Handy templates for start-ups

One of my friends set up his own business recently. He spent oodles of time messing about, hand crafting document templates, using complex headers and footers. And glitzing up powerpoint slides in a way that overtook his business critical activity (drumming up clients and securing billable work) for a good couple of weeks.

Don’t get me wrong, I like good design and I think that every business should project a professional brand image. But in those very early days where securing orders can make the difference between staying in the black, or going into the red, I would strongly advocate focusing your attention on generating sales, rather than the knobs and bells of marketing.

Which is why I liked the idea of a load of natty templates on the Microsoft Corporate site. These could save you valuable hours in your early days and allow you to pop your own label on some pretty cool layouts. There are also some ‘creative’ presentation slides that come without a cheese warning. Fab.

Sara is a marketing specialist with a wealth of on-line and traditional experience. With award winning credentials as an advertising writer, her career also spans the disciplines of planning and strategy for both B2B and consumer clients. Having worked for one of the the UK's biggest non-London agencies, Sara now works on a consultancy basis for clients large and small. http://www.smallbizpod.co.uk/blog