Diane Whiddon, founder of Sway Rise Creative, at her desk
Diane Whiddon at work in her Chicago studio

You’re the authority in your field. Your brand should say so.

You’re ready to publish the book, launch the program, or take the stage. Your website should show publishers, event planners and clients the authority they’re about to book.

We find the stand that makes you the thought leader in your field. Then we build your message, imagery, and website around it.

You get a brand that makes you look like the industry leader you are, ready for the keynote, the book deal and the premium client.

Before and after: the same experts, presented as the authorities they are.

River Rock website, after River Rock website, before

River Rock

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What we offer

Get found by people who don’t know your name yet.

Your next client is looking for help. SEO puts your website in a better position to be found when they search for what you do.

Social content gives them more ways to discover your ideas and keep you in mind.

Launch graphics for Sheevaun Thatcher's book, Sales, Shoes, Success Service 01

What we offer

Go from another consultant to the authority in your field, in 30 days.

We build your brand strategy, visual direction and website around the stand you take, with your offers, client results, and next steps where people need them. You launch as the authority in your field, with a website built to win premium clients.

The Align Therapy and Consultation homepage, built on the Authority Platform Service 02

What we offer

Take the stand that makes you the thought leader in your field.

Your experience has taught you things your industry needs to hear. We work with you to position those ideas and find the language that starts a new conversation in your field.

Your website leads with that message and backs it up with your work. People see a thought leader whose ideas they want to hear, learn from, and put into practice.

The framework page of the Align Therapy and Consultation website Service 03

What we offer

Brand photography that shows you as the authority you are.

We direct the design and imagery around the work you want to be known for. Our AI Brand Photoshoot gives you portraits and brand images for your website and marketing, without arranging a location shoot.

Pi Winslow in a burgundy cape on a cliff above sea stacks, from her AI brand photoshoot Service 04
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How we make you the authority.

001

Discover

You fill in your intake in your Portal: your offers, your proof, your talks and writing. We study your work and your market, and find what your field gets wrong that your results prove right.

Days 1–5
002

Take your stand

We name the conversation you are positioned to lead and write it into your Brand Document: your stand, the belief it challenges, your offers and your proof. You approve it before anything is designed.

Days 1–10
003

Set the look

Your Visual Brand Guide sets how the stand looks: type, color, imagery and layout, so your website and everything after it look as established as your work is.

Days 6–10
004

Build and launch

We write and build your website and lead tool and set up search. You review the finished site once, and it launches on your domain on day 30.

Days 11–30
005

Grow

Authority compounds when you keep leading the conversation. Our full-service SEO and social media publish your ideas every month, so clients, planners and peers see you leading the conversation.

After launch
She took my nebulous idea about how to describe what I do, and turned it into the most serious upgrade of my website I've ever had.
Tissa RichardsAuthor and keynote speaker
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. This experience has been so easy with you in it.
Sheevaun ThatcherThatcher Consulting
It had the information, but it didn't tell people who I am or why I coach the way I do, and Diane understood that was the part that mattered.
Kim TomlinsonEndeavour Real Estate Coaching
Our company’s website? It was Diane’s brainchild, and since its launch, we’ve seen engagement skyrocket.
Cynthia BarnesSpeaker, Author, and Thought Leader
… working with Diane was a truly great experience. The image quality and her creativity were fantastic! Now, my website and social media look AWESOME - lots of compliments!
Melanie WellerAI Brand Photoshoot
She is prompt, thoughtful, and goal oriented and is able to hold the big picture vision of my business while helping me execute what needs to get done now.
Crystal HinesAlign Therapy and Consultation
Oh my gosh, I love the site! Thank you so much for all your work on it!
Dana PolleyRiver Rock Therapy

What clients say

Work with the strategist who turns experts into industry authorities.

Diane Whiddon leads your strategy and design. She brings 20 years of building websites to the work of finding the stand that makes you the authority in your field and designing how clients experience it.

You’ll have an experienced partner who listens closely, tells you what she recommends and why, and helps you make decisions with confidence. From the first conversation to launch, she’s there to get the details right and keep the work moving.

Diane Whiddon, Chicago brand strategist and website designer, by the Chicago River at sunset

“Strategic, fast, and ridiculously good at what she does.”

Sheevaun Thatcher

Diane Whiddon

Founder, Sway Rise Creative

Meet Diane

Before we start

How much work will I need to do?

You share your existing material through your Portal intake, approve the strategy and visual direction, and review the site. We handle the writing, design, and build.

How long does a website project take?

The Authority Platform launches 30 days after we start, once the required materials and access are ready. Larger projects have their own agreed scope and schedule.

What if I want advice before committing to a new website?

Start with the Website Audit. You get a report, video walkthrough, and prioritized fixes for your brand, website, and search presence.

See the Website Audit →

Who looks after the website once it’s live?

Choose a website we manage through a hosting or care plan, or a Squarespace site you manage yourself, with a care plan if you want us making updates. We agree on the arrangement before the build. SEO and social content are separate services.

Compare Hosting & Care →

Building since 2006

Based in Chicago, working worldwide

The Chicago River downtown

Tell us what you’re ready for next.

A book launch, a new program, a bigger role in your industry. Bring us the ambition. We’ll recommend the brand and website work to support it.

Book a Strategy Call