The Athlete’s Advantage: How Nika Ouellette’s Javelin Career Influenced Her Marketing Journey
In this episode, we sat down with Nika Ouellette, a former collegiate and professional athlete turned marketer. In this episode, we unpack Nika’s unique career journey and how it provides her a unique perspective on the customer experience. We also talk about her experience working in a very male-dominated industry. This episode is filled with takeaways for folks looking to pivot into marketing and insights for marketers looking to bridge the gaps between marketing, sales, product, and customer success.
About Nika Ouellette: For Nika, sports has been the lens in her life. She was a college athlete at the University of Vermont, then transitioned to a career as a professional javelin thrower. Following her professional athletic career, she transitioned to working in sports tech. Nika is currently the Head of Marketing & Education at Perch.
This episode was recorded during Startup Boston Week 2024 at Suffolk University on the Podcast Stage. We are grateful for Startup Boston’s support in creating a space for us to share the stories of women and non-binary marketers in the Boston area.
Short on time? Here are some quick takeaways:
From athlete to advocate: Nika’s journey from professional javelin thrower to sports tech professional provides a unique perspective on product development and customer experience. Her firsthand experience using Perch’s technology as an athlete directly informed her approach to building the brand and establishing product-market fit in an emerging space.
The middle-man marketing strategy: Perch’s distinctive business approach involves targeting intermediaries or “the middle-man” rather than end users, requiring Nika to develop tactics and strategies for reaching those who control budgets. Nika highlights the importance of understanding complex stakeholder relationships in B2B environments.
Make yourself indispensable: Nika’s cross-functional role bridging product, marketing, and sales demonstrates the value of versatility in startup environments. Her career advice about making yourself indispensable offers practical wisdom for listeners navigating their own careers.
Listen to the convo →
Shoutout to Wistia for sponsoring season three of MKTG TLK. Wistia’s complete marketing platform makes video creation, collaboration, and measurement a cinch. Learn more at wistia.com/MKTG.