Christchurch-based Kellianne wanted a career working from home. Pre-COVID, she was working at a Japanese travel agency. When lockdown pushed her – like the rest of us – from the office chair to the comfort of her abode: she never looked back. After researching remote career options, and settling on the idea of studying Digital Marketing, she found herself on the DMS homepage.
Choosing Digital Marketing at DMS
“For me, the level of information that was readily available upfront intrigued me. I wanted to learn more."
After a few phone calls with Recruitment Advisor Phil, Kellianne was signed up and ready to begin her Diploma in Digital Marketing:
“I did look at other institutions that offered similar courses, but they didn’t offer the scope that I was interested in. In particular, it was the social media as well as digital design as part of the same diploma that interested me."
Looking back on her Diploma
Unfortunately for Kellianne, the start of her Diploma didn’t mark the end of COVID. In August 2021, the announcement of level 4 lockdown happened in the middle of one of her classes.
This was just one of many moments during the Diploma, where Kellianne knew she “made a good choice with DMS”.
"I had so many great tutors. Steve was probably one of my favourites. I liked his no-nonsense attitude: he was very [direct]. Karl was supportive. Every question I had - even if it wasn’t directly related to what we were supposed to be learning - he would take the time to answer it and offer over resources.
I think a lot of people would say the same thing about Jen. I don’t know if you’ve seen the spreadsheet of resources that Jen gives her students but it’s massive; there’s a lot of useful information in it. Lasma has the patience of a saint."
Some of Kellianne's favourite design work: created for DDM712 Social Media assessment.
A member of the DMS community
Even now that she has graduated, Kellianne stays in touch. An active member of the DMS community, she collaborates with Janaina, our Client Success Advisor, on a mentorship programme for Maori and Pasifika students, like herself, who study with DMS. She is also signed up for DMS’s Google Digital Academy: a program supported by Google in training DMS graduates in Google systems:
“It’s been really helpful to remain connected with Jana, who has kept me in the loop with job opportunities. I was stoked when she reached out [about Google Digital Academy].
It just really solidifies the feeling that I made a good choice with DMS because they will support students even after they’ve graduated. It's not just ‘Here’s your diploma, see you later.’ ”
She describes Digital Marketing Diploma tutor Rajika as her "background cheerleader. Anytime I post something on LinkedIn she’s right there." She stays in touch with her cohort and checks in about their career progression.
What is Kellianne up to now?
Kellianne is working in digital marketing roles at 2 different enterprises in Christchurch. She’s the Operations/Communications and Marketing Assistant for QuickLens, an online lens company. She's nailing their social media, email marketing and developing content marketing strategies.
She’s also a part of a super exciting start-up, Takumi Craft, which combines her passion for Japanese culture with her social media skills.
“We're in the process of setting everything up and waiting for the stock to arrive - then we can start selling it. I'm excited to start the social media accounts from scratch. We plan to do a mixture of talking about the products that we’re selling: a lot of them are handmade and crafted in Japan by ancient artesian techniques. As well as talking about the techniques the artisans use to create the products while mixing in info about Japanese culture in general.”
Valuable skills learnt at DMS
“Scheduling content in advance is one of my favourite things. [Doing] keyword research: I learnt that through the SEO course with Lasma. I think that’s going to help with the visibility of these two brands that I'm working for.
One thing all the tutors mentioned is that you have to be constantly staying up to date. You have to stay on top of trends. I found that as I started digging deep into this job was that I had to make sure I was still following the current trends.”
Goals for the future
Kellianne is “stoked” to be working from home full time, in 2 digital marketing roles. A long-term goal is to make a trip, or a life, over in Japan – something she dreamed of doing while working in the travel industry pre-COVID.
We wish her all the best in future endeavours and look forward to staying connected in the DMS community.
Inspired by Kellianne's story? Keen to learn more about our Digital Marketing Diploma? Book a chat with Recruitment advisor Phil below.