Who Ya Gonna Call? CreativeTechs!

If your MAC is on the fritz and you live in the Seattle area, CreativeTechs can help. I only call them in for the really big or complex jobs that have stumped me and everyone else including Apple tech support. And, every single time I've been impressed.

My latest MAC malaise was a real doozie. I run a tiny wireless network in my office between a G4 MAC and a PC. The PC was running like a champ, but my G4 wasn't able to get a reliable internet connection, which got worse over three weeks.

I called Quest, my DLS provider, we ran through software and hardware checks, it had to be my computer they told me, maybe the ethernet card. So, I bought a new ethernet card and bravely opened up my computer and installed it. Still no internet connection. Then I decided to talk with Apple. "Upgrade your software." they told me, which I did (my whole business runs on the internet so I was pretty stressed by this time). Still no internet connection on my G4.

Then I remembered my pals at CreativeTechs who had revived my harddrive and retrieved all of my data that I thought was lost for good after the autostart virus had turned my system into Swiss cheese. It must have been in 1998. It was a miracle.

In the end, it was a faulty internal ethernet card that was at fault. But, my new ethernet card wasn't working because only CreativeTechs knew of the software adjustment that needed to be made to modulate the signal. And, now, my G4 is back online, just like old times. Thank you CreativeTechs!

Design - Is it Just Window Dressing?

Working in the technology industry, designers sometimes feel as though they're taking a back seat to programmers and everything technical, so I was glad to see an article New Shelf Life about how design impacted the bottomline in a positive, measurable way. Yes, ROI.

It seems small companies often design their websites, brochures, packaging etc., themselves. And, in most cases much to their detriment. The article profiles Madhouse Munchies, a potato chip company out of Vermont. The company was doing well and after two years had captured $500,000 in annual sales, but realized that the packaging that the owner had designed with the help of a friend, wasn't attracting enough business.

Six months after hiring a NYC design firm, his new packaging hit the market and with no new advertising, Madhouse Munchies was selling about 50 more bags of chips a month in every store. That was in 2000, today their revenue is almost 10 million.

Next time I hear techies snicker and describe design as window dressing - I'll have just two words for them -- Madhouse Munchies!

The Brand Gap

As we often help companies and organizations take their branding online, I attended an American Institute of Graphic Arts branding workshop at the Seattle Art Museum in July.

Marty Neumeier, author of THE BRAND GAP, president of Neutron, and consultant to Apple, Gap, Herman Miller, Kodak, Hewlett-Packard, gave a workshop built around six key disciplines:

• Identify the Gaps - bridge the distance between business strategy and creativity
• Differentiate - beat the clutter by standing up and taking your claim
• Collaborate - today it takes a village to build a brand
• Innovate - how to zig when everyone else zags
• Validate - let audience feedback show what works and what doesn't and why
• Cultivate - deliver on the brand promise across the board and over time

The biggest take-away was that your company's or oganization's brand lives within your clients and/or grantees. No matter what you project as your brand image, people have a gut feeling about your product, service or organization. Your brand is not what you say it is but what they say it is. It's time to ask your clients and customers what your brand means to them.

Neutron's top 5 (out of 70) critical points for brand improvement:

• Mental Ranking - Do your customers think you're first, second, or third in your category?
• Value Proposition - How strong are your brand's functional, emotional and self-expressive benefits?
• Brand Essence - Do you have a single, clear, unique vision that drives your organization?
• Market Position - Do you have a single, clear, unique idea that drives market share and margin?
• Head Start - How big is the buffer zone around your market position?

If you would like to learn more about branding, email jane@superwebgroup.com to setup a presentation time. As a workshop participant, I received a copy of the entire presentation to share with my clients.