Increase your Income by Rebranding

This month, my focus is on branding as one of my clients is ready to launch a new business concept using a visual marketing campaign that uses branding extensively.  This post is about how you can increase your income by rebranding your business.

Take a long hard look at your brand. What are you communicating to prospects and clients with your brand?  Could it be that an investment in your brand could allow you to take your business to the next level?

Here's a story about how rebranding can lead to new business revenue. I pass a pizza restaurant almost daily not far from my home.  The restaurant has been in the same location for many years and I had never set foot in it. To me the restaurant was nondescript with a rather bland exterior that did not catch my attention hence the reason why I drove past it and never ventured in.

Recently however, the owners have started a new branding campaign. They invested in a vibrant color palette and new logo which they painted around the restaurant windows and duplicated in the overhead signage.  Suddenly they stand out. Suddenly I can't drive past without seeing them a mile away. So I stopped in the other day to buy a pizza. The restaurant was crowded with eat in diners and folks like me looking to take home a pizza. I asked the young kid behind the counter why they were so busy and he said "Gee I don’t know, but lately it seems like more people are coming in saying that they didn't realize we were here."

So, the owners may not be sure that the reason their business revenue has increased because of their brand, but it seems pretty obvious to me that the restaurant was invisible before the rebranding.

Is your business brand too bland? Do you need to consider how to stand out from the crowd? I hope you'll consider rebranding one of your goals in 2012. You might find yourself with lots of new clients and a new look on life.

Suzanne Muusers

Business Coach to Branded Business Owners

Keys to Branding Success – Invest in Yourself and Use Imagination

Everyone has heard the term "branding" but do you really know what it means? Branding is the art of attracting ideal clients through communicating a firm's core values, business name, logo, colors, tagline and much more.  Often this is accomplished through conscious and subconscious communication in print media, social media, and online through the use of creative visuals.

Firms use their brands to "position" themselves in the marketplace and make an impression on buyers. A brand must be strong enough to garner attention with the demographics or target market that your firm seeks to attract.  A good brand will influence buying decisions. That's why stock logos and template websites don't do much for anyone's brand: these bland devices don't stand out and don't make an impression on the subconscious mind. 

I'm often asked, "What qualities should be used in a brand to attract wealthy clients?" I believe that's putting the cart before the horse. Successful brands are based on the firm's core values and what's important to you, the owner. After all, your values are your passions, and if you attract clients who believe in your values, you'll be a better match and work well together, and you'll enjoy your work.

What are the keys to branding success if you want to stand out from the crowd?

Core Values: Decide what's important to you and your firm. What do you stand for? What is your investment philosophy? What's important to you when attracting ideal clients?

Business Name: Start with your firm's name. Create an image with your name. It's best to avoid using your own name in the firm's name to steer clear of sounding like a one person business.  Not to mention that succession planning will be easier with a name that is not your own.

Logo:  Clip art is not a logo. A logo is a visual representation of your firm and what it stands for. A logo is used to promote instant recognition among your target clients.  A good logo inspires trust and serves to differentiate you from an average firm in your field.

Colors: Advisors have traditionally gone with blue and white for their logo color choice because it stands for trust and integrity. Break out of that mindset and go with something new and different, just please avoid black and red – colors that definitely don’t work for financial planners.

Tagline: Wrap up your brand with a benefit driven tagline to finish off the concept. A good tagline serves to complete your business name with a BENEFIT of what the target client receives out of working with you. Using a benefit is appealing to buyers because they can conceptualize how your service can help them.

Using a creative tagline such as "Your Guide Down the Path to Prosperity" provides a better mental image than "Invest For Your Future" because the target client can see themselves walking down a vine-covered path to prosperity with you as their guide.

Mistakes to avoid

Being generic:  Financial planning naturally attracts left-brained individuals, but that doesn't mean you have to be boring. That's why using a professional is so important – they can contribute the creative force that you may lack.

Low-priced: Don't retain the services of a low price graphic design company.  The "dime a dozen" material they put out is not worth the few hundred you'll fork over. You are asking clients to INVEST with you, so make an INVESTMENT in your professional firm. Don't cheapen it by using an amateur.

Not using visuals: Good financial advice leads to a happy retirement. So please depict what that looks like to your target clients. What will they be doing in retirement that will make them happy?  Drinking wine, playing golf, gazing at sunsets, wearing pajamas during the day, and dining out with their loved ones. These images demonstrate the end effect of hiring a financial planner.

Using high-quality branding in your financial planning firm is a good business practice. Smaller firms can differentiate themselves from wire houses, carve out a niche, demonstrate value, and attract quality clients by investing in their brand. All it takes is looking at your firm with new eyes and deciding what you are all about and how you want to represent your firm with your branding.

Suzanne Muusers

Prosperous Advisor™ Coaching Program
Branding Packages

How to Create a GREAT Tagline

Is there something missing from your business brand? When prospects hear or see your business name, do they understand or "get" what you are about? If not, could it be that you need a tagline? A tagline, also known as a slogan, is a great way to position a company in a specific target industry and can add value by communicating a distinct message that may be missing in an otherwise good brand.

When we think of good taglines, it's usually the ones that are short and snappy such as "Just Do It" or "Eat Fresh." Other memorable taglines are those that rhyme such as "Takes a licking and keeps on ticking" and "Don't Get Mad, Get GLAD."  So a good tagline is memorable and "sticks" in the brain.

As a student of branding, I often study business cards and websites. I find that the majority do not have a tagline, and even if they do they are missing one crucial element that would make them GREAT: the main BENEFIT that the target client would receive by working with the firm.

Checklist for a GREAT tagline:

*No more than 7 words (3-4 would be even better)

*Speaks to the firm's target client

*Finishes off the brand with a positive "message"

*Identifies a BENEFIT

Here's a PDF exercise that lays out a step by step procedure to create a tagline that you can save right to your own computer. It takes time to create a tagline, so don't rush it. I recommend that you brainstorm a few taglines and then put it away to come back later. You'll then find that one or two will jump out at you as being more effective than the others.  Then, ask a few of your best clients which one best exemplifies your business and your brand. That's when you'll find the best one.

Suzanne Muusers

Prosperous Advisor™ Coaching Program
Branding Packages

How Advisors Can Attract Wealthy Clients

Don't we all want to work with wealthy clients? More assets, less hassle, more income, and lots of wealthy friends. But do you know how to attract the rich? Many advisors think it's through the way they look or what they drive or the appearance of their offices. But it's really simpler than that.

You can attract wealthy clients by your business model. If you are paid solely via commissions, the wealthy client will not touch you with a ten foot pole.  They didn't accrue all that money by giving their business to someone who's going to push products at them.

Yes. You can attract wealthy clients by putting clients' needs first, way above your own and by focusing on long term strategies to accumulate wealth.

What else? This may come as a surprise, but a great website really helps too. The new way to find anything is via the internet. Yellow pages books are being tossed into recycle bins by the ton. Wealthy clients can investigate you on the internet anonymously without any pressure.  They look for hints regarding how you get paid, your asset minimums, your credentials, and your brand.  Here's a hint: a custom website is the way to go. Template websites are fine for your first three years, but later on, you'll need to spruce up your brand with a custom site.

Wealthy clients are out there right now shopping for an advisor. What are you going to do to attract them?

Suzanne Muusers

Marketing Coach for Financial Advisors

Prosperity Coaching LLC
Branding Packages

Re-Branding: Ride Marketing and PR in Scottsdale Arizona

• Have you ever looked at your brand with an objective eye?
• Does your brand set you apart from the competition?
• Does your brand impart a sense of the benefits your Ideal Clients will get out of working with you?

The answers to these questions can help you decide if you need to re-brand. That's what happened to Sharon Krieger of Ride Marketing and PR. She has just finished a re-branding of her business and answered these questions for me.

First off, what is Ride Marketing and PR and what do you offer clients?

Ride Marketing + PR is a boutique firm located in the East Valley specializing in lifestyle marketing, events, branding, copy writing and public relations for entrepreneurs and small to medium-sized businesses. We are hands-on and affordable, running “lean and mean” with little overhead - which means a nicer price point for our clients!

What made you decide to re-brand your business?

Working with a FANTASTIC business coach...YOU! It was during this time that the idea of a re-brand was suggested. At first, I was resistant, it being my first venture as an entrepreneur. But after further thought and looking at the bigger picture, it made complete sense. Not only strategically, but after the “wet behind the ears” phase I had gotten to know my business better and where I wanted to go.

Who are your Ideal Clients?

We’re big thinkers so work best with those like-minded souls with a great vision for their business and the world! Specifically, the businesses we connect most with are those in hospitality (i.e. restaurants, lounges, resorts), outdoor and active lifestyle, philanthropic organizations, sustainable/green companies and music & entertainment. While we love a good startup and have all been there, we prefer to work with clients who’ve been around a couple years and are well on their way to catching that bigger wave.

Your brand has a quirky, artsy feel. How does this appeal to your Ideal Clients?

Our clients - the “ideal” ones especially - we’ve found, have a sort of instant connection to our brand. The surf culture look and feel appeals to many entrepreneurs who have that drive, vision, creativity and spiritual way of moving through the world. And at the end of the day, it’s really all about having fun and enjoying the ride.

What benefits do you think you will gain from this re-branding?

Benefits gained from the re-brand have been both immediate, in terms of the type of response we’ve gotten from new contacts and existing relationships, and will continue to ripple out as we move forward. New doors have opened a result - from working with an awesome designer, learning a lot from our web developer and attending events that are both educational and offer great networking opportunities. It’s like starting a new business, but better because we’re not starting from scratch!

What advice do you have about branding for entrepreneurs in this economy?

In all honesty, there really could not be a better time to do this. I’d say for any entrepreneur out there who has been toying with the idea of freshening up their brand, or doing a full overhaul on an existing product or service....now is the perfect time!

While so many business owners have frozen in their tracks and have had their lives turned upside down, few are taking this season of challenge as a real opportunity. It’s an opportunity to look inward, evaluate, brainstorm, create, and EMERGE as better people and better business owners. This economy has given all of us pause to appreciate what we have, decide what’s really important and discover our true values.

Those entrepreneurs who rebrand during a time like this are going to be so much further ahead on the other side of this thing.

Suzanne Muusers

Prosperity Coaching LLC

Branding Packages

What is your Business Identity?

At lunch on Friday a client asked me "What is a Business Identity?"

It's not easy to define a business identity, but I'll give it a shot.

A Business Identity is the feeling or aura you create for your company. It is sometimes explained as a "personality." Your identity helps to communicate who you are and the nuts and bolts of what you offer.

A business owner usually works with a professional designer to create a Business Identity.

I don't consider a business to be fully grown until it has an identity. There are plenty of successful businesses who have never established an identity and many may think they don't need to, but I think they are wrong. These businesses are usually the ones who cut corners by not hiring a professional designer to design their identity, logo, and brand. This business owner may never get to the next level by maximizing their brand potential.

A professional Business Identity allows you to charge more, attract your ideal clients, maintain a competitive advantage, and maximize your business potential. It is a crucial component of Effortless Marketing.

What does my Business Identity say about me?

Prosperity Coaching LLC is a professional Business Coaching company.

The colors I have chosen are fun: Red, Purple, Green, Yellow - and the colors work well together.

My design is professional and expert.

My business personality is all about: Expertise; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Success; Fun; and Creativity.

If you've never thought about your Business Identity, I urge you to consider doing so soon. You could spend time working through the process and come out of this recession with a new look. This is an INVESTMENT in your business, not an expense.

The best way to create your Business Identity is to get together with your staff and a professional designer and create a list of values you want to communicate. Then think about your personality.

• Are you fun or serious?
• Are you professional or laid back?
• What colors represent your business personality?
• What benefits do you provide your clients?

I recommend that you read this interview with Ken Peters about Branding which will give you a professional designer's insight into what makes a Brand successful.

Suzanne Muusers

Financial Advisor Business Coach

Branding Packages 

It Pays to Have an Opinion

A pat on the back for me! Due to my comments regarding Suze Orman and fear mongering, and my comments regarding remaining calm during scary times, I received some press in a well known publication. The Wall Street Journal interviewed me for an expose on Suze Orman.

What’s the lesson here? If you have a something to say, someone will listen. If you toe the line and say what everyone else says, you will remain vanilla.

How about you? Do you have an opinion? Do you have something to say? Then for goodness sake, SAY IT! Don’t sugar coat it.

You and your BRAND have to stand out in the market place. Stand out by not being boring.

Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Financial Advisors and Entrepreneurs

Branding – What makes a brand successful?

I recently met with Ken Peters, owner of Nocturnal Graphic Design Studio, to learn what makes a brand successful. My clients know that I have a passion for good design. When prospects and clients ask me “How do I attract high net-worth clients?” I always tell them to hire a top notch designer and make an investment in their brand. See for yourself what an expert in the design industry has to say.

Click on images to enlarge

What is a good brand composed of?

It’s much more than a logo and a catchy slogan. Brands are composed of consumer touch-points, and the perceptions they create. Every experience a person has with your company, products, or services, communicates a message establishing a perception that defines your Brand. A Brand is as much the perception of beauty in an attractive marketing brochure, as the perceived ease of navigating a user-friendly web site. It’s as much the tangible perception of quality craftsmanship, as the intangible perception of friendly service.

Because we each view life through the lens of our individual experiences, perception can’t be determined, only influenced. Influencing perception is the job of the Brand Identity. A Brand Identity is the visual articulation of the perception you wish your Brand to convey. Graphic Design is the craft used to create the Brand Identity. Marketing disseminates the Brand Identity. Advertising promotes and sells the Brand Identity. Together, they work to create, retain, enhance, sustain, and when necessary, recreate, Brand perception – all in an effort to elicit the desired consumer action.

Why is a professional brand identity so important for business owners?

Brand Identity is what differentiates your business in a cluttered market. It’s how you attract attention, communicate with consumers, establish emotional connections, create desire, and elicit action.

What are the top three mistakes entrepreneurs make when designing their Brand Identity?

1) Not working with professional graphic designers: Accessibility to computers, design software, fonts, etc., has created a proliferation of “off-the-shelf-graphic-gurus”. But, knowing how to use Photoshop doesn’t make someone a designer anymore than knowing how to scramble an egg makes someone a chef. Navigating the complexities and nuances of effective and compelling Identity design requires the acuity of trained, professional practitioners.

2) Cutting corners on quality: Graphic design, printing, photography, illustration, copywriting, materials, and overall consistency in visual tone and message each influence consumer perception. Skimping on these could communicate a lack of quality that will reflect poorly on your Brand. You might save pennies up front, but it’ll cost you in the long run.

3) Not following through: Designing your Identity is the first step, but it doesn’t end there. Building Brand equity takes time. Once your Identity has been launched it must be managed as your business grows and the Brand evolves. Communicating a consistent message, while being flexible enough to adapt to change, keeps your Brand from becoming obsolete. This requires constant attention. Trying to tackle the task yourself is a recipe for failure. Maximize your return on investment in Brand Identity by keeping it in the expert care of design professionals.

Is it more important to design an Identity to communicate an idea or is it more important to design an Identity that is visually eye catching.

Every Brand communicates an idea. The key is creating the right perception through an engaging Identity. That requires smart design. Design isn’t rocket science. It’s persuasion. And, persuasion is an art.

Please give us some tips on how to develop a successful Brand Identity.

1) Understand that working with a professional graphic designer is a capital investment, rather than an expense. Investing in quality up front generates greater dividends in the long run.

2) Work with a designer who excites you. Designing a creative and effective Brand Identity is a highly collaborative process. It not only requires imagination and skill, but also a spirit of enthusiastic give-and-take among people who inspire and challenge each other.

3) Be open to bold ideas, and willing to take risks. Creativity and imagination are still the most effective means of gaining an unfair advantage over your competition.

4) Remember that bad design is often as memorable as good design. You have to decide how you want to be remembered.

Ken Peters is the Owner and Creative Director of Nocturnal Graphic Design Studio, LLC, a Phoenix-based design firm specializing in brand development and corporate image for large and small businesses in all industries. To speak with Ken directly email ken@nocturnaldesign.com. To view samples from Nocturnal’s portfolio, visit http://www.nocturnaldesign.com/

Suzanne Muusers

Prosperity Coaching LLC
Branding Packages

Café Carumba – An Example of How to Create a Purple Cow Brand

My husband and I had a great experience at a local Scottsdale restaurant recently that is the perfect example of a business with a great brand. We had breakfast at Café Carumba in old town. Here’s a restaurant that is not afraid to be different. From the ambiance to the local happenings, everything was unique.

I think so often we are afraid to pump up our corporate identity a notch because we are afraid to be criticized. In order for everyone to like us, we have to have a bland, boring, see-it-everyday identity. There’s also the cost factor. Hiring a professional is not cheap. I remember in 1989 when I hired my first graphics person. I paid $1000 for a professional company identity that was definitely not the norm. It was a tough cost to cough up, but that identity served me well for over ten years and helped me land a very prestigious client who would never have hired me with a plain jane boring business card.


What, you ask, makes Café Carumba so different? Here’s a rundown of what impressed me:

Business card: an old sephia colored photo of a bikini-wearing-woman playing a guitar. They obviously used the services of a professional designer with some out-of-the-box thinking. Is this a safe photo image? No way.

Tagline: Spirited Southwest Grill – this has two meanings, spirited as in beverages, and spirited as in personality. I like it.

Most expensive margarita: $9,999.00. How’s this for different?

Events: Cantina Tuesdays, Wine down Wednesdays, daily happy hour, The Margarita Bar Tuesday through Saturday, and several others I can’t remember.

Advertising: tents on the table advertising nightly events with inventive names and enticing food and drink options.

Environment: concrete bar area that is out of the ordinary and artistic; bright colors on the walls; nicely decorated outdoor patio.

When the urge strikes me to grab a bite to eat, I will go to Café Carumba because they have a well designed brand that wraps up their promotions into a unique, purple cow package. There are plenty of restaurants. There are plenty of investment advisors. And there are hoards of business coaches.

The moral of the story is: if you want to stand out from the crowd, create a brand that's not boring. Safe is boring. A good brand is never safe.

The Economic Stimulus Package - 5 Ways to Invest the Rebate in Your Business

Uncle Sam has your best interests in mind this year by doling out a sizeable chunk of change to each tax payer to spend on whatever your heart desires. There is some debate as to how helpful the rebate will really be for the economy, but that argument aside, you have the ability to do something REALLY great for your business with the funds.

How much do you get? Provided you paid taxes and filed a tax return for 2007, you may be eligible for up to $600 per taxpayer, $1200 per couple, and $300 per each dependent child.

Entrepreneurs can be a lazy bunch. They are known for working day in and day out on the technical aspects of the business, and not looking at the big picture. They can ignore the long term plans for business growth just to keep up with the daily grind. They can ignore the need for knowledge growth and can lose sight of the need to delegate. They can also let themselves off the hook for doing those key actions that really grow the business.

Here are some ways you can get the most out of the rebate:

1. Hire a Virtual Assistant – What tasks are you doing day in and day out that are really not your cup of tea? Consider your hourly rate versus the administrative tasks you are performing. If your rate is $100 per hour and you spend five hours per week on bookkeeping, then you are spending $2000 per month on tasks that can be delegated for far less.

2. Rebrand your business – Is your brand exciting? Do you stand out from the crowd? If not, consider hiring a professional design company to rebrand your business. The easiest way to attract the best paying clients is to present a professional business image.

3. Invest in Your Business Skills - Take a workshop – What skill do you need to upgrade? Look around for workshops and seminars to help you improve skills you need to grow yourself and your business.

4. Invest in YOU – Are you happy with your life? Are you stuck in “all work and no play”? What could you do to improve your personal life? You could take a Life Planning Workshop, invest in a counselor to work out some old issues still plaguing you, or take a mini vacation.

5. Hire a Business Coach – Remember when you where involved with sports in school? The coach didn’t let you get away with slacking. Having a business coach to help you brainstorm ways to bring in new business will help you grow your business because you’ll be accountable to someone and they won’t let you off the hook if you’re not doing what you say you’ll do. Go to the International Coach Federation, click on “Find a Coach”, and enter the key terms for the type of coach that would be most helpful to you.

Whatever you do, don’t fritter away this tidy sum of money. If you chose to invest in your business it will pay off big time!

Grow Your Business & Prosper!
Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Entrepreneurs & Financial Advisors
Scottsdale, Arizona

http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz

6 Simple Steps to Organize your Business Finances so that you can Sleep Soundly at Night

Here's a great article I wrote to help a start up client get her business finances organized.

Loose papers, receipts, notes, credit card bills, financial statements, tax returns – these are the byproducts of owning a business. They take up space on your desk and in your mind and every time you look at the litter you feel disorganized.
Before I created a system to organize my business paperwork in the manner I’ll soon explain, I felt disjointed, out of whack, and like I never got anything done. I’d walk into my office and want to turn right around and walk out.

Is there a better way to organize your business finances? You bet. Follow the steps below to create a simple, yet functional way to organize your business and live a more carefree life.

Step 1 – Get a Binder - Purchase a three-ring binder based on the volume of paperwork you produce annually. A 1.5” or 2” binder would be adequate for most businesses. You will use one binder for each year you are in business, so that every detail pertaining to your business that year is in one place for easy retrieval. In the viewing window type a cover that shows the name of your business and the year.

Step 2 – Get a Three Hole Punch – Purchase a three-hole punch. This is to hole punch all larger receipts, documents and financial statements and have them fit neatly into your binder.

Step 3 - Get a Zipper Compartment – Purchase a plastic zipper compartment from an office supply store to hold small receipts.

Step 4 – Purchase Accounting Software – Get yourself accounting software so that you can track your finances. Professional business owners track their profits and losses using the right tools and analyze their financials regularly. I recommend QuickBooks, but there are others such as Peachtree, Microsoft Office Small Business, and Simply Accounting. Try to begin tracking sales and expenses from the beginning of your business or the beginning of the year.

Step 5 – THE SYSTEM: Arrange paperwork in your binder according to month. Keep all receipts, credit card statements and bank statements (make sure to reconcile these monthly), and sales tax reports (if you sell products). At the end of each month, run a Profit and Loss Statement and a Balance Sheet (collectively known as Financial Statements). The Financial Statements become the separator for each month. File small receipts that can’t be hole-punched in the zipper compartment at the back of your binder.

Step 6 – CLOSE IT OUT – At the end of each year, reconcile your accounts, print your annual Financial Statements, and close out your year. Put the binder away and start a new one for the New Year. Give your accountant or CPA a copy of your QuickBooks file to prepare your income tax return.

Tips:
Only handle receipts one time. Review them. Record them in your software program. File them in your binder.
Use one credit card for business and one for personal expenses. This way you can maintain separate business and personal expenses. If you ever need to carry a balance, you can easily determine the tax-deductible interest.
Consult with your accountant or CPA regarding what is and is not tax deductible.
Make an appointment with yourself one to two hours a week to do your business finance organization. When you have room in your budget, hire someone to come in and do it for you.

The system above is one way to organize your business finances. If you would like to go beyond this system and organize your business for financial success, you may want to consider writing a Business Plan. I have created a plan that incorporates Goal Setting, and heavy Branding and Marketing with My Success Book - a built-in Daily Action Planner to encourage accountability and results. Find it here: The Two Page Mini Business Plan™.

©Copyright 2008- Suzanne Muusers - All Rights Reserved

About the author
Suzanne Muusers is a Business Coach and Business Expert based in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a credentialed member of the International Coach Federation and has owned or managed a business every year since 1981. She is the creator of The Two Page Mini Business Plan™, The Six Step Guide to Creating a Business Plan That's Short, Easy, and Gets Results! Visit her site: http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/

Get Yourself a WOW Business Card – Please don’t bore us at networking events!

You’ve all heard me drone on and on about how important it is to have a professionally designed business card. Well today I’m at it again. I just came back from a lunch networking event where I walked away with 15 business cards.

Since I’m a professional brand and business card consultant, I decided to try an exercise when I returned to my office. I decided to sort the 15 business cards into A, B, & C piles just to see how they stacked up in terms of professionalism. What ended up with was absolutely no cards in the A pile. Two cards in the B pile. Thirteen cards in the C pile.

The two cards in the B pile both have a professionally designed logo, good use of color, and all the standard info. What they didn’t have that could have moved them to the A pile was a benefit-driven tagline and a call to action.

BLAH
All the cards in the C pile ranged from just barely adequate to plain boring. One was printed with only one color. Dull. One was completely unflattering for a flower store. Hello? If you are selling something that appeals to the eyes, like flowers, create a FABULOUS visual card with a four color photo of a beautiful flower and juicy copy. Invite people to your flower store with an offer of some sort.

EFFORTLESS MARKETING
Why is it that business owners are resistant to spending money on their number-one most-utilized marketing material? Don’t they realize that having a FABULOUS business card is the cornerstone to Effortless Marketing?

If you’re ready to take the plunge and spend some money where it will give you the most benefit, please take my Business Card Quiz. What I want for you is a kick-butt business card. One that causes prospects to say: “Wow! This is a really cool business card.”

THE NEW YOU
It just might be time for you to reinvent yourself through your business card.

Grow Your Business and Prosper!
Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Entrepreneurs & Financial Advisors
Scottsdale, Arizona
http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/

5 Business Plan Mistakes to Avoid

Everyone knows they need one. Everyone plans on writing one, eventually. But not everyone does it. Why? Because it’s so easy to put off and it’s such a chore.

I’m talking about writing a business plan. Many business owners put more effort into planning their vacations than they put into planning their businesses. This is a shame because an entrepreneur with a business plan is much more likely to succeed than one without a plan.

With just a little effort, you can plan the business of your dreams complete with desired level of income, time off, and emotional satisfaction. The key is the business plan. Let’s take a look at some of the mistakes we tend to make with business plans and what you can do to overcome them.

Mistake #1 - Putting it off
It’s easy to hang up an “Open for Business” shingle and then dive right into the busy-ness of day to day operations of your business. Things are going well and you think “Someday I’ll get around to writing that business plan” or “I don’t need that business plan after all”, or even “Who says you need a business plan to be successful?” Years later when you want to buy a building or expand operations you find out that the bank or investors want a plan, but you don’t have one.
Don’t put it off. Having a business plan helps you to solidify your future, anticipate problems, and plan for success. If you’re always running on adrenaline, putting out fires, and playing catch up, you probably need a business plan. So just do it. Block time on your schedule two to three hours a week and just get it done.

Mistake #2 - Not a big enough vision
Think BIG when creating your long term vision. This is your opportunity to design a business that far exceeds your current situation. I’ve seen far too many boring, limited, and going-no-where visions. Think in terms of the ideal and put yourself in the future. What would you most like to be doing in your business? The grunt work? The annoying stuff you’re doing now? Of course not. You are the face of your business. Your job is to meet the clients, close the big deals, and rake in the dough.
What kind of revenue do you want in your business? Think BIG again. And don’t say 20% better than now. What are the possibilities five to ten years from now?

Mistake #3 - Weak goals
A business plan without detailed goals is like a ship without a rudder. The business becomes directionless without a purpose. You, as the business owner must have goals for every facet of your business. What I often see is a 5 year revenue goal, but no monthly and yearly goals to lead up to the finale. I see very few business plans with client goals, professional goals, and personal goals. How many new clients do you want each month? What are the revenue goals for your products or services? What information products do you want to produce in the future? Having goals in life is what drives successful people. What are your goals?

Mistake #4 - Not focusing on Marketing and Branding
It’s really easy to get into statistics, theory, and hyperbole in a business plan. I say “Show me the money!” What are you going to do to bring in the dough? Any business plan worth the paper it’s printed on should have a significant marketing and branding section. Take a look at your vision and decide what marketing actions you need to take to close the gap between where you are now and where you want to be in five to ten years.
If you want to stand out in the crowded marketplace, you’ll also need to create a strong brand and continue working on it going forward. Invest in yourself and get a professionally designed corporate identity complete with tagline, website, four-color business cards, and the like. No one wants to do business with someone who doesn’t look professional. So get rid of the dull boring business image and kick it up a notch.

Mistake #5 – Not working the plan
Why do you write a business plan if you are going to put it away in a drawer somewhere? You need to keep the plan visible. You need to review the plan on a weekly basis. You need to be asking yourself “What now?” at least weekly. You need to make sure you are getting results. No matter how brilliant the plan, you must take action to get results. You do this by reviewing your plan, checking the marketing activities for results, and asking “What bigger projects do I need to tackle to get closer to the big Vision?” Then you ask yourself if the direction needs to change. If so, it’s time to re-write your plan.

Traditional thirty-page business plans are not always useful for entrepreneurs. They can be overly technical and may not provide the accountability needed. I have created a business plan system for entrepreneurs and independent professionals that may fit the bill: The Two Page Mini Business Plan™. This system incorporates Goal Setting, and heavy Branding and Marketing with My Success Book - a built-in Daily Action Planner to encourage accountability and results. This may be just the system you need to get where you want to go.

©Copyright 2008- Suzanne Muusers - All Rights Reserved

About the author
Suzanne Muusers is a Business Coach and Business Expert based in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a credentialed member of the International Coach Federation and has owned or managed a business every year since 1981. She is the creator of The Two Page Mini Business Plan™, The Six Step Guide to Creating a Business Plan That's Short, Easy, and Gets Results! Visit her site: http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/

Your Domain Name Versus Your Business Name – What’s an Entrepreneur To Do?

Most of us know that an URL means a Unique Record Locator. A Domain Name is the same thing – it identifies your website and can serve as a branding tool as well.

But did you know that once you pick a domain name, go to all the trouble of researching and writing your content, and uploading your site, that you would be wise to stick with that name? (see referenced article below).

Your Business Name on the other hand is usually written in stone. Once established it doesn’t change. But should it? As you change, learn, and grow, the original focus of your business may change. If so, you may need to change your business name.

Let’s say you started your business as Ted Jones Financial Advisors in 1998. You were focused on basic financial services at the time, but now you’ve earned several credentials and are more of a wealth manager. (WARNING: This is a trick question) Do you change your name to Ted Jones Wealth Management?

Think long-term. Do you have an Exit Strategy? If not, now is a good time to start thinking about one. The typical bright young upstart financial advisor will be reluctant to buy your firm if your personal name is on it. Now would be a good time to create a business name that implies a “team approach”, not a “star advisor approach”. This would also be a great practice management strategy (ask me why).

Before you make the business name decision, it would be wise to do some research utilizing the following points.

Your business name should:
1. Be easy to say and remember – two to three words is optimal
2. Say what you do.
3. Imply your unique niche
4. Create a strong brand
5. Create a strong trademark

Your Doman name should:
1. Be easy to remember
2. Utilize dot com rather than dot net or dot biz
3. Contain one to two industry key words

For a detailed discussion on how to select a domain name, see an article I wrote: What's in a Name? Domain Names Do's and Don'ts for High SEO

I hope this helps to solve the Business Name versus Domain Name puzzle. Being that I made some missteps in my choice of business domain name (see above article), I feel qualified to suggest alternatives.

Grow Your Business and Prosper!
Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Entrepreneurs and Financial Advisors
http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz

Stages of a Start Up – What the Entrepreneur Can Expect

Many of my clients have wanted to know what they can expect when starting a business in regards to cashflow, marketing, how to get referrals, and how long it all takes. So here's an article I wrote for ezinearticles.com about the Stages of a Start Up - What the Entrepreneur Can Expect.




When you were starting out in business, no one told you it would take two to four years to become an "overnight success", did they?

That's because no one really knows how much time it takes to become financially successful in a new business venture. It tends to be different for everyone, based on your skills as an entrepreneur, your start up budget, and your willingness to take risks.

Throughout the years I have noticed a distinct "start up path" with my coaching clients. It can be a rough pathway, at times a jungle, but getting there is half the fun. In this article, we are going to investigate the stages of a start up entrepreneur. We'll take a look at what a hypothetical entrepreneur can expect and what to watch out for. We'll examine some "what ifs" and lay out an entrepreneurial path that you may or may not chose to follow.

Year One – Getting Your Name Out There

At this stage you're an infant business owner. You're learning who you are; what you're good at. You're the person with the "big idea" and you begin to recognize that you might be able to make money at it.

You may decide to keep your "day job" for the first year to provide income while you're building the business. Learning to be patient is essential during this phase because you're likely doing a lot and not getting much in return in the way of income. But that's ok. You may need to save 6 to 12 months of living expenses to augment your income when you leave the safety net of your day job.

So you begin to experiment with company names. You investigate legal entities for your business, depending on whether you'll have partners or go it alone. You print your first business card. It's not the best example of a cohesive brand, but it will do for now. You use your cell phone as your business phone number. Your home computer becomes your business computer.

You begin to develop your 30 second commercial. It's a bit shaky, but it gets the point across. You start the networking circuit to build awareness. You want to hit the ground running and you're a little disappointed that the revenue doesn't roll in as fast as you thought.

You land a few clients. You're elated, but it wears off quickly. You keep going. You're undercharging and working long hours, but you may not recognize it at this point. How can someone who works so much make so little? Oh well, you keep going.

Year Two – Growing the Garden

At this stage you've grown up a little to become a teenager business owner. You're getting better at what you do and the word is getting out. You're still working like mad, but it's all starting to make sense.

You recognize that you'll need a better Brand if you're going to attract better clients, so if you're smart you hire a professional designer and do a brand overhaul. You re-work your 30 second commercial and it starts to sound more like you. You come up with a great benefit driven tagline and excellent copy to market yourself. You redesign your website and re-create your marketing materials based on your newfound knowledge and you get out there again to sell yourself.

When it’s time to get a paycheck, you'll need to determine a reasonable salary for someone in a similar position. Don't get greedy though. Keep your lifestyle modest with an eye to the future. You are building a business empire but you'll need to reinvest your profits for quite some time.

You begin to realize that growing your business is a bit like being a gardener. You're building relationships that plant seeds which grow into vines. In time, flowers on the vines will bloom. Some vines may take longer to bloom than others and may need additional fertilizer and loving care. Eventually, though, many vines bloom with elaborate intricate flowers yielding strong business relationships that benefit your company for many years.

At the end of this stage you raise your fees which has a big impact on your profitability. You realize it's better to charge at the higher end of the market. You may lose a client or two, but you'll have more cash in the bank and more free time to enjoy your personal life.

Year Three – Becoming an Expert

Congratulations on becoming an adult business owner! Clients you worked with in year one and two are referring business to you. You realize how powerful referrals are and you work on developing a distinct referral strategy.

You've invested in additional education and certification in your field. This gives you credibility and allows you to be more selective in choosing your clients. You no longer have to take the clients that give you headaches and don’t pay their bills. People are coming to you with questions because they recognize that you have the expertise to provide the answers. Your close ratio has improved significantly because the referrals you receive are already pre-sold on your services. This means you don’t have to work as hard as you did in the past. You’ve got more time for yourself, more time to live your life.

By now you've built network of contacts and you've established yourself as an entrepreneur in the business community. The relationships you worked so hard to build are beginning to provide a return on investment. You've identified the networking groups that yield the best results, and you've let others fall by the wayside.

You're now making more revenue and you're excited about the possibilities you envisioned since day one. Suddenly there's more money for extras. The old worn out office desk has out lived out its usefulness and you begin to shop around for something more suitable. You decide to invest in new technology and systems that you'll need to be more efficient.

Year Four – Reaping the Rewards

You are now a mature business owner and a master-gardener. Your many vines have ripened with age and are producing hoards of beautiful blooms that reach geographical areas you never imagined. You need only to fertilize and water the vines occasionally to keep them healthy and happy.

By this time you have figured out how to take your company to the next level. You've created a virtual business and a team of experts to guide you: Employees or independent contractors, Attorneys, Accountants, Business Coaches, Mentors, Financial Advisors, Graphic Designers, Writers, and anyone else you may need to help build your wealth. You realize that you don't have to do everything yourself. There are others out there who specialize in what you need and they can easily be on your team. All you have to do ask them.

Business comes to you easily and frequently. You’ve developed a reputation as a specialist in a specific area by leveraging the power of niche marketing. Your referral partners know when to send you business. You receive new client inquires almost daily and you've learned to clone yourself and refer business to others on your team.

Your new business comes from referrals, the internet, and networking. You write about your specialty, you speak to groups with confidence, and you are well known in the community.

Conclusion:

Your four-year "overnight success" was a long road to travel. You learned that you need the support of your spouse, friends, and family to get you through each start up phase. Going forward you may need the support of a coach or a mentor – someone to hold you accountable for your key success actions. This point is critical. It's focused action that gets results, not rhetoric or vision.

©Copyright 2007- Suzanne Muusers - All Rights Reserved

Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long the article is printed in its entirety including the about the author information, you leave all the links active, and you do not edit the article in any way, and include the copyright statement.

About the author
Suzanne Muusers is a Business Coach and Business Expert based in Scottsdale, Arizona and is the creator of The Two Page Mini Business Plan. She is a credentialed member of the International Coach Federation and works exclusively with entrepreneurs and financial advisors who want to leave behind their lives as business workers to become business owners earning six figures and above annually. Visit her site: http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/

Branding YOU – Should You Put Your Photo on Your Business Card?

I was at a networking event this week having a pleasant conversation with a nice fellow about Branding and how to set yourself apart in the marketplace. We were discussing the benefits of using a professional designer to create a brand for your business.

Upon handing him my business card he said "I see that you have your photo on your business card. I've been told that it's not a good idea to do that. What do you think?"

I have my photo on my business card because I'm in a relationship building business and I want to be memorable. Think about all the business cards you collect when attending networking events. You get back the office and sort through the stack. Very few business cards stand out and you're challenged to remember who the person was days or weeks later. Having a photo on your business card helps people remember you. People do business with those they know, like and trust. If they can remember you, that's the first step.

That's not to say that any photo will do. It must be the right kind of photo. It should be taken by a professional. You must be wearing professional attire. And it helps to have a pleasant, friendly expression on your face. It also makes sense to use a photo that looks like you, not some glamour shot.

So what else should you include on your business card if you want to have the best darn card out there?

Business Name and Title - I know it seems obvious, but try to include enough information on your business card so that people know what you do for a living. I don't know how many times I've been handed a business card that didn't tell me what the person does. Either they haven't named their business correctly, or they don't have a title. So, be clear and don't forget your title.

Business Address – These days it seems that more and more businesses are not including a snail mail address on their business card. To me this imparts a sense of "we operate out of a bedroom in our house". List your business address and if you do operate from home, and are concerned about privacy, rent a street address from one of those mailboxes companies.

Phone Number – Of course it's obvious that you need a phone number on your business card. But it's no longer necessary to crowd your card with a fax number. With so much business being done via email, the fax has become somewhat obsolete. This will also help you to get less spam via fax.

Email Address – Ensure that you are presenting a professional image to your prospects by including a professional email address. Yourname@yourcompany.com is far better than lovetoride@yahoo.com.

Tagline – If you want to look "pulled together" in a branding sort of way, spend some time strategizing around what type of tagline to use on your business card. Try to think like your target client when brainstorming. A tagline that is about how great you are doesn't do much for your target client. Create a BENEFIT-DRIVEN tagline. And don't say your service is excellent. Everyone says that.

Website Domain Name – This is a no brainer. Any entrepreneur who doesn't have a website these days really isn't on the map as far as professionalism is concerned. To really take this a step further, tell them to go to your website to get something for free. A free report, articles, resources, and things that they could really use. For that matter, you can also direct them to your blog.

Listing of Services or Benefits – I actually prefer a listing of benefits on a business card. It really speaks to what you offer. Imagine a massage therapist's card "banish stress, relieve tension, pamper yourself".

So yes, I think you should put your photo on your business card because it makes you stand out from everyone else. You get extra points if you have your card designed by a professional who is not your cousin's friend from college. Invest in your business. It really pays off.

Grow Your Business and Prosper!
Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Entrepreneurs and Financial Advisors
http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/

29 Perfect Business Card Tips That Will Make You Loads of Money

I talked about the importance of Branding and New Year's Resolutions in my last post, so I thought I would post an article I wrote some time ago about how to make money from your business card by turning it into a Branding and Marketing piece. Read on for some useful tips.

I love networking and meeting new people. I enjoy the pleasant etiquette of exchanging business cards. Unfortunately, I have seen some poorly designed business cards in my travels. I have been handed a boring dull business card from someone claiming to be a professional graphic designer. I have been handed a torn and frayed off-size card by someone claiming to be a marketing consultant. I’ve seen cards with outdated contact information and scribbled corrections.

This article is intended to help business owners create and design a business card they can be proud to present – a card that will pass the trash test.

The goal is to be memorable. What I want for you is for prospects to remember who you are days, weeks, and months after the networking event and for you to make loads of money because of your business card!

Please use the tips listed here to design a card that makes money:

1. Don’t use plain white card stock for your business card. There’s nothing more boring than a white card.

2. Don’t use raised printing also called thermograph printing. This is considered passé.

3. UV coating is the shiny coating you see applied to many business cards. Make sure you coat only one side of your card as people like to write on cards to remember who you are and where they met you.

4. Make sure there are 3 methods of communication on your business card. Prospects have a preferred method and if you don’t include it, you may not hear from them. List your phone number, email address, and mailing address.

5. Use your business card to drive traffic to your website. Advertise on your card “download my free report” at http://www.yourwebsite.com/.

6. Use a nice quality card stock for your card. There’s nothing that screams unprofessional as a thin card.

7. Don’t list your fax number unless your business regularly receives faxes as a normal part of your business workflow. This is extra information that doesn’t need to crowd your card if not appropriate. And you won’t be bothered by fax advertising.

8. Include a Tagline on your business card. Tell your target clients what it is you do for them. This will serve to polish your image and create a brand for your company. Put your Tagline on the front of the business card.

9. Maintain a consistent brand by utilizing your unique design on both your business card and your website.

10. Keep your business card simple. Don't try to cram too much information on your card. You need some “white” space to even out the design.

11. Use no more than two fonts in your card design. Fewer fonts make it easier on the eyes.

12. Don’t use all caps on your card. All caps are difficult to read.

13. Don’t use odd sized cards. Prospect keep regular sized business cards after networking events. Odd sized cards eventually end up in the trash.

14. Use the back of the card for something useful, like a listing of the benefits your clients receive from utilizing your services.

15. If you really want to be cutting edge, use the new video business cards available today. This technology is said to be the wave of the future and especially useful if you exhibit at tradeshows.

16. Do utilize a photograph of yourself on the front of your card if you are in a relationship building profession. This helps to make you more memorable.

17. Do utilize a four color photo of your creations on the back of your card if you are in the creative professions.

18. Make sure your business card fits who you are. If you’re an artist, include a photo of your work and make sure the card has an artistic feel. If you are in a conservative field, keep the design simple.

19. Make a digital version of your business card and include it in your email signature.

20. Use a professional email address on your cards: yourname@yourdomain.com. Foxylady@yahoo.com is not appropriate for the business environment.

21. Add certification titles to your card to add credibility.

22. When handed a business card, make sure to study the card and ask questions about the prospect. This makes you a more “interesting” person.

23. When giving out business cards take them from a case and hand them to your prospect so that the card is facing up. I don’t know how many times I’ve been handed an upside down business card.

24. Include an offer on the back of your business card such as a free consultation, or free service offered in the form of a call to action.

25. Include a card with all correspondence.

26. Use a logo that is visually appealing and tells prospects what it is you do for a living.

27. Use a 4-color business card. They are not expensive and are more memorable.

28. Make sure you list your title near your name.

29. Hand out your business card as much as possible. Keep a supply in your car so that you never run out!

Professionalism Counts

The best advice I can give you is to use a professional to design your business card. This is a one-time investment in your company identity. Just think about the additional fees you can command when you are perceived as an expert. How much is your professional presence worth to you? A well-designed business card shows that you are a successful entrepreneur and not a fly-by-night. It also positions your business for success by presenting a clear image of a company that can be trusted.


©Copyright 2007 Suzanne Muusers All Rights Reserved

About the author:
Suzanne Muusers is a Business Coach and Business Expert based in Scottsdale, Arizona. She has owned or managed a business every year for the past 25 years. She is a credentialed member of the International Coach Federation and works exclusively with entrepreneurs and financial advisors who want to leave behind their lives as business workers to become business owners earning six figures and above annually. Download her Free Report "Top 5 Business Mistakes Entrepreneurs Should Avoid" at http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/.

Branding and New Year’s Resolutions

* Do you have clip art as your business logo?
* Did you use a business card template from one of those inexpensive print websites?
* Do you feel that using the services of a professional designer is an expense you can skip?

Well, I’m here to tell you that it matters a great deal that you have a professional brand identity and there’s no better time than the New Year to get one! I’m writing this because very few people will tell you the truth about your business card or brand identity, but I will. People will take your card, glance at it, and decide what kind of business owner you are right there on the spot.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS DO COUNT.

I run into a lot of bad business cards. I don’t want to be rude so I look at the cards with a pleasant face before putting them away all the while thinking “Don't people realize that they're making a bad first impression?”

I started my first business in 1985. It was an international fine jewelry company selling to upscale department stores. I hired a graphic designer to design a first rate brand. It worked. I was in 400 department stores within a few years and it had a great deal to do with how I presented myself, including my business cards.

If you’re using clip art, please stop right now - Step away from the clip art! If you’re using a template, it was good in the beginning and saved you money, but now it’s time to invest in your business. If you think you can skip the expense of a professional designer, think again.

What sort of message do you think you are sending to your target clients by not having a professional brand? I’ll clue you in: it sends a message that your business is under-funded, hasn’t been around long, is lacking in credentials and credibility, or is a fly-by-night.

What benefits come with a professional brand?

1. Being able to command higher fees (who doesn’t want this?)
2. Pre-sell yourself, less work on your part to acquire new clients
3. Attract better quality clients
4. Credible or professional image
5. Ability to brand products that you create and promote
6. Effortless Marketing is at work in the world for you!

So, what I want for you is to be a professional business owner, not a business worker, and one of the ways you can do this is by getting smart and presenting yourself as a successful, professional entrepreneur. I don’t care who you hire. Just make sure it’s someone with experience and creativity. Look at their portfolio and decide if they have the style you’re after. There are all types of budgets. Expect to pay between $600 and $1200 for a professional.

(another Monday night football post)
Grow Your Business and Prosper!
Suzanne Muusers
Business Coach for Entrepreneurs and Financial Advisors
http://www.prosperitycoaching.biz/
Branding Packages