Now I'll be honest: it feels hard to admit that. Because I want to be a service provider that makes my clients' lives easier, not add more to their plate. And I still do that in the work we do together, but there's a key word there: together.

A few weeks ago, during one of our "drive daddy to work" days, I was with my husband, Nick, and kiddos at the shop (they sell lawn equipment) when a customer came in looking for a new mower. He had been in before, speaking with my brother-in-law (family-run business) and took some time to decide what he wanted. The day I was there, he came back in with his mind made up. When Nick began talking to him, he was able to learn more about his situation and discovered through natural conversation that he owned horses and would be cutting a ton of acreage. Turns out, if he purchased a different brand and model, albeit more expensive, he'd be able to better serve his acreage and get an equine discount.

Now this is not a story about upselling a customer and getting them to spend more money. This is a story about communicating and working together to get to the root of the "problem" and find the most beneficial solution. The conversation didn't end there. Nick did an in-depth comparison of the two mowers, giving just about every piece of info he knew about them both (it's scary how much he knows about mowers) and the customer ended up purchasing the more expensive equipment.

Again, not about the cost of his purchase. It's about the fact that, when it was time to draw up the paperwork, the customer came up to me and told me how incredibly knowledgable my husband is and how much he appreciated receiving all that information. That he felt so much more informed before making this investment. Light bulbs were flashing throughout every corner of my mind this whole time, of course, as I thought about writing this very post.

I'll bring it back to us now:

Spending thousands of dollars, whether on a piece of equipment or a service, is a big deal. That's why it's important to me in my business that I integrate education for my clients throughout the entire design process (not just when I'm trying to make a sale). If you look at my about page, you'll see the two top values listed: transparency and collaboration. Both apply to this aspect of my process. I want you to know what you're getting when we work together and why those thousands of dollars are a worthy investment. I want you to walk away from our time not just understanding how we got from point A to point B and why we took the steps we did; I want you to have clarity on exactly where that hard-earned money went and feel it was worth it—and not just for the final files.

So what forms does this education come in?

Well for starters, these blog posts.

It's one of the reasons I decided to start a blog for KWC. I looked at my website copy and felt like there was just a massive collection of topics I could touch on that would benefit potential and current clients, but I didn't want to crowd the main pages of my site. Posts could become resources I could share both generically and specifically depending on the situation. Want to know what the process looks like before you dive in? There's a blog post for that. Want to learn more about whether a service is right for you? There's multiple blog posts for that. Want to understand how I price my projects so you know what you're getting? There will be a blog post for that (I have over 50 posts to get to; cut me some slack haha). The point is: I want this Journal to be a resource for clients that want to dive a little deeper into the process before and during our time together.

Second—and I'll keep this one brief—Instagram and Pinterest.

While yes, I share my creative work in both spaces, I also use them as a channel for sharing educational items. Much of that content reflects what's in these blog posts, but education is important to me and, should someone interact with my business for the first time in those spaces, I want to be sure I'm adding that value to their experience.

Lastly (and most importantly), throughout our time working together.

From the proposal phase to the launch date and beyond, we walk together through every step. Now, I'm not going to spend our time going through rehearsed scripts and inundate you with endless tips and facts. It happens organically and you set the pace. Sometimes it's a link to a blog post in your proposal or welcome packet that expands on something you're receiving. You can read it or not. Sometimes it's a written or spoken explanation behind a design choice. Sometimes it's challenging you to think differently about something, while also communicating why I'm having you do it. And sometimes, it's just an answer to a question. Point is: we move with intention based on what you and your brand need.

It all comes down to this: I want you to know why.

There are a million ways I could end that statement but that's the root. I provide additional insight because I want you to know why. I respect you, your time, your investment. I believe you deserve to know the answers to the questions you have and I strive to answer them to the best of my ability. I want you to walk away feeling like you were part of it all and see your brand in a whole new light. It wasn't something you simply handed off and got back a few weeks later.

If that sounds like a process you want to be a part of, head on over to my inquiry form so we can start making something beautiful and be sure to subscribe for more content along the way.

Until next post! :)