Communicating Your Brand–How to Avoid Costly Mistakes that Will Chase Away Your Customers

September 11, 2013 DanaLeave a comment

You communicate your brand from the first moment a prospect views your website, walks into your store, or hears a phone greeting.

So what are you communicating? Is it positive? Is it professional? If it’s not, you will chase away your customers and this will cost you!

What can you do to attract rather than repel customers?

Here’s some ideas you might consider. Some of it might seem obvious, but believe me there are business owners who have no clue about this!

1) Have a separate business line. On that business line, record a greeting stating your name, company name, and ask to leave a message.

Can’t afford a separate business line yet? Sign up for Google Voice and get your own phone number. You can forward this to any phone, even your cell. Or get Magic Jack. This Internet-based phone will cost around $70 for equipment plus about $21 per year. All the bells and whistles are included, except call forwarding.

Why is this important? If you hand out your business card and a prospective client tries to call and they get an unprofessional greeting or one that is clearly a home, it will confuse them. You will lose credibility and trust. Your prospect will throw away your business card and never try to reach you again. This reflects poorly on your brand and you will chase them away. This will cost you money!

2) On your Facebook profile page, in the About section and near the cover photo, include as much relevant information as possible. Let people know who you are. Include a link to your Facebook page or website so prospects can easily find you. Include this both on the About page and on the Timeline cover. On your Facebook pages, make sure you have a link to your website near your profile picture.

3) Be consistent in your imagery. The artwork and photos should be similar on your business cards, on your website, Facebook pages, ezines, etc. This gives your prospect a sense that you are credible and trustworthy and makes them feel comfortable that you are who they are looking for.

4) These days, with spam, there is much debate about displaying your telephone and email address prominently on your website. Personally, I think it’s worth the risk. I want my customers to know that I am easily reachable if they have a question. I want it to be convenient for them. This lets them know I am a real person, not a scam.

Additionally, I like to use a widget from vCita.com that encourages prospects to reach me if they wish to. It’s a popup that makes it very easy for them to reach me.

5) In your store or at a show, you want to be friendly and helpful. Don’t ignore customers. Of course, you don’t want to be breathing down their necks, but remember that excellent customer service speaks well of your brand. It puts your brand in a positive light. Especially at a vendor fair, it is amazing to me how many business owners act completely disinterested when a prospect walks by their booth.

6) Additionally, if you have a brick and mortar store, good signage is absolutely essential. If you don’t have your store clearly marked with signage consistent with your brand, you will confuse your prospects. And they will walk away!

Remember the purpose of your brand is to show your business in the best positive light. This is more than an image or a logo. It’s showing up to serve your customer. It’s creating a pleasant experience for your prospect that helps them to trust you and proves to them you are credible.

Do this and your brand will sizzle and your future will dazzle!

Want to know more ways you can have a dazzling future? Click here now to take my free mini-course, 5 Secrets to a Wildly Successful Home Business!

Talk time © Garry Wolsey | Dreamstime Stock Photos

Designing Brand Identity–5 Ways You Can Make Yours Stand Out!

May 8, 2013 DanaLeave a comment

You are designing your brand identity. You want your brand to stand out. As a matter of fact, your brand MUST stand out or you will be lost in the crowd!

So how do you that and where do you start?

Keep reading to find out more!

1) Make sure your branding is based on thorough analysis.

I see this mistake over and over again. A logo is chosen to represent a brand that has nothing to do with the company. It just looked good. Or perhaps it was cheap or just designed arbitrarily.

To make your logo and brand TRULY stand out, you need to do some research up front. This takes thorough analysis. You need to know what makes you unique from your competition, what your vision is for your company and brand, who your target market is and much, much more.

2) Make sure your brand image communicates a specific message.

After you have done thorough analysis, you need to synthesize what you want to communicate in one sentence. What is it that you want your audience to “get?” Will they understand your message in 10 seconds or less? If not, you will not get the attention you need!

For instance, awhile back I designed a logo for my husband’s new business that he is building. I had it made into a sweatshirt and one day he was wearing it in public. A person unfamiliar with Travis and his company looked at the logo and said, “Oh, you do… ”

This is what you want your prospects to understand immediately. Exactly why your company exists and what you can do for them.

3) Make sure your brand is authentic.

You need to present yourself as an original. After all, there is only one of you! Like a snowflake, we are all unique individuals. Your brand needs to reflect this.

When the perception of your target market equals reality, then you will have an effective brand. Think through this exercise: what are the five words that I want my target market to perceive me as? Now BE that perception and reflect it accurately in your brand image.

4) Use an appealing mix of fonts, color, and graphics.

You need to approach your brand image with a design concept. Don’t just use Helvetica for the fonts for your business name! Make it different with the use of typography.

And remember that color sells. Use it to your advantage. Graphics will make the appealing difference that can make your logo image stand out!

But be careful. Remember that logo images are above all symbolic. It’s easy to get carried away (don’t I know it!), but above all you want your logo image to be readable and recognizable.

5) Be consistent on all mediums.

From the moment your prospect sees your business card, signage, catalog, website, or however they encounter your brand, you need to guide them through an experience that builds trust and credibility. For instance, when you give them a business card, it should stand out with your unique brand image, which should lead them to your website with the same brand image, which should lead them to the next step, and on and on.

You want them to feel comfortable with you, create name recognition, and build an unconscious awareness that indeed they are doing business with a person they like, know, and trust.

So there you have it. Five ways you can make your brand stand out. When you follow these steps, you will have a brand that sizzles and a future that dazzles!

Do you want to learn more ways for your brand image to stand out and for your business to be successful? Take my free 5-day mini-course that will give you the foundation to build a wildly successful business!

Business Success Secrets–Your Second Way to Soar Like Never Before!

February 17, 2013 DanaLeave a comment

Business Success Secrets.

Everyone wants to know that magic formula that will propel them to a six figure income. Or even better yet, a seven figure one!

But how do you get there?

In the next few posts, I will be describing ways you can gain clarity for your business and experience amazing success!

In the last post, I talked about letting go of the expectation that all it takes is a magic pill, that perfect program, that system, or that formula that will skyrocket you to wealth beyond your wildest dreams.

Today, I will talk about what you need to replace that expectation with. You need to shift your mindset to one of a magic pill to realizing that being an entrepreneur is a journey of faith.

Because that’s what Business Success Secrets is. It’s a journey of faith.

You see, even last fall I was not confident enough to call myself an entrepreneur. I didn’t think that I was worthy of the title. How could God use me? After all, I’m just a homeschooling mother!

But something changed inside me. I began to cast aside the lies that were holding me back. I began to step out in faith like never before. I embraced God’s calling on my life, to be an entrepreneur. I have something of value to share with the world and what I do can make a real difference in the lives of thousands of families. I am invigorated by that vision!

And I discovered that what God’s really after is a change of my heart before He will change my pocketbook!

It is not an easy process. I have had to face deep-seated fears. Fears that I don’t matter, that God is going to abandon me, that nothing will ever change.

While all around me, needs scream out to me in desperation. I am forced to be utterly, completely, absolutely dependent on Him.

I have to come to a place where I am an entrepreneur so I can serve others, not out of desperation. My efforts always fall flat when this is my primary motivation. It is hard, especially when finances get tight. Believe me, I’ve been there.

Because when you see your prospects not as dollar signs but as people who could truly benefit from what you have to offer, it’s not about what you can get, but about what you can give. And because you value yourself more with this mindset, you will charge what you are worth.

And that will help your success soar! And you will have a sizzling brand and dazzling future!

Are you ready to take that next step? Are you ready to soar? Then take my 3-month Brand Identity Quest course. You will learn step by step guidance on how to build your brand as you build your business in weekly downloadable lessons and actionable assignments. Get started right away by clicking here.

Photograph © Sam Beasley

Courses in Online Marketing–How You Can Create Your Own

April 19, 2012 Dana6 comments

Courses in Online Marketing. There are plenty of them. The Internet provides endless learning.

This is what I discovered a few years ago as I embarked on my journey to learn everything I could about Internet marketing. This is a lifelong process and one that brings me much joy. I love that it is immediately actionable to my business!

Watch the video below to get some ideas on how you can create your own course in online marketing; where to find classes, what to avoid, and why you should also embark on this journey!

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Branding Strategy–Build Your Brand Identity Through the Five Ws

August 24, 2011 DanaOne comment

Branding strategy. How do you do it?

The other night I was thinking about the classic questions asked in journalism: who, what, where, when, why, and how; and it occurred to me this would be a fantastic tool to developing your brand and reaching new levels in your business.

So I came up with a laundry list of brainstorming questions:

1) Who

Who are you in business for? Whom do you serve? Who runs the company? Who is your staff, if you have any? Who are your important resources? Who are your mentors? Who are the business owners you admire? 2) Who motivates you to be an entrepreneur, especially in hard times? Who do you need to delegate tasks to?

2) What

What does your business do? What is the history of your business? What is your history? What do your important publics think of you and your business? What is your business perceived to be by your target market? What motivates you when you experience roadblocks? What resources do you need to really achieve the level of success you are aspiring to? What skills do you need to learn? What equipment do you need? What are your products and services. What tasks can you delegate? What obstacles are holding you back?

3) Where

Where do you serve? Is your business in geographical in nature or is it online? If you are primarily a regional business, can you expand your business online. For instance, if you teach a class in your town, can you teach it via a webinar? Or, if you teach a webinar online, can you form a local class? Where is your audience located? Where do they hang out? Where on the Internet do they surf?

4) When

When does your target market get on the Internet? When is your target market able to make purchases? When do they have cash flow? When do they have the least cash flow and therefore in the most pain? When do they need your products or services?

5) Why

Why are you in business? Why do you serve your target market? Why did you start your business? Why are you an entrepreneur? Why did you choose your target market? Why did you create your products and services?

6) How

How does your target market benefit from your products or services? How does your business work? How do you promote your product or services to your target market? How do you get paid?

That’s a lot of questions, but brainstorming the answers may help you build a brand that gets noticed and reach a new level in your business!

Want more help with your brand strategy? Join me in a journey to unmask your authentic identity! Several programs available, including webinar workshop series starting September 14! Space is limited, so reserve your spot today by clicking here!

My Latest Disaster Reminds Me to Backup My Computers

July 15, 2011 DanaLeave a comment

Well, disaster struck last night. It happened. My son dropped my Macbook and the hard drive is possible permanently damaged.

Two weeks of work lost. Mostly my article marketing. That’s primarily what I do on my laptop.

Fortunately, I had backed it up before. Most everything is on there. But those two weeks are hard to let go of. I am devastated and discouraged.

But this is progress. Last summer my hard drive crashed and I had NO backup. That hurt.

I at least had set up a manual process. But honestly, it’s one more thing that takes effort. I have too much to think about.

I love how my backup service, Carbonite, automatically backs up my iMac. I never have to worry about it. I can access the disk anywhere.

If my laptop survives, you can bet I will be adding that computer. It’s just not worth it to lose all that work!

What about you? Have you considered an automatic backup service? Are you REALLY going to manually backup your laptop or desktop? What happens if disaster strikes? What will it cost you in time, money, and frustration?

Backup those files today. Believe me, you will not regret it when disaster strikes!

And please, if you like this post, do me a favor and share it! You can save people a lot of heartaches if you do so!

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Tag: small business tips