8. November 2007 by Tim Collier.

While it sounds like you are on the range, branding is just a fancy name for having a consistent message attached to your product and image. Branding is not just the sole area of large companies, small and medium companies need to focus on their brand as well.

One way to determine how you are doing with regards to your brand image is to do a “brand audit”. This is just taking a look at how your customer base looks at you when they are looking to make the decision to purchase your product or service. You can do this fairly inexpensively by trying the following:

1) Create a survey on a service such as Survey Monkey and send the link to your clients either on a postcard or e-mail link.

2) Ask them when they come to your shop or purchase your product/service. How did we do? Would you come to us again?

3) Ask for feedback through your website. You can do this be setting up an additional e-mail address and asking for feedback on a page of your website.

Use the results from these informal surveys to then assess where your brand is and where it needs to go.

Other tactics would be such things as:

Having somebody review your website, redesign your logo and put together a website. This can be done relatively inexpensively through consultants which you can find through sites such as guru.com or elance.com.

Develop a blog, this will allow you to talk about your services, add examples and have others give you input. Remember once you start a blog and are using it as a tool to develop your brand, you need to stay with it to continue to be effective.

While branding may seem complicated it basically boils down to how do you want people to see your company when they are looking for a product or service. Focus on your message and the tips listed here and an increase in your brand equity will follow.

Posted in General Business | Print | 1 Comment »

8. November 2007 by Tim Collier.

The type of business entity that you want your company to be is extremely important. Findlaw is a great site to help walk you through the decision process. Hitting just the highlights, sole proprietorship leaves you exposed liability wise, an llc helps shield your personal assets, but remember to make sure you keep the books seperate from your own. C Corporations are beneficial if you are going public, but otherwise are a little more difficult to manage because of the potential for double taxation and bookeeping requirements. After you do your own research and come up with a general idea of what entity type you want to be, make sure you consult with an attorney.

Posted in General Business, Tax | Print | 1 Comment »