Meet Claire Oetter, our creative and versatile Graphic Designer at Market My Market! Claire is a design pro who uses her skills daily to refresh client websites and bring their brand to life. She has a bachelor’s degree in graphic design from the University of Northern Iowa, where she also minored in marketing. She joins us from Des Moines, Iowa, where she enjoys crocheting, baking, and attending potlucks with friends.
While every day brings its unique set of triumphs and challenges, Claire enjoys working with clients to create designs with a strong vision and is able to roll with the changes when things do not go according to plan. Her unparalleled design skills and dedication to her team and clients make her one of Market My Market’s rising stars. When she isn’t at work, you may catch her taking a ceramics class or reading up on Asian history.
Q&A with Claire
What Do You Love Most About Your Job?
“I like doing a 360 turnaround, kind of like those old HG TV shows where they take an old, ugly house and make it nice. That’s what I feel like I get to do with websites, and I think it’s really fun to compare and contrast what it was to what it is now. I do all sorts of design here, but website design is definitely my favorite part.”
How Do You Deal With Creative Block?
“I look at certain websites for inspiration. But one thing I like to do to help so I’m not overthinking a project while staying in the work zone is to do something with my hands. I’ll crochet for five to ten minutes when I feel like I’m reaching a block and just think through the problem in a more relaxed way. That usually helps me refocus on what I’m doing. Because if I’m staring at a project for too long, it becomes nothing.”
What is Your Favorite Project You’ve Worked On at Market My Market?
“One of my favorite web design projects was one for one of our legal clients where not only did I have a clear vision for the site, but they were one of the kindest and most responsive clients I’ve ever had. They were so into it, and we were having great communication throughout. Even though I only communicated through the account manager, it was such a great project because of all of the open communication. They really trusted me as a designer, and I knew what I wanted to do for them.”
Describe Your Perfect Saturday
“I moved to Des Moines back in October, and I have a few college friends out here, but it was hard to meet new people. I use Bumble BFF, and I’ve met a few people from that. One girl will throw potlucks or get-togethers with 20-something people around my age. I think that’s one of my perfect Saturdays because they’re not crazy parties. They’re just laid-back get-togethers where I get to talk to other people my age in different careers and get to them on that basis. So those are what I look forward to on the weekends if we have those planned.”
If You Could Have an Unlimited Supply of One Thing, What Would it Be?
“Coffee. I feel that I’m the biggest coffee loser, but I love coffee so much. I make a pour-over every morning, and I have a coffee subscription. I love getting roasts from across the country and seeing all the packaging. I love tasting all the stuff, but I save all my coffee packaging. I want to make some cool mural with it, but I’ve been saying that for three years. We’ll see!”
Where Do You See Yourself in Five Years?
“I hope professionally, I grow more into a leadership role. This is going to sound weird, but I want little minions. Not that I don’t want to work, but one of my favorite things to do is critique work. When we get a new project, I usually break down the website for the client to see the problem areas. I love doing that. I would love to do it in more of a leadership role where I can help critique young minds who are much more creative than I am to develop and reach their goals.”
