Ink Publishing & Design announces affiliation with Lil SociaLyte

Ink Publishing & Design announces affiliation with Lil SociaLyte

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2015

Louisville – Ink Publishing & Design announces its expansion and progression by affiliating with digital marketing company, Lil SociaLyte, LLC who offers a state-of-the-art text marketing program.

Poised for growth, this proactive approach for the future allows Ink Publishing & Design to build upon its already established social media marketing services and bring text marketing to its customers.

“This is really about looking long term for both companies and building on our menu of services to clients,” said Ink Publishing & Design President Yetta Blair.

Established in 1999, Ink Publishing & Design has more than 16 years of marketing experience and is supported by an experienced staff to facilitate any size marketing, publishing and design project.

Lil SociaLyte is headed by CEO and founder, Ellie Blair. Ellie has ten years experience in marketing and brings fresh and exciting ideas to engaging customers and helping businesses add to their bottom lines.

“This change enhances the positive growth the employees of Ink Publishing & Design have created since we started and we are excited by the possibilities,” said Yetta Blair. “By sharing resources and being affiliated with Lil SociaLyte, we can grow and expand our client services.”

Ink Publishing & Design is located in Louisville, KY and located at:

833 Valley College Drive
Suite 8
Louisville, KY 40272
502-271-1166

www.inkmagazines.com

Yetta Blair founded Ink Publishing and Design in 1999, with a passionate drive to produce high quality custom company magazines for organizations. Fast-forward to nearly two decades later and IPD is now thriving as a strong and nimble creative marketing agency offering a menu of products to help clients market their business and communicate with their customers. They offer website design, graphic design, custom developed company magazines, help in self published books, email marketing, printing and now text marketing. They are client focused and results oriented and do everything they can to ensure they are delivering a high quality product each and every time.

Mission First. Brand Second.

Mission first. Brand second. 

By Yetta Blair


Recently I was asked by a young organization to help them with their marketing materials and branding. After meeting with them and reviewing their current materials, they were surprised, when I told them the first step to building their organization’s brand was to fine-tune their mission statement. They had a good start on a mission statement but it still read more like goals to reach a mission, instead of a mission statement itself. It had no passion. It had no direction. It had no soul. It gave no real clue as to the organizations brand.

Your mission statement is the soul of your brand and it should drive everything else your business does. It is your “why”. It is the very reason your organization does what it does. It provides your company direction. It helps you stay focused and clear. It is a reminder to each member of your organization of where you are going, what you are doing and why you are doing it. It keeps you moving in the right direction and it can take your business to the next level.

Up until now, you may not have considered your mission statement to be all that important or relevant to your business brand. But, your mission is your core purpose and it defines your brand. Once your mission statement defines your brand, taking steps to build on that brand and establishing a significant and differentiated presence in the market, should fall easily into place. A highly skilled design company can then easily assist in creating marketing materials, logo designs, website updates and more that reflect your brand. But, first things first.

Here are some tips on how to develop your mission statement

• Start by asking yourself questions such as:

What do we do? 

Who are our customers or the people we aim to help?

What’s our role?

Why did we organize this business? What is our long term and short term plans?

What image do we want to convey? What is our style, culture?

• When writing your mission statement make sure to:

Write it with a goal that’s an action, not a sentiment.

Make it quantifiable.

Use vibrant exciting words but match your company’s personality.

Create dynamic visual images and inspire action.

Keep it short. Leave out the fluff.

Write it in a way that signals what your business is about.

Be clear about your passion and values for operating your organization.

Revise it when necessary.

Believe in your own statement. If you do not, your customers will pick up on that.

Examples of Mission Statements

Facebooks mission 

“Facebook's mission is to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected.”

Coca‑Cola Company Mission
 

Our mission is:

· To refresh the world - in mind, body and spirit 

· To inspire moments of optimism - through our brands and actions 

· To create value and make a difference everywhere we engage

McDonald’s mission 

“McDonald's brand mission is to be our customers' favorite place and way to eat and drink. Our worldwide operations are aligned around a global strategy called the Plan to Win, which center on an exceptional customer experience – People, Products, Place, Price and Promotion. We are committed to continuously improving our operations and enhancing our customers' experience.”

General Motor’s mission

"G.M. is a multinational corporation engaged in socially responsible operations, worldwide. It is dedicated to provide products and services of such quality that our customers will receive superior value while our employees and business partners will share in our success and our stock-holders will receive a sustained superior return on their investment."

American Red Cross mission

The American Red Cross, a humanitarian organization led by volunteers and guided by its Congressional Charter and the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross Movement, will provide relief to victims of disaster and help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies.

Google’s Mission

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."

Communicating Why You Are Different Can Build Your Business

Communicating Why You Are Different Can Build Your Business

By: Yetta Blair

The most powerful marketing strategy is not social media, direct mail, television, or publicity.  It is instead, uncovering and then communicating what makes your business different from every other business that says they do what you do.

If you want to build your business and increase sales, a good place to start is answering these two basic questions; why should customers choose your business over the competitor and have you adequately communicated what makes you different to your customers?

Why should a customer choose your business over your competitor?

When trying to figure out why a customer should choose you over the other guy, start by looking for ways to claim a unique point of difference over your competition. Some clues to uncovering your difference could be looking at your best clients and figuring out what elements exist with them.  You could even ask them why they chose to work with you, why they stay with you and why they refer you.  You can also consider asking yourself the following questions: 

Product/Service:  Do you offer a product or service that is unique and trendy that only your business is associated with that offering? 

Market or Niche:  Have you carved out an industry and become the dominant player in that industry? 

Customer Service:  Do you offer unmatched customer service?  Do you go above and beyond a customer’s expectations? 

Guarantee: Do you offer a guarantee so strong that no one else in your industry is willing to match it? 

Pricing: Do you offer better value in pricing? People who buy professional services want a professional so providing professional services at a fair price that is value driven (not necessarily the cheapest), is a good way differentiate yourself from the competition.

Do your customers know why they should choose your company?

Once you have figured out what differentiates your business from the other guy, all your advertising and promotional materials should be centered around communicating that difference.  You can’t expect your customer to seek out and know the difference.  You need to tell them. And keep telling them. Over and over again, you should tell them. Here are a few ideas to consider when getting your message out:

Create an infographic.  Since 90% of buying decisions are influenced by visual factors, don’t forget to promote your message with visuals that grab your customer’s attention.  An infographic can be a fun way to do this. 

Include it on your website.  Sounds simple, but you don’t want to forget this option even if it means an update to your site. 

Social Media Engagement.  Create a dialogue with customers about what makes you unique using your social media platforms.  

"70% of consumers prefer getting to know a company via articles rather than ads." 

Content Marketing. Content Marketing is a compelling way for a business to get what is unique about them in front of their customers.  With content marketing you can engage readers with relevant articles that educate and at the same time, entertain and deliver value.  You can create a company magazine to engage in content marketing along with a blog.  Both complement each other perfectly and by offering content in both print and digital formats, your message can reach your customers wherever they are.   

Best Business Practices when using Twitter

Best Business Practices when using Twitter 

By Sarah Gaither

With over 200 million users generating well over 200 million tweets a day, keeping your company’s message in front of your audience is easier than you think.  We have complied a list of guidelines to help business' get the most out of their corporate twitter account.

1. Know What Twitter Is: Twitter is a real-time information network. What does that mean?  It means that as soon as you post something to Twitter the people online at that time are going to be the people most likely to see it. 

2. Clearly Define Your Objectives:  It is important to have clearly defined objectives.  Do you want to highlight content, spark action, or encourage awareness of an issue?  Clearly defined objectives will help your company use Twitter to meet your larger communication goals. 

3. One Voice: Many companies have two or three people in charge of attempting to run their social media platforms.  We recommend having one profile manager to be your voice.  One person in charge means that your company will have:

Regular content: This keeps your followers engaged in what you have to say.  We encourage companies to consider posting at least once a week.

A Consistent Voice: It’s hard for three people to have one consistent voice.  

Accountability: When Tweeting for a company it’s good to know who had made the comment when issues arise.

4. Engage: As with any communication from your company, engaging with your audience(s) is important. It allows you to develop relationships and communicate messages that prompt them to take action.

This means following people that have similar interest in the community, other businesses that would have interest in your product, or businesses that you have an interest in their product. 

It also means actively re-tweeting things that your followers have tweeted that you think your followers would have an interest in. 

Consider holding twitter events.  Twitter events encourage followers to participate in conversations about your priority topics. 

5. Keep Your Content Short and Simple: Even though you have 140 characters to get your message across, we recommend only using 120 of them.  This allows room for your followers to re-tweet and, quote the tweet without having to edit it! 

6. Conduct Promotion Activities: Ongoing promotion of your Twitter profile is strongly recommended.  Promotion Tips Include: 

Cross-Promote on other social media and web channels.  For example, use your Twitter page to promote your Facebook page and vice versa.

Consider Twitter advertising to increase the number of Twitter followers. Before committing to any advertising consider your budget, target audience, and objective before beginning a Twitter advertising initiative.

7. Don’t Forget The Goal: The step that even the best social networking companies forget, is to set a goal and then evaluate your process and progress every few months.  Having that goal allows you to see if the efforts that you are making are proving to be fruitful.  If they are, that’s great.  If not, you can adjust.

Choosing The Right Graphic Design Firm: 5 Factors to Consider

Choosing The Right Graphic Design Firm: 5 Factors to Consider 

By Amber Hyde

Working with the right design firm is a key element in helping a company achieve their advertising, branding and marketing goals. But when it comes time to select the design firm, what elements should you consider to insure you choose the right design firm for you?  Cost may be the top criteria, but there are other, equally as important, factors to take into consideration. Here are five factors to keep top of mind when choosing the design team best for you. 

1. Expertise- There are many different types of creative firms, many specializing in one particular field, while others offer a wide range of services. Because of this you need to carefully consider all of the current and future design needs of your company.  Do you need just a logo design or do you want complete branding, print, and marketing material? You need to look for the firm that has the resources to solve all your design needs.  You don’t want a web design firm handling a print project; that is not their expertise. It is important to maintain a consistency with your projects because it is vital to business success and recognition. So be sure to find the firm that can handle your entire project needs.
 
2. Portfolio- The expertise of a firm can be seen through their portfolio. You want to look for qualities such as variety, originality, and creativity. Mainly deciding whether you consider their style of design effective and suitable for your business. You want a firm that is going to work with you to create the vision that you have for the project. It is important to also get an understanding of their creative process and see if they will be people you can work alongside, bouncing ideas back and forth. Look at the quality of their work and how they present it. This will give you an understanding of what you should expect to receive. 
 
3. Rate- Every Firm is unique, having their own skills, expertise, and price. If price is a concern, be upfront but be aware that the lower rates mean that less time will be devoted to research and concept development, less time translates into a less creative and unique piece. Design is an investment for your business. You want to compare the price offers and the quality of the work they present.  But in the long run I believe that good design doesn’t cost money, it makes money. 
 
4. Time- Time plays a very important factor. You will have some sort of deadline for the project and you want quality work done. First, look for quick responses to your initial inquiry. If it is taking awhile to hear back from them they are either too busy, unprofessional in their work manner, or simply not interested. You want to know that your business and project are important to them. Every firm will obviously have other projects they are working on, but they should make you feel that your project is important and at the top of their list. After seeing their portfolio and understanding their creative process you need to know that they will be able to handle the project in a timely manner. 
 
5. Location- Location may or may not be as important to you, but it is a factor that needs to be considered. One of the big benefits of using someone local is that it provides an opportunity to discuss the project in a focused manner with face-to-face contact.  If you have found a non-local firm you want to work with, be sure that they will take the time for phone calls or video chats so that nothing can get lost in translation when working on the project. 

Take your time and do the research to find the right firm for you and your business. Interview several design firms before making a decision. If you're happy with the solutions they've provided other clients, comfortable with the way they present themselves, and think you'd enjoy working with them...hire them. Clients who understand the value of good design realize that a talented design firm has the ability to influence their current and potential market.