Hello, my name is Setria James. I'm an Art & Creative Director living and working in DFW Metroplex. I have experience working with large, medium & small businesses & brands.
Ideation. Concepts. Design. Art Direction. Branding.
I flourish in bringing ideas to life. I have extensive experience in executing concepts from start to completion, leveraging and combining all media to promote a brand including print & interactive digital applications (web & social). I’m currently the Senior Art Director at Caliber Home Loans, where we are constantly creating new marketing materials to help Loan Consultants drive their business.
Passion.
In my spare time (lol, some would say what spare time), I develop educational, activity coloring books, through my publishing company Doodles Ave under the Doodles Coloring Fun series. Our mission is to encourage learning through creativity, by using coloring as a road map to aid children in their discovery of themselves and the world around them. I'm blessed that I'm able to positively affect change in the world around me by cultivating my own artistic expression as well as assisting others in finding their creative voice.
Ideation. Concepts. Design. Art Direction. Branding.
I flourish in bringing ideas to life. I have extensive experience in executing concepts from start to completion, leveraging and combining all media to promote a brand including print & interactive digital applications (web & social). I’m currently the Senior Art Director at Caliber Home Loans, where we are constantly creating new marketing materials to help Loan Consultants drive their business.
Passion.
In my spare time (lol, some would say what spare time), I develop educational, activity coloring books, through my publishing company Doodles Ave under the Doodles Coloring Fun series. Our mission is to encourage learning through creativity, by using coloring as a road map to aid children in their discovery of themselves and the world around them. I'm blessed that I'm able to positively affect change in the world around me by cultivating my own artistic expression as well as assisting others in finding their creative voice.
ART DIRECTOR and CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Brand Identity Development | Full-Scale Rebranding Strategy | Visual Storytelling
Visionary leader with 15+ years’ experience and proven success supporting billion-dollar revenues and driving key marketing and branding strategies across multiple platforms. Track record of increasing revenue and market share, with an innate ability to simultaneously manage big-picture goals, everyday details, and individual client needs. Known for strategic product development, continuous process improvement, and high-performance team building. A trailblazer who ignites creativity in others and skillfully balances creative ideation with tactical execution to get the job done.
Brand Identity Development | Full-Scale Rebranding Strategy | Visual Storytelling
Visionary leader with 15+ years’ experience and proven success supporting billion-dollar revenues and driving key marketing and branding strategies across multiple platforms. Track record of increasing revenue and market share, with an innate ability to simultaneously manage big-picture goals, everyday details, and individual client needs. Known for strategic product development, continuous process improvement, and high-performance team building. A trailblazer who ignites creativity in others and skillfully balances creative ideation with tactical execution to get the job done.
Creative Strategy | Brand Building | Strategic Marketing Campaigns | Product Development | Extensive Market Knowledge | Established Vendor Relations | Process Implementation | Project Management | Motivational Leader | Developer of People | Organized and Detail-Oriented | Highly Resilient and Resourceful
CAREER EXPERIENCE
CREATIVE DIRECTOR | Black People Will Swim | New York, NY | April 2022 – Pres.
Convert business objectives into top-tier creative strategies, driving the brand to be recognized by Forbes as the fastest-growing swimming program.
• Partner with executive leadership, instructors, and the marketing team to develop cohesive and impactful brand experiences.
• Develop digital promotional materials, including landing pages, social graphics, videos, emails, and digital ads, to promote the seasonal swim lesson sessions and the brand nationwide.
• Collaborate with stakeholders, UX designers, and web developers to revamp the corporate website, enhancing the brand and improving the user experience for current and prospective students.
• Strategize and design materials to enhance the student experience, including exterior and interior signage, pop-up shop displays, student certificates, staff uniforms, and more.
CREATIVE DIRECTOR | Black People Will Swim | New York, NY | April 2022 – Pres.
Convert business objectives into top-tier creative strategies, driving the brand to be recognized by Forbes as the fastest-growing swimming program.
• Partner with executive leadership, instructors, and the marketing team to develop cohesive and impactful brand experiences.
• Develop digital promotional materials, including landing pages, social graphics, videos, emails, and digital ads, to promote the seasonal swim lesson sessions and the brand nationwide.
• Collaborate with stakeholders, UX designers, and web developers to revamp the corporate website, enhancing the brand and improving the user experience for current and prospective students.
• Strategize and design materials to enhance the student experience, including exterior and interior signage, pop-up shop displays, student certificates, staff uniforms, and more.
CREATIVE DIRECTOR | Falkon Technologies | McKinney, TX | March 2023 – March 2024
Support 7-figure sales revenues, including expanding service offerings in the marketing and data science space.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including sales, executive leadership, and developers to deliver cohesive and impactful brand experiences.
• Design intuitive and visually appealing interfaces, applying user-centric methodologies to improve usability and accessibility.
• Strategize, plan, and implement social media campaigns across platforms (e.g., Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) for multiple accounts, achieving a 12.8% increase in engagement.
• Develop and execute comprehensive social media plans, managing content calendars, and overseeing day-to-day activities across platforms.
SENIOR ART DIRECTOR/SENIOR DESIGNER | Caliber Home Loans | Coppell, TX | APRIL 2018 – March 2023
Help support 11-figure sales revenues, including a record-breaking $60+ Billion in revenues in 2019.
Develop comprehensive branded assets for various media channels and platforms. Lead storytelling and manage concepts from ideation, through production, and into the market while effectively disseminating the impact of those concepts to customers and internal teams. Creatively implement brand identity across multiple platforms and mediums.
• Serve as 1st-in-line supporting the Creative Director; in the Creative Director’s absence, assign jobs, mentor designers, and provide creative direction on projects.
• 1 of only 2 Senior Art Directors to support 2,000+ retail loan consultants in a nationwide sales force; collaborate with the Creative Director to create strategic, innovative solutions to enhance sales.
• Liaise with multiple divisions (wholesale, retail, correspondence, direct-to-consumer) and communicate cross-functionally to create the necessary assets for every channel (social, print, and web graphics).
Significant Contributions and Achievements
• Piloted a new trade show brand for an existing renovation loan product, which has brought in $500,000 in revenue so far; architected start-to-finish creation and design of all elements of trade show assets for the new brand.
• Key creative ideator in the brand’s contemporary evolution; redeveloped dozens of existing marketing assets in support of the rebranding effort.
• Originated and developed a comprehensive social media template library (for all social platforms) for an automated marketing resource website, which drastically streamlined and improved efficiency in the social media content creation process.
• Piloted a new trade show brand for an existing renovation loan product, which has brought in $500,000 in revenue so far; architected start-to-finish creation and design of all elements of trade show assets for the new brand.
• Key creative ideator in the brand’s contemporary evolution; redeveloped dozens of existing marketing assets in support of the rebranding effort.
• Originated and developed a comprehensive social media template library (for all social platforms) for an automated marketing resource website, which drastically streamlined and improved efficiency in the social media content creation process.
SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER | Southside Bank | Frisco, TX | September 2016 – April 2018
Creatively directed full-scale rebranding for the largest and oldest bank in East Texas ($500 Billion in assets).
Revamped vintage style in new-century modern design and created stop-gap assets for the outgoing brand. Deeply involved in every aspect of the rebranding process.
• Oversaw and conducted in-depth marketing analysis and ground-level research on the bank’s mission, vision, values, public image, and future goals.
• Created primary and subsidiary brand logos and set the overall artistic style and creativity to clearly communicate Southside Bank’s brand identity, and positioning from concept to output.
• Clearly communicated brand identity, positioning, and messaging from concept to output in animated gifs, annual reports, campaigns, social graphics, presentations, print and digital ads, and web banners.
• Led implementation of the new brand across various mediums (print, web, social media, in-store, out-of-home, and merchandise) to create a consistent customer experience.
Significant Contributions and Achievements
• Led company, industry, and market competitive for marketing team, leveraging knowledge to spearhead innovative, and strategic concepts that drive brand awareness.
• Developed and established best practices for presenting concepts to the leadership team.
• Fostered the initiative to increase Marketing’s workflow efficiency by developing a template library.
• Collaboratively launched an eStore and streamlined the product ordering process in all markets.
• Led the creation of the 2016 GDUSA award-winning annual report.
• Led company, industry, and market competitive for marketing team, leveraging knowledge to spearhead innovative, and strategic concepts that drive brand awareness.
• Developed and established best practices for presenting concepts to the leadership team.
• Fostered the initiative to increase Marketing’s workflow efficiency by developing a template library.
• Collaboratively launched an eStore and streamlined the product ordering process in all markets.
• Led the creation of the 2016 GDUSA award-winning annual report.
SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER | Nerium International | Addison, TX | October 2011 – October 2016
Translated business objectives into industry-leading creative and supported the sales force in $1 Billion in revenues. A key member of the marketing team when the company reached its first $1 Million.
• Mentored and advised designers in Creative Services. Branding, and Digital through weekly brand reviews; collaborated with team members, cross-departmental personnel, and vendors.
• Organized the Marketing Department’s server by working with IT to determine usability, capacity levels, archive schedules, and file naming conventions that reflected international growth trajectory.
Significant Contributions and Achievements
• Collaborated with GMs and architects to launch the international store in 5 countries; developed brand center guidelines, designed branded products, and built e-commerce site content and promotional assets.
• Tapped by CMO to lead brand development on an international level, including working with translators and international designers to make sure the brand was implemented in the right way.
• Achieved Honorable Mention for Happiness Heroes customer service initiative and initiated all creative for the Customer Reward Program; helped earn the 2016 Hermes Creative Award for Brand Identity.
• Collaborated with GMs and architects to launch the international store in 5 countries; developed brand center guidelines, designed branded products, and built e-commerce site content and promotional assets.
• Tapped by CMO to lead brand development on an international level, including working with translators and international designers to make sure the brand was implemented in the right way.
• Achieved Honorable Mention for Happiness Heroes customer service initiative and initiated all creative for the Customer Reward Program; helped earn the 2016 Hermes Creative Award for Brand Identity.
GRAPHIC DESIGNER | MetLife Enterprise, Creative Services | Irving, TX | January 2008 – October 2011
Collaborated with the creative team to develop and deliver top-quality design solutions and timely production support.
• Provided brand support to 15 account executives; developed and maintained print and web collateral, such as postcards, animated and static web banners, car magnets, brochures, flyers, print ads, buck slips, packaging, tradeshow graphics, and jump pages.
Significant Contributions and Achievements
• Collaborated with marketing managers to design and execute mission-critical recruitment initiatives to attract and acquire top-performing loan consultants.
• Led creation and implementation of a new third-party approval process (including Charles Schulz Peanuts characters) for 2 divisions: MetLife Bank and MetLife Home Loans.
• Collaborated with marketing managers to design and execute mission-critical recruitment initiatives to attract and acquire top-performing loan consultants.
• Led creation and implementation of a new third-party approval process (including Charles Schulz Peanuts characters) for 2 divisions: MetLife Bank and MetLife Home Loans.
EDUCATION
Master of Arts in Graphic Design
Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design
Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX
UX Certificate, 2022
Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX
Master of Arts in Graphic Design
Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design
Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX
UX Certificate, 2022
Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX
SKILLS
Programming Language: HTML5, CSS, JavaScript
Hardware: Mac and PC platforms, Digital / Laser Printing, Photography
Software: Adobe CC (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, XD, Lightroom, Bridge, Dreamweaver, After Effects, Spark, Acrobat and Premier Pro), Microsoft Office, Keynote, Prezi, Enplug, Sketch, and Figma
Programming Language: HTML5, CSS, JavaScript
Hardware: Mac and PC platforms, Digital / Laser Printing, Photography
Software: Adobe CC (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, XD, Lightroom, Bridge, Dreamweaver, After Effects, Spark, Acrobat and Premier Pro), Microsoft Office, Keynote, Prezi, Enplug, Sketch, and Figma