What's in a Name?

Possibly your entire image – take time to choose the right
name. Think about the last time you named a child or a pet
or perhaps that prize-winning racehorse! How many days and
nights did you agonise over choosing just the right name?
Think of all the baby name books, the names that jumped out
at you while watching TV or listening to the radio. How
they sounded when you said them out loud.

A lot of time and effort was spent in coming up with just
the right name because you knew that you'd have to live
with your decision for many years. Choosing a name for your
company and products can be just as difficult.

A good name portrays personality, stands out in the crowd
and is memorable. A great name is one that is easy to
spell, pronounce or remember and tells the consumer what
you do. A perfect example is Toys R Us. Everyone instantly
knows what the company sells.

You need to think how the business name will translate to a
domain name. What would LTD Enterprises do? Even LTD
Plumbing or Graphic Design would be better – particularly
if people use a search engine to find a plumber or graphic
designer.

What about your own name? Many people would think that's
too "small town" or, what if I want to sell my business?
But think about it. Most business is done by referrals.
People want to do business with people they like and trust.
Would you remember to call Future Success or Luke Hayes
Website Marketing?

Inventing or reinventing a brand can take many forms – new
packaging design, advertising, sometimes a whole new
personality along with the business name. The key is to
make sure all of those elements work together and portray
the same image. Find that one look or message that
describes your business and stick with it. Use the same
colour scheme, fonts and design on all your communication
materials – business cards, letterheads, brochures, web
site and e-newsletters.

However, you can't live on branding and image alone. Public
Relations – relationships – are still the key to successful
business practice. You need to continue to communicate
consistently with your customers and clients. Branding is
more than just a pretty cover – it's about the total
customer experience. Your brand needs to have some impact
to help you generate leads, make sales and develop new
relationships with your clients.

You want your business to leave an impression – on your
customers, your employees, your suppliers, the media and
the public at large. But you still need to have
accountability. You need to follow through with great
customer service, quality of management and products and
services.

Make sure customers are happy with the end product and the
service you provide. Be vigilant with every contact you
have with your clients and help build the overall company
brand and image.

What about personal image? There is no doubt that personal
presentation plays a big part in succeeding in your career
and business operations. They say that 67% of first
impressions are accurate. What sort of first impression are
you making?

Take some time to do a bit of self-analysis and look at
plus and minus personality traits. Things like sloppy dress
and bad manners can be your worst enemy. We invest a lot of
time, money and effort into our establishing our businesses
or upgrading our skills for the job, why not invest a bit
of effort into ourselves. We're worth it!

----------------------------------------------------
Sue Currie, the director of Shine Communications
Consultancy and author of Apprentice to Business Ace – your
inside-out guide to personal branding, is a business
educator and speaker on personal branding through image and
media. Sign up for free monthly tips on personal and
professional PR at
http://www.shinecomms.com.au/contactmanager/default.cfm
and learn more about how you can achieve recognition,
enhance your image and shine.