How liberating! The blank canvas is stark, but it holds limitless possibilities.

Liberating as it was, I really needed to restore my blog posts for SEO purposes. My good friend Jay Hughes of Ingage, LLC was able to help me restore my posts from a SQL backup I made before all the chaos began.

The saga that is the blog of AJ Design continues.

“Cobbler’s children have no shoes.”

This adage is all too true in my own experience. I help clients tell their story, connect with their audience, and build their reputation. I tell them with wide-eyed enthusiasm how blogging regularly can crush any whizbang, one-time SEO wizardry. I assert that winning the SEO battle and being found is all about content.

Then I hop over to my own website and I see my latest post was more than six months ago. Ouch.

(For those of you concerned about the welfare of my own children, thankfully, we are able to afford shoes for them. Whether or not they are able to locate them is yet another question.)

It’s all about workflow.

What I’m coming to realize is that I’m subject to all of the same dysfunction that I observe in my clients who also run small and growing businesses. I make sure to stress to them how a growing footprint of on-message content will help them build their visibility and reputation – both online and in their local marketplace. We talk about workflow, planning, and delegation. Back at the ranch, in my own business, I’m juggling projects, deadlines, expectations, marketing, administration, and everything else that makes my business tick.

My business is not at all unsuccessful, but there are things I ought to be doing that just don’t get done. I’m not suffering from ignorance. I have no lack of enthusiasm. But I am often hamstrung by a lack of organization in my workflow. It’s the classic tortoise and hare example. As a creative professional and small business person, I find it very easy to dive into a task with which I am enthused. I usually have a variety of projects in motion, so this avoidance is quite easy. Not feeling very inspired on a logo project? No problem…just shift gears and spend some time on that book layout job. Feeling the tedium of a communication and form design project? Easy fix…just pick up the sketchbook and start brainstorming ideas for that event promotion project. I can run as fast as the proverbial hare, but I often make precious little progress.

This policy of striking while (and where) the iron is hot is not a completely bad idea. At some level in any successful organization, the leadership needs to be able to deviate momentarily from long-range strategic objectives to pursue an unforeseen near-term opportunity. Whether you are running an international big box retailer or a mom and pop restaurant, you have to have the ability to recognize and harness opportunities that hadn’t presented themselves when you were planning your strategy. However, too much of a good thing is too much. When you are so “agile” and “responsive” that you yourself don’t know when a certain project will be finished or when you will have time to deliver on a promise, you are probably a victim of a poor workflow.

Despite my relative dysfunction, new business keeps on coming.

In the past several months, I have had promising conversations with three new clients/prospects. Two of the three found my website by searching graphic design greenwood sc or graphic design abbeville sc. The third new prospect was referred to me by a colleague who has done freelance web design in the past. He recently took a full-time job and will not be able to continue doing web projects on the side. I’m thrilled with the potential that these new relationships bring! All three of these new relationships came as a result of my marketing efforts over the past six months to a year. I developed the lion’s share of my website in early 2012. I networked with that colleague at a bi-weekly networking event in the fall of 2012.

What’s the lesson here? I haven’t blogged as often as I should. I also haven’t been able to participate in as many networking events as I would like. But past blog posts and long-forgotten lunches led to three new projects. That’s the great thing about quality marketing efforts. There is a durability to reputation, for better or for worse. Sure, no blog may be better than a stale blog. And making no impression may serve you better than making a poor impression at a networking event. But if you emphasize quality over quantity and focus your efforts, they will bear fruit over time.

Wrapping Up

Over the next couple of weeks, let’s both take a look at our workflow. There’s no way we can achieve perfection, so let’s cut ourselves a little slack. Relax. Inhale. Ahh…that’s better!

With that out of the way, we can think a little more clearly. Line up your priorities and ongoing projects according to urgency and importance. If you’re not already using a robust project management system, might I suggest Wunderlist?

Be realistic with how long things will take to get done. If you bill time in your business, this is doubly important. Slice up your workload into manageable chunks, and see if there is anything you need to delegate. Broken promises can poison and undermine your efforts to build your reputation, so keep your promises at all costs. I use Zoho Invoice and Zoho Mail to keep my ducks in a row.

After you take care of what is already on your plate. maybe there is one action step you know you need to take to improve your website or your marketing…publish that blog post, attend that networking event, or plan that direct mail campaign. Maybe you need to make weekly or monthly space to execute that growth-related action consistently. Add it to your calendar and build a habit.

Andy Johnston, Lead Creative

We can do this. It’s not rocket science; it’s just business. And if you need a hand with your marketing efforts, don’t hesitate to give me a call at (864) 554-5061 or contact me online. As I told one of my good friends who recently became a client, I don’t currently charge anything for writing emails or talking on the phone.

Students and Teachers Get a Break

I have had conversations with several college students lately who told me they have an interest in the graphic arts. Some were business-focused but had an artsy side. Others aspired to be professional graphic designers one day. One young lady wanted to eventually teach sculpture. In addition to sharing an interest in the arts, these students also have another thing in common:  Adobe is willing to give them 66% (or more) off the commercial purchase price of the industry-standard Creative Suite software simply because they are students.*

In what other profession or trade is the same deal available? Let’s put this into perspective. Folks learning to be plumbers don’t get a 66% discount on tools at Lowe’s when they flash their technical school ID. Someone in police academy can’t buy firearms or other tactical gear at 1/3 the market rate just because they are in training. A music major doesn’t have the opportunity to buy a $3,000 guitar for $1,000 just for showing they are enrolled in the music program at their local university.

* < asterisk

This kind of deal is just too good to be true…and yet it is. If you noticed the asterisk in the title and are looking for the catch, this is it. You must meet Adobe’s eligibility requirements for academic pricing. Read through their guidelines, but the short version is this: if you are a student in K-12 or college (even homeschool), if you are a teacher of K-12 or college, or if you are a homeschool parent, you probably qualify. I would like to link an article explaining why it is good for Adobe to do this, but a quick search yielded nothing significant. The only reason I can imagine that Adobe allows this is that people who qualify for academic pricing may eventually NOT quality when they want to upgrade in the future. They are buying future loyalty with that hefty discount.

Do It Now

So all you design-inclined teachers, high school students, college students, and even homeschool students, do whatever it takes to scrape together the cash and secure your license for the Adobe Creative Suite application(s) you might need — even the Master Collection is available! Ask your parents for some financial help. Ask your boss if you can pick up some extra hours this semester. Enlist the help of friends with a Kickstarter or Indiegogo campaign. Make the decision to secure this incredible advantage and equip yourself for freelancing, volunteering, or independent creative work. Hey, if nothing else, your term papers and presentations hot-rodded with InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator will be head and shoulders better than what your classmates turn in with the typical office software!

I may have a hard time doing a few critical things for my own marketing efforts, but it doesn’t mean I don’t know what to do. (Yes, that even sounds like a cop out to me as I type it…)

Here is a link to a great infographic from our friends at HubSpot via their Unbounce landing page testing utility. Read it with me, and make improvements to your own landing pages when you have the time. I know I will!

http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/33453/10-Stops-to-Take-on-the-Road-to-Lead-Generating-Landing-Pages-INFOGRAPHIC.aspx

And if you want to contribute to my overgrown workload and further prevent me from having time to actually implement these principles myself, call me at (864) 554-5061 or Contact Me to discuss your project. I know I need to do a better job marketing my services, but I’ll be glad to be the “cobbler” with barefoot kids so you can have a better marketing function.

Have you ever needed to design desktop wallpaper that was consistent across several sizes? Here is an Illustrator file that will allow you to create desktop wallpapers for the following resolutions:

Artboard 1 – 1024 x 768
Artboard 2 – 1280 x 720
Artboard 3 – 1280 x 960
Artboard 4 – 1366 x 768
Artboard 5 – 1600 x 900

To use this template, align your art to the center of Artboard 1. Make sure it fits within 1024 x 768 and has sufficient margin. Create or place a background that is as larger than each of the artboards. When the design is finished, select the artboard with the size you want and then go to File > Save for Web & Devices. Select your format and your export options. Click Save and choose a filename. Repeat for the other sizes you need.

Terms of Use:

This template is royalty free, and can be used in any of your projects, both personal and commercial with no attribution required. Please do not host this template elsewhere or redistribute it in itsoriginal format. If you found this helpful and would like to share it with others, please direct them back to this page.

“Don’t respond to e-mails, text messages or online ads offering free gift cards. Make sure the website address and branding match up with the company referenced in the offer.”

How about your business and your brand? Would you be able to tell customers to steer clear of messages that don’t carry your brand? Could the average consumer tell the difference between official communications from your business and a cheap knockoff?

Branding – and all of the sub elements of branding like logo design, advertising, etc. – is a strong tool for the sales function of any business. That is understood without much explanation. But Best Buy’s tip on their website hints that branding is a tool for security. In an age where identity theft is becoming increasingly commonplace, it is no longer optional for businesses to have strong security practices. The next time you are considering your security vulnerabilities, consider these best practices of branding as tools to enhance your customers’ confidence in your business.

Consistency and Precision

There is a difference between ACME Widgets, Inc., Acme Widgets, Inc., and Acme widgets. People who resort to phishing (or “smishing”) tactics usually don’t attend to the details like capitalization or punctuation. Many logo designers prepare graphical  standards to ensure the logo is properly reproduced in a variety of contexts. In addition to visual standards, your branding standards should also encompass text-based presentations of your company name and other identifiers like  your web address, product names, and slogans. Make sure your name is presented the same way every time. This uniformity helps differentiate the genuine from the false.

Uniqueness

Anyone can buy a piece of clip art, drop that in Microsoft Word, and add text under it. Some graphic designers with professional quality software tools even resort to cookie-cutter art. But when you take the time to craft a unique logo to support your brand, you are telling the world, “I am here, and there is no one else quite like me.” You are also making it harder for would-be thieves to mimic your brand and take advantage of your customers.

Clarity

Brand clarity is closely related to consistency and precision. Is it easy or hard to discern your message? What is the purpose of a particular email or document? The more obvious the answer to those questions, the better. Make sure communications stay on point. Use clear subject lines for service-related emails. Don’t make a customer guess at the message you intend to convey.

It’s your turn now. What are your thoughts? Have you seen any great examples where branding has strengthened security or prevented fraud? What about really poor examples? Comment and post links below. Feel free to change names to protect the guilty if you must!

FYI, this image is unedited. It was sort of a “lucky shot” in low light without a tripod.

Enjoy!

In the wild world of business, sometimes you just have to shoot a few times then start aiming. This is especially true for start-up companies. But I highly recommend you at least consider these 17 suggestions and ask yourself, “Do we have a plan for that?” If you do, great. If not, make sure your business goal justifies the risk of ignoring these sensible and helpful principles.

Note about my relationship with Hubspot: I am not employed, in contract, or in any other way compensated by Hubspot. But I was certified as a Hubspot Inbound Marketing Specialist when I worked for Lee Resources International, Inc.

Before & After is a resource devoted to helping improve design. I find the articles enjoyable and helpful, and I know clients who appreciate my work will occasionally appreciate resources like this. There are a variety of free resources in addition to their paid service.

There are a couple of phrases that differentiate AJ Design from other graphic design services in the market. We provide clean, creative, and business-friendly design solutions. Clean and Creative are fairly intuitive in the context of graphic design. Clean designs are uncluttered and effective. Designs that are creative have a unique quality and stay away from copycat ideas. But business-friendly might need a little explanation. When you understand my background, it will make more sense. Allow me a moment to share some of my personal history with you.

I came into the world of professional design through a very roundabout path. My undergraduate education is a bachelor of science in business administration with an emphasis in accounting. Yes, a guy who now holds himself out as a creative whiz and expert visual communicator was once immersed in a world of financial statements, spreadsheets, and accounting jargon. Toward the end of my senior year, I considered the option of pursuing a master of accountancy degree and becoming a CPA, but there was something unsettling about the process and the result that caused me to back away from that path. I completed my degree and got a job as an accounting analyst for a local business form company. My checkered career path eventually led me to a management consulting firm where I had the opportunity to hone my graphic design skills on a variety of print and digital projects. That work, coupled with volunteer work from a decade of serving my church, enabled me to prepare a strong portfolio and earned me an interview for a graphic design position with Self Regional Healthcare.

After nine enjoyable months working at Self, my contracts there wrapped up. While I networked diligently for a full-time design job, I began taking on freelance projects. The volume of freelance work began to swell to the point that it surpassed the “odd jobs” stage. I then decided to launch AJ Design and begin promoting my services to a broader audience.

As my career history reveals, I am not primarily an artist who has decided to open up a design firm. On the contrary, I am a business professional who has developed a strong set of graphic design skills.

So what can you, a small business owner or manager, expect from a graphic design firm that holds itself out as business-friendly?

1Dependability
Your world runs on people doing what they promised. Mine does too. If I promise you will have three drafts to review by 9:00 a.m. Thursday, they will be in your inbox on time. If we have an appointment for 3:30 p.m., I will be at your office by 3:25 p.m. If there is some unforeseen challenge impacts our agreed-to timeline for a project, we will discuss it as early as possible and develop a contingency plan.

2Artistic Discipline
I don’t routinely doodle and daydream. I don’t have a huge body of unpublished artistic work. I am not an artist; I am a graphic designer. I won’t let “art for the sake of art” undermine the needs of my client. The art serves the project, not the other way around.

3Bottom-Line Sensitivity
Nothing sours a good business relationship like a blown budget. I work hard to make sure a project stays within the boundaries of the initial quote. I look for smart cost savings over the life of the project and pass those along to my clients whenever possible.

4Work Ethic
You don’t take a day off when you feel like it. Neither do I. My clients can’t afford for me to work only when I feel inspired.  My work day begins around 8:00 a.m., and I don’t shut it down at 5:00 p.m. I may respond to emails at 9 o’clock in the evening, and sometimes I crack open the laptop and keep working on a project after the rest of my family goes to bed. God and family come first. But after that, I give myself to my work.

Occasionally, it makes sense for a business owner to get design work done on a shoestring budget. There are some great free software programs and services available today. There are also some very talented students who may be able to work for less than a professional designer. But in the majority of situations, you get what you pay for. Don’t get burned by a relationship with a designer or artist that doesn’t understand your needs as a business.