Five Ways to Make Your Small Business Appear a Lot Bigger to Clients

It's an undeniable fact that in business, image is everything. If you're a young company you need to ensure that your image isn't restricting your business. You need to learn how to create an appropriate image and present your image to clients accordingly.

A Bad Website Means Bad Business

Even if you offer the ultimate customer service or have an indispensable new product, if your site is poorly designed and stuffed with terrible content, chances are you will be dismissed with a single click. You must ensure that your site is constantly updated with fresh, interesting content and is professionally designed for ease of navigation and maximum visual impact. If you're concerned with expense, the money you spend will not be lost; your website is today's storefront window with the potential to bring in incredible amounts of profit.

It's All In the Details

The days of monogram note-papers are over, but the principal of personalization remains the same. Pay the extra cash to have a graphic designer work up a logo and template for all your correspondence. If you want to project the image of success, a commonplace email simply won't do. Opening a message from a business and seeing a professionally designed header and footer makes your clients realize they are dealing with an established company, not just someone behind a computer.

Amusing Email Addresses Just Don't Cut It

If you want to create the illusion of being a major company when it's really just you and your mailing list, you may want to consider altering your email address. Chances are that as a small company, you do almost every task yourself but your customer doesn't have to know that. For example, by having a variety of email addresses for the various departments of your company, such as billing and admin, you instantly create the illusion of being a large, fully staffed corporation.

A Virtual Assistant Is Better Than None At All

If you're not yet in a position to have a personal assistant taking messages and routing calls, you can turn to VoIP (Voice over IP) as a low-cost alternative. A unified Internet communication system used by millions in the business world, VoIP bypasses traditional phone companies by supplying clients with a variety of communication services. Even if you or your staff are scattered throughout the city or country, VoIP can greet clients and redirect calls as if you were all cubicles apart.

Tweeting and Liking: The New Business Essentials

Social media has a remarkably huge presence in the everyday lives of millions. As a small business, you would be amiss to ignore the potential of sites like Twitter or Facebook. Creating a strong presence online by gathering followers means greater brand recognition with little or no expense on your part. Using these networks means you can almost constantly keep your clients aware of deals or offers while at the same time creating a progressive image. In an unforgiving economy, people are looking to deal with companies that they feel they can trust. They want to know that you take your business seriously, that you are both firmly established, and that you’re constantly growing.