Introducing…Apex Creative

Hi all! To my loyal followers and fans, thank you for all of your continued support, and for your interest in what I’ve been up to. As you may be wondering, why the heck would I change my business name now? Especially as my brand equity has grown and organic search results are up.

All I can say it, it’s been a long time coming. Ever since I started freelancing, I’ve struggled with what to call my design business. I’ve never been clever at naming myself, and so just ended going by plain old “Sheila Patterson Design.”

After much time and thought, it finally dawned on me: Apex Creative!

This name was inspired, in part, by Shark Week. That’s right.

I’m a bit of a geek, and love learning about science and the world around us. During the Discovery Channel show, they referred to the Great White as an apex predator. I thought that was a cool word and looked it up; essentially, the apex of something is the peak or summit. It means that the Great White is the best predator. He’s at the top of the food chain. Likewise, I’ve always striven to become a better and better designer.

It was a tough decision, but for several reasons I’ve come to the conclusion that changing my business name and branding is the best course of action both for myself as well as my clients, for the following reasons:

1. To be seen as more capable and professional

Although I am not ashamed of my name and the fact that I’m a one-woman operation, I’ve always gotten the impression that Sheila Patterson Design was perceived as not very capable. For example, I’ve noticed that design students fresh out of school, call their new design biz “My Name Design” by default.

On the flip side, world-renowned designers like Saul Bass simply go by their name; it’s recognition enough. Since I’m in between these two extremes, I felt it was appropriate to have a “real” name.

2. To be more memorable and easier to spell

If you’re going to name your business after yourself, you better be sure your name is

a) memorable, and

b) easy to spell.

While I’m sure I was okay on point a, I’m not so sure about b; people never seem to be able to spell my name right. I didn’t want this to be an issue.

Apex Creative is much more unique, memorable, and easy to spell. Also, whenever I introduce myself at business functions, I found saying my name followed by my name design didn’t exactly roll off the tongue smoothly either.

Make sure your business name is memorable and easy to spell.
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3. To separate myself from my business

One of the pitfalls of having a business named after yourself, I’ve noticed, is that it becomes increasingly difficult to separate yourself mentally and emotionally from that business. And working from a home office only compounds this issue.

I found, when operating under Sheila Patterson Design, that I was identifying too much with my business; my business was me, and I was my business. Not good.

4. The opportunity to start on the right foot

After working with dozens of startups and clients, I’ve seen how important it is to start your business on the right foot so it can grow.

I realized I wasn’t doing this myself. So, I decided I needed to start at square one, and carefully plan out my business plan, strategy, marketing, branding, and vision before launching.

There you have it!

I am super excited about my new business name, branding, and website, and promise that I will continue to provide exceptional design and informative advice as we continue this journey.

It's important it is to start your business on the right foot so it can grow.
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Let me hear your thoughts.

Do you like the name Apex Creative? Or did you like my old name more? Why or why not? When do you think changing a business name is a good or bad idea?