Designer Problems

So the good thing about being a Designer is that you have total control over designing your company's logo, business card, website, etc. The bad news is that you have total control over designing your company's logo, business card, website, etc.

I'm never happy with a design for too long. I've just re-designed my logo and marketing materials for about the 5th time in the past 5 years. Yes, I need to stop it or no one is going to remember or recognize my logo because it's changing all the time. But I think I've finally gotten it to a point that I like it. I love this font, I love the new colors and I'm coming up with a new division, so I've created that logo and color scheme to be distinct, yet similar to Designer Photo Imaging's.

It's been so crazy trying to figure out how I'm going to handle this new division. I currently have a shop for Designer Photo Imaging (designerpi for short) in Etsy and one in 1000 Markets. That's been keeping me busy enough, but now that I've turned my focus to invitations and announcements, the name Designer Photo Imaging just doesn't fit anymore.

So for months and months, and probably over a year now, I've been contemplating a new name for my company. But I've gone through so much work registering Designer Photo Imaging as a legitimate business that I don't want to undo all of that. So my decision was to create a division of Designer Photo Imaging that will sell only invitations and announcements.

I wanted to come up with a name that started with A, in case it were ever listed anywhere alphabetically. I also had to come up with a name that had a website URL available, as well as a username on 1000 Markets and Etsy. I wanted it to be something fun and memorable. Not many people remember the name Designer Photo Imaging. I came up with that name several years ago because I started the company out offering photo services.

My decisions on naming it finally ended with Appleberry Ink. The colors are berry pink and apple green with brown as it's background or accent color.

Running a business isn't easy. You have to be the marketing genius, the designer, an entrepreneur, accountant and not to mention janitor! There are so many roles it makes your head spin sometimes. I have a lot of anxiety and stress at times. I try so hard to please everyone, my family, friends and customers. Plus I have to get in my workouts when I can so I can release that stress, running has become my passion. As much as it sucks during the run, once I'm done it's like "aaahhhhh that's better!"

I'm getting off track. I guess what I'm trying to say is that being a Designer, you become your worst enemy. It's nothing like customers, who say "change this, change that", that's easy, they know what they want. As a Designer I say to myself, "well, I'll change this and I'll change that", then I do it all over again. I let it sit for some time, then come back and say "what was I thinking!?!?". Then I go and change everything all over again and the process goes on and on.

BUT, I think I'm finally coming to the end of my changing ways for my newest design for Designer Photo Imaging and Appleberry Ink. The fonts are set, the style is set, the colors are set and it's feeling good to have that done.

Now my new problem is going to be getting Appleberry Ink up and running on Etsy and 1000 Markets, then taking down Designer Photo Imaging on 1000 Markets and minimizing Designer Photo Imaging on Etsy to just sell the photo artwork.

Whew, that was a load off my mind. If anyone reads this feel free to post your own thoughts on running your own business, or if you're a designer vent about your designing struggles. Or if you're just an average Joe, what do you think about my new division's name???