TRISH BERRONG

Strategist | Collaboration Coach | Improviser

Trish Berrong: curriculum vitae

Growth-minded strategist.
Hybrid-thinking leader.
Silo-busting collaborator.

As a strategist, I synthesize diverse inputs and points of view into powerful, actionable insights.

As a leader, I clear obstacles and create space for high-performing teams to excel.

As a collaborator, I break down silos to build genuine teams, fully invested in shared goals.

Key competencies

WRITER AND EDITOR
  • Storytelling
  • Creative thinking
  • Brand voice development
  • Marketing copy: email, social media, web, blog, education/how-to, print, scripts, OOH, direct marketing
  • Corporate communication
  • Adaptability
  • Project management
  • Structural editing
  • Copy editing
  • SEO knowledge
  • Content management systems
  • Adobe Creative Suite
  • Microsoft Office 365
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
  • Talent development
  • Breakthrough creative development
  • Business strategy alignment
  • Brand stewardship
  • Innovation
  • Design and copy oversight
  • Omni-channel experience (direct, digital, e-commerce, video, print, merchandising, packaging)
  • Quality standards
  • Trend awareness
  • Attention to detail
  • Team building
  • Delegation
  • Conflict resolution
  • Motivational skills
  • Budget management
  • Workflow optimization
  • Capacity planning
STRATEGIST
  • Creative briefing and direction
  • Ideation and concept development
  • Cross-functional leadership and collaboration
  • Stakeholder management
  • Deep understanding of target audiences, segmentation, personas, journey mapping
  • Competitive bench=marking and market trend analysis
  • Brand/story positioning
  • Go-to-market strategy
  • Metrics framing: objectives, key results, measurement frameworks
  • Data-driven decision making
  • Campaign planning and execution
  • Brand hierarchy, positioning, values, voice personality
  • Equity building and measurement
  • Storytelling and narrative design
  • Experience design and consistency
  • Content strategy and life-cycle
  • Content formats and storytelling
  • Content quality and governance
  • Content distribution and optimization

MARKETING CONSULTANT (contract)
COPYWRITER (freelance)
HELZBERG
October 2023 – present

Full-time, multi-project contract for newly re-branded jewelry retailers.

  • Currently writing content for Helzberg.com education pages to align with new brand direction and updated message framework.
  • Led Q4 2024 organic social channel planning, concept development, and copy-writing. Engaged Millennial users with Instagram and Facebook posts focused on holiday giving, bridal and fashion jewelry, and cultural trends.
  • Conducted market and competitive research and analysis for new business opportunities; content pillars and editorial calendars; naming projects; and engagement and wedding product and content.
  • Briefed marketing and creative teams on industry, market, and consumer trends for seasonal marketing, digital, and merchandising campaigns.
  • Recommended roles, processes, and best practices to move social content development to in-house studio from external agencies.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

MARKETING CONSULTANT (freelance)
LAKEMARY CENTER, Paola, KS
August – November 2025

Marketing strategy research and recommendations for a nonprofit organization that provides education, mental and behavioral health, and social services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

  • Delivered campaign strategy to increase charitable donations from existing donors and build awareness in local community.
  • Recommended scope and process to re-imagine website and social content. (Awaiting next steps.)

PRO-BONO CONTENT STRATEGIST, MARKETING COMMITTEE MEMBER
HEART OF AMERICA SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL
May 2018 – April 2024

Led a group of marketing and creative volunteers to help KC Shakes expand their audiences, increase Good Will Society memberships, and improve donor/supporter retention based on content and donor engagement best practices.

  • Designed a full-day hackathon to clarify brand POV and brainstorm messaging for priority events and programs. Delivered new message architecture campaign concepts for their production of Shakespeare in Love, education program, and Good Will Society membership.
  • Surveyed Hallmark’s Millennial Employee Resource group and created consumer profiles to inspire campaigns and content.
  • Delivered three distinct campaigns, user stories, engagement ideas, and creative direction for production of The Tempest. Refined concepts created social media posts designed to engage families and young adult audiences.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

  • Coming soon

HALLMARK CARDS, INC.

I started at Hallmark as a greeting card writer fresh out of college and left five years later to start my own business.

Lured by the opportunity to put my advertising degree and entrepreneurial spirit to use, I boomeranged back to the fast-growing Business Expressions team,

I stayed at Hallmark for 25 years — never returning to core businesses or traditional roles. I built high-performing teams, attacked different challenges, and piloted new roles. One company — half a dozen careers.

creative strategist
content & marketing studio
2022 – 2023

Led brand, content, and creative strategy for Hallmark’s Consumer Experience team.

  • Collaborated and consulted with cross-functional team to develop Hallmark Brand channel plans, message strategies, tone and style for Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook.
  • Recommended social media strategy and process for reacting in real time to news, cultural events, and consumer content.
  • Initiated research and discussion to clearly define Creative Strategist role, career paths, common talents and skills, and recruiting and retention.
  • Partnered with research team to publish Insight Out, a bi-weekly e-newsletter for Hallmark Global featuring business results, marketplace news, cultural trends, and consumer research.
  • In-demand mentor (formal and informal) for writers and strategists.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

content strategist
HALLMARK BRAND CONTENT STUDIO
2015 – 2021

Led content strategy and editorial leadership for Ideas.Hallmark.com, Think. Make. Share. creative blog, and multiple brand social media accounts.

  • Initiated a cross-discipline, multi-department audit and analysis to recommend holistic content strategy for Hallmark brand and businesses.
  • Steered creative strategy for high-priority Gold Crown OTT video content project.
  • Collaborated with Hallmark DE&I to prioritize creating more diverse, inclusive, and authentic digital content for Ideas.Hallmark.com and social media accounts.
  • Planned, assigned, wrote, and edited hundreds of pieces of content to support Hallmark brand, products, and vision for Ideas & Inspiration and Think. Make. Share. blogs and multiple social media accounts.
  • Dramatically improved SEO content, organic performance, and e-comm conversion for Ideas & Inspiration blog, consistently driving 30-plus percent Hallmark.com traffic.
  • Synthesized user behavior, social media data, consumer and shopper research, and generational insights into global user personas.
  • Managed high-performing, senior-level content team.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

LINKS

STRATEGIC planner
HALLMARK CREATIVE MARKETING STUDIO
2014 – 2015

Piloted a new strategic planner role for the in-house marketing studio.

  • Briefed creative teams for B2C and B2B (retailer) campaigns and product go-to-market plans.
  • Collaborated with internal teams and external agencies to articulate Hallmark Global consumer promise and brand jobs.
  • Owned brand-wide naming architecture and processes.
  • Tapped as Creative Strategist for Crown Rewards program reinvention project.
  • Collaborated with internal marketing team and Leo Burnett (AOR) to improve creative briefing process.
  • Developed style guide template for brand storytelling and creative direction.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

  • Coming soon

INNOVATION LEADER
HALLMARK CORPORATE INNOVATION GROUP
2012 – 2014

Explored and pitched new opportunities for Hallmark in the wellness industry, focused on bringing out the best in people as they go through life’s biggest transitions together (positive aging, illness, end of life).

  • Pitched, won, and co-managed relationship with CaringBridge.com (national non-profit organization that supports families on wellness journeys) that resulted in 50+ cards for Hallmark.com and Gold Crown stores, Keepsake Ornaments, and a relationship with Hallmark Business Connections:
  • Pursued opportunities resulting from relationships driven by the Affordable Care Act: Conducted research and synthesized existing consumer research to define key consumer insights and areas of opportunity. Focused on using Hallmark-tested relationship-building experience and practices to improve connections between health care providers and patients.
  • Led cross-functional focus groups and ideation sessions for a variety of product, content and service solutions.
  • Captured brand positioning and creative style guide for Easy, Tiger brand; created social media channel plans; facilitated partnership with Boulevard Brewing Company resulting in product collection and appearance at Boulevardia festival.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

creative director: strategy & editorial
HALLMARK CREATIVE MARKETING STUDIO
2005 – 2012

Joined a small group of Art Directors and Designers as an Editorial Director and helped turn it into a full-service internal creative agency.

  • Hired, mentored, inspired, and led Editorial Directors, Editors, Writers, and Technical Editors on marketing, digital, packaging and merchandising teams
  • Collaborated with Leo Burnett (AOR) to create seasonal creative themes and message strategies based on consumer research and insights.
  • Established process, training, and communication plan template—including positioning, reasons to believe, message hierarchy—to connect Hallmark’s Consumer Innovation Group visions to marketing, packaging, and merchandising teams.
  • Collaborated and consulted with marketing partners to research, brainstorm, and recommend changes in rewards, perks and communication with Crown Rewards loyalty program members.
  • Worked with research team to design stimuli and questions for focus groups; attended sessions to make on-the-spot changes and synthesize feedback about branding, products, loyalty programs, digital services, and seasonal campaigns.
  • Directed creative strategy; positioning; personality, voice and style direction; and message direction for print ads, catalogs, CRM, and other marketing tools—many taken over from outside agencies—as well as merchandising, packaging, and digital.
  • Provided editorial direction and content strategy for multiple redesigns of Hallmark.com, including landing pages, UX copy, product descriptions, blog content, and services.
  • Led brand strategy and editorial direction for internal communications including recruiting, volunteering, employee resource groups, Creative Leadership Symposium.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

editorial director | client creative director
HALLMARK LOYALTY MARKETING GROUP
2001 – 2005

Pitched, directed, and developed strategy and creative for external clients of Hallmark Loyalty, a full-service relationship marketing agency.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES

editor
HALLMARK BUSINESS EXPRESSIONS
1998 – 2001

Assigned, edited, and wrote greeting card collections for businesses and custom greetings for external clients.

  • Developed model line for Hallmark Business Expressions catalogs
  • Increased revenue from repeat buyers from 10% in 1998 to 21% in 1999
  • Increased everyday orders by 57%; holiday orders by 55%
  • Assisted in planning launch of Cards for Coworkers

WRITER
1989 – 1994

Product development and creative writing for greetings, gifts, and innovation projects for emerging markets and existing consumers.

PORTFOLIO/CASE STUDIES