No.one.knows.what.I.do. 

There, I said it.  I realized that I work my tail off and am struggling to find new business leads because I am not educating my potential clients or my potential clients referrals.  That is  big problem given that I run by almost 95% referrals.  So this post today and the many going forward are going to be geared to help you understand what it is I do.

Although my company is called Graphic Design 26 (also realized I maybe should change that today… another blog post though…) I do so much more than just graphic design.  I graduated with a Marketing degree from ISU (Go Clones!) and my main love and passion is and will always be marketing.  I get marketing; it is natural for me.   I am also a salespersons dream customer as I can be suckered into almost anything!  That being said, I can also sell almost anything to anyone.  You just have to figure out how that product can help them.  Many times that will be in ways they didn’t even realize they needed.

I create logos and illustrations, brochures, mailers, newsletters, sales collateral and pretty much any other form of marketing materials for companies any size.   The difference with me is that I am going to take that piece you want created and am going to make sure your idea is the best idea to get you your end result!  That is Marketing 101.  I want to make sure that what you are creating (and paying for) is going to work for you.  Perfect example…  How many people are heading to Homecoming parades in the next couple weeks and will get the “flyers” from businesses and really, truly, read them?  Not too many of us unless they are colorful and real flashy!  We are going to spend more time on the pieces that we are given that we have something to do them.  A bracelet, a tattoo, a magnet…  The flyer is going to go in the bag with the candy and will probably just get thrown away with the candy we don’t like.

Along with the physical marketing pieces that companies need to promote themselves, they also need to be marketing themselves with some form or forms of social media.  I too was in the same boat as many people and had no idea what all these different mediums of social media were or how they would benefit me.  The more I have dug into them and thought about ways they can help my clients, the more educated I have become.  And the more I have realized I need to use them for my own business.  It is hard to not promote a business to use them, after all, many of them are free marketing!  You just need to determine which ones are going to be the best fit for your objective and for your clientele.

I have created websites and maintained them for smaller companies from templates.  It is how my own site was created.  I have designed the look of wesbsites for bigger companies too.  I don’t write code but I know a great local company that does and I work with them to  make the site look and function just like I envision it.

Here is a piece that I have created recently to hand out about what I do.  It is very basic but it at least lists everything I do.  I hope this helps the many of you who have always wondered what I do or what a graphic designer does.  I am now going to call myself a Graphic Designer AND Marketing Consultant.  I think it just sums up what I do best.  The good part is that once I give you those ideas, I can then do them for you.  We don’t need to look further!

IAFP – International Association for Food Protection

I have had the pleasureof assisting these awesome people with their latest project, creating a theme around their 2011 Annual Event in Milwaukee.  They are also marking their 100th year of service and were in need of a logo to state this.  While these two events are completely separate, we needed to make sure the “looks” worked well together.

Here is the 100th Anniversary logo we came up with.

I will post the annual event material soon!  The colors aren’t coming through correctly this morning…

studio 3

We have been busy getting business cards, letterhead, flyers and everything else in order for Amanda at studio 3.  Below is a taste of what their business cards are going to look like.  Very happy with the way things are turning out for her!  We are doing a front and back full color business card.

I could upload more, but instead I need to get working on studio 3′s newsletter!  Yes, another thing to add to my list of capabilities.  I am designing newsletters and sending them out every month for clients.  Calling myself their “Virtual Assistant!”

We have amazing teachers at our school.  Each year we have been extremely blessed with wonderful teachers.  This year though, one in particular, really grabbed a hold of my little girl and gave her her first pair of “big girl” wings…  I get tears just thinking about it.  But really, her teacher has a gift that we were so lucky to get!  She will be the one we never will forget!

So with that said, if you think I am missing every once in awhile this summer, you are probably correct.  I might be playing hookie at the pool or feeding the goats at the zoo or riding the Tornado at Adventureland.  I will still be trying to keep my business going as smooth as always, but I do have my priorities straight!  Family is definitely #1 for this workin mama!

When I look back at choosing my companies name, I can honestly say, I started with just my name being business name.  Then, I moved on to my initials.  Pretty common moves so far…  Then, I added 26 (my anniversary date) to my initials.  It was starting to feel better but we were still not there.  Then, my husband called one day and said, “I got it, Design 26!”  I loved it right away.  It sounded catchy yet creative yet it was going to require someone to think “I wonder what the 26 stands for???”  For me, I felt that would bring my customer closer to building a relationship with me.  They would reach out and ask what the significance was of the 26.

My company name stayed that way until I re-organized my website.  In that process, I was consulted to add the word “Graphic” to my name.  Design is a very broad word and adding the word graphic to it would give my customers that much more knowledge in what I offer.  It also would help Google find me when that customer searches for a graphic designer as opposed to just a designer.

So, my name has been changed now for a little over six months.  My business cards haven’t changed yet.  They will once this stack runs dry.  I would love to hear your thoughts regarding my process.  Recently I had someone ask me what a graphic designer even did.  That made me think again about whether or not I had chosen the correct name…

Although a professional, easy-to-use, and friendly website to represent your company is the critical foundation that you must have in order, the rise of Social Media has opened new doors for you to connect directly with your customers online.  Using these unique tools to broaden your online presence and further connect with your market is a matter of doing a few simple things.

• Develop A Plan – This may seem trivial, but establishing an objective-based plan for what you and your company plans to do within the Social Media world is critical to avoid wasting time and developing the most efficient use of your time.  Social Media is not difficult to get involved with, but it does take time, so having a plan in place will help you and your team use time wisely and allow for objectives to be met.
• Establish A Few Social Media Websites To Engage – With so many options online, determine a few good websites that you feel there would be value in getting involved with.  This not only means that the user base is advantageous to your business, but that you enjoy the website and can work with the tools available on this website.
• Update Your Website – Once you start establishing a base of websites you’re involved with, be sure to reconnect your own website to these accounts, so that current clients have the opportunity to further connect with your business in the environment that they’re also a part of.
• Stay Current – Once you have the plan in place and start setting up your visibility within the Social Media world, don’t let things go stale.  Try and allot a small amount of time each day to update your accounts.
• Reach Out – As you become more efficient within the social network or online community you’re engaging, do your best to reach out and make new connections within the online environment.  Along with broadening your reach within the networks you’re a part of, step out a bit further by trying to understand and use additional social media outlets.

Another option is to contact me and we can review your business needs.  I have seen firsthand how many of these tools have helped my business.

So, yesterday I sent out a ton of requests to people to be a connection with me, recommend my work, or let me join their groups on Linkedin.  Just when I thought that I was in the big world all alone as a freelancer, I now feel like I have a whole group of supporters to rely on and get answers to problems when I get stuck.

What other forms of social media are out there that I haven’t even dipped my toe in yet?  I have heard of yelp and flicr, but haven’t really done much with them.  I guess I have learned my lesson and need to get on that quickly!

If we aren’t friends yet on these different forms of social media that I am connected to, invite me!  I would love to connect with you!

Here is a picture of the site before.

While the site created the feel of warmth, it wasn’t inviting.  It also required the customer to click in order to find any information out regarding the business.  The studio owner was wanting that step taken out for the customer.

The studio owner also felt the menu items were too wordy and just kind of ran across the page – Agreed!

Here is a picture of the site after!

This is the site after we converted it to a WordPress format.

Much warmer and when the customer is on the homepage, it is capturing them and giving them a brief idea of what they have to offer without forcing them to click on the menu.

We still have a little tweaking to finish up on, but we are getting there and have already found quite a strong turnaround with their analytic scores.

Check out the site for yourself.  I would love to have your feedback!

www.studio3pilates.com

Following is the booklet I made for them and the additional pieces they needed.  Notice on the cover, I put a picture of the Iowa Speedway (location of the event) inside the semi truck grill.  I was so happy with how that turned out!  The book is eight pages long.  Trying to create a piece that is exciting for the trucking industry proved to be a challenge for me!  Not an area I was too familiar with to begin with.  Now, I can say I get it a bit more!

Front Cover

Back Cover

Inside spread - page 1

Inside spread - page 2

Inside spread - page 3

Inside spread - page 4

Inside spread - page 5

Inside spread - page 6

Pride & Polish Application

Registration Form

Sponsorship Opportunites - front

Sponsorship Opportunites - back

Exhibitor's Contract

Their first focus or area of concern is in their name.  Another business located not too far from them recently put up their new business sign and guess what?  Same name, with the same font.  All in upper case even!  While the two businesses are not in the same line of work, it still has started to create confusion for the current customers.  All the more reason to make this companies revised logo a bit more “unique” for them.  The current logo is very general and uses a very common font.  It isn’t surprising to me that this happened.

I have met with the owner and her associate and we have gotten the basics revealed.  I am now starting with the basics of all and revising the logo.  I will post the old and the new when we are up and ready.

Case in point, spend the time and effort needed to make sure your business starts in a very “unique” spot from day one regarding the image you want to portray.  It will only make your job easier down the road!  Less room for confusion among the clientele!

My husband works with sales for a major bank in the US and he keeps telling me that research shows many people will through a tri-fold brochure in the garbage before they even look at it.  Being that I create those for clients frequently, I don’t like hearing that.  That is what I was getting ready to create for myself!  Only problem is that  I just couldn’t bring myself to do this without adding a creative twist making the brochure a different size or adding some type of embellishment… but, that is when the price went up too…  I can’t win.

So I thought some more…  With social media changing so much I find myself spending so much time on perfecting my website as that is my  main reference for my business when potential clients want to see my work.  In my field, it is key.  So with that knowledge and thought process behind me AND my website finally starting to take final shape, it is time for me to create some postcard “teasers” for my business.  For me and my business, that is the best bang for my buck I believe!  Stay tuned, I will post it when I am done.