Beware... You don't want this guy to be your next web marketing expert.

I was reading posts in one of my favourite online forums when I noticed the signature line for one of the users: The Internet – Where anyone with a keyboard is an expert. Truer words have never been spoken and thinking of a recent conversation with one of my clients, I could feel my blood pressure start to rise.

But let’s start with my first reaction. It’s absolutely true (and in many ways wonderful) how the Internet has opened up the world and provided a soapbox for a variety of backyard experts. For example:

Wikipedia – the user-managed encyclopedia of everything.

Podcasts – allowing you to learn about everything from how to lose weight to overcoming your fear of public speaking.

YouTube – Now the world’s 2nd most popular search engine where you can watch and learn how to stop your dog from jumping, install a video card, or what not to do with a van, a ramp and a mountain bike.

The nice thing about these resources is that they are truly “caveat emptor” or “buyer beware”. But it’s easy to watch, read, or listen and make a judgment call as to how much validity you want to put in the “expert’s” skill, ability and experience. If you agree with their advice, take it. If it seems faulty, you may want to pass. Did you watch the bike video? The point is, it’s easy to make a judgement call on the “expert.”

The other reality of that signature line, however, is the part that makes my blood boil. Owning a pen does not make a someone a great author. Owning a camera a does not make someone a great photographer. Owning or watching a TV does not make someone a great producer (although I tend to be able to pick the fall line-up winners better than most TV execs). And owning a computer and some web design software certainly doesn’t make someone a great online marketer.

It’s frustrating having the same conversation time after time with clients or potential clients. “Why do you charge so much? My brother/ son-in-law/cousin/grand-niece/buddy’s kid can do it for free!”  My response? “Okay.” Creating a website isn’t that difficult and in truth,  almost anyone can do it. But more and more, your website is the “first impression” of your business that most of your customers will receive. Do you want just anyone to create that…and for free?

Today if you are in business, you have to be on the web. I used to tell people that if they couldn’t afford a professionally designed website that something, perhaps designed by their nephew, was better than nothing. Well, I’ve seen too many of those “somethings” and they bring about expressions: “that sure is something…,” “something in there has to make sense,” “I bet they had something else in mind.” A bad website can destroy your credibility. If you can’t afford a website, claim your business address in Google Places and other directories and add a short informative description. That is better than nothing and won’t leave potential customers wondering if the typos on your site are indicative of your lack of competence.

Now sometimes “the nephew” does get it right and the website looks great. But, there’s often another side to the story. It’s the inevitable follow up a year or two down the line. The business owner explains that online marketing “doesn’t work” for their business model. They didn’t get any leads through their website, the site is too difficult to update, or some other thing. The logic here is faulty. It’s no different than the 65 year old web Luddite who claims the “Internet is broken” because they can’t figure out how to buy a book from Amazon.

Successfully marketing a product or service online isn’t easy. While a “free” website may look great, it may not:

• Capture your unique selling proposition
• Include calls-to-action, telling visitors what to do next
• Organize information about your business in a logical, easy-to-digest manner
• Do one of a hundred other little things that make a website “sell” your business

And it’s definitely not going to be part of an overall strategy for marketing your business online. It’s the years of experience, testing, understanding of best practices for website design, online marketing, email marketing and now social media marketing that my team and I bring to the table. That’s why we cost more than your nephew, or cousin, or brother-in-law.

The Internet – Where anyone with a keyboard is an expert. However not all experts are created equal.

The brand is the heart and soul of the company. It describes who you are, what you do and how you do it. It’s important that the entire team work in unison to present the brand consistently across all marketing channels.

Having and following a Brand Manual will help build both brand equity and awareness. It will explain the message of the brand, helping to express your company’s culture and character. This will result in greater control of its representation in the market.

When dealing with marketers, advertisers, designers, photographers and printers, the brand manual will ensure that they fully understand your message. You will avoid inappropriate use and positioning of logos, careless handling of style elements, incorrect colours, and an inconsistent message. It will safeguard the true design and character of your brand.

Elements a Brand Manual address are:

• Brand description – The story and values of your company and brand.
• Logo – A visual list of the proper usage of the brand and logo. Placement and sizing should remain consistent within each communication vehicle (e.g., website, email campaigns, stationary, brochures, etc.)
• Tone – It’s what you say and how you say it. Are you straightforward and reassuring or cheeky and playful?
• Color – Colour plays a large role in memory retrieval and increases brand recognition. You want to make sure that a consistent colour palette is used.
• Images – The look and feel of all images should be similar in style and support the brand positioning. Does the brand utilize photographs or illustrations?
• Typography – A description of what fonts are used in, how often, and in what contexts.

Using a Brand Manual will protect the consistency of your brand, improve customer confidence, increase your profile and enhance your competitive advantage. You will spend less time worrying about the details, giving you more time to focus on the big picture.

The main objective of a logo is to be instantly recognizable, inspire trust, gain loyalty and to position an implied superiority. It is one aspect of your company’s brand and must be relevant but strikingly unique from other logo’s in the same market niche.

Key considerations for your logo;

Simplicity

Your logo should make a statement about your company, starting with a concept. The simpler the logo the easier the intended message will be to communicate. Your logo can have some detailed features but it should be simple enough to make a quick and powerful impression.

Remarkable

Your logo can strengthen your company’s image and give you an advantage over the competition. Distinctive features are necessary to construct a logo that people will remember, and engage your audience. When viewing your logo you want future customers to quickly recognize it, comprehend your message and distinguish you from the competition, most importantly, they should remember you.

Flexible

Your logo should work across a variety of media such as web sites and in various printed applications. For this reason a logo should be designed and supplied in vector format, to ensure that it can be scaled to any size. The logo should work both in horizontal and vertical formats.

Colour

Colour has a strong emotional effect on people because of association. For example green is associated with the environment as well as associated with sickness and green with red indicates Christmas. You want to make sure you have the appropriate color and shade to reinforce your message.

The next time a customer needs your kind of business, your company will be chosen because of it’s brand recognition.