Holly McCaig Designs Giveaway

Diving into 2011 with eager hearts and hopeful minds, we’re starting off this year by bringing you helpful resources and tools to help you achieve  those ‘business’ resolutions you’ve set forth. Today, we’re introducing you to Holly McCaig of Holly McCaig Designs and Two Pear. Holly, a photographer and graphic designer, started her own design company to offer photographers a variety of templates and products for their business. With products ranging from card and album templates to borders and festive print outs, she covers it all. Her designs are featured and sold through Pink Ink Studios, and she has recently started a new subscription company called Two Pear, a collaboration with designer Carrie Bombria.  Holly and Carrie have set out to offer clients a subscription service to products designed specifically by them. Launching this month, customers will be able to subscribe for a one-time fee, to receive new products and helpful tips on how to use designs to help their business. So today, we want to give you guys the opportunity to get a behind the scenes look at Holly and her design company. We’re also giving  two lucky readers a chance to receive a gift certificate to Pink Ink Studios for any Holly McCaig Designs (see details below). Sounds pretty great, right? We thought so! So with out further adieu, here’s a little bit about Holly McCaig of Holly McCaig Designs.

Holly McCaig Designs is…
Something I’ve been doing for over five years now. With my background in graphic design, I was always designing for someone else. I finally started my own company when I was heavily into the scrapbooking hobby. Designing for scrapbooking manufacturers, being published in industry magazines, and working with companies like Wacom to enhance the digital scrapbooking community were just a part of my life. Now, I focus on my photography business, which mostly features high school seniors, and selling my designs to other photographers through Pink Ink Studios, my online consignment store, and soon-to-be, Two Pear Designs. I’m quirky, messy, infatuated with mustaches, Will Ferrell, and coffee, and can’t get enough of vintage antiques. I love my dogs (and really any dogs) more than life itself. I work out of my home in St. Louis, Missouri and often never get out of my PJs (well, I do, but you know what I mean!)

Lets say I’m new to templates. What are some of the benefits that come along with your products?
The really great thing about where I sell my templates is that we have a ton of cool video tutorials showing you how to do the most basic things with our products – or anyone’s templates for that matter. Most of my products are fully customizable…meaning, you can easily change colors to match say the colors in your photographs, your client’s wedding color scheme, or just whatever you want. Offering your clients unique and fun products is a great way to add on to their order and show off more of their photos to friends and family.

What are your top three best sellers?
Photographers tend to be drawn towards the items I create that can be altered in a more generic sense. Which many of my stuff is. Say I designed it for the senior market, they can still be changed easily for weddings or child photography. My top template sellers are my Portrait Party Starter (one of my very first products I designed for Pink Ink 3 years ago!), my Cropping Guide Postcard, and my Senior Portraits What to Wear Guide (you could make this for child photography too).

Portrait Party Starter

Cropping Guide Postcard

Senior Portraits What to Wear Guide by Holly

How would you describe your style?
Every time I asked to describe my style, I get tongue tied. I have yet to come up with a good name to describe it. I am always torn between a vintage/shabby feel and a clean/modern look. I love bold fonts and gold ornate frames – all at the same time. I should probably put together names like Brad-gelena, huh? ModVin maybe?

Designing and creating must have you constantly looking for new ideas and inspiration. Where do you tend to find the most inspiration? What keeps you motivated?
It’s a bit of a curse, I am constantly noticing things. My brain never shuts off. It drives people crazy because we can be watching tv, and a commercial comes on. Immediately I think, “I love the colors in this commercial.” I’m sure this isn’t what the company wants me to notice, they want me to notice the product. What was the product again? But seriously, inspiration is everywhere. I see it in packaging, blogs featuring home decor, magazines, tv, billboards, and store displays (one of my favs).

How can photographers market and incorporate products like yours to increase their sales?
I always encourage in-person sales. When I started doing this, my sales went up. And, I was selling products I wouldn’t have before. Having samples made from your favorite lab helps! When the client can see and touch a card, or a photo box, they fall in love instantly. I sell more and more 7 x 7 book designs all because the client sees my samples and has to have them. I do think it’s easier to start with a few things and not go too overboard. Maybe start out by offering cards. Get a good grasp on them, and how you want to sell them. Make a really cute display in your studio to show them off. It will draw them right to it, when they walk in. Then, move on to offering book designs or photo boxes. Just a little at a time. You don’t feel overwhelmed and they don’t feel overwhelmed.

Win a $100 or $50 Gift Certificate to PinkInk Studios and Holly McCaig!

Here’s How to Enter: Join us on Twitter for a simple RT Contest. Follow us on Twitter at  http://twitter.com/Formula1Actions. If you’re new to twitter, sign up at www.twitter.com, and then make sure to follow us.

Tweet on your Profile: ” @formula1actions is giving away a gift certificate to Pink Ink Studios for any Holly McCaig Design & I want it! http://ow.ly/3ylbd RT to win”

Prize: 1st Prize: $100 gift certificate to PinkInk Studios for any Holly McCaig Design

2nd Prize: $50 gift certificate to PinkInk Studios for any Holly McCaig Design

**You may tweet the contest as many times as you would like. The more you tweet, the more likely you will be selected. Winner will be announced Friday January, 14 2011.