Imagine waking up to a joyous festival in your honor only to realize the festival's host is someone you despise.

The following mistakes will put this festival on your competitor's calendar without delay.

Mistake: Big business wants small business to think small.
The greatest feat of big business was to create an illusion of such size that the small business felt no hope of competing. This in reality is far from true and professional branding is a proven first step to establishing the foothold required to begin really edging into a large company's marketshare.

Time after time, smart small businesses achieve local dominance in a market through branding and consistent strategic advertising. Market presence through branding can make even the tiniest of enterprises a player locally and regionally So think big or at least bigger than you actually are.

Mistake: Changing your identity too quickly. 
Banks are notorious for this. They blow in the breeze grasping whatever message happens to be popular at the time. And if the public gets a sour taste for a particular bank, they swallow a friendlier (more publicly admired) rival and rebrand using the more appealing acquisition (See First Union and Wachovia). This sort of morphing ends up doing a disservice to the enterprise that "morphs" too often. The result is a combination of unrecognizability and uncertainty. The lesson is simple, get some principles and stay true to them. A business can adjust the edges of its message to adapt to a popular ideal, but it must stay true to its core 


Mistake: Believing people don't read anymore. PHOOEY. 
In an era where glitz, glamour, and soundbites send us phony messages from every angle, there is an outcry for honest credible communication. Facts matter. People still read (just like you are now). I recently saw a shirt that said "1 in 4 people didn't read a book last year." That means 75% DID read a book. Wow, a whole book. Your competition would love you to believe people ignore all advertising, throw brochures away, ignore t.v. commercials and miraculously come up with their preferences out of thin air. They would love you to put down your pen, unplug your keyboard and stop talking to your customers.

Calculated speech can be heard before the lips are even open. And that point is very important. The cynicism of the public at large underlines a simple fact: People are listening. If your message is contrived or overly calculated, you're doomed. Make it honest and real and watch them read every word. Mistake: Neglecting your website reroutes customers one click to the left or right.

Mistake: Allowing your attorney to be your editor. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - What do they want to hear?
Honesty is essential. We intuitively know when a message sounds genuine. We also know when to be skeptical. When a company is brave enough to be simple and clear they usually reap rewards such as loyalty and word-of-mouth. Now more than ever, consumers are numb to flashy sales pitches and exaggerated claims. But that doesn't mean you should be boring. Entertaining messages that are interesting have proven their worth since the beginning of time. People want to hear that your products and services do what they say. They want proof.

They want substance. They want quality presentations that show you invested in your company. That investment validates the quality service or product you provide. Not recognizing this is why homemade brochures and amateur designers fail so miserably at launching new enterprises. They believe that great marketing is a byproduct of success when it is actually the path to success.

We practice what we preach
Have you ever asked a designer for their brochure? Odds are they don't have one. Why then should you be convinced they know how to make one for you? You shouldn't. Designers must practice what they preach. They will talk forever about creating an integrated marketing message across all media outlets (print, web, tv, ads, direct mail, etc.), but do they do this themselves? Most don't. Imagine hiring a builder to build your home who lived in a mobile home? You'd probably think twice.