A Dash of BusinessPaprika

Content Strategy at the MTA

March 7, 2020

Content Strategy at the MTA The recruiter was vague when we first talked. The project sounded interesting but I was happy where I was, and didn’t hear anything compelling enough to consider a move. That all changed on the next call when she revealed I’d be doing content strategy at the MTA. They’d just launched [...] Read More

I Hate FAQs

February 4, 2019

Here’s a free idea for anyone thinking of redesigning a site: get rid of the FAQs. Each and every one. I hate FAQs. Hate, hate, hate, hate them. I hate them so much I’m not going to waste time making an FAQ image for this post. FAQs are a leftover from the interwebs era and [...] Read More

The Chairman Mao Watch, My All-Time Favorite SWAG

July 23, 2018

I’ve spent many a year in Corporate America, and I’ve gotten a lot of free stuff. I’ve thrown almost all of it away but one item remains: the Chairman Mao watch I got when I worked at Monster. Here’s how it landed on my wrist. I worked at Monster in 2005. It was past its [...] Read More

Why is a Taxonomy Important?

May 2, 2018

Why is a taxonomy important? Our clients needed to know. They’d never worked on a web project before and didn’t understand why we couldn’t just add new top-level pages to their site whenever the need arose. We’d presented a ton of visuals but they couldn’t grasp how the taxonomy blended with UX and design to [...] Read More

My 2018 Vision Board

February 7, 2018

Last year I started freelancing for real. In December I was thrilled, and a little shocked, to see that 2017 was more successful than I thought it would be. I wanted the good juju to continue into 2108 so when I received an invite to Ripley Strategy’s 2018 Vision Board party to kick off the new [...] Read More

My Confab Top Five: What I Learned at Confab Intensive 2017

October 29, 2017

Attending Brain Traffic’s Confab Intensive in fabulous Denver, CO was one of the best decisions I’ve made in 2017. As a freelancer I don’t always get the chance to interact with, and learn from, colleagues on a daily basis. I had a hunch Confab would fill that void and I’m thrilled my gut instincts were [...] Read More

Writing for Trump…My Days at Monster

September 18, 2017

No, it’s not what you’re thinking. I didn’t write for the orange Trump. I wrote for the other one—the green Trump that used to be the heart of Monster’s brand. I worked for Monster around 2005, well after its “When I Grow Up” Super Bowl-ad heyday. At the time Monster’s biggest problem was figuring out [...] Read More

Omnichannel Retail on Display at Amazon and Whole Foods

September 16, 2017

In my travels as a messaging consultant I often got a sneak peek into emerging business trends. A couple of years ago I helped Wipro and FedEx create messaging for omnichannel retail. Though they were entering the market from different angles both companies had the same goal. They wanted to help big retailers sell, and [...] Read More

Content Meets AI in the Ford Owner Mobile App

September 6, 2017

Writing content for the Ford Owner mobile app remains one of my all-time favorite projects from my days at Razorfish. I worked with an incredibly smart team, took my writing into new directions, and expanded my skill set into the big, bad, fascinating world of content strategy. It also introduced me to artificial intelligence. Working [...] Read More

I Love Content Audits

July 10, 2017

There’s a headline I never, ever thought I’d write. Never heard of a content audit? It’s just what you’re picturing: Someone (or several someones) goes though a live site, link-by-link, to see how much content’s there, and how good that content is. Along the way the auditor keeps track of the findings in a fabulous, [...] Read More

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Emily is an amazing analytical human who can turn verbal diarrhea into pithy copy that cuts through the noise and makes an impact.

Calum Kilgour | Slingshot Edge

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Emily in several message development workshops. The workshops are intense and a lot of work, but made fun and exciting by Emily and her team. They are masters of pulling out the significant details and helping craft a message that communicates the true value of your products and services. Emily in particular is very astute in assigning value to ideas making it possible for the true message to rise to the top.

Michael Rocco | Power School

Emily is among the best writers I had the privilege of working with, during my nearly-20 years in marketing. Not only is Emily a great pro and a wonderful writer, who knows how to capture the essence of a story and pass it to the reader in a clear and precise way, but she is also a fun person to work with.

Ilan Vagenshtein | Marketing, Sales Enablement & Business Development

Emily worked with my team at iCrossing as a freelance Content Strategist for about 7 months and became an invaluable member of our team. Once she’s immersed herself into a project she becomes a go-to resource, retaining even the most minute details. I felt extremely comfortable when Emily took responsibility for a piece of the project because I knew it would be done well, on time, and she would be able to speak to any questions that our clients may have had.

Charlie Chapin | Associate Director of Operations, Essence

Emily is one of the most astute, analytical, and strategic forward-thinking executives I have worked with in a marketing capacity — all helped with a keen creative mind and an exceptional sense of humor. Her ability to synthesize complex business needs and devise a creative win-win solution for her clients truly sets her apart from her competitors. I would not hesitate to use her services when the need arises.

Jeffrey Hirschberg | Writer-Director/Film Professor