Esther I. Brown
dynamic, detail-oriented creativeRésumé
ESTHER I. BROWN
Dynamic, detail-oriented social media and marketing professional with management, editorial, research, communications, PR and business development experience. Freelance writer with a passion for the food, health, lifestyle and travel verticals. Self-starter who meets tight deadlines. Quick study. Grace under pressure. Excellent interpersonal skills.
COMPETENCIES
SOCIAL MEDIA
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT
TECH-SAVVY
- Stay abreast of social media tools, trends; track, analyze and report key social media performance metrics
- Served as the voice of Outside.in in the social media space, engaging community members every day; continually created fresh, engaging content for use in social media space; responded to all user troubleshooting emails and all other incoming email inquiries
- Identified, developed and nurtured relationships with hyperlocal bloggers nationwide
- Drafted strategic plan for community engagement and social media best practices at Patch.com
- Conceived and produced virtual-exhibits for the award-winning site WhiteHouseTapes.org
MARKETING
BRANDING
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
PUBLIC RELATIONS
COMMUNICATIONS
- Planned, developed and executed marketing campaigns for product launches and company milestones; identified, developed and nurtured relationships with industry players, for instance journalists, bloggers, PR and marketing professionals
- Developed advertising spots and marketing campaigns for multiple clients, writing copy and coordinating with clients, illustrators and graphic designers
- Created a wide range of marketing pieces for both Chamber’s Mid-Market and Small Business divisions, leading product development from research to content coordination, copywriting and publication design
REVENUE
RESULTS
CUSTOMER SERVICE
- Signed over 30 new accounts and exceeded individual quarterly sales target by > 65%
- Assisted in closing hundreds of thousands of dollars in Chamber dues, receiving an unprecedented number of public messages of thanks and recognition from the sales force
- Closed and managed well over $500k in orders in 2009 alone
PROBLEM SOLVING
ORGANIZING
COORDINATING
- Vetted prospective Mid-Market member companies to ensure their appropriateness as leads, significantly improving the effectiveness of the Mid-Market sales cycle while simultaneously eliminating competition between the Mid-Market division and other sales channels
- Overhauled law firm’s filing system, increasing efficiency
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
MULTITASKING
EVENT PLANNING
- Managed over 40 multi-project construction sites and more than 800 volunteers
- Regularly planned and executed large cocktail parties; gained fundraising and trade show experience
- Coordinated every aspect of award-winning, all-volunteer childcare service for students
- Trained new Chamber hires in corporate research and analysis writing, research methods and style
- Hired and supervised four cooks, collaborating with cooks and wholesalers to feed 80 volunteers per day on a budget of $80 per day
- Managed 15 high-end Italian product lines for interiors (both residential and contract use); traveled to Italy on a regular basis to train with manufacturers; communicated with Italian counterparts regularly
- Created two internship programs; interviewed, hired and managed student interns
EDITING
PROOFING
- Edited hundreds of briefing papers prepared by colleagues at the Chamber
- Obtained editorial experience at publications of all types, from dailies to annuals, with circulations from 1K to over 3M, including national magazines [Sports Illustrated], local newspapers [C-VILLE] and literary journals [Meridian]
- Led a staff of 30 to launch a monthly paper emphasizing concise, non-partisan political information
WRITING
REPORTING
- Develop content and write at YallHungary.com; serve as a correspondent/consultant for FlaNboyantEats.com; developed content and wrote at blog.outside.in; wrote press releases, marketing collateral, web copy for Outside.in; drafted iTunes app store copy for the Patch for iPhone app
- Researched, reported and wrote for C-VILLE, Charlottesville’s premiere free weekly news and arts paper
- Wrote copy and developed content for The Black Book Buzz, a weekly e-newsletter
RESEARCH
FACT-CHECKING
- Researched, fact-checked and edited copy for the Presidential Recordings Program at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs
- Transcribed and annotated secretly-recorded, newly-declassified White house audio tapes, from telephone conversations to Oval Office meetings
DEADLINE-CONSCIOUS
- Managed a record volume of briefing requests from an ever-expanding sales force, writing well over 500 strategic, company-specific briefing papers in 2007 alone
SELECTED EXPERIENCE
Writer and Editor
Freelance
U.S.A.
May 2006-Present
- Passion for food, health, lifestyle and travel writing verticals; Currently writing at YallHungary.com and serving as a correspondent/consultant for FlaNboyantEats.com; previous clients include: TheFasterTimes.com, Wifeville.com, Eshe Body Center and MountSinai.org.
Community Manager
Google
New York, NY
April 2011-Present
- More details soon!
Community and Marketing Manager
Patch.com
New York, NY
February 2011-April 2011
- Drafted copy about the Patch for iPhone app for the Apple iTunes App Store
- Drafted strategic plan for community engagement and social media best practices
Community and Marketing Manager
Outside.in
New York, NY
January 2010-February 2011
- Managed blogger outreach and seeding campaigns (significantly increasing hyperlocal blogger registrations); identified, nurtured and developed partnership opportunities with industry players
- Managed company’s social media profile and work to increase engagement across all channels
- Created, maintained and executed an editorial calendar for all social media, community management, PR, communications and marketing channels/efforts; managed reviews, approvals with stakeholders; coordinated implementations with product managers, developers and partners
Design Consultant and Product Manager
DOM New York
New York, NY (Flagship Showroom)
March 2008-December 2009
- Trained staff in all North American showrooms on 15 high-end Italian product lines for interiors: Altamarea, Arper, Coro, Domodinamica, EmmeBi, Ferlea, Fiam, Horm, Kristalia, MisuraEmme, Res, Rimadesio, Serralunga, Tacchini and Toscoquattro
- Processed orders and installation/delivery paperwork/payments for all showrooms, kept showrooms fully-stocked with promotional materials and finish samples, verified payments to manufacturers and timely ocean shipping, obtained insurance certificates and scheduled installations/deliveries; was responsible for all aspects of product management and customer service
- Served the world’s finest design professionals and tastemakers, e.g. Santiago Calatrava, Orlando Diaz-Azcuy, Esquire, Trinity Development Group, RMJM Hillier, Costas Kondylis, Ismael Leyva, Thom Mayne, Enrique Norten, Jean Nouvel, Gwathmey Siegel and Perkins + Will, among others
- Worked with clients (design professionals and end-users) to design custom luxury environments, wardrobes, walk-in closets and wall units
Analysis Associate, Corporate Research – Mid-Market Sales Operations
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Washington, DC
December 2006 – January 2008
- Supported the fundraising efforts of the Chamber’s Mid-Market division, supplying sales directors with in-depth corporate and market research, policy analysis and lead-specific talking points
- Researched specific industries, providing sales directors with tailored briefs re: the Chamber’s related lobbying activities and policy positions
Account Executive and Copywriter
Bloom Consulting + Publishing, LLC
Falls Church, VA
May 2006-November 2006
- Top-producing Account Executive for the DC/NOVA edition of The Little Black Book for every Busy Woman, an exclusive, referral-based guide to area retailers and service companies
Research and Editorial Assistant – Presidential Recordings Program
The Miller Center for Public Affairs at the University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA
December 2003 – May 2006
News Intern
C-VILLE
Charlottesville, VA
January 2006-May 2006
Editorial Intern
Sports Illustrated
New York, NY
December 2004 – January 2005
Project Manager & Foods Coordinator
Appalachia Service Project
Johnson City, TN and Logan County, WV
May 2004 – August 2004
Legal Assistant
Brown, Crump, Vanore & Tierney, LLP
Raleigh, NC
May 2003 – August 2003
EDUCATION
Parsons The New School for Design
New York, NY
Fall 2008
Corcoran College of Art + Design
Washington, DC
Fall 2007
The University of Virginia
CLAS 2006
Charlottesville, VA
- B.A. with Distinction, English Language & Literature, Honors Area Program in Poetry Writing
- Double major in American Studies; Foreign Affairs minor
- Dean’s list (all semesters), Echols Scholar, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Golden Key, Distinguished Majors Program
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
- Both Mac and PC platforms (OS X, Windows)
- Type 80 WPM
- Social Media tools and channels, including: Radian6, CoTweet, Basic Facebook OpenGraph
- Adobe Creative Suite
- Microsoft Office Suite
- Blogging software (WordPress)
- CMS
- Basic HTML
- Intuit QuickBooks
- 3CAD
- LEXIS/NEXIS
- TeamApproach (Fundraising & Donor Management)
- GoldMine (CRM)
- Hoover’s/ D&B
- Westlaw
- Native speaker of English & Hungarian; proficient Spanish skills
