Life of an Internet Company Logo

Almost two years ago I started Global Promoter, a search engine marketing and optimization firm. Even though it's only been incorporated that long, I designed a site for it more than 5 years ago and this was the original logo. I can't believe how cheezy it looks now but I guess that's the way it goes.

I remember thinking at the time how proud I was to be flexing my Photoshop skills and now when I look at it I have mixed emotions. The design is incredibly lame and typical of the era (this is depressing) but then I think about how I was truly ahead of 99% of the mainstream marketers out there because I focused my efforts on search engine placement (that's exciting. In the end I'm quite proud of how far the company has come since it's humble beginnings in my one bedroom apartment. I still remember the renegade feeling of consulting for well known internet companies using my Pentium Pro 200 Intel (yes it's actually an Intel badged machine) that only had a 2 gig hard drive. Talk about the spirit of the internet.

What's the point? I think there's a little bit of that renegade spirit in all of us. In the beginning when we're learning a new skill we feel ignorant and almost like we're wasting time. But as our skills and experience (the most important part is experience IMO) increase, so does the demand for them. That's the payoff and that's when we see the fruits of our labor ripen. That's also when you're glad you didn't take shortcuts because you then realize you've built a solid foundation that's not easily shaken.

Hopefully, this little entry encourages some of you to keep pushing on because no matter where you start from or what you choose to excel at, as long as you're determined and willing to make sacrifices you'll go far.