OPen

Hi, I’m Jenny. Creative director and designer living in Santa Barbara. I help create brand & digital experiences for startups, small enterprises, and major corporations. I have been working in the design industry for 15+ years.

Companies I've Worked With:

AppFolio

Procore

The Fund for Santa Barbara

Daysaver

Silverander Communications

QAD

Hard Skills:

Figma

Acrobat

Photoshop

Illustrator

InDesign

After Effects

Wrike

Brandfolder

Google Workspace

Webflow

Soft Skills:

Team Leadership

Creative Direction

Creative Mentorship

Brand Management

Resource Allocations

Talent Acquisitions

Budgets

I’m hooked on helping companies reach their full potential utilizing end-to-end design, design strategy, & creative leadership,

I hold a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Visual Arts and boast more than 15 years of experience in the design field. Over this period, I have finely tuned my expertise in design principles, creative strategy, and the realms of brand development and management. My proficiency extends to the use of design tools like Adobe Creative Suite and Figma, complemented by a deep understanding of B2B and SaaS marketing strategies.

My experience spans working with startups, small enterprises, and major corporations alike and covers a diverse array of creative disciplines, encompassing digital + print design, creative leadership, brand systems + management, content + collateral creation, event design, video + photography direction, UI design, environmental design, typography, and nomenclature.

Jenny VanSeters / Creative Director & Artist
Education:

BA of Fine Arts, Visual Arts

Stockton University (NJ)

Associates in Arts, Fine Arts

Northampton College (PA)

Data Visualization

Edward Tuft Course

Experience

Sr. Art Director
AppFolio, Inc.
May 2018 - Present

In my role as the Sr. Art Director for AppFolio's Investment Manager solution, I lead the creative vision, brand strategy, and artistic direction for all branding and nomenclature initiatives. Investment Manager initially operated as a startup within AppFolio during its incubation phase. My primary responsibility is to position AppFolio Investment Manger as an industry leader in real estate through visual storytelling, messaging, and content creation.

I oversee all creative projects, from initial concept to completion, while maintaining regular communication with key stakeholders and department leaders. Additionally, I collaborate closely with fellow product Art Directors to ensure a cohesive AppFolio brand presence. Beyond this, I provide guidance and mentorship to both senior and junior designers, manage the selection and assessment of external creative agencies and freelancers, and engage in cross-functional partnerships with various teams within AppFolio, including Marketing, Events, Sales, Product, Client Services, Communications, and Legal.

Job Highlights: Over the past 3 years, I've dedicated myself to crafting a customer-centric product brand that has earned the prestigious recognition as the top-ranking Real Estate Investment Management Solution on G2.

Additionally, I played a pivotal role in conceiving and launching three Value Added Services, notably AppFolio AlphaTM.

More recently, I have taken the helm in steering the product through a brand and domain consolidation effort, aligning it with AppFolio Property Manager. This strategic move aimed to provide our audiences with enhanced clarity and a cohesive brand experience.

As part of the Investment Manager team, we've made remarkable strides: expanding our customer base from 100 to over 1,500, witnessing a remarkable revenue growth from $500K to $16M, and achieving three consecutive months with $1 million in revenue in 2023.

Art Director
Procore Technologies
Jul 2016 - Apr 2018

At Procore, a dynamic, rapidly growing tech company, my daily routine involved engaging in high-paced collaborations with various team stakeholders, including content, video, events, sales, and product teams. Within this fast-paced environment, I managed concurrent print and digital campaigns, provided guidance and mentorship to both junior and senior designers, all while maintaining clear communication with a marketing team comprising over 100 members.

My creative responsibilities encompassed translating national and international account-based marketing objectives into captivating visuals, developing and upholding the visual identity system, crafting brand logos, and ensuring brand consistency across every touchpoint within the customer journey. I oversaw a wide range of marketing assets, including brochures, print advertisements, digital ads, social media campaigns, landing pages, sales collateral, and the comprehensive execution of Procore's annual industry conference, "Groundbreak," attended by 3,000 individuals. I also managed assets for tradeshows, booth design, the company website, segment-specific microsites, and specialized brand campaigns (such as those featuring Mike Rowe and NASCAR). Additionally, I had the responsibility of supervising and approving design materials created by both junior and senior designers.

Creative Director
Daysaver
Jun 2015 - Jul 2016

I spearheaded the creative direction at Daysaver, a tech startup headquartered in Seattle, WA. Daysaver specialized in crafting a cutting-edge time-management and calendaring platform enriched with real-time scheduling capabilities and embedded intelligence, tailored for the healthcare sector. My creative duties encompassed a range of tasks including: Developing and maintaining the company's print and online brand; Designing the interaction and visual elements for the user interfaces on both web and mobile devices; Collaborating extensively with the lead architecture team to ensure design alignment; and Creating wireframes for demonstrations and practical use cases.

Design Director
Silverander Communications
Feb 2006 - Jun 2015

For a decade, I held the role of Design Director at Silverander Communications, a prominent design agency in Santa Barbara. During my tenure, I crafted a diverse portfolio of intricate and thoughtfully designed projects, encompassing both print and digital mediums. These projects catered to clients spanning various industries, including retail, publishing, wholesale and direct sales, manufacturing, education, and professional services. Some of our esteemed clients included Counterpoint Press, Sage Publishing, ABC-CLIO, Pacifica Graduate Institute, CMC Rescue, UC Santa Barbara, and United Way of Santa Barbara.

Beyond the creative work, I took pleasure in mentoring junior designers, nurturing long-lasting client relationships that spanned over two decades, and exploring new design tools to enhance our team's capabilities.

Recognitions

"I had the pleasure of working with Jenny for 4 years on the AppFolio Investment Manager product at AppFolio. Jenny brings a holistic, goal-oriented approach to her design direction that prioritizes the business needs. She takes the time to painstakingly understand her audience and broader business initiatives to inform her work and is a fantastic cross functional partner. Jenny built the Investment Manager brand from the ground up, assisting in taking the brand from launch to #1 in the market in 4 short years. I have witnessed Jenny pioneer brand adoption and growth while staying nimble and managing through change--including broader org rebrands, logo changes, and name changes. Her brilliance and talent will be a key asset and differentiator for any team."

–Savanah Wernick, AppFolio, Senior Manager, Marketing Programs

"I had the pleasure of working closely with Jenny for many years at AppFolio. Our roles changed a lot, but part of the time, she was my leader and I was so lucky to be able to work under her and along side her for many years! Jenny is so talented and is such a caring and nurturing person! She gave me the space to thrive and also pushed me to be better at my craft! Her leadership, positivity, creativity, knowledge, skill, innovation, and collaboration makes her a valuable asset to have on any team that's lucky enough to have her!"

–Adrianna Craff, AppFolio, Creative Lead

"Jenny, you are an incredibly talented designer, and it was such a pleasure working with you. The Investment Manager brand would not be where it is without you, and you made such a strong impact across the entire organization. You were an amazing teammate, and I know you'll continue to do great things!"

–Sierra Newell, AppFolio, Marketing Programs Manager