Let me share a little story with you. It’s called ‘When Chris met Jenn’.

You see, Chris and I weren’t always the yin and yang that we are now. In fact, the first time I ever met Chris, we were in a very different scenario…

Enter: Chris & Jenn

Chris was the lead designer at the agency presenting a campaign concept being developed for the company I was working for.

That’s right, I was the ‘client’!

I remember the concept being great – well thought out, met the objective and was beautifully designed. However, instead of this compliment being the first thing out of my mouth, I opted for “Hmmm, you can’t use our logo there. Haven’t you read the brand guidelines”. Chris put a twisted smile on his face , nodded and marked it as a revision to be completed. This is a day that he will never let me live down.

Fast forward 6 years and here we are, steering the ship of our own agency.

At kitestring, we have the opportunity to develop some amazing brands for our clients. We also have the honour of working with some very well established brands each and every day.

In both cases, we understand and value the power that a properly developed and executed brand can play in the success of a business.

Enter: Brand Guidelines.

There’s no doubt that Brand Guidelines are an integral piece of the brand – they help in ensuring that the carefully crafted brand is used properly and consistently when put to the test of ‘the real world’.  It provides both internal stakeholders with an understanding of the brand as well as a tool to effectively communicate with designers, writers, photographers, etc., etc., etc.

The question I’ve been left to ponder for the last few weeks is – how much is ‘too much’ when it comes to brand guidelines? Can there be too much? Can there be too little?

Enter: Reality.

Unfortunately, sometimes reality doesn’t live nice and neatly within a beautifully bound brand book. It’s important to remember that your brand guidelines are just that – guidelines. They’re job is to provide guidance to the creative team and ensure consistency in brand application at all times.

Guidelines should provide enough information and structure to adequately support the brand without enforcing so many rules that it chokes the creative potential.

Remember, your brand is an organic, evolving creature that must fit into an ever changing horizon of advertising and marketing outlets. Take care in ensuring that your brand guidelines are flexible enough to allow you to adapt to this morphing landscape without losing the core essence of the brand.

No doubt, It’s a tricky balance to strike…and so to close… “Jenn’s Guidelines Regarding Guidelines”:

If your brand fits nice and neatly on the back of a cocktail napkin you most likely aren’t providing the structure and support it requires to be used consistently. On the other hand, if your guidelines carry the weight and rigidity of an anvil, chances are there’s too many restraints placed on the brand to grow with your business over time.

Develop and utilize brand guidelines that provide the foundation, are realistic and are flexible enough as not to stifle your brand from reaching its full potential.

- jenn

Chris’ post about creativity got me thinking about a great little interaction I had this past fall. Although it was short, it stuck with me.

A few weekends ago, we were at one of the wonderful Fall festivals happening in the area. At the end of the ceremonial parade, one of the firefighters came up to Jack and I and gave him a colour book and crayons.  ‘Mamma, I draw!’ Yes, Jack takes any opportunity he can to break out the crayons and scribble! It’s one of his most favorite activities.

As we were thanking the generous fireman, he admired Jack’s innocent excitement and shared a little story…

“I remember exactly the moment in life that I realized that it wasn’t acceptable to draw outside the lines. I was in grade one colouring away like a mad man. The teacher came around and admired the girl sitting next to meet for how well she was colouring. As I looked over, I noticed that there was something distinctly different about our two papers. Hers was neat and tidy and all inside the lines. Mine was a free-for-all a big splash of colour – and certainly not inside the lines. Hmm, I thought, I guess that there are some rules here to be followed…from then on in – I did my best to colour inside the lines.”

This story not only stuck with me but also made me think that maybe the ‘colour inside the lines’ philosophy isn’t always the best route. We need to reach outside of the lines – not only on our colouring sheet but in life in general. Reach for the stars as they say! As a mom, I keep this story in my mind as Jack grows up. I think its important for Jack to understand that sometimes its okay to colour outside the lines – it makes life interesting!

-jenn

Social Media has become an important element of my day. The chirp of tweet deck is a common sound throughout out the office. I check in on my facebook throughout the day and always seem to be thinking about my next blog post. They have truly become important tools for our business. They provide us with resources and knowledge, allows us to share a little about kitestring, and introduce us to some really awesome people!

I must admit, at one point, I actually refused to jump on the social media train – preaching that I just didn’t have enough time to dedicate to MySpace or the like. So, what changed? Well, for me, it was having Jack and settling into a year of maternity leave.

Coming from the corporate world, I felt abandoned when, all of a sudden, it was just me and a newborn for upwards of 15 hours a day. What was I going to do? There was no inner office chat, no client calls, no meetings – nothing!

It was at this point that I signed up for my Facebook account. Immediately, I was connected with a whole network of people to share moments with, reconnect with and, ultimately, socialize with – online. Finally, I had an outlet to the world again!

Soon, I was following blogs, connecting with other mompreneurs and finding out about groups in our city that I may never have.

For me, social media provided a window to the outside world for a while. My reasons for using these tools have changed through time and now, I can’t imagine growing my business without them.

What’s your purpose for using social media? Let us know!

Happy Tweeting, Blogging, Digging and Facebooking!

-   jenn

I didn’t do any work this past weekend. Yes, I admit it! I didn’t answer emails, I didn’t work on next year’s marketing plan, I didn’t even think about my schedule for the coming week. I had a totally un-kitestring weekend.

What I did do this weekend included watching morning cartoons with my son, seeing a movie with my husband on Saturday night, playing with my son at the park, and cooking my family a big Sunday dinner.

It’s not that I never do these things but, too often, I only do them half-heartedly (and usually with my iPhone in hand).

I always say that finding balance between my many jobs (entrepreneur, mom and wife) is one of the toughest things I face each day. I love having an office because I need the structure of ‘going to work’ and having focused kitestring time. Sometimes, it’s difficult for me to remember that it’s also okay to have focused family time as well.

Does this ‘balance’ happen every day? Absolutely not! It’s not uncommon for Jack to hang out at the office for an afternoon or for me to be answering an email while cooking dinner. It’s actually part of the reason that I love what I do so much.

So, I woke up thinking this morning, “Does my mini-break this weekend make me a bad entrepreneur?” After I got over my Monday morning guilt, I came to realize that maybe it actually makes me a better entrepreneur. I was ready to hit the week – energized and ready to tackle the tasks at hand.

- jenn

As entrepreneurs, we spend a lot of time building our business plan and perfecting our product or service. Of course, these are both super important but as Dragon’s Den Arlene Dickinson notes, branding is also an essential piece of a successful business.

Have a listen to Arlene’s podcast on the importance of building a solid brand strategy.

http://www.kpmg.ca/en/services/enterprise/dd_podcasts/dd_10_23_2009.mp3

Happy Listening!

-jenn

Here at kitestring, we have the privilege of spending our days working with passionate entrepreneurs to develop and define their brand as they start their business. It’s certainly an energetic, challenging and rewarding process to collaborate on and launch into the marketplace.

What happens after a brand is launched? Good question! That’s when the real work begins.

Too often entrepreneurs spend a tremendous amount of time and energy into the development of their brand, send it into the marketplace and then let it sit there. It’s important to remember that your brand needs you, just like you need it! Spend the time to evaluate it, evolve it and nurture it – believe me, the time you invest into it will be returned ten-fold.

Need a little light hearted read to get you inspired? Here’s an article that I recently read that you might enjoy: http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/branding/article203748.html

Cheers,

-jenn

Sometimes being a mompreneur requires a well thought out plan, a wonderful support system, a bit of magic and a touch of humour.

My week started today with an 8am meeting. Not really a big deal – at least it wouldn’t have been in ‘pre-Jack’ days. How things change when you throw a 2 year old in the mix. Not only was I up at the crack of dawn but I also had to gently wake Jack up super early to ensure that he  was dressed and fed with adequate time to meet the schedule. Thankfully, it was a good morning for Mr. Jack. He decided that, indeed, he should wear a shirt and socks today – unlike the daily battle we had last week!

We did it! We were successfully out the door on time. As we pulled in the driveway of Jack’s daycare, I asked him my daily question, “Jack are you ready to go?” Instead of his typical “Ya Mamma, I ready!” all Jack could say was “Mamma, It Dark Out” as in… “What the heck are we doing here, it’s still night time out!” I couldn’t help but laugh; Jack was right – it was way too early to be starting the day!

Like I said earlier, a well thought out plan, a wonderful support system, a bit of magic…and a touch of humour!

- jenn

From Everyone @ kitestring…

It was actually soon after the birth of my son, Jack, when I started down the path of opening my own design firm. I felt that if I was going to make the leap, now was the time. One of the most desirable aspects of being an entrepreneur was the flexibility to have the time my son that I wanted while still maintaining a rewarding career.

I’ve almost been back to work for a year now and, I must admit, it’s taken a lot of trial and error to get this new ‘family machine’ working smoothly. It seems as though I’m on a constant quest for balance between work and family. Throw in a week of work travel for my husband, business functions after work or a sick little boy and everything can quickly turn upside down. Luckily, I have great people behind me that bring support and sanity, when I need it most.

It’s certainly a challenge but, in the end, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

- jenn

Check out the following article on how mompreneurs are making an impact on the business community:

http://www.thestar.com/comment/columnists/article/409934