When Dillon, Montana fly fishing outfitter, Justin Hartman needed a cost-effective website, we immediately thought of the benefits a WordPress powered website could offer him. Our involvement with this project stemmed from logo, business cards and other identity work we had completed for him.

We already knew Justin has style and is fun to work with, so when he gave us the go-ahead on his web project, the creative wheels just started spinning! Throughout his years of fishing some of the most spectacular trout waters in Montana, Justin has collected many great photographs. We knew that these images had to be the star of his website.

To accomplish this, we ensured that each section of the website would have a different header image displayed behind his logo and the site’s primary navigation bar. Not only would this offer a great, high-impact visual element, it also serves to help the visitor know which section they’re currently reading.

Justin has the ability to update nearly every aspect of his website without having to write a single line of code! He can add special promotions, photographs and seasonal updates as they happen. As web developers, it’s been really neat to watch Justin add information to his website as soon as he returns from the river.

Additional Views

Website Features

• Ability for client to update nearly every aspect of the website.
• Special promotion is displayed near website navigation for greatest visibility and impact.
• Automatic thumbnailing of post photographs.
• Ability to search entire website.
• RSS and email signup features create leads and encourage return visits.
• Ability for readers to leave comments as Client allows.
• Links to share blog posts using social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter.
• Full Gravatar support.
• Strong search engine optimization provided automatically.

Services Provided

• Website consultation to determine needs, goals and strategy.
• WordPress theme creation.
• PHP, HTML, CSS and JavaScript programming.
• Research and identify plugins to extend capability while reducing cost.
• Research keywords and provide optimization.
• Google Analytics installation.
• Website hosting and email setup.
• Basic training and instruction on using the WordPress platform.

Other services we’ve performed for Tight Line Adventures include:

• Logo, business card, letterhead and envelope business identity package.
• Printed brochure.
• Truck graphics.
• Apparel graphics.
• Other miscellaneous printed materials.

A few months go I was contacted by Justin Hartman of Tight Line Adventures, in Dillon MT who was interested in a new logo design. While communicating with Justin, it became very clear that Justin had put considerable thought into what he wanted for his brand identity. Below is an excerpt from one of his early messages:

“…I think the name and meaning of the business needs to be depicted in the logo somehow. ‘Tight Line’ in fishing terms means keeping a tight line connection between the rod and the fish…hence “Tight Line”. I was thinking that it may look good placed in the lettering somehow. A rod with a tight line? Lettering with a tight line? Something like that. Be creative with it and play around with the ideas. But I think it is necessary to play along with the “Tight Line” language.”

Justin also was hoping for a logo that had illustrative elements that could stand alone during his marketing efforts. It wasn’t long before I had come up with a rough logo design based on Justin’s input, along with a fair amount of creative tweaking of my own accord. The final logo design was essentially three custom graphic elements, (1) a drift boat with guide and fisherman, (2) a distinctive typeface, and (3) a trout stylized in the shape of an ‘e’.

Here is the finished logo design:

With the logo finalized, Justin was very eager to put it into use, so we got right to work designing the core elements of his identity – this included business cards, letterhead, and envelopes. By separating a few of the the graphic design elements of the logo, we were able to design an identity package that had great continuity and really emphasized the brand.

Justin’s finished identity package:

Soon after Justin’s identity package was finished, we also began designing his website and advertising brochure. These items both used the interchanging elements from the logo and identity to keep the look and feel of the marketing materials consistent. You can check out the Tight Line Adventures website at http://www.tightlinemontana.com, and you can have a look at his photo-filled brochure below:

At this point Tight Line Adventures had a very professional and well rounded marketing and branding platform, but Justin still had other plans. As a Montana outfitter and guide, Justin was well aware that his clientele often would purchase apparel (hats, shirts, jackets, etc.) as part of their Montana fly fishing experience. Knowing this, Justin choose to have his logo embroidered and screen printed on various clothing items to sell to customers, and to provide to his guides for further promotion.

Talk about branding power, these photos say it all!

Big fish and even bigger smiles!

Justin Hartman holding Jessica's freshly caught fish.

Another big trout with the angler wearing some Tight Line Adventures swag!

Not one to miss an advertising opportunity, Justin also had us design his logo and information into vinyl decals that he had installed on his vehicle’s rear window. When taking clients on drift boat trips down the river, Justin’s truck often sits at fishing access sites for hours at a time. Having the Tight Line Adventures logo on his truck allows him to advertise to the very customers he would like to attract, at areas they are already frequenting. It also looks sharp where ever he chooses to travel, and is a rolling advertisement for his services.

Window decals can be a great way to advertise your business.

Tight Line Adventures is a fine example of what to do when it comes to identity and branding. I think any business can take a page from Justin’s playbook – use your identity and branding when ever and where ever possible. Look for advertising and marketing opportunities and capitalize on them, only then will you realize the true value and potential that branding can have on your business.

If you enjoyed this post, please leave a comment below and share it with your friends. Also, if you have any questions about logo design, identity, branding, advertising or common sense marketing, please give Manifest Creative a call at 406-585-9406. We would to hear from you, and discuss how we can help your business as well!

Here at Manifest Creative, one of the many things we do for our clients is design and create unique websites. When we sit down to meet with new web clients, one of the reoccurring questions we get asked is, “Will I, or one of my employees, be able to update the website on a regular basis?”

Now from a developer standpoint, traditionally the answer is almost certainly no… unless the client or their employees have at least a basic concept of programming languages, or your company is ready to invest in a database driven website. That being said, at Manifest Creative we do not particularly like the word “NO”. In fact, we are not a “NO” kind of company. Instead, one of the ways we are able to say “YES” to this question, is by offering something that many business owners haven’t even heard of yet… a blog.

WHAT IS A BLOG?

Well a blog can be almost anything… a news outlet, a diary, a collection of memos, a newsletter, or even a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) with answers at the ready. A blog can take on nearly any size, shape, or form – ranging from a simple virtual postboard of messages, to a complex interactive forum with multiple users and groups. There is no real set way of running one, and there aren’t specifically any rules to follow either… a blog can be what ever you want it to be!

We realize that saying a blog can be anything is a little vague, so after a little research we’ve been able to discern the word “blog” was actually derived from the term “web logging” back in the early 1990’s. Even though we now call it blogging, the concept itself has actually been around for quite some time. Blogging as we know it today has been gaining in popularity and momentum over the last several years, and we happen to think the business world has only just begun to grasp what a powerful tool a blog can be.

WHAT CAN A BLOG DO FOR ME?

What ever you want to say, a blog can help you say it! A blog is your voice on the world wide web, and the best part is that it’s available 24 hours a day… 7 days a week! It allows you the availability to post messages, answer questions, share images, publish recent news, and offers a whole variety of other uses and applications as well. Most importantly, it gives you a unique opportunity to connect with your customers, and provides a venue to receive valuable feedback.

As part of a complete website, a blog allows individuals who may not be well versed in computer languages an easy way to update the content of their site. This makes it possible to update a website with current news and fresh relevant information… without having to employ a web designer. This also means changes to a blog can be made or added when ever the administrator finds time, and it is all completely customizable and relatively easy to edit.

That being said, the author or administrator of a blog has complete control over who can read and who can write to a blog. The information within a blog can then be set to be viewable by anyone and everyone, or perhaps limited to only a select few. A certain portion of a particular blog might only be able to be viewed by employees or specific users with a password, while yet another section might be available to anyone for review and comment.

WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK CAN I EXPECT?

As with any form of feedback, the response is something that nobody can predict. Some blogs get very little response or even nothing at all. On the other hand sometimes the feedback can be nearly overwhelming! The feedback is all dependent on the information posted and how those who read it react in turn. Either way, it can provide tools to help measure the impact and effectiveness of a particular message, while giving valuable insight as to what makes customers respond.

Speaking of feedback, what if you get comments or responses that you may not have expected or that you may find offending or harmful? The beauty of blogging is that you can choose whether you want to allow comments on a post-by-post basis, and in case of a worst case scenario… you have the option to delete any comments you don’t like.

HOW DO I GET STARTED?

Well that is the easy part! Usually a blog can be easily added to, or even posted as a link on a website that may already be online. It might all seem confusing, but if you are interested in running a blog, please feel free to contact us. Here at Manifest Creative, we are always looking for innovative and cost effective measures of communicating the messages of our clients, so we’d be happy to answer any questions or to schedule a consultation.

Feel free to check out the blogging scene for yourself! You can click the links for some of our favorite blogs as a start. There are also many free blog sites that are incredibly easy to set up and use, Blogger.com, WordPress.com, and Blog.com are just a few worth mentioning. So go ahead… give it a try!

In closing, blogging is a simple, effective, low cost way to further convey your message and increase your methods of communication. The advantages of running a blog as part of your web presence can easily be justified. When used correctly, a blog can help increase brand awareness/loyalty, be used as a tool to educate consumers, and be a useful means of connecting with your customer base. We see it as an distinct advantage to any business or entity, and that gives it great value as common sense marketing… which is what Manifest Creative does best!