If you’re in Indianpolis on May 10, be sure to check out the hanging show at Big Car.

Designing a poster isn’t as easy as it may appear. Much like designing a logo, we always aim to simplify an idea down to it’s most pure form, removing anything that doesn’t belong. And one of the best ways to do that is to start with a sketch.

So, in what seemed very fitting for the film, my poster design began with a few sketches by Brian K Gray and I, on the back of a few hotel napkins. When I’m sketching, the number one thing I’m trying to flesh out is the visual concept. In this particular case, using the olive spears in a martini glass to spell “11″ was at the heart of the concept.

At this point I was ready to bring the concept into Illustrator, to begin work on the scale and shape of the graphic elements. In this phase, you may notice I’m not too concerned about style yet. This is more of an extension of the sketch. Does it work on screen as well as it did on paper? How might the colors work together?

It was starting to work, but after bouncing these ideas off of the Miles Design team, we all agreed the “Ocean’s” type was really feeling a bit awkward.

So where to go for inspiration? Instinctively, I started to reach for my Saul Bass book—if anybody understood simplicity in poster design, it was this guy. And this book is amazing. But when I glanced back at another one of my napkin sketches, the idea had been there all along—taking inspiration from the iconic Las Vegas signage.

Now I was headed back to Illustrator with a little more of a purpose. I flipped back and forth on color a few times, but ultimately landed back on the original color scheme.

Here’s a little detail of the neon-inspired type.

And, here’s the final.

What do you think?

The post Ocean’s Eleven Design Process: From Back of the Napkin to Movie Poster appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

At Miles Design, we approach B2B marketing a bit differently than most. We like to consider what works in the consumer market, and do our best to apply those principles to B2B marketing. What do the best B2C marketers do best? Sell their niche. How do B2B marketers go about doing that? Here are our top 5 suggestions:

1. Find a price niche

What would your customers be willing to pay a premium for? Within your market, what can you offer at the top end of the price spectrum? Or how can you bill differently? If your industry typically bills by the hour, consider offering a fixed bid for project work, or even a flat monthly retainer. On the flip side, what can you systematize and charge a minuscule amount for? What if you become known as the giant law firm that files trademark applications as fast as the online guys, but with the clout and service that you’re known for in the community?

2. Look for low hanging fruit

What do your customers want that you (and your competitors) don’t currently offer? How can you take your service to the next level? Daily personal telephone updates? On-site service? Online project status monitoring? A project manager with an iPhone could easily post progress photos of your new building and status updates via Twitter. (Hint: This may be the thing from #1 that allows you to charge a premium.) At our office, the dry cleaner picks up our laundry and delivers it right back to our coat closet. My credit card is on file, and I seldom even see our trusty delivery guy. It’s like magic. And guess what? It costs pretty much the same as the strip-mall dry cleaner. Remarkable.

3. Before you try to look different, be different

Design and marketing professionals are experts in the art of creating something new and interesting. This works out great when you ARE new and interesting. However, if you’re really more of the same old, same old, it tends to backfire. The same goes when a bad brand tries to fix all their business problems by rebranding. It’s like putting lipstick on a pig. (It’s still a pig.) Arguably one of the best “brands” in history for doing something different: Barack Obama. He sounded different, he exploited his differences, and he did an amazing job of looking different. Now we get to see if he lives up to his brand promise of Hope and Change (again.) Not to mention, his branding and design work has been flawless over the course of his 2 election runs.

4. If you’re doing something different, be sure you look and sound different

Imagine this: You have designed a game-changing, professional services offering. And now that it’s time to take it to market, you decide to mimic you closest competitor’s brand identity, design, brand voice, and advertisements. Give all of these similar visuals and messages, why on earth would anyone expect your services to actually be different, let alone better? If your aim is to truly be remarkable, take it all the way. Imitation in the world of branding is the sincerest form of shooting yourself in the foot.

5. Ask a trusted advisor

Chances are you’re so close to your own brand that you’re still a bit confused. You may have even convinced yourself that you’re well-niched and highly differentiated. Strangely enough, your competition is still there, buzzing in your ear. Now would be a good time to get a second opinion. Ask a mentor, a colleague in a different profession, or even an outside marketing professional.

One final suggestion

When you’re looking for an outside firm to help with your positioning, branding, or marketing, ask them why they are unique. And then ask them who their competition is. If their answers sound similar to yours, keep looking.

Bold Brand

This content is from Josh Miles’s book, Bold Brand. Bold Brand can be purchased here, and a free chapter download can be attained here. Enjoy!

Related Blogs

Brand Audit – What is a Brand Audit?

Branding Resolutions for 2013

Brand Awareness Problems

The post 5 Easy Methods to Identify Your Brand Niche appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

Recently we published a blog discussing brand awareness problems and how they’re the most common reason for rebranding. Rebranding efforts most commonly fall under one of three approaches. We could explore other approaches, but in the end, those could probably be classified as a variation of one of the following:

#1: Window dressing

It’s not uncommon for organizations that are dealing with internal problems to think that “updating their look” may help improve public perception, and in the end, their bottom line. However, if this “window dressing” isn’t accompanied by real change within the organization, the rebranding effort at best will flop and at worst, completely backfire.

“We have concerns with out reputation and our brand. Although many of our problems are directly related to our internal operations, organization, and customer service, we how our new look will help improve our reputation in the marketplace.” - Bold Brand

Real World Example

Remember the Yugo? Considered one of the worst cars in history, the Yugo brand name became a common punchline on late night television in the late 80s. Clearly, the “window dressing” visual update didn’t provide the long-term boost the company was looking for.

#2: A fresh face on a great place

Putting a “fresh face” on your company may sound like a similar approach to the “window dressing” example. The crucial difference here is that the company is already known and well respected by its current clients. Chances are that the company’s visual identity has become dated and the appearance of its brand may be the detractor as new prospects compare them to the competition.

“We have a great company, but a dated presence in the market. We want our brand to be seen as positively on the outside, as we see our organization internally.” - Bold Brand

Real World Example

Consider the UPS brand update of 2003. Their primary service had not changed in practice. They remained an international player in the shipping business. They were known for their approachable and courteous delivery drivers, (and their male drivers were known for their shorts.) Unfortunately, their previous logo (designed in 1961 by design legend Paul Rand) was becoming, practically speaking, a bit dated.

What followed was a logo and overall brand update. The new identity was simple and looked “fast” (more befitting of their racing partnerships). In addition, their new slogan “What can brown do for you” quickly became part of the public lexicon.

#3: Total brand overhaul, inside and out.

Companies that overhaul their brand must be committed to change, both inside the organization and in how they’re perceived from the outside. When an overhaul is done well, every possible brand touch point is examined thoroughly, asking “how could we make this touch point better?”

“Our brand is in rough shape. We have internal problems and external problems in the marketplace. We know it’s time to overhaul how we do things, and we’re thinking through every possible touch point, both inside our organization and in the marketplace.” – Bold Brand

Rebranding at this level can be a long, expensive, and challenging undertaking, but when done well, is well worth the investment. This type of holistic approach is the one we at Miles Design can always stand firmly in favor of.

Real World Example

Regardless of whether or not it was true, the Wendy’s “fingertip in the chili” story sent shivers down the backs of patrons nationwide. Wendy’s isn’t the only fast-food giant to suffer from these types of food-quality scares. Often the fastest type of response to these issues is a campaign restating the company’s commitment to fresh ingredients.

 Which approach will you take?

If you’re considering a rebrand it’s essential that you focus on each and every touch point of the brand, not the least of which is how the brand performs and delivers on its product, service or promises. The goal is not only to develop the workings for a great brand, but also to create a clear picture of how to live out that brand on a daily basis. With the guidance of a positioning document and a brand strategy, a rebrand will lead to authentic improvements for a company, both internally and externally.

Need some help determining if a rebrand is right for you? Be sure to check out our Do-It-Yourself Brand Audit – help determine if you’re in need for a rebrand!

If you can think of some other relevant examples of brands that have gone through a rebrand? Please leave a comment below or engage with us on Twitter:

Tweet #BrandStrategy

If you’re dying to find out more on this topic RIGHT NOW – please feel free to purchase Josh Miles’s book: Bold Brand or contact us directly here.

The post 3 Approaches to Rebranding appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

Amanda has seen us through many milestones, and a few changes here and there. Little did we know, the next big change would have to do with her…

You see, Amanda’s designer / developer husband Joe Blackburn started his own studio practice several years ago. And deep down inside, we kinda knew she couldn’t stick around here forever. So it is with mixed emotions that I announce, Amanda is officially beginning a brand new studio venture with Joe called, TWO BIRD.

We hate to see her leave, but it’s exciting to watch new entrepreneurs spring up from your own “nest.” So please join us in wishing Amanda (and Joe) much success in their new business!

If you’d like to email Amanda, her new address is: amanda (at) two-bird (dot) com

Happy flying, TWO BIRD!

Josh, Amanda, and Joe watch in awe… circa 2009

The post One Bird leaves the nest to join another appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

Our very own Josh Miles was featured on Next Stage Media Group’s Content Marketing 360 Radio Show! The host, Pamela Muldoon, invited Josh on the show to discuss his latest book, Bold Brand. Listen to the recording here, or read the transcript provided below!

Interested in the book? Check out the link in our sidebar on the left side of this page to get your very own copy!

Transcript:

Pamela: My guest today is Josh Miles and he is the Principal and Founder of Miles Design located in Indianapolis and, of course, a recent published author, which is an exciting place to be, with Content Marketing Institute. He’s just released the book, “Bold Brand: The New Rules for Differentiating Branding and Marketing Your Professional Services Firm.” So, Josh, thank you so much for participating on Content Marketing 360 radio show and welcome. Welcome, welcome, welcome.

Josh: Oh, thank you so much and it’s great to be here. I think you enunciate “Bold Brand” really well. I’m going to have you say that for me everywhere I go from now on.

Pamela: I love alliteration, Josh.

Josh: Other people will say, “Is that Old Brand? Was that Gold Brand, Old what?”

Pamela: That’s fantastic. I have a theater, radio and English background so I appreciate beautiful words that work together and “Bold Brand”, it’s just very tight. I love that. Thank you for the compliment and thank you for being a part of our show and, of course, we get to talk all about today your expertise in the Bold Brand process so, Josh, we’re excited to have you on the show. Congratulations with your recent opportunity to be published through Content Marketing Institute and their CMI books publishing arm.

Josh: Oh, thank you. Yeah, they’ve been fantastic to work with and as we were trying to figure out what we wanted to do in the book, it was just so clear to me that CMI was interested in helping guide us and coach us through the process, so it was just so easy to make a decision to publish with them and they’ve been really fantastic.

Pamela: You know, it’s good people over there at CMI and, of course, you are writing about something that, I think it’s been talked about in marketing circles and folks understand the importance to a certain degree, but you really put pen to paper literally, or I guess cursor to Office, Microsoft Word, and really decided to tackle this concept of branding with professional services firms and the concept of why it’s important and just kind of how-to, step by step, here are some things to consider. So I’m excited to dive into the topic because I think it is something. I mean, we as marketers are professional services firms, but of course you’ve got attorneys and accountants and all these service agencies out there that really do struggle with marketing.

But before we dive into that, I want to learn a little bit about you, Josh. This isn’t the first opportunity in marketing for you either. You’ve been a busy guy. So tell us a little bit about how you got to Miles Design and getting to the point of writing this book, “Bold Brand.”

Josh: Yeah, thanks. So as Miles Design, we will be pushing our tenth birthday here later in spring of 2013 so exciting to see a little baby business actually growing up, and it’s almost a tween now, or whatever you call that.

Pamela: Excellent. Congratulations.

Josh: Oh, thank you. I’d worked with an ad agency prior to that and worked in-house with a big athletic shoe retailer here out of Indianapolis called “The Finish Line” and done a little adjunct faculty work with some of the local universities in their design programs. So that’s always been something I’ve enjoyed is the speaking and teaching and presenting.

As our firm has focused more and more in this B2B, business-to-business, professional services space, as you said, consultants and accountants and attorneys and architects and engineers and even software companies–I would kind of loosely throw in that group–we just found ourselves having similar conversations and talking about similar problems over and over and over just across all of these varied business-to-business service industries. So that was one of the things that really drove me to write this book was, “Man, I feel like I’ve got a really unique point of view in that we focused for so long in this space,” so kind of wanted to share some of our thoughts and findings and best practices.

Pamela: With ten years under your belt as an agency yourself, of course you’ve seen a few best practices or experienced some failing forward as an agency yourself and helping others, so good timing, I think, for writing this book. Actually, I wanted to touch on that if we could, Josh, kind of the timing of now. We’re doing this interview here in late 2012. The marketing landscape has changed. Gosh, every year it seems to shift and change just a little bit more. Why is this book, “Bold Brand,” the concept of really getting professional services firms to wrap their ideas around more of a marketing and a design approach, why is this important now? What’s really happening out there that says, “You know what? These folks really need to understand this now?”

Josh: The interesting thing is that, at least from our perspective, many professional services firms are always a little bit hesitant to pursue marketing as a whole. If you rewind even as recently as the 80′s was really the first time that a lot of professional services’ organizations determined it was okay for them to market themselves, that it was okay to try to get new clients beyond doing sponsoring a golf outing or a charity chicken rubber dinner. The traditional networking avenues is where a lot of this work had come from in the past.

First having a foray into the yellow pages in the 80′s was sort of a big deal for professional services firms, but today I feel like these same service firms are slow to adapt and adopt things like social media or this concept of content marketing. Their websites are seldom more than a brochure. As the rest of the world, I feel like is leaping forward in a lot of these new types of marketing, we thought it was important to help these professional services businesses know that it was okay for them to do this too. The branding and marketing is not just for Nike, Apple, Amazon, and Zappos. This is something that is a powerful tool that even business-to-business firms could apply.

Pamela: Well, and you mentioned, of course, our show is Content Marketing 360, and we work with wonderful folks over there at Content Marketing Institute, and it’s interesting because with the world evolving with more of a content marketing approach, I would think that the service professionals have even more to provide and add in terms of information, resources, education. Has that also driven some of why this is so important today?

Josh: Yeah, absolutely. I would say most branding folks would, I think, agree that their practice is a very holistic view of marketing so it’s not siloed into, “We are just SEO people,” or “We are just e-mail designers,” or “We are just PowerPoint consultants.” I think brand [folks], and ourselves included, have a very holistic view of marketing. So when we see things like content marketing start to get some traction and the idea of storytelling or creating entertainment or education pieces that people would want to share and want to reach out and search for, those are obvious additions to things that we’re recommending to our clients, and I really think just adds even more value to what we have to say here.

Pamela: Absolutely. Of course, that’s where you and I met was at Content Marketing World. What’s great about engaging with folks like yourself is even though you’re coming from a brand conversation, you’re connecting the dots, and it really is a 360 degree marketing world, and I love that we can have that conversation on our radio show because, again, content marketing content really takes a lot of shapes, a lot of forms, including podcasting, right 

Josh: Yeah, yeah, exactly. I definitely enjoyed your session on podcasting. I thought it would have been funny if you’d put a black sheet over your presentation, so we just had to listen to you tell us about podcasting.

Pamela: That’s not a bad idea for 2013. So, Joe, CMI, you listening out there? We may want to do round two and make it a little more interesting and creative.

Josh: Pay no mind to the woman behind the curtain.

Pamela: Right. Kind of like the Wizard of Oz, right? Only the Wizard of Oz of content marketing. No, I appreciate that and what we’re going to do here today, Josh, is we’re going to break down some of these items. Your book, and again, “Bold Brands,” folks, you’re going to want to catch this book, especially if you’re in the services world. We’re going to break down some of the, I guess, the process, some important elements that when it comes down to building a brand, thinking of design and even content connecting to that brand, we’re going to break down kind of the process that you outline a little bit in the book, if that’s okay.

Let’s start with the first part, which I personally am so grateful you put this in there because it really is a place all marketers need to start from, which are the objectives. What are the objectives and business goals? So how does that conversation actually connect to the brand strategy when it comes to a service firm?

Josh: I think it’s so easy for a creative firm or for marketing people to want to just jump in and start creating stories or designing visuals, but especially for this services space, I think something that resonates with them is, “Hey, let’s stop and think for a minute about why is it that we’re investing in marketing. What do we expect our return on this investment to look like and what is it that we want to accomplish?”

So the way that I typically phrase this with a new client is, “If twelve months from now we could only accomplish one thing, what’s the most important thing that all of this does for you?” I think when you look at a branding and marketing engagement with that lens and can get that crystal clear, and by the way, nobody ever just has one thing.

They always come back with the five things but it really helps them to think about, “Okay. This is why we’re doing this,” and gets everybody on the same page and their skis are all pointed down the same hill, so it’s a great way to go after this together, so we’ve got some stakes in the ground that say, “Okay. At the end of the year, we want to increase views,” or, “We want to increase dollars, increase numbers of clients, or “We want to be in a new market,” or “We want to promote a new service, or “We want people to understand how we’ve changed over the last three years, how we’re a very different firm now that we’ve added these new partners or have a new location.” I think just getting that all on paper is a really essential thing to have everybody agree as to where you’re going and what your goal is.

Pamela: And I was just going to say, Josh, that I think this is so interesting because my guess is, because I’ve worked with a few folks in the service industry as well and my guess is that this is probably the first time they’ve ever connected brand strategy to business objectives for many of them.

Josh: Yeah, exactly. They come to us typically with either, “We need to freshen up our look,” or “We’ve got a total website emergency, and we need you to help fix our website.” They very seldom say, “We don’t have a concerted brand strategy. We don’t all understand, as an agency, how we’re positioned and how we want to go after the marketplace.” They’re always much more visual goals of, “Yeah, we just kind of look out of date,” or “It kind of looks like our stuff was done in the ’80′s.” Maybe because it was done in the ’80′s, but there are always more visual problems in their head. But helping them understand it in business terms, I think, really gets everybody moving towards the same objectives.

Pamela: Well, and that is one of the great things about a service firm is they’re very connected to the business objectives. They just aren’t connecting their marketing, or in this case, their brand strategy. So it sounds like it usually comes in as a short term pain that they’re feeling and then you take the opportunity to show them the bigger picture.

Josh: Yeah, yeah, absolutely, absolutely.

Pamela: Excellent. Awesome. And I love that you’re doing this because our service firms, the majority of them, really do need some assistance on this so it’s great that you’ve chosen this niche and this market to really focus your energy on. Business goals, objectives, we’ve got those written out. We want to increase “x” by end of 2013, or we want to launch this product or this program by June of 2013. Excellent. So now we’re connecting that to the brand strategy.

But the next step, we’re not quite there yet, are we? We’ve got to figure out–and you kind of touched on this–how am I different? What makes me different from all the other service firms in my industry? So tell us a little bit, this positioning in differentiation that you talk about in Bold Brand. Why is this important? How do you get folks to really identify what makes them different?

Josh: Do we have time for a story here?

Pamela: Absolutely. We love stories on Content Marketing 360.

Josh: Okay. Well, I’m going to do a little flashback here to my days as a senior in high school.

Pamela: Oh, good.

Josh: The first day of class in our AP literature class, this is like all the smart kids in the school in this class and I think the only reason I’m in this class is because I “could draw good.” “That guy can draw good. Let’s see if he can do the AP thing.”

Pamela: Awesome.

Josh: So I was a little bit of a fish out of water to begin with, but we get in this room and all the lights are off except for this one incandescent light and our teacher, he’s got his desk pulled all the way back into the corner. So it’s this really dim light and all the students’ desks are in a big circle around the room. The bell rings and everybody’s still talking, talking, talking and finally the hush starts to fall over the room and when we all realize there’s total silence, and Mr. Waldren is back in the corner staring at us and he finally says, “I am thinking of a frog.” And we’re all like, “What the heck is this guy doing?” None of us really know this guy and nobody says anything and he says, “I said, ‘I’m thinking of a frog.’”

Finally somebody was brave enough to say, “The little, green, slimy thing that hops around, it’s an amphibian?” He’s like, “Yes. That is a frog, but I’m afraid that’s not the frog I was thinking of.” So he sits back and he says, “I’m still thinking of a frog.” Somebody says, “Well, what about that thing on the violin bow? Isn’t that a frog?” He’s like, “Ah, very good, but that’s still not the frog I was thinking of. I’m thinking of a frog.” This went on for the entire class period. So we’re all a little bit dazed and confused anyhow, but the bell rings and everybody leaves.

Next day, start class and he just goes straight into the syllabus so we’re like, “No, no, no, Mr. Waldren, you’re going to have to tell us what the frog thing was about.” He was like, “Oh, it’s about clarity. Just because you say ‘frog,’ you can’t assume that your reader is going to understand which type of frog you mean so you need to make sure that you’re being clear beyond the words that you choose, that you’re making sure that everyone understands what you’re trying to communicate.”

So for me, that is a huge, huge example of what positioning is. So when you say to the marketplace, “We are an engineering firm,” you know, there are many, many things called “engineer,” and you’ve got to make sure that when you’re telling the marketplace that you’re a “design firm,” there are many different types of design. Or we’re “consultants” or plenty and plenty of examples of all of these types of B2B professional service industries that you think you know what you’re talking about but nobody else understands what type of frog you’re trying to tell the marketplace that you are.

When we talk about positioning and differentiation, I think it as much about clarity, but also in carving out a really unique space in the market that only your firm can say with a straight face that’s what makes you unique.

Pamela: Well, and that’s the frog we’re looking for, right? I love that story and I shout out to Mr. Waldren. Is that his name?

Josh: Yes. Mr. Waldren.

Pamela: Does he know that you’re telling this story as you share about your “Bold Brand,” your new book?

Josh: I have admittedly lost ties with Mr. Waldren, but . . .

Pamela: Maybe he’ll come out of the proverbial Internet woodwork because it’s a great example. Little did he know what effect he would have on Josh Miles way back when.

Josh: Years and years later.

Pamela: Years ago but what a great example of clarity. It’s very true. You say “frog,” we all get a different visual. You say “engineering,” we all have a different, “What does that mean to us?” Perception is very much the reality for those of us that are taking in marketing. So if we’re not clear with our messaging, then, of course, whatever I perceive with my history or my experience is going to be what I attach to your brand. Do you find that when it comes to the service firms, this is a challenge? One of the things I like to remind folks is, “You’re not everything to everyone.” But is this a challenge for some service firms to get past this concept and realize what they’re really, truly good at?

Josh: Yeah, 100%. I think what happens is firm leadership gets together. They have a half-day retreat. They order pizzas and are like, “You know what? This year we’re going to work on our mission statement and we’re going come up with exactly what our mission is, and everybody agrees on all the words that everybody would want to agree on like “quality” and “on time” and “great people” and all of the same mission statement-y words that everybody else uses on their mission statements. But once you plaster that up on the wall or put it in the employee break room or heaven forbid it’s the first paragraph on your homepage, outside of your name being in that mission statement, it sounds exactly like almost everybody else’s mission statement in the world. So it’s so tough to remove yourself of all the nice-sounding language and actually think about, “What is it that’s actually different about what we do?”

Pamela: And when you’re doing that, now Josh, when you’re working with a client, is this mission statement process something you do assist them with to get to that brand differentiator? Is that something your agency does?

Josh: Yeah, so our first and foremost goal is we want to help our clients get to what we would call a brand essence, and if they really feel like they need to have a mission statement, that’s something we would build from the brand essence. The mission in and of itself, I think, is not the marketing phrase. Your mission might be to . . . actually, let me come at this from a different direction. One of our clients, he’s a business consultant and he has got his down to two words and they are, “Inspire growth.” So everything that he does, he’s an inspirational speaker, and he is a one-on-one business consultant that works with senior leadership teams. In everything that he does, he’s sort of the part drill instructor, part cheerleader, which is really funny to picture because he’s bald, but in everything that he does, he wants to inspire growth. I think when you have a two-word brand essence like “Inspire growth,” you don’t really need a mission statement that’s bigger than that. I don’t think you need to unpack or explain that a lot further, and you don’t need to say, “We’re committed to quality relationships that inspire growth in our top people and share the values of . . .” Words are just meaningless at that point, I think.

Pamela: Well, it’s like less is more, it sounds like, in this process. If you can drill it down, like this client of yours did, to inspire growth. I know just those two words, I start to perceive what that means and more than likely, it’s more closely aligned to his brand strategy than I probably even realize because it does say a lot in just those two words.

Josh: Yeah, I think if you think about the opposite of that, maybe in a networking scenario, so picture in your mind, if you will, these two Pacmen coming up to network with one another in this networking environment over a cocktail shrimp and the first Pacman said to the second Pacman, “Hey, great to meet you. Let me tell you about what I do,” and he goes onto list every service and every vertical on every industry that he works and all of their awards and how many people they are and how many locations they have.

All that Pacman number two is going to take away from this conversation is, “If I’m ever at this networking event again, stay away from that guy,” because it’s the old show up and throw up information. Like, “Oh, man, I didn’t even say hello, and he was already dumping all this stuff on me.” But if you think of that as almost like it’s a megaphone of noise coming out of Pacman number one’s mouth at Pacman number two.

But if you flip it around and Pacman number two is my business coach and he leads with, “Well, everything we do, we try to inspire growth.” That is like leading with the pointy part of the megaphone and now it’s like a wedge or a spear that’s struck this guy uniquely, and I think it’s something that I think he’s going to take with him and go, “Oh, that was really interesting. That guy, everything he does, he tries to inspire growth.” It might even lead him to say, “Well, tell me about how you do that.” if you start to go back up to the megaphone, backwards and can unpack to these bigger things and talk more details and talk about the types of clients he works with, but it started from a point of interest from leading with that brand essence, that most unique defining thing about who he is and what his firm believes, and it doesn’t start with all that data points.

Pamela: It’s such a great example of really where we all want to be, which is to get folks to go, “Really, how do you do that,” and it opens the door to the bigger conversation and more language if you need to but, yes, it’s not easy. One of the things that I find in marketing and so many things is we want to keep things simple, but it’s not easy to get to simple. It does take a little bit of work and trial and error and when you’re talking about brand essence, Josh, one of the things that you kind of use as a piece here in the book is defining who you are, who you aren’t, and what you believe.

The “who you aren’t”, I think, is really interesting. And the reason I say I think it’s interesting is because I think sometimes it’s hard for us to actually say who we are, but it’s easier to say what we don’t like. Even just in like regular conversation, I can’t always tell you what I like, but I can tell you what I don’t like. Is that kind of the process you’re going at there with the brand essence as well?

Josh: Yeah, absolutely. I think I’ve heard it said other ways is it’s sometimes easier to figure out how to position your firm if you know who your arch enemy is, if you know who you’re working against and who you never want to be like and who’s out there working against you, metaphorically speaking. If you can picture who you’re not and who you don’t want to be and think about it like, “Hey, we’re not the old guard. We don’t do things the traditional way. We don’t think that things have to be done the same way they have been done for the last 50 years.”

And I think when you start throwing out the who we know we’re not; it helps you to define, maybe, who you are to say, “Okay, well, what’s the opposite of that?” “Well, we think about things in new ways where we’re not afraid to try new things and we’re aggressive and we try new strategies.” It really helps to build a fuller picture instead of just saying, “Okay. On the count of three, tell me who you are and what you do.” I think it’s an easier place to start for most. “Okay. What’s the opposite of you? What are you not?”

Pamela: Well, it is. It seems so, again, it’s simple, but it’s not always easy and what a great list of kind of differentiating questions here, even asking people to just look at things a little unique, so that they can get to that place of inspired growth, like your client. One of the elements of branding, I just want to touch on this because as we were talking, we’re talking about this as like brand essence, and you and I are in marketing and our audience is made up of marketing folks, but also folks in business that are looking to do better and increase what they do in content and brand.

When you talk about brand, a lot of times we think about the logo, the Nike swoosh or the McDonald’s arches, but you’re taking this too a bigger level and a bigger process, aren’t you, with your service firms?

Josh: Yeah, for sure. Logo is definitely whatever ends up being your trademark or trade name. That’s definitely a piece of your brand and that’s maybe the thing that helps designate who is offering the products and services and other legal and specific sort of sense. When we talk about brand, we’re talking more about reputation and all the things that go with when I think of, to use your Nike example, when I think of Nike, what are all the stories and what’s all the meaning that comes with that name “Nike?”

And it sure is a whole lot more than the symbol on the swoosh. I can remember the first pair of Nikes that I bought. I can remember when I first saw the “Just Do It” commercials. I think of Michael Jordan. I think of all the athletes that they’ve sponsored. I think about very recent history, their overall, all the NFL jerseys. A lot of meaning comes with me when I hear “Nike” and when we say “brand,” that’s what we’re talking about is what’s the sum total of meaning that comes with that firm, with that company, and their reputation that goes along with it.

Pamela: Wow. And you’re providing this great gift to service firms to see that and look beyond just that surface so, again, going back to your client of inspired growth, that will actually, in and of itself, inspire visual opportunities and inspire emotion. I just wanted to make sure we touched on that because a lot of times, especially if folks are not in marketing day in and day out like you and I are, we get confused with the visual element versus something that is bigger and like what you refer to as “an essence” which I think is great word.

Josh: Yeah, absolutely.

Pamela: Excellent. So here’s what I want to do, one of the elements of my show, my differentiator if you will, Josh, is I like to have my guests provide a little bit, a little one or two kind of wrap it up punch. If I’m listening today, I’m a marketing professional and, gosh, what Josh is saying is really hitting home. Or maybe I’m a business or service professional listening in, and I’m thinking, “Gosh darn it, this guy is pretty darn smart but where do I start? What is that one or two action item pieces that if I can get started in the next 24-48 hours will start me down a more Bold Brand?”

Josh: That’s a great question. I think you could really get overwhelmed quickly when you think about brand in a holistic sense you could either go, “Oh, man, what are all the pieces, all the touch points, all the pieces that we use, copy, where does our logo appear, are our colors consistent?” It’s easy to get overwhelmed, but I think that there’s a few places that you can sort of spot-check your brand and do a gut feeling for, “Is this something that needs some more attention and do I feel like we’ve got a good handle on this?”

One of the easiest places, I feel, to spot-check your brand is your website, which is probably, for a professional services firm; it’s probably your best validation tool. So when you get a word of mouth referral or you’re talking to a new client or you’re cold calling somebody, your website is the first place that prospect is going to go to see if you are who you or they said you were.

So here’s the test: you pull up your website and maybe in another tab or two you pull up your two closest competitors who are the people you go up against time and time again and now think about this in terms of I’m a prospect, so tune out the logo, tune out the name and just read the text. What’s the messages that are coming across from these two or three websites and do you actually see a difference between what you have to say and what your two competitors have to say? Are you actually offering something different or framing things uniquely where if you were the prospect, you would be most interested in talking to yourself?

Pamela: Excellent. I love that. As soon as we get off this interview, Josh, guess what I’m going to do? That’s a really great, easy to do tip and I don’t care, you don’t have to be a marketer to do that.

Josh: Yeah, absolutely. I think one other tip that I think is worth taking a look at is along those same lines is, beyond your homepage, what are the other, if you had a list of the top three or the top five places where somebody might begin to interact with you, what would those things be? So make a list of here’s the three or five most likely interactions and now let’s read or experience this like I’m a prospect and see, “Is this the same brand that’s being described in all these areas and is the voice consistent?” So if I’m on your hold message on your phone or if I read your homepage or I pick up your corporate brochure or if I look at your Twitter feed, am I going to feel like these are all the same company? Is this a consistent voice? Is this a consistent brand experience?

Pamela: Absolutely. Excellent, excellent tip and it’s one that is often overlooked and yet so important, especially, you know what, Josh? You’re bringing it right back home to that 360 degrees, aren’t you, really? Hold message, blog, website, print material, is that voice the same? Is that 360 degrees there? So kudos to you for helping me out and explain this 360 thing. I appreciate that.

Josh: I do what I can. 

Pamela: Great tips and, of course, I’m actually going to add another tip, Josh, as we wrap up our conversation today, if you are a service professional, if you are a marketing professional, if you are a business owner that’s looking to take your brand essence to the next level, purchase “Bold Brand: The New Rules for Differentiating Branding and Marketing Your Professional Services Firm” by none other than Josh Miles of Miles Design. How’s that for tip number three?

Josh: I like that. That’s a fantastic tip.

Pamela: And so, of course, we want to make sure, Josh, that our audience knows how to connect with you if they loved what they heard and they want to get to know a little bit more about Miles Design, yourself and the work that you do. So how can we do that? What’s the best way to connect with you?

Josh: Fantastic. Of course people can check out the Content Marketing Institute website. There’s a lot of stuff about Bold Brand. There’s a little bit about me and some of our fellow authors as well. We also have a website specifically for the book at BoldBrand.com. We’ve got a couple other interviews and I’m sure we’ll be posting this on there as well in our ongoing blog, but I think most importantly, there’s a free chapter there if you’d like to read a little bit more and get a free sample before you decide to invest in the book, the chapter called “The Five Fears of Social Media”.

As a complete side point, I think professional services firms are always a little bit weary of jumping into social so this impacts a little bit of what I think is going on there, but free chapter download on the site as well as you’re welcome to check us out and more of what we do in the professional world at MilesDesign.com and you can follow me on Twitter @JoshMiles, and Twitter’s probably one of the more active social profiles that I have going

Pamela: Excellent. So there’s no lack of opportunity to connect with Josh, and I highly encourage if you’re listening today, do that. Go ahead and follow him on Twitter and check out not only his site but the book site as well and our friends over there at Content Marketing Institute have some great information on Josh as well and, of course, “Bold Brand,” the book.

Thank you so much for taking time out of what I know is a busy time for you with the book and taking care of your clients, Josh. We are so appreciative that you have participated today to share a little bit about your book, your brand essence, I guess, as well, and we really enjoyed our conversation. I really had a good time today.

Josh: My pleasure. Thank you so much for having me.

Pamela: Excellent. So go out, buy “Bold Brand: The New Rules for Differentiating Branding and Marketing in Your Professional Services Firm.” Connect with Josh Miles at Miles Design and, of course, we’re going to be right back. You’re listening to Content Marketing 360 Radio Show.

The post Bold Brand: Josh Miles on Content Marketing 360 Radio Show appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

Yes, the rumors are true – Josh has made the IBJ Forty Under 40 2013 list! We’re not sure if many of you have heard the story of how Miles Design was founded. On the heels of the IBJ announcement, we thought it might be a good time to recap this story for our readers, clients, and friends.

…

Twenty-six years old, married and only one thing on his mind: starting his own design firm. Josh Miles made it happen the old fashioned style, completely bootstrapped. No investments, no loans – just talent, networking and a ton of hard work.

“I always knew I wanted to start my own design firm. I’m just not sure I imagined it being quite this awesome back then.”

Josh stepped out from his in-house design job back in 2003 and decided to give it a shot. His wife, April Miles, was working a steady corporate job at the time and together they decided to take a chance and pursue Josh’s dream.

“To begin with, I was working my corporate job during the day, and doing freelance work at night. Eventually I really had more than I could get done at night, and that was without really trying to get new work. 2003 just seemed like the right time to pull the plug, so we made it happen. In the early years, we really built our business through networking, referrals from my clients, and word of mouth. In 2004 and 2005 we had enough work to begin bringing on additional designers.”

Miles Design has been a fully operational design and branding firm for over 10 years now. Serving local and national clients with branding and design work that has covered the entire spectrum, from strategy to implementation. Josh currently employs 8 talented team members (including myself) who are all extremely grateful for the chance he took in early 2003. Without it, we don’t know where we’d be.

“I’ve always tried to hire people that I think are better than myself. As we’ve grown, I’ve stepped away from most of the design work, and taken more of a strategy role with our clients. The only way to be comfortable with that was to hire other really great people. And I think our work speaks for itself. Our creative director Brian Gray – my good friend and fraternity brother – has been with us for over five years. That’s a pretty cool thing.”

On behalf of all of our clients over the past ten years, and the team here at Miles Design, we could not be happier to congratulate Josh on his most recent accomplishment: Being recognized among the most successful young professionals in Indianapolis in the Indiana Business Journal’s 2013 Forty Under 40.

Join us in congratulating Josh on his recent accomplishment – leave him a message in our comment section below.

The post Josh Made the IBJ Forty Under 40! appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

No question. Oreo nailed it.

First and foremost, they nailed the timing. This day in age, with how fast news becomes news – timing is everything. In the middle of the Super Bowl, the worlds’ most watched television event, as thousands of fans inside New Orleans Mercedes Benz Superdome, and the millions watching on TV wailed as half of the lights in the stadium went out, Oreo designed, developed and tweeted an ad that won the attention and hearts of millions. While the rest of the world was still trying to figure out what was going on – creating fake twitter accounts, and trying to come up a witty 40 character response to one of the most embarrassing moments in professional sports history – Oreo was designing and creating this masterpiece of design, branding and utter simplicity:

Obviously, every marketing company is discussing how epic this tweet was last night, and we completely agree. 14,413 retweets pretty much speaks for itself. Considering a 30 second advertisement during the Super Bowl costs an average of $3.7 million dollars makes this social media cookie success all the sweeter. There’s no greater feet when it comes to branding than receiving national recognition in a moment like we experienced last night during the Super Bowl. It’s unprecedented.

They nailed the timing. They nailed the design, with the perfect balance of negative space, lighting gradient, reverse type treatments, and a stellar icon. Most of all, Oreo nailed their branding. This tweet will no doubt land itself into advertising and marketing textbooks and be visible for years to come. Not to mention the attention they received last night and will continue to receive all through the week.

Here’s a snippet from Adage’s write up on the event:

“The Oreo graphic was “designed, captioned and approved within minutes,” according to Sarah Hofstetter, president of the cookie brand’s digital agency of record, Dentsu-owned 360i. All the decisions were made in real time quickly because marketers and agency members were sitting together at a “mission control” center, or a social-media war room of sorts, at the agency’s headquarters in the TriBeCa neighborhood of Manhattan. Among those who were there were two brand team members from Oreo, and nearly a dozen creatives, strategists, community managers and social-media listeners.

The agency acknowledged that it was able to make decisions so quickly because the Mondelez-owned cookie brand was a broadcaster advertiser in the Super Bowl, and so was closely monitoring chatter and interaction with consumers on all social media channels. It’s arguable though, that 360i’s simple little execution overshadowed Oreo’s far more expensive TV ad, filled with stunts, that ran in the game before the blackout. That ad was done by independent shop Wieden & Kennedy.”

All it took was a few minutes. Branding and design teamed with stellar marketing make for one powerful combination. Miles Design tips our hats to you Oreo. Well done.

The post Oreo’s Superbowl Tweet appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

What is the purpose of a brand audit?

The purpose behind a brand audit is plain and simple: to gain a fundamental understanding of where your brand stands in its current state. 

When and why should we audit our brand?

The majority of business go through the process of auditing their brand when they have a vested interest in making a change within their organization. Maybe they’re rebranding, or refreshing their current look. This would be a perfect time to take a look at your current brand and see where it has shifted since its inception. Perhaps an organization is unhappy with their internal communication and employee relations. A smart CEO or CMO might take that opportunity to judge what their brand stands for, who they are as a company and what they need to do from a communications stand point to fix the internal problems or issues. The power of a brand is much stronger than most realize. A strong brand empowers and inspires employees. It’s the foundation on which a strong organization can be built. If the foundation is cracked in certain areas, it would be in the homeowners best interest to audit the situation and put the proper processes in place to fix it. The same goes with companies and their brands.

Who should perform our brand audit?

Every organization is different. There is no once-size-fits-all approach. Regardless of whether you assemble an in-house team or hire an outside agency, you need one important element if  you hope to perform a successful brand audit: an honest objectivity.

Brand Audit Example

An extensive brand audit should look at the following categories:

Internal

• Positioning
• Brand Values
• Unique Selling Proposition (USP), brand promise, or brand essence
• Voice
• Culture
• Product / Service positioning

External

• Corporate Identity – logos and other brand elements
• Collateral-brochures, print materials, trade show displays, etc.
• Advertising
• Website
• SEO
• Social Media
• Sponsorships/civic-involvement/memberships
• News/PR
• Content Marketing and other assets – blogs, white papers, case studies, articles, books, etc.
• Testimonials
• Videos

Systems

• Corporate identity/brand standards
• HR policies/on-boarding process
• Sales processes/touch points
• Internal systems
• Customer service systems

Brand Audit: Before and After

In today’s increasingly complex market, there is a hyper-focus (and rightfully so) on return on investment (ROI). Of course, ROI isn’t just a tactic to keep the bean counters satisfied-weighing the financial benefits of your branding decisions throughout the process will help guide difficult decisions.

Once way you can demonstrate ROI is by conducting a brand audit before and after a rebrand. This will show where the branding exercise helped improve systems and close gaps.

Do the math.

How many new clients/projects would you have to win to justify the costs of a rebrand?

For most professional service firms, one or two clients would be more than enough to justify the investment.

Want to begin a brand audit on your own?

Download the Miles Design DIY Brand Audit and start today!

The post Brand Audit appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

What really drew me to wanting to intern at Miles Design was their reputation for consistently producing the very best work in branding and marketing. From brand strategies and corporate identities to well-crafted responsive websites, an internship at Miles Design offers insight and expertise to the business, as well as the art of professional branding and marketing.

I know my time at Miles Design will be well spent as I work closely with the team of designers and developers on a variety of projects. I plan to build upon a strong foundation in design for print, as well as expand my understanding of designing for the web. It takes a smart and skilled designer with a conditioned eye to see what a brand has the potential to become. The team at Miles Design is known for turning those possibilities into real results and it is my goal to continue in that tradition.

This post arrives a little over a week into the start of my internship with Miles Design. I was given a brief amount of time to get settled in before we had our big move up to the new permanent office. I’m excited to see the new space fill up with all the great work that will be produced there in the weeks and months to come. I’m excited to encounter new challenges there, and to grow under the guidance of one of the most talented marketing and branding firms in Indianapolis.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to end my final semester studying visual communication at Miles Design this spring, and I’m eager to see what my career as a designer has in store!

Be sure to check out some of the great work produced by Miles Design. And for those interested in seeing some of my past projects, those can be viewed here.

The post Miles Design Welcomes New Design Intern, Marco Boulais appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.

I know you’ve probably already read 12 other New Year’s resolution posts already, but I’m willing to bet that none of them had to do with branding!

So read up, take notes and don’t be afraid to submit your questions and comments below or via social media. We’re always here and ready to engage!

#1: Simplify

If you can’t sum up your brand into a :30 second elevator pitch or demonstrate your visual identity on a business card, you’re in trouble. In 2013, work to simplify and strengthen your brand by eliminating the distracting visual clutter and confusing buzzwords. Remember, it’s always quality over quantity.

#2: Consistency

If nothing else, be consistent. The tone of your headlines, copy, and other messaging should follow the brand voice developed as part of your brand strategy. Use consistency within your web design elements and calls to action to help increase your conversion rates. Be consistent with your marketing messages and means of delivery. Nail down your brand colors – Pantone, CYMK and RGB values should remain consistent throughout your marketing. Be consistent with your typefaces. They should be defined and clarified within your brand standards.

#3: Test, Measure and Adjust

Marketing is a science. Start treating it like one. (Ahem…)

#4: Get Social

If your brand voice isn’t shining through your social media accounts on a daily basis, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity. The world is out there ready to consume your messaging and content. Your brand strategy needs to highlight and outline how you’re going to utilize your social media presence to communicate your marketing messages. On this note, harness some consistency within this realm of your marketing as well. Plan out how many blogs you want to publish per week. Map out how you’re going to communicate your content via your social channels and stick to it! Need help? Consult your brand strategy. Don’t have a brand strategy? …

#5 Focus on Brand Strategy

Take the time to create a brand strategy. Get your executive team on the same page as far as what you want your brand to communicate and represent. What are the goals and initiatives within every department of your organization and how will your branding affect and/or help achieve these goals. Audit your existing brand and its perception within the marketplace and with your current clients. Plan and structure your brand strategy for the fiscal year ahead and communicate consistently to all your employees to make sure everyone’s on the same page.

#6: Utilize Print

Remember that great printed stuff is still awesome in moderation. Don’t go completely digital all the time. Touch is still one of the 5 human senses – take advantage of it!

#7: Do The Unexpected

Separate yourself from your competitors. Do something no one will expect or will be able to replicate! This is the fuel for a sustainable brand.

#8: Over Communicate

Don’t go light on communication. Consumers are seeking the Zero Moment of Truth, and we as marketers have to be the ones to provide them with that experience.

#9: Rebrand

If everything we touched on so far is out of whack in your firm, it might be worth considering a full rebrand. If that’s a serious goal, we’d love to have a conversation with you. After all, we did write the book on it: Bold Brand.

What is your #1 branding priority this year?

The post Branding Resolutions for 2013 appeared first on Miles Design Blog | branding, design and strategy for professional services firms.