We recently connected with Clare Cahill and have shared our conversation below.

Clare, appreciate you joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

I come from a family of entrepreneurs and hard workers – my grandfather came from humble beginnings in North London and trained to swim the English Channel for a cash prize which he used to buy my grandparents’ family home. He also started one of London’s biggest swimming clubs, as well as a swim school to feed into it. Swimming is in my blood – my parents ran the family swim school, and I came on board as a partner and teacher to work in the family business too.

I received my first book on website design at fifteen, and spent a lot of time coding and designing a website for our family swim school.

The name The Highboard came from my swimming background – it makes me think of the highest diving board at the pool, and for me reflects the way the sport transformed our lives as a family. It means launching yourself from the very highest point – the idea that with the right strategy behind the website, you can elevate your brand and bring your ideal clients to you.

The idea of elevating your perspective also resonates with my values – that with an overview of your business: of how you wish to be seen, of how you want clients to interact with your brand, of the journey you would like clients to take towards working with you and throughout the process of working with you speaks to me too. What is your purpose, and how do you want your business to work within your lifestyle? What is the story behind your brand? How can that story be woven through your branding and the way you present yourself? My goal is to support my clients to gain that top-down sense of perspective, and then to use the message to underpin and support their website. I think you speak volumes by representing your brand with confidence, clarity and style and allowing your clients to access the information they need in a way that feels intuitive and joyful, and that comes from that top-down, “highboard” perspective.

I also believe that with that sense of perspective, you learn to streamline your business – which behind-the scenes processes are working, and which could be automated, digitised or improved (something I also do to support my clients).

I supported business owners in a range of industries – other swim schools approached me first, then athletes and professional sportspeople, and then arbitrators, restaurant owners, financial advisors, e-commerce, business coaches and luxury brands, but when I worked with the first interior designer, I felt like I’d found my calling, and that’s where the “Creative” part of my company name really came in.

I knew that designers are looking for that elevated, polished, high-end image, but that they’re also looking for their own eye for aesthetics to be mirrored in their website design and that felt like something I could add so much value to. I focus on the spacing, colour, typography and placement in my designs, and aim to give everything a classic and timeless feel and represent my clients’ personality, purpose and values.

Today, I work with interior designers, creative professionals and still support business owners in other industries too.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I run a website design business called the Highboard Creative. I’m based in North London in the UK and work from a studio in the countryside, which gives me a great mix of city living and escape in nature. I design websites for interior designers, creative professionals (and other business owners too), and my goal is always to get to the heart of a brand’s story. In a world determined to keep us online, I believe we can be intentional in the world of website design – there is so much we can convey visually and with intentional copy to ensure our website visitors have an intuitive and joyful experience and really understand the purpose behind the brand and the journey they can take to work with my client. As a busy mum, I also appreciate the importance of weaving work in with family life, and I feel passionate about streamlining my clients’ systems behind the scenes to automate or digitise aspects of their business and give them back their time and energy to spend with those who matter most. I’m proud of the relationships I build with my clients – they mean a lot to me, and I always feel so proud of and inspired by the work they do, which makes my job so much more meaningful.

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

There are so many hacks out there when it comes to marketing, but I always believe (and have seen in others) that the best form of marketing is to do your job well and honour your reputation. Digital marketing absolutely has its place, but in my opinion, if you show up with integrity, offer your clients the very best service you possibly can, ensure you’re genuine and empathetic (with boundaries, of course) and charge a fair price, that is the very best way to build your client base. When times are more lean (and we all have those quiet seasons), don’t second guess yourself – trust in the system you’ve built.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Two books were really formative in my entrepreneurial journey – one was Company of One by Paul Jarvis, and the other was Never Lose a Customer Again by Joey Coleman. In Company of One, Paul speaks about knowing where your business is headed – rather than focussing on growth for growth’s sake, we can reduce our stress, build a better work/life balance and grow with integrity if we keep things simple. As a female entrepreneur, that really spoke to me. I loved the idea of genuinely caring for my clients that came from Joey Coleman’s book – he speaks a lot about ways to show clients how much you value them, and about focusing on the client’s desired outcome and making that the focus of your work together.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://highboardcreative.com
• Instagram: @highboardcreative
• Linkedin: clare-cahill-highboard