You’ve submitted and filled out the inquiry form on Swells website. These preliminary pieces of information allow me to get to know your project a bit better and evaluate if we're made to work together.

At Swell, I strive for quality, detail and merit with all of my clients and projects. With this, I’m very selective with the projects I take on to allow this. It’s more than design, it’s what your business is all about, what your goals are, what problems you’re looking to solve, what’s your aesthetic, what are your design expectations…all of these variables play a significant role in the inquiry process.

Your project and business sound like something I would love to know more of. Every potential project is followed by a consultation, typically this is done in person (if you’re local). If you’re outside of Calgary, then this meet and greet will be via phone or video. Please note, due to COVID-19, all consults are held via Zoom. Here, we dive further into your project needs, goals, aesthetics, and expectations. I want to get to know you more, your business more and make sure we’re a sure fit.

I will also provide insight into how Swell works, procedures, what’s expected of you, us, how your project flows, etc. With all of this, we start the foundation for a seamless and transparent working relationship.

After the consultation, If we both decide that we’re the right fit and both would love to move forward, then I will follow up with a proposal and contract.

Typically, other studios charge for each consultation, at Swell, we'll donate our consultation fee of $50 to one of our listed charities of your choice.

If you decide to move forward after reviewing the proposal and contract, then the onboarding process has begun!

The booking process includes completing the deposit, signing the contract and booking your strategy session.

The strategy session is where we get down to the nitty-gritty of your business and complete your creative brief. The consultation above was just scratching the surface. With this session we’ll learn more about your business, objectives, pain points, goals, target audience, competitors, project deliverables, summarize the project overall and answer any remaining questions you may have.

The creative process at Swell is highly detailed, complex and is absolutely unique to each client. It’s more than aesthetics. I take into account your entire creative brief at every step of the way. At Swell, each and every brand is made from scratch and molded into a concept that suites your business goals, audience and aesthetics. This requires extensive time and commitment to the project, which is reflected in pricing. The only templates I work off of are in regard to our Squarespace website design builds. Even these, there is extensive custom coding that goes into each website. No website, brand or client is the same.

Mood Board

Every brand and website project begins with a mood board that sets the tone and direction for your project. The mood board includes inspiration for typography, colors, and more specifically your project scope like logos, packaging, websites, etc. The mood board is the jumping off point for the project and ensures that we’re in agreement on the design direction. It also allows us to play on a few ideas before concepts begin.

Concepts

After the mood board is approved, I begin on the design process. This process requires deep thinking, time and patience. Great brands, websites and designs don’t pop up overnight. This creative step is really our digital sandbox for your project…fleshing out different ideas, iterating, honing the final solution. I'll provide 1 concept for you – a smart, curated design solution that fit your goals and aesthetics. At Swell, I believe that you’re here to get it done right. To get results. To finally have a brand that works. That’s why I’m only providing you with the only answer you need, one brand.

I will send you a pdf presentation for the concept or website build, typically with some iterations. For brands, each presentation typically includes – wordmark logo, submark logo, typography, color palette, patterns/textures/graphics, photography (if applicable), and finally, how the concept showcases on digital platforms. For Squarespace websites we'll showcase the landing page, one secondary page, and mobile. I'll also dive into the design decisions that were made, how I approached the project and how I came to the final result. This allows you to understand how every detail objectively fulfills the goals we set. Remember, the brand is about your business and your audience, not you personally. This is hard to separate sometimes but when you trust the process and put your clients first…incredible, successful things come of it.

From the concept presented, we’ll refine where needed. Typically for most clients, there isn’t much to refine here, and we go straight into development or off boarding.

For websites, after you have approved the concept, this is the point that development begins, along with iterations. Depending on whether your website is being built from scratch or is an audit, we'll complete the architecture setup, back end details, SEO in regards to alt tags, appropriate headings, brief content overlook, keywords, descriptions will be put into place…just to name a few.

Once you approve the final design, we'll start to wrap up the project. The brand package will include - strategy, wordmark logo, submark logo, fonts, color palette, patterns/textures/graphics, and photography (if applicable). You will also receive a brand style guide which is a handy reference to keep you on point going forward.

Websites will have their final testing complete, domains will be connected and your website will go live.

I'll give you a couple of weeks time to let you live with your new brand/website. I'll follow up and make sure everything is going well, and if there is anything else I can do for you. Keep in mind we provide brand management (freelance) services, so any design needs you may have along the way, I have your back.