Jessica is one part massive email marketing nerd and one part permission-marketing evangelist. She’s stimulated ROI in customer—and data-driven marketing for a diverse clientele, including Applebee’s, IHOP, Fogo de Chão, Dairy Queen, Spirit Airlines, Winnebago, Motel 6, Delta Faucet, Planet Fitness, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Water.org, Hallmark Baby, At Home, and Boulevard Brewing Company, and many more.
In 2016, she was rated in the top 50 Awesome Marketing Women to follow by Search Engine Journal. In 2017, the Kansas City Direct Marketing Association honored Jessica as the Direct Marketer of the Year. In 2018, she was named one of DMNews magazine’s 40 Under 40, honoring the best and most accomplished marketers in the industry under 40.
She’s been quoted in numerous articles and trade publications, including being featured in Graydon’s Data-Driven Marketing Guidebook (published in print and ebook, in Flemish and French).
As an evangelist, Jessica also spreads the good word of great email marketing from the stage. Since 2012, she’s lead trainings and spoken in front of audiences from dozens to 1200+, from New York to Bucharest, and from Vancouver Canada to SXSW Interactive in Austin. She’s also taught email marketing and data-driven marketing in higher education, including guest lecturing at Johnson County Community College, University of Kansas (Edwards campus) and teaching a full 45-hour module on email and data-driven marketing for Harbour.Space University in Barcelona, Spain.
Her passions include good food, good people, and great email marketing. As of January 2023, she’s the Owner & Chief Strategist of her own consultancy, BetterAve.
The Backstory
After starting her career in radio advertising, writing spots and even voicing some of them, Jessica dove into direct marketing for a Broadway theater presenter, Theater League. That was a job with great perks (for a gal who grew up in a theater family), and her first chance to be on stage in front of thousands of people, promoting season ticket packages. It was also at Theater League that she first came to the email and content marketing world. She quickly became addicted to measurable, targeted, direct marketing. After years of focusing on return on marketing investment (ROI or ROMI) and customer retention, she fell in love with email marketing for its immediacy and the complex possibilities of relationship marketing.
She spent over seven years with digital marketing agency and email software company, emfluence, wielding email marketing as a measurable, personalizable and reproducible medium for clients from coast to coast. In 2016, she joined the Barkley team as Director of Data-Driven Marketing, implementing the best practices she preaches for international Barkley clients, before going out on her own in 2023 with BetterAve.
Since 2008, she’s used email marketing and other emerging digital tools to work with clients in a broad (and broadening!) range of clients, from meat and rice growers to project management software, casual dining and high-end restaurants, financial services, and nonprofits.
I have asked Jessica to speak at at least eight of my events around the country in the last 12 months, including having her as a keynote speaker. Partly due to the great content she provides, but also due to the great way she delivers it. Very engaging and upbeat presentation that always provides practical action items and takeaways. She brings a true passion for the subject matter and captures her audience’s attention, working with them rather than just speaking to them.