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From Karen Saunders

Your Branding, Marketing & Self-Publishing Coach



Archive for the ‘Branding’ Category

July 26th, 2012 | By: Karen Saunders

Five Ways to Use Pinterest to Market Books

I’ve asked team member Mary Walewski to contribute an article this month and she introduced me to Pinterest. This relatively new social media site intrigued me because it’s all about images. I posed the question to her, “How can self-publishers use Pinterest to market books?” I discovered this is a perfect way to quickly post portfolio samples from recent projects completed by my team. I’ve already created a set of Pinterest boards dedicated to samples of book covers, logos, business cards, speaker one sheets and branding projects. There are many reasons why you should join interest, and Mary has listed 5…

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February 26th, 2012 | By: Karen Saunders

Spotlight on a Client Project: Designing a Children’s Book

Designing a children’s book was a treat for my team! As a team leader serving the publishing community, I have the privilege of helping authors publish their books and launch their websites. Every client is so passionate about his or her book, product or service, it’s fun to live vicariously through their work for a few months. Occasionally a client brings a project that seems to leap heads and shoulders above the rest in regard to the intriguing subject matter, quality of content, scope of work, artistic challenge and affect it has on our community. One such project was Alphabet Denver,…

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November 29th, 2011 | By: Karen Saunders

Do your marketing tools focus on YOU or your PROSPECTS?

A client pointed out that the projects my team and I create – websites, one-sheets, and other marketing tools – successfully “encapsulate” what the target audience really wants; they don’t simply describe the product or service being sold. In other words, the copy focuses on the benefits and results the target audience receives. I asked my team member Patrice Rhoades-Baum to address marketing tools focus points. Patrice is a marketing consultant specializing in branding for solopreneurs and micro-businesses, and she’s an expert copywriter for websites and one-sheets. Do your marketing tools focus on YOU or your PROSPECTS? Take a quick quiz!…

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July 28th, 2010 | By: Karen Saunders

Coordinating a Website and Book Cover Brand

My team just finished creating a website and book cover brand for our new client: author and speaker Bill Young. The portfolio samples and case study below show you how we created his new brand and worked together to keep the graphics consistent throughout his website, 2 book covers, CD label and stationery items. An accomplished business and community leader Bill Young has created and sold businesses, is spearheading efforts to raise millions of dollars to fund a healthcare start-up company, and has led teams of volunteers to raise millions for Denver-based charities. Given his expertise in raising funds for non-profit organizations and start-up…

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February 24th, 2010 | By: Karen Saunders

Website and Branding Webinar at Women’s Economic Summit

This month I have something very special for you: a free branding webinar. You are invited to hear my presentation at the Virtual Women’s Economic Summit. It is entitled: “Branding, Logo, and Website, Oh My!” The Yellow Brick Roadmap to Develop Your Brand, Website and Marketing Materials. This is a FREE 60-minute audio recording in Q&A format. First I will describe how a branding assessment clarifies the fundamentals of your business. Then I’ll show you the most important key elements and why you definitely need a brand. Finally, I’ll explain how to leverage your time, effort and dollars by creating a solid…

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November 29th, 2009 | By: Karen Saunders

Tips for Logo Design Excellence

In our marketplace today, we spend hours and hours on a computer surfing the internet. According to research, it is estimated that many of us are exposed to over 200 logo designs or branding marks per hour. Your logo will be used on your business cards, your website, outdoor designs, various spots on the Internet, and on promotional items like T-shirts, mugs, key chains, etc. At that rate, in order to be memorable to your prospects and clients, that logo had better pop out and stick in someone’s memory, wouldn’t you say? Sprinkled below are my tips for logo design and several…

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May 27th, 2009 | By: Karen Saunders

7 Steps to Brand Your Business and Launch Your Brand Online

Can you brand your business and launch your brand online . . . . without losing your mind? A great idea can hit you anywhere. It can wake you at 2:00 a.m., so compelling that you jump out of bed, put on a pot of coffee, and begin outlining your business plan. Remember, though, in the heady rush of dreaming up the business, to build a launching pad for it. In other words, a presence on the Internet. Because in today’s buzzword search-engine climate, a website is the most powerful marketing and sales tool available to any company, large or…

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March 30th, 2008 | By: Karen Saunders

2 Visual Branding Keys To Make Your Business Memorable

Have you ever asked yourself why a competitor’s business gets more attention than yours? The answer just may have to do with the elements that go into how memorable the business is. And that has to do with branding. Specifically visual branding keys. But exactly what is branding, anyway? Think of branding as predefining what a company is all about in the minds of its clients. Good branding differentiates your products and services in a positive way that really sticks in the minds of potential customers. Let’s say you are getting ready to run errands on a busy Saturday morning,…

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November 30th, 2007 | By: Karen Saunders

7 Crucial Reasons Why You Need to Market Yourself as an Expert

My guest writer today is Nancy Marmolejo, “The Visibility Expert.” You may remember she interviewed me on November 14th for a teleseminar on one-sheets. Today she will share with us why you should market yourself as an expert. With the phenomenal rise of media outlets such as cable TV, online networks, blogs, podcasts, and more, never before has the demand for quality information been higher. From magazine publishers to bloggers, expert opinion is needed to provide valuable content for listeners, readers, and web surfers. As a business owner, you can easily become a recognized expert by taking what you already…

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August 26th, 2007 | By: Karen Saunders

Business Card Design: Make Your First Impression Last — Part 2

In Part 1 of my “First Impression Last” story, I told you about my quest to find a contractor to landscape my backyard . . . and the trouble I had figuring out who’s who with the generic batch of business cards I brought home from the local home show! I finally did get in touch with the right person for the job, but it was almost like finding a needle in a haystack. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out what your specialty or niche is with a good business card design. I was at a Chamber of Commerce…

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