Meet Nicole Morris | Website Designer, Social Media Strategist, Graphic Designer, Mompreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nicole Morris and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nicole, what is the most important factor behind your success?
I wish I could say I have one important factor that is behind the success of my company and brand. Honestly, it is numerous factors that helped play a part in my company’s success. God, self-care, my circle, authenticity, integrity, perseverance, and mindset has played a major part in my success. Having that alone time with God early in the morning allows me to be at peace, focused, and faith that I can accomplish anything. Self-care is new to me as of this year but I’ve found how helpful it is in not only my business but as a woman, mom, and friend. It allows me to fully rest and relax. I’ve dedicated every Friday as my self-care day and it has allowed me so much peace and I am ready to tackle my business and personal life head on the next business day. Changing my circle allowed me to dream bigger, have amazing connections with other black women entrepreneurs, and have given me an amazing amount of motivation and determination to build a legacy for my family. Being a mom and sharing my struggles allows me to really connect with my clients. They love the authenticity and integrity that I possess and it draws them closer to doing business with me on a consistent basis. I’ve been through a lot especially in this past year in my personal life, the ups and downs of my business but I’ve had this crazy amount of perseverance to get me through. It has allowed me to push through and work even harder to build a legacy for my 3 beautiful daughters and generations after them. A positive mindset has allowed me to dream bigger, believe the best, and go in with crazy faith so that I can build something that my daughters can help build.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I started my business in 2015 and have been doing it ever since part-time. I took the leap of faith in going full-time in January of 2021. I love being able to help start-up businesses with their visuals in website design, graphic design, and social media management. I believe what sets me apart is my authenticity, and heart to truly care about my clients. I pray for each client and their business. I give my honest opinion in helping them succeed and being real. Being a mompreneur has allowed me to connect with other women entrepreneurs in ways I cannot even describe. I’ve had moments where clients vented to me, cried to me, needed prayer on the spot, needed some encouragement as a mother, and so much more. Not treating them as a business transaction but treating them as a family helps our relationship and brings them back. 95% of my clients are from referrals. Yes, I promote but I get a lot of my clients from previous clients and I truly pride myself in that. Having your own business is amazing but it hasn’t always been easy. I’ve done this throughout the years but only as a side hustle. When I began to dream bigger, have crazy faith, surround myself with ladies who are on another level, it allowed me to elevate on another level. I’ve learned a lot of lessons along the way. Starting out I did not have contracts, I accepted payment in various ways, I spent a lot of time sending things to clients using multiple systems and it was truly a headache. I’ve learned to make things simpler for me as well as my clients. I use one system for everything and that in itself has saved me so much time. Another important lesson is dealing with your trauma. Going to counseling was life-changing for me because it revealed a lot about my childhood, why I do certain things, and more. Counseling allowed me to be freer and it allowed me to believe in myself and encourage others to go. I want everyone to know that being a mompreneur is not easy but it’s so worth it. My business truly cares for small businesses and will do whatever it takes to make sure your brand speaks from your heart. I allow my clients to follow me on my journey as I navigate my personal life, major life changes, and being a mother who works hard in keeping their children first.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I am an introvert as well as an extrovert so we will do numerous things. Being able to have a chill night where we relax, watch a comedy movie, drink some wine and talk about life. After we get that chill phrase out the way, we will go out shoot some pool, gun range, a restaurant like Cheesecake Factory in Virginia Beach, and hit up the Apex Entertainment Center where we can bowl, play games, and act a fool! Some of the most fun spots are in Virginia Beach and Norfolk, VA. There are so many things to do and I am all for doing things that are out of the norm. My friend will be refreshed because we would have moments where we talk about life, chill, but also have adventurous moments where we can forget about life, and just have fun.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people who I can credit to my success not only in my business life but my personal life. These people have been my rock in praying for me, encouraging me, client referrals, and just being there for me. Tiffany Morris has been like a sister to me and has supported me in everything that I have done. She has given me ideas, prayed for me, encouraged me, watched my daughters for me and so much more. Quniana Futrell has been my rock for the past couple of years but has been even closer in helping me find faith in myself as a mother and business owner. She has always given me numerous client referrals and has kept my business afloat. Her determination allows me to see myself in a positive light and have faith that I can do anything. My husband was in my corner when I took the leap of faith in going full-time the first time and the second time around. I couldn’t have done it without you, Jermaine! My 3 daughters have pushed me and allowed me to work. They continue to motivate me to be better and involve them in being future business owners. I love you, Mya, Zoe, and Sky. Priscilla Shirer, Tony Evans, Lysa Terkeurst, Nedra Glover Tawwab are authors who have helped me so much in my personal life and have changed my mindset, and vision for myself and my family.

Website: www.creativebait.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/creativebait

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/creativebait

Facebook: www.facebook.com/creativebait

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/creative-bait-virginia-beach?osq=creative+bait

Other: TikTok – https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPd2m7xfF/

Image Credits
Branding Photos by Annette Holloway Photography (www.annetteholloway.com)