Designing Your Company’s Image
Do you realize
that you are bombarded with about 3000 ad messages a day, but
you probably only remember twelve of them. Imagine your name
and/or logo in a sea of images; will your image be strong enough
to surface in consumer’s memories?
What do your
documents say? Not the words on your pages, but the image your
pages present to the outside world. Do they say "important,
reliable, and unique," or do they say "trivial, fly-by-night,
and ordinary"?
Having a
consistent look in all of your documents (marketing materials,
instructions, and invoices) will give your business a
professional, reliable and organized look. It will also improve
your company's recognition and potentially increase sales.
Be Your Own
Promotion
As you go
about your daily business, try to keep track of the number of
T'-Shirts, hats, or jackets that have company names on them that
you see. One of the best ways to advertise your business is to
have some shirts or jackets made and distribute them to your
employees and good customers.
Donate them
as prizes to various functions and charities around town. If
they are well made and well designed then they will be worn. If
they are cheaply made and poorly designed they won't. The cost
difference for quality is usually pretty small.
They will
be seen around town and your name will be out there where a few
more potential customers will see it.
Cost Saving Idea
Design the
outside of the brochure to be permanent and the inside for
future changes. That way you can print up large quantities
(5,000 or more) of the outside only and have the printer or
yourself keep them on hand. Then as your message changes you
only have to print the inside.
Three Secrets of Marketing
1. You
must be committed. Commit the money and leave it alone. Plant
the seeds that will grow later.
2. You
must be consistent. Why does McDonalds advertise every day on
every channel? Is there anyone who hasn't heard of McDonalds?
The marketing message must be constantly reinforced. Your
customers will forget you if they don't hear from you.
3. You
must be confident. Most marketing plans take at least 60 - 90
days to produce even minimum results. Be patient, your efforts
will pay off in the long run.
Stick your
message to your customers – literally!
Magnets
often get thrown on the fridge along with grocery lists, phone
numbers and other useful reminders! That makes them the perfect
vehicle for services, especially ones that people don’t always
remember to call! But that also means your design needs to
stand out. This can work with labels / stickers too.
Get Your
Message Out There
If you have
a new business or product, the important thing is getting some
kind of message out there. You need customers or clients and you
need them fast. Every day you delay the better chance your
competition has to reach your customers. Your materials will go
through several evolutionary changes over the years and you will
never be totally happy with them.
Make Sure
Your Clients Can Reach You.
-
Print your
company name, address, and fax number on all materials
including, packing slips and invoices.
-
Provide
customers with business cards and Rolodex cards.
-
Customers
who have to search for your number may come across your
competitor's number first.
The best way to succeed is to
ignore the competition.
Too many
people worry so much about their competitors that they forget
what they are doing. If you're confident in your vision, don't
worry about your competition.
The most important order you
ever get from a customer is the second order.
Why?
Because a two-time buyer is twice as likely to buy again as a
one-time buyer.
Know
who your customers are.
a. Describe
the person most likely to want or need your product.
b. Why should they want to buy your product?
c. When you know the motivation, you can target the product to
the correct customer base.
d. You can't sell a product until it is defined and positioned.
Note:
A pharmaceutical company shelved a cold medicine because they
couldn't correct the drowsiness it produced. Someone renamed it
NyQuil and sold it as a bedtime cold medicine. It became the
largest selling cold medicine on the market. Just because your
product is good doesn't mean it will sell. It must be positioned
correctly. That's what marketing does.
Team Up
With Another Business
a. Share
advertising costs with another company.
b. Sharing costs makes high-quality printing and larger ads
affordable.
c. Can your product be teamed with another product?
Add Personality to Your
Business
a. Use
photos of you and/or your staff in your promotional materials.
b. A quote from the person pictured conveys friendliness and
builds confidence.
c. Responses to seminars and programs are dramatically higher
when photos are used.
