It may be wishful thinking to say a logo is just a combination of a pretty font, some symbols, and using fun colors – but it’s nowhere near the truth. In order for a logo to be effective, stand the test of time, and leave the right impression of your business, there are 5 key guidelines to follow. Check them out and see how many criteria your current logo is able to meet!

If you think that your logo may be in need of a tune-up, or a total makeover in order to be more effective; I’d invite you to schedule a Brand Strategy Call and discover how you can begin creating a far more effective, unforgettable brand!

1) Simple

With logos, less is always more. By keeping a logo simple, you are able to keep it easily recognized, easy to remember, and easy to use in a variety of formats and situations! The best logos are those that have something special to them without being “over-the-top” or overly elaborate

2) Memorable

On a similar note, effective logos must always be memorable. By keeping things clean, uncluttered, appropriate to the industry or business sector, and using a carefully strategized color scheme, it becomes a breeze to create a logo that people are sure to remember.

3) Timeless

Gap. Nike. Target. Ikea. McDonald’s – the largest corporations and most powerful brands around understand that while trends are great; a quality logo must also be designed to withstand the test of time. Ideally, a logo should be able to stay relevant for 10-15 years without needing a rebrand.

4) Flexible

A logo that only works in one format or context is useless! Your logo must be able to flawlessly transition from print to online, from small to massive. A good logo should make just as strong a statement in black and white as it does in full color. Make sure your designer is using a vector format to create your logo so that it can be resized to as small or as large as your projects may require.

5) Appropriate

I saved the best for last. At the end of the day, if a logo isn’t able to properly reinforce an enterprise’s positioning – why bother? The color scheme you use, the fonts selected, and even the shapes of your logo must all be strategically designed. For example, the logo used for a women’s hair salon would not use the same font and color scheme as a hardware store!

Want to share this article in your newsletter or on your blog? Sure! Just be sure to include the following message: Adam Haroun is founder & President of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm dedicated to helping solo entrepreneurs stand out, step up and shift their results by developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To begin transforming your results, get your F.R.E.E. Branding Kit at http://www.TheXFactorAgency.com.

Defining A Brand

A brand is the cultivation of a feeling. In other words, it’s the emotional response of your customer to you, your company, and the products/services it offers.

A brand identity, on the other hand, is the verbal and graphic representation of your brand. It’s the way in which you communicate your brand to the world!

The 3 Brand Strategies

Depending on your long-term business goals, you will not have the same brand strategy as everyone else, and you may even have a different branding strategy than your cross-town rival! It’s all about considering where you want to take your business and what role you ultimately wish to play inside of the enterprise.

1) Celebrity (aka Personal) Brand Strategy: This is where you are quite simply the brand! This is ideal for those who are looking to build a true empire with a rock-solid platform, and may ultimately wish to have a presence through the media, speaking, books, and television!

2) Company Brand Strategy: With this branding strategy, the organization take sthe lead. This is best used in those cases where the entrepreneur has plans to sell the company or wishes to take a more passive, minimal role in the day-to-day activites of the enterprise.

3) Product Brand Strategy: This is where a brand is created around a specific product, program, service offering, or system. This is ideal in many cases, especially those where a new offering is being used to complement and existing product line or where the intention of a new offering is to extend the strength of an existing celebrity or company brand.

Bottom Line: There is no one brand strategy that is going to “fit” for everyone, so the best way to determine which strategy is right for you is to get clear on your long-term objectives and then explore the path that best suits you to make these goals a success! Whichever strategy you may choose to implement, remember to enjoy the process (branding, in my opinion, can be the most FUN part of business development) and work with best-in-class professionals who will be able to make your brand strategy implementation a success – regardless of the strategy you feel works best for you!

Want to share this article in your newsletter or on your blog? Sure! Just be sure to include the following message: Adam Haroun is founder & President of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm dedicated to helping solo entrepreneurs stand out, step up and shift their results by developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To begin transforming your results, get your F.R.E.E. Branding Kit at http://www.TheXFactorAgency.com.

Step 1: Discover What’s Working – And What Isn’t

Before we can figure out where you want to take your brand and online presence, we need to figure out where you’re standing right now. We start every project by exploring your brand at the core – and helping you gain clarity about what sets you apart from the crowd, how you’re promoting yourself, and what kind of image you’re looking to create. From here we’re able to move forward by focusing on what makes you unique.

Step 2: Implement A Brilliant Brand Identity

Every exceptional brand has a clear, captivating visual identity as it’s foundation. Your logo, business card, and visual communication guidelines often serve as the first impression you make and represent everything you offer the world. Your identity sets the stage for the look and feel of you envision which is why it’s the first leap towards becoming unforgettable.

Step 3: Construct Your Ideal Online Presence

While your identity is the foundation of your brand, your online presence is the hub of all your marketing efforts. Your website, email marketing and social media platforms (when designed the right way) are you best resource to educate, involve, and engage your prospects and customers – turning them into loyal followers and raving fans. We work with you to determine what your ideal online presence looks like, and then take action by weaving all elements together in an appealing, elegant way that leaves your audience wanting more.

Step 4: Leverage Your Products & Marketing Materials

With an outstanding identity and online presence in place, your next step in creating an unforgettable brand is to carry exceptional design into every area of your business – from your brochures, to your media kits, to your information product design and packaging, into your presentation materials. Working closely along your visual communication guidelines, we’ll extend your identity to all you products and marketing materials – ensuring that everything you share with the world reflects your level of skill and service; immediately giving a dramatic boost to the perceived value of your offerings.

Bottom Line: While this formula may seem rather simple, don’t let that fool you! By having a clear, well-planned, and straightforward process in place to begin your re-branding efforts (or simply create your brand from the start!) you will run into far fewer roadblocks and be able to create a far stronger, truly unforgettable end result than you eve could by going “ad hoc” with your branding efforts! If you’re looking for a bit more help in developing your brand, or re-inventing your current brand…be sure to schedule a Brand Stategy Call, we’d love to chat with you!

Want to share this article in your newsletter or on your blog? Sure! Just be sure to include the following message: Adam Haroun is founder & President of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm dedicated to helping solo entrepreneurs stand out, step up and shift their results by developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To begin transforming your results, get your F.R.E.E. Branding Kit at http://www.TheXFactorAgency.com.

While I got dozens upon dozens of major “take-aways” from the event; one thing I realized is that several of these had a striking impact on the issues I see my clients facing time and time again. I’d love to share just a few of these with you, and what I believe you can do about each!

Doing More of “The Same Thing” Will Give You More of “The Same Thing”!

When we’re looking for better results in business, we think it’s about doing more, more, more of what we have been doing! The funny thing is, that is exactly how Einstein defined insanity! For something to change, there’s something that has to change – wouldn’t you say?

When it comes to your brand, if you’re looking to attract a higher calibre of prospect, raise the level of products and services you’re offering, or perhaps simply transition the focus of what you’re doing – it’s unlikely that your current brand and online presence can get you there. It’s time to step things up! You may even wish to start small, but the first step is starting to realign your image with the goals and changes and goals you’re looking to accomplish! You can’t create a new results with an old brand!

To Attract What You Want…You Can’t Send Mixed Messages!

At the event, we were given a stellar example of this – if you are at a diner, and change the order your waitress gives you time and time again; your order will never be delivered! When it comes to mindset, this means saying and wanting one thing, and making sure that is what your mindset and internal are reflecting – otherwise you’ll end up with skewed results that don’t reflect what you’re looking for!

Likewise, if you’re presenting your business to prospects with a “hodge podge” or inconrguent marketing message and visual identity, you’ll end up leaving them confused…not to mention failing to attract them at all. A great first step is to pinpoint exactly where you current brand and online presence are incongruent; and find where you can begin creating a more consistent identity at the lowest cost possible; if you aren’t able to do a total upgrade all at once.

There’s More Than Enough For Everyone – So Why Compete and Compare? BE YOU!

This was a huge shift I took away from the event. Most entrepreneurs will operate from a place of fear, lack, and scarcity…and it’s self-sabotage! There’s more than enough business out there for everyone, so why feel the need to “take” from someone else or continually fear that your competitors are simply out to “steal” from you? Instead, make decisions from a place of empowerment, positive expectation, and realizing that you have the ability to create new business instead of simply feeling that you are “taking” from someone else.

On a similar note, so many of my clients will come to me saying that they want to model a certain competitor, or that there’s a particular way things “need to look” in their industry. I coudn’t disagree more! I believe the most authentic, most distinguished brands come from being fully self-expressed and reflecting a vision 110% percent. Why be a second-rate clone of a competitor when your business can claim an identity thats completely it’s own! Get outside the box and watch your identity soar!

The bottom line is that, both in your branding and when taking a look at your mindset – by taking a new perspective towards just a few small things, you have the ability to completely shift your paradigms and shift your results…and there’s no time like the present to do so!

Want to share this article in your newsletter or on your blog? Sure! Just be sure to include the following message: Adam Haroun is founder & President of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm dedicated to helping solo entrepreneurs stand out, step up and shift their results by developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To begin transforming your results, get your F.R.E.E. Branding Kit at http://www.TheXFactorAgency.com.

The sad truth is that in many cases, when an online presence doesn’t “work”, it’s a tell-tale sign that a clear, well-designed foundation was never established to begin with! If you feel like you are getting nowhere with your online presence, here’s a roadmap to evaluate (or perhaps build) the foundation of your internet marketing efforts.

Is There A Specific Goal?

It might seem like the right thing to do, but launching a website or social media presence just for the sake of “doing it” will only cause you headaches and frustration down the road. If you don’t have a specific goal for anything you do online, it’s time to re-evaluate if you are spending unwisely or simply in need of a clear purpose.

Who is going to see the site? How will you drive traffic? What are these people looking for when they reach you? What information and content are you trying to provide them with?

Clarity of purpose will allow you to build every aspect of your online presence with the end in mind and avoid any wasted time, energy, or money!

What’s Going To Be Included?

With your goal and purpose in mind, it becomes easy to target the specific tasks your online presence is looking to accomplish – and for whom. From here, evaluate what exactly needs to be integrated into your online presence – and how you plan to structure it. Video, opt-in forms, sales pages, multimedia, ecommerce software…and the list goes on! Don’t let your online presence become an inefficient “buffet” of components…plan out what you’ll need from the very start!

Are You Designing for “Now” – Or For The Long-Term?

It’s easy to get caught up in the “latest and greatest” design trends or trying to follow and model the site of a business you admire/aim to compete with, but step back for a moment.

By creating an online presence that simply follows “trends-of-the-moment”, when design concepts evolve and change, you’re going to be left with a site that looks both dated and perhaps even foolish.

By building an online presence around your visual communication guidelines and brand identity with a simple, streamlined layout you’ll keep your site relevant well into the future.

Has There Been Testing on Multiple Platforms?

There’s nothing worse than creating a magnificent website in one browser – only to find a cluttered, incoherent mess in another web browser or on a different operating system. On a similar note, if your “good-looking” site can’t be easily found by the search engines…there won’t be anyone to see your flashy new online presence!

For this very reason, a cross-platform CMS such as WordPress is a great option to keep your site looking uniform across all systems and browsers. By avoiding the use of Flash (or keeping it to a minimum) you’ll also optimize the search engine rankings of your online presence.

It takes planning, diligence, and strategy – but it’s highly worthwhile to ensure that your online presence is effective from the very start, to save yourself both money and headaches down the road! If you’re not sure how to create an effective online presence, a great first step may be to bring in some “expert eyes” to help you out by booking a Brand Strategy Call!

If that happens to be the case for your business, is your brand in alignment with the direction your business is currently taking? If not, maybe you find yourself taking steps in one direction, but your brand is pulling you in quite another! It’s a big step looking to rebrand your business – but absolutely worth it, if and only if you recognize when the right time to rebrand!  So many times, entrepreneurs will look to change their brand at the wrong time, only to need further rebranding a year or two later. When you consider rebranding your business, here are 3 big signals to look for that may indicate it’s the perfect time for you to reinvent your brand and online presence!

You’ve gone through a name change– If you’ve changed your business name, odds are it’s one of many changes taking place in your business. Don’t make the amateur mistake of simply “slapping on” the new name with your old logo – doing so might leave your audience thinking “something is up” with a sudden name change. Instead, reflect on how you can build an unforgettable brand around a renewed business name!

You have a new business model– Have you gone from being a solo entrepreneur to having a team? Have you gone from focusing on one-on-one services to products and/or virtual programs? Have you significantly revised your pricing? To ease the “shock” on your audience, clients, and prospects, a new brand may make this changeover go more smoothly. As an example with my own business,  when I transitioned my business from “Adam Haroun Designs” to “The XFactor Agency”, I was immediately able to express my new business model, service structure, and position in marketplace with ease; instead of trying to explain the changes made to my old business mode..

Your ideal client has changed– Who do you work with? Is it the same ideal client you were working with 18-24 months ago? A brand that focuses on the corporate sector may not appeal to the individual, and vice versa! This encompasses everything from your logo, to your marketing materials, to your promotion strategy, down to your brand promise!

With these signals in mind, I’d love to share how Einstien defined insanity. Quite simply, he said it was doing “the same thing over and over, yet expecting different results”. If you’re going after a completely new market with the same brand that served you when your business was at a different stage – perhaps it’s time to consider what a revitalized brand can do for your bottom line!

Want to share this article in your newsletter or on your blog? Sure! Just be sure to include the following message: Adam Haroun is founder & President of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm dedicated to helping solo entrepreneurs stand out, step up and shift their resultsby developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To begin transforming your results, get your F.R.E.E. Branding Kit at http://www.TheXFactorAgency.com.

• Your Name

• Your business logo

• City, State/Province

• Phone Number

• Email Address

• List of services

While this is a good start, do you want your marketing materials to simply tell someone how to reach you if and when they decide to…or would you rather have them help someone decide to reach you, and compel them to do so? It’s a shame that so many solo entrepreneurs make the investment into developing brochures and business cards – but then fail to see any substantial results from them! If your business card and marketing materials fail to compel a prospect to contact you – then they fail to do anything! In other words, if someone were to flip through their Rolodex and find your business card – would they be motivated to contact you? If not…odds are, you’re missing a call to action!

A call to action might include encouraging someone to download a free offer from your site, contact you for a free consultation or strategy session, or even take action to receive an incentive or rebate on your products/services. No matter what particular call to action feels right for you and your business…the important part is to actually have one clearly visible!

Ideally, place your call to action in places that are highly visible within your marketing materials (at the top of a brochure page, along the reverse side of a business card, in a uniquely colored box, etc…) and make sure to offer something of real value to a prospect! Couple this with a compelling and consistent message, and you’ve got a toolkit of irresistible marketing materials at your disposal!

XPERTISE IN ACTION – YOUR RAPID ACTION STEPS

STEP 1: Take inventory of what you have to offer prospects. Maybe it’s a consultation, a free sample, a one-time incentive, a free CD or report – the options are endless! Remember that you’re looking to provide something of value to motivate a potential client to get in touch with you!

STEP 2: Take a close look at all of your marketing materials, and figure out where you can include a call to action and tweak the layout to start getting better results! If you’re stuck in the process, or not sure what to do next, bring on the help of an expert!

Take action! From this point forward, only accept the use of marketing materials with a clear and compelling call to action! The design and development of effective marketing materials can feel overwhelming – but don’t get discouraged! Instead, bring on the help of an expert who can take the load off your shoulders! A great place to start may be scheduling a Brand Strategy Call to get clear on how to make your marketing materials and a call to action work for you!

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Adam Haroun is President and Founder of The XFactor Agency, a boutique design and outsourcing firm that empowers solo entrepreneurs and small business owners to stand out, step up, and shift their results by developing an unforgettable brand and online presence. To discover how you can transform your business download your FREE Branding Kit at www.thexfactoragency.com