Branding It All

> I just received the printed pieces for some of my holiday promotion recipients. Ever since I got the proof in the mail a couple weeks ago, I was SO excited. They're cards—printed on thin wood. And they look fantastic!

> I'll share pics of the actual pieces soon. (I want the recipients to have them in their hands before they see them here) You'll have to wait a little longer!

> The thing I want to share here is this company's brand. Every email I get, whether it's a sales promotion, or the response from a customer service rep; even down to their packing tape is branded thoroughly. Not just logos all over the place—that's not a brand—but a true extension...what the world would look like if they had created everything in it...the language, the expressions, even the name of the state they're located in. I just love it. This is a company who "gets" what branding is "owl" about.

> And the quality of their products is something else for them to be proud of. Check them out: Night Owl Paper Goods.

Logo or not?

> I sent my holiday promotion to production yesterday. A week ago when I was going over the details with my vendor, he was surprised to find out that I wasn't going to include my logo on it—anywhere. Typically on my promotions, I use some kind of brand reference—color, the letter m, etc. And I'm okay with only a minimal hint of my company's brand. After all, it's a gift to my clients, vendors, and to those who support me and my business. I find it a lot less likely that they would actually use it if there was a huge logo on it. 

> Is it somehow hypocritical to send a holiday self-promotion that doesn't have my name all over it? I don't know. But for a gift-promotion, I believe if the recipients like it well enough to use it, they will remember where it came from.

> Of course I will package it with a note, and my note will make clear who it's from, as well as the concept behind the gift. I guess for me, it's the golden rule of gift giving: if I receive a gift, I don't want someone else's name on it; so I do the same for them. I hope the recipients will appreciate that it is a true gift. Something they can use. Not something that is such blatant advertising that they feel like they should receive a royalty for using it. 

> Wondering what it is? Watch for a post in December with the big reveal!

being better

> If you run a small business, you have to work harder to stand apart from your competition. It's not impossible though. In the June 2009 issue of HOW Design magazine, Glenn John Arnowitz wrote an article specifically directed to in-house creative departments, but I believe the information applies to any small business. He shares a couple of suggestions that are so simple, you may think you're already doing them. And if you are, good for you. But maybe you can be doing it better. 
> First, let people know what you're doing that's different or better than your competition. Explain what you do. Next, do good work, outstanding work. Then finally, tell everyone about the great work you're doing. If you're doing it right, the cycle will feed itself.
> Sounds simple, doesn't it? I have been designing for over 20 years (eek!) and I've had a couple of occasions where someone who has known me for years "discovers" something they didn't know I could do. I realized I needed to do a better job of sending a clear message about what I do, especially as I refine my areas of expertise. 
> While your "categorical" target audience may remain the same, the companies and individuals who are within that target change. Making the effort to continually educate others about your service, is vital to having a smart marketing strategy.
> Another vital part of that strategy is making sure your "visual message" is consistent with the verbal message you're broadcasting. Do your business card, your web site, and any other applications of your brand visually "belong" together? Do your logo and brand accurately represent you and set you apart from your competition? Are you confident that they present you professionally and in the most positive light when you're competing for a potential client?
> If you're just starting out and you need help creating your brand, or your small business identity just needs a facelift, or an expansion of what you've already got going, mGraphicDesign specializes in creating projects that will help small businesses put their best foot forward.

one thing at a time

>  Years ago, I was concerned about launching my first web site—I wanted everything to be "perfect". My background and expertise is primarily in print design, where you don't "finish" and distribute a job until there are no errors. However, I got some advice from a fellow designer. He told me, "Just get it out there. You can finesse and make changes as often as you want, but at least get it out there".  So I did. 

>  Since I'm the one doing everything: the design, production, accounting, sales, janitorial, etc., I'm not always able to take the time to finalize and finesse things for myself, like I do for my clients. My own projects take the back seat, but it doesn't mean I can't make things happen. I just have to do them a little differently. Like my blog. I knew I wanted and needed to get one going, but only took a minimal amount of time getting it started. I made sure it was green, (of course), but didn't play too much with the formatting at the time, knowing that as my brand continued to develop and expand in other areas, the graphics and style would be take less time if I applied it as I went along.

>  Yesterday, I finally took some time to update the header and style of my blog. Through my email newsletter and the overhaul to my web site, I had figured out the style elements I wanted to apply to my blog, so I was able to reduce the design time and just do a little production to make my blog a more cohesive piece of my entire brand.

>  Not necessarily the ideal, but it works. For myself, I've found that I can do everything, as long as I do one thing at a time.

visual messages

> In the text of my new (but not live yet) web site, I talk a lot about visual messages. What's a visual message? Just what it sounds like: a visual message is what any application of your brand (business cards, blog, web site, brochure, etc.) "tells" anyone who comes in contact with it.

> You can tell people all about your business, about how you are unique with skills that no one else can provide, and that you offer something better than any of your competition...but if your web site is built using a free downloadable template and clip art, your visual message isn't consistent with your verbal one.

> From your business card to your web site, and everything in between, make sure there is consistency beyond just slapping your logo on everything. If you didn't know there's more you should be doing, you're in luck, now you know, and mGraphicDesign can help!