SMX East 2014 Speaker Series: Joanna Lord on Authenticity in Internet Marketing

Joanna Lord has made a name for herself carving out marketing strategies at BigDoor Inc., moz and, now, Porch.com, where she recently signed on as vice president of marketing. Lord has a longstanding passion for all things involving Internet marketing, brand management and community growth.

She’ll be speaking at Search Marketing Expo (SMX) East 2014 in “The Future of a Brand” on Sept. 30 at 1:30 p.m. Come with tablet (of the digital or paper variety) in hand, because you will definitely want to take notes when Lord is on stage! Read on to discover some of Lord’s thoughts on marketing and authenticity in this exclusive pre-SMX East 2014 interview.

BCI: You make branding a fashion statement in both your personal and business life.  How important is a personal brand in today’s business world?

JL: To me a great brand really means you know what you stand for and you authentically execute that story in beautiful ways. It has less to do with how popular or famous or loud you are with that brand and more about how real and valuable it is to the world. So I think it’s really important to have a personal brand in today’s business world. I think knowing that story not only makes it easy for you to differentiate yourself from all the noise, but gives you this beautiful platform to do creative work that you love. I feel like the luckiest lady in the world when I share posts about the upcoming season’s fashion and then five minutes later I share commentary on the latest Facebook ad platform changes. It might seem odd or unrelated but it’s me, and I’ve built a community of awesome people that want to share in those moments and conversations with me.

In 140 characters or less, describe a winning brand …

A winning brand is one that touches you in a beautiful way. It stops you in your track, makes you think and leaves you in a better place.

What’s your personal branding goal for 2015?

I want to be more vulnerable in my blogging and writing. I have been humbled time and time again for the last three years as I grow into new roles, take on new challenges, and stretch into new disciplines. I don’t want to just share the wins and successes, I want to share the low points too. It takes time and usually a glass of wine (or three) to write the posts that share how badly you messed up, but those posts help me grow and help others so much. More of that this coming year. Should be an interesting one.

You just started as VP of Marketing at Porch.com, can you share some of your favorite winning aspects about the Porch brand?

I am so darn excited to have joined the Porch team as VP of Marketing. We have this brilliant team of creative, passionate, and kind people. It really shines through in the brand. The brand of Porch represents a number of things — trust, inspiration, approachability, love. We want to be the destination for everything home — if you are buying, building, selling, or researching. Our brand is about making the journey of your home a beautiful one. One that you enjoy and share and truly love. I couldn’t be more excited to participate in the shaping and sharing of this brand with the world. It’s something really special.

You’re very active on Instagram — can you leave us with your favorite picture of yourself? :)

Honestly, I loveeee Instagram. I love that I can be dressed in stilettos one day and then a scarf and flannel the next. But one of my favorites is this one, because I believe it. We all need to be our own hero.

The SMX East 2014 Speaker Series continues Thursday with Lisa Williams. Then, next week, Virginia Nussey and I commence liveblogging key sessions in NYC! Get our liveblog schedule here.

Kristi Kellogg is a journalist, news hound, professional copywriter, and social (media) butterfly. Currently, she is a senior SEO content writer for Conde Nast. Her articles appear in newspapers, magazines, across the Internet and in books such as "Content Marketing Strategies for Professionals" and "The Media Relations Guidebook." Formerly, she was the social media editor at Bruce Clay Inc.

See Kristi's author page for links to connect on social media.