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 In one of our very last blogs for 2020, we are wrapping up this blog series about the best things you can do for your business now to make the new 2021 the best year yet!
Hello, Summerville! Welcome back to the blog writer's desk! The year is slowly picking itself up and putting itself away, and boy was it one for the books. We are happy to see it go, and we are happy and excited to see what this new year will be bringing us. As all of us at Creative Consulting have been gathering for our last in-person meetings of 2020, it's been interesting to sit back and see what this year has taught us. First and foremost it has taught us how resilient our town is. Nothing can stop Summerville! In fact, through all of the challenges we have been through as a community, it has been incredible to see just how much we have supported one another and continued to grow together and for one another. We have seen compassion, hope, and the dedication each of you have to your families, community, and your passions. We have also experienced so much support and an outpouring of love from all of you supporting small businesses of all kinds right here in town. You decided to shop small, give big, and give back to your community. You took more time to be proud of the movers, makers, and shakers right here in town, Thanks to that you now own beautiful pieces of artwork and homemade products made by your incredibly talented neighbors, and you have tried some of the best new dishes and desserts made from your neighbors that you might not have known about unless the pandemic had happened, a tough silver lining, but one just the same. We have also seen resilience in our industry that we are so thankful for. We are honored to support and care for your businesses, and to help build and support them to help reach all of your goals and more. It has been an honor working with each of you, and we look forward to ringing in 2021 with you and stepping into new beginnings. In part one of this blog, we spent time talking about all of the financial things you can do right now to help save on your 2020 taxes. While many of those decisions, purchases, and money moves might seem like a little bit of strain on your business accounts at the end of a very difficult year, we promise that they are still good decisions. While you might feel every penny this time of year, you will appreciate the time you dedicated to following the list in our previous blog and spending a little more money now. Come April 15th, your tax expenses will not be as challenging to cover, painful, or a surprise. In this blog, we are focusing more on the business aspects of closing out a year. What can you be focusing on and working on now that can help you create the best business plan for 2021? How can you make your goals become realities? How can you uplift and support your team? Let's talk about it! Year-End Count Down Before we all wrap up our work for the new year and settle into our holiday parties with our coworkers, there is still so much left to do. This is our busiest time of the year, so we understand that sometimes things can get lost in the shuffle. Don't let that happen this year! Use this end of the year checklist to wrap up 2020 and get your head in the game for 2021! We know the pandemic has been devastating to so many of you, and many companies are still trying to recover from its reverberations. Keep strong, keep going, you've got this!
From all of us at Creative Consulting, thank you for an incredible year! We deeply appreciate your support and friendship and couldn't do what we do without all of you and the incredible town of Summerville. We are so appreciative to our clients who have been with us for years, our new 2020 clients, and all of our future clients. We wish you all a very exciting and wonderful 2021!
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 Get to know the hilarious, hard-working, and creative individuals that make up the Creative Consulting family one blog at a time.
Hello, Summerville! Welcome back to the blog writer's desk for a very special edition of the blog. This is our very last team member spotlight (for now) and one of the very last blogs of 2020. While our beautiful little town is aglow both day and night with holiday decorations, people (safely) shopping and enjoying their surroundings, and everyone getting excited for the holidays, I will be officially taking over this blog. That's right! The blog writer herself will be stepping out from behind the pen and you will get the chance to get to know her a little better! I thought it would only be fair since my wonderful teammates took the time to let me interview them. While the appeal of being the mysterious masked writer for Creative Consulting does have a nice ring to it, I do have a substantial amount of FOMO (fear of missing out), so I thought why not? Let's jump into this thing, shall we? Hello, everyone! My name is Maddie Casto and I am the blog writer for Creative Consulting! I was born in raised in Columbus, Ohio, and graduated from Wright State University with my BFA in Musical Theatre. I moved to New York City in 2012 with some of my best college friends, and we all dove into the world of the New York Performer; catering and auditioning. I didn't realize that once I settled into my very overpriced and tiny apartment that I would spend so much time in my polyester tuxedo and waking up at ungodly hours to stand in the line (in ALL weather) with everything I own to sing and act as best I could under two minutes for a bunch of strangers. Sometimes I'd have a great audition and a great catering shift, other days my audition bag would break in the middle of 8th avenue and a guest would "accidentally" splatter salsa down my all-white (oh yes, we had all white catering tuxedos too!) catering outfit in front of the high strung party planner. I was one of the lucky ones, though. I lived with some of the best people I've ever known, got to explore New York City like a local, and I did get to perform. No one really tells you that once you get to New York that you'll be spending a lot of time moving away from it to go work while finding a (hopefully nice and clean) sublettor to fill your room and pay your rent while you're gone. Everything was worth it though, I've learned that more times than I can count. On top of multiple regional roles, I got to tour the United States with a children's show called "How I Became A Pirate", I got to perform in Las Vegas and Flordia with a jukebox musical called "The D*Word; Ditched, Dumped, Dating, and Divorced", I worked at one of most beautiful resorts in the United States singing some of my favorite music, and all along the way I continued to work and meet some incredible people while I was doing what I loved. At the end of my contract at said beautiful resort, I happened to send in my headshot and resume to a brand new theater in Charleston, SC for a brand new 1940s Musical called "Boogie Woogie Bugle Gals", and the rest is history. Thanks to this brand new theatre (34 West Theatre Company), Charleston became home before I even realized it. I was very lucky to do four shows with them back to back, hopping back and forth between New York City and Charleston between each one. Then, I met a redheaded chef, fell in love with him and his two very fat cats, and Charleston officially became home. I was in the middle of a wonderful artistic community, I loved this city, and I loved the person I was experiencing it with. I had grown up going to Myrtle Beach every year (don't hate - North Myrtle has a lot of charm!), but this was an introduction to a beautiful and bustling southern town that I didn't expect. I fell in love with so much, and fell in love hard. (Hello - can we talk about the food?!) One thing many performers won't tell you or talk about is their time in-between shows. That's because it's not the most glamorous or mentally healthy time for a performer. Granted, if a period in between a show is your chance to see your family and friends or go on vacation, that's a totally different story. If you come off of a long contract, get a chance to settle in back at home, and a chance to recover, and still don't have your next show lined up? That's the danger zone. Your bank account starts getting low, your anxiety starts to get high, and you're curious if you'll ever work again. Many performers (not all - we are all very different and all have different paths) have what we call "survivor jobs" aka jobs that help pay the bills but aren't performing jobs. The best survivor jobs are the ones that you love and help ease that time in between shows. They are even better when you get to work with incredibly talented, hilarious, and kind people that inspire you and push you to be better. That's how Creative Consulting kind of fell into my lap - like many things in my life. All by chance, luck, and being in the right place at the right time. I had been doing some social media work of my own ever since I moved to Charleston in 2015 (again by sheer luck!) and realized that it was not only artistically fulfilling, it was also something I could take with me anywhere. I could get a show tomorrow (well, maybe not TOMORROW, thanks pandemic!) and take my job with me. Ironically it was social media that lead me to Creative. They posted a job advertisement on Facebook, and I just figured why not? I applied, interviewed, and now a year and a half later here I am, part of the crazy and wonderful Creative family, still learning every day, still being creative, and incredibly thankful. 2020 was a doozy for performers, as you can imagine. While there are some performing opportunities out there, I personally don't feel safe about those opportunities right now. With family members and loved ones in those danger zone ages, being engaged to a chef who works at a very popular restaurant, and just being honestly a little afraid of this pandemic, I have chosen to put performing on hold until it's safe (for me) to do so. This is why Creative has been such a saving grace this year. I've been creatively fulfilled, I have a wonderful community of creatives around me and a job. These three things have been taken away from a lot of people due to the pandemic, and because of that, I count my blessings every day. So, that's me! Now when you visit the Creative offices and you hear someone who is (naturally) a very loud speaker and could potentially be caught singing a show tune or two, you have a better idea of whos behind it. This is also a big virtual hug to the Creative team, and to the whole arts community. You've inspired me with your perseverance and the fact that we are in this together. Since I owe my teammates the same kindness that they gave me - please find my questionnaire filled out below! Name: Maddie Casto How long have you been working at CC: About a year and a half. How did you hear about the positions: I happened to see a job posting on Facebook that they had put out looking for a content creator and blog writer. I filled out an application, and about a month later I had my first interview with Meg and Stephen. Like I mentioned in Rebekah's blog, I didn't think I was going to get the job, but looks like the universe had a different idea! What do you do for CC: I am the blog writer! What is your favorite part about working for CC: The incredible people I work with. They're hilarious, so creative, intelligent, passionate, and I love that my job is another unique creative outlet. In another life, I wanted to be a writer, and by chance, this job is letting me do that! What have you learned since you worked at CC: I would have to write an entire blog on this topic! I do feel that I learn something new every time I'm in the office. One of the great things about working for CC is that it is a collaborative learning environment. What is your favorite part of your workday at CC: Working with this incredible team! Also, there is NOTHING like how it feels when you've finished writing your blogs for the month. Favorite memory at CC so far: Right after I started working with CC, it was their 5 year birthday, and Meg and Stephen threw a huge birthday party with incredible food and invited clients and friends to help celebrate. Seeing that room full of people who loved and supporting the business and meeting the clients was such an exciting experience. However, there is a new great memory that I make almost every week - and I am so thankful for that. Favorite Summerville Small Business (besides CC): OH MAN - can I tell you, I love so many, but my new favorite obsession is the Cuban Gypsy Pantry. The FOOD! If you haven't tried it yet - GO NOW! What is your educational background: I graduated with a BFA in Acting with an emphasis in Musical Theatre. What are your hobbies: Journaling, reading, playing video games, spending way too much time with my cats, watching movies and TV What is your favorite book, color, song, movie: Favorite Book: The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes, City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert/Where the Crawdad Sings by Delia Owens, and the ENTIRE The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher Color: Red + Purple Song: I have so so many. My dad was a radio DJ in the 70s and 80s and my mom introduced all the musical movies to me growing up. I feel like if I name just one, I'm betraying so many others! If There's A Rock Tie Me To by Snow Patrol is one of my all-time favorite pop songs - Roses Turn is one of my all-time favorite Musical Theater Songs. Favorite Movie: Basically anything with Tom Hanks in it or basically anything on TCM or AMC. Interesting Facts: I am an only child, I've moved over 20 times in my life, my dad was a radio DJ in the 70s and 80s, I'm distantly related to Jacques Cousteau, I've met Rosemary Cloony's Brother (George Clooney's dad!) Favorite Food: Asian and Mexican food! Favorite Restaurant in Charleston/Summerville: Cuban Gypsy Pantry, Chez Nous, Rutledge Kitchen, Chubby Fish, NICO, Raw 167, Jackrabbit Filly, EVO, Millers All Day, The Daily, Bucher and Bee, Edmunds Oas Favorite things to do in Charleston/Summerville: Shopping, try new restaurants, spending time at the beach, spending time with my little family, and finding new coffee shops! Thank you so much for coming on this journey with us - and here is to the continuation of learning more about our crafts, supporting one another, to a new year, and to working towards new and exciting things together as a community. Thank you for adopting me, Summerville, and for being so supportive of the company that has been so incredibly kind to me. Now that you know almost everything about me, back I go behind my pen! Until next time Summerville, find the silver lining in your life, and stay caffeinated!
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 Get to know the hilarious, hard-working, and creative individuals that make up the Creative Consulting family one blog at a time.
Hello, Summerville! Welcome back to the blog writer's desk! Our whole team hopes this blog finds you happy and well where ever you might be. I personally hope that you are relaxing somewhere comfortable, with a view from your favorite spot in your home, or sitting in one of your favorite places in our beautiful town of Summerville. Even though we've had a lot of rain recently, it's helping keep the grass greener longer - and have you been paying attention to the clouds when these storms roll in? There is always a set of silver linings with every season, and through this tumultuous year, I have personally been trying to find as many as possible. What have you been doing this week to find your silver linings? Sometimes it's hard to do that, I understand. When it's hard to do that in my personal life, I try to focus on the silver linings in my day to day work life. One of the biggest ones is that Creative Consulting has been such a constant through a year that you can't count on what might happen in a few minutes, let alone a few days. I have never been more thankful to work for a company that can be just as successful when we are working in the office as we are remote. Thanks to the wonders of Google Meetings, Email, and Hubspot (if you don't know what that is - it's an incredible tool for your company, so look it up!) we were able to adjust quickly to our first shut down. Once we were back in the office, it was like we had just seen one another the day before. That comes with working with such a great team. Being supportive, helpful, and available to one another has also made this year so successful. My silver lining this week is having the chance to go to work, work with such a great group of people, and continue the forward motion in the growth of Creative Consulting. Welcome back as well to our second to last (gasp!) team feature. Thank you, dear readers, for following along with this journey. While I only have four more blogs left to write for Creative in what's left of 2020, I am excited to come up with my next blog series for 2021. Make sure to enjoy these last few blogs and check-in with what wonderful things will appear next year. I have already started to brainstorm, and I am getting so excited. This spotlight is very unique because I have the pleasure to introduce you to an amazing team member who virtually started the same day that I did. We were both originally hired to be content creators for all of the social media clients, the only difference between the two of us is that she had more social media clients while I had some social media clients and all of my blog clients. I look back and think about those first few weeks we spent together; helping train one another, our first few Monday morning team meetings, and our first Creative birthday. We might have been working together and for Creative for five or six weeks, and we were already helping set up Creative's 5-year birthday party. It was such a whirlwind; we were meeting people who had supported and cared for creative since the very beginning, meeting some of our clients face to face and the FOOD was amazing. That was my first true introduction to the incredible food and sweets that are made right here in Summerville, and even now almost a year and a half after that party, I still look back and crave the finger food and the personalized cookies we nibbled on that night. What is so special about this young woman, is that from the moment we started working with one another, we formed an instant friendship. We started as easy-going coworkers who loved having their desks right next to each other. Now, we have formed a deep bond and friendship that I wouldn't trade for the world. It is my honor to introduce you to Rebekah McCubbins, the other half of the content creation team. Together with Kelsay, they make sure that hundreds of content posts go out every month. She is incredibly passionate about what she does, about her community, and her family and friends. I feel like every time Rebekah and I work together, she is teaching me about something incredibly important happening in the world, in pop culture, or telling me about an incredible recipe she made for her and her husband the other night. (I am still hoping to try her chickpea curry someday soon!). I love learning about new music, new artists, new companies, new restaurants from her. She is always five steps ahead of me in knowing the coolest and latest trends, and I am so thankful that she keeps me hip and cool. She is also just an incredible source of joy, putting the two of us together can be dangerous - especially during our Monday meetings. You get us going and we can interrupt and pause a meeting in a fit of giggles. I have loved working next to her from our very first days of work. A day hasn't gone by where she didn't ask or offer her support or help before she left for the day, checked in with how I was doing, or asked about what projects I am working on. Get yourself a co-worker who loves and cares as Rebekah does, and you'll understand how lucky you are once you do! Let's meet Rebekah, shall we? How long have you been working at CC: A little over a year! How did you hear about the positions: I stumbled across the position on Facebook and filled out the application. I didn't think I would get an interview, and I definitely didn't expect to get the position! What do you do for CC: I write social media content and manage the social media accounts for some of our clients. What is your favorite part about working for CC: Collaborating with the most talented people! Everyone here blows me away daily with their creativity. What have you learned since you worked at CC: It sounds cliché, but I feel like I learn something new every day. I think the biggest thing is that Stephen and Meg have been super transparent about the business side of CC, and that has allowed me to learn so much about business! What is your favorite part of your workday at CC: Any time that I get to collaborate with the amazing creatives I work with! Everyone here at CC is so sweet and so talented, and I love working with them. Favorite memory at CC so far: A little while after I started at CC, we hosted a 5th-anniversary party for the company. It was such a fun time! I got to know my still-new coworkers better and met some of the incredible business owners from around the Lowcountry. Favorite Summerville Small Business (besides CC): There are so many! I love the chai latte and baked goods at Coastal Coffee, the candles at ETC, and the macarons at Swank! What is your educational background: I majored in English and History and minored in Religion. I finished my Bachelor's degree at UofSC in 2019, and I plan to continue my education in English and get my doctorate in the future. What are your hobbies: Reading, Cooking, Embroidery, and Video Games! What is your favorite book, color, song, movie: Book: I've read so many that it's impossible to narrow it down to one, but a book I recently finished and loved is The Weight of This World by David Joy. It is a beautiful, haunting story that sheds a light on the reality of poverty in the South. I highly recommend his books! Movie: V for Vendetta, The Princess Bride, and The Devil Wears Prada are all amazing, and I've recently become obsessed with Midsommar and The Day Shall Come! Color: Pink! Song: Right now I really love Water Me by Lizzo, but there are truly way too many I love! Interesting Facts: I was homeschooled all the way until I got to college. I am currently working on a set of small embroideries of sushi. I have strong opinions about practically everything, especially the Oxford comma. Favorite Food: Thai food, soul food, and sushi! Favorite Restaurant in Charleston/Summerville: I love Pad Thai 1. They're right around the corner from our office, they're so sweet, and the food is delicious. I also recently discovered Alicia's Soul Food, which makes the BEST mac and cheese I've ever tasted! Favorite things to do in Charleston/Summerville: Shop, eat, and spend time with family and friends! Reading this interview, you can just feel Rebekah's kindness, good heart, and passion. Reading back through this, it was even more of a walk down memory lane. Ironically, she and I had very similar experiences with our applications and first interviews. We both applied on Facebook and didn't think we'd get an interview. With my background in performing, I am so used to sending in my resume and information and not hearing back, so that's kind of what I expected. Thankfully, Stephen and Meg had a much different plan for both of us. We were also both so convinced that we tanked our interviews, but Meg and Stephen had a different idea about that as well, thank goodness! I am so excited to see what other incredible things Rebekah is going to do with her time working with Creative and in every venture of her life. Spoiler alert, I have seen sneak previews of her sushi embroideries, and they will make you crave a California roll they're just so incredible! Many thanks to Rebekah for taking the time for letting me interview her, and for sharing these wonderful insights about her and her time with Creative. I have loved sharing this with all of you. Coming up in December, readers, you will get to read the last team feature (until new team members join us!), which will be the blog writer's interviewer herself! Until next time Summerville, find the silver lining in your life, and stay caffeinated!
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 Get to know the hilarious, hard-working, and creative individuals that make up the Creative Consulting family one blog at a time.
Hello Summerville, and welcome back to the blog writer's desk! We are taking a break from your normally scheduled program of learning more about the social media and marketing world, and welcoming you back into the personal offices of Creative Consulting! I'm not sure about you, but the fact that there are only a few weeks left of 2020 seems pretty crazy, right? This year has sped by, and in many ways, that is really alright! Before I get too ahead of myself and dive into the Holidays (hold me back, I am ready for some tensile and fake snow!) I am trying to soak up the last bit of fall right here in the heart of Summerville. Have you recently taken a walk around our adorable little square? It is still emerald green, the fountain is bubbling, and all the shops have their doors open and ready to welcome each of us. I just took a walk with a cool cup of joy from Cuppa Manna and enjoyed a little slice of Summerville. If you haven't done that recently, I would recommend it for your next break during the workday. I am also very excited to get back to one of my favorite series of blogs I have written for CC, our spotlight on each of our team members! I know that I say this in every blog, but it so refreshing to learn and read more about my coworkers, especially if they are newer to the company. Creative has come to a very exciting threshold that many young businesses work towards. We are growing and planning for something big, and every time I'm in the office or talk to my teammates, it feels like we are standing on a precipice of something very exciting. One of these exciting things came in with our newest team member, Michael Andrew Hatchell. Andrew, who is our Customer Relations Manager and Marketing Specialist, has given so much to Creative in the very short time he has been with us. Hiring Andrew meant that our relationships with our clients could become more hands-on, more time could be delegated to new ventures, and more things could get done on a day to day basis. Andrews's expertise and fresh new ideas have been an exciting part of the Creative work week, and I have enjoyed working with him. Being a blog writer is a very unique hat to wear, while my background is in the arts, I spend a lot of my time learning and researching about a whole slew of topics that I personally had never spent time on until this job appeared. Just like any artist or writer, writer's block is very common. I spend more time brainstorming and staring at my blinking cursor than I care to admit. My Creative team has always been so supportive when it comes to helping me brainstorm and come up with the next new and exciting topic for my set of blogs every month. It has also been fun to sit one on one with Andrew almost every week brainstorming about our clients in a whole new way. If you are a new client with Creative or a perspective one, and you haven't met Andrew yet, you will truly enjoy working with him. He supports and loves the business, he is always excited to learn, and always excited to talk about food and his beautiful family. I am so excited that he's joined our Creative family, and I look forward to seeing what wonderful things he has in store! Dear readers, it is my pleasure to introduce you to Mr. Michael Andrew Hatchell! Name: Michael Andrew Hatchell How long have you been working at CC: Almost two months! How did you hear about the positions: I reached out to Stephen organically. I didn’t see a job posting, just walked in, and handed him a resume. Then I just waited semi-patiently for a call. What do you do for CC: Marketing strategy and customer relations. I analyze all the statistics for the client’s website and social media so I can come up with a formula to increase the business’s outreach. What is your favorite part about working for CC: The people are already some of the best I have ever worked with. Everyone is so nice, very helpful, and extremely talented. I feel fortunate to be a part of Creative Consulting. What have you learned since you worked at CC: I studied marketing in college but what you learn in the books is very different from real-world application. I have learned a lot about how to take the information I got from college and really apply it to helping businesses grow in the greater Charleston area. What is your favorite part of your workday at CC: Meeting with existing and prospective clients. I love meeting new people and learning about them. Everyone has such an interesting story and nobody is the same, so it keeps you on your toes. Favorite memory at CC so far: We are in the midst of conducting a case study around videography. We had a film crew in the office and was able to finally meet everyone face to face. Favorite Summerville Small Business (besides CC): It’s not fair in my opinion to have a favorite here in Summerville. There are so many great businesses and they all have different specialties. The most recent discovery though would have to be Patrick the Groomsmith. Highly professional and one of the best master barbers I have had the pleasure to get a haircut from. What is your educational background: Graduated from Limestone University with a BS in Business Administration where I majored in marketing. Currently, I attend Webster University and should graduate with my MBA in the summer of 2021. What are your hobbies: Other than being with my 4-year-old, I love to cook and play instruments. Really anything music-related. I also enjoy the outdoors, so hunting, fishing, and golf are up there on the list. What is your favorite book, color, song, movie: Being that I spent a good bit of time in school recently, I don’t have much pleasure reading going on. I most recently read “Can’t Hurt Me” by David Goggins and absolutely loved it. Interesting Facts: I was in the Navy for nine years. There, I traveled a lot and got to experience a plethora of different cultures and food which is some of my favorite things! Favorite Food: I’m not a picky eater by any means, but I do prefer home-cooked meals. On Saturdays, you may find me in the back yard running my smoker. I love making and eating barbecue. Favorite Restaurant in Charleston/Summerville: Another tough one. It depends on my mood but I love Poogan’s Porch and 843 BBQ. 843 BBQ is a Korean restaurant and sushi bar. Great for date nights. Poogan’s Porch is great food and is awesome for a late breakfast on Sunday mornings. Favorite things to do in Charleston/Summerville: My wife and I love to just go walking around Charleston and seeing the sites. After five years of living here, my wife still can’t believe we only live 30 to 45 minutes from downtown Charleston (depending on traffic). I don't know about you, but after I went back and re-read Andrew's interview while preparing this blog, I was craving BBQ and a nice walk around some of my favorite places in Charleston, how about you? This blog, while it does give you an insight into Andrew's passion and humor, you'll have to meet him in person to really see and enjoy it. Summerville, keep your eyes open for this gentleman. If you don't know him yet, he will become a staple in the area. He is here to support your business, help you grow, and help Summerville grow and prosper in some very new and exciting ways! Again, many thanks to Andrew for spending the time working with me on this blog, and helping me be better at my job every day! I hope you all enjoyed another visit with me and another of my teammates! Until next time Summerville, find the fun in the puzzles you come across in your life and stay caffeinated!
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 Sometimes starting over can be a huge benefit to your company. Today, we are going to be talking about rebranding, when it's time to rebrand, and some of the best ways to go about doing so!
Happy blog reading, Summerville! We hope you're doing well and continue to enjoy our wonderful town to its fullest! We are working hard as ever over at Creative Consulting, and we love seeing more and more of you responding to our posts, reaching out, and starting the steps in working with us. We've truly been wonderfully overwhelmed by getting to know new people and their businesses every week. Helping companies at all stages of their growth and size become the company they've always dreamed of is one of the most rewarding parts of our job. If you have any questions, comments, or you're curious about working with us please don't hesitate to reach out. We would love to hear from you! Until then, make sure you're following us on Instagram and Facebook to follow all of our exciting news and ventures! Today, we are going to be talking about rebranding. This might sound like a scary term to apply to any business, and we understand your hesitation. However, this doesn't mean throwing out your business and starting from square one. It means that after you accept the fact that while yes, this can be scary, it is well worth the effort and it can give new life to your company. Rebranding leaves the heart of your company and its products or services alone while you decide to change your image. This could mean changing the brand logo, the colors, your name, the symbols you use, or going in for a totally new design overhaul. It's a refresh of what you had and taking it to a new and improved level to catch a new audience, compete with your competitors, grow with the times, and become bigger than you ever were before. It can be scary to totally change and edit the identity of a company and let go of all the time and effort you spent putting into your current brand, but please believe us when we say that it can take your company to a whole new level of success if you trust the process. In the first part of this two-part blog, we are going to be talking about red flag moments that will let you know that it might be time to rebrand. In the second part of this blog, we will be talking about successful steps and things to make the rebranding process as pain-free and successful as possible. TIME TO REBRAND We have new clients come work with us who already have a website and a social media presence. They've hit a wall and they aren't getting any response, customers, sales, and it seems like no one knows who they are or what their business does. In these situations, we do a few things to jumpstart these companies again including blog work, SEO, a new approach to their advertisement plan, new ideas when it comes to the social media pages, and so much more. One of the biggest things we do is help rebrand these companies. We redesign logos, change the color schemes and layouts of their website, and are consistent in what their social media posts look like. This helps create a consistent flow that allows audience members to remember their brand, connect images and layout to their brand, and entice people to check out and understand what this particular company does just by looking at their logo and branding. What are some other examples of when it might be time to start rebranding? Just like everything else in the business world, your company will change and evolve. This is the perfect time to start the rebranding process. REASON ONE: Growing Pains Over time, your company can begin to offer new services, new products, and can even change the focus of what is important for the company and what they want to provide to their customers. When this happens, your original logo might not incorporate all of these new ideas or what all you're now offering to your clientele. You want everyone who comes across your logo and branding to know exactly all there is to know about your company or, be inspired to find out more just by looking at it. If your original logo isn't providing this, then it's time to start thinking about rebranding to something that does explain all of these things for you. This can save you a ton of time in the long run, because there will be less confusion to clean up, fewer questions about what you do, and you can get directly to selling your services and products without hesitation. REASON TWO: A Bad Day It's something we hope never happens to your company or any future companies you might come to own in the future; but, once a company has a palpable and recognized bad reputation, it might be time to rebrand. A company can still have so much to offer even if it has hit a wall of a bad reputation. Their product still might have something important to offer its consumers. Everything can change if new management and new owners come into the picture, and with a refreshing rebrand from head to toe, this can be a total rebirth and survival of a company. Along with that, it can also help slowly remove the negative connotation associated with it. This can help your audience and a new audience see you in a brand new light with a new understanding. REASON THREE: Getting In Your Own Way Rebranding doesn't mean that you're failing or doing something wrong. It can simply mean your original logo and brand is getting in the way of your current success. For example, say you started your company 15 or 20 years ago. While your products are still popular and necessary, your font, brand, and color choices can make you feel dated and old fashioned. The fonts and colors you're using might have been popular all those years ago, but they might be tired and very out of style now. This can turn people away from your brand when they see it for the first time and make them choose your competitors instead. All because of your branding! Don't let this happen. Many businesses, no matter their success, know it's a smart move to rebrand because they've "outgrown their original mission" according to Entrepreneur. Also, once this rebrand happens, it's a great opportunity to put your logo on even more products! Have you had pens with your logo on them? Maybe try mini flash drives, portable phone batters, or mini hand sanitizer bottles! New products that people will use with your new brand on it is a double win! REASON FOUR: Beyond the Competition This is one of the most popular reasons why companies rebrand. If your brand is similar to your competitors or even a company that does something different than yours, it's time to shake it up. You want your logo to stand out and be remembered, not questioned, or confused with another company that could potentially take your business! Also, if your competition has a better brand than what you currently have, it's time to step it up and go one step further with a better brand than what they have. This can be pricey, but it will be worth it. Also, please avoid using anything overtly generic and never use stock images or art as part of your brand or logo. Sure, these can be used in other parts of your company, but not for who are! REASON FIVE: The Cool Kid On The Block Another very popular reason companies rebrand is to reach a whole new level of customers and a new demographic. Does your product or service offer something for people of all ages, but for some reason your demographic is only reaching a certain age group? It might be your brand. Subconsciously thanks to our culture and how we associate different colors, shapes, pictures, and fonts we connect who a product is for, even if we are incorrect in these assumptions. Rebranding to attract everyone instead of limiting your reach can bring you more business and a wider reach. A new rebrand can introduce you to a whole new generation of customers who might have been looking for your product for years and they never even knew you existed! How do you feel about rebranding so far? There are multiple reasons why it might be time or extremely necessary to do so. While it might not be an easy experience, it can save your company and prolong its lifespan. We are here to help you through the process and to help make it as pain-free as possible. In our next blog, we will be discussing some of the best tips, suggestions, and steps to take to make your branding process as successful as possible. Until then, stay safe and caffeinated Summerville!
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 We are finishing up our blog series on the best ways to handle negative social media comments. We know it's a difficult situation to deal with, but with enough preparation, you can be ready to handle anything!
Hello, Summerville! Welcome back to part two of our blog about handing negative social media comments. We hope that part one of this blog gave you a good basis for how to move forward if you are faced with this issue. As we mentioned before, this is not something we would wish on anyone. Sadly, it is very possible. Hopping on the internet and telling everyone exactly how you feel has become a trend since the dawning of Facebook, if not sooner, and has continued to grow stronger in the years following. As a business, you prepare for the inevitable with insurance, a strong plan, a good financial team, and a good workforce. Why not be prepared for everything you might face? Keep a watchful eye on all of your online networks, and be ready to handle everything and everyone you come across with an attitude of being calm, cool, and collected.
It might be incredibly hard, but take a moment to see the issue from the client's point of view. There will be people who will be angry just to be angry. If the product or service your company offers is broken, doesn't deliver as promised, or arrives extremely late, apologizing and owning up to your mistakes will help. Offering a discount, refund, voucher, or replacement can also help calm the tension at hand. Make sure you are aware of the comments you're receiving. Keep notifications on and connect them to a phone or email that will be checked and monitored frequently. Also, make sure to follow up with any complaints and follow through with what you promise to offer your client. Make sure you understand what the problem is and discuss how it can be fixed. Once these terms have been agreed on, follow through with them and check back in with your client to make sure they're happy and satisfied with the situation. This shows that you really care, and you didn't just fix the problem and forget about them. Sometimes you will run into a situation where an issue is out of your control. A system error could be beyond your knowledge to repair, your suppliers that help create your goods and services could be doing something to harm the quality of your product, and sometimes you are in a situation where you don't have the answers or a way to fix it yourself. That's okay - you're human. This doesn't mean you just toss it away and brush the problem off, you still have to fix it. What you can do is outsource someone who can help you. Recruit a good IT company, find a new supplier, and find the best of the best in what you're having issues with. This can cause a hike in price than just refunding your customer, but this can be a priceless decision to help keep your customer and continue bringing in others. It is never wrong to ask for help with something you don't know! Not only can this help relations between you and your customer, but it can be a learning opportunity for you and your team as well!
According to Forbes, 84% of people who go looking into a company online say they trust the reviews they see. Sometimes you can't help how people will respond or react, their anger could be something completely out of your hands. If you can, try to get ahead of any potential problems so negativity can be avoided. Listen to your customers before things get difficult. Have you been hearing similar small complaints? Have you been hearing the same suggestion over and over again? Have people been supporting you for a significant amount of time, but have been asking for a revamp of your goods and services? Listen to them! They are giving you excellent free advice, why not take it? If you can get ahead of the curve, this can help avoid negative situations.
Negative comments are bound to happen. It's how you deal with them that will make all the difference. Everyone is allowed to have their opinion, but make sure your voice as a company isn't quiet. Don't be afraid to connect with these unhappy people, human to human. Remember too, one bad comment does not reflect your company as a whole. Take it in stride, and keep doing what you do best! If you need help or would like to learn more, please contact us! We look forward to talking to you soon!
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 Dealing with negative comments or bots is sadly something every business needs to prepare to handle. It's not a fun situation or topic, but it's always best to be prepared.
Hello, Summerville! How is our favorite city? We hope you're staying safe and making the best out of your week! This week's blog is going to touch on an uncomfortable topic that sadly every business that has an online presence needs to prepare for. When a company creates its online presence, its goal is to create a positive community to share their products, services, knowledge about their industry, to connect with their customers and future customers, and connect with anyone who happens to discover their brand. With the freedom that the internet allows and the ability to hide behind a keyboard, this positive community isn't always positive or well-received. People will have their opinions and the internet allows them to share them in an instant, regardless if they're good or bad. In a world dominated by Google reviews, Yelp reviews, comments, and opinions, staying on top of these interactions is incredibly important. It's not a pleasant part of owning a business today, but it is a reality. Hopefully, this isn't something that you'll have to deal with often but just in case, it's always best to stay prepared. Social media and the internet has its own culture, its way of interacting, and its way of how best to communicate. It is a different animal compared to dealing with an upset or disgruntled client in real life, which is why many of the normal practices of dealing with these situations might not work. In this two-part blog, we are going to give you a few tips and suggestions on how to deal with handling negative comments, and how to move on from them.
Many trolls, scammers, and bots are trying to get an emotional response from you so they have the upper hand in making you and your company look bad. Don't allow them to do this. First, make sure to document these posts or comments. Take a screenshot on your phone or computer just in case. Deleting the comment won't be in your best favor. It could anger the person who commented in the first place, and it could also bring your integrity into question by the commenter and anyone who saw the post before the comment was removed, according to Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. The only time you should remove a negative comment is if it has nothing to do with your company or if they are inappropriate. Remove these comments and block the user who is abusing and attacking your social media platforms. This is an example of people being mean to be mean. Make sure to discuss your response with your fellow employees, if a response is necessary, and make sure to do it quickly. Anyone can see these comments, and news travels fast on social media. Make sure to get a handle on it before it handles you. With this being said, the continued conversation doesn't have to be in the public eye. Make sure to respond to every comment, but invite the disgruntled party to connect with you outside of social media. Invite them to email you or to directly message you to fix the issue at hand. Make it known to your customers where they can turn to if they do have issues and who they can speak to. This can channel these issues into a safe space instead of all over the internet. The internet can be an easy escape and a wonderful addition to running your company. It can also be a harmful place for quick and ugly comments and opinions to spew. We do believe that inherently, people are trying to be good. Sometimes, a bad experience makes us angry for a split second, but that doesn't mean that we are bad people. The internet opened up a world of wonderful and it also opened up the possibility for a lot of ugliness. Learning how to deal with it professionally and quickly is a skill that you will acquire when owning a business. In our next blog, we will be continuing this topic and giving you more ideas on how to handle these situations. Until next time, stay safe and sound Summerville!
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The Importance of Brand Identity9/15/2020  Creating a strong brand identity can make or break your company's success. Here is why it is so important, along with a few tips and suggestions to make yourself stand out!
Hello, Summerville! We hope you're doing well. The smell of pumpkin spice abounds, all of our favorite stores here in the square are starting to put out decorations. We also might be a tad embarrassed about the number of baked fall goods from Swank that we've already sampled. To say the least, we are pretty excited about fall! Celebrating Summerville, supporting our fellow local businesses, and creating exactly what our clients want is a part of our brand. The bright orange color we use in our logo is a part of who we are. We are quirky, hardworking, and usually a little over-caffeinated. This is who we are and what makes us unique as a company. All of these are traits that we are proud of and what we want our current and future clients to know about us. All of these elements are a part of our branding. It's the part of our company that you see online, what you see when you drive by our office, and what you hear about us when you ask about us around town. Brand identity is the unique fingerprint that people will see and look into before they meet the people behind the business. This is why having a strong branding identity is so important. More Than Just A Logo Granted, yes. Your company needs a logo, a color scheme, and fonts that you'll use consistently. There is something very special in seeing your signage, window decals, business cards, website, social media, and stationary all decked out in your logo, colors, and fonts. All of these tools are necessary because you'll use them to catch the eye of your future clients. When it comes to the whole of your brand identity, this is a very small part of the whole story. Your brand identity is so much more than your meticulously created logo. It is your reputation, how you want people to perceive you, your unique and individual voice, and what you want to be known for. It needs to stand up to the challenge, support your business, and get your message across.
What It Does For You Now that you've established what brand identity is what can it turn around and do for you?
It takes work to create your brand identity. Creating your logo didn't happen overnight, and your brand identity won't provide these amazing benefits to you overnight either. The steps to creating a strong brand identity aren't overwhelming, they're actually very straight forward. The challenge is implementing them into your workflow and your company's everyday life. How To Get Started As we said, strong brand identity doesn't happen instantly. It takes time, research, and doing all of those necessary tedious things that arent the glamorous side of owning a business.
The list goes on with the many ways you can create, strengthen, and grow your brand identity. This blog is just a peek into everything that is available to you. We did mention that this took time, right? Every company and business is different. You need to find what works for you. We just wanted to provide a little foundation for you to build on. The long and short of it is that brand identity is important and it's worth your time. If you need help or would like to learn more, please contact us! We look forward to talking to you soon!
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 Curious about lead generation and exposure for your business? Not sure what the difference is between the two or what they can do for your online marketing? We are here to answer all those questions and more!
Hello, Summerville! We hope this blog finds you happy and well. This has been a very exciting few weeks for us, and if you've been following our social media pages (which if you're not - catch up!) you'll understand why! We've started a new local business feature, we've started a brand new video series answering all your business questions, and more! Stephen was also a recent guest on Invest Local!, a fantastic local podcast. Visit their website to hear Stephen give the insider scoop on what it's like to run a top-tier, full-service agency that handles client's brands from a hands-on and personal approach! We have so many exciting things coming our way, and we are so thankful for the amazing community of Summerville for helping us make it all possible! One of our most recent posts on social media was dedicated to Lead Generation vs. Exposure. Did you know that there are two main types of digital marketing? That's right! Lead Generation and Exposure are those two main types. Lead generation seeks out new leads or sales and exposure grows your audience and brings awareness to your business. We wanted to dig a little deeper into these ideas and talk a little more about how both can help your company grow and why they're so important. If you want to know which focus is best for your business needs, reach out to us! We can help you understand the strategies used in each type of marketing, and help you create your custom system. Lead Generation One of the most important things for businesses to gain through their marketing is to convert followers into clients. You don't want to waste time or money into an advertisement plan that doesn't get attention or any conversion. That goes against the whole purpose of why you have an advertising plan in the first place. With the way that the market is right now, and with so much up in the air, you want to make the most of your advertisement right now. Your goal, as always, is to attract the highest quality followers and leads that are going to turn into consistent and supportive customers.
Exposure Marketing According to Forbes, most new small businesses fail because they didn't have enough exposure in the beginning, to get the clientele needed to get them off the ground. Early exposure can help you get ahead of the game, ahead of your competitors, and help keep your head above water. The main focus is to grow your audience at a steady and productive rate. You need to understand and know your product and what demographic will be most likely drawn to your goods and services to make this a successful campaign. Once you understand that, you can begin to expose them to what goods and services your company offers, and why you're the experts in the world of your industry. It's an important process that needs to be seen in the early stages of your company and throughout its entire lifetime.
What is very important to remember is that both types of marketing are not only important to your business, but also to one another. Someone might be introduced to your company due to your exposure, and thanks to the efforts of successful lead generation, could become official clients. It can be difficult to pick and put either practice of marketing into successful action. We are here to help you make those decisions and to make that marketing dream become a successful reality. Have any questions? Please feel free to reach out, we'd love to hear from you! If you would like more in-depth training and someone to help you walk through your issues, we can help you with that. We offer individual social media training to walk you through on how to use each platform. If you or your company wants to take another step up in your online business world, we are here to make that happen. Don't hesitate to reach out. We are here and excited to help your company grow. Thank you for continuing to follow us, learn with us, and support us. We are here for you Summerville, no matter what!
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The Importance Of Following Trends7/29/2020  There are so many working pieces of a successful company and workflow. Is keeping up with trends one that you have to do? We believe it to be one of the most important things to stay on top of!
The business world, just like any industry, changes rapidly. The right thing to wear, the cool things to do, where to eat, and the latest catchphrases can grow in popularity thanks to one viral Instagram post in a matter of seconds. It can be exhausting to follow and keep up with. It's even more exhausting when you're trying to run a business on top of staying aware of these changes. We get it. It's part of what we do for our clients and is something we deal with every day. Is it really necessary to stay on top of and to follow trends? Or do you just find what works for you and your company and stick with that? In all reality, as much as we hate to say it, not staying on top of these fast-paced trends can endanger your company. Sticking to your very traditional means of business can be very damaging and will leave you in the dust of your competitors as they take the lead, your customers, and your business.
Also, remember to identify if the changes in your industry are true trends or if they're just fads. Fads will disappear overnight and can lead to a lot of frustration. A lot of money and time can be spent on implementing a fad. If it's mistaken for a trend, it can lead to a lot of frustration and money and time lost. Make sure you know the difference between the two, and how to spot both. What we want you to take away from this blog is to make sure that you are staying on top of trends. We do recognize that it can be a lot of added work, but it needs to be added to your workflow. We want to hear how you've encountered and implemented trends in your business! Comment below and share your experiences. If you want to learn more about trends, let us know! It could appear in future blogs. |
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