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Do Something, ANYTHING!:Basic Internet Strategies for Local Businesses: Part I of III

Posted on August 25th, 2008, 06:08 am
Filed Under (Biz Start Up, Graphic Design) by Joe Witte

Listen up folks, newspapers are piling up unread on your kitchen floor, and yellow pages are best served as a booster for your 2 year old at the dinner table. So how are your customers going to find your local business? Well, most of your prospects are spending their time nuzzling their laptop in front of the boob tube watching the Olympics (is synchronized swimming really a sport- c’mon!). And in between reading blogs on albino sea horses, people might actually be searching the internet for YOUR services. My question for you is, if someone goes to Google and looks for your service, what will they find? Do you have a website for people to find before we can zero in on how they can find your website? Is your website professional or did your 16 year old cousin create it 5 years ago? If you are ready to enter the new millennium with a decent website, start creating a list of what you want your website to do, which will play a critical role in choosing the right vendor for you.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when analyzing what you want your website to do for you:

Do you need someone to write the content for you, or can you write it yourself? (If you’re busy, and have the money, hire someone who can write in an SEO format for you. Check out www.WebsiteText.com).
How many pages will you need? Do you plan on adding any pages in the future?
What’s the purpose of your website? Informational/Credibility? Sell a product? Drive leads?
Are you selling lots of products? If you want e-commerce or a shopping cart, check out www.ProStores.com - it’s an eBay product and they have every feature you can imagine for a low monthly rate (starting at around $20 a month). In addition, you can get a custom design, or template if you require it from www.ProStoresTemplates.com .
What sort of functionality do you need? Do you need a calendar function to show events? Do you need a database to store and collect names or businesses? What do you want the database to do? Will you need to change the text on your sites on your website regularly (this will require a Content Management System or a “CMS”)?
What do you want your website to look like? (Hint: check out the leaders in your industry and your favorite websites for ideas).

Once you’ve mapped out how your site is going to function, and what it will look like, you will get a better feel for who can meet your needs based on pricing, and area of expertise. You may be surprised to find that creating a quality website may not be as expensive as you think.

Where can you find a vendor? Go to Google, type in “website design” or “‘your city’ web design” if you want to find someone local. If you know someone who has a nice web site, ask them who designed it or check with your local Chamber of Commerce. Whatever you do, try to find 3 vendors and narrow the field from there.

Next, think about what your budget is, and how you want to pay for your site. For example, do you want to pay a monthly fee and have your design firm on a retainer? The advantage to this is a lower initial cost, but you’ll probably end up paying a lot more in the long run. Also, if you do go this route, the monthly fee should include hosting and maintenance. The alternative is to pay a flat fee for your website upon its completion, and own the site outright. The only ongoing fees should be your hosting fees (GoDaddy charges around $10 per year) and your domain registration (very cheap), and if you decide you need “maintenance” or an outsourced version of a “webmaster”. This will hit your pocket a little harder earlier, but in the long run, it’s less expensive. Always try to negotiate a ½ upfront payment, and ½ of the payment upon completion. This incentivizes the designer to get the job done in order to get the 2^nd half of their payment.

Web designers can come in all kinds of forms: freelancers, internet based companies, interactive agencies and “do it yourself” web programs. For most small companies, the first or second option is probably the best fit, as interactive agencies are usually very expensive (but provide a great service) and if you could “do it yourself”- you probably wouldn’t be reading this article. I would certainly recommend avoiding a “per hour” charge, and try to negotiate a total cost on the project. Nothing is more maddening than watching the clock when your web designer is talking about their kids’ soccer game and wondering if you are being charged for it (we reserve that privilege for our attorney’s fees). However, make sure your specifications and requirements are clear, because any good vendor is going to have to charge extra if you are one of those neurotic people that change your mind ten times half way through the project.

Ultimately, I think you can expect to pay anywhere from $600 to $3000, depending on who’s writing the content and if it’s a custom design (verses a template, which is a “reused” design). If you can’t afford all the bells and whistles that you want to add at this stage, let your designer/developer know what you may want in the future so they can easily be added without too much trouble or having to redesign the site.

This sounds like a lot, but really, it’s just as easy as rewriting your resume and applying for jobs on Monster, which you can count on doing if you don’t get that darn website up!

Joe Witte is a partner at Logo Design Guru and WebbyGuru, and has successfully started 3 small businesses including CentricSource and Travel Ad Network.

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Get Out! From Behind Your Desk: How to make the best use of tradeshows

Posted on August 13th, 2008, 03:08 pm
Filed Under (Biz Start Up, Branding) by Joe Witte

Let’s face it-time management is every business owner’s greatest challenge. Picture it now: you are all set to make some calls to potential partners, then a frustrated customer calls, or an employee calls in sick, or someone’s computer breaks, or someone’s dog pees in your office (I swear this happened to a client).

All of this will grab your attention and require you to take action (especially the last, can you say “Oxi Clean?”). But, are they more important than what is at hand? After all, if your objective is to grow your business from $500,000 in sales to $5,000,000, you won’t do it by going through the same routine day in and day out. At some stage, you’ll need to land a “bigger fish.” The only way to land a big fish is to set aside time each week to prospect, network, and develop relationships with solid prospects that can have a major impact on your company.

One great way to achieve this is to exhibit at targeted tradeshows, and you’ll be able to see the country while you are at it.

I’m going to focus on the business development aspect of tradeshows rather than the educational perspective, which can help you find key vendors and keep you abreast of industry changes. As most small businesses are on a tight budget, I usually recommend visiting the tradeshow you plan on exhibiting at prior to investing in a booth.

Setting up an exhibit is a significant investment, often north of $10,000 including travel, booth development, design, promotional items and marketing materials. After you “try out” a tradeshow, and you feel that the attendees would be good prospects for your business, get ready, grab your top salespeople, and start planning!

Ok, so you are thinking, “I don’t have $5000 to invest in a booth, and can’t afford another $2000 to transport it and pay ridiculous fees for electricity, chairs and a union guy to lay down carpet for me.” Well, that is all true, but you can set up a simple booth on a shoestring budget. Our company just invested around $1500 at FastSigns for 2 pull up screens and a large banner. It wouldn’t win any booth awards, but it was respectable. And even better-all of this was shipped in a box by FedEx (or, I could have carried if I wasn’t so lazy) and it took 10 minutes to set up.

The next step is to get effective promotional items. Try to be creative, and think of something that stands out and is complementary to your company’s theme. We have recently adopted a “stand out from the competition” theme, so we ordered some unique orange coffee mugs with our logo and tagline on them, and they were very well received during the morning session. (But beware of shipping expenses with larger promotional items).

Now, the pursuit of partners doesn’t stop here, in fact, it is just starting. It’s critical that the booth staff have a clear understanding of what their objective is while they are at the show.

Are they there to promote? Find vendors? Develop relationships? Make sure you establish some goals for everyone before the first attendees walk through the door.

Next, practice your pitch on each other. I swear, even as an experienced owner, my pitch was very rough at the beginning of our last show. By the end, I was smooth like butter. Why? Practice! How would a 23 year old without supervision or training do on their pitch if they don’t practice? Most likely, they’d struggle and lose out on key opportunities.

The next step is big: Don’t sit down. Get out in front of the table and use your promotional items to draw people in and make conversation. The question “Want a yo-yo?” can do wonderful things for initiating a fun conversation.

As you are meeting prospects and collecting business cards, be sure to write on the back of their cards little reminders or “grades” so you can prioritize the business cards you collect after the show. Once you return to your office, start smiling and dialing right away. Follow up with emails and track the results. If you’ve selected and prepared for the right tradeshow you should develop some excellent partnerships within 3 to 6 months.

Joe Witte is a partner at Logo Design Guru (http://www.logodesignguru.com) and has successfully started 3 small businesses including CentricSource and Travel Ad Network.

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Avoiding the Bad Employees: Hiring Tips for Your Small Business

Posted on July 28th, 2008, 06:07 am
Filed Under (Biz Start Up) by Joe Witte

Let me get the catchphrase out of the way…your employees, also known as “people”, are really important to your business. They’ll handle your money, your customers (who give you money), your product (which you sell for money) and you’ll spend more time with them than your family. So why do so many people get stuck with bad employees? Typically, it’s because we fail to search, prepare and interview candidates thoroughly, and are hasty to hire someone hoping they’ll work out. These bad hiring habits result in a weak workforce which will make your life miserable and destroy your business.

My first suggestion is to ensure that workload doesn’t cloud your judgment. If you are desperate for an employee because your team is overworked, or you just lost an employee, you’ll inadvertently drop your standards just so that you’re not stuck working 12 hours a day. This compromise will usually lead to hiring some knucklehead who is under qualified, lazy or dishonest which leads to frustration and wasted time and money.

So where can you find good candidates? Clearly, the position and degree of experience will require different search methodologies, but for entry to mid-level white collar employees, we have used Monster.com. This site can usually produce 15-20 relatively qualified resume’s that have led to multiple successful hires for our firm. Other sites to consider are CareerBuilder.com and HotJobs.com. These postings are not cheap, so start by posting one career opportunity on the site of your choice and see if it meets your expectations. Career fairs are also a great way to meet hundreds of people immediately and get a good sense of a candidates “presence” and professionalism. “Grading” the resume’s you receive and setting up interviews on the spot is a great way to maximize your investment in the show. For whatever reason, many of the candidates won’t show up for their interview or even give the courtesy of calling. The best method of finding a good employee is employee referrals. These referrals are cost effective, and good employees usually won’t recommend someone who would embarrass them.

The next phase is interview preparation. It’s not just the candidate that has to get ready. Make sure you and your staff dress properly, and make your candidate feel comfortable when they arrive so they are more forthcoming with their answers. Ensure that you have researched and developed a thorough list of questions prior to meeting candidates- and that you ask each candidate the same questions. Questions should relate to their experience and what they will bring to the position, character and their personal interests. Pay attention to the prospects’ dress, handshake, eye contact and level of confidence. If the position requires technical skills, TEST THEM. I always look to see if the candidate is involved in some form of community service. This is a clear indication of responsibility, kindness, teamwork and lack of selfishness which usually makes for an excellent employee. Don’t overlook interview blunders such as resume’ spelling errors (or not having a resume’ in an interview), tardiness or inappropriate dress. If someone makes these errors this early in the game, they aren’t going to get better, they’ll get worse.

Be sure to have 2 separate interviews with the candidates and get at least one other person to meet with them from your staff. It’s impossible to get to know someone in one hour, but over the course of 3 or 4 hours on multiple days, you’ll get a better sense of their personality and character.

So, how do you choose? A simple rule to remember is hire people you like and who seem to have good character. If you get along with them well, and they have the right requirements chances are it’s a good fit.

Joe Witte is a partner at Logo Design Guru, and has successfully started 3 small businesses including CentricSource and Travel Ad Network

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Constructive Criticism and your Graphic Designer

Posted on July 23rd, 2008, 08:07 am
Filed Under (Graphic Design) by Ed C

Criticism and critiquing are fine art forms, when properly executed. They can be some of the most beneficial elements used when your graphic designer is creating your logo. Criticism and critique used in the wrong way can also be your project’s greatest detriment.

The most important thing to remember is that criticism in itself is a relative term; something you find unappealing may be another person’s masterpiece. A key point one should always keep in mind when relaying your thoughts, whether good or bad, must always stay positive. Think to yourself, “If I had spent 2 days working on a design would I want someone to flat out say that it was horrible? Probably not.

However, you probably wondering, “How do I give constructive criticism without rewarding uninspired work or giving unstructured, critiques that my designer doesn’t take seriously? The answer is a perfectly administered critique structure.

A good critique structure is essential to getting product you have envisioned:

•Always start out on a positive note: This is key. Remember there is no such thing as “bad art” its all subjective and opinion based. Use phrases such as “That’s a good start”, “I see what you tried to do here”, “This is good work”,

•Presenting negative points: Chances are you aren’t the first person to give an artist a negative comment. This is the point of constructive critiquing; one’s art cannot improve without assessment. Negative is “negative” there is no way around it, however, do it in a positive way. Avoid words like “ugly,” “horrible,” “bad,” “worst.”

•Be honest and direct: If you don’t like something say so, but being polite and professional is never a bad thing.

•Make it a team effort: Use phrases like “We need to take a look…” “What we should do is…” Making your designer feel like he is working with you rather than trying to satisfy you, will bring a better relationship and in turn a better product.

•Give at least one positive point: Even if you don’t like your designer’s attempt try to find a good aspect. Build the artist up. It never hurts to complement someone on their efforts. Bring out and reinforce the artist’s strong areas.

•Always end your conversations with a positive note: “This draft was good, Keep up the great work”, Thank you for your efforts” these will bring confidence to your designer, and with confidence comes better work.

•Rapport: A businesslike yet casual relationship will do wonders for a project. Keep the human element involved, and the results will follow.

Stick to these basic principles and you and your designer will reap the benefits of awesome graphic design.

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Building a Small Business Brand:Why Your Logo Matters (But Not That Much)

Posted on July 17th, 2008, 01:07 pm
Filed Under (Biz Start Up, Branding) by Joe Witte

I’m not sure I should say this, since I’m a partner at a logo design company, but your logo just doesn’t matter that much, and neither does your company name. So, for all you small business owners who are spending hours every day pondering over your company name, wondering if you should call it “Smith Jewelers” or “Jewelry World”, or calling Uncle Ned to see if he likes your logo in dark blue or light blue, I have terrible news for you, it doesn’t really matter.

How can this be, you say? Well, let’s take a couple real life examples and see how important their company name and logos were to their success. Ford, Dell, Hewlett-Packard—boy, they thought hard about those companies didn’t they? Hmm, what’s my last name? Great! McDonald’s (another winner of a name) has a big “M” for a logo. Nike has a swish, Microsoft has—nothing, just their name in a lame italic font. ExxonMobil didn’t even take the time to put their logo in italics. Somehow, I don’t think these company logos had any effect, whatsoever, on their billions in revenue last year.

Now, before you run out and name your company “Slobby’s Suit Makers”- it’s important to be aware of what is important when developing your brand, and where you should spend your time, and money. When it comes to a company name, there are some excellent rules to abide by when you are in the “naming” process. First, keep it short and easy to pronounce. If your last name is Stratklowvitz, you probably want to come up with another concept. Second, try to be descriptive with a subtle name that can let people know what you do (I know, Logo Design Guru is not subtle-it’s a long story). And finally, pick a name that’s easy to spell, and someone can understand over the phone. Nothing is worse than having to repeat your company name 3 times until someone understands you.

Once you’ve decided on your business name, GET A PROFESSIONAL LOGO DESIGN. Find a reputable online company (make sure they have a US office), or a local designer, but please don’t jump on Word and try to create your own logo. As a new business, you are building credibility, and your customers will know. Here are some rules to consider when you are giving your designer some input:

1. Keep it simple: Big, crazy, illustrative logos are hard to print and produce on marketing collateral. If your logo wouldn’t look good on a golf ball, it may be too complex.

2. Minimize your colors: Unless you own “Rainbow Dry Cleaners”- keep your logo to 2 colors. Ideally, your logo will look good in grayscale as well.

3. Make it memorable: A slick, original logo is optimal. However, keep rule #1 in mind.

4. Balance: If you use an icon, it is typically centered above the text, or to the left of the text. However, it’s ok to break the rules, if done with caution.

5. Don’t pay too much: A close friend of mine developed software for $60,000. He was quoted by a local marketing company to build his brand for $75,000. These companies are self righteous and will squander your company. This is outrageous.

Your brand is something that you will develop and build upon, and, if you grow large enough, may even change. However, keep in mind that people won’t buy because your logo is red or blue, they’ll buy from you because you have a desirable product or service at a reasonable price.

Joe Witte is a partner at Logo Design Guru, and has successfully started 3 small businesses including CentricSource and Travel Ad Network.

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Why Brochures Still Matter in a Paperless World

Posted on July 1st, 2008, 10:07 am
Filed Under (Branding, Brochure) by Daniel Natale

In this increasingly paperless world, the majority of marketing collateral and business presentations consist of digital documents. From your latest PowerPoint masterpiece to a flashy interactive website, electronic media can be quick, easy, and visually stunning. There is no denying the advantages of electronic media.

However, due to these strengths it is likely your message will be forgotten. Your clients will want and need a permanent reminder of your message. Offer them the presence and physical cache of a slickly designed brochure.

1) A Brochure is Tangible

Made only of simple paper or basic card stock, a brochure is a tangible object that your clients will hold on to and keep. This is especially important if you offer a service that is abstract or industry specific. A brochure will give you a prime opportunity to explain your services and will allow your client time to absorb the finer points of your proposition.

2) A Brochure is Impressive

Traditionally the costs of designing and printing a brochure kept all but the biggest companies from producing a printed brochure. Fortunately, with the ease and efficiency of online design and printing, the cost has significantly fallen. Take advantage of this development, and present your small business as a juggernaut. Underscore to your clients that you know the value of professionally designed and printed collateral.

3) A Brochure is Simple

With the alphabet soup of file formats (PDF, DOC, PPT, HTML) the last thing you want to do is confuse a potential client. Don’t force them to take a training course in computer science just to read your pitch, give them a prepared hard copy. Not only will your client’s appreciate this, but also your message will be clearer without the noise of unwanted technical questions.

4) A Brochure is Timeless

Today’s cutting edge web presentation will be passé and outdated in a matter of months. Rapid shifts in technology can make your slick electronic collateral dated and obsolete overnight. Don’t waste time and money chasing the next big thing. Invest in a brochure, a time tested and proven medium.

A brochure with a classic design will stand the test of time. Easily portable, and simply stored, a brochure will always remain not only on someone’s desk but also in their mind.

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Lead Generation Web Sites for Small and Local Businesses

Posted on June 2nd, 2008, 08:06 am
Filed Under (Biz Start Up) by Simon Heseltine

Over the last few years there have been several companies that have sprung up around the web offering to generate leads for your business. These companies promise to drive these leads to your business either for a fixed monthly fee, on a performance basis (pay per click, metered phone numbers, increase in traffic, etc), or through a mix of the two. Typically these companies have, or claim to have, relationships with various sites and channels across the web that deal with listings for specific vertical markets. If you’re a locksmith in Louisville they should have a network that they can slice and dice to place you in to get the most relevant visibility, and therefore the most relevant leads.

You’ll also find that these services tend to offer landing pages, lead sites, or mini one page websites (terminology may vary) that they’ll use to drive the traffic to. This is how they’re going to measure the performance and effectiveness of their campaigns. However, don’t be confused into thinking this lead site will replace your website and give you the web presence you currently lack, as the chances are there’s not going to be a great deal of optimization or linking done to this lead site. Therefore you’re not going to get much organic traffic. Even if it does manage to generate organic traffic, if the lead generation company controls the domain and the content, you’ll lose your investment if you ever decide to discontinue their services.

How do you know if it’s going to be worth it?

As with any marketing you’re paying for, you need to know what your ROI will be. How much is it going to cost? How many leads will it generate? How many leads does it take for you to generate a sale? What is the typical value of one of your sales? Once you have the answers to these questions, you can evaluate whether utilizing the services of one of these companies is going to be worth it for you.

How do you pick one?

If you decide to go for this type of a service, you’ll need to look at what they’re offering for the money.

What channels are they using to drive those leads?
Do they have experience in your vertical / market?
What do they define as a lead?
Will there be reports beyond the bill, and what level of detail are you going to receive to know the effectiveness of the campaign?

It’s your money, you need to make sure it’s not just being thrown away on a Pay Per Click campaign on a fraud ridden 3rd tier search engine.

How attentive are they to your needs? These companies operate down at the ‘mom and pop’ local level where the margins aren’t going to be high. They tend to be in the volume business, which means that there will be as much automation as possible.

Why can’t you do it yourself?

For the most part, you can. You can go to Google maps, Yahoo local, SuperPages, Kudzu, etc, and enter the information for your business in their system. The lead generation companies rely, in part, on the fact that self provisioning is viewed as a daunting task. This is why they offer to ease the burden and take care of the process for you. The various channels recognize this and have been trying to improve their self provisioning systems but they still have a way to go. (As Greg Sterling said last May.)

“DIFM” (do it for me) is more powerful than “DIY” (do it yourself). But I also think that larger numbers of SMBs will do some form of self-service as those tools and entry points become more pervasive and simpler to use.

…and simpler they may well become if the various local search sites do standardize on one format to make it easier for small businesses to propagate their data across all. (I don’t imagine that the lead generation companies are too thrilled about that prospect).

Simon Heseltine is the Director of Search for Serengeti Communications.

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Why You Should Hire a Professional Web Design Company

Posted on May 16th, 2008, 02:05 pm
Filed Under (Branding) by Jeffrey Heiserman

If you’re just starting your business, or already running a small business, hiring a professional web design company may seem unnecessary, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’ve highlighted a few of the more common arguments below.

I have a web site, and I made it myself in about 10 minutes.
Most web sites that are generated by do-it-yourself software use templates, which are stored in a database for any and everyone to use. If you want an online identity of your own, do-it-yourself software can’t provide it. A professional web design company knows how to translate your overall business objective into a visual, functional solution, using current web design trends; whereas, a template can be used by anyone, at any time.

I Don’t Have the Budget to Hire a Designer.
False – You may not want to admit it, but you just don’t want to have a budget to hire a designer. One appealing thing about web sites is that you can build onto them as needed. Most reputable web design companies understand this. As long as you have a well–designed web site with valuable content about your company, it doesn’t matter if your web site has ten pages or a thousand. This means that you can start with a reasonable budget if necessary. The most important fact to consider is that, in today’s technology driven world, you need to have an online image to stand out. There’s only one way to be available 24/7, and that’s via your web site.

They Know What They’re Doing.
Not to mention, a professional web design company has more resources. When you hire a professional web design company, you have a team of professionals that make web sites day in and day out, working to create the best possible web site for your business. Design, programming/development, and optimizing your site to rank higher in search engines, are generally each handled by separate employees. Would you rather have a web site created in this manner, or by yourself—learning as you go, and hoping that you’re doing things the right way?

Do what you do best.
Just as you know your business better than anyone else, a professional web design company knows what type of web site your business needs. Essentially, a web designer applies all the principles of graphic design to the web—only they know how these principles need to be re-thought so they do apply to the web. Trying to learn web design on your own will be way too time consuming, and will test the limits of your patience to the fullest possible extent. Running your business is busy enough. As they say, “Keep your eye on the prize.”

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5 Critical Tips for Small Business Owners (that want to grow)

Posted on May 16th, 2008, 01:05 pm
Filed Under (Biz Start Up) by Joe Witte

By Joe Witte, Executive Vice President and Partner, Logo Design Guru

Starting a successful business is challenging and stressful. That’s why 80% of small business don’t last for more than 5 years. Of the 20% that do survive… only 20% of those will last another 5 years. So, what can you do in order to avoid going extinct like the rest of the small business owners?

1) Be prepared to sell

“Selling” has developed a negative stigma. If you want run a successful company, recognize that sales and business development are critical. You’ll need to fight tooth and nail to earn and keep every piece of business. You’ll be competing with companies that have more resources, experience and better branding. Your customers will be buying YOU and the connection they make with you.

2) Remove your “expert” hat and Become a leader and businessperson (sometimes)

If you are designer, and love to design, be prepared to sacrifice a significant amount of your design time to manage employees, find new customers, manage your books, fix the phones, take out the garbage, manage vendors… and the list goes on. If in your heart, you only want to “design”- then I recommend you work for another company, or do freelance work. However, your expertise in a specific field will still play a very important role in ensuring that your employees meet your standards. Don’t ever sacrifice your high standards.

3) Outsource

One of the smartest moves our business made was to outsource our accounting and bookkeeping. Instead of spending hours each week tracking our books, I currently stick everything in an envelope and hand it to our accounting partner, who provides outstanding accurate monthly reports. I now have more time to grow our business, and better information to make informed decisions. Some additional areas to consider outsourcing include networking/computer support, janitorial, payroll and design. I highly recommend hiring a company that will charge a flat monthly fee rather than an hourly fee. This will incentivize them to do the job correctly upfront, and allow you to budget for their services.

4) Hire good people

Get ready, your highest expense is going to be payroll. Take your time to find the RIGHT person. The wrong employee can make your life miserable, and sink your company. The right individual(s) can make your company fun, productive and very profitable.

5) Start small, think big

Now, I stated “thing big”, but I what I should propose is, “think of your end result”. If your goal is to run one small café, then work towards that objective. If you want to own 50 café’s then, make critical decisions based on that goal. That may include investing more capital in to scalable equipment and more experienced employees, so that in 1-2 years you are better prepared for rapid growth. But most importantly, be prepared to sweat, suffer, and never be happier as you pursue your dream.

Joe Witte is a partner at Logo Design Guru, and has successfully started 3 small businesses including CentricSource and Travel Ad Network.

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