Contracting a celebrity or a big time industry figure to advertise your product or service is often difficult and nearly always, expensive. As a result, few small businesses or startups can afford to leverage influencers.

Yet influencer marketing continues to be an effective marketing tactic.We’ve even written previously about how small businesses can benefit from influencers in How Influencer Marketing Can Pay Off for Small Businesses in 2017. In fact, research shows that 70% of consumers would rather learn about a brand from content than from traditional advertising.

Given the high cost, how can startups and small businesses actually leverage this marketing strategy?

The solution is to use micro-influencers. Unlike big time influencers who have thousands or even millions of followers, micro-influencers have a couple hundred to a few thousand followers. They are often less popular, less well known, more niche, but still highly relevant to their respective audiences.

Micro-influencers give smaller businesses an advantage by allowing the businesses to target smaller, more unique audiences.

According to Digiday, the best follower range for maximum engagement is between 10,000 – 100,000 followers. Fergus Thomas, co-founder of Irban Group, adds that these micro-influencers are not only more effective but feel more authentic:

With the same amount of budget, brands can collaborate with 20 or 40 ‘power middle influencers’ to reach different demographics and see better engagement, compared to one or two celebrities.

With smaller price tags and more follower engagement, micro-influencers aren’t a “second best” option to more popular influencers- they’re often the best option for influencer marketing. But how do you leverage micro-influencers for your business?

1. Figure out what you specifically need from micro-influencers.

Maybe you need a sponsored post or a social media “takeover”. Perhaps you need a video or a review. Either way, it’s important to understand what kind of tasks you need the influencer to do. This will help you target micro-influencers and communicate with them. By knowing your path upfront, you prepare yourself to direct a micro-influencer and make the most for your money. For more information, check out this ebook from TapInfluence: 8 Things Influencers Can Do For Your Brand.

2. Know where to find micro-influencers.

Finding micro-influencers can be tricky because they aren’t necessarily the most recognized faces in your industry.

Many companies find good micro-influencers by looking through their followers and who they are following or talking about. When there is overlap with the connections/branding and a big enough group of followers, you might have found a micro-influencer. Additionally, you can use hashtags, location, or social media groups to find micro-influencers.

To get started, take a look at your social media channels. For even more insight on finding micro-influencers, read Who Are Micro-Influencers & How to Find Them.

3. Reach out to micro-influencers.

If you’re ready to start an influencer campaign, you’ve already identified what you need the influencers to post. Naturally, the next step would be to reach out to them via a comment, tweet, email, or direct message and propose your idea. Before doing that, it’s important to prime the influencer and make them feel valued. Show that you appreciate their content with likes, follows, comments, etc. This is a slow way of building up a relationship and makes it more likely that the micro-influencer will agree to the job. Once you do this, you can propose what you’d like the influencer to do and your compensation for the job.

4. Stay in touch.

It’s always important to stay in touch with a new contact, but it’s especially important with micro-influencers. This is because the micro-influencer could eventually become a great partner or sponsor and is likely to be willing to do even more in the future. When you are competing with fewer brands, you have a better chance at maintaining a strong business relationship. Plus, they’re not (yet) a big celebrity and they likely appreciate the personal attention.

Share their content every once in awhile (when it’s relevant to your audience), send them a thank you, or simply keep them updated on your company. If the micro-influencer knows that you are continuously invested, they will be more likely to work with you in the future or recommend your business.

With micro-influencers converting at a 20% higher conversion rate compared to regular influencers, it’s no wonder that micro-influencer marketing is the next promising niche trend.

As social media becomes more prevalent in our everyday lives, it’s important to find what works for our companies and how we can adapt big trends to small budgets. What are some of your experiences of working with micro-influencers?

Image sources: Jaelynn Castillo, Dũng Trần Việt, William Iven, Glenn Carstens-Peters, Aaron Burden

When perusing our galleries here on crowdSPRING, we see some amazing work submitted in the projects. Today, we recognize this gem submitted in this logo project:

The challenge of this project was to update the logo of a family business in Arizona that is being taken over by a family friend. They wanted it to stay familiar for their old customers while attracting new ones.

Let us start the slow clap for deepu. Check out more great work on deepu’s profile page.

Nicely done, deepu, nicely done!

Beer brewing has exploded in growth over the past few years and new breweries are joining the ranks every day. As a result, it’s more difficult to stand out.

Are you new to brewing and want to add a little more personality to your home brew? Have you been brewing craft beer for years and are looking for ways to build your business? Wherever you are in your brewing journey, now is the perfect time to consider the importance of branding for your brews. According to brand builder Oliver Russell:

The U.S. has more than 3,000 breweries producing somewhere around 30,000 unique beer styles vying for attention at any given time. That’s a saturated market with limited marketing dollars, which makes packaging more important than ever.

From building a brand identity to choosing cans vs. bottles, we’ve got all the information you need to help your brewery stand out right here. Read on if you’re ready to make your brewery more competitive with great packaging and label design.

Know Your Brand

Image Courtesy of Oh Beautiful Beer

The first step of any design process is to know your brand. With store shelves packed to the gills with beer options, having a clear brand identity is vital. Terri Brown of Craft Brewing Business claims,

We’re thirsty for a beer with a good story… Give your market something unique to love about the brand.

The three designs shown above from Bionic Brew, one of the premier craft breweries in China, are a great example of a consistent branding with a unique story. Bionic Brew drew their design inspiration from Chinese folklore.

In Chinese folklore, ancient poets tell a story of The Gold Rabbit. Tethered to the moon, the mythical figure spends its days brewing the elixir of life. That care in craft, electrified by the spirit of the Bionic Brew team sparked a powerful symbol for the brand.

When you’re determining the story you want to tell, follow Bionic Brew’s example and make sure it’s authentic and genuine to your brewery. 

Julie Napoli, a marketing professor at Curtin University, recently reported in The Journal of Business Research that consumers see three dimensions to brand authenticity: heritage, sincerity, and commitment to quality. Though it may be hard to measure these dimensions, it is clear that customers want to buy into something more than just a logo. When selecting which beer they want to buy, the one that is able to tell a story or represent a bigger message will have an edge on the competitors.

If you are unsure how to build your brand identity, check out our article on the 4 Building Blocks of Brand Identity You Can’t Ignore.

How Will You Use Your Design?

Once you know your brewery’s brand, you can start to think about the next vital step: where will you be sharing your design message, bottle or can?

But, even within these two choices, there are a lot of design variables at play.

Bottles offer a lot of design flexibility. All bottles have a label and a cap and may also have a neck band. Each of these elements presents a unique design opportunity. And, your design considerations don’t stop with the words and graphics printed on the label.

Image courtesy of Online Labels

You’ve got a dizzying array of label materials to choose from; including paper, matte film, glossy film, metalized film, wood finish film or clear film. Each of these communicate a different message to your consumer; so make sure to select a label material that reflects your brand identity. Does matte paper best represent your heritage brand? Could a metallic label best communicate industrial your vibe? Or do you prefer a wood finish that speaks to your dedication to sustainability and nature?

While bottles offer more flexibility, cans offer more design real estate. You’re not limited to a tiny cap, small neck band and a label. You’ve got the entire can to share your design message. Besides the design limitations, many brewers choose cans because of their improved shelf life and reduced costs.

Image courtesy of Half Acre Beer Company

And no, cans aren’t just for American lagers anymore. Recently, the craft beer industry has seen a resurgence in cans, earning a 17.2 percent national share of packaged beer sales in 2016 — up from 5.6 percent back in 2013. Half Acre, a Chicago, Illinois brewery (and local favorite of the crowdSPRING team), has been brewing all their craft beer in 16 oz. cans since 2008.

So, now you know your brand, you’ve decided whether you’re bottling or canning, you’ve chosen your label material (or lack thereof) and you’re finally ready to create a design! Here are a few pointers to get you started.

Your Logo Reflects Your Brand

A strong logo is vital to establishing the visual recognition your brand needs. But what makes for a strong logo?

You should aim for your logo to be simple, memorable, timeless, versatile and appropriate. Choose colors that align with your brand identity and evoke the right emotions for your customer. Finally, make sure your logo doesn’t look like anyone else’s. The last thing you want is to have your beer confused with a lesser look-alike.

Design created by crowdSPRING creative snopy

This logo designed by crowdSPRING creative snopy for River Hops Brewing in Fort Dodge, Iowa is both timeless and appropriate. It showcases the brewery’s namesake river and hops in a clean and classy design.

Because your logo should be the one consistent graphic element across all of your marketing, it’s worth investing in quality design. Crowdsourced logo design can be a fantastic solution for growing breweries because the process is fast and cost effective. Logo projects on crowdSPRING start at $199 and average over 100 entries. That means you have more options to choose from when trying to find your perfect logo for your brewery.

Labels with Personality

With your logo squared away you can start to think about labels. Your branding, including logo, should remain consistent across all of your labels to establish familiarity and trust. But, each label should be unique to each brew in your line-up. Tell your future customer what’s special about this specific beer. After all, creating your own unique brews is the reason you founded your own brewery to begin with, right?

Image Courtesy of Oh Beautiful Beer

Tenaya Creek Brewery in Las Vegas, Nevada pulled imagery from their Native American heritage to differentiate between each brew. The presence of their navy logo creates a band around the top of each can to ties the designs together while each individual beer has its own unique label design in a distinctive color palette. It makes you want to collect them all!

Are you designing for a seasonal brew? Feature images that conjure that season for your consumer. Is it wheaty, hoppy or fruity? Take your inspiration from those. Show your drinkers what they can expect to find inside the bottle.

Image courtesy of Neel and Cottage

New Belgium in Fort Collins, Colorado takes their customers through all the seasons with label designs that are able to communicate the flavor of the beer and the seasonality of the offering at the same time.

What about the beers you offer all year round? This is where your brand identity comes in handy. Use design to showcase your brewery’s unique personality to win your consumer’s attention.

Image Courtesy of Oh Beautiful Beer

Birra Bizarra in Montevideo, Uruguay has channeled their inner sideshow performers with this line of unique labels. Their clean, simple text logo provides an appropriate backdrop for their featured characters and ties the line together nicely. There’s no shortage of personality here. They’re bound to attract a playful, adventurous consumer with these labels.

Whether we like to acknowledge it or not, every brewery is participating in a popularity contest. You’re judged by your beer… but only if you get that consumer to buy it first. That means your label is your first impression. Are you quirky and fun or do you take your beer very seriously? Are you innovative and new or steeped in tradition? Show your consumer on your label and you’ll attract like-minded drinkers.

Call in the Professionals

Design created by crowdSPRING Creative dancluj50

The thought of tackling your brewery’s label designs by yourself can be overwhelming.  With so many competing breweries, let alone individual beers competing for your consumer’s attention, you need every advantage you can get. Working with professional packaging and graphic designers like our creative community of over 200,000 designers will give your brewery the edge it needs to stand out. And though it may seem more frugal to “homebrew” your design, investing in good design can actually save your brewery money in the long-run.

Make it All About You(r Brewery)

Finally, remember to enjoy the design process. The packaging and label design for your brewery is all about you. Well, your brewery. Use your label designs to tell your story and have fun. 

Custom craft beer labels really don’t have a set standard. They allow for freedom when it comes to design, and in turn, provide you with freedom for how you want your label to look.

So, don’t be afraid to run with it. Make bold design choices that share the soul of your brewery and your beer.  If you’re successful with your design choices you’ll be sure to attract the kind of consumer that you’d like to sit down with and share a beer. And that’s what this is all about at the end of the day, right?

If you’re ready to step up your brewery’s design game, consider working with crowdSPRING’s community of over 200,000 creatives on a brewery design project. You’ll get dozens of entries and only pay for a design you and your customers will love.

Choosing the right font for your business can make an impact on your consumer’s interest and engagement level with your brand. As we know, people have pronounced feelings, responses, and associations when they see certain colors. Similarly, they have a reaction to typefaces and fonts, and using that information is to your marketing advantage.

Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing when displayed. Typography can make or break the overall effectiveness of your design and message.

One of the most important elements of successful typography is the right typeface. The huge array of typefaces available can feel pretty overwhelming, so we have outlined some of the broad ideas you should consider to help narrow down your choices and pick the typeface that is best for your brand.

1. Serif or Sans Serif?

One primary way typefaces and fonts are classified are whether or not they have “serifs,” which are the tiny flourishes found at the end of a letter’s strokes. Serif typefaces have these added bits, and sans-serif typefaces are, as you can guess, literally that; “sans [without] serifs.”

Serif typefaces are associated with tradition and stability. Stuart de Rozario of Font Smith writes, “Serif typefaces are great for premium brands as they convey elegance, prestige, heritage and authority.”

Finance, fashion, journalism and other prestigious industries incorporate that classic style into their designs to great effect. Burberry uses a custom designed serif font, and it elicits an immediate feeling of luxury.

Serifs give a visual anchor to characters, contributing to their solid and traditional feel, as in the TIME logo (which uses your college professor’s favorite, Times New Roman). They also improve readability of lengthier amounts of text, delivering a professional and trustworthy impression.When you’re designing something with a great deal of text to read, choosing a serif font is an excellent choice to make sure your readers don’t wear themselves out visually.

When you’re designing something with a great deal of text to read, choosing a serif font is an excellent choice to make sure your readers don’t wear themselves out visually.

Sans-serif types became popular around the start of the 1800s, right around the same time that modernism took off. With design moving toward a more universal style and focusing on inclusive thinking, Sans-serif typefaces deconstructed the traditional letterforms and modernized them into an accessible and appealing aesthetic.

Popular sans-serif typefaces like Helvetica, as used by Skype and Target, are everywhere on the web because they fit right in with the modern aesthetic. That makes them a stellar choice for branding and marketing systems, though their omnipresence does make them a less distinctive choice. If you spend the time to make sure the typeface you love reflects the personality of your brand, though, you won’t go wrong.

If you spend the time to make sure the typeface you love reflects the personality of your brand, though, you won’t go wrong.

2. Traditional or Whimsical?

Typefaces have personality. Certain typefaces, classified as “whimsical,” convey playfulness or even mischief while “traditional” typefaces can establish a brand as trustworthy or serious.

Since typefaces vary so much, figuring out which one fits your brand can be a little overwhelming. Figuring out if you want a traditional or a whimsical vibe is a good place to get started. Some typefaces look like the handwriting you wish you had: elegant and refined, like Cadillac’s cursive serif (based on English 157).

A traditionally styled font, like American Airlines’ use of Helvetica, will ground your design in a classic and respectable fashion. Choosing something staid in tradition will loan your brand credibility and the assurance of a secure, trustworthy organization.

A more whimsical choice–think about the friendly Disney font, or even the futuristic looking hand tweaked version of Futura that Hulu uses–gives off a distinct vibe for your brand. Understanding that a progressive choice will absolutely gain notice can work to your advantage. Just make sure that it fits with your brand’s personality!

3. To Mix or Not To Mix?

It’s a delicate art to mix two (or more, like LG did!) typefaces together, but your project will project a much more engaging presence than you might get from using just one typeface. A good rule to follow is to select a typeface as your foundation: your body text is a good choice for this since this will be the one you use most. Build off of this by choosing a core element to branch off from and then select your contrasting text from there.

If you want to try out variety, but having to choose specific typefaces feels too difficult, try putting in contrast within the same typeface family. Some typefaces include variations within the same typeface family (like “Myriad”and “Myriad Bold”). You can also vary the size and boldness of the same font, as Linkedin did with their logo.

4. Know the Rules to Break Them

Typography is an effective way to convey more than just the words involved in written communication. It showcases personality by visually representing the tenor and tone of what it is you’re talking about. You may find that your purpose is best met by using a font with a vibrant personality throughout your website or using an amalgamation of sans and serif typefaces.

However, it is very important to proceed very carefully when you do decide to embark on a less traditional road with your typeface design. Making sure that you are familiar with the conventions and rules typically adhered to in design puts you in a much better position to be able to break those rules. Once you know how typography and design work together, you can intelligently move away from standard form to create a compelling, fresh design.

How you use typography has a decided impact on how your brand and content are perceived, which means that your font choice can have real dollar influence for your company. Choosing the best typeface for your brand is an art, and our creatives at crowdSPRING would be happy to help you select the one that’s just your type (sorry, I had to). Our community of over 200,000 designers can help you find the typeface that will have your brand show-cased (sorry, again, I had to) to perfection.

Most smart entrepreneurs and business owners have small budgets when starting their new business. Yet, if you do some research, you’ll find people suggesting that it’s common to pay $1,000 to $5,000 for a logo design for a new business and $5,000 to $50,000 for a logo design for an established business.

Logo design does not have to cost thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. I founded crowdSPRING to help organizations and businesses get quality design without a big budget, and today more than 200,000 designers and writers on crowdSPRING help the world’s best entrepreneurs, small businesses, and non-profits with logo design, web design, graphic design, product design, and company naming.

Watch the video below to learn about my frustrating experience with a design agency that inspired me to found crowdSPRING nine years ago and how your business can get a great, professionally designed logo for as little as a few hundred dollars, in just a few days.

When perusing our galleries here on crowdSPRING, we see some amazing work submitted in the projects. Today, we recognize a gem submitted in this logo project:

The challenge of this project was to create a logo that had a calming affect on people and invoke feelings in the customers that they are doing something good for their mind, body, and soul. We were jazzed by how much this logo calmed us down.

Let us start the slow clap for CitM. Check out more great work on CitM’s profile page.

Nicely done, CitM, nicely done!

Social media has changed rapidly in the past year, even more so than it has in previous years. From the uptick of influencer marketing to Instagram’s shift to algorithm based newsfeeds, social media has evolved to fit an entirely different consumer base.

One of the more recent changes is the development of “stories”. Initially seen on apps like Snapchat, stories allow people and companies to connect in a different way than a typical social media post.

The Rise of Stories

In September 2011, a new mobile app was released and started to gain traction. That app – Snapchat – introduced a new social media trend, taking online interaction to a new level. The app allowed users to receive and send disappearing photos, which transitioned into videos, filters, and stories- allowing users to communicate in a more natural way. In Snapchat’s first blog post, CEO Evan Spiegel explained Snapchat’s purpose:

Snapchat isn’t about capturing the traditional Kodak moment. It’s about communicating with the full range of human emotion—not just what appears to be pretty or perfect.

Fast forward to 2017, and many popular apps have followed Snapchat’s lead, integrating story features into their products. Some of these apps have even surpassed Snapchat with story usage.

Instagram, for example, has 50 million more users using their stories feature than Snapchat- and Instagram Stories just launched in August 2016.

Even more recently, Facebook launched its own stories feature on March 28, 2017, giving consumers and businesses another stories option. With apps like Snapchat reaching 41% of 18-34 year-olds in a day, it makes sense that businesses are getting on board with social media stories.

While many of these apps have similar features, each has slightly different audiences leaving businesses confused about which app to use.

We took a look at two of the most popular apps with stories features, Instagram and Snapchat, to see how they compare for social media marketing. The best part is that since stories features are so similar, these insights can be applied to many other applications offering stories.

Snapchat

As the pioneer of social media stories features, Snapchat became the default for many companies testing out this type of social media marketing. On Snapchat, a company can create an account and send photos or videos directly to consumers. More importantly, a company can add photos and videos to their “story” so that their “friends” (followers) on Snapchat can get a glimpse into the company or whatever they want to show. These photos and videos disappear after 24 hours, making the content seem more urgent for users to consume.

Many companies are attracted to the idea that they can give consumers an inside look into their offices, processes, and meetings. They can interact more directly with consumers, and reach them more quickly- as well as track how many people viewed their story. Since stories don’t depend on likes or comments, Snapchat allows companies to see exactly who has seen which part of your story, and this can help marketers test and tailor additional content.

Snapchat stories also give companies the power to draw or add text on top of their photos/videos, as well as use filters- whether it’s a timestamp or cat ears. Additionally, Snapchat boasts Bitmoji integration, which gives people and companies a more human-like digital identity.

Businesses can also benefit from Snapchat’s geofilter feature on stories. The ability to create your own geofilters, which are filters made of logos/graphics that are available based on a specific location, allows brands to insert themselves into other people’s stories- and not just their own. From announcing product launches to increasing brand awareness, geofilters are a great addition to Snapchat stories for many marketers.

However, one of the drawbacks of Snapchat is that it is inherently consumer based, and requires businesses to manage an entirely new platform. For larger companies, this may not be an issue. For smaller companies and startups, this can be difficult because smaller companies might not have the resources to run multiple social media accounts. Especially with stories, it’s important to constantly curate content- and you have to create your own, which takes up time and people. Therefore Snapchat often becomes a tossup between reaching many people, building up another portion of your brand identity, and cost.

Snapchat has an audience favored by consumer-based businesses: younger people (18-34 year olds) rate Snapchat as their number one most important social media platform, with Instagram as a close second. Especially for businesses focusing on that age group, Snapchat is a great way to reach kids, teens, and young adults.

However, over half of the users currently signing up for Snapchat are older than 25, and increasing in age range, so the app is gaining popularity across the board. In a survey about social media video ads, consumers ages 16-54 rated Snapchat stories ads as being 1.3x more effective than any other platform. The difference is that people on Snapchat aren’t necessarily expecting to interact with a brand, they’re looking to quickly connect with friends or more recently, with celebrities. So it can be a great surprise for young people to see a company on Snapchat.

Instagram

Many features seen on Snapchat stories are also available on Instagram stories. Launched in August 2016, Instagram stories have quickly surpassed Snapchat stories in terms of usage, with millions of Instagram users quickly adapting the feature. Instagram stories also allow drawing additions and stickers on stories but Instagram lacks a few features, like Snapchat’s geofilters. However, Instagram stories allow users to tag others, which helps companies collaborating with each other or with influencers.

Just like Snapchat, Instagram stories don’t depend on likes, follows, or comments. Instagram also allows users to see lists and numbers of who watches what part of each story, making it equally as valuable to marketers to tailor and test their content. However, the difference with Instagram and Snapchat is the types of consumers using each app and the reach of their stories on each app. Nick Sheingold, Associate Director of Strategy at social media agency Laundry Service, says that marketers actually prefer Instagram stories to Snapchat:

It’s just another way to communicate with fans on their terms. We know users love Snapchat, and since the Instagram experience is so similar it makes it a little easier for brands. They don’t have to develop a totally unique strategy.

The idea that Instagram stories are simply a more instantaneous way to reach an already existing audience is extremely attractive to marketers. Since Instagram is typically seen as a business-friendlier social media platform than Snapchat and it has double the average monthly users, it makes sense that more businesses are on Instagram.

Because of this, many businesses won’t find it much more difficult or time-consuming to use the stories feature on Instagram if they already have the account. Even better, the brand identity and expectations have already been set, and people are already liking pictures on the existing accounts- which can give companies an easy audience base for their stories, allowing them to focus on growth rather than building a social account from scratch.

Often, the types of businesses found on Instagram are businesses that focus on visuals. Apparel companies, physical products, and travel-based business are just some of the more popular businesses on Instagram. Companies that focus on people do well on Instagram too, or companies that work with brand influencers. As far as audiences go, 55% of 18-29 year olds use Instagram, with the next largest demographic being 30-49 year olds at 28%. Just like Snapchat, younger people are on Instagram. However, Instagram definitely sees a wider and older age range, making it more applicable to young adults/adults.

With Instagram, there is also a clear urban appeal. About 32% of adults using social media in urban areas are using Instagram. For the most part, this demographic breaks down into the most prevalent Instagram audience being female millennials living in cities. For businesses looking to add to their already-existing Instagram profile, Instagram stories allow an exciting sneak peek into what is currently being shown by the brand. With Instagram, the stories feature combines its power with the other features of Instagram and allows businesses to briefly break away from their Instagram aesthetic and show a more “real” side of their business.

Looking Ahead At Facebook

Even more recently, Facebook launched their own version of a stories feature. Found at the top of both the Facebook and Messenger apps, Facebook allows users to share glimpses into their days too. While the stories platform on Facebook is relatively new (it just launched late March), it might be worthwhile for companies to explore especially if they have an active audience on Facebook.

With over 1.86 billion worldwide users active on Facebook, the stories feature may prove to reach even more people than it does on Instagram or Snapchat, especially since Facebook typically caters to an older demographic. Since the feature is relatively new, it’s too early to gauge popularity or effectiveness. Yet as history shows, the first people to adopt new technologies usually end up becoming the leaders on those platforms.

Which app do you prefer for stories marketing for your business? Let us know in the comments below!

Image source: Hans Vivek

Entrepreneurs are in a prime position to shape the world around them- through their own businesses and through charitable giving. A few weeks ago I wrote an article about 13 female entrepreneurs who are changing the world. It was such an inspiring journey, that I decided to see what the rest of the entrepreneurial world was up to as well.

The following entrepreneurs are from countries all around the globe, male and female, and they are reshaping the world in a positive way. From the fields of health, clean energy, fair trade agriculture and so much more… These entrepreneurs raise the social bar, proving that business isn’t just about money.

1) Sophi Tranchell Divine Chocolate (UK)

Image courtesy of Divine Chocolate

Sophi Tranchell is not your average business woman. In fact, she’s proud to say that she’s “still a radical.”  Tranchell is the managing director of UK-based fair trade company Divine Chocolate.  A company that is reinventing what “fair trade” means. Divine is co-owned by the Kuapa Kokoo farmer’s cooperative in Ghana. The cooperative owns 45% of the company and receives an equal percentage of the profits.

Cocoa farming is becoming difficult to sustain for smaller farmers even though the global demand for chocolate continues to grow. Divine and the Kuapa Kokoo cooperative provide resources to support their small farmers. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship reports:

Its key innovation lies in this ownership structure and in the creation of a completely sustainable and traceable supply chain. From the outset, Divine was set up to deliver not only a higher income to farmers but also, through the cooperative’s ownership shares, the profits and power that have traditionally been denied to farmers at the start of the supply chain.

Divine’s social advocacy resonates strongly with Tranchell; who received Ernst & Young’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2010 for her work with Divine. In an interview with Will Smale of the BBC Tranchell revealed,

“I have always been interested in who is controlling what… and I’m very keen that people don’t feel hopeless… If we all do something we can make a difference. We are proving that you can do business differently, and do it well.”

2) Yaron Gissin Kalisaya (US)

Image courtesy of The Next Web

Yaron Gissin was on a three-day photography trip in the desert when the idea for the KaliPAK was born. He and his companions were forced to cut their trip short after all of their electronics (including their cameras) ran out of power. It would have been handy to have a portable source of renewable power.

Fast-forward to the present day. Gissin’s company Kalisaya (named after an Incan word used to describe energy from the sun) has developed the KaliPAK. The KaliPAK is an easily portable, lightweight and rechargeable solar-powered generator.

Although the idea grew from a desire to have a convenient power source for recreational travel, the KaliPAK’s debuted with the Israeli Air Force Humanitarian Rescue Mission for Global Disaster Areas. In an interview with The Next Web Gissin shares,

“They needed power in disaster areas to set up a field hospital. We recruited some multi-talented people – Industrial designers, electronic and mechanical engineers and disaster-recovery experts  – and we built some prototypes.”

This experience helped to reveal the KaliPAK’s true value. Gissin points out that the first infrastructure to fail in cases of natural emergency is the electrical grid. The KaliPAK can help to restore power in emergency situations, making it an essential piece of emergency equipment for both emergency support services and home consumers. Oh, and it’s also great for vacation travel.

3) Jean-Marc Borello Groupe SOS (France)

Image courtesy of Les Echos

Jean-Marc Borello controls Groupe SOS- an organization that Business Week speculates may be the largest social enterprise in the world. Their efforts for positive social change impact more than 1 million people every year.

The organizations that would grow to become Groupe SOS were founded in the mid 1980’s. Prevention and Care of Addictions began in 1984; and, Care and Habitat was formed in 1985 in response to the growing AIDS epidemic. Today, Borello’s Groupe advocates for positive change by overseeing roughly 400 independent organizations in efforts to improve health, employment, housing, education and social inclusion across 35 countries.

According to the Schwab Foundation, among their wide range of socially motivated endeavors Groupe SOS oversees 53 retirement homes, 8 hospitals, and provides help to 10,000 children in need every year. The groupe also offers employment training for the unemployed; 75% of which find employment after completing their training.

Borello’s Groupe SOS is seeking to make the world a better place on a grand scale.

4) Tracey Chambers The Clothing Bank (South Africa)

Image courtesy of Mail & Guardian Africa

Woolworth’s former head of financial management, Tracey Chambers left the corporate world behind when she decided to live a purpose-driven life. In an interview with The Legacy Project Chambers shared that money does not drive her; instead, she is motivated by the desire to leave behind a positive legacy. Her organization The Clothing Bank has ensured that she does just that.

According to the Schwab Foundation,

In South Africa, 60% of single mothers are unemployed and few have access to training opportunities and job experience required to be hired into the formal sector.

Chambers is the CEO and co-founder of The Clothing Bank in South Africa- a not-for-profit company whose mission is to support and train unemployed mothers to start their own businesses. The Clothing Bank utilizes a holistic approach that provides life coaching as well as business training for the women they recruit.

An article from Elle South Africa reveals that,

In only four years, the initiative has trained 431 women whose businesses have generated collective profits of R14.6 million from re-selling over 1.1 million surplus garments in Cape Town’s townships.

The Clothing Banks’s website anticipates that they are in a position to mentor and train 300 new women per year. Jackie Mpotula, a Clothing Bank grad shares,

“The Clothing Bank has provided an opportunity for me to learn and grow in a safe and supportive environment. I am on a journey to reach my full potential.”

5) Dr. Gavin Armstrong Lucky Iron Fish (Canada)

Image courtesy of Guelph Mercury Tribune

Dr. Gavin Armstrong is helping to fight iron deficiency- a condition that affects nearly 2 billion people.  He’s doing it with the help of a lucky iron fish. Well… many lucky iron fishes.

Iron deficiency can lead to “anemia, weakness, impaired cognitive ability, compromised physical development in children, and increased risk of illness.” But, it’s also completely preventable. Armstrong is the founder and CEO of Lucky Iron Fish– an organization devoted to reducing iron deficiency with the use of literal iron fishes. The fishes are boiled in a litre of water with a few drops of citrus juice. Then the fishes are removed and you use the remaining iron-rich broth to complete your meal. The fish are reusable and easy to clean.

Armstrong is the first Canadian to be honored with the William J Clinton Award for international work against hunger. He is also the inaugural recipient of the international Michaelle Jean Emergency Hunger Relief Award, a recipient of Edison’s Silver Innovation Award, and a 2015 honoree of Conscious Company Magazine’s Seventeen Rising Social Entrepreneurs of the Year.

Not only that, Armstrong’s Lucky Iron Fish has a program that pays fish forward to those in need.

The Lucky Iron Fish is committed to putting a fish in every pot… Every time someone purchases a Lucky Iron Fish… we use a portion of the proceeds to distribute Fish for free to communities in need.  In 2015 we were able to give away thousands of Lucky Iron Fish to communities in need all around the world for free!

6) Amancio Ortega Inditex (Spain)

Image courtesy of Markets Morning

Amancio Ortega, a native of Galicia, Spain, is reported to be Europe’s richest man. He is a co-founder of Inditex, the world’s largest fashion retailer and founder of Zara. Owning nearly 60 percent of Inditex, Ortega’s personal worth is estimated at roughly $70 billion.

In 2001, Ortega founded the Amancio Ortega Foundation in an effort to reinvest his wealth in his home regions of Galicia and Andalusia Spain. The foundation established scholarships for students from the regions and built learning centers. The AOF also created agricultural training programs and donates to the Spanish Federation of Food Banks.

More recently, Ortega has turned his attention to cancer research- initially focusing close to Ortega’s home. In 2015 Ortega donated $18 million to provide cancer screening devices to hospitals in Galicia. After their success with the Galicia healthcare system, Ortega’s foundation plans to expand their efforts.

In March of 2017 the foundation announced that it would donate €320 million (roughly $350 million) to provide cancer screening apparatus to public hospitals throughout all of Spain, making The Ortega Foundation one of the largest charitable donors in Spain. The screening devices provided are anticipated to “allow more accurate diagnoses and provide patients with less aggressive, more effective and shorter treatments.”

7) Vibin Joseph BioZEEN (India)

Image courtesy of YouTube

Vibin Joseph is the founder and Executive Director of BioZEEN, a biopharmaceutical company that is responsible for vaccinating one third of the children across the globe. Joseph’s company bio shares his motto:

“All our activities should benefit society and make our world a better place.”

The vaccine manufacturing industry has historically been a niche market monopolized by just a few companies. But, Joseph has managed to break into the niche in a big way. BioZeen’s goal is to “manufacture lifesaving therapeutics accessible for the whole of humanity.” They’re well on their way. In a feature article with One Young World Joseph says,

“In a short time, we have managed to scale new heights in quality, productivity and market reach in the niche vaccine production industry.”

In addition to the undeniable impact BioZEEN has on children’s lives around the world, Mr. Joseph also seeks to create positive change in his immediate sphere of influence. He describes his coworkers as his “BioZEEN family” where he seeks to create an attitude of “we-not-I”. And, in his spare time, he mentors college grads and teaches mathematics.

Joseph believes,

“If we are passionate in what we do, true to our values and humane in our intention, we will be successful. BiOZEEN, my company is a tangible demonstration of that.”

8) J.K. Rowling Pottermore (UK)

Image courtesy of Celeb Mix

J.K. Rowling’s meteoric rise to fame must have seemed as magical to the impoverished mom as Harry Potter’s invitation to Hogwarts. Her books about Potter have sold over 450 million copies worldwide and been translated into 78 languages. Her first book launched in 1997 in the UK. By 2004 she became the first author to be included on Forbes’ annual list of billionaires.

But Rowling never forgot her financial roots. She remained on Forbes billionaires list for seven years; but, in 2012 she dropped off the list. This has been attributed to the amount of money she has donated to charities (approximately $160 million in 2011 alone) and the amount of taxes she pays.

Rowling founded the Volant Charitable Trust in 2000 and her children’s advocacy group Lumos in 2005.  She has been documented to support a total of 17 different causes, including AIDS and HIV, cancer, homelessness, literacy, and human rights. Rowling shared this thought about charitable giving in an article with The Telegraph,

“I think you have a moral responsibility, when you’ve been given far more than you need, to do wise things with it and give intelligently.”

9) Luvuyo Rani Silulo Ulutho Technologies (South Africa)

Image courtesy of Destiny Man Magazine

Former teacher Luvuyo Rani is doing his part to help the little guy get ahead in South Africa. He started Silulo Ulutho Technologies with a single internet cafe/technology training center in Khayelitsha Township.  Eleven years later he had opened over 36 branches. In 2015 he began franchising; providing new opportunities for others.

Rani explains in an interview with SME South Africa,

“We service communities. Silulo Ulutho Technologies makes the use of technology affordable, we reduce the cost and time needed for people to gain technology skills, and gives marginalised communities desperately needed access to the tools of the mainstream economy.”

Silulo Ulutho provides IT training, products and services in townships and rural areas with limited access to technology. Rani goes on to say,

“We put computer training skills, software installation, website development, computer and accessory retail sales, and computer and mobile phone repair and maintenance services right on the doorsteps of people who would otherwise have to travel considerable distances to access such facilities.”

The facilities do triple duty as internet cafes, business centers, and technology training schools. Customers can purchase refurbished computers, print, scan, copy and fax; as well as learn to use technology. 60% of Silulo’s graduates are unemployed when they begin taking classes. Many have since gone on to work as IT sales representatives, call center operators and at Silulo itself.

According to Endeavor.org

Today Silulo is a household name in Khayelitsha, praised for empowering residents through convenient and affordable access to technology. Each June and December 500 students dress in their robes and caps, and graduate from Silulo’s SETA certified training programs. 

Rani shares,

“I am passionate about empowerment and I would love for my success to trigger success for others.”

10) Enass Abo-Hamed H2GO Power (Palestine)

Image courtesy of Cartier Women’s Initiative

Enass Abo-Hamed is a champion of renewable energy. Her company, H2GO Power, seeks “to bring affordable reliable energy to millions across the globe in a green way for large social and environmental impact.”

During her PhD work at Cambridge University, Abo-Hamed studied a porous catalytic material used to produce and store hydrogen. Realizing the implications of this material, she was inspired to found H2GO.

Abo-Hamed’s solid-state, carbon-free synthetic fuel and easy storage capability allows H2GO to offer inexpensive, environmentally friendly power for areas off the traditional power grid. H2GO seeks to utilise excess renewables to create self-sustaining energy systems.

In the long-term, Abo-Hamed’s goals are to reduce air pollution caused by traditional power sources, provide power to those who currently live without, and to fight the spike in carbon-dioxide that is driving climate change. H2GO’s website invites us to,

Imagine an electric grid powered by 100% renewable energy, and then extend that grid to power the transportation sector. To achieve this requires innovative technologies that allow renewables to be stored and dispatched at all times, even when the wind isn’t blowing and the sun isn’t shining. This is what we aim to enable.

11) Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen LEGO (Denmark)

Image courtesy of LEGO

Everybody loves LEGOS. (Except parents who’ve just stepped on some in the middle of the night.) And LEGO owner Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen just keeps giving us more great reasons to love LEGO. Kristiansen has made it a priority for his company to reduce their carbon footprint, leaving the world’s children a healthier planet.

In 2013 LEGO partnered with the World Wildlife Federation, “pledging to intensify their work to improve performance on a range of environmental priorities – including greater focus on collaboration with suppliers to reduce total carbon emissions.”

In 2014, LEGO reduced the size of their packaging in an effort to save trees and reduce CO2 emissions. “For 2014, a total of approximately 6,000 tons of cardboard will be saved, and the smaller boxes will reduce transportation needs by 3,000 truckloads.”

And, in 2015 LEGO’s first offshore wind farm began producing environmentally safe power and they established the LEGO Sustainable Materials Centre. The Sustainable Materials Centre’s purpose is to find a new, environmentally-friendly material out of which to build LEGO’s.

All of these efforts show the LEGO Group’s enduring commitment to minimizing their impact on our climate and environment. LEGO is on target to source all of their energy from renewable sources by 2020 and well on their way to finding and implementing their goal of using only sustainable, renewable materials by 2030. CEO Jorgen Vid Knudstorp had this to say,

“This is a major step for the LEGO Group on our way towards achieving our 2030 ambition on sustainable materials. We have already taken important steps to reduce our carbon footprint and leave a positive impact on the planet by reducing the packaging size, by introducing FSC certified packaging and through our investment in an offshore wind farm. Now we are accelerating our focus on materials.”

Are you inspired by these amazing entrepreneurs? Do you want to join their ranks and make your own difference in the world? Then now might be a great time to check out our free e-book: STAND OUT:
An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business

If finding time to watch or listen to anything longer than a cat video these days is a challenge, finding time for self-improvement and self-education is even harder. As our daily obligations take up more and more time, taking advantage of the time you spend commuting to and from work becomes increasingly necessary.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average travel time to work is 25.4 minutes, and that time increases annually. One of the unexpected benefits that have comes with longer travel times (and the sudden expanse of available time for all of us stuck in transit) has been the resurgence of podcasts. With over 325,000 different shows to choose from on iTunes, Apple reports that over 10 billion podcast episodes were downloaded or streamed in 2016. There is an embarrassment of audio (and video!) riches out there.

With that in mind, here are nine podcasts we think are worthy of your time in transit.

How I Built This

NPR’s How I Built This is a well-produced show hosted by Guy Raz that shines the spotlight on “innovators, entrepreneurs, and idealists.” Every week a different guest traces the history of their business or company as well as their own personal journey. It’s a fascinating, inspiring show that surfaces the humanity behind the brand while uncovering the sometimes painful path it took to success.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• 1-800-GOT-JUNK?: Brian Scudamore
• Kendra Scott
• Chesapeake Bay Candle: Mei Xu

The Tim Ferriss Show

No roundup of essential business podcasts would be complete without a nod to Tim Ferriss, author of the very popular series of self-help “4-hours” books. The popularity and reach of his show The Tim Ferriss Show have earned him the nickname “the Oprah of Audio” with over 100 million downloads. In each show, he examines a “world-class performer” and what methods, hacks, and attitudes they use to be successful.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• David “DHH” Heinemeier Hansson: The Power of Being Outspoken
• The Secrets, Tactics, and Creative Processes of High Performers and Achievers — Debbie Millman
• How to Achieve Self-Ownership

She Did It Her Way

Female entrepreneurs are all too often underrepresented in the media. The podcast She Did It Her Way addresses this by shining a weekly spotlight on a different woman in business for each show. Of course, essential business how-tos are the basis for the program, but it is particularly notable for how it is directed toward women looking to break ground in fields often dominated by men.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• 10 Things I Wish I Would Have Done Sooner In My Business
• Q&A – The Ups and Downs of Building a Business PT5 With Cordova Pleasants
• Know When To Take The Leap With Your Business

Six Figure Side Gig

In a period of seven years, Mark Costes built six successful dental practices as
well as a dental assisting school company with 140 locations throughout the United States. Mark’s knack for creating profitable businesses from scratch led him to become a mentor and business coach for entrepreneurs all over the world.

In 2015, Mark Costes started Six Figure Side Gig to offer real-life strategies to help people get their own businesses started on the side just like he did.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• Tom Corson-Knowles: Profiting Through Self-Publishing
• Jake Conway: From Complexity To Simplicity To Increased Profits
• Mark Costes: Tackling Common Challenges in Entrepreneurship

Startup

True to its tagline, “what it’s really like to start a business,” Startup’s first season was, appropriately enough, about starting the business the show is a part of, Gimlet Media. It’s hosted by Lisa Chow and Alex Blumberg, who is best known for his role as co-founder of the very popular NPR show Planet Money.

Now in its fifth season, the show brings a strong narrative-driven approach to how businesses started and sometimes ended their lives. Its first episode, which was downloaded over a million times, featured Blumberg pitching the idea for what would become Gimlet Media to investor Chris Sacca.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• You Have To Invent Something
• You Can’t Wear A Suit Here
• From the Cell to the Sell

What Great Bosses Know

“Jill Geisler on work, leadership, and success” is how What Great Bosses Know describes itself. An extension of her book Work Happy: What Great Bosses Know, the show delivers short, practical lessons on subjects ranging from leadership and management to running meetings and motivating employees.

No episode is longer than 5 minutes, which means it fits in nicely for those who find spare time for things such as podcasts in short supply.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• Can Charisma Be Learned?
• The Power of Listening
• 6 Tips for New Managers

The Journal

Host Kevin Rose’s credentials are well-known: he was one of the people behind the Internet site and phenomenon Digg as well as mobile app creation company Milk, which was eventually acquired by Google. The Journal is his video podcast Foundation’s second life, this time as an audio show. Both feature interviews with successful entrepreneurs and founders, including such luminaries as Tesla’s Elon Musk and entrepreneur powerhouse Gary Vaynerchuk.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• Gary Vaynerchuk: Lessons Learned in Building a Media Empire
• Jason Fried: Reimagining Work/life Balance
• Dr. Rhonda Patrick: Cold Stress and Longevity Hacking

The Fizzle Show

The Fizzle Show is a weekly show by Fizzle, who specialize in courses and resources to help entrepreneurs build their ideas and businesses. FIzzle’s focus is on helping “indies” and the podcast reflects this. Nearly 100 episodes are filled with actionable advice such as how to avoid burnout and how to be more effective and efficient business owners.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• The Three Most Difficult Things in Your Business Right Now
• Follow Your Curiosity, Find Your Passion, and Keep It!
• 5 Business Boosters Guaranteed to Give You a Competitive Advantage

a16z

Respected venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (whose list of investments reads like a who’s who of technology) has an equally respected podcast that examines the interplay between technology and business, and how, as their company tagline states, “software is eating the world.”

With topics ranging from current technology obsessions such as augmented reality and more immediately useful things such as brand building, there’s a bit of something for everyone.

Some episodes worth checking out:

• Crisis Communications
• From Hidden Figure to Sonic BOOM
• Build Your Personal Brand

Other resources to find podcasts

With so many great podcasts available there’s definitely one for every need and every taste. If these nine have whet your appetite, check out these sites for more recommendations.

• Product Hunt Podcasts
• PodcastGift
• The Podcast Wire
• Best Podcasts

For something a little closer to home, subscribe to the crowdSPRING YouTube channel for actionable insights on starting and growing your business. And, if you haven’t yet read it, grab your own copy of our latest ebook titled Stand Out: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing and Managing a Successful Business.

Smart businesses apply science to marketing. Relying on psychological research, these businesses adapt marketing strategies to maximize revenues and profits. When companies unlock the innermost secrets of how and why people buy things, interesting patterns begin to emerge.

For example, there’s good empirical data showing the best times and days to send marketing emails to maximize opens and click-through rates. However, as people have grown to more heavily use mobile devices, the science of email is gradually evolving. New research suggests, contrary to conventional wisdom, that many brands can benefit from sending email campaigns at night.

How can you apply scientific wisdom to improve marketing for your business? In this video we look at two approaches:

1. Let data drive your decisions
2. Create and execute controlled experiments.

Watch the video for more detail on these two approaches and how you can implement them in your business.

When perusing our galleries here on crowdSPRING, we see some amazing work submitted in the projects. Today, we recognize this gem submitted in this clothing project:

The challenge of this project was to create a T-shirt/tank top design for a local corporate run. It was an opportunity to show off their company’s new logo and have some fun with incorporate the “run” theme.

Let us start the slow clap for Godfreyw. Check out more great work on Godfreyw’s profile page.

Nicely done, Godfreyw, nicely done!

What does it mean to be a leader?

Truthfully, there are as many answers to that question as there are leaders in the world. And, as an entrepreneur, manager or supervisor, it’s incredibly valuable to know your own leadership style- and to understand your own strengths and weaknesses.  

The most successful leaders do share some common traits. For example, they avoid toxic behaviors that can destroy their teams. They’re good listeners. And they understand the difference between management and leadership.

Seth Godin, in his book Tribes, explains the difference:

Management is about manipulating resources to get a known job done … Managers manage a process they’ve seen before, and they react to the outside world, striving to make that process as fast and as cheap as possible. Leadership, on the other hand, is about creating a change that you believe in.

My thesaurus says the best synonym for leadership is management. Maybe that word used to fit, but no longer. Movements have leaders and movements make things happen.

Leaders have followers. Mananagers have employees.

Managers make widgets. Leaders make change.

Peter Drucker famously summarized this by stating that there’s a difference between doing things right (management) and doing the right things (leadership).

Both management and leadership are important, but of the two, leadership has a bigger impact on the success or failure of an organization. A recent Gallup article reveals that the single most important factor in determining whether your business’s work culture is good, bad or great, is leadership.

Remarkably, 70% of the variance between lousy, good and great cultures can be found in the knowledge, skills and talent of the team leader. Not the players, but the team leader. This is one of Gallup’s most profound workplace breakthroughs.

So, what kind of leader are you?

If you know the answer to this question, you can learn how to get the most out of your natural leadership style. Or maybe, you can even consider adopting a different style that better fits your personality, business or employees.

Here are seven of the most common leadership styles for entrepreneurs and small business owners:

The Autocratic Leader

The autocratic (or authoritative) leader is the stereotypical “bossy” boss. They make decisions on their own and lay down the law. Employees’ opinions are not welcome, but their obedience is required.

The autocratic leadership style isn’t as cut-and-dried as the stereotype would suggest. While it may not be the most diplomatic approach, there are definite benefits to this leadership style.

Pros – Effective autocratic leaders set clear guidelines so that their employees know what is expected of them. This creates a framework for employees to succeed by working toward their assigned goal within those set guidelines. This is particularly useful in situations when the leader is the most knowledgeable person in the group.

Autocratic leadership also allows for rapid decision-making and decisive action since there’s no need to consult or debate with others. It also establishes a consistent vision for the company- the autocrat’s vision.

While authoritarian leadership certainly is not the best choice for each and every situation, it can be effective and beneficial in cases where followers need a great deal of direction and where rules and standards must be followed to the letter.

Cons – The downside to autocratic leadership is that it can leave employees feeling unheard and disrespected. As a result, it’s been found to quash creative thinking in the workplace.  Kendra Cherry of Very Well says of autocratic leadership,

…it tends to create dysfunctional and even hostile environments, often pitting followers against the domineering leader.

What Autocratic Leaders Can Do Better:

When occasions permit, give your employees a voice. Making your employees feel heard will make them feel valued and provide greater job satisfaction.

Mark Murphy, of Leadership IQ shared this advice in Forbes:

While your inclination may be to yell some exhortations to ‘suck it up’ and ‘stop whining,’ that’s the wrong move. Instead, back off a little, break your project into smaller pieces so people aren’t so overwhelmed, and calm your voice… This will give employees a chance to regain their emotional footing, and once that happens, their performance will shoot back up.

The Transactional Leader

Transactional Leadership is based on the very simple concept that work is a transaction. In essence, “You do this for me, and I will give you that.” As a result, transactional leaders need not concern themselves with the nuance of managing each employee based on emotional needs. According to Leadership Central, transactional leadership theory assumes that all employees are motivated by the same rational reward system.

Pros – Transactional leadership establishes very clear roles in the workplace. The leader sets goals and controls the reward, while the employee earns their reward by meeting said goal. And, while transactional leadership can sound very sterile, it can also serve as a great motivational tool.

For example, commission-based positions are transactional in nature. The more the employee sells, the more they make. Having a perpetual carrot dangling ahead of you can produce great results.

Cons – Transactional leadership’s biggest pitfall is that it can be used to manipulate and exploit employees. Without an emotional connection, it’s easy for a transactional leader to view employees merely as the means to an end. When employees cease to be viewed as people it’s easy to limit the reward and increase workload in the name of the bottom line.  

Creative thinking also tends to suffer. Management Study Guide explains:

They do not make an effort to enhance followers’ creativity and generation of new ideas…. Such leaders tend to not reward or ignore ideas that do not fit with existing plans and goals.

What Transactional Leaders Can Do Better:

Invest time in getting to know your employees as people. Hisham Sorour explains in his Linkedin article The Top 11 Ways to Increase Your Employee Loyalty”,

As an employer, you need to understand why your employees are emotionally connected to your business – and it’s generally much more than salaries, training, or benefits. Research shows that emotionally connected employees are the best employees because they are engaged and productive, and they feel validated and appreciated.

Also, find ways of encouraging creative thinking in your office. This is the lifeblood of innovation. Holding a contest (another form of transactional leadership) to reward the most useful creative ideas should be right in your wheelhouse.

The Visionary Leader

The visionary leader unifies their employees to work toward a common vision or goal. Rather than dictating or purchasing their employees’ efforts, the visionary inspires. By sharing an exciting vision- and emphasizing how their employees will play an important role in making that vision a reality- visionary leaders build loyalty and move everyone toward creating his or her shared goal. Visionary leaders do not usually outline specific expectations, instead encouraging their employees to find their own way of doing things.

Money-zine’s definition of a visionary leader states that,

The leader is inspiring in vision, and helps others to see how they can contribute to this vision; allowing the leader and followers to move together towards a shared view of the future.

Pros –  Visionary leadership inspires loyalty to both the leader and to the goal. Loyal workers experience a sense of solidarity with their team and motivation to achieve their goal. This feeling of being part of something larger than themselves can create a great deal of worker satisfaction. And because visionary leaders tend to be pretty hands-off, employees are encouraged to think creatively and find their own solutions.

Cons – Visionaries generally focus on the big picture, not the details. This can make it tough for them to guide their employees through the actual minutiae of how to get from point A to point B. Inexperienced employees in particular may need more hand-holding than a visionary leader is used to providing. Martin Zwilling of Forbes reminds us that

Visionaries typically don’t like running the day-to-day of the business on a long-term basis, and aren’t good at following through.

What Visionaries Can Do Better:

Learn more about the day-to-day details of your business so that you can be a resource for the “how” as well as the “why” and the “what”. And, know your strengths and acknowledge your weaknesses. If details really aren’t your thing, hire someone excellent to manage the details for you. Zwilling recommends,

…the operational expert, who is very good at leading, managing, and holding people accountable…. When a major initiative is undertaken, they will anticipate the ripple of implications across the organization.

The Laissez-Faire Leader

Laissez-faire leadership is all about keeping your hands off and leaving your employees free to find their own way. It’s also known as “delegative” leadership in some circles because laissez-faire leaders often delegate tasks to subordinates rather than retain control of them.

This leadership style requires that you show your employees a lot of trust- if you need to be in control at all times, laissez-faire leadership is not the style for you. But, if you believe in giving your employees the opportunity to excel on their own terms, laissez-faire leadership could be right up your alley.

Pros – Laissez-faire leadership is well received in a corporate culture filled with highly skilled individuals who know what they need to do and how they want to get it done. Hands-off leadership gives these sorts of employees the space and autonomy they need to thrive. Creative employees who feel penned in by normal corporate environments also thrive under laissez-faire leadership because their creative solutions are allowed and appreciated- as long as they get the job done.

Joseph Chris, of Joseph Chris Recruiting Services, writes,

This autonomy can bring about the feeling of freedom among employees, which can help them feel more satisfied with their jobs.

Cons – Not all employees are good at setting their own deadlines, or managing their own tasks and time. If your employees need guidance, laissez-faire leadership can leave them feeling lost and frustrated. Not to mention the fact that it can lead to missed deadlines and stalled projects. Chris also points out that laissez-faire leaders can appear withdrawn and uncaring; which can lead to employees withdrawing and caring less, too.

What Laissez-faire Leaders Can Do Better:

Get to know your employees. That way, you’ll know who might need a little extra guidance and who doesn’t. Of course, that also means that if you have an employee or two that needs extra help, you make sure they receive it. You can spend extra time with them yourself, or make sure that you establish a support structure that can help in your absence. Chris concurs, saying,

If staff members are unfamiliar with the process or task, leaders should take a more hands-on approach, and eventually, as followers gain more expertise, they may then switch back to a more delegative approach.

The Democratic Leader

Image courtesy of Darton Consultants

Democratic leadership strikes a balance between the autocrat and the laissez-faire leader. Democratic leaders value the input of their employees, but reserve ultimate decision-making rights for themselves. In democratic leadership there is less of a distinct divide between the leader and the subordinates, as the leader is willing to participate with (and accept input from) their employees. Groundbreaking leadership researcher Kurt Lewin felt that the democratic leadership style was the most effective. Could this be you?

Pros – Democratic leadership takes advantage of the full potential of your employees. By utilizing their input you stand to gain a wider perspective and learn things you may have otherwise missed. Respecting employees’ input also helps them to feel valued and appreciated- and thus happier in their work roles. Kendra Cherry of Very Well points out,

Group members feel engaged in the process and are more motivated and creative. Democratic leaders tend to make followers feel like they are an important part of the team, which helps foster commitment to the goals of the group.

Cons – Democratic leadership is not the most efficient style when quick decisions and decisive action are called for. And, if you regularly err too far on the side of decision-making by committee, it can really slow your business down.

What Democratic Leaders Can Do Better:

Know when to make the tough calls by yourself. In situations calling for speedy action, you’ve got to be willing to make your own decisions. Former Navy Seal and Forbes contributor Brent Gleeson calls this command decision-making.

Command decision-making… where leaders make decisions without consulting their teams… is an effective style, especially when things are moving quickly and the team is looking for immediate guidance. In a business setting, leaders use this style the most effectively on large financial decisions and in crisis situations.

The Coaching Leader

Image Courtesy of WOC in Tech

Coaching leaders are all about helping each member of their “team” reach their full potential. Coaches believe that their company is at its strongest when each employee’s goals are aligned with the company’s goals. So, they take the one-on-one time to get to know their employees- their passions and long-term goals, their strengths and their weaknesses. Then they invest in real conversation time to encourage employees and develop them for future success.

Pros – Knowing your employees well means that you know who is best suited for tasks as they come up. And, the rapport and trust established in coaching relationships leads employees to feel valued and appreciated in the workplace. Forbes contributor The Muse asserts,

The real benefit of this approach is that you’re not just helping individual employees, you’re increasing the quality and capacity of the entire organization.

Cons – Not everyone wants to be coached. Whether an employee resents authority or is simply uncomfortable with intense one-on-one interactions with their boss, not everyone responds well to this approach. Successful coaching also relies on the ability to establish genuine rapport. If a coach’s social skills aren’t as well-developed as they think they are, coaching sessions may make employees uncomfortable.  And finally, too much coaching can feel a lot like the dreaded “micro-managing”.

What Coaches Can Do Better:

Brush up on your body language skills. Few employees will tell you when your conversation is making them uncomfortable. But chances are their non-verbal language is shouting it loud and clear. In their article Body Language: Understanding Non-Verbal Communication the Mind Tools editorial team explains,

By developing your awareness of the signs and signals of body language, you can more easily understand other people, and more effectively communicate with them.

Effective understanding of body language can help you identify when an employee is feeling intimidated, resentful, or distracted. If you can recognize discomfort in your employees you’ll know when you’re not getting through; and, you can modify your approach accordingly.

The Servant Leader

Image courtesy of Mark O’Rourke

The Servant Leader puts their employees first, believing that it is better to lead by example; and, that by investing in your employee that they will, in turn, invest in you. A servant leader prioritizes the well-being and growth of their employees. The Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership defines the practice this way,

Servant leadership is a philosophy and set of practices that enriches the lives of individuals, builds better organizations and ultimately creates a more just and caring world.

If you lead by example, put your employees’ needs first, and prioritize collaboration, empathy, ethics and trust within your organization, there’s a good chance that you might be a servant leader.

Pros – Putting your employees first can lead to happy employees. And, happy employees have been shown to be more creative, more productive and more likely to be retained. David Burkus, best-selling author of Under New Management, explains,

The assumption is that if leaders focus on the needs and desires of followers, followers will reciprocate through increased teamwork, deeper engagement, and better performance.

But, not only that, the servant-as-leader philosophy espouses a pay-it forward mentality. Meaning, that followers are encouraged to grow as people so that they, too may become servant leaders seeking to improve their world.

Cons – Altruism can come into conflict with the day-to-day decisions of running a business. Servant leaders may regularly be asked to choose between prioritizing the needs of their employees and the most profitable direction for their business. Burkus points out,

Many researchers and theorists argue that servant leaders can become so focused on the needs of their followers that the needs of the organization suffer as a result.

What Servant Leaders Can Do Better:

Remember to keep an eye on the big picture. Always putting the needs of your employees first is a noble pursuit. But, if you let the business go under because the salaries you offer are too generous for your business to afford, you’re not really helping anyone in the long term. So, do what you can to look out for your employees- including being business-savvy enough the keep the enterprise afloat.

What’s next?

With a clear idea of your leadership style, it is up to you to either improve upon your natural style or to adopt the traits of a different style. There is no one right way to be a leader (and often, you must mix the styles depending on the situation or the people who you are leading), but it is always important to consider and understand how your leadership style affects both your employees and your customers.

Are you ready to use your newfound leadership style to start a new business or grow your existing one? Check out our latest ebook by crowdSPRING founder and CEO Ross Kimbarovsky titled STAND OUT: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business.

Great leaders aren’t flawless. In fact, it’s the complete opposite.

Being good at everything isn’t just impossible, it’s unhealthy. When people think that they can do it all, they fail to delegate or trust others- both of which are important skills for great leaders to practice. That’s why the best leaders recognize and work around their own weaknesses.

This isn’t just a theory – research supports this conclusion.

Weaknesses and Strengths Work Better Together

Boris Smokrovic

In a study done by Harvard Business Review, researchers found that combining skills (often a weakness with a strength), resulted in much more effective leadership. The study looked at several attributes of great leaders, including focusing on results and building relationships.

According to the researchers, both skills are qualities of great leaders but are rarely found in the same person. For example, only 14% of leaders with strong skills in focusing on results qualified as “exceptional leaders”. Similarly, only 12% of leaders exhibiting strengths in building relationships classified as “exceptional leaders”.

However, 72% of the leaders who exhibited both skills were “exceptional leaders”. For the most part, these leaders were able to exhibit both skills because they had recognized a weakness within themselves and worked on it, not because they were naturally good at both “competencies”. To learn more about what your strengths and weaknesses might be, check out “

For the most part, leaders were able to exhibit both skills because they had recognized a weakness within themselves and worked on it, not because they were naturally good at both “competencies”. To learn more about what your strengths and weaknesses might be, check out “

To learn more about what your strengths and weaknesses might be, check out “What Kind of Leader Are You? 7 Business Leadership Styles and How to Become a Better Leader”.

Weaknesses Keep You Grounded

Jessica Furtney

The HBR study we mentioned above proved the effectiveness of what psychologists call the “interaction effect”, or the improvement that results from the combination of two variables. While many business experts may argue that these variables stem from strengths, others argue that combining strengths with weaknesses is what truly improves leadership.

Often, revealing and recognizing a weakness grounds leaders in reality, connecting them even more to their customers and employees. Dennis Yang, CEO of Udemy reiterates the importance of breaking down the “strong leader” facade:

If leaders project nothing but confidence — even when everyone knows things aren’t going well — those leaders will lose credibility and mute voices of dissent. So I don’t sweat it too much when I’m feeling less than completely self-assured. It is a good reminder that we’re all part of a group effort, makes me more approachable, and opens the door for others to contribute.

When leaders seem exceptional and strong all of the time and become less believable, then they aren’t truly leading their teams. A leader sets an example and sets a standard, but a leader also encourages and works alongside their team.

If there is seemingly nothing for a leader to work on personally, then they cannot expect their team to work on their weaknesses either. In fact, a lack of understanding or relatability is one of the most toxic traits a leader can exhibit.

Read more about these toxic traits in “4 Toxic Behaviors All Successful Leaders Avoid”.

Weaknesses Encourage Growth

chuttersnap

To build great teams, leaders must understand their own strengths and weaknesses, and also must understand the strengths and weaknesses of their teams.

But a great leader isn’t satisfied with the status quo. People improve and grow by becoming better through personal (and team) growth. Yet personal growth is impossible without recognizing weakness. Ken Blanchard, the author of Great Leaders Grow: Becoming a Leader for Life, says that leaders who fail to recognize their own weaknesses fail to become great leaders:

The biggest obstacle that stalls leaders’ growth is the human ego. When leaders start to think they know it all, they stop growing. Growing for leaders is like oxygen to a deep sea diver. Without learning and growing, leaders die in terms of their effectiveness.

Without weaknesses, leaders risk being arrogant, conceited, detached, frustrated, and completely clueless because they are so disconnected from their teams. With weaknesses, leaders are better equipped to delegate, trust others, and expand their networks.

When leaders are forced to depend on others to fill in the gaps, they learn how to better focus their own time and even better nurture their team’s’ strengths. Having weaknesses doesn’t define a leader as weak; it characterizes a multi-dimensional leader.

Weaknesses also don’t automatically allow leaders to make excuses, they actually force leaders to come up with solutions to fill in their leadership gaps. Without recognizing weaknesses, these gaps are left untouched.

Overall, the real significance behind recognizing weakness as a leader is to create more strengths. It’s not that weaknesses are a good thing to have, though all great leaders have them. The importance is that recognizing a weakness is the first step to creating a new strength or developing a new leadership style.

For more ideas on how to grow as a leader, check out “7 Habits of Highly Effective and Successful Entrepreneurs”.

When we stagnate as leaders, we stagnate as innovators and we prevent our teams and companies from growing with us. If a leader doesn’t grow, then a company rarely grows. Weaknesses force us to create new solutions, embrace others, and be more positive presences in our businesses.

Learn more about being a great leader and running a business in our latest ebook by crowdSPRING CEO and founder Ross Kimbarovsky entitled STAND OUT: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business.

Contracting a celebrity or a big time industry figure to advertise your product or service is often difficult and nearly always, expensive. As a result, few small businesses or startups can afford to leverage influencers.

Given the high cost, how can startups and small businesses actually leverage this marketing strategy?

The solution is to use micro-influencers. Unlike big time influencers who have thousands or even millions of followers, micro-influencers have a couple hundred to a few thousand followers. They are often less popular, less well known, more niche, but still highly relevant to their respective audiences.

According to Digiday, the best follower range for maximum engagement is between 10,000 – 100,000 followers. Fergus Thomas, co-founder of Irban Group, adds that these micro-influencers are not only more effective but feel more authentic:

With the same amount of budget, brands can collaborate with 20 or 40 ‘power middle influencers’ to reach different demographics and see better engagement, compared to one or two celebrities.

With smaller price tags and more follower engagement, micro-influencers aren’t a “second best” option to more popular influencers- they’re often the best option for influencer marketing.

Watch the video for four tips on leveraging micro-influencers for your business.

In one photo, two hands shake firmly, assuring you that a deal has been made. In another, a group of business people stand assembled in varying poses of authority, all wearing similarly satisfied smiles on their faces. Finally, we move on to a photo of a professional-looking young woman wearing a headset. She smiles warmly at you.

It’s hard for stock photographs to look unique, especially when so many of the photos come from the same stock photography websites. Part of what makes a successful brand is its ability to differentiate itself from its competitors. When companies want to stand out, they often turn to illustration.

Why illustration?

Draw me a picture

One of the biggest strengths of using illustration is that it is based on ideas and not reality, as photographs tend to be. They can be crafted to communicate exactly what you want to convey and can often make complex ideas easier to understand. It’s also easier to create a very individual style and feel using illustration than it is with photography.

There is a lot of interesting, effective illustration being used by companies in varying industries. Here are just a few of them.

Shopify

Canadian e-commerce powerhouse Shopify uses illustration throughout their service because, in their words,

“Illustration is a communication tool with three super powers. It can add clarity to a complex idea. It can link concepts to the words we’ve assigned them within our respective products (aka on-boarding). And, it can capture the values and traits of a brand in a single voice, shift the tone depending on the situation, and speak directly to the user.”

They have a delightfully detailed (and copiously illustrated, of course) look at how they recently rethought their “visual voice” that’s very much worth your time.

In the article, Shopify’s Meg Robichaud talked about why Shopify uses illustration in their product design:

“It’s obvious why it is becoming more popular in recent years; straight up: illustration is likeable. You have a greater willingness to try new things when you like them. You are more understanding when things go wrong if you like them.”

Google

Google is possibly the only company famous for dramatically changing their logo on a regular basis. We are, of course, talking about the now-famous Google “Doodles,” where their logo is transformed via illustrations (sometimes animated or interactive) to celebrate a particular event.

Google’s first doodle went live in 1998 to indicate founder Sergey Brin and Larry Page’s attendance at the Burning Man Festival, and their craft and creativity have become more elaborate and impressive ever since.

Another place Google uses illustration is in Google Calendar. When they added Goals as a new feature, they turned to illustration to both inform and inspire. Alessandro Suraci wrote,

“Imagery acts as a bridge between aspirations and the content you see in Calendar, making goals more tangible and actionable — seeing a woman running with her dog for example, might get me off the couch and to the park for an evening run.”

Mailchimp

Mailchimp embraced illustration a long time ago when they adopted a drawing of a friendly-looking chimp named “Freddie” as their mascot and logo. The mascot has become so popular, a vinyl toy version of the mascot has an entire community dedicated to collecting it.

The email service provider helps reaffirm both its ease-of-use and comprehensive services through a combination of the cartoony and beautifully rendered abstract artwork. Their use of illustration is an excellent example of how to use different visual styles to communicate a complex yet fun brand.

Oscar

Navigating the wilds of health insurance is almost enough to cause a condition requiring it in the first place. Insurance provider Oscar tries to make this process feel “simple, intuitive, and human” through big, boldly colored illustrations and no-nonsense language.

After releasing a fresh batch of cartoon ads on the NY subway system, including one with a male patient pulling his briefs away from himself to snap a photo of his crotch with his smartphone, the company saw membership double in a six week period. Impressive results for an illustration of a guy trying to take a photo of…well. You know.

Digital Ocean

If there’s one thread that ties all of these examples together, it’s the idea of taking complex or impersonal concepts and making them clearer and more human.

Web hosting company DigitalOcean calls itself “the world’s simplest cloud platform,” and their style and use of illustrations drives home that theme across all of their documentation. Their use of a cool, crisp color palette alongside relatable imagery helps tie together complex technical information with the simplicity their tagline evokes.

Headspace

One of the benefits of meditation is reduced stress, which we all could benefit from. Part of the challenge is many people find getting started with meditation daunting.

Headspace uses friendly looking illustrated characters and colorful splashes of color that are still easy on the eyes to remind visitors that their approach to meditation is beneficial, simple, and accessible.

James Hamlin at Medium writes, “In the world of apps and web, illustration is often under or over-utilised, but Headspace gets it just right.”

Dropbox

Illustrations don’t need to be complex to be effective. Dropbox started using illustration from the very beginning by using crudely drawn stick figures as a way to make the service seem simple and welcoming. This approach has become an integral part of their brand and has been very effective, as long-time “Black Ops” head Jon Ling noted in a detailed account of Dropbox’s use of illustration:

“I made a drawing for an email campaign sent to people that recently downgraded from Dropbox Pro. The image we made was a weeping PC with a thought bubble with a broken heart inside. People started writing in and tweeting to apologize for hurting us by leaving. Many even resubscribed.”

Illustration, in this instance, was manipulated into an emotional connection between people and product, which far surpassed any connection people might have felt with simple stock photography.

Brush up on illustration

Everyone’s seen the photos of beautiful people who seemingly spend their days hanging out and smiling, or that young entrepreneur sitting in a cafe happily banging away at a laptop. Illustration can give companies struggling for visibility a unique look that can help them stand out. It can breathe life into concepts that are either too dry to hold your customer’s attention, or too complicated that customers get lost in the complexity.

As Vennage noted in its look at design trends for 2017,

“It will definitely help you stand out online. Like many of the trends in 2017, this is a push back on the clean and almost clinical nature of design in recent years.”

If you’re thinking about starting a rebrand or a new design project, illustration might be just what you need.

Ready to create an illustration that perfectly conveys your brand’s unique message? Consider using crowdSPRING’s community of over 200,000 creatives who can help you get professionally designed illustrations for as little as $499.

When perusing our galleries here on crowdSPRING, we see some amazing work submitted in the projects. Today, we recognize a gem submitted in this illustration project:

The challenge of this project was to create an illustration about statistical distribution that conveys the concept that the ‘tail’ of the distribution is out of control. Having a bright fun illustration of a concept for use in presentations, web, and printed materials is a great way to engage and educate clients.

Let us start the slow clap for PaoloRezzani. Check out more great work on PaoloRezzani’s profile page.

Nicely done, PaoloRezzani, nicely done!

‘Burnout.’ We’ve all heard of it. But, what does it mean to be burned out? And why should you care?

Well, burnout is not a matter to be taken lightly; and can pose a serious threat to your career. In her book The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World Christine Louise Hohlbaum describes burnout as:

…a ‘silent condition’ induced by chronic stress that is characterized by emotional [or] physical exhaustion, cynicism and a lack of professional efficacy,

HelpGuide offers additional insight, saying

Burnout reduces productivity and saps your energy, leaving you feeling increasingly helpless, hopeless, cynical, and resentful. Eventually, you may feel like you have nothing more to give.

Burnout can leave you feeling defeated, trapped, detached and unmotivated. It’s no small wonder then, that the phenomenon negatively impacts work performance as well. Procrastination, tardiness, and avoidance of responsibilities are all linked with on-the-job burnout. It can even affect you physically, leading to constant feelings of fatigue, loss of appetite, and frequent illness.

Those afflicted may suffer silently, but burnout isn’t just a personal issue; it directly impacts your business. The American Institute of Stress estimates that stress costs US Industry roughly $300 billion annually as a result of reduced productivity, missed work, and employee turnover and related training costs, among other factors.

According to Amy Blackburn of Business.com,  burnout can even be contagious in the workplace as other employees are forced to pick up the slack of their less productive counterparts. And sadly, burnout can be hard to kick. One study found that burnout is likely to continue once it becomes entrenched. It was found to persist, in some cases, as long as fifteen years!

But, you’ve got a business to run. And you’re not going to let burnout stall your career. So what can you do? Remind yourself that running a business is a marathon, not a sprint. And, prepare yourself for the long run with these five tips.

Be honest with yourself.

Most definitions of burnout include mentions of cynicism. Cynicism is defined as “the feeling of distrust or that something isn’t going to work out well.” A cynical outlook encourages disengagement- because it’s not going to work out anyway, right? And, if it’s not going to work out, then why try?

Arnold Bakker and Patricia Costa explain, in their article “Chronic job burnout and daily functioning: a theoretical analysis”:

Cynicism is a negative or excessively detached response to the work itself and/or to the individuals with whom employees’ interact while performing their job.

In other words, burnout sufferers mentally disengage and as a result, job satisfaction and productivity suffer.

The key to preventing cynicism (and disengagement) is to reconnect with the source- you. Taking the time to really know yourself and your goals will allow you to stay connected with the things that really matter to you, keeping cynicism at bay.

What do you want from life? Is your career aligned with those desires? If not, you may find yourself headed for disillusionment down the road. So, make the changes now that will align your business with your personal passions.  

Are bad habits holding you back? What changes can you make to establish habits that serve you better? Eliminate the friction that negative habits bring to your life and free yourself up for a smoother, more pleasant work experience.

In order to understand your own strengths and weaknesses and to know what you truly want, you first have to be willing to spend some quality time with those issues. Stress and resilience expert Paula Davis-Laack calls this process of being honest with yourself “getting real”. She says,

Getting real isn’t always pretty (which is probably why you’re avoiding it), but true happiness and burnout prevention depend on it.

Know how you work best.

Are you a morning person or a night owl? Are you most productive settling in for long, uninterrupted sessions? Or do you thrive when you take regular breaks to refresh your mind? Working within your ideal circumstances will ensure that you are as productive as possible with as little effort as possible.

So, take the time to figure out what the most productive version of you looks like and schedule your days accordingly. Set yourself up for success by working with your natural productivity cycle and style.

Each of us has a unique circadian rhythm that helps determine when we are most productive. This is called our chronotype.

Scientists are still working to determine how many different chronotypes there are. But, at least three chronotypes are commonly accepted- the standard chronotype (which follows the cycle of the sun), the early-bird or “Lark” chronotype, and the night owl chronotype.

Each person’s day is broken down into cycles of energy and focus. Your chronotype dictates when the peaks and valleys of your cycles will occur. To learn more about chronotypes and how to use them to plan your most productive day, check out this article by Christopher Barnes in the Harvard Business Review.

Also be aware of how you work best. There is no one-size-fits-all answer for how to maximize productivity. Each of us is unique. So, take the time to find out what works best for you.

Productivity guru Carson Tate has pinpointed 4 different productivity styles – the Planner, the Arranger, the Prioritizer and the Visualizer. Each of these has their own communication style, decision-making style, and thrives with their own unique set of tools. You can learn your productivity personality by taking her Productivity Assessment.

As GI Joe used to tell us, “Knowing is half the battle.” Once you know your style you can implement your own set of productivity best practices. Combine your most productive habits with your most productive schedule and you’ll set yourself up for success; reducing stress and preventing burnout along the way.

Recognize and show gratitude for success.

Burnout is often associated with the feeling that nothing you do matters. A great way to counteract that feeling is to acknowledge your victories. Focusing on your successes reminds you that your work really does make an impact, leading you to embrace the meaning behind your efforts.

To achieve the most positive impact, take acknowledgment one step further by cultivating a practice of gratitude. Simply taking the time to be grateful for your work achievements can have a tremendous impact on your overall well-being.

Studies by UC Davis gratitude expert Robert Emmons have shown that gratitude improves sleep quality, overall immune function, and lowers blood pressure. Beyond physical benefits, gratitude also reduces a person’s risk of anxiety, substance abuse or depression over the course of their lifetime. UC Davis Health reports,

Practicing gratitude also affects behavior. Studies have shown that grateful people engage in more exercise, have better dietary behaviors, are less likely to smoke and abuse alcohol, and have higher rates of medication adherence – factors that translate into a healthier and happier life.

The simple act of gratitude can provide a powerful reconnecting force, helping to battle disengagement and cynicism- two key symptoms of burnout.

Find your work/life balance.

With the weight of their business resting solely on their shoulders, it’s remarkably tempting for an entrepreneur to take their work home. But, doing so may do more harm than good. There are truly compelling reasons to establish a healthy work/life balance. Mental Health America reminds us,

In our rush to “get it all done” at the office and at home, it’s easy to forget that as our stress levels spike, our productivity plummets. Stress can zap our concentration, make us irritable or depressed, and harm our personal and professional relationships.

It can also lead to burnout. But, the social connection provided by your family or friends and the relaxation provided by regular breaks and vacations are invaluable.

Vacations provide time for much-needed physical rest and mental/emotional relaxation, not to mention the opportunity to reconnect with family and friends. And, yet approximately 40% of American workers don’t take full advantage of their available vacation time. If you want to avoid burnout, use those vacation days.

Maintaining meaningful social relationships outside of the office gives life purpose and richness. But not only that, a strong emotional support network makes you more resilient to work stresses.

In fact, high social connection has been discovered to lower anxiety and depression, support stable emotional regulation, and maintain emotional and mental well-being. All of these positive benefits help to make you burnout-proof.

So, make time for your friends and family, secure in the knowledge that doing so is a responsible choice. You might even have some fun.

Practice self-care.

Entrepreneurs are used to thinking about the big picture. With so much on their plate – including the well-being of every single employee –  it can be easy to overlook their own needs. In fact, some people view self-care as a selfish act. I know. I used to be one of them.

However, self-care is a responsible and necessary act. Think about it… How long will your car run if you ignore regular maintenance and don’t fill your tank? Self-care isn’t necessarily about indulging yourself. It’s about providing yourself with the regular maintenance and fuel to keep going for the long haul.

In her book Nurturing the Soul of Your Family: 10 Ways to Reconnect and Find Peace in Everyday Life, Renee Petersen Trudeau says that self-care can lead us to “…feel more generous and… avoid building resentments toward others who demand our energy and time.”

Considering how many employees, friends, and family members demand an entrepreneur’s energy and time… that’s a pretty compelling argument.

So what does self-care actually look like? Each person is unique, so there is no one right answer for how to perform self-care. But, embracing healthy habits such as exercising, getting enough sleep and practicing mindfulness are a great place to start.

Aerobic exercises such as running, biking or kick-boxing are not only excellent for increasing heart health (The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes, 5 days a week), they also lead to the release of “feel-good” neurotransmitters in the brain. Endorphins, serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine are produced while performing aerobic exercise.  These chemicals help to regulate your moods. Ryan Collins of Healthline shares,

Regular exercise also helps balance your body’s level of stress hormones, such as adrenaline. Adrenaline plays a crucial role in your fight-or-flight response, but too much of it can damage your health.

Good sleep habits have been shown to increase productivity at work by reducing mistakes and allowing you to refocus more quickly from distractions. Not to mention that sleeping less than 6 hours a night is one of the best predictors of professional burnout according to the National Sleep Foundation.

Developing a mindfulness practice has been linked with decreased anxiety and depression, among a host of other benefits (including improved cognition!) The American Psychological Association defines mindfulness as,“…a moment-to-moment awareness of one’s experience without judgment.” Practices such as meditation and yoga are rooted in mindfulness. 

The APA reveals that making the time to establish a meditation or yoga practice has been shown to reduce stress, negative rumination, and emotional reactivity. Reduced rumination and stress in particular help to decrease the likelihood of developing burnout. Mindfulness also boosts focus, working memory and cognitive flexibility.

The combined effects of good sleep habits, regular exercise, and a mindful perspective can do wonders to ward off stress and burnout. To learn more about wellness and some useful tips, check out our article “Wellness Tips from Successful Entrepreneurs and Health Experts“.

Prevention is key.

Burnout can strike anyone in a state of prolonged chronic stress. But, now that you know the danger is lurking, you’re in a position to do something about it. Following these five tips will ensure that you prevent burnout before it can take hold.

Are you looking for other ways to maximize productivity, improve your leadership, and run or grow your business efficiently? Check out our latest ebook by crowdSPRING founder and CEO Ross Kimbarovsky titled STAND OUT: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business.

It used to be for the young and the ambitious the best advice was to “go west.” Whether heading to Hollywood or moving to America, riches and success were not found in the place you were, but the place you weren’t: just beyond the western horizon.

This romantic notion that the “west is best” still prevails today. Many people still believe the best place for entrepreneurs, especially ones working in technology or seeking funding and network connections, is found in California. The challenges of finding affordable housing and the cost of living have made moving there risky for some, and prohibitive for others.

Fortunately, with the continuing expansion of the global community and our interconnected world, centers of innovation and entrepreneurship are now found in many countries. To paraphrase the Bard himself, “the world is our oyster.”

Here are eleven of the most interesting startup cities in the world:

Melbourne

With a population of 4.1 million, Melbourne, Australia sits in the sweet spot for size when it comes to the startup community. Large enough to uphold a solid standard of living in a city, but small enough to have access to plenty of people, Melbourne balances well enough in size to serve as a hotbed for its thriving entrepreneurial spirit.

Kon Karapanagiotidis, CEO of Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in the city, writes that

“Melbourne is an entrepreneurial city where people are more open than other cities to new ideas and innovation, there is a culture of giving it a go and taking strategic risks. The diversity of the business community, its high desire for engagement, a robust appetite to bring its networks and skills to improve the lives of asylum seekers to enable them to fulfill their potential.”

The strong ‘can do’ attitude prevailing amongst the startups in Melbourne mixed with the wide range of businesses located in the city make it a great choice to launch a fresh new company.

Austin

The Texas capital recently was named the #1 place in America to start a business by CNBC, the top city for “small-business vitality” by the American City Business Journals, and the top city for launching a technology startup by Sungard Availability Services. According to the Fortune magazine, Austin had 44,163 small businesses in 2013–or 2,342 for every 100,000 residents–which is a very impressive ratio.

According to Kevin Johns, Director of the City of Austin’s Economic Development Department:

“Austin is the best place in the nation to grow a small business … because our ecosystem has it all: entrepreneurs, incubators, investors, business school involvement and community-building events.”

The overall culture in Austin is renowned for its supportiveness and inclusivity between entrepreneurs-in-arms. The celebration for its unique culture and flourishing business community is very appealing, and any new startup would do well to consider Austin for their venture.

Stockholm

Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, is quickly breaking out as Europe’s most prolific developer of new tech start-ups. Last year it was named the 8th most competitive city in the world by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Global brands like Spotify, Skype, and SoundCloud all have their start-up roots there, and many others are continuing to emerge from Stockholm’s humble, focused community.

Stockholm is one of the most dynamic start-up cities in the world. Between 2005 and 2012, 6.5% of the world’s billion-dollar exits were from companies that had come from Sweden.

Jens Munch, VP of Strategic Partnerships at iZettle, attributes that to the incredible entrepreneurial activity in Stockholm:

“I believe…Swedish people embrace entrepreneurship. We don’t mind testing ideas out and giving them a go.”

If a flexible but tenacious spirit sounds attractive for your company’s culture, Stockholm might be for you.

Toronto

Toronto is home to Canada’s largest entrepreneur network: a recent report by research firm Startup Genome listed the city eighth in the world for startup ecosystems. Toronto is home to a number of successful venture-backed businesses, such as Shopify, FreshBooks, 500px, Wave, and Wattpad. Toronto was also ranked the sixth-best city in the world for female entrepreneurs in 2016, according to a study by the Dell Women Entrepreneur Cities Index.

Small businesses are an integral aspect of economic growth and job creation in Toronto. The city’s vibrant startup community is increasingly gaining international recognition, and these successes continue to inspire new entrepreneurs in larger numbers every year. The greatness of Toronto’s startup ecosystem is enhanced by a well-educated and globally engaged talent pool, with many area resources available to those who seek to become an entrepreneur.

Toronto is also one of the most multicultural cities in the world, with half the population of foreign origin. This makes for a wonderfully diverse, compelling population; it also provides critical ingredients for a startup business foundation. The undeniable correlation between immigrants’ willingness to relocate (and the inherent intrepidness behind that) and entrepreneurial activity is notable and evident in the broad cultural blend of Toronto.

Berlin

In 2015, Berlin was the fastest-growing startup ecosystem in the world. Startups headquartered in Berlin include Soundcloud, 6Wunderkinder, ResearchGate, and Delivery Hero, among others. Larger tech companies also have major hubs in Berlin, including Microsoft, Google, Lufthansa, and Volkswagen.

Berlin’s startups collected €2.4 billion in venture capital last year, according to Ernst & Young. That beats the numbers from startups in London, Paris, or Stockholm, and while it’s only 9 percent of Silicon Valley’s take, it’s still an impressive number.

The creative industry in Berlin — music, film, art and design — acts as a major draw for the city, attracting artists and entrepreneurs worldwide.

Other attractive aspects of Berlin? A relatively low cost of living and a reasonable visa-application process. Starting a company in Berlin is much easier because you can avoid the typical visa process in the U.S., which in turn garners attention from some of the best talents in the world.

Chicago

We’re proud to include Chicago in our list of the world’s top cities for startups and entrepreneurs. Just a decade ago when we started crowdSPRING, Chicago did not have a strong entrepreneurial community. Today, Chicago stands alone among the “biggest and baddest of startup cities” when it comes to profitability, according to PitchBook.  As recently shared in Inc. by Betsy Mikel:

While San Francisco continues to remain supreme as the biggest and baddest of startup cities, investment research company PitchBook decided to look into other regions and cities just to be sure. Shockingly, they found the Bay Area does not have the highest percentage of profitable startups. What’s more, some of the smaller markets were far more profitable than large cities like New York City and Los Angeles. And the most profitable of all? Chicago.

In Chicago, 45 percent of investments produced 10 times a return on investment. This was far higher than the runner up, Raleigh, where 26 percent of startups produced the same return on investment. Chicago raked in high numbers across the board, with 81 percent of its startups producing between three and 10 percent ayield on initial investment. New York came in third below Chicago and Raleigh.

And while startup resources in Chicago were scares a decade ago, things have changed quite a bit. Chicago’s 1871, created in 2012 to support Chicago’s startup community, ranks 1st in the U.S. among North American Business Incubators and 4th in the world. 1871 is home to hundreds of early stage, high growth digital startups and offers tremendous resources and programming to entrepreneurs at all stages of their startup journey.

Istanbul

Istanbul’s transformation into a startup hub is a credit to its complex, storied, and fascinating culture. Business incubators and accelerators are being created at an increasingly rapid pace in Istanbul, with a growing network of angel investors and mentors fostering a new generation of startups in the city.

Low market competition combined with plenty of available market opportunities make for a fertile environment to set up new businesses. With a youthful population eager to take on uncharted market territory, Istanbul boasts an excellent blend of vigor and promise. Because it’s an emerging market, getting involved now could mean access to many other regions once a stronghold has been established.

In a contribution to Virgin’s series on startup cities, Anastasia Haralabidou writes that Istanbul is “a thriving environment with contagious spirit and running dynamics, where once the ‘gates’ will be widely open it will become the hub where all will be possible.”

For those up for a challenge and ready for the opportunity, Istanbul is calling.

Tel Aviv

With a population of 405,000 and a nearly unrivaled tech startup culture and a sophisticated, talented population, Tel Aviv is frequently cited as one of the greatest places to be an entrepreneur in the world.

Pini Yakuel, CEO of Optimove, describes Tel Aviv as having a strong startup ecosystem with ready access to angel investors, venture capital firms, and talent.

According to Yakuel,

“The high-tech talent is a huge advantage here. Employees here know how to think for themselves, they do not require micro-management, and they naturally take on additional responsibilities when they see the need. All of these are crucial elements to startup success.”

Tel Aviv is unique and offers everything an ambitious, nimble and creative entrepreneur needs to succeed.

London

London isn’t just the capital of England and the United Kingdom, it’s also one of the largest centers for startups in Europe. Between 4,300 to 9,600 startups are active in London, as measured by Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report. That report also notes that as one of the world’s largest finance centers, London’s capacity for venture capital and investment is extensive. “Brexit” may loom in Britain’s future, but many entrepreneurs felt confident that London and its mayor, Sadiq Khan, would “come through with measures to help the startup community specifically in London.”

London’s proximity to Europe means it can attract talent and expertise from a wide variety of cultures, languages, and backgrounds. It has a very diverse population and has a melting pot of experiences to draw from. This gives it an advantage for companies looking to create businesses for a global market. It has travel connections to almost anywhere in the world and acts as an economic bridge between Europe and the United States.

Vancouver

Fears over immigration challenges may be turning Vancouver into “Silicon Valley North,” but this temperate city established its start-up credibility long ago with companies such as Slack, Hootsuite, PlentyOfFish, and Unbouce located there. It also has one of the largest concentrations of video game and digital media companies in the world, with over 800 calling it home.

Vancouver routinely charts as one of the best / most liveable cities to live as measured by the well-known quality of life surveys by The Economist and Mercer.

According to the provincial government, the tech industry employs over 100,000 people in Vancouver. The presence of offices from big names such as Facebook, Google, and Microsoft and the concentration of talent, venture capital, and energy (not to mention its easy access to the west coast and San Francisco) makes it a compelling option.

Silicon Valley

No roundup of startup cities can be complete without mentioning Silicon Valley, equally mythical and mocked. Whether or not you find HBO’s take on Silicon Valley a silly parody or “so funny because it’s true,” there’s no doubting that the region is to tech entrepreneurs what Hollywood is to actors. Silicon Valley (or, if you prefer, the Bay Area), still dominates with nearly 16,000 active startups and two million tech workers, as measured by the Global Startup Ecosystem report.

As the area is one of the key attractors of investment dollars and talent, there has been some high-profile problems recently related to the Valley’s housing market and cost of living, with the New York Times referring to Silicon Valley as a “housing villain.” Even with these challenges, the area is still synonymous with entrepreneurs. The fact that nearly half of the founders in the area are immigrants is a testament to this.

With deep cultural resources, a critical mass of investors, and broad professional networks, Silicon Valley still stands tall as a beacon for the entrepreneurial spirit. Go West, indeed.

Wherever you decide to build your business, make sure you have the resources you need to succeed. Check out our latest ebook by crowdSPRING founder and CEO Ross Kimbarovsky titled STAND OUT: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business.

It’s not easy to name a new company or product.

At times, it feels like every name in the dictionary is already taken. And just when you think you have found the perfect name, you realize that you can’t get the matching domain name.

Naming consultants want to charge you thousands or tens of thousands of dollars to help name your company or product. Few business owners can afford such fees.

There’s a better alternative.

MSNBC recently asked me to share five tips when naming a new product on a budget. The same tips apply when naming a company. Here’s the video from my interview on Your Business with JJ Ramberg on MSNBC:

More than 200,000 creatives on crowdSPRING help the world’s best entrepreneurs, businesses, agencies, and non-profits with company and product naming, logo design, web design, graphic design, and product design.

You can get a great name and matching domain for as little as a few hundred dollars, in just a few days. Naming doesn’t have to cost thousands or tens of thousands of dollars.

In today’s world of technology, it’s easy for companies to dismiss the value of promotional products. Often considered a less effective and more expensive marketing strategy, promotional products are becoming less relevant.

However, as companies turn to internet-only advertising and focus more on things like social media, they risk losing touch with their customers. To a certain degree, promotional products allow companies to connect with their customers more closely, develop brand recognition, and serve as a constant reminder.

A study conducted by BPMA found that over half of the study participants’ impressions improved after being sent a promotional product. More importantly, 79% of participants who received a promotional product said that they would likely become repeat customers. Many of the participants were even able to recall exactly when or where they received the product- and 94% of them never forgot the company that gave them the product.

Clearly, promotional products can still impact how – and with whom – customers choose to do business.

But how do you know what products can best promote your business? And when should you give them out? The issue becomes blatantly clear at networking events or conferences, where seemingly every company is handing out a USB drive, a pen, a mug, or some sort of pamphlet explaining their business.

Sometimes, these products are impactful- but other times they just don’t make sense. And for technology-based companies, physical products can seem confusing and meaningless. But with the right intentions and a clear understanding of your goals, physical swag can be a big enhancement to your marketing efforts.

Try to accomplish these three goals when developing physical promotional materials for your customers:

1. Delight Your Customers

Having great customer service and a fantastic product isn’t enough anymore. With increasing competition across industries, companies are now competing for brand loyalty and positive reviews. The best companies accomplish this by surprising their customers by going the extra mile.

One company, HEX, built their success by handwriting over 13,000 physical thank you notes. The wearable fashion tech brand focused on making their customers feel valued and special by sending each order with a physical thank you note as well as a confirmation email.

Image source: Forbes

While HEX’s competitors may have just sent emails, the personal touch of the thank you note made HEX’s customers feel special and appreciated.

Thank you notes aren’t the only way that companies use physical swag to delight their customers. Many companies choose send welcome gifts, like gift baskets or branded swag bags. This way, customers feel appreciated from day one.

Other companies like Buffer choose to keep a pulse on their customers and potential industry partners via social media, reaching out whenever they feel someone could benefit from a little extra surprise:

We try to ask for an address anytime we get a hint that someone might need swag, for any reason. We also reach out to new faces at our weekly Twitter chat, #bufferchat, and thank them with a personalized note and stickers.

With this philosophy, Buffer customizes their swag according to the customer’s needs and interests, and become the highlight of that person’s day. These random gifts are branded like thank you gifts, but it’s their spontaneity and specialization that truly delights the customer.

As with any company, looking to delight the customer boosts brand impression and typically generates a positive word of mouth.

2. Build A Deeper Brand Connection

According to research on high-impact motivators (read: what drives consumer behavior), brands that enhance and assist these motivators are able to better connect with their customers on an emotional level, which pushes customers to consume even more. And more importantly, the emotionally connected customers had double the lifetime value compared to highly satisfied customers.

One example of emotionally connected customers were people that sought a sense of belonging. To enhance that desire, companies tapped into a group mentality and made customers a part of a family, a team, or tribe. No matter what a brand calls it, that sense of community creates a deeper tie to the customer and can be done in a number of ways- including with physical swag. Again, the initial outreach and special feeling from receiving a gift help customers feel like the brand values them as individuals, and values them more than other brands do. We talked about how promotional products can create a sense of

To enhance that desire, companies tapped into a group mentality and made customers a part of a family, a team, or tribe. No matter what a brand calls it, that sense of community creates a deeper tie to the customer and can be done in a number of ways- including with physical swag. Again, the initial outreach and special feeling from receiving a gift help customers feel like the brand values them as individuals, and values them more than other brands do. We talked about how promotional products can create a sense of

Again, the initial outreach and special feeling from receiving a gift help customers feel like the brand values them as individuals, and values them more than other brands do.

To learn more about how promotional products can create a sense of belonging, read “Can A Hoodie Increase Brand Equity?”

Companies build deeper brand connections in the same way that they delight their customers, with thank you notes or other gifts like notebooks and mugs (depending on the customer). The difference is that physical swag aimed at deepening brand connection is usually more consistent and predictable.

When a company consistently follows through with a signature thank you gift, giveaway at a conference, or other swag, they show a commitment to their customers that goes deeper than just their main product.

3. Provide A Useful Solution

Physical products allow companies to integrate themselves even more into their customer’s lives. Useful products like mugs or pens are likely to be incorporated into the recipient’s daily life and can serve as a constant reminder about your company. Now, your company isn’t only providing the main product or service, but it’s thinking a little bit deeper about what the customer needs. This connection is even more apparent when your swag is compared to other swag. The more useful your items are to your customers, the deeper your care about them shows.

For example, in today’s digital age, giving out USB drives as swag at a conference may not make a ton of sense. With technologies like the cloud or other forms of sharing files, USB drives have become obsolete. And in some instances, traditional USB drives may no longer plug into newer computers, like the new Macbook Pros. If customers receiving the USB drive won’t find use out of it, the product will be a waste.

Instead, companies can find success in useful products by following product trends. Our increasing attachment to our smartphones has caused a market for sticky wallets that stick onto the back of phones or phone cases to hold credit cards and cash. Since these wallets are inexpensive, it makes it easy for companies to offer these card sleeves as promotional products. Now every time someone pulls out their phone or goes to pay for something, they and the people around them are seeing your logo and design, as well as making the connection between utility and your brand.

In the end, promotional products are just one of the ways in which you can promote your business. Whether they are for a conference or a fun surprise for your customers, physical products can help you better connect with your audience. Because even in today’s digital age, who doesn’t love free swag?

For more tips and tricks on running your business, check out our latest ebook written by CEO and founder Ross Kimbarovsky entitled Stand Out: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Starting, Growing, and Managing a Successful Business.

Featured image source: Flickr