Case Studies
Because graphic design, branding, and storytelling so often overlap, sometimes it’s easier to showcase those skills via case studies. Below are a few examples of projects I’ve worked on—all for different purposes and with different goals in mind—that showcase not only my creative skills, but my project management skills, too.
Cadent Solutions
In the summer of 2024 I was approached by a fellow former Cisconian—someone else who had unfortunately been impacted by the company’s February layoff of just over 4,000 people—about potentially helping her with the website design and branding for an IT consulting company she’d been thinking about starting up. We hit it off, decided that yes, we would love to work together, and in December of 2024 Cadent Solutions officially launched.
Services Provided for Cadent Solutions
Enlighten2 Equity
While working at Cisco, I was incredibly lucky to meet and work with some amazing people. Some of them I was lucky enough to become really good friends with.
One of those people is Mary Fernandez-Arias, whose work in the disability and accessibility space is nothing short of inspiring. She approached me about helping her create the branding, logo, and website for the disability consulting firm she’d been dreaming of for years, and I very enthusiastically said, “Um, hell yes!”
It was actually this project that led me to switch from using Divi for my website builds to Kadence. I’ve long been an advocate for accessibility, but it wasn’t until this project that I truly became aware of the inherent accessibility issues within Divi (and the fact that fixing those issues didn’t seem to be a priority). After all, there was no way I was going to build a website for my blind friend—for a company focused on disability inclusion—and not have it be accessible. After a lot of research, I landed on Kadence—accessibility is baked in AND I’m still able to create really pretty websites. Win/win!
Services Provided for Enlighten2 Equity
#PositivelyPurple 2023
Cisco’s Connected Disability Action Network (CDAN) ERG has a handful of “flagship” global events each year, and #PositivelyPurple, which coincides with the UN’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities, is one of them. In 2023 a small event committee of about 7 of us worked together to create what we called the #PositivelyPurple Purpose Party—a 5-day celebration of disabled and neurodivergent Cisconians and people around the world, culminating in 7 different global events following an “around-the-sun” model. I created all of the internal comms (including the Sharepoint page), and graphics were shared in accessible pdf or PowerPoint format for those using screenreaders.
#PositivelyPurple Purpose Party Highlights
Aubrey Gross, Romance Author
Skills & Programs Used for Aubrey Gross, Romance Author
Sure, I’m doing the branding, graphic design, and storytelling for myself, but any author will tell you that one of the hardest things to do as an author is market yourself. Furthermore, any marketer will tell you that one of the hardest things to do is, well, market yourself. You put those two things together in the same person and toss in a good dose of ADHD-fueled perfectionism? Let’s just say it can make things interesting (seriously, the number of logo iterations and cover designs alone is astounding). On the flip side, one of the things I love about being an independent author is having complete creative control and being able to make sure my series have consistent branding, that each cover visually tells the story I want it to tell, and that the social media imagery does the same.
A Kidney for Phillip
When my then-husband and I unexpectedly found out he was in renal failure and would need to go on dialysis and receive a kidney transplant, I felt hopeless as a non-match. So I did what came naturally to me as a marketer—I started a Facebook page called A Kidney for Phillip with the goal of keeping friends and family updated but to also hopefully find him a kidney and maybe educate some folks along the way. I used a combination of day-in-the-life photos and videos, infographics created in Canva, and memes—along with our written words—to tell the story of what it’s like living with kidney disease both as a patient and a loved one. These graphics are probably some of the most important ones I’ll ever make in my life, but I also learned that I’m really good at translating complex topics (like organ donation) into easier-to-understand formats for people to consume. While the Facebook page hasn’t been updated in quite some time (he received a second kidney in October of 2018), I urge you to check it out for further examples of the storytelling used.
Polinator’s Discord
A fun project for a Discord I admin might seem like a weird project to include as a case study, but walk with me here. Aside from the fact that moderating the world’s largest Polin Discord means I have to flex my communications muscles on a weekly (if not daily) basis, it’s given me the opportunity to flex my creative muscles as well.
One of those projects was a Season 3 Premier Bingo game, which I project managed from start to finish. The primary tools I used were Canva to design the Bingo cards, Google Forms to collect suggestions for the squares, and AirTable to project manage the card distribution (and which ones had Bingos), participants, winners, and prize contributors.
Some fun numbers if you’re curious:
Your story. Better.
Want to learn more about how we can work together to better tell you or your brand’s story? Check out the services I offer and then give me a shout!