Bella-Grande, Charlotte MI

The Small Business Administration (SBA) and credit card company, American Express has been instrumental in creating a groundswell in support of shopping small. Small Business Saturday has become a movement we can all embrace. We are all familiar with the chaos and spending associated with the day after Thanksgiving, otherwise known as Black Friday. Many celebrate the special deals and excitement that is generated each year. This season we can also feel good about our choices when we head out on Saturday, November 26, 2011 to our local shops to find those coveted items we can feel extra special about giving this year.

Small Business Saturday honors those local shops who work hard and give back to their communities throughout the year. So many Lansing and Charlotte local shops come to mind who carry innovative items. Lambs Gate Antiques, with shops in Grand Ledge and Oldtown Lansing carries one-of-a-kind retro collectibles and antiques, Bella’s and Bella Grande shops in Charlotte offer tasteful, quality clothing for small and curvy divas for resale, the Yarn Garden in Charlotte has an amazing variety of yarns for those who are talented enough to make gifts for the holidays! Charlotte’s Silver and Gold Barn has exquisite custom jewelry, Tea & VIntage Treasures boutique is one of those sweet shops you only find in unique shopping districts, quality gift items, loose teas and herbs to light your senses on fire – you are sure to find some spice and beauty here.

When you are all done or need some sustenance between shops stop into Fay’s Evelyn Bay Coffee Shop for a warm beverage and light meal or treat. If you show a receipt from a local merchant shop you will receive 20% off your purchase!

Want to Shop Small in your community but don’t know what shops to go to? Enter your zip code on this page and  get a list of local shops in your area.For more information visit the Facebook page and to join in the twitter fun use #smallbizsat.

Find special deals and support your community. When dollars are spent locally, they can be re-spent locally, raising the economic activity, increasing employment, and building the local tax base. For every $100 dollars you spend with a small business in your city, $73 stays is in your community. Your $100 spent non-local business only $43 stays in the community. Gain more insight on these studies through reports from Capital LocalFirst.

Have fun! Remember to shop small and that I love beautiful, artsy things.. call me for my sizes. Happy Thanksgiving!

Stay connected!

This summer I renewed my subscription to Print magazine for the first time in quite a few years. Since each year a higher percentage of Connection Graphics projects are web based, our focus and research tends to be more directed to keeping current with electronic solutions and techniques. A Print direct mail piece convinced me I deserved to indulge my love of print design.

While luxuriating in the recent issue an article by Rick Poynor resonated with my thoughts on the evolution of graphic design.  Although graphic designers have been creating since the 1930s, I remember a mere decade ago having to explain to people what my job was as a graphic designer. While working in the corporate climate my designations were visual communication director, publication specialist, marketing director — under all guises, my tasks in each position were virtually the same – a rose by any other name…

Today graphic design is a burgeoning industry. Everywhere you look, in every media, throughout the world, viewers are influenced by strategic and creative graphic design solutions. From website design, to packaging, print literature, billboards and video, graphic design is in the heart of all brand development and marketing communications.

Our customers and the current work force have steadily raised the bar of expectations of graphic design. In this digital world a graphic designer can’t just excel in logo design, they must have a strong grasp of website design and digital design solutions.  A designer has always been a problem solver and visual magician and now we must also be product developers, typesetters, coders and more. The beauty is, we can and we are. Successful graphic designers welcome the challenge, we know the generations will be even more discerning in their product and service choices because they have been raised on design since day one. Customers will continue to challenge our ability to balance creative visuals with clear messages that hit the mark.

Some may say this evolutions of the industry requires a new name, that graphic design is now an outmoded term. More artistic expression, interdisciplinary skills and reasoning may justify this change but I am one graphic designer who is grateful for the new discerning and savvy clientele. I especially appreciate not having to explain what I really do for a living anymore.

I would love to purchase some and plant them for some customers. When their businesses grow as the result of our magic bean planting I would occasionally submit a small report – maybe just a page or two with pretty graphs showing the astronomical growth Connection Graphics has nurtured in such a short amount of time.

What a great way to live! We would have infinite love and gratitude from hundreds of clients – because once those magic beans are planted for one customer the word will spread and we’d have a full crop of growing companies under our care. What company doesn’t want instant growth through their marketing efforts?

As graphic designers and brand marketers we combine our love of the visual with the experiential and psychological aspects of a brand. As much excitement as a new logo or website design can instill, the often time consuming press releases, consumer research,  blog submissions, and database development required to build a strong foundation for awareness of the brand is like watching a seed take root in the dark. This phase is boring to customers who are only interested in seeing increased sales results.

Sometimes, to our horror, while we are developing roots and studying patterns, some clients will ask us to dig up the seed, maybe try new soil, or plant an entirely new seed to see if it will grow faster. This of course only results in losing ground and burning more daylight. Some marketing companies actually shovel in more fertilizer which appears to increase the yield faster but it doesn’t reap the sweet fruit that buyers return to again and again and tell all their family and friends about.

So for those customers who haven’t allowed time to prepare the soil before seeding and  still expect a bountiful harvest in the first season, the most practical solution I can think of is finding these magic marketing beans. We could celebrate Thanksgiving everyday and bask in the cornucopia of satisfied customers. My bet is though that these magic marketing beans other marketing firms are pushing are loss leaders for them and their top sales product is really the bull fertilizer that’s packaged with them.

Stay connected,

www.connectiongraphics.com

Brianna Flowers, Tony Sweet and Jill Marlin featured in Grand Ledge/Waverly Mi Sports Page Magazine

The inaugural Mi Sports Page Magazine, covering Grand Ledge and Waverly is now available on the newsstand in multiple community locations.

The first edition includes stories on former Grand Ledge athlete Jill Marlan, who has used the discipline she learned and benefitted from as an athlete to cultivate a successful educational and professional career; former Grand Ledge basketball coach Tony Sweet who has now taken his  basketball knowledge and passion to Brighton where he coached the Bulldogs’ boys team  to a Kensington Lake Athletic Association championship in his first year; and the steady, calming influence Brianna Flowers had on the Waverly girls track program during her four year years.

As an area leader in website design, print and corporate communications, Connection Graphics, is proud to introduce the first Mi Sports Page Magazine. Our goal to support local businesses and communities with highlights and feature stories of local athletes and high school athletic programs.

Please visit misportspage.com for more information.

Thad Kraus (517)645-4387

email: thad@connectiongraphics.com
(more…)

The Lansing Economic Area Partnership (Leap, Inc.) has combined with Great Lakes Entrepreneurial Quest  (GLEQ) to bring aspiring  entrepreneurs two days of inspring presentations, Angel funding session, points on securing government contracts, tips on marketing, notes on protecting intellectual property and many more critical topics of value to entrepreneurs.

On Thursday, June 9, enjoy a day of presentations and breakout sessions and virtual tours of Michigan’s business incubators and the GLEQ Business Plan Competition Awards Banquet that evening. On Friday, you’ll have the option of participating in numerous networking and educational activities and exploring the displays in the exhibit hall (please stop by Connection Graphics table and let us know you read this post to receive a special gift!).

The agenda on both days encourages meeting and learning from other entrepreneurs, investors, business professionals and resource experts. Contact LEAP to secure small conference rooms that are available at no additional cost on a first-come, first-served basis for small meetings and private conversations. Visit Entrepreneur Connect to read more about the session available and reserve your place. Participate in the events and activities as best fits your schedule and interests.

I hope to see you there and look forward to this great opportunity to meet and support business in Michigan. Even though Connection Graphics opened our doors over 14 years ago, business continues to evolve because we keep learning. If all we offered were the graphic design services for print marketing that was our base  in 1997 we could not have sustained the business. Because we paid attention to trends and consulted experts, we have continually expanded our product offerings to meet the market. Internet marketing, website design and consulting quickly became a larger segment of client sales, even in those early days.

The ability to learn and excel is a critical component to business success. Because we have stayed in touch with customer needs and honed our skills, Connection Graphics has become recognized as a brand marketing resource. When our customers need to engage in social media we develop social media strategies for them, custom designed Facebook fan pages, landing pages, and custom website design and development as part of the marketing services mix. We don’t know what the future will bring, but we will be one of the first to learn about it as we continue to attend great events such as Entrepreneur Connect.

Entrepreneur Connect will be held at the Henry Center in Lansing, Michigan.   Take a look at these breakout sessions and register to attend!

As Miche Suboski shared, “Summer is usually a sleepy time for business, but not for Entrepreneurs!  At least the one’s that are out making stuff happen….Entrepreneur Connect has many… excellent opportunities (all in one event!) for you to get out there and continue to build your brand or make connections that will help you take the next step with your venture.”