Sales and marketing top concerns for small engineering firms

Research carried out by not-for-profit small business support group found that sales and marketing strategy is a priority for more than one in five (26.1%) smaller firms in the engineering industry; ahead of operations management, highlighted as an issue by 14.6% of respondents, and HR-related issues, such as recruitment, training and employment law (13.4%). Credit control was also a concern for many, with business owners citing chasing overdue payment as a major problem. The financial loss small engineers suffer when other companies go bust owing them money also emerged as a worry. Forum chief executive Phil Orford (pictured) said:"Getting sales and marketing right is crucial for small engineering companies – especially as they are acknowledged as one of the main sectors to lead the country to a sustainable private sector recovery. "However, marketing often falls outside the skill-set the of many small business owners in the industry, leaving them unsure about how best to increase sales and grow. Similarly, owners of engineering companies can't be expected to be experts in the ins and outs of employment law or the criteria banks use when assessing a firm's viability for lending, so it's perhaps not surprising that these also emerged as concerns."