Cathy Stucker - The Idea Lady

Attract Customers and Make Yourself Famous

Pictures Worth a Thousand Words

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The famous saying that a picture is worth a thousand words means that pictures provide a way to get a point across quickly and easily. Use them in your marketing to get attention and gain credibility.

The Internet is a visual medium. Posting pictures of yourself and your staff lets web visitors see the real people behind the company. Pictures of your office, store, factory, and other facilities promote credibility. And customers expect to see pictures of your products.

Want people to click on a link in an e-mail or on your web site? Use a photo. It never fails to get attention and arouse curiosity.

Including photographs with press releases may increase the chances of your news being used by the media. Make the pictures visually interesting. Instead of the standard “grin-and-grab” photo, showing two people shaking hands while smiling into the camera, send an action shot. For a new product launch show the product being used. To announce a charitable donation, show someone from your company interacting with people helped by the charity.

You can get links to your web site when you post your photos on http://www.flickr.com/.

Make the equivalent of a movie trailer for your business with muvee autoProducer. Simply load photos or video into the software, add a music track, choose a style (such as Cinema, Classic Sepia or Rock Video), and the software creates a movie you can put on your Web site or burn to DVD. Get a free trial version at http://www.muvee.com/.

Have you had your picture taken with a famous person? Put the photo on your web site or print it in your customer newsletter. Get it framed and hang it on the wall of your store or office.

When hiring a photographer, make sure you have all rights to the photos. In the absence of a work for hire agreement, the photographer owns the photographs even though you paid him to take them. See http://copylaw.com/forms/Workhire.html for a sample work for hire agreement.

For some purposes, such as web sites, brochures and advertisements, stock images may be appropriate. These are photographs you license from a stock agency, or as part of a clip art collection. Stock images are inexpensive, so they may be a good choice for some projects; however, you will not have the exclusive right to these photos. That means you may see them turn up in other places. One publisher was unhappy to discover that the artistic image she licensed for the cover of a literary novel was later used in ads for a feminine hygiene product.  Two sources of stock photos are http://www.istockphoto.com/ and http://www.clipart.com/. Do not copy images you find on the web. Most are covered by copyright, and they can not be used without permission.

Pictures are a powerful communication tool. Use them to make your marketing more effective.

Are You Over-Designed?

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Does the design of your website or printed materials get in the way of your message? 

Many marketing pieces seem to be designed purely to show how clever the designer is, not to get the message across. Although the problem exists in print, it is epidemic on the Internet. I recently visited a website where all of the menus were done in Flash. It took longer to load than text, and was harder to use. I couldn’t wait to get away from that site, and I have a broadband connection. Many users are still using dial-up connections.

Here are a few tips for user-friendly publications and web sites:

Graphics should enhance the message. Use a graphic that fits what you are trying to say, and the audience you are trying to reach. Animations may seem like a cute idea for your web site, but make sure they don’t repeat constantly. The motion is distracting and annoying.

Use fonts that are readable. For the web, that usually means sans serif fonts, such as Arial and Verdana. In print, large blocks of text are most readable when they are in serif fonts, such as Times Roman and Garamond. Use only one or two fonts per page, in most cases.

Keep text readable with lots of contrast between the background and the type. Red type on a pink background won’t cut it. And remember that too-small type is hard for many people to read.

Break text up into short blocks and bulleted lists. It is easier to read and understand that way.

And if you are tempted to put a Flash intro on your web site, don’t. The only people I have ever met who like Flash intros are the web designers who charge extra for making them. No one has time to sit there waiting for your little movie to play.

First rule of design: Don’t annoy the customers. Keep your design clean and easy to read.

I R a Gud Riter

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You may believe that the content of your message is what matters, and how you express it is not important. But you are judged by others based on how you use language.

Spelling, grammar and punctuation matter. Poor spelling makes you look sloppy. Use a spell checker, but also proofread to catch errors. Use a dictionary when you’re not sure about a

word. Many confuse homophones (words that sound alike). Have you ever written “their” when you meant “there”? Your spell checker won’t catch that.

Sometimes it helps to read what you’ve written out loud. You’ll spot where you need commas or semi-colons, run-on sentences which should be broken up, grammatical errors, and things that just don’t sound right.

Conversely, at times something written correctly will not ‘flow’ well or will sound clumsy. Especially when political correctness raises its head–such as the his/her/their nonsense.

For example, “A writer must choose his words carefully,” is correct. However, lots of writers are women who might object to using “his.” You could write, “A writer must choose his or her words carefully,” but it’s clumsy. “A writer must choose their words carefully,” is wrong (“their” is plural, “writer” is singular). The best way might be to say, “Writers must choose their words carefully.”

I’ll confess. I sometimes write in a way I know is not 100% grammatically correct. I start sentences with “And” and I end them with prepositions. The language is always in a state of flux, and there are times when simplicity and a conversational tone are more important than being “correct.”

If a lot of this sounds like Greek to you, don’t trust a grammar checker to catch mistakes. If you don’t already have a solid grasp of the rules, the grammar checker will create more problems

than it solves. So, where can you get help? Many universities have grammar hotlines you can call to ask your questions about who and whom, me and I, prepositions, his/her/their, and lots more. One good website is at: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/. I also run grammar tips on my mystery shopper blog.

For important documents, such as brochures, books or booklets, sales letters, web sites, etc., get someone else to edit. Hire a professional editor, or at least get someone with a good command of the language to review it for you.

Be aware of regional and national differences in spelling, punctuation and usage. For example, American and British English are very different. If you are an American writing for a British market, have someone familiar with British spelling and grammar review your work.

Pay attention to the quality of your writing, and remember that many others are paying attention to the quality of your writing.

Do You Have an Up to Date Website?

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When people are looking for information online, they want to know that they are finding new and correct information. If your site does not send the right signals, they will be gone and on to the next site.

Here are a few things you can do to make sure you have an up to date website.

First, check the copyright date. I was on sites this week that had copyright dates of 2008, 2005, 2003 and even 1999. When I see an out of date copyright notice I wonder: (1) Are these people still in business? and (2) When did they last touch this site? I do not trust the information I find there if it looks like the website may not have been updated in years.

Tip: If your site has been around for a while, show an inclusive copyright date. For example, at IdeaLady.com, my copyright says, “Copyright 1998 – (the current year).” And it always shows the correct current year because a script changes the date automatically when a new year begins.

Show the date the site was last updated. Some website software will do this automatically, or you may be able to insert some code to make it do so. Of course, this is only effective if you…

Update your site regularly. Make sure your contact data, location, hours and other information are correct. Do you have new products, or have you discontinued some old ones? Make your site reflect that. And you should frequently add new content to your site, such as articles, tips, special offers, etc.

When someone visits your site, they will see that your business has a vital online presence, and that is sure to make a good impression.

Show Your Stuff with a Portfolio

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Artists and designers use portfolios to show examples of their work to potential clients and employers. Portfolios are not only for artists, however. No matter what your business, a portfolio can show off your skills and accomplishments and help you to gain customers.

Artist portfolios are typically displayed in oversized cases or binders. You may use a traditional artist’s portfolio, a three-ring binder, a scrapbook, or any method that shows off your portfolio contents. Craft stores carry a full line of special papers and other materials to dress up your portfolio.

You can put your portfolio online at your Web site. Your online portfolio should not just be a copy of the hardcopy version. Use the capabilities of the Web to include audio, video and interactivity.

What should you put in a portfolio? That depends on the nature of your business, but it might include

Examples of successful projects, such as photos, drawings, documents, product samples and other documentation.

Photos of you in action—doing your job, making a speech, and working with your staff. Or photos of your office, your facility, your equipment and your products.

Letters of commendation or client testimonials. Include audio or video testimonials in your online portfolio.

Press clippingsarticles you’ve written, articles about you, reviews, quotes from you in the press, etc. Or publicity that your clients got because of you or your work. For your Web site, include PDFs of the stories, or link to the online versions.

Don’t forget broadcast media appearances. Include a list of television and radio shows on which you have been a guest, perhaps with a photo of you from a television appearance. Include audio and video clips from some of the shows on your Web site.

Professional certificationsdiplomas, licenses, certificates, and other credentials. These all help to establish your credibility.

Awards you have won. Include a list of awards, certificates received, photos of trophies or you accepting an award, etc.

Color print outs of one or more pages from your Web site.

Covers of the books, booklets and audio programs you have published.

Photos of you with famous clients or associates, especially if the person is a leader in your field.

Examples of your involvement in the community. Photos of your participation in a charity event, thank you letters and certificates from organizations, and photos of the local sporting teams you sponsor demonstrate your commitment to the community.

Now, how do you use your portfolio? Leave it out on a table in your office (open, of course!) for visitors to view. Show it to potential clients. Frame duplicates of some items to hang on your office walls. Include portions of the portfolio in proposals.