The quality of your logo can mean the difference between success or failure. It can be that simple!

Trademarks and Logos make up the most international language in the world. An excellent logo can cross many barriers and provide your organization with a means of delivering to your customers an unequivocal and uniform message.

Every successful company has its own "personality," and just as human personalities are complex, so too is your company’s personality. A successful logo is a means of condensing a complex reality into a single, simple statement, one that can be controlled, modified, developed and matured over time.

Your logo needs to be much more than just a distinguishing mark for your company. It must be an indication of quality, value, and reliability.

Does your logo do these things successfully?:

• IDENTIFY your company, product, or service.

• DIFFERENTIATE it from the mass of other similar companies.

• COMMUNICATE information as to your products value and quality.

• ADD VALUE by causing you to provide a quality service in order to maintain your company’s reputation.

• REPRESENT potentially valuable assets. When people see your logo, can they tell by the design that your product or service is of high quality.

If your logo doesn’t do these things, then you might need to update it, possibly seeking professional advice.

Is your logo design really that important?

It is extremely important! Your logo is a part of the foundation on which you build your brand. Especially since the recent explosion of Internet businesses, but even before that, consumers have an overwhelming variety of choices. Chances are that whatever you are selling, there is something similar to it available. Chances are there is someone in direct competition with you right now. Yes, there are very few products that are shielded from direct competition because of a patent or for some other reason.

It is because of this that much of your efforts in marketing and branding should be concentrated on building a distinctive and differentiated "brand personality" for your company.

Take the success of Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola. There is some difference between these two products, but this difference is very subtle. Plus, there are hundreds of other brands of cola on the market. Even so, these two brands, Coke and Pepsi, are able to dominate the world wide cola market. What is the main factor for their success? It is the strength and appeal of their brands.

And what is the foundation for their brands?

It is their powerful Logos!

Your logo is the means by which you can distinguish your products and services and therefore serve both your needs and the needs of your customers.

Ok, so what are the TOP 5 components that make up an excellent logo?

1) Long lasting style.

It is often tempting to adopt a design that looks really cool at the time but that can become outdated very quickly. This leads to the logo being constantly changed. Your logo designer should resist the urge to change your logo unless it is really necessary. It is only after consumers frequently see your logo that people may start to notice it. (Sometimes this is after you are already bored with it)

2) Distinctiveness.

It is interesting to note that many new companies adopt logo styles that are very similar to everyone else’s. Don’t go overboard though, your designer should be sensitive to cultural norms. A really wacko design wouldn’t do well in funeral home. However, you should still seek distinctiveness.

3) Appealing to consumers.

Your logo must be appealing to those who aren’t affiliated with your company. This means you must test your logo. Show it to your customers and see what they think. Ask them what emotions it evokes in them.

4) Conveys the right image.

What image are you trying to get across to your customers? Corporate? Upscale? Franchise looking?

5) Legibility

No matter what you do, if people don’t understand your logo, then it will be ineffective. Who are you trying to target? Where are you going to be displaying your logo other than your web site? Will it be on your letterhead, business cards, auto signs? Does your logo put out the same message no matter where it is displayed.

In conclusion, your logo is central to your company’s "personality". Even if your company has a great personality, if your logo doesn’t convey that, then people may get the wrong idea and never do business with you. Within your logo and company name is held all of your investments, because it is this clear, identifiable aspect of your brand that the consumer uses in selecting your company or purchasing your products.

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The author, Nathan Cain has more ideas that will help your business marketing efforts.

Visit his promotional products web site at http://www.Web-Magnets.com

This month, we wanted to share some general tips relating to your graphic design that we’ve come up with over the past year:

Always include an address on your business card, even if you are operating a small business out of your home — it greatly increases your credibility and makes you look much more established! If you’re concerned about privacy, a Post Office box is a great way to go. When signing up for a Post Office box, consider using a "Mailboxes" store instead of the Post Office — you’ll get a street address instead of the typical "P.O. Box", and the store will accept shipped packages from UPS, FedEx and other carriers for you, so you won’t need to give out your home address as a shipping address.

Never be caught anywhere without business cards again! Carry a supply of cards in your car so that if you can restock when purse or wallet stash runs out. The same applies for brochures, articles, promotional postcards, samples, informational flyers, and presentation folders with information about your company and capabilities — you never know when you’ll have an opportunity to hand them out!

Look for ways to make producing your designed materials less expensive. Need a business card and brochure? Why not combine the two into a folding business card and save on the printing costs? Is your logo designed in so many colors that printing becomes too costly? Try having materials printed digitally by an online printing house like psprint.com or vistaprint.com — they’re often much more cost-effective for materials printed on white paper stock. If you want to print on a specialty paper, consider converting your logo to a one- or two-color version just for your printed materials — unlimited colors on a website don’t cost extra! We’re always thinking up creative ways to save our clients money, and we’re happy to offer many more suggestions like these based on your individual needs — just contact us with your questions.

Do you want the professionalism of having a printed letterhead, but don’t expect to write 500 letters (the minimum quantity for most printers)? There are two options to avoid this: Design a letterhead that can act as a base for your printed invoices, flyers, report or proposal covers, articles, client intake documents and everything else! This way, all of your materials will be professionally branded — and you’ll go through "all that letterhead" quicker than you think! Or, recreate your letterhead design as a Microsoft Word template, so that you can print sheets one at a time from your desktop printer. Just pick up a ream of specialty paper from the local office supply warehouse to avoid that "home printed" look.

If you frequently drive for your business, or if your parking spot happens to be on a busy street, make the most of it by having a set of car magnets designed and printed with your logo, phone number and website address on them — they make a big impact, spread the word all over town and, after the initial investment, it’s free publicity!

We hope these tips help you promote your business.

About the Author

Erin Ferree, Founder and Lead Designer of elf design, is a brand identity and graphic design expert. She has been helping small businesses grow with bold, clean and effective logo and marketing material designs for over a decade. elf design offers the comprehensive graphic and web design services of a large agency, with the one- on-one, personalized attention of an independent design specialist. Erin works closely in partnership with her clients to create designs that are visible, credible and memorable – and that tell their unique business stories in a clear and consistent way. For more information about elf design, please visit: Logo design at http://www.elf-design.com

Look at your company logo. Does it fade into the background against other images you use to promote your company? Has it become dated? Does it still fit with your company vision? Is your message connecting with the customers you want?

Your visual identity is a vital tool in communicating the essence of your business. Before someone even buys a product or service from you, they formulate ideas about the business based on your logo and visual design. Having an identity which works can positively change how your customers perceive your business and put more money in your pocket. Don’t believe me? Think Nike, Apple, Coke, Rolex…the list goes on.

How do you make your visual identity come alive and attract customers to your business?

What is your message?

Businesses change and develop over time, so the message you need to communicate will change too. The first step is to decide what you want to communicate about the changes in your business – maybe the company is more modern in its approach to customers. You can use a new visual identity to communicate this. This can be achieved by a revamp of your logo, design and messaging or a completely new approach to all elements of your identity. Consistency is key when building a brand so when you revamp or change the design of your visual identity you must patiently and continually communicate the changes.

Who are you talking to?

You need to be aware of who your customer base is and if they understand and connect with the current visual identity of the company. Has your audience changed significantly over time? Maybe the current design worked for customers 20 years ago but leaves the new audience cold. Work out who you want to communicate with and what they will respond to. How do you make it last a lifetime?

If you are going to develop a new design then it needs to stand the test of time. You should work with a good designer, who knows current trends and how to avoid anything ultra fashionable that will look dated in a year. A good design should last 20 years and should be solid enough to take slight adaptations or modernisations during this time.

How do you keep your brand intact?

Building a brand takes a long time and needs consistency, repetition and giving customers the service they expect time and time again. You don’t want to alienate your existing customer base by a radical design change that they can’t relate to. If you want a change, consider using elements already in place such as one main colour or image, think about the changes companies like Pepsi and Coke have made over time. A company with a strong logo and visual identity is taking the first step in building an established and profitable brand.

What you ultimately want to achieve is an identity which can evolve over time without noticeable change allowing you to maintain your core identity.

To find out more about making your visual identity come alive contact sales@trulyace.com

The logo and graphic elements that you include on your business card are quite important, but having the right text and contact information on the card is equally important. Here are our tips about the elements to include:

Your name — Consider whether you want to include your middle name or initial, degrees or professional credentials that are unique to your field.

Title — Including a title on your card will help your potential clients to identify your position within your company. Including a title can also make your company seem larger. A reason to not include a title would be if you’re a consultant, and want to market your solo nature as a benefit to your clients.

Address — Always include an address on your business card, even if you are operating a business out of your home. Including your address greatly increases your credibility and makes your business appear established. If you’re concerned about privacy, a post office box is a great way to go. When signing up for a post office box, consider using a commercial mailbox vendor (such as the UPS Store) instead of a box at the United States Post Office. At a mailbox store, you are given a street address instead of the typical "P.O. Box". The store also accepts shipped packages from UPS, FedEx, and other carriers, so you won’t need to give out your home address as a shipping address.

Phone number (and toll-free number) — Include your phone number and, if you do business long distance, consider including an 800 or toll-free number as well, as an amenity for your clients.

Cell phone number — This is an option to consider if you’d like to make your services available to your clients around the clock, or if your business often takes you on the road. If you’d like to keep your cell phone number private, you can do that tactfully by offering to make your cell phone number available to clients once they have signed up for your services — then your clients will feel special and know that you’re taking good care of them.

Fax number — If you have a fax number you should include it on your card. If you rarely receive a fax, or if you don’t know if faxes will be useful in your business, you can try using efax (www.efax.com). This is an online service that can provide you with a free fax number that will email all of your faxes to your email account. They also offer a paid service that is available as an upgrade if the number of faxed pages you receive per month exceeds their free offering. That enables you to upgrade if needed, without changing your fax number and reprinting your cards.

Email address — Your email address is an often-overlooked opportunity to brand your business. Instead of using a generic email address such as "yourname@aol.com" or "yourname@comcast.net", purchase your own branded domain name to use as your email — yourname@yourbusiness.com. It’s inexpensive and easy to set up, especially if you use GoDaddy.com to register your name and set up the new email address to forward to your existing account. This makes your business look larger and more professional.

Website address — A website is a must in today’s business world, even if it’s a simple, one-page site that gives a few paragraphs of information about your business offerings and your contact information. A website offers potential clients an easy, no-pressure way to both learn more about your business, or to refer you to new clients. This is also another way to take advantage of the branded domain name that you set up to use for your email address — using it for your website URL will extend your business brand further.

Tagline — If you have a tagline, including it on your business card will contribute to your branding and memorability, and a graphic treatment of the tagline (font, color and any graphic effects used) can add visual interest to the card as well.

License Numbers — Include your license number if you are required to display them by your industry regulations (i.e., insurance or contractors), or if your being licensed is a benefit that you offer to your clients, or if it differentiates you from your competition.

If you have room on the front, or would like to create a two-sided card, consider adding:

A few bullet points about your business offerings — This provides you with an opportunity to further explain what you do. This is most helpful when your business name is not specific, so potential clients can identify what you can do for them.

Your photo — The people you meet while networking will remember who you are. Putting a face to your business also makes your cards more personal for potential clients. However, we recommend that you do this only if it’s appropriate, or somewhat standard, in your industry (for example, with certain types of coaching, or real estate).

A "next appointment" area — If you often make appointments with clients (for massage therapy or health care, for example), consider printing a line or two on your business cards to make them into appointment cards as well. This makes a lot of sense from a printing standpoint — you’ll be able to print a dual-purpose card for the same price as printing one card design

About the Author

Erin Ferree, Founder and Lead Designer of elf design, is a brand identity and graphic design expert. She has been helping small businesses grow with bold, clean and effective logo and marketing material designs for over a decade. elf design offers the comprehensive graphic and web design services of a large agency, with the one- on-one, personalized attention of an independent design specialist. Erin works closely in partnership with her clients to create designs that are visible, credible and memorable – and that tell their unique business stories in a clear and consistent way. For more information about elf design, please visit: Logo design at http://www.elf-design.com

You wouldn’t skip letterhead when sending out a sales letter - Or would you?

How many emails do you send each day? If you are anything like me, you probably send hundreds of emails for every one print letter. Most businesses use letterhead for their print correspondence but miss out on extending their branding to virtual communications. Shouldn’t you use each email as an opportunity to promote your business?

Don’t ignore the benefits of e-stationary:

1. Consistency – Branding your business is all about perceived image – e-stationary can help maintain a consistent “identity” across all platforms – letterhead, website, e-stationary, etc.

2. Name/ Face Recognition – This is especially important in the industries where it helps if your clients can recognize your name or face – include your picture on your e-stationary for extra emphasis.

3. Differentiation – Email Stationary can set you apart from the competition. Your emails will be professional looking and will set you apart from the competition.

4. Inexpensive and Easy – E-stationary is easy to use and integrates with popular email software applications. Custom designed e-stationary can purchased for less then $100.

5. Always be Marketing – Use your e-stationary for all of your communications, even your personal communications. This will remind friends, colleagues and clients what you do.

Think next time you send an email – Are you doing everything you can to build your brand identity.

© 2004-2005 Tanya Beaudoin o/a Office on Demand, All rights reserved. You are free to use this article in its entirety, as long as you include complete attribution, including live web site link. Please also notify Mrs. Beaudoin as to where the material will appear. The attribution should read: “Tanya Beaudoin, B.A. is a virtual assistant who specializes in e-solutions (including e-stationary) and administrative support for small businesses and non-profit organizations. Please visit Tanya’s web site at http://www.officeondemand.ca for additional business related articles"

There are three main reasons why I would hesitate when deciding to advertise in the local press:

• Everyone else is doing it

• Nobody buys a paper for the adverts

• The odds are it won’t work

Just because everyone else is doing it, doesn’t mean it’s a good thing, or more importantly – that it actually works! However it seems the natural thing to do – you need to raise your profile, make the local community aware of your company, so you why not advertise in the local paper? Well, because…

Nobody buys a paper for the adverts. In fact, do most people buy a local paper these days? As many local papers are free, their only income is through selling advertising space. In fact if you look at the inside cover of a newspaper you’ll see the staff on it. More often than not the ‘sales team’ will out number the reporters 3 to 1. The local paper is not ‘a local’ way for the community to keep up to date with local events, it’s a 100 page selling tool.

Very often when approached by the advertising telesales team, they’ll quote all sorts of readership figures. ‘Well actually the Acme Recorder is distributed to over 50,000 homes and offices’. A very impressive statistic. However, of those 50,000 ‘readers’ how many will actually want an accountant at that specific time their browsing through the paper? How many of them will actually see your advert amongst all the others? How many will actually read your advert, and then REACT to it?

The next time someone gives you these figures, follow it up with this next question:

“What’s the response rate to an advert?”

They won’t be able to tell you. Why? Because this is not important to them. But it’s VITAL for you. The chances are they’ll either admit they don’t know, or they’ll quote a local builder who has a great response (but you’re NOT a builder) or they will come back with something like, “Well people keep advertising with us so I guess it must be working?”

People keep advertising for exactly the opposite reason. It’s not working, so by keep advertising they’ll figure that eventually someone will respond. Wrong. If the advert didn’t work the first time, it won’t work the second time and it certainly won’t work the third time!

The odds are if you still do decide to advertise that the advert itself won’t work. Remember above all else adverts, direct mail etc, should get a reaction from the reader NOW. However most adverts are poorly designed, and that’s okay. You’re a coach, trainer, consultant, professional service business owner…That’s what you do, what you’re good at, designing adverts for maximum impact is probably something you haven’t worked on before.

Other problems you’ll face. Where will the advert be placed? If it’s on the left hand page, studies have shown that it will be noticed a lot less than if it’s placed on the right hand page. Similarly where on the right hand page will it be placed? Again studies have shown that placing the advert on the bottom right hand corner will increase its notice ability more than anywhere else on the page.

These are just a few of the factors you should consider when advertising in the local press. Readership levels are not a measure of response rate, it’s the ability to convert them into paying clients that counts!

Andrew Ludlam is a client attraction expert, and Director of Maverick Marketing Solutions. If you’re deadly serious about maximising the potential of your business, then I urge you to visit http://www.maverickmarketingltd.com and sign up for the monthly ‘Maverick Marketing Solutions Newsletter’… where you’ll also receive the FREE white paper “Six Magnetic Ways To Attract More Clients To Your Business In The Next 90 Days..!" (Value $37)

Warning! This could be the last business marketing website you ever need to see…

McDonald’s buys its potatoes from corporate farmers in Idaho not the commodities market; therefore it limits its exposure to price gouging that might have occurred by using the commodity exchange to get those potatoes. Starbucks is doing the same thing, but instead of having partnerships and coffee beans, they are all of in-house. Its Starbucks owns the partnerships they grew the coffee then they might have a conflict of interest for their stockholders. Because they would be dictating the price of the coffee at the partnerships been sold to Starbucks. If they paid a little more than normal for those coffee beans, so the coffee plantation can expand by better production facilities and upgrade then Starbucks funneled money to those partnerships, that should have either paid in dividends, shown as profits or retained earnings. By doing that their stock price would go up and shareholders would be better served short-term. There is a lot more involved before that food or drink gets to your table. Commodities are very much part of the behind the scenes of our civilization.

McDonald’s has even other things to consider. Its franchisees need to realize economies of scale to pay the extra franchise fee, royalties and price for the potatoes that make the French Fries. If the McDonald’s made a deal long ago to help Ray Kroc’s personal friend expand the production of his potato farm, in turn for loyalty to sell to McDonald’s, then that is totally fair (speaking of Simplot of ID). Even if, McDonald’s pays 2 cents more per potato now. You see, the potato farmer is reaping the rewards for helping Ray Kroc in the beginning; build the McDonald’s brand name. Building a brand name is the most important thing that McDonald’s has today. Sometimes, accounting irregularities do not take in consideration future market domination, marketing strategies, brand name building, and loyalty of partnerships, co-brands, team members and vendors. What we should understand is that anytime you are building a prototype, or trying out a new system, you must reward for potential success. By doing this, with what ever means is possible is important. You have to reward your team. Your team consists of much more than just employees, Just stockholders, and partners.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

When you first start out on your business venture, money is usually tight but you still need to advertise. One of the most affordable, yet very effective, ways to begin your advertising campaign is with flyers. Flyers are simply full page ads that are distributed directly to your potential customers. There are several ways in which they can be distributed.

You can either make the flyers yourself or have them made professionally, which might not be in the budget. There are several points to remember when designing your flyer, just as in writing ads or any other sales copy.

1. You want your flyer to get people’s attention, so don’t just use your boring, standard white paper. Use bright, alive and cheerful colors to bring out the message you are trying to convey.

2. The flyer’s purpose is to sell, not to let everyone know your name. The flyer is not a business card. On the flyer, you want to highlight your problem solving product/service.

For example: Ants a problem in your house. We can get rid of them in just a few hours. No more problem!

3. Use incentives and/or closing dates to get people to act NOW!

Call NOW and get 10% Off our Regular Price! 1-800-ANT-B-Gone

4. Adding a few testimonials to the flyer can also be very effective. Highlight comments of past satisfied customers. List your qualifications as well, making sure to set yourself apart from other similar companies.

5. Another good idea is to encourage referrals. Having a statement such as, " If you are not in need of our product or service, please pass this along to someone who is." You might be pleasantly surprised at how many customers this one line can bring in!

6. Don’t forget about the back of your flyer. Take advantage of this space as well. List some of your specials, sales, more testimonials, incentives, etc.

7. Do not stop at one try. You MUST follow-up!

8. Test your flyers as well. Use different incentives, headlines, paper colors and see which ones get the best response.

9. Distribute your flyers in targeted areas. If you offer a business opportunity, try distributing them at the unemployment office. If you offer weight loss products, visit the local gyms and exercise studios.

There are several ways you can distribute your flyers, once you have designed them and printed them out.

Post your flyers on Public Bulletin Boards found in grocery stores, community centers, banks, post offices, laundromats, etc.

Hand them out outside of targeted buildings such as stores, unemployment office, restaurants, etc. Never push your flyers on anyone. If they hand it back, smile and accept it back. Do not block doorways or sidewalks! If handing flyers out in stores, malls, etc., be sure and get permission.

Parades and other public events are great places to hand out flyers. Do not engage in conversation, just smile and offer the flyers. If they do not take it, move on.

You can also distribute your flyers door-to-door. Leave the flyers on the doorknob, not in mailboxes!

Talk with apartment building owners, real estate offices. People just moving into the area are always in need of this type of information.

Check with your town’s ordinances. Leaving flyers on people’s cars might not be allowed in your city. Be sure and know all local laws before starting your flyer campaign!

Find tons more tips, information and articles at http://www.SeymourProducts.com.

Terri Seymour and her husband Terry also offer a no-cost, non-MLM home business opportunity. They strive to help you build a successful home business. Take advantage of the tips, support, resources, and more for your home & business.

After more than a decade since the last attempt to update the 1970’s Franchise Rule The Federal Trade Commission is at it again. May I ask why we are looking at reviewing these rules for franchising, where no problems exist? Why we are looking to tighten up ambiguities, which over time have occurred in this sector, when we should be dismantling the over regulations choking the industry? Why we are trying make rules upon rules, where no rules are needed since no problem really exits? Why can’t we use the red magic marker approach and start drawing lines thru massive amount meaningless dribble required in these disclosure documents?

Let me explain this philosophical thought for a moment. Recently Mr. Allen Greenspan before the Senate was asked about rules in the securities industries, stock exchanges, broker dealers to curb potential future fraud. He then correctly indicated that once you make a rule, the temptation to make additional rules to close gaps is just too great. Now then are we not sure we are headed down a slippery slope with regards to the litigious nature of the franchising industry, in that the trend in the industry currently is for franchisors to exit the market place.

One Industry Insider, franchising consultant in Houston is recommending this to his major clientele –Stop Franchising. Adding more laws and disclosures will only cause fewer competitors in the market, fewer choices, higher prices all in the name of protecting the now damaged consumer? This means we may deny many their American Dream of owning their own business and those citizens who have their hearts set on it will be severely limited in the number of choices and ways to go into business. Who does this really help; a few more jobs at the Federal Trade Commission? Room for a few more franchising lawyers to bill at a little higher rate? If we reduce the rules, some franchise attorneys will have to move to California to sue for workmen’s compensation, to the northern Midwest to sue for mold or to Cape Cod and specialize in the new emergence of the ever-changing same sex family law there? The attorneys have made millions of dollars in the franchising realm since the 1970’s and in the last decade they have doubled their fees between 1995 and 2005, enough is enough? Think about it.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

If you’re a typical small business, you’ve probably been approached by at least several different radio station sales representatives. In most cases, he or she comes armed with all the latest rating information demonstrating, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that his or her station is number one among just the kind of people who would buy your products or services. She or he will also probably stress how inexpensive radio advertising is vs. TV or even newspaper ads.

Yes, radio spots are cheaper that TV ads and often even cheaper than newspaper ads. But there area few things you need to think about before you sign that radio advertising contract. First, is yours the kind of business that can really profit from radio advertising? Radio commercials are very ethereal. Once the 30 or 60 second spot is over, there is nothing physical for your customers to hang on to. You have to depend on their ability to remember your message long enough to take some action, i.e., either call you or come to your place of business. This means you have to have a very strong and compelling advertising message. This could be a special, and I do mean special, sales event, or some other special promotion.

Second, how many of your prospects will the advertising actually reach? Radio ads are much harder to target than some other forms of advertising because they can be purchased only by demographics such as age. You can pick a station that scores well with people age 18-35, but how many of these 18 to 35-year olds are really prospects for your products or services?

Third, when will your spots actually run? The most expensive radio advertising is called “drive time,” which in most cities is 7:00 to 9:00 AM, and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Drive time gets higher radio ratings because there are so many people in cars listening to their radios as they drive to and from work. The smart radio station sales person probably won’t even try to sell you drive time spots because either they’ve already been sold or because she or he knows you’re most likely to choke at their cost. Instead, they will most likely try to sell you some other combination of times and days. The important thing to know is when your spots will run and how many people will hear your message.

Because radio advertising is so ethereal (see #1, above), you need to do a lot of it to get your message across. This is especially true if you cannot feature a special sales event or some other special promotion.

One of our local jewelers is a good example of what to do when you do not have a special event to promote. The main thrust of his advertising is for engagement rings. Just think about this market. A guy buys only one of these during his entire lifetime (theoretically), and could decide to make his purchase on just about any day of the year. So how do you reach this market? He buys so many commercials, I don’t think a day goes by that I do not hear one of his spots. Sure, it’s expensive, but it’s the only way he can guarantee he will reach a prospect just before he purchases a ring. Plus, he has advertised so heavily and for so long, I don’t think a man in this city could buy an engagement ring without least thinking about this particular jeweler.

I don’t think it makes much sense to run a commercial that requires your prospect to remember a phone number. In most cases, he or she will not be in a position to drop everything, grab a pencil and write down your number. What would be more effective, in my mind, is to use a web address, especially if your web address matches your company’s name. For example, if the name of your store is Great Memories, your web site should be www.greatmemories.com. Repeat this at least a couple of times in your commercial to help prospects remember the name of your business and drive them to your web site. You can then use your web site to provide more your business’s address and phone number, and well as other important information.

The radio station will most likely offer to do your commercial for you free or at a reduced cost. This can be a good deal for you but you must provide the station with a list of “talking points,” or those sales points that must be included in your commercial. For example, your list might include:

Store name = Great Memories (at least twice)|

Store description: Everything for the avid scrapbooker

Web address – www.greatmemories.com (at least twice)

Special sale = all items reduced 30% this week only. Once a year sale. Stock up on your scrapbooking supplies now

Store address: 5600 Brookhaven

Finally, make sure you get to approve the script for your commercial before the station records it. As you review the script, think about your customer and make sure it includes everything necessary to get them to contact you or stop by your store.

Have you heard about HD radio technology? It makes AM sound as good as FM and FM sound almost like you were listening to a CD … and its free! To learn more about this amazing new technology, just go my Web site, http://www.hd-radio-home.com, to get all the buzz. Douglas Hanna is a retired marketing executive and the author of numerous articles on HD radio and family finances.