5 Service Providers Many Businesses Don’t Know They Need
- Money Mentor
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Running a business in the UK today is simpler and more accessible than ever. Across industries, startups are thriving, and SMEs are targeting the next phase of growth.
However, running a business isn’t easy. Determination and passion will kickstart your entrepreneurial journey, but making the right choices and investments will keep your business moving forward.
One of the key decisions business leaders have to make is finding the right support partners for business growth. From selecting a low-latency cloud hosting platform to configuring ERP solutions for your operations, the right service providers can help build a solid foundation for your venture and its growth.
Here are 5 service providers that you may be overlooking, who can support your organisation in different ways and free you up to focus on running your business.
1. Managed Hosting Providers
All businesses rely on the internet and digital technology, whether you’re a big enterprise or a small, growing entity. Some choose to host websites on-premises, while others opt for more advanced controls with heavier customisations on third-party servers.
But as your business grows, even with an IT team, you may find it difficult to manage your DIY hosting and storage choices. Whether you build your IT infrastructure on-premises or on the cloud, having a reliable hosting provider can make all the difference. Partnering with a reputable UK provider like BlackBox for managed cloud services can be the answer if you’re looking for a provider who can take care of everything, from setup to ongoing support. Managed service providers like BlackBox Hosting can keep a close watch on your systems with 24/7 monitoring, regularly update and maintain them, and safeguard your business from cybersecurity threats.
If you think knowing a “computer guy” is enough, think again. This is one of the business areas where investing in service providers is a long-term strategy and not a short-term fix.
2. Legal Services
When running a business, legal risks can arise unexpectedly in property and finance deals. Whether it's a bridging loan, personal guarantee, legal charge, or debenture with floating and fixed charges, unclear terms can expose you to personal liability and high costs.
You may not know it right away, but the best people to get you out of such sticky situations are independent legal advice lawyers. When you invest in legal services, you’re assured of someone who can help you with various aspects of the law. Consulting a lawyer can highlight red flags before issues arise. You can clarify risks in joint borrower sole proprietor mortgages, transactions at undervalue, litigation funding, development loans, gifts, statutory declarations, and disponer restrictions.
Even as a startup or director, getting ILA upfront protects your assets and decisions. You'll have experts reviewing documents to highlight obligations before you sign, ensuring you're protected in every transaction.
3. CSR and Impact Management Services
Today’s customers, investors, and employees expect more from business. They don’t just look at good products, services, and healthy profits. They also want to know how responsible it is, whether it supports communities, reduces its carbon footprint, or treats people fairly.
This is corporate social responsibility, or CSR. If your organisation is invested in volunteering, fundraising, and related CSR activities, it can get easier to manage them using corporate social responsibility software. Instead of using multiple tools or spreadsheets to track contributions and initiatives across teams, a single software solution can organise and manage everything your CSR and HR teams need.
CSR software or tools can help your organisation plan, manage, and report on the impact of your social and environmental activities. From tracking carbon-reduction or offset efforts to organising volunteer events, it can ease the workload of your CSR and HR teams without the admin hassles.
Some software may include social-sharing or communication features, making it easier for teams to share what your organisation is doing, how, and why it matters. It’s equally important to pick the right CSR software provider who can showcase and support the good work your organisation does.
4. ERP Solutions Partner
If you’re looking to scale your business to the next phase of growth, you may need to look internally. It’s easy to manage core operations like finance, HR, and sales on spreadsheets or freemium tools when the business is small. But as you expand operations, managing multiple software applications or spreadsheets becomes a chaotic task. And when your departments are working in silos without interacting with each other, they’re likely slower and less efficient.
One of the reasons a business thrives is in how well its processes are connected and integrated as a whole. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software can help by consolidating your core business processes into a single platform. ERPs like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central are modern systems that can be customised to suit your industry-specific requirements. When supported by the right ERP partner, an ERP system can be a game-changer for your business.
You can monitor your financial health and inventory levels in real time, rather than waiting for reports. Automation can reduce repetitive tasks, easing the burden of admin work and freeing your teams to more strategic aspects of your business. One system connected across departments helps facilitate collaboration.
If you’re new to ERP systems, choosing the right solutions provider can support implementation, training, and ongoing support plans.
5. Marketing and Branding Services
You may have the best product or service with top-tier benefits, but if word doesn’t get out, it may be fruitless. Marketing and branding services help people, especially those interested in your product or service.
But this task goes beyond just “spreading the word”; it also comes down to how you talk about your offering, who you say it to, and how often you say it. Marketing and branding professionals can design your brand and its story, develop a strategy, and help you be seen by your target audience. They are skilled at analysing what strategy will work best, whether it’s designing and ordering custom flags online or running a well-planned social media campaign.
Depending on where your customers are searching, your product or service will be present across media, including print, TV, digital channels, outdoor, or a mix of all. But their work doesn’t end there, as these service providers also track your company’s performance and reach.
At first, marketing in-house may seem enough to get by and easy on the pocket. But once your business takes off and you’re looking to get a foothold in the market and the market share, you’ll need to rely on more than just free tools like Canva and internal brainstorming. For real growth, consider hiring marketing and branding professionals with industry experience.
To Sum Up
No business was built overnight. It’s always the result of multiple factors and the right decision that pushes your business forward. But you don’t have to invest in all these service providers at the same time; partner with them as the need arises or if your future growth depends on it.
As your business grows, don’t hesitate to invest in the right partners. At the right time, they can prevent costly mistakes that set your business back. It may just be one of the wisest business decisions you’ll ever make.
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