Monthly Archives: December 2020

Hot Business News Today

Writing off Bounce Back Loans would be best thing to do, say accountants

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Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Writing off the £42bn worth of Bounce Back Loans that have been issued to small businesses is going more effective in the long-run than chasing debts which will never be repaid.
So says accountancy association the AAT, responding to the withering assessment of MPs investigating the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS).
Nearly two thirds of Bounce Back Loans, designed to help small businesses survive Covid-19, may never be repaid, according to the government’s own figures. That would leave the taxpayer staring at a loss of £26bn.
>See also: Europe’s small businesses call for three-month post-Brexit transition period
Writing off the entire £42bn worth of Bounce Back Loans would save the government £1bn in interest payments alone paid to banks while they chase bad debtors, and free up banks not to waste time working with costly debt recovery agencies.
Back in June, ex-chancellor George Osborne said that all emergency Covid-19 financial support should be written off – an assessment the AAT agrees with.
Taxpayers are facing a hit of up to £26bn because the government failed to “strike the right balance” between rescuing companies and protecting the public purse with an emergency loan scheme, MPs have warned.
>See also: Government plans

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Hot Business News Today

How to double down on video ads without doubling your budget

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Originally written by Partner Content on Small Business
Video ads are an amazingly powerful marketing medium. It attracts attention, stops people in their endless scroll, and sticks in the memory to convey messages and information in appealing and easily digestible ways.
It’s perfect for digital natives who want their content to be entertaining and effortless to consume, so it’s no real surprise that the global video ads market is growing at a rate of knots. It rose from $3bn in 2016 to $19.7bn in 2019, and it’s estimated to continue at a CAGR of 41.1 per cent year on year until 2027.
 

Even during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, when marketers scaled back on many channels, global video advertising revenues remained stable, probably because people stuck at home were seeking entertainment. It’s striking that video ads are considered as part of the entertainment category.
Video ads have expanded to new platforms like social media ads, in-app video ads, and OTT streaming media ads, and evolved new styles like 360-degree video and vertical filming which make them even more eye-catching and immersive. It’s impossible — and unwise — for SMEs to overlook them, especially when you’re swimming in the same ocean as large, corporate

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