Uprising: Mallory Westry Embraces a Student Mindset

Mallory Westry is a channel engagement specialist at Lewis, a marketing agency based in Birmingham, Alabama. A member of the team for nearly three years now, Mallory started as a media intern-turned-media coordinator, after having studied and worked briefly in PR.

“I learned about Lewis through a family friend,” she says. “Their company had just collaborated with the agency on a project and spoke highly of its work. This inspired me to closely follow Lewis’ campaigns and projects, and even schedule meetings with some of its team members, throughout my college journey… ​​The dynamic environment of a marketing agency is what truly drew me in. I love having the opportunity to work across multiple clients, each at different campaign stages and with unique goals.”

A naturally curious child, Mallory has always been eager to learn more about and dissect topics from all angles. Early on, she found a passion for shooting and editing content, filming music videos, trailers and family moments on her pink camcorder. “I was a vlogger before I even knew they existed!”

“I’d say these early experiences paved the way for my current career in owned, earned, and paid media,” she says, “where I exercise my research and influencer coordination skills daily.”

During the last two and a half years in Birmingham - a city she says is going through “an exciting time”, with big artists paying it more attention than ever and “new restaurants popping up all over” - Mallory’s focus has shifted to include owned, earned, and paid media. However, the skills she developed through her early PR experiences – effective communication, attention to detail, and organisational abilities – are still just as essential and present in her work today. 

In her first year, working on accounts like LED and Kentucky Bourbon Trail, Mallory says she was “an absolute sponge”, eager to absorb all available information. “There wasn’t a day that went by where I didn’t learn something new or challenge myself in some way,” she says. “I remember being surprised, yet excited, by the complexities of media planning and buying. I don’t think the average consumer realises just how much work goes into ensuring they receive the right message, at the right place, at the right time.”  

Mallory recently received the Media Planning Award at AAF Birmingham’s Ten Awards - a humbling “big moment” for her which provided a moment to step back and reflect on her journey so far. “It meant a lot to hear my coworkers express their appreciation for my contributions during the ceremony,” she says.

As a Black woman from Alabama working in advertising, Mallory also notes that she’s had to face challenges like imposter syndrome and underrepresentation, saying that “being the only POC in a room is something I’ve become accustomed to.” Now working on Lewis’ Student Experience Team, these experiences have, however, fuelled her passion for engaging with the next generation of talent and informing them of the vast opportunities within the industry.

“I have the privilege of connecting with talented, diverse students from local colleges,” she explains. “I lead agency tours, coordinate shadow days, and serve as a mentor. My goal is to inspire these students to see themselves in roles they haven’t considered before, and in doing so, help create a more representative future for our industry.”

Mallory recently spearheaded the owned and earned media strategy for the Kentucky Bourbon Trail’s first-ever ‘Worldwide Toast’ - “a real ‘pinch me’ moment”. The virtual and social media event was hosted in celebration of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail’s 25th anniversary and offered Bourbon lovers two ways to join: to ‘Toast and Post’ on social media, or tune in to a 24-hour livestream.

The creative challenge of this campaign was to effectively communicate these details without overwhelming the global audience. “To drive the desired participation, our team knew we couldn’t give users too many steps to follow,” she explains. “We needed to make joining feel as low lift as possible, and had to get the word out through various sources. I had never promoted an event quite like this before, but I couldn’t have been more excited to dive in and take on the challenge.”

Media-wise, the result was a holistic strategy that included a social media toolkit, press release distribution, influencer outreach, email reminders, organic and paid social, and an official event hashtag. “Where possible, we leveraged video assets to avoid lengthy captions and relay the event details in a digestible format. We also selected ‘#WorldBourbonToast’ as the event hashtag so it was simple and memorable.” Thanks to seamless cross-department collaboration, the event garnered a reach of over 17 million, attracting participants from 32 countries across six continents.

As a channel engagement specialist, Mallory enjoys the fact that no two days are the same. “One day I might be drafting press releases and building content calendars, while the next I’m launching a new paid social campaign and collaborating with influencers.” That said, juggling all three types can be challenging at times, especially when keeping up with the latest trends. For this, she pays careful attention to various newsletters, webinars and Lewis’ weekly media huddles, though, she adds, “It’s okay not to know everything.”

“In the fast-paced and ever-evolving media landscape, there will always be new platforms to learn and adapt to,” she says. “We have to embrace a student mindset, approaching these developments with curiosity and a willingness to learn.”

One area where Mallory is particularly excited to apply this attitude is strategic influencer partnerships, as well as organic social - a topic which she believes has a “frustrating” reputation for being ‘quick and easy’. She explains, “While the final result may look and feel effortless, there are layers of strategy baked into it. We’re not just posting pretty pictures, we’re applying audience insights, experimenting with different formats and topics, and consistently optimising based on performance.”

More generally, she also wants media teams to have a seat at the table earlier in the process. “We shouldn’t be the last stop before content deploys. Let us leverage our understanding of the platforms and audience insights to create a message that resonates.”

Away from the office, Mallory likes to decompress by spending time with friends and family, reading or scrolling through her immaculately curated TikTok feed. One of her FYP heroes is Zaria Parvez, the social media manager for language-learning app, Duolingo. “As a junior talent, she increased the app’s TikTok following from 50,000 to 5 million and landed herself a spot on the Forbes 30 under 30 list,” she says. “I really admire her risk-taking and how she didn’t feel pressure to follow what every other brand was doing.”

Equally ambitious to continue forging her own path in media, Mallory says her drive comes naturally. “Maybe it’s the Enneagram ‘Type 1’ in me, but I’ve always enjoyed the satisfaction of a productive day and the feeling of achieving the goals I set for myself.” And with a Media Planning Award already under her belt, and a role on Lewis’ Student Experience Team, Mallory’s goals of developing as a multi-channel media expert and mentor for a ‘more representative future’ are well on their way.