✨ Get access to my Creative Direction Figma Template for FREE ✨

Episode Description:

In this episode, I chat with Shannon Mattern, a web design business coach and founder of the Web Designer Academy, to discuss her journey from corporate marketing to running a successful web design coaching business. Shannon shares the key turning points in her career, including how she identified and overcame six common areas where design businesses leak time and money and shares with us what those are. She emphasizes the importance of mindset, proper pricing, and setting boundaries to ensure profitability in your business.

Guest Name: Shannon Mattern

Guest Website: www.shannonmattern.com

Guest Instagram: @shannonlmattern

Shannon’s Course: Web Designer Academy

Shannon’s Podcast: Profitable Web Designer

00:00 Intro and Creative Template Freebie Info

02:49: Shannon's Story

19:19: Identifying Time and Money Leaks

20:39: The Cost of People Pleasing

21:24: Setting Boundaries and Managing Scope

24:34: Perfectionism and Pricing Challenges

25:35: Client Feedback and Pricing Models

28:30: Empowering Clients with Choices

35:25: Mindset and Self-Concept in Business

37:43: Web Designer Academy Course Overview

Links:

The Design Minimind

• Sign up to be notified - Applications for cohort 5 opens Nov 1st, 2025

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*These are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

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

✨ **Grab my Creative Direction template for FREE** ✨

Curious what the first stage of my brand design projects looks like? Grab the Figma template (and four bonus audio trainings walking you through how to populate it!) below!

👉🏼 Grab the template here! — Coming Sept 1st!

Episode Description:

As the first guest of season 12, I talk with Liz from Favorite Things Studio to discuss the integration of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in brand strategy and design. Liz shares her journey from casting director to boutique brand designer, emphasizing the value of AI tools (ChatGPT being her bread and butter) for creating more efficient and high-quality outputs and how to use them elsewhere in your business and systems. We discuss all things skepticism and the advantages of using AI in the creative industry, and how AI is reshaping the way designers approach their projects. Liz also shares details about her Brand Strategy Purrr-fection course and how she's helping other designers master the fundamentals of strategic branding.

00:58: New Updates to the Upcoming Design Minimind Course

06:06: Liz's Journey to Brand Design

08:10: Starting from Scratch: Learning the Tools

14:06: Customizing AI for Your Business

19:16: The Future of AI in Brand Strategy

26:33: Leveraging AI for Client Questionnaires

29:09: Transparency with Clients About AI Usage

32:13: Exploring Visual AI Platforms

36:57: Creating Custom AI Workflows & Systems

40:30: Legal and Ethical Considerations of AI

43:16: Brand Strategy Purrr-fection Course

Guest Name: Liz Martinez-Nelson

Guest Website: www.favoritethingsstudio.com

Instagram: @favorite.things.studio

Liz’s Course: Brand Strategy Purrr-fection

Links:

The Design Minimind

• Sign up to be notified - Applications for cohort 5 opens Nov 1st, 2025

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, design studio, design business, brand designer, better podcast, better designer podcast, logo design, brand identity design

✨ **Grab my Creative Direction template for FREE** ✨

Curious what the first stage of my brand design projects looks like? Grab the Figma template (and four bonus audio trainings walking you through how to populate it!) below! I'll send it out September 1, 2025 (or automatically after that date) - are you ready? 👀

👉🏼 Grab the template here!

Episode Description:

In this solo episode, Jen talks about the intricacies of naming your business or your client's business. She covers the emotional (yes, that’s a thing!) and psychological aspects of naming, common pitfalls to avoid, essential checks in the naming process, and best practices for creating memorable and unique names.

00:00: Intro

01:11: Exciting New Freebie Announcement and What That Includes

04:11: Diving into Episode Topic

06:20: Psychology and Emotional Impact of Naming

08:02: Abstract and Compound Naming Strategies

09:30: Things to Avoid in Naming

12:35: Naming and Brand Design Considerations

14:32: Ensuring Name Availability and Suitability

16:11: Conclusion and the Upcoming The Design Minimind Cohort 5 Reminder.

Website Mentioned:

USPTO Trademark Search

Links:

The Design Minimind

• Sign up to be notified - Applications for cohort 5 opens Nov 1st, 2025

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*These are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

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