Design Hack: Recent Episodes
Chris Johnson
With businesses being so technologically driven nowadays, Chris and Mackie discuss what type of hardware a small business needs to be successful and the best brands for those.
In this episode, I got to interview one of my favorite graphic design artists and discovered just how of an all-around cool Kenton Hoppas really is.
In this episode, Chris and Mackie dive into the influence Kanye West has had on design and its lasting impact on church design.
Neither of us has a graphic design degree. Both of us are successful designers. In this episode, Mackie and I discuss how we got into design and why we both think design degrees are overrated... and expensive.
In this episode, I discuss design trends for 2022 - 2023 and how small business owners should use them when designing for themselves. Mackie McAdam joins me.
Articles Referenced:
https://www.envato.com/blog/graphic-design-trends/
https://financesonline.com/graphic-design-trends/
In today's episode, we discuss what negative or white space is and how utilizing it can enhance your designs.
Working with little to no money as a startup small business owner can be a very daunting task. However, your branding is key for any small business and is something that needs to be done and done well. Good thing there are ways you can brand your business on a budget! This week I give you ways that you can still get a great design and do it on a budget.
Do you only design for the now... and not the future? In this episode, we discuss getting your brand ready for all marketing mediums in the beginning so you are not changing things once you start to gain success.
In today's episode, I discuss my new program Good-Buy Design and why you, as a small business owner, need to do it.
In this latest episode I discuss the topic of should we be swearing or using vulgar sound bites in our social media posts? Does this detour us from getting potential clients?
I know that not every small business owner is going to have money to hire a designer. So in this episode I discuss how a small business owner can discover a design process that works for you when designing your logo
In this episode, I discuss all the key characteristics you should look for when hiring a graphic designer to design for you. Spoiler Alert.... I have all of them.
In this episode we discuss online printers and which ones I think are the best. Spoiler alert, Canva's printing rocks!
In this latest episode, I talk about the two major factors you have to pay attention to when designing for print and web. Messing up either of these two will destroy your design so make sure to listen.
In this latest episode, I discuss my favorite design tools and resources for small business owners to use in order to design great pieces for their small businesses. I discuss things like stock photography, vector graphics, typography, and color. All important things when trying to create great design pieces.
In this latest episode, we look into what exactly is a target audience for your business and how do you find them.
In today's episode, we dive into the different types of websites and discuss the in's and out's of each, in hopes of helping you decide which one works best for your small business.
In this episode I discuss the facts pertaining to whether or not a small business needs a website. With how important social media is today, are websites worth the expense? The answer is YES! Find out why in this episode.
In this episode I am joined by fellow graphic designer Tiffany Collette. We discuss top branding mistakes being made by small business owners and how to fix them.
In today's episode we look at my top 5 rules to follow to make a great design. Remember, it is not the software that makes the designer, but the rules that need to be followed. Any small business owner can make a great design... as long as you follow these rules.
Have you given thought as to what type of a message you are giving out to your customer base? Have you thought about what separates you from your competition? Branding your business is a very vital part of any business strategy and something that needs to be done now. In todays episode we talked about what branding is, misconceptions, and 3 key elements for branding your small business.
SHOW NOTES
Why is branding important?
A brand is a set of characteristics that helps an customer differentiate a business, product, service, or project from its competitors.
Usually words and images form the basis of these characteristics.
A brand can also include other elements like sounds or smells.
Common Misconceptions with branding
Only big companies need to worry about branding
Branding is too expensive
Benefits of branding
As your brand becomes more recognizable you don’t have to do as much work or spend as much money to get noticed.
Helps separate you from the competition
3 Elements of branding
A brand is comprised of 3 distinct elements that when combined and used together can evoke an emotional response from you current and future customers
Verbal Brand
How you talk about your brand and the voice you use is important. Are you sarcastic, serious, funny, deep, thoughtful etc..
Brand voice is used in your slogan, brand name, brand story, personality, tone of voice, style of language.
Visual Brand
This is how you visually present yourself to your customers. Elements such as typography, logo, colors, imagery are some of the most crucial elements that make up the visual brand
Many times this is all people think about.
Logo, graphics, typefaces, color palette, imagery, campaigns
Brand Emotion
All brands evoke an emotion
You want your brand to make your customer base feel a certain way when they see any content put out by you.
Wrap up
It is very important you establish your brand in the beginning or you will be lost and have no real clear direction.
Branding guides are a great way to house all your brand info
Get my free branding guide template by subscribing. Link is in my bio on Instagram @designhackco
Today I discuss why I started Design Hack Co and the goods and bad's of my experience so far with Instagram, Reels, and unoriginality. It's been a fun yet frustrating one.
In this "controversial" episode, we dive deep into my frustrations with Canva templates and why we as small business owners need to re-think how we are using them for our content designs.
Show Notes
· What is a template.
o Design templates are pre-made designs and documents that can be customized.
· The purpose behind them.
o Templates are often designed to meet specific standards or specs so they're consistent between users and mediums. You can use pre-designed templates from template libraries and websites or create custom templates for future use.
· My frustration with them.
o It’s all people are using and there is no creativity anymore
o People are just copying other people
o They become boring and don’t help you separate yourself from the competition.
o They are lazy
· They hurt your branding
o Everybody uses them so what is going to separate you from them?
o See a lot of content coaches tell you that you can batch create 30 days worth of content in one day using templates. Doesn’t your business deserve more than one day.
o How can you constantly use someone else’s designs that has no idea about your business or business nee
o Your business should be unique to you.
· What should you do?
o Find a couple that you really like the layout for.
o Make your own graphics based on elements from the templates you like.
o Create your own from scratch.
If you are planning on starting any type of business big or small, you need to have a logo done professionally. This isn't an option. In todays episode we explore what a logo is supposed to do, what elements make it up, and why you need to hire a professional to do it.
Today we discuss all things Typefaces. What the difference is between a font and a typeface, how to choose a good typeface, and why you need to choose a great typeface for your brand. Get excited cause I know I am.
In this episode I talk about what a branding guide is and the importance of it despite the size of your company.
Welcome to the first episode of Design Hack. A podcast dedicated to helping small business owners with their graphic design needs. In this episode we dive into Adobe vs. Canva. Both are great software for creating marketing pieces, but which one is best for small business owners? Find out in this first episode.