There is a large amount of useful information and tools available across the University of Southampton website, and on the wider internet.
We have collated a number of these resources for your reference below. This information is added to and updated on a regular basis so remember to check back frequently!
Business Registration Types
| Resource | Information |
|---|---|
| Set up a Business | Gov.uk guidance on setting up a business |
| Sole Trader | Gov.uk guidance on operating as a sole trader. |
| Limited Partnership | Gov.uk guidance on operating as a limited partnership. |
| Limited Liability Partnership | Gov.uk guidance on operating as a limited liability partnership (LLP). |
| Limited Company | Gov.uk guidance on operating as a limited company. |
| Running a Limited Company | Gov.uk guidance on running a limited company. |
Marketing and Branding
| Resource | Information |
|---|---|
| Brand Guidelines - University of Southampton | Having good brand guidelines is key to having a consistent approach to your marketing strategy. Take a look at the University of Southampton's guidelines to see what you might need to consider. |
| Userforge Persona Exercises | Persona exercises are a great way to focus on what your customer and/or user wants. Use these to pin down their demographic, goals and limitations. |
| DaFont - Free hero fonts | Using the right font is crucial to your branding. Find a hero font to use that matches the look of your business. Remember to check the usage limitations and credit the creator if required! |
| Google Fonts - Free body fonts | Using the right font is crucial to your branding. Find a body font to use that matches the look of your business. Remember to check the usage limitations and credit the creator if required! |
| Coolors | Sometimes finding the right colour palette can be tricky. Coolors lets you lock-in the colours that you like, and finds complementary ones for you to use. |
| FlatIcon - Free vector images | Vector images can be scaled up and down without losing any quality. Here you will find a vast selection of images that can be used for a variety of purposes. Again, remember to check the usage limitations and credit the creator if required! |
Website Creation
| Resource | Information |
|---|---|
| WordPress | WordPress is just one of a number of sites that offer a quick and easy way to build a website, with lots of plug-in functionality. No need to learn how to code, search for the service that offers you what you need for your business. |
| Wix | Wix is just one of a number of sites that offer a quick and easy way to build a website, with lots of plug-in functionality. No need to learn how to code, search for the service that offers you what you need for your business. |
| SquareSpace | SquareSpace is just one of a number of sites that offer a quick and easy way to build a website, with lots of plug-in functionality. No need to learn how to code, search for the service that offers you what you need for your business. |
| GoDaddy Hosting | Likewise, there are a huge number of places offering webhosting services. WordPress, Wix or SquareSpace may also offer this service as part of their packages, but you can also look at doing this separately. |
Miscellaneous Resources
| Resource | Information |
|---|---|
| Careers Library Webpage | The Careers Centre has a number of books and e-books available to help you with planning your enterprise journey. |
| e-books webpage | The Careers Centre has a number of books and e-books available to help you with planning your enterprise journey. |
| The Entrepreneur Handbook | The Entrepreneur Handbook, set up by a Loughborough graduate, offers a number of enterprise and entrepreneurship blogs and guides across a range of categories. |
| LinkedIn Learning | LinkedIn Learning is a great resource that UoS students can access to broaden their knowledge. Containing concise and professional videos on a range of subjects that can help students learn and enhance skills in all areas, not just enterprise and entrepreneurship. |
| HMRC Guidance Pages | HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) site has useful information about company structures, what and when you need to inform HMRC, claiming expenses and tax returns. |
| IP Tutor Pages - IPO | Find out about intellectual property with subject-related training, and gain a free certificate online with IP Tutor from the Government’s Intellectual Property Office. |
| Start-up Loans | Start Up Loans is a government-backed scheme helping individuals start or grow a business in the UK. |
| UnLtd - The Foundation for Social Entrepreneurs | UnLtd finds, funds and supports social entrepreneurs - enterprising people with solutions that change our society for the better. |
| Strategyzer Blog | A blog by Strategyzer, the company behind the Business Model Canvas approach to business planning (you can also sign up and receive their e-newsletter). |
| Business Model Canvas Guidance | A really useful guide which helps you get the most out of the Business Model Canvas. |
| Dinghy | Low-cost, flexible and fair freelancer insurance. |
| informi | Free resources for small businesses and a guide to starting your own business in 20 days. |
| Cost Model Example | We in the Student Enterprise team have put together an example Excel spreadsheet to demonstrate how this powerful tool can be used to keep track of your incomings and outgoings. Please note, this is not intended as a demonstration of correct accounting or financial planning methodology. |