TEDx University of Michigan - Marketing Leadership
Phase 1 — Marketing Lead (2023–2024)
My Role
Led a 15-member marketing team to design and execute TEDxUofM’s full-year marketing strategy for its 2024 annual conference, Golden Ratio.
The Challenge
When I stepped in as Marketing Lead in May 2023, there was almost no budget for the next conference. The only way to fund it was to sell out all 1,400 tickets through pre-sales—a risky goal given how rare early buyers were.
To make it happen, my co-director and I designed a two-stage plan:
(1) Fall 2023 — build capability and brand presence, and
(2) Early 2024 — convert that momentum into ticket sales.
Stage 1 — Fall 2023: Team Presence & Marketing Practice
We treated the fall semester as a learning lab.
I divided the marketing team into online/offline subgroups to increase agility and gave every member full ownership of their own experiment — social media, tabling, creative campus promotions.
We built a daily storytelling calendar on Instagram, rotating team takeovers and behind-the-scenes posts to grow engagement.
We also hosted TEDx “Diag Day,” an interactive pop-up where students played games and shared their thoughts on Golden Ratio.
By December, awareness was high, the team was confident, and we had a foundation ready for the big push ahead.
Stage 2 — Jan–Feb 2024: Full Conference Promotion Campaign
In the spring, our focus shifted from awareness to conversion.
We created Valentine’s BOGO ticket events and referral discounts to drive urgency.
We produced speaker highlight videos to humanize the conference.
We shared behind-the-scenes footage to build FOMO.
Through daily posting, tabling, and cross-campus promotion, we sustained visibility until the final day.
We also designed a post-event survey to measure attendee satisfaction and guide next year’s improvement.
Impact
Within just two months, the campaign sold out all 1,400 seats, built a 50-person waitlist, and generated $23K in revenue — fully funding the 2024 conference for the first time in TEDxUofM history.
Phase 2 — Senior Marketing Director (2024–2025)
My Role
Served as advisor and co-strategist for TEDxUofM’s 2025 annual conference, Rooted, guiding the new Marketing Lead and ensuring leadership continuity for a 100-member organization during a major transition year.
Stage 1 — Fall 2024: Remote Advising & System Building
While studying abroad in London, I mentored the new lead remotely. My role evolved from execution to building systems and frameworks that could outlast individuals.
I wrote TEDxUofM’s first-ever Marketing Transition Guide—a 40-page playbook on content planning, partnerships, and analytics.
We compiled case studies from the 2023–2024 campaign into an onboarding toolkit, and I ran weekly online sessions with the new lead to refine strategy and leadership.
Even from abroad, I helped maintain consistent brand tone and visual identity across all social media channels, ensuring the TEDxUofM presence stayed strong.
Stage 2 — Jan–Feb 2025: On-Site Advisory & Campaign Recovery
When I returned to campus in January, the team was struggling—only 100 of 1,400 tickets had been sold, morale was low, and execution lacked direction.
Together with the new lead, I restructured the campaign, focusing every effort on sales recovery and leadership clarity.
We rebuilt the team’s workflow using the guidebook framework, set clear accountability systems, and reestablished momentum through daily syncs and feedback.
I also led targeted outreach to 4,000+ past attendees, faculty, and community partners, introducing data-driven messaging and academic discount codes tied to speaker themes.
Most importantly, I mentored the lead through the process of crisis management and adaptive decision-making—learning how to lead through pressure, not just plans.
Impact & Reflection
Within two months, the team recovered over 900 ticket sales and restored TEDxUofM’s operational stability ahead of the 2025 conference.
This experience taught me the art of advisory leadership—guiding from behind the scenes, balancing mentorship with strategic oversight, and turning short-term recovery into a sustainable system for future teams. It reminded me how deeply I’ve grown through TEDxUofM — and how much I truly cherished every part of the journey.
