J.D. FOWLER PORTFOLIO
From small businesses to non-profit organizations I have served entrepreneurs and business leaders of all kinds with a multi-disciplined approach to graphic design, marketing communications, and content development. My career has spanned the world of traditional print, branding and logo design, digital content creation, email marketing, website design, illustration, ecommerce, social media, blogging, and more. While I have no formal schooling, my work experience has afforded me a level of expertise in a broad range of disciplines. Taken together, I offer an integrated approach that weaves words and images, imagination and strategy, the creative and the technical.
Toolset
Adobe Creative Suite:
Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat
Web Design:
WordPress, Squarespace, Shopify,
Shopify Plus, Google Services
Email Marketing:
Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Aweber
Team Platforms:
Slack, Clickup, Asana, Basecamp, Dropbox,
Zoom, Jitsi, Google Docs
Video and Other:
Davinci Resolve, Keynote, Powerpoint
Skillset
Web & Digital:
Social media graphics, Blogging, Web design,
E-commerce management, Basic SEO, Copywriting,
Email marketing, Powerpoint and Keynote slides.
Print:
Business cards, Signage, Postcards,
Booklets, Book covers, Publications,
and much more.
Branding:
Visual identity systems, Logo design,
Art direction, T-shirt and merch design.
Other:
Hand drawn illustrations, info-graphics,
Basic video editing, Event promotions.
Web and Social Media Graphics
Annual Report: Gleaning For The World
I designed this annual report for the non-profit relief organization Gleaning For the World. This booklet is jam packed with lots of information and visual storytelling of their years work back in 2016. Photos are not mine but all layout and graphic design is.
Promotional Booklet: RBTC
Wisely Woven handled all the print and digital marketing for the Roanoke Blacksburg Technology Council for several years. This square promotional booklet showcases my print design capabilities and all event logos shown were designed by me. I also rebranded the RBTC while working for them.
Product Catalog: Blue Ridge Overland Gear
I helped lead the marketing efforts of this small American manufacturer for over seven years. Most of the business comes through e-commerce but occasionally we would put together a print catalog to pass out at expos and events we went to. I was responsible for all graphic design and brand development. I also helped with strategy, content creation, and stewarded our e-commerce efforts in a small team context.
Conference Program: Business On Mission
This conference program was designed for Business On Mission – a volunteer organization with a mission to help Christian business leaders understand that their work is their calling and a unique platform for ministry.
Article Design & Layout: Conspire Magazine
Here is one of a handful of article layouts I designed for this small artful magazine focused on radical faith, creative expression, and biblical justice. It was created by Shane Claiborne, his organization, The Simple Way, and a network of intentional Christian communities.
Promotional Folder: CAER
The Center for Advanced Engineering & Research (CAER) was a partner organization of the Region 2000 Technology Council that I worked for years ago. I designed a number of web and print marketing materials for the CAER – including this promotional folder.
Apparel Design
Patches, Stickers, and Labels
Branding and Visual Identity Design
Website Design
(click images to open each website)
Blue Ridge Overland Gear
Since 2016 I have helped guide the ecommerce and brand development of this unique American manufacturer of outdoor and off-road soft goods. I lead the re-platforming transition from Volusion to Shopify and shaped both the technical and creative direction of the BROG website. All the graphic design, banners, theme customization, and graphics are mine. Product photos on product pages were not taken by me.
Mountain View Champions
A young, ambitious homeschool student started up a labrador breeding business and wanted to go beyond his DIY website to compete seriously in the search optimization game. With the new website he now has a thriving business.
Luna Midwifery
Midwifery is a noble profession and I was honored to provide Luna Midwifery with an open invitation to women seeking the first step on their homebirthing journey. This website is often the first point of contact for a very busy midwifery practice.
Mountain Run Farm
The local food movement is near to my heart and I have done alot of marketing and branding for direct-to-consumer farmers. Mountain Run Farm was one of my first clients over a decade ago and their website is now in it’s fourth iteration.
Town Kitchen Provisions
Town Kitchen specializes in incredible food. A popular cafe and lunch destination, Town Kitchen needed a website that was basic and straightforward. This single page website reflects a barebones approach with a unique creativity that puts forth their brand and captures their eclectic spirit.
Blue Ridge Lamb & Wool
A family who raises sheep on a solar farm needed a way to get the word out about their lamb meat. This WordPress website started out with a Shopify ecommerce embed which made for easy purchasing of farm product. Currently, the ecommerce element is paused while they sell through only in-person retail, but is ready again for online selling at anytime.
ElectricCoArt & More
Four micro-sites were needed for ElectricCoArt – a family of intertwined businesses filling a vintage electric company building in downtown Bedford. Though the logo was already done I created a unified visual branding across all websites for a cohesive feel that still respects each part. The client is now making updates to their own website based on the training I provided.
Video Production
My work at Blue Ridge Overland Gear for seven years culminated in the development of branding for a new signature product line: Triple Run. I not only came up with the concept and visual identity but also storyboarded and directed the branding video that was filmed on a friends farm. I even chose the music and made a cameo appearance as a banjo player 😉
This teaser video for a nationwide geocache challenge launch was meant to make the viewer curious and to evoke a sense of mystery. Documentary footage and custom graphics were used to create a cohesive sense of an emerging story. I came up with the concept and branding for The Secret Order of the Sasquatch – a fictional club of sorts for adventure loving outdoorsmen and overlanders. Once viewers watched the video they were encouraged to sign-up for a launch list to get more info.
I created this short promotional video and related graphics for Blue Ridge Overland Gear to announce a limited run branded hoodie. This horizontal version was created for YouTube and a vertical version was created for Pinterest.