Stephanie UngerCreator. Of dance, of words, of babies.
Writing
About
I’m a mother of two and a lover of the arts. After many years in the professional dance world, I have switched gears to pursue other interests. Professionally, I have written for arts organizations, education websites, and digital media. I enjoy working on multiple projects and writing for many different styles and voices. I also have experience designing digital and print media. Personally, I love music and cats and hate trying on clothes.
Before you sit down to craft cute quips about your company, make sure you have gone over these easy questions of brand identification. After you have honed in on your product, your audience, and yourself, the writing will come much easier to you. These are steps that we, as creative marketing professionals, take for our clients whether the text is for a blog, social media, or any form of marketing. So, ponder these points, follow allow with suggested exercises, and deepen your brand identity.
(You’ll need a pen/paper or digital notepad for best results.)
What is your product?
Do you provide a service or create a physical product? Write it down. Seriously.
List all of the concrete and/or physical characteristics of your product/service. (Examples: “Complimentary delivery” or “hand-whittled wood furniture” or whatever you provide.)
Jot down all of the “fluffy” words that you would like other people to use to describe your business and your product. By “fluffy,” I mean nice-sounding adjectives! (Examples: “Timeless,” “glamorous,” and “full-service.”)
These descriptors will be used EVERY time you write about your product. Refer to your list often and mix and match as you’d like.
Who is your audience?
Note that I didn’t say “Who is your intended audience.” Your actual audience and your intended audience can be different.
When you are first launching your marketing or social media campaign, your audience will most likely consist of clients (past, current, and prospective), colleagues/contemporaries, and—let’s face it—family members. These are the people, your actual audience (that pay regular attention to your company page), that you hope will support your efforts and spread the good word to your intended audience.
Your intended audience are the folks that you want to pay attention to you. Would you like to have a more high-end clientele? Are you hoping to reach a different age group? Whatever your intended audience is, write that down too. You’ll need to be reminded of your goals as you craft your content.
Research other companies that you admire, even if they are far ahead of you. For example, I am inspired by marketing campaigns by Starbucks and Coca-Cola, both of which are HUGE organizations, even though BeatCreative is a small business.
Who are you?
Know yourself—or who you want people to think you are. This question goes along well with targeting your intended audience.
You need to decide what kind of image you want to project for your brand. As you write text and select photos to represent your company, ONLY choose what will support your image.
Write down your ideas.
You’re ready!
Now that you have the basics to get you started on your brand identity (in written form), you must make sure to fine-tune your content as you go along.
Three quick points to consider as you continue:
Follow up
Make sure you receive feedback from your audience. Whether this comes from comments on your blog, posts to your Facebook page, or replies to your e-blast, take the response of your audience into consideration.
Test run
Try new things. Inspiration is everywhere, from your contemporaries to brands in completely different fields. If you see something you like that you think will fit your identity, give it a shot.
Make adjustments
As you listen to your audience and try out new ideas, know that you will constantly make tweaks to the way you approach writing about your brand. Be flexible, you’re growing!
I wish you easy, happy writing about your firm, but malleable, brand image!
So, you want it all…a thriving career and a life outside of work? Most people think it’s not possible; you either have to choose a career that becomes your life, or opt out of the typical working world in order to have a personal life.
Searching for a position that will allow you the best of both worlds? We are pretty pleased at BeatCreative that one of our specialties tops the charts: in 2014, the “Social Media Manager” job title was ranked #5 out of 20 and achieved a 4.3 out of 5 (where 5 is very satisfied) through a poll conducted by Forbes and Glassdoor.
First of all, what exactly is meant by “work-life balance”?
“Work-life balance is not a situation anymore where you’re at work and then you’re at home, it’s more this balancing between the two,” said Lauren Griffin, senior vice president of Adecco Staffing U.S. “It’s a common trend, generationally–people all want the flexibility, but the reasons they want it might be different.” Griffin went on to say that the younger generation tends to classify flexibility in terms of long lunches and the ability to work during off-hours, whereas Baby Boomers and Gen Xers want flexibility in order to care for their families.
Either way, general flexibility is the key. According to U.S. News and World Report in a 2015 Workplace Flexibility Study, 75% of polled employees desire workplace flexibility above all other benefits.
Based on our personal experience at BeatCreative, where our employees work nearly 100% remotely, the ticket to boosting employee morale is to allow a flexible work schedule for our social media development team. A rave review from our Online Marketing Specialist, Robyn, shows how much flexibility is valued within our social media team:
“I love the flexibility BeatCreative allows. Plus, I can wear yoga pants to work every day. Best. Job. Ever.”
With the availability of digital tools and the prevalence of smart phones, we are always connected, and therefore can respond to work requests and complete urgent tasks while away from the office.
However, being constantly “plugged in” can make it hard to step away from work. According to an article by Experteer, the trope that “social media is 24/7” makes it arguable that Social Media Managers would have a positive work-life balance. It is easy for an employee to push back and not feel like there is ever a break! Even our Content Specialist, Patrick, says:
“Balancing work and home life sounds easy when you don’t have to leave your house every day. But it’s not that simple. Working from home means the two lives bleed into one another, which can make it feel like you ALWAYS should be working on something.”
What makes a difference in balancing the work and personal is how the individual handles each sphere. Patrick went on to describe his regimented, but flexible, work approach:
“Maintaining a regular work schedule is so important. I treat it like a “normal” office job. I get up the same time every day, get dressed, walk the dog, everything someone with a commute would do. Only my commute takes me to my home office. I only write in my office, leaving the rest of the house to feel like a home, not a workplace. I tend to work until about 6:30, when my wife gets home. Then it’s family time.”
So why are social media jobs achieving such a high rating in work-life balance polls? Most likely because the positions often allow the employee to work from home or telecommute for part of the time, giving more time to do things like run errands, have a lunch date, or just take a break when needed. For me, BeatCreative’s official Social Media Project Manager, I have been lucky enough to care for my toddler at home (without putting him in daycare) and work my full work week. That’s enough for me to give my job a rating of “highly satisfied.”
Ultimately, achieving a balance between “work life” and “personal life” could be attainable for most people (social media career or not)—it’s just a matter of perspective.
Successful and Stylish: Tips for Your Grand Opening
Last week, our team at BeatCreative Marketing opened our new office in style with a ribbon cutting ceremony and grand opening party. Check out some of our behind the scenes social media snapshots and then read how we can help you achieve similar results.
1. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Follow the top three rules of real estate when establishing your headquarters. The location of your office will set the tone for how your business develops. Want to gain interest through word-of-mouth and passers-by? Select a store front in a popular shopping area or a shop near a busy intersection. If you’d rather have a quiet haven to boost creative energy, try to find location near something you find inspiring: a body of water, museum, or park, perhaps.
2. GET WITH THE CITY
Now that you’ve found your perfect space, coordinate with your local Chamber of Commerce to conduct a ribbon cutting ceremony or sponsored grand opening party. Since the event will most likely go on the city’s event calendar, you’ll naturally gain more curious attendees and get a little free advertising.
3. PARTY LIKE IT’S YOUR BRAND’S BIRTHDAY
Keep your branding consistent in the selections you make for your grand opening party. From the colors to the refreshments to the entertainment, your brand should be represented in all aspects of the event. For example, if your company focuses on healthy living, it may not be a wise choice to serve pizza and cupcakes.
4. GO WITH THE FLOW
Identify the best floor plan for your location. Your party should have an easy flow to it that makes mingling easy. Are there certain elements that you want to highlight for your guests? Make sure important aspects of the party are in prominent places or put on display. Also, consider the elements: where can you place food and drink so it is not disturbed by wind, rain, heat, snow, etcetera?
5. TAP THAT RESOURCE
Of course, you want the BEST vendors for your grand opening party. Unfortunately, the best often comes at a price. If you’d rather not spend all of your hard-earned cash, make sure you consider your resources and connections. Do you have friends or family in the service industry? See if you can have them donate their time to bartend or pass hors d’oeuvres, or use their employee discount on catering. Can you barter your services to feature any of your clients?
6. TALK IT UP
Remember—PROMOTE! Make sure to e-blast your contacts, send your press release to local newspapers and magazines, create an event on Facebook, post frequently on social media leading up to the event, write blogs about your upcoming party, and tell everyone you meet! You can’t have too much promotion–this is a big deal!
7. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE DETAILS
The little details are so important to running a successful grand opening. Send personal invites to your VIPs and prospective clients. Include branded details wherever possible. Make your attendees feel special by offering goody bags or other takeaway. All of these touches will help you be on top of your game.
8. GO BIG OR GO HOME
Make your presence known! Launch your brand with a bang by using memorable, attention-grabbing effects. Add excitement (and close-proximity promotion) with a pop of a confetti canon, excitement of a balloon release, or blaze of searchlight for a nighttime event.
9. A PICTURE IS WORTH 1,000 MORE WORDS
Make sure you have a quality photographer and videographer at your event. Capturing the highlights will help you promote post-event. Attendees can reminisce about their favorite moments and people who missed the party can get still an idea of how amazing your company is.
10. IT’S NOT OVER UNTIL…
You follow up with your attendees! Send thank you notes to your vendors (either via e-mail or snail mail). Thank your clients for attending either personally, or through a dedicated e-blast. Most importantly, contact everyone who inquired about your company! Ideally, your grand opening party should solidify relationships and garner new ones.
We can help you with branding and marketing for your new office, planning your grand opening, and creating promotional materials and social media posts for the event–just ask us how!
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