Megan Toal

www.linkedin.com/in/megantoal

m.e.toal27@gmail.com

Chicago, IL

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CAREER SUMMARY

Passionate, creative, well-organized storyteller and content creator with more than five years of experience executing and managing a variety of written and multimedia content, consistently meeting tight deadlines in a fast-paced environment. Able to switch seamlessly between print, digital, video, podcast, blog, and social media projects to inform, excite, and engage audiences. Industry experience includes e-commerce, healthcare, food, CPGs, travel, PR, and marketing. List of published works available upon request.

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Core Skills:                                            

• Adobe Premiere Pro, Photoshop, SharePoint

• Engagement (generating 24,000 LinkedIn video views and up to 5.44% engagement rate)

• Bilingual communications skills including written and oral in both English and Spanish (Advanced)

• High creativity and resourcefulness level

• Top 5 Clifton Strengths: Communicator, Winning Others Over, Positivity, Includer, Input

 

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

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SPARK FOUNDRY, Chicago, IL                                                                                                                                                                             2022–Present

Media Agency within Publicis Groupe 

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Senior Associate, Content

Responsible for managing deals between media industry partners and clients in the finance and beverage industries.

• Supervising remote shoots, quality assuring footage for clients, selecting final assets before campaigns launch, and monitoring campaign flights.

• Selecting media partners for video campaigns and partaking in pre-production calls, recording shoot notes, and managing communications with the partners and clients.

• Acting liaison between media partners across print, digital, and social media; and clients in the beauty, finance, and alcoholic beverage industries.

• Managing projects and campaigns from end to end: creating partner decks, submitting and analyzing RFPs, managing timelines, assessing budgets, reporting on campaign results, and identifying areas of opportunity and improvement.

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PEAPOD DIGITAL LABS, Chicago, IL (Contract Engagement via LaSalle Network)                                                                                      2020–2021

E-Commerce engine for Ahold Delhaize USA grocery retail brands.

 

Communications Specialist

Responsible for creating engaging internal communication and external media by telling the stories of employees, teams, and company initiatives through written and video content.

• Producing videos via Premiere Pro and vendor collaboration. Responsible for pre-production, production, and post-production coordination and duties such as scheduling, shooting, recording, paper editing, storyboard developing, captioning, editing, exporting, publishing, and distributing videos content.

• Implementing and executing the monthly and quarterly video series for Talent Acquisition purposes and multiple culture and internal community videos, generating an average of 1,882 and up to 2,700 social media views.

• Coordinating weekly virtual Stand Up meetings, including content development, agenda topics, and meeting logistics.

• Creating copy and content for company website, blog, and LinkedIn channel. Generating 24,259 video views and up to 5.44% engagement rate.

• Increase staff engagement with co-development of weekly email update. Currently achieving open rate of 70% and CTR of 41%.

• Managing quarterly Built In content for Chicago and Boston markets, generating 12,660 article views, 10,972 job views, 6,358 profile views (28% more than profiles in the same markets) and a 9.5% apply rate. Average profile engagement time is 300% longer than that of other profiles in the same markets.

• Collaborating with brand partners to ensure accurate and appropriate messaging across Peapod Digital Labs and brand partners’ communications vehicles.

• Writing internal and external news stories featuring innovations within Peapod Digital Labs.

 

ASSOCIATION MANAGEMENT CENTER, Chicago, IL                                                                                                                                         2018–2020

Full service medical and trade association management company.

 

Content Marketing Associate

Responsible for internal communication and creating content for AMC’s website: press releases, AMC expert biographies and profiles, case studies, testimonials.

• Mastered multimedia tools including photography, Adobe Photoshop, video, and the Conversations by Association podcast. Increased podcast users by 216%, page views by 194%, and sessions by 215%.

• Coordinated, executed all-staff semiannual Connections meetings: booking speakers, finding venues, scheduling, sending pre- and post-event surveys, messaging, and compiling information for new communications and meetings strategies.

• Managed, wrote, ghostwrote, edited, and scheduled thought leadership blog posts and social media channels using Hootsuite. Increased LinkedIn following by 100%, blog posts by 42%, page views by 12% in the first year.

• Formulated internal and external content, including press releases, advertorials, articles, marketing collateral, monthly e-newsletters, web copy, surveys, and internal messaging.

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VIRTUOSO LIFE MAGAZINE, Seattle, WA                                                                                                                                                               2018–2020

A travel and leisure magazine connecting savvy travelers with global hotels, cruises, and experiences.

 

Freelance Researcher

• Maintained positive relationships with more than 100 global hoteliers, restaurant owners, tour operators, airlines, PR correspondents, and business owners.

• Researched upcoming articles regarding travel, hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions.

• Fact-checked and copy edited pieces for veracity, accuracy to uphold magazine integrity.

 

DELTA SKY MAGAZINE, Minneapolis, MN                                                                                                                                                               2016–2018

Delta’s inflight magazine.

 

Freelance Copywriter and Marketing Intern

• Launched, copywrote the inaugural Sidebars promotional page, producing up to 85% conversion rate and 39% e-newsletter opt-in rate.

• Copywrote for sales sheets published in the magazine, creating clear, persuasive copies, reaching an audience of 6 million global readers.

• Compiled, updated data in marketing informational packet for new clients, combining with swag kits.

• Created, wrote, proofread sales collateral and promotional materials.

 

SEATTLE MAGAZINE, Seattle, WA                                                                                                                                                                            2017–2018

Seattle area’s definitive city + regional magazine.

 

Editorial Assistant (concurrent)

• Published written and digital pieces for Essentials, Road Trip, Benefits Plan, and Field Guide sections of the magazine.

• Researched personal pieces and editors’ pieces for upcoming issues.

• Fact-checked, copy edited, confirmed editors’ articles for veracity and accuracy before sending them to print.

 

AMERICAN ACADEMY IN ROME, Rome, Italy                                                                                                                                          June–August 2016

A research and arts institution and member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers.

 

Intern and Associate Fellow

• Collaborated with a team of Italians and Americans to organize, archive, clean, and re-shelf the Rare Books Room’s 2,350 volumes in six weeks.

• Identified, located, and reclassified missing rare texts from within the library.

• Integrated rare books in the Library of Congress by assigning new call numbers.

• Received the Notre Dame International Summer Grant to embark on this internship.

 

EDUCATION

 

Bachelor of Arts in the Program of Liberal Studies and Spanish

University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, 2017

International Study Program, Toledo, Spain, 2016