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Category: Branding

Should You Use an AI Logo for Your Business?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere, and it’s safe to say that most everyone is using it.

But should they be?

I’ve been asked a few times in the past year to take a logo that someone has generated from an AI platform, and to refine it – whether that means making the words look better, changing out the colors, or balancing elements that AI just couldn’t get right.

But here’s the thing: I have big-time ethical issues with using AI artwork. And this kind of thing has become enough of an occurrence in my business that I have to start talking about it more.

So what’s the big deal? AI can’t create something original or unique (not to mention the environmental and societal impacts of using AI tools). To the point that the United States Copyright Office and the U.S. Court of Appeals agree that AI-artwork cannot be copyrighted, because a human wasn’t the one creating it in the first instance. [Source]

What does that mean for businesses and branding?

The question I get most often when I bring this up is, “why should I care about copyright?” or the statement, “we don’t need to copyright our logo.”

This is a foundational misunderstanding, and it can cause problems in the long run for you and your business or organization.

Copyright is inherent for works for art – the person who created it owns it unless they transfer the rights. If someone were to use their artwork without permission, the creator (or rights owner) would have legal grounds to go and tell them to stop using it, and could take that as far as they needed or wanted to.

But when the “artwork” you create using AI isn’t copyrightable, you have no grounds. Which means you have no (legal) control over how your brand is used or by whom.

While the same rules may not apply for trademarking an AI-generated logo, a vast majority of small to medium businesses won’t pay the steep fees required to go through the trademarking process, leaving themselves with zero protection.

Where does AI artwork come from?

Generally, AI learning models are fed by imagery from the internet – whether that imagery was found in public directories, downloaded from paid or pirated sources, or bought and paid for. AI models learn from things that already exist.

Think about where that imagery came from…someone created it. And it’s nearly impossible to know who that someone is, and whether they were 1) fairly compensated for their contribution to the learning model or 2) whether they opted in to having their work(s) train the AI models.

Cite Your Sources

Have you ever seen an AI model that has cited their sources? If we the humans were to create a composite of things for something of value, and we didn’t cite our sources, we’d be accused of plagiarism and generally discredited. So why isn’t AI treated the same?

When you ask AI to provide sources, it throws a few dozen links in there that it may or may not have leveraged to any great extent, and it’s up to you to decide whether you’re going to trust it. There’s even a disclaimer on the bottom that says, “sometimes [the AI model] gets facts wrong so make sure to double check;” but do you?

How should AI be used?

I’m not naive; I know AI isn’t going anywhere. I’ve had to evolve my business to leverage it – it’s built into the tools I use every day, and speed has always been a factor in design and marketing. And yes, I know that as a business owner, you should always be looking for the next big thing that’s going to make running your business easier.

But AI should be a tool, not a replacement for real humans.

AI doesn’t possess empathy, and it doesn’t understand nuance. You can compare an AI prompt to writing a text message or an email that was ill-received when the intention was only positive; emotion doesn’t come through in text for most people. So how could AI “listen” to a business owner tell the story of their brand and pick up on the emotion and nuance that should be brought into the design of it? Or, know where to ask questions and get the deeper story that ultimately makes the brand?

Here’s how I use AI in my business:
- I use it for competitive research (and then go and verify what it’s showing me).
- I use it as a sounding board for content and ideas to see how they might work for my ideal audience, in addition to my circle of real people.
- I use it to check my tone on sensitive emails.
- I use Photoshop’s generative fill and expand features to remove filler, irrelevant background elements or to make a photo wider for a website (sparingly).
Here’s what I won’t use AI for:
- To write content for me – emails, social posts, blogs, newsletters, website content, etc.
- To create artwork – including patterns, icons, logos, or photos – of any kind
- For fact checking
When is using AI for logos okay?

In my opinion, never.

But what if I don’t have a budget? Use a word-only logo until you do.

But what if I don’t know a designer? Ask around, there’s a lot of us out there.

But what if I need a logo for something fast? You should probably slow down or you’re going to miss something crucial. Also, see the first point above.

Getting a logo via AI – whatever learning model or platform you use – is doing your business a disservice.
- AI doesn’t have the human touch; it can’t fine tune your logo to be right for your audience.
- It isn’t taking into account the larger strategy of using your logo.
- It’s not going to generate different usable variations for different scenarios.
And the worst part (from my perspective) is that even if you’re using an AI platform that can generate an SVG or EPS version of your logo, that file is going to be such a hot mess that you’ll have an incredibly difficult time using it again in the future. So if you start off with an AI logo to get something fast, with the intention of having a professional edit it later, you may find yourself having to start from scratch because a professional may not be able to (or may not be willing to) touch the AI generated items.

What’s Most Important?

In this era of speed (seemingly) being the most important thing, I’d challenge you to consider what you actually value most in the long run.

Is it doing the thing the fastest, saying “yep that will work,” and getting it out the door?

Or is it taking the time to do it right, and knowing you won’t have to revisit it later and spend more time (and potentially money) on it?
May 18, 2026
How to Choose a Business Name that Sticks

November 3, 2025
Cohesive Branding is the Goal: A Case Study
Updated: Oct 18, 2024

These days, great leadership is hard to find. Many companies struggle with high employee turnover because of poor leaders and high stress environments.

Amber Waugaman, Executive Leadership Coach, is learning from her experience in environments like these. She’s made it her mission to collaborate with company leaders and entrepreneurs in a group setting or one-on-one to create healthy work environments, resulting in better organizational and financial outcomes for her clients. Whether it’s through coaching, strategic advising, leadership training workshops, or public speaking, Amber has a ton of ways she helps companies make the most out of their leadership teams.

Amber found me via a Facebook post and after exploring my website. When we met, she knew she needed help with branding, but wasn’t sure exactly what she was looking for. After a discovery call and a successful first project, one turned into many growth opportunities and collaborative efforts, and the end result is now one of my favorites. Amber’s personality, drive, achievements, professional experience, and now branding, shine through in nearly all of her documents and platforms, including social media, stationery and marketing.

Together, we worked on:
- Social Media Templates
- A Strategic Business Audit & Branded Asset Update
- A Biography Flyer
- Branded Company Stationery
- A Website Overhaul
Social Media Templates

Amber’s most important initiative was making the process faster and easier for her to continue to post on social media, and achieving a level of polish, poise, and professionalism that matched what she was offering to her clients; something she didn’t feel capable of doing on her own. She shared that she was very active and involved on her platforms, but that she struggled with the “making it look good.” She wanted consistency and simplicity, something that was branded, and something that she didn’t have to think too much about how to make it look awesome.

We worked together to create Canva templates that were very much an “easy button” for her – replace this photo and change this text, and you’re off to the races! We’ve now created nearly 20 different templates that she can pull from for both Instagram and LinkedIn (a difference in size), and each one is cohesive with the rest of her brand identity.

Strategic Business Audit for Cohesive Branding

After finishing our social media template project, I took the liberty of doing an audit on Amber’s digital presence. While she didn’t ask for this, I felt like it would be a disservice to her not to share my perspective and to give her some action items that would immediately improve the look and feel of what she was projecting on the web.

Ultimately, I found that she had great content and direction, but each place she showed up online seemed disconnected visually. There were key missing pieces of her brand in odd places, and it was clear that it was all “good enough,” but not great.

Amber took this feedback amazingly well, and we came up with a plan to fine tune many of her branded assets. This included a tweak of her logo, creating social media headers that were consistent, looking at the visual aspect of buttons on her LinkedIn, and as minute as how she was phrasing certain CTAs. We even drilled down to her future plans of a photoshoot, and how she could make that even more representative of her brand, too. (I’m excited to say she’s bought a stunning orange blazer that’s going to look killer in her new photos!)

This kind of audit – while powerful – doesn’t have much that can be shown off in one fell swoop. It’s a lot of little things that add up to a more cohesive and streamlined presence online, so that if a prospect is vetting Amber, they’re confident that she’s got it all together.

Biography Flyer

One of the things Amber shared and was excited about was an opportunity she was pursuing (and eventually secured!) to be an executive leadership coach with her alumni, Penn State. They requested a document from her that they could pass on to her new potential coaching clients, highlighting her expertise and everything she could offer.

Amber secured the content, and I created a custom biography flyer for her, which is similar to a compact resume. This document allows her to highlight her work experience and expertise, and show readers and potential clients why it’s a great idea to work with her. By incorporating her brand colors and updated logo, it visually tied in to the rest of the work we were doing. Now, not only is she able to use this for her Penn State position, she’s also able to use it at any event she speaks at, or whenever someone needs an “at a glance” reference that goes over why she’s a good fit for them or their company.

Cohesive Branded Stationery

On our initial discovery call, Amber had shown me a document she created in Canva – it was something she was using as a contract, and every time it needed updating, she had to move a bunch of text boxes around. I asked her if it needed to stay in Canva, or if we could create a Word template for her. She told me that the only reason it was in Canva was because she didn’t know how to apply the styles that she wanted in Word, and she wanted it to look good.

Now, Amber has a Word document template (dotx) that she can leverage that does three key things for her:
1. Makes it really difficult to save over accidentally
2. Saves her time if she needs to edit an older document to make it current
3. Creates a cohesive look within her client experience
As a way to show her how to use it, I created a screen-recorded video applying some of the basics from the template she had in Canva – ultimately getting her started recreating it into this new Word document. It’s all one-click style applications, and she’s reported it works great for her! She now uses it for debriefs, pricing pages, presentation resources, and more, saying “it definitely helped elevate my presence and keep things consistent.”

Website Overhaul

The biggest project Amber and I worked on together (and my favorite in this case!) was her website. We started by reviewing it; going over the elements she liked, what needed to be updated, and what she wanted to add. Although it had a great deal of information, like many of the other assets we worked on together, it was inconsistently branded.

Some of the things that made the biggest difference in the redesign included:
- Making the layers light and intentional, which made her pages clean and easy to skim through
- Adding some of her awesome branded photos and videos, and leveraging lots of opportunities to highlight the testimonials she had that raved about her process and results
- Adding an FAQ page, updating her professional speaking page, including a section to display all her certifications and the organizations she’s involved in, and adding candid photos to show more of her personality
- Including her updated logo and fine-tuning the colors and design elements for a consistent look
Ultimately, we ended up with an exquisite testament to her coaching abilities and expertise, and a powerful sales tool that Amber is excited to use and share.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Jenn, my go-to marketing designer and strategist, for several months, and she has truly elevated my professional presence across all platforms. From stunning social media graphics to a polished website and bio flyers, Jenn has ensured everything looks exactly as I envisioned—highly professional and polished, which is crucial for my organizational clients. I am continuously impressed by her creativity, attention to detail, and her ability to bring my ideas to life. Not only is she incredibly talented, but she’s also a joy to work with, always offering fresh ideas and insightful advice. I can’t recommend Jenn enough and look forward to continuing to work with her as I further build my brand and online presence.
AMBER WAUGAMAN

This project was a fun labor of love! Amber had a strong foundation for her marketing and visuals but lacked a cohesive look and feel, so it was fun to partner with her in bringing her ideas to life and giving her a brand she can be proud of and excited about. We’ve continued to tackle other small initiatives, often bouncing ideas off one another as Amber’s company grows and changes; she told me that she’s building a list of projects aligned with her goals that she wants me to weigh in on and help her achieve!

If you’re interested in exploring how we might collaborate on creating a cohesive brand identity for your business, book a free Idea to Execution consultation!
September 24, 2024
Bringing a Brand to Life: A Case Study
Amongst the rolling foothills of Boise, Idaho, a new brand has been launched: Foothills Capital Advisory. Nabil, its founder, has a background in both law and finance, and he stepped out on his own with a passion for helping business owners succeed. Foothills Capital’s primary mission is to connect businesses facing cash flow constraints with the capital they need, even after the banks have turned them down, regardless of whether that’s to grow their business, to refinance existing debt, or just to provide a bridge and keep the lights on until they can qualify for traditional financing.

Together, Nabil and I worked on a few key initiatives:
- Logo & Brand Identity
- LinkedIn Optimization
- Business Stationery
- Website Design
- Promotional Materials
This project was exciting because Nabil had already walked away from a steady job to pursue an entrepreneurial path, creating a true start-up from scratch. He didn’t have any existing clients or income, but he didn’t lack the confidence that they would come his way. We jumped on each initiative as quickly as possible, and there were a lot of conversations had in a small amount of time to make it happen!

Logo & Brand Identity

When Nabil was referred to me, he already knew that he wanted to name his business Foothills Capital Advisory. After recently transplanting to Boise from Seattle with his family, he found that he enjoyed the slower lifestyle and the view of downtown Boise and the foothills from his back deck, finding peace in the tranquil surroundings. So, we leaned into that.

Together, we explored a modern approach to his logo, leveraging hand-drawn line art ranging from abstract, to artsy, bringing in soft curves, and eventually landing on a geometric approach to the view he’s so fond of.

The final version is a beautiful balance of colors found in nature.

Coupled with a brand overview guide and some accompanying assets – like a social media profile graphic, a brand pattern, and branded assets like a Zoom background and email newsletter template, Nabil was off to the races with his new brand.

LinkedIn Optimization

Since so many of Nabil’s clients come to him from referrals, we needed to make sure his LinkedIn profile was an accurate representation of what he does, while we worked on his website behind the scenes.

While we were developing his brand initially, Nabil had put a little “coming soon” message in his experience section, and we were able to quell the anticipation by refreshing that and premiering his new brand identity.

Business Stationery

Though a little out of order from how a typical brand identity project goes, time was of the essence! Nabil was looking into attending a conference where he’d have the opportunity to meet a lot of great business contacts, so instead of doing his website next, we jumped on creating something he could hand out and leverage – his business cards. In a relationship-heavy industry like Nabil’s, business cards are definitely still an expected touchpoint.

Since the designs generally tie together very nicely, Nabil’s business cards were delivered alongside letterhead (both something he could print, and a Word document template he could type right into), a notecard that he could use to write thank you notes, and a couple of envelopes to send it all in should the need arise.

For his stationery, we wanted to continue to lean into the geometric look we established with his logo, and incorporated diamonds with icons to share his contact information. The addition of a watermarked background helped everything to feel modern and put together.

Website Design

From there, Nabil and I started working on his website. He already had a foundation laid, as his daughter had helped him build a Squarespace site. Instead of starting over, we leaned into that framework and updated it to be something that was more in line with his new brand identity.

The content was mostly done, but Nabil had supplied a few additional pieces, and we collaborated on updating his bio to be something a little friendlier and easier to read. We used stock photography of sun-kissed foothills and Boise cityscapes to accent each page.

The final site is clean and slick, with the basics front and center, and the ability to get started obvious on every page. A large majority of Nabil’s clients are referred via industry relationships, so we were sure to include a page that spoke directly to those referral partners.

Promotional Materials

With the website wrapped up, the rush to get this brand out the door slowed down a little – Nabil had what he needed to be successful, found online, and to communicate with new and existing referral partners.

The next thing he needed was something that his referral partners could use to share with their clients. Nabil asked if we could put together a one-pager that could be shared digitally or printed. It needed to cover the key things that he can offer, his process, the fees, and how someone can get started working with him. It was a lot of information, and we wanted the piece to look and feel very intentionally designed.

This one-pager helped to get people in the door, but what then? Nabil was preparing concise summaries of his clients’ stories, financials, and projections so that he could quickly solicit commercial lenders on his clients’ behalf, and he needed those to be beautiful, easy to use, and quick to customize. The next thing we collaborated on was a presentation template that was designed in Powerpoint.

For this project, I started by looking at a presentation that Nabil had already put together to get an idea for the types of content he was using, and then I got to work building out templates that made sense for that type of content. By inserting photos that we had used on the website and leveraging his color palette, we were able to make something both beautiful and functional. The best part is that he can use this same template for anything, and it’s near impossible to overwrite it – every time he opens it, it forces him to save it with a new name.

I truly enjoyed working on this brand launch with Nabil, and he and I have continued to stay in touch for future opportunities while he’s nurturing several new client engagements. His business launched with a bang, and he’s been enjoying having pieces he’s proud to show off and leverage as he continues to build.

If you enjoyed this case study, and are interested in exploring how we might collaborate on your next big idea, schedule your absolutely free, no-commitment Idea-to-Execution consult today!
August 23, 2024
3 Reasons Why You Should be Templatizing Your Business
When it comes to running a small business, your greatest asset is your time. If you’re feeling like there’s never enough hours in the day to get things done, maybe it’s time to see what’s really eating up your focus and energy.

One of my favorite hacks is the use of templates. Creating and leveraging reusable assets (aka templates) can eliminate redundancies in your business, saving you precious time and contributing to brand consistency and professionalism; ultimately boosting your business and attracting more clients. Here are three reasons why templatizing your business is a game-changer:

1. Maximize Efficiency

Having templates is a sure-fire way to save you time. Consider the use of Canva templates for social media, for example. By creating (or hiring a graphic designer to create!) Canva templates, you can just “plug-and-play” when it comes to getting your beautiful ideas and knowledge out to your audience.

Having ready-made templates eliminates the need to reinvent the wheel every time it comes to creating content.

Not only does it conserve your valuable time, but it also guarantees uniformity across all your deliverables. By utilizing templates decked out in your brand assets, (colors, logos, and fonts) you ensure a consistent and professional presentation across every touchpoint with clients and prospects. They’ll appreciate the professionalism and attention to detail, which contributes to having a brand people trust.

2. Scale with Ease

Scaling your business shouldn’t mean sacrificing quality or spending hours on admin tasks. Take, for instance, the use of standardized forms (like intake forms). By templatizing your intake process, you streamline client onboarding, ensuring that vital information is captured efficiently without unnecessary back-and-forth. This not only contributes to the professionalism of your operation, but also frees up valuable time and resources that can be redirected toward nurturing client relationships or pursuing new opportunities. Standardized forms also minimize the risk of errors or oversights, leading to smoother transactions and a more positive overall experience for both you and your clients.

3. Personal Growth

You may be thinking that templatization could stifle your creativity, but when you have the basics covered, it frees up mental capacity and time to allow you to focus more energy on innovation and value-adding activities.

By freeing yourself from the burden of repetitive tasks, templatization empowers you to explore new avenues, develop new offerings, and stay ahead of the competition.

Ready to start implementing templates in your business?

Here are some additional templatizing projects to consider:
- Email Templates: Standardized email templates can streamline communication with clients, leads, or team members. Whether it’s for initial outreach, follow-ups, or project updates, having pre-written templates can save time and ensure consistency in your messaging. (Just make sure you read them before sending to make sure your canned language is still relevant!)
- Proposal Templates: Creating proposals for clients can be time-consuming, but using templatized proposal formats can make the process much smoother. Preparing a template with sections for project scope, deliverables, timeline, and pricing can help you quickly customize proposals for different clients while maintaining a professional look. (And it’s been my experience that sending a proposal faster, while the client is still excited and thinking about the project, can help you close more deals!)
- Tailored Business Resources (e.g. Training & Onboarding, Sales Presentations and Prospect Engagement): When bringing new employees or clients onboard, having templatized materials can ensure that everyone receives consistent information and guidance. This could include training manuals, onboarding checklists, or presentation templates for orientation sessions.
- Invoice and Billing Templates: Simplify your billing process by using template invoice formats. Whether you use accounting software or create your own templates in Word or Excel, having a standardized format for invoices can help you get paid faster and keep track of financial transactions more efficiently.
The key here is to identify repetitive tasks or processes in your business and create templates that can streamline those activities, saving time and improving consistency and efficiency. It’s all about working smarter, not harder, and giving your business the boost it deserves. So, whether it’s branding your social media with Canva or simplifying with forms, templatizing your business is the way forward when it comes to growing your business.

If you need help with identifying template opportunities or creating some for your business, schedule your (absolutely free and zero commitment) Idea to Execution Consult!
May 14, 2024
What Are the Best Ways to Market Your Small Business on a Budget? Nine Key Tasks to Get You Started
If you’ve made the leap into being a small business owner, you know that clients aren’t just going to fall from the sky and pay you hundreds of dollars. (You do know that, right?)

So what are the best ways to promote your business when you’re just getting started and don’t have a huge budget?

The following nine tasks can help you be more visible to your ideal prospect and can help you convert them to an ideal client, faster.

START HERE!

1. Make a Plan for Your Small Business and Figure Out Your Offer

You’ve started a business, yay!

Now what? Where do you go from here? Start by making a plan!

Your plan should have a couple of key things in it:

What you offer
- Whom you’re offering it to
- How you’re going to spend your limited marketing dollars
- A timeframe
- Goals to guide your progress
This may seem like a waste of your time, because doing this right now isn’t making you any money. But the reality is that if you’re just doing work with no real rhyme or reason, you’re going to get burnt out and not know if your efforts have been worthwhile.

Getting into the weeds figuring out details like your key offerings and ideal clients will allow you to measure future business decisions easier. You’ll be able to decide if your ideal client will benefit from you investing in something or offering something new or more niche. You’ll also know if you’re spending time on the right things because you’ll be able to judge them against these two metrics.

Once you’ve made those decisions, you can set aside a dedicated marketing budget (remember, you have to spend money to make money!) and figure out how it’s going to be spent. When I go through this exercise with my clients, I like building out the framework for 12 months. This allows us to look at things like sending holiday cards, upcoming conferences you want to go to, and big networking opportunities.

Defining a timeline and setting up measurable goals along the way will help you to know if the marketing efforts you’ve got in place are working, and if they’re not, you can dive into why not. Once you have your plan in place, add a block to your calendar once a month (I would recommend at the end of the month) to review and assess your progress.

Want to know more about what this looks like? Tell me in the comments below, or book a call with me and we can go through this exercise for your business together.

PAID OPPORTUNITIES

2. Partner With an Expert

No, this isn’t just in here because marketing is part of what I do.

It’s here and number two on the list because you should be looking for and trusting people who are smarter than you!

Doing this early in your business development can give you more time to work on income-producing activities, and can give you the confidence to show up because you know things are getting done well.

Consider this: if you’re a lawyer, you’re really good at contracts and serving your clients’ best interests, right? People come to you because you’ve been to school, spent time studying complex legal cases, and the state says you know your stuff. So why wouldn’t you do the exact same thing and trust someone who does what you need (CPA, Bookkeeper, Graphic Designer, Web Developer)?

The largest benefit in finding a trusted partner that does what you need? You can get back to focusing on what YOU do best, and leave what THEY do best, to them.*

This doesn’t just go for marketing professionals (but that is what I’m talking about in this blog). It can also mean hiring someone to take care of your books regularly, or hiring someone to write up your contract template one-time.

*Yes, I know there are plenty of options out there for the DIY approach. But just because they exist doesn’t mean that you’re going to a) know how to use them, b) enjoy spending your time on them, or c) be able to use them to create an output that’s as good as hiring a pro and being done with it. Stop settling for good enough!

3. Tackle Low Hanging Fruit First

As a new business owner, what are the best first uses for your marketing dollars?

I would argue it would be setting up your brand. That means figuring out what your business name is, what your logo looks like, and how you will present yourself to clients.

That can go further into making sure you have branded documents, business cards, social media profiles, a branded email address, getting started on your website, and building a functional and beautiful email signature.

If you know that you don’t want your business name to be your legal name (e.g. Susie Smith, doing business as Susie Smith), you should allocate some marketing dollars to this first. Otherwise, you risk confusing clients down the road when you “all of a sudden” introduce a brand name and identity. And confused minds don’t buy.

4. Make Yourself Discoverable Online

So you’re out there doing good work and working with good people, but what if one of them wants to refer you to a friend? Where can that friend go to learn more about you?

Let’s be real, if someone refers a friend to you, the friend isn’t going to just call you up (typically). They’re going to check you out online. They’re going to see if what you have to offer is actually what they need.

And if they can’t find you, they’re going to have a hard time deciding on if they should call you. If they DO end up calling you even after they can’t find you… you’re starting that relationship off sans trust.

Don’t do that to yourself!

At the very minimum of minimums, have ONE really well-defined and active social media profile. Yes, even if you don’t like social media and don’t use it personally. You would be silly to believe that in this day and age, social media isn’t a search tool.

What’s better? Having a website that has all the things!

Your website is usually the one place online where someone can go to learn everything about your business. It showcases your brand, shares what you do, talks about who you do it for, and should include social proof (testimonials, portfolio items, links to social media, etc.) that says you know your stuff.

FREE OPPORTUNITIES

5. Focus on Service

Despite anything else you could be doing as a new small business owner trying to market themselves, you should be focusing on offering amazing customer service.

Fantastic customer service is going to be the ONE thing that can wipe out any irregularities in your branding, and it is the most likely reason people will send you referrals.

Folks just want to know that you “got this for them” and that you’re going to make sure it’s done right and done well. They want to know they can get in touch with you and ask questions. That you’re going to be their ‘go-to’.

If you think about going to a store or restaurant where it felt like a breath of fresh air when interacting with the team members there, what did that look like? If you’re a Disney Adult like me, just think of the interactions with the cast members at any park. What do they do differently than most other retail establishments?

They make you feel like the most important person in the world.

Do that for your clients – the referrals will follow.

If you want to read a book on how to create that experience, I highly recommend Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard! (That’s NOT an affiliate link.) It’s a quick read, I promise, and worth your time!

6. Leverage Freebies

For most people, a free marketing opportunity is social media. Getting online and creating content, interacting with content, and promoting your services is the best freebie there out there.

Here’s my recommendation for which platform to use for your business – choose one and get really good at it before jumping to another:
- Instagram: B2C creative businesses that have a process or product they can showcase.
- LinkedIn: B2B professionals, showcasing thought leadership.
- Facebook: B2B and B2C businesses. Setup a business page, but focus on building relationship in and promoting your business in relevant groups. Otherwise, you’re paying to play, and it’s not cheap.
There’s an entire strategy behind how to create stellar content and promote it to the right people on social media. That’s not what we’re here to talk about. Just know that social media can be your best free marketing tool.

If you’re a local business operating locally, especially as a brick and mortar, look for opportunities to:
- Post on a community bulletin board
- Host or sponsor events
- Network with other businesses in the area
- Place strategic and low-cost ads in relevant local places / publications
- Tap into new, unusual, or unique markets in your area
7. Don’t Be Afraid of The Hustle

As a new business owner, you’re going to have to work for what you want.

The internet revolution means that there are (probably) lots of other people out there doing what you do – but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do it.

You’re going to be able to bring a whole new flavor and perspective to the business, and you should lean into what makes you different and better.

But you’ve still got to want it, go after it, and hustle for it. (Not ‘hustle’ in the bad way, like stealing people’s money.) You’ll have to lean into the bad days, work through them, and figure out what’s not working when the clients and revenue aren’t coming in.

You know how they say that an animal can sense your emotions – good or bad? Clients are the same way. If you’ve got a bad attitude about your business and you’re feeling righteous and annoyed that it’s not making you a millionaire overnight, they’re going to pick up on that.

Trust the process, do the things, and don’t be afraid of the work it’s going to take to achieve your version of success.

8. Gather Social Proof

Along the way of building your business, there are going to be things that say, “I know what I’m talking about.”

Generally, those will be testimonials. For creatives, that might be a portfolio of projects. In other situations, it might be contest entries/wins, or mentions in a publication, or guest spots on a podcast.

Regardless of what social proof looks like for you and your business, you should be gathering it all the time!

Social proof is going to help convert people from a maybe to a yes.

Put that ish everywhere. Make a highlight on your Instagram. Put it on your website. Post a blog about it. Send out an email blast that includes it.

Just make sure you’re always gathering it.

AND FINALLY…

DON’T GIVE UP

Look, I kind of already touched on this in the hustle tip above, but being a business owner is HARD.

You’re going to have good days and bad days. Hell, you’re going to have good months and bad months!

Things are going to throw you off course. Clients are going to fire you. People aren’t going to like you.

The trolls are everywhere.

That doesn’t mean you should give up on your daydream. If you felt strongly enough about building this business to get started, there is a reason for that! Lean into it, trust the process, and enjoy the ride.

There are going to be businesses that don’t work out, and every situation is unique. But don’t be the business that didn’t work out just because things got a little hard. Give it everything you’ve got and look for new tactics and opportunities so that you can know that you tried everything before throwing in the towel.

If this blog was helpful for you as business owner, tell me about it in the comments! If there is something you want to know more about, feel free to book a complimentary Idea to Execution call.
March 15, 2024
What to Wear for Your Next Corporate Photoshoot

If you’ve ever been to a business’ website where they have pictures of their team, and especially group pictures, you might have noticed some off-putting things right away. Maybe the pictures felt dated. Or perhaps that one girl stood out in her hot pink dress.

While I would absolutely recommend a business owner invest in great brand photography, there are some things that you have to pay attention to in order to ensure you don’t fall into easy traps.

Note: There are exceptions and caveats to every rule. If you have something you’ve seen that is inspiring your shoot, or you want to be intentionally different, by all means. The following are meant to be general do’s and don’ts for business leaders who don’t know where to start.

JUMP TO A TIP

Do look at what everyone plans to wear.

Don’t forget to start with a color palette.

Do reserve the right to veto.

Don’t forget a backup.

Do opt for classic styles and fits.

Don’t be too stuffy.

Do avoid bold patterns and colors.

Don’t show off too much skin.

Do ask for a second opinion.

Don’t wear white or beige.

Do remember your environment.

If a client asks me for recommendations of what to wear for a corporate photoshoot, here’s what I would tell them and why:

DO look at what everyone plans to wear ahead of time.

You don’t want to get to the photoshoot and be appalled or annoyed by what someone chose, with no ability to change. You’ll end up hating the photos, which means you wasted time and money.

See how the girl on the right stands out?

DON’T forget to start with a color palette or theme.

Going into your outfit options with an idea of what you’re looking for is going to reduce your headache in the long run, especially if you have a big team. You could choose a theme like fall colors, jewel tones, or black and gray. Or, you could say no to specific colors based on the background you’ll be shooting against.

They have a theme, but the red shirt in the middle is immediately noticeable.

DO reserve the right to veto a team member’s outfit.

Let’s not worry about hurt feelings here. You’re the business owner, you get to decide how you want your photos to look. Obviously, you want your team to feel amazing in the photos (it will come through, trust me!), but don’t force them to go out and buy something new. Give them some parameters and work with them to find something you’re both happy with.

The choice of footwear for the person in the middle maybe should have been veto-ed here.

DON’T forget a backup.

Even if you’re just bringing an extra sweater in a different color, bring an option for your outfit – just in case it’s not photographing well or you’re feeling way too self-conscious for good photos.

DO opt for classic styles and fits.

So bell-bottoms and crop tops are very “in” right now? Not for your corporate photo shoot! Find outfits that will stand the test of time so that you can get the most out of your investment. Business casual is a safe bet, unless…

In 2024, they’re very trendy. But in 2006? They would have looked frumpy and disheveled.

DON’T be too stuffy.

If you’re not the business casual type, and your clients would never catch you in a blazer or a pencil skirt, don’t wear that for your photoshoot! It will create a disconnect, especially for new clients who’ve looked at your website. Instead, opt for a slightly elevated version of your daily attire, while keeping it timeless.

She still looks professional, but she’s not wearing a suit.

DO avoid bold patterns and colors.

This goes back to timeless photos where no one stands out like a sore thumb. If one person is wearing huge polka dots while everyone else is in solid colors, your eye is going to go STRAIGHT to the dots in the final picture.

The red tights don’t make sense for this shoot. That’s immediately where the eye goes in a sea of blue.

DON’T show off too much skin.

Bottom line, it’s just as distracting as the polka dots in the last tip. Ladies, avoid tank tops and above the knee skirts. Gentlemen, don’t open too many buttons on your button down.

The girl farthest to the left is bordering on scandalous, sitting in a short sleeveless dress.

DO ask for a second opinion.

If you’re not sure if what you’ve chosen will photograph well, ask your photographer! They’re going to be able to point out what will look good on camera, if a pattern will add extra pounds, if a color is going to be too bold in your environment, or worse, camouflage you. They’ve probably seen it all, and they’ll appreciate that you trust their opinion.

DON’T wear white or beige without something over it.

A crisp white button down looks classic. But, unfortunately, white doesn’t make photography easy – that’s why there is an entire industry of people who specialize in wedding photography. White tends to “blow out” the exposure in a photo, and it can make everything else appear dull without the right settings and lighting. So, if you are heart-set on that white button down, add a dark blazer or sweater for contrast and to minimize the white. And sorry ladies, no white pants, please!

White outfits help the overall softness of this photo, but would have been hard on a dark background.

DO remember your photoshoot environment.

I live in the southwest, and it gets HOT here. Doing a photoshoot outdoors, asking people to be covered up, in the middle of summer… you’re just asking for sweat stains. Consider whether you’ll be indoors or out, what your background is going to look like, and what the options are for staying warm or cool in-between shots. Pro-tip: Bring things that can help folks touch up – hairspray, bobby pins, mirrors, safety pins, extra makeup – so that you can fix anything that happened between your bathroom and the shoot.

The woman in the middle is beautiful, but her outfit is washed out- she’s almost a ‘floating head’.

These tips are mostly for teams of people. But they also apply for individuals who are planning for their corporate headshot, just without quite as much coordination.

My last tip for your next corporate photo shoot is to tell your photographer to be a little bossy. You’re hiring a professional, so let them do their job and be the professional. Encourage them to tell you if your outfit isn’t photographing well, or if the pose you’re in isn’t flattering. A good photographer will know what works, and given the freedom to tell you will result in a better shoot.

The photos above are taken from publicly-accessible Pinterest pins. These are NOT my photos or my clients, I do not take credit for these photos, nor is this meant to be slanderous of the teams photographed or the skill of the photographer(s). These are simply here to serve as an illustration of the points identified above.

March 1, 2024
Why Color is the Least Important Part of a Logo Design
Working with a new client, I have a template that I use to show them their logo designs. On the third slide, it says in bolded, italicized text: “These concepts are done in black and white to start so that you can focus on the structure of the logo without color getting in the way.” But without further explanation – I wondered if the purpose was clear enough.

Why is color the last thing I incorporate for a new logo design?

The folks I work with are business owners, and nine times out of ten, they’re not creative people – hence why they are hiring someone to fill that gap for them. While a creative person could look at something and generally see the nuances of a color, chances are that a business person has a limited color vocabulary and would have a hard time voicing that the blue they’re envisioning needs to have more green in it.

When I present the initial concepts to the client – sometimes even through the first few rounds – we’re not even talking about colors yet. Maybe we discussed it briefly on our initial Idea to Execution Consult, but we haven’t fully gone down that rabbit hole yet.

Black and white concepts allow the client to see the pieces of the logo, without “the wrong blue” getting in the way. They can see the hidden iconography in the logo mark, they can see how the font is wide, skinny, tall, or sans-serif, and how the brand name is sized in relation to the logo mark. They can see the overlapping elements clearly. All of these things are just as – if not more – important to the logo design as color.

There’s also another reason…

Designing a logo in black and white allows me as the designer to ensure logo versatility.

What is versatility mean in a logo project?

At the end of a logo project, my client gets a suite of files. This is usually a zip folder with organized sub folders for different layouts and color options. It generally looks like this:

And if they drill down into the “wide” folder, they would typically see something like this:

Not every logo project has every format or color option, but by doing everything I can to ensure that they have:
1. A wide version
2. A stacked version
3. A logo mark by itself
4. An all white version
5. An all black version
Will allow the client to be prepared for whatever branding challenge gets thrown at them.

By designing logos in black and white from the get-go and adding color later, I’m solving for versatility first!

What about when the client wants something that doesn’t fit the versatility mold?

Yes – it happens! I have one particular client in mind who knew exactly what he wanted when he approached me about working together. And what he wanted broke the versatility mode wiiiiiide open! But, I guided him through the future challenges he would face, and made sure that he had a secondary option when all was said and done so that his brand could be as versatile as possible. And he LOVED the end result!

The logo on the right is his primary logo – it’s in color, and it very much only fits in a square – which can be tricky for a website application. It’s also the last version of the logo he saw!

When we started the project, he saw a reversed version of what’s on the left – all black outlines. We continued that way until he was happy with the structure and the story that the logo told even without the color added.

Originally, he asked for a blue and gray logo – but when we started playing with colors, there were obviously more colors added in! The version on the bottom of these two is his secondary version – and it solves the need for a wide format that fits into the brand identity… and he also has an all black and an all white version if it, too. While he may not use the secondary logo often, it’s a good asset for him to have available.

That’s why I’ll continue designing logos in black and white to start, and always advocate for a versatile logo as part of my clients’ brands.

If you’re interested in working together on a branding project for your business, let’s schedule your free, no-obligation Idea to Execution Consult now!
January 3, 2024
Do you need a site rebuild, or just a refresh?

Recently, I was referred to a new client who was looking to improve his marketing strategy. He wanted to ‘level up’ his passion project into more of a full-time income producer, but wasn’t sure where to start. The first thing I did was look at his website.

A business’s website is the primary place where someone can find all the details about the business, and in this case, it was where everything was. This client didn’t do much on social media, and his idea was great – but his website didn’t do a great job of selling it for him. The thing is, he built the site himself, so he was very proud of his work and didn’t want to blow it up and start over, nor did he need to. So, we worked together to refresh what he already had into a more appealing and modern look that told the story of the brand and business model better and more intuitively.

A Case Study in Refreshing a Website

Here’s the before and after:

My client did all the work (because he wanted to and it allowed him to better manage his budget), I just gave him the details of what went where, wrote content, and QA’d what he created.

This might seem like a rebuild, but the reality is that all of the same functionality stayed put. We gave it some new clothes, but really, we only accented what already existed.

If you would like to talk about how a refresh might benefit you and your business, schedule your free, no-obligation Idea to Execution consult today!

December 8, 2023
Brand Guide vs. Brand Overview: What’s the Difference?
I recently completed a proposal for a potential new client who is looking for a brand identity, and in it, I noted that she didn’t need a full brand guide, but a brand overview would be a good addition to her branding package. As I was putting this together, it occurred to me that there are a lot of people who might use those terms interchangeably – so what’s the diff’?

Long story short – the difference is in the length and detail of the document.

What’s a Brand Guide?

A brand guide is a more extensive document that can go over virtually everything in how you want your brand to be portrayed. The most basic things, like what versions of your logo exist and how they should be used, color palette, and font choices are always included. But you have an opportunity to also include things like:
- brand voice
- pictures – what they should be of, how they should look, and things to think about when choosing new ones
- how email signatures should be formatted
- color choices for color blindness considerations
- logo and verbiage placement on pictures
These are all things I’ve included in a client’s brand guide before, and some brand guides can get very bulky, very quickly. But for those organizations that want to have some sense of control over every angle, that’s perfect. They’re also great for an organization who works with a lot of third-party vendors – no one wants to explain all the rules, all the time.

What’s a Brand Overview?

A brand overview, on the other hand, is typically a one-page document that looks at things from the highest level. The overviews I’ve done are simple – what fonts are included in the brand, brand color palette, and logo options. Sometimes I’ll also include a brand pattern (but not always).

Does my business need a brand guide or a brand overview?

So how do you choose which one is right? In the instance of this client, a brand overview makes more sense because they are not a large corporation, and their brand is being specifically designed for an educational platform. It’s not a “full business” in the most traditional sense, but more of a bonus offering. It doesn’t need all the bells and whistles of a full brand guide – the client won’t ever use them. However, they will use an at-a-glance reference of colors and fonts anytime they’re building a new piece of education material.

While many people will use “guide” and “overview” interchangeably, you won’t find that here – they’re very different things in my vocabulary, and which one makes the most sense for your business depends on a lot of factors.

Do you need a reference guide to make decisions easier for your business? Let’s chat – get in touch to get started!
November 6, 2023