The internet is bursting at the seams with graphic designers who have started their careers from a whole heap of different backgrounds – tertiary education, self-taught, big corporates, and advertising agencies.

As the client, you need to find someone who ‘gets’ you and your business. Industry design experience is where we learn our trade and skills, so it is definitely worth knowing a bit more about the background of your designer.

Here at Two10, we have a mix of corporate and agency backgrounds. It is part of the reason we teamed up in the first place, so we could offer our clients the benefit of our complementary backgrounds.

So, what is  the difference between corporate and agency design, and why should it matter to you?

Your logo is the hub around which you build your brand, and as such really is one of the most important pieces in your marketing kit.

Your awesome business needs an awesome logo.

What is it that makes a logo awesome? We know the answer to that question - it’s our job!

If you would like to find out, just follow along…

Just a quick one today to share a mini-project we completed using a logo we created for a client.

It's a short demo video to give you an idea of some cool stuff that can be done with your logo and brand. 

It's a great piece of visual marketing that can be used on different social media networks, to hook people to come back to visit your website.

Pretty awesome, right?

Take a look at some more branding ideas we came up with for the same client. Who knows, you might find some fun inspiration for your own business and brand. 

I love the internet, I find it a totally fascinating place, and I’ve been working online for many years now. As a result, I’ve got all sorts of projects scattered across the web - under different accounts, linked to different email addresses, using different blogging platforms. It’s a bit of a mess, if I’m honest.

(For the record, it’s nothing sordid. I am also a freelance photographer).

For better or worse, it's becoming increasingly clear that if you want to be taken seriously online, you need to start owning your internet identity. And so, I’m on a quest to streamline my various presences.

I started simple, and worked out how to juggle multiple Google accounts. Sometimes the simplest things can cause the biggest headaches! 

My next step has been working out how to unscramble my Google Analytics. I’ve set up Analytics for this website, for my photography website, and project-based photography blogs. In bursts of well-meaning but poorly-researched enthusiasm, I had gotten the whole shebang in quite a mess.

It was a mini-nightmare to unravel, but I did work it out, and during the process I realised that the shifting nature of the Google goalposts has serious implications for many businesses.

Hands up who has been struggling to stay on top of all the new (and old) Google-based features and applications?

Google +, Google Places, Google Analytics, Google Adwords. Each has it's own necessary place in online marketing for your business, and ideally you want them all to work in harmony with each other.

But what if you have a "scattergun" relationship history with Google? Over the years they've been tweaking their services, and alongside them you've probably been signing up to different offerings, creating multiple accounts linked to various email addresses that you may or may not remember setting up in the first place.

Sound familiar?

Well, that's definitely a brief synopsis of my torrid history with Google, and when I recently tried to pull it all together for my business I was faced with a perplexing tangle of accounts that seemed impossible to streamline. 

Making the decision to set up small business, or even to become a sole trader, is a huge step in your life. Most small business owners will have had to generate funds by borrowing from friends and family, saving extensively for a while, or by taking out a start-up loan. So you’ll want to make sure your venture is successful and generates a nice profit so that you can clear your debts and move things onward and upwards. 

Here are my top tips to help you market your small business to potential customers:

This is a guest post from SEO experts, Tasty Placement.

Are you looking for expert help with your logo and branding?
We have the experience and expertise to make your business stand out from your competitors.

A website is a tool, and as with any tool there is no definitive 'perfect' option for everyone. When choosing how to build your website, it can be hard to work out which route to take. 

A Weebly website won't be for everyone and certainly not for every business, but as an affordable alternative to bespoke web development, it may be an option worth considering.

Want more information? Here are some pros and cons for using the Weebly builder for your template project.

Deciding to take the plunge to start working for yourself is a big step. It's a decision both exhilarating and terrifying, and you're going to be on that emotional roller coaster all along the journey.

I know that when I started down this path, I could hardly contain my excitement. The ideas were bubbling over, I was frantically scribbling down lists and notes, creating half-baked flowcharts to stick and admire on the walls.

Once the initial excitement calmed down a little bit, I quickly realised that enthusiasm alone wasn't going to keep me going in the long-term. Excitement is exhausting, and while great for brainstorming and getting lots of ideas flowing - for me at least - it works against me when I need to get things actually done.

My business much prefers me when I'm being calm, steady and disciplined. And while these personality traits aren't necessarily the ones that come most naturally (or sound the most glamorous), I am working very hard on nurturing them and letting them guide my daily schedule. 

So why do we put ourselves through this? What are some reasons for starting your own small business?