recommendation is based on typing set in a single column. If you type your documents in two or more columns, however, the type you use will have to be smaller. In a two-column layout, for example, you would have to reduce your type size to 10-point.

Paragraph Length
One of the most important things you need to do to improve the appearance and readability of your documents is to control the length of your paragraphs. Like your words and sentences, your paragraphs should be short, averaging 8 to 10 lines - never be longer than 15 lines. If you get to 15 lines, make a break anyway and start a new paragraph.

As a matter of interest, if you want to stress a particular thought or idea, write it as a short sentence, and then make that sentence a paragraph on its own.

Although the laying out of your pages comprises only about ten per cent of the work involved in creating a document, it is an extremely important part, so, you need to get it right. If you follow the above principles, your documents will present a pleasant, dignified, and modern image of you and your business. As you will have cleaned up your shop window, people will be more likely to come in. They will then start to read what you have written. And that is a good start.

Chris can be contacted on (016) 349 3031 or click here to email. To find out more about Curwen's various courses and seminars, see www.curwen.za.com.

In Brief: Feeling Snowed Under? Learn to Delegate!
by Sally Hetherington, Bizland Webmaster

As much as you would like to believe it, there will come a time when you can't do it all. Many people are reluctant to hand work over to other people, mistakingly believing the old saying that "if you want a job done properly, do it yourself." Trying to take on too much at once can be detrimental not only to yourself, but also to your business - don't be too proud to ask for help. Click here to read on.

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For everything that you ever wanted to know about owning a small business, from financing, managing, training and support, check out BRAIN (Business Referral and Information Network). BRAIN is run by an organisation called NAMAC, an SMME support agency within the Department of Trade and Industry group. Bizland is an affiliate of Brain and can be seen under a number of their resource links.

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Farewell fond friend - It is with a heavy heart that we bid a fond farewell to the big boss, Piers, who will be leaving with his family for the States at the end of the year, to expand our branch in Tennessee. He will still be popping back every couple of months, but in the meantime all queries can be sent to me and anything requiring Piers' attention will be relayed on - otherwise it's business as usual! And to Piers and his family: "Y'all have a great time, ya hear?" Best of luck and stay in touch! Bon Voyage!

Tax Seminar - Bizland will be hosting a Tax Seminar on 22 January from 5 - 7 pm in Cape Town, at R350 per delegate. Receive important information about the latest amendments to tax laws, understand Capital Gains Tax, learn how to set up your payroll for tax efficiency and discuss your concerns with the experts. Not to be missed! For more information click here!

Carols by Candlelight - Just to get you into the Christmas spirit - fun for the whole family!
Cape Town: Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, 12-30 December (get there early to get a good spot - 6-ish)
Johannesburg: Northgate Dome, 4 December, 5pm (with Ed Jordan, The Welsh Male Voice Choir, and more)
Witwatersrand: Wits Botanical Gardens, 6-8 December, 7pm (with The Welsh Male Voice Choir)
Watch your local press for details!

Free Software Download - Lucky enough to be going to Europe for Christmas? Then you need the nifty Euro Changer Calculator to translate other currencies into Euros - Click here to download.

Need Christmas Presents? Click here for great gifts from Kalahari.net.

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The Agenda: What Every Business Must Do to Dominate the Decade

From one of the world's foremost business thinkers comes an action plan to steer a company in today's hypercompetitive world. The Agenda show managers how to rethink every aspect of a business and reshape it for the imperatives of the customer economy.

This is the essential handbook for 21st-century business, filled with powerful and practical business ideas for today's world of fierce competitors and even fiercer customers.
Click here for more Tep Ten books

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This month's Success Story: Ian Hurst of Paymaster - Paying for Success

Ian Hurst has spent many years in the payroll management and human resources field, having started his career with aspirations of becoming an accountant, completing a Commerce degree at Stellenbosch University. He was only three days into his first job, however, when he realised that accounting wasn't for him, and in 1981 he accepted a position on the diamond mines in Kimberley. Due to his background in accounting, Ian was asked to look after the wages department as part of his portfolio, work which was in those days done manually.

Three years later Ian found himself working at Van Leer Packaging as a training manager, followed by a four year stint at Mobil (now Engen), and in 1989 he joined Bergers stores. Ian says of this period: "It was a difficult six years, as I had to start the HR department in a family owned company that did not believe in the niceties of

Ian Hurst
human resource management." On top of this, the company was not performing to expectations, posting a R54 million loss in 1994, and was eventually taken over by the Morkels Group. As part of the management team that turned Bergers stores into a profitable chain (R6 million in 1998) Ian learned an incredible amount about people and business. In 1998 the Morkels Group was split into various companies, and Bergers was sold to Fashion Africa (Dunns) Stores from Nelspruit.

Ian was not, however, happy with the change, and did not agree with the autocratic management of the company: "I was not prepared to sacrifice my values to be part of the "in" group. I believe in balance, and all work and no play did not excite me." In addition to this, there was talk of the head office relocating to Johannesburg, which was not part of Ian's future plans.

It was during this period, having spent many frustrating hours trying to find a reliable, competent payroll outsource company without success, that Ian saw the need for a company that would take full responsibility for payroll: "At that stage there were plenty who would plonk a terminal on your desk leaving you to do the input and verification yourself. I was looking for a company that would take responsibility and do all the work, encompassing pension, medical aid and human resource work as well." Ian believed that payrolls would become more and more complicated due to more stringent laws and government policing, making payroll a specialised and highly skilled area of business. He partnered up with ex-Bergers MD Joe Wolfson, who now heads POSSE Investments, who shared his vision, and so Paymaster was born.

The going wasn't easy at first, the biggest problem being to convince clients that Paymaster could deliver in a very sensitive area. In order to overcome this problem, parallel salary and wage systems were set up to convince clients of the feasibility. Growth was at first slow, with a monthly turnover of only R40 in the beginning. Things looked more promising, however after eight months, when Paymaster signed a large company who was able to cover all Paymaster's business expenses. The client was unfortunately sold shortly thereafter, and turnover dropped by half: "We survived by focussing on costs and concentrating on marketing to smaller companies (30 - 80 employees) to diversify our customer base, a market we still focus on today".

Through much perseverance and hard work, Ian eventually brought Paymaster to where it is today, with five payroll administrators working for 114 clients and running over 160 payrolls monthly, transferring over R16 million a month through their trust account to pay over 5500 employees. Paymaster have also teamed with Bizland in order to bring Paymaster into the technology age: "Because of our association with Bizland, clients now have access to their information via the Bizland website, where individual employees can change their own biographical data online."

Ian offers the following advice to aspiring entrepreneurs: diversify your customer base to avoid putting all your eggs one basket; work at finding trustworthy and loyal staff, as they are worth more than anything else in your business; and remember the balance - keeping your support structure (spouse, family) in tact is more important than the extra turnover. Ian also stressed the importance of keeping customers happy, as this will only serve to have a positive effect on your business. As a final point Ian adds: "Business is my passion and it gives me great pleasure to see companies being able to focus on the core issues and grow from strength to strength, because Paymaster is dealing with the staffing issues."

A family man at heart, Ian enjoys spending time with his wife and three children, as well as all things outdoors, such as hiking, cycling, camping and recently sailing, and is also an avid reader of biographies.

Ian is positive about the future of Paymaster, and will shortly be introducing a Time and Attendance model to the offering in partnership with Bizland. He is also looking into adding medical aid and pension brokerage services to the offering. Ian's aims is to pay 10 000 employees by the end of 2004, doubling the business every two years - true proof of a man passionate about his business.

Ian can be contacted on 082 898 5006 or click here to email. Visit Paymaster's website at www.paymaster.co.za.

Let us know if there is a success story that you want us to investigate, or if you have a story to share with us. Send your contributions or suggestions to success@bizland.co.za - we look forward to hearing from you.

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"Always do right; this will gratify some people and astonish the rest" - Mark Twain

Please send us your comments or questions to sallyh@bizland.co.za or post them on our Discussion Board.

We would like to wish all our subscribers a happy and safe festive season!

Until next year...

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