Refined Messaging for Social Media Ads: Addressing Pain Points & Positioning Domain Forge as the Solution

Launching an online presence is one of the biggest challenges for first-time business owners—not because they lack passion or vision, but because web hosting and domain registration can feel overwhelming.

The Problem:

New business owners often struggle with:
🔹 Confusing setup processes – Not knowing where to start with domain registration, hosting, and website setup.
🔹 Hidden costs & unclear pricing – Unexpected fees and unclear service tiers lead to frustration.
🔹 Security risks – Fear of cyber threats and unreliable hosting can create uncertainty.
🔹 Making the wrong choice – Wasting time and money on the wrong provider can be discouraging.

The Solution: Domain Forge

The campaign strategically taps into these common struggles to not only educate and reassure business owners but also position Domain Forge as the go-to solution by showcasing:

✅ Effortless setup – A step-by-step guided process that simplifies getting online.
✅ Transparent pricing – No surprises, just straightforward, affordable plans.
✅ Built-in security – Peace of mind with SSL certificates, firewalls, and 24/7 monitoring.
✅ Expert support – Real people, real help, whenever you need it.

By addressing pain points head-on and providing real solutions, these ads drive engagement, build trust, and convert hesitant entrepreneurs into confident website owners.

This problem-solving, value-driven messaging approach ensures that first-time business owners see Domain Forge as a trusted partner—not just a service provider, but a key to their success.

Domain Forge is a company that specializes in helping first-time business owners and small businesses start up their first site. They understand the pain points for those that may find setting their business site intimidating and frustrating.
Domain Forge’s visual identity is designed to reflect the enthusiasm, creativity, and determination of first-time business owners as they establish their online presence. The bold color palette—blue and orange as primary colors, with accents of deep purples, hot pinks, and dark tones—embodies theenergy and excitement of launching something new. Blue conveys trust, stability, and reliability, essential qualities in a web hosting provider, while orange injects a sense of innovation, enthusiasm, and forward momentum. The striking accent colors add a touch of vibrancy and modernity, reinforcing Domain Forge’s commitment to making web hosting approachable and exciting.

Typography plays a key role in shaping the brand’s confident and welcoming personality. We use bold display type for headings, creating an impactful first impression that reflects the strength and ambition of new business owners. This pairs with clean, modern sans-serif body text, ensuring clarity and accessibility across all brand communications.

To further establish a cutting-edge, tech-forward aesthetic, Domain Forge integrates abstract-style, tech-inspired textures throughout its design language. These subtle yet dynamic visuals suggest momentum, digital connectivity, and the building blocks of a strong web presence.

Photography is another cornerstone of our brand identity. We showcase a diverse range of entrepreneurs and business owners because today’s digital landscape is shaped by people from all backgrounds, industries, and walks of life. By highlighting real-world diversity, we reinforce the message that Domain Forge is for everyone, empowering all entrepreneurs to bring their ideas online with confidence.

Mockup of Landing page on mobile:
https://www.figma.com/proto/9H92Y3bqY2xcdGIO4GcTr9/Untitled?node-id=0-1&t=rK4Bu6fuTKFGXqYt-1

Some of these were part of 2018 OBIE Finalists for Out of Home Campaign.

Turning Local Buzz into Big Results: A Dunkin' Success Story

When a frustrated Dunkin' franchise owner approached us about her underperforming corporate-provided ads, we saw an opportunity to rewrite the playbook on local OOH marketing.

The Challenge:
Generic, one-size-fits-all creative wasn't resonating with her Atlanta customers. We needed to craft hyper-relevant campaigns that would:

Break through the visual clutter of corporate templates

Capitalize on local events and cultural moments

Drive year-round foot traffic with seasonal urgency

Our Solution:
We developed a dynamic, always-on OOH campaign featuring:

Holiday-Specific Creative that gave customers irresistible reasons to visit (Thanksgiving coffee runs, Valentine's donut gifts)

Major Local Event Takeovers including a custom Peachtree Road Race execution that became a neighborhood talking point

Illustrated Original Designs that maintained brand recognition while standing out from cookie-cutter corporate ads

The Results:
The campaign delivered:
✓ increase in foot traffic during campaign periods
✓ higher social engagement from OOH-to-digital calls to action

Why It Worked:
By blending strategic local insights with executional excellence, we proved that franchise marketing doesn't have to mean settling for generic creative. This became a case study we've since replicated for other location-based businesses looking to break free from corporate template constraints.

Addy Winner, Bronze

Featured on Ads of the World

Baskin-Robbins Sundae Shakes – A Playful Transit Media Campaign

How do you showcase the irresistible indulgence of Baskin-Robbins’ Sundae Shakes? By contrasting them with something hilariously unappealing.

For this out-of-home transit media campaign, we created a faux health brand—"Bobo’s Fish Juice." Designed to mimic trendy health food advertisements, these satirical transit ads were placed side by side with genuine Baskin-Robbins promotions. The goal? To capture attention, spark curiosity, and reinforce the message: Why settle for questionable health fads when you can enjoy a rich, creamy Sundae Shake?

To drive engagement and conversion, the campaign featured a custom URL and landing page, directing viewers to their nearest Baskin-Robbins location—ensuring that they left Bobo’s behind and opted for something truly delicious.

This campaign leveraged bold visual storytelling, strategic placement in high-traffic transit areas, and playful contrast to create a memorable, shareable brand moment that resonated with commuters and passersby.

I created this motion design piece as part of a promotional campaign for our OnSmart inventory and mobile platform. The goal was to craft a dynamic, engaging visual experience that would resonate with viewers across digital transit media. This project involved blending creative storytelling with motion graphics to capture attention, convey the brand message effectively, and enhance user interaction with our platform.

Savvy Spirits – A User-Centered Approach to Cocktail Discovery

Savvy Spirits is a desktop and mobile application designed with a modern, intuitive, and sophisticated interface that welcomes all users—from cocktail enthusiasts to casual mixers. Backed by a cloud-based solution, the platform enables users to create, save, and share their favorite cocktail recipes effortlessly.

User-Centered Navigation & Engagement

The home page is designed to provide a seamless browsing experience, featuring curated category suggestions to inspire users. A dynamic user feed showcases the newest cocktail recipes, trending drinks, and a personalized section for previously viewed recipes—ensuring an engaging and efficient discovery process.

Personalized User Experience

The user dashboard serves as a central hub for organizing and managing saved recipes. Users can:

Create and categorize their own collections for easy access.

Submit and share new cocktail recipes with the Savvy Spirits community.

View, save, and share recipes from other users while maintaining full control over their own content.

Strategic Monetization & Brand Integration

To enhance user experience while creating monetization opportunities, the platform seamlessly integrates brand sponsorships through curated recommendations, suggested ingredients, and in-app product placements—offering value to both users and partners.

By prioritizing user experience (UX) and seamless functionality (UI), Savvy Spirits delivers an engaging, easy-to-navigate platform that makes cocktail creation and discovery both fun and accessible.

Elevating GUSTO!’s Brand Presence Through Strategic OOH Design

When GUSTO!, a beloved local restaurant chain committed to wholesome, honest cuisine, sought to expand its marketing impact beyond digital and print, they needed an OOH strategy that would scale their visibility while preserving their distinctive brand essence.

The Challenge

To translate GUSTO!’s farm-to-table ethos into large-scale, high-impact out-of-home advertising without losing the authenticity that defines their identity. Key objectives included:
✔ Maintaining strict brand consistency across all OOH formats
✔ Ensuring immediate visual recognition in high-traffic environments
✔ Strengthening community connection through compelling, appetite-driven creative

Our Strategic Approach

Leveraging deep expertise in OOH design and branding, we meticulously adapted GUSTO!’s visual identity—including their signature color palette, typography, and messaging tone—into formats optimized for maximum impact:

Billboards featuring vibrant, ingredient-focused photography that stopped commuters

Transit ads placed strategically near health-conscious neighborhoods and fitness centers

Street-level placements that reinforced proximity messaging near store locations

Every design decision—from hierarchy and scale to contrast and legibility—was engineered to ensure GUSTO!’s branding remained instantly identifiable at any size or distance, while still feeling fresh and ownable in the competitive QSR landscape.

The Results

The campaign delivered:
✅ Enhanced brand recall with distinctive creative that stood apart from generic food advertising
✅ Increased foot traffic through strategic proximity-based messaging
✅ Seamless cross-channel integration, strengthening overall campaign performance

Why It Worked

Rather than simply placing ads, we extended GUSTO!’s brand experience into physical spaces—turning everyday commutes into opportunities for engagement. By combining strategic OOH expertise with faithful adherence to their brand principles, we helped GUSTO! own its space in the market while staying true to what makes it unique: honest food, honestly advertised.

A proposed campaign for Spirit Halloween Stores aimed at reconnecting audiences with the excitement of the season. After the disruption of routines caused by the pandemic, many missed out on the traditions that make Halloween special. This campaign sought to reignite that festive spirit by engaging users across digital and social platforms.

Strategic digital ads across web and mobile directed users to their nearest Spirit Halloween location, while social media served as an interactive hub—featuring DIY makeup tutorials, user-generated content, and the #HalloweenSpirit movement to foster community engagement. A highlight of this project was the opportunity to integrate custom illustrations, adding a unique and visually compelling element to the campaign.

Violet Viking is a blog that chronicles owner and author Rebekah Rothe’s journey through the world of sewing, with a focus on educating, inspiring, and empowering others. To create a platform that effectively supports her mission, we approached the design process through a user-centered lens—prioritizing both content accessibility and future growth opportunities.

Through stakeholder consultations and competitive research, we identified key audience needs: intuitive navigation, clear content categorization, and the ability to engage with posts through comments and social sharing. Additionally, the platform needed to accommodate potential ad placements for future sponsorship opportunities.

To enhance user experience, the blog was structured via post categories—ranging from sewing tips and tutorials to personal insights—this ensures that readers can efficiently find and engage with content relevant to their interests.

Design mockups of the homepage and article pages were created, incorporating a clean and functional layout that balances storytelling with usability. By integrating thoughtful content organization and a scalable design system, Violet Viking is positioned to grow while maintaining a seamless and engaging user experience.

The Cookie Studio is a bakery that specializes in creating all-natural, homemade cookies that bring back the warmth and nostalgia of homemade treats. This identity and brand guide captures the essence of the bakery’s commitment to wholesome ingredients and nostalgic comfort. The design elements, from color palette to typography, are carefully crafted to reflect the bakery’s dedication to natural ingredients and the timeless joy of freshly baked cookies.

Color Palette

The color palette draws inspiration from the earthy, wholesome ingredients used in The Cookie Studio’s cookies. Soft, warm browns echo the rich, golden hues of freshly baked cookies, while gentle creams and light greens symbolize the bakery’s use of natural, organic ingredients. These colors not only communicate the authenticity and quality of the products but also evoke the sense of comfort and nostalgia, reminding customers of simpler times when mom used to bake cookies from scratch in the kitchen.

Typography

The typography reflects the bakery’s friendly, approachable nature. Soft, rounded fonts give a sense of familiarity and warmth, bringing out the cozy, homemade feeling that The Cookie Studio stands for. The typography strikes the perfect balance between modern simplicity and classic comfort, inviting customers into a space that feels like home.

Photography Style

The brand guide also emphasizes the importance of authentic, warm photography. Each photo captures the texture and warmth of the freshly baked cookies, highlighting the natural beauty of the ingredients and the joy of enjoying a homemade treat. The photography style evokes a sense of nostalgia, inviting customers to relive the memories of good times spent in the kitchen with family.

The Cookie Studio’s brand identity is built around the idea of wholesome indulgence, where every bite of a cookie is a taste of love, quality, and tradition. This guide serves as a blueprint for creating a visual identity that aligns with the bakery’s mission to offer delicious, natural treats while connecting customers to the fond memories of homemade goodness.

When Back to the Roots—a pioneer in home-growing kits for mushrooms, herbs, and vegetables—wanted to expand their reach beyond digital and retail, they turned to us to help them plant their brand in the minds of consumers through strategic out-of-home (OOH) advertising.

The Challenge

With a mission to reconnect people with their food, Back to the Roots needed creative that:
✔ Educated busy city dwellers on the simplicity of growing their own food
✔ Differentiated their kits from generic gardening products
✔ Drove conversions at local retailers and online

Our Solution

We developed an OOH campaign rooted in simplicity and delight, featuring:
🌱 Visually Striking Imagery
🛒 Smart Call-to-Actions
🌆 Hyper-Local Placements

The Results

The campaign branched out beyond traditional advertising:
in-store sales lift in target markets (Whole Foods, Target)
increase in DTC website traffic

Why It Worked

Unlike typical gardening ads, we didn’t just sell a product—we sold a moment of connection. By blending appetite appeal with effortless usability, we made growing food at home feel as easy as picking up dinner ingredients—because with Back to the Roots, it is.

The Cookie Studio is branching out in the online world. They are building an e-commerce site to boost sales, enabling users to view a menu, place orders, and schedule pick up online.

The Project Scope ran roughly 4 weeks, which consisted of researching similar vendors, user surveys of small groups, and providing wireframes, style guide, and a high-fidelity prototype.

Anime Weekend Atlanta: Bringing Out-of-Home to Life with Custom Illustration

For the first time, Anime Weekend Atlanta (AWA) ventured into the world of out-of-home advertising, combining large-format media with custom illustration to capture the energy and excitement of the convention.

With the goal of increasing awareness and driving attendance, we developed a visually striking campaign tailored to AWA’s passionate fanbase. Utilizing handcrafted illustrations, we infused the artwork with the dynamic, vibrant aesthetics of anime culture—ensuring an authentic and engaging connection with the audience.

Strategic placement in high-traffic areas, including transit, digital billboards, and street-level posters, maximized visibility and created an immersive presence beyond traditional digital promotions. This campaign not only elevated AWA’s brand recognition but also reinforced its status as a must-attend event for anime enthusiasts.

At OUTFRONT Media, I developed a range of internal marketing materials designed to support strategic decision-making and communication. This included fact sheets, data-driven insights, and social media content that highlighted key industry trends and performance metrics.

By translating complex data into visually compelling and easily digestible formats, I helped internal teams better understand market opportunities and engage stakeholders more effectively. These materials not only streamlined internal communications but also reinforced OUTFRONT Media’s positioning as a leader in the out-of-home advertising industry.

Adrian J, a passionate Wildlife Photographer and entrepreneur, has developed an online course designed to educate photographers of all skill levels. To effectively grow her customer base, she is leveraging strategic social media advertising on Instagram and Facebook to drive targeted traffic to a high-converting landing page designed to maximize engagement and lead generation.

The landing page is carefully structured to guide visitors seamlessly through the sales funnel, using clear messaging, persuasive call-to-actions, and an intuitive layout that encourages email opt-ins. By incorporating user testimonials, the design establishes credibility and builds trust, increasing the likelihood of conversions. Additionally, the email opt-in form not only captures leads but also gathers valuable audience insights—allowing for personalized email drip campaigns tailored to user interests, pain points, and learning goals.

Every design element, from color psychology and whitespace balance to strategic content placement, has been optimized to reduce friction, enhance readability, and drive action. This thoughtful approach ensures that visitors are engaged, informed, and smoothly guided toward subscribing to the course, ultimately improving customer acquisition and retention.

Grenier Law, an attorney firm in the D.C market, wanted to let bikers know they have an attorney in their corner if they are injured in a biking-related accident. A compelling layout was put together from several photos, to communicate this. The ad was placed on bike shares around the city to connect to the riders.Grenier Law, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney firm, sought to connect with the local biking community by ensuring riders knew they had legal support in the event of an accident. To effectively communicate this message, we designed a visually compelling ad that strategically combined multiple images to create a strong, relatable narrative.

Placing the ad on bike-share stations throughout the city ensured high visibility among cyclists at key touchpoints, directly aligning with their daily routines. This targeted approach not only increased awareness but also reinforced Grenier Law’s commitment to advocating for the biking community.

Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of assisting local brands and startups in developing their visual identities, with logo design playing a pivotal role in the process.

From initial consultation and discovery to the final design, I have guided each client in defining their unique voice, aesthetic, and brand mark—ensuring a cohesive and impactful presence.

Sweet Reads, a family-owned bookstore, sought to establish a strong online presence that reflects their commitment to quality and authenticity. With a primary audience of young adult female readers (ages 16–28) and a top-performing category in Young Adult Fiction, the goal was to create a brand identity and website that not only attracts visitors but also fosters community engagement.

The project deliverables included a logo, style guide, wireframes, and a high-fidelity prototype for the homepage. A key feature of the site was the integration of Sweet Reads’ Instagram feed to encourage social interaction and enhance brand visibility. Additionally, a book search functionality was incorporated, allowing users to find titles by author or book name, creating a seamless browsing experience. Recognizing the store’s dedication to supporting local authors, the site also highlights author events, meet-and-greets, and book talks, positioning Sweet Reads as a hub for literary engagement within the community.

The design process was informed by market research and user analysis, examining similar independent bookstores and the shopping behaviors of the target demographic. Insights from this research shaped a digital experience that is visually inviting, user-friendly, and optimized for engagement, ensuring that Sweet Reads’ online presence effectively supports its in-store experience and business objectives.

For Gold Rush: Dead Man’s Creek, an Old West-themed card game for players aged 8 and up, I contributed to multiple aspects of the project, including character design, illustration, layout, and logo design. My goal was to bring the rugged, adventurous spirit of the Old West to life through dynamic visuals that capture the essence of the game. By blending detailed character art with thoughtful layout and branding, I helped create an immersive experience that enhances gameplay and resonates with players.

OOH Pitch Summary – Kettlerock Brewing
As an OOH specialist, the pitch for Kettlerock Brewing focused on creating eye-catching billboard creative that made traffic worth it. We used bold, playful copy paired with crisp, modern visuals that reflect Kettlerock’s adventurous, community-driven vibe. Each design was crafted to grab attention in a split second and leave a lasting impression, guiding drivers straight from the highway to the taproom. It was storytelling at 65 mph; It was messaging that was fun, memorable, and undeniably Kettlerock.

I've been passionate about drawing since I was a child, and it has always served as my creative outlet, providing relaxation and a way to unwind. While I occasionally take on commission work, my true joy lies in creating for myself and sharing my experiments with others. I’m constantly pushing myself to try new techniques, explore different brushes, and experiment with various programs. Whether it's a piece born from inspiration or an opportunity to learn something new, each project is a chance to grow and evolve as an artist. Here are some examples of my work, reflecting both my creative journey and my ongoing exploration of new possibilities.