Graphic and Website Design Nevada County in Northern California

The Journey of a Local Talent

Posted on 02/15/2012 by Phyllis

Tammy Silva had a vision of what she wanted her logo-illustration to look like, “the hula dancer’s hair would look like ocean waves and the title would follow the form of the dancer,”she told me. So we went to work to create an image of that vision to put on her t-shirts, business cards, flyers, etc. This image would be an important part of the brand for her dance business. She teaches Hawaiian dance a skill that she has been studying, E Ho’omau Ka Ha O Ka Hawai’i…Perpetuating the breath of Hawai’i and will graduate this spring. It has been a true pleasure working with Tammy to help her create the visuals that she will use to market her business.

She is producing an event April 14 at 4:00 in Loomis CA for more information see her Facebook page Halau Hula and the flyer below. I have seen her and her dance group perform and I can say they are fabulous.

Posted in Brand Identity, Graphic Design, Women in Business | Tagged Branding, ilustration, Local Women | Leave a comment

Informative Website for Business Women

Posted on 01/18/2012 by Phyllis

Women on Business, I have been following this blog for a while now and have booked marked almost all of what I have read. Women on Business is a website to promote the success of business women by providing valuable information in the area of online marketing. The most recent blog, “5 Costly Website Mistakes and How to Avoid Them” by Jess Webb, has some great information that I want to pass on to you.

I outlined the information for you here:

#1. Leaving YOU out of the website.
This is so true. How many times have you come across a site that is intriguing but there is no indication of who is behind the website. I don’t know about you but I want to know a name, see a photo and read some kind of bio to make me feel more connected to that person. Give it your personal touch.

#2. Too much clutter and confusion.
We have all experience this. You go to a website and there is so much stuff, images, options, even too much text, that you end up leaving the site confused and frustrated. Give your visitors something to focus on. Why did they go to your website in the first place? Did they find the answer or answers they were looking for once they got there? Let them know what steps to take next. Make it easy, clear and a good experience for your visitor.

#3. Not capturing email addresses.
Staying in touch with your audience is key. Create something of value to give to your audience will help your email list grow. Be ready to follow up once you have your list.

#4. Settling for something you don’t LOVE.
It is important that your online presents reflects you and your business in a way that you will want to share and be proud of. It reflects your brand identity and how your customers perceive your business.

#5. No strategy or clear plan for your website.
What do you want your website to do for your business? Make a plan and monitor its progress. Are you selling products, adding to your mailing list, or? Makes changes if it is not holding up its part of the bargain.

I like this list because it is short and doable. But if you find that you are not sure where to start or how, I would be happy to meet with you. Or maybe you need an update of your website, or a new online presence, either way you may contact me for a complimentary consultation.

Posted in Marketing, Web design, Women in Business | Tagged nevada city website desiger, website design, Wordpress websites | 2 Comments

Are You Doing Your Marketing?

Posted on 12/23/2011 by Phyllis

Did your marketing plan work for you in 2011? With the start of a new year, this is the time to evaluate your how successful your marketing plan was and make the necessary changes to improve it.

There were several things that worked well with my marketing plan and a few that I will plan to improve upon. My good intentions to blog twice a week sharing tips, business news, and successful projects with you, but were put aside as my work load grew. I know if I stop marketing then eventually the work flow will stop too. Marketing should not be ignored if you want to grow your business, the big question is how does a solopreneur find the time to do the billable work and market too. These are some tips that I plan to use and that you might find helpful too.

• Have a written marketing plan.
Your written marketing plan should be easy to read and follow. List the marketing tools you plan to use and how often will they be implemented. Put them on your calendar. The tools you should consider and a sample plan are:

networking – twice a week
e-marketing – quarterly newsletter
online presence – website maintanence once a month, blog once a week, post on Facebook and Twitter twice a week, add people to LinkedIn page and comment on discussions twice a week.
promotional materials – make to have a good supply of business cards and brochure handouts

The key is to plan small at first and grow into it.

• Get your information/resources in place.

Build a library of resource materials to refer to with topics you would like to talk about.
Use mind mapping
Keep track of customer/client questions that you can answer. Chances are others have the same questions.
Have 2 or 3 articles written in advance to relieve the pressure of meeting your deadline.

• Know how much time it takes you.
Tracking your time is invaluable. It allows you the ability to plan realistically and not overextend yourself. It also keeps you on task, when you know that the timer is ticking you are more likely not to get distracted. There are many ways to track your time:

the kitchen timer
timer on your cell phone
use a software program, I use Function Fox.

• Track your progress

Use google analytics for tracking your website
Many social media sites have tracking available
Where are your referrals coming from

• Delegate
There are many marketing tasks you can delegate or if you enjoy the marketing, delegate another task that you don’t enjoy.

If writing is not your thing, hire a copywriter to write your newsletter or blog such as The Written Word.
If social media is not your thing, hire someone to do posting for you.
Hire someone to maintain your website for you.

• Success
If you make time for your marketing and you are consistent, you will be successful. Patience is the key. Creating relationships takes time, stay on task, track the progress and grow your business. Good luck in the New Year.

If I can be of any further assistance to you growing your business, contact me for a complimentary consultation.

Posted in Marketing, Women in Business | Tagged business brand, marketing, solopreneur | Leave a comment

Turning HTML into WordPress

Posted on 12/21/2011 by Phyllis

I would like to introduce another successful website revision, turning a html website into a WordPress website. Patricia Pierce, owner of Reflective Images Photography is now empowered to work with her website as she wishes. She can upload new photos, or share new bodies of works with her clients and followers by posting blogs weekly or as her time allows. The bonus is, she is creating a strong brand within her target market and her once static website is dynamically alive and recognized better with search engines.

If you have a html website and would like to be able to communicate your brand better to your target market Contact me for a complimentary consultation to discuss your project further.