Personal Branding Predictions: Top Ten for 2010 | Search Journal

Personal Branding Predictions: Top Ten for 2010 | Search Journal

Every year since William Arruda founded his company, Reach, in 2001, he has made predictions about how the world of personal branding will evolve in the coming year. Here are his top 10 for 2010! (just click on the link above to be connected to the article at SYS-CON Media)

Cut Your Job Search Time in Half | Wireless Developer's Journal

Cut Your Job Search Time in Half | Wireless Developer's Journal

"Careers on Ulitzer - The December 2009 Reach Personal Branding Interview on Thursday, Dec. 10 at noon EST features tips and techniques from David Perry and Kevin Donlin, co-authors of Guerilla Marketing for Job Hunters 2.0.

In this guest expert interview with William Arruda, founder of Reach Personal Branding, David and Kevin will discuss job search secrets that have enabled their clients to land good jobs in less than half the time of the national average."

Enjoy Building Your Personal Brand - Branding You

Branding yourself is the same as creating a "business image" and it is the most powerful way to gain advantage over your competitors. Having the advantage can only be done if you have the best, most unique and strongest image that shouts confidence and is wrapped around your personality. Who are you? Do you want to stand out in the crowd? What do you want to be? Get noticed? If you have not considered these thoughts, perhaps, it's time you began to seriously image and focus on developing yourself as a "brand".

Personal branding is about understanding your uniqueness in combination with your rational and emotional attributes - your strengths, skills, values and passions and knowing how to use them to differentiate yourself and guide your career decisions.

With that being said, here are some basic tips to get you on your way:

1. your personality and style; you can brand yourself in just about anything just remember to include your personality and style. Example: a female boutique owner looks and acts like a female boutique owner, right?

2. be original; go the extra mile to be different. People notice originality. It may make the difference in getting more customers than your competitor.

3. be outstanding in a way that makes you stand out; do your best to be the best at something;

4. be subtle and not someone who is looked at as someone who is craving attention;

5. be confident and assertive but not arrogant. Be humble, even if you excel at just about everything this
behavior can be perceived as a jerk.

6. be outstanding in something you really like to do;

Branding is no longer exclusive to companies and products.In a world where everything is branded, you need to think about yourself in the same way. Your branding mission is to "bring out the artist" in you..that which is unique, strong, valuable and marketable.

Are you considering an Internet marketing business or are already doing affiliate marketing and want to collaborate with a special team of remarkable mentors? Please visit the following link to learn more http://networkmarketingstorm.com _________________ Prepare to effectively brand your business in 2010. The Brand Unearthing Phase for Networkers, Coaches, Trainers, Solopreneurs, Consultants, Representatives, and other entrepreneurs and small business owners is available beginning in January 2010 through the Unearth Your Brand Excellence Workbook & E-Course Program. Unearth Your Brand Excellence is a powerful preparatory course to building a brand foundation for your business to set yourself apart from other businesses who seemingly offer the same products and services. In addition, the program is specifically designed to give you the tools to effectively communicate your unique brand promise. Are you ready for brand excellence? More information and updated website coming soon at www.lisahromada.com/

Your Employees Are the Brand | .NET Developer's Journal

Personal Branding news post from the Personal Branding Guru, William Arruda ~ "Your Employees Are the Brand"
"Companies are embracing the idea of employees delivering on the corporate brand promise in ways that are authentic to them."

My favorite commercials are those that showcase the real people who contribute their unique strengths and talents to a company/business. Each of the commercials in the post showcases "people" as making a significant contribution to the company/corporate brand. A new world of work is emerging and companies, small businesses, and even entrepreneurs are catching on to personal branding and its effects on the success of business. Branding is about making an emotional connection with the public and what better way to make that connection than to use real people with real stories.

Check out this post:
Your Employees Are the Brand | .NET Developer's Journal

Online Personal Branding - Three Key Ways to Promote Your Expertise Online

Your brand, whether it be your personal brand, or your business brand is a key piece of your business model that is needed to successfully market your business. Once you've created the right brand, promotion is the next step to using your brand to gain the attention you need for your business.

The top three ways to promote your brand are blogging, blogging and blogging. Seriously, blogging is truly important to your business. The top way to make your mark is to name your blog well and then start posting two to three times per week in your area of expertise. A well-branded blog will get you found more easily on the web when potential clients search for information and solutions to their problems that you provide.

Establishing yourself as an expert through your content also extends your brand. This helps to create perceived value, and you will be seen as a leader and expert in your field. You can do this by blogging, writing white papers and using personalization in everything you do. The most important part of this is being consistent and continuing to do this over and over. Blogging is the perfect platform to show and tell your expertise on a regular basis.

White papers, or special reports, are another way to promote your business. You can repurpose blog posts to create your white papers, or use the content from your white paper on your blog. You do not have to reinvent the wheel.

The third area of promotion is through personalization. Be as personal as you can in your business. Create videos talking about your business, providing tips and be as transparent and authentic as possible. Post your videos on your YouTube Channel for wider distribution. Of course, you also want to post your videos on your blog!

Doing these things will help you and your business get noticed. Staying consistent and keeping your blog content fresh is one of the most important aspects of using a blog to promote your business. This helps the search engines to find you and keeps your potential clients and customers up to date and in the know as well as keeping them interested in what you have to offer.

Those who follow your blog will see you as an expert in your area of expertise and will come to you for the information that they need on that particular topic.

You have to remember that blogging is marketing your business so you must make it a priority in your business. Be committed, stick to it, and watch the results that it can deliver for you.

And now I would like to invite you to claim your free instant access to my report on Better Business Blogging so you can learn more valuable tips for extending your brand online with a blog. Visit http://www.betterbizblogging.com

From Denise Wakeman, Founder of The Blog Squad and Online Marketing Advisor.

Unearthing Your Unique Promise ~ From Small Business Branding to Entrepreneurial Branding

The branding – and re-branding – of a small business is much like that of an entrepreneurial business. It’s about extracting your business’s unique promise of value in the most authentic way possible and then clearly expressing that promise of value through your work, daily communications, and brand messaging. This is not the easiest process at times simply because the Unearthing process asks you to take a close look at and contemplate on what you value and specifically stand for in your business.

I am currently in the process of taking part in the re-branding of a small business. A wonderful company who understands the power of branding through authenticity and importance of strategic positioning within their market. The first step is the Unearthing process and this is often the most difficult, especially when there is an existing brand in place. Often times, when businesses have an existing brand in place for a number of years, there are understandably emotional attachments to it and the process of unearthing a truly authentic brand becomes more difficult. The goal, however, is still the same – determine what rings most true for you in your business, so that you can attract the right clients who value you and your business.

The same difficulty often comes when entrepreneurs, coaches, trainers, consultants, etc. begin the process of Unearthing their brand or even re-branding themselves for the purpose of making their business more successful, attractive and profitable.

At this point in the process of re-branding this small business, the company is reviewing their current core values and positioning statement to determine whether it still holds true for them.

The following process is what I introduced to help Unearth the core values that really ring true for them and it can help you too in your business:

1. Write out your current core values (or if you don’t currently have core values set in place, it’s a great time to think about what those are). Next to each core value, I want you to write the definition of what that core value actually means. For example, let’s say that one of your core values is innovation. A definition of innovation is, “the act of introducing something new; introducing new things or methods.”

2. Next, for each core value, I want you to write how you or your business demonstrates this core value. What are the tactics that you use to demonstrate innovation? Are you coming up with new products to introduce to the marketplace? Are you introducing new technology or a new way of doing something?

3. Once you have your core value, definitions, and your tactic, write down what your outcome is for this core value. This outcome must answer a problem, concern or need for your ideal client. So, the outcome for innovation could be that you introduce a new product or service that addresses a specific need of your client. For example, you might introduce a client program that guarantees to improve lives through helping your clients lose weight in healthy and enjoyable ways.

4. So, now that we have all of these current core values written out and defined, we will take a look at each one more closely to determine whether the business practices these core values on a daily basis. This is the best way to determine whether it is a core value.

What’s so special about Unearthing your core values?
Determining the core values for your business helps you to provide a clear understanding of who you are to your clients. It helps to build credibility and loyalty, not only internally with employees, but also with your clients and those people who can benefit most from what you do.

Determining your core values is only one step in the Unearthing process to building a more profitable and authentic business. For more information and to begin extracting your brand, the Unearth Your Brand Excellence is starting up in January 2010. You can choose the workbook/guide to unearth your brand or the e-course for added support.

_____________

Prepare to effectively brand your business in 2010. The Brand Unearthing Phase for Networkers, Coaches, Trainers, Solopreneurs, Consultants, Representatives, and other entrepreneurs and small business owners is available beginning in January 2010 through the Unearth Your Brand Excellence Workbook & E-Course Program. Unearth Your Brand Excellence is a powerful preparatory course to building a brand foundation for your business to set yourself apart from other businesses who seemingly offer the same products and services. In addition, the program is specifically designed to give you the tools to effectively communicate your unique brand promise. Are you ready for brand excellence? More information and updated website coming soon at www.lisahromada.com/

P.S. As a special gift to my subscribers, starting December 14, 2009 I am starting the “B.E. ~ 12 Days of Giveaways!” where each day, I will be giving my wonderful subscribers valuable information (I will keep it short as I know your time is precious!) to help them start off the New Year with brand excellence (B.E.) a clearer vision of what they want 2010 to hold for them and their business.

If you're not yet a subscriber, you can sign up at lisahromada.com ~ As a bonus, you receive 15 articles from my e-book!

Brand Discovery Phase – The Most Important First Step Toward a Strong Brand Foundation

In the last few weeks, I had been productively busy participating in the preparation for a brand discovery presentation to a panel of corporate clients. As I was helping to prepare for this presentation, I took note of some things that I wanted to share with you about this important phase in the development of your brand. Many of the exercises and principles for corporate groups, I also apply when working with consultants, trainers, nutritionist, and other small business owners and entrepreneurs.

First, let me give you a little more information about preparing for this brand-changing presentation. As part of this presentation, the preparatory materials included: a PowerPoint presentation, written report outlining the results from the brand discovery, and initial logo identity comprehensive designs.

So, what goes into the brand discovery phase and how can it benefit you to explore this phase in depth for your own business?

Brand Discovery

• Exploration and Finalization of Core Values – Your core values are the core principles that guide you in your business. In everything that you do in your business and everything that you express in your marketing must always link back to this ‘backbone’ of your brand and what you stand for in simplest terms.

• Identification of your short and long-term goals – Know who you (your business) are today, compare it to where you were, and form a vision of what tomorrow (and the coming years) holds. What is your vision for your business in one, five, and ten years?

• Get clear about both your strengths and your weaknesses – To accomplish excellence and stand out, you must understand what your strengths are in your business and what can potentially be holding you back from achieving your goals.

• Ensure that the external perceptions of your business align with the inner perceptions – You may know what you stand for in your business and what you do to bring results to your clients, but are you clearly conveying it? As part of the brand discovery phase, it is important to acquire feedback from your ideal audience, often referred to as your target market. There are multiple ways to do this; as with the brand development of the corporate client I mentioned above, a extensive phone survey was conducted. Other ways of doing this include: online surveys and customized and anonymous email surveys.

• Collect internal and external feedback to create a positioning statement – Also known as your mission statement, your positioning statement is meant to clearly express who are you, what you offer, and for whom in a compelling way.

These are just a few of the main steps you must take within the brand discovery phase. This phase leads you to the next phase in your brand development, the Brand Expression phase. The discovery phase must happen before you can successfully market your business. This phase acts as the foundation for all that you do in your business and the basis of your brand expression.


Prepare to effectively brand your business in 2010. The Brand Development Phase for Networkers, Coaches, Trainers, Solopreneurs, Consultants, Representatives, and other entrepreneurs and small business owners is available beginning in January 2010 through the Unearth Your Brand Excellence Program. The Unearth Your Brand Excellence is a powerful preparatory course to building a brand foundation for your business to set yourself apart from other businesses who seemingly offer the same products and services. In addition, the program is specifically designed to give you the tools to effectively communicate your unique brand promise. Are you ready for brand excellence? Information coming soon at www.lisahromada.com

One Simple Way To Quickly Wean Off Of 1-on-1 Clients

One Simple Way To Quickly Wean Off Of 1-on-1 Clients

Posted using ShareThis

5 Easy and Effective Holiday Marketing Ideas for Your Business

It seems that, at least in the US, the holiday season starts earlier and earlier, with Christmas cards taking over most of the card section of any store right after Halloween (if not before!).

And while it bugs me to hear holiday music over the store speakers while I'm shopping for my daughter's Halloween costume (because by the time Santa does visit, I'm quite tired of dreaming of a "White Christmas"), as far as planning on how to market for and during the holiday season for my business, it's almost never too early.

As you may know, one of the mantras of Client Abundance is "Giver's Get," in the sense that you are giving from a place of having no expectation of getting anything in return.

What follows are 5 ways that you can give in your business, feel really good about it, and reap the rewards from the Universe.

1. Thank your clients and customers.

An obvious one to do around Thanksgiving is to show your gratitude to your current clients and customers for their business. But you might be surprised at how few business owners actually take the time to do this.

It could be something as simple as expressing your thanks in a short email. Or you could send a thank you card in the mail. Or you could take it a step further and do what I'm doing this year - sending a postcard expressing my gratitude with a link to a special - and fr*e - gift to my VIP clients and customers.

Taking the time to say thank you goes a long way towards deepening that all-important relationship with your current clients and customers. If you do nothing else this holiday season, at least do this.

(See this article for many more ideas of how to show appreciation to your clients and customers.)

2. Give your ezine list a gift.

Your 'pot of gold' in your business in your email list of potential clients and customers. You should always be treating them well, but at least once a year, offer them a gift - no stings attached - just because...

This year, I'll be offering my second annual 12 Days of Christmas series to my ezine subscribers (that's you!), where they will receive something of value that will benefit them in building their business once a day for the 12 days leading up to Christmas. This was a huge hit last year, and it was a blast for me to come up with something new each day.

You don't have to offer 12 gifts, however. Just one will do very nicely as well.

3. Give a holiday coupon.

As a gift to your list as well as to give you a boost in your income, why not offer a coupon towards one or more of your offerings. You could offer a 2-for-1 coaching session, or a 20% off discount for one of your ebooks or ecourses, or you could offer a special price for the month of December only on one of your programs.

4. Give your affiliates a gift.

Your affiliates are also one of your greatest assets in your business. Show your gratitude to the folks who have chosen to join your 'sales force' by increasing their commissions for the holiday season.

Ideally, your commission rate should be at least 25%. Why not reward them further for promoting your offerings by doubling their commissions to 50%?

5. Give yourself a gift.

And don't forget yourself! If you haven't already, hire a virtual assistant*** to help you now so you can enjoy more of your holidays. You'll be so glad you did and you'll never go back to being a lone ranger!

I'd like to invite you to choose at least two of these ways of giving in your business to implement this holiday season. And then let me know how it goes - email me directly at alicia@clientabundance.com.

© 2006 Alicia M Forest and ClientAbundance.com

Alicia M Forest, MBA, Multiple Streams Queen & Coach™, founder of http://www.clientabundance.com/, and creator of "21 Easy & Essential Steps to Online Success System™, teaches coaches, consultants, online entrepreneurs, and self-employed professionals how to attract more clients, create profit-making products and services, make more sales, and ultimately live the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to create abundance in your business, visit http://www.clientabundance.com/

What Makes Up YOUR Brand?

Your Two-Minute Brand Tip:
What Makes Up YOUR Brand?

Building a strong brand takes time. Even the most successful brands take years to develop…then refine…develop some more…and refine. So, what makes up a brand?

Here is your two-minute tip to building your brand.

• Explore and determine your core values and mission. What do you stand for in your business? Successful brands take a stand.
• Have a compelling story to tell. Why did you start your business? Some people start their business because they were seeking a better quality of life and health, so they found a business where they can enjoy optimum health and quality of life. Sharing your story helps make a connection with your ideal audience.
• Logo mark or word-mark. A logo is a graphic representation or symbol for a company name or product, often uniquely designed for immediate recognition. A word-mark is a logo created from type, such as FEDEX and Oprah.
• Clear, compelling tagline. Does every brand need a tagline? A tagline is useful to conveying what your brand is all about in a few words. The intention is to immediately connect and attract your ideal audience. A tagline is highly recommended, even if you are just personal branding yourself to apply to jobs.
• Build credibility and trust through consistent use of your visual and verbal brand messaging. This includes your colors, typography, images, logo, tagline, etc. Keeping these elements consistent through all of your brand communications is what helps build credibility, recognition, and makes your brand memorable.
• Communication style and reputation with your internal and external clients and vendors. Every interaction that you have online and offline contribute to your brand development. When building your brand, you always want to ensure that you are communicating in the way that you want your brand to be known.
• Build your professional biography and resume. An updated biography and resume is not just used for landing a job, it’s also utilized to attract clients and quality partners.

How does your brand compare?

_____
Article featured in the Hromada Brand Newsletter. Subscribe with Lisa Hromada at www.lisahromada.com and get a free e-book gift*

_____
Is your brand not up to par? We are about the change all that!
Rev-up for brand distinction beginning in 2010!

The Unearth Your Brand Excellence program is expected to arrive by the New Year. The Unearth Your Brand Excellence is a powerful preparatory course to building a brand foundation for your business to set you apart from competitors who seemingly offer the same products and services. In addition, the program is specifically designed to give you the tools to effectively communicate your unique brand promise. Are you ready for brand excellence?

Check out www.lisahromada.com for details coming soon

3 Keys to a Solid Brand For Your Business

Are you like many online business owners who are confused or stuck when it comes to creating a unique, memorable, and authentic brand? If so, you're not alone. I've been there myself, so I understand the frustration of feeling stuck on this whole branding thing.

But once I discovered that if I looked at it from a completely different perspective, that my brand wasn't just about my business, but about ME, everything shifted.

Creating your brand from the inside out allows you to fully step into your business identity in a truly authentic way. It's also the easiest way to stand out in the sea of others who do what you do.

So, if you're stuck, let me give you three things you must be clear on in order to create a truly compelling and unique business brand.

Strategy 1: What results do your clients experience from your service?

One of the exercises I do with my Platinum clients is have them generate a long list of the results their clients get from working with them.

You can easily do this right now. Just complete this sentence 30 times:

"The results my clients get from working with me are ___________________________."

If you get stuck, here's my secret: Send this question to your clients so they can tell you the kind of results you're helping them create!

For example, when I asked my own clients this question, here's some of what they shared:

"The results I get from working with Alicia are...

- clear, easy to follow instructions on strategic Internet marketing techniques

- insightful advice from a trusted mentor who understands my business

- generous knowledge and expertise, honest feedback and support, focus and direction

- more clarity on which steps to take to experience more alignment with my business/life purpose

- I now see the bigger picture and base my decisions on the 'whole' of my business, rather than just the next thing.

- stretching me in ways and areas that I could/would not do on my own.

- more clients, more money and more fun in working with my business.

- getting me out of my comfort zone so that I discover what is possible when I play a bigger game.

- more clarity and awareness around time sucking activities that I am engaging in so that I can STOP doing them.

Strategy 2: What are you an expert at? Once you have a solid and in-depth grasp of the value you bring to you clients and the results you help create with them, you should easily be able to define what it is you're an expert at.

Complete this sentence: "I'm an expert at________________________."

Strategy 3: What does your brand promise?

Let's take it one step further...

Your brand promise is a statement that is pretty specific. It's true regardless of the program, product or service you may offer. No matter what the program, product or service, it always fulfills your brand promise.

And just to be clear, I'm not talking about your marketing tagline. What I'm talking about goes much deeper than that, to the very core of what it is that you are so passionate about providing to others.

My brand promise is, "I passionately inspire women entrepreneurs to breakthroughs in their business so they create the life they ache for."

So, my Platinum programs, Online Business Breakthrough Brainery, 21 Easy & Essential Steps to Online Success System and Take Action Group, Coaching Cafe, and the rest of my offerings all fulfill this brand promise.

Here's one from one of my Online Business Breakthrough clients, Dale Carter at TransitionAgingParents.com:

"I provide trusted information and personal insight to inspire adult children to passionately pursue, for their aging parents, the quality of life their parents hunger for."

So everything that Dale offers to her specific market fulfills this overarching promise. Dale knows what she is an expert at and that shows up in her brand promise very clearly.

So, what does your brand promise? What is it that your clients can count on you for?

The formula for an effective, compelling, memorable, authentic, fun and fabulous brand is really very simple:

"I get X results for my clients, which makes me an expert at Y, which means they can count on me to provide Z."

Voila!

Alicia M Forest, MBA, 6-Figure Business Breakthrough Mentor, teaches self-employed professionals how to attract more clients, create profit-making products and services, make more sales, and ultimately live the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to create wild abundance in your business, visit http://www.ClientAbundance.com

Power Up Your Brand: 4 Turbo-Charged Reasons to Brand Your Biz in 2010

Branding is a hot topic; When I attend networking events and introduce myself, I usually have at least a few people who come up to me at the end of the event to ask me what branding is all about, how it can benefit them, and what I do specifically as it relates to what they want to achieve professionally.

They often express that they want more people coming to their website, generate more sales, be able to express what they do without rambling on, and well...make more money. And those clients with whom I have worked in these networking groups to develop their brand have had tremendous positive feedback and noticed a significant difference in the success of their business.

So, how can branding yourself help you to achieve what you want?

First, a brief history of branding might help us get started on understanding why it is used. The term brand is defined as marking an object by burning into the surface indicating identity or ownership. Branding goes back thousands of years. Ranchers branded their cattle and potters branded their pottery and porcelain. As the concept of branding evolved throughout history, people began to associate branded items with certain characteristics and levels of quality, value, security, and honesty. Today, brands continue to play a fundamental role in expressing these same qualities and much more.

As a Personal Brand Strategist, I wholeheartedly believe that you need a strong brand to succeed in your business and stand out among all others offering seemingly similar products and services.


Here are four turbo-charged reasons to brand your biz to achieve more success in 2010:

1. Accelerate Your Market Valuation - The process of determining the value of a business's assets is not always dependent solely on the product (tangible asset), but the perceived value of the product through the emotional connection that is made with its brand (intangible asset). The market valuation of the majority of large corporations comes not from their tangible assets, but from the strength of their brand.

2. Attract and Preserve Quality Partners, Vendors, and Employees - Don't we all want to do business and be associated with strong brands? Think of the last time that you updated your resume to apply for a job or wrote up a proposal to bid for a large client project; we all want to list lavish experience with respected and well-known brands. It boosts our credibility and shines a light on our own professional brand. When you build a strong brand, others want to be a part of that.

3. Expand your product and services offerings - "The Global Superbrand" as he is called, Donald Trump exemplifies the meaning of a personal brand. From Trump real estate, television shows, hotels, and entertainment, to jewelry, books, vodka and even spring water, Trump's highly-recognized and well-established brand allows for easy access to successfully expand his product and service lines.

4. Charge more for the value of your brand - In a number of neuroscience marketing studies, it's been shown that people are willing to spend more for a branded product than a non-branded (generic) product. And don't we? Take Nike for instance: Ever think about why you'll pay more for a Nike or Adidas brand athletic gear, when there are multiple other comparable options at a portion of the price?

There is a strong sense of credibility, trust, and importance that accompanies a well-crafted brand, and it's not just for big corporations. Everything is branded; including you...you just may not know it yet.
_________


What's Lisa Up To In 2010?

Are you waiting to grow your business until the "right moment?"

That moment is here...and it's now.

The reason?
As a Personal Brand Strategist & Designer, I will be sharing my exclusive set of brand tips, secrets, and actions steps with you throughout 2010!

Who says branding yourself has to cost tens of thousands of dollars? Let the *big brands do that.

For years, I have been directly involved with an abundant array of marketing campaigns and brand development projects for corporations and now I am preparing to bring my techniques to you!

Consider the following high-yields programs, products, and celebrated services coming throughout 2010:

Services: Incomparable design packages you won't find with anyone else (including the majority of design agencies!)

Products: Take the guesswork out of brand marketing by immediately accessing resources, blueprints, guides and workbooks.

Programs: Expert advice, little-known techniques and a wealth of information await you in my 2010 programs. You may just achieve the remarkable and measurable results that you desire, beyond your expectations.

Workshops: Customized workshops created to build and enhance your company's image and find the balance and success that you desire.

All the tools you need to succeed and stand out!

My goal is to make 2010 purposeful and profitable for you as you create your power in the marketplace.

http://www.lisahromada.com for more information

10 Simple Tips to Creating a Strong and Memorable Brand

Creative and dependable brands trigger positive emotional responses and make a product and service memorable. Think of your brand as the sum of all of the meaningful elements of your business and who you are at your core. There is a reason why you do what you do; your business is part of who you are, thus your brand is in large part a representation of you. A well-defined brand identity becomes the foundation for effective marketing. The visual and verbal elements of your brand will create a substantial impression in the minds of your clients and the public at large.

Tell a compelling story about you and your business. Your clients and potential clients want to know your story. Stories help you relate to your audience personally and intimately. Your story will develop over time as you and your business grow. So, what is your story? Why did you start your business? How does your story relate to how you can help your clients?

Maintain reliable product and service. This is so important. Your brand builds over time and over time you build a reputation. Your reputation depends upon the consistent value you provide through your products and services. Take special care to always be aware of how valuable your unique products and services are to your clients.

Be sure that your online and offline communications are user-friendly. Exceptional client-service is also another important element to the value of your brand. Your clients want to feel special; they want to feel that in that moment that they need you, you will be there when you say that you will. For example, a client sends you an email because they have a question. Your auto-responder expresses that you will get back to this client within 24 hours; be sure that you do. This is one of your brand promises that you make to your client, and you always want to keep your brand promises.

Creatively express your message. When you know who your ideal clients are, you know what they value; you know what they respond best to when they encounter effective marketing. Knowing this, it is easy (and fun) to brainstorm ideas and images that you can use to reach out to your ideal clients. Your brainstorming sessions will give you creative ideas, and your clients, no matter who they are, appreciate creative ideas.

Consistent use of your brand elements—logo, colors, graphics, photography, and typography. Consistency builds trust and loyalty. It expresses that you know who you are and who are your ideal clients. Be sure that whatever application you use when marketing your brand (whether it is an online or offline application), that you are consistent in the use of your brand elements.

Communicate often, directly and personally, and listen to the desires and needs of your clients. Again, your clients want to feel special when working with you. Depending on who your clients are, the more personalized time that you offer, the more valuable is your service. In addition, the more attentively you pay attention to the desires and needs of your clients, the more valuable you are and this value may be the single element that sets you apart from others who offer the same services.

Offer a total brand experience. The most successful brands are those that stimulate all 5 senses. People remember better when more of their senses are stimulated when interacting with a brand. For example, if you offer an online article, you may also want to offer an audio version of the article. Some people connect better when they hear information and a person’s voice. In addition, because you are also offering the text version of the article, they are able to keep it and refer back to it.

Clearly communicate your values. Mom always said, “Actions speak louder than words.” This is especially true for your brand communications. For example, it’s one thing to say that you value your clients, and it’s another thing to actually show them in a special way that you value them. I recently ordered a program on CD and when I received it, I found that it was wrapped in pretty tissue paper with a “thank you” card attached.

Compassionately communicate and value the work you do with your partners and vendors. Your clients are not the only individuals who relate and create a relationship with your brand. Anyone with whom you work make a connection with your brand and you want that connection to be a strong and healthy one. Your partners and vendors also bring value to your brand by providing you with quality services that help you to provide the best for your clients.

Offer unique solutions to fulfill your client’s needs. Often, price is not the deciding factor for those interested in your products and services; it is the unique value and results that they get from working with you or purchasing your products. Be sure that every communication clearly describes the unique value of the results that you intend for your clients. You may offer the same type of service as someone else, but it is how you deliver those results that will set you apart and attract more clients.

Known to her clients as creative, enthusiastic and passionate, Lisa Hromada, personal brand strategist, designer, and creator of Brand Essentials Home Study Program, specializes in brand communication and design for women entrepreneurs and small business owners. For more information about Lisa's products, programs, and services, visit http://www.lisahromada.com

7 Top Tips to For Building Confidence For Women in Business and Leadership

As a woman leader in business you always need to know how to build on your levels of confidence. The good news is that staying confident in your abilities is something that you can control. These 7 top tips give you specific ways that you can develop your abilities and increase your self awareness in leadership.

1. Listen. Listening is one of the most important skills for any leaders to develop. It is more important than speaking skills as listening lets you form the foundation for a good public speech. Learn to listen to the right people who have wisdom to share. Be selective about whom you listen to and the type of information you feed to your brain. Verify information and be sure your sources are accurate and worthwhile. There's so much talking and things being said that it's easy to get confused. You can't be a confident leader if you design your information base from faulty materials, so learn to listen carefully.

2. Prepare. A confident leader is a prepared leader. She knows what she will present and how to present it. Preparation even means having the right materials in order for you to present a professional and powerful image through your dress and accessories. Don't wait until the last minute to pull things together that you need to be a confident leader. By staying prepared, you can accept an invitation that could expand you career at what seems like a moment's notice, because you are always ready to make a move. Preparation is the key to being confident because you will know what you can do and what you understand about a situation. Preparation is how leaders stay confident in all circumstances.

3. Mentor. Leaders learn how to lead by watching the steps of a mentor. A mentor is usually a person who is wiser in an area than you. You can't learn everything from a book; practical knowledge is needed to know how the theories actually work. Find a mentor to show you the insider ropes to leadership. Mentoring is a needful skill for women in leadership and one that many women are not provided with on a normal basis. If you don't have a person to mentor you in your local area of company, look for a professional mentor or leaders in professional associations or organizations locally or online. Contact that person and ask them to be your mentor.

4. Network. A confident leader will have a strong network of influential people that she can call on in a variety of circumstances. Your network should have people who provide insider information, can provide contacts that move your goals along, and be people who can tell you where to go and when to increase your visibility and opportunities. Carefully create a strong network of power brokers that you can nurture and grow in order to build your leadership confidence.

5. Assess. Take time to assess your personal and professional background and realize how many sills and abilities you actually have. It's easy to forget how skilled you might actually be because of your busy lifestyle. You might have forgotten that you already know what a lot of people are trying to learn. You can find opportunities to teach, lead, guide and mentor from a data base of skills you already possess. This lets you understand the range of your capabilities and potential.

6. Train. Stay on top of the latest technology and continue to increase you knowledge in areas pertinent to your leadership. Taking courses to increase your skills is easy with the addition of online and offline classes. You can find a course in almost any topic. Don't get behind when it's simple to stay ahead of the learning curve by getting the training and education you need. Go to workshops and seminars include those designed especially for women in leadership positions.

7. Read. Leaders are readers. It is known that people who lead will read at least 12 books on business and leadership a year, if not more. Pick up a book and read it. Learning just one new concept or technique will be worth the price. Also get a subscription to a leadership magazine and read monthly updates on what people are doing in different industries. Take ideas from one place and use them to enhance the operations where you are. Read newspapers, special reports and white papers and online ezines designed for women leaders.

These 7 tips provide important ideas that you can use to increase your levels of confidence as a women leader. You can take immediate responsibility for your leadership growth by doing the things that let you know you are prepared, ready and able to lead when the time comes.

Consuelo Meux, Ph.D. coaches professional and executive women to build the confidence and communication skills to start and grow a small business that generates elegance and financial freedom. Get a free business plan template, resources and other support at her website. Enjoy monthly teleclasses on Communication Skills for Successful Business Women for only $9.95 a month. Private fast track coaching is available for the woman who is ready to move into her success - fast. http://www.consuelomeux.com

____
About Blogger: Known as creative, enthusiastic and passionate, Lisa Hromada, personal brand strategist, designer, and creator of Brand Essentials Home Study Program, specializes in brand communication and design for women entrepreneurs and small business owners. What makes you extraordinary? Are you effectively communicating your promise of value to your ideal audience? Are you attracting the success you're meant to have? Find out how you can increase your business success through creating a powerful personal brand: http://www.lisahromada.com

Build Your Business - The Know, Like, and Trust Factor

You've no doubt heard the phrase that people like to do business with people they know, like and trust. Think about it - the same things applies to you? When is the last time you did business with someone you didn't know, like or trust? We have limited resources - money being one of them. If we want to invest our dollars wisely, then we are going to seek out opportunities that are comfortable and reassuring.

We can describe that another way. That is, inherently, we are wired to be risk-averse. Risk is a fascinating topic and having taught enterprise risk analysis, it's a topic that's little known in academic circles and even less addressed directly in business circles. As a human being, though, you're hard-wired, for the most part, to avoid situations that expose you to risk.

And that applies to our relationships as well. That's why we want to develop relationships with people before we take another step. That's why we date before we get married. It's why we research companies before we apply to jobs and it's also why we want to get to know, like and trust someone before we exchange our hard-earned dollars for whatever products or services we might need.

With that in mind, and as you seek to grow your business, you need to orient your activities around growing, maintaining and sustaining your relationships with others. The "others" are your customers or clients of the future. Get to know them. Call them up and chat. Find out about how you can best serve them. Ask for feedback on products and services they may have already purchased from you. Invest in them in a genuine and authentic way and you'll be pleased with how they invest in your later.

So build your list, but also keep it top of mind that you're trying to build a long-term relationship with your followers. You don't just want customers or clients - you want customers or clients for life.

Tara Kachaturoff works with entrepreneurs who want to grow their businesses faster, easier and with less effort by implementing strategies and systems to increase performance and bottom line results. Sign up to receive Easy Online Marketing Tips at http://www.MyEasyOnlineMarketingTips.com If you want to achieve better results, try a better method. Learn more about how you can use online marketing strategies to increase your visibility and credibility online.

6 Ways to Increase Your Earning Potential Using the Internet

There are many options on the internet to put a little extra cash in your pocket as well as attract more viewers to your website.

The following are just a few options to consider:

1. Affiliate Programs: There are many websites that offer affiliate programs. Affiliate programs benefit both parties in the agreement. They can be great resources for extra income and they don’t take a lot of work to start. Amazon is one reputable website that offers different options for their affiliate program. Amazon offers a feature called “aStore” where you can design a section of your website to feature Amazon products and provide a link to Amazon. If the product sells from the link that you provided on your website, you get a small profit. Be sure that you choose products that relate to what your business offers. For example, if you are plumber, you might want to consider advertising products that have to do with plumbing and home or business repair, rather than choosing a product such as a book about traveling to Peru. You can earn up to 15% when your visitors buy the featured product on Amazon through your link.


2. Sell your stuff: We know that you can sell your stuff on Craigslist, but did you know that you can also sell on Amazon, EBay, and many other sites? Most of the websites that offer features to sell your goods take a portion of the final price. Some of the websites let you choose what percentage, while others have a set fee that they take from the total profits of the item sold.


3. Sell ad space on your website: This can be a good option, though you have to make sure that you are able to accept or reject ads that want to be placed on your website. It is usually free to sign up to use an ad placement company who will help you manage and profit from placing ads on your website. Research ad placement companies before doing business with them. Be sure they have a privacy policy and be sure that you read it.


4. Write articles: I was recently introduced to Associated Content. They offer articles, stories, and opinions on just about any subject. You can make up to $20 per article that you submit, depending on how popular and beneficial the subject matter. Another option is ezine Article Submission. By submitting articles to ezine Article Submission, you attract more of your ideal clients and increase your chances of making a sale on your products and services by bringing more people to your website.


5. Build your own online store on your website: Websites, such as Zazzle and Café Press, offer options to create your own products and sell them on your website. Look at the terms of these types of websites to determine what percentage they take from the purchase of your products and how you are paid.


6. Sell your knowledge and expertise: E-books are becoming more and more popular as a way to advertise your products and services as well as earn additional income. Ebooks come in all shapes and sizes and on multiple topics. You set the price and give a link to your online shopping cart, market your e-book and you’ll be selling it in no time. The “trick” is to write about what people want to know. It’s as simple as that.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

Where to Start Your Internet Marketing

I recently spoke with one of the top social media strategists, Sally Falkow. I asked her what her recommendations are for those wanting to start out their online marketing and don't know where to begin. I'd like to share her response with you:

Sally Falkow's Recommendations for Starting Your Internet Marketing

1. figure out two keywords or phrases that will bring good, relevant website visits to your website


2. optimize your home page and one interior page with those terms


3. add an RSS feed to your website


4. write one article each week and add an image (be sure to tag your image as well with good words)


5. Use an RSS feeder


6. add your articles and images with tags to the website. The articles will go into the feed and links within your article lead your ideal clients back to your website



If you're interested in more from Sally Falkow, you can find her at http://falkow.blogsite.com and http://twitter.com/sallyfalkow



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

4 Ways to Improve Your Website Content

Get more people visiting and coming back to your website! The following are just a few ways, but some of the best ways to improve your website content.

1. Optimize your website content.
You might have a drop-dead gorgeous website, but if no one is finding you, what's the point? The only way that people will find you is if you optimize your website so that the search engines can seek out your content. Many of my other articles will focus on the best tools that I've found to optimize your website.



2. Add key words and phrases to your website pages (which is one very important way to optimize your website), so that visitors quickly scanning your website find exactly what they are looking for right away. Most visitors only spend 10-20 seconds at the most checking out the content on your home page to see if it is worth their time. Make it worth it!



3. Be sure you describe your business clearly and prominently on your website so your audience can find you in search engines. There is a special place within your website, called the description tag, where you should write a short description about your business, products and services for those looking at your listing in the search engines. Whether you are designing your website yourself or hiring someone to create it for you, be sure that your description tag is utilized properly.



4. Update, update, update! Search engines love new content! Update the content of your website on a regular basis and the web “spiders” will keep coming back for more, thus improving your search engine ranking.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

Search Engine Optimization Keyword Tips to Attract Your Ideal Client

Search engines are all about keywords and phrases, so in order to rank higher in the search engines and attract more people to your website, you need to know the basics of using keywords on your website. Follow these simple steps and start the process of increasing your Internet visibility!

1. Write at least 300 words on your home page. Your home page is the top page of your site and is the first to be searched out by the search engines. The content must include relevant keywords related to your products and services, and should be written clearly for viewers to follow. Avoid filling the page with keywords and phrases that don’t make much sense to the people reading them.


2. Choose the right keywords. First determine exactly what you offer, how it benefits your clients and what other information your clients will find valuable. Determine some words that your ideal client might put into search engines to find what you offer, then work from there to create a list of keywords and phrases to put on your website.


3. The top word phrases used are: two and three word phrases and can be as much as four, five and even up to six-word phrases.

Good luck and have fun!



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

How to Attain Balance in Work and Life

For most women entrepreneurs, juggling the demands of career, family and personal life is their number one challenge. Often feelings of overwhelm arise when trying to strike a balance. To avoid these feelings, it is best to prioritize the activities that are the most important to you.

Here are some ideas and methods that have helped me and can help you find balance:

Keep a log. In an effort to avoid overwhelm, I began to track everything I do for one week, both work-related and family-related. I then decided what is necessary and what I can eliminate to have more time for more things that satisfy me.


Separate work time from personal time. Though it may not always be easy in today’s technologically driven community, turn off your work-related cell phone and any other devices when you make time to spend with your family, yourself, or your friends. Give yourself (and others) a break from being obligated to immediately respond on your ‘off-hours.’


Know it’s okay to take time for you. Women tend to have a habit of always putting others first and they neglect nurturing themselves. This neglect is an important contributor to the stress that comes from not finding balance. When you begin to eliminate the feeling of guilt for not doing everything that others ask of you, you will be much happier and better able to find the balance that you seek. Fight the guilt. It sounds like a simple concept, but it is not always easy to do. Women often have a difficult time saying no, but keep concentrating on making quality time to nurture yourself; otherwise you’ll never find that balance. Find a little time each day that you set aside specifically for you, such as running, working out, watching your favorite show or reading your favorite book, or whatever that might be.


Concentrate on the current task. Do you ever find that when you are concentrating on one thing, you’ll notice that the dishes need to be cleaned, or the clothes put away, or the trash dumped or the bed pillows fluffed, or whatever else that may need to be done? I have been guilty of this on more than one occasion. Be strong; concentrate on the task that you currently have scheduled to get done. If you allow yourself to get distracted too much with other things, you will not be able to accomplish what you set out to accomplish that day or week.


Schedule out your time. I have found it very useful to write a list of attainable daily goals and schedule them out by the hour. I will do this for each day of the week, so that I don’t have to guess what I need to do next and by the end of the week, I can look back at how much I actually accomplished. I am always pleasantly surprised. They don’t have to be huge goals, but smaller goals done in increments. A family calendar can help as well. Each person writes out their daily/weekly events and things to do and this is helpful in avoiding any schedule conflicts or time crunches.


Plan out your time off. Try to make a habit of doing routine-type things little bits at a time during the week, so that you feel better and more relaxed on the day that you schedule for play and relaxation.



Remember, balance doesn't mean doing everything. Write out your top priorities and set your boundaries.

>>

Balance in Design

Having balance in life makes us feel good. It is the same for design. When designers incorporate different elements on a page in evenly balanced layouts, it makes the viewer feel more comfortable, at ease, and less confused. All designs have specific basic elements to convey a certain message beyond the individual words and graphics that are placed on the page. How these elements are placed on the page determines how our eye moves around the page as well as how immediately we get and understand the intended message.

Balance in design works throughout all kinds of brand materials:

Logos

Business cards

Letterhead

Advertisements

Fact Sheets

Brochures

Books

Newsletters

Press Releases

Websites

and more...



First, What is Balance in Design?

Visual balance comes from arranging elements on a page with the purpose of not having any one section of the page be too heavy visually. At times, designers intentionally place elements on a page to create a visual imbalance to express a certain mood or emotion.

Basic principles of balance in design encompass 4 main principles:

Proximity - Proximity refers to how close or far words and graphics are from one another on a page. These elements together create an overall balance, telling the eye where to look.


Alignment – Aligning the elements of type and graphics on the page can aid in reading and understanding the intended message. When correct alignment on the page is not accomplished, it can make the layout difficult to read and may drive away viewers.


Consistency - Consistent use of type and graphics shows the viewer where to go and it helps them navigate the layout easily.



White Space – It is important to use white space, not only for balance, but also to give the viewer a place for their eye to rest. Designs that cram too many elements in one space may be too difficult to read or make the viewer feel uncomfortable.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

5 Simple and Productive Ways to Improve Your Business

After talking with many small business owners and entrepreneurs, I have found one main theme to what they want out of their business – more freedom! So, I took that to heart and have made it my mission to help. Take a look at the following basic steps to make this coming year a year of health, wealth, and more freedom in your business!

Harness that crazy schedule
I have often expressed, “there are just not enough hours in the day.” Here is one way that I have found to free up hours in my day and get myself out of the “people-pleasing” mode that we often put ourselves in. One time management technique that I have found particularly effective is designating slots of time in the week for certain activities. For example, I set aside certain times during the day to return phone calls (unless they are urgent), certain days of the week where I meet with potential clients and do all those other (thousands) of little things on my to-do list.


Learn when and how to say, “no, thank you”
It is important to know what is going to be the best use of your time and commit to only those things, events, and meetings that are going to be the most beneficial to you, your business, and your family. I began to analyze the quality of my invested time and realized that if I said yes to one thing, meant I had to say no to another, perhaps more important, thing. I realized that if we all cut back here and there on some things that should be lower on our priority list, we are better able to be productive for our clients, family, and most of all, ourselves.


Put yourself on (creative) timeout
When working on a project, marketing plans, or generating creative ways to solve a client’s problem, it is best to find a quiet place to let your creative thoughts flow. I have found that the best ideas and solutions come when I am able to concentrate on the flow of thoughts and solutions for my projects. Your quiet place may be a corner of the library, or a room in your home, or perhaps you find that staying "after hours" in your office is a good place to sit and work without the many distractions of the day. It’s amazing how much you can accomplish when you have a few hours just for you. Not only is it productive, but it also gives you a greater sense of energy and accomplishment.


Take a hike!... or a walk or run.
I find that I come up with some great ideas when I am out walking or out for one of my longer runs. It does not necessarily matter how often you go out or for how long, what matters is getting out of your current environment, clearing your mind, nourishing your body, and replenishing your energy reserves.


Change your mind set about building relationships
“Networking.” Yikes! Am I the only one who flinches a bit at the mention of that word? For those of us who network just for the sake of "networking" because we are told that is what we should be doing as part of our business plan (which is true), I have some good news. You don’t have to hit the pavement as much as you think. I’ll admit, when I first started venturing out to network, I had to force myself... but I ended up meeting some pretty great people. And in all honesty, I had networking all wrong at first. Networking is not about going to meetings, passing out your business card, and telling people what you do; unfortunately, it is just not that simple. Networking is about creating relationships by attracting people with your knowledge and with the exchange of ideas. Change the way you view networking and it will make meeting people and sharing your great products and services much easier. The most important part of this tip: Don’t attend networking meetings with the sole purpose to sell your product or service. Your main goal should be to meet your target demographic, learn and listen to what matters to them most, and start to build strong relationships. Somehow along the way, the rest of what you want will fall into place.





Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

Where to Begin Discovering Your Personal Brand

The unique way in which you make a contribution to the world relates to your overall ‘personal brand.’ Your 'personal brand' relates to what you do both personally and professionally. It's about bringing your natural character and talents into your business to make it more profitable and compelling. A positive personal brand is partly about doing what you enjoy and the value that you provide to others through your work. I meet many people who desire to make a difference and provide a better life for themselves and their family.

They usually feel that they have to do something ‘big’ in order to make a difference, whether it be making a difference in another individual or making a difference in the prosperity of their business, but in fact, many of the smallest actions in life and in your business for the benefit of others is what contributes to making the biggest differences. If it weren’t for all of the ‘little’ things that people do each day through their business, there would be no ‘big’ discoveries or advancements. I enjoy the aspects of personal branding and what it brings to others who are in the process of discovering and growing their personal brand excellence. It is an empowering feeling to do your life’s work in the excellence of who you are and not who you think that others want you to be. This brings me to what is personal branding.

One can begin to discover their personal brand by identifying what are their unique gifts, strengths, characteristics, and the passions they have in your professional and personal life. By going through the process of identifying these characteristics and defining your personal brand, you can create a compelling identifiable personality for your business, package your services and products more effectively and attract more of your ideal clients. Doesn't everyone want to stand out from others who offer the same types of products and services? Of course! Personal branding can help you stand out from others as well as give your business immediate and positive recognition in the eyes of your ideal clients.

Take the first step.

Figure out precisely what you want, how you are going to accomplish what you want, what steps that you need to take, and who was going to help you when you need help (don’t do it all yourself; you may burnout). To help organize your thoughts, write each one of these categories on a piece of paper and explore the answers.

What do I want for my business? What do I currently offer and what additional things do I want to offer in the future?

What steps do I need to take in order to accomplish what I want?

Who can help me with the specific things that I want to accomplish if I need help?

Also, open yourself up to seeing opportunities to grow personally and professionally. Once you know what you want and ways that you can accomplish what you want, you may find it easier to see opportunities that may be beneficial to you when they arise. Examples of opportunities may include opportunities of marketing your services better or opportunities for attracting more of your ideal clients. Taking the first steps to identifying your personal brand may take much inner exploration, but it can be well worth the time that you spend. I know you can make some great discoveries once you get started toward defining your personal brand for your business! Once you are able to identify the unique characteristics of your personal brand, you can utilize these characteristics in the marketing of your brand so that you are better able to attract more of your ideal clients and stand out from others who offer similar products and services.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

How to Build a Stronger Brand By Understanding Generations

One of the essential elements to building a strong brand for your business is to understand the unique characteristics of your ideal client. In order to truly understand what your ideal clients value and what their concerns are, you must conduct some in-depth research into what they like, what they look for in a brand, how they make buying decisions, and much more. Understanding the different generations, how they think and what concerns them is a great place to start. It can help you find creative ways to communicate with your ideal clients on a personal and emotional level.

When you know the attributes of your ideal clients, you are better able to find them, reach out to them on their level, and provide them with quality services and desirable products.

The following provides you with a start to understanding the different generations:

Generation Baby Boomer
Baby boomers were born approximately between 1946 and 1964. This is a generation of hard workers and they believe that hard work pays off. Baby boomers lived through the women’s rights and civil rights movements, and they were determined to live the “American Dream.” They have a different mentality than generation X and generation Y, which at times frustrates them because baby boomers think differently and have had more years lived and lessons learned. Because baby boomers received much of their identity from praise and most of the praise came from work, it is important for them to be acknowledged for their hard work and where they are today.

Generation X
Generation Xers were born approximately between 1965 and 1978. They saw all of the mistakes that the baby boomers made and they are determined to fix them and not make the same mistakes. They are the generation known as the latchkey kids; they were left home alone to take care of themselves because both of their parents (or their single parent) were forced to work and make money for the family. They contemplate family life wisely and with caution due to growing up in a society of high divorce rates. They desire a healthy balance of work and life.

Generation Y
Generation Yers were born approximately between 1979 and 2001. These are the children of the young baby boomers. This generation behaves much more grown up at their young age than previous generations. They are often thought of as the generation with high self esteem with no experience to back it up. With guidance, this generation has the potential to make a powerful and positive impact on the world. They believe in giving and finding better ways to live one’s life.

As you can see, each generation thinks and values things differently. By understanding how your ideal clients think, feel, and what they value will make a significant difference when it comes to building and developing your brand.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

3 Simple Steps To Create A Total Brand Experience

Branding is not just about creating a logo or using the same colors on your marketing materials; branding also includes the experience that your clients and the public have with your brand. Create a total brand experience inside and out. Keep in mind that you are not just marketing a product or service, but also the experience of using the product and doing business with you. From the way that you decorate your store or office to how you present your products and services, creating a brand experience that appeals and tickles the senses can have a powerful impact on your clients and it can be a determining factor in whether they choose to buy from or do business with you.

A total brand experience is increasingly important to developing an emotional connection with your ideal audience. The ways in which you connect emotionally to your audience is by relating the benefits of your business to the ‘quality of life’ concepts important to people. Stress relief and convenience are two good ones that come to mind though there can be many others of benefit to your specific audience. A total brand experience is one that engages all five senses; this can greatly affect your clients’ overall acceptance of your products and services as well as get them talking about it.

People tend to remember things better when more of their senses are engaged when experiencing something. When creating a new product or decorating your office or store, set a goal to create a user experience that will engage your visitors in new and creative ways. You can use words, visuals, sounds and smells to stimulate the client’s overall experiences and imagination. When a potential client is not able to experience your products first-hand—let’s say when you are selling a product on your website—you must be able to use words to stimulate the viewers senses and allow them to imagine the experience of using your products and in what ways that they can benefit from using your products. Words can be powerful tools when advertising and marketing your business. Finding the ‘right’ words can allow the client to subconsciously taste, smell, touch, see, and hear a product just the way you want them to, as if they were actually experiencing that product first-hand.

A total brand experience begins with taking action! So, here are three steps to take to begin creating a total brand experience:

Step One: Take out a piece of paper and write down these categories: smell, taste, touch, sound, and sight.



Step Two: Choose a product or service that you want to advertise.


Step Three: For each one of the categories, write down what the user experience might be like when using your product or doing business with you. Take one sense at a time. Tip: Be creative! Just because your service may be cleaning bathrooms, doesn’t mean that you can’t provide a more creative ‘sensory experience’ in describing your services. After you have cleaned someone’s bathroom, what is the result? For example, “After Mary’s Cleaning Service is finished with the job, you’ll feel like you’re frolicking through fields of daffodils each time you flush the toilet.” Immediately upon hearing this description, I picture a huge field of flowers. I can imagine smelling the freshness of the flowers and imagine how they might feel against my legs as I frolicked through them. I may even imagine hearing them rustle as I make my way through the field. This is a much more pleasant and rich experience than just talking about the features of Mary’s Cleaning Service services. Good luck and have fun.



Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

5 Ways to Set Yourself Up for an Extraordinary Business Year

Here are some of the ways that I have found to best nurture a growing business.

Set up an environment fit for the new you.
It's more than having your books in order and desk organized; it's about creating an entire work environment that stirs positive, creative thoughts. These positive thoughts turn into positive emotions; these positive emotions are what drive you to your best ideas. When you feel good, your mind is more open to finding creative ways to solve problems and bring in business. Now is a great time to get organized and surround yourself with things that inspire your creativity!


Learn to be self-centered
“What, self-centered?!?” Yes, yes, we were all taught that being self-centered is never a good thing, but it is all in how you define those words. A self-centered environment is one of the healthiest and most beneficial tools to the success of your business. Here’s what I mean: Some of the most successful (and happy!) women and men that I know, have one important characteristic in common; they are self-centered. They know how to center themselves so that they are the best they can be for themselves, their family, and their business.  They make the time and take the time to eat healthy, exercise regularly, and make sure they get an adequate amount of sleep.

“Dress for success”
How you feel is often how productive you will be. How you dress has a lot to do with how you feel. Well, you see where I am going with this. It does not matter if you are working from home or in a dark radio station where no one will ever see you, dress in attire that you wouldn’t be embarrassed to have your clients or co-workers see you in. Even if you are alone, you will take yourself more seriously and be more inclined to focus on the task at hand if you dress the part. Of course, this does not mean that you have to dress in your best suit, but it wouldn’t hurt to put on some nice jeans and a clean shirt.


Give yourself some “white space!”
Look around you. If you find that your workspace is filled with papers, stacks of books, old newspapers, your child’s drawings, and empty cups of coffee (from all those late nights), get rid of them, immediately! Creativity and inspiration does not come from clutter or knick knacks scattered everywhere, it comes from giving yourself a little “white space” (design term for spaces for the eye to rest). Creativity and inspiration comes from surrounding yourself with paintings or drawings or whatever else gives you inspiration and makes you feel good. So, all you clutter-bugs, get rid of all those things that represent the “uninspired” you, and surround yourself with beautiful, inspirational things that represent the “new, prosperous” you.


Give your creativity a chance
Take the time to harness the power of the creative part of your brain. The trick to doing this successfully is to not give your creative brainstorming sessions a time limit. Creativity can’t be squeezed into a short period of time when you are also thinking about all the other millions of things that you have to do after you get out your brilliant ideas. Try taking two or three chunks of time per week and go to an environment that inspires you and see what thoughts and ideas pop up. Many of your best ideas will come from these sessions. Write out ALL the ideas that come to mind, and when you find an idea that you feel has great potential, take the time to pursue it in detail for a while and see where it leads.




Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

Why Have a Personal Brand

"A strategically designed brand builds credibility in the eyes of your audience and the public at large."

A personal brand helps you to stand out from others and attract more of your ideal clients. Personal branding is about finding and leveraging your unique characteristics and talents in your business. There may be many people who offer the same types of services as you, but it is the unique flavor that you bring to your business that makes your clients and the public want to do business with you. The visual and verbal elements of your brand will create a substantial impression in the mind of your clients and the public at large. The wonderful thing about design, and what you will find as we work together, is that certain colors, shapes, images, and typography can be a determining factor for whether a person is going to buy or do business with you. Your clients want to feel something when they see and interact with your brand. Colors, graphics, photography, and typography have a lot to do with that.

My focus is on helping entrepreneurs and small business professionals build on their natural strengths, develop a strong brand and market their business most efficiently, by providing the tools that I have found most effective in the marketing of products and services, both online and offline. With a little inspiration and creativity, you can take control of your business success and reclaim what belongs to you - your freedom.

Copyright 2009 Lisa Hromada lhcreativeidstudio.com - All Rights Reserved

Work-Life Balance - Taking Care of Your Life's Garden

When you spend any time out in nature, really out in nature, you see just how predictable nature is. When a landscape is deprived of what it needs to thrive -- be it rain or not enough sunlight -- that landscape begins to wither; it cannot survive and the landscape begins to take on a different form. On the flip-side, when a landscape has what it needs to flourish, it is a beautiful and pristine place without blemish and in the state it is intended to be. People are a lot like nature.

Like nature, people are predictable. When we are unhappy and un-centered we get itchy-scratchy; we tend to do, say and be things that are out of character. When we don't nourish our bodies, it changes shape and we don't have the energy we need to be who we are meant to be. Yet, when we are tearing it up at the gym, nourishing our bodies, having fun, and know who we are and where we are going, we become serenely centered in what we do, what we say, and who we "be." The best news of all is that unlike nature, we are not at the mercy of the heavens or mankind to nourish and care for us. We have a choice to be happy or not; to take care of ourselves or not; to let other people under our skin or not and to be who we are meant to be, or not!!

How do we get rid of the weeds in our life's garden and get re-centered in who we are?

First, you have to get clear about what not taking care of you is costing you.
Envision for a moment the seeds of your life (your efforts, your dreams, your relationships, who you are and what you do) playing out in a garden. The first garden is well tended, fertilized, weed free, hydrated, and in beautiful, full bloom. The second garden is parched, overgrown with weeds, and the few seeds that landed there are struggling to become what they were meant to be! If you are a gardener, which garden would you choose to plant your seeds in? The point is that the fundamental foundation of our lives is built out of the way we care for ourselves, and if you want your life to be the best that it can be, you will choose to take care of your soil first; you will choose to take care of you so that the seeds you plant in your life (the things you choose to take on, the relationships you have, etc.) can fully bloom!

Second, you have to be committed to you.
Just like a garden, your life requires maintenance. You can't take great care one week preparing your garden's soil and planting seeds, and then not hydrate and weed your garden the next. Having a great life requires you to be vigilant. You've got to take care of you consistently, not just when time allows. Otherwise, taking care of you will become one of those things you have every intention of getting to, but don't ever do!

Third, have a plan for taking care of you.
Create a written plan for taking care of you that says what you are going to do and when. Include only things that you love to do and have dates by-when you are going to do them. For instance, do you love to fish? Pick up your calendar and schedule a day to go. Do you love dates nights with your spouse or family movie nights? Schedule the time to actually do it!! When you make the time to do what you love to do, you will find that you are more energetic and productive doing the things you must do. (For instance, cleaning out the cat box or finishing a project for work!)

Fourth, you have to ask for help and accountability.
Keeping our lives weed free isn't always an easy task. If it were, we'd all be bouncing off the walls happy! So, the best way to stay on track with regard to your commitment to you is to ask for help and accountability to do so. Ask a trusted friend, a co-worker, or even your children to hold you accountable for doing what your written plan, for taking care of you, says you are going to do. There are people in your life just waiting for you to ask for the help you need; to support you in having a happy and centered life!

Finally, teach others the value of taking care of themselves too.
When we nurture nature, it gives back to us in the beauty it provides, the recreation we enjoy, the water that hydrates us, and the food we eat. And in nurturing ourselves, we need to give back to others as well! We need to teach those around us the value of taking care of them. Now we don't do that by giving up a piece of ourselves or time with our families to teach. Instead, we teach by being an example of what "taking care of you" can do to brighten and energize ones life! Not only will you help those around you transform their lives, but it will allow you to constantly sharpen your own "taking care of you" edge!

You are the only person who has a say in how your life turns out. If you want to be energetic, passionate, and happy you've got to take you on. There isn't another person, job, house, car, or electronic gizmo that can make you happy. Only you can do that, but you have to choose to! So, what do you choose?

Clay Nelson is a business coach, experienced talk show host, author, former "nail belt wearing" contractor, and speaker at numerous trade show and corporate events including: International Builders Show, Remodeling Show, International Pool Spa Patio Expo, International Roofing Expo, and many others. Backed by 30-years of experience and leadership in the building industry and as a business coach, Clay uses his innate intuition and people skills to help his clients take a look at what's stopping them from achieving their goals. He then helps them create plans and build teams for getting what they say they want and by-when they say they want it! He is the founder of Consulting Services Network LLC, Clay Nelson Life Balance, and a non profit organization called Transforming America's Youth that makes a difference for troubled youth throughout the United States. For more information, go to http://www.claynelsonlifebalance.com