May 24, 2023
Donna: Hello, you are listening to Design and Prosper. This is episode 80 and we are continuing our chat from last week we run through step by step what is included in the Academy Design Business School.
Be sure to listen in because it’s also a checklist of what you need to have in place to ensure your business success.
Kris: Hey everybody.
Donna:Hello.
Kris: Okay, so if you haven’t listened to episode 79, go back and listen to it because mm-hmm. It was the first part of. This series. So we’re doing a two-part series. It’s a behind the scenes peek, behind the curtain of what is inside the academy. Now we talk about the academy a lot because it’s our passion and it’s our love.
It’s our design business school. It was created purely to help graphic designers thrive. It’s everything we know. Yeah. Packed into this beautiful, this beautiful
Donna: It’s a big bundle of joy.
Kris: big bundle of joy. Um, and it’s become so much more than we thought because of the people who have joined us.
Donna: Yeah. And it’s this beautiful community and we just rave about it. And luckily our students rave about it too, which is beautiful.
Donna: Yeah, we just love it so, so much and what we thought, there are a lot of people joining in listening to us now who may not know us very well, and we just wanted to give you some insight into what the Academy’s all about.
We’ve made some changes to the academy as well. We were running the academy twice a year. We’re now running the academy three times a year, which is really exciting. And we just wanted to make sure everybody knew the richness and the value that is inside the academy. And also this doubles up as a beautiful checklist for you for all of the tools that we use.
You can go, tick, tick, tick. I have that. Yes, I have that. Yes. Oops, no, I don’t have that thing. And you can start to see where there might be some gaps in your business and what you need to implement, whether it’s with the academy or not. It’s a beautiful checklist of what we believe will ensure business success in, in a, as a creative business, whether it be a web design business, a branding design business, a graphic design business, whatever it is, we believe these are the critical tools that you’ll need in play.
Kris: Okay, so we got up to module six last time. So we are starting with module seven, which is client and studio management.
So this is so, so important for designers. This is all about time management, the client journey, making sure this is, this one’s a real pain point module, right? It’s the one that, um, causes designers a lot of pain and stress and suffering in their design businesses from, you know, working too many hours to not being efficient, to procrastination, to, you know, working for a client and then realizing that you earn $5 per hour because you didn’t have your time management sorted.
But also dealing with those clients, they’re a bit tricky. And let’s face it, they can all be a bit
Donna: tricky. Yeah, absolutely.
Kris: Unless you reign them in. Yes.
Donna: Yeah.
Kris: So that’s what this module is all about.
Donna: Yeah, absolutely. So we have some awesome resources. Um, we have an everything Time tracker. And it’s where we get some real intel onto where our time sucks are, we talk a lot about managing our time and understanding our time is the first step.
So that’s a wonderful tool that we, we share.
Kris: it’s magic intel.
Donna: magic, magic intel. Then we have, uh, we share with you literally, here it is. This is our digital filing system. And we, we took for granted for a very long time that this was taught at universities because we taught it when we university lecturers.
We taught our filing system to our students, and we found when we got into the industry, there are a lot of designers who aren’t doing this. And it’s really something that will fundamentally save you time if you have a good filing system.
So we share that with you. We share a model week structure with you as well. What does a model week look like? You know, we go all the way back to our. business model, the amount of hours that we wanna work, the time that we wanna invest in our business.
Then we make sure that that’s reflected in our model week. We talk about batching time, we talk about all the things. It’s just so rich, so exciting. Yeah.
Kris: So many time management tips. So many to get you organized and working with ease. It’s all about ease with this module.
Donna: Yes. So along with scheduling and managing your time in our folder system, we also share with you our welcome guide. We love. A juicy welcome guide. So it is there for you to adapt and implement into your business, but it is the first point where you get to set boundaries about your time, about how you are gonna work, about how you are going to contain the work that you’re going to be doing for the client.
So it’s important that it’s included in this module where we are wanting to sort of understand managing our client and managing our time.
Kris: Yes. You’ll have our InDesign template that you can use and adapt and implement. And if you’re wondering, um, generally about welcome guides and what to include, go and take a listen to episode 69, which is all about welcome guides. We really unpack it for you
Donna: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And is, like Kris said, it is a pain point for a lot of designers. Managing your time is managing your money. Managing your time is managing your stress. Managing your time is managing your clients. There’s so many nuances and so many complexities that go into managing time, and so it is a, a big module, but we have the, the tools are bustling with strategies and tips for you to be able to manage your time with ease.
So we are really excited by that. So checklist, we hope you have an everything time tracker in your system. We hope you have a really beautifully. Mapped out digital filing system, and we hope you have a model week structure and a welcome guide. So if you don’t have those things, they’re inside the academy.
Kris: Yes.
Donna: Okay.
Kris: Next one is module eight, which is, Ooh, so much fun. It is, Design process. So we are we’re shifting gears a little bit. It’s about design process and brand strategy for your clients. So we love the idea of systemizing this from a business perspective to make sure that you are profitable, to make sure that you create beautiful work for your clients with ease.
That is incredibly impressive for clients. Yeah.
Donna: And for you, we find a lot of designers who join the academy get to module eight. They apply the principles of this academy to their own brand. And then before you know it, we have designers who are going up, I’m gonna change my name, I’m gonna change my brand, I’m gonna change all of these things.
And you know, we couldn’t be more excited for them. So at the end of this module, you’ll have intel into our. One of the first of our creative systems. So like Kris said, we believe our creative processes can be systemized. And the reason for that is we want them to be duplicatable.
We want you to be able to duplicate these so that financially, you are able to make a profit and we, we can get lost in the creative process. We can go down rabbit holes, we can, you know, spend oodles and noodles of time on searching for that perfect font on searching for that. Perfect.
In inspiration. What we do with this process is we actually reign it all in and make sure that our creative process allows us to be profitable.
Kris: Yeah. This is a brand strategy process for designers. It’s one that designers love, love, love,
Donna: Mm-hmm.
Kris: it is just so fun, so intuitive.
Donna: It’s something that you could probably do all day long
Kris: but we do, as, as Donna said, we, we’ve gotta reign it in.
Yeah. But this just makes it so fun that you wanna do it all day. Yeah. But it is something that is going to give you such high end results for your clients
Donna: every single time. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. All right. So the resource or the tool that you have will be our brand strategy board template.
Um, it’s an in-design template and a brand direction template as well. So a couple of cool tools there.
Kris: Yeah, so the key is you really do need a duplicatable process for that first conceptual phase of projects.
You might think, oh, it’s all just like floaty and I’ll just see how the wind blows and i’ll with your projects, but it needs to be systemized. Otherwise it’s going to undermine the success of your business.
Yeah. Because you’ll spend too much time. it’s just inconsistent. You’ll get inconsistent results. So it needs to be systemized.
Kris: if you don’t have this, you need it. You need a system for brand strategy.
Donna: Absolutely. 100%. So that leads us into module nine, and we wanna preface this one with saying that module eight and nine really do go hand in hand and run parallel. Really? Yeah. In, in, uh, studio environment.
However, we’ve had to. Split them up into two for the purposes of education and to, to really give them the time that they deserve so they each get their own module.
Kris: They needed some breathing space.
Donna: Yeah. So module nine. Now it’s time to develop your concepts from that inspiration and brand strategy you have. And PS that brand strategy has been approved by the client.
We’re, we are big on approvals at the Design and Prosper Academy. We want to make sure that we get approval every step of the way so the client knows which direction we are going in. They haven’t seen your conceptual thoughts or anything like that, but they do understand. Visually the direction that we’re going in.
So it’s now time to develop your concepts. So it’s really important to take that deep dive now. So this is where you do the research, that juicy, divergent research that Kris and I love and built our businesses on. We believe our passion for divergent research is what really led us to our most amazing results that we had in our business with our creative, process.
Kris: And if you think that your creative process can’t be systemized and can’t be, um, molded into your business in a beautifully cohesive way, will then think again
Donna: because think again because it can be systemized and it can be systemized to. A level that you can get consistently high results every time.
So again, just as a checklist, inside module nine, you’ll get, uh, research and inspiration template. It’s a 15 page template that we share with you.
You’ll get a PDF worksheet of, of our visual matrix icon brainstorming template, which is amazing for icon generation. It’s very, very cool.
Kris: So by the end of this module, you’ll also have an understanding of the difference between research and inspiration. And we actually use. A sample client example
Donna: Yes. We forgot to say that. Yes.
Kris: Module 8, 9, 10, 11. We. Go from brief to presentation with a realistic client example so that you can see it in action.
So you’ll be able to understand what divergent research is and you’ll be able to understand, the brainstorming, techniques that you can use time and time again to get the most efficient, excellent results
Donna: Absolutely. I love that, Kris, the difference between research and inspiration and what exactly what divergent research is. Yes. So you can tap into that.
Kris: because, um, Donna and I were both university lecturers, right? So this is what we taught. We, we taught designers how to think conceptually, how to get really beautifully finesse, high end designs, and that’s absolutely a passion of ours.
Not just design business systems, but it’s such a beautiful thing for us to visit becausewe get so excited about it.
Um, just the whole design process.
Donna: Absolutely. Love it. Love it. And really, it’s exciting for us to share with you how you can systemize this so that you too will have that high end result on repeat. That’s what it’s all about. We have experienced long-term relationships with our clients, really beautiful long-term relationships.
And it’s because we can produce high-end results again and again and again and again. And it’s because we have process for that. Mm-hmm. So we can’t wait to share that with you. So that’s module nine,
Kris: And we have module 10, which is where we’re going to present the concept to the client. So this is the selling concepts module. We’ll get into that just after this beautiful testimonial from one of our academy students. We’ll be right back.
Liz Testimonial: I cannot recommend the Design and Prosper Academy enough to any designer who is still out there trying to make a decision whether or not you should do it, just click yes. It is the most comprehensive course I have ever done, and it is the best investment I have made for my business. It is full of tools and tips, and Kris and Don are just the loveliest people.
They’re available whenever they answer all your questions when you need it. And more importantly, they give you a step by step of how to run a design business, and not just how to run it, but how to run it at a level that will give your clients the perfect and best experience that they can have and will allow you to charge your premium prices.
When I started the Design Academy, I was in the process of starting my business backup, and I was running a full-time job as a designer. I have since left that job and I am so well-equipped with running my business, setting it up, having all the right processes, thanks the Design and Prosper Academy.
I feel so well prepared for what’s lying ahead.
It is the best decision you’ll make. Sign up
Kris: Okay. we’re back. So. Module 10, selling concepts. We know how nerve wracking it is to present your work. We know what it’s like to have those sweaty palms and have imposter syndrome creeping in and just thinking, goodness me, are they gonna accept this one concept that we present. Because that’s what we teach. One concept. So this demystifies the whole thing for you.
This is how to present work so you get that full body. Yes. Often there are tears of joy with clients and we’ve experienced that. Not only ourselves personally, but our academy students tell us that as well,
Donna: Yes.it’s just so incredible. Beautiful. So incredible. There’s one testimonial from one of our academy, students, she wrote, hi beauties.
I just wanted to report that I did a brand presentation yesterday using your template as a guide. The client cried with Joy when we got to the logo, which was pretty much the most transformative experience I could imagine. The lead in and reminders before the reveal was so intrinsic to the experience. I can’t thank you enough for all the wonders you have provided and the knowledge you have shared. Such a cool testimonial. We love hearing when clients cry for joy. Yeah. Out of joy. Keep that coming. Yes, please.
Kris: Yeah. So with this module 10, you’ll have a complete presentation system. You’ll have a template. You’ll have um, actually multiple templates cuz we’ve got the visual presentation, but we also need a written rationale as well, because that is very important in showcasing your knowledge, showcasing your process, and it really helps the client to buy into the solution, to wholeheartedly, believe and trust that this is the right solution.
Donna: Yeah, absolutely. So it is a beautifully juicy module. Love it. All right, leading us onto module 11, which is all about brand manuals. Now you may or may not like to include brand manuals in your offerings.
We absolutely love them, but so we just break it down. So what are brand manuals? Why do you create them? You know, some of the success factors around brand manuals and the essential components, uh, you can have a bursting at the seams brand manual, and depending on what that client needs, it could be really comprehensive. you know, It’s really user friendly and adaptable, so you can add or subtract whatever you need to, um, to do there for your client’s business.
Kris: Yeah. One thing that we’ve noticed with, a lot of brand manuals is that designers complicate the crap out of them.
Donna: Oh, so complicated.
Kris: And we have done many, many brand manuals in our decades of designing and we have the method for creating a brand manual that actually. Works that actually helps and guides clients without overwhelm.
Donna: Yes. So it is comprehensive. You can make it very, very detailed or you can make it less detailed depending on the client’s needs. And we also have another version of it, it’s like the mini version, more of a brand snapshot version for, for the clients that aren’t really ready to invest in kahuna brand manual.
Donna: Yeah. It’s more a lookbook, but it’s instructional. So the key checklist for module 11, the InDesign template for the brand manual and the InDesign template for the brand snapshot template. So it’s also a beautiful one.
All right. onto module 12, the final module.
We’ve made it through everybody. There’s usually a little bit of partying going on around now in the academy.
We get really excited and. This module, uh, it basically launches our client’s project. Whatever the project is, we love the terminology. Project launch over say a Goodbye packet or, uh,
of Boarding. Yes. Yep. So we talk about ways that we can now enrich the process in order to continue the momentum that we’ve got with this client.
Like we’ve said many, many times, Kris and I have had beautiful success with long-term clients. This is how we do it At the end of the project, we don’t far, well the client, we don’t offboard the client. We ask them, what’s next? So in this little toolkit, We have a project launch checklist that we share.
We have a strategy around, uh, getting feedback. We share with you our feedback questionnaire and what should be included. We share with you referral strategies. If you don’t have referral strategies in place, might be something that you’d like to look at.
And we discuss retainers. And one of the key takeaways today about retainers is, We recommend that you don’t go into a retainer relationship with a client unless you’ve worked with them before, because you need to understand them. And we talk about all of that and, and how retainers can be really successful and different retainer models that there can be.
Kris: Yeah, So it’s a lovely way to wrap. module 12 is really a lovely way to create a complete plan for moving ahead with your clients, so you’ll have a really solid, um, strategy in place for staying in touch. Um, you’ll have scripts, lots of scripts that you can use for the different aspects that we mentioned.
Donna: It’s a really beautiful way to you set some goals. Yeah.
Kris: Well not finish projects, but finish a phase of a client’s project so that you can keep on going. And there’s strategies in there to encourage more work, which is what we want.
Donna: Exactly. Yeah, that’s right. All right. But as we promised, it doesn’t end there.
Kris: Yeah. So
We’ve got some supplementary trainings. Yeah. That, felt was really important to add to the modules, just to make sure that you’re maximizing all the teachings
Donna: Yeah, that’s right. That you can hit the ground running. So we’ve got some Dubsado training, just the 1 0 1, um, where we’ll, by the end of the training, you’ll know how to set up and send a proposal, a contract, and an invoice or via dub
Kris: Yeah. Dubsado is a, a customer relationship management tool.
Donna: Yes. Then we’ve got a project management tool, which is Trello. We love Trello. The training that we share with you is inside Trello so that you get to understand that app, but the principles of Trello and the way that we manage a client can be applied to anything like Asana.
Monday, click up, whatever. But we want, because we talk about Trello, we want you to have a little bit of, um, insight into how that works, so we share that with you as well. And we share some Trello templates. We’ve got some templates ready to go. We’ve got a client portal board ready to go. We’ve got a studio management planner ready to go, and we’ve got a content planning board ready to go for your social media and all of your marketing.
So it, they are supplemental training that’s imperative to, um, what we are teaching. So we built them in. So they’re inside the academy. And we have for all of the print designers out there, we have a really beautiful tool that is imperative for anybody who’s doing print. It’s our print, Cate. It is literally the ultimate production tool.
We talk about everything inside their front, and we give you some scripts on. Requesting a quote, re requesting approvals, requesting proofs, the whole kitten caboodle, as well as we take a little look at Pantone books and things like that.
Kris: we’ve got canned emails for you to go in there, like ready to request quotes, ready to place orders, all that sort of thing. Cuz Donna and I have done a lot of print.
Donna: Love it. Yeah. And then we also have the community, which we talked about in the first episode. So again, if you haven’t listened to 79, head back and listen to 79, but you’ll have access to our private Facebook community for the life of the academy.
And we are told by our Academy students that this is one of their very. Favorite inclusions. You know, being a solopreneur can be so very, very lonely. Mm-hmm. And having around the clock access to like-minded business owners who are experiencing the same things that you are and who have the same tools that you have. That’s the kwy. It’s a game changer
Kris: because there are Facebook groups out there, right. With, with designers. But everybody in this group has the resources that have the resources and the trainings that you have. So everybody’s aligned.
Donna: Everybody’s on the same page, so they’re all boosting each other up and saying, oh no, that’s way too long. Use that tool. Yeah. Have you considered that tool? Yeah. Yeah. It’s, it’s really great. We love it. We love getting in there and reading it, how everybody’s so supportive of each other. It’s, it’s just a little love bomb fest in there. It’s just so beautiful. Yeah. we also share our library of resources that we love and that our academy alumni love, it’s a living, breathing, organic beast of a thing that we are constantly adding to. Um, and, you know, it’s, it’s bursting at the seams. It has everything from book recommendations to our favorite places to find. Fonts and mockups and so, so much more, um, mindset stuff. It’s all in there.
And like we said, we are collaborating with the Academy alumni all the time to make sure that that’s current and up to date and has such beautiful resources. it’s
Kris: all of our favorite things. Yeah. All our techy things. All our suppliers and resources that we love, just. So much stuff in there.
Donna: Yeah. So that brings us to the end and what we wanna say here is a big, big truth bomb. Everybody out there, the academy is just so, so much more than a 12 week course. Please listen to the testimonials of the Academy alumni.
Nearly everybody says the same thing. It’s so much more, you know, you might join for a particular resource or a particular module or, or one or two modules that you identify as being gaps in your business, and then you’ll be so pleasantly surprised and delighted. That there is so much more that comes with the academy.
It’s not just about the tools and the resources and the assets. It really is about the whole community. It really is about the whole experience of growing a business and being supported, being made accountable, but being held and nurtured through the process as well. Yeah. By people who actually care.
Kris: Yes. Yeah. Yeah. So if you’ve got any questions, please do reach out. We actually are offering some limited spaces for, you know, little virtual coffee dates with us. So we have the booking link on the academy, page. If you go to Design and prosper.co/the academy, you’ll find it there, but we’ll also link it in the show notes as well.
Donna: Yeah. Beautiful. Alright. We hope to see you inside the academy, but if not, keep your questions coming. Yes, we will. We love getting questions. We love answering questions on the podcast. And. We wanna talk about things that are important to you. So send us a dm, let us know what, what you’d like to chat about, and we’ll just keep the podcast
Kris: Yeah. We truly hope that everything we’ve covered has, um, sparked some ideas for you about what you need to implement as well. Um, and like Don said, if you need support, we are here. We’ve got it all for you.
Donna: Yeah. We’re here for you. Okay.
Take care.
Kris: Bye!
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