So we are a few weeks into the new year, and I am contemplating the resolutions I made for myself and my business. I think it is important to continually look back and reflect on the decisions we make. Are we keeping up with them? Are they as important as they were at the beginning of the year? If not, why not? What is now important to you and your business now? Revise your resolutions constantly throughout the year… you can make a resolution any time of the year!

For those of you out there, that don’t know what a CMS is, it is a Content Management System.  It is software that takes care of all the content on certain websites.  Not all sites have them, but more and more people are getting them.  There are several different ones out there, but I am going to talk on a couple of the open-source ones, Joomla and Drupal.  As I get more and more clients looking to manage their own content of their site, I ask, what CMS should I use?

Joomla has such a huge following and it is hard not to be attracted to the ’shininess’ of it.  Joomla is easy to use for the non-technical and provides lots of extensions.

Drupal on the other hand also has a pretty large group of supporters, but is not as user-friendly.  You really need to be able to move some code around if you are going to use it.  Don’t let that scare you though, it is something that can be learned.   The question is, do you want to learn it?  And for most of my clients the answer to that question is no.

So for my second question I ask, who will be using the CMS to manage the site… me or a client?  As long as my client isn’t going to want to use 100 different modules and plugins in Joomla, we should be good to go with Joomla for them.   Many different modules and plugins in Joomla can break your whole site when combined, if not recorded and used properly.  Doesn’t mean you are totally safe in Drupal, but it is less likely to happen there.

If the clients wants some spectacular social networking site or a CMS that works with the security of their shopping cart better, then we would want to go with Drupal.  Drupal has better support for those types of sites.

But these are just a few of the features of these extremely powerful content management systems.  You really should do your research and ask yourself the right questions.  Who will be using it?  For what?  How often?  Will they want to add anything in the future?

If you know the answers to those questions, then you probably know which CMS to use!

As I get more and more focused on keeping up with blogs and other social media forums, I find myself asking, ‘what should I write about?’ And after racking my brain over and over again, I thought who better to ask than my peers and the people that will be reading it.

So here is my question: What type of information would you most want to hear about?

1. Help with DIY design projects - resources and tips on how to get the job done

2. The latest trends in the design world

3. JR Design’s trials and tribulations

4. Other - any suggestions are helpful, so if you can think of something I may have missed let me know!

Thanks!
Joy Rogers

Hmmm… just set up my Ping account so that all my social media accounts are updated at the same time, instead of having to update each one individually and I have to say… this is nice!! I almost didn’t believe and went and checked every account, but yep it is all there! Pretty freakin cool. I suggest it to anyone that is drowning trying to keep up with all their social media accounts.

So I continue to get the same question from different business owners I talk to, ‘what is the best way to stay ahead of my competitors out there?’

My answer is: stay fresh with your image and maintain a consistent public presence.

And then my answer is normally followed by, ‘but there are so many avenues to take when trying to stay fresh in a customers’ mind, so what do I choose?’

‘There are websites, email marketing, mailers and postcards, business cards, direct marketing, word of mouth, incentive plans, networking events, twittering, blogging, reciprocal links, social networking, search engine optimization, online advertisements, newspaper ads, magazine ads, classifieds, coupons, yellow pages…’ ok so, there is a lot.  So how do YOU choose?

Well I am probably not going to give you the answer you are looking for… everything and anything.

You, being a business owner, have probably selected at least three (you need at least three) marketing tools your customer base responds to most and continue to work with them.  That’s great!  You get a gold star for the first part of consistency within your marketing plan!

But answer me this… how are they working for you?  Whatever you have selected to do to promote your business should be working for you in some manner.  If they aren’t, do you know why?

BRANDING!!! Ahhhh you hear the angels singing in the background right?!  No?  Well then let me tell you.  Most businesses that have a failing marketing plan can attribute most of it, if not all, to not branding themselves.  Branding will get you in the door every time.

People like to go with services and businesses that they recognize.  There is a level of comfort when you buy from the brand that is familiar to you.  And we, as people, like comfort in such uncertain times.

Think: When you are starving and are desperately in need of nourishment, if you have a choice between mac and cheese and baby conger eel, even the most adventurous person is going to go with something they KNOW they will like.  They don’t want to take the risk of trying something new, when they need are in need of some food to fill their belly.

Branding will not only give your customers a feeling of comfort, your business will also come across as professional and stable.  It shows that you have been meticulous and thoughtful about your approach, which says you will be meticulous and thoughtful about the service or products you will give to your customers.

So your next question may be, ‘how do I brand my company?’

Easy!

1. Have an image that no matter what it is on, postcards, website, business cards, ads, that it is CONSISTENT across the board.

• You want a person to be able to look at a postcard one day and then see an email a month later from you and be able to put the two together.
• I know this may sound obvious, but make sure your colors match from one promotion to the next.  Don’t have a purple logo and business cards, then turn around and send out brochures that are orange.
• Make sure the pertinent information is in the same place every time.  You are training your customers’ brains to find your information every time, not just once in awhile when they really try hard to find it. You want to make it as easy as possible for them remember you and your information.

2. Continue to put that image on a consistent basis in front of your customers with the marketing tools you have chosen, so it becomes familiar. They can expect to have an email from you every Wednesday morning at 9 AM.  Or they know that at the beginning of the month you send out specials for your business on postcards.  The more you promote your consistent look, the quicker your company becomes recognizable, then the sooner you will have people coming to you rather than your competitors.

So the moral of the story is consistency, consistency, consistency!

Welcome to JR Designs’ blog!  I finally bit the bullet and made one for myself.  So far so good!

With this blog, I want to share my insight to designing company marketing materials, logos, websites, and everything in between.  This blog will also include some of my pep heaves, what not to do, and my suggestions on what to do.  In the end though, take it as my opinion and go your own way.  If everyone did it the same, then what a boring world we would live in!