Interview with Christina De Leon

Let me introduce our next fabulous woman professional, Christina De Leon. Christina born and raised in Germany, she moved to the US to study Marketing & Communications and build her career. Please welcome her story about her PPC journey!

 

 

Share the story of how you first got into PPC!

I was first introduced to Google Adwords in one of my classes at USC’s Annenberg Graduate Program! We were tasked with generating leads for a local Kids Karate Studio – I still remember the excitement I felt when I saw conversions coming in rather quickly and knew right then and there that I just found my passion in the Digital Marketing space. I started freelancing during college to get some real-life PPC experience and was very lucky to land an amazing job as a Digital Marketing Manager for a software company right after I graduated.

What was the proudest moment of your PPC career?

I was tasked to expand a brand globally and worked closely with digital marketers from various countries to get keyword research off the ground and translate the ads into other languages! It was a very long, but extremely rewarding project that led to increasing the brand’s search presence and occupying top SERP real estate in over 85 countries.

Do you struggle with maintaining a healthy work-life balance?

Absolutely! I have always been very career-focused and it can get hard for me to get out of work mode and just relax. I oftentimes obsess over projects and get stressed out easily – this is definitely something I have been working on and my family has been a big help in calming me down.

Have you ever experienced any problems or challenges as a PPC because you’re a woman?

As a woman it can sometimes be tough to make yourself heard in a more male-dominated setting – I have had quite a few instances where I was talked over constantly, or couldn’t even get a word in. You have to be persistent to be heard and sometimes that can be construed as being “too aggressive” for a female.

Have you ever had any advantages or benefits as a PPC because you’re a woman?

I can’t think of a particular instance where I had an advantage! But I do think as women we can connect with people on a more personal level, which can build a lot of trust with clients and also co-workers.

Are there any differences in how you’re treated as a female by clients?

I think it depends highly on the industry the client is in – when I worked in the automotive industry I wasn’t taken very seriously by clients until they realized my dad is a classic car collector and basically grew up in car workshops.

Has a client ever underestimated you because you’re a woman?

Not my clients but I have definitely been underestimated by co-workers/peers throughout my career – the only thing you can do about that is to go above and beyond and show them your worth by proving yourself every day!

If you could wave a magic wand and change something in the PPC world, what would it be?

I would like to see more collaboration on the PPC and SEO side! In my opinion, oftentimes there is a big disconnect between the two, and sharing findings cross-department could be extremely valuable in taking a business to the next level.

What about being a PPC do you enjoy the most?

The most rewarding aspect of PPC to me is how small tweaks or additions can elevate an account. I get very excited about ad copy tests and obsess over seeing CTR’s and conversion rates going up over time. Nothing feels better than to go back to a client or executive and showing them what kind of impact these tests had on the overall account performance.