I Need A Logo!!!!

Marketing gurus tell us that we need to become a brand, and that the first step down that road is to develop a logo. Then we will use it in all our communications with the public, be it an add, a website, business cards, stationery, a blog, etc.

But developing a logo may mean hiring a graphic designer, who will charge hundreds of dollars or more. Don't get me wrong, I believe that the talents of a good graphic designer are well worth the hundreds of dollars that he or she will charge, and they deserve every penny. The problem is that many new businesses are counting pennies, and waiting to have the funds to hire a graphic designer may mean delaying the startup date.

Good news, I just came across a website that may be the answer to a new business's prayers. The address is LogoMaker.com. This site allows you to design your own logo for free, though you need to buy the logo if you want to use it. You can design several logos, save them, and share them with friends and family. Your friends can vote on which one they like best,and you can make your decision based on their opinion, or ignore them and go with your own preference. And even though you must pay for your logo, the price is only $49.00. I think that this a great solution for a new business long on dreams but short on cash.

The Perils of Reducing Service to Save the Business

Two items on today’s paper got my attention. One was an article about the airline industry. It seems that if you did not have enough of airline delays, lost luggage, oversold flights and plain bad customer service; well, you are in luck. The airline industry intends to fix all this problems by…..giving us more, much more, of the same, and the plan is to charge more for the lousy service! The article by Jeff Bailey of the New York Times News Service states that while the 2007 flying woes might indicate that there is a need for more planes to ease the overcrowding, in fact some airlines are planning to cut flights in the hope of raising prices.

Another example of cutting service, in this case features, in order to improve your business is the newspaper itself, as the San Diego Union-Tribune has been steadily cutting sections and features for some time now.

Usually the first thing that I read in the morning is the editorial section, which in most days consists of three pages. Well, to my surprise today it only had two pages of editorials and letters to the editor. This in the middle of a dramatic election! Of course, this is not new for the San Diego Union-Tribune. For months, actually maybe a couple of years, it has been tinkering with its content in order to make the newspaper more profitable. But the way they have been going about it is by insulting the readers’ intelligence. One trick that they have used several times is to combine, let say, the Food section and the Living section by telling us how much larger the Food section is now going to be. But you find that this particular section is now half of what it used to be, while the Living section is now also half of what it used to be. Some improvement!

Businesses have to find creative ways in order to survive. Newspapers, in particular, are going through a rough time. So many of us rely on the Internet for news, and this makes it very hard for the print media. By the time the newspaper arrives at your door 90% of its content is “old news”. What is a newspaper to do? It certainly makes sense to find the right mix of stories that will interest the reading public, and experimenting seems a logical way to do it. As to the airline industry, I do not claim to understand their thinking process. Abusing your customers doesn’t seem to be a great way attracting more; but heck, what do I know?

The problem here is that with experimentation comes the risk of losing more and more customers, until the business finally becomes irrelevant. Therefore, it is very important that the customer is treated with respect while the company finds a solution.

The newspapers have a right to fear irrelevance, as there are now so many other ways that a person can acquire information. As to the airline industry, clearly they do not fear irrelevance, so they mistreat the flying public with abandon

The lesson here is to not lose sight of the fact that the customer is an intelligent and rational actor, If we want our business to survive, we need to treat him as such, otherwise he will find a solution to bad service by going elsewhere.

Blogging for Business and Pleasure

You like to read blogs, but would you ever consider writing one? I had never thought about it until a couple of months ago and I find that I am enjoying the experience very much. I used to write a column in Spanish for a local newspaper. The topics and content were very similar to the ones presented here, but I was so busy with my law practice and other responsibilities that I decided to stop.

So what is the difference between writing a blog and writing a column? Why would I have more time to post on my blog? The most obvious reason is that with my blog I have total control of the content and length of each “column” or post. I also have control in publication, since I say when the post appears, as opposed to being moved around, depending on the needs of the newspaper owner. I also don’t have to worry about deadlines.

You may say that writing a column validates your worth as a writer because someone else has decided to accept you as a writer. But posting on your blog is no different, since your readers validate your worth as a writer by reading your posts. When you see your readership increase little by little, it is very satisfying.

But why would a business owner want to spend time starting a blog? There are many reasons why. Many businesses start one to increase their sales and name recognition. Others do it to communicate directly with their clients. They want to share their business philosophy and values, and they find that this is an excellent way to do it. I personally do it because I like to share information as so many have done so with me. Blogging gives me that opportunity.

There are several excellent books on this topic. I gave one to my daughter for Christmas. The name of the book is The IT Girls Guide to Blogging with Moxie by Joelle Reeder and Katherine Scoleri. I hope she will put it to good use. She is an excellent writer, funny and thoughtful. I am sure she can have a terrific Blog, if she ever catches a few minutes to write between feeding, diapering, and chasing after her 9 month-old twin daughters!

Fusion Marketing: What is It?

Fusion Marketing sounds kind of esoteric, but it is nothing more than collaborating with another business in order to increase sales.

Ideally fusion marketing works best when you find another business that has the same customer base and similar target market. For example, a store that sells wheat grass juice, fruit smoothies, and other health related drinks can form a great marketing partnership with a vitamin and dietary supplement store. The two businesses have the same type of clientele, and their customers have very similar interests.

The following steps should lead you to an effective and successful plan:

Sept 1: Find a partner who has a similar client base but isn’t a direct competitor.

Step 2: Brainstorm together about the type of offer that you both want to make to your clients.

Step 3: Write a letter of agreement. This document can be simple, as long as you both agree about what you will each do, and what each will get.

Step 4: Execute. Write the offers (coupons, etc.), plan the way it will be disseminated, how you will communicate it to your own clients and to the general public.

Step 5: Combine each other’s mailing list and communicate to both groups.

Step 6: Keep the bargain. By this I mean, honor the coupons or offers that the other business has distributed, and be responsive to the other business’s clients.

Step 7: Evaluate. Follow up with your clients to see if this has been of benefit to them, as well as with your marketing partner to see if it is working well for that business.

Step 8: Continue to market to both sets of clients.

And there you are, that is fusion marketing, a simple but effective idea with an exotic name.

Tip of the Day: Don’t Waste Advertising Money

On the same vein as previous posts, it is important to understand the purpose of an ad, and that is to sell sell sell. Advertising professionals sometimes are too focused on creating clever commercials. The purpose of an ad is to create a need, to persuade, and to inform so that prospect will want your product. An ad shouldn’t be just amusing and entertaining, its sole purpose should be to get the sale, if it charms the public while selling products, so much the better; but make sure that the ad creates a need, otherwise you will be wasting your money.

Getting Results Not Just Reactions

Lets say that you have come up with a clever sales campaign. You try it out on your friends and relatives and they all love the story line. They think it is witty and darn right funny. They all congratulate you on your ingenuity.

You try it out on the public, and you get the same reaction. People send you emails telling you how amused they are. The whole town is using your catchy phrase. People call you to tell you how much they like the ads. You are feeling mighty proud of yourself about now. But what has it done to your business’s bottom line? If what you have gotten is reaction from the public, rather than results, then all you have accomplished is a boost to your ego, not your business.

You may argue, and you would be right, that the whole town is talking about your business when they use that memorable phrase! And your business’s name recognition has increased tremendously. Certainly that is a very enviable position to be in. Who wouldn’t want such a fantastic outcome? But the fact still remains that goodwill is good, but what you want is goodwill and money in the bank! Make sure that your witty efforts do not overshadow your product or service. Remember that you are not in the copy writing business (unless, of course, you actually are!) You are in the business of selling your product or service, and that is what you want flying out the door.

Tip of the Day: Gifts to Thank Your Clients

This is the time of the year to thank your clients and referral sources with a holiday gift. It can be treacherous road, since you may not know that your client suffers from diabetes or high cholesterol when you proudly deliver that yummy cake. And that bottle of wine may be wasted on someone who just gave up drinking. So what is a business owner to do? Here are a few ideas beyond calendars and pens.

Why not give a flash (or USB) drive or a staple-less stapler. These are items that your client will use every day. Other items that may be appreciated and a bit out of the ordinary are back massagers and lip balms.

My personal favorite is books, and for this you need to know a little bit about the recipient. If your client likes mystery novels, give him or her the latest Sue Grafton. Also, there are many beautiful coffee table books on the sale tables at your local book store, find one that appeals to your client. For example, I have a client who took a trip to India. She was absolutely captivated by the country, and she cannot stop tell you about her great experience. I have found a lovely book about India that I plan to give her, and I know that this gift will not add inches to her waist!

If you do not know your clients’ tastes, but you like the idea of giving books, you can give those that reflect your industry, or the region where your business is located.

Tip of the Day: Don’t Sabotage Your Marketing Efforts

When it comes to marketing, do what feels comfortable to you and what fits your personality. If you are shy, don’t participate in a huge networking event; instead, stick to one on one networking such as a coffee or luncheon appointment. If the idea of public speaking makes you break out in a cold sweat, don’t offer to give a presentation to the local Rotary Club, the discomfort will show through. As an alternative, if you like to write, offer to write an article for the Club’s newsletter, or a local newspaper. Pick the method that will be most effective for you. Don’t sabotage your marketing efforts by trying to be someone you are not. Marketing should be a daily activity in your business, so make it an enjoyable one.

Tip of the Day: Why Should Your Customer Believe You?

As a business owner you believe that you offer a terrific product, and you probably think that your potential customers will also believe that you offer a wonderful product because your mother and your compadre believe you do. But it isn’t enough to say that you have the best vanilla ice cream in the county; tell them why it is so. Explain that your vanilla ice cream is made with the freshest milk and cream, that the milk comes from California cows; and as everyone knows from the ad, they are the happiest cows in the world! Tell your customer that you use the finest vanilla beans that Madagascar has ever grown. Explain how you manufacture your ice cream, the care that you take with each ingredient and each step of the process. In other words, explain, explain, explain why your product is the best. Give your customer a reason to believe, and to buy.

Pricing Your Product or Service

Pricing your Product or Service

One of the hardest things to do when you are a business owner is coming up with a fair price to charge for your product or service. I can tell you that it was the hardest thing for me when I started my law practice. I had worked for a non-profit law office where we provided legal services for the indigent. The lawyers did not have to consider billable hours or thinking about how much to charge for our services. The survival of the law office was the headache of the executive director, the lawyers worried about the legal work. Our salaries were rather modest, to say the least; but the lights were always on, and there was always paper and ink for the printer.

When I decided to strike out on my own I had no idea how to charge a fee that was fair to the client and to me. Now I am the one who has to keep the lights on and the ink flowing! And even today I struggle with the question of fees when I am doing legal work that is open ended. The billable hours can add up very quickly! For this reason I always try to charge a flat fee, even if it isn’t always possible. With a fee that I quote before I start the work, the client doesn’t have a nasty surprise; though I sometimes do, if the client is calling me at all hours of the day and night!

The pricing strategy is essential for the success of your business. You need to price your product within a range called the Price Ceiling and Price Floor. The Price Ceiling, as the name suggests, is the highest price that you can charge. The Price Floor, obviously, is the lowest price that you can charge and stay in business. You want to be between these two boundaries. “Well, that sound great”, you may tell yourself, “but what do I need to consider in order to achieve that goal?”

Lets start with the price floor, since this is easier to quantify. In order to come up with your lowest price you must consider all your costs, and I mean all. You will start with the cost of the raw materials, your office overhead; which will include utilities, employees’ salaries and benefits; insurance, loans and interest, the cost to operate your company’s vehicles, shipping charges, and taxes to name a few.

Determining your pricing ceiling is not quite as simple, as you must consider factors that are not easily quantifiable. Some questions that need to be answered are: How much is a client willing to pay for this product or service? What is the quality of this product? Why are people demanding this product or service? Do they need it, or do they merely want it very badly? How much does the competition charge for a similar product? What image am I trying to project? These questions are not always easily answered. Some clients always think that the fee is too high. On the other hand, I once had someone question how efficient could I possibly be, based on the fact that my fee was considerably lower than another attorney he had consulted.

But I want to be an attorney that a small business can afford, and I am happy to give up the image of the powerful lawyer; and in the eyes of at least one person, an efficient one. In that particular case, there was no contest, I didn’t really want to work with a client who forms his opinion of the value he receives based on whether I can charge three times my usual fee. I rather work with many clients who believe they are getting value for their money. That is my niche, and it is the business decision that I am comfortable with. You will make your own choice about niche and price. The important thing to remember is that your decision must result in profit for your business; otherwise you won’t be in business very long.

Tip of the Day: Your Referral Sources

You may be lucky enough to have a group of friends and acquaintances that regularly refer clients to you. Don’t forget that every time they send a customer to you, they put their reputation on the line. Show your appreciation, and keep the referrals coming, by staying in contact with your referral sources. Call them or email them regularly. It doesn’t have to be a long phone call or message. A “Hi, how are you” and a bit of small talk will suffice. And definitely call if you have something of interest to one of your referral sources, he or she will appreciate the information. Also, you may invite them, on a rotating basis, for lunch or coffee; or if both of you are too busy, send a gift card from a coffee house or restaurant. You don’t have to spend a great amount of time making these phone calls, two of them a week should be enough. As long as you rotate the names on your list, and you do this consistently, they will not forget.

Tip of the Day: “What Do You Do?”

When you are asked, “What do you do?” do you go into a long explanation that makes your listener’s eyes glaze over? You should develop what is commonly called the “elevator pitch”. This is an explanation of your business that you can deliver in 30 seconds or less. Why would this be useful? Well, not boring your listeners is the first reason that comes to mind; but beyond that, the short explanation will focus the attention of your audience. This way they will quickly know if they can buy from you, or if they know someone who can. Another reason for developing the elevator pitch is that you will better understand what your business is about. This may sound crazy; of course you know what your business is all about! But you would be surprised at how unfocused some business are. And lack of focus leads to lack of success.

Tip of the Day: Is There a Market for your Product?

Often a motivation for starting a particular business is the excitement of offering a product or a service that we are interested in. But is there a market for this product or service?

If you are in the planning stages of your business, find answers to the following questions:

Do people really want what you are offering?
Who are your potential customers?
Will they want the product or service at the price that you are offering it?
Do your potential customers live or work near your business?
Can you create a demand for your product or service?
Who are your competitors?
How will you differentiate yourself and your business from them?
Will your business be able to compete effectively in price and in product?
What marketing methods are your competitors using?

Tip of the Day: Wacky Marketing Ideas

I found a list of wacky marketing ideas online, and I thought I would share a few with you on this Halloween day. Some were too wacky for me, like the one about nominating yourself for an award, but I will share a couple of my favorites.

1. Give a customer of the month award.
I thought this idea was great, not only do you thank a good customer; it makes you think about who your ideal customer is, which is something that I have talked about in previous posts. You can place a photograph of your customer receiving his or her award in your place of business. You can also take out an ad, or write an article about your award, and have it published in your local newspaper.

2. Hold a wacky contest.
One example is an ugly tie contest; or a mad hatter contest, where the public is invited to design and wear outlandish hats. Another idea is a pet costume contest. People love their pets and love an opportunity to show them off.

3.This one could be called wacky contest on steroids.
It is a very elaborate wacky idea that I saw on the nightly news last week. They had a story about a furniture store owner who announced in April, at the beginning of the baseball season, that if the Boston Red Sox won the World Series everyone that bought furniture from his store for a period of time, I didn’t catch how long the period was open, would get their furniture free of charge. They said in the news that about thirty thousand people took him up on the offer. He explained that he wasn’t loosing money because he had taken out insurance to protect himself from the potential lose, that became very real in late October. Think about this one for a minute, not only did he keep the marketing campaign going for six months; he got a huge bang at the end by having his story told on a national newscast!

I hope that these ideas get your creative juices flowing.

Is the Customer Always Right?

Most marketing experts will tell you that acquiring a new client is very costly, so it is important to hang on to the ones you have. And the mantra of “the customer is always right” is well engrained in the business owner’s mind. It seems that the first commandment of a company is that no matter what the client wants, we must go along in order to keep him or her happy. I disagree. There are some clients that are not worth the trouble. Sometimes a client will want you to do something unethical or illegal. Other clients want to micromanage every minute of your day. Still others are just plain toxic.

I personally have fired a couple of my clients; very politely, I have to say, but nevertheless, they are gone. The reason why I have done this is that these clients wanted something from me that I was unwilling to give.

As a business owner you have many worries and responsibilities, but this is one of the perks of the job. Yes, obtaining a new client is costly, but keeping a difficult one can be more so. Getting new customers isn’t nearly as difficult as hanging on to troublesome ones. Don’t be afraid; being free of a toxic customer will liberate you, and you will find that you have more time in your day, time to find new clients.

Tip of the Day: Your Target Market

As I mentioned before, an important part of your business plan is a marketing plan; and one key factor in the marketing plan is identifying your target market. Of course, most of us would say “my target market is everybody in God’s green earth!” But you can well imagine that it is very difficult to develop an effective marketing campaign targeted to every person on earth.

There are two ways of defining your target market (well, I am sure there are more than two!). One way is; if you already have a product, ask yourself who would be most interested in your product? If it is a service you offer, who would be most interested in your service? Another way is to ask yourself who would be your ideal client. Who is the client that you would most like to work with and why? This method works best if you are still trying to find a product to sell or a service to offer in your business.

Now, go find that ideal client!

Tip of the Day: Marketing

Remember. No market, no business! Start working on a marketing plan that is appropriate for your product or industry. Be creative with your marketing, but do not ignore the traditional marketing methods for your type of business.