Posts Tagged ‘tweet’

As I start my business from scratch, I am finding I have to create everything. I like having a logo, so I paid attention to this from the very get go. I considered getting a VistaPrint logo for Broad River Creative, but I prefer having something unique. So I designed my own logo. Now, it needs to be said, I am not a graphic designer. However, I think I have a pretty good eye for things, and with a little training on Photoshop, I could probably crush a nice logo. But I don’t have Photoshop or the time for training. So I used what I have and designed a logo. I put it on my first batch of business cards. In the end, though, I didn’t like it.

This left me adrift without a logo. Not the end of the world, I know. When I redesigned BroadRiverCreative.com, I just left the logo out of it. I still wanted something nice for the site, for letterhead and other materials. I think a logo helps bring things together. But it would have to wait.

Then something pretty cool happened. I don’t consider myself lucky. I hardly ever win things. But, out of the blue, I got a tweet from 99Designs saying that I had won a $1,000 design package. I was pretty blown away. I could use the award for anything I wanted on the 99Designs web site.

Okay, in case you don’t know, here is a little information about 99Designs. This web site offers crowdsourced designs. Basically, any business or individual puts a job out for bid. Instead of bidding for the price, designers bid with their designs. As someone looking to have something designed, it works out pretty well. You get a lot of variety to choose from. I personally had 236 designs to choose from.

Now, I know that there are quality designers out there that hate sites like this. They feel it commoditizes the process. In some ways, they are right. If you have a little more money, you may be better off hiring a proven designer whose portfolio you like. That gives you more control over the end design. But for people that are just starting out, 99Designs and sites like it are a good match. Its a step above (way above) stock logo sites. You get a custom design, but the cost is lower and controlled.

My experience with 99Designs has been great. In the end, the hardest part was choosing a design. There were some pretty creative entries, and the designers responded to my suggestions and kept working to make just the right logo. In the end, my choice came down to a few really great designs. Some were fun and very unique. I thought that this was what I wanted, and almost went with a design that looked like a box of water with two fish swimming in it. But then I didn’t. I went with a more traditional logo instead.

Why did I make this choice? Well, while I want my company to be fun, I also want a design that is easy to use across multiple mediums. I was afraid the fish one wouldn’t make sense as a logo in some settings. Also, I am going after business customers, and I didn’t want to have a logo that confused them. Taken by itself, the fish logo could look like a fish tank. I don’t sell fish tanks, so I thought that may be a problem.

So I chose another logo that I really liked. This one did a good job of capturing the essence of Broad River Creative without being over the top. It was a design that I saw progress from the simple original that the designer submitted to the end product that you will see below. I liked the cleanness and vibrancy of the logo, and thought that it was simple enough that I could easily grow with it.

That was another important aspect of my decision. Would the logo last? Could I envision myself using the same logo, or perhaps a variation of it, for years to come? A logo should have staying power, otherwise, what’s the point?

So now I have a logo for Broad River Creative. I am so thankful to 99Designs for awarding me the money. Also, they were great to work with all throughout the process. And each and every designer put in a great effort, some making many adjustments. It was hard to say no to many of them.

Of course, the logo is only a small thing. As I create this business, there are so many more important things. Often, I get sidetracked by things like design and look, and don’t pay enough attention to sales and profit. Next time, I’ll tell you a little about my marketing plan and how I hope to bring in a bunch of new clients.

Here is my new logo:

I have spent most of my life failing, or so it seems. When I think of failure, I can see a list of things half-done, not accomplished, or downright failed. Thankfully, I have been blessed with a healthy dose of optimism, so I can keep going and keep trying. In fact, I don’t spend a lot of time looking at past failures, and you shouldn’t either. But from time to time, it is a good idea to reflect on failure. If you can figure out what went wrong, if you can identify a negative pattern, you can learn from it.

That is what Jason Markow had in mind when he started #FAILweek. He wanted businesses to look at their failures not for the failure, but for what can be learned from it. And in encouraging people to share failures, the hope is that others who come behind can more easily learn fr0m our mistakes.

The Potential

The failure I am going to share here is only a half failure. It is the story of what could have been, and maybe a little about the potential that is still there.

I little over a year ago, I was just getting going with my blog and was getting more and more active on Twitter. I still didn’t really know anybody on Twitter. That all changed when I sent out a tweet something to the effect of “I feel like an idea wrangler.” This tweet was read by Neal Rohrbach, a truly amazing and creative guy. Something about what I said hit home with him. We had “met” prior to this on a Twitter chat called #sbbuzz and had gotten along. So Neal, being the go-getter that he is, got inspired and registered a domain name. IdeaWranglers.com wasn’t available, so he registered IdeaAnglers.com instead. The rest, as they say, is history.

When Neal let me know what he did on a whim, I was surprised and excited. At the time, I was also buying up all kinds of domains and dreaming of the businesses that I was going to start with them. In Neal,  I found someone with similar passions, and most importantly, the same heart to help others, especially entrepreneurs. So when I found out what he did, I naturally said, okay, lets see where this takes us.

Where it took us was a partnership. We wanted to develop Idea Anglers to be a site that helped small business owners. We wanted to make money at the same time. A membership site seemed to be the natural fit. So Neal created a site and a great logo (he is a graphic designer, among other things). I brainstormed concepts. We pre-launched and immediately got some good traction. Everyone liked the idea, or more accurately, the story of two strangers meeting on Twitter and launching a business.

The Failure

The idea was the problem. We never really nailed down exactly what we wanted to do. I take the blame for this, since that was primarily my department. I tend to have too many ideas. Turns out, I needed the kind of help that Idea Anglers would eventually offer. Unfortunately, I needed it before Idea Anglers was there to help.

What we ended up with was two very creative people trying to build a broad-based solution for entrepreneurs. We never found the kind of focus we needed, I now realize. Secondly, we both had full time jobs plus side projects we were already working on. We were very busy, so we didn’t have the kind of time we needed to get things launched. So very little time plus not knowing what to focus on when we did find the time meant we couldn’t push it forward fast enough. The fact that we pushed it as far as we did is a testament to what can be accomplished when you work together on something with shared passion.

There were lots of good things. Neal and I got along really well, and still do. I found out that you can really establish meaningful friendships with people that you meet online. Also, it is possible to meet business partners online. Knowing that, what we should have done was narrowed down a focus really fast and then sought to bring more people in to help run things, people who had more time and more focused expertise.

The Education

Idea Anglers is not dead. It is just on vacation. Neal has a great new job that keeps him even busier than before. I am trying to build a business of my own, plus grow this blog. Idea Anglers still fits into my vision of helping small businesses, but it will play a very specific role when I am ready for it.

The lessons I learned are many.

First of all, there is nothing wrong with trying. I got a great friendship out of this. I also saw how opportunities can open up if you just go after them.

Second, it is possible to build meaningful relationships online. My goal this year is to increase those friendships and build on the ones that I have started.

Third, collaboration is better than working at something alone. Idea Anglers would have never gone anywhere if it was just an idea in my head. By bouncing things back and forth with another party, you can move things forward. The key is to have a focus and goals.

Going from here, I have plans. Perhaps too many plans, still. I appreciate more the importance of focus, so I am focusing on fewer things. I want to help small businesses in a lot of ways, perhaps eventually having a full-service coaching/consulting agency. But for now, I am just focusing on one area where I can be of service, helping small businesses with web sites and online marketing. Of course, I am also focusing on this blog and making it better and more dynamic.

I am also going to explore collaboration more and get better at reaching out. I value things like Twitter so much more when I am having meaningful interactions there. I want to build on that. I still want to build some things with other people. This time, however, I am going to go in with a plan and spend time up front building a focus and specific goals.

And maybe there is one more lesson. Neal and I are both very creative. We thrive on the ideas. If we wanted to build a membership site, what we should have done was bring in an expert in that. A good expert can really help you focus your ideas and broad thoughts, no matter what they are. When you are having trouble moving forward, but you know you have good ideas, I really suggest getting some expert help.

So that is my story of failure. It wouldn’t be a good story if there wasn’t something to learn from it. How have you used failure as a learning tool for success? Because that is all failure is, another tool that you can use to build your dreams. Its nothing to be afraid of, really.

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Bradford Shimp helps small businesses build web sites and online presence. Follow him on Twitter @bradfordshimp.

Twitter is very easy to get started on. Publishing your content is a no-brainer. You just write some words and send it to the stream. But this is not what makes Twitter so special. What does make Twitter special is the amount of interaction you can have with other people. Twitter is, more than anything else, a networking tool.

As you use Twitter for your business, you will want to build and nurture a two-fold network. First, you want to meet, interact, and learn from people who are doing the same thing you are doing. This is both generally, as in they run their own business, and specifically, as in you are both karate instructors. Secondly, you want to meet and interact with people who live within your ideal customer demographic.

Finding the Right People

Finding the right people to interact with is key to having success on Twitter. There are various ways to do this. Read about how to find people in your niche using Twellow in this article. Also, use Mr. Tweet to get good recommendations based on who others in your network are following.

Twitter chats are a great way to meet new people. Check out this growing list of Twitter chats to find out if there is one that appeals to you.

You also want to include searches for specific key words as part of your strategy to find the right people.

But don’t take all of your time searching for people and neglect your primary job on Twitter. That job is to keep posting interesting and pertinent information. If you do this on a regular basis, the right people will begin to find you.

Reach Out

Once you are following interesting people, you need to reach out to them. Take some time every day to respond to people’s tweets. Also, be generous in retweeting good information. The goal is to strike up some conversations and to start building some relationships. You have to put any shyness aside. You are only sending 140 characters or less, so don’t feel bad about interrupting anyone’s day. On the other hand, never send ads directly or anything like that. When you reach out to someone, do it to be helpful, to ask a question, or to engage in conversation.

Nurture

You may follow and be followed by a lot of people on Twitter. However, you will only be able to maintain an active relationship with a handful at a time. Your ongoing network will be made up of people that you respect as friends and mentors. Your potential customers will move in and out of your communication zone. Always be ready to reach out to a potential to answer a question or to lend a helping hand.

For the ongoing friendships with people who are in a similar position as you, you should have a plan. Use a tool like TweetDeck to organize your tweets, and devote a group column just to these people. That way, you can read more of their Tweets and get more active as a networker. Take time to reach out on a regular basis. Take an interest in them.

If you are committed to it, you can build a dynamic and useful network over Twitter that will open up new opportunities.

Have a Small Business Question? Ask me and I will answer it here – email me with your question now.

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–

Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow on Twitter @bradfordshimp. Let Bradford help you with your business – visit BroadRiverCreative.com

Suggestions on how to use Twitter and keep it useful.

1. Do not Auto-DM. Yes, it is tempting to send a link through to everyone who follows you. However, most people find this annoying. People follow you because they want good content and interaction. If you start off your end of the relationship with a sales pitch, and an automated one at that, you are setting the wrong tone. Plus, you will get unfollowed by a lot of people. Leave the Auto-DMs to internet marketers who value quantity over substance.
2. Push Others as Much as You Push Yourself. Twitter is a great tool for promotion. However, if you spend all of your time promoting yourself, people won’t want to listen. Spend at least as much time promoting other’s tweets, articles, and businesses. And don’t forget, what goes around, comes around.
3. Save the Embarrassing Stuff for Facebook. Don’t post that compromising photo or that bit of gossip on Twitter. All tweets can be seen via Twitter Search, even by people who don’t follow you.
4. Provide Value Instead of Pitches. People flock to value. If you want to increase your followers and keep them happy, provide quality tweets. This value play will lead people back to you and your business, so you can keep your direct pitches to a minimum.
5. Answer Questions. More and more people are using Twitter as a search tool. If you see a question pop up that you know the answer to, take the time to answer it. Not only will you be helpful, you might start a great new relationship.
6. Always Give Credit. Don’t poach someone else’s great tweet. Instead, retweet it with their username attached. If you have to, edit the tweet so that the originators username still fits.
7. Leave Room for the RT. To make things easier for people to retweet your posts, always leave about 10 characters open at the end. This will give people the opportunity to retweet without having to edit your original tweet.

Add your Twitter etiquette suggestions in the comments. If they are really good, I will update the post with them (giving you full credit, of course)!

Twellow is an interesting tool which acts much like a yellow pages for Twitter. You can search by topic or by geographic region. You can also sort your searches in a number of ways, including how many followers a person has.

If you are trying to build a network for your business on Twitter, you should be using Twellow. You can find new colleagues and people who would be ideal customers.

If you are a virtual assistant, for instance, you will want to connect with other virtual assistants. There is a lot to be gained from networking within your field of expertise. You will also want to find people to connect with who might hire virtual assistants. Small businesses for example. Or online marketers.

To find any of these people, simply type your search term into Twellow. If you want to follow people directly from Twellow, you will have to create a free account, which simply involves you providing your Twitter log in information.

You can go down the list and decide who you want to follow. If you want to follow top people in your field, simply start with the person with the most followers and go down. If, however, you are hoping to build relationships and get customers, look for people with 50 to 100 followers and follow them. If you engage with these people, they will be more likely to engage back, and you can start a relationship.

Don’t follow too many people at once. Do a few at a time and then find a way to engage with them. This can be a reply to a tweet or you can strike up a conversation. The goal is to establish the connection. You won’t establish a relationship with everyone. You want to find those who are active on Twitter and who are interested in your topic. In other words, find people that share your passions.

Continue to revisit and refine your searches on Twellow. Build networks based on interest and location. Twellow is a very useful tool in your quest to build a worthwhile Twitter network.

Have a Small Business Question? Ask me and I will answer it here – email me with your question now.

Get Unique Content Weekly with The Letter

–

Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow on Twitter @bradfordshimp. Let Bradford help you with your business – visit BroadRiverCreative.com