GET YOUR SMALL BUSINESS FLYING WITH A FLYER

Imran Rashid Khan--

One of the most cost effective and amazing way to market your small business is with a flyer. Flyers are simply full page ads that are distributed directly to your potential customers. A flyer can positively persuade a customer to buy your product, or to use one of your services. With the right approach your small business can yield a great return on investment (ROI) from this tried and trusted marketing tool.

Flyers are most direct form of marketing, because they get straight to the point. Flyers give immediate access to what you are selling. Flyers grab attention with their colors and visuals. Anyone from doctors to web designers are using flyers to market their services, even high end businesses use flyers to promote special events. Flyers are being more and more used as a brand awareness tool. Whenever your flyer reaches somebody your business is introduced to them. They may not make a purchase then, but you will increase your brand awareness, and likelihood that you'll be considered in the future.

The question now remains, should you hire a professional or should you do it yourself? The answer depends on how artistically inclined you are. It may certainly be cheaper, but if you are not experienced in visual presentation you may forget to add important components to your flyer. On the other hand hiring a designer may be comparatively costly, but it will be more efficient. As you will not need to worry about the design choices or color schemes. Whatever the decision may be, make sure that your flyer has a creative design; it is printed on good quality paper and the design abides by theses 9 guidelines so that whatever you are offering will look impressive and be noticed.

1. COLOR

Colors instantly grab attention and communicate your message emotionally, as it affects behaviors. Use the right color to further ingrain your brand message. Below are some examples of what color represents:

RED - Energy, Excitement
GREEN - Freshness, Money, Health
BLUE - Trust, Confidence
YELLOW - Warmth, Cheerfulness
ORANGE - Fun, Optimism
PURPLE - Creativity, Luxury

Whatever colors you choose, make sure they complement each other. Visit ColourLovers  and Visually for more information on colors.

2. FONTS

Selection of a suitable font is very important for a flyer design. Ensure that you select a font which is easily readable from a distance, for example sans-serif fonts.  Font size is very important, so make it large enough for the reader to read it from at least 2 feet away. Use one font for headlines and the other one for details.

3. YOUR LOGO

Logo is part of branding your small business, so make sure it is placed strategically on your flyer. It can either be placed on the top or at the bottom corner, near your business name and address.

4. YOUR CONTENT

Make sure whatever the reason you have the flyer, be sure to spell it out and explain to the reader what is important. Get to the point straight away, but still give them enough information to get them attracted.

5. YOUR VISUALS

Include images and illustrations that convey your message with the text. Be careful as less is more; don't clutter your flyer with too many images, as it will distract the attention from your message. Choose a large image to match your content's message.

6. WHERE TO FIND YOU

If you have a shop then add the address, contact number so that you’re potential customers know where you are located and are able to find you easily. Be sure to add directions or a small map that shows your location at the bottom of the flyer near your address information.

In addition to that add your email address and your website address. Create a welcome landing page of the flyer on your website, to further explain your offerings.

7. CALL TO ACTION

Create a call to action space on your flyer to entice the customers. Make it clear and bold so that the reader will respond to the offer sooner rather than later.

Branding Your Business

Branding Your Business - Freelance WorkTips

As more and more companies enter the marketplace, many of them small businesses, it’s more important than ever to rise above the competition and establish your reputation. To do this the businesses need to start establishing their brand. The value of your brand sets the benchmark for your marketing potential.
If there are 100 other web designers, or 20 other caterers working in your area, how will you make sure that clients choose you over your competitors? The only way is to create a brand which will allow your target audience to actually look your way and see what you have to offer.

First of all let’s get the definition of brand and branding down. A Brand is a collection of words, images, and ideas which represent and identify a business.

Branding is the process of integrating a company’s brand into everything they do.

Branding is a complete packaging of your business going in the website, emails, promotional videos, letterheads, business cards, etc., but keep in mind that branding is not just your logo, your website or, your business name it’s what your customers perceive about you. With the right branding you can invoke trust, build loyalty and connect with your customers emotionally.

Branding preferably should be done in the early stages as it allows you to jump start on some marketing activities therefore, branding your business should not be taken lightly.

If you own a startupbusiness and planning to make it big in the industry, here are some tried-and-tested tips that will help you establish your brand.

Brand Strategy

Branding is one of the most important aspects of your business, large or small. An effective brand strategy gives you a major edge in increasingly competitive markets.

Your brand is your promise to your customer. It tells them what they can expect from your products and services, and it differentiates your offering from your competitors. Your brand strategy is how, what, where, when and to whom you plan on communicating and delivering on your brand messages. Where you advertise is part of your brand strategy. Your distribution channels are also part of your brand strategy. And what you communicate visually and verbally are part of your brand strategy, too.

Defining Your

Once you've created your brand strategy, the next step is how to define your brand. Here are a few simple tips:

Know your audience:

Your audience is one of the most important factors to consider when putting up a business simply because they are the ones who will buy your product.

Therefore, it is important that you familiarize yourself with your target market, so that you can tailor your products and services according to what they need and want.

Identify your competition:

As the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. What it implies in your situation is that you have to identify who your competition are in the market, and then look at their strengths and weaknesses. Look out for areas where you can develop something better or eliminate or minimize your flaws.

Get a great logo: 

Your logo is the face of your brand, so get a logo which incorporates your brand message so that your target market will like and never forget it. Place it everywhere.

Create a website:

Whether you are an online business or a brick-and-mortar shop, create a website for your business. Your website will help not only to showcase your products but also help you to interact with your customers easily. In your website, you can have an about page, your product or services page, a testimonial page, a contact information page, and even an order form page for convenient transactions. Just make sure it resonates your brand message.

Blog regularly:

As an entrepreneur, part of your job is to keep your customers updated not just about your products/services but also of the industry you represent, you can accomplish these by regularly publishing blog posts on your website.

Write about your new products/services or communicate to your customers the latest industry-related event and happenings through a short feature article. If your products require assembly or specific instructions, you can also make tutorials in video format to assist your customers.  The idea here is to provide content that your customers will find highly useful and relatable.

Engage in social media:

To connect with your customers better and learn what they think, establish an active online presence by creating accounts on popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Build your online community, and engage them in virtual conversations.

Your customers are the best judge of your products so ask them for feedback, When they do, don’t forget to thank them for their time and if possible give them some incentives/freebies.

This way, you’ll get to know your customers more and improve your products/services based on their opinion.

Integrate your brand:

Branding extends to every aspect of your business – be it your website, emails, promotional videos, letterheads, business cards, Social Content,Blog,etc

Your brand should be applied in all written communication and incorporated in the visual imagery of all materials, online and offline. Use the same color scheme, logo placement, look and feel throughout. Be consistent and create brand standards for your marketing materials. 

Be consistent:

Customers won't return to you,or refer you to someone else if you don't deliver on your brand promise. So the most important tip above all is consistency. If you can't do this, your attempts at establishing a brand will fail.

Check out the interesting infographic by webs.com below to learn what elements you need to help your brand stand the test of time.

As always you are welcome to post your questions and comments below.

Have a great and prosperours life.

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