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February
2001
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Most good things do not happen by accident. Usually, a business starts with a really good idea for a service or product, but many fail, because they do not have a marketing plan. Some entrepreneurs rely on good luck to get them started and keep their businesses going, but whilst luck will always play a part, a strong marketing strategy will reduce the amount of gambling required and increase the chances of success.
Good marketing relies on creative thinking, common sense and hard work, to turn your idea, for a product or service, into something special that makes you money. When you have that something special, marketing will be needed to make sure that it is kept special; customer expectations alter with time and competitors improve their products, services or prices to meet and beat your challenge. One of our current projects is for The Grange Courtyard Limited in Shepshed, Leicestershire. The owner, Linda Lawrence, is aiming to provide 'home from home' accommodation for anybody who is living and working temporarily, away from home.
The initial phase, involved analysing the local market to ensure that the project would be viable. We contacted all potential competitors in the area to see what level of service they offered and at what price, in order to establish that there was indeed a niche in the market to be filled. Our findings confirmed that there was a market for the service Linda was about to offer and enabled her to decide on a competitive tariff. Having analysed the market, we identified companies that may be interested in using the Grange Courtyard and made contact with the relevant people within the organisations. We then arranged for the Company Directors and HR Managers to attend a lunch meeting with Linda Lawrence, so that she could explain her philosophy and show them around the Grange Courtyard. We also supply promotional gifts and in this case, an engraved paperweight was supplied in a velvet bag, so that each attendee had a reminder of their visit.
As part of this contract for the Grange Courtyard, we have designed a company logo, designed and produced a brochure to send out to prospective clients and provided all the business stationery. We have also designed, developed and hosted an Internet web site for the company, which provides on-line booking facilities and a virtual tour of the Grange, as well as the usual pages expected on a company site.
Presbury and Company can help with all aspects of marketing and corporate image.
Making Effective Searches
Search engines have access to a great deal of information, so how can you make sure you get the most relevant results? The key to this, is understanding some important search rules. For an example, we tried to find information about the Roman Empire. We used www.google.com.
If your search is: Roman Empire
The top three results come back as:
1.
The Roman Empire - Italy, Rome...
2. Roman Emperors - DIR -- DE Imp...
3. The Roman Empire - Welcome t...
Notice how the second entry contains only one word from the search, while the remaining two contain both of the key words. Searches with a space between each word, allow the engine to return pages with any or all of the keywords.
Another kind of search is more specific and requires the engine to return only pages with an exact match to the keywords. You do this by typing your search phrase in quote marks: "Roman Empire"
The top three results come back as:
1.
The Roman Empire - Italy, Rome...
2. The Roman Empire - Welcome t...
3. ...History of the Roman Empire...
The entry with only one matching word has now gone and is replaced with an exact match. Other rules allow you to narrow the results of your search even further. For instance, if you want to find information closer to home, your search could be: "Roman Empire" + Britain
This would tell the engine to return sites that contain the exact phrase "Roman Empire" and the word 'Britain'.
Another search could be: "Roman Empire" - Julius
By using the minus (-) sign in this way, you can tell the engine to only return "Roman Empire" sites without reference to 'Julius'.
These rules apply to most search engines. By using them, you should be able to find the information you want more easily.
One of our most recently completed web sites was for Corlett Roofing Ltd, (www.corletts.co.uk). They wanted a friendly and professional image, with a clear presentation of their services. The completed site incorporates an introductory Flash animation and uses Java Script to add interactivity to the menu system.
We asked Les Corlett for his opinion of his completed web site: “I would like to express Corlett Roofing's thanks for constructing such a great web site. It adds to the company's profile of being skilled professionals and clearly gets the message across that we are providing a service for the more discerning client. The response has been excellent and it is invariably our target customer who has responded. The layout is clear, easy to access and is what we wanted a professionally designed site and not a DIY job as so many others have mistakenly opted for. The introduction is relevant, very individual and well thought out. We have even had positive comments from other web site designers!”
Why do you need to register a trademark?
Trademarks help protect your company name, logo and image by giving you exclusive legal rights to what is registered. You could take legal action against any company or individual that tries to use your name and logo for similar products and services. They are particularly useful in the E-commerce industry and protect your domain name from the danger of being taken.
As well as protecting your business, they promote your business by helping to make your products and services recognisable by a wider variety of people. Everyone knows that a picture of a white jug, pouring milk, on a purple background, is associated with Cadbury's chocolate and the symbol of a tick is associated with Nike sports wear. The words 'Cadburys' and 'Nike' are also registered trademarks in their own right.
Launching new products and services is made easier as people recognise your company name and logo and know that you are a reputable company. Anything new that you offer, will be associated with the stability and experience of your company, as people will remember the other products and services you provide.
What is a trademark?
A trademark is a word or logo that is secured to you by legal registration and used as representation of your company and its products and services. Types of trademarks.
There are several types of trademark that you could choose to register. These are word marks, figurative marks, three-dimensional marks, colour marks, sound marks and other marks. The two main types of trademark are 'word' and 'figurative' marks. A figurative mark could be your company name in conjunction with a colour, logo and style of lettering for example. A word mark however, would be the registration of your company name only and there would be no reference to style, colours or logos. This would mean that your trademark would be recognisable in E-mail format.
Where are trademarks protected?
They can be registered in the United Kingdom alone, the European Union or even Internationally. If your company is expanding, or you feel you would like greater protection, due to the UK's ever-increasing links with Europe, it may be better for you to register your company in the EU, as obviously a UK registration would not stop a company in France for instance, from using your name.
In the UK, word marks and figurative marks may be applied for together on the same application. However, in the EU, they must be applied for separately, due to the varying ruling standards of each of the fifteen countries involved.
Which countries are covered in the European Trademark registration?
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom.
How long does it take to register a trademark?
It usually takes between six and nine months to register a UK trademark and nine to ten months for an EU trademark.
How long are trademarks registered for?
Trademarks are initially registered for ten years, after which time, you could decide to renew your trademark. If taken care of properly, you could renew your trademark time and time again.
How we help you register your company trademark?
You send us the details of what you would like to be registered, for example a word mark or a figurative mark and we have a Trademark Search carried out to check for similar trademarks and the availability of your actual trademark request.
If your name is available, we then complete the paperwork for you, including the Application Form and General Authorisation Form (giving your authorisation for us to apply for a trademark on your behalf). We send you both of these forms for you to check, sign and date where appropriate.
After receipt of your Trademark Search and Application Fees, we then send all documents to the relevant patent office for filing and the application process begins.
The patent office carries out further searches, sends a report of their findings and we keep you updated with the progress of your application from then onwards.
Your application will then go into the 'Opposition Period', where it will be advertised in the ‘Trademarks Journal'. If there is no opposition, your application will be accepted and your trademark registered. We also inform you of when the Registration Fee is due.
Our aim is to help you register your company trademark as quickly and efficiently as possible, preparing all the paperwork for you and corresponding with the patent offices on your behalf, ensuring that you do not have to spend much of your valuable time working on it.
Protect your brand and future commercial and Internet development.
For
more information on any of the topics above call 01509 600367
© 2001 Presbury & Company.