Archive for September, 2010
Thursday, September 30th, 2010
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
image credit: Andrew Morrell Photography
Put Crowdsourcing to Work for You – http://bit.ly/9bjSx1
10 Most Common Excuses For NOT Making Ideas Happen – http://bit.ly/9vjwwd
Useful resource for small businesses – Google has refreshed its SEO starter guide – http://selnd.com/ciSfnv
Logo & web design: the crowdSPRING alternative – http://bit.ly/9ZAObz
crowdSPRING’s Small Business Spotlight of the Week: Sole Discretion – http://bit.ly/cSVr09
How to handle getting a no – http://bit.ly/bHGWHQ
Free resources for small businesses from Google – http://bit.ly/c7bI7a
Excellent and must read post from MailChimp – Going Freemium: One Year Later – http://bit.ly/cUs61S
Good intro “how to” guide on local online targeting by IAB – http://bit.ly/a7kx13
Five social media recommendations for startups – http://bit.ly/ahrsSF
Startups Should Say No to Most Opportunities – http://bit.ly/9rnFNE
10 Most Common Excuses For NOT Making Ideas Happen – http://bit.ly/9vjwwd
(more…)
Tags: advertising, copywriting, crowdsourcing, design, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, facebook, industrial design, leadership, marketing, packaging design, pr, product design, public relations, small biz, small business, social media, startup, twitter, writing
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, How To, inspiration, Interviews, marketing, Reviews, social media, start-up tips, Strategy, Technology, writing | No Comments »
Monday, September 27th, 2010
Early this summer we surveyed over 500 Creatives on crowdSPRING to help us gain a better understanding of our community – who we are, how we work, and what drives us creatively. The results were fascinating and, although we are still sorting through the data, some really interesting information had come into focus. A few weeks ago we looked at who we are – our education, experience, earnings, and expertise. For the second part of our analysis I drilled down into our community’s online work habits: what percentage of our work we do online, and how many projects we did online in the past year.
For each of the following infographics we divided our community into our four largest groups: logo designers, web designers, print designers, and illustrators. Interestingly each of these groups approached their online work differently, and the charts demonstrate this nicely. In terms of the percentage of the work they do online, the logo designers were distributed fairly evenly with about as many reporting that they do “most” of their work online as those who reported that they did a relatively small percentage online. Almost 1/3 of web designers do the majority of their work online, while more than half of the print designers were doing very little work online. This speaks not just to the opportunities available to each of these groups with traditional clients offline, but also to the availability of online projects in their area of expertise.
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Tags: community, creative, crowdsourcing, design, designers, inforgraphic
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, social media | No Comments »
Friday, September 24th, 2010
We’ve all seen her…the woman on the bus carrying a purse, a briefcase, a lunch bag, and a tote. Some may refer to them as ‘bag ladies’ but in a big city, it’s hard for women not to carry literal ‘excess baggage’. One of the main causes? Shoes. Believe it or not, those three inch heels are hard to walk in for long periods of time so most women bring gym shoes but how awkward does that look with dress clothes?
Which brings me to my next point, Sole Discretion! When I saw this company I had to write about them! Sole Discretion manufactures rollable/foldable flats that can fit in your purse with a chic wristlet that folds out into a tote to carry your heels in – genius.
Back in July, Sole Discretion’s co-owners, Sheree Coleman, Sherrae M. Hayes, and Alyxaundria Sanford, posted a logo project on crowdSPRING and awarded cS username: allfun with the award – congrats! The SD Team officially launched Sole Discretion on September 1, 2010, and you definitely need to check them out. The flats come in black, gold, silver, and leopard and are only $15!
So put down your bags, take off your shoes, and read what advice The SD Team has for you…
1. How did you get things designed before crowdSPRING?
Life “B.C.” (before crowdSPRING) was difficult. Our logo was our first major project. We were waiting for quotes and logo drafts from select designers for weeks, only to come up short – no follow-through from the designers, missed deadlines, and the looming feeling of only receiving 2-3 designs and disliking all of them. We felt like our only option was to depend on independent designers, but little did we know, crowdSPRING would save the day!
2. Why in the world did you decide to use crowdSPRING?!
Once we reviewed the website and how innovative the crowdSPRING process was, it was a no-brainer. crowdSPRING offered everything that we needed – a chance to work with multiple designers, countless logo options to choose form, a fixed deadline – all within our budget. As a small business with big dreams we could not ask for more.
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Tags: crowdspring, small biz, small business spotlight, sole discretion
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, How To, inspiration, Interviews, marketing, Reviews, social media, start-up tips, Strategy, Technology | 5 Comments »
Thursday, September 23rd, 2010
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
image credit: monkeyworks illustration
Free resources for small businesses from Google – http://bit.ly/c7bI7a
Small Business Web Design: The Power of Crowdsourcing – http://bit.ly/9Ekcv4
crowdSPRING’s Small Business Spotlight of the Week: Alfred Jorgensen Laboratory – http://bit.ly/99PBwU
The 3 Most Common Small Business Pricing Mistakes – http://bit.ly/cmatK0
How to find great design help at a very affordable price (that u determine) – http://bit.ly/ddudip
Secrets of Apple’s customer success – http://j.mp/97quhU
6 Tips for Getting the Most Out of GMail for Business – http://bit.ly/8ZaG8E
How to find great design help at a very affordable price (that u determine) – http://bit.ly/ddudip
Secrets of Apple’s customer success – http://j.mp/97quhU
Free resources for small businesses from Google – http://bit.ly/c7bI7a
Collusion? Fuck That Noise. Wake Up & Smell the Innovation Mike – http://bit.ly/FireInTheValley
Good short read dispelling productivity myths about employee performance – http://bit.ly/d9sb4x
Guess What? Programmers can #JFDI it too! – http://bit.ly/boFtXc
The Power of Threes – http://bit.ly/96XGr1
Lesser Known Traits of Successful Founders – http://bit.ly/axMqdG
5 historic billboard campaigns (or everything old is new again) – http://bit.ly/bDRBKg
Twitter, Transclusion and Trust – http://bit.ly/datKYu
Creative Exodus in Adland: It’s Just Not ‘Fun’ Anymore – http://bit.ly/cK83gm
(more…)
Tags: advertising, copywriting, crowdsourcing, design, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, facebook, industrial design, leadership, marketing, packaging design, pr, product design, public relations, small business, smallbiz, social media, startup, twitter, writing
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, How To, inspiration, Interviews, marketing, Reviews, social media, start-up tips, Technology, writing | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010
In our 12 Questions blog series, we feature interviews with someone from the crowdSPRING community. For these interviews, we pick people who add value to our community – in the blog, in the forums, in the projects. Plainly – activities that make crowdSPRING a better community. Be professional, treat others with respect, help us build something very special, and we’ll take notice.
We’re very proud to feature Shannon Perry (crowdSPRING username: shancore) today. Shannon lives and works in Phenix, Virginia.
1. Please tell us about yourself.
Hello, my name is Shannon Perry, also known as Shancore on crowdSPRING. I’m a 27 year old freelance graphic designer. I recently just moved to Phenix, Virginia to be closer to my parents and family, with my boyfriend Russ, and our “little monster” pitbull Eddie. But before the big move, I had been living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the past 10 years. I attended Tyler School of Art at Temple University in 2001, hoping to major in Graphic Design, only to find out that I was more interested in printmaking. So I took up printmaking as a major instead with some fundamental design courses on the side. After several years of running circles around getting my BFA, and juggling a full time work and school schedule, I decided to take a break. I then landed a job as graphic designer at a small printing company, where I worked my last 2 years in South Philly. During this time is when I really started to get back into design. It wasn’t until then, that I thought I 
could actually make a living doing graphic design as a freelance profession, and decided to move to Virginia and pursue a career in freelance design.
2. How did you become interested in art and design?
Growing up with great parents. My dad is into computers and my mother is a crafter, so I got the best of both. I’ve always been interested in art since I was kid and my parents are very supportive, always encouraging me and my art. They even let me start taking private art lessons with a local artist when I was in elementary school. Even at an early age, I decided that I wanted to be an artist and knew that no matter what I did, I would always be doing something creative.
(more…)
Tags: 12 questions, art, blog, community, creative, creativity, crowdspring, design, designer, graphic design, graphics design, graphics designer, inspiration, logo, logo design, logos, Phenix, shancore, Shannon Perry, weekly glance of awesomeness
Posted in Awesomeness, community, crowdsourcing, design, inspiration, Interviews, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, September 21st, 2010
Google has many terrific free resources for small businesses. Below, we summarize our six favorite free resources for small business from Google. In each case, we describe the resource, help you understand why you should consider using it, and offer tips on using with links to additional information if you’d like to read more about that resource.
What it is: AdWords is Google’s advertising program. When people search on Google.com and partner sites, Google displays text ads (at the top of the search results and to the right of the search results). According to Google:
AdWords enables you to create online advertisements and show them on Google and across a huge network of partner websites. Advertising with AdWords allows you to reach new customers at the precise moment when they are searching for your type of products and services. You only pay when someone clicks on your ad, and you control how much you spend on each click, your daily budget, and where your ads appear. AdWords accounts also include graphs and performance data so you can track what’s working and edit your ads accordingly.
The AdWords Small Business Center was established by Google earlier this month to help educate small business about ways they can better leverage AdWords and to provide best practices and tips. The Center has useful free guides on writing strong text ads, choosing good keywords, adjusting your budgets, tracking your results, and improving your conversions. The Center contains useful tips for beginner, intermediate and advanced users. The Center also has a discussion forum where users can share AdWords strategies with others – and ask questions.
Why you should consider using it: Although AdWords can be a powerful marketing tool for small business, more than half of small business owners stop paid advertising within six month of starting. This often happens because many small business owners don’t fully understand the many ways they can customize and leverage their AdWords marketing programs.
Tips: If you’re spending money on AdWords, you should regularly read Google’s AdWords blog for the latest information about AdWords, useful resources, and tips. If you want to learn more about search engine marketing, I suggest you read 10 Practical Small Business SEO and SEM marketing tips.
What it is: Google Analytics is a free tool from Google that provides detailed and very useful information about your website traffic and the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.
Why you should consider using it: There are numerous paid analytics tools available – and many are quite good. Google Analytics is free and offers more than enough features that small businesses need. Google has continued to innovate in this area and has recently added new features, including advanced segmentation (allowing you to analyze subsets of your traffic) and custom reports.
Tips: We monitor traffic to every page on our site. We also monitor every marketing campaign that we run to evaluate whether the expenses (both time and effort) are justified. We’ll also occasionally compare our data to those of our competitors. If you’re interested in reading more about evaluating your competitors, I recommend you read 10 Tips For Evaluating Your Competitors – a useful guide that lists additional resources that could supplement your analytics data.
If you use Firefox, you’ll want to get this extension right away – Better Google Analytics. It adds a ton of useful features to your analytics account giving you the ability to export data to Google Docs, absolute numbers (as opposed to percentages), quick search, table sorting, and social media metrics (among other things).
Tags: foursquare, google, google adwords, google adwords small business center, google analytics, google apps, google places, gowalla, location based services, place page, smal business, small biz, small business, smallbiz
Posted in business, How To, marketing, social media, start-up tips | 2 Comments »
Monday, September 20th, 2010
Billboards and outdoor advertising have been around for almost 150 years now and in many ways are precursors to, and cousins of, today’s online campaigns, both paid and viral. Companies have been using techniques such as eye-catching design, creative content, and clever placement to create word-of-mouth and build buzz for their products dating back to the time of our great-great-great grandparents. Here are a few classics of the ilk, still effective today.
1. Mail Pouch Tobacco barns (1890)
In the last decade if the 1800s, the West Virginia Mail Pouch Chewing Tobacco company would pay farmers to use their barns as outdoor advertising for their product. 
The company would do the painting and maintenance on the signs and. for the privilege, they would pay the farmer between $1 and $2 per year. It was a pretty good deal for the farmers, as they didn’t have to worry about painting their own barns for the duration of the contract. By the 1960s there were more than 20,000 of these barns in 22 states. Other companies also advertised on bars and this type of roadside advertising continued until it was restricted under the Highway Beautification laws of the 1960s.
2. Burma Shave highway signs (1925)
Does your husband Misbehave? Grunt and grumble? Rant and rave? Shoot the brute some… Burma-Shave! In 1925 roadside advertisements started appearing along highways across America and by the mid-50s they could be found in virtually all of the 48 states. 
The signs were catchy poems, always ending with a punchline, and always grabbing the attention of the passerby; everyone wanted to know how the ditty would end! Through the power of this advertising tactic, Burma Shave would become the second highest selling brand of shaving cream on the market.
Within this vale… Of toil… And sin… Your head grows bald… But not your chin… use… Burma-Shave! Travelers couldn’t resist these little messages and shared them with others, often writing them down to send to friends and family. The viral affect of the ads, decades before the internet, made this one of the most effective (and cost-effective) advertising campaigns ever. I can’t resist either: You’ve laughed… At our signs… For many a mile… Be a sport… Give us a trial… Burma-Shave!
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Tags: advertising, billboard, branding, creative, crowdspring, design, fun facts, graphic design, inspiration, marketing, pr, public relations, sign
Posted in business, design, inspiration, marketing, Strategy, Technology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 17th, 2010
Now, I may be the reigning champion of Christmas Party Beer Pong here at crowdSPRING (no big deal…) but this next company may have me beat. The Alfred Jorgensen Laboratory, located in Copenhagen, Denmark, has been supplying breweries all over the world with pure cultures of brewing yeast for over 130 years. For those of you who don’t brew your own beer… these yeast cultures are what make it possible to brew the delicious beverages you consume each night. 
They have the world’s largest collection of brewing yeast strains – more than 850 different yeasts – one of the world’s most historic collections, amassed over more than a century. AJL supply these yeasts to breweries in the UK, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, France, Spain, Brazil, Chile, USA, Canada, Australia, the Philippines, Korea, India, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Russia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Czech Republic, Greece, Belgium, Holland, Vi
etnam, Germany and many other countries.
Dr. Bill Simpson, AJL’s Director, posted a logo project on cS and it’s no surprise that they received over 1100 entries! (With the winning submission belonging to cS username: Socorro)
I got a chance to speak with Dr. Bill Simpson and he has a lot to share with you so grab a beer (if you’re 21, of course), sit back and read along…
1. How did you get things designed before crowdSPRING?
Before crowdSPRING we really had a bit of a patchy approach to design work. We tackled some of it in-house, contracted some of it to a really great independent designer in Poland, and ran various one-off projects with several UK design agencies. We often find ourselves in need of artwork ‘yesterday’ in an attempt to respond to promotional offers from magazine publishers for discounted advertising. That’s sometimes made it difficult for us to get something we’re really happy with in the time available. There’s a limit to what one single designer can do in a day.
2. Why in the world did you decide to use crowdSPRING?!
I’d seen crowdSPRING mentioned on the Hubspot Blog and checked it out pretty much right away. I was impressed! But in a somewhat Luddite-inspired act that I’m at a loss to explain I wrote down the name on a piece of paper which I kept in my back pocket for months
. Now and again I’d find that note and take another look at crowdSPRING. I’d continue to be impressed, and even recommended the site to a few of my friends. The power of prevarication! Finally, one late Friday afternoon in July, the end of the week approaching, I decided to bite the bullet and post a project. When I finally found out just how easy it was I felt more than a little foolish. The posting process was a breeze and the rating and feedback part of the process was really quite fun. It was quite a buzz to see so much great talent focussed on our logo. Why had I waited so long?
(more…)
Tags: alfred jorgensen labs, crowdspring, crowdspring.com, small biz, small business, startup
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, How To, inspiration, Interviews, marketing, social media, start-up tips, Strategy, Technology | No Comments »
Thursday, September 16th, 2010
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
image credit: Coletivo Mambembe
5 great viral marketing campaigns (and what small businesses can learn from them!) – http://bit.ly/bclZZx
Small Business Spotlight of the Week: Fearless Women Entrepreneur Network – http://bit.ly/9m7CcA
Being pompous and learning from mistakes – http://bit.ly/9h3d9K
Why You’re Going to Hire the Wrong Designer – http://bit.ly/avOLu3
Being pompous and learning from mistakes – http://bit.ly/9h3d9K
Lessons Learned From StartupBootcamp 2010 – http://bit.ly/cuXxwH
Why You’re Going to Hire the Wrong Designer – http://bit.ly/avOLu3
Here’s the free download of Tribal Leadership audio book with foreword by @zappos – http://bit.ly/c0GiSI
Don’t Confuse Getting to Market with Building a Company – http://t.co/FsSKjLH
5 great viral marketing campaigns (and what small businesses can learn from them!) – http://bit.ly/bclZZx
The Most Powerful Colors Of The Web (Infographics) – http://bit.ly/bn86YX
Twitter claims it’s not a social network – http://rww.to/aLnQnu
MATRIX: The difference between Facebook vs the *new* Twitter – http://bit.ly/9rBcFv
Good post about Google Instant and the impact on Adwords (CTR and CPC rates) – http://bit.ly/d9qZgk
60+ Mind Blowing Cars Advertising Ideas – http://bit.ly/dnkbpz
40 Beautiful Package Designs – http://bit.ly/ckHhkJ
20 Smart and Creative Resume Design – http://bit.ly/bgIMr6
800+ Photoshop Patterns For Your Next Web Design Project – http://bit.ly/cVREdB
Retro inspiration: Vintage Advertisement Of Modern Technology – http://bit.ly/905lM9
The World’s Best Design Schools – http://bit.ly/bwZGBM
50 Examples of Modern Single Page Website Designs – http://bit.ly/cylEmt
(more…)
Tags: advertising, copywriting, crowdsourcing, design, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, facebook, leadership, marketing, pr, public relations, small business, smallbiz, social media, startup, twitter, writing
Posted in Awesomeness, business, community, crowdsourcing, design, How To, inspiration, Interviews, marketing, Reviews, social media, start-up tips, Strategy, Technology, writing | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 15th, 2010
In our 12 Questions blog series, we feature interviews with someone from the crowdSPRING community. For these interviews, we pick people who add value to our community – in the blog, in the forums, in the projects. Plainly – activities that make crowdSPRING a better community. Be professional, treat others with respect, help us build something very special, and we’ll take notice.
We’re very proud to feature Carmen Tsang (crowdSPRING username: heyheykermit) today. Carmen lives and works in Markham, Ontario,Canada.
1. Please tell us about yourself.
Hey all…it’s really excited to be interviewed by crowdSPRING…and it’s actually my very first blog interview, so really looking forward seeing it go live. Let’s get the ball rolling…
My name is Carmen Tsang, I was born in Hong Kong and move to Canada for good about 10 
years ago after I completed my degree in education. My DECISION to move to a country with a whole new culture and lifestyle was tough (start everything from zero??) but I told myself to give a try while I am still young, so, at that time I bought a one way air ticket, and off I go….til now, 10 years later still residing in Canada. I knew that there’s no harm even I couldn’t make it at that time (just an experience), i still remember my tutor once said, “no matter what you do…aiming for the best, preparing for the worse.”
Without any local experience my first job in Canada was a home decor assistant, luckily after 2 months, on the day of my first birthday in Canada I got a full time job offer as graphic designer. In 4 years’ time, I gradually worked my way up to the art director level, overseeing the design department and lead a team of 4 designers and freelancers. While everything seems so perfect (stable job & income), me, a workaholic, found myself trapped in the imbalance of work and personal life. I feel torn and I made another 
DECISION. I quit the full time job, walk out of my comfort zone, and start to work as a full time freelance designer. At that time, I did not think deep on how to set up a design business, no planning, no researching, no risk estimating, no cost-calculating, I just start doing it….
Although day 1 of my business, I only have one client (yes! ONE!), I gradually build up my clientele for the past 6 years. At this moment, I am happy for what I have attained…enough business to keep myself busy Mon-Fri 9-6. As a full time freelance designer working in home office, I keep myself in a rigid yet flexible work schedule – work diligently during office hours, but try not to work at night or weekends. Now I can spend more quality time with my partner and family to enjoy the every taste of life through traveling, cooking, reading and movies…..
(more…)
Tags: 12 questions, blog, Carmen Tsang, community, creative, creativity, crowdspring, design, designer, graphic design, graphics design, graphics designer, heyheykermit, inspiration, interview, logo, logo design, logos, weekly glance of awesomeness
Posted in Awesomeness, community, design, inspiration, Interviews, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
