Building a Distinctive Brand: Insights from the Busy Beaver Button Company
In a recent episode of the Turbo Branding Show, host Sue Kirchner sat down with Christen Carter, president and owner of Busy Beaver Button Company, to discuss how she built a thriving business with a distinctive brand that makes both products and a community impact. You can listen or watch the episode here.
From DIY Punk Rock to Thriving Business
Christen Carter started Busy Beaver Button Company in 1995 as a DIY punk rock business, selling custom buttons to help bands spread the word and connect with people. Nearly 30 years later, the company has expanded to include stickers and other small, shareable custom products, while maintaining its core ethos: helping organizations and individuals promote their ideas, share messages, and build community.
The Brand Behind the Buttons
When asked about the Busy Beaver brand, Carter emphasized that “friendly” is one of their core pillars. “I think friendly is one of the big kind of pillars of what people appreciate about us,” she explained. The company also prioritizes quality and customer service, offering what Carter calls “white glove service” – unusual for a manufacturing company.
“We do have white glove service, which is unusual for a company that manufactures custom products. You can call us, we’ll answer the phone. There’s a lot of human-to-human contact that’s available,” said Carter.
One of their key brand messages is “service from a friend,” which emphasizes their commitment to being approachable and supportive to customers.
Diverse Customer Base
Because buttons and stickers are essentially a blank canvas for messaging, Busy Beaver serves a diverse client base. Their primary customers include universities, non-profits, musicians, bands, artists, and political campaigns.
Carter finds joy in this diversity: “That’s one of the joys of having this business is that we’re kind of a hub for people up to stuff and wanting to spread a message. So we get to see all angles and what people are up to in general.”
The Power of a Small Medium
Buttons may be small, but they pack a powerful communication punch. Carter likens them to social media posts but with more accountability:
“I often liken them to social media, like a tweet or something. But it’s not anonymous like a tweet, and it’s literally something you have to stand behind. It takes some thought to put into it, and people are physically wearing them. So it means a lot more in the person-to-person connection and can change minds.”
Building a Brand Strategy
When the pandemic hit and her marketing manager left, Carter knew she needed a more structured approach to branding and marketing. She sought help from Brand Strong Marketing to develop a comprehensive brand strategy that would give her team direction and consistency.
The research revealed some surprising insights. Customers loved working with Busy Beaver and would order everything from them if possible, because of their friendly service and ease of ordering. However, aspects the company they thought might be key differentiators – like being solar-powered and women-owned – were seen as nice bonuses but not primary decision factors.
This research helped them adjust their messaging priorities and focus on what customers truly valued.
Measuring Success Through Data
Implementing HubSpot was a game-changer for Busy Beaver, allowing them to gather vital data about their target markets, customer responses, and product performance.
“I wanted to get HubSpot to create these measurables for us because we were doing email marketing and weren’t sure what was working,” Carter explained. “The software actually made things a lot more simple for us.”
This data-driven approach helped them focus their efforts on specific markets like non-profits, where they could make the most impact.
Evolution Over 30 Years
The company has come a long way from its mail-order beginnings in 1995: “It was all mail order when I started it, so it was all like getting a check in the mail with a piece of artwork and a note of where to send it,” Carter reminisced.
Key milestones included accepting credit cards online and launching their first website in 1998. Throughout these changes, word-of-mouth marketing has remained a constant driver of business growth.
Beyond Products: Creating Experiences
Busy Beaver extends its brand through unique experiences:
- On-site button making at events, conferences, and even private parties
- The Button-O-Matic – toy vending machines placed in 15-20 locations around Chicago featuring curated button series
- The Button Museum – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that houses a collection of 60,000 buttons and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records
The museum in particular reflects the company’s passion for the medium. “The mission is to tell as much American history as possible through pinback buttons,” Carter explained. The museum receives about 100,000 visits a year to its website (buttonmuseum.org) and welcomes approximately 15 in-person visitors weekly.
Looking Forward
As Busy Beaver approaches its 30th anniversary, Carter is focused on continuing to strengthen the brand by:
- Streamlining the website to make ordering even easier
- Refreshing brand elements for consistency
- Better measuring marketing success to inform future strategies
- Expanding their presence at industry conferences for more human-to-human connections
The Name Behind the Brand
The company name itself has a charming origin story. Carter explained: “I always liked companies that had an animal mascot logo, and my mom had this arithmetic book when she was a kid called Busy Beavers that I used to love looking at. The beavers all worked together, and they were just cute and figuring out equations and stuff like that. I just thought it was funny.”
This blog post was adapted from an interview with Christen Carter on the Turbo Branding show hosted by Sue Kirchner. To learn more about Busy Beaver Button Company, visit busybeaver.net and follow them on Instagram. For a fascinating journey through American history via buttons, check out buttonmuseum.org.
