How I Work: Kelli Graham, senior digital marketing specialist at Belk

Office location

2801 West Tyvola Road (near the airport)

Job Title

Senior Digital Marketing Specialist

What do you actually do?

I manage Belk’s social media channels including the strategic planning, content creation, scheduling, analysis of results, and competitor tracking. I am mainly responsible for Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Sweepstakes at Belk. I work on our calendar to support company initiatives, store promotions, events, and merchandising priorities. We as a team work to balance our engagement and branding with our sales and promotions across all our social media channels. We represent Belk’s brand in a way that is native and appropriate for each channel. We want to engage with our customers and also inform them about our products and promotions. Our campaigns tie in with other marketing outlets like email, print advertising, tv commercials, and interactive banner ads. We work with teams across the company to make sure we are supporting the business through our different marketing tools. Or others might say I just play on Facebook all day.

Commute

15 minutes

What do you do during your commute?

Flip through the radio stations trying to find music – talk radio and commercials annoy me in the mornings. Or I just think about the day ahead silently.

Phone Type

Android – Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge

Desk photo

Gadgets you can’t live without

Phone, laptop, second monitor

Do you listen to music while you work?

Occasionally I will listen to Pandora (top 40 – pop/hip hop) when I really need to focus on something but usually I am headphone free so I can collaborate with my co-workers. We work in a very open environment and work with one another to produce the best results. You will often find us checking details, copy, and images with one another for an upcoming promotion. The open communication gives you a sounding board for your work and extra resources to find the information you need.

What’s your favorite spot for a business lunch? Your order?

We don’t have a lot of selection for restaurants near us but our team often walks over to the shopping center across the street to choose from five options. I like going to Jersey Mike’s for a #13.

Social media habits

On constantly… it’s my job. I am mainly on Facebook and Twitter for work but will also check-in on our Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and Google+ to track results. I engage with our customers’ comments and posts, checkout competitors’ channels, and review our ongoing posts. Social Media is always evolving so in conjunction with my team, our agency, and our internal partners, we are always looking for new and innovative ways to connect with our followers. Personally, I check my own accounts occasionally during the day but there is plenty of work social media to keep me busy.

To-do list manager

Paper, notebook, post-its, and Outlook calendar. I love making to do lists!

What everyday thing are you really good at?

Pushing our team to innovate and not succumb to last-year-itus. With my background in Innovation at Belk, I try to test new ideas and think of ways to improve our efforts. Everyone on the team enjoys testing new types of ads and working on new projects to make our marketing event better!

Best time-saving shortcut or Charlotte life hack

It’s easier to get around in SouthEnd if you walk instead of drive.

Sleep routine

7-8 hours a night…mornings are rough for me…like 6 alarms rough, lol

Where do you go around Charlotte to get away from the office?

I enjoy going out to lunch away from the office occasionally. Loving the lunch spot selection at Park Road Shopping Center lately! Or I will go home to make lunch and relax for a little bit. I live in SouthEnd, so after work I enjoy happy hour at the places near my apartment.

What did you eat for breakfast this morning?

Scrambled eggs

If you weren’t doing your current job, what would you be doing?

I love what I do now but my other potential career path was kindergarten teacher… my mom said I didn’t have the patience for it.

Best job advice you’ve received

It’s ok not to go down the path you originally thought you would. This especially helped me when I graduated from college in 2012 and the job market was extremely competitive. I took an internship with no job description at Belk in Innovation, and I loved it! I learned a ton in that job and it evolved into a fantastic career at Belk. Now I work in Marketing doing another job I love. Things may not always work out exactly how you planned but it is important to take risks and try new things. I am so happy I took that advice to heart!

Last book you read (grade it on a A-F scale)

I just joined a new book club and our first read was The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. I’d give it an “A” – Fabulous and empowering book!

What’s one thing people don’t know about Charlotte that they should?

Charlotte natives aren’t as rare as you think!

Is there anything else that we didn’t ask that you’d like to tell our readers?

Belk is a fabulous place to work and shop (shameless plug)! Myself and a few other co-workers founded a Young Professionals Business Resource Group, YoPros, at Belk. We host a variety of events from professional development presentations to networking events! This group provides the young professionals at Belk’s corporate office with the opportunity to network with others, learn about different jobs, grow professionally, and connect to the Charlotte community.