General

Twitter Business (The Use of Twitter for Small Businesses)

On October 24, 2013   /   General   /   Leave a comment

Ever since its origins in 2006, Twitter has been proven time and time again as a powerful resource for information and community outreach. There are some important things to know when working to grow your Twitter business brand from the Twitter2_C_3ground up. Unlike Facebook, Twitter requires more of a commitment and active participation in the community. Here are some things you will need to know:

Acquaint Yourself with the Platform

Observe how other businesses send out information and when. Learn how to utilize hashtags (#hashtags) and see if there are any relevant ones that relate to your business. Follow some other people who have similar goals. And always be sure to check up on your account at least a couple times a day.

Make Sure Your Followers are up-to-date on Things

Twitter excels in terms of its ability to spread information very quickly. If you are running a special, be sure to post it. Possibly post it a few times, just to make sure anyone who is interested can stay informed. You can also use Twitters quickness factor for anything else that needs to go out immediately as well (such as events, schedule changes and so on).

Get Creative

Don’t be afraid to try things and go ahead and be creative with your tweets. Some of the more successful twitter campaigns emerged simply by experimenting and seeing what worked. Twitter is an open platform for anyone to spread work and share ideas, take the initiative and make your brand a part of that experience.

Hashtags are Your New Best Friend

The explosion of hashtags across media has made them even more powerful. To elaborate, hashtags are a number symbol followed by a word (ex. #TBT). Essentially, hashtags are used to promote specific products, events or days giving the twitter communities involvement and input on things going on.
For example, every Friday people are encouraged to promote other Twitter users in the hopes of them doing the same for you and making yourself more involved. This occurrence is known as “Follow Friday” and whenever someone tweets about someone they want you to follow the hashtag #FF is somewhere in the post.

Network, Network, Network

You never know when something or some person will come in handy. Always be sure to welcome an opportunity to exchange information with someone else on Twitter who is in a similar situation or industry as you. Together you might even be able to work together or advertise one another and increase the exposure for both of you exponentially!

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Can A Small Business Blog Increase Website Visits?

On September 27, 2013   /   Branding - Marketing, General   /   Leave a comment
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computer screen with connection graphics website design with list of blogging basics: • Integrate your blog with your website. • Include tags in your posts. • Include comments on your blog.  • Promote your blog.  • Include share buttons in your blog. Absolutely! A corporate or small business blog is one of the best ways to share information about your products and services, current events and sales promotions or press your organization has received. A happy accident of sharing this information is that your company blog posts add relevant content to your website which offers a better chance of appearing in search engines such as Google and Yahoo. A third benefit is when you add scheduled corporate blog posts your small business website will get higher marks from the search engines because not only is the content relevant, it is current. Relevant plus fresh content equals SEO (search engine optimization) or higher search results.
Not every visitor who comes to your website from a search may result in a phone call or a sale but like all advertising, marketing and sales, it’s a numbers game. The more people who engage with your blog and your corporate website the more likely you will enjoy increased company sales from your blogging. By posting relevant blog content you become the trusted source for your visitors and existing customers for information on your product or industry.

Proactive planning can determine how often you should post a new blog entry

editorial-calendar-graphic-connectiongraphics.comThere really is no on-size-fits-all formula for small business blog posting, anymore than there is a one-size-fits-all marketing plan for small business. It really depends on the goals you have set for your digital marketing. It also depends on how much time you have to feed your blog or the budget to outsource it to an marketing company.
Now, there are success stories about small business blogs that have become income generators in and of themselves.  If your corporate blog attracts 1000’s of daily website visits you may want to plan daily blog posts. However most small business blogs primarily serve as information tools, and as a portal to add relevant website content to increase website visits through SEO. The way Connection Group approaches client blog scheduling is to determine the role of the blog in each small business marketing plan. We recommend creating an editorial calendar for your blog posts. Our e-marketing packages that include blog posting, e-mail newsletters, and social media we develop a monthly plan. For instance if your company hosts an event for small business owners every January all of the content scheduled for the month of January will include information about the event. All of this will be in your editorial calendar. Including your blog updates in a small business editorial calendar helps you know what you will be covering each month and will help keep you on a schedule. Whether you write blog posts daily, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly a plan is a must.

Embrace the power of content on your small business blog

Each blog post should offer insight into your corporate philosophy, industry standards, details on a product or service you offer, or changes that may effect the customer. Seek content that will increase the visitors understanding of the subject. Help your customers make educated choices and purchases. Just as the visitors to your small business blog are researching, be sure to research the content for your corporate blog posts. Research but no stealing! Sharing the most current information available is important just avoid plagiarizing others work.
When you are satisfied with the information you have written for your blog post, add an image. Statistics from 3M corporation and Zabisco state that 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual, and visuals are transmitted to the brain 60,000 times faster than text! Increase your website visits by using original graphic designs, photos or videos to connect and engage with your audience. Select only images that that are free from copyright. See the article in our e-newsletter about copyright issues and images.

Your blog is posted – Now, how do you increase your website visits?

integrate your blog with your website blog and navigationIntegrate your blog with your website
The first step is to make sure your small business blog  part of your corporate website, not a separate page. There are many free blogging software options available and it is very easy to tie them into your existing small business website. Contact your web design and development company to create a seamless integration of your blog and corporate site. The biggest benefit is if you have a visitor to your blog, in the eyes of search engine tracking, you have just increased website visits. Other benefits are a custom designed blog will be consistent with your corporate brand and your complete website user interface is built into the blog so the visitor can easily click over to other website pages.
Include tags in your posts. Tags help people find your information more easily when they are searching the web. For instance for this blog entry on our website I would include small business blog, and small business website design and development as tags. Because we offer those services and those services are discussed in this blog adding them as tags show our website and our blog are relevant when people search for small business blog or small business website design and development. When visitors click on a tag in our posts they will see a list of previous posts that relate to those subjects.
Include comments on your blog. Comments show that you are open to feedback, good or bad. Allowing comments on your blog shows your visitors that you want to communicate with your customers. Comments may also help you determine what your visitors are looking for, give you ideas for future articles, and  comments may use keywords that will come up in searches too. Do make sure you moderate your comments though! Even with strong spam filters blogs are petri dishes for spam – check them regularly. We set up our comments to be pre-approved prior to posting just for this reason. As visitors begin to interact with comments you will build a community and advocates for your brand on and offline.
share buttons for blogInclude share buttons in your blog. Make it easy for viewers to share your website content. One share from a high ranking social media influencer can increase website visits astronomically. The ability to share across social media and email is how videos and blog entries go viral – this is an easy way small business blogs can get noticed.
Promote your blog. When you have posted a new blog entry promote your blog in all your marketing outposts. Social media is a great platform to share your blog posts, twitter, Facebook business pages, Linkedin profiles and industry specific groups and social media channels get the information to targeted groups. Include your blog link in your email signature and add a snippet of your current blog posts to your email newsletters.

Are you a small business who doesn’t have time to blog?

Connection Group understands that small businesses are limited with time and resources to implement all the marketing components that will help build their corporate brands and increase website traffic. We have developed a variety of e-marketing packages to suit the variety of requests our customers need. We’re here to help you build connections and reach your target audience – if you just need a monthly blog entry, a combination of e- mail marketing, social media and blog management we have monthly packages that will suit your small businesses goals and budget. We offer a free half hour consultation to discuss what digital marketing elements will fit you best.
Give us a call or shoot us an email today. We appreciate feedback on our blog content and encourage additional insights readers can share to help other visitors learn more. Please add your comments or questions below.
Stay connected!

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Google Images Are Not Free Use… and Other Copyright Issues

On September 26, 2013   /   General   /   Leave a comment
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Charlotte Area Biking Walking Map - Connection Group
A copyright is a form of Intellectual Property as are patents and trademarks. Copyrights are the most common form of we encounter in everyday business and personal use. We learned about copyright and plagiarism when compiling our first report for grade school. The same rules apply with internet content.  You research multiple sources to gain an understanding of the subject or a clear visual and then interpret it in you own words or creation. When you add a direct quote or paraphrase content, seek permission and include the credit where it occurs and also at the end.

When you use photos or graphics do your best to contact the original creator to get permission for use and always name the artist underneath the image. We often have customers send us images they have found in Google Images. Unless you have permission to use these visuals from the original artist they are not legal for use in your digital or print marketing pieces. I know Google makes it really easy, one search and you find the most awesome artwork ever! But hands off unless you want to get slapped with a copyright infringement.

If hiring a photographer or a graphic design studio to create original images is not in your budget for small projects, there are other options online. Many stock photo websites have visuals, including videos, that companies can purchase for use in their blogs, websites and corporate marketing pieces. The graphics and photos vary in size, resolution, cost, plus have levels of permissions and use. Be sure to read agreements closely prior to purchasing and downloading. Most of the restrictions with stock art is that you do not use it for use on items you will be reselling. For instance an original rendering of an owl you purchase and download can be used on your website, brochure, and all your company brand items however you may not be able to print greeting cards with the same owl on it and offer them for resale. Connection Group holds some subscriptions to a few stock art sites and if you are looking for a particular subject Connection Group may be able to purchase them for your use and save you from the sometimes high cost of subscriptions that you don’t plan to use frequently.

Knowing the high amount of copyright abuse on the website you may want to add the copyright symbol and user agreement on your website. Obtaining copyrights for your original work is easy and inexpensive. Go to copyright.gov and for $35 you can apply for legal ownership of your creations online. Having a copyright on your website or printed piece doesn’t ensure your original work will not be stolen, but it does give you legal grounds to take legal actions if you find someone has infringed on your copyright.

For more answers to common copyright questions this page has a pretty comprehensive list. Otherwise, if you don’t know – don’t do it.

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The Goal for Your Small Business Marketing is to Connect

On September 8, 2013   /   Branding - Marketing, General   /   Leave a comment
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authentic marketing imagesThere are so many blog entries, emails and webinars titled “The top 10 Things To Do To Market Your Business “. We have posted or shared a few in social media ourselves. It’s a catchy title that does well with search engines and covers some general steps important to all small business marketing.
The articles declare ‘You must post the exact amount of recommended Facebook posts each day, you must use an animal in your logo, you must create YouTube videos till the break of dawn, you must kiss every baby…’ because that is what the most popular marketing guru of today said you should do.
There really is no one-size-fits-all marketing plan for any business. Will a turquoise tupperware cereal bowl look good in all of our kitchens? No, and tupperware knows this, so they offer web and print catalogs to see other colors and size options to suit the need of each customer. Each industry, including marketing, serves the client best when it is personally customized to fit the true need.

The best small business marketing methods are authentic, sustainable, and focused.

Understanding these three concepts will help you reach your small business marketing goals plus save you time and money. Instead of clothing yourself in someone else’s wardrobe, do your homework and determine what will suit you and your customer best for the long term.

Create an authentic small business marketing message by being yourself

  • Can you add humor to a technical demonstration to help people understand it better?
  • Do you work best with people one on one? Set up individual appointments instead of group meetings
  • Are you an energetic people person? Networking groups will be a great place to start making connections
  • Are you a natural teacher? Seminars or webinars can demonstrate your skill and desire to help others.

Establish sustainable small business marketing practices

  • Don’t make promises or claims you can’t keep. The most valuable customer is the repeat customer. Your company and your product or service needs to deliver on your promise.
  • Be realistic, how much time do you have to do marketing tasks each month? Can you handle 10 social media posts each day or attend all the meet and greets in town, every month?
  • Look closely at your budget. Do you have $200 dollars to allocate to your monthly marketing or $2000? A budget spread out each month throughout the year to build consistency in key media will show a greater return than spending a large chunk for a one time promotion.

Your communications are focused and connected

  • Start with a plan, don’t throw ideas at the wall to see what sticks, take time to develop a small business marketing plan that can be updated each year
  • All small business marketing materials are presented with constant brand messaging
  • Determine results, review reports, remember to ask new customers how they heard about your company.

Your small business marketing needs to stand out from the mlieu to compete with large big box stores, and large corporations. The best news is small businesses have the advantage to make personal connections with your customers and develop brands that are that are sustainable and profitable.
Stay connected!
Other marketing blogs of interest:
Raising a puppy and building a brand ain’t what it use to be.
Media Savvy Business Marketing

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Email Scam for printing quotes and other fakes

On August 27, 2013   /   General   /   18 Comments
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computer screen showing email template - send email buttonIf you have received a scammer email, or ‘sold’ an item to a scammer, please enter the senders email in a comment below. Others who receive the email can search the email address and find this thread and be forewarned.
The post for August blog entry was suppose to be Pinterest – Pinning for Profit: How to Maximize Traffic and Sales through Pinterest. However, in the last few days we have been reminded of the proliferation of scams in today’s digital world and we decided to pose a few words of caution.
We are a marketing and graphic design firm in Lansing Michigan area specializing in Brand Marketing. We also provide print estimates for businesses print marketing. We have an email on our website for visitor inquiries and we also have an online estimate form. The online estimate form is protected from spammers by a captcha which helps filter the real from the fake inquires. However, it is not fail proof, nor is the email link on the website.
In the last week we received these second email this year from a Rick Barry seeking a printing estimate. Now, we provide printing quotes and print services but we are primarily a marketing and design firm. Customers do not usually just call on us for a printing quote. Our existing customers may request print estimates for the graphic design projects we have developed for them but seldom do we have someone contact us just for printing. That was my first red flag. The next caution was there was no contact information other than the email they sent form (scammers usually use a free email service like g-mail, hotmail, yahoo, etc., and lastly there was no company name given anywhere in the message.
My initial thought was this was another print service company phishing for prices (yes, it happens in every industry). Upon further research we discovered this is a wide spread scam. Had we provided a quote the scam would be for them to accept it and send us a pdf to print from. They then provide us credit card billing information. As the project moves forward some emergency will come that requires a shipment out of the country and they insist on using a specific shipping company that, of course that comes up with an exorbitant shipping cost, that then is added to the bill and they have you charge it all to one credit card. Within a few days the card is charged back to you and you are stuck with shipping fees, taxes, paper and employee time to prepare the project.
Some of the other names associated with this particular scam are: joshuaandsonsinc1@yahoo.com, jsperling45@yahoo.com, rickbarry55@gmail.com, david.may55@gmail.com, baron.davis89@gmail.com, zimlinefreightco@rediffmail.com, atlanticgoose@usa.com, david.may55@gmail.com,

Other cautions to avoid online scams:

  1. Look at the-mails you receive – especially those that say the purchaser has paid you. Look to see where those have come from. If it says “You have received money from ___@___.com via Paypal. Make sure the actual email is from Paypal an email address. Even if it has a Paypal or recognized logo – the scammer can get that off any website and recreate an email with the stolen logo.
  2. If there is no artwork provided and they place the order for a printing project.
  3. They don’t ask questions or negotiate. Everyone trys to negotiate price these days or asks about payment structure, etc. when they are ready to place an order.
  4. Be wary of any excuses or emergencies that come up during the process.
  5. If you receive unsolicited inquiries about services you typically don’t provide at random.

paypal-screen-cap
 
So friends, be careful. Not just with online print estimates but with selling products online, even if it is just an occasional item on CraigsList or Facebook. If you are selling to someone you do not know, don’t ship anything, don’t accept any form of payment other than cold hard cash or a cashier’s check. If you accept a credit card payment, look at the processing time the merchant takes to confirm the payment before shipping the product. Just this week a family member was taken for $900.00 through CraigsList for a MacPro she was trying to sell. She received an email noting that the recipient had deposited the payment in her Paypal account so she shipped the laptop. Unfortunately the payment never ended up in the account. The scammer gave a ton of reasons why the payment wasn’t showing up, blaming Paypal, saying she would ship the MacPro back… now there is no computer and no $900.00. I have advised her to contact authorities here and where she shipped it… we’ll see…

Be Proactive Against Scams for Printing Quotes and others:

  1. If they change the delivery from pick up to shipping. Check the address in Google maps or Mapquest, etc.
  2. Search their name, email and other information online
  3. Be wary of those who have honorable or religious designations; Reverend, Honorable, etc. Scammers try to play on the sympathies of their targets.
  4. Check with snoops.com and other online sites to see if there have been other reports.

When you hear of these scammers, post their emails, phone numbers, names online – everywhere! Add them in comments below! It doesn’t have to just be the printers scam. The more we publicize specific scams and the scammers names, emails and tactics the more others can be protected.
Stay connected

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Get in Front of Your Target Customer with Direct Mail

On July 30, 2013   /   General   /   Leave a comment
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direct mail branding postcard examplePrint is not dead! On the contrary print marketing has seen a resurgence over the last year. Although printing is expensive and direct mail postage adds even more costs, when crafted properly direct mail campaigns and print materials can be a cost effective solution to get in front of your target market.
We hear more and more how businesses are challenged with the many marketing options available to them today. Should they advertise on Facebook? Should they continue to pay monthly for an ad in a reference book that nobody seems to look at anymore? Should they create a monthly direct mail campaign of postcards highlighting specials or company services?
Then there are the internet marketing options; social media, blogs, and websites. All of these marketing opportunities can be overwhelming and the most important factor, your target audience, can be difficult to capture. If the only customer you are seeking is the twenty something or under, internet marketing solutions along with some tv spots are a viable approach. However, if your business target market includes people over the age of 30, you may want to consider combining your internet marketing campaign with a direct mail campaign.
Depending on your offer, message, and target audience Connection Graphic can suggest the best format, develop the content, and determine the approach – all with consideration to your time and budget. Maybe you have a comprehensive mailing list that you can reach out to with a direct mail campaign? Or maybe you are trying to reach a specific neighborhood or segment of the city? We can craft direct mail pieces that suit your needs and gets in the hands of your audience. Postcards are an economical choice and since there are no envelopes hiding the message an eye-catching design is hard to miss – even in an often full mail box. A well designed, colorful direct mail piece is always more welcome than a bill too! Give us a call today to schedule a 30 minute complimentary consultation. Or submit contact information here.
Call today to take advantage of August 2013, 15% discount on postcard design and printing 517-645-4387.

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New Responsive Website Design for Book – Discovering Michigan County by County

On June 27, 2013   /   General, Graphic Design and Web design   /   Leave a comment
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New homes page of Discovering Michigan County by County website.

New version of book website design by Connection Group

Screen cap of Discovering Michigan County by County website.

Original screen cap of the website.

Connection Group is pleased to share a recently completed responsive website design for books. Take a look at the before and after images of the customized website design utilizing a WordPress back CMS. The original book website was initially designed by a company that utilizes templates for their customer websites and author Barbara Vandermolen wanted a more customized, contemporary,  website that would function well and still reflect high quality. Connection Group had so much fun going through all the beautiful photography the author has gathered through her over six years of research. Photography, design, and visuals can make or break a responsive website design or print marketing items and Connection Group staff is in heaven when we can play with a catalog of images at this level.
This fabulous book is full of these gorgeous photos in full color that show off the wonders of Michigan County by County. Author Barbara Vandermolen celebrates her home state of Michigan by paying homage to each county in this recently released book “Discovering Michigan County by County” Your A-Z Guide to each of the 83 counties in the Great Lakes State. This tome is  616 pages of pure beauty. The photos alone will hold your interest and attract visitors to the fine Pure Michigan state. The author cleverly outlined each of the 83 chapters to feature details of  every county in Michigan. Each chapter is an A-Z Guide of the county. “A” highlights agriculture, “B” features Bridges or Boats, etc. This informative book is a great find for travelers and residents alike. Clearly Barbara’s effort was a labor of love and Connection Group was honored to work with her to create a new website design that represents the quality Barbara has strived for and reached with this beautiful book. Read more or purchase the book.

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Top 10 Tips for Creating A Great Business Card Design

On April 22, 2013   /   General, Graphic Design and Web design   /   Leave a comment
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Business card sample of Bear Creek MaintenanceBusiness cards are still the best and most cost effective form of advertising your business or freelance work. The surest way to stand out like a start up is to say “I don’t have a business card yet.” The next best way to scream novice is to have a  business card design that looks like you designed and printed it yourself.
A business card design should quickly and clearly communicate what your business is. Creating a great business card design that will stay in the forefront of a prospect’s mind says it is customized for you and your company.

  1. Be Clear – Choose a font that is clearly legible. You don’t have to stick to the same standard fonts that are on everyone’s computer. Choose a font with personality that suits your brand just be sure it can be read. Print a proof at 100% size and have a variety of people read it. Don’t close out the senior market because they can’t read your card!
  2. Keep It Clean – A business card should not replace your brochure or website. Add contact information, a tag line if you have one or a coupled of products and services you offer. If you choose to add all of your products and service or other information, consider using the second side of the business card.
  3. Stand Out  – Nothing helps build a brand quicker than a custom logo design. Nothing beats a brand image that demonstrates your commitment to quality, and quickly communicates who you are like a professional logo design. Choose colors that are noticeable and suitable to your brand.
  4. Cover It – It’s important to include all points of contact. Include your company name, your name,  phone number(s), address, email and website. Include the best phone number for customers to reach you. If you don’t want to list your cell or fax number, it is not necessary. Web or home based businesses do not need to include addresses on their cards if they prefer. For independent company representatives, it is good practice to include the corporate headquarters address.
  5. Hold On – Compare the weight of the paper from business cards you have received. Which ones feel best? A flimsy stock will not hold up over time and can easily be lost. Choose card stock, preferably 12 pt and up.
  6. Finish Strong – A gloss- or UV-coated stock is more durable than an uncoated sheet, but it also shows finger prints and glare in high light. An uncoated or matte finish business card stock is more understated. A graphic designer or printer can help you determine which can suit your brand best.
  7. Add Value – Include a coupon, a calendar or dates to remember to encourage the recipient to hold on to your card. Add these to the back of the card so as not to compete with your contact information on the front.
  8. Look Closely – Whether you do it yourself or outsource design, make sure someone who hasn’t been a part of the design process proofs it before it goes to print. Call the phone numbers listed, check the emails and website URLs before printing your business cards.
  9. Show Off – Photos are a custom touch to business cards. Realtors, consultants and professional speakers business card designs benefit greatly by including their image. A picture offers recall for many years after a meeting; just be sure to use a current photo. You can also use a photo of your product, a shot of your corporate office building (if it is attractive), or a photo or graphic that is connected to your industry.
  10. Convey Class  – A business card from your desktop printer screams low standards. Plus inkjet prints dissolve before your eyes with any contact with water!  Full color business cards printed professionally are very economical and show you are committed to presenting your business in the highest class.

There are a few free business card design websites that offer hundreds of pre-made business card design templates. These sites often offer very inexpensive (sometimes free printing). For start up companies on limited budgets, this seems like a great solution. So thousands or companies utilize these business card templates – every day. I remember attending a networking event one evening where I brought back four business cards that were exactly the same design, same ink colors, same logo, etc. and they were all for a different company (and in some cases a different industry). Customize your business card to have top-of-the-mind awareness. If you are a commercial builder, you don’t’ want to be confused with the unlicensed home remodeler in your town because you are distributing the same business card designs.
Connection Group offers custom business card designs as an individual service and as part of our graphic design packages. Call us today for a business card design consultation. We can provide individual business card designs and cards for all of your staff and contractors. We’re happy to brainstorm unique added value ideas including calls to action and informational tips to help people hold to and continue to reference them. Receive
Fay's Evelyn Bay Coffee Shop Business Card  Phoenix Advisors Business Card samples  KISSolution Business Card Sample - Tammey Wine

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10 Tips – DIY Small Business Logo Design

On March 26, 2013   /   Entrepreneurs - Small Business, General, Graphic Design and Web design   /   1 Comment
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For some people, putting together a DIY small business logo design is easy. Anyone with a computer and software can do it. Can you believe a person built a logo in Microsoft Excel?
It’s often too easy to distinguish a professional logo design from a DIY small business logo design. These tips can save you grace, time, and money.

charlie's-bar-and-grill-logos1. Color Can Cost You

Remember that your digital logo is in RGB. For professional printing purposes, you will need it converted to the CMYK color ink model. For specialty advertising, promotional products, labels, etc., you’ll get a better price if you use spot or pantone (PMS) colors instead of 4-color process printing. Save money and time by making sure you have all formats in place before ordering printing, creating displays, etc. Learn more about the color models in our recent blog post: DIY Graphic Design – Reproducing Your Small Business Logo Design and DIY Design: How to Choose Colors for Your Small Business Logo and Brand.

2. Can You See Me Know?

Your screen is right in front of you and possibly blown up 1000 percent larger than an actual business card. Make sure your logo is legible when it is reduced to fit clearly on a business card. Print at 100% to check legibility.

3. Consider Old Eyes

Depending on who your small business is marketing to, you’ll want to remember that as the population gets older, eyes can’ distinguish certain colors on top of similar colors. Make sure to balance and contrast colors especially when you are placing color on color.

4. Match Your Font Personalities

wirth-and-fedewa-construction-logo-designNow that you are a designer, it is no longer ‘type.’ Instead, we are sculpting with fonts. My first caution is to please not treat them like they are shoes. ‘The more, the merrier’ doesn’t apply to fonts. We must limit ourselves. Too many styles will appear erratic.
Choose a font that is legible from a distance. This doesn’t mean it has to be simple or boring. A stylish font that communicates clearly establishes a  brand.
Which style feels right for your business? A flowing script, or a vintage schoolhouse font for a bridal shop logo? Solid bold sans serif, or edgy and grungy for a manufacturing firm logo? Choose what fits and keep it clean.

5. Logo Size Matters

Your computer screen is 72 dots per inch (DPI). To reproduce a logo that is clean and crisp when printed professionally, your logo needs to be at least 300 dpi. As a guide for business card, brochure or pocket folder printing, your logo file should be 300 dpi by a minimum of 4” tall. Don’t worry about the width as long as it is equal or larger than 4”. For small business exhibit design and other sign designs including vehicle graphics, I say go as big as you can with your logo file – vehicle wraps cover a lot of area, you want your logo to be crisp and clean even at 8” if it is called to.

6. Use Effects with Caution

Be careful with effects that overwhelm your font or graphics. Effects often use shadowing that may distort your business logo when printed or when it is enlarged on a screen that’s bigger than the original. Don’t let your small business logo look as though it’s from a horror film. Unless it is a horror film.

7. No Stealing!

OMGosh get your hands out of the Google images cookie jar! I know everything looks so good in there but you just can’t have it.
Fortunately, there are plenty of clip art resources and stock photos sites available. You probably have some installed with your software. Don’t get crazy and use the same stick person image from Microsoft Office that millions have used in their logos since the 90s’. Be unique, how can you change a stock graphic to make it your own?
There are free resources for stock images online and some with fees that have limits on use. Read use terms carefully. Be careful and respectful,  and follow online copyright law.

original cartoon illustration logo8. Eye-Catching Original Graphics

Using graphics in a small business logo design is a great way to help your logo design stand out. If your artist  (wife, kid, guy you met at church…) draws a logo graphic for you, the bigger the original, the better. When you scan the logo into your computer, scan it at 100%. If it is a digital illustration the original should be saved at a high resoluton from it’s native application.
An original illustration of a house for a custom home builders logo that is only 1” wide will not reproduce well once it is blown up to fit the side of a vehicle. A small original may also limit how much color can be added. Be sure the style suits the message you want to Not a DIY small business logo design but a logo for Custom Home Builder logo designportray for your small business.

9. Admit When You Need Help

If you find you are spending every weekend for a month researching and designing and restarting to design a logo for your small business, stop.  Think about the value you place on your time as a busy small business owner. Instead, put in a few hours doing what you are skilled at and take the money you made to pay a professional.

10. Honest Feedback

Most important of all, get feedback on your design. Share ideas with your family, friends, people who know nothing about your business and people who know you and that you respect.
Please don’t ask a professional graphic designer for an opinion on your DIY small business logo design unless you are ready to hear the truth. I love it when I can say, it works; good balance and choice of colors, etc. When there are issues… and  you already told me your daughter designed it for you… I’m in a bad spot.  The designer in me knows it’s my job to create strong brand identities. The human says, I can’t squash a kid or a parent’s dream. Prepare yourself to hear the professional truth, maybe don’t have your daughter in the meeting!

Start your DIY small business logo design

All the best on your business endeavor and enjoy creating your DIY small business logo design and honing brand message!

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