Chief Marketing Officer Jen Linck
“I love that I get to meet and work with lots of different people who are using their own talents and creativity to realize our shared vision of a kinder world.”
Contact: Email jen.linck@cgcgiving.com or call 424.291.2173
Jen Linck’s Story: Having spent 20 years doing marketing, sales, and new business development in the entertainment industry in Washington DC and Los Angeles, first in book publishing and then in TV and film distribution, I recently came to the realization that I could use my experience to make the world a better place in a more direct way by working with nonprofit organizations and philanthropic corporations doing social good all over the world.
There are a couple of specific events that brought me to this decision. First, I volunteer with an organization in Los Angeles and I believe in their mission, however, it seems that they could be doing so much more to market themselves. They’re a national organization with local chapters and they have been around since the 1970s, but they don’t have as much recognition as they should. I’ve found that many nonprofits, especially the smaller ones, don’t have the resources to embrace the marketing tools and opportunities that are available. Nonprofits are a business and should be marketing themselves just like for-profits, using social media, email, video, mobile, and big data to tell their stories, target potential donors, and successfully fundraise, but it appears that marketing isn’t always the priority when allocating limited resources.
Second, while working on my MBA at Pepperdine University, I met Brandon McCarty and learned about CGC’s mission to connect nonprofits with corporations who want to start or grow social responsibility programs. I’d been so proud of Acorn Media Group, one of the companies I had worked for in DC, when they launched a program with CARE to plant trees in Africa, and I was so disappointed when other companies I worked at did not make any philanthropic efforts. I would suggest team building activities for charity, but nothing would ever come from it. With the trend of Millennials wanting to work at and buy from socially responsible companies, I know more and more of them will want to develop CSR programs and CGC gives me a chance to help them do it successfully.
Chris and Brandon started CGC with a mission I believe in and I know I can use my experience and passion to help achieve that mission while learning a lot along the way about an entire new industry. And I love that I get to meet and work with lots of different people who are using their own talents and creativity to realize our shared vision of a kinder world.
Jen Linck’s Bio: Jen Linck comes to CGC after twenty years of marketing experience in the entertainment industry, working in book publishing with National Book Network, then television and film with Acorn TV and RLJ Entertainment, as well as with Time Inc on the launch of the People Entertainment Weekly Network. A driven marketing professional with a passion for innovation and a reputation as a highly analytical consumer engagement expert with proven project management skills, Jen is responsible for leading the marketing strategy for CGC and its nonprofit consulting clients.
Jen holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from James Madison University and an Executive MBA from Pepperdine University where she graduated with honors and now serves as adjunct faculty teaching marketing at the business school. Jen also volunteers as a CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocate) providing a voice to foster care children in Los Angeles County.