SKILLS/ATTRIBUTES

Award-winning copywriter • Extensive advertising and marketing background

Organized and detail-oriented • Project Management • SEO & digital experience

Recognizes the value of data • Creative thinking is my superpower • Eye for design • Computer/software proficient

Contractor and vendor engagement and management • Plays well with others-teamwork, collaboration, brainstorming

Critical thinking skills • Branding • Ability to get up to speed quickly on new subjects • Flexible and positive

Speak some Spanish, but mostly present tense now • Ma français est merde maintenant

EXPERIENCE

FREELANCE COPYWRITER:

October 2022-Present

UNICEF:

May 2023-Present

• Founding Member of the Austin Taskforce. LMK if you’re interested!

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING: Smokey Mo’s TX BBQ, Cedar Park, TX

March 2020-March 2022, contract from March 2022- October 2022

BACKSTORY:

Switchback, LLC., the PE firm that acquired Smokey Mo’s BBQ, brought me on to help the transition from a family-owned and operated chain of 16 restaurants to a 21st-century business with a very aggressive growth strategy. Buckle up, I wore a lot of hats.

CREATIVE DIRECTOR/WRITER FOR REBRAND AND ALL COMMUNICATIONS:

• Company Rebrand

  • Spearheaded the rebranding effort with Love&War, NYC. Acted as CD/Writer.

• Website Development and Management

  • Wrote and oversaw the design/development of the rebranded website– Smokey Mo's BBQ

  • Responsible for content, updates, SEO, tracking analytics and the occasional blog

• Social Media and Reputation Management

  • Crafted content for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Linkedin, and/or managed outside agencies

  • Responded to all GMB (Google My Business), Yelp, Trip Advisor, social media and 3rd party delivery reviews, which involved varying degrees of damage control for 11 corporate restaurants

• Wrote and oversaw production/implementation of:

  • Magazine and newspaper ads, TV commercials, Facebook and Google ads, radio and live-read scripts, billboards, mass emails, crisis communications, event sponsorship communications and signage

  • Updated Catering Department by creating all new materials and collaborated on program details

  • Created a franchising campaign that included: emails, postcards, a brochure, swag boxes and a website page with a 3-minute video — smokeymosbbq.com/franchising

  • LTO (limited time only) Promotions- Thanksgiving turkeys, Christmas dinners, back to school, etc.

  • Wrote recruitment marketing materials including amusing job descriptions

  • Crafted and distributed Press Releases before a PR Firm was engaged

• Acted as the Brand and TM Police on all fronts

• Oversaw Packaging Production in the age of supply chain issues

• Photo Shoots, Video Shoots and TV Appearances:

  • Identified and hired photographers/videographer, engaged TV Show appearances, coordinated dates, locations, necessary personnel, managed food prep and acted as the food stylist

  MARKETING INITIATIVES FOR 11 CORPORATE STORES IN CENTRAL TEXAS AND CONROE

• Yearly Plans and Budgets:

  • Created data-driven annual Marketing/Media/Promotional Plans for the 11 corporate locations using Target Market Analysis, Site Studies and Comp Sales Reports

  • During 2020, aka, the global pandemic, sales only decreased by 3% and not one store closed

  • For 2021, store sales were up 17.6%

• Franchisee Oversight:

  • In addition to the 11 corporate restaurants, I oversaw (and was the approval process for) the marketing initiatives and content for 5 franchise locations. I also created most of their marketing materials

• Community Involvement:

  • Coordinated special events and sponsorships with the Director of Operations/GMs including delivering meals to hospitals during Covid, Golf, Clay Shooting, BBQ Cook-Off and Rodeo Sponsorships, Bridal and Quinceanera Shows, ongoing High School Team Dinners and Spirit Nights

  • Managed all outside donation requests and initiated a donation channel called Mo’Nation Donations

• 3rd Party Delivery Sites (UberEats, Door Dash):

  • Implemented marketing promotions, answered customer reviews and kept menus/prices/photos updated

• Coordinated Media Buys

• Oversaw the Trademark process with SMB’s law firm

• Entered Industry award contests and coordinated efforts to place highly in “Best of” contests

• Created and delivered presentations for the PE Firm/Investors and Franchise Partners

• (UN)Common Logic-Digital Marketing Firm:

  • Worked with their team on website SEO and CRO improvements (as the writer for the website)

  • Supplied content and weighed in on strategy for the PPC campaign

• Snackbox- Public Relations Firm:

  • Worked closely with the Snackbox team to create strategically relevant quarterly PR Roadmaps, supplied content

NEW RESTAURANT PROTOTYPE AND INTERIOR DESIGN:

• Managed and collaborated on new restaurant designs including interiors, furniture,

  lighting, merchandising and interior and exterior signage with Hip Hop Designs, Austin, and DP3 Architects, Greenville, SC

DESSERT COLLABORATION:

• Initiated and managed a dessert program with Sugar Shaker Bakery, Cedar Park, for SMB’s 8 Austin area locations, chose the vintage desserts (Snickerdoodles, Dr. Pepper Cake, Pecan Squares, Texas Ranger Cookies) and helped with recipe refinement

TECH:

Proficient on Adobe Illustrator/Stock Photo, Google and Microsoft Suites, Send Grid, Constant Contact, Mailchimp, Basecamp and Slack • Novice at WordPress but never crashed the site • Still learning the finer points of effective Google Ads • Know more than I ever thought I would about SEO and Keywords

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

FREELANCE COPYWRITER: Various agencies in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and Austin

• MasterCard, National Rent a Car, Kinkos, Saturn Cars, Sprint and Southwest Airlines, Reliant Energy B to B, the website for KMO Travel Clothing (now defunct), St Gabriel’s Catholic School, St Michael’s Catholic Academy and other non-profits

MARKETING COMMITTEE: St. Gabriel’s Catholic School

• Helped identify untapped markets, advised on budget allocations, and wrote ads as needed

ASSOCIATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR/COPYWRITER: Foote, Cone and Belding, San Francisco

• KEDS, Amazon.com, Levi and Company- Dockers, Gallo Wines

• Ran the KEDS account which entailed flying to Boston every other week for 2 years for 1-hour meetings

COPYWRITER: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco

• Pacific Bell, Sega, Pizza Hut, Polaroid Cameras, Isuzu, Haggar, The Body Shop

COPYWRITER: Hal Riney & Partners, San Francisco (now Publicis)

• Saturn Cars, The Mirage Hotel and Casino-Las Vegas, Alamo Rent-a-Car, Old Milwaukee Beer, KRON Channel 4

COPYWRITER: McCann-Erickson, New York

• Sony, ESPN, Nintendo, Coca-Cola, Martini and Rossi, Piper Heidsieck Champagne

INDUSTRY RECOGNITION:

• Awards:

  • The One Show, The San Francisco Show, New York Festivals, ANDY, AICP Award for Dialogue/Monologue

• Honors:

  • Work included in The American Advertising Museum's "Dream Girls" Retrospective

  • A TV commercial is part of the Museum of Modern Art New York's permanent collection

  • Recognized in The Paley Center Collection: https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=erin+walling+&p=1&item=AT:40738.041

• Press:

  • Profiled in Creativity magazine and Adweek's "Best TV Spots"

EDUCATION

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN:

• Bachelor of Science in Communications: Advertising Sequence

• Bachelor of Arts in Spanish: The History of Spain from 1600

UNIVERSIDAD DE VALENCIA, VALENCIA, SPAIN:

• Summer of graduate-level grammar and literature classes, beaches and beer

INTERESTS

• Live Music- I’m a member of Sonic Guild which keeps me going to concerts almost every week

• FC and Longhorns-I’m equally happy wearing burnt orange or verde, however, I’m distraught that Fagundez was traded

• Anything Foodie related- I love cooking, trying new restaurants, collecting cookbooks and I have my own kaffir lime tree for making Thai food

• When it’s under 100 degrees, I can be found kayaking, paddle boarding, hiking or walking around Lady Bird Lake

• Travel- I’ve visited 26 countries, and still have a very long bucket list. Ask me about the Siberia Experience in New Zealand

• Other stuff that keeps me out of trouble: lifting weights, movies, pastels or painting, historical fiction, interior design, walking my crazy Austin Pets Alive dog, and visiting my kids in NYC and Santa Barbara

• Great design in all things

INTERIORS AND EVENT EXPERIENCE: In case you’ve scrolled this far

INSIDE JOB:

• Interior Design Services- making suburbia less beige one room at a time

CO-CHAIR: “James Bond” Gala for St. Michael’s Catholic Academy, September 2018 - March 2019

• Collaborated on every aspect of a fundraising Gala for 250 guests at the Hotel Van Zandt

• Managed 30+ volunteers, ran meetings, oversaw budgets, coordinated with Hotel and AV reps, and chefs, designed decor and wrote online communications/ads, program, videos and slideshow

CHAIR: BBQ Throwdown Fundraiser for St. Michael’s Catholic Academy, May 2016 - December 2016

• Led a committee of 18 volunteers to organize a fundraiser for 130 guests with a cocktail hour, dinner, a BBQ contest, and live auction

• Managed logistics including: securing the location, catering, linens, set up/break down, rentals, hiring, marketing, music, and organized trash removal (really!)

DECOR: BBQ Throwdown Fundraiser for St. Michael’s Catholic Academy, May 2015 - December 2015

• Designed the decor including the layout of tables, bars and buffets, outdoor lighting, tablescapes and signage

CO-CHAIR: Senior Presentation Dinner for the National Charity League, November 2015 - May 2016

• Oversaw decor, made floral centerpieces, created graphics, arranged party favors, chose the menu and orchestrated a very tight schedule for 80 mothers and daughters at Chateau Bellevue

CREATIVE DIRECTOR: “Night at the Museum” Gala for St. Gabriel’s Catholic School, May 2012 - April 2013

• Created surprising and creative decor for a Gala at the Bob Bullock Museum for 400 guests

• Worked with vendors for lighting and linens, hired actors to dress as movie characters, designed and created original centerpieces, worked on invitation and teaser videos sent to the community

CREATIVE DIRECTOR: “La Bela Serata” Gala for St. Gabriel’s Catholic School, August 2007 - April 2008

• Created an unexpected Italian ambiance for a sit-down dinner, live and silent auctions for 340 attendees at the Hyatt. Collaborated on the concept and design of marketing materials