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Starting Up a Start Up

One of the very first things we do when starting a new business is to come up with a name. Without this it can’t become a legal entity, so it makes sense. Assuming you know what your new start up is making, selling or offering, then there’s the creative side of creating a business to deal with: logos, websites, social media, and marketing are all important pieces of the puzzle.

Part of the process for lots of people is a tagline, or positioning statement, for their business.

Today we’re asking – is it really necessary?

Positioned for Success…Maybe

Which is not meant to sound as confrontational as it does. But it’s a question worth considering because it could free you from being distracted by creating a tagline. It also brings into the focus the value of having one, and the role it plays in your branding to potential customers.

We’ve all seen vehicles belonging to local businesses on the road. The company name big and bold, as you’d expect. And underneath, often in a lighter font, usually at an angle, sometimes contained in oversized quotation marks there’s a tagline like these we’ve just made up:

Keith’s Kitchens and Cabinets. “The Best Kitchens for the Best People”

Newcastle Lawn Co. “Laying it Down Every Day”

The Umbrella Shop. “We’ve Got You Covered”

Is it necessary? Probably not. Is it adding to the clutter for potential customers? It could well be.

How Much Information Can Consumers Consume?

Unless you’re one of the biggest companies in the world and battling for attention armed with marketing budgets the size of a small nation’s GDP with billions in revenue on the line, is a positioning statement helping people remember your business?

Or do you risk overloading consumers with information, and make yourself vulnerable to the possibility they forget you?

It goes right to the heart of how you see your brand. If it’s strong enough to stand on your business name alone then adding a tagline may be visual and mental clutter for consumers.

Dave’s Dog Walking. “Take a Paws for your Furry Friend”

OK sure…but when your business is Dave’s Dog Walking, it’s pretty clear what your name is and what service you offer. If people are interested, they’ll search you online – tagline or not.

Don’t Bore, Don’t Overwhelm

Circling back to the start, a business name that’s short, sharp and strong can be a real benefit. It lets consumers know what you offer without needing any further explanation. It also leaves room on your marketing assets for other things that may offer you more value, like your Instagram handle, a QR code, or your website.

It feels like small businesses creating taglines is often a case of following the lead of the biggest brands on the planet. And counterintuitively it could work against them by giving consumers more to remember than a good strong name, when that will do the job nicely.