Curious, kind and creative designer based in regional Victoria.
Content Specialist at Laminex and #sidehustling with freelance projects for Bewley Street Studio.
ABOUT
Hello! It's nice to meet you.
My name is Alana McSwain, and I'm an experienced creative designer who is passionate about people and producing work that makes the world a better place.
Throughout my career, I've gained expertise in design, copywriting, social media management, illustration, photography and email marketing.
Outside of work, I'm an avid reader and traveller, lover of live music and baking and a very proud Aunty to four beautiful nieces.
I love to learn and am always looking for opportunities to use my skills to create a positive impact.
EXPERIENCE
Social Content Creator
2022 - 2023
Freelance Designer, Illustrator & Photographer
2021 - Present
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Digital / Graphic Design
- Content Design
- Copywriting
- Social Media Management
- Photography / Editing
Social Media Coordinator (2021)
Content Designer (2021 - 2022)
Social Media Specialist
2019 - 2020
- Email Marketing
- Illustration
- Brand Development
- Social Media Strategy
work
Social Content Planning, Design & Production
During my time as Social Content Creator at Vidico, I worked on many social videos for clients, including Finder, HiBob and AI Rudder.
My work on these projects spans from kick-off through to final delivery, including scripting, pitching, frame design in Figma, music selection, and collaboration with animators and clients on the final edits.
As a part of this role, I also built out a social template design system in Figma, to streamline the design process and make it more accessible to other members of the team.
Branded Video Design
During my time at Vidico I also had the opportunity to work on larger client projects, such as this explainer video for Koala.
This project was a joy to work on, from designing the individual frames (across 3x ratios), collaborating with the client on copywriting and music selection, and working with our animators to produce the final edits.
The video has appeared on multiple social channels, as well as its permanent placement on their website. As a fan of the brand (I own one of their amazing sofa beds!), I'm really proud to have worked on this piece of content.
Social Media Design, Strategy & Management
A major focus of my career has been creating & managing social media content, which plays to my strengths in graphic/digital design & copywriting, but also in project management.
During my time at Speckle, I managed and created social content for multiple clients, including Exponentially, BidHQ and 100 Story Building, as well as for Speckle itself.
Prior to this in my role at The Pistol, I worked across paid ads campaigns for hundreds of SMBs, using the company's API platform. Alongside QA and campaign reporting, I was also responsible for copywriting and visual designs.
Copywriting
I have always loved writing, and throughout my career I've had the opportunity to create content across a variety of written formats. At The Pistol and Speckle, I wrote copy for social captions, email marketing campaigns, one-page explainers and long-form blogs. I was also responsible for reviewing & editing content written by other members of the team.
At Vidico, this extended to written content for website and internal communications, as well as scripting across all of our social clients.
Some examples of my work:
Illustration
A more recent addition to my skill set, illustration makes up the core of my work for Bewley Street Studio.
Most commissions are portraits, to be given as gifts, which I design using Procreate. If any captions or additional design elements need to be added, I finalise those using tools like Canva or Figma.
So far, my illustrative work ranges from portraits of people and pets to Valentine's Day cards, pop culture figures, phone lock screens, mug designs and personal passion projects.
You can view more of my work for Bewley Street Studio here.
Portrait & Travel Photography
My longest standing creative pursuit, photography is something I’ve loved since childhood. Portrait photography is my specialty, followed closely by travel photography. I've been working professionally as a photographer (in various roles, freelance and paid) for almost a decade, and can also shoot in studio and green screen environments. You can view more of my photographic work over at Bewley Street Studio.
Alongside the taking of the images themselves, I also have considerable skills in photo editing, including with software such as Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom.
CONTACT
Thank you for your interest
in my work!
Have a question or want to see further examples? Get in touch -I'd love to hear from you!
LOCATION
St Arnaud, Victoria
Freelance WORK
SOCIAL CHANNELS
I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I work and play, and I pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
I’m committed to creating experiences that foster inclusion across race, gender, age, religion, ability, identity, and experience. I’m a proud supporter of the LGBTIQA+ community.