One of the challenges that start up companies (and sometimes even established companies) face is finding enough clients to sustain business. As a result, they often take on projects that don’t exactly fit their business model, and over time they begin to dilute their core focus. When this happens, they lose effectiveness and their revenue and profits suffer.

Look at some of the examples of companies that have become extremely successful and profitable because of their intense focus in a very particular area of business. UPS was built on the concept of shipping their customer’s packages as quickly and cost effectively as possible. They could have branched out into a number of other businesses relevant to their customers, such as printing services or internet access, but by focusing strictly on their core business model, they (along with Fed Ex and DHL) have become a major competitor to the United States Postal Service. Geek Squad is another example. They don’t set up your entertainment system or repair your microwave. They fix your computer and nothing else.

It’s this kind of focus that allows certain businesses to become ultra-successful while others fail miserably. It allows them to become more knowledgeable, proficient and efficient, and ultimately, more profitable.

If you want your business to become as successful as possible, you’ll need to determine what your core business is and go after it with absolute focus. What ever you do, do it better and faster than your competitors. Make it easier for your clients to work with you. Give them more value for their money. If you do, over time, your company will be known as the go-to expert in your industry.

We’ve all gone through slow times in our businesses, and many industries even have certain times of the year when things slow down for everyone. For example, it doesn’t take first hand experience to understand that few people will be investing in an air conditioning unit during the winter months (even here in sunny Florida) or a heating unit during the summer months, but as business owners, especially small business owners, we need to insure that we avoid that as much as possible since we typically don’t have the financial resources to weather the dry periods as effectively as a larger company might.

That being said, by taking a few simple steps and leveraging your time a little more effectively, you can do a lot to keep your pipeline steady even during the slow times.

• If you run the type of business where people come to you, and they’re not, get out there and make contact with them. You could try printing and signing a letter to each of the businesses in your building offering some sort of incentive for doing business with you, and then hand delivering them. You would probably get some results by simply mailing them, but you will begin to establish a relationship be getting out their and introducing yourself.
• Maintain a consistent email campaign with your clients. They have already purchased from you in the past and when the need arises, they will be more likely to purchase from you than from someone else. Stay at the top of their minds.
• Blog regularly with relevant and useful information. Not only will it give your visitors a reason to come back to your site more regularly (and search engines too) but it will also keep your mind sharp and help you to come up with more ideas to improve your business.
• Increase your advertising. Most people conduct their advertising incorrectly by decreasing it when business is slow. Think about it like excursive and you’ll see how ineffective that is. If you exercised only when you were in great shape, but then slowed down if you got a little overweight or even stopped all together if you became obese with the intent on exercising again when you got into better shape - how do you think it would work out for you?
• Become well known by speaking in public on your area of expertise, networking and volunteering in organizations that you believe in. The more exposure you have the better your chances of generating new business. A side benefit is that the more time you spend actively interacting with a variety of people, the better you will become at presenting yourself more effectively.
• Send referrals. If you know someone whose product or service would be a benefit to someone else who is actively looking for that type of thing, by all means, put both parties in contact with each other. People are more likely to help others who help them.

A large portion of our communications are conducted via email these days, however, most of us are not making it as effective as it can be. You might be surprised how many people include weak subject lines, or don’t even include a subject line at all. You may save a little time by using a generic subject line or even omitting your subject line completely, but think about this ? other people are just as busy as you, so if your subject line isn’t compelling, they will likely glaze over your email and focus their energies on the ones that they can tell are important. On the other hand, avoid using the feature in Outlook that lets you tag your emails as important. Most people don’t pay much attention to that, and it only works with Outlook anyway.

For quite some time now, we’ve been talking about how old media companies will need to adjust to the rapidly evolving, consumer oriented?marketing world. Most haven’t. The New York Times seems to be on the right track, evident in their recent release of a product called Times Reader, which allows subscribers to view the Times online in a similar format?to the printed paper.?Subscribers can jump?from section to section, read a 7?day archive, and even save, print or email articles.

I can’t imagine it taking too long for other newspapers to follow suit, and magazines should be right behind them. It’s a brand new world we’re entering into in terms of marketing, and the consumer and forward thinking businesses will be the ones to benefit. Will you be one of them?

Whether your products or services are complex enough to confuse a nuclear physicist, or simple enough for a child to easily comprehend, you will need effectively crafted copy to persuade your prospects to make a buying decision. This decision, as much as we would like to claim otherwise, is not based on logic ? it?s based on emotion. Logic does play a role, but more often than not, the logic comes into play after a decision has already been made and is used to validate our decision.

The most effective way to trigger powerful emotions in your prospects is to focus on the benefits, rather than the features of your offer. No one ever wanted an?aspirin, they simply wanted to get rid of their headache. Similarly, no one really wants a suit. Instead, they want to present a particular image or feel a certain way. Write your copy to appeal most to the end result that your prospect is after instead of focusing on what it does or has.

Is it a combination of the right colors? Perhaps a lot of white space? Could it be a particular style of art? In reality, it can be any of these factors, none of these factors, or even a variety of other factors. Graphic design, unlike art, generally should not be a subjective thing. Graphic design has a business purpose and that being the case, means that it should accomplish a particular goal. That may mean driving sales, promoting a political agenda, educating, or whatever applies to your business model.

Experienced graphic design companies, freelance graphic designers and in-house graphic designers know how to craft your marketing materials to do just that. They know when it’s a good idea to use a lot of copy to explain a complex message and when it’s a good idea to use just a little bit of copy to get your message across quickly. They know when to use a rich, textured design and when to use a clean modern design to stir up the emotions of your target market and incite them to take action. They know when to use a subtle color pallet, when to use a vibrant, eye-popping color pallet, and when to use a combination of the two. They know what images are going to work best with your designs to convey the image that you are looking for. More importantly, they know the reasons behind the decisions they make. Many other businesses are very black and white where in situation “1″ you take action “A” and situation “2″ you take action “B” but with graphic design, you must take human emotion and experience into account as well. More than a few businesses have learned this the hard way when using inexperienced graphic designers or even doing their own graphic design to save a few dollars. On the other side of this coin, as a start-up or small company, there is no need to invest in the largest ad agencies because even if you can afford their prices, you will be such a small account for them that you won’t get the attention you need. By investing in the right graphic design company or freelancer, you’ll generally see greater results more quickly at the best possible price.

So what is good graphic design? It’s something that conveys the image that you want for your company and accomplishes a particular goal.