The Learning Portal, a Microsite for Fresh Art International

In 2017 I began working with independent curator and founder of the Fresh Art International podcast, Cathy Byrd. Cathy is a one-person team, with a keen eye for engaging, relevant and thought provoking content. She needed marketing and brand expertise to further propel the podcast into a new stage of growth, increase downloads, and expand audiences–both of which had otherwise remained stagnant for some time. I identified key personnel needed for daily tasks and assisted in sourcing, hiring, and directing contractors to achieve the strategic growth plan I built for the podcast. Over the course of our work, I created a clear brand guidelines document, and developed the sub-brands for content areas of the company such as the Research Guides, the Student Edition, and Topical Playlists.

In 2020 I conceptualized and built The Learning Portal (freshart.education) to package Fresh Art content and deliver distance learning resources to educators and students in the creative arts, while expanding and diversifying the podcast’s listener base and content production, beyond audio. Dedicated to optimizing Fresh Art’s potential to inspire, inform and influence the global community, the platform offers access to all content for free. I also implemented fundraising incentives to encourage donations to support the development of free content. In tandem with the portal, I developed a comprehensive strategic marketing plan to promote the distance learning initiatives, across various channels and tactics, including social media, advertising, SEO, email marketing, and PR.

One of our main objectives with this campaign was to get the archive entered into the digital collections libraries and universities. Fast forward to 2024, and the archive is now one of the first podcasts to be added to the Library of Congress' online catalog.