We recently connected with Devin Beaford and have shared our conversation below.

Devin, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

My business name weDaBBle Brand Marketing came from a personal place. I was facing rejection after rejection in the job market due to my perceived lack of expertise in a certain area of marketing. I was qualified for different roles, but because I held a marketing generalist role for the majority of my career, there were always better applicants with more direct experience. So, weDaBBle was my way of owning the fact that because I’ve worked in most areas of marketing, and was forced to wear multiple hats as a team/department of one, I dabbled in it all: social media, PR, graphic design, video, copywriting, brand strategy, etc. weDaBBle, is a representation of dabbling in different areas of the creative marketing space, but also being very good in those spaces. And the cherry on top was finding a name that could emphasize and represent me, with my initials D, B and B, capitalized (Devin Burks-Beaford).

Devin, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was always the person more excited about the creativity and strategy behind the Super Bowl commercials than the game itself, so always knew media, to some degree, was where my passion was. It wasn’t until undergrad, though, when my love for marketing really grew. My psychology classes and consumer behavior classes essentially overlapped in coursework and a light bulb went off. The similarities between the two and elements that effortlessly worked together introduced me to the world of marketing and how I can incorporate my psychological background into the marketing world.

The road to marketing was not what I had originally planned, though. After I graduated I had trouble finding an entry-level marketing position that paid well. I planned on staying in the city that my now husband lived in, far away from home, and the stars were just not aligning. So, I took a role as an investment banking financial analyst, so out of left field for me, but ended up being so much more rewarding than I could’ve ever dreamed. I learned skills in market research, data analytics, competitor analysis, collaboration and formatting that I still use in my marketing role today.

I transitioned to an official marketing role at the same firm a few years later when the then marketing person retired, and I’ve been evolving the role ever since. The marketing issues this role presented inspired me to gain more insight into branding and strategy, so I got my Master’s in Integrated Marketing Communications, immediately applying my knowledge to the firm’s rebrand initiatives, social media expansion, and graphic design strategy. I now run the firm’s marketing and communication strategy as a whole and love it! My largest accomplishment thus far is being named as one of the Women in Content Marketing Awards’ Marketing Leader of the Year for Small Businesses Finalists. It is such an honor that I do not take lightly and am very touched that my hard work and endless support from my team and mentors has gotten me here.

Given all of this though, there was an itch I just couldn’t scratch in this role, and that was my need to work with more than one brand. I started weDaBBle Brand Marketing to have the opportunity to apply my expertise to business owners who were overwhelmed, confused, lost and in desperate need of a digital marketing strategy. I want them to grow, and I want their businesses to make their dreams come true. So I offer social media, branding and graphic design services.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Everyone always told me that work is work, it’s not supposed to be enjoyable. Or, “there is no such thing as a dream job.” This was something I had to unlearn in order to find happiness. I did all the “right” things they tell you to do as a child. Go to school, go to college, get a job. Then I realized how much time I spent at that job, and how much time I spent thinking about the job when I wasn’t even at the job, or all the things I had to do to prepare to go back to the job. A job determines where you live, how often you travel, and so many other factors of your day-to-day life.

All in all I realized that I needed to find what made me happy, and that was branding and content creation. So I made it my goal to create my own dream job, doing work I knew I enjoyed. Now, I know it’s not always butterflies and rainbows because something is bound to go wrong, be challenging and/or test you, but it’s much more worth it when you love what you do in the end.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

A great thing about what I do is that I’m not limited to where my clients live. I have clients everywhere from Toronto to Georgia and love keeping up with them just as easily as I do my more local clients.

While I communicate often via email with them my favorite way to update them on highlights, new strategy initiatives and more is via phone or video call. I think that hearing each other speak about the brand, hearing the passion behind their desires and goals is what fuels me to create the best digital marketing strategy for them.

My main goal with clients is making sure they view me as reliable, someone who will not miss a deadline and also foster transparent communication. I want them to feel comfortable working with me, knowing that I’ll deliver for them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.wedabblebrandmarketing.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wedabblemarketing/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devinburksbeaford/