Salt Design

At Salt, we help independent consultants and creatives re-evaluate who their best client is, how best to get in front of them, and how to get paid more for doing what they do best. We help you get better organised in your business, and become more proactive and effective in how you are getting and retaining clients. 

After 10 years working for ourselves and learning the hard way, and a previous 10+ years at top London agencies, we understand both sides of the client and supplier relationship. Everything we do is battle-tested by us, and we don’t ask you to do things we are not prepared to do ourselves. 

Want to chat to Stella & Victoria about our High Calibre Clients in 60 Days programme? 

Book a time on our calendar to suit you, or drop us DM

→ https://www.saltdesign.uk/contact

See what our clients have to say

→ https://www.saltdesign.uk/testimonials

Co-Founder

Playgroup

Concept development, brand development and environment branding for clients including Unilever and Direct Line.

Freelance Design Director

me&dave

Concept development, brand development for the premium property sector. Clients include Savills, Mount Anvil and Imperial College London.

Designhouse

Brand identity and communications for both retail and corporate clients predominantly in the finance, property and healthcare sectors. Clients include ING, RBS, Land Securities, John Lewis, NHS and the Priory Hospitals.

Design Director

Caulder Moore

Brand identity and retail communications for boutique and high street retail brands. Head of Graphics. Clients include Aveda, Berghaus, Champneys, New Look, Sweaty Betty, Thorntons and M&S.

Associate Director

Astound

Helping clients communicate with their customers through the retail environment, branding, literature and packaging. Clients include B&Q, Nationwide, Superdrug, SSP UK Rail, Tesco, Waitrose, Wyvale Garden Centres.

Senior Designer

Henrion Ludlow Schmidt

Brand development, annual report and literature design for BASF, Deutsche Bank, Mercedes-Benz, Roche and TFL.

PSD:Fitch

Collaborating with other design disciplines on a range of B2B and B2C projects including signage, environment, exhibition, digital media, packaging and trends reporting. Clients include BT, Ericsson, Kew Gardens, Lufthansa, TFL and Westminster City Council.

Designer

⚫️ Helping ambitious creatives who work with global brands to increase profit and recognition with our High Calibre Clients Programme | 1:1 & Group Programme | LinkedIn for Creatives | Brand Consulting

We help professionals in the creative sector with a step-by-step plan to get high quality clients.

Are you frustrated your website and social media aren't bringing in the right quality clients or projects?

Are you too busy for marketing yet have frustrating & stressful gaps in work?

Are you unsure of the exact steps to take to widen your reach or move into a new area?

Our process takes you from going round in circles, uncertain on how and where to present what you do, to confidently and consistently creating the right opportunities. 

If you're interested in increasing the value of your projects, drop me a message to learn more, or book your 15 minute call with myself & Victoria 

www.saltdesign.uk/contact

What we can cover on the call:

* How to position and sell the value of your work or service
* How to define the market you should be pursuing or moving into
* How to define your unique competitive advantage
* Your best strategy to bring in high value projects or customers

Looking for Senior Retouchers to join our Creative Image team on a freelance basis.

High End Creative/Fashion Editorial Experience is a must.

Please DM with CV/Portfolio and Availability. London based pref.

Stella Chapman


📸 Exciting News! 🏡 We're thrilled to share brand new updated photographs of our stunning location house Dehav Studios in Clapton, East London! 🌟 Whether you're planning a film shoot, photo shoot, or event, our versatile space offers the perfect backdrop for your creative vision. From the stylish flexible interiors to the fully equipped kitchen with kitchen island on wheels, every detail is captured to inspire your next project. Take a virtual tour and discover the endless possibilities! Contact us today to book your visit and bring your ideas to life. 
Photos by Marlan Henry 📷 
#LocationHouse #Clapton #EastLondon #CreativeSpace #FilmLocation #PhotoShootVenue

Looking for a creative headshot photographer, preferably based in London. Please DM me with your recommendations! 📸 

CGI Artists & 3D Motion Designers 🖐

We love the passion you have.
Your creative aesthetic and attention to detail
It’s important.
What you do is an art form.
We’re designers so we get it.

But what if not enough people get to know about your passion and incredible skill? Not enough clients see the benefit you can bring them?
Simply because they don’t know you’re out there?

Here’s the truth

Unless you have a viable way of marketing your business and getting yourself in front of your target client, getting work in AND making a profit, you don’t have a business.

So before you return to perfecting your project work (overdelivering ?), OR checking out another CGI tutorial
OR looking at your competitors’ websites (again)

Think business first
‣ Think about who you want to work for
‣ How you need to get in front of them
‣ And then make a timeline for when you want this to happen.

If you’ve done that, speak to us and we’ll help you put the steps in place to reach your goal 🙌

Processes that will bring in work, get you noticed and allow your passion to make you money.

#cgiartist #motiondesign #3Ddesign #creativebusiness #cgigeneralist #profit #linkedintips #linkedinmarketing

I’m in this for the long run…

I recently completed the 'High Calibre Clients Group' programme by Stella Chapman & Victoria Johnstone.

Before this programme, I was stuck in a rut, but I can now clearly see where I want to head. So thank you Salt Design!

”I want to illustrate and paint more & spend less time in front of my mac!”

There, I've said it! 

I've made more progress towards this goal than two years ago.

🎨 I’m working on another two new illustration projects.
🎨 My first workshop goes ahead next week, with another two lined up.
🎨 I have work being exhibited in a gallery.

Next steps…

⭐ continue to build connections & conversations.
⭐ host some evening workshops.
⭐ build a new website.

This transition won’t happen overnight, I just need to keep showing up, adopt the marathon mindset and keep going, as my resilience has proved time and time again.

P.s. Good luck to all the London Marathon runners this weekend…I’ll be volunteering at the Mile 8 water station…wishing I was running!

#illustrator #artist #runner #ultrarunner #londonmarathon #volunteer

Showing up or just showing off?

Bringing your personality into your content can be daunting.

We know creatives can hold back because they are worried it might seem unprofessional

When you show a little of who you are and what makes you tick, it makes you more relatable and memorable

We’ll be talking about this in our LinkedIn Workshop for Creatives - more on this tomorrow

Do you share who you are, as well as what you do?

⚫

We help ambitious creatives bring in more targeted business, increase their value to clients and position them for growth | 121 & Group Programme

#Q&A #creatives #LinkedIncontent #posting #creativebusiness #retoucher #photographer #cgiartist #3danimation #voiceoverartist #content

“My god you guys proper nailed that” 
Vahakn Vorperian - The Retouchers

Did you know our 3-step programme involves branding, project curation and website design?

This is the ‘Present’ stage of ‘Differentiate, Present & Connect’ that sees our clients like The Retouchers grow from solo freelancers to business owners.

If you’ve had a portfolio review or reshuffled your website and not much has changed, book a chat and we can let you know how the system works

#rebrand #websitedesign #newbusiness #marketingstrategy #highcalibreclients #retoucher #postproduction #branddesign #logodesign

We know you
‣ You’re experienced - but don’t feel you’ve fulfilled your potential
‣ You don’t like selling - your promotions aren't attracting enough clients
‣ You’ve updated your website - but it’s not getting you any leads
‣ You thought word of mouth would keep the work flowing - but lately, it hasn’t

At Salt, we understand your ambitions and concerns
We know what's holding you back

Our High Calibre Client program helps you bring in a steady flow of clients and helps you recognise your full potential as the go-to in your space.

❌ No more feeling stuck
❌ No more feeling overwhelmed by conflicting advice
❌ No more wondering if you're missing something crucial

Our proven process can help you confidently and consistently create the perfect opportunities for your business.

What our clients say ⤵

"I went with Salt because the training was focused solely on creative people. It gives you that extra confidence that the information you're getting is specific to your particular sector” 
Mark - Fabric CGI Studios

“The best way to help people is to understand. You guys really do!” 
Kate - An Artful Life Interior Design

”You both do know the difficulties we creative people deal with in business. Your course is really helping with perspective and reviewing what needs to be done to up my game”.
Matt - Photographer

”I saw your communication online from a fellow retoucher. I thought - they actually know what a retoucher is! You know, you don't see much of that”
Kyle Mitchell - Retouching

Check out our full client testimonials (link in comments)
Happy to chat and let you know how we can help 

#creative #clientacquisition #successincreativity #photographers #portraitphotographer #lifestylephotographer #cgiartist #retoucher #postproduction #voiceoverartist #interiordesigner #CGIartist

Salt client quotes

Imagine being voted as the BEST in your field!

Congratulations to our clients Matthew Biddulph and Leonie Schliesing on being nominated in 3 categories for the One Voice Awards including -

🏆 VOICEOVER ARTIST OF THE YEAR - MALE & FEMALE !!!

A huge recognition of their work and all round boost 👏

#clientwin #workingwithtalent #OVA24 #OVC24 #OneVoiceConference24 #awards #shortlist #nominations #voiceactor #voiceacting

Creatives - want to know our Top 5 LinkedIn updates to get you noticed and increase your call bookings?

Your LinkedIn profile is NOT a glorified CV with an outdated holiday snap, cobbled together banner and your entire job history

It’s your chance to show your clients that you build your reputation and your business by getting the best RESULTS for them.

If you missed out booking our LinkedIn Profile Review calls - we’ve put together an updated checklist to walk you through priming your profile from the viewpoint of your potential client 🤩

Email us at studio@saltdesign.uk for your copy!

⚫

We help ambitious creatives bring in more targeted business, increase their value to clients and position them for growth | 121 & Group High Calibre Clients Programme

#LinkedInprofile #primeyourprofile #marketing #creatives #creativeentrepreneur #linkedintips #linkedinmarketing


If your website alone is not enough to bring in new business - what else matters?

Great question put to us by Web Designer & Marketing Expert Aggie Dymarska in her Expert Interview series.

There are so many things! Let us know what you think…

#creatives #expertinterview #highcalibreclients #marketingstrategy

Shoutout! 📢

Are you putting in the reps?

We're proud of our creative clients who are posting regularly, gaining confidence and getting into the swing of writing about what they do.

‣ They recognise you don’t always get heaps of response, but there is a silent audience who read, watch and get in touch

‣ They are practising getting offers out to their audience - testing, asking questions, listening and improving

‣ They are following a process for taking things to the next stage, starting conversations and landing clients, rather than waiting to be noticed

‣ They know social media is not only about staying top of mind (too passive). It’s about interrupting the conversation in someone’s head and promoting action.

They are putting in the reps 💪

We want to say we are enormously proud and keep going 💙

#highcalibreclients #creatives #progress #consistency
#cgiartist #photographer #retoucher #postproduction #3ddesign #voiceoverartist #businesstips #socialmediatraining

Image credit - Salt Client, Retoucher Rashpal Gurm (Photographer Andy Mahr)

The more invested we get in our clients’ results

The better results they get!

‣ Matt bought in 2 new projects in the first 2 weeks of the programme
‣ Sarah filled her new workshop
‣ Paul is booked out in the first few months of being independent
‣ Andy has increased his project value and started a networking group
‣ The others are building out exciting new offers and taking daily actions

All alongside being exceptionally busy

Because they all took action from day one 💪

What could you do in our group programme?

⚫

Helping ambitious creatives bring in more targeted business, increase their value to clients and position them for growth. The next High Calibre Clients Group Programme starts Monday 15th April. Limited spaces! Get in touch to join

#highcalibreclients #groupprogramme #photographer #retoucher #designer #cgiartist #motiondesigner #digitalartist

Client Image - Photographer Igor Emmerich

Why Choose Us?

We help creative professionals get higher calibre clients.
Like established CGI artist Mark Zawila - founder of Fabric Studios.

Mark was stuck -
He was working "with a few regular clients and taking other jobs as and when they came in". He wanted to reach out and find new clients but didn't have a strategy.

So he came to us

‣ Because we understand the specific problems creative businesses come up against daily
‣ Because we understand the creative mindset
‣ Because we too are a creative business. We’ve worked in London design agencies, and now in our own business, and have faced similar problems.

Mark explains:
"That’s why I went with Salt because it was focussed solely on Creatives. For me, that’s a massive bonus. I think it gives you that extra confidence that the information you are getting is specific to your particular sector"

Working through our 1-2-1 programme through our Differentiate, Present & Connect strategy Mark has:

👉 Gained clarity around who his target client is
👉 Understands how to offer value through results to his clients
👉 Has learnt the processes needed to effectively market his business daily to get in front of the clients he wants to work with.
👉 Has changed his mindset from freelancer to business owner and expanded his team and reach

If you want to discuss how we can help your creative business book a quick 15-minute call with us. Link in comments.

#cgiartist #3Danimator #CGIbusiness #3Dgeneralist #retoucher #postprodution #creativebusiness #creative #creativeprofessionals #creativemindset

Want to turn conversations into clients?

The poll results are in for the most requested content for our LinkedIn Workshop in May (thanks for voting!)

Looks like conversations win! 💬

So the focus will be on how to ‘Turn Conversations Into Clients’ by getting the right people to take action:

‣ The best approaches in DMs
‣ The art of transitioning people onto a call
‣ How to turn prospects into projects without sounding salesy

Here are the results:
What content would you like us to cover in our LinkedIn Workshop?
‣ Linkedin Profile Optimising 19%
‣ Content that resonates 16%
‣ Post to get noticed 9%
‣ Conversations into Clients 56%

Creatives it’s our turn to nail LinkedIn!

To register your interest either comment below or DM us with a private message. Spaces are limited.

#linkedin #creatives #workshop #conversations #linkedinworkshop #creativebusiness #newclients

New client Friday 🤩

We’re welcoming 6 new clients to our Group Programme kicking off next Monday

👉 6 creatives who want more from their business

👉 Ready to set their mind to something

👉 And follow through

They’ve made a choice - and we’re happy they chose us! 🙌 

Are you ready to work with us? 
Check out our testimonials to see if you might be a good fit.

#creatives #businessgrowth #highcalibreclients #creativeentrepreneur #linkedinlearning #creativementor #creativebusiness

Creatives 👋 do you dream of outsourcing your marketing?

It is better to offload it? Or master it?

It's helpful to think about 'high-value' and 'low-value' activities

Low-value = admin, parts of your job that are time-consuming, emailing, scrolling, procrastinating, researching etc - it’s a loooong list

High-value = 
✅ How to increase your average project value 
✅ How to better reach your target market 
✅ How to get a stronger offer to your clients
✅ How to eliminate the low-value activities from your day

There is a compound effect around working on solving these questions and doing the right activities regularly for a greater amount of time

Think about
‣ What could a VA support you with
‣ What could you ditch completely (start with over-delivering!)
‣ What could you easily outsource with low costs (website updates, admin, cleaning, accounts)

What we eventually want to do is eliminate all the low-value activities and distractions to free up more time and headspace to work on how to reach our goals!

#creatives #freelancers #creativebusiness #photographer #retoucher #designer #didgitalartist #voiceartist

Our FREE LinkedIn Profile Review spaces fill up quickly
If you missed out last time here’s another chance!

We have 5 sessions available

We’ll go through 8 key updates and give you actionable steps to prime your profile for your specific audience and start growing on LinkedIn

⤵ Check out a few ‘before & afters’ from our High Calibre Clients Programme below

Your LinkedIn profile is a powerful tool for showcasing the value you bring to clients and accelerating call booking. 

Don’t let your profile be a glorified CV!

Email us to book on studio@saltdesign.uk

#highcalibreclients #creatives #linkedinprofilemakeover #retoucher #photographer #voiceartist #digitalartist #cgiartist #linkedintips #linkedInmarketing

High Calibre Clients Programme - LinkedIn Before & After

3 things I’ve done to reduce overwhelm (followed by procrastination 😫)

1. Instead of writing down every idea and task on hundreds of post-its, I use a day planner with only the tasks for that day. I don't need to waste time wondering what to tackle first as the order is the same every day!

2. Focus on one platform instead of spreading ourselves too thin and worrying about algorithms and trends. For us, there is endless potential and opportunity here on LinkedIn because our ideal client is active here ☺️

3. Ask for support. I stopped trying to do everything myself and make everything perfect. Getting support from others, like our amazing VA, and being okay with testing, tweaking, and learning has been game-changing

I still get that overloaded feeling, but when it happens I shift my focus to the next one thing that needs to be done. 

What tips do you have?

#overwhelm #procrastination #creatives #todolist #burnout

It’s easy to write ‘teaching’ posts with ChatGPT
‘How to do this’
‘Why you should do that’

But not so easy to give an original point of view
Or better still - a counter-intuitive point of view

One that no one else has
These are the best kind of ‘teaching’ post

One of ours is not to let your clients dictate your success

At one time we were at the beck and call of our clients. Classic over delivers and pleasers

Our profits were low and our stress was high!
Doing everything for anyone. 

Now we have a clear offer for a clear audience, with clear results for both us and our clients ☺️

What’s your counter-intuitive point of view?

#creatives #pointofview #creativebusiness

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Stella Chapman's Linkedin Analytics

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Stella Chapman's Best Posts (last 30 days)

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