We were lucky to catch up with Kayla Bradford recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kayla , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of our favorite things to brainstorm about with friends who’ve built something entrepreneurial is what they would do differently if they were to start over today. Surely, there are things you’ve learned that would allow you to do it over faster, more efficiently. We’d love to hear how you would go about setting things up if you were starting over today, knowing everything that you already know.

If I were to start over today with my business I would only change one thing. That one thing would be procrastinating. I have procrastinated on a lot of goals and projects within my business that could’ve gotten me further quicker. I no longer procrastinate. I now better manage my time with breaks and planning. When I did procrastinate I often did because I was so overwhelmed with the task at hand along with all of life’s many challenges. I recall being a full time student while working a part time job, planning a wedding, starting a job and switching jobs all while running my business. So procrastination was my form of avoidance. I have since learned that it takes planning and mental breaks to juggle all that comes with entrepreneurship . I’m not really one to have regrets so I wouldn’t say I regret all of the lessons that I’ve learned over the years because they have definitely made me a better business owner. Although, when I think about how many clients I lost due to procrastination I will say I could’ve avoided that by learning the art of balance. When I started my business I didn’t have the slightest clue of how to run a business successfully. I originally looked at my business as a side hustle rather than a business. It wasn’t until I started growing and needed to implement rules and regulations to maintain my business’s integrity that I began to really consider myself a business owner. So when I look back over all my experiences within the last 4 years I am thankful overall because as I head into year 5 I am better than I was and know I will get so much better in the future.

Kayla , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a freelance self taught graphic designer. I am also a certified surgical technologist. I work in labor and delivery where I assist in the birth of babies. I like to mention that when I speak of myself because both of these bring me great joy. But as for my business, I have been designing for 4 years. My business, Simmm ( She is Me Media Marketing), was birthed when I began to make graphics on my phone for my sister’s lipstick business. I then wanted to branch out so I purchased one single design class from a graphic designer in Jamaica. We did a 2 hour zoom where she gave me several gems to get started in graphic design. I never stopped designing from that day. I hit the ground running with designing anything for anyone. I just wanted to create and get better. I began to study so many designers within the industry and mimic their business practices because I was oblivious to what it really meant to have a graphic design business. As time went on I started offering many services branching from flyers to web design. I now offer several design, print, and web design services within my business. I have learned how to manage social media marketing by accessing the needs of brands looking to expand professionally. Graphic designers never really get the credit they deserve because many don’t understand the importance of having one on their team. Marketing and branding plays such an important role in business. It is what sets you apart in the industry. It is what drives customers to trust you and your product. Without credible graphics/marketing your brand can easily be considered fraudulent and unprofessional . Overall it could make you seem incompetent as a business owner. I love to take the visions and ideas of entrepreneurs and help them achieve their sales goals. Often times as a graphic designer I come up with entire concepts for brands to help them stand out and make an impact within their industry. My graphic design style is different from most because I love to use shapes and vibrant colors to pull my designs together. My focus is for my work to not look like everyone else’s, but to still have a clean professional presence. I love to think outside the box but still keep things simple. Simplicity is key because less is more. There’s definitely an art to graphic design and I love every bit of creating!

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

This is actually pretty recent. I created a passion project for Jekalyn Carr. I posted it to instagram and she responded and now we are working together! Passion projects are designs you do free of charge for brands big or small. These projects could be to expand your brand by adding to your portfolio. They could be used to work with potential clients by showing them your capabilities. They could even be a creative outlet because sometimes paid projects become stressful and you need something to rid creative block. All in all it worked out for my good. I am not as well known as many designers in the industry so this is a pretty big deal to me. I took a chance when the odds were stacked against me and I succeeded!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I have a gained a pretty good range of followers/friends on Facebook from over the years. I have many people from different states that I am connected to via Facebook. I initially started growing my clientele by having a well known client post some work I did for them to their facebook page. I immediately gained several new followers and I have continued to gain followers by word of mouth and shares of my posts. When I first began my business I would post all day and all night! I never went a day without posting and it helped me tremendously. As time went on I began joining many facebook groups. Some had free promo and some had paid promo. I’ve paid for many promotional post over time and most of them have been beneficial. I don’t think anything is wrong with paying for promo because I feel like it takes money to make money. Not all of the promos have been beneficial but the majority have been. I also have purchased facebook ads with targeted audiences that have helped me grow as well. I say try it all!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.simmm.co
• Instagram: simmm_co / sheis_kay
• Facebook: Simmm | Kayla D Bradford
• Youtube: Simmm
• Other: TikTok – simmm_co | kshaune__

Image Credits
Maria Jones | Snipers Lena | www.sniperslenz321.com