Words. They can get you into so much trouble! Too many words, not enough, not the right one. Then there are the typos, the incorrect grammar and—the bane of modern day text-ers—the auto-correct… yeah, just google it…OMG!

Writing is both a craft and, in the hands of some, an art form. They move us to take action, bring us to tears and provide solace in the face of loss. For your business, words represent you when you cannot be there in person.

Words become our ambassadors and in this age of social media it’s essential that you take the power of your words seriously. It is relatively easy to post to your wall, send out a tweet or update your blog. The difficult part is the whole thinking-it-through, editing and re-writing process… that’s where the real work is done.

At the very least, before you press send READ IT ALOUD to yourself… those words are meant to stand in for you and your voice. If the words sound weird coming out of your mouth, they will definitely ring false with your readers and customers. It takes a little more time to edit, but it is worth every minute. And if you are short on time call a Blackberry… our pencils are ready!

pen•cil (pen’səl) n. a long pointy thing used to write words or draw pictures.

Autocorrect... a cautionary tale!

Shift happens... see the Blackberry Creative video

What do the recent changes to Old Age Security (OAS) in Canada and the potential closing of our local high school (KSS) have in common? Demographics… plain & simple. The demographic shift that is taking place as baby boomers move into their senior years has far reaching effects.

Boomers have powered growth over the past sixty years, but as they retire this group will begin pulling money out of the system rather than pumping it in, and where they put that money will be changing. There will be challenges and opportunities for all of us, our communities and our businesses.

Click here to see the “Generation Exit” video project created for Community Futures. Original concept, research, art direction and script by Blackberry Creative. This project was a collaboration with Target Multi-media.

As an addendum to our post from last October, it is heartening to know that we are in good company. In a recent blog post Seth Godin suggests “whenever you can, work with people who take it personally.” Our experience has certainly been that the more knowledgable we become about our client’s business, and the more personally we take their success, the better it is for us and for them.

And if you are in business and not already aware of his brilliant marketing mind do get yourself acquainted with Seth Godin’s work at http://www.sethgodin.com.

Start by reading “What Matters Now.” I don’t know about you, but I can always use a little inspiration and some food for thought! And you will understand once you begin to read these timely messages why you are able to download it right here… thanks to Seth and friends!

Click here for What Matters Now pdf

In a digital version of the “the builder whose roof leaks or the cobbler’s children who go barefoot” we are finally in the process of upgrading our own website to accommodate the mobile/android/iPad world. Farewell to Flash-based photo and video galleries… and we will be adding recently completed projects to our portfolio pages, too!

So how long has it been since you upgraded your site? Just like those chores—that are difficult to begin but make you feel oh so much better when they are done—if your site has been essentially the same for the past thee years, it is time! This is a worthwhile re-investment in your business that needs to be made. And you know the longer you put it off the more complicated and expensive it will be… just like your roof!

One of my favourite exchanges from You’ve Got Mail—your basic chick flick with Meg Ryan (pre-Botox) and Tom Hanks, who these days is still just adorably Tom Hanks—goes like this…

JOE/Tom Hanks

It wasn’t personal (This after the big box bookstore he owns contributes to the demise of the small independent bookstore around the corner owned by Kathleen/Meg Ryan)

KATHLEEN

It was business!  What is that supposed to mean anyway?

I am so sick of that.

All it means is it’s not personal to you,

but it’s personal to me, it’s personal to

a lot of people. (she shrugs helplessly)

What’s wrong with personal anyway?

JOE

Nothing.

KATHLEEN

I mean, whatever else anything is,

it ought to begin by being personal.

As a small business owner I gotta say that it is personal for me. And I wonder if possibly the “it’s not personal” crowd need to maintain that stance simply because it would make it too difficult to sleep at night otherwise. Taking your business personally means taking full responsibility for how it interacts with clients, suppliers, employees, fellow business owners, and the community at large.

Is your business a good citizen? Does it support local programs and events? Does it pay suppliers on time? Treat employees with respect? Honour its commitments to clients… delivering on time, and on budget? Do you take responsibility when mistakes are made? And do you remember the small personal things… saying please, thank you, I’m sorry, and really mean it when you say Have a nice day?

We devote too much of our lives to work—often spending more time in the company of employees, clients, suppliers and fellow business owners than we do with family & friends— to not be guided in business by the same principles by which we are guided in life.

It’s all personal and that’s what makes it worth all the time and effort you put into it!

The date for the Qualicum Beach Gala Auction, organized by the local Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club, is fast approaching. This annual fun & glamour-filled event has been raising funds to support local programs and projects that contribute to the betterment of our community for the past 20 years. When the organizers asked if we could track down the themed artwork we had provided for the past few years, I realized that it had actually been more than a few. Blackberry Creative has been providing pro bono design services to the Gala for the past decade…. and we have been very pleased to do so!

One of the joys of pro bono work—along with the feel good of being able to do something constructive to help—is the latitude in style and design that we have been able to explore. As with many charitable events, the production budgets for promoting it are small to non-existent— digital copies for posters, programs etc. being the standard—but the freedom to pretty much go in any design direction we chose is a wonderful opportunity. This year the event is flashing back to the 70s & 80s with an ABBA tribute… hmm, where to find my white platform boots!

Here’s a look back through ten years of Blackberry Creative Gala design…

Where there’s smoke, there’s BBQ!

Today we are giving a shout out to restaurant client Smokin’ George’s BBQ! If you are anywhere near Nanaimo and craving some seriously delicious BBQ ribs, brisket or chicken, this is the place to be. Owner & chef, George Kulai, and partner Lea Ortner, have been in business since last Fall and are doing it up right!

We began working with Smokin’ George’s last Spring, creating a logo for the new Vancouver Island eatery. The pair had put a lot of thought into what they wanted their logo to say to their potential customers, and the flavour they wanted to convey about their business. Most recently they asked us to create two new menus… for takeout and tabletop.

Over the past year, George and Lea made sure that they put into place marketing and promotional tools they could use to support and enhance all the hard work and long hours that they were (and are) putting in, and they have been busy promoting the business from the ground up. A website, Facebook, Twitter, contests and promotions, strategically placed ads on local buses, and George is always ready and willing to be interviewed (check out his appearance on Shaw Cable) sharing his expertise and passion for all things BBQ!

Our job was to create a logo and other materials that honoured their passion and commitment to their customers. And we are proud of our work, but at the end of the day no matter how spiffy a logo is, or how many ads are taken out, or how clever the menu graphics are, what really matters is the food and delivering on your business promise. Smokin’ George’s delivers… they are all about authentic, mouth-watering BBQ! George and Lea are successful because they love what they do, they do it well, and their restaurant patrons walk away happy & satisfied…. and perhaps with some BBQ sauce on their cheek!

Every once in awhile something comes along that is simple, practical and —wait for it— a no brainer! Although I detest that expression, in this case it certainly applies! Finding a way to link elements of a marketing campaign across print and online platforms has been a challenge, but the emergence of QR (quick response) codes is proving to be a quick and easy solution.

In the past, collateral materials such as business cards, brochures, print ads etc. would rely on the viewer of these products to take the time to access your online components via entering a website address using their browser of choice. This worked reasonably well, but if you wanted to direct a visitor to a particular page on your site (beyond the standard Home Page) it was difficult to encourage them to continue entering past your basic url with all the back slashes et al.

Send viewers direct with QR codes

For example, what are the chances you will get past the dot ca part, and arrive at our page on websites and multi-media projects, given the following url… blackberrycreative.ca/?page_id=38?

Scanning QR codes leads your customers directly to the page, micro-site, video or other online offering that you want them to see. Which in turn allows you to track how effectively individual elements of your campaign are directing that traffic to what you want them to see & hear. QR codes allow the viewer to access additional and pertinent information and the potential uses are exciting…

• If you are a realtor, a QR code on your sign outside a house you have listed could take potential buyers directly to a video tour or photo gallery of the property, as well as contain as detailed specs.
• Trailhead signage could be augmented with downloadable trail maps, and information on local flora and fauna.
• Gallery exhibits could link to additional biographical information on the artist whose works are being displayed. Museums could add historical details and post mini-lectures for viewing as the visitor passes through an exhibit.
• Wine labels are expensive to produce and vintners might save a little space by directing buyers to full information on pairing the bottle in their hand with an upcoming meal.
• Have fun scanning colleagues name tags at your next conference… and upload their digital business cards.

QR codes allow you to link your potential customers to everything you have to offer. And they increase the value of all the marketing materials you create from rack cards to baseball team t-shirts… imagine the possibilities for your next promotion!

In Slurls: They Called Their Website What? author, and self proclaimed Chief Slurler, Andy Gelman states “In a world without spaces we mentally insert our own.” But those Speed of Art folks remain unbowed, as do the owners of  Pen Island, and Big Al’s bowling alley in Vancouver, Washington. The “powers that be” at Experts Exchange, however, thought the better of their first URL, and eventually added that all important hypen.

Finding just the right URL for your business website can be problematic at the best of times, but strange how letters without those all important spaces indicating words, can lead to trouble online. It is always a good idea to take a step back from your URL brainstorming session to look at your potential choices with fresh eyes. You may know what the name of your company is, but will someone looking at it for the first time see it the same way? That all-important first impression exists whether your potential customers meet you in person, online, or in print.

Even the smallest detail such as your URL communicates something about your organization. At best it is clear, concise and appropriate, and at worst it can raise a red flag about just what you are all about. So unless your goal is to find your company listed on one of those Biggest/Funniest Mistakes in URL Naming websites, take a moment to consider your options, and better yet, pass it along to a few friends and colleagues and ask what they see!

Some designers have all the fun! Take a peek at the text on this product label for Glacéau vitaminwater™

I guess this means no more sweating those little typos… well, as long as the words are in the right order, and the first and last letter rule is followed to the letter—so to speak.

Hmm, let’s try it shall we…

smoe tihngs are jsut fun… po was rdeaing the leabl form a porcudt taht her son was diikrndg cleald glacéau vitaminwater™ No her eeys wree not diiecvng her… tkae a qciuk peek at the ifno on the lbeal! so no mroe sniteawg tshoe prbomeltaic litlte topys, I gsues… spchelclek bgonee! wlel, as lnog as the wrdos are in the rghit oderr  of cusroe and the wlhoe frsit and lsat lteter tinhg is fweollod to the lteter—so to sapek.

Not sure that this phonetic effect is as straight forward as stated on the label—there appear to be some letter combos that we simply must see together in order to make sense of a word—but this an interesting exercise nonetheless. And sorry kids the only reason this actually works is because it is assumed that you already know how to read and spell the words correctly… so keep reading!