Hi there! It’s me, Darren.

This all began where an interest & a hobby met academics and experience.

I am a marketing and communications strategist by day, and a creative-everything the rest of the time. It all started at Goose Creek High School, in Graphic Technology classes. My career in marketing began at the College of Charleston. This is where my hobbies and studies all came full-circle. Content is key, and so is being able to design, and get it to the right eyes.

It sounds cheesy, but being in marketing and photography is fulfilling. From meeting clients to working with families and celebrating with seniors or newly-engaged couples – nothing brings me more joy. Engaging and understanding the project and the purpose is like a puzzle, and I treat every opportunity as a challenge to make my best work yet.

From logo design, photo sessions, and marketing strategy, I strive to create content that is client-centric. And I ALWAYS have fun while doing it.

-DC

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Education

College of Charleston, SC
B.S. in Marketing

Experience

Greystar

Manager, Brand and Insights | January 2023 – Present

I help maintain and evolve the Greystar brand to communicate as One Global Greystar. We have built upon prior brand work to provide consistency and reinforce the brand vision. Collaborating with cross-functional teams, I develop materials to communicate these efforts in brand strategy to internal stakeholders, investors, and consumers.

Focus areas include:

• Greystar brand strategy and development

• Multi-asset and fund branding

• Trademarking

• Consumer and resident insights and research

The overall Brand & Customer Experience team’s mission is to create value for Greystar by better understanding our residents and building an experience to best meet their needs. The team’s primary activities fall into four categories: insights & branding, customer experience, innovation, and digital.

College of Charleston

Assistant Director of Marketing & Communication | September 2019 – December 2022

  • I write, produce, and distribute communications to promote Alumni programs (10 -12 per year), events (160+ per year), and merchandise using the website, direct mail, email, social media, e-newsletters, advertising, and other methods.

  • Determine appropriate format, audience and content to ensure effective and engaging communications for 93,000+ alumni.

  • Manage the Alumni Association’s social media accounts, writing and posting relevant messaging an average of five times each week and increasing engagement and audience size.

  • Coordinate and collaborate with Schools, Departments, and Programs to develop and deliver regular communications to appropriate alumni segments. Then, develop and design materials based on the constituent’s needs.

  • Edit, produce and distribute 20 to 30 separate e-blasts/event announcements each year to assist Schools, Departments, and Programs in keeping their alumni informed.

  • Plan, write, and post messaging and appropriate images on the Alumni Association’s social media accounts.

  • Coordinate with the Assistant Director of Alumni Research to highlight accomplished alumni. Monitor and analyze engagement on social media channels.

  • Collaborate with other College marketing offices as needed.

  • Develop and deliver a comprehensive and cohesive communication plan for quarterly board meetings and annual meeting of the Alumni Association based on collaboration with the Executive Secretary of the Alumni Association.

  • Manage the promotion and nomination process for the Alumni Association’s awards and scholarship programs.

Turbo Medical Marketing

Marketing Account Manager | October 2017 – October 2019

  • Curate monthly marketing initiatives for 30 clients across the continental United States.

  • Strategize monthly email, social media, and Google Ad campaigns.

  • Enhance client SEO with a multi-faceted digital strategy.

  • Contribute monthly blog topics based on client procedures & practice focus.

  • Develop specials graphics with graphic designers for client branding.

Palmetto Moon

Marketing Coordinator, E-Commerce Assistant, Sales Associate |
October 2010 – October 2017

  • Create content based on store promotional schedules & product sales

  • Develop branded materials for hiring initiatives & in-store use

  • Collaborate with the buying team to stylize photo shoots for digital ads, website content, and re-marketing.

  • Coordinate in-store signage & display visuals (point-of-sale to display)

  • Contribute to the advertising strategy for 15 markets across 4 states

  • Align products on the retail website with Google taxonomy categories, and merchandised the menu for customer experience