Interview

When and how did you get your start in marketing?

I began my career in marketing after graduating with a dual degree in Marketing & Business Management from West Chester University back in 2018. As a natural problem solver and skilled communicator, I’ve always been drawn to work environments that allow me to collaborate cross functionally with other teams in order to come to a solution. Marketing requires so many different partnerships and perspectives in order to be successful in your role, such as ecommerce, analytics, product, data engineering, creative, and the list goes on! Bringing a brand to life through email, SMS and in-app campaigns involves a much more detailed and complicated process than it seems to the average consumer, but it’s so worth it to tell the story of how a given product or service can integrate and improve the everyday experience of its customers.

What’s a mistake you’ve made at work, and how did you deal with it, or what did you learn from it?

The more monotonous, less exciting tasks are still some of the most important steps in the process of pushing a campaign live. I’ve always considered myself to be a detail-oriented person, but we’re all human at the end of the day! I missed a very small check box when setting up a push message, a setting that didn’t appear on the admin page unless you expanded the options available. This tiny detail that was input incorrectly caused the national app to fail for all users on the platform, interrupting millions of dollars in sales. When I joined an investigation call with several software engineers looking into what caused the mysterious “blackout”, I discovered it was a mistake in my setup and owned up to it live on the call. These things happen to all of us at one point or another! I didn’t lose my job BUT I will never make that same mistake again.

What tips, tricks, or pieces of advice would give a new Iterable user?

I am a relatively new user of Iterable, and have a lot of experience with other ESPs in the market. What I would say to anyone currently learning how the platform works and how to apply to your business, is to focus on one functionality or section at a time. For example, getting super familiar with how templates work and how to set them up, then moving to campaigns and journeys and integrating audience segmentation into the picture. Each ESP uses similar language for different applications, so it’s best to start fresh with any preconceived assumptions and take it piece by piece.

What are some Iterable features that have made your job easier? Or have been game-changers for yourself and your team?

The ease of use overall – Iterable is a very intuitive and easily digestible platform to learn, which is a big feat considering the number of complex features it offers and problems it is able to solve. I specifically enjoy using the customizable tiles in journeys to really tailor the experience to fit a specific use case, as well as the static vs dynamic lists available to use.

As a consumer, what brings you joy from a brand’s outreach/communication?

I really enjoy when brands can “break the 4th wall” and use the data they have on my preferences, browsing history, purchase history, etc to give me personalized recommendations on how to better use their product or what I should invest in next that would be valuable to me and why. Discounts and partnerships that are dynamically presented in a timely manner after I have engaged in a behavior – for example, the Strava integration with the workout app Mindbody that also connects to my Apple watch. I don’t mind and truly enjoy what may be considered “overstepping” otherwise, when any of those brands suggest a new studio to try, give me a discount on a premium health tracking membership, or invite me to join localized activity competitions that all encourage me to be my best self and make the most of what’s available with their brand.

What would you like to see brands doing more of? Or less of?

I would love to see brands putting more emphasis on giving back to their existing audiences and customers, rather than allocating the majority of their marketing budget for paid media advertisements or influencer contracts. I had the opportunity to lead a car giveaway campaign at a previous job that had a very low barrier to entry for customers, and gave them the chance to enter to win a brand new Hyundai sedan simply by using a low-cost function on the mobile app. Creating a story about the real-life person who was gifted a car as part of this promotion was the cherry on top to wrap up a more meaningful, relatable and engaging project.

If you weren’t a marketer, what would you be?

A teacher (they make the world go round!) or a therapist. I have people close to me that are in each of these professions, and I respect them so much!

If you came with a warning label, what would it say?

Warning: Will ask a million questions. Will not survive any meeting without mentioning her cats. Won’t stop talking.