What's your job about?
Emma Sleep helps people achieve their best sleep experience! I’m working with the Global Influencer Marketing team where I collaborate with the Southern European markets to arrive at the best data-driven strategies, making sure we get to reach our customers who need help the most.
My daily schedule is usually like this: In the first half of the day, I review the performance of my markets, derive insights, and use these to ideate new strategies. In the second half, it’s either I share these findings and results with the rest of the marketing team, or I check in with my markets for a little chat to combine our ideas to arrive at the best one. In general, there's a lot of proactive planning involved. I can compare it with cooking - prepare the ingredients, create the dish, wait for it to cook, then figure out how it went. You find what worked and what didn't, then repeat from the start again in the next campaign.
I would be even more surprised if it were the older people that understood my work! I bet most teenagers, at one point in their lives, have aspired to become the people who we are collaborating with – influencers. Working with them [influencers] is very exciting, and I love the fact that my role is multifaceted: apart from the technical demands of the job, you also need to be great at managing your relationships.
What's your background?
I would describe my whole life story as one that is full of surprises and abundance. I grew up in Angeles City, an only child of two loving parents. I only went to Metro Manila to take my undergraduate degree. I was not a bright kid growing up, but I had a sudden burst of determination.
Thankful for the opportunities that came along the way, I graduated With High Honors in secondary school. I was awarded and recognized for my feats in leadership, journalism, and creative multimedia. My achievements gave me the confidence that I can take on bigger challenges in life.
Life seemed good but it didn’t come easy. My family went through a lot of unexpected turn of events that led us to go through a significant financial crisis. So, I had to find a way to manage myself as well. I took different jobs and gigs to earn and sustain myself. I became a freelance photographer and a graphic designer, then I spent a year as a virtual assistant. I would wake up at 3 AM to work, and by 8 AM, I would continue the rest of my day as a student. There was even a time when I was cooking and selling food.
Today, I am grateful to God because I was able to survive this setup. Today, I'm closer to achieving a stable life, and it would not be possible without the opportunity given to me by Emma is life-changing for me.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Yes! I have teammates who did not necessarily have a marketing background to start with. You don’t necessarily need to have a marketing background, but a great understanding of the fundamentals of marketing should be good enough. However, I think the most important skill to succeed in my job is being able to work and read through data. Data is the core of the tactical strategies that we use. A nice-to-have would be a skill in dealing with people. The unique thing about Influencer Marketing is you work with a lot more people compared to other marketing channels.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
I find it cool that I can establish working relationships with influencers! It’s thrilling to work with them, and it’s even more fun when we collaborate on our ideas together. Other than that, I love being able to build rapport with teams from other markets. Individually though, one of the most satisfying feelings is seeing the strategy you derived from an insight and seeing it perform just as expected. The excitement in the job has its highs and lows. The most boring one is working with data - but you can make it fun by thinking you're solving a puzzle!
What are the limitations of your job?
The job requires a lot of thinking, thinking, and thinking, and this can drain you by the end of the day. It’s a good mental exercise though! I think there’s a good weight of responsibility in my job. My country managers rely on my knowledge and expertise to help them make the right strategies and go all the way in making sure we execute these well. Sometimes I have to take some hours during the evening so I could meet with my counterparts, so I’m thankful for Emma’s flexibility to address this.
3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...
I think I would tell my student-self to: