Blog
Welcome to the AM Blog! This is our little corner of the internet where we blog about business advice, accounting tips and designing for business. Kick your feet up and stay a while!
-
![we're moving]()
We’re Moving!
It’s going to be a busy month here at Ashton McGill as we’re excited to say that we’re moving to our new permanent home on 16th August! We’ll be saying goodbye to our temporary office space at The Flour Mill in Dundee as we move upstairs into a bigger and brighter office. In February,…
-
![local accountant]()
Why You Don’t Need to Use a Local Accountant
Choosing the right accountant is a huge decision for you and your business. It’s got to be someone you can trust, who can provide you with real value and allow you to do more of what you’re passionate about. And as the accounting world continues to shift, traditional ways of working are slowly becoming replaced…
-
![risk]()
Thinking Beyond The Business Model Canvas — Risk
The Business Model Canvas is an invaluable tool for designing, challenging and improving your business model. But the one thing the Canvas doesn’t outline is risk. DJCAD Masters student Rebekka Merget has identified the value of risk underpinning everything in The Business Model Canvas. There’s an element of risk which underlies any business,…
-
![Revenue Streams and Cost Structure]()
The Business Model Canvas Series: Revenue Streams & Cost Structure
Underpinning any business plan is profitability and cash flow. The Revenue Streams and Cost Structure building blocks of The Business Model Canvas can be used to map out the incomings and outgoings for your business. Revenue Streams This section of the canvas can be used to map out the income generated from each…
-
![switching accountants]()
How Difficult is it to Switch Accountants?
Before we launched Ashton McGill in 2017, we did a tonne of user research. Over 4 months, we had over 100 conversations, and one of the most common questions we encountered from our interviewees was “how difficult is it to switch accountants?” As we explored this, we found that many business owners believed moving…
-
![key activities]()
The Business Model Canvas Series: Key Activities, Key Resources & Key Partners
Key Activities These are the main things you need to do to have a successful business model and to deliver your product or service. This building block of The Business Model Canvas allows you to map out the vital activities you need to undertake to properly function as a business. These activities enable you…
-
![Customer Relationships and Channels]()
The Business Model Canvas Series: Customer Relationships & Channels
Customer Relationships This is a key building block of The Business Model Canvas which defines the kinds of relationships you form with each of your Customer Segments. Consider what the perfect relationship would be—should it be personal, automated, or somewhere in between? Put yourself in the customer’s shoes—what would the ideal relationship look like…
-
![]()
How to Implement Design Thinking in a Start-up
Too often people make the mistake of speaking to family or friends for advice on a potential business idea rather than speaking to the people that will actually use their product or service. By taking a design thinking approach, you can ensure that those products or services are solving the real needs & problems of…
-
![value proposition canvas]()
The Business Model Canvas Series: The Value Proposition Canvas
Now that you’ve completed your Empathy Map, it’s time to transfer this key information onto The Value Proposition Canvas. This is a section of The Business Model Canvas which can be mapped out as its own canvas. It synthesizes the Value Proposition section and the Customer Segments section of The Business Model Canvas. The map…
-
![Empathy Map]()
The Business Model Canvas Series: The Empathy Map
When mapping out your business model, the first place to start is with your customer base. A successful business will ultimately design their products or services to solve peoples’ needs and problems, so identifying those customer needs and pain points from the outset is essential. This can be done by using an Empathy Map. …
