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Are YOU Essential?

Posted on February 20, 2022 - 11:59 pm by
Radcliff “Rad” Spencer was a man of laughter and traditions.

The definition of essential is what’s absolutely necessary, extremely important.

The question: “Are you essential?” was posed to our community group Mindfulness for Mamas here in Jackson, Wyoming. The mama group shared so many different ways in which we’ve experienced the past 2.5 years during a global pandemic as mothers, as wives, as partners, and as career-oriented women. The pandemic has brought a lot of big questions to our lives about our significance and our importance. How do we decide to spend our time? How do we want to show up in our lives? Who do we want to spend on our time on? What do we decide to pour our time and energy into?

We are all essential to someone, right? The first thing that comes to mind is if you have lived, you have mattered to someone. Our community suffered a recent loss of Radcliff “Rad” Spencer, 27 years old to the mountains. The loss felt deep and wide in the community. Rad was our real estate agent that helped us with the purchase of our very first home in October 2021. He was the youngest partner at age 24 at Neville Asbell Spencer team at Compass Real Estate. He was way more than his occupation though, he was a son, a brother, a friend, a mountaineer, a skier, a lacrosse coach, a breakfast and coffee lover, and even a hot yoga guy! Rad lived up to his name, a person and a name you could never soon forget.

Is your business essential to the community?

It’s important to ask ourselves this question to have a moment of pause and reflection. How can we be better servants to our community? What kind of impact do we want to have on our community?

Peel back businesses, there are people behind them. No matter the size, no matter the industry. People reside.

We all need to have opportunities to think and reflect on how we live our own lives. When we lose someone that was an essential part of the community we have an opportunity to take stock. Despite how many years of experience I have in serving businesses and nonprofit organizations I can still learn something new. I tell my son when I send him off to preschool, I say “You go to school. Mommy goes to ‘life school.’” When you stop learning you stop living.

How will you be essentially rad in your own way?

Rest in Peace, Rad! This is not goodbye, but see you bassoon!

Content Overload

Posted on February 10, 2022 - 12:12 am by

If you have internet you must be feeling the same content overload that I feel.

Since the pandemic began in early 2020 I recalled seeing my inbox implode with emails almost immediately. Everyone, I mean everyone wanted to fuel connection. The trouble with too much too often is the overload conundrum. My inbox becomes a sea of emails I don’t have time to read, it becomes noise. And I am one of those folks that loves to keep my number of emails unread very low. I mean low, like 2 to 5. Work email especially. I flag them or star them to keep myself accountable to tasks that need my attention. But for the most part I skim through emails to make sure I don’t miss important deadlines, obligations, appointments or events. With “content overload” it sure makes it difficult to reach your audience.

What makes your email campaign content stand out without the content overload?

  1. Frequency: If your emails are being scheduled out with great succession that surely can make it difficult for your audience to: a. stay on top of what you already sent them AND b. care about what you sent them.
  2. Attention Grabbing: Have your subject line standout among the sea of emails. I’m a fan of emojis!
  3. Unique content: Share something NEW and exciting with your audience. Don’t tell them something they already know, this keeps them more engaged.
  4. Relevant content: Stay relevant to your audience. If they can’t relate to your content they will unsubscribe. Note: Unsubscribers are doing you a favor. Don’t waste unnecessary time on trying to capture their attention they’ve made their choice to step back and that’s okay, it’s not personal.
  5. Simplicity: Keep your emails short (dear God). Your audience will likely not read your lengthy email that has no photos or icons, or colors to break up the monotony of reading your boring email. Sorry to be so blunt but it’s true. We folk have a short attention span, let’s keep it short and sweet. Gifs (moving images/graphics) do help keep the eye interested. Be sure to use alternative text to reach your audience that use screen readers. The alternative text helps describe the images on your emails, website and now social media imagery too.

Providing Humanity in Marketing

  1. Elicit (positive) emotion, especially connection: If you just flip on the news, you are inundated with content that elicits fear, negativity and division. Phew, let’s not use that same influence here in their inbox. Help solve a problem, bring positivity to the inbox, share goodness and inspiration. The very last thing you want to do with your messaging is for it to become someone else’s white noise. If you can accomplish connection in your emails, that’s something special. Societally many of us have felt disconnected but if you can help even for a moment to inspire your audience feel connection you’ve accomplished something truly amazing.
  2. You are NOT for Everyone: Release the idea that you are for everyone. It is an impossible expectation to have when deploying your marketing strategy. Focus on your sweet spot bullseye audience and allow for your inbound audience to discover you.
  3. Allow for Discovery: Again, help solve a problem, educate your audience, and inspire them to make a decision about your business. What I have found is that individuals love “discovery” of new businesses and products. Allow for that discovery to happen by sharing your content piece meal through your social media posts, blog posts, and newsletters. That inbound audience will follow the breadcrumbs and make their decision on purchasing from you based on that important groundwork.

Honor where you are

I attended a ED (Executive Director) Roundtable event with Jackson Hole community yesterday and I felt inspired by the presenter. Paige Curry, ED of Astoria Park Conservancy is taking a step back from social media as she recognizes the “content overload” and quite frankly I respect that. She claimed as a mother she doesn’t have time for catching up with everyone right now and needs a personal break. She felt perhaps her audience felt the same. I thought to myself, “Amen, sister. Amen.” In fact, many of the takeaways from her leading of this ED Roundtable inspired this blog post. Thanks Paige!

On a personal note, staying up night after night glancing at my phone has just stopped working for me. It kept me stressed and “on” too much. When you work for yourself or when you work remotely you can easily get sucked into the never ending to-do list that looms. Put down the device and walk away. I am typing this last sentence and shutting my laptop because the next thing on my list can wait until tomorrow.

Good-bye, content overload.

Unique Ways to Engage with Non-Profit Donors

Posted on January 30, 2022 - 9:10 pm by

I love helping nonprofit organizations with their marketing strategy and implementation. I have 15 years experience working with nonprofits and here is a peek into why I am so keen on helping them. Find unique ways to engage with non-profit donors.

Why my Heart is into Helping Non-Profits

People Spread Love

Nonprofit organizations are unique manifestations of good ideas that serve communities. Here in the Teton County, WY/Teton County, ID area we have over 400 nonprofits serving this region. Organizations do so much to serve the community’s needs in ways that government agencies and for-profit companies can not. The important work that nonprofits provide sparks a lot of motivation in me to serve them.

Founder of People Spread Love

I founded a nonprofit, People Spread Love nearly 7 years now. The mission of People Spread Love (PSL) is to empower communities to write notes of love to those facing adversity.  This act of kindness expresses empathy and revives human connection across community lines. PSL had very humbling beginnings, very grassroot style with compassionate volunteers at the helm. This 501c3 nonprofit organization is now stepping into a new phase with funding our very first People Spread Love Starter Kit program. This is an exciting time for me and my Board of Directors and for the community that has loved and supported us for many years now. As part of the Starter Kit program, I put together these clever and fun hand drawn postcards to be included in the kits and as a way to entice our donors to donate to PSL’s operational costs.

Hand Drawn Postcards for LOVE

Like many nonprofit organizations there is a need to engage with donors in unique ways. This angle is a creative one. As Galentine’s Day, Valentine’s Day and Random Acts of Kindness Week is right around the February corner, I thought it wise to release these designs in late January to get a jump start on getting these into the hands of our donors. I put the postcards up as an incentive when donating a certain amount to PSL. I’ve priced the postcards as a way that was less expensive than a greeting card you would already buy from a shop/grocery store (those suckers are nearly $5-8 a pop these days – yikes!). This example of an incentive is a practical one, away to reconnect or express love to someone you care about.

"You'll Ramen in my Heart" postcard
"You have a Pizza my heart" postcard
"You Make my Heart Hop a Beat" postcard
"Be Human Kind" postcard
"I love you!" postcard
Printed Products are NOT Dead & Gone

The dilemma these days is our world revolves around being online, Zooming in, and always being tethered somehow through social media. This separation from that world into the physical written word is a relief for many. This is one of many reasons that PSL is so effective and easily adopted into our volunteer’s routines. When you are marketing your nonprofit do not give up on printed products, they are still very much appreciated and effective ways to reach your audience.

Capture their attention through a unique approach like humor. Since PSL’s premise is inclusion, love, kindness and generosity, a few good puns is a complimentary vibe. The example below is a postcard mailer I helped GAP! send to donors. The postcard presented the problem and the solution, this captures the attention of the donor and gives them the call-to-action (CTA) clearly in the middle of the postcard, the QR code they can “Scan to Give.” QR codes are back and more are utilizing it in the USA.

Ways to Engage with Nonprofit Donors
Direct Mailer postcard from GAP (Girls Actively participating)
Direct mailer postcard from GAP!

Here are some other ways to engage with nonprofit donors;

  1. Monthly emails with Carefully Crafted Content with very direct call-to-actions (CTA) ie. Campaign and goal communicated directly tied to a project or program.
  2. Give them incentive to donate ie. Pun-ny postcards, stickers, etc.
  3. QR codes are “in” now and work effectively to expedite the donation process.
  4. Write and mail a “Thank You Note” – seriously that goes a very long way! Tell them what their gift went to better the community.
  5. Share your impact story – collect testimonials of people have been directly impacted by your organization. This measurable helps your donors see the impact you make on the community.

Interested in learning more about different ways to engage with non-profit donors? Let’s get coffee to chat about other ideas.

Content Creation Carefully Crafted

Posted on January 23, 2022 - 4:57 am by

What makes your business stand out among your competitors? A consistent content stream to share with your audience. It’s not just spewing out content, there is a formula for content that actually inspires and educates that will help influence behavioral change(s), build trust, and ultimately come to you for your expertise. Your messaging may shift and change as your audience does. If the past two years have demonstrated anything its change is the only constant. Let us help you with content creation.

Be consistent.

Much of what keeps your audience engaged and interested is consistency. We can’t always be ON all the time but we can try our best to share something rather than absolute crickets. You’ll find staying up on social media feeds is what we are talking about: photos, videos, reels, graphics to keep your followers engaged and looking out for your updates is important. Consistent flow keeps your business in their minds even if it’s in the back burner.

Be authentic.

The last thing you want to do is try to be someone you are not. When someone comes to you wanting to work with you and notices your external portrayal isn’t true to how it is to speak to you in conversation, you have a problem. You want folks to already get a sense of what they’re getting even before they pick up the phone to call you. Be you and you won’t have a problem. What entices folks to go into business with you is because there is a person behind the business. Remember people buy from people. Authenticity is arguably the most powerful component of content creation.

Educate.

Chances are that in your industry you are a pro which is why you started your own business. A saying I love and say often is: “always a student, always a teacher” – meaning that you have the opportunity to teach others just as you have an opportunity to learn from others. Share what you know, what you know ought not to be some kind of secret. Once you’ve taught something to your audience you have hooked them in to want more of the same.

Try something new.

To reiterate what I mentioned above is: change is constant.
If you have been trying just a few ways to reach your audience and you have not noticed no real results from those efforts any longer. Try something new. There are various resources (YouTube videos for one) that are free or webinars at a minimal cost to you in order to learn a new platform or system. Technology changes and in the past 15 years, so much change has occurred. I’m not necessarily all businesses need to be using Tik Tok for example. But try something on and see if it fits, you may find that new methods can work well for you and you may be surprised how fun it is to try something new.

Brain dump.

Have you ever tried a brain dump?
The idea is you grab a notebook or jump on your computer and jot/type subjects that you could write about that could be beneficial for your audience.

For example here is mine:

  1. Content creation
  2. Advantages of shopping local
  3. Mindfulness in business
  4. Humanizing your business
  5. Enneagram in business
  6. Importance of a website
  7. Have a digital audit lately?
  8. Social media, the right way
  9. Website platforms
  10. Community and business

Content should be:

  1. Focused – Be clear what topic you wanted to share.
  2. Digestible (2-3 min reads) – Approx. 350-450 words for blog posts.
  3. Clear Call-to-Action (CTA) – make it very clear what you’d like your audience to go next?
  4. A/B Testing – Testing your content is a great way to compare the effectiveness of your messaging.

In summary:
Be consistent with your content. Be authentic with your voice. Educate your audience. Try something new. Brain dump and so many content ideas will pop-up and spark more content for social media, your blog, your newsletters, and marketing materials.

Want to talk this out, fill out our “Let’s get coffee” form and we can talk it out!

Facets of Love Case Study

Posted on November 30, 2021 - 8:09 am by

Renee is an Army solider and a Reiki Master came to Transcend Ideas looking for assistance on her book cover design. “Facets of Love: A Guide for Every Lost Woman Desperate for a Life of Full Authentic Embodiment” is Renee’s book. Facets of Love is her gift to the world through her own life experience. Through her own personal story of ending a nineteen-year marriage she offers women extra tools in processing their own trauma. Facets of Love is a book that encompasses self-discovery. Love, loss, and transcending barriers to find the woman you are at your core.

This illustration of a silhouetted woman is an embodiment of Renee’s journey back to her own self-discovery. This journey is hers. We wanted to help amplify her journey by encouraging her to utilize this unique illustration she drew during her path to freedom.

Need Illustration?

Are you interested in hiring Transcend Ideas for illustration on your creative project? Heather at Transcend Ideas has 15+ years in the professional sphere helping clients bring their business stories to life. She utilizes the art of storytelling through minimal and impactful design. Whether it be branding, vibrant illustration, or direct and humanity-based marketing strategies – she finds the solution that work for your business. Let’s get coffee and chat about what you need!

Image and recommendation from Melissa Renee, client that wrote Facets of Love: A Guide for Every Lost Woman Desperate for a Life of Full Authentic Embodiment

The Advantages of Shopping Local

Posted on October 31, 2021 - 10:39 am by

It’s Halloween now, how did that happen? You probably already notice Christmas ads sneaking in. The capital frenzy of holiday shopping is an all too familiar behavior in American culture. You have probably noticed that camp stove you bought online was backed up for months and just came in. That is 100% because of the chain supply shortage. So many of us consumers have leaned on these online sales especially during the pandemic for things that have provided comfort and convenience during the most inconvenient time. Local shops do rely on the chain supply for material and inventory, too however those handmade items they are less dependent. Especially those local artisans. Convenience stores can’t replace the advantages of shopping local. The experience, personality, value, and soul of local shops are unmatched.

Here are the Advantages of Shopping Local:

1. Talk to a human being, not a hotline number speaking to an automation. Have a problem? Take it back to your local store.

2. Quality over quantity. More is not necessarily better here.

3. Word-of-mouth is golden, your friends and family are your most influential voices in your purchase choice.

4. Align with your values with where you shop. Spending your money locally helps funnel that money to charities that are doing good locally in your community. You have seen campaigns that kick 5-10% of sales to a local cause. Keep your eye out to those opportunities to give back when you purchase items this season.

5. You are supporting local people in your community.

We hope you have the chance to get out there for Small Business Saturday and enjoy the advantages of shopping local! Fill out our client questionnaire at this link if you’re interested in working with Transcend Ideas as a small business this year!

Brands Need to Make Women Feel Seen

Posted on September 11, 2021 - 9:13 am by

“Brands need to make women feel seen as they are, not as men want them to be. That’s the big shift that needs to happen. Brands need to stop telling women how to be, and start being in service to them.”

We just couldn’t stop saying “yes, yes, yes” to this New York Times article from Mara Altman on “Yes, Marketing Is Still Sexist.” We are fascinated by how brands have marketed to women for generations with out ever truly getting them. Being a mother it is even more apparent how brands are missing the mark on reaching us. A way that we say out loud, “you get me!” Cunningham and Roberts beautifully illustrate how brands haven’t truly considered the audience they so strongly want to reach.

Trends with Women in Marketing

Women in 2021 want to feel seen and heard. The economic impact the pandemic struck on women has been devastating. Opportunities have halted for women, especially mothers. The epidemic gave female workers the realization that work can look different for them. Opportunities with remote working being normalized are constant.

Women are working. They work from home, they go to school, they are raising their kids, they are without kids, they are coupled-up. Some women are single. Many female workers delegate the cleaning or the laundry. Whether they order in, cook, build community, have family nearby, or have a chosen family to lean into. Mothers are paying for daycare, nannies, and fur babies. They try to balance their self-care, they are constantly questioning themselves, they are confident, they are all different shapes, sizes, and shades, they “Google” when they don’t know something. The key point shows women are a fluid group that makes up 51.1% of the world’s population.

NYTimes: Yes, Marketing is Still Sexist

Between 1980 and 2010, women in commercials were shown in workplace settings only 4 percent of the time; frequently they were shown in kitchens, waxing poetic about the products they were selling. They were shown in kitchens so often that creatives referred to the trope in whispers as 2Cs in a K. “The K represented kitchen and you can guess what the Cs stood for,” they wrote.

Women Centered Marketing Solutions

It’s imperative that women get a seat at the table in creative decision making when it comes to marketing to women. After all, we are women and that’s the most relatable as it gets. Relating directly with the consumer you want to reach is most ideal in messaging and creative direction. From our perspective, we believe that with empathy marketing there can be lasting “business to consumer” relationships formed with great care and consideration. Here’s to more profound relatable brands that reach real women.

Women’s Equality Day

Posted on August 26, 2021 - 3:02 pm by

Today we celebrate Women’s Equality Day, this day is to commemorate the passing of the 19th Amendment in the United States that promised women the right to vote in 1920. This is a day to celebrate however not all women were free to vote nor were men. Millions of women and men were steered away from the polling places for decades. The fight over the amendment was not just about sex; it was also deeply entwined with race.

Women's Equality Day Image of National Baptist Convention banner being held up by 9 African-American women
Nine African-American women posed, standing, full length, with Nannie Burroughs holding banner reading, “Banner State Woman’s National Baptist Convention” Photo cred. Library of Congress

NPR: “Yes, Women Could Vote After The 19th Amendment — But Not All Women. Or Men” – Listen to Story (5 mins)

Even in 2021, voting rights are in jeopardy with new voting laws put in place in the more recent months. The fight for the right to vote is never over until ALL citizen’s voices are heard at the ballot box.

Transcend Ideas quote graphic "A Victory for some was not a victory for all, and fights continue today." - Marcia Chatelain, Professor of History and African-American Studies at Georgetown University.

Today is a day to celebrate but also an opportunity to look to the horizon at what true equality really looks like. There is so much work to do to create a more balanced and represented nation. Encouraging every society to celebrate Women’s Equality Day will form a more just and fair society.

Enneagram in Business

Posted on August 13, 2021 - 3:22 pm by

The Enneagram helps provide a framework for personalities that are quite useful in business. Small businesses and nonprofits around the world use the Enneagram as a breakthrough approach to leadership, team building, communication skills, and emotional intelligence. What’s your Enneagram?

Utilizing the Enneagram model in business trainings, onboarding, and seminars can help us quickly bridge the disconnect and misunderstandings when different personalities are working at the same table. Shining a light on the qualities that make each personality unique and how they thrive is a key tool to help unlock productivity and efficiency in workplaces. Communication barriers can shut down effective work. In contrast, finding ways to gently put barriers down help us appreciate what every worker has to offer. A win in our book!

Enneagram in Business graphic Two The Helper: Protector, Generous, Empathic, Encouraging, Driven to Connect the World Transcend Ideas

My (Heather’s) Enneagram is a TWO.

Accessing your own personality type is helpful to understanding yourself. Being familiar with: how you work, what motivates you, and what setbacks you may challenge you is self-awareness. Self-awareness is an excellent place to begin in any avenue in life. “Making meaningful human connection” is our mantra and if we can move through the world with more self-awareness we can show up more authentically and have more profound, and productive relationships. What are your thoughts on the Enneagram model? Let’s get coffee to discuss!

Empathic Marketing

Posted on July 23, 2021 - 3:25 pm by

The definition of empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. What does empathic marketing mean to you? How does it affect your decisions or emotions as a consumer?

Empathic Marketing Transcend Ideas graphic -identify your audience - align with what's important to them - listen and be curious about your audience - revisit to make sure you're still reaching them

The Role of Empathy in Marketing

Have you ever felt your heartstrings pulled during a commercial, felt nostalgic or hopeful when glancing through a magazine and an ad gave you pause? These are the moments we, as marketers, are hoping to generate for our end users. We want to create moments that allow individuals to transcend their circumstances and become whatever their heart desires. We want your business to soar in much the same way. There are some key strategy components that come with utilizing a marketing campaign that is empathic. Utilizing the power of empathy in marketing stirs up a drive in consumers and a call to action, whether that be through product, travel, or service promotion.

The marketing campaigns that speak the most to us encourage us to step up and be more or to discover more for our lives, and to realize the status quo need not remain indefinitely. To cause an emotional moment of reflection for any population requires coming to know who you are marketing to.

When communicating your message to your customers it’s important to practice curiosity and compassion with empathy. Your customers want to feel they are understood and that the products and services they utilize are in alignment with them. With that being said empathy is a vital component of your messaging. Interested in learning more about Transcend Ideas and our approach to marketing with every client? Let’s chat!

Empathic Marketing Transcend Ideas graphic Loyal audiences are seeking in businesses - Integrity - Honesty - Authenticity - Thoughtfulness Not perfection.