I provide simple but innovative solutions for my clients.

Current clients include The Marc Steiner Show, CMD Outsourcing SolutionsReal Life Real Estate Training, Enig Associates Inc., SF&C InsuranceElite Health Services and more. I also provide website & tech support for a museum. Past clients include Olympian Tony Azevedo, Global Wave, MTV, and the US Army. 

I was also at the center of innovation and cutting-edge technology during the dot-com boom in Silicon Valley when I was the lead web designer for Fatbrain.com (an online bookstore bought by BN.com). I also worked with the emerging technologies of online training and 3D animation early in my career. I value technology as a business tool, but take a practical approach for service-based businesses to use it…not because it’s cool or the next big thing, but rather to solve everyday problems.

Get a custom blend of STRATEGY + DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY=MARKETING.Virtuallinda Creative / The Brand Builder Toolbox

Owner & Consultant
Strategy, brand identity, websites, marketing & more
2012–present

Grow your business with less stress using my structured, yet flexible approach. I offer training & customized support to start & grow your service-based business. I can help you get you started AND help you transition into working with ideal clients…and I can create & implement a plan that works for you. Build your brand at a pace & budget that works for you!

Get started with my budget-friendly toolbox to start & grow your business. Work at your own pace with free tips, training & resources. At any time, add on 1-on-1 support to accelerate your success & ease your stress. Transform your vision into reality & attract ideal clients with your marketing. Brand identity, websites, business cards & more.

Website clients & projects include:

Live Towson www.livetowson.com Community News & Real Estate Services
Real Life Real Estate Training www.rlretraining.com Real Estate Training
Guidance Redefined www.guidanceredefined.com Sales Consulting & Training
Century Resume www.centuryresume.com Sales Consulting & Training
Coach Rita Sonntag www.livelifenowcoach.com Coaching Services
Enig Associates www.enig.com Science & Engineering Services
The Sun Today www.thesuntoday.org Science Education
Dominican Republic Luxury Vacations www.dominicanvacations.net Travel Services
F&M Auto Repair www.f-mautorepair.com Auto Repair Services
Three Brothers www.three-brothers.net Convenience Store & Services
Reclaiming Our Children And Community Project, Inc. www.rocacp.org Health & Wellness
Columbia Center for Spiritual Living www.columbiacsl.com Spiritual Community
Jody Jewell www.jodyjewell.com Floral Designer
John Donald Paull john.jpaull.com Personal Memorial
Anna Renault www.annarenault.com Author, Speaker & Radio Show Host
The Marc Steiner Show www.steinershow.org Radio Show & Podcasting
Making Space for Life www.makingspaceforlife.com Coaching Services
Most Powerful Life www.mostpowerfullife.com Coaching Services
Mary Dunlap Consulting www.marydunlapconsulting.com HR Consulting Services
Elite Health Services* Contact me for the website archive Health & Wellness
Abby Locke* Contact me for the website archive Executive Branding Services
SF&C Insurance Associates, Inc.* Contact me for the website archive Insurance Services
Concretus* Contact me for the website archive Concrete Repair Services
Italian Travel Service* Contact me for the website archive Travel Services

* NOTE: I no longer maintain this site. Broken links & other problems on the live site are not my work. Contact me to see my archive version.

Get a custom blend of STRATEGY + DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY=MARKETING.

The Brand Builder Toolbox

Owner & Consultant
Strategy, brand identity, websites, marketing & more
2012–present

Grow your business with less stress using my structured, yet flexible approach. I offer training & customized support to start & grow your service-based business. I can help you get you started AND help you transition into working with ideal clients…and I can create & implement a plan that works for you. Build your brand at a pace & budget that works for you!

Get started with my budget-friendly toolbox to start & grow your business. Work at your own pace with free tips, training & resources. At any time, add on 1-on-1 support to accelerate your success & ease your stress. Transform your vision into reality & attract ideal clients with your marketing. Brand identity, websites, business cards & more.

Website clients & projects include:

Live Towson
www.livetowson.com
Community News & Real Estate Services

Real Life Real Estate Training
www.rlretraining.com
Real Estate Training

Guidance Redefined
www.guidanceredefined.com
Consulting & Training

Century Resume
www.centuryresume.com
Consulting Services

Coach Rita Sonntag
www.livelifenowcoach.com
Coaching Services

Enig Associates
www.enig.com
Science & Engineering Services

The Sun Today
www.thesuntoday.org
Science Education

Dominican Republic Luxury Vacations
www.dominicanvacations.net
Travel Services

F&M Auto Repair
www.f-mautorepair.com
Auto Repair Services

Three Brothers
www.three-brothers.net
Convenience Store & Services

Reclaiming Our Children And Community Project, Inc.
www.rocacp.org
Health & Wellness

Columbia Center for Spiritual Living
www.columbiacsl.com
Spiritual Community

Jody Jewell
www.jodyjewell.com
Floral Designer

John Donald Paull
john.jpaull.com
Personal Memorial

Anna Renault
www.annarenault.com
Author, Speaker & Radio Show Host

The Marc Steiner Show
www.steinershow.org
Radio Show & Podcasting

Making Space for Life
www.makingspaceforlife.com
Coaching Services

Most Powerful Life
www.mostpowerfullife.com
Coaching Services

Mary Dunlap Consulting
www.marydunlapconsulting.com
HR Consulting Services

Elite Health Services*
Contact me for the website screenshots
Health & Wellness

Abby Locke*
Contact me for the website screenshots
Executive Branding Services

SF&C Insurance Associates, Inc.*
Contact me for the website screenshots
Insurance Services

Concretus *
Contact me for the website screenshots
Concrete Repair Services

Italian Travel Service *
Contact me for the website screenshots
Travel Services

The Sun Today

The Sun Today

Co-Founder & Designer
Online community sharing solar facts & space weather

www.thesuntoday.org
2010–present

I co-founded The Sun Today, one of the leading hubs on solar physics and space weather. My design and strategy helped build this community by blending education with excitement about the Sun. It reaches millions of people and the site is often quoted by reporters globally. I have participated in social media strategy & execution for award-winning live NASA webcasts.

In just a few years, I have worked with my husband, Dr. C. Alex Young to develop a thriving community around his niche. IN HIS SPARE TIME (working full-time with a long commute) he communicates in just minutes a day with followers all over the world. He has used my strategy system to break this down into byte sized steps.

This is a process that can be used to build YOUR business that works around your lifestyle.

LEARN MORE »

Social Media Works

Owner & Consultant
Strategy, brand identity, websites, marketing & more
2009–2011

An on-call team that offered a unique blend of consultation, services, and training for Entrepreneurs. Clients relied on our expertise for both small projects and an entire web presence. Services included social media profile setup and WordPress blogs/websites. Training from Byte Sized Learning assisted teams in learning how to maintain their social presence.

Linda Schenk (Virtuallinda) was the project lead. She has a unique blend of creative and technical knowledge. She works with people who are ready to begin a journey of embracing technology and learning how it can make their business run more smoothly…with a twist. She understands:

  • Social Media is complex, and it’s very easy to get overwhelmed and confused.
  • The how-to’s don’t matter if you are not clear on what you want to accomplish.
  • Most busy professionals don’t have a lot of time.

Social Media Works worked with your team to understand your short- mid-and long term goals and scale your project to your budget and time frame. We provided a project strategy to plan for your company’s growth.

The services are now part of The Brand Builder Toolbox.

Byte Sized Learning

Owner & Consultant
2009–2013

ONLINE TRAINING

Virtuallinda created online training to teach you big concepts in small chunks of time, at your desktop or on-the-go. This is was a unique format that every professional could use to increase his or her knowledge of social media quickly and effectively. The training topics covered were business strategy, networking, social media and blogging with WordPress.

  • On-demand and short format to fit into your busy schedule
  • Big concepts are broken down to eliminate info overload
  • Low-cost investment that won’t break your budget
  • Simple action steps will put your new knowledge into practice immediately
  • Printable workbooks to record your ideas
  • PDF handouts that are quick-to-read and will act as a reference library
  • Online videos will reinforce concepts as you listen and see what is being taught

STRATEGIC COACHING WITH VIRTUALLINDA

For more personal support, coaching was added to help get specific questions answered. The recorded phone sessions built on the online training.

The training & services are now part of The Brand Builder Toolbox.

Cirquel Design & Development

Freelance Web & Graphic Designer

www.cirquel.com

1998–2010

Arthur Graphics, Inc.

Freelance Web & Graphic Designer

www.arthurgraphics.com

2002–2005, 2008

Services offered included strategic planning, usability evaluations, information architecture, branding and logo design, illustration, content (copywriting and editing), analytics and web metrics, and virtual assistance. The aim was to design websites that are easy to navigate, pleasing to the eye, load as quickly as possible, target your intended audience, and meet key business goals.

Involved in all stages of production including branding, marketing, interaction design, HTML, graphic design, site launch and search engine optimization. Specialized in finding cost-effective solutions such as PayPal and Blogger.

Industries served:

Corporate Websites with a more traditional, business audience.
eCommerce Websites selling products, services and communities with a paid membership system.
Financial Websites for mortgage & real estate companies, accountants, publication and investment firms.
Industrial Websites and illustrations for goverment services & technical illustrations for an Army project.
Medical Illustrations for educational CD-ROMs.
Professional Service Websites for a variety of businesses offering professional services, including photography, editing and cooking classes.
Small Biz Websites for a small businesses and non-profits.
Technology Websites for companies working in the high-tech field or built using cutting-edge technology, such as real-time translation.

Portfolio


Clients included:

The Marc Steiner Show / Center for Emerging Media
www.steinershow.org
Branding, Information architecture, design and development of a community & podcast website. Site built using Drupal to promo radio show, blogs, featured articles on a variety of topics. Content entered by client, then displayed based on template styling. Special promotional images for events & features. ECommerce donations uses PayPal.

Fashion Community Website
Project details
Information architecture, design and front-end development of a community website featuring user profiles, fashion photo upload with rating system, “Add a friend”, user comments, weekly video webisodes. Users created a “closet” consisting of their own and favorite items from other users. Design incorporated the site sponsor’s look into parts of the website.

TalentPlanet
www.talentplanet.com
Full site development for a small business, which combines executive recruiting with coaching and organization development.  Also features tips from a bi-monthly KPIX news segment.  PHP code for rotating content and fly-out menus for easy navigation. Added Blogger to site for new book promotion. Podcast development in progress.

Heart Healthy for Life
Project details
Full site development of this community website featuring articles, video and audio content. Utilizes PHP, CSS and JavaScript to create multi-tiered navigation structure. Member management system and payments processed via PayPal’s subscription plan. Members-only pages are protected with username and password.

Illustration Projects
SFA, Inc & US Army / Primedia / HealthMark Multimedia
Created various industrial and medical illustrations using Photoshop and Illustrator. Accuracy of graphics was very important. (Arthur Graphics)

Military Benefits Portal & Website
Project details
Redesign and coding of HTML templates. New flash elements to educate users on the various services available. Templates design to be used for other Military branches with minimal layout changes. Updated navigational elements so user does not feel “lost” in the site.

Olixir Technologies
Project details
Multiple projects to support web site, marketing and investor presentations, including product labels, datasheets, posters, PowerPoint presentations and photography editing.

The Berndt Group

Baltimore, MD
2005–2008
Web Production & Usability Specialist

  • Front-end programming of multiple websites using HTML, CSS, javascript, Flash-detect and SEO (search engine optimization) techniques. Sites used Dreamweaver templates, server-side includes and/or CMS template integration.
  • Conducted on-site client training of Adobe Contribute and Dreamweaver. Wrote documentation for internal production and QA procedures.
  • Evangelist for usability and interdepartmental collaboration to streamline the development process.
  • Review of information architecture wireframes
  • Website projects included The Berndt Group, University of Maryland School of Law, MapInfoMercy Medical Center, Maryland China, Maryland SPCAThe Johns Hopkins Children’s Hospital and an Extranet and Internet for a large organization.

Engine Performance

Marketing Communications Talent Agency
Baltimore, MD
2005
Freelance Contractor

  • On-site freelancing at a variety of companies in Baltimore-DC Metropolitan area.
  • Projects included flash banner ads, marketing campaigns and product packaging.
  • Demonstrated ability to quickly adjust to unfamiliar working environments.

Passion Parties

Brisbane, CA
2001–2002
Marketing Manager

  •  Designed the labeling and packaging for the entire Passion Parties product line. 
  • Collaborated with executives, printer vendors and graphic designers. 
  • Projects included order forms, product manuals, 12-page monthly magazine, conference collateral and branding guidelines.

Fatbrain.com

A Barnes & Noble.com Company
Online bookstore
Santa Clara, CA
1999–2001
Lead Creative Producer, UI

  • Responsible for designing and maintaining unified look and feel of entire web site using templates,
    storyboards, style guide and software training.
  • Worked as part of the User Interface Team to define end-user and product feature requirements.
  • Created flow charts, screenshots and interactive prototypes of products/features for use in usability testing,
    marketing and web production training.
  • Finalized design and HTML to resolve identified usability defects and to engender customer satisfaction.
  • Launched new web sites: Mightywords and Accenture Information Exchange.
  • Collaborated with departments including Production, Writing, Product Marketing, Program Management,
    Engineering and QA to evaluate, plan and execute company needs.

Senior Web Producer

  • Contributed to the creation and regular maintenance of HTML pages.
  • Created customized bookstores for partners including: Adobe, Cisco, Clarify, Lucent, Microsoft, Nortel
    Networks and Sun Microsystems.
  • Met schedules for both long-term development and multiple, daily deadlines.

Williams Learning Network

Multimedia Training Company
Rockville, MD
1996–1999
Computer Graphic Artist

  • Designed interfaces for corporate web sites and training products.
  • Created 2D and 3D graphics for Web, CD-ROM, video and satellite broadcast.
  • Developed procedures to save the Production Department significant time and money.
  • Prioritized multiple projects and team assignments, never missing a deadline.
  • Participated in all stages of production process.
  • Received praise for eagerness to learn and attention to detail.

Imaging Research Center

Animation Research & Production Facility
Baltimore, MD
1994–1995
Intern

  • Produced 3D animated graphic packages for clients using high-end equipment.
  • Gained knowledge of production house and team environment.
  • Trained on Wavefront with certified instructor.