Meet the Team: Graham Bewley

Let’s kick things off by learning more about where you’re from and where you live now.

I was born in Columbia, South Carolina, but my family moved to the metro Detroit area of Michigan before I turned 2. I’ve lived in a number of different places around the Mitten State since then, and my wife and I are planning a move to Kalamazoo, on the west side of Michigan next, which we’re very excited about.

As a website designer, you work with financial professionals to create the website of their dreams. How did you get your start in this field and what is your favorite part about your job?

I went to school for Computer Science and was always a fan of web design and development. I worked in IT through college and had the chance to work on some clients’ website projects during that time. This transitioned nicely into joining the Twenty Over Ten team in November 2019. 

My favorite part about building websites for our clients is coming up with a design or an idea for a component that’s unique, which aligns with the direction the client wants to go in and make it happen. Getting to build brand new things every day keeps the job exciting.

What would you say is the most important piece of advice that you share with advisors when working with them to create a new website?

One of the most important things is making sure your website doesn’t look like everyone else’s. Coming to a Tailored Design kickoff meeting with some unique ideas, or just allowing the designer some creative freedom, can result in a website that stands out from the crowd. 

Using interesting fonts or images, use of things like illustrations, taking a unique direction with your website’s copy… all of these will help differentiate your project from the next.

When you aren’t working, what are some things that you like to do for fun? Did you pick up any new hobbies during quarantine that you’ve continued doing?

When I’m not working I like to get outside. I’ve always loved riding bikes but got into mountain biking especially after the pandemic hit as a way to get out of the house and keep a safe distance from others. I’ve been fortunate enough to get to ride mountain bikes with friends all over the Midwest and would love to explore more of the country by bike.

I also love camping and hiking, kayaking, disc golf, and a bit of photography. A true jack-of-all-trades, and definitely a master of none. When it gets cold, record collecting, home-brewing beer, and dreaming of warmer weather keep me occupied.

Even though every day and client is different, what would you say a “typical” day at work looks like for you?

Every productive workday starts with good coffee, so grinding up some fresh beans is always step number one. We’re full-time remote on the Design team, so from there I get shut into the home office and get to work on new website projects or revisions. I’ll move out to the patio to work when the weather permits, which here in Michigan is about 3 months out of the year. 

We work pretty autonomously, which means keeping yourself on-task is very important, but we’ll meet as a team weekly to discuss our current projects and share design resources we’ve found.

What is your favorite childhood memory?

My best childhood memories are always from “up north” here in Michigan, canoeing, fishing, and doing other “up north” things. I’ve also always loved riding bikes around town with friends and family.

The longer I think about this question, the more I realize that I’m still doing many of the things I enjoyed in my childhood years. I’m trying my hardest to grow old slowly.

Do you have any pets? If so, what kind and what are their names?

I have the most beautiful pound pup you’ve ever seen, a border collie mix named Brooklyn. She still whines a bunch and still tries to get into the garbage at 9 years old, but she’s a lovely dog and keeps all the squirrels away.

If you stumbled upon a time machine and could go back to any period in time. What time would you choose and why?

This is a tough one. I do enjoy late-60’s and early-70’s funk music, so going back to that era to enjoy the music in its heyday would be most excellent.

If you could hop on a plane and go anywhere in the world tomorrow, where would you decide to go and why?

My wife and I had plans to take our honeymoon to Iceland, which unfortunately didn’t pan out. That’s always been on the bucket list and I’d love to make it happen someday. My favorite place I’ve visited in the U.S. was a trip to Portland and the Mount Hood area, which I’d definitely return to the next chance I get.

After taking nearly 80 (and counting!) sites live for financial professionals, what is one site you’ve worked on that’s your absolute favorite and why?

One that immediately comes to mind is Rincon Wealth. During our kickoff call, there were many design decisions that Scott wanted to defer to our design team for, providing us a bit of a “blank canvas” to build from. As a result, I decided to go with something unique, using a hand-drawn/illustrative theme throughout the website. I used hand-drawn arrows and icons to lead the visitor down the page, which I think turned out great! Scott was happy with the initial design direction we took, and the revisions process was straightforward, resulting in the website we ended up taking live. I’ve gotten to work on many website projects that I’m proud of, but this one definitely stands out as one of my favorites.