Every year, the world’s most recognizable companies pour millions of dollars into marketing strategies. From New Balance’s signature shoe deal with tennis phenom Coco Gauff to the 100 brand partnerships Mattel created to promote the Barbie movie, top-earning companies continue to invest in getting their brands in front of new and existing audiences. These initiatives are ideated and executed by marketing professionals who understand how to cut through all the noise in today’s crowded markets and get consumers to pay attention and pull out their wallets. In Atlanta, Mary Seats is a highly sought after marketing maven, known for her ability to build campaigns and strategies that generate massive brand recognition and sales.
Seats, affectionately nicknamed ‘The Kris Jenner of Marketing’ for her ability to spot unique and unlikely opportunities to maximize a brand’s impact, has been spearheading successful marketing strategies for more than a decade. She first tested out her expertise, backed by her educational background in marketing, on her own fashion brand, Cupcake Mafia.
Starting with only $300 in 2011, Seats grew her clothing line into a $2.4 million-dollar business in just four years. Success was followed by loss, when an acquisition-gone-wrong cost her the business and brought on financial challenges that left her sleeping on an air mattress.
But seats didn’t stay down for long. While she was scaling Cupcake Mafia, she had built an expansive network by finding ways to add value to the markets and spaces she entered. So, when she sought support to find and secure roles in the fashion industry, she had plenty of help. Eventually, Seats had developed marketing experience that allowed her to regain control of her company. Through the ups and downs of her entrepreneurial journey, she tested and refined her ability to engage audiences and translate attention into sales.
“I took my formal education and did the work,” said Seats, who holds a BA in Fashion, Marketing, and Business from Kent State University and a Ph.D. in Philosophy, Christian Leadership and Business. “I studied. I loved my craft, and I worked endlessly and entirely to make something of it.”
Eager to help other entrepreneurs and business owners, especially minority female founders, in 2015, Seats started the Icing Agency, a full-service marketing consultancy providing everything from graphic design to brand development.
“I thought, ‘I have all these amazing ideas, and I want to see more people get into retailers. I want to see more women grow and scale their businesses,’” Seats recalled. “I started to take on smaller clients and created a digital community for female entrepreneurs.”
Today, Seats continues to support up-and-coming female founders, but her client list also includes notable names like Tamar Braxton, Kountry Wayne, Shear Share, and SPERGO, which featured on Shark Tank. She shared her advice for marketing professionals looking to make their mark on the industry.
Be Forward Thinking
Marketing isn’t just about selling a product and service in the moment. Good marketers understand how to forecast and create strategies that will position their clients for success both in the present and the future.
Seats noted, “If your clients are [focused] on tomorrow, you need to be [focused] on next year and the year after next,” Seats explained. “When you’re building out someone’s brand, the decisions that they’re making tomorrow will affect their five-year growth strategy and personal brand image, so you have to be a forward thinker.”
One case study that exemplifies this advice is her work with auto industry executive, Todd Skelton. As Skelton transitioned from Pizza Hut manager to owner of a multi-billion-dollar auto company, Seats knew his success would be significantly impacted by his personal brand narrative and visuals. Seats and her team provided Skelton with a complete rebrand, including photography, videography and brand messaging.
“This transformation led to Todd securing prominent unpaid media appearances, including features on the Brad Lea Podcast, NASDAQ, Bloomberg, and Fox, despite having a modest 2,000 followers at the time,” Seats shared. “This transformation propelled him to a prominent position with the auto industry, showcasing the remarkable power of strategic branding and visual storytelling.”
Know When to Pivot
Seats has never been afraid to change directions. Her career has included a number of shifts, including her move from owning one of the largest female-owned streetwear brands to managing a manufacturing factory in China to her current success as founder of multiple companies. Seats knows that in business, being able to pivot on a dime is critical to success.
She has a knack for guiding her online community and clients through quick transitions. It’s a skill she’s worked diligently to master. “I always have my finger on the pulse. I not only know when to pivot, but I know when to make my audience pivot as well,” Seats said.
That’s precisely what she did when she helped Tamar Braxton build a haircare brand in just a few days. Braxton had been preparing for her show, “To Catch a Beautician,” and wanted to launch a beauty brand to coincide with the program’s debut. Initially, Braxton was considering selling hair extensions, but Seats saw an opportunity for her to pivot, offering her the hair growth serum she had already been developing herself.
“We had two days to fully develop the whole brand. Packaging, labelling, the ingredients from the vendors, website, social media. We developed sales scripts on how to talk about the company on live. We flew to L.A. a month later to do a photoshoot to promote the brand. I personally managed [Tamar’s] social media during the launch to ensure we were able to sell and scale. In just the first three months, the brand generated six figures [in revenue] and was featured in Essence and on BET,” Seats recalled.
Understand Key Metrics
Seats shared that a common mistake new entrepreneurs and marketers make is spending money on ads and campaigns without tracking metrics to ensure those tactics have been effective and worth the investment. Seats suggests paying close attention to metrics like monthly sales, profit, and social growth before and after services have been provided. She warns marketers not to get caught up in what clients do after the end of the contract but focus on the impact of the campaigns they created and executed while working with them.
“When I look at metrics, I look at what I did for them in the time that I was working for them – sales, social media followers, influencer collaborations, what rooms I put them in that they wouldn’t have had access to without me. Those are the measures that I am tracking results,” Seats explained.
Another case study that exemplifies this includes the first film project she ever marketed, “Secret Society Movie.” The film’s producers approached Seats with a goal to land on Amazon’s top 10 list. By carefully studying and tracking the key metrics that contributed to a film’s Amazon ranking, including streams, rentals, and purchases. In the end, “Secret Society Movie” made it to #2 on the Amazon list within a month; accumulated 12 million Amazon streams in its first year; and attracted an audience of 700+ to the Miami and Atlanta premieres. Social played a huge role in the strategy’s success as the film went viral on both Instagram and TikTok, garnering a total of 20 million impressions across the platforms. Those metrics have translated to tangible financial success, with a revenue of $10 million to date.
Be of Service
“Marketing is not an industry in which you can have an ego to say, ‘I’m not doing that,’” Seats explained. “I’ve done it all. I’ve sacrificed my own name, likeness, and relationships. A big part of the job is saving your clients in ways no one would ever believe. You have to be ready to serve at any time.”
Seats proves that the best marketing professionals are those who understand that the goal is not to shine the spotlight on themselves. To excel in this space means being willing to work hard behind the scenes. It’s about understanding your clients’ goals and their audiences’ interests and creating unique experiences that bring those two together. Most importantly, being a good marketer means recognizing your capacity to move the needle on big cultural moments and conversations and creating and executing strategies that allow those to happen.
Seats’ marketing genius is undeniable, and she’s certainly leaving a mark on the industry and brands she works with, but her vision extends far beyond that. Seats has consistently strived to create spaces and opportunities for female entrepreneurs of color to thrive.
In addition to running the Icing Agency, Seats founded The Bakery Cowork, a creative epicenter with over 100 monthly members that includes a photography studio, event space, podcast studio, and more. This innovative coworking space is designed to equip female entrepreneurs in Atlanta with the practical tools and resources, along with trainings, workshops, and an extensive network, that will support them in building and scaling successful brands.
Seats is also dedicated to pouring back into her community, using her skills and experience in business and marketing to mentor thousands of young women in Atlanta and the surrounding area. She regularly hosts retreats, women’s empowerment conferences, and webinars that cater to entrepreneurial-minded girls and women.
“I just want to be the person that shows other women that not only can they [succeed] but give them the resources to do it,” Seats said.
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