MEET KARA-KAE
I have a thing for
complicated problems.
The marketing team running in six different directions.
The organization that's grown faster than its strategy.
The product nobody knows how to position.
The marketing budget everyone is questioning.
Those are my favorites.
Hi! I'm Kara-Kae James, and I've spent more than 20 years figuring out why marketing isn't working and what to do about it.
Give me the messy brand.
I'm equal parts strategist
and problem-solver.
I've built brands from scratch. I've repositioned brands that lost their way. I've led teams, launched campaigns, built digital strategies, managed paid media, implemented MarTech, developed fundraising programs, and turned big ideas into actual work. I've worked in the strategy. I've worked in the weeds. And I've sat in the room where everyone is look at the same problem from a completely different angle.
That's probably why connecting the dots comes naturally to me. I see how the pieces fit. And when they don't, I can usually see why.
That's what I do best
Not more marketing.
Better marketing.
I ask the big-picture questions
- Where are we going?
- Who are we trying to reach?
- Why should they care?
- What needs to change?
- What will actually move us forward?
And the details, too
Strategy doesn't mean much if nobody can execute it. So I care about the systems, the channels, the technology, the campaigns, the copy, the customer experience, the team, the measurement.
That's what 20+ years in marketing has taught me: the best strategy is the one that can actually survive contact with reality.
The things I believe
Five things I'm not going to change my mind about.
-
01
More isn't always better.
More content. More channels. More campaigns. More meetings. Sometimes you need less — just the right things, working together.
-
02
Activity isn't the same as progress.
A busy marketing calendar can look impressive. It doesn't necessarily mean you're getting anywhere.
-
03
Strategy should be useful.
If your team can't understand it, use it, or make decisions from it, it's not a strategy. It's a document.
-
04
Good marketing starts with clarity.
If you don't know what you're saying, who you're saying it to, or why it matters, everything else gets harder.
-
05
Marketing should move something.
A business. An organization. An audience. A mission. Something.
My favorite question to ask
“Okay, but what's actually going on here?”
Because that's usually where the interesting stuff starts.
Bring me the messy thing — let's figure out what's actually going on.