Whether you are marketing for yourself or marketing for a large international company it is always helpful and essential to know the basics.

This of course might sound silly and patronizing to many, however, in the world of business and learning I have seen time and time again the lack of preparation from many educated and experienced people.

This has subsequently resulted in failed enterprises and businesses.

It has been estimated that roughly 60% of new businesses the open up in the UK each year fail before they get themselves off the ground.

This isn't because they didn't have good communication skills or a good idea. The problem mainly arises from people not taking the time assess their surroundings not building up client relations and not building up customer retention.

-Location, location, location this is always important. Ive seen many companies spend vast amounts on their location and waste their savings. Before you establish where you want the company to be it is important to know the surrounding the demographics the demand and the supply and more importantly the competition

-For building up clients and customers, usually the first 6 months to one year most companies expect to make a loss. This is because like everything we do it takes time to build up clients to generate interest and to get customers to come back to you time and time again. A company has to always ask itself what makes it stand out from the crowd. What makes this company unique and what can it provide onto the market.

-For dealing with customers and services it is always important to remember the rule of 1/49 that is the for every one customer you deal with you will probably get one additional customer. For every customer complaint they will go and tell 49 other people about the bad service.

-For new companies reputation and a good service offer is essential, because a new company does not have a brand identity or the resources to compete against most existing companies, it has to take the extra time to stay open later, to continually offer promotions and to accept every potential customer they can.

-Overall most new companies setting themselves up in the UK need to be aware that while they might make a short term loss they should be thinking about the long term goals. 

Failing everything a company should also be thinking of an exit strategy a form of escape is the situation goes sour so to speak.

While too many the development of the internet has brought about a lot of economic opportunity and greater measures and mediums for people to communicate, it has several draw backs.

For the most part while from a marketing perspective the internet allows information to travel, it also means that what get written on the internet will permanently stay there. Like a permanent marker on a board, posting reviews comments etc will stay on sites and if worded incorrectly will be taken out of context and will be used against you in the future.

The internet provides everyone with a voice equal in all and with a balance viewpoint to present arguments and debates.
The problem is that it is usually quite hard to find a well rounded debated on a posting forum as it is near impossible to gain the complete picture of information from just the internet.

Some of the main problems are that everything you write / post can be used against you in the future.
Everything that you write can be traced back to you as a person
With social media applications and the growing web.2.0 you never can be sure who you are talking to and you have no control over your user data. Lastly people can take over your identity using various social media sites and information.

While social media has proved essential in the development of the internet towards a growing community, there are still several associated problems and things to look at for.

Up to date my work experience in England has been quite limited to student based jobs over the last few years. From summer placements to student jobs and retail work. Everything from factory work to farming I think that I have done pretty much most of the casual labour work that was available. My past history of work has been as a steward at the University of Keele and as volunteer promoter for many nights out around the area.

Over the years I found that I was in the rush like many of my friends and people my age, looking for the next level of education. Trying to by pass the low level jobs and hope for that one magical day when we could all go abroad live in a nice warm country and get paid a fair amount for the minimal amount of effort. Like many British the thought of abroad has been on everyone's mind year in and out. The concept of work, or an internship or just a few weeks off in the summer or some vacation is always on the mind of people from the UK.

I decided that without the cash resources and the additional language qualities that rather than go abroad to study I would take the opportunity to study in my home country of England and gain some practical work experience in England before going abroad for an international internship in the sun.

I wish all who look for a great time out and some experience the best and to think about their options before venturing too way and wide. However, on the other side to always keep perspective and take all into account. Whether you look for work close by or abroad it is always best to think of the long term gain, as well as the short term benefits.

Overall, from my experience and from the people I meet each day who have also undertaken work placements or travelled afar I can safely way that by just giving it a try or chancing it on the line is always worth it.

My day to day activities at my internship are to look after and help my fellow interns and promote internship programmes around the world. I also make sure that interns feel welcome upon their arrival and help them with training and development. 

Aside from the usual work load and the day to day tasks of being in the Human Resource department, part of my task is to make sure that everything runs smoothly and that all the other interns enjoy their time and gain the most from their work placement.

Since I have been an intern I have enjoyed learning a lot and have had many opportunities to develop my skills and embrace new cultures. I look forward to seeing what the next year has in stall for me and what I can bring to other interns and what i can learn and more importantly teach to other interns.

I look forward to the upcoming events of this year and more importantyl the summer months, to take some time off and enjoy the sun. For the time being I'm busy as ever making sure that everyone around me has a good time and can make the most of their internship experience.

This post is for the most part an update of my plans for the summer and to let myself and others know what I will be doing over the next few months.

With luck my friend will have his camper van fixed and soon, I and a few other crazy cats might do on an old fashioned road trip round Europe. Failing that plan, like most plans that I try to work on, I think it will be a summer of relaxation and good nights out. To ideals of many and the plans of a few. Over the upcoming months I aim to either travel on the cheap or just free load my accommodation.

While the comforts of a hotel do have the added sense of appeal, I feel my wallet might brake at the thought of spending large. Alas, when it comes to travel and comfort in my experience the two dont go hand in hand. As such my plans will be lacking in the comfort department and in return will be gained in the spontaneous realm of adventure and uncertainty.

Aside all the usual amenities I aim to have at least one week off from everything to sit in the sun and unwind after many a hard days work. To take comfort in the knowledge that tomorrow like so many other days is just round the corner and that with each day the ground starts to warm up and the sun stays out just that little bit longer. For advice on where to travel this summer, apart from going the distance and enjoying the remote areas of distant land my recommendations for travelling round England would either be to go to the west country. Or to go up north and visit cities such as Leeds and York, 

       With hard times ahead and the troubles of not just the lack of financial incentives afoot, the time had come for me to apply myself from what I had learn't in academia. Although my university experience was long, fruitful and very fulfilling. The only problem I had was that I had no work-experience that would be credible to companies when I had finished my studies.

I thought for a long time about the possibilities of internships and work placements during my studies, however during my time at Keele University I partied way too much and did not spend enough time thinking ahead. When I took my masters course at the University of Leeds I thought about a work placement, but then again my studies were long and I felt that I did not have the energy nor time to go for an internship placement.

Looking back on it the benefirs and skills that I have learn't in my internship have for the better part been more practical and useful to me tthan my 4 years of study. While I do not think my time was wasted in University. I feel now that in order for new upcoming univeristy graduates, that taking some time out and getting some work experience, whether paid or not can be a real benefit to getting on the job market.