When you want to stand out from the herd, you can either highlight your brand with vivid color or you can glam it up with a dose of dazzling gold and shimmery silvers. This is what rug manufacturer Global Accents did at High Point Market. They took the standard hide rug and blinged it! No longer is it just designated for that rustic Western retreat or a part of that retro 1950’s interior, now it can go full on urban sophisticate and city elegant. Take a look here at the gold and white patchwork hide opportunity.

I’ve talked a lot about the social networks and social media and how valuable they are.  This article is about how to streamline your updating. I know many are overwhelmed by the amount of time they imagine (because in reality it doesn’t) it takes to keep up.  While I could spend 5 hours a day, I usually don’t spend more than 1-2 hours a day on my networks.  This isn’t idle gab time; it is connection opportunities, value content sharing, and marketing.  What I have learned are the shortcuts. Read on for the details to saving your time and maximizing your reach.

Have any website isn’t going to move your business forward.  There are 5 deadly mistakes too many designers make!  Take a read here and see if you are making any.

Do you know how to make money by throwing a party?  As a design professional you can add this as a regular part of your design services.  Often clients are afraid to entertain, they don’t know the many details required to create a really memorable bash.  You do, so offer to create a housewarming or room warming at the completion of the project.

Color is about more than interior design and fashion; it is used for marketing products from diapers to diet soda, from office supplies to electronics, from bargain buys to luxury investments, color sells. The key is to learn how to use color to your advantage as it is often a subliminal influence. Once you know the psychology and the cultural differences you can layer hues from light to dark, subtle to bold, to achieve the desired response.

When I share with colleagues and creative types that I am on the social networks, engaged in Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to name but a few, one of the first questions is “what on earth do you say?”  It isn’t that difficult.  When I first climbed on, I was overwhelmed and disinterested too, but I persisted and have found an incredible and limitless group of talented professionals of all age ranges, specialties, and generosities. It is about being positive.

When I speak of the social networks I am referring specifically to building your nest on Twitter, finding friends on Facebook, connecting on Linked In, getting contacts on Ecademy, and expanding your reach on Plaxo. Yes, there are more, this is more than enough to overwhelm anyone. The beauty is there are some neat tricks and shortcuts to making it manageable, marketable and ultimately profitable!

Marketing is the life blood of every small business, particularly those that are creative and service based!  It is vital to make marketing a real part of everyday business activities.  Here are five cost effective, time efficient, and proven successful ways to market your business daily.