Two More Questions with Brittany Darr-
Exclusive Issue 2 Bonus Q&A
Got web design and branding questions? Brittany Darr of Driftwood Creative Co. has the answers! Be sure to read the full article in issue 2 of MILSPO Social Co. Magazine.
Q: What should a business have in place before working with a designer or building a website?
"Your core messaging — and this is non-negotiable. You need to be able to articulate your mission, your vision, your core values, your core offerings, your ideal customer, and what your unique value proposition is.
Take a photographer, for example, there's a ton of amazing, wonderful photographers out there. So the sale is going to come down to: what do you do differently? Are you the photographer that focuses on making toddlers smile during a family photo? Are you the one who focuses on creating heirloom-level wedding photography? You've got to be able to articulate what those specific things are before you start designing or writing anything.
This is especially important if you're going to seek the help of a designer. Hopefully they're asking you to provide these things — not just a Pinterest mood board of 'here's the colors I like and here's the font I like.' Because if you don't have all of that in place, you just have something that's pretty and may not actually be speaking to the people you're trying to reach."
Q: How do branding, copy, and web design work together to create a cohesive experience?
"I once had a client who filled out all the discovery work. Her answers were very corporate, buttoned up. She described her brand personality in three words: authentic, caring, and professional — which to me are three throwaway words, because everyone wants to be those things. So I write her copy with all of this in mind, and she tells me, 'This just really isn't hitting the mark. This doesn't feel like me.'
As we dug further, I found out she's really into Taco Bell and trash reality TV — she even did her brand photo shoot in a Taco Bell. Totally different vibe. Her copy honestly could have incorporated expletives, memes, or slang. Things like 'get in the car, loser, we're going shopping.' That would work for her brand. It would never work in another brand. But it would've worked for her.
So when you have all these things working together — visuals, copy, personality — it's sending cues to people: this is the same person. I have a clear idea of who they are. They're less likely to feel like one of these things was made by a computer and I'm not sure which version of this person is the real one.”
Brittany Darr is a branding and web designer for small businesses. She specializes in brand identity, website design on Showit, and website copy. Find her free DIY messaging guide —a plug-and-play formula for discovering your own “Brand Superpower”— on her website.
