Mastering Your Brand: An Interview with Lorinda Hanson on Creating a Memorable Business Identity-Ep.224

Music, welcome to she coaches, coaches. I'm your host, candy motzek, and I'm going to help you find the clarity, confidence and courage to become the coach that you are meant to be, if you're a new coach, or if you've always wanted to be a life coach, then this is the place for you. We're going to talk all about mindset and strategies and how to because step by step only works when you have the clarity, courage and confidence to take action. Let's get started. You Hey everyone, and welcome to this week's episode of she coaches, coaches. I am so pleased that you are here. I'm going to tell you today is July 31 that we're recording now. This episode's not going to come out for a little while, but tomorrow I am going away on vacation. I'm still going to work a little bit while I'm on vacation, but I'm excited to go, and I also notice that I'm a little bit nervous or feeling pressured to go on vacation. And I wanted to share this with you, because maybe you experienced this as well. So my business, primarily, I'm a solopreneur, but I do get lots of help from great resources and people that support me, but ultimately, I'm the CEO. So as I'm getting ready to go away on vacation, I'm thinking, Oh, have I got everything done? Is it okay for me to go and leave my phone off, not check my email as much, and I'm pretty prepared. But if this is something that sounds like, you, make sure that you take a little bit of time, maybe two weeks before you go away, one week before you go away, make sure you have your list. These are all the things that I need to do each week for my business. So for example, this podcast is a weekly thing for my business, and then you want to make sure that you've got all those details handled before you go. Means that you're going to be able to zip up your suitcase and head out of town or head on to your vacation with a clean slate, and know that you've managed your business as well as you can. Okay, that's my personal tip for today. Second, I wanted to let you know that we've got a really interesting guest now. I met her at a networking event where we were learning about LinkedIn. And if you guys have been listening to me, you know that I'm all the thing about LinkedIn these days, I'm finding it a fascinating platform, but I met her, and I really liked her approach. I really liked her, and she is an amazing expert. So let me introduce you, and then we're going to dive into the conversation. Her name is Lorinda Hanson, and she has a company called Daisy and CO and she's a graphic designer, a web designer and a branding specialist. She helps small businesses communicate their key messages to their target audiences with professional creative that cuts through the clutter in today's templated world. So I don't know it looks short, but then, as I read it, there is a lot here, and I think that Lorinda welcome Lorinda. Lorinda has taken her bio and made it a great example of how to be straight to the point. Talk to your target message. Talk your target message to your target audience in a way that is really unique, larinda, I am so glad you're

here. Thank you candy for having me today.

Yeah, and so we're doing the video recording, but I know primarily this is audio, but for those of you who are into it, make sure you go and check out the episode on YouTube, and what you're going to see as we talk is that Lorinda is a really great example of what she teaches and the service that she provides, and you're going to find out more as we go on. So Lorinda, tell me a little bit about your story. How did you get started? How did you come to this place?

It's a really long story. I've been at this a long time. I went to school for graphic design back before computers were invented, so I just had a passion for art and design, and was working a job that wasn't really my cup of tea, and so I decided to go into graphics. I took a few side steps with my career. I had a child in between there, and then landed a job in my field, and then it took off from there. So I started off at a convenience food store chain, working in their internal marketing department. And, you know, worked there for several years, cut my teeth. Then. Moved on to the agency world, and then spent several years in that and then 14 years ago, due to some unforeseen circumstances at my current company, I decided to take the leap and start Daisy and CO so I've been at it 14 years now, and I haven't really looked back, and it's been an amazing opportunity. I

really like this. And I like the idea that you had this opportunity to take a leap, and you did it, and that it has been something for 14 years so far. So so many people who start businesses, and, you know, the audience here is coaches, but so many people who start businesses, they don't think that. They don't have that long range view, you know. So they might think, well, if I'm not successful in three months, then it's not going to work. But here's you with 14 years worth of experience in your business. What do you think? What do you think is the reason that you stayed in business for 14 years? You have any thoughts on that?

I think a couple of reasons. I do good work, yeah, and I get a lot of referrals from my clients. We have fun working together. It's something I enjoy doing. I'm passionate about it. I have had moments of weakness where I thought, boy, you know, I should just get a job and get that steady paycheck coming in and get those benefits more affordable. And every time I think about I just, I can't give it up. I just, I like the freedom it gives me, the flexibility it gives me. I'm able to work directly with clients and the main decision makers versus when you're in the agency world, you're a couple tiers down and you're getting, you know, information handed to you from an account manager or whoever. And so I just love working directly with small business and solopreneurs, entrepreneurs, yeah,

sounds like it really satisfy. Satisfies a number of values for you as well, the value of creativity and freedom and to be you know, quick to the mark, right? Like, if you know your client personally, then you're going to do some so much better of a job. And if something needs to be changed, you get to change it right? Like you can change it quickly, as opposed to three change orders that have to have two signatures each, and you know, like just that, the long paperwork process that can happen when you're in any kind of agency or corporation. I think that's really cool. So let's talk a little bit about branding to start out with. So as I said, Youtube peoples look at larinda and notice brand. Okay, so learn to talk to me a little bit about having a brand and what is that? How like? How do you get started? I know I asked you three questions, so you answer whichever one you want to start with, yes.

What is a brand? That is the magical question that everybody asks, and the brand is not your logo, it's not your the name of your company, it's not your tagline, it's not your website or your brochure or anything individually. It's the entire impression that you give a customer or potential customer when you present your business. So it's all of those things together, and it's a feeling that they get more than anything that you can document on paper. And it's something that it takes a long time to build, and it doesn't happen overnight. But if all those things are working cohesively together.

That's your brand, right? So that makes it sound like a big deal, right? Yeah. Okay,

so it very much is a big deal, yeah. So

talk to me about why it's a big deal and why it's not just an individual component that makes a brand. Can you? Can you go somewhere with that?

Sure it again. People leave your company with whatever experience they had, and it was a good one, they're going to remember that as you know, and tell other people about it, and be able to explain to other people that this is why I like working with this person and all of those things that they've experienced again, the logo, the colors, the website, all of those messages that they've absorbed from you, resonate in their mind as your brand, and they'll be able to communicate that to referrals, right?

Yeah, so there's a place here about having congruence, right? It's the presentation like how you show up, like today on Zoom, how an individual shows up. Is it in alignment with the level of service and the type of service that they provide? And that is a trust piece to me as well, right? Absolutely. It like, if somebody has a super professional brand, but then when they show up, they're kind of not really professional. They got papers piled all behind them on Zoom, and they look like, you know, a hot mess. Then it kind of makes me go, huh? It makes me wonder, right?

Because, absolutely, that's exactly why, like I said, if you do all the things right, and you have all all of your things are saying the right things to the right people, but when they call on the phone, the person that answers the phone is, you know, not nice, or doesn't give the answer that that they want, they immediately that's, you know, a check mark against your brand. Because all of those things matter your customer service people, how how you make your appointments? Does your technology work? How pleasant Are you on the phone, on Zoom, your tone of voice, your patience when you know they want to make 25 changes? Yeah, all of those things equal the brand experience, and they might not think it or know it, or know exactly what it is. Most people can't explain it, but that's definitely what it is. It's that feeling that you leave and experience with, whether it's going to your local hardware store just picking up a couple of screws that you needed, and how nice they were and they helped you. Again, that's that feeling you get, and you're probably going to be loyal to, you know, ace or wherever you went because of that experience that you had.

Yeah, yeah. So, I mean, I'm not well branded for my business, but and so I'm learning, learning as I'm listening to and it's making me think the same time. So let's kind of go back to the audience that listened to this show, newer coaches. These are people who are often professionals, and now they're doing this switch. So they are the true solopreneur getting started. Many of them are bootstrapping their business. They might have a virtual assistant. They may not. Where would you point someone like that to begin with, to just get them started on the path towards this,

towards developing a personal brand.

Yes, yeah,

I think it's important to start documenting your points of difference. What sets you apart from your competition. It's important to document your target audience, have a full, clear understanding of who you're talking to and what those messages should be, then start thinking about the fun stuff, colors, shapes, forms, icons, things that represent you, style, tone, the tone of The copy is a big part of the brand. It can be, you know, fun and flirty, or it can be super serious corporate, depending on, again, who you're talking to. So that's probably where I'd say start. And then once that's if you're doing it yourself, then you have to start looking at the tools that are out there. There are literally 1000s, way too many for this podcast today to talk about the tools that are out there to help you build your own website, you know, make your own logo, design your own brochure, all of those things. I just say, proceed with caution. When you do it yourself. Some do it very well, and others, you can kind of tell they just did it themselves. So keep that in mind. The other thing I don't like about the DIY tools so much is everybody starts to look the same. You know, everybody grabbed that same. You know, I can't think of a category right now, but certain categories, you grab their business card and, you know, they just look like everybody else. And so I caution that the temptation to grab templates and the temptation to make things easy sometimes doesn't set you

apart. So when I hear what you're saying and you know, starting to understand just a very high level the complexity and the thought that goes into creating a brand and maintaining it, building it and keeping it consistent. The thing that I always want my clients to do when they're getting started is I, I want them to get out there and sign clients like that's their first priority. So most of them are going to be on that DIY path to begin with. And you know, from what you said, there's a lot of things to consider. I would say, you know, start with the DIY, because there's no point in having, you know, if you're a solopreneur and you've got no clients, you got no income, you don't really have a business yet. You actually need a business before you're going to, you know, do some of these larger projects, like a brand, a really well developed website. So start in that area. That's what I would think. There is the place where it sounds like you need to be very aware of yourself. You know, what's your tone? How do you like to work? And. Then your target audience, and the kinds of things that you help them with like so it's this place where it's in the and right it's in the dash, it's the them and me to start with right now. So we're we may start DIY, and we may move over assuming that our business works, and we sign clients and we're happy, and we're like, Yes, this is happening now we want to go and we want to engage somebody. So what are some of the things that you would be thinking of if you were looking to hire somebody to help you with your brand and your website? What are those considerations?

Yes, of course, interviewing them would probably be my first advice, whether that's zoom or in person, because the personal feeling that you get when you're talking to somebody tells you a lot about whether or not you're going to be able to, you know, last through an entire project with them or not. I think that's important. Experience is important. Portfolio is important if you're looking for a designer or a writer, for that matter, or anybody else in my creative space, look at examples, lots and lots and lots of examples. Have a clear vision of what you want that person or persons to help you with, like, I need help with this and this and this. Yeah, it's like, I guess that's probably where I'd start. I also wanted to tag on that last part is, if you are going to do everything yourself, and I get that a lot of people do is just be consistent with what you're doing, consistent with fonts, colors, tone, all those things matter, whether you're doing it yourself, or whether you're hiring a professional, just being consistent again, that it makes it more memorable, makes more trustworthy. You know, if you're saying something different at every point, it gets confusing, and as soon as you confuse your target audience, they're probably going to move on. So you know, nowadays we have this attention deficit problem, and we have to get our point across in very little time. So it's important to be consistent, so that every time they see that message, they feel comfortable with it

right? There's there was something that you said when we were you were giving just the highlight ideas, thinking about hiring somebody, outsourcing the design and a website, and that is the you want the client to arrive with. This is kind of what I'm after. And so this is my personal experience. When I started out, I paid somebody to build me a website and a brand right off the bat, and I was a little bit shocked that they asked me all these questions, like, we're just gonna go and do it. So I was surprised how much of it was like, I thought I was like, just gonna show up and say, yeah, the website, go and build it right? Like, I thought that that was it, but it turned out that I had to

work really hard to make it work, right? And so,

so you're laughing, right? Yes, I am laughing, yeah. And so as I'm thinking back to that, that's the that was the thing that I really heard when you were describing this, is like, this is a partnership, you know? So when you're going to interview somebody, you're actually interviewing somebody that you're going to be an in conversation. With a lot, right? You know. So you really, you don't want to be, you know, kind of hands off on the things that are some of the most important part of this brand. Do you ever experience that with clients, where they come in and they think you're just going to kind of wrinkle your nose like the old bewitch show, and magically it would appear,

oh yes, quite often, that's usually in the first conversation we discussed that all the their responsibilities during the project, the things I'm going to need from them, I put it in written form when I do my proposals before they even sign off, yeah, because they haven't signed off yet, so they have a chance to back out still. If they look at the list and they feel like, oh, gosh, I can't even do this. But yeah, it's definitely a partnership. I there's not a magic wand. The content doesn't come from the sky. It has to be worked on together. Like I said, all of the brand thing, the style, the look, the colors, all of those things, we have to have long conversations or short conversations sometimes to make it right, to make it feel like you're a brand, and so that you feel comfortable going out and promoting that as your story, right?

So it really sounds like, you know, we've got an airplane here, and you know, the expert such as yourself is the navigator and the co pilot, and responsible for all the other bits and pieces, but the individual who owns the business, there's still the pilot, right? Like we still, it still needs to be that partnership, and you're both in the cockpit together to create something. Think that matters. So that means that this is a time consuming and effort, not just time consuming, but like energy consuming. So I think that that's part of it as well. You know, like when you go to that place where you are ready to engage somebody such as yourself, just know that you need to clear some space on your calendar, right and so, do you have any guidelines for you've told us, you know, here's kind of how to think about how to bring somebody on board to work with them. Do you have any other guidelines around this, you know, like, timing specifically, you know, like, how long about does this take? And I'm and I'm asking the question, as if I was a person who has never done project management before, who has never kind of sort of been through that the ups and down ride of taking on a substantial project, so looking for guidance, so that the listeners are going, you know what? I have clients. I'm ready to do this now. What do I what do I need to expect? What do I expect from this?

Well, every person that you're going to work with has a different timeline. My timeline for things, you know, I've been doing this 30 years, so I'm pretty efficient and pretty fast. So I can, again, in my initial proposal, I list out the timing, and a lot of that has to do with the complexity of the project. If it's, you know, a five or seven, eight page website, or does it have all this other extra technology that's going to affect the timeline. But expect a basic website to be done in 30 to 45 days or less. Again, that's meetings with you. That's the initial consultation, where we where we map out the pages of the website. You know, all those things can happen in that time. Again, it depends on who you're working with, a lot, right? I find that great,

so great question to be asking, when you are interviewing a designer, what's your expected timing on it? Okay, that's

yes, absolutely, because they could be swamped and it might be six months or, you know, kind of what's that's a great question to ask yes for sure. And budget, of course, is based on scope. We have to, you know, figure out, basically, you know, what work is involved, and then the numbers based on that.

Let's see what else, and that budget is an investment, right? Like, that's the way I like to think of it is, you know, you're investing your time, your energy, and your money, and something that's got a longer this is a, this is an asset that you're building for your business, right,

right? And I believe in most cases, you can write that up as part of your business expense. Oh, yeah, any of your marketing services or products. So, no, not that that necessarily gives us a lot, but at least it's something,

yeah, wow. Okay, so we know that

also, also make sure that if you hire somebody, when you're doing your interview with them, I'm sorry that you ask or that they're asking you questions, so they're asking you questions right away in that first meeting, because then, you know, if they're, if it's really going to be a two way street, or if they're, you know, just a button pusher, I guess it's the best way to say it. And I find that the technology companies, a lot of times they want to just build your website so they don't ask those questions about the communication piece that we've talked about. So that's very important that whoever you work with understands that piece as well as the technology. And I know those tech companies dangle those deals in front of you and all of that, but they're really focused on technology, and most of them don't have a lick of design or a lick of communication experience or very little, and so they're going to be relying on you. In fact, I just had somebody that I talked to, and she said they they asked me, they basically said, send everything to me, and there was no interactivity. So just be careful with that. Yeah,

and I can see that, you know, coaches, the business itself, is a business that's built on relationship and personal relationship with your clients and with your partners. So this is, you know, this is similar, like coaches don't want a just give me all the information and I'll and I'll pigeonhole you into the boxes they do want that place where the website, the brand reflects how they work with clients, who they are when they're working with clients, because it's kind of like it's not the beginning, but it's like it's an integral part of that relationship, right? If you're somebody who is a little bit slower and a calmer, more relaxed, present person, you're not going to be wanting to work. Work with people who are like, you know, high energy type a rushing around kind of people, you're not a match, right? And so I guess in that way, your brand, your website, will do a really great job of helping to filter your dream clients in, and also sort of showing the other clients that maybe you're not the right match to them right

it will absolutely and that's all about the trust. Again, based on their homework that they've done before they called you, there's a level of trust built already because they've, you know, reviewed your materials, they've they felt comfortable with with it, enough to contact you and set up this meeting. And so now you have to deliver. Okay,

okay, so we've covered a lot, and it feels like there's a like, if I was a newer coach, I've got my clients now, things are starting to come together. And I'm like, Okay, I think that this, I think that that's a really good next step for me. Could you just summarize again, just so they could, like, have that little sound bite that says, Okay, this is where I start. I know I'm on the right path. You know, that episode really helped me to take the next step.

I'm not sure what order this would be in, but, you know, establish a budget. Make sure you're clear about your messaging and ready to communicate it to the world and to communicate it to whoever you're going to work with. Make sure you ask the right questions. As far as timing, let's see what else. So I think as far as a list would go, the first thing would be ask your circle of influence for a referral. Have they worked with anybody? Were they happy with them? Check your LinkedIn list. Are you connected to anybody? Maybe somebody you met before that you clicked with at a networking event. Sorry about my cat, those things. And then come prepared for that first when you narrow it down to a couple of people, come prepared for that first interview with them, with your questions, with things like, you know, what is it going to cost? What is the timeline going to look like? How will we work together? Feel free to ask them about their process. How does their process work? And then look at examples of their work. If you've narrowed it down to two or three, check out their portfolio. Do you is it something that you like, or maybe you're turned off by their portfolio? So that might eliminate somebody right away that you don't resonate with their work. So probably not a good fit. So that's, I guess, a list, if I had to come up with a list.

Yeah, that's really helpful. And the reason you know listeners that I asked for the list is, if you're anything like me, you've had a career, you've had a life, but you've never actually interacted with a designer. So you might be in that place where you like, you're like, Okay, I know I could use this. I know it would be great, but I kind of don't even know where to begin, or where or what to ask. And so if you're in that position, listen to what lar is giving you as some good guidance. Because if you can get over that hurdle of, oh, gosh, I don't even know where to begin. That's the thing that's going to help you take the next step, right? So this piece here about you know, you may not have any knowledge of this field, so let's find a way that you can begin and feel a little bit more comfortable, and you notice how she suggested you're going to be talking to people that you know and asking them for people, asking them for referrals. You're going to go to your LinkedIn network or your Instagram group and see, oh gosh, is there somebody there? And do I really like the looks of what they've done now you're in a position to have a conversation. And these professionals, their role is to work side by side with you to help you be successful and create that end result that you're like, Oh, this is amazing, right? So Lorinda, can you tell me, I'm just guessing, and I'm thinking, I'm putting words in your mouth. What are some of the most satisfying results of your work that you feel like as the service provider. What's some of the most satisfying things that happen?

Well, one just happened today. I'm working on a site. We're almost done, we're ready to launch, and she said I revealed it to my husband last night, and he loves it. He thinks it fits me perfectly. He loves everything about it. And that just made me feel good, made me feel like I did my job, and I again, most importantly, makes her look good, so I captured her essence, and that's what my job is.

I love that I love that it's kind of the i. Yeah, it's sort of the the business version of when you go and you get a new hairstyle, and then you go, wow, so good, right? And so I just think that that's, I think it's amazing. I love it. Okay, so let's wrap it up. Lorinda, I you have shared so much with the audience, and I really appreciate that you are so aware that I'm asking you, because most of the time I don't have any idea what the answer to this question is. So I'm learning while I'm talking to you too. Is there anything that has occurred to you in this conversation that you thought, oh, I have to remember to share this one thing, anything at all, that you think would be really helpful for the audience.

Most important is making sure you know who your target audience is, and making messages that communicate to them. That's the most important thing. And being consistent with whatever you put out there. Be consistent with it. If you're switching all the time, it just causes confusion, and that's the worst thing that you could do. So I think, yeah, that answered it.

That's really, really helpful. So this be consistent with your messaging show up consistently as yourself, and know who your target audience is, know who your dream client is, and how you help them, and that's the basis for everything that we do in business. So wonderful advice. Thank you. So Lorinda, there's going to be people who listen to this episode and said this woman, I want to talk to her. I want to find out how she can help me. What's the easiest way for them to get into your world?

They can visit my website at Daisy and co.com, and Daisy with a, z, D, A, I, Z, Y, and then and spelled out, and then C, o.com, and all of my contact information is there. There's a form. If they're not, if they don't want to talk on the phone, yet, they can fill out the form, and I'll get back to them. They can check out my portfolio. That's probably the best way.

Lovely. Thank you so much, and I'll make sure to put all that information in the Episode Notes as well. Okay, all right, everyone. I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did, and that you learned something new, and when you are ready to get some support with website design, with branding communication, check out Lorinda. She does an amazing job. Thanks so much for joining me, and I look forward to talking to you again next week. Thanks again for listening today. Please hop on over to Apple podcasts and leave a review. Also, I would love to hear from you did something that I say resonate. What else would you like to learn about? Click the link in the player and leave a comment on the post. This is going to give me great ideas for future episodes, so I can help you best Join me again next week from our coaching support and teaching to help you become the confident coach you are meant to be. You.