Celebrating 20 Years of Creative Leadership With Joel Davis

This year marks a special milestone for Cross & Crown: our Chief Creative Officer, Joel Davis, is celebrating 20 years with the company. From shaping the visual identity of brands to mentoring teams and leading projects that inspire, Joel has left an indelible mark on both our work and our culture. To honor this anniversary, we sat down with Joel to reflect on his career, creative journey, and what he’s most excited about in the years to come.

1. Can you share a project or campaign from your time at Cross & Crown that you’re particularly proud of and why it stands out to you?

I have been involved with so many projects that I find it hard to pick just one. I appreciate working on projects where our entire team gets to work on it or the organization has a far-reaching impact. On a personal level, I would say the work our team did for Roland Builder stands out. We touched everything: their brand, website, marketing efforts, and even video work. It has stood up well over time, and the owner, Brent, is always a joy to work with.

The work we did in the past and continue to do today for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy also stands out to me. The Trail has incredible impact and reach throughout the eastern US for so many people, and for our team to help spearhead and craft their digital experience is so rewarding.

2. What’s been the most valuable lesson you’ve learned about client relationships during your 20 years here?

Communication is key, but good communication is essential. Both our clients and our team need one another in order to complete a project. Communication is a two-way street, and if one side does not communicate well, the project can be affected by it. Poor communication can result in wasted time, missed expectations, scope creep, and more.

3. How have your role and responsibilities evolved since you first started, and what aspects of your current work energize you most?

I was hired as the first official employee at Cross & Crown and was the only designer for a few years. As the team grew, I transitioned into leading the design team while still pitching in on design projects as they fit. Today, I oversee the design team as a whole and have my hand in almost every web project, either from a leadership standpoint or actually executing the design work.

I do enjoy working with clients to help reshape or recreate their website experience and getting to learn how their business or organization works; however, I will always be energized by getting my own hands on a project and doing the design work myself.

4. Looking at the marketing and design landscape today versus when you started, what advice would you give to someone just entering the field?

I would give two pieces of advice.

First, I would encourage young designers to understand business. One of the oversights in design education today is failing to teach young designers how business works: the language, the terminology, etc. Young designers often do not see the perspective of the business and only focus on design language and execution, which can cause the project to be ineffective or make their design miss the mark completely. Learn to understand the business or organization, and you will better understand how to make your design work effective and see results.

Second, avoid becoming a niche designer. It is okay to have a favorite type of design to do, but you should strive to be a generalist; focus on many areas of your craft, such as branding and identity, web and app design, environmental design, print, and motion. If you only specialize in one area of design, you limit yourself to the amount of work you can be hired for as a designer. The more skills you have as a designer, the more doors of opportunity will open for work.

5. If you had to describe what’s kept you motivated and engaged at Cross & Crown for 20 years in just a few words, what would they be?

Our people and the projects we do are what have kept me here at Cross & Crown over the years. We have a great internal team, and seeing how we have grown in size and capability has been fun to be a part of. Our turnover is incredibly low, and I think that speaks volumes to who we are as a company and who we hire on our team. Also, the projects we work on are from all types of industries and backgrounds, so I rarely feel like we do the same type of project.

While Joel’s story is one of vision and creativity, it’s also deeply tied to the people he’s worked alongside. To capture that, we reached out to a few of our clients to hear their perspective on Joel’s impact.

1. Can you share a memorable project or moment that stands out from your time working with Joel?

“Joel has worked with my team both at Martin’s and at Menno Haven to create websites. He always brings the latest trends, features, and designs to the table when creating the sites. He methodically thinks through all the possibilities for the structure of the site and user experience as well as security, SEO, and all the other things that need to be built into a high-performing site.”
– Wendy Cowan, Marketing Manager┃Martin’s Famous Pastry Shoppe

 

“Joel did my website (pamdidner.com), and it was wonderful working with him. He has a unique taste about aesthetics, and that resonates with me, so we work very well together. I really appreciate that he also did my brand guide and selected the adjacent colors in addition to my main colors. Well done, Joel!”
– Pam Didner, Founder, VP of Marketing┃Relentless Pursuit

 

“The most memorable project was our first project about 15 years ago when I worked for a mission called Alaska Village Missions. That’s the first time I worked with Trevor and Joel, and it was great because that was my first experience trying to brand things and create a logo. It was great to have Joel and feel encouraged by him and to see his enthusiasm. He never got frustrated with me as I changed a lot of things. We came up with such a cool logo, and I always like to tell people that several students at the college associated with Alaska Village Missions actually got a real tattoo of the logo years after Joel and I created it.”
– Sam Gandy, Owner, President┃4G Design Build

2. What sets Joel apart as a creative partner or project lead?

“He has a passion for what he does, and it comes through when he is presenting his ideas.”
– Wendy Cowan, Marketing Manager┃Martin’s Famous Pastry Shoppe

“He gets things done. I really appreciate that. He stays on top of it and tries to answer my questions and get a design done with the timeline I requested. Of course I really appreciate working with Dylan as well, and that is his partner in crime. So thank you so much, Dylan and Joel!”
– Pam Didner, Founder, VP of Marketing┃Relentless Pursuit

“His Christian attitude. It was great just to know that he was a follower of Christ and that he really believed in the mission that we did and was willing to help with that. His patience and understanding—of course his creativity and style are great, and I just really appreciated him. The other thing that sets Joel apart is he is the only other person I know that had pet rabbits living in his house.”
– Sam Gandy, Owner, President┃4G Design Build

3. What keeps you coming back to Cross & Crown, and Joel specifically, for future design work?

“We (I) have worked with C&C for so long—it is an extension of our team. We like the consistency, and we know that C&C (Joel) has our best interest in mind.”
– Wendy Cowan, Marketing Manager┃Martin’s Famous Pastry Shoppe

“I really appreciate the website that you have designed for me and the sense of consistency. Joel and Dylan have known me for several years, so I don’t really have to brief them about what I need. It’s wonderful to just go to them directly, explain my simple requests, and they will take it from there. I like that a lot.”
– Pam Didner, Founder, VP of Marketing┃Relentless Pursuit

“Again, it’s the relationship. We’ve known each other for 15 years, and I know his caliber of work, work ethic, attitude, and creativity. Also just knowing how great of a guy he is and how he’s come through in the past. Every website he’s ever done for me (I believe at least four) has gotten comments from my clients and customers multiple times about how great our site is and how much better it is than anyone else’s. Many have commented that when they went on our website, they knew we were the builder for them.”
– Sam Gandy, Owner, President┃4G Design Build

4. Is there anything else you would like to add?

“Congratulations, Joel! Thank you for all you have done for Martin’s Potato Rolls!”
– Wendy Cowan, Marketing Manager┃Martin’s Famous Pastry Shoppe

“Happy anniversary, Joel! 20 years—that’s a long time! By the way, you look great! I hope we have the chance to work together again.”
– Pam Didner, Founder, VP of Marketing┃Relentless Pursuit

“Congratulations, Joel. I appreciate you, man. You’re an awesome guy. You’re used by the Lord, you’re used in business, and you help so many people. It’s my hope that you’ll continue with Cross & Crown and continue to do great things. You’ve been a personal blessing to me and I’m sure to all your other clients. So way to go, Joel! Thank you.”
– Sam Gandy, Owner, President┃4G Design Build

As we celebrate Joel’s 20 years at Cross & Crown, one theme is clear: his creativity is matched by his dedication to relationships. From clients to colleagues, Joel’s influence reaches far beyond the projects themselves—it’s in the trust he builds, the ideas he sparks, and the vision he brings to every conversation. Here’s to the past two decades of creativity, and to all that’s still ahead.