Apto Media

12/11/2023

Moving onto our next adventure…✨

Thank you everyone for your support and love these past 6 years 💙

Don't hesitate to reach out, we’re still here and will answer 😆 We can’t wait to continue to watch your brands grow!

06/04/2023

Great time, great people, and all for a great cause 💙

🏀🗑️ You made a slam dunk! Thank you to the individuals and member businesses who contributed to the chamber team.
Apto Media
James L Hayes CPA & Company
Kenny's Carpet One Inc.
Master It Media
Patterson Auto Body
Schech's Pool Spa and Patio
Sizo Salon
TrueNorth Financial Solutions - Lisa Scully

05/04/2023

Target Audience - another marketing term you probably read and wonder, "wtf does that mean?"

So that we're all on the same page. A target audience is a group of people who share a common interest in your business. This interest could be because your business helps solve their problem(s), fulfills a need(s), or simply provides entertainment.

But how do you know who to target? Create a profile (think of a SIMs character or Avatar). Sit down, grab a pen and paper, and write down everything about your target. Their likes, dislikes, and behaviors ~ think of their day-to-day life, who they interact with, their lifestyle...essentially everything about them.

Once you create their profile, you'll know exactly where to focus your marketing efforts.

If your target audience doesn'tdoesn't like the mall, will you advertise there? No.

If your target audience doesn't like camping, will you set up a booth at a camping conference? No.

If your audience doesn't hang out on social media, will you market only on social media? I hope you know the answer at this point.

Developing a target audience in your brand'sbrand's strategy is essential to growing your business. Everyone is on the same page, you know who your business can help, and your business will grow.

Questions? Jot them down below, and we'll answer!

04/04/2023

Why be ordinary when your brand CAN be extraordinary?

Your brand NEEDS to stand out to grow your business. Why? Because if your brand looks like everyone else’s, how will your ideal client/customer feel any differently about your brand? News flash: they won’t!

So how do you create an extraordinary brand?

By answering these questions:
~ How is your business different from your competitors?
~ What colors, fonts, and content attract my ideal client/customer?
~ What design elements are my competitors NOT using to grow their business?
~ What are my core brand values?
~ Why should clients/customers come to my business?

No business is ever original. But you can have original competitive advantages, ideas to enhance your business, and a refreshing design to attract clients/customers to your business.

Make sense? Ask any questions in the comments below:

30/03/2023

Let’s chat about Working On, In, and For your business ~

WORKING ON YOUR BUSINESS
~ Running the day-to-day operations, checking in with employees, updating your budget tracker, paying taxes, and creating marketing assets. Think about everything internally you must accomplish to run your business.

WORKING IN YOUR BUSINESS
~ Completing client work, fulfilling customer orders, answering customer service questions, and ALL interactions with your clients/customers. Everything externally that makes your business run. 

WORKING FOR YOUR BUSINESS
~ AKA making sure you have a business with purpose. Whether you’re in it to support your family, provide a solution to your clients/customers, or change your industry (just to name a few examples). Ensure you consistently review your business values, mission statement, value proposition, etc.
 
When you accomplish all 3 consistently, your business will GROW!

29/03/2023

The best business growth formula.

Simple, yet it will take time, consistency, and patience. But all these assets are the foundations for your business to grow into a brand for the long term.

THE FORMULA
Brand Strategy + Logo Design + Brand Shoot + Website Design = A business ready to grow

Not sure how? Join our fam of other businesses by signing up for our newsletter. Sent Bi-Weekly (for now, we may switch it up soon), our newsletter gives all the insight on how to grow your business.

27/03/2023

Rebranding.

If you read that word and got a pit in your stomach ~ don’t worry. You’re not alone. And most businesses avoid it like the plague until it’s too late.

Don’t wait until it’s too late and you don’t have any clients/customers interested in your business.

Instead, tackle it head-on and ask yourself:

~ Do I need a quick brand refresh?
Update your color palette, rearrange your logo, get a brand shoot done, refresh your website copy ~ the little updates to make your brand feel more like your business.

OR

~ Do I need to rebrand my business fully?
You’ve updated your services, the brand feels outdated, you’ve taken time off, your branding is starting to look similar to other brands, or (and in our opinion, it’s the worst one) you’re embarrassed to hand out your business card. If your brand has any of these feelings ~ fully rebranding is your only option.

Start rebranding ASAP, so your business feels more aligned with you and the type of business you want to have. You must be proud of your business. Otherwise ~ what’s the point?

22/03/2023

Not having solid foundations will kill your business.

Even with the greatest marketing strategy, your business will NOT grow.

Once we got back to the foundations of Apto, our business grew ~ without using ANY social media.

Swipe through to read the changes that helped us grow our clientele x2 in 2022.

Not sure what foundations to focus on first? Here are our suggestions:

PROFITABLE SERVICES/PRODUCTS
~ Research, create a service/product that helps your ideal client/customer, help them at a low rate, acquire testimonials, double check your profit, repeat.

CLIENT EXPERIENCE
~ Welcome gift, easy way to contact you, and be upfront with how you’ll work together. Transparency and ensuring your clients have an easy experience working with you are vital.

BRAND STRATEGY
~ aka messaging, value proposition, client/customer journey, brand colors, fonts, and more (our guides are 50+ pages of jam-packed strategy)

WEBSITE
~ Have a website that explains what you do, offer, and how to contact you. Start simple (a landing page will do), and then you can add more pages and expand as time passes.

Don’t get overwhelmed. Focus on one thing at a time. Once you accomplish the first task, move quickly on to the next. FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS!

16/03/2023

True: there are a lot of great businesses.

False: there are a lot of great brands.

You can have a great business, but if you don’t have a great brand, your business will never grow.

Brands keep businesses going ~ not just for 1 year but 5, 10, and 15+ years.

So how to create a brand?

~ Brand Strategy
~ Logo
~ Website
~ Branded Content

All are cohesive, consistent, and all help you establish your brand.

15/03/2023

We've seen it before, and we won't do it again.

Not even the best branding in the world will help grow your business if you haven't established it first.

We don't know your business, we don't know your services, and we don't know the direction you want your business to go in.

Only you do. And if you don't tell us, we can't complete the proper research to create the best brand strategy, logo, and website for your business.

Trust us when we say if you're hiring a branding studio to do "all the work for you," ~ your business will never grow.

Not sure if your business is ready? Send through a client application or a DM, and we'll let you know. We'll tell you upfront if you're ready or need more time.

02/03/2023

Just like we told you, we HAVE been working hard.

2022 was our busiest year yet. From working with non-profits, brick & mortar shops, new apps, and service-based businesses ~ we’ve been helping businesses rebrand and grow!

We work with various colors - which website, at first glance, has your favorite color palette? Comment below your favorite!

P.S. Peep the last Carousel slide for a project of our brand we’ve been working on for a while 😉

01/03/2023

Imagine this…

> Your brand is up to date with the 21st century
> You’re excited about your business again - no more “status quo.”
> Your customers/clients notice you’ve rebranded and are eager to work with you again
> You easily attract new followers and grow your business

What may sound like a fantasy to you now, can be a reality.

Not sure where to start with your rebrand? Start with research, redeveloping your brand’s strategy (think mission statement, tagline, mood board), and finally, revise your website.

What’s holding you back from rebranding? Let’s chat about it in the comments below!