CATHERINE SAYKALY-STEVENS
Writer, Consultant, and Small Business Owner in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
My mission is to help people maximize their online reach through a better understanding of how to communicate clearly, persuade strategically and convert efficiently.
I believe every person has a powerful message inside them to deliver once they find their voice, visibility, and ideal audience to attract; compelling content to create; and lead an engaged, connected community.
How I got into Digital Marketing Strategy
Do you remember the dark days before the Internet?
This is where I started. As a pioneer, I created and worked on some of the earliest websites (lovely grey backgrounds with only 16 text colours to choose from). My background included, programming, troubleshooting, testing, training, and translation from geek speak to the user.
My work spans over 25 years in IT (Information Technology) starting with Freenet (pre-Internet) in ’93 then HTML programming for some of Canada’s first websites in Ottawa. In 2000, I moved to Los Angeles to train business professionals in application and coding for American Media Training/ Multimedia Workshop’s most popular programs (i.e. Flash).
My father started Optima Research, a market research company (old school marketing) where I had deep exposure to the marketing world early on. My work included creating sampling surveys, questionnaires, and hosted focus groups.
In 2005 I combined my love of IT and my marketing shifted my focus to website development and social media content delivery.
Today, armed with the knowledge and experience that online change is a constant, my digital marketing strategy keeps clients up-to-date with customized solutions specific to their needs to attract and convert their target audience.
The big win was marrying my knowledge of old-school marketing with online marketing. With the internet evolving at a faster rate, I believe that staying informed means making the priority of keeping up, taking courses, testing, reading the latest developments, and keeping open dialogues with a community of like-minded colleagues and keeping alike.
Catherine’s Approach
Often people are confused by the complex world of social media and they come to me for help. They don’t understand that social media is only one small component of a bigger picture to achieve their overall goal.
Take the time to understand people. How do you work … Why do people work with me?
When Catherine’s Offline
Personally, my downtime is filled with writing, non-fiction and fiction alike, focusing these days on screenplays. I belong to multiple groups and networks, volunteer when I can for Hull Services, and keep abreast of the Calgary Film and Tech scene.
International travel is my catnip and my home-automation husband Don and I plan a big trip every 2 years. At home 2 bad cats keep us busy.
I consider myself lucky and privileged to have been able to bear witness to the birth of the public Internet and grow beside it as an early adopter, bringing with me those who want to benefit.