October 30, 2009 | Category: Success Stories | Tags: Small Business Success Stories

If you have a small business, you likely feel intimidated and at a huge disadvantage going up against the big guys. However, there is one area where small businesses have a huge advantage: the internet. Small businesses are the driving force of internet commerce, and the following story proves it more than any statistic I could dig out.

Pink Cake Box was a New Jersey business that struggled to compete in the competitive wedding industry. They faced hurdles that are likely familiar to small business owners: a lack of credibility and difficulty spreading the word about a high quality product. Many prospective brides and grooms are willing to pay more for a specialty cake, especially with the advent of many television shows showcasing custom cake businesses. However, few are willing to risk the success of their big day on an unknown brand.

Despite this disadvantage, Pink Cake Box had one golden ticket: a well designed website and often-updated blog at www.pinkcakebox.com and a nice looking cake shop logo. Through this internet presence, the owners managed to draw attention and traffic to their business, albeit virtual traffic. However, there was one benefit that Pink Cake Box never expected to get from their internet site: massive media exposure. Through their website, this custom cake company managed to spread the word about their story to media outlets ranging from CNN to glossy national magazine. This gave the brand credibility while showcasing the high value of their products.

Exposure is not without its drawbacks. Pink Cake Box was initially flooded with inquiries, not so much from potential paying customers as people who were merely interested in the business and its products. The owners quickly had to adjust their web campaign, narrowing their message so that it reached mainly people who were interested in ordering a custom cake.

What can small business owners learn from Pink Cake Box? First, branding is important with a great cake shop logo and a cake shop website. Without a cohesive brand, Pink Cake Box would not have received interest after their national exposures. In fact, they might not have gotten their national exposure in the first place.

Second, it’s important to have a professional, well put together website with information both for customers and for a general audience. The general information will be what media outlets focus on, but the customer information can turn that media exposure into sales. While the owners of Pink Cake Box were successful in designing and maintaining their cake shop website themselves, they were already design oriented people with a good sense of their brand. If you are lacking either of these qualities, it’s important to outsource website and brand development to a professional rather than settle for a sloppy job.

Last, your products must back up your claims. If Pink Cake Box had not made delicious and beautiful cakes, the buzz would have turned negative quickly as word spread that the product was not worth the hype. Because they offered a high quality, custom product, the media attention instead was merely a continuation of and a bolster to their reputation. If you have the right combination of brand and quality, a website may be just the impetus you need to find success in any field.