When you meet a new business prospect or a potential client who shows interest in your business/services, how do you react? Are you able to effectively give that prospect more information without overwhelming him/her with a sales-y lecture? After giving your simple elevator speech, let your website do the talking.

“Make sure your website is attention-getting, informational, and in line with your brand standards,” said Chelsea Janke, Social Media Administrator. “You shouldn’t have to click more than three times from your homepage to find desired information. Use your website as a snapshot or representation of your business and what it has to offer, while making sure that it is also user-friendly for your clients and prospects.”

What’s your elevator speech? No, it’s not actually about elevators. What I’m asking is if you were to sum up what you do or what your business is all about in just one to two sentences (roughly the time you share with another person on an elevator), what is your key message? It might not be easy to summarize, but it’s great to be prepared for those short encounters with other people – who might be prospective clients.

Having trouble formulating your key-message speech? Here’s a tip: don’t try to include every single aspect of what makes your business great – that would be far too in-depth and excessive for an elevator speech. Instead, try to include two or three of your most important goals, maybe part of your mission statement, or just a couple of your strengths that make your business unique and successful. Whatever it is, keep it simple.

If you’re a business owner thinking that you know exactly what your key message is, can you say the same for every member of your team/company? Remember that every employee is a reflection of the company as a whole, and clients often formulate their opinions of a company based on one experience or interaction with an employee of that company. Make sure each member of your team correctly and effectively represents your business and its solidified message.

photo credit: Debs (ò‿ó)♪

How far would you go to show your loyalty to your favorite brands? Many consumers will recommend brands to friends, wear clothing with obvious logos, or even put bumper stickers of logos on their cars. But is there any greater sign of brand loyalty than the willingness to have a logo permanently tattooed onto your skin? That’s commitment that speaks loudly for your company.

According to a Star Tribune article from last month titled “The new branding: company tattoos” by Kristin Tillotson, numerous staff members of Anytime Fitness have gotten the company’s purple logo of a running person tattooed on their skin. Not only is that strong brand loyalty, but it also shows the extreme devotion that Anytime Fitness employees have to their company.

So what do you think: Is there a brand logo that you would have tattooed on your skin? How about the company you work for? Or is this branding going too far?

To read the full Star Tribune article, click here.

C.E.L. can show you how to get positive press!

As fall approaches, the media starts setting their sites on new angles on old, but stable stories that they always cover at this time of year. Back to school, change in season and temperatures are a couple examples of old news becoming new again. Now is a good time to see if you have a news hook that can bring the media to your door. If you can’t tie into fall, start planning for the rest of this year and into 2010. You most likely have a story to share and remember; the best news angles are not always obvious. Dig below the surface to find what merits special attention and then prepare to “pitch” your story to the press. Do your homework. Research the best target reporter, define your key messages and present them in a clear and concise way. Email is the best way to make your first connection and then follow up with a phone call. Then, brush up your interviewing skills.

A mirror is a good way to reflect on your abilities!

For more detailed information, check out the article I wrote for the August issue of HVACR Business magazine.

~ Kari Logan

	Look inside >
Spreading the News

Speaking consistent key messages is essential to branding small and midsize businesses, yet many don’t do it.  I’m co-owner of CEL in Plymouth and day after day, we meet business owners who can’t clearly articulate the service their company provides to their customers.  Therefore, neither can their employees.  There is power in the momentum that builds from everyone speaking the same message and it has the power to impact revenue.

In response, our firm is now taking clients through key message boot camp, designed to devise consistent key talking points and a business “elevator speech.” You simply can’t leave the office without it and you certainly can’t move on to further marketing without it.  Many companies have placed a multitude of messages on their websites, in brochures, and within ads, wiht no consistency.  We drill them on their current messages and lead a charge to fine tune and get ready to march to key message independence.