Kathleen Sykes - Content Marketing Strategist, The Charrette

Keep in touch with meI'm using Intch to connect with new people. Use this link to open chat with me via Intch app

Work Background

Deseret NewsNewsletter Writer for Utah Today

Jul. 2022 - Apr. 2023Salt Lake City Metropolitan Area• Research timely news stories relevant to a general Utah audience for a daily newsletter to go out every weekday at 6 AM. • Infuse personality into the newsletter to foster engagement with the audience. • Brainstorm and implement techniques to improve engagement and grow the current audience.

The CharretteFreelance Content Marketing Strategist, Consultant & Copywriter

May. 2022HybridI’m a freelance content marketing strategist, consultant, and copywriter specializing in social media, SEO and email marketing. My clients work with me because of my unique content-creation techniques and audience-focused writing strategies. I thread the needle between concept and final project to help clients, writers, and artists develop coherent brand storytelling, increase engagement, and showcase your unique positioning.

Strangers in Ukraine FundraiserWebsite design, Marketing & Fundraising Volunteer

Mar. 2022 - Mar. 2022Salt Lake City, Utah, United StatesAmazing things happen when strangers in a community get together for a good cause. When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Eli McCann—a friend with deep ties to the region—reached out over social media to organize a fundraiser with Razom Ukraine and Lifting Hands International. What was initially planned to be a small fundraiser, quickly turned into two, large events wherein strangers in our community came together, donated, volunteered, and rallied support. In the end, we raised over $133,000 for these organizations that were helping with the crisis on the ground in Ukraine. As soon as Eli posted asking for help, I immediately offered to donate my content marketing skills, and I got a website up for the event in under 24 hours. This was a deeply satisfying project for me to work on, and I was amazed at the impact one community can have when we are unified under one cause. I accomplished the following on this project: • Developed messaging and designed a Squarespace website in under 24 hours for a community fundraising event that had a one-week turnaround. To date, it has raised over $155,000. • Mentored organizers on how to maximize donations by refining and articulating the message. • Coordinated with graphic designers to develop an eye-catching, engaging website and made rapid changes to the website as needed. • Pitched "Strangers in Ukraine" concept to match the organizer's highly recognizable podcast and blog.

Utah Symphony | Utah OperaContent and Social Media Manager

Apr. 2021 - May. 2022Salt Lake County, Utah, United StatesWhile testifying before congress, Maurice Abravanel was asked why the government should support the arts. His response, “...for the same reason that your farmers plant also flowers.” That sentiment follows through today as Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) boasts an incredible resume and deep impact on the community. USUO has one of the most robust music education programs in the country reaching more than 50,000 students every year. The regular season consists of 18 Masterworks programs, four operas, films and entertainment series, and a summer season at Deer Valley® Resort in Park City, Utah. My duties and accomplishments included: • Produced multimedia editorial, social media, and marketing content for a performing arts non-profit. • Managed editorial calendar; maintained and refined brand identity; managed multiple projects; and planned content marketing strategy to promote upcoming programming. • Grew social media followers by more than 58,000 (or 333%) over several social media platforms. • Wrote, edited, organized, and developed content, graphics, news articles, and blog posts for the newsletter. Within six months, the number of subscribers went from several hundred to over 10,000. • Oversaw projects with other departments and external contractors and developed the project’s creative messaging and storytelling.

Utah Symphony | Utah OperaDigital Content Producer

Jun. 2017 - Apr. 2021Greater Salt Lake City Area

FriendemicClient Success Manager at Friendemic

Apr. 2017 - May. 2017Salt Lake City, Utah, United StatesFriendemic provides reputation, SEO, social media, and video content software and management services. During the period I worked at Friendemic, the company heavily focused on content creation and reputation management. The agency focused on automotive clients, but due to my creative background, I was trusted to work with several non-automotive clients like Chronicle Books on their “642” series (which was nominated for an AAF-Utah award) and The Leonardo, a STEAM museum in Salt Lake City. They merged with GoFanbase in early 2017 which specialized in providing SaaS reputation management software to car dealerships. I switched focus to expand my skill set and work in client services, managing accounts, and upselling clients on new software solutions. • Managed content creation, social profiles, customer engagement, and client communications for 12–16 clients at a time at a digital marketing agency. • Managed multiple projects at a time and consistently met deadlines for weekly content submission. • Refined the online brand voice for a book series, a marketing firm, a museum, several car dealerships, and other clients. • Managed four or more platforms for each client, maintained separate brand voices, created graphics, engaged potential consumers, ran Facebook ad campaigns, and generated sales leads on behalf of clients. • Maintained client relationships across multiple time zones, reported performance, consulted on reputation management, offered SEO solutions, and upsold clients on updated products and software.

FriendemicCommunity Manager

Mar. 2016 - Apr. 2017Greater Salt Lake City Area

Career BreakVoluntary work

Sep. 2014 - Mar. 2016Community of MadridShortly after graduating college, I committed to 18 months of volunteer work in Spain. (See volunteer section below). In addition to developing skills I use in my everyday professional life, I also developed important personal and leadership skills. For example: Working with people from diverse backgrounds; pivoting quickly when a situation changed; prioritizing my contacts’ needs over my own agenda; resolving conflict; and speaking my mind—even when challenged. I am very grateful for this experience. It deepened my respect for other peoples’ beliefs and helped me develop empathy for people from varied backgrounds—two skills essential for building trusting relationships at work. • Engaged people with the organization's mission by developing powerful messaging and nurturing relationships through service. Generated interest through cold contacting and referrals. • Spoke fluent Spanish after four months of work in the field. • Researched contacts questions and sought to mentor and inspire. Mentored other volunteers one-on-one and in group trainings. • Helped several contacts significantly improve their reading skills. • Focused on the empowerment of contacts and fellow volunteers.

Utah SenateSocial Media Operator — 2014 General Session

Jan. 2014 - May. 2014Greater Salt Lake City AreaDuring the 2014 legislative session, I worked for the Utah State Senate reporting to the chief of staff. In the past, they had brought on interns, but they had big plans for their communications strategy for this session and recruited me to the team as a full-time social media manager and online community liaison. The Chief of Staff’s vision was for me to be the “woman on the watchtower” and keep constituents informed about Senate proceedings as well as my finger on the pulse of the community’s reactions to the session. • Performed public relations and communications duties, drafted press releases, responded to citizen comments, and created online educational content. • Grew the State Senate's social media following by 11% during five-month seasonal tenure and educated citizens about sensitive issues through engaging content. • Implemented a live-tweeting strategy informing citizens about committee meetings and Senate floor proceedings. • Monitored social media, detected potential crises, and alerted the team to security threats. Using social media, discovered the organization of demonstrations. • Made HTML improvements to the website.

Utah Symphony | Utah OperaMarketing Intern

May. 2013 - Aug. 2013Greater Salt Lake City AreaMy major in arts administration required an internship with a non-profit organization, and I was lucky enough to work with Utah Symphony | Utah Opera. It exposed me to the practical applications of what I was learning in my communications courses and helped me decide where to focus my career. And I could not complain about being around great live music! • Trusted as a media contact for Deer Valley Music Festival and acted as the press liaison during concerts. • Wrote copy for radio, blogs, and press releases for 14+ concerts. • Wrote content about Carl Nielsen for the 2013–2014 season which was later turned into a comic. • Archived over 100 news stories from 2010 to 2013 to help the department do a cost-benefit analysis of previous public relations efforts. • Compiled the entire company discography from 1953 to 2006.

Sykes McAllister Law Offices, PLLCSecretary/Social Media Manager

Jan. 2010 - Jan. 2014Greater Salt Lake City AreaSykes McAllister Law Offices (formerly Robert B. Sykes and Associates, PC) is a law firm specializing in medical malpractice, personal injury, product liability, and civil rights. In the early 2010s, the firm began to receive local and national attention for civil rights claims involving excessive force, illegal search and seizure, and police brutality. In addition to my duties as a secretary and receptionist, I was instrumental at this time in helping shape a content and communications strategy to improve online visibility to potential clients looking for an attorney. • Performed administrative and marketing tasks such as maintaining social media profiles, writing website content, and secretarial work for a law firm specializing in civil rights and personal injury cases. • Implemented a social media and content strategy for the first time in the firm's history and improved website SEO by writing blog posts on subjects that interested and educated potential clients. • Spearheaded creative projects like getting headshots of the attorneys and researching marketing solutions. • Maintained relationships with over 150 clients per year, facilitated contact with attorneys, and communicated regular status updates. • Recorded case information of potential clients and articulated the core message to attorneys.

Intch is a Professional Networking App for the Future of Work

100k+ people

130+ countries

AI matching

Get Intch if you'd like to

📝

Get Recommended to New Customers

👋

Connect with Like-Minded People

💸

Raise Capital

🚀