Ada Pally is speaking on PPC at SearchFest 2016, which is being held March 10th, 2016 at the Sentinel Hotel in Portland, Oregon. For more information or to purchase tickets, please click here.
1) Please give us your background and tell us what you do for a living.
I graduated in 2005 with dual degrees in English and Marketing; as I entered the workplace I quickly learned how fickle companies were with their marketing dollars and was immediately attracted to digital marketing as a way to quantify efforts. I poured myself into SEM, working both in-house and as a consultant for a variety of companies for many years. I had the opportunity to work with 3QDigital (then PPC Associates) first as a client while consulting. I joined 3Q in 2011 after that contract ended and David pursued me to work remotely for 3Q. Since then, 3Q has grown to close to 200 people and we service an incredible portfolio of clients.
In my current role as the VP of Client services, its my responsibility to ensure that my teams (my umbrella has 35 people in it) have all the training, support and collaboration required to the best work possible for our clients, and that our clients’ expectations are exceeded at every opportunity. Beyond team management, I focus on delivering cross channel strategies to support the growth and efficiency goals of our clients and lead paid search, SEO, social, display and creative resources to that end.
2) As the head of Client Services, how can you positively impact an account on which you’re not part of the day to day relationship?
The greatest value I provide is taking the learnings from hundreds accounts across the agency, and applying those strategies or problem solving where needed. I also take a step back on higher level client goals and encourage teams to step out of the weeds with their perspective to problem solving. Disseminating information, enabling collaboration and providing a seasoned, objective set of eyes when needed is the best way I add value without day to day context.
3) You manage a large number of disparate individuals with different skill levels at different locations. What skills and tactics do you use to get people to act cohesively as a team and be supportive of one another?
In addition to the way I structure account teams and channel teams, I try to lead by example as much as possible by asking a lot of questions and dedicating time to collaborate. We have a unique culture at 3Q in that we are eager to innovate- so much of that is dependant on problem solving with others, being open to new ideas and a willingness to learn new things. Perpetuating that culture starts with hiring the right people, facilitating Q & A, and ends with creating mentorship opportunities and empowering collaborators.
Todd Mintz knows PPC…knows Social Media…knows SEO…knows Blogging…knows Domaining…and knows them all real well. He runs growth marketing for )and is also a Director & Founding Member of SEMpdx: Portland, Oregon’s Search Engine Marketing Association, and he can be found here on Twitter and Facebook.