Effective Marketing: First Impressions Count
Copyright 2006 Marketing Maven
A mistake that entrepreneurs and business owners making is
trying to create their own marketing materials or to have
an amateur – a friend, relative, or neighbor design their
materials. It may seem like you are saving money by doing
your own logo, business card, or website, however, the
reality is that you are making a VERY costly mistake that
can make your business more likely to fail.
By trying to create your marketing materials cheaply, you
end up looking…well…cheap. Many business owners do not
realize the high cost of this mistake. They do not
understand that by having a logo, stationery, brochures,
and other marketing materials that looks unprofessional and
poorly designed is creating a sub par impression in the
minds of new prospects.
When you are in the building and growing phase of your
business, you need everything you do to accelerate your
success. Your logo and marketing materials are the first
impression people get of your company – a professionally
designed logo contributes to your success by enhancing your
business visibility and credibility.
Your marketing tools should move your prospects closer to
making a purchase. You cannot afford to look unprofessional
and “thrown together†because you won’t look like the
expert you are, and you won’t attract your dream customers.
If a prospective customer views your materials as
unprofessional or confusing, you will lose them to a
competitor.
Here are specific reasons why unprofessional marketing
hurts you:
1. Your business does not look reliable and trustworthy.
Customers may assume your company is more likely to fail
because you have not taken the time to create a stable
branding presence. No matter what business you are in,
people want to purchase services or products from a company
that appears established and secure. They want to know that
you will be there for them if they have a problem or need
your products/services in the future. Well-established,
sound businesses need to look that way.
2. You appear less capable. Larger, successful businesses
would never conduct business without professional,
custom-designed marketing materials. Using marketing
materials designed from templates or by an amateur gives
your company the appearance of being flighty and
inexperienced. You are less likely to attract professional
clients when your business doesn’t appear professional. It
may give people the impression that you don’t care about
quality and attention to detail.
3. You are less likely to stand out. By using homemade
marketing materials, you not only make your business look
confused but you also have a problem differentiating your
company from your competitors. You don’t have a solid
branding strategy, your core-marketing message isn’t being
reinforced, and you aren’t memorable.
People make decisions on where they make a purchase based
on first impressions and imagery. Anything your company
puts out in front of prospects and customers must be of the
highest quality. If your logo, website, business cards, and
brochures aren’t well designed and professional, why would
prospects think your services are any better?
Your appearance sells your company first!
Here are some specific tips to help you with the first
impression you make through your marketing materials:
- Never hand out a homemade business card.
- Don’t print out your own marketing materials.
- Go to a professional designer to create your marketing
materials, especially your logo.
- Make sure all of your links on your website work. Avoid
“under construction” and simply hide teh pages that aren’t
completed yet.
- Add your website URL to all of your printed materials.
- Avoid clipart in your printed materials and never use
jumping animals or rotating whirly-thingys on your website.
Remember, people make decisions on where they make purchase
based on first impressions and imagery. Anything your
company puts out in front of prospects and customers must
be of the highest quality. If your logo, website, business
cards, and brochure aren’t well-designed and professional,
why would prospects think your services are any better?
ACTION ITEM: Conduct an audit of your current marketing
materials. What is your logo like? Your business card?
Website? Brochure? Are there specific items that need to be
designed, redesigned, or rewritten? If so, which ones? Keep
in mind, your appearance sells your company first! Spending
money to have your marketing materials professionally
designed is in investment in the future of your company
that will pay off 100-fold over time.
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Wendy Maynard, the Marketing Maven, publishes REMARKABLE
MARKETING, a weekly marketing strategy ezine for business
owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. If you’re ready to
skyrocket your sales, easily attract customers, and have
more fun, get your FREE TIPS now at
http://www.gomarketingmaven.com/ezine.html
