When you hear the term, “Personal Branding” an initial thought may be that it’s all about how you look and come across to people but I was very happy to see a very refreshing post at the Personal Brand Blog on the myth that personal branding is about you. Dan, who write and runs the Personal Branding Blog interviewed Daniel Pink about his new book, “The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need.” and one of his favorite quotes from the book is, “You’re here to serve, not to self-actualize.” I love that. What are your thoughts?

The past couple of days have been fantastic days of growth and the feeling of a turning point in the history of our company.  We’ve been getting more and more calls for current clients to take on new web design projects, an upswell in photography assignments from clients has been encouraging and we are making big plans for a greater focus on podcasting aspect of our company. Last night I attended an excellent webinar hosting by Cliff Ravenscraft of gspn.tv where I learned many of the aspects of podcasting that will help us streamline and bring better service to our clients. As a result of attending the webinar I spent a good part of the morning testing out some audio editing programs and as a result I’m looking at getting a piece of software I don’t currently own, Sound Studio 3.  More than likely I will take advantage of the MacUpdate Promotion which not only includes a copy of Sound Studio but also several other pieces of software that will be interesting to try out including a copy of Parallels so we can run Windows on one our our Mac laptops that currently aren’t running a copy of Windows.

Tonight I plan on doing further work on the web site I mentioned in a previous post. The task will probably take several days as I work on it between client projects so please be patient as some things will be renamed and moved around in the following days. I want to close by saying I appreciate all of those who have thought of us for their small business marketing needs such as web site design and development, custom photography, small print jobs and online media distribution like podcasts, etc.

This morning I will be in a 2 hour planning session (between 9 and 11am) with my fellow organizers and leaders of the Upstate Entrepreneur’s Forum. We will be meeting at Port City Java near Fluor Field in the West end of Downtown Greenville.  We will be setting our calendar for the next year and lining up speakers.  What topics or special speakers would you like to see at a UEF meeting? Are you an entrepreneur or thinking about taking the plunge? What’s holding you back or frustrating you? How can we help you turn your visions into profitable realities? Feel free to leave a comment as I will be checking my e-mail and posts to this blog this morning.

It’s amazing the time and energy a company will invest in a logo. I can understand the need to be picky and the constant requests for changes as this will be an images that will need to stick around for a while.  Not only will it be imprinted on letterhead, brochures, business cards, web sites, products and product packaging but also in the minds of current and potential customers.

Think of the logos that come to your mind. Why do they come to your mind? I bet the first one that popped into your mind has a very simple yet elegant design the completely identifies the company or company name.  A great temptation in logo design, especially to the client is to cram as much information and design ideas into has possible because the charges for logos are usually more than a lot of other projects?  Why do so many designers charge so much for logo work?  It’s not the complexity but rather the time spend with the client to get it right in such a way that matches the company and their mission.  Probably the biggest mistake I have made in the past is charging too little for logo work. Often logo designers are charged to create logos even though they don’t really know the company. They may have the skills to create the finished project in under an hour but often to get it right and to satisfy the customer it can literally take months. No, Joke.

If you want your logo to be right in a reasonable amount of time make sure your designer clearly know what your business is all about. The logo may not have anything to do with your product but it can quickly identify the name and mission.  A great example of a logo that works is the logo of Apple Computer.  It’s the simple shape of an apple with a bite taken out. Of course the apple itself is a no brainer but how it is presented, especially in it’s current form is the key. The company is know for producing products that are easy to  use in a very visual way.

All that being said if Apple did not have the reputation it did for the quality and design of it’s products it would not be worthy of the logo. It’s amazing how many people love to sport the little Apple stickers on their car bumpers, notebooks, etc.  Yes, some do it as a status symbol but many are just proud to announce they are a user of the product.  Branding begins with your products and/or services.  Are they worthy of your logo or marketing designs.

When I was younger the logo of Izod was a big status symbol.  People wanted to wear the shirts just because they had the little alligator on them but I was one of those people who hates to advertise for another company for the sake of status and nothing else.  The blog, Marketing Environmentalism has an interesting article called, Tattooing Your Brand Love.   If someone loves your brand so much to get it permanently  etched in their skin says something.

What is your company doing to make a logo worthy of the brand? Are you clearly communicating your mission to your designer? Are you willing to spend time and money before the first lines are drawn to get your message across? If you are looking for a cheap solution to get some quick artwork what does that say about the attention you give to the rest of your business?  Conversely can the fact you are spending way too much time and money on a logo show “too much attention” to perfection.  Often a logo will not be perfect or adhere to the most current design trends but if people identify it with a quality product it is often best to leave well enough alone. A good example is the controversy of the new Xerox logo.

You may have seen an article here about how blogging can be good for your business or heard one of us at a networking group talk about RSS, blogging and other similar topics yet you may still think writing a business blog is not the best thing or a top priority for your business. Do you really think that?  Seems that’s a common perception but think again.  Really, think again!  The business and blogging web site/blog is offering readers a challenge. Try to stump them with a business that could not benefit from blogging.  Before you are quick to take their challenge read the example of one such business they were presented with during the writing of the article, a gas station. It will make you think twice about your own business.  Feel free to leave comments here but try to stump them on their blog because they are offering a pretty good incentive. I feel the same idea can apply to podcasting. Podcasts are the same thing as blogs but are audio and video instead of text and more often than not are delivered via RSS.