I have never been part of a marketing department.

That probably seems like a funny thing to say given my background, but no, I have never been a part of a marketing department. I have been the entire department, trying to fulfill all of an organization’s marketing needs. I won’t lie and say that it’s been easy. Trying to do everything at once, without knowing which lens through which I should approach my role is a challenge. What should take precedence? How does it all fit together? What’s the ultimate goal for the company, and equally important, what’s the ultimate goal for myself and my career path? These are the questions I continue to ask myself, while remaining focused on my long-term goal of becoming a marketing communications maven, someone who knows a brand inside and out and how to utilize every channel possible to communicate that brand’s messaging to the people who matter most.

I’ve acquired everything that I know through research, trial & error, asking A LOT of questions (a huge thank you to everyone who has been on the receiving end for your endless patience), and through intuition. I’ve found that my gut is a powerful tool. When I say that I trust my gut, I’m not referring to acting on impulse and hoping for the best. A gut’s intuition is formed and developed through experience. It’s the holder of insights that have not been fully processed by the conscious mind. It is not to be underestimated or diminished, but nurtured, developed, and honed.

So, here I am. 4-ish years into my career. Not a newbie, but far from the expert I aspire to be. I’ve found that a lot of companies want to be marketed, but they don’t realize that it’s so much more than a few social posts. Having a presence in this era is useless if a company doesn’t have a long-term vision and hasn’t taken the time to define its voice and its message. It’s like shooting darts in the dark. Sometimes you hit the mark, but more often than not you miss entirely, and you will rarely—if ever—hit the bullseye. It’s wasted effort, and the customer can see right through it.

Don’t get me wrong. Even with a well-defined voice and message, you’ll probably miss the mark a few times. Still, your chances of speaking to the right people, in the right voice, at the right time, getting them to connect with what your offering and to buy into your brand, increases drastically if you know who you’re targeting and why. Once you know that, you can figure out the right ways to do so. The goal isn’t to be on all social platforms, it’s to be on the right ones. The goal isn’t to be at every event, it’s to be at the right ones. Act with intention.

Simply put, it’s all storytelling. That’s not just a buzz word, it’s what so many companies across so many industries are struggling with. You can’t start a story in the middle, jump to the beginning, and circle around to the end. I mean, you can, but you’re asking the consumers to work a lot harder to figure out what’s going on than if you give them a story that they can digest. Chances are, they’ll lose interest long before they figure it out.

As I continue my work, helping companies to define their intention in order to plan and scale communication efforts, I remind myself to do the same. I have to act with intention, even when it feels like I’m pulled in 20 different directions. I remind myself to be grateful for the opportunities at hand, while reminding myself that there is still so far to go. My story is just beginning.

-MEC