My Role As A Senior Digital Strategist – An Interview With Crystal Carter

Optix: What is your role at Optix and what does it involve?

Crystal: I am a Senior Digital Strategist, which means that I get to research and implement strategic digital marketing activity for my clients. I spend a lot of time crunching numbers, learning about new updates from Google, crawling sites, finding and solving problems.  

I have been formally in this role for about a year and I genuinely love it. On an average day, I’m working on ads, content, social, search, and technical solutions for multiple clients. I find the research element really fascinating, I enjoy working with my clients and love seeing the results in action.

Optix: Why did you choose this career and how long did it take you to reach this rung on the career ladder? 

Crystal: I’ve been working in marketing and digital for more than 10 years. I’ve been an in house marketer for Tomy Toys, Exeter City Council and a few small businesses in around Devon. I started with Optix as a freelancer but I’ve found working with the team here really rewarding. 

Optix: What motivates you in your role? 

Crystal: I love the internet and I’ve always been fascinated by what it can do. I know I’m showing my age, but I’ve been online since 1992 and my American university was one of the first to see Facebook. This means that I’ve got a good handle on how different platforms have evolved and how new platforms can be used to increase reach and exposure.

Optix: What advice would you give someone just starting out in Digital Marketing?

Crystal: My best advice for those interested in digital marketing is to have a go. Start a blog, vlog, Insta account, on something you’re passionate about and see where you can take it. If you are working with a company that could be doing more online, let them know. Send some proposals, I think you’ll be surprised at the response. 

Optix: What advice would you give someone who is looking to take the next step on the digital marketing career ladder? 

Crystal: Training. In digital marketing, the tools available to you are constantly changing. You can’t assume that the knowledge that you had about a platform 6 months ago will still apply. Core updates from Google, new features from Instagram, can completely change your strategy overnight.

My team regularly runs digital marketing training for our clients and for ourselves to keep on top of new features and share ways to make it work for us. Finding a reliable training resource is essential.

Optix: What are your favourite Digital Marketing resources?

Crystal: The obvious answer is Google Analytics. This is my go-to for most things. I use it so much it’s almost not worth mentioning! But it is absolutely crucial for anyone with a website to have Google Analytics set up on their site – and to be able to interpret the data.

With Google’s emphasis on Mobile search and making the web lighting fast,  I’m also a big fan of GTMetrix, PageSpeedInsights, and TestMySite. Those three tools work really well together to help solve speed problems. 

Optix: Why do you like working at Optix

Crystal: I love my team. It’s a soppy thing to say, I know. But when I come in, I am always grateful for the people that I work with. We work very hard, but we support each other and can have a laugh. These things make all the difference to the everyday.

Also Spud.