Maka Designs Limited
Graphic design · Brand · Video · Photography · Print · Web · Events management
Hello, I'm Marcie Nolan-Meddings. I have over 16 years' corporate experience as a graphic designer working within the finance/mortgage/insurance industry and have since freelanced for small to medium businesses in the food & beverage, and hospitality services. I have created a range of marketing communications projects for internal and external use, corporate literature, adverts, presentations, lead in brand development, event management, manage design to print workflows, design for print, video & digital projects (emails and websites) and website development.Feel free to get in touch if you require a logo, brochure, flyer, website. email or social media campaign.
Brand management
Visual presence
Consistent, meaningful and beautiful visual branding created with your key messages, strategy and style.
Video
editing
Engaging people
A cost-effective and impactful way to reach out to your customers and clients in a competitive and global economy.
Digital
photography
Your image
Taking photos in line with your brand style or finding the best source of professional photos.
Corporate presentations
Your message
Creation of visual and animated PowerPoint slides with key messages that are engaging and impactful.
Digital projects
Your channels
Providing the assistance in both social media platforms, website development and digital asset production.
Project management
Enterprising
Making things happen by managing print production, sourcing suppliers and event management.
CV · LinkedIn · Portfolio
Click the icon below for my full CV, visit my LinkedIn profile for more information or preview my portfolio
CV
LinkedIn
Portfolio
Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) Visual Design Specialist
Adobe Certified Associate
in Graphic Design & Illustration Using Adobe Illustrator
Experience
Maka Designs Limited - Freelance Graphic Designer
Freelance Graphic Designer/ Director Present
» Logo and brand development.
» Creation of marketing & creative material for print & web.
» Email templates and website development.
» Managing and advising on design and print process with suppliers if required; negotiating best rates and best practice for workflow.
» Supporting & advising on corporate design & branding.
» Designing marketing literature, presentations, templates and infographics.
» Creating and sourcing images, infographics, Smart Art and photography for use on email, web and Word/PowerPoint templates.
» Filming and editing using After Effects and Premiere Pro.
» Photography for corporate communications and editing in Lightroom.» Use of Adobe Creative Cloud packages, Microsoft packages and Canva
GE Money Home Lending
Senior Graphics Designer (Brand & Marketing) Aug 2008 – Nov 2019
» Creation of marketing & creative material for print & web using Adobe Creative Cloud Design.
» Management of design and print process with suppliers; negotiating best rates and best practice.
» Creator and manager of corporate brand in marketing literature, projects & other special projects. Apply brand guidelines appropriately across a wide variety of media, both on & offline.
» Supporting & advising business departments concerning corporate design & branding.
» Designing marketing literature, presentations, templates and infographics.
» Presenting graphic design solutions to corporate literature ensuring that the brand fits with the copy and tone of voice.
» Maximising the use of design & digital technology in marketing communications.
» Proofing all work, liaising with printers and maintaining organised files and managing best practice of the design to print workflow.
» Experienced in pre-pressing work, specifying print and handling suppliers, working with printers, finishers, web design consultants and other specialists and managing design projects.
» Creating and sourcing images, infographics, Smart Art and photography for use on email (dotMailer), web (Sitecore/Sharepoint) and Word/PowerPoint templates.
» Development and management of interactive presentations using Adobe Creative Suite (DPS).
» In-house video filming and editing using After Effects and Premiere Pro.
» In-house photography and location photography for corporate communications.
» Creator and manager of the corporate literature library system and asset library.» Developer of email templates and key contact in website development skinning & branding for Miller Insurance Services LLP.
» St John Ambulance First Aider.
GE Money Home Lending
Marketing Services Executive Jan 2006 – Sep 2008
Support to Marketing product teams & business in:
- Print - advise in production, best practice & supplier relationship
- Web - management of changes on gemoney.co.uk with the eCommerce team & web development team in Mexico. Administrator of mortgage and secured loan changes.
- Design - in-house resource for graphics, imagery, design requirements using Adobe CS2 and Quark for Internal & External campaigns
- IP Agreement - contact for IP licences and logos
- Job bag & archive of literature - aid process with D&P manager
- eLiterature audit - relationship management for artwork database supplier
- Online Proofing System - ongoing project to set up to improve workflow
- Online image library - source and manage images & licences
- GE Money Home Lending Brand approval & advice
- e-marketing - set up and implementation of an email campaign management system for all brands. Tool administrator and provided best practice support for email campaigns with brand managers.
Blemain Group
Marketing Communications Executive Mar 2004 – Dec 2005
Started as a marketing assistant for several financial companies under the Blemain Group. I was thus promoted to Marketing Communications Executive for B2B marketing in July 2005. Tasks included:
- Day to day management with design/print houses/ some broker queries
- Organize company documents (hard and electronic copies)
- Creating artwork for adverts, brochures, flyers, and mailshots using Photoshop, Illustrator and Quark Express
- Organizing advertising schedule and budgets
- Compliance sign off and account/payment of adverts/projects
- Coordinating with external agencies in regards to creating brochures, flyers, and various promotional items
- Project managed corporate exhibitions in Manchester and London
- Adhoc design projects within the business
Education
Coursera
Disaster Preparedness (University of Pittsburgh) February 2016
Terrorism and Counterterrorism: Comparing Theory and Practice (Universiteit Leiden) December 2015
Better Leader, Richer Life (University of Pennsylvania) June 2014
The Power of Microeconomics: Economic Principles in the Real World (University of California, Irvine) March 2014
Introduction to Communication Science (University of Amsterdam) March 2014
Nanotechnology: The Basics (Rice University) Jan 2014
On-going personal learning via Coursera
Chartered Institute of Marketing
Brand Touchpoints March 2016
Principles of Great Copyrighting Nov 2015
On-going training for CIM certification with work.
Adobe Packages | XChange Training
Adobe Illustrator CC (3 day Advance & ACA) March 2017
Adobe InDesign CC (3 day Advance & ACA) February 2017
Adobe Premiere Pro CC (3 day Advance & ACA) November 2016
Adobe Photoshop Pro CC (3 day Advance & ACA) October 2016
Adobe Premiere Pro CC (2 day) May 2016
Adobe After Effects CC (2 day) May 2016
Adobe Photoshop CC (1 day) November 2015
Adobe InDesign CC (2 day) October 2015
Adobe InDesign CS6 Print Production (1 day Training Course) March 2013
Bespoke Adobe Digital Publishing Suite One Day Training Course Feb 2013
Adobe InDesign CS6 Two Day Advance Training Course Jan 2013
On-going training for Adobe graphics design packages with work.
University of Plymouth
Bachelor of Science - BSc (Hons) Multimedia Computing 2000 – 2003
Entered the University of Plymouth in 2000 to MediaLab Arts (BSc). It is now known as BA (Hons) Digital Art and Technology (DAT) and provides a vibrant mix of theory and practice, a unique experience developing technical and critical skills for the design of interactive media products and projects for the media, technology and cultural industries. Year 1 provides a grounding in digital media, theory, software, technologies and production techniques needed such as graphic tools and web design technology. Year 2 provides a fundamental foundation for building CVs, portfolios, project management, individual creative practice and professional collaborations.
Transferred to Multimedia Computing BSc (Hons) in 2002 to incorporate a Business and Marketing courses. Module choices are drawn from the suite of computing subject areas within the School of Computing and Mathematics. These include software engineering, analysis and design, computer networking, security and artificial intelligence.Brent International School, Manila
International Baccalaureate Bilingual Diploma and Brent Honours Diploma
Math, Physics, Filipino, Computing, English, Information Technology in a Global Society 1989 – 2000Brent Schools, in a Christian ecumenical environment in the Philippines, are committed to developing individual students as responsible global citizens and leaders in their respective communities, with a multicultural and international perspective, and equipped for entry to colleges and universities throughout the world.
Activities: National Honours Society (1998-2000), Brent Drama Club (1997-2000), Glee Club/Brent Choir (1997-2000), Asia Pacific Activities Conference Girls Football (1999-2000) and Choir (1997-1999), Student Council President (1999-2000), Student Council Secretary (1998-1999), Brent Azure Club Representative (1998-1999), Brent Girls Rugby (1997-1998)International School, Bangkok
1988 – 1989
Grade school 1-2 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Projects
Below are a selection of key projects I have completed. Please get in touch if you wish to find out more or visit my project portfolio on Behance.
Brand management
I have been involved in two brand redevelopments and was the key manager of a brand refresh while working with an external agency, the Marketing Director and CEO to incorporate the vision and strategy of the company's brand during a transition milestone. I selected the agency to work with us, worked with them on the brand style, prepared the brand standards, managed the launch campaign and applied it to all print and web touchpoints.
Corporate literature
I am the key producer of all corporate literature in the finance/insurance companies I have worked in, from corporate brochures to presentations and advising on best practice throughout all visual touchpoints for marketing teams. I also have experience in working with print and web suppliers, both large scale and small, to complete corporate communication projects to a high standard and in the most cost-effective way.
Website and email
I have worked with members of the Marketing and Communications team, IT and external agencies in the set up and development of various websites and email CMS systems. My contribution has been to the design, layout and templates and providing advice on other technical aspects. I have also learned how to use these systems and assist the team in in web and email projects.
References
Joanna Whitehead
Design, Brand, Print Specialist at AcuteNorth
Marcie was my main contact at GE Home Lending when she worked for the business. She was a dream of a client, very organised, efficient and a pleasure to speak to day to day. I hope to work with her again in the future!
Kat Livingstone
Senior Marketing Executive at Prospectus.ac.uk
Margaret (Marcie) is an exceptional designer with raw talent. Her creative eye and flair for graphics always amazed me with innovative ideas to bring even the most basic marketing messages to life.
Laura Gosling
Culture Communication Leader at GE Healthcare
I had the pleasure of working with Marcie Nolan on several projects during her time with GE. Her creative talent was complemented by her professional approach and can-do attitude.
Paul Culshaw
Digital Marketing - SEO Lead
I had the pleasure of working with Marcie for a few years. During this time Marcie was highly creative, innovative and pro-active in all elements of her work. She produced effective graphical artwork for online and offline media resulting in increased leads and reach for the business. Marcie is a confident, results focused team player who provides initiative, fun and support for her colleagues.
Mark Tiley
Simplification & Innovation Leader at GE
Marcie is creative, picks things up quickly and is flexible / adaptable to get the job done…capable of meeting challenging deadlines whilst working on several simultaneous tasks…manages stakeholder expectations well...always willing to help colleagues - a real team player and a pleasure to work with…
Milena Koottungal
Project Manager at Lloyds Banking Group
Marcie worked with me on various projects. She is a great asset to any project team. She is reliable, flexible and always willing to help or go the extra mile to get work complete. She is very creative, enthusiastic and an absolute pleasure to work with.
Abhinav Gaur
Vice President Risk at GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS)
Margaret was a fantastic peer to work with as she combines natural creative ability with a positive outlook. A pleasure to work with you...
-AbhinavNick Calver
Cyber Security Exec at IT Governance
Margaret has a great attitude towards work. A great addition to any team. Very experienced in marketing communications. Highly organised and efficient. Will take the lead on any project and will ensure that it is delivered to budget on time.
Ketan Vaghjiani
Experienced marketing professional
Whilst working with Marcie at GE Money I found her to be a very friendly and supportive individual. She helped with design work, developing web pages and any brand and communications queries. She was always a pleasure to work with, well organised, and always helpful to work with when required.
Marcie has a very good range of the creative skills and was always keen to learn new techniques and take on work over and above her remit.Neil Horne
Creative Director at Abbey DPM
My experience of working with Margaret whilst she was at Ge Money was always a very positive one. He role when working with us was to act as a buffer and support between the marcoms teams and creative services suppliers like us. She was a pleasure to work with, always extremely professional and organised, willing to work with us and help when required. Margaret has a very good understanding of the creative services business and therefore understood what we needed to work more effectively for the teams - Margaret also has a creative mindset so again her thought processes linked very well with our own when discussing projects.
Joe Hedges
Art Director and Web Designer
I have collaborated extensively with Marcie in the realm of corporate branding. Her deep understanding of both the creative process as well as the reality and constraints of production make her one of the most 'real' and commercially minded designers I have had the pleasure of working with. Added to this, her personal creativity and flair means that she is always looking for innovative, engaging and interesting solutions to visual problems. Better yet, the grace and manner with which she approaches projects is wonderful - never daunted by the scale of the task at hand, she has an incredible ability to get on, develop
and deliver with the minimum amount of drama. Now that's impressive!Nigel Clegg
Director, MLCM Marketing Ltd.
Marcie is one of very, very few designers I've encountered in all my years in the industry who combines creativity with enthusiasm and exceptional organisational skills - a truly rare commodity amongst designers.
Marcie is a real team player who is always a pleasure to work with.
