5 Things Small Business Owners Need To Know This Week

Five Things To Know This?Week:

1) The Differences Between Branding and Brand Identity

2) Supercharge Your Productivity with a Calendar App

3) Preparing for a Recession

4) The Risks and Benefits of Offering Coupons

5) Resource of the Week:?Evolve Small?contest

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1. The Differences Between Branding and Brand Identity

So many small business owners conflate business branding and brand identity. According to a blog post on?Marketing Profs, they are?not?the same.

The valuable post defines the differences:

• Brand.?The meaning people attach to your organization, product, or service. It’s who you are as a business—and, more specifically, who your audience perceives you to be.
• Branding.?The perception of a brand is shaped by its branding—the management of a brand. Branding is the deployment of?your brand’s strategic plan?to ensure your audience perceives your business as you intend.
• Identity.?The sensory elements used to identify a brand include your logo, colors, website, brand photography, and digital marketing efforts.

The post goes on to “explore five key differences between branding and brand identity.”

Read more?about the?benefits of branding?and how to build your brand identity.

2. Supercharge Your Productivity with a Calendar App

If you’re like me—and millions of other small business owners, you’re constantly searching for apps that will make you more productive and efficient and help you better manage your time.

Of course, there are tons of apps out there that can help you do all that, but don’t overlook the tool you probably use more than any other—your smartphone.

Most smartphones come with a calendar app, but there are likely better options for you. The challenge is that with so many choices, how do you find the calendar app that best fits your needs?

Make Use Of?says good calendar apps should be:

• User-friendly
• Customizable
• Integrate seamlessly with other productivity apps
• Cross-platform compatible
• Shareable

And they explain how to set up, share and use your calendar app for maximum productivity.

Learn more?about how a simple calendar app can “supercharge your productivity.”

?3. Preparing for a Recession

Expert opinions are divided on whether we’re in a recession, will be in a recession, or can dodge one altogether. But smart business owners will prepare for a recession now in case one does occur.

The good news is that, according to several recent surveys, many small business owners think they can survive a recession because they made it through the COVID-19 pandemic. But it?is?better to be ready, so check out this post on the CorpNet blog that shares five tips that can help you prepare for a recession—just in case.

Learn more?about?preparing for a possible recession.

4. The Risks and Benefits of Offering Coupons

Customers today are still spending—but they want to be incentivized to do business with you. That can take several forms, coupons, BOGO (buy one, get one), percentage-off discounts, free shipping, and more. And while promotions like these are almost certain to drive customers to your business, can you afford to actually deploy them?

Business News Daily?advises small business owners to develop a coupon strategy before they start offering promotions, or they can quickly reduce revenues and negatively impact their cash flow.

Read more?about the risks and benefits of?offering coupons to your customers.

5. Resource of the Week:?Evolve Small

As part of its Evolve Small program, Lenovo is teaming up with Queen Latifah to “champion and promote small businesses.”?Evolve Small?provides financial aid, technological resources, community support, and business mentorship to small businesses in the U.S. and Canada.

As part of Evolve Small, Lenovo and Microsoft just launched a contest where small businesses (those with fewer than 100 employees) can get a chance to win a $30,000 cash grant, $10,000 in Lenovo technology upgrades, and a mentorship session with Queen Latifah. She’s not just a star of stage, screen, television, and music, but she’s an entrepreneur too.

To enter, submit a 30-second-to-2-minute video pitching your business. There will be three grand prize winners and four runner-up winners, who will each receive a $5,000 cash grant and a $5,000 package of Lenovo tech solutions.

Enter now. The application process ends on November 15, 2022.

Learn more?about how you can win the?Evolve Small?contest.