In Episode30 of the Wandering But Not Lost Podcast, co-hosts Matt Emerson and Jan O’Brien continue the discussion on your Brand.  In the WBNL 52 tip they discuss how you can effectively build your visual brand, in Reach Your Peak they finish it off by hitting 3 keys to managing your brand and in today’s Wandering Zen, Matt visits Oregon’s Crater Lake.

Key Points/Takeaways

WBNL 52 Tip –  Building Your Visual Brand

Develop the visual look and feel of your name, logo, and tagline if you choose to use one.

• Your name is the key that unlocks your brand image in your consumer’s mind.
• Your logo is the brand mark or symbol that serves as the face of your brand.
• Your tagline is the memorable phrase that provides consumers with a quick indication of your product, brand, and market position.

Develop Your Brand Guide

• Logo Design
• Color Palette
• Templates
• Fonts / Typography
• Great photos, images, visuals

Hire a graphics designer

• Check out their portfolio
• Get references – read the reviews
• Do they work online and with social media?
• Will they create templates you can use in Photoshop or Canva for you?
• Understand their creative process
  • They should have a creative brief or interview process
  • How many revisions do you get?

Your brand/logo kit should include:

• Your Logo
  • Color variations
  • Black & White
• Color palette with (RGB, HEX codes)
• Font(s)
• Package with all file formats
• .eps/ .ai
• .jpeg
• .png

Outsource or Do-It-Yourself Marketing Kit

• Branded marketing flyer templates
• Letterhead
• Business cards
• Website Banner
• Standard advertisement sizes
• Facebook page cover image
• Twitter background
• LinkedIn background
• YouTube background
• Facebook Ads

DIY:  Try Canva.com

Marketing/Graphics Services and Freelancers to assist you in creating your marketing kit:

• http://99designs.com/
• https://logotournament.com/
• https://www.fiverr.com/
• http://www.logodesignguru.com/
• https://www.upwork.com/
• http://www.hobbsherder.com/(Real estate specific)

Reach Your Peak – 3 Keys to Managing Your Brand

Be Clear

A well-managed brand creates a strong emotional appeal and fosters loyalty with your customers and clients.

Know who your target audience is, and where you can connect with them (online and offline), so that you can strategically position yourself and your offering.

Adjust your messaging if your target audience changes. 

Be consistent

“If you are not consistent, you are non-existent.”

Consistently use the same personal brand messaging across all communications channels (online and offline).

If your brand messaging varies from one real-life setting to the next, or from one social network to the next, or from one website to the next, you will confuse your prospective customers.

Be Constant

Strong brands are always visible to their target audience.

Stay top of mind with your clients and perspective new clients through social media, real-life networking, and other traditional marketing efforts.

Social media platforms (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Blogging, Instagram, YouTube, etc.) allow you to constantly update your network and target audience in real-time, with brand-reinforcing messages and content that amplifies your visibility and credibility.

Online Reputation and Brand Management

Use a consistent User / profile name

• Real Estate Listing Sites
• Websites and Blogs
• Social Media sites

Set-up Google Alerts

For variations of your name, company name (https://www.google.com/alerts)

Register YourName.com (or some variation) on GoDaddy or Your Preferred Domain Registration Service

Wandering Zen  – The Crater Lake 5

Crater Lake National Park was established in 1902 as America’s fifth National Park.  The Park sits in the Oregon Cascades about 110 miles from the California border and 100 miles east of the Pacific Ocean.  The Park is open all year but the annual snowfall is over 44 feet (or 533 inches –  WOW) putting many of the Park’s roads, boats, and trails out of commission from October through June.

Crater Lake and Wizard Island

Formed after a massive eruption 7,700 years ago, the caldera that forms the lake was created.  The lake is 1943 feet deep – the deepest in the US and the ninth deepest in the world. A unique feature of the lake is that is formed by snowmelt and rainfall – there are no inlets or outlets for water flow to or from the caldera. That is one of the reasons that the lake is so clear and pure. There are no organic materials or sediment brought in. in 1994 an experiment was conducted that showed clarity of an object 134 feet below the water’s surface.  No wonder it is some of the purest water on the planet.

So let’s jump into it.  Here are the WBNL – 5 Ways to Enhance your Crater Lake Experience

Rim Drive – The 33 mile Rim Drive circumnavigates the caldera and provides stunning vistas from points all around the lake.  The mission of the engineers was to create a road that would naturally blend into the landscape and not ruin the beauty of the area.   They succeeded in that effort with the careful placement of the roadbed and rock work to conceal the road as well as provide protection from drop-offs.  The drive was listed as a historic district on the National Registry of Historic Places in 2008.  Due to the heavy annual snowfall, the road typically closes October through June.

Crater Lake Lodge

Crater Lake Lodge –  The lodge opened in 1915 and offers incredible views of the lake along with beautiful sunrises and spectacular starry nights.  The public spaces are warm and inviting with fireplaces to curl up with a good book and areas to play a board game or two.  Their dining room is rustic and modest but the food is very good and will be a nice addition to your experience.  When booking your room please note that all have bathtubs but not all have showers.  Request a lake view room to really enhance your stay.  Due to the severe weather conditions the cost for upkeep of the lodge was a problem from the start and in the 1970’s & 80’s there was a plan circulating to demolish the building. Public outcry kept the lodge open until it was forced to close it’s doors in 1989 because it was deemed unsafe to open. The National Park Service began a complete restoration of the Lodge in 1991 and in May of 1995 it reopened to the public with a price tag of $15 million.  The Crater Lake Lodge is a great member of the National Park Lodges and shouldn’t be missed.

View from Atop Wizard Island

Wizard Island – Climbing 750 feet above the surface of the lake is Wizard Island.  It is a volcanic cinder cone that erupted after the caldera began to fill with water – sort of a caldera within a caldera!  This rocky island is a must do if your timing allows and weather permits.  Getting to the island is an adventure in itself.  You’ll start your trek by making your way over to Cleetwood Cove located on the northern side of the Rim Drive, and the only access point to the water.  In order to get to the boat dock there is a 1.1 mile hike down to the dock – there is a 700 foot elevation drop and can be considered moderate to strenuous to some, depending upon your physical condition.  Take it slow and you should be good.  Remember, as with all pathways like this, you’ll have to climb out at the end of your adventure so plan accordingly.  There are several boat excursions available on the lake but only one that will take you to the island.   You’ll need reservations so make sure you book them ahead of time.  The boat trip is half the fun as it is truly incredible to be on this clear deep blue water.  Once on the island take the .9 mile hike up to the top of Wizard Island.  Great views all around and an entirely different perspective of the caldera from within.  This is a photographers dream location and your head will be spinning on what to snap that next pic of!

Old Man of the Lake

The Old Man of the Lake –  Floating upright for the past 100 years has been a large piece of mountain hemlock.  It can catch you off guard if you aren’t familiar with it and it is a fun activity while you visit the park.  We were fortunate during our visit because the Old Man wasn’t too far off the island and we got a good look at the old guy.  Another impressive sight in the lake is a small island called the Phantom Ship which you get the best view of from the water (but it can be seen from the rim as well). This island looks desolate from above but there are actually seven different trees that grow on this tiny outcropping along with colonies of violet green swallows.  There is often more than meets the eye everywhere – you just need to look!

Hiking the Park –  With over 90 miles of hiking trails there is plenty of other ways to get up and get out at Crater Lake. They range from short easy hikes to strenuous day hikes. The moderate Watchman Peak trail was on our list which was to offer panoramic views but we were thwarted by snow (the snowfall was particularly heavy that year and most of the trails were snowed in until mid to late July!  This hike is one of the park guest’s favorites because it offers up yet another perspective of the lake from a higher vista point.  We are looking forward to our next trip to Crater Lake when the weather is a bit more on our side so that we can tackle many of these hikes that have been calling us.

Crater Lake National Park is spectacular and should definitely be on your National Park Bucket list.  Get Up and Get Out to #FindYourPark!

 Mentioned in the Episode (Resources & Links)

• Check out Episode 29 for the other tips and strategies on Branding & Business Purpose
• Namechk is a great tool to check username and domain availability
• Fonts.com to purchase fonts
• Google Alerts  set up alerts for your name and/or brand
• Learn more about our Real Estate Team Builder Program( Agent Team Building in a Box)
• Join the Wanderers Club for real estate business systems, social media training and more (only $197/year)
• Get travel tips & insights at Wandering But Not Lost

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