Investing in Myself

Recently I was chatting with a client who said "Emilie, you should do all that you do for me, for yourself. I'd never know what you do, how you do it, or how successful you're able to make clients by looking at your website."

And that's when I realized -- my biggest stumbling block between present and success is myself. So, this year, I'm making a concious effort to invest in myself. Now, what does that look like? For me, the biggest areas of opportunity are (1) my branding; (2) business processes; (3) online presence. So let me talk you through how I'm starting to act.

Branding 🎨

I've tried over the years to figure out branding for myself. I have probably like 15 logo ideas in the back of my mind. I know how I come off to clients, and the type of clients I want. I have even done the excercises, and conciously incorporated, my brand guide when it comes to brand characteristics. But what I haven't done is formalized any of it. So this year, I've started to invest, and I even hired someone to help me do it. I am my own worst client, and that needs to stop.

When looking for a designer, I looked for someone I trusted. I, luckily, have a large amount of designer friends. People who I know their style, who also understand mine and what I do. I sat down and looked at all their work and then I set up some meetings to see who was avaliable. I wanted someone who could help with this sooner, rather than later. And someone who would deliver a product that I'd be happy with for more than just a season. I'm so very excited to show it to you! Stay tuned! 🎉🎉🎉

I also hired Savannah Faye Photography to take some life style photos to put on my site, and assets that I send to clients. I'm so excited for the new look! 😍

Business Processes 🤓

If you've worked with me, you know that I'm pretty trusting; I bill in arears; and we don't have a formal contract. This was okay as I was just starting up, but today? Not as much.

Starting in July, I'll be sending out formal contracts to clients to ensure that both sides are happy. A lot of people don't love conversations about billing, contracts, and business processes. To me though, they're peace of mind. I want to ensure that I deliver what my client needs (& hopefully what they want). And I want to make sure that I'm proving my own value. If it's been a minute, and I haven't shown you the value that I add -- that's a problem. I believe better business practices will allow clients to have more peace of mind, get better results, and come back more and more!

Online Presence 👩🏼‍💻

You know the saying A shoemakers kids never has shoes? Well, a web developer should have a website, haha. My goal this year, is to really ramp up my site. Some steps I'll be taking are (1) aligning it with my brand; (2) implementing my own design system; (3) publishing articles for small businesses; and (4) publishing technical articles for my coding friends.

Join me in my journey -- next month when I set up my email list! 💌