Remember in my last blog when I said, “What is your logo worth? Is a first impression important? Is a lasting impression important? If the people who make the decision whether to do business with you are given one impression of your business, will your logo leave a positive, powerful, lasting impression? The first impression you make may be the only impression you get a chance to make.”? The same holds true for your homepage of your website. Ask yourself if there something there to capture your prospect’s interest quickly, beyond that first 3-5 seconds.

It’s not about being flashy or stylish. It’s about interesting content that’s relative to what you are selling. Something flashy or stylish will impact your viewer by getting their attention. But after you get their attention you have to keep their attention. The content of your website is critical to your success in doing that.

It should be true that we know more about what we offer than anyone else. But that doesn’t mean that we know how to say it the most effectively.  Hiring a professional to work with you on your content may be some of the most cost-effective money you ever spend on building your business. An expert may not know your business as well as you do, but they do know how to communicate the message you provide better than you do because their expertise is in communication.

Have you google-ized your SEO (search engine optimization)? Okay, “google-ized” is a term of my own creation, but it’s important to know that Google is the standard for searches on the internet. Optimizing your website for search engines is important to make sure you get the most impact from web searches. It’s also important to make sure that your SEO is geared towards Google since that is the standard and the most used search engine. It will increase your success on the internet.

Ever tried to find a place when given poor directions? That’s what it’s like on some websites. It is important to have a well organized, easy to navigate website.  You may know where everything is on the site, but can the average person who’s never seen it before easily find things? Does it make sense to the average user?  Most websites do not. They are not user-friendly. This is another area where professional help is really important. We often forget that the person we are speaking or writing to does not have the knowledge that we do. We have to make it easy for them to find things.  Your site should be intuitive, easy to use. The more friendly your site is, especially to a novice, the better. You cannot make it too simple.  And simplicity will help assure success.

And don’t forget to have a lead capture device that will allow you to get information for follow up. If someone visits your site and you get this information you have an opportunity to follow up and increase your chances of a sale.

All too often people overload their websites. Either they have too many visuals to “impress” people (which often means they don’t have much content or don’t know how to present it), or they have too much content.  We tend to talk too much when we’re selling. Use as few words as possible to get your message across. You don’t have to answer every question on your website.  You have to create an interest that will cause your prospect to want to contact you to find out more. By keeping a good balance of visuals and content you can educate and encourage your prospect so that they will seek more information. And when they do you can have personal contact with them which will increase your chances of making the sale.  Don’t forget that your website won’t make the sale for you. Your website is there to drive people to personal contact, which is where the sale is made.

Not everyone knows how to dress well. Not everyone knows how to decorate a house well. In fact, most people have difficulty doing things that require visual taste.  Yet if your website is not nice to look at you send a message that you really don’t care. Ugly is a turnoff. Pleasant, appealing sites draw people in and send the message that what you have to say is important. It’s much like how you dress.  When you dress nicely you are non-verbally telling your prospect that they’re important and you’re glad to be there. How you “dress” your website sends the same message.

Don’t be something you’re not. The visual style of your website should match the look and feel of your industry. It would make no sense for a company selling window coverings to use a Star Trek style for their website. Match your industry to the style and you will increase the effectiveness of your site.

Websites have become the norm in business today. Very few businesses are without websites, yet few websites are effective. It doesn’t take a huge amount of money to make your website its most effective. It takes careful thought, planning, and often professional help in a few areas. When you do this you turn the chances of effectiveness from poor to great.

What is your logo worth? Is a first impression important? Is a lasting impression important? If the people who make the decision whether to do business with you are given one impression of your business, will your logo leave a positive, powerful, lasting impression? The first impression you make may be the only impression you get a chance to make.

As a culture, we frown on those who make a poor first impression. When you are trying to get someone to buy from you, you are trying to entice them. You want to attract them. Think of the first date with your spouse. You were interested in them and wanted to get to know them better. You didn't skip taking a shower for three days before the date. You didn't find the shabbiest clothes you owned and dig them out of a pile of dirty clothes unwashed to wear them on the date. No, you fixed yourself up. You cleaned up. You wanted to make a good impression. This impression could make or break your opportunity. Even at work we look down on those who show up to work in shabby clothes, or don't bother to shave, shower, or brush their teeth before they represent their company to the world. We respect those who dress up and look their best. It's the same with your business. Your logo is the first impression your business makes to those who are discovering you through your website, your sign, business card, or other printed material. It can make a good impression, a poor impression, or no impression. You don't want it to be either of the last two.

A logo is a critical part of your brand identity. It further establishes meaning to your business name and tagline. It helps people recognize your brand immediately. It communicates that your business is established and isn't going to disappear tommorow. It gives people a sense that they can trust your business, respect you business, and that your business is a leading expert in its field.

A logo should:

• Be memorable

• Be Effective with or without color

• Be Reconizable and readable whether it is displayed large or small

• Convey the style and character of your brand identity

• Communicate credibility and quality to your target market

• Be original

I am going to first show you some examples of bad logos and then show you some examples of good logos:

Below are some bad logos created by people who either didn't know what they were doing, didn't care, or didn't invest the time, effort, or money to create a logo that would design their business for success:

Below are some good logos created by skilled designers around the world. These are strong symbols that help to establish a powerful brand identity for the companies they represent:

If you want your business to be set up for success on all levels, then a very critical element you need to have in place is a strong logo that effectively represents your brand identity like one of the good logos that I discussed above. If your business is in need of a new logo or a logo makeover, click this link to set up a consultation and I will be happy to talk with you.

Here for your business success!

The first thing that you need to have in place to be designed for success is a clear and compelling brand identity for your business. You brand identity needs a name and tagline that clearly communicates what you do for your customers and what sets you apart from every other business in your industry. Your brand is the foundation for all of the other building blocks needed to effectively market and promote your business.

Al Ries, in his book ‘The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding’ wrote, “The objective is to create in the mind of the prospect the perception that there is no other product on the market quite like your product.” In order to acheive this, what you say about your brand must also ring true in the mind of your prospect as well. If you are not “the biggest and the best” in your industry and your prospect knows that, then it is pointless to say that you are. This will also hurt your brand in the long run.

In 1962, The Avis Rent-A-Car company was losing money every year. They wanted to compete with Hertz who was in the number one spot in annual sales and also in the mind of the prospect. If Avis had said to the world, “We are number one”, prospective buyers would have thought “No your not! Hertz is!” So Avis created the brilliantly successful postitioning statement, “Avis is only number 2 in rent-a-cars. So why go with us? We try harder.” Since the number two company at the time, National, had not positioned themselves as number two in the mind of their prospects, Avis was easily able to claim that spot with their brand. The result was that Avis shot up from losing money for 13 years in a row to the number two spot in the marketplace.

Here are a few classic brands you may be familiar with:

• 7-Up: The uncola.

• American Express: Don’t leave home without it.

• BMW: The ultimate driving machine.

• ARMY: Be all that you can be.

• Apple Computer: Think different.

• Nike: Just do it.

• EF Hutton: When EF Hutton talks, people listen.

• Energizer Batteries: It keeps going, and going, and going.

• Snapple: Made from the best stuff on Earth.

Here are some creative brands I recently discovered:

• IttyBiz: Work from home tips to help you stay sane.

• Wake Up Later: Web freelancing, Online Income, and Sleeping Late.

• B2B CFO: Cash. We help you get it.

• The Jekyll & Hyde Restaurant: It actually makes New York seem normal.

• The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce: We Mean Business.

• Get Rich Slowly: Personal finance that makes cents.

• TrafficBunnies: Making your hits multiply like rabbits.

• Shoemoney: Skills to pay the bills.

• The Straight Dope: Fighting Ignorance since 1973 (It’s taking longer than we thought).

When you are creating your brand identity, you need to focus on the needs and desires of your prospective customers, not on a "title" or "job description". Your name and tagline should answer the question "what do you do?" in a way that makes a prospective customer say, "Tell me more about that." If you are a Realtor named Joe Smith in Colorado Springs, Colorado, then your brand should not be:

Joe Smith: Real Estate agent to the Colorado Springs Area.

Customers don't care what your "title" is. They what to know "what is in it for me?" There is also nothing in that type of "brand identity" that separates you from every other realtor in the area. You need something that states your unique promise to your customers like:

Joe Smith Realty Group: We get your home sold. Fast!

or:

Joe Smith: I find you the best home values on the market. Guaranteed!

Whatever your brand promise is, needs to be something that you always provide to your customers without exception. It is the one thing above all that you always strive to do better than anybody else. That is what sets you apart from your competition. When you have a clear and compelling brand identity in place, you are ready to move on to the next step of becoming designed for success. If you need help crafting a clear and compelling brand identity for your business, click this link to set up a consultation and I will be happy to talk with you.