Design : Innovation + Job News

There are plenty of wedding planning websites, giving advice on everything from rings to thank-you notes. But GetMarried stands out, thanks to a recent revamp that's made the site more airy, fresh, and useful.
 
An asset of Taylor Corporation (run by Glen Taylor, former politician and owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves), the site was an underutilized asset that couldn't match major competitors. Heather Dempsey, who worked on strategic accounts and digital print technologies for the company, suggested a major shift toward inspiration and photography rather than the usual articles and advice.
 
"With the popularity of Pinterest and other visually-oriented sites, it's clear that people love to look at images and take ideas from that," she says. "At the same time, the site needed to feel more personal."
 
GetMarried relaunched at the end of June, with Dempsey at the helm. True to her vision, the design features plenty of photographs and trend-spotting. For example, she groups wedding photos into areas like "vintage glam" and "preppy chic."
 
"We feel that the site now is a great start in terms of putting out fresh ideas and letting people translate that into what they want," she says. "One disappointing aspect of some wedding sites is that they have elaborate photo shoots and then you find out that they weren't even real weddings. Brides and planners prefer to see details that other people really loved, and that made the day special."
 
The format of the site is being tested now, Dempsey notes, and could lend itself to additional lifestyle directions like baby showers, graduation parties, and other common celebrations.
 
"It's really fun to work on this, and see the different directions it can go," she says.
 
Source: Heather Dempsey, GetMarried
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

For some creative agencies, staying small and nimble means creating strong areas of specialization like logo creation or social media management. But for Deephaven-based DW Creative, sticking with full service sets them apart.
 
"There aren't many boundaries for what we can do creatively," says Ryan Benson, the firm's director of business development. "We're multi-channel focused, with expertise in all different types of areas." The firm does videos, catalogs, web, print, retail, direct mail, and other materials.
 
The agency started almost 16 years ago by three former NordicTrack executives, he adds, which kicked off the business with a healthy amount of media savvy. NordicTrack was a pioneer in the direct marketing space--sometimes selling thousands of units every day--and that knowledge of creative approaches became a bedrock for DW (short for "Design Write").
 
The firm employs six people, and Benson feels that the size and the cohesion of the staff kept the clients coming in even during the tough economic climate of the past few years.
 
"We've not only survived what went on with the economy, but we're poised to grow, and not too many small agencies can say that," he says. "We take quite a bit of pride in that."
 
In the past couple years, marketing and ad dollars were significantly reduced in the general business community, and many creative agencies felt the pinch, but DW Creative was able to stay afloat through its breadth of services.
 
"Our clients see the value in our work, and that will only help us grow," Benson says.
 
Source: Ryan Benson, DW Creative
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

A few years ago, 3rd grade teacher Matt Hardy became interested in using blogs to help students express themselves. But there was one problem: he couldn't find a software solution or website that met his needs.
 
Because his students were so young, the blogs had to be simple to use, as well as secure so that he could moderate comments and block potential creeps. When he couldn't find what he needed, he developed a version himself, and his efforts had an immediate impact on students, who loved their new blogging abilities.
 
After sharing the application with other teachers, he decided to join forces with entrepreneur Dan Flies and start Kidblog, which now boasts over 1.6 million users, in 80 countries.
 
"This technology is at the intersection of programming and pedagogy," says Flies. "Matt understood how tools could be effective for students because he'd been a teacher, but he also has an intuitive understanding of web development and business startups."
 
Although the company is still just the two business leaders, Flies anticipates growth in the near future, as more and more schools adopt the technology. After only a few years, there's been significant expansion, without any marketing.
 
"Right now, we're the largest educational blogging service in the world," he says, adding that technology access is exploding in the United States and other parts of the world.
 
"The opportunity to grow this will only get bigger," says Flies. "It's really fun to see how much this is catching on."
 
Source: Dan Flies, Kidblog
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Small business owners face limitations when it comes to bulk buying; the lack of huge orders sometimes usually means they have to pay higher prices, or order more than they'd like.
 
For printing, Smartpress.com is trying to correct that imbalance. The Chaska-based company has operated for the past three years, and sees steady growth in offering online printing services that cater to retailers, graphics professionals, and small businesses.
 
The range of printing options is vast, from car magnets to sales booklets, and a custom banner-printing service can produce hanging banners up to 150 feet long.
 
An online calculator sets the company apart, believes president Chuck Reese. Clients can get accurate pricing quickly, rather than waiting for a quote request from a more traditional printer.  
 
Another area of differentiation is proofing, he adds: "With many printers, the file that you send in is the one that gets printed, because no one looks at it. But we have someone really look over everything that comes in." Many times, the proofer catches layout and copy errors, saving a client from having to redo an order.
 
Because of its distinctive service, Smartpress.com has found a dedicated audience, and strong growth as a result. It's been adding to its 128-employee roster, and Reese notes every year brings 250 percent growth.
 
Currently, the company is adding custom sites for clients so they can implement print-on-demand service, which is helpful for clients like ad agencies and franchises. Reese says, "Everything we see shows that same strong growth rate going forward."
 
Source: Chuck Reese, Smartpress.com
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Although most people think of search results when they think of Google, the company is a powerhouse when it comes to business applications.
 
With its web-based email, calendars, document sharing, data storage, and other services, Google is fast becoming a necessary part of business operations for many companies, and that's giving Minneapolis-based Agosto a major boost.
 
The firm specializes in Google Apps, and was one of the first to partner with Google for application development. CEO Aric Bandy notes that Agosto's Google Apps team grew 400 percent last year, leading to the opening of a Toronto office and more work than the company can handle.
 
Google is distinctive in the marketplace for offering a platform that's scalable, he says, as well as deeply collaborative. Anyone who's ever worked on a document in Google Docs, for example, knows that the app is user-friendly, efficient, and reliable.
 
"Google offers a radical way to interact with other people," says Bandy. "Other solutions aren't as flexible in the same way. Because of that, these apps fit well with agile, lean companies and that's driving consumption."
 
For the near future, Bandy expects Agosto to continue on its strong growth track, with app development leading the way, especially as more people get mobile. Creating workflow technology that synchs well with iPads and tablets, for instance, will be a boon to more growth.
 
"This is a very exciting time for this field, and we're happy to be part of it," Bandy says.  
 
Source: Aric Bandy, Agosto
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

When Amanda Axvig and her "rockstar team of developers" decided to establish a company for creating social media applications, they ran into just one hitch: many of their potential clients weren't even on Facebook or Twitter yet.
 
So, their company, SocialBundle, was forced to switch tactics. She says, "We decided to take a step back and get people on social media in the first place, and then we could go back to the app development."
 
The firm specializes in helping clients work out an overall social media strategy, including content development, scheduling, and site monitoring. For those who don't have time to craft multiple Tweets, put them up regularly, and watch how people are responding, SocialBundle is a boon.
 
Recently, the company has been seeing an uptick in interest from creative agencies that want to add social media to a broad client strategy.
 
Axvig notes that SocialBundle's growing reputation for social media insight comes from an ability to work with clients, rather than simply post and Tweet for them. She says, "We can handle everything if that's what someone wants, but we also enjoy working with people to help them learn how social media works, and how they can add to various conversations."
 
Now that so many businesses are flocking to social media, it's likely that SocialBundle will get back to its original purpose, and start focusing on app building again. But it'll never abandon its larger intent to make social media simple and effective for every client.
 
Source: Amanda Axvig, SocialBundle
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Although mobile devices like the iPad are wildly attractive to children, local app developer Christopher Black found that the tools don't have many apps that are geared toward that audience.
 
"You can find some storybooks from major brands like Disney, but there didn't seem to be many options for kids' books, especially from small local publishers," he says. "We wanted to create something people hadn't seen before."
 
About two years ago, Black founded his own contract work and app development firm, Blacktop Interactive. When his girlfriend had an idea for a children's book, the pair realized it could lend itself well to an online storybook, and "Turtle's Day at the Beach" was born. The interactive storybook, designed for ages 3 and older, is available as an app for Nook, Blackberry, and Apple devices.
 
That app has been followed by "Rainbows are Colorful," an app to help children learn about colors, and coming soon is a painting app that allows kids to digitally color illustrations of animals.
 
"Now that we have the platform, we wanted to continue reusing that and going down that path," says Black. "It just makes sense in terms of our strategy and our interests."
 
Black hopes to have at least eight apps on the market by the end of the year, and to keep going strong after that. So the next time kids reach for a coloring book, they'll want to make sure it's got a full battery charge first.
 
Source: Chris Black, Blacktop Interactive
Writer: Elizabeth Millard 

The Role of Diversity in a World of Opportunity
 
May 31
Walker Art Center, Skyline Room
5:30pm - 8pm
$35 (rsvp required)
 
What does diversity in business really mean? It goes beyond race and culture, and extends into creating meaningful messages that resonate with consumers. In this presentation by Chris Roberts, president of Cargill Kitchen Solutions, attendees will hear about how we can check our own biases in order to do good work. All proceeds go to benefit The BrandLab, a non-profit that brings students from diverse backgrounds together with people in the marketing industry.
 
Eyeo Festival
 
June 5 - 8
Walker Art Center
9am - 2pm
Pre-conference workshops: $125; festival ticket price: $549
 
Artists, designers, and coders come together for a series of workshops and mixers to transform digital culture. The festival attracts a wide range of talented individuals, including those interested in creative code, data visualization, design, experience design, 3D printing, architecture, and gestural computing.
 
d.school Crash Course
 
June 5
CoCo Minneapolis
6pm - 8pm
$50
 
A quick introduction to "design thinking" methods and mindsets. In this session, students will take a common experience and redesign it completely. This crash course is based on the original Stanford Design Program d.school curriculum. See The Line's coverage of CoCo's d.school here.
 
TechMasters
 
June 5
Benchmark Learning training facility
4510 W. 77th St., Suite 210, Edina
7:40am - 9am
free
 
TechMasters is a new Toastmasters chapter in the Twin Cities, dedicated to helping technology professionals improve their skills in public speaking and presentations, impromptu speaking, critical thinking, and communicating with non-technical people. Every week, the group rotates roles to practice speaking in a friendly and supportive environment.
 
Womens Excelerator Workshop
 
June 16
St. Catherine University
CDC401 Board room, 4th floor
8am - 12pm
$89
 
In this workshop, attendees will develop a level of comfort with pitching their business, and will learn to create a value proposition statement. Each entrepreneur will have 10 minutes to present her business to her peers and facilitators, followed by a feedback session to identify which parts of the elevator pitches need work.

School outreach and scholarship program The BrandLab has been growing steadily since its inception in 2007, and this year, the organization is kicking off its summer season with a whole new offering: a work-ready training week.
 
Started by OLSON and expanded to include other agencies, The BrandLab creates opportunities in the marketing industry for students with diverse cultural and economic backgrounds (see The Line's previous coverage here).
 
This year, executive director Ellen Walthour was chatting with a 3M executive about wanting to broaden the initial training that's done when the students arrive. Since the participants range in age from 17 to 20, most haven't had a professional job and sometimes have trouble adjusting to a business environment.
 
3M offered to pay for a week of training, and that kicked off a flurry of networking and workshop development, with a range of topics planned. Students will learn about how to act at a business lunch, what to wear, how to write in a professional manner, what to expect in an informational interview, and how to brand themselves.
 
"It's been amazing to see how this has all come together," says Walthour. "People are so eager to help, and we have workshop leaders from several agencies in town."
 
The main goal, she adds, is to give the students confidence when they're walking into their 7-week internship. From there, they can learn about how to eventually stand out in a competitive job marketplace and compete against a large pool of talented professionals.
 
If all goes well, it's likely that The BrandLab will implement the week-long workshop again next year, and keep the business insights buzzing for its fortunate interns.
 
Source: Ellen Walthour, The BrandLab
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Most people don't think about the light bulbs that illuminate their homes and offices, but Jennifer Sethre isn't like most people.
 
One of the partners in the new Minnetonka-based venture Lumena, Sethre has been deeply involved with the lighting industry during her career, and is eager to drive more attention and sales to this fresh venture.
 
Started about a year ago, Lumena is an LED lighting manufacturer that already has operations in Miami and Denver, as well as a 700,000-square-foot factory in China. Going up against major competitors, the company is working to replace the traditional lighting used at large facilities like hospitals and factories with eco-friendly LED alternatives.
 
"When starting Lumena, we didn't want to be average," says Sethre. "We didn't want to be one more lighting manufacturer. We want to be great, and we think that takes just a little extra effort."
 
Although the company has barely had its first anniversary, business is already booming, thanks to strategic partnerships, sales and marketing efforts, and a market eager for new products. Sethre believes that the timing is crucial--before now, the LED lighting market wasn't quite ready, she thinks. But now, with the increasing push for environmentally friendly alternatives and a lower price point for products, the time is right.
 
"Our success is due to our innovation, I believe," says Sethre. "It may sound cheesy, but we really do pride ourselves on our products. We're excited to see where we can take this, and we believe that we'll just keep expanding from here."
 
Source: Jennifer Sethre, Lumena
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Never underestimate the power of a basement office.
 
Take recruitment professional Stacey Stratton. She decided to leave the Minneapolis-based staffing firm Celarity and strike out on her own in 2008 to start True Talent Group, and she laughs now about the timing: "It was a terrible time to start a business, just dismal."
 
But she wanted to give it a try anyway. She set herself up in the basement, with a bathmat as her office rug, and told her husband that she was giving herself 60 days to make it work. Over the next year, she did sales recruiting, and then got back into working with creative professionals. "I'm so passionate about this industry, I just love it," she says. "And that's translated into triple-digit growth."
 
In 2009, she brought on three employees and all work out of their homes, which Stratton believes is beneficial for achieving a strong work/life balance.
 
Although the firm initially focused only on permanent placement for creatives, the industry at the time was more geared toward contract work, so Stratton added freelancers to the pool. She focuses on marketing and creative professionals partly because marketing is her background, but mainly because she finds the fields exciting.
 
"There's nothing cooler than looking at great creative," she says. "Also, creative is its own animal. If someone says they need a production artist, we know exactly who to find. There's value in sticking with a niche instead of trying to build expertise in all areas."
 
To keep the growth rolling, Stratton will be launching a new website in the near future, and focusing on keeping her 90 percent referral rate. "The Twin Cities has such a vibrant community when it comes to marketing and creative," she says. "That makes our opportunities seem limitless."
 
Source: Stacey Stratton, True Talent Group
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Crowdsourcing is a technique that allows tasks to be outsourced to a wide array of people simultaneously. A project that might normally be sent to one individual for help on a specific issue can be sent to "the crowd," where it benefits from numerous perspectives and skill sets.
 
Minneapolis-based Brand Ninjas brings this concept to design contests, giving clients the ability to create a design brief and set a project budget, then send it out to a crowd of design professionals (which the company calls ninjas).
 
The artists submit designs and give feedback, and the client can choose the design they like the best. Every time a designer places in the top three rankings for a client, he or she earns a "belt" similar to a martial arts ranking.
 
Created by entrepreneurs David Throldahl and Brad Haymaker, the company is already gaining traction, even though it was started just a few months ago.
 
"It's been shocking to us, how much it's taken off," says Throldahl. "People are really honing in on their ability to find reliable resources through this method." He adds that the design ninjas are worldwide, so the "crowd" that sends in designs might include people from Indonesia, Texas, or Eastern Europe. Becoming a ninja is free, which is part of what's driving the growth, Throldahl notes.
 
"We just wanted to create a platform where artists can get recognition and jobs, and clients can get more access to an international design community," he says.
 
Next up for the site will be the creation of a brand toolkit, where site users can store multiple brochures and ads, giving designers a better reference point for bidding on projects.
 
Throldahl says, "We're very excited about the future with this. The fact that it's so well received already gives us a great starting point."
 
Source: David Throldahl, Brand Ninjas
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Founded about 15 years ago by two professors at Carleton College who wanted to create a French/English dictionary for students, Ultralingua has evolved from a small side project to a robust company headed for impressive growth.
 
The professors--a French linguist and a computer science prof--envisioned a quick-and-easy product that would reduce the need for reference books. They launched an initial version in 1997, and then eventually started making mobile apps for that early handheld organizer, the PalmPilot.
 
In 2008, when Apple launched its App Store, the company found itself on the fast track. "We grew really quickly, really suddenly," says Ashleigh Lincoln, Marketing and Communications Coordinator at the company. "After being two guys working in a garage, all of a sudden, we were a fast-growing business."
 
The firm has eight full-time employees, but is ramping up hiring, Lincoln says. They're looking for software developers and marketing gurus, but they're willing to take their time in finding the right fit. "This is a very fast-paced startup environment and our team is small," she says. "So we're really picky about getting the right fit for our culture."
 
It's possible that Lincoln and other team members will have to speed up the search. Ultralingua is experiencing rapid growth and gaining new customers every day, and the company is considering a move into phrase books and word games, expanding their capability beyond dictionary apps.
 
"We're having fun making the word games, and everyone is interested in pursuing that," says Lincoln. "We're excited to see where we can go from here."
 
Source: Ashleigh Lincoln, Ultralingua
Writer: Elizabeth Millard

Designing Content That Sells
 
April 4
International Market Square
274 Market St., Suite 180, Minneapolis
11:30am - 1:15pm
$35 members, $55 non-members
 
Put on by the Society for Marketing Professionals, this workshop for those in the architecture and engineering industries focuses on developing effective online content. Reporter and PR professional Rachel Gold will give tips on making content interesting and on gauging how well design and content work together.
 
From Focus to Performance
 
April 6
DoubleTree Hotel
7800 Normandale Blvd., Bloomington
7:00am - 9:00am
$35
 
Sports psychologist and executive coach Dr. Justin Anderson presents the latest advancements in performance psychology and brain research, providing tips on how to use your mind in a more optimal manner to enhance sales and lead a more meaningful life.
 
High Heels, Higher Heights
 
April 10
Minneapolis Convention Center
3:00pm - 6:00pm
$80 members, $95 non-members
 
This annual event honoring women leaders is a prime networking opportunity, and is put on by the Women's Health Leadership TRUST. This year's speaker is Teri Fontenot, president and CEO of Woman's Hospital in Louisiana. Women leaders in health care will also be recognized for two major awards.
 
MHTA Spring Conference
  
April 25
Minneapolis Convention Center
$165 member, $215 non-member
 
The Minnesota High Tech Association presents its popular spring conference, kicked off by a morning keynote address by Rick King, Thomson Reuters chief operation officer for technology. Participants can network with other technology leaders, visit an expanded exhibit hall of more than 100 technology-related businesses, and attend breakout sessions about research, funding, education, and policy development.
 

In the middle of the recession in 2009, Jamie Millard (no relation to this writer) was ready to find work in publishing. There was just one problem: there were no jobs for her.
 
After graduating at the top of her class and having done five internships, Millard still couldn't find a position. "So, I decided to stop asking for permission and create my own," she says. Together with a couple other enthusiastic, literary friends she formed Paper Darts in order to create a new literary magazine.
 
"We saw the opportunity to jazz up that genre with a more lighthearted tone, to pull in the mainstream reader," she says. "That was our mission, to fill the void of unemployment with something useful."
 
Although Millard eventually landed a job at the Charities Review Council, she and the other founders kept the magazine going and even hired an editorial director to bring more cohesion to the firm. Recently, Paper Darts published its first book, and the staff members were excited to learn about the book publishing process from start to finish, Millard notes.
 
The firm has slowly turned into a creative agency as well. They'll be redesigning the popular Pollen newsletter, and taking on other projects as they crop up. Millard says, "We're trying to build a model that can support a full-time staff, but right now, we're just happy with the creative projects that we have. We're having fun with it."
 
Source: Jamie Millard, Paper Darts
Writer: Elizabeth Millard