Resolution Revolution 2008

If only.

Well, let's review a bit, shall we? Last year, my resolution watch word was "attainable." For that reason I only created about five business goals that I felt I could relatively keep. So, here we are a year later...how did I fare...or as is the case, where did I go wrong?

2007 Resolution 1:

Increase Profit. Didn't see that one coming, did you? But it isn't enough to make a general declaration as though the intuition to accomplish this will mystically materialize. Chris Gee of Cube Interactive, LLC and ringleader of The Prepared Mind suggests arriving at a target amount you want to make in a specific time period (in my case, how much I want to earn in one year) and working backwards. Forming a plan this way seems less like an uphill struggle when strategizing a means towards your lofty objective.

Although my profit did increase, I still didn't hit my goal. So, what happened? I started at the end, but didn't work out a detailed enough plan to take me there. Or it could have been that my aspirations were a bit too ambitious. Either way, I didn't realistically factor the time that was needed to research and reach certain benchmarks, particularly when last minute projects or personal emergencies popped up. My plan looked pretty good on paper, but fell apart in practice.

How to resolve the resolution: More research. Others reached their fiscal goals, so can I. And with a year's worth of data from the past year to use as a comparison, I should ideally be able to devise a more effective attack plan that will either bring me closer to hitting this year's goals or surpass them. It's good to dream.

2007 Resolution 2:

Launch a Self Promotional Campaign. I've fussed and balked long enough, it's time to heed the clarion call for action. Part of the reason, well, most of the reason why I still don't have a website or a stationery system with my redesigned logo is that I'm too anal, I feel as though I can always come up with a better solution and end up changing strategies. In short, I'm my worst client—EVER.

Not surprisingly, I'm still my own worst client. Unlike my other (real) paying clients, I ended up putting my business marketing projects on the back burner for real work more often than not. An effective strategy is only good if I stick to the deadlines I place on it. If I don't treat myself like a real client, the obvious result will occur.

How to resolve the resolution: I still had a solid game plan, however I have to stick to my agenda and not set my work aside whenever a paying project or "life" compromises it. I have to think of it in this perspective: if I don't promote my business, I won't get any new business and won't reach my year's financial goals. What I'm going to do is schedule a consistent block of time during the week (Thursdays between 6 and 8pm for example) to specifically dedicate towards the growth of my business.

2007 Resolution 3:

Get Fresh Blood. In order to reach my lofty profit goals, I need new clients. For this, as I stated in the previous resolution, I've been driving and walking around town taking down company names that are in sore need of a re-brand, visiting "noteworthy" yet poorly designed sites and developing a good promotional campaign that targets their needs. In all of these cases, I took a page from J.P. Morgan and "followed the money."

Well, if I only had that gosh darn promotional collateral that I kept putting off in the previous resolution this one could have worked. And in truth I didn't participate in the start-up forums as much as I should have. To be quite honest, I was indulging myself in all the wrong forums.

How to resolve the resolution: It's still a good idea to create a custom mailing list, but like a well oiled machine, all aspects of my business model have to be in place and running. So for this to have a chance I need to prioritize some of my other resolutions. Regarding the start-up forums, I'm going to pick at least two and slot time every week to hob nob with the locals. Considering that I am already an active participant in so many other groups, I think two is a nice number to get my feet wet.

2007 Resolution 4:

Launch Website. Oy, what a headache this has been. The fact of the matter is that I wasn't really satisfied with any of my concepts.

It's still a headache, but I finally decided to move in a direction that ties into my overall branding agenda. Although I don't have a "complete" site, I did put up an interim page with redirections to a portfolio of featured projects (which will soon be moved to another, more private location) and my web log.

How to resolve the resolution: There are two ways to go about this, either whizz or get off the pot. Realistically dedicate time to learn Flash and/or Dreamweaver (to start) or outsource the coding. It's that simple. Times are such that I can't afford not to have my site up—people seem to be using it as a benchmark of professionalism (how many times have you been asked if you have a web site?). Regardless of whether the bulk of my work comes via referrals, if I want to generate consumer interest from other sources, then I have to have one up.

2007 Resolution 5:

Enter Industry Design Competitions. NO, not spec run "contests." Here's the major distinction between the two.

Actually one I kept, so huzzah for me! So nothing to resolve except to continue to enter this year. Time will only tell if it will prove a beneficial promotional tool. Even if it doesn't, it certainly can't hurt to add the title of "Award Winning Designer."

Conclusion:
Rather than create new goals for this year, I'm going to try to keep to the ones I formulated in 2007. The only difference is this year, I'm going to try slightly different approaches, both in my plan and in my perspective, to stick to them...or well, most of them. I don't mind taking baby steps so long as I continue moving forward.

Janfirst illustration ©2008 Dagmar Jeffrey. All rights reserved.

Season your Greetings

'Tis the season once again for designers to thank their clients for their business, wish them well, and perhaps take one last shameless opportunity for a little subtle holiday plugging of their services before the end of the year.

There are several ways to leave a jolly ol' mark, but the common denominator in all of them is "tailor it."

If you can afford it, give your valued clients the ho-ho-whole enchilada. Take a page from design firms and create custom greeting cards and gift packaging. Think of it as another vehicle to showcase your talent. It can also lead to business in the future—after all, a client may see your nice presentation and decide to hire you to design their own holiday greeting cards for next year. It's also the ultimate personal touch that makes the guys and gals that sustain your business feel like they're your "number one."

Regarding gifts, if you can also spring for it (and in some measure, you should) find out what the company heads have an interest in, and buy them a nice gift that in some way reflects it (don't forget to include a nice assortment of holiday goodies for their employees...or the department with whom you've worked with).

It doesn't need to break the bank to be special. For example, I plan on surprising a good client of mine who is launching a fashion line branded around Ancient Egypt with a magnet. Not just any ol' magnet, mind you, but a 3D magnet replica of "William" the faience hippo that resides at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (one of his favorite museums). I plan to create a unique little shipping crate "seared" with the Archetype Design Studio mark. Hopefully he doesn't follow this web log otherwise my surprise is ruined, but I digress. It's an affordable, customized gesture to show my appreciation for his continued patronage.

Failing time to even do that for whatever the reason, there is always the fall back plan of gift card giving. All major stores have them and it takes no time to figure out what store or drink or sport or restaurant a client likes and just buy them a simple card. And for the exceedingly, shall we say..."overwhelmed"...designer who has time as their enemy, pay a visit to Gift Certificates.com. They have such a broad selection of merchants ranging from home improvement to fine dining that they're bound to walk away happy. If you aren't going to mail directly from the site to the client, buy a nifty gift card tin.

If you can't afford (neither in time nor finances) to create a unique card or gift package from scratch, at least try to buy the best that you can afford from what's available. The simple action of selecting a card that a client can identify with will resonate with them far more than some generic card. There are a few designers and shops who have lovely and/or whimsical selections to choose from, which I'll list below. You can also take a walk around your local shops to see what you find. You'll never know when or where a nice, client/vendor worthy card will capture your attention.

Dear Nic
Sunlit Media | Letterpress
Jane Hancock Papers
A Little Hut
Tea Leaf Design
LSV Galleria
Kate's Paperie
Melissa head Designs
Luxe Paperie

For clients or vendors that may be from out of state or country, you can purchase a card that identifies with your region, or with theirs and add a little special personal touch inside. Artist Alexander Chen licensed a line of cards through Tim Binder Fine Arts that identifies with Christmas in my hometown of New York City. They ended up being so nice that I just may be persuaded to send a couple of out of state/country vendors a taste of the holidays in NYC along with a nice little gift.

In the end, it's not so much what you buy or create more than how much they will ultimately enjoy—and thus appreciate—a thoughtful gift over a generic one.

"Merry Christmas" holiday card by Sunlit Media. All rights reserved.

A design:related Buzz

I love forums. Really I do. Amidst the camaraderie threads one can always run into some very useful resource tidbits every so often. design:related is one such tidbit.

It's essentially a network (one of many—but that's an article for another day) that uniquely targets Creatives, a big "pro" over other networks like Facebook, which although good, was originally meant to cater to the scholastic crowd, then adapted. As with other networks, they have the obligatory "profile" interface, where you can input likes, interests network groups (basically your base of operations) and so forth. Because it's catering to designers, illustrators and other creative ilk, it also offers a dedicated page just for you...like a free webspace server...and a section to upload a portfolio of work along with room to post the project details beneath the image (client, description, etc). When a person viewing the piece clicks on the image thumbnail, it acts as a link to that project. When clicking on the larger image header, it opens it at the center of the browser window (think "flash" pop-up) and...best of all...allows one to upload up to three different images related to the project. Just think—you can put up different product shots, or variations. It adds a refreshing dimension to the usual "one product image per portfolio piece" norm.

Taking a page from other sites like the new blogger, design:related doesn't bog you down with too much copy. Wisely catering to this visual (likely ADD rampant) market, they let the image stills of their site do the talking in their quick tour. Although I would've preferred the option of a short video tour with a narrator entailing the benefits in brief detail as well, what they had was sufficient enough to seal the deal.

There are also other issues that could have been addressed, like a dedicated "help" page. I for example had to discover some of the better bits on my own. I know many designers who neither have the time nor patience to sit and play for extended periods of time. They are however aware that there might be some kinks in the works and are eager for our input, which is good. Time will tell just how adeptly they apply the suggestions that are offered.



If you are a designer like myself who doesn't have a live web site for whatever the reason, this is a nearly perfect alternative. "Nearly." To ensure a higher degree of visibility, I resorted to taking a snapshot of their logo (no, it's not pirating, read on) and create my own affiliates link from my splash page to the site (yet another resource they should offer, to increase their viral power). Creating your own link and adding it to one's sig (if they are forum advocates like myself) is another good advertising tactic.

Even if you do have a website, it doesn't hurt to try design:related if for any other reason than to extend your networking base in a site that specifically caters to our creative ken. I imagine as their popularity continues to grow, more prospective clients will visit when looking to hire a designer.

My Mad Mad Marketing Plan—Phase Two: Scheduling

It's been said that timing is everything. So in my endeavor to organize a time-sensitive campaign that I have to develop, design, output, assemble and mail, it must also be scheduled in such a way that I can temporarily set aside (like last week's post which is now this week's) so that I can address any sudden, shall we say, pressing concerns.

Like any good General, I strategized a plan to divide and conquer. First, still being the web derelict that I am, I mapped the project details on paper (although a PDA or other similarly useful digital media is a fine substitute) to have a clearer understanding of what sort of beast I was up against. I then segmented it into four main phases so that I don't become overwhelmed or side tracked, which also permitted me to establish appropriate deadlines within my limit:

1. Research
2. Execution
3. Printing
4. Delivery

Research.
Essentially brainstorming, budgeting and fundamental concept development. I had to come up with an idea that kept my "eyes on the prize." Best way to do that I surmised was to create a few brief basic criteria.

• It must be "general" enough so that I can use it as a promotional item for potentially any future client.

• It must be something they would want to use or pass on to someone who could use it (never know where your next client will come from).

• It had to be small enough to be portable, or be able to "set aside" on a work desk for example. Anything that was too large that the person had to take it off the table top to make room is a promotional bust to me (there are exceptions, but I digress). If they set it aside on their desk however, it's still within their line of sight and can always be picked up again or be spotted from anyone else who spies it on their desk (again, never know where your next client will come from). Concurrently, I didn't want it to be so small that it gets lost from someone's view.

• Most importantly, the subject matter had to reinforce and associate itself with the brand, in this case, Archetype Design Studio.

It's important to specify your campaign's goals and to outline a realistic timeline to develop an effective promotional concept. For example, I had a bunch of ideas from the onset that may have met some of my criteria, but really didn't meet my most important one, the promotion of my business. They just were good reference tools that I planned to lay out nicely. However how to tie it to my brand? That needed some thought—I felt something sufficiently clever yet simple was in order. I had to set limits because, overanalytical as I am, I've often mired myself in the research phase, literally planning ideas to the ground and beyond before they even had a chance to take off.

I decided, all things considered, that a month and a half of development was ample enough time to finalize the "bones" of this little project. Any less wouldn't have been enough and could've caused setbacks down the road if I wasn't satisfied with it's direction, any more would've been overkill, endangering the fulfillment of my predetermined mid year deadline.

Execution.
It pretty much says it all, I think. This not only includes the computer design, it also includes all of the pre-drafting, scanning and assorted materials gathering as well. Not to be understated, it allows plenty of time for revisions and in the most drastic of cases, the potential to develop another creative direction altogether (also known as "back to the ol' drawing board" syndrome, but if you research well enough, this extreme back pedal is usually not as severe or even necessary). For this project, considering it's scope and that it has to constantly take a back seat to other paying projects, I've given myself three months.

Printing.
The underestimated phase. My rule of thumb is to double their projected turn around time. Quite simply it's to account for output issues that might cause a delay. It happens more often than not, so always allocate extra time if you want to meet any deadline.

Delivery.
Another phase that requires the "printing" rule of thumb, solely because it's the one phase that is totally out of your control—your campaign if it is time sensitive like this one, will be left in the hands of another who may not prioritize it's timely arrival as you would. So it pays to do a couple of things here. Double (or even triple) the estimated delivery time (even if it's next day air) and get a delivery confirmation receipt of some kind (registered, etc) so that you can track your package.

This is also a good time to briefly address packaging. After all, it's part and parcel of your presentation as well, no pun intended. Imagine the difference between a plain shipping box or envelope over something more inviting like this (click on the little arrows). As a designer it'll further reinforce your creative talent in developing appropriate, attractive promotional solutions. And as the saying goes, Style is in the Details.

There is one last consideration, and that's "Murphy's Law," Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. After all your careful plotting from your promotion's completion date on back to ensure success, things can still go so far South that it falls off the proverbial radar, "...best laid plans" and all. Hopefully by structuring a more organized attack plan from the very beginning, it will keep most of your ducks lined neatly in a row instead of splayed all over the street.

Next time: First Dates.