With nearly 20 years of experience in sales, operations, marketing and management, Laura Cole serves as the Vice President of Marketing, Training and Channel Sales at Vivial. A role she has prepared for since joining the company as a sales representative in 2001.
Laura is responsible for bringing the latest online, social, and mobile solutions to businesses of e very size. She leads a passionate and creative team focused on Vivial’s go-to-market strategy, branding, public relations, and digital/social marketing strategy, as well as the company’s customer-centric training program and sales enablement strategy. She is also responsible for driving channel sales for Vivial, with a focus on growing the company’s reseller and agency client base.
Success, One Step at a Time
Laura attributes her leadership to the breadth of experience she has gathered throughout her career. “We often say Vivial is a sales organization and I am be yond proud to say I began my tenure in sales,” said Cole. “The firsthand knowledge and interactions I experienced, set a strong foundation for my career. To this day I continue to interact with our customers daily. This not only helps keep me grounded but fuels my drive and dedication.”
“It’s important for sales and marketing teams to challenge each other in order to guarantee the best results. Healthy conflict helps businesses avoid status quo and achieve growth.”
Working in a variety of roles – sales, operations, field marketing and product development – has helped Laura develop a deep understanding of the customer, Vivial’s capabilities and the necessary elements to achieve customer satisfaction. Throughout her career, Laura has been extremely fortunate to work for and with some incredible leaders who have mentored her and helped her hone her skills. She works incredibly hard; and is dedicated to helping drive growth for the company and lead her team to success.
“I am privileged to work for a company that celebrates the success of women,” said Cole. “Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to be surrounded by powerful women, as colleagues, mentors and team members. I am inspired by the innovation, expertise and hard work these women bring to the proverbial board room every day to advance the industry.”
Exhibiting Excellence
Constant evolution is necessary for success at Vivial. “My role is to identify changing consumer behaviors and help bring new marketing solutions to the table,” said Cole. “This may be an evolution of an existing product line, or the introduction of a completely new solution. Regardless my team and I are involved in all stages of the product lifecycle from introduction to growth, maturity through decline.”
Laura challenges her team to deliver tools, resources and product innovations that are tailored to the customers’ needs. Whether this is for internal customers – sales and service teams – or external clients – local business owners – Laura ensures she and her team take the time to understand the objectives and goals prior to developing a strategy. This approach breeds success.
Helping People to Succeed
As a leader in her organization and industry, Laura makes mentoring others a priority. At any given time, she serves as a professional mentor to a half dozen employees throughout Vivial, including sales representatives, account coordinators and more. “For me being a mentor is a true privilege,” said Cole. “It’s not just talking about my journey; it’s about helping someone’s career path.”
Laura believes the mentor/mentee relationship is a two-way street. “I have learned so much from my mentor relationships. We bounce ideas off each other, discuss new opportunities and often I ask how Vivial can do better. Together, we help each other, and the company achieve success,” said Cole.
A Strong Balance
As a single mother of three boys, it is crucial that Laura maintains balance, in both her professional and personal life. Having strong support from her company and executive team, have helped Laura not only achieve, but maintain this balance.
“Every time I connect with my CEO, he makes a point to ask how my kids and I are doing. He genuinely cares about his employees and wants the best for each of us,” said Cole.
Constant Learning is Key
In the rapidly changing world of digital marketing, Laura is constantly learning and seeking opportunities to expand her influence.
Laura loves to share her expertise with others, which she does through a variety of channels, including webinars, speaking events, podcasts and the Forbes Agency Council where she often writes articles and provides her unique point of view to help others grow.
For young women, who have just started their own professional journey, Laura advises to take chances and risks. “Think more broadly when taking on a role – where you start doesn’t have to define your trajectory. Don’t be afraid to take a job you’re not overly confident in because you never know where it can lead you,” concludes Laura.
“I am beyond proud to say I began my tenure with Vivial in sales.”
