Today we’d like to introduce you to Sirena Carpenter.
Hi Sirena, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Raised in uptown New Orleans, I’ve always understood the value that small businesses bring to a city and their local communities. You will never hear a NOLA local refer you to a chain or franchise. They’ll tell you a mom-and-pop shop or hole in the wall that has the best offerings in town, and chances are, they know the owner and have a few stories. This is part of what makes a city special and vibrant in an otherwise corporate atmosphere. It’s also something I love about Atlanta.
After graduating from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) with a BFA in Advertising Design, I was fully prepared to enter the ad agency world and work my way from intern to, hopefully, Creative Director. However, following a successful audition, I found myself performing at the Walt Disney Company for five years, moonlighting as a freelance designer along the way.
Although that was not in my original plan, I wholeheartedly believe that my time at Disney equipped me with skills I may not have gained along a more conventional path. My desire for designing full-time grew, and I landed a role with an advertising agency here in Atlanta, where I would spend the next four years donning a variety of creative hats- including Production Designer, Senior Graphic Designer, Art Director, and Creative Director. I was lucky enough to work on some large accounts, including IHG Hotels, Dunkin’ Donuts, Bacardi, Pabst Brewing Company, ADT, Beam Suntory, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola.
In 2020, mid-pandemic, I found myself struggling to turn a blind eye to the hardships that small local businesses were facing. For me, in my design bubble, it was business as usual. Meanwhile, many were forced to close permanently, and others scrambled to find creative solutions to somehow keep their doors open. It was then I realized it was time for a change. I felt called to take my knowledge and experience handling design for large successful companies and scale them for the small business owner in a way that suits their needs and at a much more affordable rate. That’s how Muse Creative was born.
In chatting with local business owners, there has been a common thread- a lack of understanding of “branding”: what it is, what it isn’t, and how greatly it can affect your business. My mission with Muse Creative is two-part for small businesses: first to educate them on branding, and then deliver it in a way that helps transform their business into a memorable brand that can hold its own against its large company competitors. I work with business owners to strengthen their brand every step of the way, from logo concepts and other visual identity design components to social media and offline marketing endeavors. Together we explore opportunities to share their story with their audience in new and exciting ways and continue evolving to best serve their customers’ needs.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Certainly not. Leaving a full-time career in the middle of a pandemic to start your own business wasn’t exactly an ideal scenario. Aside from the obvious challenges of gaining new clients while they’re doing their best to stay afloat in an uncertain time, it became alarmingly clear that a lack of understanding of branding and marketing would become a massive hurdle for us. It’s not easy to convey why a small business owner (who has put their life’s work into their company) should trust you with their business, but especially when you offer a service that isn’t always clear and requires educating potential clients upfront. Not everyone is open-minded enough to invest that kind of time. Our goal at Muse Creative is to build enough of a sound reputation through our work that word of mouth and testimonials from clients (who are also beloved businesses in the area) will continue to organically grow our clientele.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are an all-in-one branding solution that specializes in design and marketing for small to medium-sized businesses. We’ve found success in partnering with businesses in the health, wellness, and beauty industries, but we love to help any small businesses, such as our Nashville-based food truck client and our upcoming luxury handmade jewelry designer client.
We are most proud of the relationships built with these businesses. By investing time into learning about our clients beyond their product and service offerings, we’re able to collaborate alongside them and create something that is not only authentic to the business’s mission and values but also proves successful from a sales perspective. At the end of the day, our goal is not to improve branding for vanity’s sake. We want to share gems of the city with locals in a way that rewards returning guests, continues to bring in new ones, and yes, is also aesthetically pleasing.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
If you’re looking to connect with local business owners, you need to take time to visit these businesses on your own and learn what you can beforehand. Observing the operations, services and offerings, and paying special attention to your overall experience can help you identify where and how you can help a business. Cold calling and following traditional sales reach-out methods have not been successful in our experience, and that’s understandable. These businesses receive so many spam calls and emails every single day. For us, helping locals means showing we are one of them. Relationship building is crucial to small businesses, and that’s what makes them so much fun to work with long-term.
Contact Info:
- Email: Hello@MuseCreativeCo.com
- Website: MuseCreativeCo.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/MuseCreativeCo
- Facebook: facebook.com/MuseCreativeCo
- Twitter: twitter.com/Muse_CreativeCo
- Other: https://musecreativeco.com/contact
Image Credits:
Greg Hernandez, VMP Photography
