TeaDigest Online Tea Magazine, July 2006:

Homespun marketing:
What you don't know will kill you

Reading the tea leaves

When I started my custom tea-blending company, I was bound and determined to do all the labels and newsletters myself without any outside help, loans, or gifts. 

 Plugging along, I thought I was doing well. Newspapers and local magazines were willing to cover the charm of my product. I was on cloud nine! 

My troubles began when I was contacted by "big-name" businesses for samples. In follow-up calls, I received feedback that about dropped me to my knees. The main comment was always the same: “We absolutely loved the product, but do you have any other labels, or can we repackage this stuff ourselves?”  

I felt like I had been kicked in the stomach. They want to repackage my product? What a polite way of saying it looked so bad they don’t even want to put it on their shelves! To me it was just as painful as if my husband pulled out a photo of a model at cocktail parties claiming it was his wife. 

I took it very personally, to say the least, but knew I had to take action quickly, to hear what my customers were saying without getting defensive. I was never going to gain wholesale accounts that would add credibility to my product unless I did something fast.

I hired a design company that claimed a one-week turnaround time for redesign to revamp the “homespun” label that I had created myself. I was quoted a mere fifty dollars, plus the cost of printing. I was on fire. What a great contact I had! 

Or had I? Several meetings later I met the designer to view my new label design. After being presented with their $50 bill -- plus over-inflated printing costs of well over a thousand dollars -- I was handed the run of hundreds of labels they had printed for me from the rough sketch on a napkin a week before.  

Logo-a-go-go 

I almost spit my coffee through my nose as I sat peering at my new labels for the first time. I had been looking forward to a feeling similar to when I first laid eyes on my children. Now, starting helplessly, trying to bite back tears, I saw my baby as a three inch catastrophe with a leaf cartoon in the middle of a faded green circle. My five-year old nephew could have been more classy and creative.

My hands were shaking as I wrote the check. I gathered up my purse, claiming I was late for a meeting -- and I cried the whole way home, having myself a real pity party. I knew there was nothing I could do about the logo from hell, complete with the misspelled word “lose” instead of “loose” for tea. 

I soon discovered that the labels were an inch too small for my product bag. I called the designer with my concerns, and was told there was nothing I could do because I had signed off on the proof by agreeing via email. I never even caught it on the blurry scan.

I had to admit to myself (and my checkbook) that I was not a professional designer and had no idea what to look for. Even though I overlooked the typos in my haste, I had a designer who couldn’t spell, and should have been designing birthday wrapping paper. 

Do the right thing!

This is a common mistake for start-ups, not going to a competent design firm to get all the marketing pieces in order before you open your doors for business. I am speaking about business cards, and  letterhead and envelopes that match. Using custom colors, not the limited primary color selections at a 24-hour copy shop. 

Going back to the drawing board takes time and money, and can be confusing to your existing customers. In my case, we decided to go with the design team's advice and change the name completely, opting for a name that was a bit more classy than clever, and one that started with the letter “A” instead of “T” -- which normally left us at the end of any alphabetical directory listings. 

If you cannot afford to start with a trendy or classy trademarked professional image, your clients may see you as a “hobby turned business” in which you are not confident enough in to risk a few thousand dollars up front.  

So do it right the first time or don’t do it at all. You don’t have time to mess around with image, testing the waters, once your doors open for business. Take the plunge before you start. You get only one chance at a first impression. Homemade signs and marketing materials scream "cheap" and "crafty." 

Remember that success is where preparation and opportunity meet, and there are no shortcuts to any place worth going. 

Copyright © 2006 by Lisa Wynn. All rights reserved.

Lisa Marie Wynn is a writer, consultant, and "fempreneur" with five-plus years of experience as a serial entrepreneur. Her businesses include Artisans Cup Tea Company™, Hell on Heelz™ Fempreneurs Group, and Artisans Press™. She has appeared in Southern Living and Southern Lady magazines and on FOXNews, among others media. Lisa has written for publications globally, across North America, and online. Artisans Cup distributes throughout the USA to celebrities, resorts, spas, and hotels, and was included in the 2005 Oscars. Visit Lisa's website.