Your business has a story. I help the right people find it.
Real marketing, real results — for small businesses that deserve both. I'm a digital marketing strategist based between Chicago and Toronto with 4+ years of experience in social media, email, branding, and AI-powered content workflows.
166% website traffic increase51% email open rate1M+ impressions60K+ followers grown
I built my first marketing playbook for my own e-commerce brand, Naeem Gifts — scaling it to a 166% increase in website visits before ever working for a client. Since then I've led 10+ person marketing teams, run AI-assisted content workflows, and managed campaigns for organizations with global partners like KPMG and Deloitte.
Whether you're a recruiter looking for someone to lead a team or a business owner who needs marketing off their plate — I bring strategy grounded in data and execution that actually gets done.
AI & Automation
Team Leadership
E-commerce Growth
Chicago & Toronto
I work with
🍽️
Restaurants & food businesses
Social media, email campaigns, and brand identity for restaurants and food brands in Chicago, Toronto, and beyond.
🛍️
E-commerce brands
Full-funnel marketing: social, email flows, and branding for online stores ready to scale.
🏡
Real estate agents
Personal brand building, listing content, and email nurture campaigns for top-producing agents.
For recruiters & hiring managers
Digital marketer. Team builder. Results obsessed.
4+ years across social media strategy, email marketing, AI-powered content workflows, and brand development — with a proven track record of leading teams and driving measurable growth for real organisations.
Promoted within 4 months to build and lead a 10+ person marketing team
Scaled digital presence to 60K+ followers and 1M+ impressions using AI-assisted workflows, reducing content production time by 40%
Managed Mailchimp A/B campaigns achieving up to 51% open rates and a 46% average — more than double the industry standard
Executed branding for 50+ events, driving a 32% YoY attendance increase overall
Developed MAX brand materials and managed corporate sponsor relationships with partners including McKinsey, KPMG, Deloitte, and EY
Jun 2025 – Jan 2026
Marketing Consultant
Seldon Institute (Contract)
Developed foundational brand guidelines and 50+ high-engagement assets using Canva AI
Led LinkedIn and Instagram launch from zero — achieved 30% increase in user interaction
Orchestrated website enhancements and Shopify integration for new gift shop launch
Facilitated strategic partnership with Chicago women's wellness organization
Dec 2021 – Mar 2024
Founder & Digital Lead
Naeem Gifts
Grew Naeem Gifts into a recognisable e-commerce brand, achieving $12,500 revenue in a single peak month
Drove a 166% increase in website visits through email marketing and organic content strategy
Produced organic content resulting in 140K+ views across Instagram Reels and TikTok
Managed full Shopify build, influencer partnerships, and email automation end-to-end
Certifications
HubSpot — Social Media
HubSpot Academy
HubSpot — Email Marketing
HubSpot Academy
Google Ads
Google
Google Analytics
Google
Meta Blueprint
Meta
Education
McMaster University
B.A. Honours Economics · 2015–2020
York University
SCS Digital Marketing Certificate · 97% Avg · 2022
Key results
166%
Website visits increase, Naeem Gifts
51%
Peak email open rate (2.4× industry avg)
60K+
Followers grown, OneMAX
1M+
Impressions generated
32%
YoY event attendance growth
40%
Content production time saved
10+
Person team led
Open to
Full-time marketing roles, contract positions, and freelance retainers. Particularly interested in growth-stage companies that value AI-assisted workflows and data-driven content strategy.
From building Naeem Gifts from scratch to leading marketing for over 50 professional events — here's a selection of work I'm proud of.
Case studies
OneMAX
Brand & Social
OneMAX
Social strategy · Email · AI workflows · Team leadership
As Head of Marketing, I led a 10+ person team and built AI-assisted content workflows that scaled MAX's digital presence to 60K+ followers and 1M+ impressions. I managed multi-platform social strategy across LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and X, ran A/B tested Mailchimp email campaigns averaging 46% open rates, peaking at 51%, and oversaw marketing for 50+ events including a 1,000-person flagship event. I also created the MAX Brand Book 2026 and the MAX Annual Report 2025 — key organizational documents used across all teams, programs, and city chapters.
Full organizational brand book covering logo guidelines, color systems, typography, photography and videography direction, email signature standards, slide deck templates, and program-specific palettes for 10+ MAX initiatives — built to ensure consistent brand identity across all teams, city chapters, and events.
Brand StrategyVisual IdentityTypographyPhotography Direction10+ Program Palettes
A comprehensive annual report communicating MAX's impact, programs, and milestones to stakeholders, sponsors, and the broader community — covering events, scholarships, partnerships, and organizational growth across North America.
UGC campaign · Influencer outreach · Social media · Shopify · Branding
I built Naeem Gifts Co. from the ground up — developing the full brand identity, setting up the Shopify and Etsy stores, and creating an organic content strategy across Instagram and TikTok that generated 140K+ views. I also ran a full influencer marketing campaign for the Advent Calendar launch, coordinating 3 local business partnerships and 8 lifestyle influencers with a combined following of 1.25M+. The campaign drove a 166% increase in website visits, generated 40+ pieces of UGC.
166%
Website visits increase
40+
Pieces of UGC generated
$12.5K
Peak month revenue
UGC CampaignCollab CoordinationContent MarketingShopify
Seldon Institute
Brand Launch
Seldon Institute
Branding · Social launch · Shopify · Community partnerships
As a marketing consultant, I launched Seldon Institute's LinkedIn presence from zero and served as a growth advisor for their Instagram. I developed their brand identity including 20+ visual assets, and led the build-out of their gift shop — from product development through to a live Shopify integration. I also facilitated a key partnership with a local Chicago women's wellness organization to expand their community reach.
Influencer content, event campaigns, product launches, and organic reels across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Email marketing
Campaigns with real open rates
Mailchimp campaigns across e-commerce and events — averaging 43–46% open rates, more than double the industry average of 21%. Includes full promotional funnels, welcome sequences, and newsletter series.
Mailchimp campaign — 2.4× the industry average of 21%
Work with me
Let me take marketing off your plate — completely.
I work with a small number of clients at a time so I can actually focus on your business. Strategy, execution, and reporting all included. No hand-holding required.
RestaurantsE-commerce brandsReal estate agents
Packages
Pricing by niche
Each niche gets tailored packages — same quality, different deliverables based on what moves the needle in your industry.
Social presence
$400/month
Consistent, on-brand social without the time commitment.
8 posts/month (feed + stories)
Captions + hashtags written
Canva graphics included
Scheduled via Buffer
Monthly performance recap
Most popular
Social + email
$650/month
Full social presence plus email campaigns that fill tables.
12 posts/month
1 email campaign/month
Email list setup if needed
Branded Canva templates
Monthly strategy call (30 min)
Full presence
$950/month
Social, email, and brand all handled — dominate locally.
16 posts/month
2 email campaigns/month
Brand refresh (colors, fonts)
Story highlights design
Bi-weekly check-in call
Add-on: Menu redesign in Canva — $150–$250 one-time.
Email foundations
$500 flat
One-time setup — everything to start building a list that converts.
Mailchimp setup
Welcome sequence (3 emails)
Branded email template
Opt-in form setup
Most popular
Social + email retainer
$850/month
Full-funnel marketing for stores ready to scale beyond word-of-mouth.
12 social posts/month
2 email campaigns/month
Product launch graphics
Monthly analytics report
Monthly strategy call
Brand + growth
$1,300/month
Complete marketing operation for stores building a real brand.
20 minutes. I'll tell you exactly what I'd focus on for your marketing — no obligation.
02
Custom proposal
A clear proposal within 48 hours — deliverables, price, timeline, and what success looks like.
03
Onboarding
I get access to your accounts, we align on brand voice and goals, and I get to work.
04
Ongoing results
Monthly reports, strategy calls, and adjustments — because good marketing evolves.
"Mariyam brought a level of strategic thinking and creative execution that genuinely elevated our brand and organization. Under her leadership, our social presence grew to 60,000+ followers across all our channels and our email campaigns consistently hit open rates above 50% — more than double the industry average. She also created our full brand book, which became the foundation for how MAX presents itself across all programs and platforms. She's the kind of marketer who takes full ownership and delivers results you can actually measure."
— Aazar Zafar, Co-Founder, OneMAX
Get in touch
Ready to get your marketing off your plate?
Book a free 20-minute discovery call. I'll give you a straight answer on what I'd prioritize for your marketing — no pitch, no pressure.