You have, no doubt, heard the words “brand” and “branding” used many times. Probably even every day! But have you ever stopped and asked yourself what exactly these terms really mean? Unless you are an expert in the fields of marketing or advertising, it’s very likely that your understanding of the word “brand” is a little bit muddled. And it isn’t your fault! In fact, the definition of what a brand is, and of what it means to brand something, has come to mean different things depending upon who you ask.

Some say a brand is a recognizable symbol, logo, or trademark that identifies a company’s product or service. Others will tell you a brand is the experience and perception of a product or company with a particular name. Still other resources combine those two meanings when defining what a brand is. These descriptions are not inaccurate, but they are a bit…dry. At Liquid Creative we prefer looking at the concept of branding in a somewhat simpler, more straightforward, way. To us, a brand is the promise of a unique experience, delivered. By the term “experience,” what we mean is a human experience, something that enhances our lives and effectively fills a specific need.

So, now’s the time to ask yourself…”Does my company’s brand do this?” If not, or if you aren’t totally sure, it may be helpful to take a look at the following tips for how to successfully build a small business brand in 2017.

• Stand Out from the Crowd! What’s your angle? What makes your business unique? What do you do that your competitors don’t (or can’t) do? Be sure to get this across in your messaging!

• Create an Online Community. Rather than spending massive sums on traditional advertising, many companies are focusing on building and improving online networks and communities. This is because if people trust a brand’s community, this will extend trust to the brand in an organic (and inexpensive!) way.Small businesses can build online communities via blogs, as well as with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest and more. Select one or two online forums that make the most sense for your business, and invest your time and resources there.

• Provide Top-Quality Products and Services. This one may seem obvious, but it’s absolutely vital! Even in today’s fast-paced and ever-changing business environment, there is still no substitute for offering fantastic products and services. You cannot grow a strong brand while providing only average or below average products or services.

• A Great Name (and Logo) is Everything! Strong brands are easily recognizable, and this truly begins with what you call your business and how you choose to represent it visually. As you consider the right logo for your company, keep your target audience in mind. The best logos appeal to (and build trust with) those you wish to reach, and a strong logo will help to pull your brand together.

• Embrace Customer Empowerment. This may come as a surprise, but the truth is that you are not actually in total control of your own brand. You can (and should!) be at the forefront of setting your brand’s course, but how your brand is perceived is actually determined by your clients. Therefore, it is invaluable to encourage fans of your products, services and brand to become your ambassadors and to spread your ideas and brand throughout their own networks. Taking the time to build and develop relationships with such people will, in turn, help your brand succeed.

Need help branding your business this year? Contact the Liquid team today and let us help you make 2017 your company’s best year yet!

Liquid Creative is proud to be a locally owned firm doing business here in gorgeous Gainesville, Florida. This is an amazing city with a ton to offer for anyone who is looking to get creative, learn something new, and be inspired and entertained. In honor of Gainesville, and in the name of creativity, the Liquid team has compiled a list of just a few of the awesome places you can go to inspire your imagination in Gainesville.

The Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention

Head to the Cade Museum where you and your family can enjoy classes, programs and exhibits designed to create “purposeful creativity” for museum visitors. They have a mission to inspire creative thinking — the kind that leads to “great inventions, new businesses and ideas that change the world”. The Cade Museum is located on South Main Street in downtown Gainesville.

University of Florida Performing Arts

The UFPA presents programs in the Phillips Center, University Auditorium, the Baughman Center, Squitieri Studio Theatre, as well as the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, so there’s always something exciting and inspiring going on. UFPA performances feature dance, music, theater and every other kind of artistic expression imaginable, so you can experience a million different ways to be inspired.

GFAA Gallery

We might be a bit biased, seeing as our office space is shared with the GFAA Gallery, but it’s still safe to say this is an amazing place to relax, get introspective and experience local art. Along with displaying beautiful artwork, the GFAA Gallery also makes art available for purchase and holds workshops and seminars. It’s located at 1314 South Main Street (just like us!)

Sweetwater Wetlands Park

If you’re in the mood for a little outdoor inspiration, consider spending an afternoon exploring Sweetwater Wetlands Park. Completed just last year, this park is a 125-acre man-made wetland habitat. Along with offering up gorgeous scenery, the park also serves to restore the natural water flow to more than 1,300 acres of formerly drained  wetlands in Paynes Prairie and protects and improves water quality in the Alachua Sink and the Floridan aquifer. What’s more inspiring than that?!

Florida Museum of Natural History

Whether you’re looking for a fun day out with the family, or a unique destination for a date, the Florida Museum of Natural History has got you covered. And admission is free! The museum features limited-time-only featured exhibits (such as the Wicked Plants display that is currently running), as well as eight permanent exhibits including Florida Fossils and the ever-popular Butterfly Rainforest, as well as several outside areas to explore. You’ll have fun while learning more about the history of our state!

While the above list represents a few of the many places we love to visit in town, we are the first to admit that this list is nowhere near exhaustive. We’ve barely scratched the surface when it comes to innovative, inspirational locations and activities to pursue in Gainesville. Please do us a favor and let us know in the comments about your own favorite creative local destinations.

Click here to view past Liquid blog posts!

Last month, on Friday, June 10th, Liquid Creative was excited to participate in the “Keep it Pleasant” NeighborWorks Week event to help preserve the Pleasant Street Historic District in Gainesville. More than 100 total volunteers turned out for the event, which was put on by the Neighborhood Housing & Development Corporation (NHDC). The Liquid team had a ton of fun working alongside the other volunteers to make a difference in our community! It was truly inspiring to join so many people who wanted to help and who all shared a mission to contribute to the preservation of one of our city’s most historical neighborhoods.

Due to the outpouring of volunteers, the NHDC reports that service projects were able to be carried out on three complete homes in the Pleasant Street District. Liquid team members donned sunscreen, water bottles and paint brushes and assisted with exterior and fence painting from 9 AM to 1 PM. And we were in good company! Volunteers from Lowe’s Home Improvement and CoverAll Painting and Repair donated project materials and were also on-site taking care of landscaping, repairs and overall yard beautification. Other sponsors included Valspar Paint, GRU, BBVA Compass, YouthBuild and the Alachua Habitat for Humanity.

As a small local business, Liquid Creative values the opportunity to partner with others in giving back to our community. This was the first large-scale community service event that we participated in as a full team, but it definitely won’t be our last! If you or your organization is interested in volunteering with the NHDC, you can visit their website at http://www.gnhdc.org/ for information on upcoming events.

You can view more pictures of the Liquid Team taking part in this awesome community event on our Facebook page, be sure to Like us while you’re there!

Last month on May 5th, Liquid Creative partnered with the GFAA to host our first annual Cinco de Mayo party at our new shared office location on South Main street. The party was the Liquid team’s first big event held in the new space – but it certainly won’t be the last! We were thrilled to welcome more than a hundred clients, friends and neighbors to celebrate with us, and we could not have been happier with the results of our first festive get together.

Mexican decor, colorful costumes, tasty food and live music were in full swing all evening; it was an awesome opportunity to relax with guests and utilize our renovated space to have some fun! Beer was provided by our friendly neighbors from First Magnitude Brewing Company and members of the GFAA (whose brand new gallery shares our office space) were busy mixing up fresh margaritas all evening. We were lucky enough to get the popular Gainesville band Ramos Pinta to play their signature style of Latin music out on the patio. Also set up in our outdoor space was local food truck Cilantro Tacos, who served up their delicious tacos, burritos and quesadillas to a line of hungry guests throughout the evening.

Needless to say, it was a super fun fiesta and the whole team at Liquid Creative can’t wait for the next excuse to celebrate. If you missed our Cinco de Mayo celebration, there’s no need to worry. We love a good get together and it won’t be long until the next one! We will always promote our events and parties on our Facebook page and via email, so be sure to come out and join us at the next celebration.

Photo: Shutterstock

There’s something about being a creative person that influences your thought process.  Everyone is creative in their own way, but for some it comes more easily because they embrace the creative process. The creative thought process is, well, different. The things a creative person does and the decisions they make are influenced by their train of thought.

In the 1960’s, psychologist and creativity researcher Frank X. Barron conducted a series of experiments on some of the most renowned thinkers of the time in an effort to understand the creative thought process. From his study, Barron concluded that intelligence plays a very modest role in creative thinking. He discovered that intellectual, emotional, motivational, and moral characteristics as a whole influenced creativity. Barron also found that common traits people across all creative fields had in common included an openness to one’s inner life, a high tolerance for disorder, a preference for complexity, the need for independence and a willingness to take risks.

Contrary to popular belief, the creative process draws on the whole brain. Yes, your right brain may be the more creative side and your left brain the analytical side, but they work together during the thought process. The whole brain’s default mode network is particularly important for creativity because it engages many regions of the medial surface of the brain in the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. This region of the brain engages with the brain’s executive network, which is responsible for controlling our attention and memory. This helps one focus on their imagination and inner experience while performing daily activities. These brain functions come together as one to create an intricate thought process that separates creative individuals from the rest. Although everyone is different, some characteristics remain true for all creatives.

• They find inspiration everywhere. They never know when their next “big idea” will happen.

• Daydreaming is their biggest hobby. They can fly away with their thoughts at any given moment.

• When they fail they try and try again. It’s definitely not easy for a creative, especially in a professional career. Every creative has failed and been rejected but they continue to make it work.

• Where most people see a difficulty, they see an opportunity. Creatives tend to do well at problem solving and finding solutions to otherwise difficult situations.

• They are great observers. Paying attention to detail is an important characteristic of creative individuals because basically anything and everything can be inspiration for their next idea.

Embrace your creativity! See if there is room for you to step out even further from your comfort zone. Push yourself and let your whole brain wander for a bit. Creative thinking is an integral part of the work that we produce and we’re proud to work in a creative environment where everyone’s ideas are heard.

The Liquid Creative team was beyond thrilled to get the opportunity to work on the FY15

Annual Report for the Gainesville Community Redevelopment Agency. Not only was it a total honor to get to work on a project promoting the achievements of such an awesome organization, but we got to create an exciting, interactive decoder map and wear funny glasses in the office for weeks…what’s not to like about that?!

Our task was to develop a fun, eye-catching and informative way to tell the story of everything the CRA accomplished in FY15. (And they accomplished a lot!) The CRA worked insanely hard on redevelopment projects in College Park/University Heights, Downtown, the Eastside and Fifth Avenue/University Heights. Their projects included the Bo Diddley Plaza Renovation, the Porters Community Project, the NW 3rd Avenue Sidewalks, and so many others. And every project is featured and described in our “Uncover GNV” interactive decoder map! It was tons of fun getting to use creativity and collaboration to highlight Gainesville’s urban revitalization in this colorful, playful format. Kudos to the CRA for all their hard work, as well as for being a fun-loving group who takes such a fresh approach to their Annual Report.

It was a pleasure to work on this project, and the whole Liquid team could not be more proud of how it turned out! Drop by the CRA office or Bo Diddley Plaza to pick up a hard copy and a pair of glasses for yourself. You’ll have a blast while you learn all about what the CRA does for our community!

The soul of any business is positive company culture. It’s what measures a company’s mission, supports company values and shapes what a company is all about. Company culture dictates how people work, think, interact and create within a business. Especially for newer businesses, nothing is more influential than company culture.

A strong company culture helps businesses attract new employees and retain current employees. We all know the saying “the company you keep reflects your personality”; well this applies to company culture as well. Employees are the backbone of a business. Building a great work environment where employees trust their employers, take pride in their work and genuinely enjoy their job and the people around them will ultimately foster a positive company culture.

As well as maintaining a strong employee base, company culture also shapes the way people perceive a business and impacts their overall image. In a world that’s always tapped in to social media, employees and clients are constantly broadcasting their experiences for the world to view. In effect, a company’s employees are the face and voice of a business, and maintaining a positive company culture helps to ensure that they are sending out the right messages to the world.

How exactly is company culture fostered and maintained within a business? Encouraging open communication is key! With communication lines flowing, collaboration is cultivated to create a strong community bond amongst employees. Afternoon outings, fun team-building activities and holiday office parties are great ideas for strengthening communication and boosting morale.
The end result of fostering a positive company culture is a group of people who sincerely care about one another and who have goals to execute exceptional work for their company and their clients.

At Liquid Creative, this is what we’re all about. We asked our team to describe Liquid Creative’s company culture in one word and here is what a few of them had to say: fun, collaborative, energetic, innovative and multifaceted!

Millions of Americans gathered behind their TV screens to watch the Panthers and the Broncos battle it out during Super Bowl 50. With Broncos quarterback, Peyton Manning, looking to end his monumental career with a bang, and Panthers quarterback, Cam Newton, hoping to squash those dreams, the game was definitely one for the books.

At least, that’s what we heard. The Liquid Creative team spent more of our time analyzing our favorite Super Bowl commercials! For some, Super Bowl champions are crowned on the field. For us, the true champions are showcased during the commercial breaks. Although we did see some lackluster ads during this year’s Super Bowl, some brands definitely brought their A-game. The overall trend of this year’s ads seemed to be to keep things light and humorous, whether that be through hybrid animal creatures or another Steve Harvey mishap. Here are our top five favorite campaigns from Super Bowl 50.

1. T-Mobile “Drops the Ball”: Poking fun at Steve Harvey’s recent Miss Universe blunder that caused quite an uproar, this commercial blames Verizon for his mistake. Congrats Steve Harvey, we can agree with the masses on Twitter and say that you have definitely been redeemed.
2. Hyundai “First Date”: It seems that any ad featuring Kevin Hart is a fan favorite. In this spot, Hart kindly gives his teenage daughter’s date the keys to his Hyundai Genesis. What the teen doesn’t know is that this new Hyundai has a Car Finder Feature so Hart can track every step of his daughter’s date night. A fun and clever way to highlight the car’s new feature, this ad was amusing and informative.
3. Mountain Dew “Puppy Monkey Baby”: No, you were not the only one wondering what you just saw after viewing this, but that’s exactly why we love this ad. Mountain Dew’s interesting approach of introducing a hybrid creature to highlight their drink’s combination of juice, caffeine and Dew was strange yet somehow memorable.  
4. Avocados from Mexico “Avos In Space”: I mean, who doesn’t love a good avocado commercial featuring aliens looking back on Earth’s history? This hilariously odd commercial takes a spin on the life of humans and some of our ridiculous trends including the white and gold dress argument, solving a Rubik’s Cube, Chia Pets, and (of course) Scott Baio. The greatest accomplishment of all mankind turns out to be guacamole. We see what you did there, Avocados from Mexico.
5. Doritos “Ultrasound”: Last but certainly not least, Doritos knows how to get people talking about their brand. This ad, which involved a father-to-be eating Doritos while his wife receives an ultrasound, prompted a shocking response when their unborn baby reached towards the bag. After all, who doesn’t want a Dorito?!

Photo Credit: designmilk

“Hey what time is it?” Time for you to get a watch…or perhaps something even better!

If you’re anything like the majority of society today, new technology holds the equivalence to chocolate; you don’t necessarily NEED it to live but you crave it when you don’t have it.

Wearable technology is beginning to grow in popularity and the functions these devices provide can range from simply keeping time to regulating sleeping patterns. Sounds like something from the future, right? Warable.com recently released a list of 50 Wearable Game-changers for 2015 and we picked a few of our favorites. So check out the wearable devices that can satiate those technology hunger pangs!

Whistle. Keep track of your furry companion with this activity monitoring tech device for your dog! Able to monitor behavioral trends, levels of activity, rest and overall health, this little color accessory links right to your smartphone in an app. Attach the device to a collar of any kind and see how your dog is doing over extended periods of time! While being waterproof and rechargeable for over 7 days of data, this little device might teach old dogs a new trick or two about their pet’s well-being. Want an excuse to learn more and watch cute dogs? Check out their website.

Ringly. Want to get out of the habit of constantly checking your phone for  missed calls or social media notifications? This is the wearable device for you! Ringly is a ring that syncs with your mobile device and notifies you when you get messages, voicemails or any other alerts on your phone that you can customize in the corresponding app. Doubling as a stylish ring, Ringly is available in 5 colors and 4 different vibration patterns.

GoPro Hero 4. We couldn’t have a list of wearable tech devices without the GoPro. The ultimate action-capturing camera, the GoPro Hero 4 can shoot  4K video at 30fps. In other words, it has extremely high performance quality, especially for such a small device! Great for scenic vacations or epic selfies, this wearable is sure to capture some great memories.

Moov. Get a personal trainer without the hassle of being followed around by a sweaty, over-energized, aggressive coach? Sign us up! Moov is the ultimate wearable for tracking your workout and recording reps, calories burned and progress while coaching you with advice for a better exercise regimen. Able to analyze your movements through 3D technology, Moov helps optimize your workout to help you get the results you strive for.

If you drink Coca Cola or live by your social media accounts, you’re probably familiar with the  “Share a Coke” campaign. In  2014, Coca Cola brought  people together one can at a time by printing thousands of names across their product and distributing them across the nation.

People flocked to social media to share their customized soda can, many people getting creative and incorporating the campaign into their weddings, graduations, baby reveals and other memorable life events. After all, there is nothing quite as exciting as getting to find your name at the grocery store!

However, an ad agency in Mexico named Anónimo recognized that not everyone gets to experience that joy of seeing their name on a can because not everyone gets to experience seeing. That’s when the agencies came up with the idea of printing braille on the sides of Coca Cola cans so that blind people could join in on the joy too!

Anónimo  teamed up with Coca Cola to then bring the braille-enhanced experience to Fundación ProCiegos, a company that specializes in training the blind to be able to transition into the workforce.  With a successful first run, they eventually expanded the campaign to movie theaters in Mexico as well.

In Argentina, an agency named Geometry Global followed in Anónimo’s footsteps, printing personalized braille Coca Cola cans for the blind soccer team in the area.

Take a look here: