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Brief Speaker Bio:

Diane Whiddon teaches designers to think like creative directors and turn AI into profitable client work. Creator of The AI Designer’s Academy, where she shows how to produce high-converting AI photoshoots clients will pay for.

Speaker Bio:

Diane Whiddon is a brand strategist, AI educator, and web designer who helps founders stop playing small. Through her work, she helps consultants and creatives evolve into thought leaders by refining their positioning, clarifying their USP, and building brands that actually match the size of their vision.

With over 20 years of experience and a background in high-converting websites and brand design, Diane now teaches web designers how to integrate AI into their client work—ethically, strategically, and without losing the human touch. She’s the creator of The AI Designer’s Academy, where she shares practical, results-driven systems that bring clarity, confidence, and creativity back to the branding process.

Diane’s work sits at the intersection of brand clarity, design strategy, and forward-thinking AI integration—all rooted in the belief that conversions don’t come from trends; they come from truth.

→ Want to learn more? Visit my About page

Social Links:

Website: https://swayrisecreative.com

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@dianewhiddon

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dianewhiddon

Past Appearances:

My YT Channel

As a Guest:

Interview on Empowered by AI

Interview with Paige Brunton

iThemes Workshop on Websites as Story

As a Speaker:

Profitable Content Creation

Website Critique Panel

Website Takedown Townhall

Keynote Topics:

From Random Images to Visual Systems: Using AI in Web Templates

Many designers experiment with AI images, but the results often feel inconsistent across an entire template. In this session, Diane shares how to design visual systems inside AI, so templates have cohesion, clarity, and brand strategy without relying on stock photos.

Matching Bio: Diane Whiddon is the founder of Sway Rise Creative, a Chicago-based design studio, and the creator of AI Designer’s Academy (https://aidesignersacademy.com), where she teaches designers how to use AI with the eye and judgment of a creative director.

With over 20 years in web design and brand strategy, Diane helps designers move beyond generating random AI images and instead build branded visual systems that support positioning, authority, and premium client work.

Through her academy and client projects, she focuses on practical workflows that help designers stay indispensable in an AI era while delivering better results, faster.

AI Visual Strategy for Premium Client Work

In higher-ticket projects, imagery needs to reinforce brand positioning, not just fill space. Diane walks through how designers can use AI as a strategic tool to develop cohesive visual systems that elevate brand perception and support premium client services.

Matching Bio: Diane Whiddon has spent 20 years designing brand systems and websites for coaches, consultants, and bestselling authors competing at the top of their markets.

As the founder of Chicago-based Sway Rise Creative, she understands exactly what premium clients expect — and why most AI-generated imagery falls flat at that level.

Today she's walking you through how to use AI as a strategic tool to build cohesive visual systems that reinforce brand positioning, elevate perception, and support the kind of work that commands premium fees.

From Prompts to Photoshoots: How to Build a Cohesive Brand Image Library for Premium Clients

Most web designers waste hours searching for stock photos that almost match but never quite work together. The result is inconsistent visuals and unnecessary production time.

In this session, Diane shows how to replace generic stock images by building a premium brand image library with AI. Instead of chasing individual images, you’ll learn how to direct AI like a photoshoot. Define clear visual rules, generate in controlled batches, and create a cohesive set of images designed to work together across an entire project.

The result is faster execution, stronger brand perception, and a deliverable clients see as strategic, not decorative.

Matching Bio: Diane Whiddon is the founder of Sway Rise Creative, a Chicago-based design studio, and the creator of the AI Designer’s Academy, where she teaches designers how to use AI with the judgment of a creative director.

With over 20 years in web design and brand strategy, Diane’s approach focuses on practical workflows that improve consistency and position designers to deliver higher-value, more strategic results.

Approved Publicity Photos (compressed for web)

A smiling woman with long blonde hair sitting at a white table with a laptop, in a room with large windows and potted plants in the background.
Businesswoman sitting at a desk in a high-rise office with cityscape view, smiling at the camera, using a silver MacBook.
A woman with shoulder-length blonde hair smiling at the camera, wearing a black turtleneck sweater, standing outdoors near a river with city buildings and a sunset in the background.
Woman sitting at a desk using a silver laptop, with a coffee mug on the desk and large potted plants nearby, in a room with a window behind her.
A woman with shoulder-length light brown hair, smiling, sitting at a table with a laptop in a bright room with windows, plants, and artwork in the background.
A woman with shoulder-length brown hair smiling, sitting at a table in a bright room with large windows. Outside the windows, a cityscape with tall buildings and a river is visible, along with a potted plant on the window ledge.
A woman with long blonde hair, smiling and holding a white mug of coffee, sitting on a bed in a cozy room.
A woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes smiling while holding a pink ceramic mug inside a home.
A woman with shoulder-length brown hair smiling at the camera, sitting at a desk with a laptop, in an office with large windows revealing a cityscape in the background.
Smiling woman with long, light brown hair sitting at a desk in a modern office with large windows and a city skyline in the background, holding a laptop.
A woman with long brown hair and a fair complexion smiling while sitting at a white table with a laptop in front of her, in a room with large windows and beige curtains.
A woman with long brown hair smiling at the camera in a modern office with city buildings outside the window.
A woman with shoulder-length light brown hair, smiling with arms crossed, standing in a bright office with windows and a whiteboard in the background.
A smiling woman with long blonde hair wearing a black blouse, standing in front of a whiteboard that has some writing on it.
A woman with long blonde hair, wearing a black blazer, smiling and standing in front of a whiteboard in a classroom or office setting, speaking to two people whose heads are partially visible.
A woman with light brown hair and blue eyes smiling, wearing a black blazer over a white shirt, sitting indoors.
A woman with light skin and blue eyes, smiling gently, resting her head on her hand, wearing a black long-sleeve shirt, sitting indoors with a decorative wall clock in the background.
A woman with long light brown hair, blue eyes, and fair skin, wearing a black blazer, sitting indoors near a window, looking thoughtful.
A woman with long light brown hair and blue eyes wearing a black blazer and white shirt, sitting at a table with her hand resting on her face, smiling at the camera.
Portrait of a woman with long blonde hair wearing a black shirt, smiling at the camera indoors.