Chris Martin provides his clients with the same high level of expertise he used to launch his own business. Early in 2022, the 36-year-old Frederick native established Convoy Creatives to formalize the social media, digital marketing, and design work he had been doing for a decade. “My freelance jobs multiplied to the point that they blossomed into a business,” Martin said. “I started with one or two clients a month. Right now, I have 15.”
Why choose the name Convoy? In the military context, the word suggests a group traveling together for mutual support and protection. “That’s the relationship I like to have with my clients,” Martin explained. “We work together to meet goals.”
Martin believes that listening is essential to building a relationship with his clients, and working toward his objective: “to help clients take their businesses’ growth, branding and overall digital needs to the next level.”
Hearing clients articulate what they think they need or want is key to Martin’s ability to understand each specific business. Not only is every business different, but also, individual goals are equally diverse. “Some want top-to-bottom marketing, including maintenance and development of their social media presence, and maximizing their digital marketing – which involves engaging with their followers, and tracking analytics,” he said. “Others may just want me to design an eye-catching label for a new or existing product or brand, an album cover, or a T-shirt.”
Martin prefers to take meetings with potential clients face-to-face, so both parties can evaluate whether the relationship will work. “If we both think it’s a good fit, I proceed to create a plan based on what I’ve heard. I find that most clients know intuitively what they need,” he said.
“I especially like being involved with a business that is about to open, or one that has been around forever,” Martin said. “It’s never too early or too late to reach a broader audience, expand your brand, rebrand, or modernize to enter the digital age.”
Martin built his expertise through hands-on experience. As a freshman at Frederick Community College, he studied graphic design. He left school to work in the music industry, spending a dozen years touring – primarily as bassist, but also handling his bands’ public relations and design needs. Other bands got on his bandwagon, inviting him to create artwork for their own albums and T-shirts.
A Chamber of Commerce member, Martin prefers to work with Frederick County businesses who share his love of the community. Five percent of Convoy Creatives’ monthly sales go to Martin’s alma mater, Ballenger Creek Elementary School. “The funds go to families and students who can’t afford to pay for lunch. I’ve got them covered,” he said. “Everyone can do something to contribute.”
And Martin does more than one something to contribute. He belongs to Frederick’s Impact Club, which is “home for those who want to make a difference!” At quarterly Impact Club meetings, he said, each member donates $100 and votes for one of three nonprofit organization presenters that will receive the total monies. In addition, Martin is a newly-appointed member of the board of directors for Housing Frederick, “a nonprofit resource for the housing continuum in Frederick County that will develop partnerships to solve community challenges better served through a united effort.”
By: Ellyn Wexler
