From Laid-Off to Lift-Off: How Emma McMulkin’s career found a fresh start
When Emma McMulkin found herself staring into the void of post-restructure unemployment after 17 years working for a multinational software company, she couldn’t help but feel a little daunted.
But following a chance discussion with a friend, she discovered a new opportunity that let her take control of her career and leverage her well-honed marketing nous into a new business venture of her own.
Six months on from that first chat, Emma is well-established in Christchurch advising a diverse range of businesses on marketing strategy as the newest entrepreneur to join the team of MyMarketer Business Owners in New Zealand.
MyMarketer is a franchise marketing brand that provides outsourced marketing services to businesses, large or small, that either lack existing marketing resources or could benefit from additional guidance in planning and executing their marketing activities.
It’s a model that appealed immediately to Emma when she first heard about it during a challenging period in her career late in 2023.
“I’d worked for online accounting software company MYOB in various marketing roles over the last 17 years, climbing the ladder to the point where I was leading a team of marketers focused on SME acquisition marketing across Australia and New Zealand,” she says.
Over that time, the company evolved from one that sold a boxed software product through retailers into a fully-fledged cloud-based software-as-a-service tech company.
“It was quite the journey, which came with much learning as I navigated the changing landscape of marketing. Then, unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on how you look at it – that all came to an end in December last year as the company undertook a restructure which directly impacted my role.”
Emma – who is also a wife, and mother of two young teens – recalls her first reaction after finding out her position had been disestablished shortly before Christmas.
“I immediately went into panic mode, and started applying for jobs left, right and centre. I was interviewing right up until Christmas, with no success. Then, with the break over summer, recruiters weren’t advertising, which wasn’t great for me timing-wise.
“Still, amidst all this stress, I also realised I just wasn’t feeling passionate about the idea of working for another corporate. The notion of going out on my own and shaping my own future was more appealing.
“Then, I found myself talking with a friend one Sunday afternoon saying how I wished I could go out and do my own thing, and she says, ‘Oh, have you heard of MyMarketer?’
“I hadn’t, but she mentioned a mutual friend was a MyMarketer Business Owner. So, I reached out to hear more.
“When she told me about MyMarketer and how it all works, it was the first time I got excited about the potential for taking my career in a different direction.”
After officially joining the MyMarketer team as a Business Owner, things happened quickly for Emma. Within weeks, she had secured a contract with Christchurch International Airport and picked up several other smaller clients, and now has another large prospect in the pipeline.
“I know there’s more work out there. This venture is about putting myself out there, building connections and working my network, and having a ‘selling’ mindset. It’s something I’ve done before, but this is about selling myself, and selling MyMarketer as a concept and what it can offer clients,” she says.
“Working for yourself and not for someone else requires a different approach and does take some getting your head around. It can be a bit of an emotional roller coaster, but I’m still learning and it’s all good fun at the same time.
“Though there are early morning starts and occasional late nights, the sense of fulfilment and control make it all worthwhile. When it’s your own business, it doesn’t feel like work.”
New venture, well-established skills
Emma says the strong foundation of confidence that she brings to her MyMarketer venture comes from the wealth of marketing knowledge and experience she developed over two decades in the dynamic technology industry.
“Strategy and planning are things that I’ve always focused on. A lot of businesses go straight to the tactics without first looking at the strategy, so my approach is to educate companies around that. Without strategy to back tactics, you are setting yourself up to fail.”
Emma is also finding her experience is helping companies in Christchurch that are struggling to recover after several difficult years affected by COVID-19 and the recession.
“In a recession, some businesses often feel like they can’t afford marketing, so they stop any such activity, but the reality is there’s never a more important time to be doing it!” she says.
“You should be organising your marketing efforts around coming out of the recession, so you’re in a strong position when that happens. I am finding a lot of companies are in this situation, and they need help with it.”
Another thing Emma drills home with clients is the importance of reviewing the results and impact of their marketing – that is, not just putting something out there and forgetting about it.
“Being results focused and making data-informed decisions has been a huge part of my career, and that’s something I’m taking forward into this role with MyMarketer. I’m always asking how we can optimise marketing activities to work and perform better.”
Looking to the future
Now that she is well underway, Emma says she is looking forward to the personal and professional challenges of building and growing a strong pipeline of work with MyMarketer.
“Networking is incredibly important in Christchurch, and it’s something that I’ve tended to avoid in the past. I’ve managed to overcome that and challenged myself to say yes to attending some networking events and talk about myself and sell myself … and it’s been great!” she laughs.
“It did take some figuring out which events and groups were going to provide the most value and opportunity, but I know that the more I do this, the better I will get at it and the pipeline of work will build from there. I’m now thinking six months ahead and putting plans in place to make sure that we’ve got clients coming through well down the line.”
Emma especially appreciates the flexibility of being able to run the business from home, so she can maintain a healthy work/life balance.
“Being able to be there for my family more was a huge part of this for me. My husband travels a lot for his work, and we have a son who’s 14 and a daughter who’s 12 – and I truly think they need me more now than they did when they were little – so it’s great I can be more available for them now with the flexibility this new business allows.”
While she works independently, Emma is also grateful for the support network that she has behind her as part of the wider MyMarketer team.
“The tools and resources that are available to us as MyMarketer Business Owners is fantastic and like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The amount of time and effort that’s gone into building resources for MyMarketer Business Owners to leverage is amazing, as is being able to reach out to other owners for advice if need be.”
“I remember thinking at the time I signed on, why don’t more people do this? It’s a great model, and I’m proud to now be calling myself a MyMarketer Business Owner.”
Story by Brendan Boughen
