My Marketings Learnings from Creating My Own Newsletter pt. 1/? - Starting w/ a Basic Logo
I've worked with many companies to build their audiences and create broader awareness, and one tool I've used is the old tried and true newsletter.
So, when I had my own idea for a newsletter, I naturally assumed I knew the ingredients that go into a successful recipe. And while I do know the ingredients, I am learning A LOT about important details that are taken for granted or assumed to be "quick and easy."
I'm still at the beginning of creating Sports Elevator Talk, but I thought I'd document my learnings along the way.
First, I'd like to just admit that I have never actually started FROM SCRATCH. I have always worked with companies that have ingredients in their cupboard. At the most basic level - a logo, corporate color palate. A layer up - a website. Every company I have worked for has already had a website, even if I was analyzing and improving. And at a more sophisticated level, every company I've worked for has had existing audiences, even the small start-ups.
So, where did I begin - with an idea and a completely blank canvas.
The idea - a very short, easy read on sports headlines for the person who just doesn't want to read the sports pages, but would like to keep up with general water cooler conversation. My idea is often compared to The Skimm daily news newsletter. Though, I wanted shorter, more focused and a slightly different tone.
1) Ground Level - Logo & Color Palate
So, here at the beginning no name, much less a logo.
I love words + I needed an available URL, so that wasn't an especially large hurdle.
Now, it's my belief that a logo doesn't make or break any company, product or service. But one needs a logo in order to identify the color palate, to put something on a website, to look professional. So, despite having a lower threshold on the actual logo design, I do know enough to have some basic parameters. I knew I needed something that worked both horizontally and vertically. Something that worked on a light background and dark background, and something that I could squeeze into an avatar for something like a newsfeed on a social media site.
I found a couple graphic designers, got their ideas, gave feedback and inched forward. But what I didn't anticipate in this part of the process is simply that even this takes several days. For me, it took roughly a week between finding available, affordable talent, back and forth and then a product (i.e., the logo itself). And even at this stage where I have a website, and the newsletter is going out and Twitter and Facebook, I'm still working with the designer to refine. So, it wasn't a job that was "quick and easy" and ended once a specific thing was delivered.
Learnings:
I need lots of different file types and sizes.
What works for Twitter doesn't work for Facebook, and neither of those work for the website or the right parameters for the newsletter.
Okay, so that's a lot just on ALL the implications of a logo and color, and it's only the tip of the iceberg.