Meet our community: Nia Patel

 Connecting with others in the marketing industry can sometimes be one of the biggest challenges. This series shows off the amazing members of our community and encourages you to connect with some incredible women in the marketing industry. Keep reading to see how you can get involved with this blog series.

Hey, thanks for joining us! Could you please introduce yourself to our readers? 

Hey everyone! I’m Nia, a Personal Brand Manager at Kurogo, a global personal branding agency. I’ve been working in the social media/personal branding space since I graduated from Queen Mary University of London in May this year. I currently work full-time remotely from my home in North-west London.

When I’m not scrolling through LinkedIn or reading the endless marketing newsletters that land in my inbox every week, I volunteer at my local Girlguiding unit (fun fact – I used to be a Girl Guide myself!). But you can also catch me most evenings stuffing my face with cookie dough and binge-watching Disney+.

How did you get into marketing? Did you follow a traditional route? 

Absolutely not! I studied Maths with Finance and Accounting at university, and when I started my degree, marketing was not on my radar as a potential career option. I thought I was going to do finance or consulting – but it quickly became clear that neither of those options was for me!

I joined a brand ambassador programme during my final year of uni, and at the start of 2022, I started to post consistently on LinkedIn to build my personal brand. By March, I started an Instagram page posting university and career tips and tricks for students and graduates (which has now rebranded to a personal branding tips and tricks page…) and I started doing online courses in social media marketing to upskill myself and supplement my learnings – it was around this time I joined the Girls in Marketing Membership.

Now whilst all that sounds amazing, there was just one teeny tiny problem – I NEEDED A JOB. I was so scared of not having a job before I graduated, that I just applied to every random job I could find in the hope that a company would take me on.

Eventually, I saw on LinkedIn that Kurogo were hiring for personal brand managers, and I went all out for my application. I researched the company until I could write a book on it. I reached out to the other personal brand managers at the agency, asking for interview tips. I built my portfolio the best I could, sharing posts from my LinkedIn and Instagram pages. I had my interview a week after I sent my portfolio to Sam, our CEO. The next day, I got a call from him to say I’d got the job – and I’ve not looked back since!

What is your favourite thing about working in marketing? 

I think for me (especially in the space I work in), marketing is the perfect mix of business, people, and creativity, all 3 of which I love!  At Kurogo, we work primarily with CEOS, founders and entrepreneurs, who are all incredibly knowledgeable in their respective fields and lovely, friendly people. I’m very grateful that I get to work with and learn from them every day. I also love that I channel my creativity every day and see my ideas come to life. Lastly, I’d say one of my favourite things about marketing is that you never stop learning. Whether it’s keeping up with the latest trends, learning from other marketers or expanding your knowledge in other areas of marketing – you really do learn something new every day!

Which section of marketing is your favourite and why? 

Social media and personal branding for sure! There’s always something new happening on social media, and it’s everywhere! It’s crazy how fast social media has grown over the last few years, but I’d say that’s what makes it exciting. When it comes to personal branding, the thing I love most about it is the people I’ve met. Building my personal brand (especially on LinkedIn) gave me the opportunity to meet so many other like-minded marketers, who’ve also become good friends. Even better, you don’t need a degree or any qualification to work in personal branding – you literally just have to start posting, there’s room for everyone! 

What advice would you give to someone starting out in their marketing career? 

Before I delve into the advice – I will say YOU DO NOT need a marketing degree to work in marketing. Building your own experience is just as valuable – you just have to start and believe in yourself.

Tip 1 – figure out what area of marketing you actually want to work in. The marketing industry is so broad and made up of so many different sections – so it’s important you do your research and get a clear idea of which area of marketing is for you.

Tip 2 – start building your personal brand. Start creating and posting content to sharpen your skills and let the world know who you are. Then you can start to expand your professional network too – reach out to other creators and book networking calls with them. You’d be surprised just how much you can learn from other people!

Tip 3 – do online courses to supplement your learnings from the practical side of creating your own content. It’s always good to learn the tips and tricks of the trade from the experts!

How did you hear about our membership? Why did you decide to take the leap and join our members community?

I attended a free Copywriting Girls in Marketing webinar a couple of months back, and I remember the membership being promoted at the end of the session. I found the webinar incredibly useful, and when I heard the other benefits of joining (meeting other marketers, resources, mini-courses etc) I knew it was a no-brainer for a marketer like me. So, I took the leap and signed up!

How has The Girls in Marketing Membership affected your marketing career prospects? 

Being a part of the Girls in Marketing Membership has made me feel so much more confident in my career prospects. I’m currently doing the How to Supercharge Your Social Media Strategy e-course, which I’m really enjoying, and I’ve made use of many of the resources available such as the Marketing Portfolio template (which I used when I applied to Kurogo!), the Professional Development Action Plan – whenever I need a boost in my marketing knowledge or a resource, the membership is my go-to place. 

And finally, as we ask our podcast guests, do you have a motivational mantra that you live by?

Yes – stop worrying about what other people will think.

When you work in social media and you’re regularly posting content, it’s natural to feel apprehensive when you’re deciding on whether to post about a certain topic. But honestly, if it feels right to you, then just do it! People are always going to have opinions, and there will always be someone who disagrees with you. But the fact that you’re able to stay true to yourself, even in the face of that, is so powerful as a marketer. I used to be so scared of posting about periods on my LinkedIn – now I don’t think twice about it!

You can follow me on LinkedIn and my Instagram page: @shinebrightmarketer

If you’d like to become a member and connect with our amazing members, like Nia, you can sign up here.