In our new office, I’m very heavily weighing toward placing a quote, rather largely, on the wall you first see upon entering our suite. I love quotes that do something for you, whether that’s inspire you, make you think or get you to act in a different way than usual. I think having a quote on the wall would serve lots of goals I have for this project: 1) It’s art without a triple digit price tag, 2) It’s easy to change if we get sick of it down the road, 3) It speaks to the people you’ll find and work with inside these walls and 4) It may just inspire others as they enter our office.
So, as with most projects of this magnitude, I stew for awhile and think. I’ve come up with some top winning quotes that may make it on the wall. My all-time favorite quote is probably going to win over all of these below, but I thought I would share them all with you and see what you think. Do chime in on these options or submit your own and open my eyes to your quote bank!
Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.–Edward de Bono
Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.–C. S. Lewis
I never met a color I didn’t like. – Dale Chihuly
I think there are two keys to being creatively productive. One is not being daunted by one’s fear of failure. The second is sheer perseverance.–Mary-Claire King
There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns.–Edward de Bono
Yes, of course [this age] is materialistic, but the only way to counteract it is to create spiritual things. Don’t worry yourself about the materialism too much. Create and stir other people to create!–Robert Frost
Little surprises around every corner, but nothing dangerous. – Willy Wonka
If you want to view paradise, simply look around and view it. – Willy Wonka
Where is fancy bred? In the heart or in the head. – Willy Wonka
“If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.” — Fred Rogers
“You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.” — Jack London
“Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious… and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” — Walt Disney
“Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.” — Albert Einstein
“An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come.” — Victor Hugo
“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” — Maya Angelou
Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.–Lou Holtz
And my all-time personal favorite:
Energy, confidence and focus…. these are the elements to making creative things – Dale Chihuly
It’s official. Tablets are most definitely here to stay. Apple’s sales were over 3 Million for the iPad alone. Next up, HP and Dell are getting in to the game. But for us at Silver Square, what we’re really noting is the increase appeal to design.
The visuals delivered on an iPad make you appreciate design even if you don’t realize it. The release of so many applications that make text and feeds LOOK beautiful is mounting, along with the increase in self publishing your own magazines, guides, books and white papers. We are asking ourselves things like… how can we make more time for resoruces to fit this growing trend? What approach do we want to take on this trend? How will we work differently with this aspect in mind? How can this trend help our clients get results?
How do you plan to embrace this quickly escalating trend?
I was in Chicago the last part of last week and took some shots with my iPhone of some randomly inspiring things I saw. I thought I would share them here and maybe they’ll do a little inspiring for you too. It’s always nice to get out of your routine and Chicago is one of my most favorite places to do so. Enjoy.
Today’s post is from guest author Curt Franke. Curt is Vice President of Business Development with BitWiseSoultions.
My friends at Silver Square have asked me, Curt Franke of BitWise Solutions, to write a blog entry this week. (Yeah, it’s possible that their judgment was slightly impaired.)
If you know anything about BitWise Solutions, then you know that we develop complex web solutions – that means web sites and software applications meant to run on the web. So, I would just like to take this opportunity to share with you a few of my thoughts about getting a good web site design.
(In this case, when I’m referring to design, I’m not talking about the look and feel, because frankly it’s more art and preference and subtle psychology than what I am probably qualified to weigh in on. Although if you know me, you know that I have opinions.)
Number one key to getting a good web site design – find a good designer. (By the way, Silver Square does goodgreat work.)
Besides that, here are nine more thoughts to help you get a good web site design:
If you already have brand standards, (i.e. logo, colors, etc., and printed materials), be consistent with them on your web design. Why confuse a prospective client about whether they have come to your site?
There are de facto standards for good web design. Don’t get cute, follow them. For example, clicking on the logo should return the visitor to the home page. Search boxes go near the top.
Make it easy for your site visitors to contact you. Don’t make them dig for a phone number or some other way of reaching you. Put your contact information on the footer of each page and/or present a “Contact Us” page.
Then there are the basics. Who are your target visitors and what specific action do you want them to take when they visit your site? What is the call to action for individual pages? Good web site developers will ask you these questions.
Great web site developers* will ask you the questions that help to define the web site strategies that support your business goals and objectives. A web site that supports your business goals and objectives will ensure a good investment of your time and money. A good investment should anticipate a return on that investment. If not, it’s not an investment. It’s a donation.
Be logical in the presentation of the content. Think through the groupings of the content so the site is intuitive. This is part of what great web site developers* do for you.
What web site functionality will support your goals and objectives? For example, does there need to be a secure login for customers to be able to access your inventory and place orders online so that you can increase sales and customer satisfaction?
Practically everyone wants some visibility with search engines. So, make sure to invest the time and effort to get the tags and content in place that will support the search terms for which you want to be found.
Practically everyone wants to make changes to the content on the site themselves. So, get a good Content Management System (CMS). Get a demo of it first. You will be glad you did. Not all CMS’es are created equal.
I realize these are pretty basic elements. But heck, John Wooden taught his basket players at UCLA how to put their socks on. So, getting the basics right is a good first step.
May God bless you.
Curt
*BitWise Solutions = great web site developers, providers of complex web solutions, and good people
We have four branding projects on our plate right now, which we love. I am the designer on the team and branding has always held a special place in my heart. It’s THE most coveted design project, not only for me, but for many artists. We just love that stuff! The business side of me has been wondering though, about the future of branding. I have been asking myself:
What does the social media effect play on your business card?
The authenticty people have come to know and expect, i.e. especially your picture, hasn’t been transfered to the business card yet; will it?
How many places do people really want to connect with each other?
Are phone and e-mail really the most important top ways to reach someone?
What are people doing with these business cards once they receive one?
I don’t have the answers just yet, but for one of these projects I proposed adding some social media contacts on the card and they got kicked off. Hum. So much for that.
Then I started thinking about the photo factor. In the online world, if your avatar isn’t yourself, it’s a bit frowned upon. I know I don’t really trust someone new if their avatar isn’t a photo of them. In fact, I had a guy find me on a social networking site, and he seemed like he had a great profile and business, but his image was such a scary, super human photo that I didn’t even respond to him. I was thinking, not a chance!
I had to immediately giggle because I have also thought of the real estate industry and how many Reatlors have always felt the larger the photo the better the business card gets. Are we moving to that? Was this industry just really far ahead of the curve and the rest of us are trying to decide how and if we want to catch up? What kind of reaction do you have to this right now just thinking about your mug shot front and center on your business card? Good feelings? No way? I’m insane?
I think this next year will really unfold a new demand for what’s taking up that precious real estate on our 3.5 X 2 pieces of paper that people pass along in the real world. What’s your prediction?
The 2009 Companies to Watch was another great evening with 50 of Indiana’s best companies in the spotlight. We are honored to be part of this event with our client, Indiana Small Business Development Center. Our role in this event is branding, advertising, web banners, e-mail, signage, and helping with logistics. Enjoy the gallery of images from the evening.
We have had a lot of conversations of late about helping companies know what they sell. To know your audience and how they buy, you need to know what they are buying. This helps you know how to sell. Ask yourself this question: “What does our company sell?” and gather answers from everyone, even your clients if you can. Any surprising answers? I’ll give you a hint on the direction; it’s probably not a product or service.
Let’s take a company example in Vera Bradley. (I was disappointed in their message on their website but I’ll stay focused to the task for now) They are running a print campaign, in some national publications even a full spread, that says ‘Make life more colorful’ with a very colorful image of a youngish woman in a hot air balloon holding one of their newer fabric backpacks. The name of the pack and the price are small and insignificant to the ad. The ad is selling a lifestyle. It’s selling add some flavor to your life by adding color. Be rich with color and exude the beauty and wonder that this woman and hot air balloon are doing for you right now. It has very little to do with that backpack. Vera Bradley knows their audience has a certain lifestyle and approach to life that makes their product, i.e. handbags and such, part of that life. If they wanted to just move some product they could have lots of thumbnail shots of each new bag with a price under it and their website.
Let’s also talk about that price. The backpack was $92. If the whole ad would have been about the product with the price, in today’s economy, that may give some people sticker shock. We all know a solid backpack can be found for much less than $92. Selling the lifestyle makes the price less glaring and less painful. While some would not like to admit it, there is a price tag for certain lifestyles. Vera Bradley knows this and is banking on knowing which category their audience is in and their appropriate price tag.
Now on to their website. This is where I was disappointed. No mention of color in my world, even, (even!) lack of colorful imagery on their site. The people on the homepage were much younger than the woman in the ad, which can go OK or terribly wrong depending on the audience you’re starting with. They didn’t bring the campaign home and speak to me once I went to their site to make a purchase. This is sad. This would be the part I would suggesting making sure you don’t repeat and tie in the right online message to your offline world.
We wanted to share an offer with you from one of our clients, Sanders Chocolate Company. Their best selling toppings are on sale this month, which is National Ice Cream month, at 15 percent off! Enter code ‘sundae’ to receive your discount. Enjoy lots of ice cream!
I’m sad to see Smith & Hawken must close their doors… but I’m glad to see they are maintaining their brand and style to the end. If you have to go, go out in style.
This image below was in my inbox this morning for the company’s farewell message. It’s a good reminder that even when exiting an agreement, a relationship or anything else, keep up your brand. Stay true to who you are and how you function, either as a person or a company. It will bode you well in the future.
One little, tiny thing that is an often overlooked marketing tool is the e-mail signature. This is something that hundreds (or maybe even more) business people see each day. Make that an opportunity that works for your business. Here are some ideas to consider:
Link to LinkedIn.If you’re keeping your LinkedIn profile udpated (which you should be) chances are you have a recommendation or two in your profile. If you don’t have any recommendations, read my advice on building that portion of your profile. This allows indivdiuals to view your recommendations, see your credentials and learn more about you.
Invite people to follow you on Twitter. Depending on how you use Twitter, it may make sense to invite people to follow you and keep updated on what you’re doing. Growing an audience that wants to know more about you is never a bad thing.
Help push traffic to a website or cause. Use a link to your website to help push traffic there. Enhance the potential of someone using this link by using a catchy phrase or adding a visual image that may add to curiosity.
Be professional. Make sure your business signature propels the look, feel, tone and mission of your business. It wouldn’t make sense to build your brand in all other areas only to have a horrible signature line that devalued the rest of your efforts.
Share your location. I still go to the e-mail to find location and phone information for those I’m trying to reach. This is a common practice that you may want to consider making a communications standard in your company.
The example below hits on these topics and a couple others. If you want to have everyone follow you on each of the social media outlets you’re frequenting, use smaller icons or visuals that still mesh with your business brand and serve your connection needs. Don’t go too overboard and add lots of info, but do rotate or update your signature from time to time to keep it fresh and keep it working as a marketing tool.
