I’m a believer that the first 90 days at a job set the tone for the rest of your time in that position – you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression, and all that. But while you’re working hard to make a good impression, the job is also making an impression on you those first months. I’m now 74 days into my role as Field Marketing Manager for The Strategy Studio in Chicago, and as I settle into the nuances of the company, my position and my team, I feel that unmistakable twinge of satisfaction knowing that I am part of a team that is doing good work every day and collectively working toward the same goal.
I remember being introduced to the various Studio folks who sit in the Chicago office and feeling like I was being given a basket of puzzle pieces but no finished picture to work from. Before long, I better understood the ways that Product, Creative, and Strategy worked together, but it took me going out into the field and visiting offices and working with agents to see how The Studio really sings. As I got up to speed on all the new tools available to agents, I was blown away by the amount of creativity and hard work it took to create and launch the products. But no one really talks about what happens after the launch, and that’s where the field strategy team really gets to shine.
In my 74 days (and counting!), I’ve seen the field team dig in and become experts on Listing Concierge, and deftly answer the full gamut of agent questions. Field marketing is at its core all about support, and for the field strategy team, the support runs both ways. The field marketers champion the work of the Product and Creative teams to the agents, and in turn take the real-life experiences of the agents and turn that into valuable feedback, all in the service of doing the best work for the agents. When an agent stands up in an office meeting and holds up a Just Listed postcard and tells her fellow agents how her Listing Concierge order helped her win three new leads, she might not know that the postcard is a result of countless hours of creative and strategic work. But she knows she has been given the tools, training, and support to be more successful. In my first few months here, I’ve seen firsthand that The Studio is many different people digging in to do good work and achieve the same goal: helping agents live exceptional lives!
