Nicole's Story: Marketing with a Mission

Hi there! I’m Nicole, the Junior SEO (Search Engine Optimization) Manager here at MGMT Digital. Since I’m new here, I wanted to share my story, and the motivation that brought me to MGMT.

A Little About Me...

I grew up in a small town called Truckee by Lake Tahoe, California. My childhood and teen years were mostly spent learning to ski, skiing, and teaching people how to ski. Not a bad life at all. There wasn’t a lot of TV watching in my house, but there was a whole lot of mountain biking and camping. My favorite saying is, “dirt don’t hurt”. But, how the hell did a little Jewish woman from a tiny town in the middle of nowhere become a marketing manager in LA? I’ll get to that in a bit.

I moved to Long Beach for college, trying to expose myself to the exact opposite of where I grew up, and was immediately immersed in new opportunities. I studied abroad twice, and ended up traveling to 11 countries during that time. While in Thailand, I had the opportunity to help build a school for stateless children in a very rural part of Chang Rai. This experience changed my life, and I realized my true passion was volunteering and helping others, and that I would not be completely fulfilled without this being a part of my career.

How I Got Into the World of Marketing

While I did major in marketing during my undergrad, universities do not prepare you for modern marketing. The world of marketing these days is no longer the traditional billboard style of marketing that it used to be. A huge chunk of marketing today is actually just trying to get Google to obey your wishes so your website is shown when people search your industry. And boy, do I love it.

I got an internship at a large digital marketing firm during my third year of college, and managed to score a part-time job while I finished up school. I worked my TAIL off to graduate in 3 and a half years, while trying to keep up with the competitive environment of my new job. I was the youngest one there by far, one of few women, and the only one still in school, so I had to work twice as hard for them to take me seriously. While this job caused me a ridiculous amount of anxiety and stress, and completely consumed my life for a year and a half, I am very grateful for it. I learned a lot about SEO, marketing, interpersonal relationships, myself and my capabilities.

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How I Ended Up at MGMT / Why I Work With These Crazy (Awesome) People

Like so many others, I was laid off at the end of March, 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the states. At first, I was devastated. However, I soon realized that my job loss had to have happened for a reason and that this opened up a lot of new opportunities for me. I could finally find a job that combined my two passions: marketing and helping people.

So, when Steph, our Director of Digital Strategy & Operations, reached out to me over Linkedin, and asked “This is random but do you have any experience with substance abuse treatment and mental health marketing?”, I said no but SIGN ME UP.

A few things I have learned from working at MGMT Digital so far:

Using my skills for a good cause, to help people find the treatment they need, is SO fulfilling.
Working with a team that cares so deeply about their work and about the world is very motivating.
Work doesn’t always have to be stressful, it can be really fun!

My Future Plans

I love what I do. I love the creativity, the strategy, the fast-paced environment, and the people. I am definitely someone who wants to do anything and everything in life, including going to every country, and living in a few. Luckily, this career is very easy to work remote with, so I just might be able to!

Above all, though, I want to continue my passion for helping people. Eventually, I would love to start a nonprofit organization to help girls have access to education in underdeveloped countries. No matter what, my goal is to continue marketing with a mission.