Better: The Brand Designer Podcast
Jen Davis
Better: The Brand Designer Podcast, founded by Giselle Field of Wander Design Co. and Jen Davis, was founded on the belief that designers need community. We find that the branding world often feels secretive, competitive, and sometimes just plain old confusing. When we realized that our honest, soul-chat-level convos could potentially help other designers, we realized a podcast was only natural! Better: The Brand Designer Podcast was officially born.Giselle passed away during a climbing trip in Peru in summer of 2020. We encourage all listeners of our podcast to listen to our two Celebrating Giselle episodes. Giselle's adventurous, kind, funny, and supportive presence is missed every day—each and every episode that we record is dedicated to her legacy and her vision for this podcast. It is our honor to continue recording episodes in Giselle's memory and we know that she is with us every time we sit down to record.In winter of 2022, we welcomed Esther Knox-Dekoning from Sereth Design as a new co-host. Esther brought an incredible and fresh perspective to the pod—her transition from agency to design studio as well as her love for web design, sustainability, and world change brought new guests, ideas, and amazing episodes to our listeners. She departed the pod in spring 2023 to dedicate more time to her studio's growth, and will be greatly missed!Now, Jen runs the podcast solo and is beyond excited to continue interviewing guests, having interesting conversations, and sharing the behind-the-scenes of running her design studio.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 5, 2024 • 1h 5min
S9 E6: How to Make Consistent Five Figure Months on Day Rates Alone with Sarah Masci
I got to chat all things VIP Days (how to price them, how to run them, and how to sell them) with the OG day rate creator herself, Sarah Masci of Day Rate Mastery. Sarah’s story spans well over a decade, and it was incredible to hear how she generated tons of leads early on in her company, how she configured her work schedule, and how she shifted her mindset to be able to make consistent five figure months on day rates alone.Guest Information:Guest Name: Sarah MasciGuest Business Name: Sarah MasciGuest Website: www.sarahmasci.comGuest Instagram: @sarahmasciLinks Mentioned:VIP Days 10 Different Ways (Free PDF!)Connect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsitePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Feb 27, 2024 • 39min
S9 E5: All About Inquiries: Stats, Trends, & How to Get More
Inspired by Abbey McGrew’s podcast episode from Unfiltered Designers! How many inquiries we got, how they found us, and who booked!In this episode Jen shares her secrets for converting those site clicks into Inquiries. Jen shares some real inquiries from real clients and talks about what exactly on her site, her social media, or her brand got those clients from just thinking about it to actually booking a discovery call.“What are your best tips for advertising yourself as a brand designer?” - Natalie BrownConnect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsitePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Feb 20, 2024 • 46min
S9E4: How to Project Manage Your Studio to Success
Project management is a skill that every brand design studio owner needs. Having good project management doesn’t just help your business run smoothly, but it leads to a good work environment for your employees and provides your clients with a seamless client experience. In today’s episode Jen shares her best tips and lessons learned around becoming a better project manager.Links Mentioned:Brand Messaging & Copy Sprint for Designers Waitlist - a new Hello June offer!Iterating on the One Concept Method podcast episodeNotionshopcreativelaw.comInbox Question:“How do you manage the subjectivity aspect of designing a brand with a client and setting boundaries on the amount of work or options you provide while giving them what they need/want?” - Maddie JacobsConnect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsitePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Feb 13, 2024 • 42min
S9 E3: Steal My Web Design Process
Episode Description:In today’s episode Jen shares her entire web design and web development process, from a blank slate all the way to launch day, Jen explains the systems that she has in place that allows her small team to design, build, and deliver the perfect website every time. Get ready to take notes, this one is packed with a lot of value and details!Inbox Question:“Finding clients who only need branding services is challenging. I’m often finding web development or design services is easier. What are the best lead gen options for this space?” - Marta Nicole RodzenConnect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Feb 6, 2024 • 55min
S9 E2: How to Confidently Show Up as the Face of Your Brand with Marisa Switzer
Marisa Switzer is the founder of RISE Creative, a strategic design studio for female-founded e-commerce brands. In today’s episode we chat about her shift from the NYC fashion girlie lifestyle to owning a brand studio, showing up confidently as the face of her brand, and how her transition into motherhood has give her added confidence and clarity.Guest Information:Guest Name: Marisa SwitzerGuest Business Name: Rise Creative Co.Guest Website: www.risecreativeco.comGuest Instagram: @risecreativecoLinks Mentioned:https://risecreativeco.com/bootcampInbox Question:"Where do you market your services besides your website and Instagram?” - Erin FitzsimmonsConnect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Jan 30, 2024 • 25min
S9 E1: How to Get Faster at Brand & Web Design
Welcome to the first episode of season 9!! Today I’ll be chatting about ways to improve your efficiency and get faster at brand and web design, allowing you to scale back on your working hours.Inbox Question:“What's an appropriate amount of time spent on choosing brand colors (initially)?” - Shelby ReedConnect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Jan 23, 2024 • 1h 4min
From the Archives | S3 E8: How to Book Your Dream Clients with Meredith Uyeyama from Quixotic Design Co
Welcome to another episode from the archives! We have Meredith Uyeyama from Quixotic Design Co on the podcast to chat all about booking dream clients and nailing the sales call.We open the episode sharing our favorite places to get icons for branding projects. Meredith then tells her story about starting a design studio, becoming a creative director, and managing a team.We dive into how Meredith has defined her ideal client and successfully found her niche in the industry. Meredith shares how she got her first client and her number one tip for getting referrals.We share our advice for having an abundance mindset, branding for our ideal client, writing goals and keeping promises to ourselves. Meredith talks all about the strategies her team uses to build relationships with dream clients and the value of building rapport before selling.Connect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonGuest Information:Guest Name: Meredith UyeyamaGuest Website: https://www.quixoticdesignco.com/Guest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quixoticdesignco/Tags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Jan 16, 2024 • 1h 13min
From the Archives | S5 E6: Level-Up Your Pricing & Start Charging $10k+ with Carli Anna
Welcome to another episode from the archives! Five years ago Carli dropped out of design school and started her own business with charging $200 a logo. Today, at 25 years old, She runs a multiple six-figure business that allows her to provide for her growing family, book dream projects at 15k+, all without selling her soul and every hour to her business. Now Carli is teaching other creatives how to charge more while still having more fun in their business. In this episode we talk to Carli about her story, why she's passionate about teaching others how to earn money, and her learnings on the path to success.Connect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonGuest Information:Guest Name: Carli AnnaGuest Website: https://carlianna.co/Guest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carlianna_/Tags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Jan 9, 2024 • 39min
From the Archives | S2 E3: Typography, Typography, Typography!
Welcome to another episode from the archives! Typography is one of the most fun (if not challenging) parts of our jobs as brand designers. We go over the vocab, resources, and chat about our favorite foundries and fonts.Connect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
Jan 2, 2024 • 1h 1min
From the Archives | S5 E11: Designing a Website from Start to Finish with Kenzie Amick
Welcome to another episode from the archives! Kenzie is a brand and website designer who fell in love with website design and decided to start her business focusing on brand and website design for small businesses. In this episode we talk about the process of building a website from start to finish, making websites feel like our clients’ digital homes, and the details we think about when putting a site together.Guest Information:Guest Name: Kenzie AmickGuest Website: https://www.kenzieamick.co/Guest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kenzieamick/Connect With Us:Our Free Facebook CommunityOur WebsiteOur Resources PagePodcast InstagramSupport us on PatreonTags:designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design
