Making Connections
Company builds small biz brandNike, McDonald's and Mercedes take their brands very seriously. Unfortunately, many new small business owners do not. That's the experience of one marketing professional who is eager to help small business owners build a great brand. ROGER PIERCE |
|
|
Pierre Barrette helps small businesses create a better brand at NEBS.ca.
"Some small businesses find it difficult to stand out in a crowded marketplace," Pierre Barrette says. "We help small businesses gain a competitive edge through great branding."
Barrette is vice-president of sales and marketing at Nebs Deluxepinpoint based in Midland, Ont. (www.nebs.ca), a leading North American company specializing in the design, manufacturing and distribution of personalized business products since 1976.
Adding to its strong background of printing business forms and cheques, NEBS recently added logo design, branding and identity development to its services for small businesses. Equipped with an entire team of professional designers, the company will actually design your logo for free if you spend $250 on printing.
It's from working with thousands of small businesses that NEBS knows how to craft a powerful image. "Small businesses often lose out to bigger competitors because they look like small businesses," Barrette says. "A small business can look like a much bigger player through use of colour and professional design in their branding materials."
Barrette says some of the more common mistakes a small business owner makes when branding or designing a logo includes using different fonts, shying away from colour and hiring a relative to design company letterhead.
"Image is just as important as your product or service," he says. "Image is the reason why a customer is going to do business with you."
Barrette says it's the small business owner's job to reach out to customers on an emotional level. "You've got to make your customers want to buy from you instead of the competition," he says. "That's why the most successful branding appeals to customers' emotions."
Would you ever work for a social or charitable enterprise in the third sector?