Welcome to the new December Oak. We have developed and changed so much since starting in 2014. This year has been so tough because we had to take a medical hiatus. Around January of 2023, I knew something wasn't right. I was feeling so sick all the time, tired, burnt out, and emotionally drained. I saw my group of doctors and they all recommended I take a break. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done. I felt like I was abandoning my business. But through this hiatus, I recovered and healed. I'm now more active than I've been since high school. I feel lighter and more aligned. When it was time to decide whether to reopen December Oak or get a 9-5, I knew I wanted to come back to my business. I missed being creative, connecting with clients and my community, and feeling like I had real purpose.
However, I didn't want to end up in the same place I was in January. I knew I needed to make some big changes in order to realign December Oak. First, I started by re-evaluating my income goals. I realized I could make a lot less than I originally thought. Since 2021, my business has felt so big. Maybe you can relate. Has your business gotten to a point that it feels bigger than you and it's a little overwhelming? With this new knowledge, I wanted to change the direction December Oak was heading and simplify.
Our Brand
While we will forever love the brand April created for us in 2018, I wanted to minimize our brand to be more of a vessel to our message and our work we create. I also wanted to be the one to brand December Oak. The first change was the logo. I went with a sans serif that was clean. I feel it's not competing with the work I create for our clients and it will allow me to better tell their stores. The next change was the font suite. December Oak now only uses two main fonts and I love how they contrast one another. Lastly was our color palette. I loved how relaxing and high end our palette was before. When choosing December Oak as our name, we loved that December made of think of being brave and bold leading into the new year. We all feel a fresh start when the new year comes and set resolutions that will improve who we are. We see the launching of an immersive, signature website the same way. Our clients are taking a brave and bold step in their business journey by working with us. We don't take that lightly. So I wanted to bring more bold and brave colors to the palette.
Our Website
This is probably the biggest change we made. The December Oak site is now on Webflow! Now I know what you're thinking...did I break up with Showit? Definitely not. I still love and offer Showit and I cannot wait to create more sites on the platform. However, I needed more from my site than Showit could fully offer. I will definitely create a post in the future outlining all of my reasons for switching. But I will now be offering custom Webflow sites as well and I'm so excited to see what I'll be able to create.
Transparency
For many years now, we have not shared any pricing on our site. We build custom packages for every client so that we can meet their needs and goals. For that reason, I didn't want to set an investment because it could vary when I spoke with a potential client. While we're still building custom packages, I understand people need to get an idea of what an investment will be, especially for their business. Having time to plan ahead could mean we can achieve their biggest goals together. So we now have a pricing guide with our services and the minimum pricing. While packages will still vary in cost, this will help potential clients make the most informed decision.
The Course & Shop
You may have noticed there is no way to access our course The Art of Conversion Driven Design or our Showit template shop. I wanted to have the time and space to explore the core changes I needed to make, all those mentioned plus refining our process and setting boundaries for more balance. So I will be relaunching the course and shop all refreshed and updated with new offerings in 2024! So stay tuned for that. If you'd like to be the first to hear when we relaunch the course or shop, sign up for our newsletter.
Thank you for your continued support! We're excited for what is to come. If you'd like to work together, reach out! Or if you're a fellow designer looking to collaborate, we'd love to hear from you. Let's connect!
