When I started my business, I admit, I was a ‘jack of all trades’. I would say ‘Yes’ to any design project that came my way. I would create logos, websites, company brochures, magazine ads, restaurant menus, AND work on writing the copy, hosting the site, taking photography, video, animation and cartooning!

I enjoyed helping clients achieve their goals through good design – all through one person. Just me.But that was my problem. I was good at all these creative skills – yet a ‘master of none’.

It was always a struggle to be the best at everything – and after most projects, I ended stressed and burned out.

So made the conscious decision to just focus on being an expert at what I always enjoyed designing and creating: Logos and websites.

This made it easier to market myself as an expert logo and website designer. It became my niche that clients and people would remember me as. I worked with other experts in their creative field – website developers, copywriters, photographers who all worked with me in?delivering a project.

This worked well. But it was difficult as I was always in the feast and famine cycle of work as and when it came in. I was still saying Yes to any job that came by.

So I needed to define my offering more. Setting a stake in the ground, my positioning, my one direction – who I was, and what I was doing this for.

I realised that I needed help and guidance in my business direction. But business advisors are expensive and mentors are hard to find. (or so I thought at the time – but not now!)

“A leader in 10 minutes can unlock your potential which in reality would have taken you 10 years to do without them.” Israelmore Ayivor

I’m an avid reader of business and self-help books and I’m constantly?learning. I had a good idea of what I wanted to do – but what I needed was to make the decision and invest in an expert to work with me and provide a ‘roadmap’ and tell me what I needed to do.

Now I’ve updated my website and offering, worked on some amazing projects with some great clients. The advice alone has paid dividends for my business as a UX and brand design consultant.

I’ve learnt that investing upfront for expertise has helped not only me and my business, but it is now a benefit I’ve been providing now to my clients. Investing in a small amount to sit down with an expert and plan your project could save you time and money and provide value in your business.

I love it when a plan comes together…

Have you been thinking of a new brand identity, website or app for your business and struggled to clearly define your ideas and plan of action?

When you’re preparing to start a new brand or website project you may have read a few articles and how-to books, and would have done some research. You reach out to three or more professionals asking for a quote and get a variety of responses.

You want the best and you are willing to invest on the right person to get the job done – right?

But behind the scenes, your shortlist may not be willing to work long hours pitching on a project or a business they may not fully understand.

And if they do, it can be a lot of time to invest into a project before getting paid. It often results in you, the client spending more time and investment after starting a project on more planning and defining outcomes.

Once we make contact with a potential client, we offer a paid Roadmapping Session based on the project requirements.

“Andy showed a passion and expertise in branding and provided great value – without the fluff. We’ve worked with many brand agencies in the past and Andy was one of the best we’ve ever worked with.”
Phil Branagh – MyEVS.co.uk

What are Roadmapping sessions?

A Roadmapping session is a deep dive into your business to explore current pain points and the context of what’s happening within the company, your industry, competitors, and who your customers are, so as to provide a baseline and ‘roadmap’ plan for the project and beyond.

It is in-depth, outcome-focused consultation between us and you, the client. We look at your business and review the intended outcomes for the project, set expectations for what success looks like, and identify any potential barriers to achieving success. These strategic sessions help you better understand your business and project, as well as where you?re going, how long it will take, how much fuel (budget) you should expect to use, and what risks face us along the way.

Why should I ?

It’s beneficial for both your business, your project, and for us. We get to work together on an initial, small project that builds up trust, and confirms that we can work well together. And we all gain a deeper understanding of the client’s needs, business goals, and intended outcomes. The client has an in-depth report and proposal afterwards and it is up to the client if they choose to work with us or not – there is no obligation if they decide to work with another provider.

Based on the scope of the project, me and my team offer half or full day sessions that are tailored to a client.

“The roadmap and strategy session helped put us on the right path. Since the new website launch we’ve grown our brand presence and increased online sales.”
Leigh Prideaux – bodyme.co.uk