Written by Vicki Powers
I’m a communicator at heart. My love for journalism and *all-things-words* started back in seventh grade in my first journalism class. I could never imagine, as my 12-year-old self, that this class would kick off my career path and provide such rewarding experiences and highlights.
One strength I bring to the MPD team as a new principal is an entrepreneurial spirit. More than half my career (18 years) has been from an entrepreneurial mindset. After learning about processes and business buzzwords for 10 years working at APQC (an original MPD client), it was only natural to begin to write about them for a national audience. My first published clip was in KM World! I later evolved into writing for Business 2.0, Entrepreneur, CMO, United’s flight magazine (Hemispheres), and a variety of trade and custom publications focusing on business, technology, and marketing.
I also built a digital website property, Houston on the Cheap, that I eventually sold nine years later. While I stumbled into the business by accident, it ultimately reached 10 million page views and made a difference for loyal Houstonians looking for free and cheap fun. The story that still gives me goosebumps is the woman who left a homeless shelter because she attended a Mattress Firm event shared on my site and won a mattress – exactly what was required to leave because of her two young boys. The site definitely provided some of my favorite career highlights and became a community. And as one long-time fan of the site recently shared when she found me on LinkedIn:
“Your posts and what you shared were so much more than saving money and things to do with your family. You provided a service, an outlet, and a type of ministry. I don’t know how or when, but I hope you return to the masses one day… soon. Your voice is missed.”
Another strength I bring to MPD are the digital marketing chops to support our clients. In 2021, I completed a 10-week Digital Marketing Science certification course from the University of California, Silicon Valley to learn the latest in digital marketing, content marketing, social media, analytics, email marketing, and SEO. These broad-based skills, that I originally learned through my hyperlocal site, are exactly what our small business clients need as we get involved to do some, or all, of their marketing plans.
And those career highlights I mentioned… here are just a few: interviewing Al Roker on his Houston charity tour, spending 24 hours on an offshore oil rig to write “A Day in the Life” piece, and receiving a Disney invitation to take a comp adventure for seven days on Disney Magic where I wrote why adults should take a Disney cruise, even without kids.
I am thrilled to be a part of this women-owned business making a difference for those in DFW-area and beyond.
