Seriously in Business: Brand + Design, Marketing and Business

You know you’re different to everyone else… so why do you try do business the same?

In this episode, I chat with CliftonStrengths™ coach, Amy Pettingill, all about how we can curate a business that works to OUR STRENGTHS!

Our way of relating to others, of managing time/energy…our way our doing business, so that we can lean into our best and serve others out of that place.

How cool!?

Using the CliftonStrengths™ Assessment, Amy Pettingill helps individuals & teams unlock, understand and unleash their natural born gifts and talents. With a bold vision to live in a world where EVERYONE knows their strengths, Amy lives, loves and leads using her own strengths to encourage others to do the same.

In a previous life, Amy was an Event Manager and it was during one of her Event Management roles in which she discovered the CliftonStrengths Assessment, instantly falling in love with it’s impact and thought “I would love to be a CliftonStrengths Coach one day”. Fast forward to the start of 2020 and Amy decided to do just that, hanging up her event manager hat and diving straight in to CliftonStrengths coaching.

Amy is an empath, a visionary, a life-long learner, an optimist & a natural born cheerleader of people and if there is one thing Amy knows for sure, it is that discovering her strengths transformed her life for the better and for good and she knows it will do the same for others too!

Website: www.amypettingill.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amypettingill/

CliftonStrengths Assessment store: https://store.gallup.com/c/en-au/assessments

You've worked really hard on your business to create an incredible product or service - but what if it's getting lost? In this episode I want to share with you 4 ways you can make sure that when you communicate your awesome offer that people can actually read and understand it.

We need our potential clients to be LOOKING at us, then UNDERSTANding what they see, and then ENGAGING with us.

If people can't read what you have to share, they won't ever work with you! So let's use these practical design tips to get your offer seen and understood.

I have a free guide that gives visual representations on what I teach in this episode. You can download it here: https://www.diydesignmybiz.com/7mistakes

The statement “less is more” couldn’t be more true about design - so much so that following the idea of “less is more” around these three areas I discuss could save you time as well as give your graphics a higher chance of not just looking good but connecting with your audience!

In this episode I chat about why you really want to make sure you don't get caught up using too much:
• Text
• Fonts
• Fancy elements

You see, sometimes we just wanna say so much stuff! Other times we see a super pretty font, or a cool sparkle or an awesome glow effect - and next minute we have a cluttered and confusing design.

Instead, learn that most of the time, less is more. Not overwhelming your audience with EVERYTHING but focussing on just what they need.

Tune in to learn why and how you can make sure to use 'less is more' in your DIYed graphics.

Good design isn't the only thing that costs our businesses - it's BAD design we need to watch out for! What is bad design costing your business?

In this episode join me as I discuss what damage bad graphics are doing to your business that could be causing you to:

• Lose clients

• Lose conversions

• Lose value

• Lose connection

• Lose to your competitors

I also chat with one of my DIY Design My Biz students, Monica, on how my design course has changed things for her as she creates GOOD graphics for her own business using the skills she's learned from me! Follow Monica on Instagram at: @monica.d.r

Find out more about DIY Design My Biz at: www.diydesignmybiz.com - I can't wait to have you join us!

Business can either grow slooowwwww or we can supercharge it to grow at a more exciting pace.

I know that for my business I would be in a totally different spot if I hadn't done this one thing. I think I mightttt still be in business but I'd be nowhere near the point I am today.

The secret? Investing in myself and my business skills.

And not necessarily investing when I'm ready, but investing when it's scary!

In this episode, I chat about the 4 reasons why I believe investing in learning and support is the quickest way to grow your business.

1. Helps us commit - there's no backing out after making a scary investment.

2. Feedback, community and support - Business is lonely, invest in a program that gives community of like-minded people, to give you feedback on your learning and your business, and support in your growth.

3. Simplifying ALLLLL the information - there is SO much information out there, invest in a program that has done the hard work, can save you Googling and teaches you the one way to do what you need to do.

Take bold steps in your business and INVEST in your growth. It's the quickest way to move forward.

Follow me on Instagram at @whitedeergd or join the waitlist for DIY Design My Biz at www.diydesignmybiz.com

Marketing is sneaky. We think it's just one little part of our business until we realise it actually encompasses almost EVERYTHING we do.

How we want to be perceived, the language we use, the designs we create, our price point, our product/service, our advertising, our social media... you get the idea!

In this episode, I sit down with Trish from Chromatical and she gives us all the goss on marketing and what it means for our businesses.

I pick her brain on all things from:
• Why marketing underpins all we do in business
• How to not copy other businesses, but be inspired by how they make us feel
• Why we can't just look at someone's social media or emails and do the same thing
• How to communicate just how valuable your product/service is
• Connecting with your customers as a HUMAN
• What to invest in in your business

Join the club here: chromatical.com.au/chromatical-club or follow Trish on Instagram @chromaticalclub

In this episode I chat with the incredible brand photographer, Fi Mims.

Brand photos are almost a non-negotiable for small business owners!

We cover why you need brand photos, how they can help grow your business and build confidence, as well as make creating your own graphics a thousand times easier!

Connect with Fi on Instagram at: @fimimsphotography or at www.fimimsphotography.com.au

There seems to be a lot of pressure to have a "pretty Instagram grid" - meaning a perfectly curated Insta page that looks incredible.

But is it all it's chalked up to be? In this episode I'll chat about when it's important and when it's NOT important to have a perfectly curated grid.

Is it something your business needs to worry about or something you can totally forget about?

Here's a designer's take!

Follow me on Instagram at @whitedeergd or grab your DIY design resources at www.whitedeer.com.au/freebies

What's the perfect way to let people know that you know your stuff?

How can you build trust, connection PLUS grow your email list?

The answer is a "Lead Magnet".

If you've been in business for a little while, chances are you know what this is and have created your own.

But if you're new in the biz world and have no idea what I'm talking about - stick around.

A "lead magnet" (or freebie or opt in) often comes in the form of a PDF document that you give your audience for free in exchange for their email address.

You create a document 👉 share it on your socials (or elsewhere!) 👉direct people to your website 👉they enter in their email address 👉and your email platform automatically sends it through to them. Voila!

It's a way for you to share with them something that is helpful to them, whilst at the same time being able build a connection and set yourself as an expert in your field. Plus, growing your email list is a great business move (that's a whole other kettle of fish!).

SOME TIPS:

✅Only target YOUR niche - your lead magnet should attract the people that you want to serve in your business with your paid product or service.

✅Share your knowledge in an area that meets a current pain point of your audience - maybe even something that's good for them to get sorted before they work with you.

SOME EXAMPLES:

✨ If you're a jewellery maker - How to measure your ring size at home.

✨ if you're a photographer - What outfits to wear in a photoshoot.

✨ If you're a coach - How to get the most out of a coaching session.

There's NO POINT in creating something that never gets read.

You have so many more important things to do my friend than waste time like that.

But what if you create an awesome lead magnet/freebie for your audience to download...

And people actually download it (YIPEEEEE!!!)...

BUT they don't read it.

They open it up, scroll through it and CLOSE it almost immediately after.

This NOT what you're after - you created this freebie to help your audience with a struggle of theirs PLUS you wanted to show off your expertise.

Design plays a massive role in how much people interact with what we create.

Next time you create a long form document think about these things:

✅ Separate your content out over multiple pages

✅Leave lots of "white space" on each page - there's no need to fill every space with text. Let the eye breathe!

✅ Create "hierarchy" on each page with clear headings, and pull outs of interesting information to capture attention.

✅Include lots of branded images and visual elements that support your message.

✅GET TO THE POINT and don't write toooo much. Respect your audiences time. (Bonus: This also makes your document easier to design).

I have my own freebie (go on, stalk how I've designed it 😉) that goes into a few more design tips that can make all the difference to your businesses success: www.diydesignmybiz.com/7mistakes

It's easy to feel like no one sees or cares about your business.

Please firstly know - you're not alone.

Secondly, in this podcast episode I wanted to provide a few tips on how your branding can help combat this.

You and your business are totally unique - when we let our branding and design reflect this we can begin to stand out, even in a crowded marketplace.