Author Archives: Small Business Planned

About Small Business Planned

*** DO NOT DELETE THIS PROFILE *** This is the profile of David Moloney, web designer from smallbusinessplanned.com. This profile allows smallbusinessplanned to continually deliver your hosting bonuses. If you delete this profile, your hosting bonuses will also cease. If you have any questions, please email me at david@smallbusinessplanned.com

Argh! 15 Mistakes That Damage Your Small Business

9 Replies

You put in incredible hours to build your small business brand. Don’t let small mistakes blow all your hard work and make you look second rate. The following are a list of 15 areas that many small business owners neglect, costing them dearly.

If you fail in these areas, customers are not forgiving. It’s a case of guilty by association. If you’re not delivering in one area, people perceive that you must be cutting corners in other areas as well.

Some of these opportunities can be used to enhance your small business brand, others need to be overcome so they don’t overshadow your small business.

How Do Your Customers Really See Your Small Business?

Has Your Signage Seen Better Days?

Mother nature will slowly sap the shininess from every sign. All signs have an expiry date before they succumb to the elements. Do not tolerate second rate signage. It decimates your first impression and scares even non-prospects away. Take a look at your signage. Does it need your attention? If so give it a new coat of paint or replace it.

Performing Cheap Alterations

Don’t make the mistake of patching up material to save money. This looks tacky and cheapens your small business. If you need to make changes to your hours, phone number, menu or statements, have them professionally redrafted. If you anticipate regular changes, ensure they can be made in a professional manner without looking second rate. You want customers to focus on the benefits you can deliver, not on why the number ‘9’ looks funny or why there’s masking tape over the second line of your brochure.

Make Way… And Make it Neat

Ensure the paths customers take to your small business are neat and free from obstruction. Grab a broom and sweep the paths of leaves, pickup the litter, fix the broken tiles and remove all graffiti. Make your trading area immaculate, and your brand will maintain the perception of high quality.

Your Customer’s Window to Your Operations

Ensure your windows are clean. This makes a world of difference. Dirty windows portray an uncaring small business who neglects themselves and their customers. Set a recurring time when your windows need to be washed and stick to it.

Worn Furniture Wears Out Your Small Business

George Orwell wrote a book titled ‘1984’. I often see business owners showcasing furniture which must have come directly from its set. Do not use dated or worn out furniture, no matter how much money you save. There’s a reason it’s cheap – because it makes you look cheap. It sticks out like a stick insect… on a beach ball. Your furniture choice reflects your small business brand. Are you a high quality small business? Or are you a dated ‘three days since I last shaved’ type business? Furnish you business accordingly.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression

Who Wants to Use Your Toilet?

Your toilets need to be kept private, clean, stocked and smelling as nice as possible. It’s pretty straight forward. Customers don’t like using foreign toilets at the best of times, so make their experience as tolerable as possible. Ensure you have a process of regularly spot checking them.

Is Your Lighting Too Dim or Inappropriate?

Your lighting needs to reflect the mood you are trying to achieve. A level of natural light is preferred if possible. Bright lighting helps customers view the full range of available products. Dimmed lighting can create a nice mood which complements services such as massage. Make a conscious decision on the lighting your small business uses.

404: Find Your Error Pages Before Your Customer

Your website has many pages and many more links. It is your responsibility to ensure that those pages are up and the links are working. Nothing’s more frustrating for a customer than being unable to access information. You’re effectively dangling a carrot in front of them before slamming your door in their face. You may as well post a message declaring “Sorry. Go check out information from my competitor.” In case of these emergencies, ensure you have a great 404 error page. Ian Lurie’s written a great article about creating great 404 pages.

You Are What You Wear

You may have a uniform or you may just choose to wear casual clothes. It’s your small business and your choice. Whatever you wear, ensure it’s clean, presented properly, in good condition and doesn’t smell. A good uniform will blend into your small business. A bad uniform will be a focal point for your customers, which will generate negativity towards your small business.

“We don’t see things as they are. We see them as we are.” – Anais Nin

Music Must be Selected

Any music you play either on hold or on your premises must be reflective of your small business brand. Do not leave this music choice up to your staff as they are not your customers. Select the music choice and set the volume level. Music should add to the ambiance of your small business – not become the ambiance of your small business.

That Smell Reminds me of Aunt Betty’s

Smell is the strongest trigger of memory. A bad smell will negatively impact a customers whole experience. An appropriate smell will work to enhance your small business experience and gel everything together. Do your premises smell bad? Do your lunch smells waft into customer areas? Fix it. Don’t mask it. Just be mindful of using smells which may trigger an allergic reaction.

Is it Cold in Here or is it Just me?

The temperature inside your small business must be geared towards customer comfort. It should consider the outside temperature and also your staff comfort, although customer comfort is your primary concern. If you’re doing your job right, customers shouldn’t notice the temperature.

“Sorry. I Can’t Hear You. Can You Speak up?”

How does the sound carry in your premises? Are you operating a popular cafe with chairs jousting along tiles? Or are you heading a retail store with basic consumables? If your customers require a lot of interaction, either with you or one another, keep the music turned down. Consider sound proofing rooms and using sound absorbing material as decorative features.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it” – Warren Buffet

“Can I help You? Not Yet? …How About Now?”

There’s nothing worse than an over eager service assistant. I once entered a shop and was asked ‘can I help you?’ After a polite ‘no’, the shop assistant proceeded to follow me around the shop for the next 10 seconds, forcing me into a quick get away.

Instead of asking “can I help you?”, which most of the time generates a negative response, instead open with “Have you been here before? I’ll just take 30 seconds to show you where everything is.” This approach both helps the customer, gives you an opportunity to build rapport and can also be a chance for you to communicate a current special or product you’re trying to move.

Receipts Are Your Last Touchpoint. Make Them Count

Often an after thought, your receipts are the last tangible item your customer takes from your small business. If you’re a pure service provider, a receipt could be the ONLY thing your customer takes from your premises. Flimsy receipts with scant information that’s difficult to read leaves you customers with a poor taste. Legible and logical receipts, perhaps including your small business unique selling point, serve to further solidify your small business branding.

Phew, congratulations for making it this far – you deserve a pat on the back. Have you noticed any businesses making these mistakes?

Small Business Outsourcing Saved Me $5,000 and My Sanity

11 Replies

We all love control. Control of the television remote, the amount of sugar in our coffee or the people we’ll sit next to at the next Wedding. It’s natural to want things done our way.

You likely have an accountant who provides specialist advice and knowledge for your small business. You hire the accountant because:

they have specialist skills you don’t have
they save you money
they save you time
they give you peace of mind, taking care of any tax compliance issues

Could you do the work instead of the accountant? Possibly. But chances are accounting is not your specialty. You would be out of your depth, it would take a long time and there’s a fair chance you may screw something up. So you outsource your accounting to your accountant who has specialist skills.

Small Business Outsourcing is Your New Out Tray

Reorganise Your Desk. Business Outsourcing is Your New Out Tray

Small Business Success. Be a Generalist – Not a Specialist

It is simply not possible to learn every skill you need to successfully operate and grow your small business. Sure you can be the accounts director, the sales director, the IT department, the graphic designer and the copywriter, but your results in each field will be mediocre. Mediocre results stunt the growth of your small business. You will never be able to compete with the specialist skills of an accountant, salesman, web designer and proven copywriter.

A great small business owner is a generalist. A great small business owner will understand their core competencies and will overcome their shortcomings by surrounding themselves with specialists. This frees up their focus, time and energy to ensure their small business remains on track.

Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don’t interfere.
-Ronald Reagan

Benefits of Outsourcing Business to a Specialist

Small business owner can retain their focus on other business critical issues
Certainty of cost
Provides a fast solution within agreed timeframes
Provides you access to specialised skills
Reduces the need to hire or train staff

You can outsource anything from graphic design, web design, copy writing, translation or video and audio production. Some small business owners have even found ways to outsource the operations of their entire online business.

My Small Business Outsourcing Recommendation is Elance

I use Elance for all my outsourcing needs. So far I’ve outsourced over 10 projects ranging from web design, logo design, copywriting, legal documentation and architectural floor plans. I know your cashflow’s tight. Mine is too. That’s the big benefit of outsourcing through Elance. You get control of everything.

Elance is an online hub of over 100,000 outsourcing professionals. This means you’re bound to find the right person for your outsourcing needs. Since its creation in 1999, Elance has generated over $245 million in outsourcing work. Elance was recommended to me by another entrepreneur back in 2007. It’s a life saver. I recommend it because:

You can browse providers for free and post a job for free

Besides an initial $10 sign up fee, you do not pay any ongoing fees to Elance

You can easily view the past work of providers and read feedback on their work

You can set the exact budget from $50 upwards

You have security knowing that Elance audits providers and has payment protection

You can save time and money. I have saved over $5,000 through Elance

Take 2 minutes and check out how it works:

Don’t think Elance is just limited to small businesses either. Large corporations also turn to Elance when they need a quality solution. Elance has helped Google, Facebook, Citigroup, Accenture and Harvard University.

Unsure if outsourcing’s the right option for you? There’s no harm in checking out Elance. Once you make the jump you will wonder how you ever survived without it.

Visit Elance

Have you ever outsourced a project? What was your experience?

Your Logo: 3 Design Fundamentals You Must Conquer

13 Replies

A logo is a graphic emblem that represents your brand and therefore your small business. A logo is the shorthand that immediately identifies your small business among a sea of competition.

A logo is not a brand name. A logo is representative of your brand name. Where your brand name can exist in a verbal or written form, a logo can only exist as a graphic.

Understand What Your Logo Must Achieve Before you Start

A good logo can become great over time. Logos can evolve, as long as they stay true to the heritage of your brand and maintain the unique point of difference of your small business.

The 3 Essentials Your Logo Must Conquer

Creating a logo is tough. Capturing the rational and emotional essence of your brand in a small graphic is not easy, but it is possible. Here are the three essentials your logo must conquer:

1. Your Logo Must Be Memorable

Although reports vary, if the most conservative estimates are believed, we’re exposed to over 250 advertisements each day (other reports say up to 3,000 per day). This constant stream of communication numbs our senses and turns most of us into passive viewers. Your small business logo needs to stand out among this clutter. Think of your positioning and where your logo is to be seen. A strong simple bold logo is more likely to rise above the chatter and leave an impression. An involved cursive logo that requires concentration and deciphering is more likely to be overlooked.

Don’t make it hard for customers. Don’t be too clever. Have impact.

2. Your Logo Must Be Effective Across All Applications

Think of every area your small business logo will touch. This may include:

Products and packaging
External signage
Websites
Office stationery
Business cards & invoices
Local sponsorships

Your logo must be able to effectively represent your small business brand name wherever it is shown. Whether it’s large or small, full colour or black and white. A great logo will still have significant presence wherever it is placed.

3. Your Logo Must Be Relevant To Your Brand and Industry

Revisit your small business positioning and your small business unique selling point. Your logo needs to capture and reaffirm why customers should do business with you. A logo should also be somewhat indicative of the industry that your small business operates in.

This does not mean your logo must be overly obvious. E.g not every dentist’s logo must show a shiny tooth, nor does every plumber’s logo need to show a leaking pipe. Your small business’ logo just needs to be reflective and harmonious with your business category. If you choose to ignore this rule, your small business will have to work extra harder to overcome confusion. And isn’t small business difficult enough?

Examples of Great Logos

A great logo is one that excels at all the above criteria. Here are some of my favourites:

The Coca-Cola logo captures the fun and exciting nature of the coke a cola brand. It has a bold red colour, strong heritage value and a design that easily stands out from the crowd. Although the cursive flowing font is difficult to read, we recognise the brand instantly. We’ve grown up with it. Our parents and grand parents have grown up with it. You may not a soft drink fan, but I bet first one you’ll name is Coke.

The Harley Davidson logo captures the original and historic feel of the Harley Davidson brand. It’s solid and looks like an association logo, further emphasising that you’re part of a club that has a rich history. No other motorcycle brand comes close to the strength of the Harley Davidson brand. Harley Davidson is the original tough motorcycle brand. It’s logo is a testament to this reputation.

The Nike logo captures the competitive, strong nature of the brand. It’s a single colour black logo with a positive swoosh. The logo was actually developed by a graphic designer for $US35. Both the name ‘Nike’ and the swoosh are registered trademarks, hence the reason for the two registered trademark symbols. When you think of Nike, the phrase ‘Just do it’ springs to mind. The logo’s simple positive-tick reinforces its winning attitude.

The Federal Express logo captures the fast and reliable nature of the Federal Express brand. It’s a no nonsense logo in capital letters. It’s even been abbreviated to FedEx to make it quicker to say. Everyone knows that red ones go faster… and that’s the message that this brand wants to communicate. It delivers things fast without hassle. Look carefully and you’ll also see a forward pointed arrow.

The Tiffany & Co logo captures the iconic and stylish nature of the Tiffany brand. It’s classic and formal yet understated. Nothing gets in the way of indulgent beauty. Looking at the logo you half expect Audrey Hepburn to enter the scene at any moment and ask you out for breakfast. And that breakfast would be eaten with on fine China and every guest would wear exquisite gloves which elegantly ended at your elbow.

Firstly, I don’t claim that the Small Business Planned logo is in the same league as the logos mentioned above. However it was designed with the above criteria in mind.

The three rocks symbolise the three critical areas of any small business owner; you’re your family/friends and your small business itself. The balancing of the stones represents the difficulty all small business owners face in juggling their priorities. Just one small move and the whole structure can fall down.

The font used is large for impact and quite modern looking, to give more relevance to my brand.

What’s your favourite logo and why?

Eureka! Finding your Unique Selling Point

7 Replies

As discussed in what’s a unique selling point, your unique selling point is your differentiator which separates you from your competition. Now we know how important this differentiator is to your small business, it’s now time to get to work and determine your unique selling point.

A Unique Selling Point Helps Your Small Business Stand Out From the Crowd

What Isn’t a Unique Selling Point

Before you start putting your small business under the microscope, it’s important to understand the attributes which are not unique selling points. Many businesses focus their promotional efforts on these factors. Don’t make the same mistake:

Great service: You claim to offer great service? Guess what: So does everyone else. Offering great service is fundamental to any business, it’s not a unique selling point. However, if you can promise and demonstrate a unique method of providing great service, such as free weekend delivery, 24/7 free phone support or reply paid postage, your service levels can be used as a unique selling point.

Low prices: You may have dozens of competitors. The reality is, only one business can offer the lowest price. And for this privilege, this business has their margin squeezed. But even worse – another competitor can enter the market at anytime with an even lower price. Enter the price war, which leads to balance sheet nightmares and endless dinners of baked beans on toast. It is dangerous to focus on being the lowest price. It’s better to focus on offering exceptional value.

Location: You may be contemplating opening a business in an area without competition. Sounds like a good opportunity. Perhaps. May be in the short term. However, competition could soon come knocking, either in the form of another bricks and mortar business or an online business. Don’t feel that your small business location provides a sustainable competitive advantage. It’s not a moat against competition.

How to Determine Your Unique Selling Point

You know your business better than anyone. To determine your unique selling point take a moment to assess the following:

1. What do your customers love about your business?

Ask them personally. Send your customers an anonymous online survey. Watch their behaviour both in your store and on your website.

2. What can you do that your competition can’t?

Look at the product and service range of your competitors. Compare it to your range. Are there any gaps that you can exploit? If so, capitalize on the gaps, make customers aware of your superior offering and stay one step ahead of your competition.

3. Is there an area that no competitors currently satisfy?

Do you have a competitive advantage that your competitor simply can’t match? Perhaps it is your size, number of employees, opening hours, onsite installation, product hiring, a guarantee or returns policy?

4. Can you bundle regularly used products/services together and offer a value pack?

Think about the total solution that your customers are trying to achieve. This solution can rarely be met with just one product. Is there anything else you can naturally bundle to help solve their problem and create value? Could you offer a free first service with your product, free installation, a free book or 50% off a complementary product?

If two small businesses are selling an identical product, the customer will make a selection based on price. You need to transfer the customers comparison from price to value by supplying an offering that provides more at an acceptable price point.

5. Can you pair up with another business to create a unique product offering?

Think of the purchasing patterns of your customers. Do they need to purchase complementary items before or after visiting your small business? If so, there may be an opportunity to directly offer these products or services or establish a referral relationship with another trusted provider.

6. Can you bundle your product with a service, or vice versa?

Think outside the square. Can you bundle your product with a service? Or a service with a product? This could be a key point of difference for your small business, demonstrating real value to your customers.

7. Can you improve your trial period, guarantee or servicing levels?

Take the risk away from your customers. Make them feel that it’s you that’s taking the risk – not them. Offer an extraordinary guarantee that will blow your customers away and leave the competition trembling.

“If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.” -George Patton

Implementing Your Unique Selling Point

Your unique selling point doesn’t just stay an abstract objective, filed in a dusty report. You need to bring your unique selling point to life with a simple, short statement. Your unique selling point must be actively threaded through all your business communication. Yes, this includes advertising, brochures, business cards and receipts. It can never be over communicated. As a rule of thumb, if you’re getting sick of seeing your unique selling point, you’re doing a good job.

“If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time-a tremendous whack.” -Winston Churchill

It is critical that your entire business can consistently deliver on this promise at every opportunity, year in and year out. This will help cement your selling point in the minds of customers and increase their trust in your small business.

What factors have influenced you in choosing one business over another?

What’s a Unique Selling Point/Proposition?

7 Replies

Your small business needs to be remarkable. It needs to stand heads and shoulders above your competition. When customers actively compare your small business to your competition, you want them to be compelled to choose you to the exclusion of everyone else. Sounds right? To do this, you need to be able to find your unique selling point and consistently deliver it.

Be Unique: Great Small Businesses Stand Out From The Crowd

Why do I Need a Unique Selling Point?

Each year the world is deluged with more brands and more choice. 2006 saw over 58,375 new products introduced throughout the World. This was more than double the number introduced in 2002.* Ouch. This means that your business has more and more competition and more and more clutter and noise to cut through.

As mentioned on the keys to small business success, a unique selling point is the differentiating benefit that your small business has over your competition. It’s the message aiming to cut through the clutter which drives customers to your small business. Your unique selling point needs to be different, relevant and valued by your target customers so they choose your small business to the exclusion of all others.

Your unique selling point must be simple to express and easy to understand. It must also be threaded through your entire business; from your business cards and catalogues, to your invoices, receipts and email signatures. You can never over communicate your point of difference. In short, if you’re sick of seeing your unique selling point you’re implementing it correctly.

You should also only focus on one unique selling point. This is easier for customers to identify with and remember. It also strengthens your focus and protects it from the competition.

*J Gerzema, E Lebar The Trouble with Brands, 2009

Brands that Successfully use a Unique Selling Point

OK, let’s step away from the theoretical classroom for a moment to see how real brands successfully champion a unique selling point.

Photoshop: The premier image manipulation software
Harley Davidson: The original motorcycle
Dyson: The bagless vacuum cleaner that doesn’t lose suction
Dove Soap: The soap with moisturising cream
IKEA: Great value furniture you assemble yourself
Wikipedia: The comprehensive free online encyclopedia
Gatorade: The sports energy drink that helps you regain energy faster
Black Berry: Access and send information anywhere, anytime
Amazon: Get any book shipped to your door

It’s important to understand that these brands champion these selling points through consistent messaging over many years, usually decades. This consistent messaging helps solidify their unique selling point in the minds of customers, guarding it against competition.

Sure, there may be moisturising soaps apart from Dove, or a better motorbike than Harley Davidson – but it doesn’t matter. These brands have already won the minds of customers. Their perception is reality in the minds of their target customers.

And in business, perception is more important than reality.

Positioning: The Brand Personality For Your Small Business

7 Replies

As discussed in Successfully Choose a Great Business Name, it’s important that your small business has a great brand name. A great brand name will put your small business on the front foot, giving you an edge over your competition.

But a great brand name is only one part of small business success. You also need to be able to support your small business brand name with substance. Without substance, your brand name is just an empty shell that won’t sustain a customer past their first inquiry.

It’s your positioning that provides the substance for your small business. Positioning is the personality and perception of your small business. Put simply, it’s the space that your small business and brand occupies in the mind of your customers.

Positioning: How Customers Perceive Your Small Business

How do I Influence the Positioning of my Small Business?

Notice how the heading is not ‘how do I determine the positioning of my small business’. This is because the perception of your small business is all the minds of your customers. You can’t tell them what they should think of you. You can only influence what they think of you.

Understanding the Perceptions of Your Businesses Category

All industries have perceptions. To successfully compete in an industry, you need to understand these customer perceptions. Examples of industry perceptions include:

I don’t understand cars. I’m pretty sure my mechanic rips me off
I believe what doctors tell me because they know more than me
My insurance is too expensive. Always
That service offer sounds too good to be true. There must be a catch
That financial company has been around for ages. I trust them more than that new finance company
It’s always more expensive to call out a tradesman on a Saturday and Sunday

Do not attempt to swim against this perception tide, it will just end in tears. Instead, acknowledge these perceptions and create a personality and perception which champions a solution.

Understanding the Positioning of Your Competition

How does your competition communicate with the market? How is your competition perceived by customers? Are they fun and lively or conservative and exact? If you note that most of your competition appears to lean towards being conservative, you may be able to differentiate yourself by taking more of a liberal approach.

The Virgin brand typically enters categories which are overly serious and boring. Virgin then uses its cheeky and irreverent personality to differentiate itself. Customers can then decide – choose Virgin or choose Beige.

Whatever positioning you choose for your small business – just don’t become beige. Don’t become part of the wall paper and DON’T copy the style of your competitors.

Alignment with Your Businesses Brand Name

Your positioning must also be harmonious with the brand name of your small business. Nurturing a fun family image will be difficult for the brand name ‘Stone Dark Scotty’s Playground of Doom™’

Visualise the Positioning of Your Small Business Brand

You may have an idea about your positioning, but to really articulate it, it’s best to visualise your brand as a person. This allows you to further develop the layers of your small business brand. It’s a bit like playing the Milton Bradley game Guess Who. Questions include:

If your small business brand was a person…

What would its gender be?
How old would it be?
Would it be married?
Would it have kids?
Is it an introvert or an extrovert?
What would it do on weekends?
What would it drink – water, coke, squash, beer, wine?
What clothes does it wear?
What kind of movies does it like?
How does it respond to a mistake?

When answering these questions, you will find that the image of your brand starts to become clearer. Once you’re finished, it’s best to reassess your brand’s personality based on the category perceptions and your competitors. Is there a harmonious fit?

Do you have a nearby business that seems to have an ‘x’ factor? Why do they appeal to you?

Successfully Choose a Great Business Name

14 Replies

As discussed in What is a Brand Name? a brand is the shorthand for your business. And it has a strong emotional attachment. So how do you ensure your brand name has the best chance of making your customers swoon? For every powerhouse brand like Rolex and Sony, there’s millions of smaller brands that don’t score a second glance. You want a great brand name that will influence your customers’ preference and make your business more attractive.

English has About 600,000 Words. But You Can Always Invent Another One.

So let’s do it. Here are the fundamentals you need to know about choosing the right brand name for your small business:

Who is the Target Market For Your Brand?

Close your eyes and think of your target market. Picture them as individual people. Think about who they are and their perceptions. When your customers think about your industry, what comes to mind? What drives their action? The brand name you choose must be geared towards helping your customers find solutions to their problems. It needs to be able to speak directly with the values and perceptions of the solution you offer.

Who is Your Competition?

Check Google. Grab the Yellow Pages. Understand who your competitors are and what their brand names are. What works and what doesn’t work? Your brand name needs to be clearly different from other brands – especially the dominating brands.

What is Your Brand Positioning and Personality?

You now have to decide what ‘image’ you want for your brand. Image means personality. Products, like people, have personalities, and they can make or break them in the market place. David Ogilvy

What is the personality of your brand going to be? Is it going to be fun and cheeky, stable and serious or dependable and straight forward? Your brand name should naturally embody this personality as it will appear across your whole business. Good examples of brand personality being exercised through brand names include: Krispy Kream, Victoria’s Secret, Nescafe and Kleenex. Say these names out loud. Hear how they capture the essence of what each brand is all about. Now that makes me swoon.

Is Your Business Category Obvious?

This is a real pet peeve of mine. So many small business owners fail on this point. If a potential customer was to look at your brand name and logo, would they be able to describe the business you are in? I often pass shop fronts or websites that place a great deal of effort into their image, using brand names like ‘Entrance Life’, ‘Kantar Direct’ or ‘Liquid Magna’… but I have no clue as to what they do. Are they a health spa? A printing worshop? An energy drink retailer?

And what do we do if we can’t make sense of something? We switch off. And the business successfully wastes money.

It is critical that your business category is clear. You may choose to make this obvious in a supporting brandline, or in the surrounding information. Just ensure it’s there. And don’t use fancy industry words either. Use words your target market understand. People are looking for solutions, not cryptic puzzles.

Is Your Brand Name Structurally Sound?

Time to bring in the structural brand engineers to ensure your brand name ticks all the fundamentals. Your brand name should:

Be easy to remember
Be easy to spell
Be timeless, and not fad related
Not be an acronym. Acronyms are cold and have no personality
Not be too long. Long brand names are harder to work with (logo, online, etc). Ok I admit, Small Business Planned is getting a little on the long side, but I knew what I was getting in to

Is Your Brand Name Future Proof?

Think about the direction your brand will or may ultimately take. Will this be contrary to your brand name? For instance:

Will you be looking to extend into new products or services that are different from your current core range? Will your brand name reflect well on this extension?
Will you be looking to expand into new suburbs, states or markets? If so, naming your brand ‘Smithville Dentistry’ may not be the best long term approach
Are you looking to on-sell your small business? If so, including your name in the brand may not be ideal

Is Your Brand Name Available For Use?

Wouldn’t you know it. You’ve got the best idea for a brand name. You’ve sketched the logo and you’ve even been placed on hold by a sign writing company. But then reality sets in. Someone has already registered your business name. Aside from buying it off them, there’s not a lot you can do.

Ensure you check your business registry before you proceed with your small business and brand name. In most cases this just requires a quick online search. I also recommend you do a Google search, as your brand name could be used by someone overseas as well.

Don’t Settle on Good. Strive For the Best

You’ve just struck upon a good brand name. Congratulations. But don’t make the mistake of settling on a good brand name. There could be a better brand name out there. Don’t stop when you reach good. Strive to see if you can make great.

How did you pick your brand name?

What is a Brand Name? It’s Everything

12 Replies

In essence a brand is a label, which represents the promises your business pledges to deliver. This could be a promise of quality, competitive prices, convenience, fun, nostalgia or prestige. If you successfully choose a great business name, the operations of your business will have a better chance of success with your target market.

A brand is shorthand for a specific promise

In most cases your brand name is the shorthand for your small business.

A good brand will stand for key ideals that resonate with your target market. A bad brand will stand for indifference or nothing at all. Unsure if you believe me? Let’s step out behind the theory for a moment and examine your emotional responses to brands:

The Emotional Strength of Brands

Below is a list of famous brands. Take a moment to read each brand name

Toyota & Ford
BMW & Audi
Ralph Lauren & Yves Saint Laurent
Vespa & Aprilia
Amazon & Borders
Google & Yahoo
Facebook & Myspace
iPhone & Nexus
Pepsi & Coke
Pixar & Disney
NASCAR & Formula 1
Nike & Adidas
Intel & AMD
Nintendo Wii & Playstation
Yamaha & Kawasaki
Heinz & Campbell’s
Nikon & Olympus

Notice how your emotions rise and fall depending on the brand you are thinking about? Your response could be anything from a fleeting rejection to a strong bond full of imagery and praise. Your response is based on your experiences (either personal or second hand) and whether your experience lived up to the promises of the brand.

In a comparative situation, when you buy a brand’s product or service, you’re giving its ideals the thumbs up. You are identifying with something within that brand. All things remaining equal, you will generally stay loyal to this brand as long as its price tag matches the value of the brand promise.

What Makes a Successful Brand?

Firstly, a brand must own a promise that is easy to understand and valued by its customers. Famous brands that have managed to own a promise include:

Wikipedia – Free information online
Moët & Chandon – Prestigious champagne
Miele – Premium quality electrical products
Disney - Fun entertainment for the whole family
Tiffany & Co – The world’s premier jeweler
Harley Davidson – The original motorcycle
Photoshop - The standard for graphics professionals
Dove - The soap with ¼ moisteriser
IKEA – Great value furniture
Black Berry – Access and send information from anywhere
Heinz - Trusted food staples

Secondly, all brand activities must consistently apply this promise. This means, your promise needs to be embedded through every internal and external touch point and process.

This is where successful brands must be strong and maintain the focus. For months. For years. For decades! But most importantly – through staff changes. Brands should not waiver from their promise just because a few internal people are bored or looking to justify their value. Brands that stray from their promise undermine their long term value.

Brands take decades to build. It is the patient meticulous business owner that will reap the benefits.

What’s the name of your favourite brand? And why?

David

Small Business Failure Rate: 9 out of 10?

16 Replies

‘..and did you know that 9 out of 10 businesses fail?’ This statement is published as fact in countless websites. You may have even heard speakers source it as the truth. Sometimes the quote may even add a time frame such as ‘9 out of 10 businesses fail in the first 2 years’. Other variations include ‘8 out of 10 fail in the first 3 years’. Whatever the numbers, they always shine a bright light on the risk small business owner’s face.

It’s scary. When I first heard it I bit my bottom lip.

Rest assured, the statistics are only a myth. They have no reliable source. In fact they have no source at all. Three separate research groups investigated the claims and found them to be a gross exaggeration of fact. These academic groups found the true small business failure rate to be much lower. Consider their findings below:

* Headd, B. Redefining Business Success: Distinguishing Between Closure and Failure, 2002
# Shane, S. Startup Failure Rates – The Real Numbers, 2008
< Phillips & Kirchhoff. Small Business: Critical Perspectives 1989

As shown above, the results of all three studies have a strong correlation. The studies agreed that at the 4 year mark, 50% of small businesses were still open and trading. By year six, the success rate had fallen to 40%.

Every Small Business That Closes is a Failure

Not quite. While further examining the numbers, it became evident that a closed business did not necessarily mean a failed small business. The pie chart below puts this into perspective.

Not Every Small Business Closes Due to Performance

It shows that at the 4 year mark:

50% of small businesses are still open
33% of small businesses have closed due to performance
17% of small businesses have closed for non-performance reasons

Therefore, counting all closed small businesses as unsuccessful is incorrect. A total of 17% of businesses were found to have closed for non performance reasons such as choice, retirement or being bought. These businesses ventures should not be classed as failures.

What is the True Small Business Failure Rate?

Taking the three studies into consideration, the business failure rate is closer to 33% within the first 4 years. This is a far cry from the purported 90% within the first 2 years. Researcher Brian Headd put it best with his comment:

“These results suggest that potential entrepreneurs, particularly those planning very small ventures, have less to fear than is commonly believed.”

So get out there and go for it! Super charge your small business.

The Keys To Small Business Success

7 Replies

Success in small business is far from easy. In fact, it’s extremely difficult. Especially if your small business is built on shaky foundations. If you trek off into the small business wilderness without knowing the basics, you’re bound to become lost and start drifting towards failure.

Rest assured, knowing the core fundamentals is reasonably straight forward. There are four key pillars of small business success. By understanding these four key pillars, you can structure every part of business and ensure it’s super charged for small business success.

Key 1: Having a Valued Unique Selling Point

Your small business needs to be known for being able to deliver something no other business can. This is known as your unique selling point/proposition (USP) This does not necessarily mean you need to have a unique product (although this would be ideal). It means that you need an offering that’s better than the competition can provide. This could either be:

Hard to source quality products
A combination package which combines valued products and or services
Superior choices of access (service hours, payment options, points of contact)
Superior environment (inviting touchpoints, empowered staff, sense of credibility)

It’s important that your unique selling point is valued and sought after by your target market, otherwise – who’s going to do business with you? And how will you be a small business success?

Like a USB: Your USP Plugs Into Your Whole Business

Key 2: Your Small Business Must Consistently Deliver

The key word here is consistency. When doing business you must strive to deliver the same experience each time. It’s this consistency which is so important in establishing your small business’ trusted reputation. In a nutshell, it’s consistency which helps you build your reputation and your brand.

Your small business also needs to thread the same messages across all internal and external touchpoints – day in and day out. Yes, all touchpoints! This includes your website, business cards, email signatures, store layout and invoice layouts. Without consistency your business can’t gain traction, which will hurt your dreams of small business success.

Like Clockwork: Consistent Application and Delivery is Critical

Key 3: Understand the Finances of Your Small Business

To achieve small business success you must be profitable, or at least be sustainable. You should have a thorough understanding about the financial position of your business, including:

Your break even point
Your margins
Your profit and loss statement
Your balance sheet

How’s Your Maths: You Need to Understand the Financials

Key 4: Have a Positive Attitude to Your Small Business

Starting a small business is exciting. Initially you won’t mind working the long hours, especially as you see your small business grow. But then the honey moon period ends and work starts to feel like work. This is when your attitude and mindset are so important. You need to stay positive. You need to keep looking for opportunities. You need to keep finding solutions to your relentless challenges. Without the right attitude you will be running your small business into the ground and taking everyone else with you.

‘It is your attitude, not your aptitude, that determines your altitude.’ Zig Ziglar

I can’t stress enough about how important these four small business pillars are. In fact, almost 100% of the content on this site will be directly related to achieving small business success by capitalising on these four key areas.