Bring on the New Year! 2017 has brought many blessings our way such as graduating from “the #1 public university in the world” and launching our company, but we are so ready to tackle what 2018 has to bring.

Before the year comes to a wrap, we want to take a moment to answer some of the most common questions we receive, reflect on the work we’ve done, and set our goals for the new year. If you have any questions that arise while reading this, please feel free to leave it in the comment section below. Also, don’t forget to download our gift to you at the bottom of the post. Happy Holidays & Happy New Year!!

Carolline: Cobalt & Sapphire helps small businesses showcase their products and services to their desired target market. Small business owners often wear several caps in their establishment, and unfortunately, marketing isn’t always their first priority. That’s where we step in.

Sofia: We knew that we wanted our business name to reflect both of our personalities. To come up with the perfect name we used nominal brainstorming, a method we learned from our Leading Groups and Teams class, to get all of our ideas out on paper. We used one of the glass study rooms at our school’s library to allow us to write on the walls and have plenty of space to get creative. By the end of the night, the room was covered in post-its and Cobalt & Sapphire was born.

Carolline: Cobalt is a chemical element, which by definition is a material that cannot be broken down or changed into another substance. We like to think of Cobalt as the strategy or foundation of our marketing ideas. Sapphire, on the other hand, is a gemstone. It represents the beauty and creativity of our ideas. Cobalt & Sapphire are also both a blue color which we use in our branding and it has our initials C & S, which was the main factor in selecting our name.

C: Working with Sofia is like working with the energizer bunny. She’s the burst of energy I need on our 9 am calls and she knows exactly what to say to motivate me and bring my spirits up. Sofia has a magic touch when it comes to making work fun and working with her truly is my favorite part about Cobalt & Sapphire.

S: I honestly could not have asked for a better business partner. After working together on countless group projects in college, I realized it is so hard to find colleagues that I can truly count on to get the job done and to do it well. She keeps me on track with deadlines and is always honest. Her contribution creates a collaborative and creative environment for our business to grow.

C: There is nothing quite typical about our days. Every day we are up to something different and each week has a very different tone to what we do. One thing that is consistent though is our 9 am calls. Every day at 9 am, Sofia and I get on a call and talk about what needs to be done that day. Then we get started on that day’s work and call each other maybe 15-20 times a day. Mondays are typically our social media planning days where we plan out and create our client’s posts for the week. Fridays are usually when we pitch new clients or attend client events. Our workdays really depend on what our clients are up to.

S: Always make time to be friends! No matter what we have on our plate for the day we always make time to talk about our lives and what’s going on that is not work-related. It’s also very important to be honest with one another and to address issues right away. We only want the best for each other and our company so we don’t take feedback to heart.

C: Demanding yet gratifying

S: Doesn’t feel like work (Sorry that’s four words but I like to break the rules!)

C: When we started, our work hours were from 7 pm to 2 am and our desks were our beds. We were still in school at the time so we at least had the luxury of being with each other 24/7. Now we are located in different states and take monthly “business” trips to visit each other. We have big girl desks and the foundation of our business is laid. 7 months ago we were just two college students with an idea we were testing and today we are “the experts” that make big decisions affecting our client’s businesses.

S: I would honestly consider every day an accomplishment because we are not following any formula on how to get the job done. Since our inception, our company has grown from an idea to servicing over 12 clients, all with different needs and expectations. Learning to adapt and grow with each client keeps pushing us forward. Beyond that, we have done everything from creating a brand that reflects our style to building our dream website. Stay tuned for what is still to come!

C: Helping someone else build their dream

S: I wouldn’t be making a real change in people’s businesses

C: We’ve had 7 months to discover what we’re good at, what is worth our time, and what we enjoy doing. In 2018, we want to refine our services and focus on our strengths. In addition, we want to grow our professional network and create greater brand awareness.

S: We are also looking forward to growing our client base in 2018. We’ve been growing faster than we could have ever imagined and I think 2018 will be the year where we also grow our team. In order to scale, we need to build out our team so we’re pretty excited to explore this next chapter in the new year.