No nonsense solution

Regional economic development agency Invest Northern Ireland liked the No Nonsense Guide to Government Rules and Regulations so much it wanted its own localised version. BHP was happy to oblige.

“We produced the original English version of the guide for the DTI [now BERR] in 2005,” remembers David Warren, BHP business development manager. “As you can imagine, it was a mammoth task.

“Our editorial team scoped, researched, wrote, edited and designed the original 100-page publication, which explains concisely legislation that applies to small firms and uses case studies to illustrate what businesses need to do.

“The guide was very well received when first published in 2005, following the distribution of hundreds of thousands of copies via Business Links throughout England.” 

For the Northern Ireland version, BHP had to source and produce case studies of Northern Irish businesses. “Once again, the guide has gone down very well and it continues to help entrepreneurs throughout the province,” David notes. “It accompanies Start a business, a practical advice publication we have also localised for Invest Northern Ireland.”

Smashing targets

BHP’s work has helped Invest Northern Ireland to smash its targets for its ‘Go For It!’ initiative, which aims to drive start-up figures in Northern Ireland.

David says: “More than 35,000 guides have been produced so far and we’re pleased to continue to work with Invest Northern Ireland. Each year we update the publications with new information and case studies annually. It’s been a phenomenal success.”

As part of the integration of the national businesslink.gov website, Invest Northern Ireland asked BHP to fill content gaps on the local version of the website. David explains: “We’ve written a number of guides, including many on international trade and specific overseas territories.

“We’re very proud of the work we’ve done with Invest Northern Ireland and look forward to more success in the future.”