So our beloved, recently elected, most esteemed, coalesced leaders are doing something very important with Capital Gains Tax. I thought that we had left the period of pre-election posturing and were supposed to be getting down to real policies to sort out the economic crisis. Evidently not. Do you know how much CGT raises each year? Around £3-4 billion. So alter that by, say 10% (a politically acceptable change for the electorate) and it might raise £300-400 million. In the current situation, that is a totally insignificant sum. As our survey amongst UK financial managers shows, it’s income tax that has to rise if we are to plug the enormous deficit gap.
The theme of tinkering around the edges can also be applied to today’s marketers. Look at the mirage that is e-marketing. Sure, some works – and Linked-in communities provide a very good example of that. Yet time after time, we find companies saving pennies on print and going totally online. It just doesn’t work. There is a substantial proportion of the business community – at least half by our reckoning – who say that they NEVER respond to online or email marketing pieces. What utter twit would therefore save a couple of thousand on print and mail, in order to studiously ignore half their target market who might represent a potential market of several millions? It just doesn’t make sense.
In business and in politics, it’s the people who can see the wood for the tress who succeed.