Marketing
« Previous EntriesTranslating Marketing Trends for Small Biz, NFPs
Friday, June 25th, 2010The 2010 Kellstadt Marketing Group Symposium held this spring for DePaul University alums, students and grad students offered some intriguing insights into what they called the Next Gen. Much of these sessions serve marketers in corporations looking to expand and innovate on a grand scale. But the Grotto approach is to glean what we can [...]
Right-Size Web Design
Saturday, January 9th, 2010With the arrival of a shiny new year — along with a shiny new decade — the promise of hot tech and the drive for business improvements can inspire many an entrepreneur to take a closer look at the company web site. Would the site deliver better results with some strategic updates? Does the look and [...]
Inclusion Solutions Ups the Access Ante, Debuts Web Store
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009One of the trickiest issues in any web development project is juggling the needs of different types of people who may visit and use the site. Evanston-based Inclusion Solutions provides products that help businesses and buildings open up to people with disabilities. But the Evanston-based company is also an energetic advocate for issues these people face.
Consider [...]
5 Marketing Things to Do Right Now
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009Yeah, we know. “This” economy is a drag. Entrepreneurs like us are scrambling to put their energy and money into best-bets for breaking even, and just maybe branch out into growth areas. But you can and should make time for a few marketing steps that keep your name and services out there. At least pick [...]
BirthLink.com Welcomes New Arrival
Saturday, April 18th, 2009Redesigning the web site for Chicago’s premier birth and wellness resource provider, BirthLink.com, actually took…wait for it… nine months. Grotto partnered with founder Jo Anne Lindberg to rethink how the site was structured and design a robust new portal with easy access to the provider directory and birthing and health info, as well as Jo [...]
Does Your Web Site Need a Check-up?
Saturday, March 21st, 2009
Do you find yourself apologizing for your web site when you send someone to it? (“Just ignore the pictures/flashy thing/out-of-date stuff.”)
Do you feel like the site could actually motivate more people to call or buy?
Does it just seem like the site feels a little dated or out-of-step with what you see on the Internet these [...]
For Small Biz: Marketing Seminar is Exactly Your Size
Thursday, March 5th, 2009Have you ever hesitated before trashing yet another unsolicited email about improving your marketing efforts? Wondering if this one is the one that might really work? Honestly, most of those direct mail tactics are aimed at getting cash away from the desperate. And while many more business owners may be edging toward that scary edge [...]
Connecting Cultures: Brand, Web Site Links Evanston to Tibet
Friday, February 27th, 2009What does Evanston, Illinois, have in common with Tibet? How do you represent the relationship not only between cultures, but between different aspects of a new organization? We recently set out to translate the mission of Tsogyaling Meditation Center of Evanston into a new brand identity and web site.
Founders Asang and Nancy Floy decided to [...]
Mind Your Copyrights: Is Facebook Getting Grabby?
Wednesday, February 18th, 2009Whether or not you have taken the plunge and started exploring the possibilities for smart business marketing among the social networking sites, this news bears watching. This week, a story broke that Facebook recently – and quietly — changed its copyright policies which made it rather unclear as to whether or not they would own whatever [...]
ARTbody Gets in Shape: New Logo, Web Site from Grotto Communications
Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009Angela Renee — creator of ARTbody: Angela Renee Technique, a unique approach to body sculpting — came to us looking to create a brand identity to represent her unique fitness program. Inspired by some sketches of the human form by Angela (she’s an artist as well), the Grotto team crafted a round mark with a curvacious flow. [...]
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