IAM2801 – Creative Director Shapes Brands in the DC Metro Area

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Transcription:

Reggie Holmes 00:00
So I have a phrase that I have come up with and that I like and it's know your worth and prove your value.

Gresham Harkless 00:38
Hello, hello, hello, this is Gretch from the IM CEO Podcast, and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Reggie Holmes of Enthuse Creative llc. Reggie, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Reggie Holmes 00:47
Thanks for having me.

Gresham Harkless 00:49
No problem. Super excited to have you on. And what I want to do is just read a little bit more about Reggie so you can hear about all the awesome things that he's doing and Reggie Holmes is the owner and Creative Director of Enthuse Creative LLC, a B2B brand consulting and design firm based in Tyson's Virginia area. The company's core services include B2B brand strategy, design, and brand management. Enthuse Creative has been shaping the brands of businesses and organizations in the D.C. metro area and beyond for the past five years. Reggie, are you ready to speak to the IM CEO community?

Reggie Holmes 01:18
Yeah.

Gresham Harkless 01:18
Awesome. Let's do it. So to kick everything off, I wanted to hear a little bit more about what I call your CEO story and what led you to get started with your business.

Reggie Holmes 01:26
Sure. Well, going back as far as 2009, I experienced the layoff. I was working as a designer for a university and they had some budget cuts and, you know, downsized my position. So I think it was at that moment that I realized that in the real world, people can take your job away in certain situations. So I sort of resolved to myself at that point that I was going to learn what I needed to learn and grow my skill set to the point where I could create my own opportunities. And at that time, I didn't know that that would mean starting my own practice, but I think I got started on a path at that point and I just kind of educated myself and went to a lot of seminars and workshops and learned from people that were doing what I wanted to do. And finally I got to a point where I was ready to start my own business doing branding services.

Gresham Harkless 02:22
Awesome. Well, I'm super sorry to obviously to hear about getting laid off. I too think that I got laid off in probably about 2011. So I learned that as well too. That's, that's definitely a painful lesson, but it's a, it's a realistic lesson that you sometimes have to learn. But I appreciate you for, you know, taking that entrepreneurial route because I think a lot of times, you know, people don't want to necessarily do that, even, you know, when certain things like layoffs happen. But I appreciate you for doing that and, and starting your firm right.

Reggie Holmes 02:47
Yeah. I mean, when you get to a point where you all options are sort of on the table, I think it makes you kind of rethink what, you know, your, your path is going to be. And maybe that is the thing that is needed to put you on a different trajectory. So I learned about it much later. But there's a, there's a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. And I think at that point I was just challenged to think about all the opportunities that were out there and, and you know, that was maybe the push that I needed to, to go more in that direction.

Gresham Harkless 03:20
Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And that's right in the line with the ways you were talking about the growth mindset. Is that because a lot of times I say, you know, things are, are necessarily happening to me and, you know, when it happens, you don't always think that way, but it's always good to kind of learn that things aren't happening to me, they're happening for me. And this kind of speaks to what you were saying about. Yeah, know, these opportunities are presenting themselves because of the talent and skills that I have, and this is what I can do with it. Right. And I know we touched on a little bit when I was reading your bio. Can you take me through everything that you're doing with Enthusiast?

Reggie Holmes 03:50
Sure. So my background is, is as a graphic designer. And so the core of our services are around graphic design and providing creative consulting and actually executing, you know, the creation of marketing collateral and brand identity and website design and services such as that for, for clients, primarily business clients, but we also work with nonprofits and organizations like think tanks and institutions. So that's the core of our services. But sort of growing out of a desire to offer a little bit more value than just the creative products, we recently decided to incorporate with brand strategy. So that's more on the front end before any design is created, just being able to help businesses shape more of their messaging and their positioning. And that obviously informs the creative that is designed a little bit later on. And then brand management is more or less, once that brand has been established and communicated. How do we need to refine that as the business grows or evolves so that the client can stay in front of the right audience and also continue to attract the right audience. So that's sort of the core services and they sort of work along the brand life cycle. So there's a tier of services for that beginning stage business, for that middle aged business that may be looking to reposition or sort of pivot where it is in the market. And then that mature business that, you know, has a lot of things in place, but is maybe looking to realign some of their, their branding or marketing

Gresham Harkless 05:40
that makes perfect sense. And I appreciate you for, for breaking that down. Cause that was going to be one of the questions that I asked you a little bit more about, you know, what exactly that the brand aspect was. Cause I know I obviously, you know, touched on it when I was reading your bio and I guess it's more than you're saying. More than like the logo and more than the things that you see is a lot more than that.

Reggie Holmes 05:58
Yeah. Because as you know, there's a lot of visual competition out there for your ears and your eyes and for your mind really in terms of all the different messages that are being communicated to any given consumer at one time. So it's important to have strong visuals. But I think people make decisions when there's an emotional connection. And so that really gets down to what you're saying and how you're saying it. And obviously what you're showing people should align with what you're saying and how you say it. But really we think about branding and how it works to differentiate what you do from someone else. There's more to it than just a pretty picture. And I realized that in order to again, create the most value for my clients, I needed to work with them on the strategic side. Because that only helps to make the visuals that are created and that support that that much stronger when that really crisp and concise and clear strategy is in place.

Gresham Harkless 07:10
Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And I appreciate you expounding upon that and talking about especially that emotional aspect. Because I think so many times as consumers sometimes, I guess we sometimes think we make decisions based off of, you know, very strategic thinking. But a lot of times people say, you know, you do business with people you know, like and trust, or you maybe have some emotional connection, that's why you purchase this product or that product. Right, Something like that. And sometimes we don't. From a, I guess, brand strategy standpoint, marketing standpoint, really understand kind of like the parts of the pieces that go into that and how that is kind of created before. Sometimes we even ask the client to buy or not.

Reggie Holmes 07:49
Right? Yeah, it's, it's, you know, what I've learned and sort of been able to see in practice is that it's all really well thought out. You know, like there are certain products, certain brands that you support, and you may not even know why. You just feel like they, they understand me and I understand them, that, you know, that we speak the same language, we sort of share a worldview in common, and those things are well thought out by people who do branding and marketing. They are very thoughtful in the words that are chosen and also the images that accompany those words. And so I try to bring that level of intentionality and thoughtfulness to the work that I do on behalf of my clients.

Gresham Harkless 08:40
Yeah, that makes perfect sense. Especially, you know, when you're creating a business and you're creating an organization or you mentioned, like think tanks and organizations like that. A lot of times you want to evoke certain things and correct me if I'm wrong. Sometimes if you haven't done that brand kind of strategy work, you still do have a brand. It just may not necessarily be what you want it to be. I feel like every organization kind of has a brand, but definitely correct me if I'm wrong.

Reggie Holmes 09:03
No, you're right. You have to put in the work ahead of time. The market will sort of tell you whether or not it thinks that the brand that you have portrayed for yourself is authentic and accurate. And you, in a sense, are making a promise to the consumer by saying, this is who we are, where you sort of plant your flag and the customer will tell you if they think that you are actually doing that or not. But it's really important to. They can. The consumer can tell that if it hasn't been thoughtfully done or, or executed. So you leave yourself open to someone else defining who you are. You know, you can, you can think about for yourself as a person. You know, you don't want anyone else saying that you are this and you fit in this box, you know, so you want to be able to say, no, this is who I am, and invite people in to that experience. So that's really what, what branding is, is saying, hey, we are in this place and we are providing this type of experience for those that, that choose to partake of whatever our product or service is. And people will abandon you and they will talk bad about you if you, you don't deliver. But you do get the first opportunity to, to go to market. And say, this is who we are and this is the value that we provide.

Gresham Harkless 10:32
I know you might have already touched on this, but I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce. And it could be for you personally or your organization, but what do you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique?

Reggie Holmes 10:41
I've grown in the ability to, to listen and to ask good questions. And so I am someone who loves to design and obviously create the, the different creative assets that, that I get to do in my work. But I really love to understand what I'm doing and what my client is doing, you know, So I have a simple three step kind of process that is not unfamiliar to most people that are in the line of work that I do. But there's, you know, discovery and then there's design, and then the last step is delivery or deployment and what I like to do. I realized that as much as I like to design, I really like the discovery process. And, and that's what kind of led me down the road of going, trying to do more on the strategic side as well as the design side. So I really think that being able to think like a strategist and execute like a designer is what kind of helps set me apart.

Gresham Harkless 11:58
I definitely appreciate that. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit and I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an app, a book, or a habit that you have, but what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

Reggie Holmes 12:11
Well, I like to lock off my time. Um, I use a color coded calendar system to be able to block off off time and, and ensure that I'm allotting the proper amount of time for specific tasks. And the great thing about using the color system is that I can look back over, you know, a period of weeks or months and, and measure how much time I've been spending on certain tasks. You know, billable design work, for instance, and, and be able to ascertain how the amount of time I'm putting on certain tasks is contributed to, to revenue or to leads or appointments.

Gresham Harkless 13:00
Makes perfect sense. And so now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. So this is a word of wisdom or a piece of advice, or if you can happen to a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

Reggie Holmes 13:10
Sure. So I have a phrase that I have come up with and that I like and it's know your worth and prove your value.

Gresham Harkless 13:21
I love that and I definitely appreciate that. And, and I wanted to ask you My absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. And we're hoping to have different, quote, unquote, CEOs on this show. So, Reggie, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Reggie Holmes 13:34
To me, being a CEO means that you are creating every opportunity. I love acronyms. So when I think about CEO, that's, that's what I think about, you know, creating every opportunity. So it's using creativity in new and different ways and using that to generate opportunities for myself and ultimately for other people by, you know, bringing my unique perspective, my processes, my experience and skills to the table on behalf of my clients. So, yeah, CEO, creating every opportunity.

Gresham Harkless 14:23
Awesome, awesome, awesome. I love that definition at acronym in that perspective because I think a lot of times, you know, we're kind of like the artist with the paintbrush and have the opportunity to create those opportunities. And if we're able to have that mentality, that mindset, it helps us, as we talked about before, bring tremendous value in the world that we have before us. So, Reggie, I truly appreciate your time and what I want us to do is pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional you want to let our readers and listeners know and then of course, how best they can get a hold of you and find out about all the awesome things you're working on.

Reggie Holmes 14:54
Sure. Now I'm always available for no cost, no obligation branding consultations, even if you just have questions. Would love to hear those questions. We're at Enthused Creative on on all social media. And Reggie at Enthused Creative is the best way to get a hold of me on email. But you know, I love to help people and I'm really excited to have been able to be on this podcast.

Gresham Harkless 15:25
Yeah, definitely. I truly appreciate you, you know, for all the awesome things you're doing and having the opportunity to work with you in the past as well too has been awesome. So we will make sure to have those links and information in the show notes as well too, so that everybody can follow up with you. But again, I appreciate you and I hope you have a great rest of the day.