We were lucky to catch up with Kelsey Maline recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kelsey, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I think it takes resilience, flexibility, drive, determination, and focus. When I lost my job to COVID in September 2020, I contacted my cousin, who was doing remote marketing work, which is my educational and professional background, for an estate planning attorney. I asked her if that attorney might know someone who may need similar work done. She admitted she didn’t want the job anymore and trained me to take over. I learned an entirely new field, systems, processes, and gained a lot of new professional experience, all remotely and all on the fly. Since then, I have been doing remote contract work for numerous estate planning attorneys all over the nation, have joined a network of contacts in a community, and have even branched into immigration law.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m Kelsey, born in Pittsburgh, PA, and I’ve spent my life in the western Pennsylvania region. I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a B.A. in Communication in 2013, and have worked in numerous areas of the field, including for nonprofits, newspapers, a TV station, and my alma mater. In 2020, I began my current venture of providing marketing contract work to estate planning attorneys.

When I learned I was losing my job due to COVID in September 2020, I contacted my cousin, who was doing remote marketing contract work for an estate planning attorney, to ask if that attorney might know anyone who would need similar help. My cousin admitted she didn’t want the job anymore and trained me to take over. I learned an all-new field, systems, processes, and tasks, all remotely and all as I went along.

Since then, I’ve gotten connected to a network of attorneys and have worked for numerous clients all over the nation. I’ve learned so much and acquired many new skills.

Some of the services I provide include posting blogs to and making updates to websites, social media content creation, scheduling, and management, newsletter creation and scheduling, creating and sending email campaigns, creating and managing email and text automations, helping with virtual and in-person event set-up, execution, and follow-up, creating marketing materials, replying to client reviews, creating and editing legal documents, gathering and preparing deeds, assisting with legal and special projects, and more.

I’m also an engagement/wedding photographer as the owner/operator of Kelsey April Photography, where I love getting to be creative as I tell the stories of my amazing clients through photos.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I think it’s being able to put a lot of yourself into what you create; your own ideas, vision, preferences, etc., rather than having to follow a design, formula, or instructions that someone else gave you.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Regarding my contract work for attorneys, I think it might’ve been helpful if I’d researched and tried to connect with more relevant groups/organizations to meet more potential clients.

For my photography business, I wish I’d listened to more podcasts and learned and read more about being a small business owner, as well as tried to connect more with other small business owners.

Contact Info:

• Website: Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelseyaprilphoto/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kelseyaprilphoto/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelsey-maline-8bb6a995/

Image Credits

Kelsey Maline/Kelsey April Photography LLC