Today marks the 400th consecutive day of creating a sketch for my children. Who knew that a few packs of sticky notes and some markers could have resulted in so much support from people around the world and so many opportunities?
LunchNoteSketch
Reaching A Milestone
State of the CommunityComment
Today marks a special day for Lunch Note Sketch. It is the 183rd consecutive day of sketching and posting the sketches online. Why is that significant? Well, I started posting lunch note sketches back in May with the hopes of posting everyday for a year. And since 2016 is a leap year, that means day 183 marks the halfway point.
To celebrate this milestone, I wanted to tell you about the journey and give you some insight into where Lunch Note Sketch (LNS) stands. I also wanted to share some thoughts on this fun little side project that has blossomed into something more. I want to talk about the past 183 days, the current state of LNS, and where we’re headed. I want to share some details in hopes this information will help someone start a side project, build a business, or learn something new.
Before I get into the details, I want to take a minute to thank my wife who has provided tremendous support in this endeavor. Lunch Note Sketch is something I work on after our children go to bed every night and my wife is the person who suffers through it. Without her understanding and commitment LNS would not exist. I’d also like to thank my children who have shown such an interest in the arts. My oldest is really into drawing, painting, and building things. My middle child has shown interest in music, dance, and drama. And my youngest, well, he is only one. So he is into everything as he explores his world. Finally, I also want to thank everyone who has encouraged me, provided feedback, and engaged online throughout this journey.
The Past 183 Days
Lunch Note Sketch started online with the hopes of building a community where parents could share what they do for their children to showcase a little creativity and love. There have been some folks who shared examples of their work on Facebook and it has been fantastic. I hope to continue finding people who are willing to share, but it has definitely proven to be a difficult task thus far. It’s a lot to ask people to share when there is no immediate gratification or incentive. Instagram has seen some people use the #LunchNoteSketch hashtag, but like Facebook it has been inconsistent.
The good news is that the community has steadily grown over the past 183 days on the two social sites I engage the most: Facebook and Instagram. Our Facebook community is over 100 people strong and somewhat actively liking and commenting. Instagram is hovering around 150 followers and gets more engagement than Facebook. The Facebook community is mostly located in the US, while Instagram is much more global. So, thank you to everyone who is following, liking, commenting, and engaging on social media.
An important point to make is that, while the Twitter account is one that I post to, I have not made much of an effort to engage with that community yet. I do have plans to spend more time there, but it has not played a large role to this point and I understand it’s a missed opportunity.
This week's Facebook stats compared to last week's. For instance, this week LNS had 2 new page likes compared to 4 from last week.
To help grow the community I have utilized a few tactics. The first is paid advertising on Facebook. I have set up and tested 5 campaigns and spent a total of $16.92 (big spender, eh?). For that amount of money I was able to reach 2,877 people and get about 20 post engagements. These campaigns can certainly do better in the future, but they were really just a way to test Facebook advertising and to see if I could narrow LNS’s audience. I am happy with the results and what was ultimately achieved.
The second tactic for building the community is simply talking to people about it. I have talked to about 20 people (not including family) and gotten a lot of good feedback. Most of those people have liked or followed on social media and a few have really engaged. Another outcome is that I have realized I really enjoy talking about the history of LNS, where we hope to take it, and how creativity impacts children. I plan on continuing the conversations with folks in order to draw more interest and I really appreciate the power of face-to-face interactions more than I did in the past.
Finally, I have recently started sharing some sketches with other people. I had a number of sketches printed on square business cards in hopes of selling them as a product and using them as giveaways. These cards have been really well received. I am getting incredibly positive feedback and look forward to exploring the ecommerce angle and running contests.
Lunch Note Sketch Today
As I have already mentioned, our community sits at about 250 users on social media and a handful of people not on social media. I have invested about $1,000 on this side project to date. These costs include the website that is run through Squarespace, Facebook advertising, photoshoot equipment so the website has some photography, professional printing, and small business setup fees.
Two of the sketches that were professionally printed.
The professional printing was done so I could test the market. I have heard from folks that they would be interested in putting notes in their child's lunches, but feel they lack the time and/or skill to create something. If there is enough interest I have a lot of ideas on how to get these notes into the hands of people who would enjoy/use them. I was lucky enough to attend a one-day print conference where I had an opportunity to meet some great people who could help. I have already started discussions with different vendors to figure out logistics and costs for some future product ideas. I won’t divulge this information yet, but it is an exciting time for LNS. The idea of selling something online, though, is a little scary, so I also invested in making Lunch Note Sketch an official LLC.
I save a lot of money in the digital aspect of the business because I have many years of experience in web design and development, as well as other digital strategies relating to social media and marketing. I also have a background in photography which is proving helpful in the web and product photoshoots. I imagine my investment would need to grow considerably if I didn’t do a lot this work myself.
The other amazing news is that Lunch Note Sketch is starting to make a name for itself in the local community. I got a request to create a small coloring book for an after school art class at a local elementary school. I am currently in the process of creating it and hope to share more news when it is complete. This coloring book offers a great opportunity to spread the word amongst children AND adults.
The Road Ahead
Thinking about the future of Lunch Note Sketch is really exciting. A lot of work has gone into it to this point and there are so many opportunities to have an impact. Growing and engaging with the community sits at the top of the list. Creating and selling new products, as well as volunteering in the community are also important. I also want to be more active blogging and start email marketing. Beyond those items, though, I want to spend some time on two other things: finding advocates and speaking/presenting on creativity.
In order to grow the community it will be important to get help. My goal is to find advocates who will help by sharing their artwork or talk about LNS with their family, friends, teachers, etc. There are many challenges to overcome, but I think there is tremendous opportunity. I have already been approached by a friend of mine who offered assistance. We will be talking more in the near future and I hope to utilize his expertise and willingness to lend a hand. It will be very important to me to make sure he is engaged and is doing things that make HIM happy to be involved. Just like I started this side project in hopes of learning more about setting up a business, social media marketing, building a community, etc., I want him to learn and try new things that interest him.
I also mentioned that I enjoy talking about Lunch Note Sketch and its history. I hope to find ways to share the story and preach about the importance of creativity in kids’ lives. I will be working to figure out an approach or angle so that I can hopefully one day speak at an appropriate event. I also have ideas on hosting my own events locally to get experience and to spread the word about creativity.
Finally, the future will eventually bring us to day 366. My initial goal was to stop creating a sketch every day at that point, but I’m not sure if that will happen. I am not able to promise the sketch-a-day will continue, but I am certain this project—now business—will live on well beyond day 366. I am excited to see where LNS will be in another 183 days, though.
Final Thoughts
As Lunch Note Sketch continues to grow I want to keep the initial goal and my highest priority in mind. The list of things to do is getting longer and there are so many new ideas that come to mind, but LNS is about creating notes for my children. The most important aspect of all of this is to continue showing off a little creativity to them. I want to lead by example in hopes they never lose the ability to approach challenges with an open mind and to offer solutions that are extraordinary.
In conclusion, Lunch Note Sketch has been a success in my opinion. If nothing else, I have learned so much. The fact that I am interacting with people from all over the world still amazes me and is truly humbling. I am excited with the community that has formed and the opportunities that lie ahead. So, let’s get creative!
Summer Break Comes To A Close
LNS in ActionCommentToday officially marks the end of this year's summer break. Everyday for the past 65 days I have sketched something to do in an effort to get my kids thinking about how they could spend their time. Some ideas were pre-planned (like taking a trip or going to the zoo) and others sadly never happened (like learning magic or riding rollercoasters). But overall I thought the summer was a success.
65 sketches for the 65 days of summer.
Over the past 65 days while I focused on the Summer Break List Of Things To Do series, the Lunch Note Sketch community grew quite a bit on social media. Facebook saw an increase of 169% in page likes and Instagram followers almost tripled.
Best on Facebook
The highest performing sketch on Facebook was "Pray." It had a reach of 209, was clicked 32 times, and had 25 likes, comments, or shares. I created this sketch after learning of a family emergency and clearly it was probably one of the quickest sketches done all summer.
Best on Instagram
The top performing sketch on Instagram was "Ride A Rollercoaster." That sketch received 35 likes. Oddly enough, this is one of only a few sketches that we were not able to follow through on. The day we planned on going to the fair was a day filled with storms. There's always next summer, though. :-)
Personal Favorite
Of all 65 sketches that I had done, my favorite has to be the "Hug Your Dad" sketch. Obviously, I like the message given that I am a father myself, but I really liked the way the characters turned out in that drawing and the cleanliness of the text.
Quickest Sketch
There was a lot of time dedicated to these sketches. I'm not sure how many total hours it took, but the quickest sketch ("Relax") probably took only 5 minutes to come up with and post online. This particular drawing was done at the end of a wonderful beach vacation. It was my abstract ode to the ocean meeting the sky on the horizon.
Most Time-Consuming Sketch
The longest sketch, due to the fact it went beyond the typical sticky note (it was in fact 11 sticky notes connected together) was the "Build A Tower" conglomerate. The concept came fairly quickly, but the sketching and the logistics of posting it online took over 3 hours. You can read more about it and see the full piece in the blog post that was written.
I hope you enjoyed the Summer Break List Of Things To Do series of sketches. If you have a favorite sketch, please share it in the comments or on social media. Now, it's time to start sketching for school lunches. :-)
Wave
LNS in ActionCommentMy 4-year old daughter is two weeks away from a new school year. The other day she said she was really excited to get back. So, to continue the conversation we asked her what she was looking forward to the most. Her answer was "art." That's enough to make me proud, but she continued by saying that she wants to learn how to draw people. And more specifically, she said she really wants to learn how to draw hands. So, I created the "Wave" sketch to show her that hands can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, robot or cartoon, four fingers or five. I can't wait to see where her love of art takes her in life.
Vacation Notes
LNS in ActionComment
My family and I recently spent five days at a beach in North Carolina. Four adults and three children (Auntie and Uncle were there) spending time in the pool, the sand, and the ocean. It was glorious. Now that we’re back I wanted to show off the vacation-themed sketches that were done while there. There’s nothing quite like sketching notes while listening to the waves crashing against the shore.
For the past 35 odd days I have been sketching notes based on the Summer Break List Of Things To Do theme. These sketches have been ways to come up with new ideas for the kids to explore while on summer break. Admittedly, I haven’t heard any complaining about being bored. That has to do with the fact that our three kids range in age from 9 months to 4 years old, so everything is exciting. It probably has more to do with the fact that my wife is a super mom and keeps them busy everyday. Nonetheless, I wanted to create notes based on our vacation and the things we might be doing that day.
Build A Sandcastle
The first day’s sketch was an easy one. Building a sandcastle seemed like the hot topic in the days leading up to the beach. Last year my daughters were more interested in the sand than the waves, so I figured it might be the case this year. Much to my surprise and delight, they wanted to spend more time in the water. Sandcastles were built, just not as big and elaborate as I thought they’d be.
Look for Seashells
Looking for seashells was always one of my favorite things to do when I went to the beach as a kid. Every year I always seemed to get lucky and find at least one really cool item — whether it was a seashell, sand dollar, starfish, etc. This year we were determined to find something cool. And we did!
Catch a Wave
After discovering that the girls were more interested in the water I wanted to shift focus from the sand to the surf. While we didn’t go surfing, we spent plenty of time jumping waves. Eventually, our 3-year old — the same girl who hated the water last year — was running and diving into the waves.
Go Snorkeling
We bought a mask and snorkel for my oldest daughter because we thought it would be fun to let her see under the water as she swam. She really enjoyed the pool and used the mask quite a bit there. Maybe next year we’ll go to a beach that has clear water where she can actually see fish and coral.
Relax
The final note came on the day we were leaving. After our quick getaway, I thought it was important to recognize that we all need to relax. Especially as the vacation winds down. All the time was spent running around on the beach or in the pool, as well as taking care of three small children. So this note might be more geared to the adults, but certainly should be appropriate for the kids as well.
Where have you gone on vacation this year and how did you like? If you took your children, what were some of their favorite activities? Please share your stories in the comments. And don't forget to tag any of your beach sketches on social media using the #LunchNoteSketch hashtag.