Darren Silverman - Games Of Thrones Sculptor's Statue Found

A six-feet sculpture of a Celtic sea god that was stolen from Binevenagh Mountain, near Limavady, in County Londonderry has been recovered by soldiers on a training exercise.

Manannán Mac Lir, which is made out of fibre glass and stainless steel was stolen last month.

The Ministry of Defence has said it was located by members of the Royal Irish Regiment.

Police said a group of ramblers spotted the statue and alerted the soldiers.

The statue was installed last year and was a popular tourist attraction.

Alan Robinson, the mayor of Limavady, said police told him there seemed to be some damage to the statue.

"The police officer in question said there appeared to be some damage around its head and whether or not that could be repaired was a matter for a sculptor to determine," he said.

In a statement on Saturday, the Ministry of Defence said: "Soldiers from 2nd Batallion Royal Irish Regiment were deployed by helicopter to the north Antrim Coast last night for a weekend exercise.

"Whilst trekking through Binevenagh forest near Magilligan Strand they discovered the missing statue and immediately alerted the PSNI.

'Detached'

"The Ministry of Defence is delighted this unique statue has been found."

Sergeant Major Wallace Mehaffey said the statue was found 300 metres from its original position and was badly damaged.

He said the base of it had been "ripped off its mount" and part of the head was detached.

"We were approached by a group of ramblers and they told us they had found what appeared to be the said statue, because it has fallen down the side of a rocky outcrop I would say some 50 to 70 metres, it is damaged to the back of the head," he added.

Police said they were pleased the statue had been recovered and appealed to anyone with information about its theft to contact them.

They said a group of ramblers spotted the statue and alerted the soldiers.

Those who stole the statue last month left a wooden cross with the words "You shall have no other gods before me" in its place.

Sculptor John Sutton, who has worked on the Game of Thrones television series, said that it would have taken a number of men with angle grinders several hours to remove the £10,000 figure from its base.

The theft prompted a campaign for its safe return, and led to a 'missing persons appeal' by police.

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Darren Silverman: China's Yuan Falls For Second Day

China's Central Bank has again cut the guiding rate for the national currency, the yuan, a day after Tuesday's record 1.9% devaluation.

The move sent fresh shock waves through Asian markets, but the bank has sought to calm fears, saying it was not the start of a sustained depreciation.

This is now the biggest two-day lowering of the yuan's rate against the dollar in more than two decades.

The commerce ministry said the lower rate would boost struggling exports.

Figures released at the weekend showed Chinese exports fell more than 8% in July, adding to concerns the world's second largest economy is heading for a slowdown.

There were further signs of weakness on Wednesday, when figures showed industrial production in July rose 6% from the previous year. The rise was smaller than expected and was also below the 6.8% increase seen in June.

Fixed asset investment, a measure of state spending on infrastructure, expanded 11.2% for the first half of the year, also below estimates and at its lowest since December 2000.

However, the action on the yuan has sparked fears of a global and destabilising "currency war". There has been criticism from the US, where markets fell sharply overnight.

One-off?

On Wednesday, China's central bank fixed the "official midpoint" for the yuan down 1.6% to 6.3306 against the dollar.

The midpoint is a guiding rate, from which trade can rise or fall 2% during the day.

Until Tuesday, that rate had been determined solely by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) itself. But the rate will now be based on overnight global market developments and how the currency finished the previous trading day.

The bank, which had called Tuesday's 1.9% cut a "one-off" adjustment, sought to reassure financial markets on Wednesday.

"Looking at the international and domestic economic situation, currently there is no basis for a sustained depreciation trend for the yuan," it said in a statement.

Backing from IMF

The International Monetary Fund said the move to make the rate more market-based "appears a welcome step".

"Greater exchange rate flexibility is important for China as it strives to give market-forces a decisive role in the economy and is rapidly integrating into global financial markets," the international lender said in a statement.

"We believe that China can, and should, aim to achieve an effectively floating exchange rate system within two to three years."

The IMF added, though, that the decision would not affects its considerations of Beijing's hopes for the yuan to be added to the "special drawing rights" (SDR) reserve currencies.

These are currencies which IMF members can use to make payments between themselves or to the Fund.

China has long been lobbying to have the yuan included alongside the dollar, euro, yen and the British pound.

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Darren Silverman: Top 15 All Time F1 Drivers

Comparing F1 drivers across eras is inherently difficult; the longer schedules and frequently changed points systems of the past 25 seasons compound the unreliability of absolute numbers. These statistics attempt to give a “relative” view of the top fifteen Formula One pilots of all time, and offer a few revealing surprises.

Alain Prost

Alberto Ascari

Ayrton Senna

Damon Hill

Fernando Alonso

Jackie Stewart

Jim Clark

Juan Manuel Fangio

Lewis Hamilton

Michael Schumacher

Nigel Mansell 

Niki Lauda

Sebastian Vettel 

Stirling Moss

Tony Brooks

Darren Silverman - Ten Essential Marketing Tips For Everyone

Follow these ten easy easy wins for an instant marketing boost...

1. Understand your customers - Getting to know your customers is the most important stage of marketing process. The more accurate your information and knowledge, the more effective you will be at selling. Use all the information at your disposal to understand customer's behavior, demographics, and requirements. This information should steer your major business decisions and allow you to write a marketing plan.
2. Observe the marketing environment - Knowing your customer is vital, but there may also be business opportunities which emerge as a result of changing global circumstances. For example, in recession budget brands such as camp sites or cheap food stores tend to flourish as people dial down their annual spending. Emerging technologies may make new products possible, and new legislation may shift consumers behaviors - a good example is the reduction in road tax for low polluting cars. Make sure you regularly 'scan' the external environment for opportunities (and threats).
3. Design your product or service around the customer - Once you have a marketing plan in place, you need to make sure your product or service is tailored to your customers - from the packaging to the way it is promoted. Entrepreneurs often fall into the trap of making the product they want to sell, rather than designing and presenting things in the way the customer wants.
4. Ensure you are smooth and efficient - The process of conducting your business is almost as important as the product itself - make sure delivery is quick, returns are dealt with courteously, your staff greet customers with a smile and a cup of coffee. Surprise and delight your customers by going above and beyond the call of duty for them. Word of mouth is a powerful selling tool and this is exactly the way to generate it.
5. Design targeting advertising & customer communications - Placing a few ads just isn't enough to get noticed any more. Consumers are bombarded with hundreds of marketing messages every day of their lives and take less and less notice. You need to do something pretty special to stand out, so make sure your messages are clear and appeal to exactly the people you are trying to sell to. Use both emotional and rational arguments to demonstrate what you are selling and why they need it.
6. Invest in your people - Your staff are your most precious asset - look after them and give them the training they need to do their jobs well. From your receptionist to your salesmen, make sure they are motivated, have the tools they need and understand their role in the business plan. If everyone works together, your business will look after itself.
7. Make sure your shop front is immaculate - Good presentation is a huge influencing tool, it generates trust, motivates your staff and makes customers comfortable with their decision. If your front of house is messy, what does that say about your warehouse or filing systems? Even if things are chaotic behind the scenes, never lower the standards of your customer facing areas
8. Have a pricing strategy - Don't just set a price based on production costs plus a margin. Pricing is a powerful tool to achieve your goals - decide what you are trying to achieve and what message you're giving out by setting your price at a certain level. High prices mean you're likely to sell less, but can give the impression of a premium product. Low prices can allow you to break into or dominate a particular market, although this may mean low profitability in the short term. Ensure pricing is part of a greater strategy, and include this in your marketing plan.
9. Respond to complaints well - Every complaint is an opportunity to turn around a dissatisfied customer - respond quickly and positively. Remember your brand is easily damaged, and the last thing you want is for people to be actively spreading bad stories about your business. A complaint that is dealt with well can often result in a loyal customer, they will have refreshed trust in your brand and the confidence to buy again knowing that if things do go wrong they will be sorted out quickly.
10. Write a marketing plan - Develop your strategy in the form of a written marketing plan, as this will ensure all members of your business understand the company direction. The plan is a comprehensive and well researched document which covers all essential aspects of taking your products to the customer, including the points listed above. When developing the plan, ask yourself the following questions. 

• Where are we now?
• Where do we want to be?
• What opportunities exist in the environment?
• How will we get there?
• Who will do what?
• How will we know we've arrived?

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