Posts by Cathy Davis

Thank you for your recent referrals! Because of you, we are able to help more small business owners grow their businesses!

A long-time client recently commented . . .

“People are amazed when we tell them we are self-published. The books you design for us look like they have been produced by a traditional publisher!”

We invest 100% of our time and energy to delivering first-class service to our clients. As a result, our valued clients, suppliers, and friends continue to refer their family, friends and business associates to us for advice when they are ready to Brand, Design and Publish.

Who else do you know who deserves the extra care and attention we provide our clients?

We aren’t looking for just anyone.

We are expanding our SPHERE of Influence to include more people like you — people and businesses who . . .

S = Serve their community through their business — be it city, state, around the country or throughout the world

P = Professional experts — passionate about what they offer and how they can help

H = Heart-centered and health-minded — be it mental-, physical-, financial- or social-health

E = Energized and excited about bringing a better way of “being” or “doing” to the world

R = Respectful of diversity and welcoming of all positive paths, be it race, religion or gender

E = Entrepreneurial in mindset and eager to grow their business and help others along the way

There is SO MUCH more to great book design than fonts, colors and Create Space.

If you’d like to learn more about our SPHERE of Influence Referral Program, or how we can help you grow your business with our Brand, Design and Publish programs, contact Cathy@daviscreative.com or 888-598-0886.

Good things come to those who wait (a bit).

BUT NO HAND SANITIZER!

When you ask an almost 4-year-old what kind of birthday cake they would like for their birthday dinner, it’s almost certain they will respond with their favorite. So, when I asked Mr. N this question, he responded right away with, “LEMON!” To be immediately followed by a pointer-finger shaking in my direction, “AND NO HAND SANITIZER!”

I figured there must be more to this story.

Come to find out, he learned the hard way, that if you are in a hurry to eat your cake, and your Mom/Dad rushes over with the hand sanitizer before your eager hands can partake . . . one MUST WAIT patiently for the hand sanitizer to dry before grabbing the cake with your hands. Otherwise, it tastes YUCKY!

Exactly (pretty much) what I tell most of the authors who are referred to us after they have heard the phrase, “We’d like to publish your book!” from a self-proclaimed “publisher.”

OK . . . so, what I ACTUALLY tell them is, “Take a deep breath, and don’t sign that contract until we have had a conversation! (Since we are talking via phone, they can’t see me shaking my pointer finger in their direction.)

Don’t be in such a hurry to sign those contracts, people. One must wait patiently and review the pros-and-cons. Otherwise, the results could be very YUCKY!”

Now, I’m not a publishing attorney (but I know a few, AND know when to refer you in the right direction). Having been around the publishing industry for almost 15 years, I’ve have had many an author referred to us AFTER they have signed a contract (which, of course is when I refer them to the attorney). I can help you BEFORE you sign the contract in three main areas:

• I can help you interpret the big picture and turn industry jargon into words more easily understood
• I can help you come up with a list of questions to ask to clarify anything that does not make sense
• I can inform you of industry-specific best-practices and help you avoid signing a contract which does not serve your best interest

But, they said . . . “We’d like to publish your book!”

These are the words most authors yearn to hear the most. Unfortunately, not all “publishers” are credible. It seems that just about anyone these days can call themselves a publisher, and many do . . . no matter their qualifications.

How can you protect yourself and not get pulled into a less-than-professional contract? Be ready with these questions:

1. Do I pay for standard editing, design, marketing, and promotion?
2. How do you charge for your services?
3. What kinds of services do you offer?
4. Do I retain the copyright to my words?
5. Am I required to buy copies of my book as part of the contract?
6. Who is your distributor?
7. Do you offer marketing and promotion support?
8. If so, where/how does my book get promoted? Does it cost extra?
9. Will I be involved with the cover design?
10. How many books do you publish per year?
11. How long have you been involved with publishing?
12. Can you give me contact info for recommendations from authors they have worked with?
13. Will you be getting an advance?
14. What kind of royalties will I get?
15. Can I read the contract before signing?
16. Do I supply the ISBN for my book?
17. Will my book be available on Amazon.com?
18. Will my book be available in bookstores?
19. Will my book be available for purchase outside of the USA?
20. What happens if I decide to terminate my contract with you?

These are just a few of the many possible questions you could ask. So, if you are in a quandary over a publishing contract, or simply trying to determine your next-best-step, give me a call. I’ll make sure you get answers to all your questions . . . and help you make the decision process easier for you.

No sense rushing into a YUCKY situation.

One of our vendors recently mentioned how much they “LOVE” our brand.

She went on to point out how much it “appears to really irritate” our competition.

HUH?

When I asked her to explain, she offered, “You know you are a success when (your competition) is jealous of your brand. You provide MORE of all the things they aspire to be . . . creative, authentic, trusted, experienced, dependable — you know — that air of excellence.”

I’ll take that as a compliment . . . although I never specifically intended to irritate anyone. Not sure if one would call that a “side benefit”?

What is your MORE . . . your
Magnificent Outstanding Reason for Existence?

Seven Actions for Creating a MORE Authentic Brand . . .

1. Define your mission, vision and values. What is your WHY? What matters to you? What matters to your clients/customers? How do you help them? Within your answers lies the basis for your mission, vision and values.
2. Recognize your brand personality. As a small business owner, you are the face of your company. It’s a “package deal.” How does your passion, talent and expertise better serve your tribe and grow a better business? What is it that ONLY YOU offer?
3. Create a niche AND boundaries. Know your customer and understand why they need YOU. Offer them the relief they seek, but also know when to draw a line if they ask for far more than what they are willing to pay.
4. Be YOU. Let your audience get to know you. Be real, share stories of success, vulnerability, and near-misses. Your vulnerability will feed the path of “Know, Like, Trust.”
5. Create consistency. Keep your message consistent, and share on a consistent basis. Whether through your website, social media, speaking engagements, or networking events, consistency builds brand equity.
6. Honor your commitments. This is a big one. Yes, it’s great to keep promises, meet deadlines and return phone calls and emails . . . but we’re also talking about honoring our commitments to ourselves, as business-owners. It’s great to put our clients first, but equally important to make time for “re-fueling” our own reservoir . . . be it taking a walk, watching a movie or sneaking in a nap on the weekends.
7. Be the competition others want to emulate. As our vendor pointed out to me, “You know ‘you’ve made it’ when your competition either tries to imitate you and/or decides they don’t like you.” Not everyone will want to play in your sand-box. And that’s OK! Stay true to your mission, vision and values, and you’ll gain the respect from those who matter.

We Brand. We Design. We Publish.

We take your business to the next level.

Contact Cathy for more info: cathy@daviscreative.com