Meet Isabel!

Meet Isabel Skormin, whose love for writing has been inspired by her upbringing as the daughter of an immigrant parent and single mom. Isabel began her academic journey at the University of Brockport as a nursing student. After changing career paths, she transferred to the University of Central Florida, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Business and Marketing. 

From working in the bridal industry to writing about Star Wars to contributing to a medical company, Isabel ultimately found her home at Market My Market. Since beginning here in 2021, she’s operated under many roles, including content writer, storybranding track lead, client editor, content strategist, and now “Writing Lead,” managing her own team. Isabel’s career journey reflects her versatility and dedication, and she continues to excel by uplifting those around her.

All About Isabel’s Growth at MMM

How did you decide to move toward storybranding?

“I was working on a project with Guido Tebano and Ryan Klein at the time, and Ryan brought up this concept of storybranding. I was sent the book because he was talking about it, and I was interested in learning a little bit more about what it was.

“While the essence of storytelling sounds like fluff, it’s really the opposite. It gets you to the point really quickly and grabs hold of the reader. So, I thought it was something that was cool and missing from how we approached content as a team at the time. We saw it as an opportunity to transform how we looked at blogs and pages. 

“Now, we’re able to take a client’s story and make sure we all are super familiar with these clients’ missions. What’s their brand? How can we bring that brand awareness as quickly and concisely as possible to the content?”

How have you approached leadership since beginning as the “Writing Lead”?

“Being able to mentor Katie and Tanner was very important to me. When I first started at MMM, it was such a smaller company than it is now. Even then, I saw a lot of potential in what I could do as just a content writer within the company. And I think that’s something I always hope to instill in everybody. Whether you work at a huge company or a startup, you can always make things what you want them to be. It’s part of thought leadership and our core values.

“I feel like sometimes I made up the storybranding role I was a part of. But that was because I saw a place for growth, and I feel like anybody can do that. They can recognize a spot for growth, whether it’s within our department, the company, or themselves as a professional. They can do it.”

How do you feel like you grew when you were doing client edits?

“I had never seen content writing from that perspective before. But it was something I always wanted to do, to be more on the editorial side of things. Because the previous jobs I’d held where I was doing content writing it was just for our company. So there was never any real feedback other than from my boss. 

“From person to person, all our clients are so different. Not only are the edits sometimes more technical, but a lot of them are stylistic choices. So, from the client side, you’re able to learn all these different people’s choices. Again, how does that reflect their brand, who they are, why do they want a certain tone, or why don’t they want a certain phrase used? I feel like it made my writing better. 

“Also, now in a leadership role, it allows me to mentor my team’s writing, more so because I’ve had the chance to see things from that perspective.”

What was it like becoming a content strategist?

“It was a hard time to come into the role. At the time, Kelly was doing everything. And so Anastasia and I—we both went in at the same time—we had to learn really fast. It’s not difficult once you get into it, but there are so many moving parts. 

“It’s also the first time within our department that you start working with people in account management and SEO and the clients themselves. So there’s just a lot that you have to learn and different processes to keep track of. And it’s very organizational. If you aren’t organized, it’s very difficult. Sometimes, I’m not the most organized person. So it was hard for me to get everything down, but it was good once I got it down.”

What did it feel like when you were first offered the writing lead position?

“That was another big turning moment. Cause I definitely felt like it was the right time for it to happen. But again, I was very nervous. I didn’t want any weird feelings around it. I wanted to approach it again from the point of mentorship and guidance, and I’m super happy with how it’s been going.

“Tanner has been able to move into new roles. Katie just got promoted to content specialist and social lead. Bringing Kimberly on board was awesome. There’s also been some crazier moments, too. Luckily, and I’ve said this to Jordan a bunch of times, I’m always thankful that we do have him cause he is such a great mentor for me and is a great manager. I’ve kind of just followed in his footsteps a little bit and taken a lot of pointers from him, and I feel like it’s been going really well.”

As a leader, how do you help your team members grow?

“I think it’s all about opening up the doors for conversation. When I was given this position, one of the first things I did was have a team call with everybody. And when we have check-ins, I want [them] to feel like [they] can talk to me about anything. 

“I’m never making them feel like they’re being pushed into something else. Sometimes, I think growth in your career should happen naturally. So, making people feel like they have to go to the next level right now isn’t always the best approach, either. I’m just making sure there’s an opportunity for them to have those conversations with me and say no if they’re not feeling ready. But if they are interested, I’m also creating those opportunities for them to learn about different things in the company.”

Do you have a favorite part of being a writing lead?

“I think it’s getting to more intimately work with members of our team. I know I say it a lot, but I really love our team. And I think our team is unique in that we’re fully remote, but we all know each other fairly well. We all have a good rapport and a great comfortability, which is not common with fully remote companies. I think it’s a testament to the great leadership we’ve had with Jordan over the years. 

“Just getting to know my little team within a team even more and having the chance to see them have these milestones within their career, getting promotions, or moving to new tracks is really exciting.”

What would you say is your biggest accomplishment at MMM?

“Honestly, I love the best buddies event that we did [at the content team retreat]. I was excited about that, and it took months of planning to nail it down. So when we actually got to do that, that was really cool. And we did a press release for it. It was just a really cool event, and to see it happen—and for everybody to look so happy—was awesome.”

What’s next? Do you have any plans for the future?

“I just want to keep continuing to grow how I can. A big thing I still have wanted to do with MMM, and I hope to continue to work on, is the philanthropy aspect. It’s something that I have spoken about since I started here, since my interview with Ryan. It’s always been a big part of my life, and I think, especially in the corporate world, it’s more important than some businesses realize. I’d still love to get a really solid program going with that.

“And then, as far as my role, I want to focus on growing my team. Helping them develop new tracks, having more workshops, and continuing to be a big supporter of content and all the great things we do here.”