Catalyst

 

About a week ago, I couldn't sleep. Worry was keeping me awake, my brain bouncing thoughts back and forth like a metronome, ticking "what if, what if, what if."

Maybe I should read this.

I had seen some posts on Facebook about a new art place for kids in Mandeville. It offered lots of the same sorts of things that I offer at The Barn, and it had a "real" storefront. I wasn't particularly worried about the business because it was in Mandeville, but my mind did start spinning webs about what would happen if someone else opened something similar in this area- my goose would be cooked. I've often thought about the feasibility of opening The Barn in a more popular, commercial area; a place that would have more exposure. However, when I look at the numbers, the prospect is daunting, if not impossible. To put it mildly, I'm not raking in the dough, and the thought of having to make enough money to pay overhead AND furnish myself with a worthwhile income is just mind-boggling. That's not to say that it couldn't be done, but I know that I'd have to sink a lot of money (that I don't have) into the business before I ever grew enough to see a profit. If I were of means, maybe that would be an option- but I'm not, so it's as much of an option as sprouting literal wings.

Silly Ms. Missy, wings are for fairies!

I was also thinking about how to increase enrollment in our Mom's Day Out program. The Mom's Day Out program is geared toward stay-at-home moms who would like to give their child an opportunity to socialize with other children but don't want the commitment of full-time childcare. At one time, Mom's Day Out was the bread and butter of The Barn. The problem is that the kids keep growing and moving on to "big school" and I have to refill their spaces. My advertising budget (if you want to call it that) is less than what most coffee-addicts spend at Starbucks in a month, so getting the word out is challenging.

Granted, many of our programs are doing very well. Camps and Kids' Night Outs are consistently filling, Birthday Parties are on the rise, and FB likes are slowly but steadily increasing. People love this place- I've had great feedback and most of my business comes from the word of mouth of happy parents and their children. I am thankful for all of the repeat business that I have and the support that I receive. But, our enrollment needs to keep growing, just as our students are inevitably growing and outgrowing, and that means that I need to proactively advertise The Big Red Barn.

I decided that laying in my bed of worry and doubt wouldn't do me any favors. In my experience, the best cure for depression is expression (It's true!). So, even though it was only about 3am, I got up, made coffee, and sat down at my computer.

The Ponchatoula Chamber of Commerce had asked me to write something about The Barn up for a Spotlight on Business email they wanted to send out. I wrote a descriptive piece about the barn, about 4 short paragraphs long, but they said that it would need to be shortened to include more bulleted points. I decided to create an eye catching graphic that had a listing of our services and our contact information. I decided on a background of colorful polka dots, which I thought looked fun, playful, and creative. I posted it on FB and sent it to The Chamber. I liked it so much that I considered putting it on as a FB profile picture for The Barn, but the text was too small for it to work. Instead, I made a FB cover photo (the kind that goes all the way across the top of the page) with the same polka dots. I liked the way it looked with the my logo on FB, so I set to work recreating the look on my website.

The small ad I created for The Chamber.

The subsequent Facebook cover photo.

My poor website, bigredbarn4kids.com, had needed a facelift for too long. I am sorely guilty of not keeping up with it and updating events and dates on a regular basis. What's more, the pictures on it were from years ago at our old location. In the wee hours of morning, I made fun web headers for each page, added new graphics and content, and gave the site a "Stacy and Clinton worthy" makeover. I knew that when people went to our site it would look good, and that made me feel positive and hopeful. You can check it out at http://www.bigredbarn4kids.com.

I'm a big believer in creating a cohesive look in business and advertising, so I couldn't stop there. Over the next week I created new advertising materials (business cards and postcards) to match our updated look. I was so excited to upload my new designs to Vista Print that I totally overlooked the spelling of Ponchatoula. I submitted an order with the word Ponchatoua (the Waterboy pronunciation) on a postcard. My sister caught it and I was able to call Vistaprint and cancel the order before it went to print. I am looking forward to receiving my order of goodies and distributing them throughout the community. Here's hoping that they help build The Barn's business :-).

Large Postcard Design

An interesting out-of-the-blue coincidence, I got a phone call yesterday morning from the owner of the art place in Mandeville! We ended up talking for about 45 minutes, sharing woes, joys, and frustrations, talking shop, and discussing ideas. I could tell that we would be friends and that she was down-to-earth, resourceful, and friendly. And I learned a couple of things: the grass isn't always greener, you never know who is admiring or envying you, and that life opens doors when and where you least expect it to.

I can't wait to see what happens next. :-)

Great advice and inspiration available at this site!