General Business Blog
3 reasons people are loyal to brands
When it comes to the products & services that fill our daily lives, we all have our favorites and our reasons for our loyalty to certain brands. If you feel like this loyalty to a brand makes you a little odd or set in your ways, it doesn't. Overall, around 8 out...
4 Tips that take the Confusion out of Choosing the Right Graphic Designer
I wrote a blog similar to this several years ago, you might see it floating around the internet, but I felt like it was time to redo it as the industry and landscape of the business community and design community have changed a lot! This is still one of my favorite...
Why Good Design Grows Businesses
Graphic Design is art with a purpose. It’s meant to be a tool to communicate information between a business and its customers or potential customers. There is a lot of chatter around about whether graphic design helps a business – Does it matter for a business’s...
The top 2 questions I get asked the most as a graphic design and visual marketing specialist
I spend a lot of time answering questions for potential clients, active clients, and former clients. I love answering their questions. It’s always fascinating to see what people want to know. Yet, I seem to find myself answering these same 2 questions the most, and...
Ask the Designer: Common Questions about Stock Art and Stock Media
I spend a lot of time discussing art and media with my clients. A topic of conversation that usually comes up is stock art and stock media. Stock photography alone makes an appearance in half of all ads with 9 out of 10 digital marketers using stock photos in their...
5 ways to boost the visibility of a business
Visibility. It’s a word thrown around on the internet a lot these days. What it means for business owners is advertising and putting your business out in front of potential customers. Businesses need visibility to grow - especially if you're in a fairly saturated...
5 Common Design Terms and What They Mean!
Every industry has its jargon. The words specific to their profession that someone outside the industry would scratch their heads at and graphic design is no different. I do my best to avoid using industry-specific terms because I know my clients don’t know what they...
5 Things That Set A Business Up For Success
Everyone wants a piece of the American Dream and for many, that means starting a business and being their own boss! Unfortunately, the statistics for new businesses aren’t very optimistic as 80% of all businesses fail. In order for your company to be part of that 20%...
5 Smartphone Apps I Use to Run My Business
It takes a lot to run a business and we all have our tools to get it done. Here are 5 apps on my phone that I love and use regularly for my business. DISCLAIMER: I do not have anything to do with any of these apps! I just like them and recommend them as a fan!...
3 easy ways to choose colors for your business
One of the top questions I get regularly is “how do I pick a color palette” for my business. Here I have three tips for picking a color palette and two reasons why color is good for business. Why you need it: Reason 1: Color helps a business get remembered. People...
The 3 Questions about Logos I get Asked the Most as a Graphic Design Specialist
I get asked questions regularly about design with logos being the top service category I get asked about. There’s a lot to know when it comes to creating a logo and lot of information out there! Today I thought I would share the 3 questions that I get asked the most...
5 common design choices that make a design less attractive
I’ve spent close to a decade doing graphic design in Orange County, California and I’ve seen a lot of designs that have these same unfortunate choices in them. It makes them stick out as something created by a newer designer or non-designer and can change the...
How to Determine Your Business’s Ideal Client
We talk about needing Ideal clients in your business. It’s mentioned that these are the people who want, need and will like who you are and what you’re offering them. It’s also well recognized that these folks are different for each business. The question I feel like...
The Art of the Visual Rebrand
Maybe your company has grown a lot recently. Perhaps you just don’t like the logo you had at first, it doesn’t fit your vision. You’re actually a lot more specialized than your old logo makes you out to be or you just inherited the family business and want to...
The Number One Mistake I Struggle To Fix as a Designer
The number one mistake that I struggle to fix as a designer: poorly written text. I love talking about graphic design and the different elements that make up a good design, like the colors, fonts and more. Here’s the thing, that’s not all graphic design is. Under the...
3 Things to Know about DIY Graphic Design
I’m on social media a lot. I’m in several entrepreneur groups and groups for graphic designers. At least once a day I see a post like “Ladies!! Who does your graphic design? Drop the deets below” and inevitably, without fail I see a chain of comments that boil down to...
2,000-year-old selling techniques that still work!
Over 2,000 years ago, Greek philosopher, Aristotle came up with his Rhetorical Triangle that was made up of the 3 pillars of persuasion. These pillars (I call them techniques) of selling still work! Ideally, an advertisement or sales pitch would use all three of these...
four financial tips for new freelancers and creatives
According to Forbes Magazine, 1.57 million Americans are part of the gig economy. With money being at the forethought for a lot of us right now, I wanted to share a few good tips about money for new freelancers and independent creatives. Tip 1: Separate Your Business...
10 Ways to Help Your Business Right Now
Right now, the world is in the middle of a health crisis. New terms like "self-isolation" and "social distancing" have caught on. Gatherings and public events are canceled. Many businesses are shut down, others have employees working from home. For small business...
Branding is Not Your Logo
I had an email from a potential client the other day who was asking for help with her branding, which is great and I’m happy to help. After a few minutes of discussion via email, I asked if she had a logo or if she needed me to create one and she said, “I need one,...