We recently connected with Sydney Pope and have shared our conversation below.

Sydney, appreciate you joining us today. Alright, let’s jump into one of the most exciting parts of starting a new firm – how did you get your first client who was not a friend or family?

My first client came from a connection I made during an internship. In 2020, in my last year of college studying public relations (PR) at Eastern Michigan University (EMU), I took a course called “The Agency” where students got to work with real clients. My client was from a nonprofit in Detroit. She was happy with my work and offered me an internship that carried me through the rest of college.

By the end of 2021, she had moved on to a new nonprofit. She remembered the work I had done and reached out to ask if I could run a social media campaign for her new organization. Because of my background and freelance experience, they also invited me to interview for an open digital marketing position — and I landed the job. That role helped me develop my expertise as a digital marketing manager.

Through that job, I met more clients and my portfolio kept growing. I’ve since worked with all kinds of organizations and people — nonprofits, small businesses, startups, local political campaigns, artists, and more. I started out doing PR work, but as I kept learning and earned my master’s degree in integrated marketing communications (IMC), I was able to offer more services and eventually moved into integrated marketing management.

Sydney, 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 specialize in helping brands communicate clearly and connect with the right people. My work covers creative message strategy, digital and direct marketing, social media marketing, and customer relationship management, all backed by a solid background in PR and marketing.

I bring fresh, creative ideas to every project and focus on strategies that actually work. Throughout my career, I have played a key role in building and running marketing campaigns from start to finish, with results that speak for themselves.

I stay on top of industry trends so I can adapt quickly and keep my clients ahead of the curve. With years of hands-on experience, I know how to lead marketing efforts that drive real engagement and lasting results.

I graduated from EMU with a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations in 2020. Two years later, I went back to EMU to earn my Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications, where I built on my skills in branding, digital strategy, and campaign development.

That education set the stage for a marketing career that has taken me across many industries. I’ve worked with nonprofits, small businesses, and startups in fields like education, technology, healthcare, and career counseling.

I’m always looking to grow. I stay current by keeping up with industry news, taking on projects that challenge me, conducting ongoing research, and having real conversations with other professionals in my field.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My journey started at EMU, and it wasn’t a straight path. I started as a psychology major, then switched to nursing after seeing how rewarding my mother’s career in the field was. But after a year, I realized nursing wasn’t the right fit for me, even though I have a lot of respect for the profession.

I turned to EMU’s career counseling services for guidance, and it changed everything. After going through some assessments and conversations, three fields stood out: marketing, PR, and advertising. PR felt like the best fit because of its focus on teamwork, storytelling, and real-world experience. Once I made the switch, the coursework clicked right away and felt directly connected to the work I wanted to do. A couple of years after earning my bachelor’s degree in PR, I wanted to deepen my expertise in the field — so I returned to grad school to pursue a master’s degree in IMC.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The lesson I had to unlearn was simple: stop being reluctant to lead. In high school, I was always the one who stepped up in group projects. But in college, I pulled back from that. Everything changed in the “The Agency” course in my Public Relations program, where I had no choice but to take charge again.

The student leading our group wasn’t getting the job done, and our reputations were on the line before we even had careers. I didn’t want my work to suffer or fail the class, so I went to my professor and asked to take over as group leader. She said yes, and things turned around fast. Tasks were divided properly, and the client was happy with what we delivered.

Had I not stepped up, I would have failed the course — and more importantly, I would not have impressed the client or secured the internship that ultimately launched my career.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sydneyepope.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydneyepope