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The next chapter: a brand makeover helps move a bookstore's story forward
Entrepreneur, April, 2006 by Gwen Moran
In addition to conspicuously featuring the new logo and colors, the site offered a perfect opportunity to give customers a peek at two elements unique to Book Lovers Bookstore--the clean, organized aisles and the two loveable cats. So the design team at Website Pros included photos of both on the home page, as well as an easy-to-read, bulleted list of the store's benefits. The site was designed with a program that will make it easy for Chandler to update news such as author appearances and featured titles.
Another important consideration was to create the site for maximum search engine optimization, which makes Book Lovers' site appear high on results lists when customers perform online searches for criteria that match her shop. Brown explains that the website copy was written to include certain keywords thoughout the site's text, as well as in the site's title. That way, he explains, search engine algorithms that crawl the site during a search will recognize its key messages and rank it according to the proper criteria.
"The single biggest mistake that small-business owners make in optimizing their sites is not being specific enough in their keywords," says Brown. He explains that, in the case of Book Lovers Bookstore, it would be a mistake to just focus on the word books, since that would leave Chandler competing with every bookseller on the internet. Instead, he used focused phrases like "antique books" and "used books," as well as the city where her shop is located.
With new marketing materials and a resuscitated website, Chandler's store is once again ready for business. "The main thing about this package is that it will allow her to keep consistency throughout every element of her marketing. She will have coordinated materials that will help her build an image," says Crowe.
And what does Chandler think of this flurry of activity? "I adore the logo and the look," she says. "They have captured the essence of my shop--whimsical and fun, but professional."
Chandler plans to integrate the new look throughout the store and within all the store's marketing materials, and she advises other business owners that investing in their own image makeovers is well worth it. "A good logo design projects the image of your business and tells customers who you are," she says. "I'm so proud. I can't wait to use this everywhere. That's a great feeling."
Happy ending:
Stephanie Chandler's logo and marketing materials now reflect the warmth and tidiness of her bookstore.
A LOGO'S NEW LOOK
BEFORE
* The tag line inside the logo is too small to read when used in a small format.
* The books in the logo look sloppy and do not reflect the store's commitment to neatness and organization.
* The colors are ordinary and have no unifying theme.
* Shading in the yellow color bar makes the store's name hard to read.
AFTER
* The store name and tag line are used separately from the graphic portion of the logo, giving it much more flexibility.
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