If you follow me on LinkedIn, you might have heard me mention that a rebrand is on its way. I’m writing this blog post to explain in more detail why I’m doing this. I’ve been doing this web design thing for three years now and I’ve learnt a lot of new things along the way (mostly in the past twelve months).
When I first started as a web designer, I thought I had to be “corporate formal” as well as professional. I even dyed my bright pink hair blonde. But the more I threw myself into getting involved on LinkedIn the more I realised I can still be professional while still being the real me. The coloured hair came back (blue this time), and I ran off and got a nose piercing. That was something I’d always wanted to do, but I always chickened out (even though I can sit there for four hours getting a tattoo, the thought of a needle going through my nose scared the crap out of me).
I noticed on LinkedIn there was a lot of talk around personal branding. It wasn’t something I’d considered before. The more I heard about it, the more it made sense. I’d always thought I was my business. But I was starting to realise it was the opposite way round. My business is me. Here I was, being me on LinkedIn, a blue haired tattooed goth and rock lover. I was actually having conversations now and finding like minded people. And I was finding they didn’t hate me (or more importantly, what I had to say). The more I did this, the more I realised something else…
My website. I was being my true authentic self on LinkedIn. But what about when those people go and take a nosy at my website? What impression do they get then? It’s a total contradiction of who I am. Sure, if I get a client through the LinkedIn platform, they’re going to have a good idea of the type of person I am. But what about those cold enquiries I get through my website? It could be a bit of a shock when a blue haired (and don’t forget the nose piercing!) rocker turns up on the Zoom call. There is nothing on my website that indicates my personality. It’s still the 2020-2022 professional version of me (boring!).
Now don’t get me wrong, being professional in business is a must. But there’s also space to be yourself. Hair colour, tattoos, piercings, etc do not affect a person’s ability to be professional. It’s not like you run off, get your nose pierced, and suddenly forget how to treat people (clients) respectfully. Or how to do your job. The more I looked at my website, the more the cogs started turning in my brain (if you smelled any burning in the last few weeks, it was me thinking).
That was a huge factor of what’s to come but it wasn’t that that sealed it. A few weeks ago, there was a post by a fellow web designer on LinkedIn. They’d posted something about how colours have an effect on the energy usage of a website. I had no idea colours made a difference like this. But sustainability had been something of a point for me for a while. I was becoming increasingly aware of it, and I’d already switched my hosting to a green provider last year. Their post put the final pin in place for me. I wanted to go dark mode on my website.
If I was altering my website to be more sustainable, I figured I might as well use this opportunity to completely rebrand and give my site some personality. Put a piece of me into it (no more shocks on Zoom). I’m not a formal corporate type, I’m a blue haired tattooed (don’t forget the nose piercing!) goth rock lover who can act and work in a professional manner. I’m a 5ft2 nerd who loves coding, retro gaming, 80s movies (Lost Boys anyone?), sage burning, cheesy 90s boy bands, and a whole bunch of other stuff that will probably slip out somewhere down the line on LinkedIn (you’ll just have to follow me to find out).
I’m just a little nerd. Little Nerd Web Design sums me up perfectly. As it should, I am my business after all!