DDB Worldwide

Social Strategy

Client: Capital One

Year: April 2018 - August 2020

Role: Senior Social Strategist

Role & responsibilities

As the Senior Social Strategist at DDB NY, I led social strategy for a portfolio of major brands, including Capital One, Lufthansa Airlines, Kroger, and Unilever. In this role, I oversaw the development and execution of innovative social media campaigns, ensuring strict alignment with client objectives and brand guidelines. I cultivated strong client relationships, serving as a trusted advisor on emerging social media trends, platform best practices, and strategic opportunities. My responsibilities included managing and mentoring a dedicated team of social media strategists and specialists, fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment. I was also responsible for developing and presenting compelling social media proposals and recommendations to senior leadership and clients. A core part of my role involved continuously monitoring the dynamic social media landscape, identifying emerging trends and competitive activities to inform strategic decision-making. I collaborated extensively with cross-functional teams, including creative, account management, and analytics, to deliver truly integrated marketing solutions. I consistently drove innovation in social media strategy, actively exploring new platforms, technologies, and creative approaches to keep our clients at the forefront. Ultimately, a key aspect of my contribution was demonstrating the tangible value of social media to clients, which directly led to significant incremental business growth.

CASE STUDY

Capital One NCAA March Madness Social Strategy

Client: Capital One

Project: NCAA March Madness Social Media Campaign

Multi-Platform Optimization: Tailored the social strategy and content specifically for key platforms where basketball fans were most active: Facebook/Instagram, Twitter (now X), and Snapchat. This involved understanding the nuances of each platform's audience and content formats.

Integration with Broadcast & Sponsorship: Ensured seamless integration of social media efforts with Capital One's broader March Madness sponsorship, including broadcast commercials and on-the-ground activations, to amplify brand messaging and create a cohesive fan experience.

Focus on Share of Voice & Brand Recall: The core strategic objectives were to break through the intense advertising noise surrounding March Madness, significantly increase Capital One's share of voice within relevant social conversations, and drive record ad recall among viewers.

Proving the Value of Social: Throughout the campaign, focused on rigorous performance tracking and analysis to demonstrate the tangible impact of social media on key business metrics, directly contributing to increased client investment in social.

RESULTS

Record Ad Recall Growth: Achieved record ad recall growth for Capital One's advertising across key social platforms: +4 points on Facebook and Instagram, +6 points on Twitter (X), and +5 points on Snapchat. These significant increases demonstrate the effectiveness of the social strategy in making Capital One's messaging memorable to the target audience.

Demonstrated Value & Agency Revenue Growth: Played a direct role in increasing agency revenue by $20M by proving the value of social offerings through successful campaigns like Capital One March Madness, leading to incremental work with Capital One and other major brands. This highlights your ability to translate social media success into tangible business outcomes for the agency.

Enhanced Brand Perception: Contributed to enhancing Capital One's brand association with the excitement and engagement of NCAA March Madness, fostering positive sentiment among basketball fans.

Engagement Lift (Capital One Specific): Achieved a 3x Year-over-Year (YoY) engagement lift for Capital One, demonstrating the success of the lifestyle-first content approach in fostering stronger emotional connections with Millennial and Gen Z audiences.

Additional Works