BIHA newsletter # 66. (Published: 17th August 2009).

Hi,

Please see below, a BIHA newsletter which was sent out to BIHA members in August 2009….I hope you find it interesting and informative.

Welcome to BIHA newsletter # 66. (Published: 17th August 2009).

I hope the season is going well for you.

There is some very important content in this newsletter. I have also tried to balance it with some amusing real-life hire stories, one-liners from customers, hints and tips to help you in your hire businesses, etc. Please could you keep a good look-out for some stolen blowers and laptops that were stolen from Fun-Factor recently

Stolen blowers and laptops.
Spotlight on a bouncy caste hire company.
Claim your free subscription to Play & Party Magazine.
2nd hand inflatables for sale.
LIW Show (Leisure Industry Week) coming up next month at the NEC.
How to maximize your visit to this years’ LIW show.
Low Cost Websites – BIHA members can benefit from a massive 80% discount.
Anchor points – Important information.
Party Popper Stain Removal.
Hints & Tips from the BIHA archives.
ISA and SAFEchild – What you need to know.
Winning entries from the recent BIHA competition. (Funny “one-liners” from customers.)
The BIHA sister website: www.BouncyCastleOwner.com (FREE subscription for BIHA members – worth £50 per year)
How to promote your website on twitter.
The Jolly Good Inspection, Repairing and Testing Company.
BIHA van stickers – just a few left! Once they’re gone – they’re gone!
How to speed up your PC or laptop so it runs like when it was brand new.
Taking your inflatable hire business to another level.
Closing comments.

1) Stolen Blowers & Laptops

Hello,

In the space of 3 weeks Fun-Factor (Based in Buckinghamshire) has been burgled twice. Once on the 10th July and then again on the 31st July 09. We are hoping by sending this email to you we may get some information.

Below is a list of equipment stolen:

2 laptops
1 Digital Camera
1 Rodeo Bed
18 Gibbons Blowers – Serial Numbers:

167924
169339
169951
167931
169340
170007
169301
169347
169309
169348
169310
169299
169314
169338
169319
169349
169331
169350

If anybody has approached you with a good offer on blowers please be aware these ones are stolen. A reward will be given to anyone with information leading to finding the majority of my equipment. Police are also investigating the burglaries.

On a much lighter note we have a new website!! Please go to www.fun-factor.co.uk to check out new stock and products we offer.

If you require any further information please contact us on 01491 573100 or follow the links to our website.

Thanks for your time.

Regards,

Ryan Wakefield
FUN FACTOR
www.fun-factor.co.uk
info@fun-factor.co.uk
01491 573100
07841 872 907

2) Spotlight on a Hire Company.

A big thanks to Derek Lawrence for taking some time out of his business to answer some questions…..

Q1) What is your name and business name:

Derek Lawrence, All Together Bounce.

Q2) Where are you based?

Great Barr, Birmingham.

Q3) Why did you start an inflatable hire business?

My mother-in-law knew a full-time veterinary surgeon who quit their £50K a year career (in the winter!!) to start up a bouncy castle hire business. I was gobsmacked, and I thought if a vet can sacrifice their career to hire inflatables, then I can do it as well! I was unemployed at the time so that this was very welcome news.

Q4) What did you do before?

I was a recruitment consultant for 14 years (with 7 different companies) I wanted a very simple product to sell, and selling inflatable hire was the perfect choice.

Q5) What is your favourite inflatable that you hire out?

Inflatable Slide (9ft to platform). This unit is the quickest and easiest to roll away. Also, it always gives immense pleasure to kids. (Lastly, it is the second dearest inflatable I hire out).

Q6) What do you most enjoy about the inflatable hire business?

Seeing a genuine sense of massive appreciation from the parents and children after I have inflated the castle or slide. The party is not complete without the inflatable! I also like helping customers who have been let down by another hire company and are so relieved when i turn up. I also like the fact that there is no stress, as in my last job, there were continual dead-lines to meet, which caused me a lot of stress.

Q7) What do you least enjoy?

Waking up on a Saturday morning and seeing that it is raining.

Q8) If you could wave a magic wand and change something about the industry, what would it be?

Have summers that are TEN months long, and then I could have a break for two months.

Q9) What is the best thing that happened to you while out hiring?

When I hire an inflatable out, and when I come to collect it, one of their friends immediately books it for their kid’s party.

Q10) What is the worst thing that happened to you while out hiring?

I hired out a large adult bouncy castle for a childrens’ birthday party. When I arrived to collect it, I was relieved to see that it had been deflated. However, As I walked into the garden someone saw me and switched the castle back on again. Hoards of kids went onto the castle and started to taunt me saying: “We shall not be moved”. There was mud everywhere on the bouncy castle. They refused to get off, but in the end the parents threw them off, and I thought this was the end of my troubles but they had only just begun!

While I was cleaning the now filthy bouncy castle grateful that the kids were off it, little did I know that all the kids had gone round to the front of the house, where my van was parked.

You guessed it, they decided to decorate the inside and the outside of my van with silly string, mud-pies and anything else that they could get their hands on,. They completely trashed my van and all the inflatables and equipment that was inside the van was covered in silly string goo.

As you can imagine I was fuming mad, especially as they ignored their parents pleas to leave the van alone.

However, I decided to give the kids a lesson that they would never forget!

Around the front edge of the castle were all their trainers. While they continued to trash my van, I “accidentally” rolled up all their trainers in the castle, which was probably the quickest wrap-up in history.

I then quickly put the castle in the van. The customer realised what the kids had done to his van, but just said “Sorry about your van, mate”.

Despite, the terrible gooey, muddy mess inside and outside of my van, I drove home with a big smile on my face!

A hour later, I got a phone call from the customer “You ain’t see twelve pairs of kid’s trainers have you mate, none of the kids can find them??

I explained that they had probably got caught up in the groundsheet or the castle, and I would look the following day.

True to my word, the following day I returned back to the customer and gave him the missing trainers. We both had a really good laugh about it, but I also told him that I could never hire an inflatable to him again, and he completely understood.

This was the worst hiring experience I have ever had.

Q11) Do you have any ideas, hints or tips to share with the other members to improve profitability and/or safety etc?

Aim to get lots of repeat business and referrals by handing out your business cards and flyers at every party. Have a good website showing your various inflatables, which is well laid out and easy to navigate. The internet is without doubt the world’s most powerful marketing tool.

Q12) What are your plans for the future?

I am happy with my 9 inflatables, various giant games and a skittle alley and don’t have any plans to expand. My wife does face-painting which is the perfect business to complement mine. In addition, one of my customers does balloon modelling as well as face-painting.

Q13) How has the BIHA helped you in your business?

My BIHA membership gives my customers that extra peace of mind that they are dealing with an accredited company who had made the decision to join the BIHA, and adhere to its recommended working practices.

If you would like your inflatable hire business to be the subject of: “Spotlight on a hire company” please let me know by sending an email to: mark@biha.org.uk

Thank you.

3) Claim your free subscription to Play & Party Magazine.

I am pleased to inform you that the BIHA will be working quite closely with Play and Party Magazine in order to involve more of the inflatable hire industry in their editorials and features etc.

This A4 size, full colour, glossy magazine is published four times a year and covers most facets of the Childrens’ Entertainment Sector in the UK.

If you are interested in receiving a FREE subscription to this excellent magazine – please email your name, address, and post-code to mark@biha.org.uk

You can see a sample copy of this magazine online at: http://www.playandpartymag.com/downloads/Play_and_Party_5.pdf

(Please be aware though that this download is 4.5 Megs).

For those BIHA members who register, the next copy of this magazine will be delivered free of charge to your letterbox next month.

4) 2nd Hand Inflatables for sale.

FOR SALE

3 – 12×12’s and 1 – 11×8 (Tots/ball pond), 5x fans, 4x mats, 4 large bags of balls (for ball pond), trolley, 4x extension cables, pegs and hammer, weights (for indoor use), 4x ground sheets. Wanted £2,000 or nearest offer for quick sale. Contact Pete 07929 467157 or Kate 07908 466651. Harrogate area, buyer collects. Can arrange to view. All equipment brought new in Dec 06. Selling due to ill health.

Many thanks
Kate and Pete
Formaly:- KP Bouncy Castles, Harrogate, Yorkshire.
Please note that virtually all used inflatables and equipment is now posted on the DISCUSSION FORUM on www.BouncyCastleOwner.com
One of the perks of your BIHA membership is FREE subscription to: www.BouncyCastleOwner.com and its’ discussion forum. Please email me at: mark@biha.org.uk if you would like your free subscription to be activated. (Please include your name, address and post-code).

5) LIW Show (Leisure Industry Week) www.liw.co.uk

There is the LIW show next month at the NEC in Birmingham – See: www.liw.co.uk If you have never been before, it is definitely well worth a visit. In the Family Land section, there is a good range of different inflatables and childrens’ leisure attractions to see. There is also a great deal to see and do at the rest of the show, and you will pick up ideas which you can apply to your businesses.

6) How to maximize your visit to this years’ LIW show.

Are you planning to visit the ever-popular LIW Show at the NEC, Birmingham next month (22 – 24 Sept – 2009 – see: www.liw.co.uk ).

Visiting this show can be a very welcome break from the day to day running of your inflatable hire businesses. However, it should also provide the inspiration and ideas to help take your business to the next level. Please see below the various ways you can maximize the benefits of attending this show.

1) Before the show.

a) Always pre-register to save time.
b) If you can get a copy of the show catalogue in advance, do. I will greatly help you to plan your days or days at the show.
c) Seminars, keynote speeches, and conference sessions run throughout the day. These can be very useful and are usually free of charge to attend.
d) Take lots of your business cards. Some exhibitors will ask for them as they will want to follow up the conversation that have with you after the show. In addition, some exhibitors have prize draws where the only way you can enter is to place your business card into a jar or sealed box.
e) Arrange in advance with your bank or credit card company to have sufficient credit to take advantage of show discounts on inflatables and accessories.

2) At the Show.

a) Arrive as early as possible on the first day to see what is available, and what discounts are being offered on buying stock at the show.

b) When you first arrive, sit down with the show catalogue, read through the entries and mark on the plan the exhibitors you wish to see in order of priority.

c) Pay some attention to all stands in Family Land especially. There may be some hidden treasure of an idea that may not be immediately obvious.

d) Never forget to take a look at the small stands and also at companies exhibiting for the first time. They may be in the process of launching new products or new ideas which go on to become very successful. Also, it may be very worthwhile visiting the Press Office , as there may be a list of new products being exhibited and also new, first time exhibitors.

e) If you attend the Show with your business partner or work colleague, it’s usually not a good idea to walk round together since you may miss things while you are talking. Split up and compare notes before leaving the show. You will both spot different things.

f) Avoid alcohol, but drink lots of water as it is very easy to get dehydrated at the show. Some visitors drink high-energy drinks.

g) Try to ask stand-holders “what’s new?”. Without asking this question, it may not be immediately obvious.

h) Try not to spend too much time with suppliers you already know – as you can waste valuable time catching up with what has happened during the year. This can be done by phone!!

i) If you have sufficient time and energy! Try to walk around thre show twice as you are bound to pick up on things that you missed the first time around.

3) After the Show.

a) Keep the exhibition catalogue in a safe place after the show. You will probably need to delve into it from time to time.
b) Never choose to have your name deleted from the Show’s Mailing List database. Exhibitors occasionally use this list to send out details of new products launched after the show. You could miss out on something that your competitors don’t!!
c) Plan to attend the next LIW Show next year. Although you may not actually buy anything, it is vital that you keep up to date with new products and services within the inflatable industry and the wider leisure industry as a whole. Also it’s important to stay ahead of your competitors if at all possible.

7) Low Cost Websites – BIHA members can benefit from a massive 80% discount.

It always amazes me how many bouncy castle hire companies are trading without a website. The public nowadays expect all companies that they deal with to have a web presence. If they don’t then they are far less likely to give their business to this company. If you have a website and you include it on your business stationery, flyers, vans etc. then you will get more business PERIOD When I first had a website for my inflatable hire business way back in 1999, I noticed an immediate increase in enquiries and bookings. Customers (and their kids) liked to see what they would be getting!!

However, getting a professional website created and regularly maintained can be quite expensive and very time consuming for a small business……HOWEVER, not any more!…..A new Website Design Company called Tea Websites are happy to build and maintain a professional website for BIHA members who don’t yet have a website presence (or want a new site designed and hosted). They are also offering a massive 80% discount off their normal rates for BIHA members.

Please click on: www.low-cost-websites.org.uk for more information.

There is also an opportunity for ONE lucky BIHA member to win a FREE website including domain name and hosting etc.

Please click on: www.low-cost-websites.org.uk and scroll down to the bottom. You will see a form where you have to enter your name and email address in order to enter this free prize draw.

Please only enter this free prize draw if you do not yet have a website for your inflatable hire business (or if you are considering a website for another business). Priority must be give to inflatable hire companies who don’t yet have a website!

(Please note that BIHA members are still eligible for this 80% discount even if it is not a bouncy castle website – but another business e.g. limo hire or a mobile DJ). This 80% discount will also be honoured if BIHA members want to replace their current website or want more than one website built.

Tea websites have built several websites for me in the past and they come very highly recommended.

What makes them different from their more expensive competitors is that they allow their customers to edit (like in Word) their own website with text and images anytime they want (which saves a great deal of money on website programming fees).

If you need a website built (be it your bouncy castle business or any other business, give them a call. Please mention you are a BIHA member.

Their fee is just £47. This includes domain name and a professional website built to your specification. There is also an ongoing hosting/maintenance fee of £9.99 per month.

As previously mentioned, one reason they come so highly recommended is that you can edit the content of your website (e.g. text and pictures) yourself – You don’t need a programmer or website expert to do this! It’s as easy as writing a letter in Word. This can save you many £thousands over the years, and also save you a lot of grief and headaches, as programmers can be notoriously difficult to pin down if it is for a very minor alteration (such as adding one picture to the home page!)

Check out: www.low-cost-websites.org.uk and please watch the short intro. video at the top right. Also, nearly halfway down there is another short video which goes into some detail as to how you can edit the site yourself!

P.S. Their normal fee is £327 set-up and then £27 per month, so the above rates are an absolute steal. See: http://www.teawebsites.co.uk BUT don’t order from this site as it is their usual rates.

8) Anchor points – Important information.

It has been brought to the BIHA’s attention that a very small number of operators may be hiring out bouncy castles with only four anchor points. The standard (BS EN 14960:2006) states that a minimum of SIX anchor points are required. (Two at each side and two at the back). Very large castles need more than six anchor points.

If you are hiring out bouncy castles with only FOUR anchor points, please could you email me in strictest confidence at: mark@biha.org.uk I have some important information for you, which you may benefit from.

9) Party Popper Stain Removal.

The following email was received from Mr Ian Hobbs on the subject of Party Popper Stain Removal. (Please also see the attached image).

Hi Mark,

As you know, these stains are a nightmare to remove. To my knowledge, no-one has come anywhere near to getting them removed so I spent absolutely ages getting to where it is today. It’s not a quick fix and although not expensive at a fiver plus post & packing it sounds a lot for just 30mls…

but importantly – it works!! Instructions are also supplied with the solution.

I have attached an info sheet and a picture. Regarding the picture,(see attached) a sample piece of bouncy castle material was deliberately covered in Party Popper stains, then half was masked off. The unmasked side was treated, the result is the attached image.

It will help hirers that have this horrible problem. It’s not a cleaner, it’s a stain remover. I do sell excellent general purpose cleaner as well. Works the same as G101, if not better (I’ve used G101 as a comparison). Trouble with G101 is the amount you have to buy, making it very expensive unless you know someone who has it locally and is willing to decant it.

Regards, Ian. VBLIH.

MORE DETAILS BELOW:

Please note that this is not a general cleaning product.

I can supply a different general purpose cleaner if required.
Hi,

I’m sorry to hear you might have a problem with the bleeding dye from Party Poppers or something similar……… please read on.

You need to be aware that my product is not a general use cleaner but is suited for removal of isolated Party Popper stains, face paints, some Inks and also treats mould in smaller areas. Mould for example is commonly a more general widespread problem and often is showing through from the inside of the unit over large areas which makes treatment much more difficult

IMPORTANT

The first thing is don’t try to remove the stain by anything other than water based products (which won’t work anyway – but no doubt it maybe already too late as most people will try various options first then seek advice, myself included). If you attempt to remove the stain by thinners or other chemicals the dye will be made more permanent / fast, known in the trade as ”fixing”. If this is the case it will take longer to get results from my solution and it won’t be 100% successful but should reduce the damage by about 90% on the bleeding of fixed colours, but will continue to fade over an extended period of time as well. Fixed Party Popper stains may take 4/5 times longer as a process.
Non ”fixed” party popper dye can be removed fully in about an hour. Don’t be alarmed, there is no need to be in attendance during the removal process once applied.

COST

I can supply 30mls for £5 and £1 for every extra 10mls, if required, supplied with instructions for use & gloves. Post & packing is £1.50 on the smaller quantities.
It is normally sold in small quantities because you don’t need a lot to remove the Party Popper stain if treated without any other attempt being made with spirit based liquids. Larger quantities can be supplied at a reduced cost per mls.

No special precautions need to be taken other than the ones you would normally take if using any strong household cleaning products like gloves and old clothing or overalls. Use in an airy place but not in direct sunlight as this dries the solution too quickly. More guidelines will be with the product. It is not a quick fix product as these Party Popper dyes are the demon of all inflatables. The process takes about an hour, to apply the solution is very quick – it takes only a minute or two and will normally remove the Party Popper Dye, as I said, in about an hour but longer if the dye has been exposed to any spirit based cleaner and may also leave a dye trace.

Sending Funds – options.
Pay Pal direct payments to: 81544@blueyonder.co.uk
Cheques made payable to ”Ian Hobbs”
Cash or uncrossed postal order payments also accepted
My contact details are:
Ian Hobbs
17, Lime Avenue,
Melksham,
Wiltshire, SN12 6UY

Mobile 07967 862748
e-mail 81544@blueyonder.co.uk

WE ALSO REPAIR INFLATABLE’S AT YOUR LOCATION (travelling charges will apply) & ALSO AT OUR PREMISES, WE SUPPLY OTHER INDUSTRY RELATED ITEMS SOME OF WHICH ARE LISTED ON EBAY, WE ALSO SPECIALIZE IN ‘ONE OFF’ ITEMS MEETING YOUR NEEDS FOR SOMETHING SPECIFIC, DIFFERENT OR UNOBTAINABLE.

Regards, Ian. (VBLIH)

10)Hints & Tips from the BIHA archives.

a) If a customer rings you to enquire about an inflatable, or just wants a quote, but they are not 100% committed to booking it with you, then tell the customer that you will provisionally book it for them – with no obligation whatsoever. Even if they do not book it through you, at least you will have their contact details, so they can be a prospect for the future.

b) Hot tip
A good way to distribute leaflets at events when you are not around and this avoids asking the host to give out your leaflets.
Have a look in office world or staples and see the range of plastic ‘polyfile’ holders. these are robust clear plastic cases with an envelope style lid which can be closed by a button. you can get a4, a5 or a6 or smaller sizes.(they’re only about £1 or two each). Go into a DIY store and buy 2inch wide heavy duty velcro tape either in strips or a roll. cut about 4inches in length and stick the more rigid ‘hook’ side on the back of plastic case. the ‘loop’ side is best on the castle front as it is more flexible (which helps when it comes to packing away). obviously, you take it off when you deflate the castle.
I think a6 (4 printed on one side of a4) is the best size – big enough to catch attention and hold information but still quite neat.
it’s a good idea to count the number of leaflets you put in at the start e.g. 20, then you have an idea how many have been taken!
There are other leaflet holders, but the envelope style lid and button closure on this one means this one can stay on the castle during a shower and the leaflets keep dry.
it’s also good to put it high (5ft is eye level for adults) so adults can reach it, but not young children!

Thanks for this idea go to Katharine Campbell.

c) Sometimes when you deliver an inflatable to a garden, the garden is not level. If you take a SPIRIT LEVEL with you, you will be able to see where the gradient is, and where it varies. This should help you position a slide or bouncer in the safest position for the children.

d) Using you diary (preferable one A4 page to the day – available from WHSmiths or similar) when you have delivered an inflatable – put a large tick next to the booking. When you collect the inflatable simply cross the tick with a ballpoint pen. You can then see instantly which inflatables have been delivered and which ones have been collected. Simple but it works well.

e) Bungee cords (sometimes called elasticated luggage straps with hooks on) can be used to keep smaller inflatables (up to say 15ft x 15ft) rolled up securely. For larger inflatables it is better to use proper tie straps, as they are more robust, and they can be tightened easily.

f) Check the oil level in your petrol blowers every time they are used – if this is overlooked (which one member unfortunately did) and it runs dry of oil, then the engine will overheat and seize – fit only for the scrap heap. There should be a dipstick on every petrol blower.

g) If a castle gets wet, try and put it out again as quickly as possible so that it dries out. Some operators attach so much importance to this that they will deliver the wet inflatable early to a customer so that it can fully dry off in time for the party.

h) Add a childrens’ inflatable slide to the end of your obstacle course. Makes it a lot more fun and you can charge the customer extra as well.

i) When using petrol blowers on a dry hire (i.e. unsupervised) – it is vital that you inform the customer / user that if they allow the petrol to run out, the blower will stop running, and the inflatable will collapse. Remind the customer that after about 3 hours use they should switch off the blower and top it up with petrol if required. On a supervised hire, it is important that the trained supervisors regularly check the level of fuel.

j) During the busy summer season (May to September) you will find that your phone rings regularly with enquiries especially if you have an advert in the Yellow Pages. Many customers will not leave a message if they get through to an ansa-phone. So to avoid missing vital bookings you have the choice of either call divert to a mobile or alternatively have a secretary (or spouse) handling the phone calls. If you have to leave your office unattended, the best time to do this is between 14-30 and 15-30. The reason for this is because many mums pick their children up from school at this time, so are less likely to call you to book an inflatable.

k) To help prevent the theft of your van and the inflatables inside – use a high quality steering lock. Many would be-thieves lose interest when they see a strong steering lock and move on to another vehicle.

I would like to say a big thank you to all the BIHA members who kindly sent in their ideas, hints and tips.
If any other BIHA member has any tip they would like to contribute to the next newsletter – please email it to me at mark@biha.org.uk Thanks…

11) ISA and SAFEchild.

The Independent Safeguarding Authority ( ISA ) has been created to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults.

They do this by working in partnership with the Criminal Records Bureau ( CRB ), which will gather relevant information on every person who wants to work or volunteer with vulnerable people. To read more information about ISA’s please click on their website at:

www.isa-gov.org.uk

About SAFEchild

www.safechild.co.uk

SAFEchild provides guidance on child protection issues in line with current child protection legislation and promotes the Government’s “Every Child Matters” agenda. Established in 1999 SAFEchild is a registered charity and is dedicated to promoting the welfare of all children and young people.

Their Services

Backed by a multi agency team of very experienced and highly qualified child protection professionals, SAFEchild provides a comprehensive range of services to help keep children safe.

At SAFEchild they take a straightforward and practical approach and make tackling the subject easier through the use of guidance templates for writing child protection policies and risk assessments. They also offer distance-learning child protection training courses, CRB checks and up to the minute child protection information. In addition, SAFEchild runs child protection seminars across the country for those wanting to explore the subject in more depth.

Through membership of SAFEchild, you can access their self-audit tools thereby enabling you to carry out your own child protection risk assessment and tailor your own child protection policy from their SAFEchild template. Where required, SAFEchild’s child protection specialists will review and approve your risk assessment at no additional charge.

Safeguarding children and young people should be of paramount importance to everyone, not least because all organisations have a ‘duty of care’ towards all those who are involved in or who attend them. The Victoria Climbié and Bichard Inquiries graphically illustrate the overwhelming consequences for children and organisations when child abuse occurs. Specifically, they have caused a major shift in government policy to make the protection of children and young people everyone’s business;

“Everyone working with children and families should be familiar with and follow their organisation’s procedures and protocols for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children in their area, and know who to contact in the organisation to express concerns about a child’s welfare”

SAFEchild has been working with a broad cross section of voluntary groups and commercial organisations from a wide spectrum of sectors since 1999, including:

Faith
Uniformed Groups
Arts/Theatre/Music
Preschool/Play Groups
General Youth Groups
Museums/Libraries/Archives
Village Halls/Community Centres
Sports
Education
Government Agencies/Local Authorities
Housing Associations
Licensed Trades
Retail
Leisure activities
Health

By joining the 2000 organisations already in membership, you will be able to access everything you need to safeguard children in your care.

Check out their website at:
www.safechild.co.uk

12)Winning entries of the recent BIHA competition. (Funny “one-liners” from customers)

I am delighted to announce the winner of the free BIHA competition (held last month). Airquee ( www.airquee.co.uk ) kindly offered to donate a free (1.5) Gibbons blower for the winner.

Congratulations to the winner who is: Mr Derek Lawrence. (“All Together Bounce”).

Derek Lawrence’s winning entry (from one of his customers) was:

“I thought I’d call you to say that I’ve got no side entrance on the house and, if you arrive with the castle already inflated, you won’t be able to get it through my front door will you…?”

I was very pleased with the large number of entries that came in and it was extremely difficult to pick the winner…..

The runners-up are as follows:

1) “I would like to know if the adult bouncy castle bounces itself or do we need to jump on it in order for it to bounce” Submitted by Darren (Arc Bouncy castles).

2) Text message received from a customer. “Jun 11, 2009 17:38:05 – Hi Pete. I don’t have a foot pump for the jumping castle just a bike pump. If you have a spare one that will do. Cheers”. Submitted by Peter (Jumping Beanz)

3) When delivering a set of sumo suits a customer said, “I ordered a full set with legs in like on your website”……….My answer was that you have to supply your own legs. I then had to explain that the legs were ACTUAL legs. Submitted by Annabelle (The Leisure People)

4) After explaining to a customer that in the event of high winds the booking would have to be cancelled for safety reasons ..she replied.. “We will just make sure that the kids stay bouncing on the castle all day for the extra weight to keep it down.” After saying, no sorry, that won’t work. She replied “Could I book the gladiator joust then as it is at ground level so it wouldn’t matter if there were high winds. Submitted by Clare and Carl (Carl’s Castles, Cardiff)

5) “But I thought the bouncy castle could go over the pond, then the kids can’t fall in it” Submitted by Ian (VB Leisure)

6) Today after arriving at an indoor hire at our local village hall I started bringing in some gear. I started with eight sandbags in their colour coded blue bags. After putting them in the middle of the hall my customer stopped me looking rather puzzled and said “I didn’t realise the castle came in eight parts, gosh it’s really small, can I have a bigger one please the kids all won’t fit on that “. She was deadly serious too….

Submitted by: Paul (Bouncealots)

7) On getting to a site we found there was a tree in the middle of the site for an 18ft x 18ft castle. We asked the customer where would you like the castle put…”over there, I thought it would look rather nice with the tree in the middle”.

Submitted by Chris (Weymouth Bouncy Castles)

8) “Do you have a licence to carry cattle??” said a puzzled policeman who stopped an operator late one night. When asked what he was carrying in the van, Tony replied “a bull”.

Submitted by Kate and Tony (Funtastic)

9) “How big are your 12ft x 12ft bouncy castles? Answer, just a bit smaller than my living room….”Oh, that’s fine, can I book it?”

Submitted by Bonnie (Bonnies Bouncy Castles)

10) Carl had a set up of 2 castles and a ball pit which included 2 generators, fencing, the works. He went to the field to set up “you’re over there mate” right at the other end of the field – approx 60ft away. Ok – so Carl starts driving over “no! no vans on grass please” – even though he had driven on there 6 months previously and there was no change to the area. Great, Carl thought – this is gonna take a while (he was alone – and was a gorgeous sunny day at 12pm-not a cloud to be seen!) – half hour or so later of dragging the kit across this 60ft gap and loading it in one big pile ready to set up – stood sweating getting his breath back, sipping bottle of water he gets a: ……………… “do you need a hand mate?”

Submitted by: Clare and Carl (Cardiff)

11) “Please could you paint your Princess bouncy castle pink, as we didn’t want a purple and yellow one!” Submitted by: Stuart (Wight Inflatables)

The eleven “runners-up” above (and the main winner) will all receive a FREE copy of a new ebook I promote: “How to earn £200+ per week from your digital camera – even from photos you would normally delete!” See:
www.cash-for-my-photos.com

This excellent ebook was written by a fellow photography enthusiast pal of mine – Chris Farrell – a DJ who used to present Club Classics on Heart FM a few years ago. It is a very interesting read if you enjoy taking photos with your digital camera (and wish to earn a few extra quid in between inflatable bookings). It’s well worth the £17 that it normally retails for.

I would like to say a huge thank you to all BIHA members who participated in this competition..and I am sorry if you did not win a prize this time around. It was an extremely difficult job to pick a winner, as all of the entries were of such a high standard.

13)The BIHA sister website: www.BouncyCastleOwner.com (FREE subscription for BIHA members – worth £50 per year)

Don’t forget that all BIHA members are entitled to a FREE subscription of www.BouncyCastleOwner.com (which is the sister site of the BIHA)

This perk is worth £50 per year. There is also a lively discussion forum on this site, where there are some interesting topics that have been discussed. E.g. in the last couple of weeks the following topics have been discussed on this forum.

PL Insurance.
Elusive big-footed child!
Competitors?
What can be done?
Looking for a repair company
No-website, no business.
Blower question
Manned hire on council land
Anchor points
Disclaimer question
What to charge?
Use of logo
Castle storage bags

In order for your FREE subscription to www.BouncyCastleOwner.com to be activated – email your name, address and post-code to mark@biha.org.uk putting “Free membership to Bouncycastleowner.com” in the subject bar.

A huge amount of effort and expense has gone into creating this site and its’ discussion forum, and any BIHA member who is not taking advantage of their free subscription to it is missing out big time!

14)How to promote your website on Twitter.

Twitter has exploded in 2009 and yet most people haven’t quite figured out what to use it for. Everybody is talking about the huge viral potential of the service, but for anybody new to the service it’s a pretty confusing and daunting prospect. To help here’s an outline strategy for promoting your website on Twitter.

Creating Your Account

The single most important thing you can do when creating your Twitter account is to make sure you use the right email address. Think about how the Twitter signup process works – it allows new users to import email contacts from Gmail, Hotmail & Outlook.
Using your companies main contact address (the one where you send e-commerce confirmations or newsletters from) will automatically mean all your customers will be able to follow you when they register an account. If your company has 100,000 past customers email addresses and 5% of them sign up to Twitter you get 5,000 followers without even trying.
It’s important to register your real company name as the account, don’t worry if it’s taken by somebody else because Twitter will normally reassign it to the rightful owner.

Adding Your Customer Database

During the signup process (or afterwards if you like) Twitter allows you to import your contacts from popular webmail services such as Gmail at twitter.com/invitations. If your contacts are on Twitter you can follow them and because you have an existing business relationship they will probably follow you back.
First of all you need to export your customer database as a CSV file (this might be best broken down into smaller chunks if you have lots of customers).
Next import the contacts into a webmail program such as Gmail/Googlemail, once this is done you can import the contacts into Twitter and start building your followers.

Building Your Followers

The key principle behind Twitter is that some users will follow anybody who is kind enough to follow them while others just follow a handful of people. If you want to gain 50,000 followers then the easiest way is to just follow 50,000 people who are likely to follow you back.
Try searching for keywords related to your brand and following people who talk about your industry if you want to get really targeted.

Monitoring Your Reputation

Twitter reputation monitoring is quite easy thanks to a service called TweetBeep.com. Think of this as a kind of Google Alerts for Twitter – enter some keywords and URL’s related to your company and TweetBeep will send you an email whenever somebody talks about you.

What You Should Say

Figuring out what to actually say is the hardest part of using Twitter. The first thing we recommend is to use TwitterFeed.com to automatically broadcast any blog posts you publish to Twitter – great if you have a blog or news site with an RSS
feed.

Other options include Tweeting job openings or special offers – try offering amazing product discounts & see if you can get some viral campaigns going. If your first tweets don’t go down well just keep following the conversation and trying new things.

Article used with kind permission from: www.nick-james.com/4success
I have a twitter account at: www.twitter.com/markjerram

15)The Jolly Good Inspection, Repairing and Testing Company.

The BIHA is aware of a letter being sent to hire companies around the UK from “The Jolly Good Inspection, Repairing and Testing Company” run by Mr Peter Morrell.

It has been confirmed by the HSE that there is a Prohibition Notice still in force preventing Mr Peter Morrell from carrying out tests on inflatables. Mr Morrell has apparently appealed against this Prohibition Notice.

If any member has received this letter from Mr Morrell, please could they email me at: mark@biha.org.uk in strictest confidence.

16)BIHA van stickers – just a few left! Once they’re gone – they’re gone!

VAN STICKERS ARE ONLY £2 each including Postage and packing. There are only approx. 100 left. They are A4 size and very high quality.

If you would like to order some, they are just £2 each (including postage and packing). Please send a cheque or postal order made payable to the BIHA. to:

Mark Jerram
BIHA
130 Moordale Avenue.
Bracknell,
RG42 1TH.

Please note that it is unlikely that the BIHA will order any more van stickers in the foreseeable future.

Once they’re gone – they’re gone! Your cheque will immediately be returned if we have sold out of them by time it arrives. Please send it off early to avoid disappointment.

Alternatively, you can send the money for the van stickers (again at £2 each) to my PayPal account at: mark.jerram@ntlworld.com Please state your name, address and post-code and that it is for BIHA van stickers.

17)How to speed up your PC or laptop so it runs like when it was brand new.

Remember how fast your PC or laptop was when it was new? Have you noticed how it slows down over the months and years? One of the main reasons for this is due to errors on your computer’s hard drive within the registry. Fortunately, you can fix your PC errors with ease. Easily scan, repair and speed up your PC.

Click on www.simurl.com/regeasy to find out, for FREE, how many errors are on your computer’s hard drive and why it is not working as fast as it did when it was new.

I have used this software myself for over a year, and I can highly recommend it to repair errors on your registry.

18)Taking your inflatable hire business to another level.

Hiring inflatables to the public and corporate sector can be a very lucrative business once you have a reasonably good size client base. However, some operators will want to take their business to the another level to really boost profits – especially in the quieter winter months.

Some examples are:
Running an event planning business. See: www.simurl.com/paidtoparty

Training to be a highly paid entertainer. See: www.simurl.com/entertainer

Training to be a clown and similar roles. See: www.simurl.com/clown

19) Closing Comments.

I hope you have enjoyed this newsletter and have found snippets of it useful for your hire businesses.

If your BIHA membership has recently lapsed you can renew it instantly online by credit or debit card by clicking on: www.biha.org.uk/membership.asp

Alternatively, you can renew instantly by clicking on the orange PayPal button near the top left of the home page at: www.biha.org.uk

If you have any information / content that you would like me to include in the next newsletter or an alert, please email me at: mark@biha.org.uk

If you wish something to be published instantly (e.g. some used inflatables that you have for sale, or your wanted items) please post it on the discussion forum on www.BouncyCastleOwner.com If you are not yet a subscriber of this site – please email your name, address and post-code to mark@biha.org.uk

Best regards

Mark

Mark Jerram

www.biha.org.uk

www.BouncyCastleOwner.com (Sister Site – FREE subscription for all BIHA members – worth £50 per year!)

FROM MARK JERRAM: Please accept our apology if you have received this e-mail in error as it is not our intention to send e-mails to anyone who does not want to receive them. If you wish to be removed from this BIHA e-mail list please reply and let us know, by writing “remove” in the subject bar.

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