OK – so I don’t have a dog, but I have had the cat sit on my laptop and scramble my screen before. I confess I’m late making my blog entry because I got buried in doing a lot of other writing. But the fact I wasn’t able to complete the promise I made (if only to myself) to post every Thursday gave me an idea to talk about the importance of credibility to small business.
In all things marketing (and even more so for guerilla marketing) credibility is a big issue. This is especially true for smaller companies & start-ups. The more established companies have the comfort of a well-built reputation behind them. But smaller companies and start-ups don’t have that luxury so every possible lapse in credibility gives their audience an excuse to pass them over for their larger competitors.
While damage to credibility happens over obvious things like not fixing customer complaints or failing to deliver on promises, credibility is also damaged by some very innocent mistakes. These are most common with start-ups, but I’ve seen companies that have been around for years doing the same thing – damaging, rather than helping, their business with their marketing collateral pieces.
I’m going to focus on the most common collateral piece: the business card. However, a lot of the same info is valid for other collaterals like brochures, flyers, and letterhead. Here are some serious “no-no’s” when it comes to your collaterals. For each of you thinking these are obvious, I guarantee there is someone saying, “I didn’t realize that was bad.” If you’re doing any of them I strongly urge you to stop. Remember, in the world of marketing Perception is Reality!
Printing Your Own Cards: Think you’re saving money with DIY cards from the office supply store? Think again. How much does a round of ink cost you? Next add the cost of those wasted cards because they jammed, smeared, ripped, or just came out screwy. Now add the cost of your time to deal with all of this. Finally, add the cost of making a bad first impression with one of these cards. In the words of the famous credit card commercials, that one is “priceless.” Thin perforated cards stick out like a sore thumb. The scream out “I could be gone tomorrow!”
The Dreaded PO Box: It’s common for a start-up company to begin in the home. Most don’t want to use their home address (with good reason) so they put a PO Box on their cards. The problem is “PO Box” translates to “Home Based Start Up,” and a lot of people will immediately dismiss you as being less than credible. Work around this by going to a UPS store, Pack-n-Mail, or any place that sends freight and rents boxes. You’ll have a physical address for your cards, a place where you can receive your freight without you having to wait for it, and you’ll most likely get your freight earlier in the day.
Yodeling E-mail: Probably the most common credibility offender is the free e-mail address. Those who don’t know better will set up a second e-mail address with their provider or an address with a free service. If the e-mail address on your cards ends in @yahoo, @mail, @aol, @ hotmail, etc. you’re telling the world you’re an amateur. Your e-mail address should always be yourname@yourdomainname.com. Even if you’re a start-up without a website, you can get a domain name for very little money. You know you’ll need a website so get your domain and set up your e-mail. The registrar will often throw up a parked page notice at no charge. This simple step adds a lot to your credibility & shows the world you’re here to stay.
With all of your collateral pieces, protect your credibility by thinking about what your audience sees the impression you leave them with.
What’s the worst offender you’ve seen & what other lessons have you learned in the credibility war? I’d love to hear about it.
1 Response to “The Dog Ate My Blog”