That being said, I’ve been to countless recruitment events over the years and it is not always smooth sailing. I’ve had my fair share of tradeshow traumas over the years. Here are just some of the lessons learned that I would like to share with you:

Don’t get too excited if something goes wrong or something falls between the cracks.  No matter how well you’ve planned everything, something is bound to happen at a tradeshow: a booth rep you were counting on may need to cancel at the last minute, or the person who helped you pack the materials forgot to include the brochure holders. Do try to check every detail before you leave the office (a checklist always helps), expect the unexpected, and be flexible and adaptable.  Leave the perfectionist back at the office, and be ready to improvise or “wing-it” when something unexpected pops-up.

Related to No. 1: Don’t trust the items you ship will make it there intact.  More than once I have had to “Mcgyver” bent roll-up banner supports, twisted frames, and scrunched-up give-aways.  Do check equipment before you ship it, and also once it arrives at the event location. Bring extras if you can, and order re-enforced packaging for your key materials – it’s worth the small investment when you consider that your $1,500 roll-up banners could otherwise show-up in a twisted mess (just in case, it may be a good idea to pack a small tool kit in case you need to do some on-site repairs!)

Do not put all give-aways and company swag out at once. At some events, visitors expect that you will have “goodies” to give away, and may treat booths like it’s Halloween. Do put out a nice selection of brochures and pens closest to the concourse. Keep the more expensive items closer to the back of the display. This way you can hand them to visitors who are truly interested in your company and who make strong potential candidates. Keep a reserve of give-aways to be able to replenish the display throughout the day.

Do not show up without anything valuable to say. Visitors come to your booth to learn more about your company and not to talk about the weather or the current state of the economy (well, generally speaking).  Do prepare key messages and a “30 second elevator speech” which provide a good overview of your company.  Share these with the team you’ve assembled ahead of time.

Do not show-up looking haggard. For the time you are at the booth you are the face of your company so you need to look your best.  Do get a good night’s rest and eat a good breakfast before the event, and bring the things you will need to freshen-up.  We all know we should dress for success at these types of events. However, it is also a good idea to bring a small kit containing hand-sanitizer, breath mints, hair brush, hairspray, as well as a sewing kit and safety-pins (or duct tape!) to fix wardrobe and other malfunctions.

Don’t treat your booth like a diner. This is one of my biggest pet peeves – there is probably no bigger turn-off for visitors than seeing (smelling) a big plate of half-eaten nachos or scrambled eggs and ketchup displayed next to the company brochures and give-aways. Yuck!  Do keep your booth tidy and food free. Make a booth schedule and take turns for lunch and for coffee breaks. Have your drink or food somewhere other than at the booth. The only exception is to keep a bottle of water hidden behind the roll-up banners.

Do not leave the booth unattended. Always have a representative at the booth.  I went to one event where several other employers left their booth to attend a workshop. They left some brochures, swag, and candy at the kiosk – but the reps were nowhere to be seen. It felt sort of eerie, like a ghost town. Do have a schedule to ensure there is always a minimum of two reps at the booth so there is back-up for breaks.

Do not wear your favourite stilettos. I know it is tempting to wear your favourite heels or pointy lace-ups. If you give in to this urge, you will regret it for days. Do wear comfortable shoes and avoid getting what I refer to as “hamburger feet.” Shop well for your tradeshow shoes and go for both comfort and style – your feet will thank you for it!

Most of all, when it comes to tradeshows, Do not sweat the small stuff and Do enjoy meeting great people and have fun!

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Lisa Anna Palmer is Principal & Owner at Cattelan Palmer Consulting. Lisa helps organizations develop and achieve their HR vision and individuals put their best foot forward to current or prospective employers. Whether you are a leader within an organization seeking to maximize performance – or an individual planning a career change – her consulting style integrates empathy and practical business sense to identify your core needs and recommend solutions designed specifically for you. Lisa can be reached by e-mail at cattelan.palmer@gmail.com or at 613-590-9654.

And what exactly do I mean by respecting your logo?

As a trusted expert recently told me, “Brands aren’t shoes. They don’t come in different colours and sizes.”

If you’ve gone to the trouble and expense of having your logo designed, use it as it was meant to: don’t change it, don’t play with it, don’t alter it, don’t mess around with it simply because YOU are tired of it. Your designer has already done the work; now your job is to use that logo consistently across all media, and build some brand recognition. Your job isn’t to mes around with something a professional has already done for you. And what exactly are those sins I’m referring to? Here’s a short list:

1) Changing the colour
DON’T. Your designer has already given you your company colours. If you now hate them, you have to question why. Don’t forget: although the logo may be quite personal, and there may be quite a bit of you in there, the logo isn’t for you-it’s for your target audience. They are the ones that are supposed to respond to it, remember it, be loyal to it, and choose it when it comes to spending money.

2) Skewing it or resizing it
Either resize it proportionately, or don’t do it at all. Better yet: have your designer come up with some brand image standards that you AND your staff can follow faithfully. Stretching your logo, squishing it, rotating it only makes it look silly and distored. And trust me, people can tell when your logo’s been resized incorrectly-it looks weird.

3) “Decorating”  it
This includes transgressions such as adding a dropshadow, a glowing edge, some extra dots, or even some words….to make it a little “different” if it’s being used somewhere else, for example, in the flyers you are distributing. All this achieves is to create confusion. Potential buyers don’t want to wonder if they are dealing with the same company; they expect to see the same logo, over and over, and that’s what they should get.

4) Providing vendors/suppliers with a poor-quality image
If someone asks for your logo (ex. people in charge of an event you are sponsoring), give them a good copy-preferrably a vector (.eps) copy. These folks should not be hunting high and low for a good quality copy of your logo: it’s YOUR job to provide it. And don’t even think about telling them to “get it from your website.” That is a low-resolution logo that will only succeed in making your company look unprofessional.

The moral of the story is that once you have had your logo designed, it should stay that way. Resist the temptation to “play with it.”

CHRISTMAS.

Let me start by saying that yes, this is the odd time I’ll get on my soapbox. But it’s for a good reason.

Over the past few years, the politically correct sector has been trying to erase the word “Christmas” from our interactions. I heard that the LCBO’s policy is that their employees are no longer allowed to use the word “Christmas” when addressing customers. No matter where we go, suddenly it has became taboo to wish someone a “merry Christmas.” Now this upsets me for a lot of reasons….one of the big ones being that I simply love Christmas cards! what’s not to love about these gorgeous greetings cards we send one another as the holiday approaches? All that colour, all that glitter, all the shiny metallic accents….?

As a designer, I have designed a Christmas card or two in my career. And yes, I do have to toe that fine line between professionalism, not offending any religious group, or the perception that I’m trying to push my beliefs on anyone.  But I simply can’t see a problem with sending out a holiday greeting that wishes someone well, whether that’s Christmas, Hanukkah, etc.

Yes, I do send out Christmas cards. In this age of digital convention and going paperless, it has become tougher to maintain this tradition. Part of me thinks of the criticism coming my way for “not saving some trees,” not to mention the cost of (usually rising) postage. But ultimately, at the end of the day, all I want to do is to send a simple greeting letting someone know I’m thinking of them, and wishing them well–during the holiday and into the new year. How can anyone have a problem with that? If someone from another faith wished me a greeting that relates to their holiday celebration, I would gladly accept it.

So next time someone wishes me a “happy holiday” I more than likely will say “thank you, and a happy Christmas to you” and mean it with a lot of joyful spirit in my heart. After all, that’s what the holidays are about. And who knows, I may just give them a christmas card as well…

What do I mean by “setting up the customers’ expectations?” The store’s visual image (brand image) gives great clues as to what you can expect to buy. The Black Chandelier supplies everyday wear plus clubwear for men and women, bringing in clothing from bigger cities. Visit their Facebook page (and some of their photos) and you will see their clothing is definitely geared towards a younger, edgier crowd…. which makes sense when you sell corsets and clubwear! Most people walking past the storefront would already have a feeling this is the type of store that caters to a younger, more urban crowd. Everything about this store’s image sets up the right expectations: the black colour, the gothic font, the sign.

This is a great strategy because by doing this, the store owners are ensuring that the right shopper comes into the store-younger crowd, probably teens and university-age shoppers who tend to like a little black and goth on their bodies. Certainly I wouldn’t expect that children, pregnant women or golfers would be shopping there! Creating this sort of “visual expectation” narrows down their target market, making it stand out from every other average store in town. In addition, customers will know what to expect and what not to, thus eliminating aggravation and frustration for shopppers. Judging by the mannequins, I don’t imagine many 50 yr-old-women will expect to find something for them. But that’s ok. Because they know they won’t.

Creating the right expectations is a great idea for every business; doing this brings us our ideal client and lets them know what they can expect to get, cutting down the guessing. For example, I may know a thing or two about websites, Twitter, blogs and Facebook, but I would never dream of calling myself a “new media designer.” That’s because I specialize in brand image and logo design. Nowhere in my marketing does it say “I design websites.” That ensures that clients looking for logo design, or design of marketing collateral will find me instead.

What about you? Does anyone ever say “wow, your office/store/practice is not at ALL what I expected!” Creating that kind of inconsistency might be tough for some potential clients to overcome. Make it easier on yourself and on your prospects-and lead them in correctly. They don’t want surprises! If they came to you expecting warm hugs and tea, they don’t want to get a drill sargeant who screams at them!

1) What IS your message? What is the goal of this ad? What do you want to say-and to whom?  Until this is clear, you can’t know what images to use, what headline to write, and where to place the ad. Try to stick to one or two main ideas, so the viewer will remember your ad-and hopefully respond.

2) Who is your audience?
It’s really important to determine who this ad is aimed at-and it isn’t “everyone.” If your ad is targetting teens, for example, you would not use the same language that you would use for teachers. If you are targetting engineers, chances are, they will expect an ad that’s different than what artists would respond to.

3) GET TO THE POINT!
It shouldn’t have to be stressed,  but with limited space and little room for text…just say what you need to say! There is no room (or attention span) for long-drawn out paragraphs and flowery language; get to it as briefly as possible, but don’t forget to make an impression: it’s all about the way you word things.

4) Choose your visuals carefully.
Research shows that 70% of people look only at the IMAGES in an ad-and don’t bother to read the rest. Make sure the images you use are meaningful, whether they are photographs or illustrations. Your images should have impact, be relevant to the ad, and of good quality. Keep in mind that ONE great image is better than 7 small ones that only clutter the space. Choose one image that really makes your point.

5) Choose the right format.
Decide what size works best with your budget, but also consider the publication it will be printed in: A full page ad in a regional/neighbourhood paper will not yield any results if you are trying to reach medium-sized companies across the province!

6) Keep it Simple.
In other words: declutter. Nothing about your ad should be vague or ambiguous…we all hate ads that leave us wondering exactly what it was they were selling!

7) Make your headline big. And obvious.
Lately, some magazines carry ads that leave me wondering whether those are ads or articles….and I don’t care enough to read further. Don’t let that happen to you; if you have something to sell, or a story to tell, make it obvious, make it large, make it stand out from the rest of the ad.

Let them know how to REACH you!
It’s surprising how often readers simply can’t find a phone number, email address, or website to reach the company that’s placed the ad. Don’t make your audience work hard to reach you…because they won’t. They will simply give up and go to the competition. If you want people to phone you, make that obvious. If you want people to buy online, give them your website! Don’t leave them wondering.

And there’s some tips to help you with your next ad. Remember: it’s a small space you are working with….make the most of it. And don’t forget to have someone proofread it!

The interesting thing about these moving eateries is that they’ve taken a completely non-traditional approach to marketing and advertising. Many of the owners of these trucks operate the business and don’t have a great deal of time or money to sit and hash out a traditional print advertising strategy. What most have in common is that they use social media to drive their sales. Most rely on their websites, Facebook fanpages, and Twitter accounts to attract customers, and tell them where they’re parked!

So some may think that as a print designer this might be a problem for me. Not at all! What these food trucks have in common is that although they use online media to advertise, the vast majority have very strong brand images to support their vision. You will find that none of these trucks are the plain, boring type; most are boldly painted, with, at the very least, a memorable logo, and an obvious colour scheme. The pain jobs alone are worth the visit! Many of the trucks are refitted to stand out even more, as in the case with Maximus Minimus.

Why bother with a logo or a colour scheme for “just a food truck”? Because the business owners understand that part of the success lies in standing out from the other food vendors, being unique, and making people notice. Who can ignore a steel pig with sunglasses sitting near their office? Or a black bbq truck with orange flames painted all over it?

One that does go above the rest in terms of brand image is The Yellow Submarine in Florida. The owners are working around a music theme, and have created a menu based on bands/songs they like, with “the yellow submarine” as the central theme. The font is used everywhere, which further helps strengthen their look.

Take a break and check out some of these websites/Twitter pages-but not when you’re hungry!

Today’s post is courtesy of Sandra Hamway, of Infuse Five. Thanks Sandra for your insights!

What does your corporate image look like? What you think it is may be different than what your customers perceive. However, there are steps you can take to move those two images closer together.

The first step is to review your current brand identity. Is your logo on all your corporate collateral (business cards, sales information, etc…)?  Do you have a website? Is that information truly accurate and correct? Typos and grammatical errors can even affect the way your target audience views the quality level of your company.

Step two is to take action. We all know small businesses continually need to fight just a little bit harder for sales. It might be worth it to bring in an expert to get that part of your business in order. You won’t need to mortgage your home to do it, either.

An experienced marketing professional will work with you to further define your strategic path and help produce the tools you need to close the sale. Many companies wait until their business cards run out before the mad rush to re-order. Why not take a breath and get a plan together now so it’s ready to implement for 2012?

Your final step is to implement that change. The goal is to develop a consistent package where it will serve to achieve your brand recognition and the level of quality you provide to your clients. This could mean updating your logo, letterhead (e-letterhead), business cards, website content and/or design, and creating new sales tools to help you close deals – quicker. An experienced marketing consultant will provide you with ongoing communication so you are part of that solution.

Your feedback is imperative to its success.  A seasoned marketer will listen to what your current and future needs are, so that the work produced will address specifically those requirements. Meet with one in the coming weeks so that you have everything in hand when the New Year arrives.

Concluding advice: Don’t rely on your neighbour’s son to create or manage your business website.  Be clever, invest in the right places. Take a look into your corporate mirror and see more than today’s face. Get organized for the year ahead, right now.

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Infuse Five is a marketing consulting firm owned by Sandra Hamway and operated in Ottawa, Canada. Their expertise is in corporate branding and developing marketing and sales tools that drive target audiences to respond. For more information contact Sandra at 613.884.7714; shamway@InfuseFive.com or visit www.InfuseFive.com

I’ll admit it. I’m not always on top of reading the blogs I subscribe to. So a little while ago I was catching up on Leighton Hubbell’s post from June 3 (“Go with the flow, or swim upstream”). And it really struck a cord with me. Because I have been in those shoes before…and I hated every minute of it. And that’s why I get to write (rant?) about it today.

It happens sometimes that I find myself working with a client who requests an enormous amount of revisions. And we go on and on, with endless revisions. One time  a client took nine months to decide whether he wanted his logo coloured or reversed out to green (ie. the logo itself white, against a green background). On and on we went trying to find the “best” solution. After a while, I started to feel frustrated-and like an idiot.

Let me explain: when a client asks me to try over 15 colour combinations for her logo, I start to feel like I don’t know what I’m doing. When a client asks me to try one more font-even though I have given him 20 other choices-I start to feel incompetent. When a client wants a graphic element rotated 5 degrees at a time….7 times….then I start to wonder what I’m doing. And my feelings start getting hurt!

Am I a delicate flower? am I a sensitive, “tortured artist” who can’t take criticism? am I so arrogant that I can’t consider the clients’ opinions? No at all. What does happen is that the client begins to dictate every move, every design decision-which is what I was hired for. I once worked for a client who told me exactly-to the letter-what she wanted. The colour, the font, the placement, the photos, the order…. I was just a pair of hands who knew how to use Illustrator. And what use is that? Basically, anyone who knew how to use Photoshop/Illustrator/InDesign would have sufficed. I certainly wasn’t anything special in her eyes. I was just a “pixel pusher.”

What clients sometimes may forget, is that as a designer I am  trained to give opinions where visual elements are concerned. A lot of times clients are delighted with the design I present them: “I would have never thought of that!” Exactly. And I have the experience and the eye to know whether a colour combination will work, or if two fonts will play nicely together. Or when we really need to fnd better photographs.

I know what Leighton meant and felt. It’s hard when a client doesn’t trust me enough to make good design decision….which is what I am paid to do. So yes, I take it personally when a client doesn’t trust my experience and my education (at a real, accredited institution!). And that’s why sometimes I say “No. We are not doing that.” Sometimes, I just have to fight for my design decisions!

A long time ago, when I was single and venturing out to buy wine on my own, I remember visiting the LCBO store(s), and for the most part, they were ugly, dingy, fairly unremarkable stores. Nothing could be further from the truth today. A number of years ago, LCBO went through major rebranding-in every sense of the word. Everything about the LCBO was overhauled, from brand image, to store decor, and everything in between. Everything got a makeover: the colours, the layout of the stores, the lighting. Today, going shopping for spirits certainly lifts many spirits!

One of the LCBO initiatives I like the most, quite naturally, is their magazines. The LCBO has a regular magazine, as well as special publications, such as this spring’s ModOZ. It’s a special magazine dedicated exclusively to the growing Australian wine industry. I loved this issue for many reasons; the main one being the absolutely gorgeous wine label designs. Wine labels have been an interest of mine for years as a designer, and these are outstanding. Then there’s the recipes, the featured chefs and sommeliers, the photography….!

If there’s one thing I can praise the LCBO most highly for, it would be for their uncompromising design standards. They understand that a magazine like this needs fabulous photography, and what we get is outstanding. At a time when design standards are falling by the wayside in many current magazines, the LCBO gives me hope (again, as a designer, of course!). If you’ve never thumbed through one of these special publications, you can check out the Australian wines feature online by clicking here.

Cheers!

When it comes to business, one of the first things I ask my clients is to tell me what they sell and who they sell it to.  Simple question – but here’s the catch.  The answer to that question determines everything about how the business is run and whether it will be profitable.

Everything about business – and particularly the success of business – starts with a clear “brand”. That brand includes price (Holt Renfrew vs. Wal-Mart), delivery (big box store vs. Boutique service) and niche (specialist vs. Generalist: hint, specialists make more money).  Trust me, you never want to be referred because you’re cheap.

To help my clients drill down to the specifics, here are the exercises we work through.  While they may sound like marketing questions, in truth, these questions provide insight into every aspect of your business.

1.  What are you selling? (products and services/features and benefits)
2.  Who are you selling to? (highest and best market for your niche and needs)
3.  Where will you find them? (where do they live, play and eat – what do they read?)
4.  What will you tell them? (what is the pain your “A” list clients or customers would like you to solve/remove and how do you address this in language, and marketing material?)
5.  How much do you need to sell and at what price point? (do you want to be known as the cheapest or the best – how much money does it take to run your business properly and live well?)
6.  How will you service them to keep them in the repeat/referral loop? (managing customer expectations and building your service brand – managing the “I care” part of your business)

Once you can answer these questions thoroughly (when there are no more “why” questions you can ask or answer) you have a base on which to build a successful business – and a “brand” you can build your reputation on. After all, your brand is the public face of your business.

Successful business is all about products & services, marketing, sales, management, profits – and YOU.

Now go get the brand out!

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Angela Sutcliffe means business!  Angela is an experienced business advisor who does strategic planning for serious business owners.  Among her services, she holds “how to” workshops and is a frequent keynote and guest speaker for business organizations and associations. Currently, Angela is the Nepean Chamber of Commerce Businesswoman of the Year.  For more information on what she can do for your business, Angela can be reached at 613.721.0141; angela@angelasutcliffe.com or through her website at www.angelasutcliffe.com.