I have spent so much time creating beautiful projects for others, that I did not make time for myself. After business picked up (A LOT!), I understood the importance of having a solid web presence. This website is long overdue, but I’m finally here!
You might be asking yourself, so, what happened to this company?
Well, technically, The Picture Portal still exists. It is a branch of my creative studio, 11Sixteen. When I started my business in 2008, my business plan was to design and print photo cards for photographers and individuals with print release forms for their digital images. The business name, “The Picture Portal”, fit like a glove. I had early success with my photo card designs, which quickly attracted other types of graphic design work (I guess I should have been more optimistic when choosing my business name). Since 2013, the majority of my work was for projects other than photo cards. I work with A LOT of brides on their wedding invitation suites who live within the South Atlanta area, and I sell one-of-a-kind, customized, die-cut wedding programs on Etsy to brides from around the country. Businesses have relied on my services for their marketing pieces and business stationery. I dabble with photography (and would not DARE call myself a professional photographer just because I own a fancy schmancy camera!). I enjoy creating paper die-cuts for table decor, which are perfect for any classy gathering! Are you seeing the BIG PICTURE here? I was starting to work on a lot more than just photo cards. The name, “The Picture Portal” was confusing to clients who were not ordering items with a picture on it!
After a lot of self searching, deliberation, and a few tears……I decided that it was vital to my future success to re-brand.
It took me months to find the perfect business name. If I thought of a name I liked, the first thing I did was check to see if someone already owned the domain. If they did, I would strike that name off of the list. If it was available, and the domain name was more than $1,000.00, I would strike it off the list too. Nothing was more frustrating than coming up with the perfect name only to find that the domain name was for sale for more than $10,000.00. This happened to me multiple times. I guess I am just good at coming up with catchy phrases! If the name happened to make it past step one, I would check to see if there was a registered business with the name I chose. Of course, if there was, I would strike it off the list. Let me tell you, there were only about three names that made it past these two steps.
In the end, I chose 11Sixteen – A Creative Studio. 11Sixteen defines the core of my life. My husband’s favorite jersey number is 11. My favorite jersey number is 16. When we were dating, we would often refer to anything in the order of 1116 or 116 as a sign that the other one was thinking about us. My husband is a software engineer, and is often called upon to help with any projects related to websites and custom software programs. There are times when he seems to be working on my projects more than me! As you can see, including him into my business name was more than appropriate. Plus, it reminds me of his daily support and encouragement. There were not always times when I was contributing to our bank account…..but still, he allowed me to be drawn by the pull of what I really loved – graphic design and paper!
In homage to The Picture Portal, I have decided to call my photo card section The Picture Portal. Hopefully, old clients will recognize the logo and realize that they have not mistakenly typed the wrong web address!
Congratulations for making it this far in my post! I hope you take some time to browse around. Don’t forget to stop by and say hello! I would love to know that you were here.
~ Jonell Wilson (Owner and Lead Creative Consultant)