Small Business Design Resources

Make the Most of Your Small Business Advertising Dollars

Advertising can be expensive, and it can also be ineffective–as a small business owner, you want to be absolutely sure that you don’t combine those two and end up spending a lot on advertising only to see a minimal (or negative) return on investment. Luckily, the rise of the Internet has resulted in many low-cost advertising options that are perfect for small business owners.

What’s on the top of our list for the best return on investment? A professional business website. These days a website is indispensable for any small business; while potential customers once consulted the Yellow Pages to find you, the Internet is now their first–and often only–stop. Many small business owners attempt a do-it-yourself website without realizing that professionals specializing in small business design are an excellent return on investment. Think of it as the difference between a single-line listing in the phone book and a full-page, color ad. Which business is going to get noticed? The one whose website looks professional, is on the first page of search engine results, and provides useful content. Investing in a professional with expertise in small business design can help you achieve that, and will quickly pay for itself.

But don’t stop at a website–there are other ways to harness the advertising power of the Internet. Word of mouth has always been one of the most cost-effective forms of advertisement, and social networking sites are the new word of mouth. These sites are reaching more people than ever and are usually free to join. Maintaining a business profile on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other sites is an inexpensive way to build an Internet presence and keep your customers up-to-date. You can even create your own television-style ads and post them on Youtube for free. Feature them on your website and your Facebook page and you might be the next viral video phenomenon! In addition to creating your own profile, connect with other people and businesses whose followers are likely to be interested in your product or services. Become visible to their followers by commenting on their profiles or blogs and leaving a link to your website.

Placing ads on the Internet can also be a good investment if you choose their location and style carefully. Choose which websites to advertise on by keeping your target audience in mind–just like with physical signage, you want to place your ads in locations that potential customers frequent. Finding the most effective placement is easy with sites like BuySellAds.com, which will help you find a target website or blog for your ads or offer advertising space on your own website. The best way to maximize your advertising dollars using Internet advertising is to start small and take advantage of the statistics available to you. There are a variety of tools available that will help you determine where your website traffic is coming from, which customers are buying what, and which ads are most effective. A lot of these tools are free, but staying on top of your Internet advertising statistics does require an investment of your time. However, it’s one that’s well worth it–you can learn what advertising methods work for you before you invest significant money.

Finally, advertising to your current customers is always a good idea. Connect with them via social networking sites, send them a monthly newsletter updating them about your business, and keep your website updated with fresh content, deals and information of interest to them. If you haven’t already, start building an email list for email marketing. Your customers are already interested in you and your business, so you know that you’re reaching a receptive audience. Cultivating their interest will encourage them to be repeat customers and make them more likely to recommend you to their friends.

Website Critique: Enhancing your presentations with Presenter Media

Presenter Media is a website that offers PowerPoint templates, animations and clipart for unlimited download during an entire year subscription. It’s a great deal, but most first time visitors miss the subscription information. The video website critique shows where the website can use some improvements to make the subscription services more prominent to new visitors.

Overall Improvements

• Basically put the focus on your subscription service. Check that your main website content is above the fold. If people can’t see it, they won’t subscribe!

Homepage

• The Flash animation at the top is not working in your favor. It’s displaying your products, but not showing what could be accomplished using your products. You are not just selling images/clipart so I believe it’s best to show what can be done using your products instead of just displaying them.
• There are so many ways you can use that top banner space, but the most effective way is to create a call-to-action for the subscription. Just take a look at other subscription based stock photo websites and you’ll notice that the subscription information is right there at the top to grab the visitor’s attention.

Screenshot of www.getharvest.com

• Another option is to polish up the look and feel of the 3 categories that you currently have blending into the text. For example take a look at what Harvest did on their homepage to focus on the subscription and below that show the 3 distinct groups that they’re targeting.

More website critiques

If you’re viewing this review and want to add more suggestions, please add your comments below.

Disclaimer

The video website critique and suggestions are for you to review and take what you feel will better your business website. There’s no guarantee that the suggestions mentioned will improve your business. Design Leap is not held responsible for any negative outcome.

10 Websites That All Small Business Owners Need to Know About

There are millions of websites, but as a small business owner I’m sure you don’t have time to search for the most important ones. Here’s a list of websites where you can read articles or even ask questions that will help improve your small business:

1. www.entrepreneur.com
2. www.smallbiztrends.com
3. www.toolkit.com
4. www.smbceo.com
5. www.startupnation.com
6. answers.business.com
7. www.inc.com
8. www.allbusiness.com
9. www.sba.gov
10. www.smallbusinessbrief.com

Let a Professional Design your Business Logo

It’s a fact that as a small business owner you wear many hats, especially when you’re first starting out. So on top of everything else that you do for your small business, you’ve decided to create your own logo. It’s clear that you understand that your small business needs an identity so people everywhere begin to recognize your name and want to do business with you. But do you really want to jeopardize your business reputation and begin the logo design process on your own? Unless you’re a professional graphic designer you have no expertise in the logo design, nor have any clue where to start, so why would you bother.

Trying to do logo design on your own
I understand you might be thinking that to hire a graphic designer is expensive and your small business budge can’t afford that. It really isn’t expensive if you think the value that a professional can bring to your business image in the long run. Let’s say for example you’re an excellent hair stylist, you have your own salon but you don’t have a logo that separates your salon from all the other salons in your area. You decide to sit down one night and take a stab in creating your own logo. You have an idea in mind so you open up your Microsoft Word and you start trying all the available fonts and clip art that come with that program. The result, a generic look with outdated clip art. The problem here is that you’re good at what you do but you clearly can’t specialize in everything. You don’t even have professional programs that a graphic designer would use to create your logo design. Imagine if I tried to cut my own hair, I would look like a mess.

Working together with your graphic designer
As a small business owner you’re always full of ideas and know your business better than anyone else. Here are a few pointers in how to work together with your graphic designer to help create your ideal image:

• explain what you’re envisioning
• provide a list of colors you like and also the colors that you absolutely would not want to see used
• let her know if you would like to have an icon, just a logo type or both
• where will your logo be used? Only on paper and web or may be also on clothes tags or anywhere else
• provide examples of other company logos that you were attracted to
• provide a list of few of your competitors
• always give us much information about your business as possible, including your target audience and geographic location that you’re targeting or anything else that might help to understand your business better

Remember, you want your business to be successful so don’t ruin your image by doing your own logo design.