Your Website is Like a Store Window
Does it invite shoppers in or do they go right on by?

By Jim Walton
President & CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.

I believe the most frequently asked questions I receive are about websites. People often ask me which elements are most important, which mistakes are most common and -- yes, I still hear this – if they even need a website at all.

Your website may be the most important part of your marketing communications effort. Without one, your organization may be perceived as weak, outdated or completely out of touch with the reality of today’s business world.

A great website has the ability to position your company or community as a leader or the place to be. On the flip side, a weak website may actually harm a perfectly fine company or a very nice community.

My very first job was at my hometown Montgomery Ward store. Your typical wise-guy sixteen-year-old, all I wanted was a chance to show how smart I was. After learning the humbling art of sweeping floors and trash removal, I was promoted to sign making and window displays. My boss, a stern man with the patience of a saint, told me, “the store windows will either draw people in or lead them to walk right on by. It’s your job to draw them in.” Ahhh…my first challenge.

Knowing that their typical store windows were very basic, featuring product on tables or an occasional mannequin, I was anxious to do something previously unseen in this small community. I had no experience, but as an aspiring photographer I had a pretty good eye for composition. To me, everything was a photograph. Since Montgomery Ward was a department store, I had a huge array of merchandise from which to pull and the windows were blank canvases.

My first window featured a family of mannequins dressed in the latest fashions. They were cleverly placed in a living room scene that included a chair, a rug and a dazzling new color television. At first my boss thought I was a bit nutty but then the customers began to comment about the beautiful and interesting windows. Score one for Jim! The store manager loved my work and I had discovered my passion for advertising.

Like the store window, your website can either invite visitors to come in and look around or it can lead them to move on. It is the window through which someone gets a glimpse into your company or community. It needs to be beautiful, informative and inviting, allowing the visitor to imagine him or herself in the scene. If it is ugly, boring and confusing, they will move on. Click!

Professional window artists know just what it takes to grab the attention of passersby, leading them to enter and spend time in the store. Likewise, web professionals know how to develop a strategy that will cause a visitor to enter and explore. Once inside, a great website conveys a powerful message that strengthens the brand and encourages the visitor to stay awhile or even to make contact.

At Brand Acceleration, we work only in the construction (a/e/c), economic development and motorsports industries. We have reams of research and years of experience that tells us just what visitors expect from an effective website. Our specialization provides knowledge and expertise that delivers extreme value to our clients. We know what our shoppers want to see and hear and how to convince them to stay awhile.

So, the next time you think about your website, ask yourself this question: “When my prospect walks by, will my ‘window’ create a desire to come in or will they go right on by?”



Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.

Job Performance Matters
It may be your best job security

By Jim Walton
President & CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.

Since childhood, I’ve been fascinated by people’s attitudes toward their work and employers. I grew up in a blue collar household with a father who worked for a company where the management versus labor divide was huge. I remember hearing him as he proudly stated just what he was and was not going to do at work.

I clearly remember him and his coworker buddies sharing a few beers and talking about how they had outsmarted the boss and gotten out of doing their work. This went on for several years but eventually ended when the company moved the jobs to another state. At the age of fifty-five, my Dad and his friends were unemployed and in a world of emotional and financial devastation. Even then, the (former) employees seemed to bear none of the responsibility. They blamed the situation entirely on the company and its inept management.

Today, many years later, I see the same attitude at many companies. At a time when even some of the best run companies are struggling, many employees act as if they are owed a job. “If they want me to work harder, they’re going to have to pay me more,” is the mantra. A friend recently told me that some of their employees have staged a 10% work slowdown to match the 10% pay cut that was instituted company-wide a few months ago. My Dad would be proud.

You’d better perform
I recently spoke with a mid-level manager at a small manufacturing company. In the past year, her employer has cut 15 people from the payroll and has reduced pay by 10%. These were agonizing moves for the company owner. My friend told me of the tears he shed as he made this very difficult decision. Even though attitudes at this company have soured a bit, this woman has rallied her department in an impressive way. She brought the team together and outlined her strategy to help the company survive and protect the people in her department.

Here is her 5-step plan:

Work your tail off
Show up every day with an attitude to give 110%+.

Show up early and stay late
Be at your desk before the company owner arrives. There is work to be done with fewer people. Pick up the slack by working a few extra minutes each day.

Be a positive force
Never, ever, ever complain. You have nothing to gain and much to lose by being a negative influence in your workplace.

Be a team player
If you are ever “caught up” and find yourself with nothing to do, offer to assist one of your coworkers. You’ll feel much more fulfilled and word will spread of your contribution.

Be visible
Be sure the company owner and other department heads see and hear of your contribution toward the company’s survival. But, don’t forget to credit the team. It’s not all about you.

The ultimate goal, of course, is for the company to survive and thrive as the economy begins to improve. Short term, however, she wants to make sure her people are seen as extremely valuable and indispensable in the event the company has to cut more jobs.

The economy still has a few months before it will stop shedding jobs. In the meantime, this is no time to play games such as work slowdowns, showing up late, leaving early or being the person who poisons the workplace with negative talk.

Right now is the time to step up, work hard, keep a positive attitude and give everything you have. Your employer will fare better and so will you.

Jim Walton
jim@brandaccel.com
317-536-6255

Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.

Why America Works!

Why America Works!
Even in a tough economy, the entrepreneurial spirit thrives.

By Jim Walton
President & CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.


I’ve always admired entrepreneurs and I’m amazed whenever I see obvious signs of the entrepreneurial spirit, especially in young people. It’s like looking into the future and witnessing greatness.

I remember one young man in particular. I first met him when he was working as a car hop at one of those drive-up burger places where you eat in your car. This kid was incredible. I had never seen a person hustle like this. While his coworkers lazily sauntered to the cars, he practically ran back and forth between the order window and his customers, always with a smile. I remember telling my wife, “Look at this kid. He’s going places.” He even brought extra napkins and a non-messy treat for my daughter. And, he wasn’t after tips. The company didn’t allow it.

A few years later I encountered him again. Apparently he had started mowing lawns while in middle school, as many kids do. But this young man didn’t just settle for a few customers. He had grown his business into a full service lawn care and landscaping business that employed him and a few of his high-school buddies. He had five commercial mowers and a couple of nicely painted trucks and trailers. His place of business was his Dad’s barn and his Mom was the bookkeeper. I loved his fire.

Sometimes business owners are portrayed as evil or greedy money grubbers who care only about the almighty dollar. Sure, there are people like that but most successful business owners just love the game and thrive on growing a successful business. Their efforts create jobs for others and fuel the economy.

When compared to Communist or Socialist countries where property ownership is limited, non-existent or taxed into oblivion, America has a history of business ownership, wealth creation and job creation that fuels our economic machine.

Even in a recession, risk-takers abound. Take, for example, 14-year old Cody Behrns of Pittsford, New York. A skateboarding enthusiast, Behrns had already been making his own skateboard decks, the board that you stand on, for two years. An eighth grader, Behrns was encouraged by his father to turn his hobby into a business. With Dad’s help and money, he bought the inventory and fixtures of a skate shop and opened Small Town Skate Shop, a store catering to the growing skater community. Their location is a train caboose which still stands on abandoned railroad tracks.

Now a 15-year old high school freshman, Cody doesn’t spend his evenings watching TV any more. In addition to his homework, he is making plans to grow his business through a website and his passion for social networking venues such as Facebook and MySpace.

I’m convinced that much of the entrepreneurial spirit comes from parents. Some kids are brought up with a passion for risk and success while others are raised to be part of a dependent class, afraid of risk and terrified of failure. Stories abound about people who start and fail at multiple ventures before they finally find their niche and succeed. I also think kids who participate in school activities such as sports, theater or choir learn about hard work, success and failure. The winners are the ones who learn from failure, work harder and keep trying.

There’s an interesting public television program where kids teach kids about money and business. BizKid features case studies about kids who start businesses. The program shows how to write a business plan, secure financing, and promote the business. It also shows how to deal with the occasional set-back. Encourage your children or grandchildren to check it out.

As I said, I love entrepreneurs. I love their spark, their passion, their optimism. With all of the pessimism around these days, it’s a thrill and honor to be in the presence of such people.

At a time when communities are exploring ways to identify and encourage budding entrepreneurs, I’d suggest looking for them in the more unusual places. That future business owner could be anywhere from the local factory to the drive-in burger place. He or she might even be the kid walking down the street, pushing a mower from yard to yard.

Jim Walton
jim@brandaccel.com
317-536-6255