Contributed By:
Serenity Gibbons
Source: Entrepreneur
When
Kevin Plank first launched his now billion-dollar company Under Armour, one of
his biggest challenges was conveying a professional image. He didn't want
people to know that he was working out of his grandmother's basement. So he did
everything possible in the beginning to make his small online business appear
bigger.
He even carried around multiple business cards so that he could play to
whatever audience necessary. Can you can relate?
Are you
facing the startup stigma?
As the owner of a startup or
small business, there's a certain stigma that comes with your size and lack of experience in the marketplace. Have you
experienced this personally?
Perhaps you resonate with
Kevin Plank and Under Armour and are currently working out of a garage or
basement while trying to hustle your way to your first few sales. Or maybe
you've been around for a couple of years, but just can't seem to get people to
listen.
Right or wrong, the problem
with being small is that people have been conditioned to think that size is
directly correlated to quality/reliability/cost. They assume that, because you
don't have a big office with a full roster of employees, you must not be
professional. This impression comes from the thousands of other tiny businesses
and small startups that have failed over the years.
Random
businesses that were small but appeared bigger
Do you know what Disney,
Apple, Lotus Cars, Harley Davidson, Google, Mattel, Hewlett-Packard, Amazon,
Maglite and the Yankee Candle Company all have in common? They were all small companies started in a garage by an
entrepreneur with very little business acumen.
The
marketplace forgets about stories like these and, as a result, continues to
perpetuate the startup stigma. Unfortunately for you, this puts your company
behind the proverbial 8-ball.
As you've figured out by now,
the biggest point of contention in your pursuit of growth is the old chicken
and egg dilemma. It's hard to scale your business without money. The only
trouble is that it's difficult to make money when you don't have experience.
Ironically, you can't gain experience unless you pick up clients, yet they want
to see that you have a large, successful operation before giving you money.
If you don't figure something
out, you'll end up spinning your wheels forever, never gaining any traction.
While an innovative product and a willingness to hustle will take you a long
way, it's important that you tackle your image sooner rather than later.
Starting from the bottom may make for a good story in a few years, but right
now it could be holding you back.
5
Practical ways to make your online business appear bigger
According to Steven Howard of
Howard Marketing Services, corporate image management is built on the idea that, "Everything an
organization does, and does not do, affects the perception of that organization
and its performance, products and services. These perceptions affect its
ability to recruit the financial resources, people and partnerships it needs to
attain its goals and objectives."
While
there's nothing wrong with being a small business -- in fact, small businesses
are often assumed to have better customer service and considered more
trustworthy -- you don't want other people and organizations to confuse your
size with a lack of professionalism or potential. That's why you need to invest
in image management.
You need to start thinking
about your business from a third party vantage point. If you were looking at
your business from the outside, what would your impression be? If you're being
honest, it's possible that your business might look erratic, unprepared or
inexperienced.
The good news is that, as
long as you have a good business idea and a willingness to work hard and do
whatever it takes to grow, you can fake it until you make it.
It's never been easier to
convey a professional image, while still remaining small and nimble. Let's take
a look at some specific tips, strategies and techniques:
1. Use a
virtual office.
Working out of a garage,
basement, spare bedroom or cramped office is totally acceptable. If it saves
you money and allows you to put all of your resources into building the
company, then it's smart to remain as lean as possible. But what happens when you get a meeting scheduled with a big-time sales
prospect or investor and they want to swing by your office? Giving them your
home address isn't very professional. You need a more sophisticated image.
One solution is to use a
virtual office. Depending on where you're located and what you need, you can
usually rent a virtual office for a few hundred dollars or less per month. Some
even come with added services.
Take Jay Suites in New York
City as an example. When you rent one of their virtual offices, you get a
prestigious Manhattan mailing address, a local phone number, the ability to
book conference rooms, access to a reception area and break room and an array
of portable office services that allow you to work remotely from anywhere.
Depending on the plan you
choose, a virtual office costs anywhere from $75 to $499 per month. That's
pretty good bang for your buck!
2. Create
a domain-specific email address.
Your website says a lot about
your company. But there's one mistake that entrepreneurs and business owners
keep making. Despite having a domain name that aligns with their brand, they
continue to use a generic Gmail or Yahoo email address. Not only is this lazy,
but it screams "unprofessional." For just a few dollars a month, you can create a domain-specific email address.
So, instead of telling clients to reach you at Joey39402@gamil.com, you can
simply ask them to shoot you an email at Joey@mycompany.com.
3. Pay
for professional branding materials.
Even if you don't have a big
marketing budget, you can (and should) invest in some professional branding
materials. For your online presence, this means investing in a quality logo,
good images and powerful graphics. Offline, basic things like business cards,
letterhead, presentation materials, banners and signs can all be purchased at
very low prices.
4. Build
up your social media following.
When people research your
company and try to figure out who you are and what you do, they're going to
check out your social media following. If you have 37 followers, they're going
to be a little skeptical. However, if you have 3,700 followers, then there's a
greater chance they'll take you seriously.
Building your social media
following isn't easy -- however, it's necessary. There are tons of techniques
that people swear by. One of the best is to network with influencers that are
involved with your target customer base. "Pick 3-5 influencers and engage with their content. Write comments,
engage in their community, and don't be afraid to ask them questions,"
entrepreneur Bhavik Sarkhed suggests. "By doing this
you will put yourself and your profile on the radar of the influencer and their
followers. This visibility will land you a bigger following but also put you on
a path to become an influencer yourself."
It's also important that you
remain consistent. You can't post five times one day and then not share
anything for two weeks. Try posting once or twice per day, every day, in
addition to regularly interacting with followers and comments.
5. Use
the right automation tools.
One of the awesome things
about the internet tech boom is that there are lots of powerful automation
tools. Many of these tools are free, or extremely affordable. Most give you the
ability to handle larger scale responsibilities without committing a ton of
resources and time.
If you have a task that needs
to be streamlined, chances are, there's an automation tool available. Common
responsibilities that small businesses automate include project management,
social media, customer service, employee scheduling, accounting and HR. For a
look at some of the top automation tools that companies are currently using, check out this list.
Use the resources you have
The goal here isn't to lie or
be deceitful. If anyone directly asks you about your company and how many
employees you have, tell them. Honesty is the best policy when building a
business. Remember that growing a business is just as much about branding,
market positioning, and image management.
You have access to tons of different tools and resources. The same ones
entrepreneurs like Kevin Plank could have only dreamed of when first starting
their businesses. Make sure you're taking advantage of these opportunities and
doing everything within your power to boost your image.
Bigger isn't always better.
I've found a strong image can get you a long way. Especially in the early days
of running a small business or startup.
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