The Transformation Series: Emily Melvin
by Emily Melvin, Director of Client Success
When I was a student thinking about potential careers, I figured I’d go into accounting or finance; digital marketing wasn’t exactly on my radar. During my Freshman year at the University of San Diego, I was immediately drawn to Ethnic Studies but wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to do with a degree in the topic at the time. When Sophomore year rolled around, I turned my attention to Communications — I’d always been a decent writer and thought of it as one of my inherited traits from my father. I figured I could combine my passion for the written word and ethnic studies into something great, I just hadn’t figured out what that was going to be quite yet.
As time went on and I started feeling the pressure of what felt like a looming graduation, I decided to pick a “safer” route and pivoted to Business Administration, which seemed like a solid resume starter if nothing else. Until…the day I found myself at a USD basketball game with my mom’s family friend who said her son was working at a digital marketing agency. She described it as young and fun, where everyone was friends. My interest was piqued. I went to the school career fair, saw the company was there and turned my resume in. A month later, I got a call and an interview.
To be honest, I’m not sure how I even got the job. They asked me if I knew what a DSP or SDK was; needless to say, with only one Digital Marketing 101 class under my belt, I did not. But they saw potential in me and I started in trafficking and moved into mobile strategy. Eventually as I gained more experience and facetime with customers, I realized that a client-focused position was where I needed to be. I was given the opportunity to move to Chicago to own strategic accounts, aid the company with a larger shift from the managed to self service model and bring backend technical expertise to client-direct discussions. Making the move was a major change and leap for me, both in the professional and geographic sense. The company treated me well, giving me experience in strategic large scale business and I met my fiance there.
While I loved the company and the experience, I became used to this cycle of change in my professional life. I’ve always had a fear of “plateauing” and have been ever eager to know what’s next. So when I was chatting with an old coworker who let me know she was at an amazing company and had a position that would be perfect for me, I knew I had to pursue it. The opportunity was a management position and the company was measurement focused. Enter VideoAmp.
VideoAmp changed the game for me. After spending years growing strategic accounts and client relationships, I was eager to foster these skills in a team of my own while focusing on a solution beyond media alone. Above everything else, I wanted to feel as open, honest and genuine with our clients as possible. Joining a third-party measurement provider allowed me to feel closer to our clients in the way that my team could truly make the most objective and useful recommendations possible to our clients.
Like many start-ups and smaller companies, VideoAmp is fast-paced and quick to evolve which is perfect for me — I love change (at least in the workplace). Early on in my time at VideoAmp, like my-second-week-of-work early, we implemented a certain structure that we ultimately realized wasn’t optimal. We pivoted a few months later and created boundaries between the two primary lines of business. I would always rather be at a company that is nimble, willing to call out imperfections and make adjustments when it still matters. It’s so important to have the ability to react to what’s changing in our wider industry, or even better, be proactive to what’s coming. To me this means a company is truly future proof and better able to service clients’ needs.
My role at VideoAmp has opened up the world of measurement for me. It’s also allowed me to work closely with the Business Development team to increase our coverage path. I love this aspect because it allows me to stretch outside of the bounds of a typical Client Success role and feel that I’m really helping make a difference when it comes to more accurately capturing our client’s media. I know we can’t measure everything (yet?!), but love that we can get to a closed loop solution for our clients. The collaborative culture is so refreshing and brings so much more meaning to my job and, ultimately, what my team can offer our clients.
My dad worked for Nestle for almost 40 years and every time they came out with new packaging he’d come home with it and ask me what I thought of it — the good, bad and ugly. So I can truly say I grew up thinking about what was best for big brands, even if it started within the lens of a candy wrapper or product placement. VideoAmp has also provided me with the ability to make my voice and opinion count when it comes to what’s best for our company and our clients. My work for a current CPG client has been so rewarding — I’ve been able to identify where waste is happening, how to pivot and then see a real difference in the bottom line. It’s so fulfilling.
The culture is rewarding as well. Anyone who knows about VideoAmp knows about the huge focus we have on fitness and well-being. Although you might not find me on every #VampChamp Peloton ride, I love how work/life integration is a priority and I can make it work for me the way that best suits my lifestyle. We are a high performance culture in every aspect but I love that our leadership also puts a huge emphasis on embracing holistic wellness. They acknowledge that there’s more to life than just working out hard and working hard. Our all-hands meetings incorporate findings from company surveys that ask us to reflect on how we’re feeling, physically and mentally, encouraging us to take a step back and pay attention.
Not to mention, VideoAmp’s roster of strong female role models is endlessly inspiring. Not only have I been uplifted and made great friends, I’ve had the pleasure of learning from amazing female leaders as well. It’s inspiring, motivating and makes me eager to see what the future holds. Here’s to year 2!
