Small Business By Design

I was recently discussing my logo work with a potential client, which led me to begin analyzing exactly what makes a good logo. Other than the obvious reasons, like appropriately representing your business and appealing to your audience, I thought I might jot down a few more technical thoughts on the matter.

1. Your logo should be vector format
Lets start with the most basic of logo design principles. Your logo design should really be a vector-format logo. With a vector logo, you have the ability to scale the logo up or down endlessly. To create a vector logo, your designer should be working in a program such as Adobe Illustrator or Corel Draw (although Illustrator is pretty much known as the industry standard). If your designer is creating your logo in Photoshop, you may want to inquire if it can be created in a vector application instead. A logo created in a photo-editing application such as Photoshop is essentially just a photo. The problem with having a photo for a logo is that we all know what happens when a photo is scaled larger than its original size…. pixelation! The yucky, blurry squares that will definitely NOT give your business a professional look.

2. Your logo should work in all black
Many business owners (and, unfortunately, designers too) get one step ahead of themselves worrying about logo colors. Color is important, but a logo should first and foremost work in all black. Trust me, you will need to use your logo in many places where only black (or one color) can be produced. The most common of these places are on faxes and on promotional items. I know it sounds small, but how professional does your small business look when your logo comes through on your fax cover sheet all muddled looking because you don’t have an all-black version. Or, do you really want to pay for 2 or more screen charges when you are imprinting your promotional items? It is best that you make sure your logo is able to be reproduced neatly in all black.

3. Your logo should work very small
Life is not always made up of signs and billboards. In the course of your business, your logo may very well need to be used in some pretty small areas. For example, take something as simple as your business card: a business card is only 3.5″ wide by 2″ high (some are even smaller), and typically the logo should only take about half this space. Merchandise tags are usually more petite than a business card, and often imprint areas on promotional items are even smaller yet. It is important not to get too carried away with the complexity of your logo and remember that all elements need to be clear and readable at a very small size.

4. Keep logo colors to a minimum
You are probably thinking this doesn’t sound fun, but neither is a whopping printing bill because your stationery HAD to be printed in 4 spot colors! Although four-color printing is becoming quite affordable in this day and age, It is always wise to keep your logo to two colors (three max). There will come a time when you want to have something printed as cost-effectively as possible, and when that time comes, you will be happy your logo is only two colors (or, you could opt for that all-black or one-color option we talked about above and get even cheaper printing . If you still want your image to be colorful, you can easily implement additional, coordinating accent colors into the rest of the design on the pieces that you have the budget to print full color.

I recently wrote about writing your copy to optimize your website, and at the end, promised that I would reveal more secrets in the future. Well, that time has come.

In addition to writing your copy to be rich in keywords, there are several other ways to help optimize your site. They are as follows:

1. Include keywords in your page headers
Most companies think that it is ok to title their page headers (the verbiage at the very top of your browser window) with their name, or the name of the page you are on. While is practice makes sense, it makes even more sense to add some prime keywords or phrases into it as well. Take my business for example, I could simply name the page “Strong Design Studios Home,” but I will increase my page relevant by naming it something like “Strong Design Studios Phoenix and Scottsdale Graphic Design and Marketing.” Although it is a little less glamorous, it is an easy way to get some of my prime keywords into a place that web crawlers look to determine the relevance of your site. You don’t have to use the same page header verbiage for each page, for example, I may wish to use the following verbiage on a page that would emphasize copywriting services: “Strong Design Studios Phoenix and Scottsdale Arizona Copywriting Services.”

2. Name your HTML pages using keywords
Just like you should use keywords in your page headers, you should also use them in the actual names of your HTML pages when possible. For instance, I might name my services page simply “services.html”,” but it would be much better to name this page “az_graphic_design_services.html” because it uses keywords that one might use to search for my services. Web crawlers pick up on details like this, and when they are done right they will help the overall relevance of your web site.

3. Utilize meta keywords in your HTML pages
Much like the previous two ideas, you should have your web developer insert several keywords or phrases into the “Meta Keywords” area the HTML code. Studies are showing that although this area used to be a prime reference for web crawlers, they are now paying a little less attention to this area. However, this is a simple item that doesn’t hurt to implement. You may also change these keywords on each page of your website if one page focuses on certain keywords than another page.

Again, there are several more ways to increase traffic to and ranking of your website. Check back soon and I will post more!

A friend of mine just emailed me the following video. It does a good job of humorously illustrating the importance of keeping your message simple and pared down in your marketing materials. Especially ones that need to be processed quickly. Often designers are asked to repeatedly shove more and more references into a piece. It is important when planning a marketing initiative to get all the desires and facts straight from the beginning and keep the message as clear and simple as possible (as illustrated in this clip, design by committee doesn’t generally help in keeping things simple either). If the message is not tightly controlled, chaos breaks loose and your message most likely gets lost. Sit back and enjoy this humorous clip that illustrates the value of simplicity in marketing.

In light of our questionable economy, many small businesses are facing challenging times. This issue has been on my mind lately and is leading me to question the future of print communications. 

Don’t get me wrong, printed communications will never die. There are people who absolutely NEED to hold a printed publication from a vendor before they will even consider purchasing their services (I am one of these people, although sometimes I just think I like to get up close and personal with other businesses’ marketing pieces). Additionally, there will always be business types and publication types that are just more practical in print form.

However, with the current market trends, will web-based marketing be pushed to the forefront even further? I am beginning to think so.

A web presence is a substantial task to initiate, however once your web presence is up and running, it is generally very quick, easy and inexpensive to maintain and update to keep up with your ever-changing business. Not to mention, websites offer the option to offer downloadable information or trials, the potential to immediately secure new sales and the benefit of and eco-friendly, paperless way of marketing.

To print or not to print, that is the question. What do you think?

In today’s culture and economy, its imperative that you have a web presence. Skeptical consumers simply need a viable place to go and explore your business’ offerings at their own pace, and get comfortable with your company before taking the step to try your product or invite you into their home or business for a consultation. It doesn’t have to be big, it can be as simple as a one page site.

But how to you develop the content for you website? Many businesses simply convert their existing print materials to the web and call it a day. But is there all there is to it? 

If you want to make the most of your website, it needs to be looked at with a different set of eyes than your traditional print marketing. You must look at it through the beady eyes of a web crawler.

Recently, while quoting a website redesign to one of my clients, he mentioned that he wanted to hire a copywriter to rewrite his website copy. Incidentally, I discovered and sent him this article, written by the principal of a major interactive company from my hometown, which discusses how to write search-engine friendly website copy. The article explains that when writing your website copy, you must always keep in mind its searchability and validity for web crawlers and site users.

Before you write your website copy, it is beneficial to do some research about how people are finding services like yours online. What are they referring to your product or service as—what phrases or “keywords” are they typing into their favorite search engine. Never fear, this is much easier than it sounds! Ask your customers and research your competitors’ websites for these keywords and trigger phrases. Put yourself into your customer’s shoes and “try to find” a company who does your line of business. What keywords/phrases were you compelled to search for? Which keywords/phrases yielded the best results? Compile all of this research into a comprehensive list.

Once you have your list, you can start drafting your website copy. Implement these keywords into your copy often, however make sure you do so in the most natural way possible. It is still important that the copy is reader-friendly and informative about your product/service and what exactly makes your company better than your competitors. Always keep your keywords in mind, and use them as much as possible, but don’t sacrifice your message for the use of one more keyword. 

Through implementation of keyword-rich copy, your site will should begin to rise in the natural search results of the major search engines. However, search-engine optimized copy isn’t the only way to boost your search engine ranking, there are many other pieces in this puzzle. Come back and visit again soon as I hope to write about more of these tactics in the near future. 

In the meantime, if you have any thoughts or questions, feel free to comment below or mosey on over to the my company’s website at www.strongdesignstudios.com to see what we can do for your website!

As I pulled my car into a small local grocery store today I looked around and realized the place was absolutely crawling with people. This shop is located in a small strip mall that is also home to a discount department store, a small dentist’s office, a used bookstore, a quaint tea room and many more small businesses. As I searched for a parking place, the thought struck me: people are still spending money. That’s right, even in this tough economy, people are still buying products and spending money.

People still need cleanings and checkups, clothing, haircuts and a relaxing dinner out with friends or family. As a small business owner, the best way to get your cut of this business is to be present/available when your customer needs you. This means the old adage is most likely correct: when business slows, you must advertise more. 

At Strong Design Studios, helping small businesses put their best foot forward is our specialty. We make small businesses look big! Whether you need a logo redesign that exhibits your professionalism and entices the right buyer or you need to create a website, postcard, flyer, brochure or advertisement—we offer all of the services you need to market your product professionally and brand your business to run with the big dogs. All for a price you can actually afford.

We believe in small businesses—we are one ourselves! We believe a better product, superior knowledge, personal service and sometimes a lower price can often be found through a small business. And we believe these businesses deserve every right to present themselves as professionally as businesses ten times their size. So whether you are a solopreneur or a shop of twenty, we can help you look your best for an efficient rate. 

For more information, you can visit www.strongdesignstudios.com to read our complete philosophy, explore our service offerings and view our portfolio. Happy marketing!