Listen and share instead?

Strategy is integral, but you need strong branding for any strategy to be effective.

From where we sit, we see companies growing and evolving to accommodate their new ideas and bigger visions. It’s exciting to watch businesses grow in defiance of what the news media hands out on silver platters. It makes dramatic story lines, and we should listen with compassion, but those stories don’t have to shape your reality.

I want to caution you, however, that growth and vision may require basic, often costly changes, that shouldn’t be ignored while you’re building. Even if your new idea is simply a better conception of a previous business, how you brand it will absolutely impact your ability to attract the customers you desire – and the ability to make the money you’re envisioning.  (more…)

My husband, Randy, brings home piles of business cards every day. By the end of the week, his back pocket is one-inch thick and wearing a hole in his pants. I always tease him about collecting so many cards, but I rarely see him whip one out to share.

Even if he goes to dig through that wallet for a reference number or email address, chances are so many of those plain, white boring cards will be reduced to the pile on the dresser when he finally takes them out.

He works in the world of title software, and he has several meetings a week. When we go out to dinner with contacts from other companies, they express the same thing. It’s become laughable that people think of their cards as just some sort of magic paper that will appear when necessary. So many people keep their contact information on their smartphones and computers that the importance of the right business card is often overlooked. (more…)

Listen instead? Don’t forget to share!

Just how hard (or easy) is it to turn luxury items or excellent services into cash? You know the adage, “it takes money to make money.” That’s not entirely untrue. But it’s not entirely true, either.

The key is to understand what makes the right audience buy, and then speak to that exact audience. The right marketing tools help you to do this well. While there’s a lot you can do yourself these days, you need a healthy understanding of customer attraction. After all, anyone can buy something. The question is, can appreciative, higher-spending clients and faithful distributors become interested in your stuff, and when they do – will your presentation convince them to call you or come to your store?  (more…)

The logo design process for The Rhythm Studio in the Austin, TX area, was truly a learning experience.

Tracy King Perry was looking for a way to communicate multiple forms of dance in a single image.

Early sketches of ballroom-style dance images were discarded because Tracy’s focus was to be different from all of the other social / ballroom dance studios out there.

She DID NOT want a graphic of a couple dancing together.  From that distinction, we moved on to body parts, poses, and finally to feet.

A good thing to consider in the branding process. (more…)