Having an attention-getting sign is critical for your local businesses – no matter the industry.  Your business signage identifies your business and location and it establishes your business image. Your business signage is the core of your brand identity strategy, whether it is proudly mounted on the building, on your booth or display at a trade show, or on your company vehicles.

It’s also the most cost-effective advertising you can do.  The Small Business Administration says, “…signs are the most effective, yet least expensive form of advertising for the small business.”  Building signage is often taken for granted, but signs are always on the job, advertising 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

How Improved Business Signage Will Help You Brand Your Company, Communicate with a Highly-Mobile Society & Leverage Your Advertising Efforts

1        Your business signage is the only indicator that you exist and would like your prospect’s patronage.   

2        A frequently-noticed business sign sends your message to more people per dollar invested than any other form of advertising.  For example, if you display a $200 sign for one year at a location where 10,000 cars pass every day, you’ve reached over 3.5 million people (not counting passengers), at a cost per person of less than $.000057. (Less than six hundred-thousandths of a dollar.)  Even a high-end, lighted or monument sign that costs $5000, still reaches those people at a cost of $.0014, or a little over a tenth of a cent each.

3        95% of retail business is location-based.  As consumers pass by your place of business, an attractive and effective on-premise sign will leave a positive impression. When the time comes to make a decision or purchase, consumers will be attracted to you.

4         About 40 million Americans move annually to a new home, all needing to buy goods and services, and looking for brands that stand out.

5        Enhanced sign technology allows sign faces to be easily changed to match evolving marketing circumstances.  New developments in lighting, plastics, digital printing resolution, and color profiling mean signs can now achieve the same visual effect as four-color magazine advertising.

6        Your company does not need to be a national franchise with a major advertising budget to “brand” your site with effective signage.  If appropriately designed and placed, your sign can develop top-of-mind awareness of your products and services, no matter the size of your business.

7        Many communities and cities have strict sign codes requiring that signage remains attractive and in harmony with the look and feel of the community, while encouraging business activities.  Advances in sign design and technology means that via signage, your company can communicate more effectively to potential customers in a way that enhances both your site and the community at large.

8        Purchase habits can be influenced with effective signage.  Pricing or product information can influence a purchase decision or prompt an unplanned stop, which is critical, since nearly all businesses rely in part on impulse visits.

9        A well-designed sign can provide a positive perception of quality and service and create the image of a leader, even for the smaller business.  For the national franchise or chain, on-premise signage reinforces all other media advertising, and maximizes advertising effectiveness at a low cost.

10    By adding your business signage to your car and “wrapping” your company vehicles with striking vinyl, you can generate over 600 visual impressions for every mile driven  At about $0.35 per thousand impressions for a typical vehicle wrap, the cost is almost trivial compared to $3.56 for outdoor advertising or over $20.00 for typical magazine advertising. 

About the Author: Orange County Business Signs Specialist Martin Neil contributes value to businesses and non-profit organizations across the United States by increasing their brand awareness with the very best sign solutions. He specializes in custom requirements for commercial building signage, vehicle wraps, office inside signage, trade show displays, promotional banners & flags, and large-size wall graphics. Improve your business signage by going to: http://www.Calibersi.com/Building-Signage.html

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Logo design is like all other professional design works, in that it appears simple, but designing a logo is not as easy as one may think. It requires extensive research, critical thinking and hard work. Without contributing whole heartedly of the three requirements, a great idea can result in a crumpled up scrap of paper in the trash. Not to worry, in just a few simple steps you will be on your way to creating a great logo.

Be Simple

It is the first and foremost important rule to follow when designing a logo, keep it simple and not complex. A complicated logo is difficult to reproduce and maintain but most importantly, it cannot be adored by the audience. An astounding logo is the vehicle that drives customers to your product. It should be simple, eye catching and provoke thought in the viewer.

Be Tricky

A logo is the best way to entertain and engage your audience with your product. Don’t divulge the message for the audience by making it too obvious. Be tricky and give your audience an opportunity to discover the meaning and intention of the logo. This should be a memorable and entertaining experience for your audience. Also try to avoid making your logo too abstract or you can risk making the logo obscure and the message and entertainment will be lost.

Keep It Green

Maintaining a green lifestyle is the future, therefore your logo should be green. Durability and longevity of a logo is worth considering. Picture your company 20 years down the road, what services and products you are going to offer? Make your logo a perfect representative of your company that can stand the test of time. Make a logo that can even stand for all the changes you will make in the future. A textual logo like IBM’s works great in this respect.

Use Vector

Using 3D effects in a logo is always tempting however, clean; crisp lines with very limited colors will prove to stand the test of time. Vector-based logos provide the contrast and balance that is vitally important in logo design. Vector formats also allow the most variations that will play a key role if you modify your logo in the future.

Be Flexible

A great logo should always be flexible so it can represent every business situation. Don’t “pigeon hole” your target group-keep it open to all and any viewers. Literal and specific logos are hard to use when catering to varying markets whereas, textual logos are the most flexible. You can easily change the color of the logo to state the on time motto of the company. Google’s logo is the best example of the flexibility of a logo.

Be Relevant

Logos should be relevant to the product and services of the company. It should give the customers a clear picture about the products and services the company provides. World famous ice cream parlor chain, Baskin-Robbins’ logo is an ideal example of relevance. Customers immediately know from the company logo that the company is offering ice cream of 31 flavors.

Be Wise with Color

Color is one of the more important aspects of a logo as it speaks feeling and emotion to the viewer. The choice of color may vary depending on age, gender and cultural demographics. So choose color according to your target market. Colors like to follow trends. A bank often will follow conservative colors where as a newly launched company most likely will follow the current trends.

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A great logo always makes a mark in the mind of people. It stands for the taste and sprit of the company. All the best brands in the world are as famous as their logos. A simple, memorable, timeless, versatile and appropriate logo is highly important for a company to reach their customers.

About Author: Donald Bates is a website designer who is working for Tampa Web Design Company for last 3 years. He loves to help fellow designers and business owners sharing his knowledge and experience. He offers website design services via www.mdesignmedia.com

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The Internet is a tool used by many people for different reasons. Social media has become a huge part of Internet usage. People are able to express thoughts and opinions and communicate with other individuals.

What is Online Reputation Management?

With the growing number of people using social media, Online Reputation Management software has been created. Online Reputation Management is a part of the Public Relations field that helps businesses enhance their online image. The Internet is a dumping ground of information, thoughts, and opinions, which is why small businesses should utilize this software. Social media is a way for individuals to gain information, share information, and express opinions about anything.

Some popular social media technologies are Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. Each one of these has the power to make or break a company, product, or celebrity. Facebook incorporates “Fan Pages” for businesses and products to allow for discussion and opinions to be expressed.

The Impact of Social Media on Brand

The numbers of individuals who use social media technologies is constantly growing. Companies need to understand this fact and understand that it can directly impact their business and public image. With online reputation management software, a small business will be able to monitor all consumer talk about their business and respond to the situation in a timely manner. This will altogether increase customer satisfaction (which is very important!).

Another way in which a business’s reputation can be at stake is because of product and business review options on the Internet. Many people rely on the Internet to provide feedback on certain products and even company ethics.

Reviews allow consumers to express personal opinions, which may not be censored. A small business should use this software not only to monitor consumer reviews, but to learn more about competitor’s products.

Online reputation management software can also assist in unexpected ways. The software will help with marketing research.

A small business will learn marketing trends and how they should position their product or service in the community. Information about the industry as a whole will also help a business thrive.

Altogether, online reputation management software is the smart, efficient way to monitor your small business on the Internet.

About the Author: Stefan is an social media specialist with Reputation Observer a reputation management platform based in the US, Germany and France.

Photo Credit: karola riegler photography

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Brand management is a process that helps your business produce long-lasting connections with your customers. Your brand is an establishment of how you would like people to feel about your business. A good brand provides a solid identity, which endears itself to your customers.

By taking the time to adequately brand your business and providing excellent customer service, you will be able to enhance the growth of your business and increase your bottom line. The following are ten things to consider as you brand your business.

1. Distinguish yourself from the competition:

A unique brand identity will help you stand out in a crowded global marketplace. When you think of majorly successful companies and their products, you will notice they all have iconic branding. This is not a coincidence. Add high-level customer service and high-quality products or services, and your business will outshine the competition.

2. Marketing becomes more effective:

Your brand conveys the message of who you are and what your company is about. By establishing your brand and identity in the minds of your customers, marketing your business becomes much easier and more effective. Truly successful brands need no introduction.

3. Make your business more recognisable:

A good brand will stand out in the minds of customers. Psychological theories and ideas, such as Cognitive Fluency, state that the easier something comes to mind, such as your business name or the visual representation of your logo, the more likely a person will choose it. It is therefore very important to make your business more recognisable than your competition.

4. Creates business credibility:

Credibility is more important than whether or not you’ve been in business for a long time. If your business lacks professional credibility, customers will go elsewhere. Provide excellent service and well-managed brand will come to represent that service to establish your business credibility.

5. Helps create a connection with your customer:

Good products and services establish a connection with your customers. In fact, customers enjoy the feelings they get when they purchase or use a particular item that they love. Imagine a favourite pair of shoes or car manufacturer. Establishing your brand with your customers in this manner will evoke that type of connection.

6. Helps ensure loyalty:

A well-managed brand takes the connection that is created between the product and customer and ensures loyalty to the brand. How many times have you heard a person rave about a great product and how they absolutely love the company that makes it? This type of loyalty is established through excellent branding.

7. Conveys establishment and stability:

By staying the course with your brand and providing top-level customer service, your brand will help your business convey stability and the idea that it has been established for a long period of time.

8. Helps your business look larger:

A professionally executed brand identity and logo system provides a look and feel for your business that could make it look larger than it really is. If you have a poorly executed logo and brand, it will create the feeling that the business is small and less established.

9. Attracts more customers:

Having a good brand will naturally attract more customers. More importantly, a good brand will attract customers through word-of-mouth, which is one of the best forms of advertising and brand equity that a company can receive.

10. Creating something more memorable:

A quality brand will evoke good feelings in customers. In return, these feelings will be more memorable in the minds of your customers. This will ensure that they return to your business when they need more of your products or services.

With new technologies and the Internet providing a global face for your business, brand management is incredibly important. If you focus on developing your brand for the long-term, and bolster it with superb customer service and quality products or services, you’ll ensure growth and longevity for your business.

About the Author: Written by Lucy Hunt a business and social media blogger currently working on behalf of Brandworkz, specialists in Brand Management Software.

Photo Credit: yoppy

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Your brand can be one of your most valued assets, especially when you’re facing challenging business conditions. Here are three key qualities your brand must have in a down economy:

1. Your brand must be loved by your customers.

A customer will stand by a brand even in a down economy. But to maintain that kind of loyalty, a customer must really love that brand.

Arguably, one of the most successful brands in modern history is Apple’s iPhone. The iPhone wasn’t the first smartphone, and therefore it didn’t start the category — but the iPhone was a game-changer in the category. Why? Some of it was because of cool features, like its intelligent touchscreen, which removed the need for a physical keyboard, like the keyboard on the Blackberry. The real game-changer, though, was the iPhone’s huge and continually growing library of applications. With these applications, customers could do things they couldn’t do on other phones. The iPhone became much more than a phone — it became a smart, sexy portable productivity powerhouse.

Customers don’t just think the iPhone is good, they think it is GREAT. They don’t just like the iPhone, they LOVE it. Apple translated that success into what essentially was a larger version of the iPhone, the iPad, and the same thing happened. Even in a down economy, Apple continues to prosper.

How does a small business learn from this lesson? Use the knowledge you have of your target audience to build a branded product or service that surprises and delights a customer, and you will have a raving fan for your brand. It could be easier than you think — it may just take the addition of one differentiating feature, or highlighting a product benefit no one else has, or relying on a great support representative to make your service stand out.

When your customer loves your brand — you have a great brand.

2.  Your brand must have the right combination of rational and emotional appeal.

People think about brands, but they also have feelings about brands.

The rational aspect of a brand is the part of the brand that appeals to a consumer’s rational mind – the brain, the head, the thought process, whatever you want to call it. The emotional aspect of a brand is the part of the brand that appeals to a consumer’s emotions – that person’s heart and soul – how that person “feels” about a brand.

If a brand appeals to a consumer on both a rational and emotional level, it has a very strong chance of becoming a memorable, long-lasting brand. Brands that accomplish this often achieve category leader status.

How does a brand appeal to both the rational and emotional sides?

Basically, the rational argument for a brand involves conveying sensible, practical facts in the brand’s marketing messages. Depending on the product, it may be facts such as saving money, protecting the environment, or offering high quality.

The emotional side is quite different, however. Typically, to evoke emotion, a brand has to make a compelling case or paint a picture that creates a certain feeling. Instead of facts, the emotional side of the brand deals with benefits and feelings – things that make the consumer feel good. Often a brand will lead with the emotional aspect because it has higher impact (and it is less rational) so it might create a desire on the part of the consumer to purchase the brand. The rational aspect is then used to support the purchase decision.

It is particularly important to recognize both the rational and emotional arguments for your brand in a down economy because buyers are making tough choices about where to spend their money. A rational argument will appeal to the need for a product or service, while the emotional argument will speak to want — a customer’s desire to have it.

3. Your brand must be truly differentiated.

Today, very few company, product, or service ideas are truly new and unique. You can almost be guaranteed that someone, somewhere, has developed a product or service similar to yours. And even if you bring a unique product or service to market, it won’t be long before another company comes out with a look-alike. This is just the nature of the competitive marketplace.

This doesn’t mean the situation is hopeless! Use a brand positioning statement to help identify your brand’s unique qualities. A good brand positioning statement includes:

• Likely Brand Buyer – This is the person who is most likely to be interested in buying your brand. Often this person is described as being part of your “target audience.” The likely brand buyer should be described as specifically as possible: gender, race, age, income, geographic area, employment, interests, etc. Ideally, you will build a descriptive profile of one or more target audiences for your brand.

• Competition – The statement should position your brand against existing competition so the target audience can distinguish between your brand and someone else’s.

• Product Benefit – The single most compelling benefit of the brand.

• Unique Brand Promise – The unique selling proposition of your brand.

The brand positioning statement will help you make sure you are creating a brand position that is as differentiated from your competition as possible.

Pay attention to building your brand even when times are tough — and your brand will still be around when the economy improves.

About the Author: Barry Silverstein has over 30 years of experience in branding, advertising, and marketing. He ran his own direct and Internet marketing agency for two decades. He is a branding/marketing consultant, professional freelance business writer and the author of the new eGuide, Branding 123: Build a Breakthrough Brand in 3 Proven Steps. Branding 123 is available for $2.99 at the Amazon Kindle store, for the nook, iPhone and iPad, and at Smashwords.com. More information is available at www.123eguides.com.

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According to tech news blog ToMuse, of the 191 online businesses that were started during and just after 2005, 113 of them were still in operation two to four years later. In other words, just as with offline businesses, running and sustaining your business isn’t easy. However, online businesses should keep in mind that offline promotional tactics can still be used. Using techniques such as business card distribution can be an effective way to stay in the game.

Everyone Wants to Do Business with a Professional

Business cards have long been a quick, cost-effective and expedient way to market yourself to the public. A mainstay of traditional business etiquette, business men and women wouldn’t attend a business event without them in order to be taken seriously. Being able to present a business card immediately distinguished you as a professional who was on top of his business. You may be thinking, “Yeah, well that was then and this is now.” Well, let’s bring this scenario to the present.

Working online, you probably have coffee stains all over your desk. Your industry doesn’t allow for much face-to-face time with the public, but the operative word here is “much.” Eventually, you will have to leave your cave to connect with possible investors, clients and customers. When you do, you’ll be sure to clean up and act the part of the consummate businessperson, but there’s one problem: people still ask – and expect to see – your business card. That’s when things get a bit awkward. Will you say that you ran out or forgot them at home? Either way, you come out looking – you guessed it – unprofessional and not serious about your business. Don’t make the mistake of irreparably altering the way people see you.

Cheap and Simple Marketing

Usually, business cards can be ordered in 250- to 500-card batches. Just to give you an idea of the low cost of purchase, you can generally buy 500 cards for around 10 bucks. Yes, seriously. Whether you decide to choose from a number of online companies to print them, order a pack from your local printer or enroll in a couple of business card tutorials to do them yourself, adding business cards to your marketing arsenal couldn’t be any easier…or cheaper.

Let Business Cards Promote the “You”

When you think of business cards, you should think of them as a time-tested marketing tool that can be easily updated to fit your needs.
Make sure to include all of the below on your business card:

• Website URL
• E-mail address
• LinkedIn URL
• Facebook URL
• Twitter name
• Direct line
• Cellphone line
• Mailing address

Handing over an item that houses at least eight points of contact is a smart way to connect with potential clients and customers. What about current apps that allow you to send contact information, you ask? You have a point, but these apps still have their problems.

Bump, for example, is a networking phone app for iPhone and Android users. At a click of a button, you can send your contact information right through your phone. Here’s where things get a bit sticky, though: What if the person you want to connect with doesn’t have the aforementioned phones? Or what if they have those exact phones but haven’t downloaded the app? What does this mean for you and your potential connection? It means a lost opportunity, where fumbling with each other’s phones robs you from possibly making a lucrative connection. Don’t get lost in the shuffle. Next time, just hand her your business card.

Business Cards Legitimize Your Business

Just because you are online doesn’t mean you won’t have offline needs. What about when you ship your products out to your customers? Attaching a business card to your product ensures that any customer who wants to have repeat business with you can. It also puts customers at ease to see that the online company they are dealing with has standard details, i.e., physical address, direct phone number, person of contact, that any offline business would have. For the small expense, business cards go a long way.

Business Cards Also Break the Ice

Whether you are at a dinner party with friends or at a high-powered business conference, giving someone your business card is an effortless way to not only start a meaningful conversation but also build a relationship. If you know that you would like to pitch your online business to that bigwig across the room, giving him your business card for starters is a professional way to jump start the conversation. Outside of your physical appearance, a business card is one of the few lasting impressions that you can make. Long after the event has passed, that person-to-know will still have your card in his possession – and that can mean future business for you.

With the NY Times , saying that only 48.8 percent of businesses monitored between 1977 and 2000 survived after five years, having any business, whether online or off, is tricky business. If you are intent on being one of the survivors, no stop should be spared in promoting your venture. While there are clearly many more complicated reasons some businesses manage to stay afloat, business cards are an easy way to stay above the fray.

About the Author: Mitch O’Conner is an online marketer and writer. When he’s not busy testing sites, generating traffic or writing content, he enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, watching TV, playing games or going camping.

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Is your business a normal cow or is your business a purple cow?

Seth Godin’s concept of the purple cow came from his observation of cows. After looking at them for a while they all look the same, common and ordinary. But a purple cow would be would stand out and draw attention.

This concept also relates to what you may have heard as your niche, a distinct segment of your market.

As a business owner, don’t be afraid of standing out, of being disliked, or of critism. How you market your business is not enough – you must be unique and offer something different to your audience.

1. Adding the Color Purple

Start by researching your competition. A competition research is an important task to complete on a regular basis. Know your competition; know what they are doing and what they are not doing. How can you make it better? What are your strengths and your weaknesses? What is unique about your products or services? How can you present them differently that will give that WOW factor?

Don’t expect to find your niche right away. Finding your niche also comes from listening to your customers. When you listen to your customers, you will learn their needs and find an area that is not being fulfilled by others in your industry. Make it part of your process to consistently request feedback, whether in person, by email or with surveys.

Another way that requires patience to be the purple cow is by trial and error. New business owners learn a lot along the way. Try different methods – if they are successful, be consistent with them and continue investing into them. Certain methods may not work for your business, so eliminate them.

2. Your Personal Touch

A personal connection with your customers is important. Do you offer a unique personal touch or do you automate everything treating your customers like they are just your next income source? This includes everything from the tone of your emails, to the style of your greeting, to your conversations online. Be consistent with your personal touch – customers appreciate consistency and predictability.

3. A Simple Wow Factor

Your brand is not just about your logo, your colors or how your marketing material looks. It’s about the experience your business provides to customers. You want this experience to be unique and to make your customers say, “Wow.”

I love the experience of shopping at Trader Joes. They make it an enjoyable experience vs. a stressful one because they considered parents shopping with children. When they see you shopping with your children, they bring them a balloon. They also offer a neat area to taste one of their products along with juice or coffee. For the older kids, they have a hunting activity, where if the child finds the missing animal, they get a treat. And if that wasn’t enough, at checkout they give your children stickers. This makes Trader Joes unique and I will continue to go back because it’s easy to shop there with my children.

Your Wow factor can be something simple. Think of a memorable experience you want your customers to have, whether you want it to be a fun, surprising, or comforting experience. Be creative and original.

4. A Creative Visual Identity

Invest time in picking your colors, your images, and your style for your visual identity. Your visual identity includes your website, social profiles, your business cards, your flyers and all other marketing material. Include all customer touch points like your email signature. Be consisten throughout all channels and choose items that are unique, creative, but most of all send out your brand message.

5. Traditional is Still Okay

Don’t chase every fad under the sun. Sometimes sticking to tradition works best. Not every customer may want the latest application available. Stick to quality, value, guarantees and great customer service.

Release Your New Color

Do your research, examine your industry and ask yourself the right questions. Reinvent your business and yourself as needed.  If you need help, don’t hesitate to outsource to professionals that will help you bring life to your business.

About the Author: Start-ups and small businesses is Denisse Marie’s specialty.  She is a Marketing Coordinator helping small business owners’ with marketing and small business management. She is also the publisher of BOOST! your small business marketing, a free blog and monthly publication packed with tools, guides, and how-to’s to help business owners boost their marketing efforts. Visit Denisse Marie or BOOST! your small business marketing.

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Perception is reality.

Sure, this is a phrase we’ve all heard before but marketers know better than anyone how true the phrase actually is. You can have the greatest product in the world but when it comes to getting others to purchase and use that product, what matters most is how your customers view it.

And good marketers know that perception is not always based on quality and performance alone. There is a large marketing component that goes in to shaping public perception and a big part of that marketing has to do with making your brand name stick in a consumers mind.

Think about Kleenex, Band-Aid, and Jell-O. Those brands are hard to forget because their brand names have become nearly synonymous with the products they represent. Every company wishes it had that kind of instant brand recognition but very few actually do. In reality, the task of keeping a brand name in the forefront of a consumer’s mind is something that all companies work hard at. The ones that succeed do so because they’ve learned the right tactics to use.

Five Strategies That Work

Here are five strategies that have been shown to keep brands at the very top level of a consumer’s mind:

1. Connect on an emotional level. People make decisions about products the same way they make decisions about other people—first emotionally, then logically. In most cases, their initial attachment is based largely on emotion. It is only at a later stage that their decision is rationalized. So how can companies capitalize on this instinct? Easy. Create a strong emotional bond between their brand and their consumer. There are many ways to do this. One of the most common is to infuse the brand with a healthy dose of comfort and familiarity. The image of Colonel Sanders on the KFC logo instantly makes a consumer feel at home even when he is thousands of miles away from home when he sees it. The same is true of a lot of familiar brand images: the Nike swoosh, the NBC peacock, and of course, the Golden Arches.
2. Keep the brand visible. The most direct way to make something stick in peoples’ minds is to keep them looking at it. This can be done in all sorts of ways. A relatively expensive way is a large-scale advertising campaign. A much more cost-conscious way is to conduct a smart program of corporate giveaways. Branding giveaway items with the company’s name, logo, or slogan not only brings instant visibility but it also becomes the gift that keeps on giving. For example, by giving out tee-shirts displaying your logo, you create a walking advertisement that keeps people thinking about your company.
3. Distinguish yourself. Everyone aspires to be cool, to be first, to be a trend-setter. Smart marketers know this and play to peoples’ aspirations. Products that can maintain a trend-setting image will always have a leg up on the competition. Elvis Presley became an icon because he was unique in comparison to the norm of his time. Brands that are able to distinguish themselves in a similar fashion will always have customers because there is never a scarcity of people who want to be the coolest guy on their block.
4. Make people feel they are already using your product. We are all creatures of habit. If advertisers are somehow able to plant a mental image of their product being used by the customer, then they are already halfway to making the sale. A great example of how this can work is an old advertising campaign for a brand of deodorant showing people in a crowded subway train with arms raised in the same position people adopt when they use the deodorant.
5. Never neglect the core criteria. The smartest advertising campaigns in the world become useless when companies take their eyes off the ball and neglect the thing that is most important: core competence. People expect your product to be at least as good as the competition in doing the basic things they are buying it for. It’s all well and good to be unique, comfortable, and visible but your brand also needs to be a strong one when it comes to measuring up well against the competition on expected criteria.

A good first impression is important but a lasting impression is what you really want. When you ask a person to name brands within your product category, you want your brand to be the first one that gets mentioned. Achieving this distinction is not easy but is definitely worth the effort. No matter what the industry, products that stay in the forefront of the consumer’s mind are inevitably the market leaders in their field. Perception is indeed reality. And when that perception becomes a lasting one, the reality never goes away.

About the Author: James Lee, Small Business Research Analyst, has been providing research on marketing techniques for small businesses for Amsterdam Printing.com’s promotional pens and personalized calendars division for several years. Amsterdam has been a leading provider of personalized pens to small businesses for many years. James also focuses his research on the use of other promotional materials, such as personalized calendars, bags, apparel and mugs.

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There are many reasons why you should consider creating a custom Thank You page for your email funnel. For one thing, a custom thank you page is more personal, creating a one on one atmosphere between you and your visitor.

It can also be a good spot to ask your visitor to take further action such as to buy a product or sign up for a newsletter. You might even use it to describe your site in detail to your visitors. Whatever you choose to use this page for, the bottom line is that there are more good reasons than not as to why you should take 5 to 10 minutes to create a custom Thank You page for your site. I explain these reasons in more detail, as well as tell you how to create a custom Thank You page below.

Explain Your Newsletter or Offer in More Detail

Whether you want customers to subscribe to your weekly emails or buy your e-book about creative Halloween costume ideas , having a customized Thank You page is a great way to reach out to customers to tell them everything that they need to know about your product and what they can expect after signing up or making a purchase. Most customers want to know where their free ebook or product is being sent to, and this page is a good place to communicate that information to them.

Create a More Personal Atmosphere with Your Customers

There are a large number of web sites that sell a variety of products and ideas, and it’s important for your web site to stand out above the competition, as well as gain the customer’s trust. Online shoppers are often afraid of fraud and may be very cautious before making a purchase, so gaining their trust is important. According to a recent survey conducted by the National Mail Order Association, the average customer first visits a web site about 19 hours before making a purchase, and many customers will visit a site several times before they even enter information such as their email address. They often spend a long time thinking about their purchase and the best place to spend their time and money.

Customers need to feel safe and connected to a web site before they make a purchase and/or recommend the web site to their friends and family. There could be millions of people looking at your web site, and these customers are more likely to buy a product from you if they feel like you care about their business. Personalizing a Thank You page is great for connecting with the customer and making them feel like a guest, rather than a number. You may also want to give your customers a coupon to use on their next order or remind them to contact you if they have any questions or comments.

More Sales Opportunities

A Thank You page is a great place to place ads, offer additional items for sale or invite them to sign up for more offers. To get to this page, the customer has already signed up or purchased something, so it’s more likely that they’ll take action again. According to a study conducted by The Nielsen Company, about 84 percent of Internet users around the world have participated in online shopping at least once. This is a huge number of people that are spending billions of dollars online. The goal is to get them to spend as much time and money or your site as possible. Your Thank You page is a good place to try to achieve this.

Customers are also more likely to take action if they feel that the site is worthy of their business. Some customers sign up for a free offer or email newsletter as a way to testing an unfamiliar web site. Helping customers feel valuable and safe is a great way to encourage these customers to make a purchase. Some companies have seen very good results from placing ads on their Thank You pages. While results do vary, it doesn’t hurt to test your Thank You page with various offers to see if you can earn a little bit of extra income from it.

How To Start A Custom Thank You Page

Creating a customized Thank You page using AWeber is easy. Just follow the steps below:

• Click the button that says “Web Forms” in the menu bar (top of the page)
• Click the tab labeled “Settings”
• In the box that drops down, click Thank You Page.
• Choose which customization option you would like for your page

Thank You page options include the Basic Version, which just has your company name and logo (with a generic message), the audio version (includes a sound), and video version (includes video). There is a custom page option that allows you to direct your customer to a URL that you have created to connect. This is the option I suggest going with, as you’ll be able to connect with your customers personally and share information with them.

Hold Their Attention

While having a personalized Thank You page helps to hold your customer’s attention and keep them on your site longer, they can also help your customer become more familiar and comfortable with your site. In turn this will lead them to spending more money with you, as well as lead them to tell their friends and family about your site which can also turn into more potential customers.

About the Author: Mitch O’Conner is an online marketer and writer. When he’s not busy testing sites, generating traffic or writing content, he enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, watching TV, playing games or going camping.

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For many businesses even now, online PR and internet marketing strategies play second fiddle to their offline advertising and sales campaigns.

This is understandable since the first word people when they go online and open up their very first email account is ‘spam,’ this first experience of internet marketing is something that’s bound to put anyone off until they find out that spam is the least productive, ugly end of internet marketing and public relations, there are other options which have grace and style which can keep your target audience/market voluntarily coming back again and again.

If you have the funds, some genius developers and a product which lends itself to fun and excitement you might come up with an ad that looks like this:

Now, I’ve tried desperados, it’s ok but the add kept me watching, obeying the prompts up to a point, I wasn’t going to promote their product on my Facebook or Twitter but I did send the URL to work colleagues and friends, however, I avoided spamming them!

Even if you have a negligible budget for your digital marketing there are still many things you can do if you’re prepared to put in the time and energy that building an online reputation requires. Creating profiles for your business on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn as well as any other social media resources you can find is a great way to improve your online presence and allow your business partners, clients and consumers to get in touch with you, ask you questions and advice about your products and even offer complaints.

Complaints from Friends are Constructive Criticism

No-one likes to receive complaints but using the social media platforms upon which you’ve produced a profile to resolve them is a great way to produce a positive image for you and your company. Most people make mistakes at some point and endeavour to solve them and cover them up with as little fuss as possible, why would you want to be different?

You can actually use problem resolution as part of your online PR strategy by turning a negative into a positive. When some-one posts a complaint onto your wall, don’t delete it and certainly never ignore it, as soon as you see it make a note that you’re looking into it and do just that. When you’ve a solution publish the process that you went through to discover what the issue was and how you went about fixing it. Even if you believe the complaint is frivolous it’s worth investigating and offering legitimate feedback. If the complaint is genuine, see how it could affect other customers and tell them about it before they experience it for themselves.

Performing this kind of problem solving under public scrutiny demonstrates that you are listening to your customers and that you value, and are concerned for them; here, problem solving becomes reputation management and the positives you give your reputation with this kind of transparency and dedication far exceeds the negative effect of publicising a user’s problem with your product online.

About the Author: Dan Cash is a social media and SEO feature writer. As well as following @Econsultancy for their regular informative tweets you can brows Econsultancy.com’s website for their online PR tutorials and social media training courses which offer strategies and recommendations for techniques to improve any company’s web presence.

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