We have been working hard on our newsletter, as we always do. And it’s ready to send! In this one the illustration was done by Tina and Amy worked on the graphics for the rest of the newsletter. Other newsletters often feature illustration work by Tamlyn – who drew our owls! Those of you who dont subscribe, you’re missing out! We almost always do special offers, games and prizes. Our latest creation involves a theme – “Make Do and Mend” which goes with the whole “January Austerity” feeling. No point in being frivolous and overly extravagent – it’s just not the done thing! So, in our newsletter we have listed “8 free or almost free ways to improve your presence online.” We do like the number 8!

We also like the number 3 – so watch out for the 3 offers within the newsletter.

Read it here and let us know in the comments below what you think!

We are working on a project to design a book cover for Tamsin Fox-Davies’s new book “The Essential Marketing Habit – 3 months to put your small business promotions on autopilot”

A little bit different from how we normally different but still the same

Normally when we work with clients on designs we show then 3 different designs and then tweak them according to their feedback. We end up with a more or less final design which our clients can take back to any other decision makers in their companies and get a final design decision. Or, the client decides which design they would like within the first design presentation meeting.

With Tamsin’s book cover, we started off in a similar way. We got a comprehensive brief from Tamsin – including Tamsin’s typography preferences, the idea of the string around a happy finger, and a colour scheme which Tamsin had done by our client, colour psychologist, colour blogger and interior designer Karen Haller!.

Then with this information Amy worked on 5-6 initial ideas.  Tamsin came to our office (on a Saturday!) and sat with me and we combined elements, tried different colour combinations, moved things around and kept comparing and eliminating options until we had not one final but 3 final different ideas!

We kind of did this on purpose

And here comes the crucial difference. In the name of market research, or social media and of “walking the walk” we then posted these on Facebook and created a Facebook poll. We each asked our facebook friends and fans to VOTE for their favourite. The responses and comments  have been so helpful!

We also each tweeted on Twitter and updated LinkedIn to ask people to vote. And we are asking again at different times to get the message to different people.

And now we need your vote too!

Would you help out? Click on the link to Tamsin’s Facebook wall and vote for which of the 3 designn you like – feel free to comment on the designs in general.

Vote now for your favourite of the 3.

We hope you like our experiment and – and just want to say THANK YOU – for your time and your vote! Comments below welcome as well!

Let’s say you launch a new business website, it’s nicely designed and up to date, and and tells the world all about the services you offer. But after a couple of months it’s not feeling quite so up-to-date – The answer is blogging – and learning about blogging from Top Left Design!

Show how cool you are (and how smart you are)

A good blog on your website can ensure that your website is constantly ‘current’, and lets visitors know that your company likes to keep track of what is happening in your particular niche. Not only does it broadcast your company’s motivation to keep it’s online presence in the here and now, but blogs are also a fantastic outlet for you to share relevant information to your industry, gain valuable feedback, and discuss topics that are on the forefront of your businesses interests.

Just like everything great, there are challenges that come with it

Of course, not everyone is born with the ability to write easily. Nor does everyone have the time to sit around writing – especially after a long day doing the “more important things” that your working life demands.

We want your business to succeed

And we want to help you  ”improve your presence online”. For most businesses, whether they are B2B or B2C – blogging has to be a major part of the marketing plan.

It’s been proven

Many studies have shown that blogging not only improves the impression people have about your business, but also generates a huge amount more traffic and visitors to your site. Partly because blogging allows you to add more pages easily to your website, and partly because there is much more current and interesting information on your site for people to see.

It’s almost like a spa

Many people find that, surprisingly, writing can be therapeutic – a good way to relax and unwind. What’s more, every word you write contributes to the worth and influence of your business.

We invite you to learn from us!

We would love you to visit us at Top Left Design and attend one of our London-Famous blogging seminars – the perfect tutorial and motivational boost, which will send you on the correct path, ensuring you do not waste your time by doing things ‘wrong’, and begin your blogging endeavour with only the good habits. All of our seminars are also CPD Certified!

Here are some of the things you will learn and experience in the seminar:

• Why blogging would be good for your business
• Blogging do’s and don’ts
• How often should I blog?
• Different types of blog post
• Using WordPress and other blogging platforms
• Avoid the pitfalls of blogging
• The best free blogging tools
• How to fit blogging into your busy working life
• How to make sure your blog increases leads to your business
• How and where to find images for your blog
• Resizing images
• How blogs can integrate with other social media
• Q+A session
• Takeaway notes
• Sandwiches, Tea and Cake
• Maltesers
• Prize draw to win a free Twitter strategy training session, including Twitter background design
• Other things we will think about before then – we are ideas people!

There are some rules

It’s one thing to write a blog post, but without practising a few simple rules, it could all be for nothing. In our seminars, I lay down the golden rules of blogging, and give precise tips on how to effectively write Google-friendly posts, to generate inbound traffic to your site, along with invaluable instructions to cross-promote your blog (and website) using various free social media platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn. Tina will even be doing a guest slot – on her birthday, no less!

And a free lunch!

Of course you won’t only be learning, there will also be a fully catered (healthy) lunch! Which should ease away some of the guilt incurred by your current lack of blogging, and also our famous Top Left Design cupcakes (homebaked and branded by our very own Tamlyn!), which you be challenged to resist!

If this little post inspired, motivated or even guilted you into getting your blog off the ground, be sure to book in at our next blogging seminar

From stories about French boys, Make My Lunch and special branded cupcakes…

…to TLD Social Media seminars and giant urns (not in that particular combination or order!) we promise you won’t be disappointed!

Go on, have a read! You know you want to to! And if you’re up for a bit of a challenge, read to the bottom of the newsletter and do as it says.. you might be in for a pleasant surprise! Happy Valentine’s Day!

Read on to find out how people felt about our last 2 seminar held on the 20th and 26th of January – all about Blogging, Twitter and LinkedIn for business. You will feel like you were there!

And our next seminar, in case you are interested, is on Social Media for Business – on February 17th

Yemi Osunkoya, bespoke wedding dress designer, said the following:

I recently attended a workshop organised and given by Keren of Top Left Design on Social Media for Business. Keren’s knowledge in this field is exemplary and she was able to deliver this in a clear, concise and easily understandable manner. I have already began to put knowledge acquired at the workshop to use and they have already started showing results. I highly endorse the services that Keren provides

Alicia Cowan, social media savvy VA said the following:

Keren supplied a fantastic (and free) consultation for my website and we have since worked together on social media workshops. She has a natural eye for design detail and a rare skill of creating websites that not only combine beauty and usability, but include up-to-the-minute marketing techniques. Keren is on a mission: to equip businesses with the knowledge to make the most of their online presence, and to look good doing it. A super networker, Keren has qualities that everyone wants from a business associate and service provider: integrity, loyalty, honesty, knowledge, skill and generosity. Her professionalism and passion for design are immediately obvious the moment you meet her.

Adam Cox, corrective exercise specialist and bodyshaping expert said the following:

After attending the TLD Social Media Seminar I have a much, much clearer idea of the strategy to use for my business when it comes to incorporating social media into my P.R campaign.
The venue, TLDs offices, is fantastic and makes for a very “comfortable” environment to learn.
Keren’s moral view is also refreshing when it comes to social media for business and shows you don’t need to bombard people with information they don’t necessarily want or need to create a fantastic network. I will be working with TLD again in the future and will be attending future seminars. I have no hesitation in recommending Keren or her team.

Darrin des Vignes, tech consultant
said the following:

TLD’s blogging seminar is a great platform to launch into the blogosphere! Keren and her team took into consideration the scatter of experience among the attendees and catered to their specific needs. The session covered everything from Do’s and Don’ts, types of blogs, the intricacies of time management and etiquette of the platform as a whole. It is relatively easy for anyone to start blogging but very difficult to do it effectively with optimal impact… and this is where TLD seminars excel. Keren has a wealth knowledge when it comes to social tech-networking and not only will she help you transform your business endeavours into an online tool but is a great personality, a hub, that is constantly creating connections between people and developing positive relationships. Conducted in a very relaxed environment with sofas, coffee, cupcakes and banter… the training sessions and seminars at TLD are highly recommended for those wanting to take their first right step into blogging! The cupcakes are awesome and lunch made me very happy.

Brendan Staunton, Copywriter
said the following:

As a writer, I was looking for ideas on how to make better use of blogging for my business. The Top Left Design seminar was excellent. Keren is a charming host and a fluent and accomplished presenter with a relaxed style all of her own. She explained the ‘who’ and ‘why’ as well as the ‘how’ of blogging and I especially liked how she encouraged participation without interrupting the flow of information. We all had an interesting and enjoyable time – even the food was well thought out. Highly recommended.

Michael Marks, Designer and Illustrator
said the following:

I knew I wanted to blog. I knew I wanted to share my insights, rants and quirky, yet endearing, humour with the waiting world. The only small obstacle between myself and my eager audience was not knowing how to blog, when I should blog or even the actual advantages of blogging – and whether it was right for me or not. I didn’t know my WordPress from Weblog or my Tumblr from my template. So, where to begin?

I can recommend Top Left Design’s Blogging Seminar as a very good place to start, where I went from blog-less novice to blog-ready acolyte in one painless session.

The seminar took place at TLD’s ambient and friendly offices in the west end. Comfortably snuggled between a blog-savvy copywriter – there to hone his blogging knowledge – and a laser-focused business owner – there to find out how blogging could increase her market share – I was relaxed and ready to discover how I could let the world share in my amusing observations.

Keren Lerner, TLD’s Director and our host, initiated us into the joys and pitfalls of the blogosphere, delivering a deceptively detailed amount of information in a relaxed and accessible way. The fifteen attendees each represented very different businesses – from a freelance movie producer to an interior designer – and required answers specific to them, but Keren ensured we were with her each step of the way, giving us a clear understanding if blogging was right for us and, if it was, how to start blogging for fun and profit.

Keren, with the assistance of case studies and real world examples, took us from the first faltering steps of blogging, through which blogging tools were right for each of us, to content, frequency and blog-etiquette. She also introduced us to the best blog-gurus on the web and the most relevant and appropriate resources for us.

The seminar was rendered even more painless by the comfortable and welcoming environment and the homemade cupcakes. Coffee breaks and lunch gave the attendees the opportunity to chat with each other and share our knowledge – or lack of it – about the world of blogging and to exchange business cards.

Rather than fill our heads with information and turn us out, blinking, into the world, we were given worksheets to complete during the seminar and take away with us. Even more impressively, Keren followed up the seminar with emails containing links to all the resources we’d discussed and a link to the entire presentation.

If you sincerely want to blog but have no idea how, where or how often, I suggest you book up for a TLD Blogging Seminar right now. After one session you’ll understand if blogging is right for you, what you should be saying, how you should be saying it and who you should be saying it to. The blogosphere is only a mouse-click away. Hmm, sounds like the title of my next blog post.

So, here goes – ahem – Just in case you didn’t hear – we are running two seminars this month. At the time of writing this blog – we have only 2 spots left on the blogging seminar and 6 spots left on the social media seminar.

Let’s see how the next few days transpire! Very exciting!

We have a special offer for Linkedin people who happen to land on this page. Really you could be anyone – but we want to offer to meet you – and spend an hour with you looking at your online presence. The cost is only £10 and we this offer is valid until the 15th of February 2011. Bookings will need to occur before 15th March 2011.

We will follow up with a recommendation summary for improvements you can make and you can choose if you want to work with us or existing suppliers.

Here are the things we can cover:

• Social media – how you use it, what you are doing right, what you could do better or more of
• Twitter strategies – how to expand contacts, build relationships and move connections to “real life”
• Events – how to incorporate your event planning with your online marketing – you can work plans and strategy into 2011′s – based on your and your team’s current capabilities
• Email newsletters – What you use now for email marketing, what options their are out there for you to use this better
• Blogging – How to make the most of blogging tools around, what kind of customisation options

The offer is limited to 4 business owners only. Click on this link to apply!

Once you email us your details and a bit of background information about your current online presence and marketing situation, we can book in a meeting at a convenient time. Meetings will take place at our Central London office and will last one hour.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Keren

I have been a member of BNI since the summer of 2002 and I am now at BNI Mayfair. During that time I have learned many skills, and I think it would be useful for anyone running their own business. BNI doesnt suit every one, as there are several rules to follow, it’s a big commitment, and the meetings occur very early in the morning. But a recent thread on Twitter inspired me to write this post.

For those who don’t know, BNI is a professional networking organisations where members meet weekly for breakfast and help each other by finding new business for each other and making referrals. These are tracked and statistics are carefully kept for attendance, participation and the amount of business passed.

I posted a Tweet with the hashtag (which is a clickable topic on Twitter) #ThatsWhyIDoBNI after doing some quick calculations.

But it’s important to note the other benefits of BNI so I have written a list of 11 things people will get out of membership.

1. Public Speaking practice – because you go to BNI every week and do a 60 second speech, you get lots of practice in public speaking
2. Learning to speak concisely – this is related to the above but there is an individual skill beyond speaking confidently, and that is getting your message accross within a short space of time. This has been compared to an elevator pitch as well
3. Taglines – many BNI members add a tagline to the end of their 60 seconds – and some people don’t have these when they join BNI but after being inspired by seeing others, they come up with clever ones. Have a look at the blog post I wrote about this recently.
4. Making friends – everyone I have spoken to about BNI has said they have made new friends through it – even a connection with just one or two members makes it all worthwhile.
5. Other networking opportunities – through BNI you will get to hear about other networking events – open networking events, monthly lunches,  awards events, workshops and seminars and often its contacts you get there that will help you grow your business
6. An education on how to network – there are many behaviours you can pick-up from other members which will improve your networking skills –  for some this will come more naturally than for others, but it definitely can always be improved.
7. A focus group – for testing out new products, marketing, and even new businesses
8. Joint ventures – It happens quite often in BNI groups that members team up for pitches, new business ventures, events, partnerships and collaborations. Seeing each other every week at BNI means you can easily meet regularly to move things along.
9. Knowledge of other types of businesses – Every week in the 60 seconds and the 10minute speeches, members share a bit about what they do, and through this you get a broad understanding of many different types of businesses. Through one to ones with other members, and with the potential clients and introducers they refer you to, you get even more.
10. Meeting the introverts – at parties, non member networking groups, and open networking events, introverts are a rarity and may not meet quite as many people. But so called “introverts” can join BNI and over time, they will be able to get to know other members and vice versa. Often introverts are the funniest and most intelligent people to meet and it’s interesting to see them come out of their “shells”.
11. Business referrals – This is the reason people join BNI in the first place – and yes, you do get these, and you learn how to along the way.

There are more benefits but I thought I would let this be a time for other BNI members to comment on this post and add their feedback!

Hopefully this will encourage more people to give BNI a try in 2011. If you would like to visit my BNI group please email me or visit www.bnimayfair.com