Introducing … Solo.icious Studio

UPDATED PORTFOLIO COMING SHORTLY

“CHERRY COCKTAILS”—$150

You may want help creating and optimizing your social media profiles so that you can be found, and get help with social media marketing. Or learn how to market using webinars. Or get your Facebook Timeline cover photo and apps created. Or get your Twitter background designed. Or get an online business card. Or brainstorm some marketing ideas. Or just learn how to get started online! Simply contact me to get started.

“CHERRY” PACKAGE—$797

Like picking cherries, this basic package is easy and offers a website built using a premium theme. Suitable for new WordPress users who want to get up and running quickly—just pick and eat! You get a 5-page site including a blog. This package is also suitable for more complex blogs. You get a choice of colour scheme, fonts, hand-picked plugins, favicon, a basic contact form and social sharing links. You also get PayPal integration for up to 3 items, a simple signup box, some graphics and up to 3 stock photos included.
 

“CHERRY PIE” PACKAGE—$1,197 and up

Cherry pie is just the ultimate luxury! This is our deluxe package that offers all the goodness and is suitable for the business owner who wants it all. The recipe includes a custom website built from scratch, with custom graphics. You can get a photo gallery, membership features, shopping cart integration, custom signup box with an e-newsletter, custom forms, a premium online calendar, social profile setup, 1-hour brainstorming strategy session, site backups, and some security measures such as securing your site against hacking, and brute force logins. Contact me for a specific quote.

Yes, I love cherries. But here’s what I love even more—implementing ideas from scratch. Design is a premium service that is all about creating something from nothing. I do what I do because I believe in earning a living from your talents and creativity. I will support you if you are striving to do the same and if you want a website you can use to find prospects and convert them into paying clients. You are running a business, not a hobby. I love beginnings, so I focus on full-out new websites and re-designs.

After quitting my government job via jet plane (yes, I did!), I moved to Italy to study traditional graphic design. After leaving school I went straight into publication design. But though I loved designing newsletters, posters, and the like, I was yet to find my sweet spot as a designer. A few years later I moved briefly into magazine and book design, but that was just not sweet enough.

A turning point came in 2008 when I wrote my first book and knew that I now needed to have a website and learn how to market a book. After creating my website in Dreamweaver I concluded that it was pretty, but useless. I knew nothing at all about marketing and creating client-attraction websites. It was through a book marketing class that I learned about using WordPress for building websites, and that led me into the world of online marketing and social media.

I fell in love with WordPress and this new online world, and jumped in with both feet. In the fall of 2008, I gave birth to Solo.icious (“working solo is delicious like a bowl of cherries”!), a virtual assistant company for solo business owners. It was through this experience that I learned about the needs of the solo business owner.

And why work with me? Because I understand online marketing. Because I understand the needs of the solo business owner. Because I know what it’s like to stay up until 3 a.m. trying to figure out your autoresponder, or some other technology. Because I know what it’s like to be bogged down with LEARNING while needing to earn some money. Because I know what it’s like to want control over your website, to be able to do your own updates and not be held hostage by a “webmaster”.
 
Who do I work with? I work with business owners who are serious about their business and are willing to invest in it. They want a designer who will translate their ideas into a website that speaks to what they and their business is about, while doing the heavy lifting of marketing and staying within budget. They want to expand their success and are open to continuous learning.
 
And because I have a passion for entrepreneurship, I combine my knowledge of WordPress, online marketing, social media, and web technology to serve the solo business owner exclusively. I have found my sweet spot as a designer, enjoying the flow of creativity in my work daily, and I want the same for you. I am so very thankful that I have the ability to make it easy for people to have a presence online.

When not working, I enjoy reading the ever luxurious bandes dessinées (French hardback comics), going to the movies, practicing yoga, and travelling.
FAQ:
Q: Karlene, do you still speak Italian?
A: Only when a cute Italian guy shows up!
Q: Can we barter services? I’ll do X for you if you build a website for me.
A: No. Bartering is against the law.
Q: Where are you from?
A: Let’s have a 15-minute phone chat and I’ll tell you all about it.