Blinc Agency Blog

Toasted: Celebrating Female Entrepreneurs

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:26:00 -0800

We’re very excited to announce a new Blinc project… TOASTED: Celebrating Female Entrepreneurs.

Check out the Kickstarter campaign which explains it all: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nicholeciotti/toasted-celebrating-female-entrepreneurs

We’d really appreciate your support in helping to celebrate the awesome women. Please contribute and share!

There is also a Girls of Toasted website and Twitter account.

Cheers!

Every day is a new chance to shine.

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 09:26:35 -0800

Every day is a new chance to shine.

All great ideas started from a simple seed.

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 09:23:51 -0800

All great ideas started from a simple seed.

A love note to my can’t-live-without, Nichole.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 20:56:28 -0800

A love note to my can’t-live-without, Nichole.

New Redesign: nyc PR girls

Mon, 22 Oct 2012 11:40:00 -0700

We’re super stoked to unveil the new redesign of nyc PR girls. As friends of both Adrianna + Meg, I’ve really enjoyed watching their brand develop since they first launched about two years ago. nyc PR girls is your ultimate PR guide for breaking into the industry and advancing your career one pitch (and social sitch) at a time.

Brian sketched up a few landmark buildings in NYC along with a few standard ones to create the skyline for their new logo. We wanted to carry over the key elements of their existing brand so their readers could easily identify with the new look and feel. Essentially, we gave the girls a mini facelift sans all the scars and scary stuff.

We added a few other goodies too; including a suite of custom social icons, new functionality, and a fully responsive design. A fully responsive site really enhances the user’s experience no matter what device they’re using. As PR girls on-the-go, it’s no surprise that A + M juggle multiple accounts all from their phone. We wanted to give their readers a clean mobile version so they can get the PR scoop in between meetings, at lunch, or wherever their day may take them.

Stay tuned for more exciting updates!

-N

A little inspiration from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Happy Monday!

Mon, 15 Oct 2012 11:27:09 -0700

A little inspiration from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Happy Monday!

“Change your thoughts to change your world.”...

Sat, 29 Sep 2012 17:00:21 -0700

“Change your thoughts to change your world.” - Norman Vincent Peale

10 Signs You Need a New Website

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:59:55 -0700

Your website is a reflection of you and your brand. You can tell which companies get that just by looking at their site. Unfortunately, a lot of companies are hesitant to invest in hiring an agency to create a new web presence even if they have the financial means to do it. If you’re questioning whether or not you need a new website, you probably do. Here are the Top 10 signs it’s time to upgrade.

1. Your current site doesn’t have social media integration. Without the integration, you’re limiting your customer reach. Making your website shareable is just another way to engage fans, generate leads, and increase brand loyalty.

2. You’re using flash. Websites built with flash have very long load times. In the time it takes to load your site, your potential customer has already started looking for an answer elsewhere. Flash automatically decreases a company’s credibility.

3. You want to strengthen your brand. If your website is more than two years old, it’s time to update it in order to keep up with web design trends and functionality. If it’s more than three years old, it’s time for a complete overhaul. Always make sure to keep things fresh and innovative so customers have a reason to return.

4. Your top competitor just launched a new design. If companies A and B both do the same exact thing, but Company B has an updated website, the masses are going to gravitate toward Company B. Company B now looks more credible. Customers who trust a brand are more likely to buy products over and over again while recommending them to others.

5. You have little to no traffic. A new design will boost traffic and create fresh interactions with your target audience through the use of new tools and interesting functionality.

6. Your site has spelling and grammatical errors. How can you take a company seriously if they can’t distinguish between their, there, and they’re? Content is king.

7. Your messaging is stale. If your messages don’t stick, how will people remember you?

8. You can’t update your own content. If your brand is constantly evolving or you’re introducing new products to your line, you need to share them with your audience. Trying to go through your old web designer is time consuming and costly. Using a content management system like Wordpress is a great way to add pages or edit content when you want, wherever you want.

9. You’re not proud of your site. If you’re embarrassed to share your site with someone or make up excuses for why it looks the way that it does, it’s time for an overhaul. A brand won’t gain a following on LinkedIn or Twitter alone. A website is the starting point.

10. You can’t pull up your website on an iPhone. Responsive design is the art of ensuring your site looks good no matter what device a customer is using. In the age where smartphones never leave our hands, it’s important that customers can access your site on-the-go.

Who’s ready for a new website?

We found our heart in San Francisco. Love this city.

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 14:30:40 -0700

We found our heart in San Francisco. Love this city.

The Better You Write, The Higher You Go

Mon, 03 Sep 2012 09:23:31 -0700

So said advertising legend David Ogilvy. We couldn’t agree more. Good marketing is getting your message across to your audience in as few words as possible. Check out this post on Lists of Note for a quick run down of Ogilvy’s advice, based on an internal company memo.

Also check out The Elements of Style; a timeless short book highlighting the many common mistakes and best practices to improve your writing in no time.

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs...

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 08:52:00 -0700

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those timid spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat. -Theodore Roosevelt

Don’t chase the paper, chase the dream. - Diddy

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 19:08:00 -0700

Don’t chase the paper, chase the dream. - Diddy

Today is the first day beginning the rest of your life.

Sat, 11 Aug 2012 09:52:19 -0700

Today is the first day beginning the rest of your life.

The strength of your game depends on your hustle.

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 17:54:53 -0700

The strength of your game depends on your hustle.

If your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big...

Sat, 04 Aug 2012 22:37:29 -0700

If your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough. - Lowell Lundstrum

Imagine a world in which we were all Larry David.

Wed, 01 Aug 2012 21:52:00 -0700

Imagine a world in which we were all Larry David.

Never never never give up. - Winston Churchill

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:17:00 -0700

Never never never give up. - Winston Churchill

Don’t be pushed by your problems. Be lead by your dreams....

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 20:45:00 -0700

Don’t be pushed by your problems. Be lead by your dreams. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Pinterest Weekly Roundup!

Sun, 29 Jul 2012 18:19:00 -0700

Here are the top 5 pins that rocked my socks the week of July 22!

1. Pinner: Gracie George
What: Boxers never think they’ve grown up.
Source: Tail Wagging Time

This is sure to put a smile on your face no matter what kind of day you’re having. After all, dogs make the greatest friends.

2. Pinner: Rachael Baldwin
What: Cravings Buster
Source: Healthy Girl

Umm, maybe I should have pinned this before I made all those chocolate chip cookies yesterday?? Definitely going to stock up on these snacks my next trip to the grocery store. I always run out of snack ideas so this was perfect. What do you snack on?

3. PInner: Terri Lynn Ciotti
What: Trim Painting Tips
Source: The Family Handyman

This article has awesome tips for repainting chipped, flaking, or dirty moldings so they look like new. DIY projects always seems a little daunting, but this one seems doable.

4. Pinner: Rachael Baldwin
What: Nothing Makes a Person More Productive than the Last Minute
Source: Charlotte Cramer

Could this be any more true? I’ll have three weeks to do something and wait til the day prior to complete it. Big shout out to Starbucks for getting me through some nasty deadlines.

5. Pinner: Natalie Lichtwerch
What: Marc by Marc Jacobs
Source: Lyst

Because telling time and being on time is important.

You can check out other Pinterest goodies on our Blinc account, or my personal one. What’s hot on your Pinterest boards?

-N

“Tell that someone that you love just what you’re...

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 15:03:39 -0700

“Tell that someone that you love just what you’re thinking of, if tomorrow never comes.” - Garth Brooks