We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stephanie Mays a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Stephanie, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
The idea for my business was birthed out of the frustrations I experienced in my journey as a website designer / developer. When I graduated from college, I was determined to utilize my skillset to work for myself. I started as a freelancer taking on small web design projects for friends and family to build up my confidence to go after bigger jobs. Throughout my journey I discovered that many people don’t understand the value of a website; mainly those with small businesses. I found that many of them would have no budget or a small budget as low as $500. Aside from budgeting, they didn’t understand that a website is a tool to help you meet your business goals and not a digital flyer, and that there are strategies that need to be implemented in order to stand out and attract your ideal client. This is a fact that successful businesses and large corporations understand and they are willing, and ready to invest in the development of their website.
I have a passion for helping community and faith-based (Christian) organizations and businesses, and it frustrated me to see so many small businesses and community organizations whose online presentations and even branding did not reflect the level of professionalism and quality of service that they claimed to offer. My business started as a general website development company, but my mission shifted to educating business owners on the value and the power of a professional website and developing web strategies and websites that elevate brands that are committed to providing a higher standard of service, and position them to dominate in their industry for the Kingdom of God. I didn’t want to just build basic websites, I wanted to build digital business partners that help make processes more efficient, build awareness, make meaningful connections with customers and increase revenue.
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?
My interest in website design and development started with the gospel group that I have with my brothers and sister. Every musical artist needs marketing tools, especially a website. Our group started with a simple My Space page, but of course like any social media platform, there are limits. Being the do-it-yourselfer that I am, I decided to figure out how to build a website. I tool a couple of online certification courses where I learned HTML, CSS and PHP coding to design and develop websites from scratch. I absolutely loved it! I decided to further my education in my newfound passion and received my Bachelors Degree in Graphic Design with a major in Website Development and Design.
My business focuses on developing strategy-centric websites or as I like to call them, digital business partners, for faith-based business owners and community organizations. My process involves developing a strategy for the success of your website before the design; define, align, and then design. This process helps to ensure the focus of the project and development of digital solutions that help my client’s meet their business goals and create better online experiences for their website visitors. In addition to my services, I write blogs and created a YouTube page dedicated to educating businesses and organizations and providing them with free tips and information on how to leverage their website.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
The biggest thing that helped me build my reputation in the market is the value that I offer. Though sales are important, I make it a priority to add value to my clients and potential customers whether they do business with me or not. I offer free educational content through my blogs, Web Wednesday YouTube videos, email marketing and my social media platform. By adding value, I am able to help other businesses and I position myself as “The Professional” and a reliable source.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
The best source for new clients has been word of mouth. As much time as I put into marketing my business, nothing has beat word of mouth. When a client has a great experience, they do not mind telling and referring others to you. This is why I have set processes in place to make sure that my client’s experience is top-notch. Listen to their needs and concerns and accommodate to the best of my ability, answer any questions they may have, treat them with respect and not like another pay check and provide professional quality service that they can’t forget. The second best source for new clients has been my website. I have implemented SEO strategies that have allowed me to rank on the first page of Google with my keywords. Just as I do with my clients, I have developed a strategy for my website that allows me to attract my ideal client.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.smaysdesigns.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smaysdesigns
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SmaysDesigns/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/smaysdesigns/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/smaysdesigns
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl7DyZN2JxuVOLxl1ObwF4g
Image Credits
I own the rights to the images provided