Alison Edgar – the sales and customer service trainer known as The Entrepreneur’s Godmother – has retained her crown as one of the country’s top 10 business advisers and gained a new title as the UK’s number one adviser in sales and marketing.
Alison, pictured, who is also managing director of Chippenham-based Sales Coaching Solutions, was presented with the accolades by Enterprise Nation, the small business support group which stages the awards each year to celebrate Britain’s top 50 hardest-working small business advisers. 
These are the advisers, professionals, coaches and mentors who work behind the scenes to ensure Britain’s businesses get the best start and fulfil their growth potential.
This year more than 300 people entered the awards, held in association with business information group Experian.
The top 50 were shortlisted by a panel of respected judges including Enterprise Nation founder Emma Jones MBE, Experian managing director Max Firth, bestselling author and mentor Bev James, and Dr Rannia Leontaridi OBE, director, business growth at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
The public then voted to decide the top adviser in each category. Among those shortlisted in the branding and design category were Denise O’Leary, founder of Chippenham-based Purpol Marketing, which provides marketing strategy and bid management expertise to the construction and manufacturing industries.
Emma Jones, who handed out the awards at a celebratory evening at the ICAEW’s London headquarters, said: “It’s our mission to ensure that we can help deliver the right advice to the right business at the right time in order to help them to grow.
“These awards celebrate the great work these passionate individuals like Alison deliver to the small business community every day.”
Alison, who is known for wearing pink, added: “I’m so excited to have won the award not once but a second time. It means so much to be recognised by amazing businesses like Enterprise Nation and Experian.”
“This year has been great so far – with the release of my best-selling book Secrets of Successful Sales. I’m honoured to be recognised twice for the work I do in such a short space of time and I’m looking forward to what the rest of 2018 holds.”
After the awards ceremony, Alison appeared on LBC Radio alongside Emma Jones and Amanda Ruiz, winner of The UK’s Top PR Adviser, to answer questions from business people and budding entrepreneurs.
Alison launched Sales Coaching Solutions in 2011 to provide blue-chip level sales coaching and training to sales and customer service teams in small businesses, helping them grow and become a success. She went on to launch The Entrepreneur’s Godmother as a separate brand to help budding Richard Bransons.
She is no stranger to national awards. Last year she appeared in the Power 100 list compiled by accountancy and business advice group Smith & Williamson to champion those whose help shape, support and promote entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship. She was also shortlisted in the Heart of Gold category of the Small Awards, which recognise small business success.
