October 27, 2011

Creating A Small Business Logo That Doesn’t Suck

You’ve got a game changing, teeth rattling idea. You’ve come up with the perfect name for your business. You think you’ve got everything covered. And that’s when you realize you need a logo.

You could contact local advertising agencies but there’s a pretty good chance you won’t be able to afford them. You could try freelancers but that would mean you’d have to sift through dozens (if not hundreds) of designers before you finding the one you want. You could design the logo yourself but, since you aren’t a designer, that’s probably not such a good idea.

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October 26, 2011

Creating A Unique Brand And In-Store Experience

Small businesses spend a ton of time marketing to potential customers just so they can get them to walk through their front door. But it’s often what happens once they actually walk in that front door that determines whether they’ll become a loyal customer or just a one-time shopper. Recently, I had a chance to check out Big Dog Coffee and I have to say they did a bang-up job creating a unique brand and in-store experience.  

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October 18, 2011

Shopify’s Kickass Build A Business Contest

Have you been thinking about creating an online store but find yourself spinning your wheels, either not sure where to start or whether you can even afford it? Well, thanks to the folks at Shopify, an Ottawa-based e-commerce software startup, all that’s about to change.

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October 12, 2011

How To Say Thank You To Your Small Business Customers

As a customer, when is the last time a small business (or any sized business for that matter) reached out to you to thank you for your patronage. As a small business owner, when is the last time you reached out to thank your customers for giving you a chance to work with them--something more than a “Thank You for Shopping with Us” sign over your front door? If it happens at all, I’m guessing you’d agree that it doesn’t happen enough.

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October 5, 2011

Dysfunctional Small Business Followership Strategies

In a race to amass as many followers as humanly possible, in the early days of Twitter small business owners relied heavily on the tried and true approach of “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.” And although the days of boldly and openly proclaiming “follow me and I’ll follow you back” in profiles and automated direct messages are pretty much over, to my surprise they still pop up every now and again. When they do, it gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling inside—the kind that makes me feel really special.

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