Two Dogs Barking Productions has been in business for a number of successful years. Very early on, we learned two important lessons that have guided and defined our work.
LESSON #1:
Sometimes the obvious answer is the best solution.
Many years ago my husband and I were outside and our two cocker
spaniels were in the house and each gave out a quick bark in unison.
It was one of those serendipitous moments when we both said 'two dogs
barking' and in the next breath one of us replied... 'that'd be a good
name for a production company.' Of course there is some ongoing debate
on who actually said it. Nonetheless, it was at least another 4 or 5
years before the shingle was hung... and there was only one obvious
name to go with: Two Dogs Barking.
One of two things happen whenever I'm asked the name of my company. Either the next question is: How did you come up with the name? Or, I'm told 'Oh I've heard of you.' I remember being at a funeral a few years ago when one of the attendees made that comment after we were introduced. As flattered as I was, I knew it wasn't likely she had heard about Two Dogs Barking. She had flown in from rural Alabama to attend the funeral. I'm not arrogant enough or naive enough to believe we had reached her neighborhood with our work. But, the conversation did make me realize that we had chosen a company name that resonates with people. It is unique enough to pique interest while being clever enough to stick with you. And isn't that the goal for any small business to stay in the minds of our customers and potential customers. Now I don't know if that woman will ever need any video production done, but I'm sure if she does, she'll remember our name.
The best choice for us in choosing the name of our company was the most obvious one. And it has served us well.
LESSON #2: To be your creative best and do your best creatively, surround yourself with the most creative people you can find.
Through a series a unlikely events I was fortunate enough to meet Michael State of m.state design in Seattle. The first time we worked together on a creative setting was for the L'Arche Tahoma Hope 2005 auction. I could see he was a creative genius immediately and that he has a gift for understanding the imagery needed to tell a story. When we met about Two Dogs Barking, Michael was very inquisitive about our vision for the company, but also very deliberate in his questions. It was through the incredibly eye of Michael that our logo was born.
For many years prior to opening Two Dogs Barking, I worked for a variety of sizes of broadcast companies with any number of layers of management. And as anyone in the creative field knows, it is difficult to get 'suits' to understand the environment in which creatives shine. We need to feed off one another. What I quickly realized after working with Michael was, that as a small business owner, I could chose who I worked and collaborated with... so why not choose the best? Since that time, I have had the opportunity to join forces with many amazingly creative and brilliant people. In future blogs, I will be sharing information about these people as my way of saying 'thank you' for making me better at what I love to do: tell stories.
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