Define Your Brand

Every brand has a perception that can be condensed to just a few words.

Apple could be defined as innovative, clean, and modern. Nike brings to mind words like strength, aggression, and competition. Ford Trucks are perceived as industrial, rugged, and tough.

These words are all associated with these brands through marketing. For example, Apple is perceived as clean because all of their marketing is done with a clutter-free white background.

How is your brand perceived?

It’s important to realize that the perception of the companies mentioned is the result of marketing – it’s not just a coincidence. While many people think of marketing as simply driving sales there’s another side to it that’s all about building a brand’s perception.

“Nobody Wants Your Email Newsletter!”

This week I started listening to the Building A Story Brand podcast by Donald Miller. It’s an awesome resource to understand how great brands are built. One line that stood out to me from their website critique was this:

“Nobody wants your email newsletter!”

Did you know that the average office worker gets 120 emails per day in their inbox? How many of those emails do you think actually get read?

Google Searches Demystified

Have you ever wondered how Google knows what results to show when you search for you favorite funny meme? More importantly – ever wondered how Google knows to display your website when someone else searches for your business?

After launching new websites we often get an email a week or so later with the following question:

“I did a Google search for my company name but I don’t see my website. Why is it not showing up? Can you please fix this.”

What is your likability score?

Do you know how likable you are to other people? What if you could score your likability and discover specific areas to improve? Well today you’re in luck!

Recently I heard a very entertaining and challenging talk by Jason Young on the topic of Likability. It was a game-changer for me as I thought through how others’ view me as a business owner, small group leader, friend, and brother.

Why is likability important?

We’re always going to have personal interactions in our lives. As business leaders, family members, and friends, it’s important that we’re aware of how other people perceive us. Being likable is a skill that carries into all aspects of our lives and generally makes us better people.

Favorite WordPress Plugins

WordPress offers an infinite number of ways to configure a website. Plugins make this possible by adding all types of functionality. Below are some of the most popular plugins that we use at Ramp.

Focus Playlist

“Music is a work of art that tends to unleash creativity in us that we did not know was there.”

– ThoughtPursuits.com

In our culture of smart phones and wearable technology it can be difficult to focus and knock items off our to-do list. Music is a powerful tool to block out these distractions so we put together a playlist to boost creativity and help you get things done.

WordPress Categories vs. Tags

So you have a new WordPress blog up and running but you’re not sure how to organize your content. Should you use categories or tags…or both?

Website Statistics You Should Know

Creating a following from your website is all about understanding your audience. The more you know about visitors on your site the better job you can do of creating content that engages them and generates more leads.

These stats are a great starting point for understanding how readers interact with your website.
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Don’t Be Like Bill – Generate Leads From Your Site

Do you remember when you got your first job? Bill is looking for his first job and has a lot to teach us about marketing our websites to more clients.

The story of Bill

Bill just graduated from State and has decided that it’s time to get a grown up job. He talks to his friends who are also looking for their first job and get’s some great tips.

“Create a professional resume.”
“Get a haircut!”
“Wear a nice suit and tie.”

He follows all this advice with great care because he wants to get a great job with a reputable firm. First Bill puts together an nicely organized impressive resume from a Microsoft Word template and prints it on a thick card stock.

Bill wants to look his best for interviews so he pays for a very professional looking haircut. He puts on his nicest dark suit with a freshly ironed white dress shirt and a black tie. Bill is ready to close the interview with anyone who’s interested in hiring him.

The problem is, nobody knows Bill!

“3 Favorite Phone Apps…Go!”

This has become my new favorite icebreaker. What we do on our phones says a lot about what’s important to us and the things we enjoy in life. In a world where we all walk around with virtually the same phone everyone uses theirs a little differently.

One of the beauties of smartphones is the ability to connect from the palm of our hands. There’s an app for almost everything out there which can be extremely helpful to our productivity or it can totally derail an otherwise productive day.

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