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Pickles, Pumpkins, and the Pandemic Pivot

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This year, for whatever reason (let’s just blame COVID), we had a horrible cucumber crop. But we had green beans galore, so we pickled dillies instead. We lost all our pumpkins to beetles. But we had a glorious peach crop, so I’ll buy a pie pumpkin for Thanksgiving and serve cobblers the following months.

Our summer gardening mimics the change in direction many businesses have recently taken. Call it the Pandemic Pivot, if you will, it’s the dance businesses large and small have done in order to survive these past seven months. It’s the steps they may have to continue for the next seven months. 

How’s business been for you? What might you need to do differently next year? Now’s a good time to take a reality check.

LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

Ever wonder why some businesses get all the media attention? I’m putting together a workshop that answers just that. Check out the Women’s Farm & Ag Network Annual Conference and sign up for “Create a Media Kit that Brings Publicity to Your Farm.”

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  1. The Land Remembers, by Ben Logan.This month would have been his centennial birthday. A great memoir of growing up on the farm in the 1920-30s in Driftless Wisconsin.
  2. Young Blood Beer Co. Their business plan was to open a taproom, then COVID hit. In their words, they “revised,” “adjusted,” and accepted “it is what it is.”
  3. Octoberfest Brewery Tour. Every year we take an annual “celebration of sipping and scenery.” This year we’re social distancing on the North Shores.
  4. Revisiting Carole Cadwalladr’s still-relevant TED Talk. “It’s not about left or right…it’s about whether it’s actually possible to have a free and fair election ever again.” 
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Organize Your Media Library For Successful Marketing

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In my last newsletter, we talked about creating a media library filled with great photos for marketing your business. This newsletter, we’re talking organization—as in organizing that media library. 

If you’re like me, you’re taking smartphone pictures and videos all the time. I’m snap-happy for all things artistic, seasonal, business, people, branding, storytelling, scenic…uh, just about everything. One never knows when a shot will come in handy for a blog post, press release, or social media announcement, right?

As you can imagine, I’ve got a wide assortment of media. The real trick is FINDING that picture or video when I need it. 

Sound familiar?

Developing an organized system for your media library is important not only for your business but also your precious memories. Here are quick suggestions for keeping things findable and ready to go.

  1. Delete duplicates and unnecessary photos
    There’s no need for multiple shots of the same thing. Delete duplicates to save valuable disk space and time.
     
  2. Download photos
    Stick to a regular schedule of downloading photos and videos from your smartphone to your computer.
     
  3. Use photo management software/storage software
    There are many reputable photo management apps. I use Bridge, which is part of my Adobe subscription. There are others equally recommended, both for free or purchase. Find one that fits your needs and use it regularly. 
     
  4. Establish a consistent practice of labeling files
    • Rename your photo or video files with descriptive names. File them under folders named with equally descriptive names—perhaps a date or subject. 
    • If your software allows, tag photos with further descriptive keywords
    • Descriptive, descriptive, descriptive—get it?
    • Develop a system for yourself and be consistent. 
  5. Backup your files
    Regularly backup your computer to a reliable storage source, whether online or external hard drive. 

Interested in Learning More?

Registration has started for 2020 WFAN Annual Conference. We’ll cover this topic and more so be sure to check it out!

LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

When it comes to promoting my clients, I love getting out and shouting the good word. It’s easy because I design for clients whose passions I share and products I love!

This month I’m traveling the beautiful countryside (tough job, but someone’s gotta do it) and delivering our very cool, zine-style Fermentation Fest guide. It’s brimming with inspiring stories, poetry, and art. Find the guides in venues throughout northern Illinois, Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota, like here in Bluff Country Co-op in Winona, Minnesota.

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  1. Zoom Etiquette:  A year ago we didn’t know Zoom, now we have rules. The comments following are also good.
  2. Kelsey Ducheneaux on Strength Through Connection: “We can’t afford to regress. We have to find ways to bridge gaps and move forward.”
  3. Food Rules, by Michael Pollan. COVID disproportionately affects those already suffering from diet-related diseases. I’m revisiting this quick and easy read. My two favorites: “Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.” and “Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it.”
  4. Hindsight in 2020: Quit giving blame, starting taking responsibility. 1) Know your mission, 2) Know your gifting, 3) See your opportunity.
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Create a Media Library For Successful Marketing

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Being the visual creatures we are, photography is one of the most attention-getting and storytelling means of marketing your small business. This is true whether you’re posting on Facebook or printing a hardcopy brochure (still very effective, by the way). 

Fortunately for us, smart phones make it easy to put together a media library filled with quality photos. The tricky part is ensuring that “perfect shot” is usable and, haha, findable when you need it.

In this post I’m covering usability. Stay tuned for my next post on findability. 

Photography Determines Project Success

From my experience as a graphic and web designer, here are three tips for success in your marketing project. They will also save you time and money.

Your photos should:

  1. Be Consistent With Your Brand
    Your photography should always match your business values. It should resonate with your target market. Earlier this year I updated a website for The Real Estate Duo. Check out the photo they gave me to use on their Meet the Duo page. It shows perfectly the fun, sassy, and totally capable Realtors that they are. 
     
  2. Elevate Your Narrative
    Storytelling and marketing go hand-in-hand. What stories do your photos tell? When Wisconsin’s Soil Sisters were featured in Modern Farmer Magazine, the photography conveyed the unique relationship these women have with one another. It also enabled readers to feel part of their farms and family. Do you have storytelling photos ready when it’s your turn to shine?
     
  3. Be High-Res
    When it comes to saving you time and money, I can’t stress enough the importance of high-resolution photography. This is especially true when it comes to hardcopy promotional pieces, where professional printing requires 300 dpi or higher (note: photos copied from the internet will notwork). Remember, you can always downsize the dimensions or resolution of an image after it’s taken, but you can never increase it. Shoot your photos in the highest resolution available—in fact, change your camera settings right now! Also, be sure to email photos to your designer in their fullest size. Do not diminish the file for the sake of easier emailing. 

Stay tuned next month for helpful tips in organizing those photos!

LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

August is Fermentation Fest month—for the guide, that is. The Fermentation Fest team and I have been researching, gathering, laying out, rearranging, editing, rearranging, adding, and rearranging again. All this behind-the-scenes is culminating an extraordinary gem; a literary/art zine, both beautiful and intelligent. Watch for it in mid-August throughout Wisconsin, Chicago, and the Twin Cities.

What I’m Tuned Into This Month

  1. Turning Personal Pain into Power, Regina Brett interviews Mary Watson on resilience. Good choices determine our life.
  2. The Corner Table, Forage for Your Supper, Wow, talk about creative entrepreneuring! Fermented hot sauce, wild food walks, wild food dinners, and CSA wild greens. 
  3. Bruschetta with Pesto: Fresh tomatoes and basil, hmmmm. My favorite of the gardening season. 
  4. This is Your Brain on Nature: Even more relevant during this summer of Covid.
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Is Your Website Serving Your Customers During Covid-19?

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It’s no secret our screen time has skyrocketed. Whether it’s socializing, shopping or Zooming, the internet sure has been our lifeline these past three months, hasn’t it? That’s why now, more than ever, it’s a dire necessity that your business has a strong online presence.

The Big 3 for Your Website

  • Your Website Should be Easy for Viewers
    People have a lot complicated things going on right now. Navigating a website shouldn’t be one of them. Keep yours simple, enjoyable to view, and easy to use. Above all, keep your necessary information right up front—whether or not you’re open, your hours, contact info, whatever your customers need to be your customer. 
  • Your Website Should Solve a Problem
    Right now a major issue for Americans is shopping. I’m hugely impressed with businesses that quickly jumped in with shopping carts to their sites. CSA farms are making it easier for subscribers to order in advance. Restaurants are making curbside pickups quicker with online ordering. WooCommerce, ChowNow, Barn2Door are just a few of the many eCommerce companies that enable small businesses to direct sell their product online. Search “eCommerce” for one in your industry.
  • Your Website Should be Easy for YOU
    You can’t dedicate yourself to your customers if you’re stressing over your website. Make sure yours is easy to maintain. While it’s convenient to have the same company build your website and set up eCommerce, some small business owners want extra one-on-one. That’s where I come in. If you need help, give me a call/text at 920-261-5519. I’m happy to set you up with a customized, user-friendly WordPress site where, together, we can simply plunk in eCommerce code from your favorite company. Best of all, I can teach you how to manage it!
LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

Another website! A perfect project for Memorial Day—The Union Cemetery of Watertown Township. Our goal is to bring awareness and appreciation to this historic, rural cemetery just up the road. 

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  • Ferment, by Holly Davis. Full of information and recipes, it’s a feast for the eyes as well as the palate.
  • The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, by Kim Michele Richardson. A touching story of 1930s Appalachia and the Pack Horse Librarians. It motivates good discussion with my online book club.
  • Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) recently began podcasting. From rebuilding a just food system to social media for your business, they’re covering a full range of topics.
  • Jenna Kutcher, Marketing Entrepreneur. Throughout my 15 years of business I’ve followed a diverse group of marketing gurus. Often they’re millennials (they keep me on my toes) or their market is far different than my own. But inevitably I learn something I can apply to my business. 
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Working Through the Madness

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In just two short weeks March Madness went from being a tournament to a pandemic. It also permeated our internet with how-to wisdom, everything from the proper way to cough to productively working from home. 

The fact is, being self-employed for 15 years, I already was a sponge for the subject of working from home. And while it’s all sound advice, I’ve come to realize when it comes to our business we each must do what we’re each wired to do. 

Here are some non-applicable tips:

Tip #1: Set consistent work hours
This morning I started work at 5:30 and later spent a FaceTime breakfast with my 2-year-old granddaughter. Tomorrow I may forego work until noon and spend some morning time in the sun. Obviously, I’m a highly unscheduled person. For me, freedom from routine is a necessity.

Tip #2: Keep your work and personal lives separate
Let’s be honest, this is as unrealistic as the separation of church and state (see this more applicable tip #4). Who isn’t going to take a break and throw in a load of laundry? And anyone who bakes bread knows it’s a wonderful way to work through a creative block. 

My Point: Know Thyself

Yes, it’s good to be open to ideas. But it’s also important to know yourself and how you operate. Whether you’re outdoors with your hands in the soil or you’re indoors with your eyes at a computer, each of us must run our business in a way that works for us. 

What I’m Working On This Month

Meet The Real Estate Duo—fun-loving, highly skilled Realtors serving the Lake Country community. We’ll debut their new website soon. Stay tuned! 

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  1. Love in the Time of Coronavirus, by Regina Brett. Love could make this our finest hour.
  2. Chicken and Dumplings. Chaos behooves comfort food and no one does it better than Smitten Kitchen
  3. InstaCart: Kudos to innovative business ideas. This one’s a lifesaver, especially for the elderly during stay-at-home guidelines.
  4. Help for Small Business: The more local you go for assistance, the faster and more personal it is. This site has A-Z information.

Stay safe everyone. May God protect you and keep you well.