Less than 45% of UK businesses survive their 5th birthday. The top 5 reasons for business failure are: 1) Not being in touch with customers through dialogue. 2) Lacking real differentiation in the market. 3) Failing to clearly communicate their value proposition. 4) Breakdowns in leadership. 5) Inability to establish a profitable business model. To succeed, businesses must tackle being in touch with customers, differentiation, communication of value, strong leadership, and having a profitable model.