Here is a short Q & A with Marketing Manager, Carrie Choules. Carrie joined the GEO Jobe team in February of 2019 and is based out of our company headquarters in Nashville, TN.
Q: What is your job at GEO Jobe and what does it entail?
A: I am the Marketing Manager at GEO Jobe. My job entails planning the quarterly marketing strategy for our blog posts and social media. I am also responsible for marketing drip campaigns, design of all digital and physical marketing materials, design of our trade show booth and trade show giveaways. In addition, I write all press releases, and case studies. I network with industry professionals while upholding and implementing GEO Jobe’s brand identity.
Q: What is your Educational/Professional background, and how did you wind up at a GIS company?
A: I attended Southeast Missouri State University and received a Bachelor in Public Relations/Communications/Media Studies. My Minor is in Fashion Merchandising and I have yet to use it in a professional capacity. I started my career in marketing by working in the Real Estate industry in Chicago. I worked for residential and commercial real estate before transitioning into a marketing role in General Contracting. I moved to Nashville in 2016 for a change of pace and ended up working as a Marketing Manager at a Healthcare IT company. After that role came to an end, I was looking to once again transition into a new industry and I ended up applying to GEO Jobe.
Q: What attracted you to joining the GEO Jobe team?
A: I liked the size of the company and the culture that was portrayed. I have always preferred to work for a smaller company with a family-like culture. I enjoy a fast paced environment and I like the impact I can make. I also knew that GEO Jobe was continuing to grow and I wanted to be apart of that growth from the ground up.
Q: Can you share something about a cool project you enjoyed working on lately?
A: There are a few projects I have enjoyed since joining the team in February. The first one that comes to mind is the branding and product launch for our new application called Clean My Org. In general, I really enjoy working with the marketing team. Our marketing team is four employees who work in sales, support, development, and our enterprise division who have volunteered to assist with blog posts, as well as brainstorming for future marketing endeavors. I like hearing their ideas for future blog posts as well as learning the industry from them or any other marketing ideas that come to mind.
Q: Being relatively new to the GIS world, is there anything that surprised you about it? Anything you want to learn more about?
A: I really had no idea how much GIS plays a role in our day-to-day lives. When people hear the term “GIS” they look at me with a blank stare. When I start to explain that most companies use GIS to make informed decisions such as where to pave our roads, where to dig our pipelines, the health of our crops, our education systems, our natural resources, our infrastructure (the list can go on, and on) I think it surprises most people who have no idea how elaborate the industry really is. I feel like there is so much more for me to learn and I have barely scratched the surface. I believe in order to be the best marketer, you really need to dig in and do the work to be an expert on the industry you’re trying to market to.
Q: Any advice for Marketing students who will be graduating soon?
A: Put in the work and pay your dues. Marketing isn’t what you see in the movies or TV shows. There are a lot of times you’re going to be doing a function that may seem more administrative and not as creative. Don’t get discouraged by this, because if you put in the work and you show your value, you are going to excel in your career and you’re going to eventually get to a point where you are able to pick and choose your favorite parts of the marketing process.
Q: On a more personal side, do you have a favorite newspaper, magazine, blog, or sources of inspiration?
A: I spend a lot of time on social media for my job and in my personal life I follow accounts that I find inspiration from. They range in subject matter. Some are inspirational quotes, some are fitness related, some are food/cooking accounts (I love food and cooking).
Q: What kind of technology do you prefer and why? (Mac or PC, iOS or Android, and other cool tech)
A: I am a Mac person all the way. I have had a Mac since I started my higher education and have used one ever since. I find that using a Mac lends well to the Adobe Creative Suite and designing.
Q: What do you enjoy doing outside of the office?
A: Something that may surprise people is that I love woodworking. I like building small pieces of furniture and refinishing furniture to transform it into something new. I also enjoy interior design, hiking, camping, fishing, boating, kayaking, cooking, cuddling up with my pups, and binge watching a good TV show.
Q: Is there one or two things on your desk or in your office that you absolutely couldn’t do without?
A: Chapstick and snacks. I probably have a slight addiction to chapstick and as I previously stated, I love food 🙂
