Small Business Design Resources

Is Your Business Ready for 2011?

Planning ahead is a great practice for your small business design. It’s never too early to start thinking about the fiscal year. You’re starting over again, so why not make 2011 the biggest year for your business yet? Get your marketing calendar up and running.

Holiday time for ecommerce websites can mean big sales. With one major spending holiday a little less than a month away, is your small business ready to cater to the needs of your clients? We talked last year about preparing newsletters for your business to let potential customers know what you’ll be offering, and there is no better time to get those sent out than before a holiday. How do you know when you need to get these promotional deals and newsletters sent out in time? A lot of it depends on the holiday in question. Valentine’s Day is the next big holiday in the United States. Typically, people are buying Valentine’s gifts for their loved ones within two weeks of the holiday. This usually isn’t great for businesses looking sell their products online, because customers feel rushed and often don’t want to pay top dollar for express shipping to make sure they get their packages on time. What you can do as a business is get a newsletter to your client list as soon as you can. This gets the holiday in their mind, so they’re likely to start shopping sooner. Prepare smaller holiday deals and newsletters about a 3-4 weeks ahead of the event. How do you know what constitutes a smaller holiday? It’s basically everything except Christmas and Hanukah.

Also, for those who order their online gifts within two weeks of the event, guarantee on-time delivery if you can. It’s going to make them feel more comfortable if they know they’ll get their purchase on time. As mentioned before, people don’t like paying extra for express shipping, but you can sweeten the deal by offering free shipping (guaranteed to arrive by the holiday) if a patron purchases over a certain amount. People love that option. They’ll order extra goods that appease them if they know it will save them on shipping.

As for the big holiday shopping season….start getting ready in summer. People are taking their money online more than ever as soon as Black Friday arrives. People no longer wish to deal with early hours, traffic and chaos in the stores to get deals. Multiple newsletters advertising the holiday deals by your small business will keep your company in the minds of online shoppers. You can send a holiday newsletter as early as October. Just remember to send reminders a few times before your sale closes out. You don’t need to send an email out every week until Christmas, but consider making an email to send out in the first week of October, November and December. Be sure to send a small reminder email out during the last week customers can take advantage of your sales.

More and more people are turning to their internet to help them with all of their shopping needs. 2010 had record numbers for internet spending and now in addition to Black Friday deals, they’ve introduced Cyber Monday. Get your marketing calendar ahead of time so you can be prepared to make the most out of your small business during the various holiday seasons.

Business Cards: Do People Still Exchange Them?

I went to a business event the other day and was curious to see if people were still exchanging business cards with each other. I did bring a bunch of business cards with me, as I always do. As I was doing the rounds, talking with colleagues and with prospects, I wondered: did I really need to bring those with me? Do people still exchange business cards?

In a way, you would think that the digital revolution would have rendered business cards obsolete. These days, when you meet someone, it’s very easy to just pull out your smartphones and enter each other’s info straight into the phones, or – better yet – locate each other on social networks and start following and interacting with each other on those networks.

But my careful observation has taught me that business cards are still being used today, and in fact, people tend to ask for each other’s business cards first, and use their smartphones only if business cards are not available. Business cards are still an important marketing tool, and should still be used in combination with other offline tools such as brochures, and – of course – with online tools such as a website, a blog and social media accounts.

This means that business card design is still important, because if people collect hundreds of business cards, most of those will just get stuffed into some drawer and forgotten. If you want people to actually use your business card to contact you, you need to make sure it stands out. Which brings me to these business card design tips. They are basic, but important. Since the vast majority of business cards I see every day are boring and mundane, I guess many people still try to “save” on business cards by using cheap card stock and discount printers. Big mistake!

Business Card Design Tips:

1. Use a logo. Small business logo design is incredibly important, because a good logo can be used everywhere – including business cards, letterhead, brochures, and your website – and help you create a strong image and a powerful brand.

2. Make sure your business card is easy to read. The font needs to be large enough so that people can read it without straining their eyes, and you should never use light font on a light background or dark font on a dark background – those are very hard to read.

3. Make your card stand out. The best way to make sure your card does what it’s supposed to do – bring you business – is to avoid using a standard, boring design. Go for a heavyweight, high-gloss card stock and use bold colors, images and fonts. Flimsy or cheap-looking business cards can actually hurt your business by giving people the impression that you’re not a serious business. Boring, uninteresting cards will usually be ignored or tossed.

Of course, you shouldn’t only rely on your business card to market your business. Your goal is to use a wide range of marketing tools and to combine the power of offline and online marketing, so your business card shouldn’t ignore your online presence. On the contrary – it’s important to make sure that your business card includes not just an address, a telephone number and an email but also your website’s URL and, if applicable, your social media accounts’ URLs.

Free Christmas Graphics Giveaway – Day 7

These are free for you to use for personal and business use, except for resale. Make sure to come back everyday for new graphics to download.

Quick Tip:

Use these holiday icons on your website or blog to add that holiday cheer.

Tis the Season for Giving

This season, people are looking to save big on their holiday spending. You can sweeten the deal by including some specials on your website that will entice your customers to spend their money on your product! Let’s talk about some ideas you can incorporate into your small business design that will have your customers feeling thankful.

One easy way to say thanks to those who purchase from your website is to offer free shipping (in time for Christmas). You can offer this only to repeat customers or those who have signed up for your e-newsletter by sending them a code they can use during the checkout process on your company’s website. Free shipping is something that everyone will be grateful for, as shipping expenses can be quite costly and they only increase as the holiday draw closer.

Another great freebie is gift wrapping and card inclusion. A lot of popular large chain stores offer this for a small fee on wedding and baby registries, why not offer it for free to your customers? Include space for them to type a holiday greeting to the recipient of the gift and your company can ship it right to their home, wrapped and with a personalized card! Best of all, it was free!

You can also thank you customers for shopping with you this holiday season by sending them a free gift for their patronage. This is where you can really show off some creativity. It can be something as simple as a calendar for the new year or even a two for one offer on your products. People love to get free items.

It is the season of giving, so this year treat your customers to some great gifts as a thank you for doing business with your company.

Black Friday Profits for Your Small Business

We are less than two weeks away from this year’s Black Friday. On this day, many wake up still full from turkey dinners the night before at the crack of dawn in search of discount merchandise madness. When we think of Black Friday discounts, we think about retail. We think of heavy traffic anywhere near malls and shopping centers. How often do we think about Black Friday deals online? Small businesses can benefit from holding these specials on their own websites.

Consider incorporating your own Black Friday deals into your small business design this holiday season. First, start by advertising your intentions. Create a newsletter or email message to be sent to your client list. Let them know what deals your website will be showcasing and let them know how long they have to act on them!

Are you unsure about what Black Friday goodies you can offer to customers? A simple discount is always a good start. Some other great ideas are:
• Discounted shipping or free shipping
• Free gift with purchases
• Coupons towards the next purchase

While these are all great ideas for your Black Friday campaign, it’s up to you to decide which promotional deal will be the best fit with your business. Make sure you get your newsletter mailed out about 3 business days before the holiday. It gives people enough time to read it, but not enough time to forget about it. Don’t overlook one of our other previous articles on newsletters and how to keep your company’s emails from winding up in the spam folder.

Have a happy Thanksgiving holiday and a prosperous Black Friday!

BBB is Scamming Business Owners for Money

Last Friday 11/12 I was watching an ABC 20/20 about the Better Business Bureau (BBB). They were discussing that business owners are asked to pay a membership fee in order to get an “A” rating on their profile.

This has jogged my memory, as I was once a member of the BBB with an “A-” rating because I was a new member. The membership fee was really high around $400 a year, as I didn’t see any value in my money (no one during that year has told me that they found my business on the BBB) I decided to cancel it when the membership was up.

The following year I’ve notice that my grade has dropped to a “B”, but I didn’t have any complaints, in fact I had two positive reviews. When they called me to renew my membership I asked about the lower grade and the lady told me that after I pay my membership fee the grade would be improved. I was kind of skeptical but I was concerned about the grade and all those potential customers who would be seeing it. The lady also told me that hundred some people have viewed my BBB profile and offered me to pay the dues in two installments. Of course I wanted my grade to be improved, so I paid the first installment and the grade was improved the following day to an “A”.

When it came time for the second installment, I decided that something wasn’t right and I canceled my membership. If you look at my profile now, you’ll see that my grade is a “B+”, again I don’t have any complaints and still the two same positive reviews that I had back then. The only difference now is that I don’t really care how BBB grades me, my customer testimonials on my website are the proof of my work and reputation.

After watching 20/20 on this, I would caution anyone from taking the BBB seriously because I was scammed and I don’t think it’s fair for the public when business owners are tricked to pay for their reputation.

Have you been in a similar situation with the BBB? Leave your comments below.

Tis the Season for Great Customer Service

The Holiday Season is quickly approaching. Countless people are turning to the internet to handle holiday shopping. With no long lines or stressful heavy traffic, many consider it the only way to buy gifts for loved ones. Get your website ready for the holidays and remember the importance of exceptional customer service. You may have a website that is selling a product or service that can be found elsewhere. If this is the case, you need to have a niche. You need to develop a small business design that will bring people to your business because you’re offering something others are not. Start with great customer care!

Remember to always be friendly when talking to clients on the phone. Train any staff members to do the same because people absorb the vibes you send out over the phone. If you deal with clients through emails, you can send good vibrations through that as well. Even if the customer is disappointed in the service or product, maintain that polite and friendly tone as you both work to resolve the situation. They’ll appreciate your honestly and may even return to your website in the future.

Be prompt with returning phone calls, emails and placing orders. It doesn’t matter how nice you are, if you don’t get back to a client within a reasonable amount of time (3 business days) you may lose the sale. Especially since people are starting their holiday shopping, they’re going to want fast and friendly service now more than ever. Make sure you’re prepared to handle the extra workload in these next hectic months!

One of the most important things you can do to provide excellent customer service is offer a no-fuss return policy. People get discouraged if they cannot find a return policy clearly listed on your website or fear that a return or exchange might be troublesome. Make sure to clearly post a return policy and make it easy for buyers to understand. With up-to-date product descriptions and high-quality photos on your small business website, you’ll make return and exchange scenarios less-likely.

The time is now to get prepared for the upcoming busy shopping season. By making sure you’re offering customers the best service possible, you’re helping your business dramatically. By adding this little touch of kindness to an impersonal website sale, you’re making your customers feel appreciated and more at ease with shopping online.

Sizing Up Your Competition

Most small businesses have competitors in their area or on the web. It is your job as the small business owner to check these businesses out to see what they’re doing right or wrong…then apply their strong points to your own business. Let’s talk about how to locate your competitors.

Use Google Places to find the competition in your location. Take a look at their website and if you can, try to make an “appointment” with them or check out their product if they have a store. You want to absorb the techniques they’re using if it makes them successful. What type of advertising campaign are they running? Can your small business design profit from borrowing a few of these ideas and applying them to your company? If your products are similar, find the differences and see if you need to make changes. Are they offering lower prices or even extras along with the product? How about their service? If it’s service competitors, consider using them and see how they go about it. How did they treat you (the customer) and how well did they do the job?

You may find out that businesses similar to yours may be doing things differently. This can be good or bad, so don’t run out and try all these different techniques all at once. If you know that a company is doing better than you, investigate and find one thing to apply to your business. If they’re taking out an ad in the newspaper and you’re not, maybe you are underestimating how much business you can get from local ad placements.

One thing to remember when you’re trying to improve your small business is the SWOT Analysis. SWOT stands for: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Whenever you’re checking out a competitor, just ask yourself the following questions:
• What advantages does your business have?
• What can your small business improve on?
• What opportunities are up and coming in your market?
• Are changes in technology going to hurt your business?

When you answer a simple SWOT analysis, you’ll most likely uncover things about your business that you can make changes on. Once again, don’t make a bunch of changes at once. When you see something that is working well for a competitor, give it a try. When you do too many things at once, when things don’t work out it’s harder to backtrack. While trying out techniques, keep in mind that you do want to have an advantage over your competition and that is to be unique. So take the good ideas from other companies and make them your own! Offer complimentary services the other businesses don’t offer. At the end of the day you want your small business to stand out, not blend in!

Take Advantage of Local Search Marketing

If you did a survey of people walking down the street and asked them “How do you find a business when you need one?” Many of them are going to say they use the internet. More people are looking up services through the web than flipping through the prehistoric yellow pages. The thing is: you can take advantage of local search marketing and apply it to your small business design without being “out of date.”

If you’re familiar with Google Maps, you may already be aware that if you type “Seafood, Miami FL” into Google’s search engine, a map of the Miami area will appear with a list of restaurants or vendors that specialize in seafood. That’s what local marketing can do for you. When you put your company’s information into Google Places, you’re making it easier for people in your area to find you. You can apply this information to not only Google search engines, but the other major ones as well.

Not convinced it will help drive traffic to your site?

Approximately 20% of Google searches are associated with location. Based on reports from Google itself: The Google Place sections are viewed millions of times each day. By not putting your company contact information, website and other miscellaneous data, you’re missing out on potentially millions of people who could stumble across your website. Local search marketing or “optimization” is just as an important small business practice as the SEO you use on your website.

There are features available specifically through Google Places that can help small business improve their search-ability. You can pay for Tags: Tags come with a $25 price tag per month and promote business features your company is offering. These are currently only available in certain cities, but expanding quickly. So if you want to use Google Tags for your company and your location isn’t listed, it may be shortly.

Google also can send a photographer to your business and offer a free, professional photo shoot. You’re not guaranteed to have a session, but you browse the available locations and apply. If you’re not in one of the major US cities that offers these free photo sessions, take your own photos and upload them to Google Places by yourself.

So, when you implement local search marketing strategies to your small business design, you’re helping to increase traffic to your website by at least 20% (according to Google). Besides a good-looking company website and a well-written blog, it’s one of the simplest ideas to apply to your business to get results.

Professional Website Design: Is It Worth The Investment?

For a small business, every dollar counts. You think long and hard before you spend – and that’s the way it should be. But while there are certainly many unnecessary expenses that you should avoid, or cut from your budget, professional Web design is not one of them. Here are the reasons:

You Need A Strong Online Identity

As a long-term strategy, you want to separate yourself from the crowd and have your own online identity. You should have a unique logo, a unique website, and unique business cards. If you use do-it-yourself Web design templates, you may be saving money in the short term, but you are hurting your business’ chances of leaving an impression. Don’t let your business look just like thousands of other businesses. The right design can make the difference between a struggling business and a smashing hit.

Professional Web Design CAN Be Affordable

Many small business owners mistakenly assume that they simply cannot afford small business website design. But this is untrue. You should find a designer who specializes in Web design for small businesses because this type of designer will be more sensitive to your budget constraints than Web designers who typically work with corporations. In addition, you should realize that you can start with a very small website, which would cost considerably less – all you need are a few Web pages and a strong design. You can always add more pages and functions later, as your business grows and your budget expands.

Built-In Search Engine Optimization

I’ve seen countless websites that were built by their owners using a template and that are not optimized for search engines. This means that no one is going to find these websites! Typically, after a few months, they realize that they keep working on their website, adding content and tweaking the design, but it’s all worthless because their website does not appear in search engine results. A good Web designer will make sure that your site is optimized for search engines, and will also make sure that the design elements are light enough that the site loads fast – people on the Web are impatient with slow-loading sites. In fact, Google has recently announced that it now incorporates website load time as part of its ranking system.

Save Time, Save Money

Your time is worth money. The time you spend on fiddling with your website design could be spent doing something else – something more productive, something you know how to do such as growing your business. You may think that you are “saving” money by not hiring a professional to do your Web design. But are you really saving if it means long hours of working on your site design, hours that never translate into the visual image you have in mind, simply because you’re not a professional? In today’s complex world, it makes sense for each of us to do what we specialize in. For you it means growing your business, and letting design professionals take care of your website design.