This is the first Maizi’s Mates woofpost, about some of the other humans who work with my humans Steve and Ann. This one’s about Richard Lalchan, who built the new look Alisar website. Good isn’t it? I particularly like all the photos of me and my big brown eyes.
Richard wants me to tell you about a new service he’s now offering to his clients.
He thought it would be useful for new businesses who have a tendency to set up their websites and develop their branding before they’ve got any ‘clarity’ of who they are and who they’re serving. Ann said that’s a bit like trying to programme your satnav when you don’t know where you’re going… which wouldn’t get you very far.
Vision before logo
Richard’s been designing and developing websites for over a decade (that’s a very long time in dog years) and he’s met many business owners who’ve spent a lot of time working on their logo, website or typefaces, but don’t have a clue about their ‘vision’.
That’s because it’s easy to spend time deliberating over colours, typefaces and styles. It’s tangible. You can get your paws – oops, I mean hands – dirty. It’s much harder, however, to find and articulate your ‘Why’. ‘Why is it you do what you do?’, ‘What is it that drives you to provide the service or products you do?’
That’s where Clarity for Creatives comes in. It’s a product of Creatives Hub, developed by Richard and Zoë Chan (who’s a graphic designer) to help creative businesses and freelancers have clarity on their:
- Vision
- Values
- Personality and
- Target audience.
These four key areas are often overlooked in the mad rush to create a logo, build a website and develop marketing material.
Having clarity (ohhh… now I get it!) on these areas helps businesses move forward with confidence, to turn the idea into reality. Bit like dreaming of a nice juicy bone and then actually getting to chew on one.
So what exactly is Clarity for Creatives?
Clarity currently comes in two ‘flavours’ (but not squirrel flavour yet…)
Clarity Connect – group workshops for a maximum of 6 people to ensure there’s enough focused time for each participant. It’s a great opportunity to
- bounce ideas off other participants
- hear other people’s’ vision, values, personality and target audience
- use their ideas to solidify your own.
These sessions involve a lot of deep thinking (like the blue sky thinking I do in my basket, although I think you have to keep your eyes open) but as you’re talking about your business, it’s worth the effort to get the results. It’s also a lot of fun!
As well as rather natty values cards, the Clarity team use animal and colour cards to help inspire thinking around your brand personality and develop your communication style.
Creative Catalyst – is a face-to-face session for you or up two members of your company. It’s perfect for anyone who’d prefer more in-depth, targeted guidance in a private atmosphere with one of the Clarity team. It also includes two, 30-minute phone or Skype follow-up sessions to keep you on track.
At the end of either Clarity session you’ll be in a much stronger position to commission design of your logo, website, and other marketing collateral.
The entire process helps you to save money, time and the frustration of endless design changes, because now you can fully brief your designer on what you’re after. (I’m very clear on what I’m after – squirrels, rabbits and next door’s cat, but not necessarily in that order).
Clarity, breeds confidence!
So what did you think of the first Maizi’s Mates woofpost? If you liked it, please share with your social media followers or leave a comment.
Look out for the next Maizi’s Mates woofpost about Ian, who sometimes helps me write my woofposts, about how he’s been promoting music for his band, Khartomb. In this age of Spotify and Apple Music, it’s not easy.
In the meantime, don’t forget to Be More Maizi!
Find out more
To find out more about Clarity, or to get some for yourself have a look at the website.