We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Robin Son a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Robin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about how you got your first non-friend, non-family client. Paint the picture for us so we can feel the same excitement you felt on that day.

I always say I became a designer by accident. At the end of 2022 I was on maternity leave, no money, living with my parents with a newborn. I used my son’s nap times to do crafts and projects and have a bit of creative fun before I had to go back to work to my ‘normal job’ in a few months.
One of these fun projects I tried was logo design. I loved it. My partner encouraged me to make an Instagram and post the designs to make creative friends, so I did.
Less than two weeks after opening my account, a photographer DM’d me asking if I could rebrand her business. I was terrified but said yes. I charged almost nothing but gave it my all. She loved it and actually recommended me to a friend, who recommended me to her husband, and all of a sudden I had three clients.
Over that Christmas period in late 2022 I took the chance to learn everything I could about brand design.
By 2023 I landed another client. Me and my partner then sat down and had the scary conversation. “Should I go back to work or should I try this thing full time?”
I went for it. I registered as a sole trader, freelanced during nap times, kept posting, and the clients kept coming.

Now, in 2025, I’ve worked with amazing clients, became an Adobe Express ambassador, and launched a podcast to help creatives. None of it would have happened if I hadn’t taken that first tiny step which was literally just posting a logo I made for fun.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a brand identity designer, but not in a boring way. I work with really fun, often non-traditional business owners who want their brand to really feel like them. I love designing bold and expressive identities.
I didn’t go to design school. I went to college for Photography and Psychology (surprisingly helpful qualifications for brand design though). I started designing just for fun, posted my work online, and somehow this all just turned into a full-time business.

I have always believed that we, as people, should be bold and have some damn personality. My whole approach is based on making accessible designs that really reflect the brand’s personality.
I’m the most proud of the fact that I built this from scratch. I started with zero experience, figured things out as I went, and somehow ended up here. I’ve got loads to learn, I’m still a baby designer. But I really believe that trial and error is the best way to learn.
I’m most proud of my podcast where I talk about the messy, real side of freelancing, because I think more people need to hear about the ups and the downs.
At the end of the day, I just want the creative space to be one where we can be ourselves unapologetically. I want designers and creatives to embrace the ups and downs and use those lessons to grow their brand.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Actually, when I first started my podcast, it was really just a standard ‘designer advice’ podcast that literally no one cared about (and had been done so much better by so many people already). I wasn’t adding anything new to the conversation.
I hit this creative burnout and stepped away from everything for a bit. When I came back I was nervous to talk about it. But when I did, I was really shocked at how many other creatives said they felt the same way.

I really thought about why no one talks about this stuff. Why does the creative industry feel so polished when we all know it’s messy behind the scenes? I put up an Instagram story asking people what they actually dislike about the creative industry. The responses were overwhelming, and I turned those responses into a post called “What the F is Wrong with the Design Community?” and the comments on that were crazy.

That was the moment I knew that my podcast really needed to change. Instead of another advice show, I started asking designers and creatives to send in anonymous ‘Creative Confessions’ and we talk about them. It’s become a space for designers to share the real stories and struggles of being a freelance creative. People send in confessions all the time, we cover a new one every Monday and the podcast finally feels like something that matters.
Pivoting was the best thing I could have done.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Social media has always been the thing that brought me clients. I post as consistently as I can but honestly I’ve found that people enjoy my content more when it’s had more effort in. The quality and the message is more important than the consistency I think.
A really important thing though for me is the experience that clients get when they work with me. I learned early on that having a smooth process leads to referrals and returning clients.
A lot of my clients have come back for more work, and some even started with tiny budgets but returned when their businesses grew and now pay my full rates. I’ve seen firsthand that people remember how you treat them, not just the work you deliver. I think there’s too much focus on getting the next client and the next client instead of building up the people who already trust you and love your work

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.brandsbyrobin.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandsbyrobin
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@brandsbyrobin
• Other: Podcast – https://podfollow.com/brand-your-brain
  Submit a confession to the podcast – www.brandsbyrobin.com/confess
  Learn more about the podcast – www.brandsbyrobin.com/podcast

  tiktok – www.tiktok.com/@brandsbyrobin

Image Credits

Whitney Nicole Photography