We read some pretty incredible books on business, branding, leadership, and marketing last month and wanted to share our favorite parts of them with you.
Entreleadership by Dave Ramsey
This is an incredible book for business owners and anyone in a leadership position including parents who are leading their family. The first four chapters really changed the way I tackle my day-to-day activities. Dave discusses passions, dreams, vision, mission statements, goals, and time management. I was motivated to evaluate these areas in my life which has led to a more intense focus on what matters most to me. This book not only gives the why-to’s on leadership, but also the how-to’s on how to lead a successful team. The wisdom in this book is simple and profound. This is a MUST read for entrepreneurs no matter how big or small your company is. I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
Brand Thinking by Debbie Millman
This book dives into all aspects branding. It is written in an interview format so it easy to read , yet very smart and informative. The author interviews well known designers and branding gurus on all aspects of branding. Her interaction with them makes the text so much more approachable, honest and enjoyable. After reading this book and you’ll start thinking differently about every logo, advertisement, or product packaging you see. Overall, this is an invaluable book for anyone interested in branding in today’s world.
Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin
Anything written by Mr. Godin gets a few high fives from us and gets put on our recommended reading list. This book is about leadership and how anyone can become a leader, creating movements that matter to our culture. I love this book because it can be applied in the work place or in general leadership roles. So many of us are passionate about something –whether it is our work or a special cause- autism, orphans, world hunger, curing cancer, etc.– but we feel powerless to act fearing failure. Godin encourages the reader that no matter who you are, you can powerfully lead a tribe of people to make effective change. I actually listened to this book twice from my iTunes account while I worked (which is why it is not pictured above).
We could not be more grateful to our mothers and grandmothers for shaping us into the women we are today. We are also incredibly thankful for our husbands’ mothers and grandmothers for the wise and humble men they raised. All these women are true inspirations for us as we venture through life day by day. Extraordinary mothers deserve extraordinary Mother’s Day cards. Here are our picks!
Simple and Sweet Mother’s Day Card by Parenthetical Press
Add these adorable coupon cards also by Parenthetical Press
Charming and perfectly worded card by Paper & Pip
For the Mom who did it all from Black Heart Letterpress
Beautiful calligraphy by Sparrow Nest Script
Clever and cute card for little one’s to their Mommy by Doodle Love
Best cookies among other things by Wit & Whistle
Mom’s love a little humor! Wit & Whistle
Happy, happy mother’s day to all the mom’s in our life. We hope you feel as special as you truly are!
My favorite service that we offer here at The Creative Cup is what we call “Create Raving Fans Plan.” This plan is all about shaping the customer’s experience.
There are many, many “Branding” companies out there that solely focus on the logo, packaging, advertising, and other marketing materials; but if you ask a company to design a logo or an advertisement without them knowing the heart and soul of your business, you are wasting your money. Bottom line, your brand is the emotion that a customer feels when thinking about your product. To know the desired emotion, you must really know the company: their values, goals, fears, passion, and mission.
There is one, and only one, thing that creates customer emotion: the customer’s experience with your product or service. So although we can create an attractive logo, and develop marketing materials that stand out from competition, we are not developing a strong brand if we do not focus in on the customer’s emotion towards your brand.
Brand is almost entirely the result of the customers’ experience with a product, so put yourself in your customer shoes today. What would your experience be?
A few months ago, I was encouraged by Lara Casey to face my fears. So I did what was natural, went to Starbucks and grabbed an earl grey tea latte and started writing down my fears. As soon as I started, it was almost like I could not stop and the more that I wrote, the more powerful I felt!
As I was writing down my fears, I realized that many of the mistakes I made in our first year of business stemmed from fear. For example, I fear getting rejected. I would much rather “make the sale” for less money than risk a client telling me “No” or worse, they decided to go with a different marketing agency! This led to many jobs that I was not passionate about nor were they profitable.
Another fear that led to mistakes was the fear of not being valued or recognized. I wanted to appear as a major marketing firm that had been around for years. So instead of letting go of my pride and being transparent, I spoke in marketing jargon, had a website that made The Creative Cup appear like we had many clients, and really dressed up to appear older and more professional for client meetings. This really hurt us in attracting our ideal client that we could really connect with and who would probably didn’t care if I wore stilettos or Toms to consultations.
Fear is crippling and makes us do crazy things that can really lead to major set-backs. I encourage you to write down what you fear and start recognizing when they hold you back and tackle them head on!
I will leave you with a fantastic quote:
“You are far too smart to be the only thing standing in your way.” Jennifer Freeman
So go, right now, grab a drink that brings you comfort and face your fear!
When meeting with clients for the first time, we have to schedule at least a 30 minute cushion to our next appointment because the entrepreneurs are ON FIRE for their company and can talk for hours about their venture. We love these meetings- their passion and excitement is contagious and we leave feeling energized!
I came across a really interesting article in INC. Magazine that really hit on entrepreneurs’ true motivations. It stated that “Founders who understand what matters most to them are more likely to create ventures that satisfy them emotionally as well as materially.”
They created a quick quiz to see what is driving you into the hardest and most thrilling profession. They surveyed about 2000 entrepreneurs about their motivations and compared the results to non-entrepreneurs who also completed the survey. Among their findings: Entrepreneurs are from Mars; non-entrepreneurs are from Venus. Their values were completely different!
Take the Quiz by Inc.com and do some soul searching to see what is your motivation!
A few days ago, I was asked a question that stirred up many thoughts:
“I have been thinking about starting my own business but I am a little scared….any advice?”
My soul lit up as I began thinking of how I would reply to that question. I have learned a tremendous amount since I have began my business, and I have learned a lot of those things the hard way, by trial and error. This is a question I wish I would have asked someone before I started my own business.
Heather and I want to be extremely honest and transparent in the work that we do. We feel that it is very important to bring honesty and to share our knowledge with other people. For that reason, I have come up with my top 20 tips for those considering starting their own business. My hope is that you allow these honest words to direct your path in a powerful way.
1. Pray. As a woman of faith, this is the most solid advice I could give you. God says “ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!” Pray over whatever has been placed on your heart and listen to his answer. Being obedient will save you heart ache and money. Pray alone. Pray with your husband or wife or whoever has authority over you like your parents or a pastor. Pray with a mentor or a friend. Do lots of praying, and then spend time listening for an answer that will come.
2. Educate yourself. I grew up relying on teachers or professors to teach me applicable skills and trades. I was a horrible student. I was really good at hearing someone spit out information to me and then making a good grade on a test. But I did very little to contribute to my own education until I started my own business. Don’t rely on others to teach you. Be eager to learn about your profession and business. Attend classes or seminars, read books, and practice becoming a good student. Teach yourself and fill your own brain with a wealth of knowledge. Atrophy happens fast. It’s the devil that comes to kill, steal, and destroy.
3. Face your fears. Fear is the biggest thing holding you back from living your best life – the life you know you should be living right now in this moment. Fears are crippling, they paralyze. They hold us back from a potential opportunity of great accomplishment. Love is action. It moves, it brings freedom, it motivates. Love releases the glue that binds us to fear. Love drives out fear. Like my friend, you may be fearful of starting a business and the unknown that is associated with entrepreneurship. Write down every possible fear on a piece of paper. Memorize this scripture, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear.” from 1 John 4:18. Begin developing the weekly discipline of tackling those fears head on. Share them with friends who will help you overcome them. This habit will bring much freedom and clear understanding.
4. Surround yourself with people who inspire and challenge you. My husband is one of these people in my life. He is an entrepreneur through-n-through, and he challenged me to become the same. When I first started my business he would say, “You just don’t have that entrepreneur spirit in you yet. You HAVE to have it. Go find it.” He was right. I didn’t have it, but his words challenged me to find that spirit.
5. Read, Read, Read. Reading is brain food. I strongly believe if you are not reading, your brain becomes stagnant. I don’t always have time to read so I occasionally buy books from iTunes and listen to books while I work or drive. An excellent book for those considering quitting their day job to follow their dreams is Quitter by John Acuff. Read biographies of people who have accomplished great things. Read and learn consistently.
6. Begin thinking about customers. All businesses have customers and those customers are the most valuable asset to building a strong brand. When businesses develop “Raving Fans,” their product or services sell with ease. Think about your best and worst customer experiences. Begin noticing how business’s treat you and how they fight for you. Do they make you feel top notch or low man on the totem pole? Record all these notes in a “Customer Relationship” journal. Once you have officially launched your business, look back in that journal and do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
7. Be willing to make no money. If you are starting a business to get rich, think again. If you’re starting a business because you have a passion and a purpose for your product or service, then you are on the right path. If your sole income depends on the success of your start-up business, consider having a large cushion to fall back on. It’s risky. Set your expectations high, but do not put all your eggs in one basket. It takes time to make money.
8. Work the Brand Work Book. When I started my little business, before The Creative Cup was legit, I had absolutely no vision, mission, or goals. My goal was to start a business and work from home, but I had no plan or vision written down. I was drowning quickly and found myself all over the place. I was frustrated and disorganized. All this changed when I developed a personal mission, established my values, set goals, and did some deep soul searching. I didn’t have the Brand Work Book at the time, but it has the power to prevent a lot of chaos and confusion. If you are considering starting a business, do the Brand Work Book! The Brand Work Book is a 50+ page book Heather and I wrote full of thought provoking questions and comments that helps our clients understand the tremendous power of effective brands. It’s a challenge, but one you will want to take before you face the challenge of starting a business.
9. Become a visionary. One of the best compliments I have ever heard someone give to another was that she was a visionary. Dreamers do not tend to accomplish anything. Visionaries see the bigger picture by looking into the future. Visionaries make things happen. Mark Zuckerburg, founder of Facebook, saw the vision and potential in facebook. At 23 years old, he chose not to sell out when Yahoo! offered him 1 billion dollars then again when Microsoft offered him 4 billion. Some people are natural visionaries. Many are not. I believe you can learn how to become a visionary by studying others who have done a successful job at it. The Bible says where there is no vision the people parish. Indeed!
10. Understand who you are. That’s not easy to do. It’s ugly and painful. More often then not you have to learn this the hard way through walking down that ugly, dirty road of who you’re not. I recently spent about an hour staring a photo of me when I was about 9 years old. I traveled back in time to find out who that little 9 year old girl was: What did she love the most? What set her heart ablaze? What did she dislike? What made her uncomfortable? What were her thoughts and dreams? What were her personality traits, her skills and abilities? That girl was reconciled with the woman I am today, a much stronger and wiser woman. I realized that I had spent too much of my life trying to be someone I wasn’t; someone that that 9 year old little brave soul would have never thought to be. When you understand who you are, your brand glows.
11. Write personal goals. I have heard it said that people who write down their goals make 9 times more money than those who do not. Money aside, these people seem to be more successful than those who don’t write their goals down. I have recently started writing a list of 100 goals to be accomplished within a year. Crossing through the goals that I have accomplished is an empowering task!
12. Choose good friends. It’s empowering to be around people who are regularly positive and encouraging. There are some people out there that have the tendency to bring you down to a lower level. Make friends who will lift you up and encourage you. Believe it or not, you will hit a rock head on and you will need encouragement and positive influences. Make sure the people who will pick you up are your friends. Ask yourself: Will spending time with this person drag me down or lift me up? Will he or she make me want to be a better person? A happier person? Will they help me achieve my most important goals? Think of five people who can help you achieve your dreams and goals and let them know that you have chosen them!
13. Start Debt Free (if possible). Our business was started debt free and continues to run this way. What a relief it was in December when we were able to take half of the month off to be with our families and we had no bills to pay. We operate out of our homes or in coffee shops and have very little overhead which is such a relief in times when we need to take off of work. As a farmer’s daughter and a cattleman’s wife, I understand completely that not all business could or should operate debt free. But let me encourage you to stay debt free if possible (and in many cases it is possible). I just spared your so much worry and frustrations with this tip.
14. Practice the art of balancing. You know what you value the most in life. Those values must be balanced or you will go insane. My top 5 values are (in order): Faith, Family, Friendships, Career, and Health. Each and everyone of them overlap the other. My friends are those who share the same faith as I do and I see my work as a ministry. However, if I work non-stop in-front of a computer everyday without working out and eating healthy my energy level will be so low I will not be able to work or serve my husband to my fullest ability. Balancing means scheduling and being disciplined enough to stick to that schedule.
15. Find a mentor. A business mentor is someone who will fill your business with confidence, lead by example, and hold your hand through the hard times. They should teach you from their mistakes so you do not walk the same path. This person should be eager to see you succeed. When you have gotten over your haze of starting a new business, you should then start mentoring someone else. A wise man recently said if you have been a believer for a very short amount of time, you should be a mentor to someone who has been a believer less time than you have. He was referring the our faith in the context of Titus 2, but I feel like he was speaking a word to entrepreneurs as well.
16. Be transparent. Hiding behind a facade is a sign of weakness and fear. If you start practicing transparency at an early stage in your business, you potential clients will connect to you in a real way.
17. Make something happen out of nothing. Do you ever watch Chopped on The Food Network? The chefs get a basket of random ingredients and must make a gourmet three course meal out of it. They are creating something much desired out of nothing. Good entrepreneurs do the exact same thing. When they open a basket of randomness, they find a way to make something happen out of nothing. Begin to cultivate this habit early on and your will reap lasting benefits.
18. Become mentally fit. As a business owner you will face challenges that require you to possess mental stamina. When you are mentally strong, you have drive and determination, patience and an optimistic attitude when the weak give up. Begin mental work-outs now. Put yourself in a position that challenges your reactions. This may be taking on a rather difficult project at your current job. For mothers it may mean training your mind to react with patience and perseverance when your child continues to misbehave.
20. Study those ahead of you in the game. The key word is study, not copy. Dave Ramsey says “If you want to be a millionaire, figure out what millionaires do and start doing it.” I say if you want to be an exceptional momtrepreneur, figure out what she is doing, study her, and start doing it! I have grown tremendously by following and finding inspiration from others who are 2 or 3 steps ahead of me. I have never met these people in person, but I stalk them on their blogs or their social media and learn from them. The cool thing about the interwebs is that you can find these people and connect with them so easily. Others, who are 2-3 steps behind you, will eventually look at you in the same way.
As we grow as a business, we want to teach and inspire others. We may be 2-3 steps in front someone who is on the brink of changing the world and impacting millions of lives. My hope is that I just encouraged YOU to take that very first step! Be brave, be bold. Life is to short to work to not follow your true calling.
With much encouragement,
M’Lynn
All the successful business icons have one thing in common, their passion for their product, service, company, or cause. They followed their hearts instead of doing what someone else told them they should do or what will make them the most money. They went with their gut feeling—and made a business out of the one thing that consumed their thoughts.
It is very sad to me when we meet with business owners that are starting a business because they prioritize money and/or recognition. Living in a college town, I meet many students who have a completely different passion for what they are studying because either their parents told them to pursue it or again money. I am not pointing fingers; I was there at one point! I cannot tell you how bored I was in my finance classes and the relief I felt when I decided to pursue my passion of marketing, even though I would not make as much money. Boy! Were those classes a lot more fun.
Follow your heart, not the crowd!
When you are honest and true with yourself, your business will begin to flourish, because people can connect with what is REAL. You are the face of your brand, meaning you are the reason people choose to come to you and comeback to you (hopefully). Allow your work to mesh perfectly with your true, authentic heart. You can never go wrong when you operate your business authentically and make decisions based on that clear, strong foundation.
It is very easy to get away from your true passion and why you started the business. Here are some classic examples and ways to fix:
- Marketing your product to EVERYONE. I know that you need money and that starting a business is expensive and worrisome, but you are only hurting yourself if you think that you can target everyone. There is no way to satisfy and connect with everyone.
- Not thinking about your ideal client and actively trying to attract them. Unfortunately, your ideal client may not be able to afford your pricing. Make adjustments for these people! Working for your ideal client makes work fun- and when work is fun- its not work. Re-evaluate your pricing strategy to see if your ideal market can afford your product/service, if not, research ways to get to their pricing.
- The only way to build referrals is to actually connect with people. Word of mouth advertising is the most effective and the cheapest way to build your business. When you truly connect with clients, they will refer you to people that are LIKE THEM, which brings you more business with people you actually want to work for.
- Get rid of the product/service that your currently provide but cannot stand. You get to be your own boss, remember? So if there is a product or service that you currently provide that you can’t stand, then chances are your ideal client won’t be satisfied with it either. Spend time on what you love!
- Fall back in love with your business. If you love your business, then unfortunately it does consume most of your thoughts, time and energy. Maybe you need to take some time off to re-energize, or you may have gotten away from your core values, or fallen into the trap of providing work that pays instead of work you love. Think about why you started it, who you love working with, what you love doing, and bring that back!
I also want to say that this post is to encourage students to follow your heart and study what you get excited about. If you are studying something you hate, ask yourself, “Do I really want to be this bored in my profession?”
If you don’t own a business, fall back in love with your career! Why did you choose the job? How can you make it more enjoyable?
Please remember, your career does not define you. Unfortunately, it is where some of us spend most of our time, but it does not define your meaning in life. There is much, much more to life than your job.
I will leave you with this from good ole Dr. Seuss , “Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive that is youer than you.”
We strongly believe the words of Marty Neumeier in his book The Brand Gap,
“Strategy and creativity, in most companies are separated by a mile-wide chasm. On one side are the strategist and marketing people who favor left-brain thinking -analytical, logical, linear, concrete, numerical, verbal. On the other side are the designers and creative people who favor right-brain thinking -intuitive, emotional, spatial, visual, physical”
This gap creates a barrier to good communication with customers. At the same time it shortens the gap between you and your competition . When a brand is communicated clearly, it sinks deep into people’s hearts and minds. They become instant fans and customers. They begin to talk about you and share your business with their friends, which is powerful and free.
Below are a few examples of good strategy and good creativity. These are only a few examples of the many ways we help businesses make this connection.
Good Strategy
Aim Well. We all know that it’s imperative for business to aim at your target market in all marketing efforts, but who exactly is your target market? Be specific when determining your target market by including gender, lifestyle, age, income, and other demographics. Getting the answer to this question right can save money and direct your businesses to your ideal client.
Know the Numbers. Finance people will tell you that this is vital. We agree. You can sell an incredible product or service with outstanding marketing and beautiful visual design, but if you are unaware of actual profit/loss, then you may sink. By knowing your numbers you have the power to build your business.
Create a Customer Relations Plan. The client’s experience, whether good or bad, is everything. It can make or break your company. A customer relations plan is good strategy. Creative customer relations plans are brilliant. One of our services is a Create Raving Fans Plan where we work through the client experience with you to create a customer relations plan or to bring fresh and innovative ideas to your existing plan.
Good Creativity
Beautiful Visual Brand Design. This includes your logo, business cards, website, social media images, and much more. When your visual products are stunning, people are drawn to you.
Be Unique. You are unique. Your brand should be too. You will become proud of your brand when it is a unique reflection of who you are.
Be Consistent. Your brand message must clearly communicate your message across all platforms. The visual elements you choose, such patterns, and color scheme and the way you write about your company creates a lasting impression in people’s minds.
We have developed our team to include both strategists and creatives. Because of this connection, we don’t just design logos or business cards, we develop strategic first impressions. We don’t just provide marketing ideas, we build solid business leaders.
