Transformation Series: Miranda Ma
by Miranda Ma, Sales Enablement Specialist
I was born in New York City and grew up on Long Island. I had a typical upbringing, with dance always being a big part of my life. I was a Senior leader of my high school dance team and went on to be a coach for my sorority dance philanthropy events at Ole Miss. I was the first and only person to ever apply and attend Ole Miss from my high school at that time, so you can call me a trendsetter. While in high school I got my first exposure to marketing in Ms. Kaufman’s class my freshman year. I was lucky, my high school had a huge business department so I took 1-2 business electives each semester. After taking her class, I knew I wanted to do something in the world of marketing and advertising. It felt like the perfect outlet for my creative side. I’d always loved content creation. I started a small business in high school up-cycling college apparel where I created original/custom college merch and packaging and blasted it all over social media, reaching every region in the country in just a couple months.
When I made my way to Ole Miss, I studied Integrated Marketing Communications in the Journalism/Media school and felt like I was introduced to a whole new world. So many of my classes were extremely hands-on, helping me dive deeper into creativity and writing. Then I took my first real research class and became obsessed with data – analyzing it, understanding the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of everything, and then how to pivot based on those findings. There wasn’t a moment in time where I thought “this is it, this is what i’m meant to do,” an “aha” moment, if you will, but it was more of a slow burn and suddenly I found myself aligning with the things I loved most in the marketing/media realm.
I eventually found myself looking for real world experience and I started as the first and only intern at VideoAmp in 2019. I remember walking into our little WeWork and being blown away by the culture. I remember thinking “THIS is what work is like? It’s not as bad as what everyone else says, everyone is friends here.” I was put on a rotation across multiple teams: Market Development, Operations and Account Sales. During my final weeks, I was put on the Account Sales team and that’s when I met Alli Felter. I’ve never met anyone more willing to teach and guide me in just two short weeks. On the last day of my internship, I remember Alli looking shocked and saying, “How are you leaving already? We were just getting started, you can’t leave yet!”
But alas, I had to go back to school. Fast forward a year, and I was two months post-grad trying to figure out what I want to do. Agency? Brand-side? While I was on the job hunt, I kept thinking about VideoAmp and the experience I had the summer before. I felt like my internship couldn’t possibly be the end of VideoAmp for me, I felt like there was still more to do. I reached back out to Laura Tormey and she connected me back to Alli. She took me through the interview process and I became VideoAmp’s first Client Services Coordinator, supporting all of the East Coast.
Working at a startup in a role that never existed before was definitely a challenge. Creating brand new materials, launching the QBR process, revamping the CSM onboarding process (meaning I had to be trained as a CSM), were all challenging but so rewarding. Looking back on past projects and old decks now, I’m able to see such a huge difference in the content I produce, which makes my growth feel so tangible. Regardless of the challenges, I was so grateful for how much I was enjoying the process. All my friends would complain about their internships or first jobs and I would always feel kind of bad saying how much of a blast I was having. Fast forward another year and I’ve now moved into another totally new role at VideoAmp, as Sales Enablement Specialist. I’ll be helping to scale our Sales teams through trainings and participation in our AMPU program.
There are so many things I love at VideoAmp, first and foremost being the roster of smart and talented women I get to work with and learn from. But overall it’s just a great place to work. I really couldn’t have asked for a better first job out of college, because I’ve been surrounded by an entire team of people who are passionate, kind and endlessly supportive since day one. Everyone is beyond willing to teach and genuinely help you grow, not only professionally but also on a personal level. My managers have been nothing short of amazing. I know I can go to them for advice and mentorship without hesitation. VideoAmp really is the epitome of a People First organization. Work doesn’t feel like work. More like a community of people working towards a common goal. I now have a team that is growing around me and so much more support. Which has also given me the opportunity to help on-board and guide others in their journey at VideoAmp, which makes me feel like I’m also contributing to the growth of others which I love.
