Pinterest is Open for Business!

Earlier in the year we did a post on how effective Pinterest can be as a marketing tool for your business. However, just recently Pinterest offered a new set of terms targeted specifically to businesses. These new terms now supply specialized provisions separate from those of a personal account.

For instance, Pinterest has made the "pin it" and "follow me" buttons, as well as the "profile" and "board" widgets very easy to incorporate into an existing business website. These buttons increase pinner traffic to your website by engaging users to link to things they like while they are there.

But one of the best resources we have found with these new offerings is Pinterest's case studies and best practices examples.

In one case study offered by Etsy they explain how adding a business account increased traffic to their individual shops and has outperformed the "like" button on Facebook in referral traffic. While business accounts usually have boards that are curated and maintained by specified users and not the general public, Etsy shares a strategy in their study of how allowing "guest pinners" diversified the content of their boards and drove more traffic to their actual site.

Etsy is just one case study offered to get your creative Pinterest juices flowing. There are several others including Jetsetter, Allrecipes, Organized Interiors, and Petplan Insurance. Additionally there are tips and tricks on how to make your business become successful through Pinterest marketing. So check it out. You can convert your existing account to a business account with the click of a button, or you can create a new Pinterest business account in just a few easy steps. We just set up our own Kalico business Pinterest page—check it out at www.pinterest.com/kalicodesign!

That's Pinteresting

Kalico's junior designer, Jen Tyler, has recently joined Pinterest users of the world!  We decided to turn her new found hobby (ah-hem, time sucker, procrastination enabler) into a great resource for marketing research and design inspiration. (PS-Jen would NEVER uses company time to do a little pinning, unless the job called for it—I'm sure of it! I think?) At any rate, here's some of Jen's most recent finds:

Lately, I’ve been doing a little research on the newest social media trend Pinterest. For those of you unfamiliar with Pinterest, it is a virtual pinboard that allows you to categorize and share things you find on the web. The cool thing is how easy it is. By creating topic-specific boards, you’re sharing the things you like with others in an aesthetically pleasing way. You can also view other user’s boards and search for specific topics, products or ideas. But, as much as I like to spend hours of company time looking at all the uses for a mason jar, Pinterest actually does have a great marketing application.

Pinterest has recently been driving greater traffic to websites than LinkedIn, Google Plus, Reddit, and Youtube — combined! That is some serious traffic that is just waiting to be tapped into. For business owners it can be used as a tool to promote new products and as a way to interact with potential and existing clients. There are many strategies of exactly how to accomplish this. In fact, there is a whole Pinterest Board on Marketing with Pinterest. However, there are a few strategies that I found particularly hit home:

• When you set up your Pinterest account for business’ make sure to connect your Facebook, Twitter, website, etc. Making this connection adds social media icons under your profile picture that link to your Facebook and Twitter profiles.

• Come up with creative and interesting board names. This is more likely to grab a viewers attention.

• Tag other Pinterest users in your pins by using “@username” in your descriptions. Network with other professionals and vendors in your field by using this feature.

So, you can see that Pinterest has infinite potential when it comes to business. You may already be using it to get your ideas into clients heads. How is it working for you? How do you apply it to marketing your business?

While both Jen and I have personal Pinterest accounts, we’re also considering creating a business account for Kalico. Let us know if you’d be interested in us adding this social media profile! And if so, what would like to see us pinning?

What's Your Issuu?

So what is issuu? This amazing online resource offers individuals a library of over a million free publications, as well as serves as a free publishing platform . While magazines are the most eye catching to me, Issuu has no limits to the types of documents it contains. While surfing the site I noticed maps, annual reports, brochures, flyers, and even the IKEA catalogue (ok, so I got a little distracted looking through the catalog, I'm not gonna lie). Honestly, I truly think I could spend all day on this website.

Kalico uses issuu to upload several of our client's publications. Both Find it Frederick and Frederick County Guide are uploaded to the site and available for viewing upon release date. Our favorite part about issuu? Its amazingly simple to use! You can either set up a free account (warning: free accounts will show advertising) or use their affordable Issuu Pro plan (details here) with benefits such as unlimited publications, unlimited storage & backup and detailed reader statistics. Once your account is set up, all you need is to upload a pdf of your publication and voilà, instant online magazine (or brochure, or map, or annual report…you get the idea!)

Plus, you can get coding from issuu to put your publication directly on your website, blog or facebook fan page. Um, let me demonstrate…

Open publication - Free publishing - More arts

Coo, huh? Interested in working with Kalico Design on your next publication AND getting it online? Give us a shout (or email, we like emails too).

Inspired by Color!

With the weather being so nice lately, we've been inspired by the many colors surrounding us at Kalico headquarters. Bright greens from the leaves and grass, vibrant flowers from the garden, and lively colored fruits and veggies at the farmer's market…color is all around us throughout the early summer!

So, in honor of the colors of summer, here are several color resources and inspirational sites to help you with your next project—be it graphic design, interior design, fashion design or more!

1. Kuler. Presented by Adobe, Kuler  is a web-hosted application that can generate color themes to inspire any project. Kuler allows you to search through color variations and browse thousands of themes from the their online community. And don't worry, it's totally FREE! The above color palette is a July 4th-inspired combination!

2. Design Seeds. Design Seeds is a great inspirational source for emerging color and palette combinations, all based off of original photography. Color inspiration comes from landscapes, animals, plants, seasons and more! And don't look now, but color inspired books are also available! The above are a few of our favorite summer palettes! (mmmm…ice cream!)

3. Colour Lovers. Colour Lovers is an international creative community that helps people discover their inner designer. They provide a wealth of user created & shared color inspiration as well as tools that make the creative process as simple as possible. Plus, not only do they offer color palette combos, but there are also color inspired patterns as well! The above palette, oddly titled "Giant Goldfish" was found by searching for "summer".

4. Color Hunter. Color Hunter is fun because it allows you to upload your own photos, and then generate palettes inspired by your image! You are also able to search for color combinations with their easy-to-use search field. The above palette is inspired by Kalico's blog! (sorry, got a little self indulgent there...it's just so much fun!)

We hope you have fun with these color inspiration resources! Where do you get your color inspiration from?

"Brand You Business"…Kalico Featured on InterviewHer.com!

We're thrilled to be featured on InterviewHer.com, a website dedicate to highlighting and supporting creative women business owners! Check out the full article here!

Here's some additional info about InterviewHer.com, straight from the horse's mouth:

InterviewHer.com Interviewher is not for your boyfriend or your husband, instead it’s a galaxy just for women. A galaxy where the Sun, Moon and Stars revolve around us, LADIES! Have fun learning about some fabulous artist studios, food adventures, breathtaking boutiques or even a great little hole in the wall that we’ve discovered and had to share.

We stumbled across InterviewHer.com just a few weeks ago and loved the playful and informational stories about women entrepreneurs, the variety of tips, the unique product picks, and more! Be sure to check out Kalico's article and let us know what you think. And while you're there, don't miss the other inspiring stories about women start-up business owners all over the country!

Girl Power: Online Resources for Women Business Owners

There are exciting things happening inside the world of women entrepreneurs—women are not only starting businesses, they are staying in business! Women are opening businesses at twice the rate of men, and, according to the Center for Women's Business Research, three quarters of all firms are either half-owned or majority-owned by women.

Personally, I love networking with other women business owners—there seems to be an instant camaraderie, and a willing desire to support and share with each other. But, as we are all extremely busy balancing work and home, sometimes it's hard to meet and network face-to-face. So, I've put together a small list of online networking tools for women entrepreneurs.

1. Savor the Success: Savor the Success is a PR Co-Op and a niche social media network for women entrepreneurs both online and offline. I've been a member of Savor the Success for the past two years and have truly enjoyed all the suggestions, feedback and support from fellow members.

2. Ladies Who Launch: The nationally acclaimed Ladies Who Launch program has enabled thousands of women across the country to break out of 9-5 and thrive in entrepreneurial enterprises that reflect their true passions, skills, and desires.

3. The Heartlink Network: Heartlink is built on a unique business networking model that provides safe, intimate, non-threatening, women-only business networking opportunities for professional women, and is dedicated to showcasing, advertising, enriching and empowering professional women in business.

4.  eWomen Network: eWomen is a great resource for connecting and promoting women and their businesses worldwide. It's a membership-based professional women's networking organization, committed to helping women and their businesses achieve, succeed and thrive in the new economy.

5. Women Owned: WomanOwned.com was founded by one new business owner, who shared her journey through business start up, incorporation, accessing funds, and hiring professionals so that other woman entrepreneurs could benefit.

6. InterviewHer: InterviewHer.com focuses on interviewing women-business owners in a wide variety of industries, from artist studios, food adventures, breathtaking boutiques or even a great little hole in the wall that they’ve discovered and had to share.
 
Hopefully one, or several, of these online resources may help you network with other women busines owners. If you join one, or are already and existing member, I'd love to hear your feedback. Or, have another online networking resource? Please leave it in a post below!


PS – No Boys Allowed! : )

Time Tracking that Changed My Life!

OK, so maybe the headline is a little dramatic, but seriously, Paymo Time Tracker has definitely made a huge impact on how I run my business! I started Time Tracker in September, when I hired my first part-time employee. Basically, I was just looking for a way to track the amount of time she spent on projects (you know, to keep an eye on the progress and all). But, what I got was an entirely different way to track the amount of time I spent on projects, and oh so much more! Plus, the two best thing about Paymo Time Tracker is 1) it's free for freelancers (up to two users), so perfect for my small studio and 2) IT'S FREE FOR FREELANCERS!

Let me walk you through a few of my favorite features:

1. The Dashboard. This is a quick overall look at my progress over a month's time span, as well as a comparison of recent company stats.

 

2. Milestones. You are able to set milestones (or, due dates, as us graphic designers like to call them) for each project, and then visually see your progress, and check them off as they are completed.

3. User Data. You can also view the overall statistic per user. As I mentioned above, the free version of Time Tracker allows for 2 users. To add additional users, you would have to invest in Premium Business Plan, for  less than $4 a month! (that's all, seriously?)

OK, so those are a few of my own favorite features. To be honest, I'm still testing some of the most effective ways to use this business source! Some of the other great features include alphabetized search listings by client or project, multiple report options, an easy-to-use time tracker, invoicing options (which I haven't explored yet), as well as online user log-in (so you can access it from any computer).

Have other questions about Paymo's Time Tracker? Take their tour! If you try this program out, please let me know what you think and what you favorite feature is!

Save Your Eyeballs!

So, lately I've been designing like a mad-woman, trying to stay on several deadlines for the myriad of end-of-the-year projects. This heavy workload is great for business, but bad on my eyes! I've been experiencing terrible eye strain, followed by headaches and more headaches. It's not like I can just take off a few days to recover, so I started researching other ways to help relieve the eye strain. Here's two of them:

1. Take a Time Out (literally)
Another graphic designer recently introduced me to Dejal Time Out, a program specifically designed to gently remind (or force) you to take time outs throughout the day. Time Out has two kinds of breaks: a "Normal" break, typically for 10 minutes every hour, so you can move about and relax, plus a "Micro" break: a very brief 15-second every 10 minutes, so you can remember not to tense up too much for long periods. You can disable either kind of break if desired, and the breaks are automatically paused when you go away from your computer, and can be reset when you come back.

Now, I'll admit it, the 10 minute breaks are too long for me to take right now, so i just skip over them. But the micro breaks (while sometimes annoying when they arrive right when I'm in the middle of something) are actually really helpful. Just taking those few seconds to shut my eyes, take a few deep breaths and then continue on has decreased my eye strain problems immensely! By the way, did I mention this program is FREE! Go, download it now, your eyeballs will thank you!

2. Have a Cup of Tea (no, really!)
The second eye strain tip came from a life coach I recently had the pleasure of meeting and it involves, well, having a cup of tea. A chamomile tea compress will help reduce eye swelling, and it will also help you relax while you have tea bags on your eyelids or drink chamomile tea to your health. Get the full directions here!


Do you have other suggestions for combating eye strain? I'd love to hear them!

PS-Special thanks to Jessica Menk for introducing me to Time Out and to Jeanette Eleff for the Chamomile tea compress article!

Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan!

It's hard to believe it's already November and the holidays and end of the year are quickly approaching. (personally, my mind is still back in the sunny, summer days of August, but I digress…). As a business owner, the end 2010 means focusing on the beginning of 2011—including next year''s marketing plan.

Last week I participated in a webinar hosted by Ilese Benum, co-founder of Marketing Mentor, entitled "Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan! Over the next three blog posts, I'll share with you some of the key points I learned.

First things first, before you even start your marketing plan, you must decide a few key factors including goals, target audience, and which tools you'll use to keep you on track. So, begin thinking about your goals for next year. Be detailed and specific, including as many dates and figures as possible. Download a worksheet provided by the Marketing Mentor to help you think about your goals. At the same time, start thinking about your ideal clients, who you'd like to focus your marketing efforts on. Here's another worksheet to help you brainstorm who those perfect clients will be. And last, how will you keep track of your efforts. You may choose to simply input all due dates into your calendar (check out a sample Google calendar below), or use a To-Do List such as Things, or a project management program like Paymo (more to come on this little program later!)

Sample Marketing Calendar Task Tool

So, let's get started on the above three key factors: Business Goals; Target Audience; and which tool you'll use to stay on task. Let me know how you do!

Later this week, I'll move onto the different types of marketing tools you may consider using for your 2011 Marketing Plan! Plus, coming Soon: Part 3: Daily, Weekly and Monthly Marketing Tasks!

Cool Finds: Wall Decor

So, in-between client design work, I've been researching ways to spruce up the Kalico office a bit.

Walls Painted…check.
Shelving Up…check.
A few new pieces of furniture…check.

Now what I need are some cool things to hang on the walls. Yes, I may end up hanging some of my own design work, but let's face it, I stare at my own designs all day! I want some fresh, fun and creative pieces to decorate the wall space. Here's a few samples of some of my finds—which one is your favorite?

Colorful Large Wall Calendars:

White Board Wall Calendar:

Simple, Minimalist, Inspiring Words:

Let me know which one(s) you like the best! Have other suggestions? Please send them on over. Working in a creative, inspiring environment helps lead to creative, inspired work. And --> THIS GIRL <-- is ready for some changes in my workspace!

Bring on the Color!

As a graphic designer I love color! Part of my job is getting to play around with color combinations to help convey a certain feeling or vibe within a logo or layout (so fun!). Recently I found a great resource to help get your creative color juices flowing: Design Seeds.

Design Seeds is a blog devoted to discovering a stockpile of fresh inspiration. "Design Seeds is about what goes into creating a collection, a new concept, or project. It is about looking forward and beginning the process...not the final product on the runway, shelf, or in a magazine. Focusing on original content that is reference/inspiration for all with a passion for design, arts, and a creative lifestyle." The blog showcases unique and interesting color palettes derived from lively photography and other found inspiration.

I definitely recommend checking this site out to help with brainstorming and for some color inspiration, I know I'll be going back to it again and again!

Gettin' Social: Facebook Fan Page

We've all heard of Facebook, you may even have your own profile. And if you're ahead of the game, you may even be using Facebook to promote your small business! (Go ahead, pat yourself on the back). Here are a few quick tips on how to use Facebook Fan pages for your business.

Facebook Pages are different than profiles. You have a profile for you, but must have a page for your business. A Page can include all the important information about your company. They’re useful because you can include everything that relates to your business such as company overview, website & contact info, press releases, videos, Blog RSS, company news and status, photos of new products or projects, plus customer interaction, to name a few.

To learn more about how to create your business fan page, click here. Then, follow the directions to create your own page. BUT WAIT! Before you create your own fan page, please read my latest eNewsletter, that will help you to plan why, who and how you will use your page. It's not enough just to have one, you must first strategize how your fanpage fits into your business marketing plan.

Once you have a fanpage, there are all sorts of fun, and thoughtful ways to make it stay consistent with your brand, while getting the most out of it. First, make sure to set a custom user name for your page. Usernames allow public entities to easily promote your presence on Facebook with a short URL, such as http://www.facebook.com/companyname. This username can be used in your marketing communications, company website and business cards. If you didn't select a user name when setting up your page, go to www.facebook.com/username, then click on the bottom link "Set a username for your Pages" and select an available name.

Second, create a unique landing page that stays consistent with your brand. The landing page would be similar to a website homepage—you want to very quickly let the viewer know who you are and what you do. Plus, you want to encourage them to become a fan of your page! Check out Kalico's landing page for an example. Landing pages must be created using FBML, which stands for Facebook Markup Language. It’s similar to HTML for writing websites, so unless you are familiar with HTML, you may need a designer's help for this part. Here's a great How-To Video that walks you through the steps.

There are tons of additional applications you can include on your facebook fan page. Here's a great list to start choosing from. You don't need all of these, of course...just pick the ones that work the best for you and your business! For instance, for Kalico, my goal was to increase subscriptions for our eNewsletter, so I have an app that includes a newsletter subscription form right on my fanpage. I also use the Photos tab as a way to showcase some of our portfolio works. My next step is to add an RSS feed for our blog. (yep, the one you are reading right now!) The possibilities are endless, and I'll admit I'm still learning new ways to use Kalico's Fan page everyday!

And last, stay on top of it! It will take time to build your fan base, so keep sending out invites to new contacts asking if they want to become a fan of your business Page. Keep your content up-to-date and give people a reason to check in on your page regularly. Constantly promote the Page in any way possible, and before long you should see a large portion of your website’s referrals coming from Facebook!

Proactive Productivity

I recently attended a GFAF roundtable session for freelancers and solopreneurs on the topic of "Gears, Gadgets & Stuff". One thing we discussed was task management software. I'll admit, my task management "software" consists of a pen and a pad of paper, with an overflowing list of hand-written to-dos! For the most part, it works for me. However, there are a few occasions when a task gets overlooked (usually due to sloppy handwriting or a flip of the page!). So, I've researched a few other options for task management. Below is a list of the three best ones I've found:

1. Things: This application is strictly for Macs (yay!). It's basically a glorified to-do list, with easy scheduling, categorizing, and tracking, as well as the ability to include file links, emails and web links with your to-do item. The interface is simple and straight-forward, so you just focus on the action items. You can download a free trial, but for a full version the cost is $49.95. Not a bad price for easy organization!

2. Bento 3: This application is a little more involved than the above. You can track your tasks and projects, but also organize contacts and mailing lists, plan special events, catalog inventory, record billable hours and payments due, and much more! Bento also offers templated backdrops, to make each project have a unique visual look. You can download a free trial, but for a full version the cost is $49.00. While this program seems to offer a ton of possibilities, for me, it was a little overwhelming—almost too much organization!

3. Basecamp: Basecamp is a web-based task management and project collaboration tool. With basecamp, you can share files, meet deadlines, assign tasks, centralize feedback directly with your clients, co-workers or your mom if you wanted. You also have the ability to upload files for sharing as well. When you've finished a task, simply mark it completed, and then everyone associated with that task is notified. Basecamp is offered at different pricing plans, starting with a basic plan for $24/month for small groups.

After researching all of these, I am leaning toward Things for Mac. It just seems the most simplified and straight-forward which is what I am looking for. But, before I purchase, does anyone have any other suggestions or any programs they are currently using?

Holidays Already?! (Don't Panic—Great Gift Ideas From Kalico)

I realized today how quickly the holiday season is approaching us (thanksgiving is next week and only 35 days until christmas, oh my!). I know that most of my family and friends already have everything they could possibly need, so I tend to look for unique and creative gift ideas during the holiday season. I thought I would start posting unique gift ideas or resources in the upcoming few weeks, which will hopefully inspire you. (Plus, if you have any creative ideas, please send them on—share the love!) Here we go...



Savor Something Special
Well, to start things off, here's a whole catalog full of unique finds and gift ideas. Savor the Success, a premium online business network for women entrepreneurs, has recently published it's 2nd annual Holiday Catalog, featuring over 50 of the top women entrepreneurs in America! From soy candles to dog biscuits, jewelry to baby clothes, or even graphic design services (ahem, check out page 52). Also, check out page 30, coloring books for women—what a fun idea for some of your best girlfriends!

To download a pdf of the catalog, click here. This is a fantastic opportunity to support some small, women-owned businesses, while getting things checked off your holiday shopping list! Let me know what you think!

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!

Get Published!

Submit your work for free. Crescent Hill books produces a variety of design-related books featuring only the best of today's graphic design. And the best thing is that it is free to submit your work! No entry fees, no publishing fees, and no award fees! Go to the Crescent Hill books submission page and create an account. You can then upload your designs for potential submission in a number of great design books (some upcoming titles include The Best of Sports Marketing and Design, The Mini Book of Great Logos and The New Big Book of Layouts). Your design submissions will then be judged by Crescent Hills panel who will let you know whether they make a good fit with the publication or not.

This is a great way to get your work published! Let me know if you submit your work, so I can be sure to look for it in upcoming publications!

You Send It (no, really, you can do it!)

By now, you have probably heard of the term "FTP" when talking about file transfers. FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol, and is a way to exchange and manipulate files over a computer network, such as the Internet. Basically, it is a way to send or transfer files that are too large to email. While you may not know it, chances are you've used FTP many times before. It is most commonly used to download content, such as music MP3 files.

But, what happens when you want to send a large file to one or multiple recipients? Usually, you would need to have an FTP Client, such as Fetch, SmartFTP or FileZilla, installed on your computer. An FTP Client is software that is designed to transfer files back-and-forth between computers over an Internet connection, .

I've ran into this problem with many clients: I want to send them a large file, but they are unable to download the file b/c they do not have an FTP Client installed, have problems with their FTP client, or have forgotten their user name and password, etc. In reverse, I've also had many clients unable to send me large files via FTP, which, ultimately, results in burning files to a disk and sending them the old fashioned way, courtesy of USPS, UPS or FedEx. The only problem with this solution is the time lost during shipment.

No more, my friends! I'd like to introduce you to YouSendIt.com. YouSendIt acts as a buffer between the sender and the recipients. It is an online application that allows anyone to send large files to, well, anyone. Oh, and did I mention it's free!

At YouSendIt, you upload a file and input your recipients' email addresses. YouSendIt will then send an email message to all your recipients, with a direct link to download files. It's fast, easy, and also notifies you when your files have been sent. Check it out and let me know how YouSendIt.com works for you!

Hint: You must first archive or stuff your files to combine multiple files into one single file before sending. Examples of archiving programs include WinZip and WinRar on Windows, and Stuffit on Macs. If you'd like more information on Archiving programs, feel free to shoot me an email.

Character Bags Logo Featured on LogoGala

I've mentioned LogoGala in an earlier post as a great resource for logo design samples. Earlier this week, I was honored to have the Character Bags logo featured on LogoGala! Every few days a logo is featured, and an in-depth series of questions and answers are posted. It is a great way to learn about the designer's thought process, a backstage look at the logo's development.

While a relatively new site, LogoGala has gained popularity as a great design resource in a very short period of time. To celebrate that success, as well as gain more exposure, LogoGala is currently offering their first promotion. Here are the prizes:

Prizes:
Prize 1: The Big Book of Design Ideas 3 courtesy of Crescent Hill Books
Prize 2: American Corporate Identity 2009 courtesy of Crescent Hill Books
Prize 3: Big Book of Business Cards courtesy of Crescent Hill Books
Prize 4: 2008 Wolda Logo Design Annual courtesy of Wolda.org
Prize 5: Two (2) Helvetica Special Edition Moleskine Notebooks courtesy of Moleskine Asia
Prize 6: A FREE logo design courtesy of Sean Farrell at Penflare Designs. You will receive two concepts and two revisions for your logo. (Worth $250)
Prize 7: A FREE 30 minute logo consultation via Skype or email courtesy of Jacob Cass.
Prize 8: A FREE 30 minute logo consultation via Skype or email courtesy of David Airey

If you'd like to enter to win any of these prizes, go to LogoGala's blog. And be sure to check out all the great logos in their gallery too!

Don't Monkey Around with Your Email Marketing

I wanted to introduce everyone to the email service provider I've used for many years — Meet Mail Chimp! I have been using mail chimp for Kalico Design's eNewsletter for the past year and have been thoroughly happy with their services, customer support and pricing — plus, their user interface is very easy-to-use. And they offer tons of free resources on email marketing tips and tricks. (and I LOVE the fact that mailchimp does not require you to include their logo or advertising anywhere on your eNewsletter, so everything looks like it comes directly from you)

Here's a little more info from the horse's (or, er, monkey's mouth):

MailChimp is a do-it-yourself email marketing service for "the Google generation." We make it easy to send email newsletters to customers, manage subscriber lists, and track campaign performance. Unlike some of our competitors, we don't "dumb things down." We take extremely powerful tools that sophisticated marketers use and we make them accessible to anyone.

Please keep in mind that Kalico Design offers eMail Marketing and design services. Should you want a sophisticated, professionally-designed eNewsletter, give us a call or shoot us an email at info@kalicodesign.com! We also would be happy to set you up with your own MailChimp account, which you can have personal access to, in order to adjust settings, add contacts and more! And be sure to sign up for Kalico News, our free, quarterly newsletter that shares tips and information for marketing your small business.

Logo Inspiration & Resource

I recently submitted a few of my logo designs to both LogoPond and LogoGala, both of which are great sources of inspiration, showcasing professionally created logos. I often go there to get ideas on color combinations, illustration techniques, or interesting font choices that I can incorporate into my own logo designs (or to just browse through some great concepts in general). LogoPond has hundreds of logos showcased, and there is a great search field if you're looking for a particular style or industry. While LogoGala is relatively new, there are more logos added daily, so this will most likely become a great resource in just a few months time. Please be sure to visit LogoPond and vote for my logos (which will give them better site rankings and higher visibility):

Green Yet
Joy of Herbs
Character Bags

To vote, just click on the little life saver icon in the bottom left corner. More logos to be posted soon!