There is no cost, no obligation. Just let me know when you’ve landed your dream job so I can remove your page. Good Luck!

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Unless your company manages to become the next Nike, you will most likely need to keep your business name in your logo. Rarely will someone see your logo out of context, so don’t worry about saying everything there is to say about your business in your logo.  That said, you do want the typeface and any graphic element, to appear stable and trustworthy.  Perhaps you also want it to look modern, fun, or hip. You don’t need to use a literal representation of your product or service.  Consider that McDonald’s iconic golden arches are at least as effective as Sherwin William’s paint can logo.  While you wouldn’t want to change your logo on a regular basis, some of the most famous have evolved over the years.

Keep in mind that a logo cannot be a photograph (read on about simplicity) or clip art. Even royalty-free clip art is usually not licensed for logo use.  Also, consider that thousands of people have access to this same image.  Make your logo unique!  It must be in vector format which means it can be sized up or down without losing image quality.

Keep your logo to just one or two elements and your fonts to one or two. Save drop shadows and gradients for later. You can always add those in for select applications.

This (fictional) logo illustrates some of the worst in bad logo design.  The image was found in Microsoft’s Clip Art Gallery.  The font is difficult to read and uses a blurry drop shadow.  The Logo depends on the black background for the graphic and white or transparent for the text and the original graphic was a .bmp file, which means that resizing it will be a nightmare!

Make sure your logo will work in black and white and on any background color. Make sure that vibrant color is not the only interesting element to your logo.  Keeping the design simple will save you money in printing, as well.

When thinking about a logo for your business, consider:

• What kind of font would be best – simple, modern, strong, artistic? Should it be capitalized, all caps or all lowercase?
• What image do you want to present – classy, upscale, dependable, friendly, affordable, artsy?
• Who is your target audience?

Do-It-Yourself logo creation sites abound.  If you truly have no budget for a professionally designed logo, you might be tempted to try one.  Just keep in mind how easy it is.  That means anyone can do it.  Which also means that your logo is not going to be unique.

It’s important for your logo designer to get to know your business and what ideas you may already have before beginning the design process.  Expect a lot of back and forth with sketches, options and revisions to get just the right look.  If you have sketches, by all means, share them with your designer, but be open to feedback and suggestions.  Expect a good logo to take some time from concept to completion.  I try to get mine done within 10 business days, but a lot depends on the quality of communication with the customer.  Try to set aside some time to see the project through.

How much do logos cost?

That is a tough question, similar to “how much do websites cost”!  The answer is that it depends on many factors, but the logos I design usually run around $300.  You’ll get all the files you could ever need to use your logo online and in print.

Ready to talk about your logo design?  Call 830.822.6589 or use my contact form.  I look forward to working with you!

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It’s pretty funny, but I if you have an idea for a great business and just no idea what to call it, this could give you some inspiration. Besides, it’s fun! Maybe I’ll rename On Target to Yakimia…..or maybe not. Oh, and since you KNOW you’re going to have a website, find out if it’s available (whois.com) and try to keep it short.

While you’re at it, why not create a random mission statement, just for fun. Oh, and need a little meaningless text for marketing? Can’t go wrong here.

Still not getting anywhere? Call me at 830.822.6589 and we can do a little brainstorming. It’s amazing how well that works despite how cliche it sounds!

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It doesn’t cost anything to be featured.  Groupon makes its money by collecting a portion of what you make selling your Groupon deal, anywhere from 30% to 50%.  If there is not enough interest in your offer, no one is charged and the deal is off.  However, with Groupon’s expert marketing and extensive reach, I have to wonder if that has EVER happened!

There are several similar sites offering local coupon deals for Austin and/or San Antonio:

• SocialBuy
• BuyWithMe
• DealOn
• Adility
• Localiter
• LivingSocial
• Twongo

Happy bargain-hunting and if you have a great business-to-consumer product or service, consider getting yourself featured  Let me know if I can help!

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What I needed was a simple way to use Google Checkout with WordPress that would allow variable pricing based upon product options, such as quantity, and I needed to keep it simple, no inventory, no fancy stuff.

What I found was what I’d wanted to use all along, Google Checkout Shopping Cart Code. The reason I didn’t try that first is that, the “View Cart” code needs to be inserted on every page just before the tag. To get around that, I used a text widget and just inserted the code into the sidebar. It works like a charm!

Now, some folks might not like the “View Cart” pop-up being visible on every page, but it works fine for this site. And with Google charging 1.9%-2.9% + 30¢ per transaction, it really doesn’t get much better.

For a limited time, you can view the test page here.

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Create a page for your business on Facebook.  Fill out as much information as you can.

Create a Twitter account for your business. Again, fill out as much information as you can.

Allow Facebook to link to your Twitter account so that all your posts to your Facebook page will be sent to your Twitter account.

Update your page often, look for friends who are already on Facebook, and might be likely to “like” your page.  Search for related businesses or those in the same city and “like” them.

Add links to your Email signatures and website to allow people to easily find and follow you on Facebook and Twitter.  The more you can get people involved, the more traffic you will get.

LocalEze

Increase your local presence with LocalEze. Bing and ChaCha use their local business listings.

Yelp

Get a discussion started – about you! Claim (or create) your listing at Yelp.com. Search for your business by category and location. If your listing does not show up, click on the “Add a Business” button. If your business is listed, click to view the business information, then click the “Is this your business?” link and follow the instructions.

Once you have created or claimed your Yelp listing, send your listing link to customer and ask them to write a review of your business.

The Bottom Line

Getting people to your website is very important, but if your website is a mess and they can’t find what they want in 10 seconds or less, chances are, your hard-one visitors will move on – quickly!  Make sure your site looks up-to-date, is easy to navigate and contains good, keyword-rich content.  Call 830 822-6589 for assistance today.

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If you have a restaurant, hotel, retail shop or storefront business,apply today for a Google photo shoot. Feel free to apply if you have a different kind of business, but don’t expect a quick response. It’s certain to be a popular program (the photographers are trained to work well in cramped and poorly lit areas and have fisheye and panoramic lenses). Besides the advantages to your listing, isn’t it just great to get something free?

Photo shoots are currently available only in certain cities in the US, Japan and Australia, including:

• Atlanta, GA
• Boston, MA
• Chicago, IL
• Denver, CO
• Detroit, MI
• Houston, TX
• Indianapolis, IN
• Jersey City, NJ – Hoboken, NJ
• Kansas City, KS
• Las Vegas, NV
• Los Angeles, CA
• Miami, FL
• Minneapolis, MN
• Nashville, TN
• New York, NY
• Philadelphia, PA
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Portland, OR
• San Antonio, TX
• San Diego, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• San Jose, CA
• Seattle, WA
• St. Louis, MO
• Washington D.C.

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Start Small

Start recycling!  Not sure where to do that?  Try Earth911 for locations.  Many trash collectors make it easy by offering recycling services as well.

What about your cyber-footprint?  Well, maybe that’s not a word (yet), but your website and the ones you frequent (Facebook, anyone?) use servers that produce just as much greenhouse gas as the airline industry!  Look for “green” website hosting options.  On Target offers hosting that is 300% wind-powered at a very reasonable $7.50 a month for unlimited storage and Email accounts.  That’s a bargain you can feel good about!

Around the House

I’m pleased to have created websites for some eco-minded businesses lately.  Nessco Designs of Arizona specializes in energy audits.  You might enjoy their “simple solutions” page with some very affordable fixes like fixing leaky ducts or improving heating/cooling equipment efficiency, that you may be able to complete on your own.  Solaris Thermal is a Maine-based company that specializes in solar solutions.  You’ll find their site to be a great source of information on solar power.

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Consider the advantages: income; and disadvantages: it could be distracting to your visitors, taking them away from the process of buying your products or services and sending them to another business. Of course, if most of your traffic is from visitors actually typing in your website address, chances are they will be able to get back to you no problem. I would also suggest having the links open the pages in a new window that can easily be closed when the visitor is finished.

Remember that your greatest source of income should be your readers, so don’t include so many ads that you annoy your visitors or detract from your message.

How long should my site be up/how many page views must I have before I can offer advertising space?

Create your site with advertising space in mind. Leave room for all the advertising options (text links, sidebar banners, header banners, etc.) Include an “advertising” page to outline options and allow potential sponsors to contact you for more information. Even if your traffic is very low, it may give you some idea of the interest out there and make it easier to incorporate ads when you’re ready.

Consider filling empty spots with Google AdSense or affiliate banners while you wait for more profitable advertisers.

For many, many reasons, make sure your website is attractive, uncluttered and very easy to navigate before you consider offering ad space.

How much should I charge?

You should have a good idea of your traffic already (I recommend Google Analytics). Some advertisers will be interested in your first-time visitors, while others will be content to know your page views per month. While most resources say that for a 125x125pxx banner in the sidebar, a CPM of $.50-$2.00 is reasonable (that works out to $50 – $200 for a site with 100,000 page views per month), consider how much you would pay for an ad on your site, consider your potential advertisers and what they may be able/willing to pay. For other ad sizes, adjust the cost accordingly.

When first starting out, consider offering 2 weeks free. At the end of the two weeks, show them how many visitors they have received as a result of their ad!

Should I do it myself, sign up with an ad marketplace, or use an ad manager?

Selling directly to advertisers is going to be your best option to get the highest return. Most ad marketplaces charge 50% to recruit and bill advertisers. If you’re just starting out and you don’t want to invest too much time, consider using a manager like TextLinkAds.com. They’ve been around a while and get consistently positive reviews.

Another option is to use an ad manager that you can integrate with your site. Several, like OIO Publisherhandle not only ad purchases, but subscriptions and advertiser traffic data as well. They also offer an advertiser marketplace where your advertisers can leave feedback regarding their experience with you.

What kind of advertisements should I offer?

Text links or banner ads?

Text links are the least distracting and look less like ads. They may get increased traffic because they look like part of your site, but are likely to surprise visitors by sending them to another site. Consider adding text links to a bulleted list labeled “Sponsored Links” and remember to add the “no-follow” tag to prevent page rank dilution. Use caution when using text links in the content of your site.

Banner ads tends are more obvious advertisements which may catch the eye of your visitors and by their nature supply more information. Banner ads run from a 125x125px sidebar to a 728x90px heading or footer banner.

What if someone requests a refund?

Clearly state your refund policy. It is not unreasonable to make a one-day or even one-hour refund policy. Also, make sure you clearly state that you are selling ad space, not website traffic. The success of their ad depends not only on your visitors, but also on the perceived value of the resource by your customers and the quality of their ad copy or banner.

How do I convince advertisers to space on my website?

Start with a top-quality advertising page and make it simple. Thank your readers for their interest in advertising on your site. Smart advertisers only advertise on relevant sites, so let them know immediately who your audience is. Will you supply data to show how well your advertisers links are performing? What types of ads are available, where will each appear, and how many total ads are being offered?

Supply information on your statistics, including:

• Unique visitors – a must
• Page views – a must
• Average length of visits
• Number of new visitors
• Newsletter subscribers
• Facebook fans

Is there anything else I should put on the Advertising Page?

Specify your guidelines. Consider items such as:

• Who will supply the banner or ad copy?
• All advertisers, banners and ad copy are subject to approval.
• Will you accept adult/gambling ads?
• Disclose that you will use a “no-follow” attribute on all ads.
• Refund policy
• Are prices subject to change?

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I’m not a lawyer and I can’t offer legal advice, but I question the validity of the claim. According to everything I have read, there must be a likelihood of confusion to claim trademark infringement. In fact, Bitlaw states, “a plaintiff in a trademark case has the burden of proving that the defendant’s use of a mark has created a likelihood-of-confusion about the origin of the defendant’s goods or services. To do this, the plaintiff should first show that it has developed a protectable trademark right in a trademark. The plaintiff then must show that the defendant is using a confusingly similar mark in such a way that it creates a likelihood of confusion, mistake and/or deception with the consuming public. The confusion created can be that the defendant’s products are the same as that of the plaintiff, or that the defendant is somehow associated, affiliated, connected, approved, authorized or sponsored by plaintiff.”

Could a small day spa in Canyon Lake, Texas with strictly local business really be confused with a spa in California?

We’re going to change the site, she’s going to change her sign and everything else that has identified her business for years. Does anyone else think this is ridiculous?

Oh, if you’re wondering if your business name is violating some trademark out there, check out the Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS). It’s not completely comprehensive, but it’s interesting to take a look!

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