BizStrong

TIP: COLLECT AND USE TESTIMONIALS

Use testimonials to let customers speak on your behalf about your reputation, reliability, and the fact that you deliver on your promises.

To obtain testimonials wait until a purchase is complete and then ask a satisfied customer to provide feedback. Ask for specific information, like what the person liked about your service and what aspects they'd like to share with others. Then ask "May we use your comments with others?" If the answer is "yes," get permission in writing. You can download a permission template at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC010011471033.aspx?pid=CT101470581033

Remember:
* The only ethical testimonial is from an actual customer who hasn't been compensated for his or her good words.
* Let customers put compliments in their own words; don't ask them to read or sign statements prepared by your company.
* Aim to have each testimonial focus on one aspect of your product or service rather than on general praise.
* Get details. Rather than "You're amazing," ask the customer to say what about your company was amazing.
* Put testimonials to work. Showcase them in sales letters, sales materials, and throughout your website so that prospective clients are continuously encouraged by the words of actual clients.

For more advice, go to pages 234-237 in Branding for Dummies.

TIP: ENHANCE YOUR ONLINE IDENTITY

A marketing question I get asked often has to do with online identity, presence and activity. Here are three tips:

* For an easy-to-remember online address, register your business name plus .com. If that domain name isn't available, avoid grabbing your business name plus .net. Why? Because most people automatically type in .com (in fact, the new iPhone makes .com the default!). If you register your name plus .net, people trying to reach are likely to end up at the .com site instead.

* If your business name isn't available for your domain name, see if your business slogan or positioning statement lends itself to an online address. For instance, www.justdoit.com takes you to the Nike site, and www.gohawaii.com takes you to the site of the Hawaii Visitor and Convention Bureau.

* If people frequently misspell your business name, capture more traffic by registering various misspellings as alternative domain names. Then redirect all traffic to your primary address. For example, if you type www.googel.com into your web browser, you'll be automatically redirected to the primary www.google.com site. Be similarly smart with your own web strategy.

For lots more information go to Chapter 16 of Small Business Marketing for Dummies. Plus, go to the Bizstrong Bookstore to order a copy of Building Your Business with Google for Dummies by Brad Hill.

TIP: STEPS TO FOLLOW WHEN LAUNCHING A BUSINESS

Several people starting businesses have asked me about timing: When should they open a business checking account, how should they run their businesses in the earliest days before they move into offices, and how can they be sure they get off on a solid footing.

Here's some advice to new small business owners from Chapter 9 (Planning for a One-Person Business)of Business Plans Kit for Dummies

*Commit to doing one thing well. Don't try to be all things to all people. Know your vision, mission, and the unique value you intend to deliver to customers. If any of those terms sound foreign, click on "Frequently Asked Questions" in the next column to reach explanations.

* Establish pricing, billing, and collection policies. From the get-go, know what you'll charge and how you'll collect. And remember, being cheapest is rarely a formula for small business success. Your pricing needs to be an accurate reflection of the value of your offering, and high enough to cover your costs plus an adequate amount of profit to keep you in business.

* Run your business like a business, not as an adjunct of your personal checkbook or a hobby that you do in your spare time. The day your business opens, be sure you have a business checking account to keep business expenses separate from personal expenses. And even before your business opens, keep track of start-up costs. For help, read the article titled "How to write off your startup costs" at www.businessbreakthrough.msn.com/. Once on the site, click on "Finance" and "Related Articles."

* Designate a workspace even if it's in a corner of a room of your house. For advice about home offices, go to an article I wrote titled "Balancing work and life from a home office at www.businessbreakthrough.msn.com/. Once on the site, click on "Organization" and "Related Articles."


TIP: NAMING A BUSINESS OR PRODUCT

Before you settle on a name, put it to the test by answering these questions:

Does it accurately depict or support your desired brand image?

Does it reflect your brand position? For instance, if your position is that you're the most professional, creative, or prestigious, does the name sound adequately professional, creative, or prestigious?

Is it a credible reflection of your business?

Can it grow with your business?

Is it easy to say and spell?

Is it unique?

Does it translate well into languages your customers are likely to use?

Do you like the name?

Is the name available as a domain name or a trademark?

The right name establishes your brand from the day you announce it and grows with your business and your vision as you evolve into a large, more established organization that possibly reaches into new market areas, new geographic regions, and even new product areas.

Most of all, the right name appreciates as an asset that is harvested through premium pricing, licensing, or even through the sale of shares in or the outright sale of your business and its brand name.

TIP: LOGO ADVICE
Your logo is the face of your brand in the marketplace. When designing your logo, follow this advice:

Keep your logo simple.

Design a logo that can be presented consistently across all communication channels.

Don't do it yourself unless you're a design professional or you want your logo to look like it represents a hands-on business that, in fact, created its own logo.

Before approving a logo design, be sure that it:

1) Is consistent with the nature of your product or service
2) Is consistent with your brand promise
3) Is consistent with the mood and tone you're committed to deliver through all your brand expressions

For detailed advice on choosing a name and designing a logo, turn to Chapters 7 and 8 in Branding For Dummies

TIP: ASSESSING YOUR BRAND IMAGE
When people hear your organization’s name, memories pop up that influence what they think and how they buy. Those memories are the basis of your brand. The process of branding is all about making sure that the brand you have is the brand you want.

The best starting point is to get clear about what people currently think when they come into contact with your brand logo or name. To get started, click on the following link. It takes you to an excerpt from Branding for Dummies that explains how to conduct your own brand image assessment.