Welcome to Brightly: The Day Studios Blog

Welcome to your go-to sanctuary for Conscious Marketing nuggets, Embodied Branding insights, spiritual inspirations, and creative musings. 

(And maybe a recipe or two, because I am 100% unashamed to admit my love for sweets and feel the world NEEDS to know about the best ones.)

I’m Dana Spano, and you are impeccable for being here! I’ve got a whole world to share with you. Can’t wait to connect with you, and hear what you have to say, too. 

But first, it may be helpful to learn a bit about how this all began. 

Because, it almost didn’t. A few times. :)

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I Was Done With The Marketing Industry. 

In 2020— after a decade in the branding and marketing industry— my work there almost came to a purposely abrupt end. 

COVID lockdowns had just started, my 12-year marriage had just ended, and I was fed up with the manipulative marketing tactics at the epicenter of hustle culture (which I saw a lot of in various businesses over the years), and I wanted out of all of it. 

But then, with one foot out the marketing door, it hit me: I'm a strategist. Why don't I just ask better questions? So, I did just that.  

I coupled my lifelong passion for human psychology and my take on conscious marketing, and BOOM. 

Well… not quite BOOM. It took quite a while, so more like …..bbbbbooooooooOOOOOOOOOMM!!!!!

Over 2 years, late nights, early mornings, 7.5 notebooks, and an entire pack of Uniball Jetstream pens (look them up, they’re amazing)— my methodology, "The Unique Force Method" was born and I pivoted my business to serve the Coaching Industry (because their clients need it most).

I have FOUGHT for this thing, y’all. It’s been a life-changing journey that would be worth it if I’m the only one this ever helps.

These ideas are deeply personal to me, but the sense I get is that there’s a certain universality to these pangs and pulls toward progress and profound internal alignment. Toward expressing ourselves, our ideas, our art in the most authentic way possible… 

Even if it’s ugly. Even if it’s imperfect or even unfinished. Even if it’s through a traditionally "unartful" medium like running a coaching business.

So, I’m on a mission to help Coaches use branding as the mechanism for falling back in love with their business and reignite their purpose. 

Because, it seems to me that too many Coaches— who have so much to share, so much true impact to make on this world— are getting lost in the business of Coaching and many of them don’t even know it. They’ve sacrificed their authentic offering in exchange for a guarantee their mentor’s generic advice is solid, or that a template will work for them.

When a coach has lost sight of their authenticity, their clients don’t connect or get the help they need. I have worked with coaches who get this, and I’ve worked with coaches who don’t.

Getting back to center starts with the willingness to answer the call that rings true for us all— to live authentically. Honestly. Consciously.

So! Will you join me on this deep dive to flip the script on traditional marketing, reimagine the forces of human connection, and cultivate a community that supports our truest values?

With all sincerity, I hope you will. 🖤

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I’d like to honor this initial blog post to let you in on some of the magic that is in the works. If you’d like to connect more intimately, I wholeheartedly encourage you to join my weekly newsletter.

I’ll share tips on conscious brand + business building for coaches, and personal experiences with actionable takeaways (and maybe even a meditation or two!).

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The Next Chapter: Conscious Marketing and Embodied Branding

There’s a fascinating phenomenon happening in this commercially-driven world. 

As consumers, we’re largely becoming more internally aligned and self-sovereign. We’re making more intentional decisions about the brands we interact with, the products we bring into our homes or share with our friends, and the causes to which we devote our valuable time and attention. This means that marketing tactics that worked in 2013 are no longer effective. 

This is not lost on Mainstream Marketing— which is only developing ever-smarter, evermore covert (yet overtly more manipulative) ways of influencing buyer behavior.

“Mainstream Marketing is gonna do what it’s gonna do. So what?” 

Well, I’d say the same thing if Mainstream Marketing tactics didn’t have a history of trickling into the Coaching Industry, which is no place for manipulative marketing. And yet, we’ve all seen it. 

Marketing is headed in a direction that Coaches cannot follow. 

Coaches are already noticing this, even if they don’t have words to describe it. No matter what they do or how they manage their mind, marketing and sales can still feel icky.

This means that Coaches need a better way to brand. THIS is why Day Studios exists. 

The key to more Conscious Marketing is clean intentions backed by a clear sense of purpose. Most coaches I encounter have a good handle on that. There’s a deeper opportunity, however. 

The key to consistently keeping your intentions and purpose in check (and in the highest service) is to build your entire brand central to them. 

Combine that with the unique magic you bring to the coaching table as the brilliant constant throughout your business, and you’ll have something deeply resonant with an exquisite-fit client base. 

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So, on this blog, we’ll share:

Conscious Marketing Resources and Guides

From outstanding leaders in the field to books and interviews, yogic pathways, and expansive sounds, you can expect detailed, yet eclectic summaries on the intersection between marketing and emotional intelligence as a vehicle to connect with clients and build a business you love. 

This might look like a listicle sharing the best marketing resources, a playlist to deepen your work sessions or musings on current inspirations. You’ll receive a wide assortment of tools I harness to bring humanity back into branding.

Client Success Stories, Case Studies & Takeaways

There is so much more that goes into branding besides a clever slogan and a fancy logo. The work I do leads clients through an internal audit, that I commend their courage for embarking on! Rather than approaching their brand from the eyes of what we can capitalize on for the sake of profit alone, we narrow in on the magic that glimmers when they show up from a space of self-awareness to offer genuine value and authentic connection with their community. 

If the saying goes, “numbers don’t lie,” then profit in financial and non-financial ways is an undeniable byproduct when we show up through integrity and deep value. Along the journey, I’ll share client success stories that pull from different walks of life to offer actionable takeaways, every time. Whether you are new in the field or a seasoned leader in your industry, my case studies and client success stories offer a fresh perspective that adds to the overall formation of your journey to embodied branding.

Brand Integrity Best Practices

When I set out to save my own sanity in the branding and marketing world, I rolled up my sleeves and crafted my branding framework, The Unique Force Method— built on deep branding exercises that draw on and amplify what works with traditional branding as we know it.

This method turns the totality of your business into a vessel that carries your purpose and message forward, creating the strongest brand experiences possible, empowering clients’ progress through genuine connection and lasting change. 

The Unique Force Method is designed to objectively outline who and how you are, on paper— challenging you to see yourself in ways you hadn’t before, discovering how you can show up for yourself and as your truest self through every aspect of your business. 

‍You are a Unique Force who is pivotal in setting yourself, your business, and those you serve free. When I say what is real is marketable (which you’ll be hearing a lot!), this is what I mean.

Interviews with Industry Leaders and Coaches

My podcast is in the works as we speak, and I plan to bring thought-leaders on for explorative conversation to reimagine marketing for coaches, and pick their hearts on what conscious marketing habits and techniques got them to where they are today.

I’ll share podcast takeaways and feature interviews to give you the best of each conversation. Who knows?! Maybe we’ll have a few guest posts in the works :) 

Musings & Inspirations

Ok, I am a brand strategist for smiling out loud… but in my heart I’m an artist. Creativity is my air, expression is my blood, and life is my canvas. While the blog will focus on conscious marketing and embodied branding, I find space to be and breathe just as important. Music, musings, meditations, glimpses into the tiniest miracles I encounter will steal the show from time to time. This is by design.

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That’s All, Folks!

I trust this introduction has given you a glimpse of what lies ahead and what is truly possible when you approach your business as the multi-faceted, Unique Force that you are.

I'm here to walk with you. Feel free to connect with me to learn more about working together to build an embodied brand and conscious marketing for you.

I genuinely feel that if a coach can adequately express their essence and their message through their brand, they will attract exquisite-fit clients.

If this sounds like something you're up for, reach out or even schedule a free consultation. It's never a bad time reach the people you were born to help.

Until next time...

XoXo—

Dana-

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