Doing some "tooting" at Create Chaos 2008

I just returned from a quick trip to the Create Chaos 2008 conference in Orlando - where I was a speaker. I was only in town for about 36 hours, but managed to get a few of the event activities in during that time.

I thoroughly enjoyed the two keynotes I was able to attend. Bob Kodzis, of Flight of Ideas, was an inspiring speaker to initiate the week of conference activities. Lee Cockerell, retired Vice President of Walt Disney World Resort was able to keep an entire audience of "creative types" entertained with his PowerPoint-free presentation "You Can Create Magic, Too!" I've got his new book, Creating Magic: 10 Common Sense Leadership Strategies from a Life at Disney, on my wish list.

It was great to network with attendees and other speakers (especially coffee with designer Kitty Florido from Guatemala and my quick visit with Justin Ahrens of Rule29), pop in and out of a variety of sessions, and finally meet my incredible hosts Jerry Brown and Dani DeLapi of the conference organizing firm Brahn Communications. I also enjoyed the performance art presentation of the group DRIP at the welcoming reception - which was quickly moved indoors from poolside due to the wind and rain of a thunderstorm.

My well-attended Monday afternoon session, "Tooting Your Own Horn!," covered a wide variety of marketing and promotion methods for creatives. The handout I prepared for attendees presented just a few online resources - most I use myself in the promotion of Jeff Fisher LogoMotives and I am sharing them here.

PR Resources: • PRweb.com • PRLeap.com • FastPitchNetworking.com • HelpAReporterOut.com • I also mentioned Dexinger.com in my presentation as a great site to send design-related press releases for possible publication.

A Google search for "press release distribution" will result in a list of numerous free and fee-based distribution sources for press releases.

Networking links: • Facebook.com • MySpace.com • biznik.com • StartupNation.com • Twitter.com • Oddpodz.com • LinkedIn.com

Portfolio links: • designrelated.com • DesignerID.com • Logopond.com • Coroflot.com • Graphics.com • DesignHide.com • Flickr.com • Carbonmade.com • Ideas.Veer.com • LogoLounge.com

Design links: • Designers Who Blog • Creative Latitude • HOW Design • Business of Design online (BoDo) • Creative Business

Book suggestions:

BRAG! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It, by Peggy Klaus

The Designer's Guide To Marketing And Pricing: How To Win Clients And What To Charge Them, by Ilise Benun and Peleg Top

The Graphic Designer’s Guide to Creative Marketing: Finding and Keeping Your Best Clients, by Linda Cooper Bowen

I wish I'd been able to stay in Orlando longer. However, previous engagements required that I jet back to the Pacific Northwest. I do look forward to future Create Chaos conferences.

© 2008 Jeff Fisher LogoMotives

Resources from "Reaping the Rewards" at theCreative Freelancer Conference in Chicago

As a speaker, I had a great time at the Creative Freelancer Conference. It was incredible sitting in on the presentations of the other presenters, meeting so many of the participants in person, having the opportunity to answer so many of your questions on a one-to-one basis, and getting to review some great design and photography work.

In the course of my presentation "Reaping the Rewards of Creative Independence," and my "Marketing Through Social Networking" roundtable, many Creative Freelancer Conference attendees requested additional information. I mentioned I would make links to those resources available.

Many people requested the handout I created for the social networking roundtable. That information is available in my blogfolio post "Marketing through social networks & social media."

I was also asked about the online portfolios I use to market my identity design work. That information may be found in the article "Marketing logo design efforts with online resources." The marketing packet I send out to potential clients is described in the entry "Prepare for any marketing or promotion opportunity with a customizable "media kit."

A few of you requested a copy of my project agreement - which includes the wording of the rights clause I include to ensure I can use all work for self-promotion purposes. The text of my contract is detailed in the piece "Signing on the dotted line…"

StartupNation and biznik were the two general business networking sites I discussed in my presentation. "Real world" networking events are a possibility in your local area as a result of biznik, if there are enough nearby members. The organization for creatives working for, or with, colleges is the University and College Designers Association.

About every 30-45 days I post an updated list of design industry competitions and book submission calls-for-entries on bLog-oMotives.

I did have questions about my personal Facebook presence and my Jeff Fisher LogoMotives Facebook Page. These are two different entities - and any Facebook member may have a personal profile and a business Page.

A review of previous bLog-oMotives entries about the Creative Freelancer Conference will also provide information covered in my presentation.

Several people asked about any upcoming speaking engagements I may have on my schedule. On Monday, October 13, 2008, I will be making a presentation on self-promotion at the Create Chaos 2008 event in Orlando, FL. I will be conducting a day-long workshop on identity design on Thursday, October 16, 2008, at the School of Visual Concepts in Seattle, WA.

I hope that all attendees got a great deal of value out of the Creative Freelance Conference. I really appreciate all the feedback I have received in the form of emails, posts on forums and other sites, and in person from those participating in my roundtable and attending my session. Thanks also for the many positive comments about my books, blogs and forum postings.

I would like to thank my friends Ilise Benun and Peleg Top of Marketing Mentor, the entire staff of HOW Magazine, my new unimaginary friend Colleen Wainwright (aka "the communicatrix"), all the other speakers and the conference sponsors, for putting on a really great creative industry event.

© 2008 Jeff Fisher LogoMotives

Toot! Toot!*: Designer and author Jeff Fisherto speak at Create Chaos 2008 conference

Jeff Fisher, the Engineer of Creative Identity for the Portland design firm Jeff Fisher LogoMotives, will be a speaker at the Create Chaos 2008 conference to be held October 13-17, 2008 at the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, FL. In his session, Tooting Your Own Horn!, Fisher will share tips and anecdotes about promoting oneself through press releases, writing articles and books, making use of social networking and social media, blogging, design competition submissions, and being prepared when the media calls to give your business major exposure.

Create Chaos 2008 is a five-day creative industry destination event produced to inform, inspire, educate, and connect creative professionals across industries through an all-inclusive event. Create Chaos serves as a spark to ignite a new renaissance by bringing together creative professionals across industry boundaries including: graphic design, advertising, film and video production, animation, photography, printing, Web, and publishing professionals.

Produced by Brahn Awards & Events and partners, the Create Chaos experience features the following conferences and events: The Creative Suite Conference, Printing+Paper+Packaging Design Conference, The Vector Conference, Stash Theatre, CreativeHeads Job Fair, The Web Design Conference, MGFest, The Pixel Conference, and more.

Registration for Create Chaos 2008 is now live on www.createchaos.com. Attendees may register directly online, or download the physical registration form. There are a variety of registration options for attendees to choose from — full-conference registration, three-day registration or single-day registration — depending on areas of interest and budget. Prices and descriptions are all available online, along with a list of important pre-conference dates. This recession-busting conference reduces travel and registration costs by co-locating several conferences, allowing for All-Access, Full-Conference passes to be available for one price, with one badge.

Jeff Fisher has received nearly 600 regional, national and international graphic design awards for his logo and corporate identity efforts. His work is featured in over 100 books on the design of logos, the business of graphic design, and small business marketing. He is a member of the HOW Design Conference Advisory Council and the UCDA Designer Magazine Editorial Advisory Board, and served on the HOW Magazine Editorial Advisory Board. His latest book, Identity Crisis!: 50 Redesigns That Transformed Stale Identities into Successful Brands, was released in 2007 by HOW Books. His first volume, The Savvy Designer’s Guide to Success, appeared on bookstore shelves in late 2004.

(* If I don’t "toot!" my own horn, no one else will.)

© 2008 Jeff Fisher LogoMotives