9 Branding Tips For Small Businesses

Think branding is only for large multi-national corporations? Think again. Here are 9 easy tips you can use to grow your brand with your customers.

1. The design of your logo really doesn’t matter. Would you choose MSN as your search engine over Google because of their logo? No, having a nice professional logo is great, but it very rarely increases sales. I’m all for a professional logo, but don’t think you need to spend a fortune on it. It’s more important to include your logo on every piece of communication. Put it on business cards, letterhead, envelopes, invoices, yellow page ads, building signage, newsletters, etc…
2. Have a professional website. It’s not just good enough to just have a website, you must reflect your brand image. If your known as a top notch photographer, the last thing you want is a website designed 10 years ago. It doesn’t reflect well on you. Everyone, yes everyone, uses the web today to check references. If someone recommends your service, you can almost guarantee that they will go online to look for you. Your website design should be updated at least every two years to stay current.
3. Blogs are good. Blogs help your business on multiple levels. First off, valuable content on a consistent basis will make you look like an expert. People are looking for experts, not apprentices. The software that powers blogs has multiple advantages. It’s very easy to publish. It’s a database driven environment where style is separate from content so you will not need to go back to your web design agency for every little change. And use of tags and sitemaps make basic search engine optimization easy. But the real reason blogs are great is that they enable conversation. Two-way dialog is much more valuable than a company that just dumps messaging and collateral on their customers.
4. Blogs are good, but they’re just one tool. A blog should not be your sole marketing strategy. You should have a comprehensive multi-touch marketing plan to get your value proposition in front of your target audience. This can take many forms. You can launch a direct mail campaign, email campaign, host a webinar, sponsor a local event, attend a trade show, attend networking events, cold call prospects, win awards, etc… There are a thousand different ways for you to be noticed. You have to find the best combination of methods for your strategic goals. Data shows that people need to be exposed to a brand at least seven times before they buy. If you simply do one touch and stop, you’re wasting valuable budget dollars and probably wondering why your efforts are not successful.
5. Prepare a one page corporate overview. This one pager will be vital as a leave behind when you meet a prospect. Use short sentences in short paragraphs – people like to read quickly. Also make it very conversational; it’s not a white paper. Your one page overview should include your value proposition, target audience benefits, previous audience experience and a mini-case study – and don’t forget your contact information.
6. Participate in local business events. And by participate, I mean be on a committee. Just showing up at events is great, but you’re just a face in the crowd. Ask to be on one of the committees. Believe it or not, it’s as simple as just asking most of time. Groups are looking for volunteer help and it’s a great way to elevate your status and visibility among the entire organization.
7. Do what you say you’re going to do. I know it may sound like common sense, but one of the primary drivers of brand loyalty is a consistent experience. If you say you’re going to have the photographs ready on a set day, be sure they are ready. Nothing leaves a bad taste in someone’s mouth like missed expectations. Positive experiences lead to good feelings which lead to telling their friends. But don’t forget that bad experiences spread much faster and are harder to overcome – if you get a chance at all.
8. Stand for something. People latch on to something they can understand and appreciate. If you’re trying to be everything to everybody, chances are you’ll attract no one. If you think it’s too controversial to choose a niche, remember the power of being seen as an expert. Experts are not good at everything, they’re awesome at one thing. This allows you to better position yourself and charge more for your services. People seek out experts, not generalists.
9. Realize that you’re not in control of your brand. That’s right, you only set the direction for your brand. Your actual brand image is determined by your audience. You can use these tips to ensure alignment between your desired brand image and your actual brand image in the minds of your customers. Branding isn’t a one shot deal, it’s an on-going juggling act of marketing, research and conversation. If you’re not tapping into those conversations with your audience, how do you know what their real impression of you is? How will you know how to address it? Brand growth comes from alignment. You have to ensure that your actions, stationary, website and marketing efforts put out the right image. But you cannot stop there; Those are pre-sales activities that get you noticed and hopefully bought. You also have to ensure that all actions and engagements during the sale and post-sale are positive and in line with your desired brand image. If your audience has a different view of you than you’d like, then you need help. And it’s probably best to bring in an outside perspective.

Dating Tips For Men

Be on time

Try not to be late. Unpunctuality is a fault that causes them to say “NO”

Prepare some topics to discuss

You could read a newspaper or watch a news program that day so you'll have something to talk about and sound as if you know what's happening in the world. There is nothing can be worse for a woman than to meet a pompous, self-important bore who couldn't care less about anything that's happening in the world but himself and how it all affects him.

Be open

Be open-to her, her plans, her thoughts and the shape the evening takes. Try not to push.

Be honest

Don't lie. Never lie. NEVER. Its OK for one night. You lie thru your teeth to be interesting. Great ! You get the second date. Now you have to be consistent with all the lies you told on your first date. Tricky. Five dates later you have to revise for two days before each date.

Be consecutive

Never surprise your date with a movie, meal etc on the first date. Not until you've got some vague idea of her likes and dislikes. Putting a poor unsuspecting girl thru 'Meatslayer And The Wartoids From The Planet SoftPorn' is not a good idea.

Be funny

A sense of humour (refined if possible) is your best ally.

Be constrained

Avoid arguing over things that won't cause either of you to lose a limb. In other words, chill.

Watch your words

Avoid calling your date 'stupid' unless absolutely necessary (less necesary than most people think!).

Sensitiveness is important

Use every opportunity to be observant, sensitive, perceptive, and appreciative of what your date does or may have done. If something embarrasing happens, get over it.

Don't boast

Don't lie to anyone else about the date and what happened. It always goes horribly wrong.

Do only like this

Never take your pants off before your socks.

Be a real man all the time

Roll over, go to sleep. WRONG. Cuddle, kiss, roll over, go to sleep. RIGHT.

Practice

Practice makes slightly better, but never perfect. You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you meet your princess.

Don't hide your feelings

If you're having a good time, let her know it.

Sports Injury Prevention Tip Sheet

Injury Risks

All sports have a risk of injury. In general, the more contact in a sport, the greater the risk of injury. However, most injuries in young athletes are due to overuse.

Most injuries occur to ligaments (connect bones together), tendons (connect muscles to bones) and muscles. Only about 5 percent of sports injuries involve broken bones. However, the areas where bones grow in children are at more risk of injury during the rapid phases of growth. In a growing child, point tenderness over a bone should be evaluated further by a medical provider even if there is minimal swelling or limitation in motion.

Most frequent sports injuries are sprains (injuries to ligaments) and strains (injuries to muscles), caused when an abnormal stress is placed on tendons, joints, bones and muscle. Contact your pediatrician if you have additional questions or concerns.

To reduce the risk of injury:

• Time off. Plan to have at least 1 day off per week form a particular sport to allow the body to recover.
• Wear the right gear. Players should wear appropriate and properly fit protective equipment such as pads (neck, shoulder, elbow, chest, knee, shin), helmets, mouthpieces, face guards, protective cups, and/or eyewear. Young athletes should not assume that protective gear will protect them from performing more dangerous or risky activities.
• Strengthen muscles. Conditioning exercises before games and during practice strengthens muscles used in play.
• Increase flexibility. Stretching exercises before and after games or practice can increase flexibility.
• Use the proper technique. This should be reinforced during the playing season.
• Take breaks. Rest periods during practice and games can reduce injuries and prevent heat illness.
• Play safe. Strict rules against headfirst sliding (baseball and softball), spearing (football), and body checking (ice hockey) should be enforced.
• Stop the activity if there is pain.
• Avoid heat injury by drinking plenty of fluids before, during and after exercise or play; decrease or stop practices or competitions during high heat/humidity periods; wear light clothing.

Sports-Related Emotional Stress

The pressure to win can cause significant emotional stress for a child. Sadly, many coaches and parents consider winning the most important aspect of sports. Young athletes should be judged on effort, sportsmanship and hard work. They should be rewarded for trying hard and for improving their skills rather than punished or criticized for losing a game or competition.

What Women Expect From Men

It may be cliche but allow me to say it, men are from Mars and women are from Venus. And just the same, we are all different people with different views and opinions, thus we have different expectations. But what do women expect from men and what are the things that they usually want in a relationship?

1. Time – women want to feel important and once they are committed in a relationship, they don't stop planning their lives ahead with complete names for children or an ideal house. A guy should commit to spend time with their girl more than they do with their friends and vices. Just the same, the guy should give enough freedom for his girl to do things on her own or with her girl friends and family.

2. Honesty and openness – a woman is either afraid of being lied at or overly confident that she would often doubt her man. A man should make it a point to share things with his partner, to return her messages when she asks things, to answer her questions even if it's the "did I gain weight" question or the "is she prettier than me" question. Allow her to know what you are thinking. Women feel confident and proud of their men if they admit what's wrong and whatever it is that bothers them.

3. Feeling of security – a man does not need to build-up his muscles to make his girl feel safe. Security could mean being financially secure, emotionally secure, or a worry-free relationship. Be a grown-up and stand-up for her. Let her know that you can make decisions and stand by it. Most women like it when their guys lead the way and have ways to protect her. In married couples, the man always makes sure that the wife has something to put up in the table for a complete meal. Be there for her in the toughest and most difficult times even when she's the problem, try to bear with it.

4. Tender loving care – all girls always love being taken-cared and being treated special. Guys should check on their girls from time to time even if there is now reason. Visit her even when she's not sick and spend time doing things for her like cooking her favorite dish and fixing her things. Girls who grew-up without their fathers usually look for guys who are older than them. This is because they long for a father-figure, thus, they demand more care and attention.

5. Do unexpected things for her – girls expect too much from guys sometimes that they get disappointed plenty of times too. Doing things unexpectedly would light up her mood and make her feel loved. Kiss her for no reason or bring her to an expensive restaurant once in a while. Long-time couples sometimes feel too comfortable and ordinary, bringing the girl to a date and reliving the days of courtship is a sweet way to make her know that she’s still that special. Write a letter for her even if it's not your style just ones.

Women are truly different from men but when it comes down to it all, we all just want to be loved. Sometimes it's the smallest things and gestures that could bring great differences.

Computer Tips

Tips for Speeding Up Your PC

Few things are as frustrating as dealing with a slow, sluggish computer. When a computer is brand new, it works wonderfully well. Over time, though, its performance can slowly begin to worsen. This happens for a number of reasons, but the biggest culprits are things like spyware, adware and other computer threats that are unwittingly downloaded along with other content while online. You don’t have to download thousands of MP3s, movies or other items to experience these problems, either – nobody is immune to them. Instead of accepting the situation, there are plenty of techniques and strategies that you can use to make it better – a few of the best ones are outlined below.

Strategy #1: Clean Your Computer’s Windows Registry

The biggest cause of slow, sluggish PC performance is errors and problems within its Windows registry. Adware, spyware and other threats usually target the registry, damaging or misplacing important files within it. When it comes to PC cleaning, a daily Windows registry cleaning should be at the top of your list of priorities. However, this should never be done manually – there are too many opportunities for major errors that could seriously damage your PC’s operating system. Instead, invest in a high-quality Windows registry cleanup program and configure it to run once per day – you won’t believe the difference that it makes.

Strategy #2: Remove Unneeded Files

Every time you log on to the Internet or otherwise use your computer, temporary files are generated. They are usually only needed once; however, they don’t disappear on their own. Instead, they accumulate over time until they are cluttering up your computer’s file system and affecting its performance. While it’s possible to remove these files one-by-one, it’s much easier and quicker to use a PC cleaning tool that’s designed for the purpose. Try to do so about one time per week to keep your computer humming along with ease.

Strategy #3: Remove Unneeded Programs

Like many people, you probably download and try out many different programs each month. How many of them do you actually end up using on a regular basis? Chances are, not very many of them. By getting into the habit of uninstalling unused and unneeded programs, you can keep your computer’s file system a lot less cluttered. In turn, your PC’s performance will improve dramatically. You can optimize your computer in this way by using its Add/Remove Programs feature. Its location varies by operating system, but you should be able to find it somewhere in the Control Panel.

Strategy #4: Empty the Recycle Bin

When you click “delete” on a file or a program, it doesn’t go away for good – not immediately, anyway. Instead, it sits in a kind of purgatory in your computer’s Recycle Bin. As things pile up in the Recycle Bin, your computer can start exhibiting some very annoying problems. If sluggish startups and frequent crashes are occurring with increasing frequency – and your computer’s recycle bin is very full – go ahead and empty it. From then on, get into the habit of doing so about one time per week. This small but important strategy can make a huge difference.

Strategy #5: Perform a Disk Defragmentation

Windows isn’t very efficient when it comes to storing files. It actually splits them up, depositing them into whatever spaces are available. The more spaced apart the pieces of a file are, the harder your computer has to work to make them run. The Windows disk defragmentation system tune-up utility works to piece all of those files back together again. The process is a long one, though, and only needs to be done about four times per year. Set it up to run automatically once every three months. By doing so, you’ll be able to keep your computer running in tiptop shape.

When it comes to keeping your computer running optimally, small but regular maintenance is the best way to go. Protecting your PC only does so much; even the most careful Internet users in the world unintentionally download malicious software from time to time. By using basic system tune-up tools, cleaning your computer’s Windows registry regularly, performing regular file-cleaning maintenance and otherwise optimizing your PC, you should be able to keep it in like-new condition for a lot longer. Even if your computer has been performing slowly for some time, beginning this regimen is sure to produce results. In the end, you’ll be able to enjoy a computer that flies along – instead of one that spins its wheels.