Indie Business Blog

Small Business Owners: Missing In Action

Free Branding Advice for Max Garcia and William Righi

Today's New York Times lead story is about the worsening economy and how people are having to stretch each dollar further to make ends meet. In addition to the traditionally employed, the article also touches upon the plight of the self employed. Consider Max Garcia and William Righi, two small business owners struggling to keep their businesses afloat. Here's what they are doing online to accomplish that goal.

          

That's right, nothing. At least not from what I can see.

Max and William are today getting thousands and thousands of dollars worth of free publicity by being featured in the New York Times, and I can't find them on the Internet. I can help, but first, let's consider the reasons why their businesses are ailing -- reasons that have nothing to do with the economy.

Do You Own Yourself?

Buy YourName.com to be Sure

For years, I have recommended that everyone reserve the dot com that corresponds with their name. The first thing my husband and I did after deciding on names for our children was to reserve their names online. If the name was not available online, we ditched the name.

I was quoted on the topic in WorkWise, a syndicated newspaper column. The article is written by Mildred Culp, who does not own mildredculp.com. (Mildred, are you listening?)

An article in today's New York Times discusses the topic. They forgot to ask for my input. But everyone makes mistakes.

Owning yourname.com is essential no matter who you are, and especially if you are a small business owner.

Here's where I go to reserve my domains. Now get out your credit card and go buy yourself!

If you enjoyed this business branding tip, to subscribe to my blog feed to get more!

The Best Kept Branding Secret

Domain Name Offers Incomplete But Valuable Protection

The United States Patent & Trademark Office reported that it examined a record 323,527 trademark applications in fiscal year 2007. Compare this to 2006, when it reported examining 275,790 applications, a 9% jump from 2005. But filing a trademark registration application can be expensive and time consuming. And while there's no substitute for a federal trademark registration, here's a tip. Whether you own the registration or not, it pays to purchase the domain name that corresponds to the brand name or slogan used to identify your products and services.

          

For example, earlier this month, I featured Shower Steamers on Indie Business TV. Shower Steamers, made by Indie Beauty Network member cerise, are golf ball sized bath fizzies that, when placed in a warm shower, dissolve and release aromatherapy essences to the air. Because the name Shower Steamers is short, catchy and memorable, it serves as a clever brand name for the product. When I discovered that cerise did not own the showersteamers.com domain name, I contacted the owner and suggested she consider buying and pointing it to the website page where Shower Steamers are sold.

Peek-A-Boo, Who The Heck Are You?

As the leader of the 600+ member Indie Beauty Network, I work directly or indirectly with hundreds of companies to help them maximize their potential in life and in business. For most, both life and business center in large part around the Internet. We shop there, we sell there, we network there, we learn new things there. But for the value the Internet brings to our lives, I am amazed that so many Indies are surprisingly anonymous at the one place where they must make themselves known: their own websites.

          

Some people are naturally shy. (A shy business owner won't be a business owner for long.) Some people don't want to disclose personal information online. (Then take your business offline.) Some people are embarassed to say anything complementary about themsevles for fear of appearing to brag. (Get over it, you were meant for greatness.) Whichever category you fit into, here are some tips to help you get out of it.

Go to your website. If you don't have an "About" page, create one. If you have one, make sure it contains at least these things.

Beauty And The Blog

All Indie businesses are special, but face it, these days, anyone with a credit card and time on their hands can launch a competing business in no time flat. Suddenly, your golden egg looks like just like the one at a website that launches the next day. What's an Indie to do?

          

Make your products stand out in the crowd of course! And one of the most effective ways to do that is to build your brand online by having your products featured in a popular weblog. But before you send the same old tired "my products are great" email to every blogger you know, read this post to get some tips from the pros.

Take Your Pics

This is a nice picture. But who cares? It's not your picture. Stock photos can be used at a website to complement the products being sold. But while they can set the mood for the products, they can't represent the products.

            

People want to see what they are buying, not cheap stock photos. If you can't hire a professional photographer, here's a tip. Everyone has a digital camera or a relative or neighbor with a digital camera. Get some tips from the website of the brand of camera you use or use online tips, like these or these, and learn how to make your products look their best.

Before the advent of affordable digital camera technology, stock photos instead of pictures of the real thing were understandable. Those days are gone. Today, there's no excuse for poorly lit, fuzzy, warped, ugly or irrelevant product photos. This applies no matter how small or start up a business may be.

So beg, borrow or steal (kidding) a digital camera, get some free advice and get out there and take your pics!

Broadcast Your Brand

Since October 2005, I have hosted Indie Business Radio, a weekly Internet talk show offering practical strategies to achievement oriented Indies who are trading in the traditional corporate ladder to enjoy life and business on their own terms.

            

I launched the show as a new way to respond to the requests I receive for business success tips. In addition to sharing my knowledge, I can refer people to an audio link where they can enjoy my interview with an expert on the topic they are asking about. One day, I'll devote an entire show to the benefits of having your own radio show. In the meantime, here are some things to consider if you are thinking about broadcasting your brand on Internet talk radio.

First, Know Thyself

Recently, I worked with "Sarah," an hebalist who asked me to review a "corporate identity" proposal she received from a graphics artist. The proposal was for $9,000 to create a logo, business cards, brochure, letterhead and other collateral materials. That's a lot of money, but the bigger issue for Sarah was whether she knew herself enough to give the graphics artist the details needed to clearly and precisely create her marketing materials.

                

After a few email exchanges and an hour consultation with me, Sarah concluded that she needed to identify exactly who she was as an herbalist and entrepreneur before spending money on graphics materials. In other words, Sarah had to create her brand in her own mind before an artist could give life to it. Here are some of the things Sarah and I talked about, along with some tips to help you avoid spending a ton of money on marketing materials before you first, know thyself.

Your Name In Fights

I used to hate my name. My mother named me Donna because she liked the Donna Reed Show. Great. I'm named after the perfect television stay-at-home wife and mother. Oh well. At least people can pronounce my name. My late father was not so lucky.

His name was Acrafare James Coles, but since no one could pronounce or spell Acrafare, he started using James. Other than his birth certificate and the gas tank (pictured) on my brother's newly built motorcycle (more on that below), nothing I know of identifies our father as Acrafare.

If you don't like your name, there are things you can do to change it and no one will really care. If you are naming an Indie Business, however, the rules are far different and the stakes much higher. If you are not careful, instead of your business name being in lights, it will be in fights -- trademark fights.

So What's An Indie To Do?

Verizon. Intel. Altria. Novartis. Afflac. What do these company names have in common? They have no meaning apart from the meaning given to them by the companies themsleves. You won't find them in the dictionary and before they were used by their owners, they were available as dot coms.

So why am I telling you this? Because you need to be smart about choosing your business name. Using a name that's already out there in the marketplace is tantamount to aiming a gun at the future of your business and pulling the trigger. There's a whole chapter on this in my Lifestyle CEO book, but for now, here are a few tips to help out. (These are tips. Not legal advice. If you need legal advice, consult an attorney.)

1. Don't Use A Name If It Shows Up Anywhere Online.
If the name you want to use for your business shows up on Google or any other search engine or anywhere else online, it means someone else is probably already using it. Pick another name.

2. Use A Name With The Corresponding Dot Com.
If the name you want to use is not available as a dot com, it means someone else is probably already using it, has thought about using it, or is offering it for sale at a price you probably can't afford or don't want to pay. Pick another name.

3. Check The Trademark Office For Name Availability
If the name you want to use is listed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office as the subject of a trademark appliction or registration, it means that someone else is claiming legal rights to the name. Pick another name.

Oh, About The Motorcycle

My brother, Jeff, built it by hand from scratch from the ground up. It took him two years. Other than my father's birth certificate, it is the only tangible thing that bears our dad's legal name.

Jeff owns One Shot Racing (a name that's been in lights, not in fights) in Bowie, Maryland, one of the only African American racing teams in the country. He is also an accomplished real estate broker and investor whose current projects include developing an entire block around Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He teaches sports entrepreneurship at American University in our hometown of Washington, DC. And if that was not enough, he's a great dad and all around cool guy who serves on the borad of directors for my company, Indie Business Media, LLC. (Yes, ladies, he's also single. But that's another blog.)

If you are looking for someone to airbrush your bike or just about anything else, contact Alan Pastrana, who painted Jeff's bike.

Here is a full shot of the work of art, made even more fabulous by my son (who if I have anything much to say about it will never ever ride a motorcycle.)

Wear Your Brand On Your Sleeve

The new embroidered branded t-shirts I ordered for the whole family are here! Since my husband's is in the laundry, my son refused to cooperate during my impromptu photo shoot and I don't look nearly as good in mine as my daughter does in hers, here's my sweet Vanessa wearing our brand on her sleeve, so to speak.

As Indie Beauty Network member Maggie Hanus of A Wild Soap Bar always says, "The family that grinds together binds together." This shirt reminds us that as we grow our family, we are also growing our brand. Each is interdependent upon the other. Each connects us in ways that work at a traditional job simply could not do.

If you and your family are not wearing your brand on your sleeve, you should be. I plan to add coffee mugs, towels, back packs and other articles around the home and office.

You can get inexpensive "on demand" articles printed at Cafe Press, and this is great if you want to sell them since most customers won't pay for embroidery unless they have a more vested interest in the graphic or logo being displayed. For my family and gifts to friends, my preference is for embroidered items where the logo is stitched onto high quality fabric.

See? Take pride in your brand! You can't get long lasting color and detail with on demand printing. Embroidery is more expensive, but it won't fade in the wash and makes your brand look better. I got mine done at First Quality Embroidery in Indian Trail, NC. They don't have a website, but you can call them at (704) 821-1334. They'll help you select fabric that feels good on the skin and is durable enough to withstand the embroidery process. They'll also digitize your logo so you can use it for future items. (One time fee: $35) Once that's done, it's easy to place an order. Just call them up and ask for it to be put on a new item. It takes about a week.

So here's the tip: get out there and wear your brand on your sleeve! It's just a t-shirt, I know, but it's amazing how seeing your brand on an article of clothing worn by a family member brings everything full circle. Proudly disaply the logo of the company that puts food on your table and see how it promotes family pride, joy, health and strength. How cool is that?

Alright Indies, now it's your turn. If you have creative tips for using accessories and clothing to promote your Indie Business brand, tell us about it!

Everyone Loves A Story. What's Yours?

In 5 Reasons To Be Indie, I listed 5 reasons why being Indie is so great: Income, Newsworthy, Destiny, Independence, Equity. Being Newsworthy is all about creating a "buzz" about what you are selling as you simultaneously pursue your passions, help others and support yourself and your family. To create this buzz, you have to have a story to tell.

I enjoyed a Spinach Spring Onion omelet at Mark's Kitchen the other day. Near the register was a display of cookies, candies, nuts and other treats. My eyes settled on a black and white vintage photo above "Elsa's Story," and a few dozen packages of cookies, 3 to a pack. No fancy embellishments. Just a photo of (presumably) Elsa with her family and the story of how her kitchen was always open.

I don't know who Elsa is, but Elsa's Story reminded me of precious childhood times watching my grandmother bake everything from biscuits to pound cake without a written recipe or even a measuring spoon to guide her. That warm, fuzzy feeling lead me to choose a pack of Elsa's cookies and leave the colors and fancy stuff behind.

If you haven't tied your product or service to the story behind it, it's time to get busy. Everyone loves a story.

• The media doesn't feature products. It features stories that include products.
• Customers don't buy products. They buy stories that make them feel good about the products they are buying.
• People buy emotional connections, and the chief way to create them is to connect what you are selling to the story of who you are and why you are selling what you're selling.

Whoever sells Elsa's cookies knows that she's selling so much more than cookies. She is sharing information and history with me. She is taking me back to a childhood place filled with comfort and joy. A place I can only visit if I take a bite of Elsa's cookies. Elsa's cookies made me feel warm and satisfied. And you can't get that feeling with just any old cookie.

So here's the tip: Give your customers one more reason to buy from you by using your website, business card, product display, brochures, etc., to share your story. After all, whatever you are selling can be purchased somewhere else. But you're the only person with your story.

Elsa's Story cookies are available in a variety of flavors: Cappucino Pecan Butter, Brown Sugar Butter Chunk, Ginger Thins and more. You can enjoy a large selection here.

Of course, the first thing I did when I got the chance was to visit Elsa's website, where I found nothing but an address and other contact information. Oh, well, you can't have everything.

Everyone loves a story. What's yours?