Case Study: The Art of the Repeatable Business System
1-800-MYLOGO (www.1800mylogo.com) is one example of a business that uses leverage and repeatable systems. The firm, which was established in 1996, creates professionally designed corporate identity logos at package prices ranging in 2004 from $199 to $499. The target market for the service is small and medium-size businesses. The company’s services have been recommended by a host of authoritative media entities, including Entrepreneur magazine and Inc. magazine. The company was profitable almost immediately—and was established without any outside capital. What’s remarkable about 1-800-MYLOGO is that the central business fundamentally involves graphic artists. It almost seems oxymoronic to use the word art and systems in the same sentence, which is, of course, why this is such an interesting example.
The way 1-800-MYLOGO works is this: Customers log onto the Web site, read compelling sales material, and decide whether to purchase one of several packages. Customers who make a purchase fill out a detailed questionnaire about the type of logo they are looking for. The questions range from where the logo will be used to colors that the customer prefers to qualitative issues involving the purpose and image of the firm.
Each package explicitly describes the process the firm uses in working with the customer. The lowest-priced service at a total fee of $199, the Ultra Logo Design Package includes six original concepts of the logo, in an unlimited number of colors, with designs by three different artists. In an easy-to-use secure access area of the Web site, the company posts these designs. The customer then chooses a favorite design and posts comments. The company works with the customer in a back-and-forth process of comments and revisions until the customer is satisfied with the completed design. At the outset, the company limited the back-and-forth process to three rounds of comments,
