Tell us a bit about yourself, background and your current role:
Straight after university I joined a start-up called Wearisma as their first employee. Over the course of seven years, as Head of Sales, I played an integral role in the company’s growth from its nascent stage to a profitable company with a presence in two global offices, over 40 employees, and a multi-million dollar revenue stream.
My contributions extended to the development of a sophisticated software solution that gained widespread adoption, catering to a diverse portfolio of brands including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Coty, Clarins, Michael Kors, among many others.
I am currently Global Product Director within The Goat Agency, a global social media and influencer marketing agency, now part of GroupM Nexus. I work with our tech partners to develop bespoke and scalable omnichannel solutions across 34+ markets that drive commercial value for our clients.
An example of this is the exclusive solution I developed with Amazon Ads that allows GroupM to be the first and only holding group to push creator-led shoppable content to the Amazon advertising suite. This solution was developed by myself and I was responsible for the initial ideation, product development, senior stakeholder management, commercial framework, ops flows, scaling strategy, initial tests, communications strategy and much more.
This solution is currently in the scaling phase and is a core feature of the omni-channel outcomes strategy as it enables us to drive commerce outcomes more effectively with audiences on Amazon.com.
Did you ever sit down and plan your career?
No! I did a degree in politics and assumed I would work in that field. I did internships at The Times, worked at a charity and a think tank and decided that politics was not the route for me. I decided to take a change on a completely different career and took an internship at a small start-up which I ended up staying at for nearly 7 years!
Have you faced any career challenges along the way and how did you overcome these?
When I started in this industry, Influencer marketing was not something that others understood or took seriously. It meant that I spent a large amount of time justifying the industry and ultimately myself. One of the ways I overcame them was by learning not to be afraid to stand my ground quite early on in my career. I think women are taught to be accommodating however there is power in knowing when to push back and not being afraid to do so.
What has been your biggest career achievement to date?
My two biggest achievements are probably joining Wearisma as employee number one and growing it into a company that is utilised by some of the biggest brands in the world. In addition, the Influencer Led Retail Media project I’ve developed with Amazon Ads has combined influencer and commerce together in a way that people did not think was possible in order to drive greater outcomes for our clients.
What one thing do you believe has been a major factor in you achieving success?
Not being afraid to take risks early on in my career has been a massive factor in achieving success. I think growing up, there are expectations to take safe and secure routes when it comes to careers and deciding to do something outside of what is being done can lead to great results.
In addition, putting time and effort into building a network of supportive people within the industry has helped me a lot.
What top tips would you give to an individual who is trying to excel in their career in influencer marketing?
This is an industry that is changing rapidly, my biggest recommendation would be to stay on top of the increasing changes and how this industry is expanding.
This means being clued up on different marketing mediums and thinking about how to push the influencer field further.
Finally, not being scared to recommend tests and ideas that are outside the norm as the only way we know if something is worth doing is by testing it.
What resources do you recommend for women working in marketing/influencer marketing, e.g. podcasts, networking events, books, conferences, websites etc?
- In bloom mentoring
- WARC podcast
- General career advice: Candice Brathwaite on TikTok and Lauren Spearmen on TikTok
What barriers for women working in marketing are still to be overcome?
This isn’t necessarily the case in every organisation, but I think in many it seems that there is still a lack of women in leadership positions. This balance needs to be addressed in order to a) inspire and enable women to grow their own careers and b) have more women’s voices and perspectives at the centre of big marketing decisions.
What do you think companies can do to support and progress the careers of women working in marketing/influencer marketing?
I think that there are now more initiatives spotlighting or supporting women in entry-level positions, embarking on the first few years of their careers OR women that are in leadership roles. However, I think more could be done across businesses to nurture middle management. This is particularly important as research has shown that women tend to take on more additional tasks outside of their roles than their male counterparts. This could be anything from the office “housework” to taking part in D&I initiatives, and even investing time in mentoring more junior employees. Companies need to recognise this and provide the support needed for women to excel at every point in their careers, not just the start of the pinnacle.
In an ideal world, how would you improve gender diversity in marketing/influencer marketing?
Simple really… hire more women at EVERY level!
Read more from our inspirational women here.
