Email Marketing Connecting With Your Customers

An effective email marketing campaign can be an excellent marketing strategy.  By providing a sign up form for your website visitors, you harness information.  You are able to learn more about your customers and what they like and dis-like.  Lets face it, everyone that visits your website does not necessarily purchase your products or service at that visit.  They may return at various later times or never again.  However, if they sign up for your newsletter, then there is an opportunity to convert them to a customer at a later date.

Email marketing campaigns keep you in the minds of your customers and potential customers.  They give you the opportunity to tell them about news, new products, and just to make a connection.  Just imagine if a potential customer went to your website and there was a product they wanted to purchase but it didn’t fit their budget at that time.  By keeping in touch with them through your email marketing campaign; when their budget does allow for that purchase, they have a quick link to your website and not one of your competitors.

How Brochures Can Help Your Business

Brochures add credibility. Very few businesses today operate without some type of brochure describing their services. In a world where anyone can spend $50 on letterhead and business cards, a brochure proves you are in business and are more than a fly by night operation.

Brochures are a great way to tell prospects the essentials of your business including how your service works, what it will do from prospects, and how prospects can take the next step in working with you. Offering a great balance between information and visual imagery, Brochures enable you to showcase your products or services in the best possible light. Use them as a central component in a direct-mail marketing campaign in order to attract new customers. They can also be displayed in your store or office for customers to take away with them.

A good sales brochure does more than explain and inform. It also persuades. It translates your facts and features into customer benefits and sells your services. From flyers to local business print material we can help your business grow.

Benefits of A Content Management System | CMS

Content Management System (CMS)

Do you make your own website updates?

Today, search engines thrive off dynamic and new/changing content on websites. An easy-to-use Content Management System (CMS) is built for the non-technical, it’s an easy and intuitive secure tool that can make updates in real time. If you are comfortable with using Microsoft Word, you’ll be comfortable securely logging in to the back end of your site and managing it.

Content management systems (CMS) are designed to simplify the publication of web content  to web sites and mobile devices, in particular, allowing content creators to submit content without requiring technical knowledge of HTML or the uploading of files.

Benefits of a Content Management System (CMS):

•    Allow for a large number of people to contribute to and share stored data
•    Control access to data, based on user roles. User roles define what information each user can view or edit
•    Aid in easy storage and retrieval of data
•    A more appropriate use of the web team results in lowered production costs.
•    Some search engines rank pages that change frequently higher in search results.
•    Ensures a controlled flow of content around internal processes.

Re-design Your Web Site to Increase Sales

A website design that promotes easy navigation and uses the right colors can increase your sales.  Having a simple, eye-catching design that users can easily find the information they are seeking and then making sure that your website helps to move the visitor into an action that you want them to do are all contributors to a great sales increasing website re-design.

Here are 5 reasons to re-design your website:

1. The site looks amateurish and/or parts are broken.
2. The site doesn’t ask viewers to do something.
3. The navigation links are confusingly named.
4. The body text is too dense.
5. The information on the site is obviously dated.

Here is an example of a website re-design for Klik Marketing www.klikmarketing.com where the original site was very outdated and it was a little confusing to navigate through the site.  A blog was added, pictures updated and re-touched, the colors were changed from very dark to light and a new logo was created.

Website Design Tips

“How can I attract thousands of visitors to my site?”, many people ask me this question. Well, driving high traffic to Website is very important, but what’s even more important, is designing a website in that way which makes them stays longer.

In this article, you’re going to learn 7 important website design tips to make your site more attractive. So not only your website will attract many people, but it will also motivate them to stay for a long time.

1. Be Aware during Selection of the colors scheme
If your company has a logo or preferred colours on its stationery that’s a good start. For those of you starting from scratch, choose two or three complementary colours and stick with them – don’t change colours on every page. The most common colour schemes include:
- Red, yellow and white
- Blue and white
- Red, grey and white
- Blue, orange and white
- Yellow, grey and white.
- Onion shade, Tan, white

If you’re not sure what colour scheme to choose, surf the internet and find a website that you like. You can then model your colour scheme on what already exists. Always Select those colours which Attract the visitors, and the person revisit your site.

2. Page Backgrounds
Ensure your visitors can read the text on the background, i.e. no black writing on dark blue background or yellow on white. Means if the page background is dark always use light colour for the writhing a text or if the light colour is used for the page background the always use dark colour for writing a text, like this colour scheme for the background everything is visible to the visitor. Also be careful that your links are visible before and after being visited. The default for links in most programs is blue (before being visited) and burgundy (after being visited), so if you have a dark background, ensure your links are light.

3. Page loading
All I’ve seen for the last 10 minutes is ‘page loading’, I think something might be wrong with my browser this is probably one of the biggest gripes a site visitor has. If your page takes more than a minute to load (on dial-up) and you have anything less than the meaning of life hidden within your content – something needs to be done. The average person does not have time they just go for another site without passed his time for these type of site those take time to open. So a good website takes less time for loading a site.

4. Appropriate page Size
Web pages are measured in pixels. Pixels are the unit of measurement for the screen. A Web page can literally be any size. Standard Web pages usually fit into a few sizes:
* W × H * 600 × 800 * 640 × 480 (Dream weaver default) * 1024 × 768 * 550 × 400 (Flash default)

The default Web page sizes provided in Web friendly applications and listed earlier are a great place to start. You will probably use a smaller, custom size for pop-up windows. The Web page size you choose is up to you. Remember to use actual space for the Web page effectively so that the content is in the proper proximity to the user’s navigation patterns. Web page size affects the way users move around the Web pages and the Web portfolio site. One rule: Pick a size for all main screens and stick to it.

5. Logo
Create a simple logo to identity your website. Have a captivating tag line somewhere with the header, and write an About Us page which describes the uniqueness of your website. These will leave an impression for your visitors to remember your website.

Thanks for the great tips from JP Grafik Dezine! For more assistance in designing your website, please contact the team at Generate Design at (919) 845-6310

10 Business Card Tips for Your Next Design

Having a business card is a necessity when conducting business.  With the highly competitive environment of business today, not only do you need a business card, but you need one that is going to stand out among your competitors.  Your business card speaks for your brand, creative professionally designed business cards can give you that edge you need for your next lead.  These 10 tips below will help you work with your graphic designer to create your next unique business card design.

1.      Make sure the information in your business card is current. If you changed address or phone number, don’t scratch the old number and write down the new one by hand; get new business cards.

2.      Keep your business card simple. Don’t use too many fonts or try to cram too much information in it. Use a pleasant layout and make sure that your main message (your tagline or your unique selling proposition) doesn’t get lost.

3.      Make sure that your business card reflects your image. If you are an artist or a graphic designer, it is OK to use trendy colors and fonts. If you are an investment banker, a sober layout and colors such as blue or gray work better.

4.      Make it Readable. Make sure that all the information on your card is printed in a large enough typeface to be easily readable.

5.      Order them in large numbers.  By ordering 1000 your cost per card will be significantly lower than if you ordered 500.

6.      Put up a website and use the URL in your business cards. If you don’t have a website, people will notice the absence of a web address in your business card and, depending on the business you are in, it may make you lose credibility.

7.      Unify your brand. Your business card is an integral part of your brand.  It should follow the same graphics standards as the rest of your communications material (stationary, brochures, letterheads, etc.).

8.      Make your business card easy to read: use high contrast between the background and the type. Light background with dark type works better.

9.      Make your company credible.  Use logos of organizations that you or your business belong to in your business cards. They are an easy way to provide instant credibility to your business.

10.  Keep them Fresh.  Take good care of your business cards. Keep them clean and crisp in a cardholder. Don’t give away cards that are bent or damaged.

Brochure Designs : What You Need To Know

Print ads are extremely effective as product and company promotion tools.  Even though you hire the services of a design company to create your brochures because you do not have the time, skills, or resources to create a suitable design for your company or business, without some important preparations on your part, you could still encounter some problems.  The following are tips of things to remember before making your brochure design.

Primarily, you must keep in mind that you need to capture the attention of your potential customers with the use of the brochure design.  Therefore, prior to going to a design firm you should already have a clear idea of who your target audience or clients are.

Next, doing some in depth research about other companies that sell the same products you have will give you some ideas of how to develop your products and services; furthermore, try acquiring samples of their brochures. This way, you will have an idea what sort of concept you could include in your brochure design.

Bring brochure design samples with you to your initial consulting in order for the design company to have a glimpse about how you desire your brochure design to look.  It is a common situation that clients tell the designer in an offhand manner that it will be up to the designer to come up with the design for the brochure. However, when they receive the final design, they may feel that the designer did not follow their specifications. Bringing brochure design samples can save time and effort in the conceptualization process.

Keeping these things in mind could actually save you a lot of time and money. Personally supervising the developments of brochure design will give you personal satisfaction with the results.

Your Website: The Hardest Worker On your Team

Why take the time and money to invest in a website design and  just to have it sit on the Internet like an old abandoned building, or even worse, stand around on a smoke break, like some questionable employees do, just collecting a pay check. Well, take into consideration that your website is an employee that works for the company like everyone else. If it doesn’t perform then it may be time to send it to the un-employment line, or at least give it a stern talking too.

Web Design

The problem with designing  a website in today’s environment, is understanding why you are creating it and what you are going to use it for. Yes, it is no secret that if you want to do business in today’s economy and beyond, you need to have a website to be taken seriously. However, don’t just have one designed and created just because you read an article that said you should. You need to have a complete plan on how making this investment is going to pay off for your business before you even think of having it designed. The key is you want to design it to meet your goals not wrap your goals around its design.

Another key point to remember is that creating a website is an ongoing effort. The worst mistake you can make is creating a website and then just leaving it on the Internet and hoping that the magic god of traffic will refer you customer after customer. You have to be an active manager of your website or hire managers for your website, just as you do your employees. You have to set goals and objectives for your website to meet. Make sure your website finishes its projects on time. When making an investment you have to either constantly cultivate it yourself, or hire a professional to do it for you. Make sure that if you invest in building an online presence, that presence isn’t just left to run however it sees fit. You are the boss and your website is an employee, tell that lazy bum to get to work.

Why Your Company Needs a Logo

Branding! Branding! Branding!

You know that your company offers the best products and services in your industry.  You have superior quality than your competitors and you work hard to make sure your clients are satisfied.  But here is the problem.  There is so much competition in the global economy that your business gets lost in the noise.  That’s where graphic design comes in.

Logo & Identity

An appealing, professional graphically designed, logo sets you apart from your competition and gives your current and potential clients a way to recognize you in the crowd.  It is your businesse’s corporate identity.  Your logo is the visual representation of your brand.  Your logo tells the consumer that they will get the quality they have come accustomed to expect from your firm.  You logo will also allow your reffered customers to find you as oppose to one of your competitors trying to pass off their inferior services to a potential client of yours.

Yes, branding your business consists of many different marketing aspects.  From refining the service or product that you offer to the flyers and websites that broadcast your message to the public, however, your logo is that basic foundation that brands are built off of.

How to Choose a Graphic Design Firm

Choosing the best graphic design company for the branding of your company can be a very trying task. Here are some tips to help you avoid common mistakes in selecting the best graphic design firm for creating your business marketing materials.

1. Number of years in business as a graphic design establishment
How many years has the graphic design firm been in the business?  The more years that a graphic design company has been on the block, the more established and respectable their company is.

2. Clientele
A reputable graphic design firm can show you the projects that they have created for their customers.  Do you recognize some of these clients?  You should also ask the graphic design agency if they have done repeat projects for a client.  Several projects with a client usually means that the client is happy with the service accomplished by the graphic design agency.

3. Copyright ownership
Ask the graphic design agency who will own the source art’s copyright.  There are many graphic design firms that hold the rights to the design. Clients may have sad stories to tell regarding copyright ownership, as they may have learned in a shocking way that they cannot use the finished product for something else because, even though they paid the company to create the design, it is still the graphic design firm that owns the copyright to the finished product.

4. Sample works
Can you see sample works of the graphic design company through different ways, such as the Internet?  If you can browse their sample works online, this could also help you decide if you would this is the right graphic design firm to make your business marketing tools.

5. Hidden costs
Frequently, the fees for revisions, initial drafts, and authoring adjustments are already incorporated in the published rate for your advertising materials. Nonetheless, you should also request clarifications so that you will not receive any unwelcome surprises when the bill is finally given to you.

Keeping these tips in mind when choosing a graphics design firm, will help you be successful in finding the best graphic design firm for your company. Remember, a graphic design firm is a partner that helps you to promote, brand, and market your business. Just like any partner, you want to choose one that you can trust to get the job done.