Julie Shaffer, CPSM
Since 2009
Active
SMPS Fort Worth member
AEC marketing professional
Julie empowers AEC marketers to create exceptional visual communications through Shaffer Creative, LLC, the marketing consulting, training, and design firm she founded in 2012. As Owner and Creative Director, she partners with professional services firms to blend creative vision with customized technical messaging that sharpens positioning and drives results—helping clients define differentiators, develop visually compelling marketing campaigns, and equip teams to leverage their marketing efforts.
Her expertise spans comprehensive marketing operations including creative strategy, brand development, graphic design, Adobe Creative Cloud training, proposal development, and content creation. As an Adobe Community Expert and Adobe Certified Instructor for Creative Cloud Design & Layout Solutions, Julie brings technical mastery rarely found in the AEC industry—enabling firms to unlock the full potential of Adobe’s design platform while streamlining content layout without compromising artistic brilliance.
With nearly 30 years of career experience including 11 years as Marketing Manager at Alan Plummer Associates engineering firm (2003-2012), Julie possesses unique ability to marry analytical thinking with creative expression. This innate skill developed from learning to communicate with engineers at a young age enables her to translate complex technical concepts into compelling visual narratives that resonate with diverse audiences.
Julie’s signature strength lies in making complex tools and strategies approachable and actionable. Her educational foundation from The University of Texas at Arlington in Communications, Journalism, Advertising, and English provides comprehensive communication expertise that informs every aspect of her consulting practice.
Julie demonstrates exceptional professional leadership through her SMPS Fellow designation (Class of 2023), joining an elite group demonstrating at least 15 years of marketing expertise and 10+ years of active SMPS involvement. Her Fellowship recognizes sustained commitment to advancing the AEC marketing profession through education, technical training, and creative excellence that elevates industry standards.
As an in-demand trainer and speaker, Julie has delivered more than 600 training sessions to in-house marketing teams and member organizations across the country and abroad. Her comprehensive Adobe Creative Cloud training programs serve SMPS chapters nationwide, equipping AEC marketers with practical skills in InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop specifically tailored to industry needs. These training sessions, often structured as multi-part series covering beginner through advanced levels, provide continuing education units (CEUs) for CPSM recertification under Domain 4: Proposals.
Julie’s thought leadership extends nationally through regular contributions to CreativePro Magazine, where she shares insights on design tools, visual storytelling, and efficiency techniques. Her articles translate complex Adobe features into practical applications for AEC marketers, democratizing access to professional design capabilities. She created and hosted “The InDesigner” podcast—a grassroots tutorial series launched 20 years ago that pioneered audio-based design education—which she announced would reboot for its 20th anniversary, demonstrating sustained commitment to accessible education.
Featured presenter at major industry conferences including CreativePro Week, InDesign Conference, and numerous SMPS regional and national events, Julie’s sessions consistently earn top ratings for practical value and engaging delivery. At CreativePro Week 2022, her “Turning Data into Design” session demonstrated how to transform data into dynamic visual content using InDesign’s data merge features—techniques that create marketing flyers, charts, and organizational diagrams efficiently.
Her conference leadership includes organizing and planning the InDesign Conference, bringing together design professionals and AEC marketers to share best practices and emerging techniques. Julie’s role extends beyond presenting to curating educational experiences that advance the entire design community.
Recognized as an Adobe Community Expert—a designation reserved for professionals who actively contribute to Adobe user communities through teaching, answering questions, and sharing expertise—Julie serves as a bridge between Adobe’s engineering teams and AEC marketing professionals. This role amplifies her impact, ensuring AEC-specific needs inform software development and feature enhancements.
Additionally certified as a CompTIA CTT+ Virtual Classroom Trainer, Julie brings validated expertise in online instruction methodologies—critical skills that enable her to deliver effective remote training that maintains engagement and knowledge retention. Her Adobe Certified Expert (ACE) status in InDesign CC represents the highest level of product mastery, demonstrating deep technical knowledge beyond typical user capabilities.
Julie’s SMPS Fort Worth chapter leadership demonstrated her commitment to professional community building, serving as an advocate and role model for chapter members. Colleagues describe her as having “a warm smile backed by strategic insight that puts her a notch above the rest,” recognizing both her technical excellence and authentic leadership approach.
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