Keith Barker

Affinity and Beyond Why free design software is not for me

If you are in any way interested in graphic design, the news that Canva has released ‘Affinity by Canva’ for free should pique your interest.

As someone paying Adobe a small fortune for design software, here why I won’t be taking up Canva’s free offer:

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Does the QR code take you to Pornhub?

Yes people use them all the time

Death of a Graphic Designer Why the design industry shake-up is good news for your business

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Mine’s cancelled too. I don't even live in the US, but hey Ho!

Too Niche for Google? Smarter Marketing for Micro-Businesses If your business serves a specialist market or small local area, traditional SEO probably isn't working. Here's a smarter way to use your time.

Traditional SEO advice assumes you have thousands of monthly searches to compete for. What happens when you're fighting for a handful? Smart micro-businesses are doing this instead:

open.substack.com/pub/visibili...

That is interesting, and counter-intuitive. I can see why corporates want certainty, but SMEs usually don't have the time or budget for this kind of long-term brand awareness. My experience is at the micro business level, so maybe that explains the difference.

This strategy may well work for big businesses with chief marketing officers, but for the small and micro businesses that I deal with, zero click marketing is just opportunity cost. It’s another example of jam tomorrow.

My colour vision deficient graphic designer top tip is to look at the graphic in greyscale, and see whether there is enough contrast.

Not me, I’m afraid. I can make out 2 if the graphic is small, and three if its larger.

I used to go in there a lot when I lived in Hillingdon, and they also (I think I have this right) had a shop in Harrow.

Built it and They Won't Come – The Painful Truth About Your Pressional-Looking Website, links to an article on the Visibility Blueprint Substack. The background image shows someone hand-drawing a website wireframe.

Many small businesses invest in a professional website, only to find it brings in few clients. In my latest article, I share a real-world, work-in-progress case study – a therapy practice with a site that's not generating leads.

visibilityblueprint.substack.com/p/build-it-a...

Marina Hyde is so good

Another vote for Nationwide. I’d have also said Chase, but you’re with them already.

If you’re in, or near Kent, give Chris at @favershamoptical.bsky.social a try.

Also, if you have Vitality health insurance, you can claim up to £500 back off new glasses if you use Vision Express.

Nice to hear the Portsmouth Symphonia getting some airplay

Stop Broadcasting and Start Connecting Relationship-first marketing in an age of social media fatigue

Social media reach has nose-dived – and for small businesses, that might be the best thing that could have happened.

If you're trying to grow your business without becoming a full-time content creator, my latest article is for you.

visibilityblueprint.substack.com/p/stop-broad...

How to Market a Small Business Without Social Media A few uncomfortable truths… and some hopeful ones too.

I work with small and micro-businesses (often solo business owners) who need a 121 brand partner to deliver strategy, design and marketing in a simple, no-jargon way.

As part of that, I have my own marketing framework, The Visibility Blueprint.

Here's a taste:

open.substack.com/pub/visibili...

That third panel needs work

The Visibility Blueprint: A New Approach for Small Businesses Empowering Small and Micro-Business Owners to Navigate an Ever-Changing Marketing Landscape

"It's not about shouting louder or trying to be everywhere. It's about making sure your marketing reaches the people who will truly value and benefit from what you offer."

Check out my new article on Substack.

visibilityblueprint.substack.com/p/the-visibi...

The Free Visibility Era is Over Why Your Marketing Isn't Working Anymore

I’ve just joined Substack with my newsletter called The Visibility Blueprint. It’s aimed at the owners of small and micro-businesses. If you want some help marketing your small biz (and we could all do with that), give it a go:

open.substack.com/pub/visibili...

That's not Peter Andre, its Jimmy White

Controversial

Is Richard Arlison currently playing up front for Spurs?

Dundee

Partial eclipse captured as light shines through a colander

My daughter had the same idea

How Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) Search is Changing Marketing Find out about Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) Search – is Google's stranglehold on search traffic coming to an end with the rise of AI search traffic?

While reviewing my website analytics last week, I noticed that ChatGPT has overtaken Facebook as a source of referrals.

That led me into a deep dive into AI-generated referrals, which I've turned into my latest article series. Here’s the first article:

keefomatic.com/how-generati...

Got a 5pt question in the Only Connect final, so thats nice 😏 #onlyconnect

He thought he didn’t like German food, but the wurst was yet to come.

Who among us hasn’t dipped their nob in the wrong ashtray — act 2, scene 2, Romeo and Juliet.