Kalico Sponsors MicroBusiness Roundtable

Kalico is proud to be a co-sponsor of the Greater Frederick Advertising Federation's first roundtable series dedicated to freelancers and solopreneurs.

The Greater Frederick Advertising Federation’s Breakfast Sessions at The Coffee Table are an outstanding way for micro-business owners and freelancers to connect with each other to gain insight on the latest trends and innovations, while collectively solving problems associated with running the smallest of small businesses.

Each session will cover a topic of interests to individuals who wear many, if not all, hats when it comes to running their business. Finance, networking, sales, and home-based issues are the just the start as the conversations will generate ideas and resources to ultimately help your business thrive.

Our first session will be held on Wednesday, September 2 from 8-9am at The Coffee Table in Frederick, MD. Here is more detailed info:

Support Networks
A Chinese proverb states, “one generation plants a tree, another gets the shade.” Who or what is planting the trees for you? As individuals running small businesses, we rely on the help of others for guidance, financial support, and an array of other needs that are sometimes difficult to take on ourselves. What people or products are in your support network? This session will focus on topics to help strengthen our networks in order to meet the needs of our growing businesses.

For additional information, please email me or visit www.greaterfrederickadfed.org.

Goodbye Lazy Days of Summer!

Let me first apologize for my 2 week leave of absence on the blogging. It's been a very busy August at Kalico Design. Goodbye lazy days of summer, hello busy busy fall! Of course, I can't complain about the slew of work that has recently come in (I did just buy a new house, after all!) Check out some of the exciting projects I'll be working on in the upcoming months:

1. Downtown Frederick Partnership's 20th Anniversary: I am super excited to be working with the Downtown Frederick Partnership to celebrate their 20 years of promoting and preserving the vitality of Downtown Frederick. Be on the lookout for an anniversary logo, plus lots of great commemorative products courtesy of local downtown businesses.

2. Find It Frederick: I remember picking up the premiere issue of this Frederick-based magazine and thinking it was the coolest thing ever! I have lived in the Frederick area all my life, but Find It Frederick manages to report on the unique finds throughout the Frederick region—even the things the "locals" don't know about! I am very excited to be working on the the Fall issue of this publication. I'll be sure to let you know when it is available, b/c you won't want to miss it!

3. Damascus Dental of Mt. Airy: I have loved working with this laser dental office over the past year, developing a whole new identity with them. It started with a logo and ended with a new state-of-the-art cosmetic and laser dental center in Mt. Airy MD. (ok, well, the logo at least helped with the office decorating!). I'm getting ready to start revamping this company's website to reflect their new look!

4. Interior Design Services (IDS): Just finished with the logo and business cards for this start-up interior designer who focuses on green, eco-friendly and energy efficient residential and commercial interior design services. I really enjoy working with start-up companies and helping them to develop their brand image! IDS even offers an online consulting services for those DIYers.

These are just a few of the amazing jobs I have coming up! I'll keep you updated on the status of some of them and will also showcase some of the final results. Now, back to the graphic designing...

Expose Yourself!

Want to get more media exposure for your business or product? It may be as easy as signing up for HARO (Help A Reporter Out)! And the best part is that it's free!

HARO was founded by Peter Shankman and runs on the philosophy that "Everyone is an Expert at Something". It is a web source for reporters around the world to find their sources, and a way for you to get the press you're looking for. HARO is currently the largest free source repository in the world, sending out over 1,200 queries from worldwide media each week.

Once you sign up to be included on the list as a source, each day, you'll receive up to three emails, each with anywhere from 15-30 queries per email. They'll all be labeled with [shankman.com] in the subject line, for easy filtering. If you see a request you can answer, go for it! HelpAReporter.com really is that simple.

I'll admit, I was a little weary of getting the daily emails, but it hasn't been a problem. The emails are divided up into categories (Urgent, Business, Travel, General, Health, etc.) for quick scanning and each request is just a very simple description of the query, contact person and publication info. When I have time to read through them, i do; when i'm too busy, I just delete them. I've also been able to send some source requests to clients, which they've greatly appreciate.

Again, sign up is super easy and FREE! And may be the chance for you to get the exposure you want!