Design. All important and all critical to the success of your business.

Design as function, that is. Design that makes sense of what your business needs to say and how best to say it. Design that establishes a content hierarchy so navigation is efficient and intuitive, allowing people to find what they need without extra precious seconds wasted. Design that is not mere surface decoration, an off-the-shelf theme or the latest shiny bells and whistles, but design that clarifies and never obscures. Design that engages and yes, looks absolutely terrific as it persuades and accomplishes the business objectives set forth at the outset. 

Design that understands the big picture and how each website, each social media channel, each ad, brochure, sign, exhibit and business card are not separate entities but facets of a crystal where the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts. This is your brand and is what will resonate in a noisy world if applied smartly, cohesively, and consistently.

In short, I am talking about design that makes your business sing. Nothing more, nothing less. The most admired companies in the world do it. You know them well and they know the power of design. It is part of their culture and in their DNA. You know them well because of the power of design. Whether your business is large or small doesn’t matter — the principles are the same. Isn’t it time you did the same?

Think design. Bring it into the earliest phases of your business strategy and listen to the pros, not the hucksters. And I know you have impeccable taste and two eyes just like anyone else, but please do not think that you can “do design” yourself. Yes, I know you know PowerPoint and maybe even a little Photoshop — well, not to be insulting, but you don’t know what you don’t know. Playing around with software, widgets and tools is not design any more than wielding a brush is painting. Respect yourself and your business enough to entrust the difficult work of design to a trusted, dedicated professional who has the talent and experience to do it right.

Effective design also incorporates solid marketing principles and communication skills. It values client input, understands market trends, analyzes the competition, pays attention to metrics, utilizes and optimizes for the latest technologies, accommodates manufacturing concerns, respects budget restraints, meets real-world deadlines, stands on its head, rubs its belly and chews gum all at the same time. Left brain meets right brain. Design does all these things and if it sounds like a challenge, it is! But it can be done with the right team. 

So what are you waiting for? Got design?

I know what you're saying: email has been around since the beginning of time so what’s to know? Well, yeah it has. :-)

So then... why can't people get it right? I see emails every day that violate the most basic tenets of communication and disregard simple common courtesies.

Just like social media, common courtesy applies and if you behave in a way that doesn't fly in real life, you're probably doing it wrong. If you don't want to be a dumbass...

1. Respond
You should usually be able to get back to someone within a few hours. If you can't, let them know you received their email and will respond more fully later. If on vacation with limited access to email, let them know that too. Bottom line — respect people and their time: after all, they took the time to contact YOU! Let them know they exist.

2. Reply all
If other people are cc’d in an email, don't forget to hit “reply all” when responding. Simple. Otherwise people are left out of the loop and well… you know what you’ll look like then.

3. Get to the point
Nothing is worse than long emails, especially when they're loaded with verbose redundancies. Emails should be succinct and to the point. Sometimes longer emails are inevitable, but you risk looking like a… yeah, you know.

4. Use meaningful subject titles
It's the most effective way of finding emails later and keeping a tidy email thread. It's a lot easier to search for an email with the relevant topic named in the subject line rather than trying to find something generic in a haystack.

5. Include your contact info
Rather than forcing more email and wasting time just trying to ascertain basic info, include these vitals at the bottom of every email.

6. Create a branded signature line
Taking the need for contact info one step further, emails are powerful branding touch points, especially if they include your company name, logo, website url and social media links.

7. Never email sensitive subject matter
When you least expect it, and usually at the worst possible time, that little rant you couldn’t resist putting in writing and send to a confidant will unwittingly be passed on. Avoid this potential business and social embarrassment by never sending this stuff through email. Otherwise, you know who’ll be the real… you got it!

8. Save important emails as text files
This is a smart thing to do with emails that you will likely need to refer to or repurpose for another need. For some reason, these are the emails that always have a way of getting lost or trashed. Just save them to relevant folders and they will be there when you need them.

9. Craft emails carefully
A clear, well-conceived business email takes time but saves time in the long run. Good emails can serve as powerful reference documents/checklists for getting a job done quickly and efficiently, especially when multiple people are involved. Bad emails waste valuable time by confusing people and generating more questions and more emails — you know what they’ll call you then!

10. Cover your butt
Forgetting to document the important steps along the way of an important project is a big no-no and can cause serious business woes. An email trail can be very handy when handling delicate business matters and vindicating you if necessary, especially when big bucks are involved and people start pointing fingers. But since you have what you need in writing, you’re covered!

11. Answer all questions
This is a pet peeve, as I often need specific questions answered before I can proceed to the next phase of a project and meet the deadline (usually the same one imposed by the very same person I am emailing!). Answering only some of the questions doesn’t cut it and wastes valuable time with more back and forth when it could have been handled in one email exchange.

12. Write complete, grammatically-correct sentences
This still counts, especially in the business world. Spell out words — texting lingo doesn't fly and if you use it, you will look like a real… YUP!

So what have I left out? I’m sure there are a few — let me know in the comments below because we all need to do our best in protecting each other from being that most vile of living beings… a dumbass.

Feeling pretty good about yourself? Now lookup “dumbass” in the Urban Dictionary and see what it says.

Today Google+ made an update and changed all the sizes for your profile images. The new art required is broken into three definitions and sizes:

1.  Profile picture — larger than before with a minimum upload of 250 pixels X 250 pixels and a recommended format of jpg or png.

2.  Cover photo — a large panoramic style photo that goes behind and extends past your profile picture on the right side. This new format ties the images together nicely, making a lot of impact. It can also create a beautiful branded image for you and/or your company. The size is 940 pixels X 180 pixels and the recommended format is either jpg or png.

3.  Scrapbook photos — these can either be five individual photos or one large photo cropped into individual squares that are 110 pixels X 110 pixels. The recommended format is jpg, png, or gif.

So, you have the option of using one large cover photo, five individual photos or five coordinated photos that make one long image (see image above). The cover photo is deeper and extends further across than the scrapbook configuration with the five square photos.

Once you have chosen your photos, go to the profile and click “Edit Profile” to edit your photos. Alternatively, if you mouse over the cover photos, it asks if you would like to “Change Cover Photo.” There are two small graphics over the scrapbook photos where you can choose a template for the large cover photo or the five scrapbook photos. 

You can preview your work before making it public, which is always a good thing. Enjoy!

More information can be found on Google.

Admit it; you don't go on Google+ very often because you aren't sure what the heck to do. Get over yourself and join the conversation. 

Now that we have that out of the way, I am going to share ten things to get you excited about Google+ and really get you grooving!

Google+ is an exciting way to show the world who you are with a beautiful visual display and customizable, editable text. These elements can take your brand to a new level, generating new followers and interest in your message. Use this to your advantage and have fun in the process.

1. Get photo fabulous! The optimized photos on Google+ are amazing and really catch your eye as they update on the stream. Choose the best photos from your last trip and share them! Picasa is a great way to share and tag your photos. All your photos on Facebook? Use Move Your Photos to transfer them. Photos are organized quite nicely with photos from your circles, photos from your phone, photos of you that you were tagged in, photos from your posts and albums that you created.
2. There are tons of really cool Chrome extensions to trick out your G+. I particularly like Favorite Posts for Google+ and Extended Share for Google Plus. Extended share gives you little chicklets to easily share to your other social media platforms. Spend a little time loading a few free extensions and make your G+ rock!
3. Create an AH-MAZING bio! Google+ gives you the absolute best profile in social media: plenty of places for links, huge section for an introduction and a visually appealing presentation of YOU! Don't miss your opportunity to shine and show people why they should circle you. Make sure you link to all your other social media platforms!
4. It’s really easy to find people to circle! Here is a list of public circles that you can search. Pick an interest and find some like-minded people. Then join in the fun.
5. This just in… there are games. Who knew? Oh… they have Angry Birds!
6. Meet new people. You may have lots of Twitter followers but Google+ is a way to connect in a much more significant manner. The commenting style is a combination of Facebook and blogging so the conversations are very interesting. Look around and find one!
7. A great place to share all your amazing finds from Pinterest.
8. Google+ plug-ins for WordPress make it easy to bling out your blog and connect with more Google+ fans. I really like the Google+ widget that you can add to ask people to circle you on Google+; it is easily customizable and looks great.
9. Lots going on every day, check the search for the daily activities: Science Sunday, Travel Tuesday, Wine Wednesday, and my personal favorite… Caturday! You can use a hashtag or just search in the search bar for something fresh going on in Google+land. It’s like having Julie, The Love Boat Cruise Director, but better.
10. Foodies! All the foodies are out in full force on Google+, you can always find a great recipe or something yummy to look at. Why? It’s fun! And who doesn’t like food?

You will find that Google+ is an awesome dichotomy of super smart, fun and sometimes downright silliness. You can make it exactly what you would like; all you have to do is give it a try. 

Take your social media brand to the next level and get in there with the big boys. What are you waiting for?