Re-Branding: Times They are a Changin’

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If your planning to re-brand your business (whether through a name change, a new logo, a business merger, or some other means), remember the name and/or logo is not the only thing that changes. Re-branding can be a large-scale operation that involves effort from multiple departments. While your to-do list may seem endless, here are a few of the top items to consider to ensure your re-branding process runs smoothly:

• Create a list of all printed collateral that needs to be updated (such as letterhead, envelopes, business cards, flyers, brochures, labels, forms, notepads, and packaging). Give us (Minuteman Press-Fort Myers) a call anytime if you have questions about turnaround times, company colors, logo changes, quantity purchase discounts, or anything else related to your printing needs.
• Update your trade show booth, banners, posters, giveaways, company pens, name-tags, and other trade show related materials.
• Keep customers in the loop by mailing “we’re changing our name” postcards, including a blurb in your newsletter, and providing social media mentions (among other things).
• Update employee bios. Add your new name to each employee’s company bio to show the transition. For example, “Mark Davis has worked at XYZ Company since it was founded in 1989, when it was called ABC Company.”
• Change your name and logo on invoices, accounting templates, quote preparation software, and other types of reporting software.
• If you’re considering a web domain name change, make sure the new domain name is available before switching, and then set up your old web address to forward automatically to your new website to ensure a smooth transition.
• Update email addresses and consider using an auto-responder to remind people to update their email address books. Also update email signatures and inform readers your address will be changing so they can update their spam blockers — especially if you send email newsletters.
• Ensure your phone service provider has the correct company name, so it shows up correctly on caller ID.
• Inform all professional organizations, business groups, subscription services, and other interested parties of your name change.
• Update on-hold marketing messages and voice mail messages. Consider using both names with a greeting such as: “Thanks for calling XYZ Company, formerly known as ABC Company.”
• We know that re-branding can be a daunting task, but you don’t need to go it alone. Our team of printing professionals can help you every step of the way. When it comes to updating your print collateral, we’re here to help, from developing creative new ideas to carrying the finished products to your document storage area. Give us a call today.

Authenticity the Key to Growing Your Business

When it comes to content marketing, you can try all the advertising, promotional, and PR ploys, but authenticity remains key. What is authenticity, you might ask? It means staying true to your business values:

It may sound like a no-brainer, but very few companies are able to withstand internal pressures or external turbulence without losing their authenticity, according to a recent study.

How to apply authenticity
It all starts from the top, so set a vision that your company’s personnel understand, embrace, and can implement. Then ensure that your “authenticity” motto aligns with your business goals, so you can clearly demonstrate to stakeholders such as investors and lenders that you have a growth strategy in place. Here’s how to do that:

Be real
Sounds easy, right? But you’d be surprised how many companies lose their operational soul, delve into every sector deemed profitable, or adopt strategies that are counter to their mission. Define what your business does — its mission and vision — and stick to those core values.

Be charitable
Ever heard of something called “corporate social responsibility”? Well, CSR is one way an organization can give back to society-at-large and the communities in which it does business. Consumers love that, and it’s a win-win for both the company and the aid recipients.

Be consistent
Don’t give mixed messages that might lead to mistrust and confusion, both of which could make you lose customers down the road. Stay close to your values, mission, and vision as much as possible. For example, Apple’s tagline is “Think different.” All of the company’s products and services somewhat match that slogan.

Back up what you say
To build trust and customer loyalty, your word must be credible. If you want to establish a solid reputation, make sure your company delivers on its operational commitments. For example, if “Maintain customer satisfaction 24/7” is your tagline, prove it to patrons in the way your handle things like complaints, merchandise delivery, and service quality.

Be responsive
The last thing you want is bad press, so don’t let word-of-mouth tarnish the reputation you’ve spent years, if not decades, building and growing. Be quick in handling customer inquiries as well as questions from any other relevant party. Think regulators, business partners, activists, and consumer groups.

Respect privacy
Build solid privacy practices in the way your company operates, especially when it comes to archiving online data. In this age, everything business-related is kept on the “cloud,” so make sure your cloud provider has implemented effective policies to safeguard your company’s data, as well as your customers’ private information.

Cultivate your client base
To grow your business, you must cultivate your clientele. These include your existing and past customers, along with a mishmash of interested parties ranging from prospects to social media followers. It’s important to cultivate fans because, while some may be unable to buy your product or service today, they definitely will in the future. Plus, they’ll encourage their friends to do the same.

Polish your reputation
Don’t spare any opportunity to polish your reputation, establish authority in your industry, or seize on a good PR occasion. Being authentic also means burnishing that authenticity every now and then, so everyone will take notice, including your competito