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Website Reveal with Promise Tangeman

I am honored and I'm absolutely thrilled tohave now I used to say my but now I could collectively say our talented graphic designer promised tandem in back and restart today thank you I think that many of us remember the huge dose of honesty that she served all you as she went through and she critique your website so I'm sure that was your favorite moment, right? But I am really excited because promise and her group of associate designers have worked on starting and recreating your websites and I can't wait to show what is in store, but before we get there, I want to make sure that everybody online and in the studio audience really understands how hard and how difficult the rebranding process is. So over the past month, what I saw happening was that people were getting started with the process and they felt like really inspired and excited after seeing the conversations they went home and they said I could do it, I can do it and then about a week or so into it they said, you know, I'm ...

just really busy it's not the right time or maybe I don't know where I am and I saw so many people falling off to the wayside and so I think that I want to stress the importance of pushing through and staying on track an understanding that perfect doesn't necessarily exist our goal is for us to put our heads down and get the work done and make changes as it happens, but to give you a better idea of what our photographers faced because they didn't have the option of quitting at the halfway point, so what was supposed to happen is we were supposed to check in with each other every four weeks, but what happened was between last deposit in this episode, we ended up just having three weeks, so at around a week and a half, I e mailed and was like, how you guys do in and then I said, better yet, why did he send me a video of how you guys are doing? And so we're about to show a short video of them in their homes, and their office is expressing how they felt, how am I feeling? Well, kind of crazy, overwhelmed has been really difficult for me. One of my big one of my fears about working with a designer is I don't want to be that client from hell. What if I go through this whole process, this rebranding web design? And I don't attract that my target clients, and I thought it was gonna be really easy once I handed it over, but I think the realization of rebranding my business has been pretty overwhelming I've been sitting at my desk I've been trying to think of some content for the web site seriously have been on website overload lately, yeah, it's kind of stressful, and I'm feeling a little overwhelmed I even made like I have this law candidate, the notebook and I created like new website, I'm really nervous and I'm really excited I really cannot wait to see what the designers have in store for me really great, I'm really excited and I'm really grateful for this opportunities. I'm excited though, and I will get over myself and drag my butt up off the floor. I had to have my little checklist do monday, all of this I have I mean, I did this, but I just forgot to make some exes I love how our mist and really they were in the fact that when I really said, hey, guys just sent me a video, they really just send me a video and rides like excuse me, I didn't have a shirt, theo think the key is because I loved it, but the key is tio let everybody online and here in studio, on his dough, we've been there it's so difficult, but these three photographers can attest, it can be done and it can be done very well, it just goes to show how bad you want it so on that note I'm really happy to have promised back in the studio with us to talk about the process and reveal their brand new sights, so please help me welcome promise weigh in three weeks okay, so that these last three weeks have been the shortest three weeks and also the longest ever but it's an awesome I'm really proud of you guys and the designers we all their heads down works really hard. So after the completion of your web sites, I got together with my friend alejandro videl from imagine it lee design and we created a thirty second introduction introduction video to your new visual identity. So, ryan, I'm going to start with yours. This is kind of just the big reveal. It's like it's a little clip of kind of what we've done in the last three weeks and then I'm gonna walk you guys through some of the design elements and also through the web site, so okay, we're gonna hit ryan's first. Wait. Okay. Pretty big deal, right? You have a new face online. We have some champagne to celebrate that what we have today, so basically, I'm gonna kind of go through some of things that way have been the last three weeks the designers I partnered with on this project was named ben turner he's awesome he's been customizing the site house sites for a while now and he's always on top of it so that was awesome. So now let's talk about some of the design elements to begin the process ryan showed you the list in that video we had a whole list do it monday and one of those was the photo safari that jasmine assigned for them I wanted all those items sent to us so he sent us that and then while we're looking at the photo safari, you can see that ryan's curated a really good group of images they all have a consistent color scheme and the consistency theme to it, which is awesome looking at this point we can also tell that ryan has a very rustic and natural personal aesthetic which I love through this design process I decided because his target market is brian brides and he's a male we wanted teo bring it up a little more upscale so there's some changes that we made to the colors and some of the five a little bit I don't really colors colors yeah, we'll talk about that in a minute one challenge ahead with ryan's website so taking these observations from the photo safari that we looked at ben and I started to build the kit of parts for ryan and I started with the logo and moved on to the selected color so we can move on to screen here so this is ryan's branding board and as you can see, ryan has a great logo has a modern and masculine typography to it holland but does anybody remember ryan's past look like laugh logo can we just get the hard way? Tio awesome so and then there's a few items that are lightly distress emphasizing kind of a natural and earthy feel kind of like the photo safaris that saw he can use his logo in its entirety displayed on the top or he can use the various icons as hints of his brand on like letterhead or facebook or blogged or whatever however he choose to use those and also I've been incorporated some various arrows in the brands you can see on the left and on the right and those are kind of a tribute to his love for giving directions so you can use those just getting anywhere just has a little hint of of ryan different so one thing that we had discussed sorry to jump in we had discussed what their strengths where I had emailed the photographers and I said you guys don't limit yourselves can you please tell me what your strength starr and I said in the beginning my strings were writing in my name and everybody thought that was silly and then I said ryan what do you think some of your strength so he's like I love giving directions I'm good direction, good directions and who would have thought that something so out there so different could actually parlay and work itself into, like a brand identity, so don't limit yourself to well, I really like cores until photos think outside of the box and at and you're if you work with really good graphic designer, they'll find ways to mesh both worlds. Yeah, I love it because it actually goes really well with the rustic outdoors theme with the idea of giving directions so works really, really well together, so most visually, most visual identities have, eh a board like this together it's the kit of parts, but I actually like seeing them collectively together, because then if ryan's making a change in his brand or he wants to create a new collateral piece, you can just look at this or designer he's working with whoever can look at this and figure out what, like a combination of these atoms they want to use to create that piece was just a really easy way to look and say, ok, on anyone make the block header. Look what I have to work with. So you're not starting from nothing that's very, really, really helpful. That's cool, so let's move on to the website here, so we took the kit of parts and we combined it. Teo create this layout and he actually chose a layout. Colds eta from sight house designed. So this is awesome because we have the kit of parts, which is all everything we just looked at, and we have a web site layout that were working with were combining them together and it's creating a really unique custom site that's really specifically built for ryan so you can see the wood accents on the side, you could see his logo there in the middle and something really fun that we chose to do with the wording. We chose to word it as if certain aspects of the site is like, we're giving direction. So for instance, on the home page, it just passed, but it says on the very bottom right corner, it says, go ahead and take a shortcut and book a shoot or something like that. So it's, very, you know, a lot of fun things around the ryan said that has some symbolism in that way, so I got really cool vertical sliding photos, and again, we're bringing about a video back in he wanted the widescreen photo gallery displaying his photos. Looks amazing, I think, as a photographer like these air your same photos and all we did was changed. The online store front, nothing about who you are is a for talking for nothing about your skill set has changed, and yet I look at you and all I could see is such a stronger representation of who you are. Congrats it looks really good contracts. So hey, teo there's a problem? Cheers think absolutely all right, so I'd like to move on to nikki's video and again, this is just a little thirty second sniff it of what we've done past three weeks wait seriously kneeled it love it good and so that so I partnered with meg along, it was the designer on nikki said she was awesome she's, uber creative and she has a really, really great customer service like you got to experience perfect she's awesome, highly recommended is really, really fun. So to begin the process of getting us everything we needed up front, just like I asked for, and one of them was the photo safari. So here is her photo safari. Can I just please take a time out? I'm sorry this is promises bit of the show, but I just want to say there was a method to the madness about the photo safari, specifically requesting you guys to take time out your schedules and really be focused on what it is and nicki worked very hard on a photo safari. She had her photo safari done the first, but then she went back and made amendments. Now there are people in the research group who want teo bypass the voters safari, but I want to say go through the process, there is reasonings too. It can make a quick comment, they actually took some of the elements and, you know, either just put it directly into my sight or judged it a little bit. So I just think it's so important to take this seriously because it could end up in your sight and you have to really told me, and I was actually gonna mention that that was one of migs favorite part, so she was really inspired working with you in that way because all the photos that they used all the texture is all the elements were from mickey, and so I feel like that really brings them brand full circle don't really crazy, consistent experience for the clients. I'm glad you pushed me to to work harder on the safari, because at first I just done it at home, and yes, I didn't want to e mail him back, and they said this is a great great start now let's finish it I really don't want to hear that, but well, I was thinking I'm attracted to it if it's already in my home so I'll just do it my home I thought I was being so brilliant but yeah in the end it was so much better just getting my wings thank you that's good and that was one of the things that all my comments here I always say they're really similar and color scheme they have consistent theme on every one of their boards you don't know how many inspiration boards I get and they don't have a particular theme you know they're just random things, different colors and like it's probably inspiring to them but I have no idea what they're after here and that wasn't the case with you guys. Each of you had a very distinct vibe about you and that's what really made this process get done in three weeks because they had their together so that's awesome. So now what we can really see in nicky's board is that she has a really feminine aesthetic and it's mixed with a hint of what I like to call retro vintage glam if that if that if that's usable for nikki and there's one item in this inspiration board for this photo safaris that does not go teo s o anybody confined now if we could get a prize is there anybody in studio can take a guess what does not belong on this? Anybody doll? Yes. I went so well. I was like, okay, this is great, except what? Wait, nick and I talked about that. And then guess what I got in the mail two weeks later, you got the black hole. Shut up, booth. So really brought it all for all. Yes, or conforming. So that was awesome. So, taking these observations into consideration, mega started to build the kit of parts for nikki and to start with the logo and moved on to the selected colors, fonts and images for nikki's brands. You can go to that which is here. We have a really, really great set of images, fonts and colors to work with. She has a really strong local mark, and the shape is very recognizable. The name nicky so she could even use the name nicky. This other places, you know, it's a little on envelopes on stamps on a t shirt you wanted on anything is very, very recognizable. So that's going to be awesome for her brand consistency and having clients recognize her. Can I see something else, too? I just feel like nikki is so much stronger than nick. See, photography niki, like nikki closser, is just so perfect that I see you and I feel you versus I never under like mixi like what is that? Now I know this is you and so for that another toast another so if you get a t shirt with just says nikki across that waiting for that in the mail so nate made also incorporated a whimsical font featured as kind of feature fun throughout the visual identity. The phone has a very feminine and natural feel what you can see over here on the right and it's perfect for the girl who is great about staying in touch of people because it has that really upscale, like, personal penmanship type and I feel like I really got to experience that personal touch, you know, of keeping in touch with people buy you even sending me that book, so but that was really cool. That was awesome. And nikki, I would encourage you to, like, really lean into that because that was really memorable in my line to get a cool, you know, just so you know, we talked about it. I mean, if she remembered so really special special for her, um, okay, we talked about that again that we use her photos over her real photos in the website and he took those that's awesome. We have a pattern over on the left that she can use pretty much anywhere on envelopes on her website which you'll see in just a minute which we can move on to all right so make took the kit of parts and designed the website and this is with theta designed from sight house which if you want to know this is the same layout as we use for ryan's with they both chose the same layout but it looks completely different and that is how that's just the power of the lighthouse designed how much you can read customise them so she meg and her did an awesome job customizing it in that way it looks awesome her photos we've got the two funds there invest peter lovett raves section that's awesome I just love it so yeah how you feeling? You want it's I love it I couldn't be happier good it's perfect so god three weeks alright let's move on to video promise can I just give some shout outs from the internet? But the internet is just loving seeing the reveals we're getting what we allow from theo burnham and coast as fits her work super well and jack's kuroda says what a difference the website suits her perfectly and meg long creative is in the chat room and it was so much fun nicky is a rock star thanks she's in there talking with everyone having a very cool wow that's great master mercy o all right, so be ready for melissa's video yes again this is a thirty second short look wait here's yours shares and I would just like to start before promise that your cousin brian is in the audience brian you married up? She looks way got her dancing yes way have been last time I was like, okay, we have to figure out so email okay, we got to get a video was in the audience took the video of it like I wish I kept the audio because the audio for the way all right, so melissa back to melissa melissa gave us everything we needed to start off with the whole list you did it photo safari boom here we go. Looking at this we can it's definitely apparent that she has a very nautical personal aesthetic which I love and I am adding it with a touch of glitz and glam that's what I added to that so taking big glitz and glam a nautical idea into account the designer that working with me on this site was joanna waterfall and she's awesome amazing you have a little radio and she really did a great job taking lessons personality and really just expounding on on the site and I feel like it really really showcases who you are and I really, really, really fun way, so I'm really proud of it were very long so, taking all these ap option observations into consideration, we have a lot of cool things going on on melissa's brand board. She has different color schemes here and a really solid I want leo and I love listens logo because she can use it in two ways. She can use the full identity, but the top or she can youjust the m k on a stamp or something really fun like that anywhere. And then she can add the glitter, you know, different places along the site or different postcards, something used and the fun rope detail on the bottom. We could put that anywhere. Headers are all all that different. That's, really, you and I just have to say how much I love out of this particular brand board was the mixing of typography that promised knows I'm a typography and fonts. Now, after the way that all of these just works so well, I mean, definitely props to miss waterfall. Cool. She good in the m k is a fear of fun. So it's got those little wings of the top. So that has a very traditional, very timeless look. And then the melissa killed there is a sand sara font, which brings in the modern kind of clean looking so the combination of those two together is really, really strong and it creates a lot of personality and then it's going to stand the test of time too so it's a really good lead everything coming combinations that'll last you a while all right? So let's go on and on to the web site design so joanna took the kit of parts design and combined it with the studio playback design from sight house and so again we're taking the kit of parts which is all the fun's in the fun stuff the layout and then bring it brought together to create a unique layout from lissa and then the video has her dancing, which you'll see at the very end. Hopefully I love that the photos full screen scrolling photography and I love the scrolling bar at the bottom like you can move it on your own and I liked the font that the u s had used like it just kills me all the mixing of fonts itjust works hurts so well we never see the glitter added eight and and you wear really pretty favorite pages. I was like dying and squealing over this painting and you know, when you looked at the original website, she just had all these items listed out right? And we're like we want to see them graphically in visually so that really um accomplished our solution here is we can see actually what she's loving and we get a vibe for melissa info section again the mix of a fun fun and one thing I like here is his text me let's go to starbucks so melinda, isn't it limitless isn't saying I have a very fancy studio that's where go it's I'm going to keep it really of it I'm q and we'll have a great cup of coffee and she did it in a way that really broadcast this is who I am so I loved it and really beautiful job find madeleine that's one of her special requests this man lives so cute so I look contact yeah adorable it's awesome and then they'll see you're dancing here let's just wait for it wait so how you feeling with I love it like I'm so sunny because such a grueling process and so towards the end I was like eleven and I was like, I'm so tired of looking at it I still love it and so tired, you know like yeah it's been a process, but I think all of the steps that we did leading up teo giving all this content over it was so important because, well, he only had like two or three days like let me give you my entire life and my entire brand in who I am and a couple of days like, I think all of the homework that led up to that was so important because it made that so much easier I'm so happy to, like, handed over and never have joined just like what you think of this and it's like, oh my gosh, like this is made like I was so excited to have somebody get me good actually leads me to a point that I wanted to make three, three points of people watching at home, these people really nailed all three of you really had your homework, and I think that was really, really important everything they've done it restart here with you, jasmine really prepared them, so they had stuff to bring to the designer, and that was the most important thing we've seen. Maybe everyone, maybe people have home have had experiences of just the designer didn't work out with them or something happened, but if you come prepared, I said, get your ish together, people, if you bring all your stuff prepared than the designer can take all that can be inspired and they have stuff to work with. I think that's really, really important because none of you came back and said, this isn't at all what I was, what I was expecting, you know, we didn't have to do any roots website reduce their anything? We presented an initial concept and it was right on cue. We just had some very, very simple edits to make and personal tweaks that mean you don't like this. You like this, but ultimately we had the big picture. We nailed the big picture that was really, really important. Can I'm going to stop promise here and say, if you're a photographer and you're watching at home and you're thinking to yourself? Well, I've had the worst experience with a graphic designer. How is it that these three people got right out of the gate? My thing is, yes, promise and her team are wonderful, graphic designers, but they would never have been able to do what they did if the photographers were not fully equipped with what itwas so if you're at home and you're frustrated by getting drafts back from a graphic designer that air not a good fit, I'm going to probably push you in the wrong er I mean, push you and make you feel awkward. But it's most likely not the graphic designer it's most probably you you're not giving a streamline overprepared folio of who you are, you figured that out yet great here, you know, that's what you need, you're expecting the graphic designer who show you who you are and you have done the hard work means that's really important to get your together so here are the things here's another thing that I sent thes three photographers and I can't til monday right on and you're a little bit like this is still overwhelming well one catch up with episode two see where we are and then if you're not going through working with sight house designs or promise but you're working with your own graphic designer that's totally cool but here's a great a place for you to start so prom yes listed out so let's listen it out so I asked them which website design from sight house they'd like to start with we wanted a base foundation and that got that helped us get far in a short amount of time this knowing what which their highlights best all page tiles in navigation I want them to send me all the pay channels of everything they needed all written content for their website I needed their photo safari that they did with jasmine three to four colors that they that they liked that we could incorporate into their brain somehow um we've been talking you talk about your way have a color of drama with ryan booth headshots to two for head shots we could use on the site twenty ten to twenty sample portfolio images for the initial layout so when the designer is working on camping different things just a few images teo, get through! We don't want hundreds of images, okay? You can have those in later topography logo examples that you like. I want to see what your eye goes towards what kind of fonsi like and what personality goes with the funds that you're liking and then any special requests or design elements are ideas. So for instance, melissa wanted the mad lib contact for now is one of her special quest that's a great example of what one of those requests would be so no designer would be mad if you came with this list of things are you figured out about yourself? They might really have a process for you to go through. And if they do that's awesome follow their process do what they do, what they do because that's what they do best but no one's gonna be mad if you have your wish together so people get your heads together, get it together, get there is together so my next tip would be learning to communicate with your designer. I know I said you guys an email before the initial calms went out. I want to get everyone on the same page so we could really discuss what the changes are. Sometimes you know, you may not know how to articulate your revisions to your designer and you may not know what the designer is expecting from you so I laid that on the table, and I suggested things that I'd like to hear from you and how I would liketo be communicated with so we can all get on the same page, I think it's very, very important in a time out. Yeah, all right. So where I see a lot of the photographers on the facebook restart group and keep referring to the research group because this has become the pulse in the lifeblood in dictating where people are and what they need. And I saw a lot of people start the process. And once they got to this step, how did communicate the revision is where a lot of people got stuck. They became so frustrated thinking, I think I did something wrong or this is so off from what I wanted that they said, I just don't have time to deal with this. No, now that you now know what your graphic designer needs promise is going to talk about communicating it in a way that a graphic designer needs to hear it because you guys are you both want to get to the yes, right. You both want to land on a design that designer feels good about, and the client feels good about you as a photographer and it's all about communication, I think sometimes we forget. That focus on the communication and really figure out each other and how to get to the yes that's so important, and I think it goes overlooked so there's a few things. One of them is I sent a little a little revision questionnaire to my plans, I sent it to them, and this is an example on a scale of one to ten, ten being best, how well does it reflect the look you desire in visualize? So we're just looking at the big picture right now, we're not focused on, oh, I don't like that little gold box or like this little thing, not focus on the specifics or focus on the big picture. I just want to figure out, did we get even close to what you're thinking of? So that's what we want to know first and then if not a ten, right? What needs to change in order to achieve a ten? And I don't want you to say, oh, just move this box two notches this way, I want to know, like more color, more real life textures, more masculine, more upscale. I want to know the vibe that you're that you need, because if something's not working for you, we gotta figure out what it is, and that leads me to my next one does it feel to this or that? So if something's not sitting right with you, does it feel too much like feel too feminine or does it not feel retro enough so using things like that really helped the designer to understand to get in your mind and figure out what is it that you're not liking? And I have suggestion I mean I'm a designer I have suggestions of how we could get it to look more retro, you know? You might just say take off that I don't like it, you know? But I might say, well, tell me tell me what it is and you want to look more retro, okay? There's other idea there's other ways that we can get make it look more retro, so learning the big picture is the most important thing for me and then we can get to the details, you know, moving the spots here, you don't like this monk, those are just the fine details we want to get the overall picture first and nail that one and then the last one is there any visual inspiration examples of what you've mentioned above? So if you could if you say it doesn't feel retro enough, show me something that looks retro enough for you so I could get an idea of what you're thinking when you're thinking retro cool, yeah bohm my last one go with your gut and I think this is so important and figures have a little family discussion for a second here these I think these people were so successful in the last three weeks because they had they were operating on their gut they were just going there making decisions they're you know, they weren't laboring over the decision and you know we're all artists and I feel like I wrestled this this with this for years you know, it's, I don't know you this decision and I don't know if it's this or that and know that you know that q and all I want that at all I don't like that I think there was a quote I think maybe I can outthink perfection leads to progressive ammunition and that's and that's exactly what it is and I've seen photographers that just the labor this whole process and they they just it's not there thinking yeah, but the process that you both put us through was so helpful I mean, most of us out there have never gone through this process we don't know it's almost like someone saying to a photographer, can you just take a couple pictures at the party and you know, we're now saying can't just design a website we need to know exactly what you want from us in this process was killer still have a ball everything from your questionnaire to the homework it was great good yeah and um and leslie like along with go with your gut I just I feel like we can really just be labor the process and you know, life is really too short to be worried about what your b to be really worried about your branch like I've seen so many photographers that just obsessed with how their brains looks and they're not out taking photos you know they're obsessed with the wrong thing so yes, you want your brand look good? Yes you want to represent you, but after that, like make a decision and go with it and get on with it you know it's like, do something really matters in life? You know, don't get stuck on next I feel like I've seen something people just get stuff there yes, so go through god go with you guys I love it and I want to say a special thank you teo promise for being here and for how hard you guys art I know I know that I pushed you really hard and promised fifty really hard and her team of designers but she really hard and everybody online who participate in the process you pushed I think that those people who participated online push themselves three times is hard because knew what he was breathing down your back, so to you I drink a glass of thie congratulations. I think it's awesome! We're gonna open it up for a couple q and a directly related to this particular section and promises here to answer those questions for the next few minutes. Okay, we have a question from pro photographer who's from california and jasmine we've talked about this many times, but let's just put it out there once again. What is the best way to get objective feedback on your site before and after its launch? I have I have said it before and I'll say it again, but I'm gonna say it now differently to different capacity it's the benefit of working with the graphic designer is that you're getting feedback from a graphic designer, which is so different than doing it on your own. But if you are doing on your own, which I know a lot of people are go out immediately to your network and some people say I don't have a network well, now you don't have an excuse. There are over seventy, eight hundred people on that restart group and I have seen people but countless and countless and countless revisions on their website, and there was always always three or four people who have the time at that moment to give feedback, so go out to your peer group of your peers and then also have your close friends if they were close friends, they will go through a proof read give it to your mom, give it to your mom's knitting group, give it to people, girls, a prayer group at church, they'll go through eight and go through and proof read it and see how navigate herbal is, according to their demographic. Yes, because I was laughing because I send it to my dad right before I went live, and I was like that when you think about it and it talks about like there's a paragraph on the talks about how I want you to feel like a freaking rock star. So you called me and he was like, so that I didn't I didn't really get it to go down like you're supposed to get it. You know my client, if they read your dad the wrong way, awesome! That was perfect! Yes promise, please that's what you think it's very important when you do that, if you're in a rebrand processes, if you're starting out, you could blast it to anyone else. You haven't touched your website yet. If you are working with a designer or you're in the process and you need help making decisions, I don't think it's the best idea to blast it to everybody and then they're gonna get way too many opinions and they don't even know so if you could just narrow that scope a little bit if you're in the navy gritty and trying to make some decisions narrow that down to know three or four trusted people that really know you that have a good eye for critiquing things and that can really give input good that's really good because you're going to many of people's opinions that don't really matter right? Maybe we'll take just one question from the studio audience so I recently bought a promise template and I love it and I just launched my sight and my only concern is that like one of my one of my branding words is vibrant because I feel like my pictures are full of lots of color well I don't have a color scheme on my on my template like I didn't choose colors because it was it was so hard for me to choose a color to go with for for my sights so a lot of it is just black and white and sew it is that bad or I don't know I just feel like I'm doing need to choose a color for it I don't think so I think jasmine and her branding words which I love doing that those air more for your photography um aspect and I kind of made some branding words up for their aesthetic of their personal style when I was talking about their photo safaris and see those is different so if for example, for example she used retro for nikki's website description but retro is not a word that nicky would use for her photography yeah, so I am so bright vibrant is one of your words for your photography that's awesome! I don't think you have to reflect that on the website cause your photos are gonna be doing that for you. Yes so I think if you want to tell her that's cool but if you want your photos to shine on their own then you're gonna go okay what we're going to do right now is we are going teo reintroduce another past created life students, but before you do that I want everybody to know that when we return when we come back, promise will be gone she's going back home, but I am so appreciative that she came all the way up here just to usher and they're sick cess to represent site house designs as well as represent her associate designers I appreciate you and your husband brian for your support she's just moved to california, so now we're even closer so it's good I'm really excited for the things are going on in her life and I appreciate you being here it's lots thankyou thankyou thankyou problem good so now what we're going to do, we're going to revisit a past creative life students we're going to be talking tio we're not talking to ashley barnett, we'll be talking to us now sometimes we talk about brands, it can seem like it's very hard to grasp, but hopefully in the past three months the had smaller, digestible bites of how brain ng works when we get down to the nitty gritty it's just basically knowing about who you are and nobody better, nobody has really athlete did this as well in the past year than ashley barnett hurt our business partner she I actually came to my two thousand eleven to twelve creative live class how to shoot an editorial wedding and get published so she was in my most recent class and hurt her business partner jen not only rebranded their studio, they change their studio name there now jen and ashley photography so then when she went back home, she to restart her business, her brand and her name so instead of me getting and they weren't sure how it was gonna be responding. Teo so here's a short video explaining how actually effectively and successfully went through that process when I get chosen for creative live with super excited and they're going to be amazing experience an awesome opportunity but I didn't know was how much of a game changer for me now only in my business but also personally when I got yours in for creative life my business partner, jen, and I were right in the beginning. Stages of a rebrand, much restart of our business way were formally noticed joining photography. And we were changing not only just our website from sorted mate. Which is really scary we're free we're going to lose that name recognition that we've built up over the past three years were afraid that we wouldn't have this clients they wouldn't have to refer us for two anymore does a scary thought there's something that we knew we had to do in order to freshen up her business and to keep us growing and changing as we grew photographically and his business woman since we've done the rebrand we've had a great response clients emails and say they love our site and that never happened before and they're finding a little piece of themselves not only in our work but in our sight and that just makes the connection all that much better which means we're having amazing weddings with amazing clients but being said my top tips for going through a rebrand something like that it's crazy to think you're restarting your business is to first we'll hire designer wear very fortunately work to someone awesome and that made a huge difference way had so it's just you working with two people we had so many different ideas and so many things that we thought we wanted but our design was able to bring it down to something really concise beautiful and it tied in perfectly with our three branding words ted in perfectly with our imagery who we are as people is so important there's no way we could have done that second thing is to really remember that dunn is better than perfect. And that sounds funny to say so when you're working with a designer. But there's always gonna be things that you can tweak and change, and you keep changing and changing and changing and changing. And eventually, you realize it's been three months, and, uh, things happen. At some point, you have to understand that don is. There isn't perfect. And as long as you're being authentic and real brick coming from a place of authenticity, then people are going to respond to that love. That last thing is to tell people it sounds silly, but we e mailed every single client we've ever had. Past present future their families and emailed every vendor we even emailed publishers that we had worked with in the past and weddings of logs even featured on and told them about the change and invited them to come check out the new site invited them to check out our promo video and just invited them to get to know join actual experience, which is a really, really great way to have them all already talking about us and to know that we have gone through such an awesome change the biggest and most wonderful thing but I'm thankful for since my creative of experience is not only was done for a business as far as looking more weddings looking really great wedding's making sure they're at our price point biggest thing has been just how wonderful and amazing the relationship that I've made have been not just with the creative life crew, not just with jasmine jd not just as my awesome jay star prime so I door but with people that I've met all over the country who somehow saw a little part of themselves meet during creative live and took that and felt that they connected this me somehow being able to help others has been something I did not expect to come out of this and has been the most rewarding experience I could possibly imagine and I am so so grateful even if I wanted to show ashley video because I want you to continue pushing forward, actually had to do a lot of things. And then she had to do a lot of things with a business partner who wasn't a spouse. But I think that when you come across the road blocks in your business, thie ashley story reminds us that without the hard work, there are no rewards.