Sometimes my event planning and marketing careers truly do collide! It happened again recently when Christina at Speak! Language Center contacted us about helping to promote her downtown space for meetings & events when they are not using it for language classes.  Here is what we came up with together- details about the space, a pricing structure and a simple layout that she can easily edit as needed.  If you are looking for a unique downtown event space (or want to learn a new language), be sure to check out Speak!

Tuesday, May 3rd- Tuesday, May 10th

Good Morning! In case you haven’t heard me go on about it enough, our wedding weekend is coming up on May 6-8!

I wanted to go ahead and announce now that Garnet will be on ‘Spring Break’ from Tuesday, May 3rd until Tuesday, May 10th. Since its just me around here most of the time, that means that there won’t be much e-mail checking & phone call answering during that time.  So, if you have any marketing projects on your list, be sure to get them to us soon!

THANK YOU in advance for your understanding!

As Chris and I plan our own wedding celebration (less than 50 days!!) I have been thinking a lot about how all of these little pieces that we are putting together are really just creating a ‘brand’ for us as a couple and for the event.  I think about it so much because wedding and event branding bring together two favorite ‘work-related’ things: marketing and event planning.

When most people think of ‘branding’ they think of a new business creating a color palette, logo, website and maybe some business cards and brochures that represent what the business is all about.  These things are then used in various ways to gain customers and clients.  Think about this for a minute: Isn’t the goal of a wedding to represent the couple and what they are becoming together?  And since there are just 52 weekends in a year and people are busy, they really are in some ways ‘marketing’ their wedding to their guests.  Sure, wedding guests will attend because they love the couple but giving them a hint of what to expect from the beginning certainly can’t hurt!

You may not need business cards and brochures for a wedding but you do need invitations, napkins, thank you notes, decor, shoes and all kinds of other little things that represent YOU.  My ‘definition’ of branding a wedding is choosing just a few things (colors, a monogram, a pattern, fonts, etc.) that pop up in well planned little places from the save the date to the thank you note to the point where guests will recognize that they are happening.

An important Tip: Don’t go crazy! You don’t need to put your new initial on everything in site! Think quality vs. quantity and place the elements that you choose in well thought out places that are noticeable but not obnoxious.

Here are just a few examples that I came across this morning.  I will share some professional photos of the ‘brand’ that Chris and I have created after May 7th.  That is the other important thing about branding events…don’t forget to keep some elements of surprise for your guests!

www.hellomonkeygraphics.blogspot.com

www.kellyoshiroevents.com

www.iluweddingsblog.com

I can’t believe Garnet turns ONE tomorrow, March 15th! What a great first year.  THANK YOU to our clients & friends for your support.

To celebrate, we are giving away CAKE- a $25 gift certificate to Chandler’s Bakery, to be specific! Answer one of the following questions by commenting on this post to enter.  Be sure to include your first name and an e-mail address to we can contact you if you win.

1- What is your biggest marketing challenge in 2011?

2- Do you have a marketing or social media question that we can answer for you?

We will answer the questions on our blog over the next few months so keep an eye out for yours to be featured! Questions? info@garnet-marketing.com

As if you couldn’t have guessed, I love WordPress.  I have used it for everything from personal blogging to simple client websites to more complicated sites that involve developers & designers.  But, this month, I am cheating on WordPress with Tumblr.

My husband Chris and I are doing a 25 day program called Clean which essentially involves eating no processed foods, sugar, caffeine, alcohol, etc.  They advise you to keep a journal to keep you on track.  Maybe it’s just because of the business that I am in but I didn’t see how a written journal stored in an undisclosed location at my house was going to keep me on track.  So, I started a blog.  It was a little scary at first but on the days that we have considered giving up, the thought of my readers knowing that I have failed has kept me going.  Sure, we are doing it for ourselves and I don’t *really* care what others things but hey, whatever works…

The Clean Program Book

When I started thinking about my goals for the Clean blog I wanted something simple to set up, easy to post to, and most likely something temporary since I don’t have a plan for this particular blog space past about 25 days or so.  I also knew that for business purposes I should really experiment with some of the other blogging tools out there and I have already checked Blogger off of that list.  So, I decided to try out Tumblr.

I have to say, for what it’s made for, it’s pretty awesome.  A step in between Twitter and a full fledged blog like WordPress, I would say it’s the easiest to use blog platform I have seen.   It is perfect for beginners starting a personal blog and those who don’t have a ton of time to invest in their blog.  It’s also great for micro blogs.  For example, I have a client who has a custom WordPress site which includes a great blog but we now have a few Tumblr blogs floating around out there on specific areas of their work.  It’s great for SEO and it allows them to really focus on specific areas individually.

I have found that you can very easily upload photos, video, quotes, etc. from a smart phone which means that I do it more often than I normally would.  Then, I log in on my computer and write a full blog post each night..or sometimes I do that from my phone as well.  It also allows me to update some of the colors and other details on the template with no problem to make it a bit more ‘me’ that the ones they offer.  My blog is also linked to Facebook & Twitter.  The whole process feels really simple and user friendly.  If you want a simple personal blog or a micro blog in addition to your main blog, try having an affair with Tumblr!  If you are looking for a fully customizable blog or website tool with all of the widgets and plug ins that you could ever dream of, I would suggest sticking to WordPress.

Check out our CLEAN journey on my Tumblr BLOG!

I am sure most of you know that I spent the last 15 years in the hospitality/events industry and loved every minute of it.  Although I have now taken a bit of a new path, I still LOVE those industries and the people in them.  So, when my now partner in a few different projects, Claire Goodman, approached me about doing a marketing workshop for wedding + event professionals here in Charlottesville I quickly said YES!

We spent the last few months surveying local professionals to see what they would like to learn, considering locations and interviewing speakers.  I am excited to announce that ‘Get Engaged’ is finally ‘real’ and registration is OPEN! I must say that it’s bigger & better than I ever imagined a few months back.  We will be holding it at The Boar’s Head (my old stomping grounds) on February 22nd and our line up of speakers is pretty awesome for Charlottesville!

Check out the website for details:

White Chocolate Bark- Yum!

Wow, I can’t believe tomorrow is Christmas Eve! Chris, the doggies and I are staying in Virginia this year and have lots of festivities to attend over the next two days.  Tonight I realized that we had decorated, shopped and wrapped but I never did any baking! I would love to have something sweet to take along to the parties so I dug out my favorite Peppermint Bark recipe and I think I’ll make a batch tomorrow morning.  Do you still need something yummy & sweet for hostess gifts of holiday part goodies?  It’s super easy to make and people LOVE it!

You can also make it with just white chocolate or just dark chocolate if you prefer.  The recipe calls for both.

12 oz chocolate chips
1 pound white chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/2 cup peppermint candy, crushed

• Preheat oven to 250. Line a 9×13 pan with foil, letting it hang over the sides. Spray foil. Pour the chocolate chips in an even layer on the foil. Place in oven for 5 minutes or until almost melted. Remove from oven, smooth with an offset spatula or knife. Place in refrigerator until cold and firm, about 20 minutes.

• Melt white chocolate chips in a double boiler or in a metal bowl over simmering water (don’t let bottom of bowl touch water), until chocolate is almost melted. You can use your microwave for this if you’re brave! Remove bowl from water and stir until completely melted, stirring in extract. Let cool a little bit so it doesn’t melt the chocolate layer when you pour it on top. Pour this over chocolate layer, and, working quickly, spread to cover. Sprinkle with crushed candy.

• Chill until both layers are firm. Lift foil out of pan and shake off excess candy. Trim edges. Cut into 2” wide strips. Peel bark from foil and cut each strip as desired. Chill in covered container. Makes about 2 pounds.

Thank you for your support in 2010! I hope you have a wonderful holiday surrounded by your favorite people!

What does your e-mail signature say?  Most people set one up when they first open an e-mail account and then totally forget about it.  Not having a signature or having a super outdated one should be considered a missed marketing opportunity!  Signatures should always include the typical information- name, company, phone, web link and e-mail link. But, you can also use it to share current promotions for your business and links to your social profiles.  I found a new tool over the weekend that helped me to quickly create a signature that I love.  In addition to the items listed above it also lets me display my latest blog post & latest Tweet on each and every e-mail.

This new little favorite of mine is called WiseStamp.  It’s currently available for anyone using Firefox, Chrome or Safari as a browser and works on Gmail, Yahoo, AOL and Hotmail accounts.  It’s very simple to set up and you can make your e-mail look something like this (or even better: you can also add photos, etc.):

We would like to introduce you to the newest member of the Garnet team, Scout! She joins Ellie as one of our adorable little mascots! Unfortunately all they do is sit around and look cute- too bad they can’t be trained to blog or update Facebook or something…

Scout

Ellie

Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE paper but that is limited to the pretty kind (like letterpress notecards and cool calendars)! Garnet is just 9 months old and I can’t help but notice how many file folders I have filled with meeting notes, receipts and other stuff that I like to call ‘ugly paper’ without even realizing it.  My office space currently looks like this:

My resolution for 2011 is to have an office free of ‘ugly paper’ and clutter.  I know that I can’t just drop these piles off to the local recycling center because it’s stuff that I do use once in awhile and it’s a full history of Garnet’s relationship with each of it’s clients .  I have a great memory and VERY organized notes but there are always days when I need to remember something that I scribbled down during that first client meeting back in March.  So, after much online research (and office measuring) I have decided to invest in these toys to help get me started:

NeatDesk for Mac: This is a gadget I have had my eye on for a long time and after reading about 50 more reviews, I think it’s the winner.  There are clearly other great scanner options but I think this one will meet my needs and take up limited desk space which was on the ‘wish list’.

Evernote: Next on my list was a place to organize all of these little pieces of paper with ideas scribbled on them in sharpie…I LOVE sharpies! I have been ‘kind of’ using my Evernote app for a while but in 2011 I am getting serious!

A Big Girl File Cabinet: Let’s face it, I am not going to be 100% paperless.  I am a marketer and keep real, paper samples of brochures, print ads, etc. for a reason.  So, I am finally getting a real cabinet to keep them in so they aren’t so noticeable.  This was was on sale at Target and got great reviews so I thought it would be a good start!  Oh, and I got the desk too.  Everything should match in my new paperless space, right!?

I will keep you all posted on the progress! What is your business resolution for 2011?