Smartfish Marketing
Katherine McGraw Patterson
Houston and Katy, Texas
303.638.8625
kpatterson@smartfishmarketing.com
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Branding & Business Identity |
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Smart Fish Marketing's goal is to provide a number of affordable alternatives - from developing branding and strategic marketing plans, through establishing marketing standards and procedures that can be employed by in-house resources, to providing a reliable, economical alternative to full-time marketing support. When combined with our unique business approach in which we become a partner in your success and a de facto extension of your own team, this offers benefits that larger consulting companies cannot match.
Because we are a key participant in the development of your marketing plan, we are able to fully integrate the concepts and goals of your branding development into all aspects of our creative services. Not only does this simplify the process for the business owner, but it eliminates the additional expense of a third-party designer. With expertise in graphic design, copywriting and project management, we offer a one-of-a-kind option to small businesses without full-time marketing personnel. This combination of skills offers Clients an exceptional value by consolidating the various disciplines into one service provider.
In November 2009, CNN Money named Houston one of the top 10 best metro areas for small business start ups. In fact, more than 28,000 entrepreneurs a year choose Houston as the place to begin their ventures. Yet many agencies and consultants don't want to do business with start-ups. Whether it's a financial decision, or whether they feel that start-ups require too much time, the fact is that entrepreneurs need help in order to succeed.
Smart Fish knows this and has created a "New Business Package" to demonstrate our commitment to helping new businesses thrive. This package includes activities and services that, when employed early in the launching process, can help establish a framework for future marketing activities. You won't have to worry that - a year into your business - you have a web site, brochure and logo that have no relation to each other. Early planning and definition of your brand will save you time and money over the long haul, and will make you stand out from your competitors from the very beginning. It's those businesses that differentiate themselves in positive ways that draw customers and create revenue.
Our New Business Package includes:
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Brand definition
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Logo design
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Corporate identity package
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Marketing Plan
One of our clients had this to say about our early involvement in their development:
"The branding exercise was great. It really made us look at our business plan in a whole new light. In fact, it changed the types of space we were looking at, because once we were able to define where we wanted to go with our business, we realized the spaces we were looking at weren't going to suit our five- and ten-year goals. Without the branding exercise, we wouldn't have known that." Cierra Imig, Mayu Sanctuary
Let Smart Fish help you down the road to success with our New Business Package.
At Smart Fish, we believe that a great marketing plan is built from the ground up. The basis of our service offering is Strategic Planning. During this process, we will engage you and your stakeholders (if applicable) in one-on-one discussions about your business, your goals and your current marketing and promotional activities. From this meeting, we are able to develop a personalized marketing plan of the services that will help you achieve your specific objectives.
During the Planning process, we will:
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Review existing marketing materials and systems.
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Conduct planning sessions with key marketing personnel to determine real needs and in-house capabilities.
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Provide strategic direction on the development of marketing materials and activities that will support and enhance the your business goals and objectives.
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Develop a detailed marketing plan with specific activities designed to accomplish your goals and objectives.
Smart Fish Marketing offers a complete package when it comes to small business branding and identity. Our menu of services includes:
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Assisting you in identifying and characterizing your brand.
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Planning and strategic development of your marketing.
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Creative services designed to bring your brand to life.
- Methods and activities to communicate your brand to your target market.
In today's market, there are hundreds of companies competing for business in niche markets. In order to win business over your competitors, you need to demonstrate to your target market that your product or service is a better value. How do you achieve this? Through branding.
Branding communicates the positive aspects of your business or service to your customer. It is the "face" that your company shows the world and sums up your firm's personality, vision, mission and product offering. Proper branding can help you build a strong relationship with your target market and help your business succeed.
In addition, building a strong brand can cut down on your overall marketing expenditure. A positive brand image in the market can build more business than traditional marketing channels. Once your brand is established and recognized by your target market, it essentially does the selling for you.
Let Smart Fish help you define and develop your brand and business identity to set your business apart. Grow your brand - and command your pond.
- Client presentations
- Mailings
- Digital and print newsletters
- Brochures and marketing collateral
- Magazines and publications
Smart Fish Marketing offers a portfolio of marketing collateral of all kinds - newsletters, brochures, direct mail pieces, etc. We combine the marketing know-how, graphic design skills and copywriting abilities to create professional, attractive marketing collateral at a price your can afford.
The materials we use to promote our companies are like its professional attire – and they make an impression on our Clients and potential Clients. We want that impression to be a good one in order to win business.
Many small business owners see the investment in a professionally designed logo, stationery, brochure and web page as prohibitive. But first impressions can make or break you in the business world, so it's wise to take stock of your company’s “professional attire” and see if it creates the kind of impact you want to make. In the long run, well-designed and professionally produced materials will pay for themselves through the new business they help generate.
Create an appearance that shines a positive light on your company. Take care that your business identity causes people to respond to you positively and, in turn, give your business the consideration it deserves.
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Newspaper
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Yellow Pages
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Banners
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Web banner advertising
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Fliers
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Posters
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New media
- Direct mail
Smart Fish not only offers our clients expert graphic design and copywriting services, but we help you navigate the production and placement of advertising in print, publications and on the web. We know that you're great at your business, and we're great at ours. When you retain Smart Fish, you get unbeatable customer service. We manage every aspect of your advertising activities - from planning, to design, through to dealing with the advertising personnel at the other end. Your job is to approve the artwork and budget - we handle the rest. With Smart Fish, you can rest assured that your goals and objectives are being met. It's this sense of ownership in our Clients' success that has resulted in multiple repeat commissions over the years.
- Concept development
- Copywriting and editing
- Design and layout
- Photo retouching and color correction
- Presentations
- Print management
- Stock imagery research and sourcing
For over 15 years, Smart Fish has provided expert graphic design and copywriting services to Clients. We develop creative ways in which to present your message to your target audience. When combined with our strategic planning and branding services, we are able to manage your image in a comprehensive manner - because we're involved with your message from its creation, we're able to offer value-added service as you begin to develop your marketing materials and graphic representations of your image.
The types of projects we have completed include:
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Catalogs
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Brochures
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Corporate identity packages
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Presentation folders and handouts
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Direct mail pieces
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Print advertising
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Booth graphics and tradeshow materials
- Corporate apparel
- Promotional items and corporate gifts
The Japanese have a proverb that says "One written word is worth a thousand pieces of gold". What could be more appropriate when talking about the words you use to describe your business? Powerful and persuasive language is what connects you to your customers and persuades them to buy from you. If one word is worth a thousand pieces of gold, imagine what an eloquently written brochure could gain you!
Just like there are different types of business, there are different types of business writing. At Smart Fish, our experience encompasses a wide variety of writing styles for a wide variety of purposes. We offer 15 years' experience of writing for:
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Non-profits
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Technical and professional services firms
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B2B companies
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Retail
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Public relations
Because we are a key participant in the development of your marketing plan, we are able to fully integrate the concepts and goals of your brand into our written materials. Not only does this simplify the process for you, the business owner, but it eliminates the additional expense of a third-party copywriter.
We provide copywriting services for:
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Web sites
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Newsletters
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Direct mail
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Brochures and catalogs
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Print advertising
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Manuals and user guides
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Press releases
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Case studies and white papers
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Standards and procedures manuals
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Project management
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In-house education
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Meeting facilitation
We understand small businesses and small business owners. Our Clients are CEO-level executives without the support team to carry the additional loads of management and sales.
To that end, we've developed complimentary services to support you and your marketing initiatives. It's our goal not only to be flexible and affordable, but also to make the process as convenient for the small business owner as possible. We will facilitate meetings throughout the entire development process to ensure that goals are met in a timely manner. After assisting you in the development of your new initiatives, we will help you educate the rest of your staff on its purpose and goals and how to implement the new brand and supporting materials.
Most importantly, perhaps, we will manage all outside consultants during the development process. While you are included in all key decisions, we handle the day-to-day interactions with other service providers, leaving you to focus on your core business. Our project management is one of the key factors in our continued success.
Training
We will train and advise in-house personnel and provide ongoing support to those charged with implementing the systems and procedures developed through our work with the Client. This may range from tutorials for new computer software packages to an in-depth review of newly developed visual and written standards.
Meeting Facilitation
Planning sessions during which marketing goals and objectives are being developed are often attended by diverse groups of professionals from within (and outside) a Clients' organization. Our services as Marketing Consultant includes facilitating these meetings so that agenda items are accomplished in a timely manner, while allowing productive input from all attendees.
Project Management
Often, specialists in web design, photography or printing will be retained in order to complete the creative process. In such cases, we will provide project management services by providing liaison and oversight of these parties. This allows the Client to focus on their core business while ensuring that milestones and projects are completed within the allotted timeframes and budgets.
