Wyospace.com

Tips on naming your business

Elizabeth Parks, Wyoming Market Research Center

First impressions can make or break you in business and your business name is part of the critical first impression to help generate traffic…or not.

The name of your business should let customers know what it is you do and should also convey the value and uniqueness of your product or service. Your name can also function as a descriptor for your business. For example, do you want to convey quality or convenience or low-cost? The more the name communicates to consumers, the less effort you will have to exert in explaining it.

Think about a name by taking a methodical approach. Develop a list of keywords relating to your business. Include in this list verbs, nouns and adjectives. Begin searching the Web and magazines to generate ideas. Use a thesaurus to determine alternate words for your product or service. Talk to friends about the message you want to convey and ask for suggestions. Enlist the help of people you don’t know for feedback on proposed names.

Focus on the experience you want customers to have by using your product or service. For example, if you have a bakery, you may want to focus on bread coming right out of the oven. Instead of “Hannah’s Bakery”, you might decide on “Warm and Wonderful Bakery”.

Don’t forget to include in your list common sayings, mottos or clichés. For example: Chapter and Verse Book Store or Head Over Heels Dog Training. Rhyming words are also easy to remember.

Consider your competition when considering a name. What is it they do you do better? Use your name to differentiate yourself from them. You want customers to remember your name before your competitors.

Keep the name flexible. As you add new product lines, your name may no longer fit. Even large corporations have made this mistake. 3M started out as Minnesota Manufacturing and Mining. Southwest Airlines has now expanded beyond the Southwest. In the Rocky Mountain Region, the Vitamin Cottage in Fort Collins now has several stores and is no longer a “cottage”.

Your business name will have far-reaching effects; it your #1 marketing connection and it will touch many different people and organizations in different ways. Here are some things to consider:
• How will it look on your website, business cards, ads and other marketing materials?
• Is it easy to pronounce and spell?
• Is it easy to remember?

Some don’ts:
• Don’t use acronyms – spell out the name to avoid confusion.
• Avoid trends in names, which go stale after a while. Examples are “R Us”, “ N’ Stuff”, “N Things” and “N More”.
• Because of e-Commerce, geographic locations as part of a name are no longer a good idea; for example, Jones Street Hardware.

If you are already in business under a poorly thought out name, don’t be afraid to change it. Bundy Very Used Cars changed its name to Rent-a-Wreck and quickly became a household word.

Lastly, in the State of Wyoming, it is not mandatory you register a DBA (doing business as) name. However, you may register a DBA by filing a Trade Name Application. More information can be found by clicking on the following websites:
State of Wyoming Statute:
http://legisweb.state.wy.us/statutes/statutes.aspx?file=titles/Title40/T40CH2.htm.
Find the Form (click on Business for forms):
http://soswy.state.wy.us/Forms/FormsFiling.aspx.

Name games…get a grip! Start from the start – with an end in mind.

By Jill Kline, WSBDC Regional Director
WyomingEntrepreneur.Biz, Wyoming Small Business Development Center

There are a varying opinions and strategies on how to select an appropriate name; I’ll provide some resources for you to consider. Choosing a name should not be taken lightly.  The right name is your first step in developing a brand for your business, which is how your customers see you and what they will come to expect and value as far as your product or service is concerned.

The Entrepreneur.com web site has a vast list of resource articles outlining strategies to help you name your business. Steve Nubie, author of a May 2000 article titled “Why A Good Business Plan Can Help You Name Your Company” offered a concise approach that should help you get started.

Nubie suggests that your written business plan can be the blueprint for determining your name. A good plan clearly defines your product or service, your customers, your competition and your industry. Your plan outlines your goals and strategies to achieve those goals. Your plan forms a framework for your brand strategy and leads you to critical issues to think about when determining your name.

Nubie provides four considerations: First, visualize your customers. What do they look like? What are their ages, genders, lifestyles and locations? If you target a specific demographic or type of customer, your business name should be customer-driven. A good example of this is the high-end clothing store, La Petite Femme, which specializes in smaller women’s sizes.

Next, think about what makes your company distinctive. What is your company's emphasis? This uniqueness or competitive edge describes the primary nature of your business. Identify the words that define the nature of your business and highlight that attribute in your name.

Third, understand your business category. Are you highly specialized or are you selling a commodity? For instance, Meals-on-Wheels, the catering company, has a specialized product and market; Melissa's Catering, has a broader market yet it clearly identifies the business and adds an element covered in the next consideration.

Finally, are you or another individual essential to the company's day-to-day activities and functions? This is often the case for service type businesses and best exemplified when you see a name or a list of last names for lawyers, doctors or insurance agents. 

According to Dave Batt, president of Everest Communications Inc. in Genea, Illinois, "In time, the name will be less important than what you make of it through hard work, dedication and customer satisfaction. It's at that point that you’ll know you've not only successfully named your company, but also given birth to a brand.”

See other topic related articles on the Entrepreneur.com web site.

Pitchin' to the Media - How to get good press

By Tom Lacock, WBC

I just flew in from Baltimore and my arms aren’t the least bit tired. I spent three days this week at the Society of American Business Editors and Writers (typical editors put the “E” before the “W” in the title of the organization) Conference on the east coast.

While the job duties are a lot more specific, it is basically my job to help people say pretty things about Wyoming in print or television and SABEW lets me hear specifically what the media is looking for.

Spencer Ante, an editor at Business Week, opened his playbook and offered his checklist of how he decides who he is going to cover. He won’t listen to a pitch without knowing about:

Management - He wants the story on a company interested in getting ink to tell him who the managers are, what is their story, why did they arrive where they have? Who have they surrounded themselves with to insure success?
Level of innovation - Sure you have a new product, but how is this changing people’s lives?
The company they keep - Who is using this product or who are the investors?
Evolution of their business plan - They might be innovative, they might be making money, but where are they as opposed to where they want to be and how they intend to get there.

If you can answer those four questions in a way that is fun or interesting, let me know and we can find a publication to plug you in.

Sounds easy, but here comes the tough part. Any lemonade stand can knock through those first four. You have to be willing to back your story up with solid financials - doesn’t mean you have to make money, doesn’t mean you have to be getting close, it just means you have to be willing to open your books.

Here we have a personal space alert just like that time in second grade gym class when the girl behind you got into your bubble and her glasses went flying across the room because she had no idea you were about to do a helicopter. This is personal, this is closer than we want to let someone in.

Granted, I don’t walk around with my credit score on a t-shirt or tell anyone on the street my amount of credit card debt, because it is personal. It’s a pretty personal thing to have your entire life on bank statements and just show that to a guy you just met. The flip side to that is a reputable reporter isn’t going to risk his/her rep for someone who isn’t about to show that off. Keep in mind, the financials aren’t necessarily going into the story, but it will legitimize you.

In a lot of cases you can talk to the reporter about using percentages of growth in a story or another measure that doesn’t necessarily give away a financial position to a competitor.  Think about it like this - if someone is writing for the Denver Post, Business Week or any other reputable publication, they are probably a smart cookie and didn’t get where they are by putting a knife in the back of the businesses they write about.

Green Business: NOT"oh come on!" How about, OH YEAH!

By Diane Wolverton
State Director
Wyoming Small Business Development Center

A movement is afoot. Some call it sustainability; others call it green business. Patricia Aburdene, author of Megatrends 2010 has dubbed it “Conscious Capitalism” and she says it will change the way we conduct business in the USA and around the world.

“Change the way we conduct business” Wow. That warrants attention. Smart entrepreneurs are taking note and looking for ways to be part of the change so it works for them and not against them. Here are a few things you can do to get started.

Learn the basics. Today’s working definition of sustainability is “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” In the context of business, this means operating profitably today without negatively impacting our environmental and societal infrastructures to compromise the future. Sustainable businesses work toward a “triple bottom line”: one that supports people, planet and profits.

One way to orient yourself to the movement is to learn its language. Check out the online sustainability dictionary by the Presidio School of Management. You’ll discover cool concepts like biomimicry, eco-labels, cradle-to-cradle, SRI (social responsible investing), global reporting initiative and more.

Connect with others: Lots of organizations are cropping up to support the sustainability movement. Co-op America has been around the longest. They offer a ton of information, plus an opportunity for sustainable businesses to sell products through Green Festivals and their catalogue of sustainable products, The Green Pages.

Another great resource is LOHAS, an organization dedicated to the $209 billion U.S. marketplace for goods and services focused on health, the environment, social justice, personal development and sustainable living. Just a few minutes on this website will show you that the sustainability movement offers a lot of opportunity for businesses who can tailor their products and services to meet the needs of this huge market. LOHAS also puts on a great annual conference loaded with information and networking opportunities.

Revisit your plan: Getting on the wave of sustainable business requires revisiting your whole business – your mission, your product, your processes, your people, your location. It may seem overwhelming. But there are lots of resources to help. The Wyoming Business Council offers an energy audit to determine what your carbon footprint looks like and how you can reduce its size. Contact Tom Fuller, tom.fuller@wybusiness.org. Manufacturing-Works offers an environmental assessment. Contact Carol Stark, cjstark@bresnan.net. The Small Business Development Center can help you look at your compete business plan through the lens of sustainable practices. Contact Diane Wolverton, ddw@uwyo.edu.

Make Your Website Work for You Seminar

By Wyoming Small Business Development Center

So you've built a web site, now what? Don't sit in front of your computer helplessly "hoping for hits". At this seminar, you will learn internet marketing and optimization strategies that will bring visitors to your site and convert them into paying customers. Sponsored by the Wyoming Small Business Development Center and the Casper Area Chamber of Commerce, the seminar will take place on Dec. 6 from 9-11:00 am, in the SBDC Conference Room, 300 S. Wolcott, Ste. 300. Stuart Hill, owner of Smart WSI Web Solutions, will demonstrate how the combination of an online and an offline marketing plan can work for you. He will also cover search engine optimization techniques, email marketing campaigns, video (email and online), informational pages, online paid marketing, online reporting, and conversion techniques. Stuart Hill has been involved with computers and business since 1979. In 2005, he started Smart WSI Web Solutions. The Casper business is a WSI franchisee, the world's largest internet solutions provider. Smart WSI Web Solutions focuses on building, maintaining, and marketing internet solutions for small to medium- sized businesses in the Rocky Mountain area. Registration fee is $20 and deadline to register is Nov. 17. Contact the SBDC at 234-6683 to register. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested at least 2 weeks in advance. The WSBDC is a partnership program funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, and in part by the Wyoming Business Council, and the University of Wyoming.

Getting to know you, Part 4 - Once you're in front of the camera

By Tom Lacock

The advice continues......

Never look directly into the camera. Imagine it is the sun, or your dog begging for table scraps. Ignore it, it isn’t there; don’t even acknowledge it unless it falls on your toes. Looking into the camera and talking is a creepy thing for the folks watching you on the other side. Always look at the interviewer, act like you are talking conversationally to them and try to ignore the camera. Never look down while speaking, you know what your shoes look like already – or at least you should.

Always start off each interview by saying, then spelling your name. No matter how easy you think your name is, spell it anyway. Then, offer your title. The reporter should ask this right away, but if they don’t, remind them to – like asking your proctologist to wash his hands when he walks into the exam room, it is a good way to avoid a potential mess.

Don’t sway or slouch. Try a 15 degree lean forward. If you need to know how far 15 degrees is… You are not alone, but that is what Bulldog Reporter suggests.  Find a comfortable position to sit or stand in right away and go with it. Use a natural positions and natural hand gestures - unless those gestures involve pounding a table or desk.

Remember the microphone is always live and by saying, “this is off the record”, doesn’t necessarily mean anything in a legal sense. As an editor once told me, “Because he said, ‘off the record’ doesn’t mean he can tell you what you can use and what you can’t.” Unless someone grants you “off the record” protection verbally you are not off the record. And even then there is nothing forcing the reporter not to use that statement.

Dress simple: For men, this is dark suits with light shirts and solid ties. Light colored shirts are better, but white can look washed out sometimes. Bringing a sport coat or suit jacket to the offices and leaving it is a good idea. For women, darker muted colors are best. Red is fine, but darker colors over the top are better. Don’t wear dangly or distracting jewelry. Ted, this means you.

Stick to three message points. Lay them out one at a time and then keep your responses fairly brief. Give the reporter something to work with, but don’t ramble.

Glossary of terms you might hear the TV personality mention:

B-roll: secondary footage (video) in a news story. This video should match what the reporter is talking about in their story (e.g. the reporter is talking about a cow, we should see a cow in the video).

Soundbite: A soundbite is what comes from an interview.  The reporter will go back to the station, look at the interview and pull out the soundbites, he/she feels get the point across.  Typically, reporters will not chose soundbites that are longer the 12 seconds long, so try to keep answers as short as possible...ideally 7-10 seconds.

VO/SOT: Voice Over/Sound on Tape: VO is voice over and SOT is Sound on Tape. Together it is a VO/SOT: This is a short, 45 second-or-so, story; which the TV anchor will read. As they read the story, b-roll will play, hence the Voice Over.  The Sound on Tape comes in when 'you,' the interviewee gives the soundbite.

Package:  A package is the longest version of a story in TV News.  This is when the reporter who interviewed you has their voice over the b-roll and 'you,' the interviewee has 2-3 soundbites in the story.  Packages can run from 45-90 seconds long. This is your best opportunity to get your story/point across.

Tom will be at the Wyospace.com Idea Expo (Coming up in TWO WEEKS!) along with his coleagues from the PR/Marketing Department of the Wyoming Business Council, to offer free advice on marketing and PR to Wyoming's Businesses.  Be sure to visit them at their booth on the main floor!  If you still haven't registered, go online now to www.wyomingideaexpo.com.  Hotels are filling fastly, and you don't want to miss this!

Getting to know you, part 3

By Tom Lacock

So now that we have the media interested, what do we do once they say they want to do a story? Television is sort of its own beast, so we’ll start with how to work with a TV reporter. The scenario we’ll work with is assuming a reporter has just called you asking for an interview.

Before you go on TV:

1. Remember that timeliness is an issue. Return calls right away whether you can schedule an interview that day or not so you don’t leave someone hanging. If a news person is calling you or for you, they are most likely interested in talking with you today and sooner rather than later. TV news reporters trying to get something on TV for the 5 p.m. newscast need to have their stuff edited by 3:30-4 p.m and editing a story takes at least an hour. The earlier in the day you can arrange an interview, the better.

2. One-source stories are not necessarily good ones. Remember that stories work best when you can provide a real example of what the story is about. In the case of a government agency trying to get the word out on a program which needs to solicit new participants, arrange time with the people you or your program has helped. That might mean asking someone to appear on TV with you – should they have the time or the people available. At least be thinking of people that can speak to this subject and offer them as potential sources.

3. Think about possible B-roll. No one wants a story made up of just one sound bite, so think of  something the reporter or photographer can shoot for background that day that can be shown as the TV personality is talking – commonly referred to as “B-roll.” For and agriculturally-based story, this could mean finding livestock for the reporter to shoot. For someone with more office-related duties and projects on the other side of the state it could mean having someone tape you while you are on the phone. The more B-roll available, the longer the story can be.

4. Bring any relevant press releases or data that can be released to support your story or point of view. The easiest way to make sure the reporter does not get something wrong is to give them the information they need in written form. If there is a third-person assessment (a study, supporting stats written by an independent source) that is positive about your story, bring that too. Getting kudos from someone without a financial interest in your company or product is a far better endorsement of your product than anything you can say about it yourself.

5. Simplify the story for the reporter. Remember, the reporter assigned to the story is not an expert in your field and could have been doing a story about dog poo yesterday, so they will probably be looking for basic background and information, rather than trying to hit the sensitive areas of your issue. Remember to adjust your vocabulary and explanations of programs to an eighth-grade level.

6. Avoid alphabet soup. BRC could mean British Ride Chryslers. LEAD could be Lacock Eats Anyone’s Dinner. Don’t assume anyone knows what initials stand for and don’t assume I won’t eat your dinner. Never use initials.

7. If there is pronunciation issue with name of people or programs, address it before going on the air, especially if you are going on live.

8. Turn off your cell phone and spit out your gum. Don’t get those two confused or you may end up with gum in your ear and a Nokia wadded up in silver paper and thrown in the trash.

9. Bring a business card with name and title on it for the reporter. Handing off a card now will result in that card turning up later when the reporter needs a source. It also offers the proper spelling of your name and title for someone who may meet four new people a day.

Getting to know you, Part 2

By Tom Lacock

Now we have something we want to get covered. Here are some tips to think of before writing that press release or story pitch:

Media tips as well as tips working with radio and TV:

• If you are going to put out a press release make sure you will be in the office for the next couple days. Nothing is more frustrating to a reporter than getting excited about a story and then finding out the person you are supposed to be using as a source is in Hati for a week. If there is a board meeting where your division or program is presenting grant proposals, block off a time to talk with the media that day, whether it be in person of over the phone.
• If you are going to put out a press release make sure you will be in the office for the next couple days. Not a misprint or mistake, just a pet peeve.
  
• Bring as many other sources to the table as you can get. Any everyday examples of your program or service helping people you can bring please do. People don’t respond to program descriptions, but do respond when you point out how you helped their neighbor. It also gives the reporter fewer reasons to not do your story.
  
• Use a tape recorder: The WBC sends out an mp3 quote with each press release we send out. This is a 30-second sound bite which is in a format radio stations can immediately cut down to something they can use. That means one less call in order to get a story on an otherwise busy day.
  
• Don’t live in fear of the media. They can be our best friends in terms of educating the public
  
• Aim your press release for a reasonable time. Newspapers and TV stations with news crews generally have morning staff meetings to decide what stories they will chase that day. At K2TV and Channel 5, those meetings happen at 9 a.m. At The Star-Tribune it is 11 a.m. and then the final meeting happens at 4 p.m. It is easy to see a press release sent at 3:30 or 4 p.m. won’t get any real play in the craziness of a deadline rush. Things sent on Friday afternoons die on the fax machine over the weekend because news outlets run skeleton crews on the weekend. Shoot for a morning release if possible for best chances of something getting picked up.
  
• If it is a larger media outlet, or a niche publication you are shooting for, remember they schedule their media calendars out months in advance. Even the local news channels need things in advance if you can give them leadtime. Especially if there is travel involved for the news outlet.
  
• Offer times you are available and remember that the skeleton crews on weekends are often looking for story ideas. Making yourself available on weekends is a pretty good way to get on TV or in the newspaper. There is often very little going on during the weekends and presenting yourself as an option can be helpful.

Tomorrow:  So now that the media is interested, what do we do once they say they want to do a story?

Getting to know you

By Tom Lacock

Prior to my days of blog postings and wearing ties on days I wasn’t attending funerals, I ran around Casper and parts of Iowa as a newspaper reporter. The one thing that I found was almost universal amongst those who read or watched the news as opposed to report on it was a fear of the media. The old joke goes, “never let the truth get in the way of a good story,” and some reporters don’t, but the good ones (and we have almost exclusively good ones in Wyoming) are just trying to help you tell your story.

In the name of making my job obsolete, I’ll tell you what I know about working with the media in this three-part series.

First, let’s take a closer look at the people in the business.
Let’s use television reporters as an example, a medium which seems to have the highest turnover in the area, which is expected when you realize reporters like to be able to pay rent and eat at least twice-a-day. Television personalities in this market work on one and two-year contracts and spend their time working harder than they ever will in the business and trying to find a way to live cheap. Those who work in television generally get paid according to their market size. In other words, New York is a market number one, L.A. number two and those folks can make six figures a year but the pay goes down as the market number gets higher. There are 210 markets in the United States and Cheyenne is number 195 with Casper being 198. Suffice it to say many of the local television reporters’ salaries hover somewhere between $15,000-24,000, meaning while the job may seem glamorous, but these are hard-working people punching the time clock.

Why would a station pay so little? Because they can. Even for a job advertised at $18,000 a year it isn’t unusual to get 20 resume tapes of reporters hungry to get their feet wet and are willing to work for the money. Supply and demand of people works against businesses in Gillette who are forced to pay someone $15 an hour to make sandwiches, but for companies when there is a glut of available labor as there is in media.

Reporters come to Wyoming because they can learn a lot in a short period of time – a real trial by fire – and hope to catch the eye of a larger market. In a top-10 market a reporting team may have a photographer, a sound tech, a reporter and even a field producer. In Wyoming, one person does all of that, which really expands their basis of knowledge. It really is terrific training and people who come out of this market tend to do pretty well. In the past two years two reporters have left Wyoming for jobs in Tampa and Denver (markets 12 and 18 respectively), a 150-market jump which is nearly unheard of.

Working in Wyoming also expands a basis of knowledge for a reporter. Instead of just having one beat (subject to cover), a Wyoming reporter may go to a City Council meeting, then the next day cover a carnival and meet a rancher the day after. The really thrilling part of it all is you get to learn a little about a lot. The bad news is you never quite get to dig as deep into a subject as you may want to, so you are constantly working to simplify the subjects. Add to that the fact you are generally doing two stories a day and things get pretty wild, but are truly a lot of fun. There is a high in trying to gather a good story that is tough to define in those who love what they do.

Tomorrow we’ll get a little more in-depth about how to get the media’s attention. Until then, Ciao.

The Number One Reason to Become a Destination Business

By Jon Schallert, The Schallert Group

I had an owner ask me recently:  “Why do I want to become a Destination Business?”  After I stared at him for awhile, dumbstruck, I replied that “Not only is becoming a Destination a strategic decision that most businesses never make, but one obvious reason is consumers and the media are fascinated by them. 

Look at these articles from national magazines that I saw traveling the country just this last week:

Gourmet Escapes: Colorado’s Best Road-Trip Restaurants

The Best Kept Secrets of Fort Smith, Arkansas

Best Places to Go After Midnight in Montreal

Trips from Portland:  A Portlander ventures out beyond the city and discovers a few easy, great escapes

Notice the words they use.  The media doesn’t call them Destinations, but that’s exactly what they are.  These are places that are so compelling different that people just have to see them, regardless of the drive.  Often these places are little-known, out-of-the-way places that the journalists take pleasure in discovering.  Destinations work because people want to find the unusual, one-of-a-kind, secret place that not everyone has discovered.   Now, apply these words to your business by answering the following questions:

• What makes your business a place that someone must see?
• What makes your business one of the best trips to take in your city?
• What makes your business feel like an escape?
• What parts of your business are extremely unique, but no one knows about them?
• What are the secrets of your business that people don’t know about, but love discovering?
• What products, services, and other components of your business are worth traveling hours to see?

You see, it’s all about taking parts of your business that you are familiar with, that consumers might not be seeing, and putting them to the forefront of your marketing.

If you had trouble answering these questions, you know what you have to do:  Until you have answers to these questions, it will be more difficult to pull customers to you, and tougher to keep your local consumers at home.  All of this involves creating points of difference that consumers notice and becoming a more dominant Destination.

Plus, if you don’t have good answers to these questions, getting free publicity will be darn near impossible.  From the titles of the articles above, it’s easy to see what the media wants to write about.  Design your business so the media comes to you.

Jon Schallert recently spoke at the Wyoming Governor’s Summit on Workforce Solutions in Jackson.  Jon teaches small business owners and communities how to reinvent themselves into consumer Destinations.  As President of The Schallert Group, Inc., Jon speaks to thousands annually on his proprietary “Destination Business” principles, which he developed over the course of twenty years of on-site small business consultations.