Now, that sounds just like exactly what you need to get your business fired up and moving along! But then reality creeps in… There’s the pressure of creating a fresh, interesting and new idea. You can’t just reach into a magic hat and pull that perfect idea out. Sitting and waiting around for that genius to strike doesn’t seem action-oriented enough for you. You’re ready to get started on what’s next... but you need the idea to begin with, plus the insurance and assurance that … [Read more...]
About Erin Ferree
Erin Ferree is a brand strategist and designer. She works with small businesses to create brands with substance and style that fit their businesses perfectly.
She's designed brands for hundreds of small business all over the world. Her brands help her clients attract their ideal clients, outshine their competition and make them unforgettable. She also works with small business owners to develop complete clarity about their brand positioning and to develop total brand clarity.
Her award-winning design work and her writing on design have been published in many books and periodicals.
Erin lives, cooks and plays tug-of-war with her dog Stanley in San Luis Obispo, California. Her website is http://www.brandstyledesign.com
Is Your Website Like A Jungle?
January 5, 2012 By 2 Comments
The jungle is dark, humid and dense. Birds of all kinds sing and call, while other animals rustle through the underbrush. The adventurers hack through the plants with their machetes to blaze a passable trail. It’s hard work, and it had to be done so they have a clear path to get where they’re going. Is your website like that jungle? Recently, I met someone at a conference and wanted to learn more about them while following up. So, I carved out a few minutes to check out their … [Read more...]
Lessons About Warming Up Your Brand . . . From Parties
December 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Do you ever feel like your brand's a little bit chilly? Like it's too professional or boring? Or you're distant... not as cozied up and close with your clients as you'd like to be? Why not warm it up a bit? Warmth in your brand can make it seem more alive, open, passionate, and even both interesting and interested. The warmth is a sign that your small business is run by a real person and that you care about your clients. A warm brand also does a lot for your client relationships. Warmth … [Read more...]
2 Traits To Create Relationship Through Your Brand – With People You’ve Never Met
November 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Are you “marketing at” your precious potential clients or connecting with them? In other words, do your marketing efforts feel more like you’re shouting at them with a megaphone, or like you’re having a two-way conversation? We all have a craving for connection and conversation – for that rich, recognition-filled two-way exchange of thoughts and information. That goes for both YOU and your potential clients… in fact, the effect can be multiplied many times over for your … [Read more...]
3 Ideas To Ick-Proof Your Brand
November 3, 2011 By 1 Comment
Do you ever feel like your brand is out of alignment with your values system? Like you have to do things in your marketing that you wouldn't want your mother or your mentor to see? If you said "yes", I'm curious: why is your brand icky? Your brand is made up of the look, the feel and the experience of doing business with you. Does it look like a mess? Is your design all over the place? Have you outgrown them and become more sophisticated and evolved? Does it feel pushy or sleazy? Are … [Read more...]
Inciting or Inviting? Why Most Marketing Doesn’t Work
October 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Sometimes one little letter makes all the difference. This is a story about a typo. A simple typing mistake, that's so wonderful - I have tears of gratitude in my eyes from the relief it's brought. Let me explain... it's all about the difference between inciting and inviting. I've been trying to be "A Marketer" for years. Instead of being a design innovator, a creative thinker, a break-the-mold genius like I'd set out to be when I started in on this business extravaganza, I thought I … [Read more...]
3 Easy Steps To Stop Spinning Your Wheels With Your Brand And Start Making Sales
October 4, 2011 By 1 Comment
Do you ever feel like instead of moving forward with your brand and your business, you’re stuck and you’re going around and around in circles with your confusing brand? That your brand doesn’t communicate, doesn’t convert sales and is a bit of a mess? What if I could show you how to easily get unstuck and create a brand that works? One that helps you get more clients, make sales and makes your business profitable. The first step in creating a brand that converts is to get clear. … [Read more...]
The 3 Kinds Of Confusing Brands And What To Do About Them
September 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“What do you do?” Such an innocent and curious question! And in the small business world, it’s where so many conversations go horribly wrong. As the other person starts to answer, a funny thing happens. The conversation starts spinning out of control. Maybe they’re talking too much. Maybe they don’t really know how to answer. Or perhaps they decide, on the spot, to make up and “try out” a new reply they’ve never given before. In any case, the person who asked the … [Read more...]
Do This “One Thing” For Website Success
August 23, 2011 By 1 Comment
If the next person who visited your website could only do one thing there, what would you want that thing to be? Having one main thing for your visitor to do on your website is a powerful strategy that will help you get better results for whatever is most important on your website. It's easier for you to do "One Thing" well. Trying to write copy, design a marketing strategy and create a business strategy around way too many things is a lot of work - and if you're doing too many things, … [Read more...]
What I Learned About Branding On My Summer Vacation
July 28, 2011 By 4 Comments
I went on a road trip with a friend recently, and even though I was “on vacation”, branding lessons kept jumping out at me. Here are the 3 most valuable lessons we learned about branding on our summer vacation: 1. The first lesson is about using your headshot in your marketing. At Mount Rushmore, we overheard a little boy talking to his mom: “Those guys on the outside are on money. But who are the other two?” Of course, he recognized Washington and Lincoln. Their faces … [Read more...]
