5 Branding Tips Creative Businesses Can Learn From The Documentary Series Growing Floret

After recently watching the latest episodes of the documentary series Growing Floret hosted on the new Magnolia Network, I couldn’t help witness so many great examples of how a business owner should be branding themselves in today’s social media environment. I’m so happy that the production team (Blue Chalk Media) captured all these branding moments that creative business owners can incorporate into their daily lives. The series follows flower farmers Erin and Chris on their Washington State Farm called Floret. The beautifully produced series covers the challenges of new farm land, book development, team growth, farm design, book launches, educational workshops and all the business decisions along the way. No matter what creative business you are in, one can relate and find so many inspirational moments. As a brand photographer/videographer and strategist I was so happy to see how Erin and Chris make branding part of their busy lives. That is why I wanted to break down 5 branding tips creative businesses can learn from the Growing Floret Series.

#1 Show Your Process

Capturing video and photos of your process is branding gold as far as I’m concerned. Your audience loves to see how you do what you do. They can learn how you are unique in your industry and become more connected to your business. Floret serves their flower community with farm walkthroughs, quick tips on materials and tools, status of the farm, upcoming projects and workshops. They make you feel part of the farm experience. Think about all the ways you can do the same in your creative business! Bring your community into your creative world and build your brand at the same time.

#2 Mix Up Your Mobile Video Content

Throughout the series one will see Erin and/or Chris break out their phone to capture a moment, a flower or do quick videos explaining some facet of the farm. There is a lot of action in their daily business, from the farm and seed room, so it helps make videos more engaging and entertaining. What I also love is that it isn’t Erin talking to camera all the time. They mix it up. Erin might be capturing a team member demonstrating a process, a team member might be following Erin around the farm as a they walk through a garden or Erin might be narrating the video. If there was a moment to share what they were doing or how they were doing it, grabbing their phones to document was a priority.

#3 Move Through The Fear

The documentary of their flower farm also highlighted Chris and Erin’s origin story and what makes them click. It was also fascinating to learn how extremely introverted Erin is as seen in the book launch episode. Most creatives I know, including myself, are introverted so it was great to witness her move through the fear and do whatever the task was anyways. It was for the good of the business and she knew it had to get done despite what she was feeling inside.

#4 Know When To Hire Professionals

Mobile video and photos were heavily used throughout their daily farm and business life and I believe both mobile and professional photography/videography is needed in every creative business. They had a great balance and knew when to hire professionals. Luckily Chris had his professional gear at the ready for video and photos for workshop filming, book photography and more. They also brought in a professional to design the farm layout and this process was amazing to watch.

#5 Does The Project Match The Core Values Of The Business

There was a big debate throughout the business whether to cut their losses on a project they had years of work already invested in. The owners toiled over what their next step should to be, they had many meetings with team members and ultimately leaned on the core mission of the business to make the decision. This is hard for any business owner to do especially when everyone around you is saying to go for it, but it just doesn’t seem right. The core values of your business is a great compass to have to make critical decisions.

Branding Your Creative Business

I always love finding branding examples to highlight and this documentary series was a true case study into what I share with my clients. It was fun to see it all happening and the results of their efforts. All five of these tips can be utilized in your creative business today. Any size business can benefit from doing all of these items. Which one will you work on today?