SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is that mystical acronym that everyone wants for their business but are often discouraged because of the cost to engage an SEO expert and also how hard it is to measure the success rate, especially if your competitors are also rolling out a SEO campaign. Below are some initial steps you can take yourself (and with assistance from your web designer) to get found on Google without engaging a SEO expert.

Hi guys,

Last week I had two emails from 'potential clients'. One wanting quotes on a website and the other wanting quotes on 30 large banners to be delivered to ... Haiti. Both jobs equated to approx $15,000.

If you are contacted by anyone that is asking if you take credit cards and are wanting to involve a third party like a project consultant or freight company please do not respond or take the process any further.

Here is a link with more info about the scame - https://blog.waveapps.com/important-alert-payments-scam-targeting-web-designers-and-other-small-business-owners/

Below is an email from the website guy who claimed to be working on an Australian Navy ship:

'Good Morning, How are you doing and how are things going on with you today, Thanks for getting back to me whichI have also made necessary arrangements with my project consultant and he said he will forward the content to you on Tuesday but I'm having some issues which I will need you help me with. I am finding it difficult to pay the project consultant as he doesn't have credit card facilities for payment and due to my absent and my online banking issue, It wont be convenient for me to pay via other method that is why i want you to assist me. I have intended paying you an upfront payment of $1000 which I will need you add $3900 to it,so that you can have all the sum of $4,900 charged on my credit card and you will have the $3,900 transferred to the project consultant so once he receive the $3,900.00 he would send you an email for the content on Tuesday so you can go ahead with your work, You will be charging my card for remaining balance upon completion of work.I will await now your positive response about this and I hope you well understand me by putting my condition into consideration. I am sorry if however it cause you inconvenience and if there would be extra charges for the transaction, kindly let me know so I can forward my card details immediately.'

I have already wasted precious time dealing with these parasites so please do not respond.

Jess x

Have you seen this meme floating around before?

This is a picture of my nifty husband that was taken in my backyard on January 26th 2015. It has been shared and liked tens of thousands of times and the question we need to ask ourselves is, why?

I have so many clients ask me how to improve their social media presence. So I have used this meme as a social media experiment to see how people tick and hopefully it answers a few questions!

So why did this work? What made this picture cause such a stir. Here is my take on it:

The timing was on point: This to me was the most imperative recipe in my concotion. It was released on Australia Day. A 'straya' meme on Australia day... come on, that's just too perfect! Aussies everywhere are feeling patriotic and seeing something like this on Australia Day would most likely instigate them to try it with their mates. Most Aussies love a beer on Australia Day, sorry to say but it's our culture! ;-)

It was relevant: The selfie stick revolution was at its peak at this point, everyone loved them or hated them, but they were talking about them all the same. So you could say that #selfiestick was trending!

Easily identifiable stereotype: This pic wasn't staged, I didn't tell Matt to go put on a wife beater and make sure you don't have a shave and a haircut! The way it happened was quite organic and people can often sense that. If they feel like something isn't authentic they don't resonate with it. Matt is your stereotypical Aussie bloke, a lot of people itentify with that. If I were to do this same thing I doubt it would have had the same impact on social media.

It sparked emotion: Seeing this pic just makes you laugh, it is truly the epitome of an Aussie Larikan. It makes you think 'I have to try that' 'I have to do this with mates' 'I am so doing this today for Ozzie Day' etc etc.

I am interested to know what is your take on it? Contact me at jess@thepinktank.com.au and let's chat!

The original image below...

Blog coming soon! Watch this space!

Future Fit in Ocean Keys are a client of mine and funnily enough I am also a client of theirs! I do group PT sessions twice a week there and absolutely love it! When my trainer and client Carrie (Director of Future Fit) asked me to join in on a photoshoot with Brian Ward Photography I couldn't refuse, what a unique opportunity to help promote such a great business, and in a way, give back to the gym for all the positives I have taken from there over the past year. I'm usually quite awkward in front of the camera, so there was some apprehension going into it, but on the day, it was just a group of awesome people laughing, and working out with the occasional snap of the camera in the background. Another amazing day to add to my list of life experiences, BUT I'm not giving up my day job, there were some shockers amongst the images. (try looking photogenic when boxing, not that easy! :-S ) Check out the gallery below for some of the shots used on their website. www.futurefitstudios.com.au

Also check out my testimonial on their website!

http://www.futurefitstudios.com.au/#!testimonials/kjoib

Want to get the design you want and lower your design costs? Then make sure you give your designer a detailed brief. Whether you’re working with a Graphic Designer on a new website, catalogue, logo or promotional flyers, it’s important to give them clear instructions of what you are looking for. If you’re not sure exactly what you want, don't panic, that's ok too. Start by sharing any general thoughts and ideas you may have and TPT can work with you to develop it into a brief. It also helps sharing designs that you have seen before that you have liked so TPT can get an idea of your taste and style.

Jump on Google, Pinterest or look in magazines, the more information you can provide, the better the end result will be!

The more time a designer spends offering options that aren’t what you envisaged is more money out of your business, so come prepared and you are sure to get something back that is what you imagined and in a quicker timeframe, which means.. less $!

Your brand image/identity is a reflection of your business but it also reflects on your designer too, so it is in our interests to make sure we put out the best design possible so we can all feel proud of what we have achieved working together. After all we are all happier when surrounded by beautiful things to look at! Unlike this picture below of me being eaten by my laptop! ;-)

*The Pink Tank formerly known as Jeska Design

I often get asked, ‘Jess, why all the pink?’. After all, I’m not a really girly girl, I only have one item of pink clothing in my wardrobe! (this is it in the picture!) Wrapping my brand in a bright pink blanket was never a spontaneous decision, a lot of thought went into it. I knew that as a designer, choosing colour for a new business was not something to be taken lightly, once chosen it should stay for good as a part of all marketing material and become sort of a ‘staple’ of that brand so to speak. I also needed to consider the colour’s relevance to my business and my target market. Being a small boutique business I can usually get away with being a little more outrageous in my design choices, there is always that little bit more room for me to push the boundaries.. within reason of course! With that bit of freedom in mind I became hungry to try something different, I wanted to be courageous in my colour choice... pink was the neglected logo colour... yes that was it...pink, it had to be pink! I was determined to make people think about pink differently, after being railroaded as a ‘girly’ colour for decades it was time for pink to make a stand! It screams creativity, emotion and individuality, that was all the convincing I needed, so I started to implement my idea.

I was very meticulous on what shade of pink I chose, studies show that colours can draw on different emotions when you see them. For example baby pink will automatically make you think of a baby girl and give you a warm fuzzy feeling, well it’s supposed to anyway! So baby pink was definitely a big no no. I wanted the Jeska pink to go ‘HELLO! LOOK AT ME, I bet you can’t look away!’, it needed to be clean, crisp, with a modern edge. After experimenting with different CMYK values, I found that 100% magenta with 20% yellow made for pink perfection. There was still one thing on the back of mind, I thought it was a good idea but how will my clients and potential customers perceive it? Before making any final decision with my brand, I do ask the opinions of my colleagues and peers, so off I went and did just that. I couldn’t help but notice my choice of pink sparked a lot of debate, people either really liked it or couldn’t stand it, BUT they were talking about it. I soon came to realise that pink was controversial. Pink, when used properly, can never really fall into the black hole of mediocrity because it’s too busy being loved or hated. That for me cemented my decision, pink it was, and it was here to stay. To say that pink is now a staple of all the Jeska branding is an understatement, it IS the Jeska branding, the logo could change but the pink will always stay the same. I received a sales call this week and I asked my usual question ‘how did you hear about Jeska?’, the woman said, ‘I saw your bright pink back window on the freeway, it stood out like no tomorrow so I sped up and got your details’. To me, this one single conversation confirmed it, I had made the right choice.

When you see this particular shade of pink, will you think of Jeska? Let me know, I would love to hear your thoughts!

*The Pink Tank formerly known as Jeska Design Jessica Griffiths Proprietor I Pink Promoter