Process trumps Content

In the last few weeks, I've been focusing my attention on networking and content, while in the back of my mind, I've been wanting to add some real meat to this infrastructure I've been assembling. When you surf the internet, do you just see a bunch of websites and content and information? I don't. I don't just have a website and a blog and some social media pages — I have a dream. I have an idea for how to realize it. All of this stuff is just part of the Process.

Today Seth Godin asks What are you good at? "Process... refers to the emotional intelligence skills you have about managing projects, visualizing success, persuading other people of your point of view, dealing with multiple priorities, etc. This stuff is insanely valuable and hard to learn. Unfortunately, it's usually overlooked by headhunters and HR folks, partly because it's hard to accredit or check off in a database.

"As the world changes ever faster, as industries shrink and others grow, process ability is priceless. Figure out which sort of process you're world-class at and get even better at it. Then, learn the domain... that's what the internet is for.

"One of the reasons that super-talented people become entrepreneurs is that they can put their process expertise to work in a world that often undervalues it."

Dang, Seth – you nailed it!

How about you? What are your unique talents? How can they help you in your Process?

Who has time for social media?

I spent the last couple weeks testing what happens when I link my site to social networks like Facebook and Twitter (I was already linked to my LinkedIn profile). There has been a marked increase in visitors to my site and blog. 

In this new media world, there are obvious benefits to using social media and networking to encourage new visitors to come to your site. More visitors means more potential clients. After less than two days on Twitter I racked up two dozen Followers without even trying. What's not to like? Some people on there even have tens-of-thousands of people following their "tweets".

But hang on. For one thing, wow - that's a lot of information coming at me all at once. I had information overload after only modest effort. Plus, I bill clients by the hour. Time spent tweeting is time away from building a website for an existing client. And if my clients are all out tweeting, they aren't doing that thing they do, either. 

I had been studying the activity of professional social mediacs. How does a small business owner of a product or service manage the time it takes to go make all of these social contacts? You can't spend ALL day at the water cooler.

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing outlined his routine for social media yesterday. For those of you just starting out in social media it will seem very time-consuming (and perhaps a little OCD). You will probably say that you don't have the time to devote to such a strategy. But keep things in perspective: Rome wasn't built in a day, John Jantsch markets for a living, and even modest effort really does create measurable results.

Here are the goals I've set for myself for 2009:

• Update my Olsen Creative website once a month (I also added news links so there's new content on there every day)
  
• Post to my Short-term Strategies blog once a week (set to distribute posts to my website and Facebook notes)
  
• Create and maintain a del.icio.us list of bookmarks (I've started a personal list, but want to create one for business)
• Twitter about olsencreative at the beginning and end of my day (I had a deadline today and didn't tweet about it - just got to work)
  
• Start a Facebook Page for Olsen Creative
  

Are you using social media? What services? What are your goals?

Accidental Graphic Design - 3: 4 things to know before you start a design project

At the core of every graphic design project is the marketing message. It’s the story. The subject. The essence. Beginning a design without clear direction is a recipe for confusion – that’s evidently how we got the platypus.

The message determines the design. Before you pick a single color or font, know your purpose.

Find the answers to these questions, then let the rest fall into place:

1) Who is your target audience? Learn all you can about the demographics. Who are you speaking to? Male or Female? Young or Mature? Empathize. How would you talk to them if they were sitting in front of you?

2) What does your audience expect? Do they already know your product? Do you need to educate them? How does your product compare to the competition? How can you enlighten your audience?

3) What is the personality of your business, or the Brand? (For the sake of creating a design, the more adjectives you can come up with, the better) How your business presents itself is a key element to making a decision on graphic elements. Be consistent with the Brand personality. Imagine that you are the Brand, and you meet a friend on the street. How do you act? How does this situation differ from when you meet a client in the boardroom? Your business should have a consistent brand standard. Know it and live it. Don’t be visually schizophrenic, like our friend Mr. Platypus.

4) What mood or image do you want this project to convey? Do yourself a service and reflect your brand personality. There’s nothing worse than having an established brand and then creating a very different piece based on your creative whim. There’s no better way to lose your audience than to turn away from your buddy, The Brand. Instead, imagine that this piece is speaking on behalf of the Brand. It’s like writing a script for an established character. If you were going to write a play about, say, Robin Hood, he would have a distinct, recognizeable personality (the Brand), but he could find himself in a myriad of situations (the Project), and would handle himself differently depending on to whom he was speaking (the Audience). "Robin Hood the Dude" has many possibilities, but "Robin Hood the Brand" must stay consistent or he risks being mistaken for another character.

When you’re clear in your direction, you're ready to start designing.



Use what you already know.

Learn what your audience already knows.

Know your purpose.

Be relevant in communicating.