Inspiring Conversations with Jessica Malek of Mercenary

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Malek. 

Hi Jessica, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Social Media is definitely not an industry I ever thought I’d work in. I got my degree in Art History with a focus on Contemporary art, but I worked at my college radio station and really wanted to go into the music industry after graduation. I was offered what I thought was my dream job at a music marketing firm in NYC, however, after two years, I discovered it was NOT my dream job and I felt totally lost. I got a job temping as a receptionist at a tech startup and my boss let me shadow different departments to figure our what I wanted to do next. Social Media was a brand-new thing for businesses – Instagram had just been sold to Facebook – and I loved the mix of creativity, psychology, design, and instantly available data. I dove in and managed the startup’s social, then after a year I moved back to Michigan, met my husband, Justin, and decided to stay. I’ve since worked for ad agencies managing the accounts of global automotive brands, worked in-house at a luxury retailer, and then about 4 years ago my husband and I started Mercenary – a boutique content studio. As a freelance creative with a decade of Social Media experience from a variety of industries, it’s been really fun strategizing, consulting, teaching, and creating for some of Detroit’s most notable brands and businesses. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Absolutely not a smooth road! Since I landed in the Social Media industry somewhat unexpectedly, I still don’t think this is my end-all-be-all career and even though I’m very experienced, I have a ton of imposter syndrome. That said, I’m learning that imposter syndrome never truly goes away, regardless of success, which is reassuring. While I love being self-employed, there is more security with a traditional job and when I first went freelance, I had a lot of anxiety around that. All the struggles are worth it though because they make me a smarter and stronger businesswoman. 

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Mercenary is an interdisciplinary creative studio with a focus on the digital space. I specialize in Social Media strategy and management and my husband, Justin, is a Motion Graphics artist, together we are content creators who provide professional photography, videography, design, creative concepting, and more. We started Mercenary because we wanted the freedom to work with a variety of clients and hated the agency model of a client being charged 200x more than the cost of a service. We figured, let’s remove the middle man of the agency and we can expedite work for clients at a more affordable rate but with the same level of service. Some professional highlights would be managing the Social Media strategy, content creation, planning, etc. for the Shinola Hotel accounts, which was like my professional baby and something I started from scratch. I also feel deeply passionate about our work with Detroit non-profit, Empowerment Plan. Not only do I manage their social presence, but Justin and I have created videos for them that have been featured on The Drew Barrymore Show and in commercial spots. I’m very passionate about digital health and I’m excited to share that I’ve started to share my knowledge via an education-based Instagram @jessicamalekedit, where I hope to help brands, businesses, and people optimize their social presence but doing it in a healthy and manageable way. 

All in all, Mercenary is in the business of solving creative problems and storytelling. Everything from creative ideation, concepting, and copywriting to visual elements like animations, photos, and branding – we love to develop compelling and eye-catching moments to tell your brand or business story. 

Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
I’m still working on finding my unicorn mentor, but for networking, I think it’s really important to want to learn and want to help. Networking needs to be reciprocal. I also think that being authentic is very important. You need to balance the bragging with admitting that you need help or advice once in a while, too. No one believes a person that’s constantly going on about how amazing they are at their job or their service and has zero humility. Also, pay it forward and spread the word about people who do amazing work, even if they do what you do! I have lots of friends who also do what I do, but we all do it differently and when you’re lifting other up – even if they’re technically your competition – it’ll come back to you. 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.mercenarydetroit.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicamalekedit/ and https://www.instagram.com/mercenary_detroit/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mercenarydetroit/

Image Credits
Jessica Malek