Our Senior Account Advisor!
How long have you been working at iFocus?
I started with iFocus in July 2018.
Describe what you do.
I am a digital marketing strategist who works directly with our clients to discuss what marketing strategies and tactics would be best utilized to meet their individual business goals. I LOVE helping my clients accomplish their goals.
What does a typical workday look like for you?
On a typical day, I meet with clients and prospective clients face to face or over the phone to discuss their current business goals and work with them to develop custom digital strategies. I also meet with current clients on a monthly basis to review campaign performance and discuss ongoing initiatives for continued optimizations. If I am not meeting with a client, you will likely find me networking with small-medium sized businesses throughout the community.
Do you have any nicknames in the office?
Half the team calls me “Lemonade” paying homage to my southern background and the other half calls me “the closer” due to my constant drive to find people we can help.
What would your co-workers say is your most distinguishing feature at work?
I have a sincere desire to do things right the first time and have worked with many of my teammates to come up with creative solutions for our clients. I have lately heard from the team that they sometimes laugh at my numerous ideas but are inspired by the energy.
Briefly talk about one of your all-time favorite iFocus projects you’ve worked on.
One of my favorite projects at iFocus has been working with a locally owned and operated business in Overland Park who has been a pillar in the community for over 20 years. They have had great success marketing their business in the past using traditional marketing methods, but the digital presence of their competitors had increasingly hurt their business. Since working with them on a Social Media and SEO strategy the phone is now ringing, and new people are once again back in the store. Helping businesses like this is why I love what I do.
Besides your own work, what iFocus product/service is your favorite? Why?
I absolutely love SEO – though I am not an SEO guru or product manager, I can absolutely attest to the long-term value of this marketing tactic because of the high level of visibility it provides to small- medium sized businesses on Google. The more often your business shows up in search results, the more often you have the opportunity to be chosen. Simply said, it is the best way to bring people to your website.
What do you like to do in your free time?
My free time is often restricted to evenings after work, I like to imagine I am in the middle of a Food Network competition show, Chopped. I LOVE to cook and create wild things for my husband to eat (bless him). I am originally from east Tennessee and cooking is a big part of southern culture. We love friends and family though our biscuits and gravy.
What’s your favorite local KC food joint?
One of the best hidden gems in Overland Park is a family owned bakery off 119th street called, Irina’s. They make the best Croissant Danishes out there! My husband and I can usually be found there on Saturday mornings enjoying their sweet treats with a cup of their one of a kind coffee.
What movie or TV show character do you most identify with?
Ann Hathaway stars in the 2011 move, One Day, and I have never resonated with a movie as much as I did with this one. It is a beautiful story of love, friendship, and the things that matter most.
What’s one cool thing that has happened to you recently?
TRAVEL. I love new experiences, both local and across the ocean. I have recently had the opportunity to explore more of the mid-west and I have fallen in love all over again with the people and culture of the heartland.
Describe your ideal weekend getaway.
For a weekend getaway, I absolutely cannot picture a place I love more than Colorado!
Are you a cat person or a dog person?
I have two dogs and a cat and love them all equally (though albeit a bit differently). My Mini-Dotson in is my lap most of the time and is absolutely my little sidekick.
What celebrity would you most like to have drinks and a conversation with? Why?
Robert Downey Jr. because of his wit and charm that keeps me laughing every time I watch Iron Man.
What’s one weird quirk that you have?
I laugh at the most random things and love to get others to laugh with me.
What social network consumes the greatest amount of your free time?
At this point, I would still say Facebook due to the friends and family I network with there, but I also absolutely LOVE Pinterest for anything from recipes to ideas for my house.
What’s one of your favorite quotes?
“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves
Describe one thing that’s a source of inspiration for you.
Keeping myself immersed in the local culture of Kansas City, to really see the people we live and work amongst daily. I have such a passion for small business, and I want to see our city thrive both socially, economically, and spiritually so in my spare time, I love shopping, visiting local restaurants, and doing photography throughout the city.
What’s your favorite part about working at iFocus?
I love that I work with a team of such fiercely devoted and talented people. The best part about this team is that we work side-by-side daily and that allows for strategic conversation and engagements that larger companies would not be able to facilitate. Nothing is pre-packaged at iFocus, we truly are a custom digital agency that provides a unique solution from best practices for every challenge our clients face.
What’s the most important thing you’ve learned from working at iFocus thus far?
The value of truly understanding our client’s business goals so that we can develop winning marketing strategy around those goals that not only creates marketing success but leads to our clients meeting and achieving their businesses long term goals. Our goal is to become partners for life!
