As a member of the business, communications, and marketing faculty at the UNH College of Professional Studies Online, Erin Holt brings a wealth of experience from her successful professional career in these industries to our programs.
Erin earned a master's degree in professional communications from Clark University and holds undergraduate degrees in Marketing and Communications and Child Psychology. Erin has worked in marketing and
communications for over eighteen years for private and nonprofit organizations throughout New Hampshire. She is currently the Director of Marketing and Communications for Northeast Delta Dental, where she leads the strategic planning and implementation of the company's marketing and communication efforts and corporate giving. She also has extensive experience in public relations, industry research, website content optimization, SEO and website accessibility.
What attracted you to pursue a career in marketing? What do you love most about the field?
Marketing was not my first choice of career, but after not getting into some of the courses I wanted in college, I took a couple of marketing courses. I had one professor who made the field exciting and encouraged me to continue looking into the field. I fell in love with the creativity needed and how it intersected with data and analytics.
What prompted you to start teaching?
My experiences in graduate school made me consider teaching. There was a mix of traditional students and adult learners, and many of my professors were professionals in the field and chose to teach as well. This combination created an amazing classroom experience. I learned so much from the experiences of my professors and classmates, most importantly the real-life application of the topics we were discussing in the classroom. It was exciting to think I could bring some of those same learning experiences to others.
What do you enjoy most about teaching adult students?
I have always been impressed by the dedication it takes for adult students to pursue education while balancing their everyday life and career. I think this plays a huge role in their engagement in the course and interest in the topics and material being covered in the course. They bring a different energy to a classroom. They ask challenging questions, are interested in the ‘why’ behind things and use their life experience as a tool in their coursework. All things I thoroughly appreciate.
One of my favorite parts of every course is the discussion boards. The experience that adult students bring with them is beneficial to everyone and I have learned a lot from their stories and insights over the past ten-plus years. One thing that always stands out is the interaction between new professionals in a field and those that are more seasoned, especially the questions asked and the willingness to share experiences and lessons learned.
Why is communication such an important element of effective marketing?
Communication is at the core of marketing and so many other parts of life. Without communication, and more importantly effective communication, an organization will never be successful in conveying their brand or core values and without these there is no connection to consumers. Clear and effective communication sets an organization apart from a competitor, fosters beneficial relationships with customers and establishes an organization's identity.
What advice do you have for someone who wants to pursue a marketing career?
I think it comes down to something that I heard a lot as a child, “Learn something new every day.” It may sound simple, but it truly is important in a field that changes so quickly. The marketing field is evolving at an unbelievable rate, with technological advances being one of the major drivers. If you approach the field with an open mind, always looking for new ways of doing things and to be creative, success will follow. I wake up every day with the intent to learn something new about the field; a new use of technology, a new way an organization is doing something, a major success or failure of a marketing campaign – anything new or different. Some of the biggest successes in marketing are when someone tries something new. And, it helps to love data and statistics just as much as being creative!