Businesses Given Practical Advice to Make Their Stories Come Alive
Over 70 businesses were given practical advice to drive growth and make their business story come alive in a networking event with a difference in Rugby.
The Power of Storytelling to Drive Business Growth was organised by the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Hub, Rugby FM and Rugby Borough Council at the World Rugby Hall of Fame and Rugby Art Gallery & Museum in Little Elborow Street.
Steve Orchard, owner of Rugby FM, along with radio hosts Simon Alexander, Ollie Gallant and Jason Moss spoke about the power of authentic storytelling to successfully market a business whether it is an SME or a high-street giant.
Nick Eastwood, chief executive of Wasps Rugby Club, Chris Ball, managing director of Lenoch Engineering in Rugby, and John Conod of Warwickshire-based Purity Brewing Company were all involved in the free event which proved to be such a big success that organisers are planning to hold more events in Rugby later in the year.
Rich Warren, account manager and business mentor at the CWLEP Growth Hub, said the speakers had highlighted the importance of connecting with customers to create a highly-effective marketing campaign to lead to business growth.
“The CWLEP Growth Hub is here to assist all businesses in Rugby from start-ups to long established businesses whether that is giving advice on applying for grants or searching for new premises,” he said.
“This was a really fun, informative networking event which gave the speakers the opportunity to give advice to businesses in Rugby on making their business story come alive across multiple platforms to drive business growth.
“When I first engage with a business, I ask them to tell me their story about how they have reached this point, their future plans and what is their biggest problem so that we can help them solve it.
“There are often common themes such as access to finance, growing the skills of their staff or finding suitable premises.
“During this conversation, the business owner often finds the issue which they thought was the problem isn’t the problem so we can help people understand their business better which, in turn, means they market their products or services in a more effective way.
“There is a whole raft of support available to businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire whether that is applying to funding programmes or connecting with another business which is a win-win for both parties.”
Rich said the event had been a great example of collaboration with partners to provide an informative event.
He said: “We are working closely with Rugby Borough Council to support businesses across the borough who are looking to grow and events such as this are a great way of highlighting the services available to provide information and support.
“This event was a big success partly due to the fact it was held at the World Rugby Hall of Fame and Rugby Art Gallery & Museum which is a great venue for business events.
“The feedback we received from delegates and Rugby Borough Council has been universally positive with one delegate saying it was the best business event they had attended for many years which was fantastic.”
Delegates were also urged to enter the sixth annual Pride of Rugby Awards organised by Rugby FM. Nominations close this Friday (March 23).
Caption: From the left, Rich Warren (CWLEP Growth Hub), Nick Eastwood (Wasps), Chris Ball (Lenoch Engineering), Steve Orchard, Ollie Gallant and Simon Alexander (all Rugby FM)
