Will Holland is exploring a personal brand focused on digital marketing for the country music industry. He grew up loving the outdoors and music in North Georgia. In 2012, he launched a country music digital company and lifestyle brand called Southern Standard. His goals are to land an entry-level marketing job at a music label and continue growing Southern Standard. He will network at industry events and use social media, email marketing, and his website to promote artists and his brand. Will aims to help thousands of musicians over his career by spreading their music digitally.

1. PERSONAL BRAND EXPLORATION
Will Holland
Project & Portfolio I: Week 3
May 26, 2019

2. Will Holland grew up in North Georgia,
falling in love with the outdoors from an
early age. In addition to spending time
outside, Will was always drawn to music.
Not as a musician himself, but he realized
the power that music held. Will launched a
country music themed digital company in
2012, supported by viral Twitter, Instagram
and YouTube accounts. In addition, he
founded a lifestyle brand called Southern
Standard. The brand is focused around the
South and all it has to offer.
IDENTITY

3. PROFESSION
Potential Job Titles:
• Marketing Manager
• Online Merchant
• Advertising and Promotions
Manager
Explorer Archetype - producing
content that creates a better, more
authentic, more fulfilling brand that
encourages people to step out of their
comfort zones and experience new
things. In addition, I want to help
musicians to realize their vision and
develop artistic control. (Creator
archetype)
Digital Marketing for Country Music Labels

4. • DEMOGRAPHICS: 58% male & 42%
female, 28-40 years old, married,
college educated, 90% of
employees are located in Nashville.
• PSYCHOGRAPHICS: Enjoys good
music, likes to spend time outside,
appreciates good work, interested
in creating viral campaigns, wants
to help musicians be successful,
fearful of ourcompetition being
better than us
• IDEAL AUDIENCE MEMBERS:
Dawn Gates, Sr. VP of Digital
Business and Creative
Development (UMG), Brian
Chisholm, Director of Advertising
(UMG), Annie Ortmeier, VP of
Marketing (UMG)
Recruiters & Hiring Managers at Universal Music Group Nashville
TARGET AUDIENCE

5. GOALS
Short Term: (Immediately After Graduation, 2021)
• Land an entry-level marketing position at one of these music
labels, in addition to continuing to build my lifestyle brand
Southern Standard.
‣ Connect on LinkedIn with and send a follow up email
to 5-10 members of the UMG team by June 30th, 2019.
Mid Term: (2025)
• Build off of the relationships with Universal Music Group +
other labels as well. Surpass the ten years in business
milestone for Southern Standard and scale
‣ Improve year on year sales consistently by December
31, 2025 and continue to build a brand that resonates
with people.
Long Term: (2040)
• Successfully sell my company to a larger one, while still
retaining control and a portion of equity. Use a portion of my
earnings to help others who need it more than most of us can
understand. On the promotional side, I would like to help
thousands of musicians over the years with their digital
marketing in an effort to spread their music to people who
may not have heard it otherwise.
‣ Have over 250 artists on board with us for music
promotions by December 31, 2040.

6. SKILLS ANALYSIS
Notable Skills & Current Proficiencies:
Notable Skills Required In Digital Marketing & Current Proficiencies:
Social Media Marketing 87%
Adobe Creative Suite 65%
Leadership 80%
‘
Attitude and self-confidence 85%
SOFTHARD
Website Development 60%
Content Development 95%
Active Learning 75%
Dependability 90%
SOFTHARD

7. I help music labels and brands
improve their digital marketing by
entertaining and inspiring their fans
and followers through digital media
storytelling in a way that others can’t.
PROMISE

8. CREDENTIALS
Work Experience:
• 7+ years as a social media influencer
• 4+ years as a CEO of Southern
Standard Co.
Education:
• Milton High School (2015)
• Digital Marketing, B.S., Full Sail University (Exp. 2021)
Awards:
• Most Improved Player, Milton High
School

9. COMPETITION
Jason Tromblay
Industry Experience:
• Since graduating from Full Sail, Jason has worked
for a variety of businesses as a Digital Marketing
Manager or Brand Manager. Some of these
companies include Synaptic Advisory Partners,
Internet Fetch Web Marketing and Primerica.
Education:
• Graduated from Full Sail in 2014 with a Master’s
of Science.
Leadership Experience:
• Mentor at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro
Atlanta
• Marketing volunteer at Heathcote Botanical
Gardens
Skills and Proficiencies:
• Social Media Marketing - 69 endorsements
• Marketing- 47 endorsements
• SEO - 38 endorsements
Brad Turcotte
Overall Online Presence:
• 500+ connections, quality headshot, lots of
details on profile, recommendations and license
easily found, active on social media
• Grade: Excellent, 90/100
Industry Experience:
• Over 30 years of experience in the
music industry
Education:
• Graduated from Belmont University in 1999
• Graduated from South Texas College of Law
Houston in 2003
Leadership Experience:
• Volunteer with special olympics
• Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity
• Co-founder of Kip’s Kid’s Fund
Skills and Proficiencies:
• Music - 99+ endorsements
• Entertainment - 75 endorsements
• Marketing - 50 endorsements
Overall Online Presence:
• 500+ connections, nice headshot but looks pretty
serious, detailed summaries outlining all of his
experience, made Forbes 40 Under 40 list, active
on social media, no articles published
• Grade: Pretty great, 85/100

10. COMPETITION
Angela Batterson
Industry Experience:
• 7 years of marketing experience
Education:
• Graduated from Full Sail in 2015 with a Master of
Science in Internet Marketing.
Noteworthy Experience:
• Project administrator at Le Refuse Art Collective
• Volunteer Curator at Northeast Florida Scholastic
Art Awards
Skills and Proficiencies:
• Advertising - 89 endorsements
• Marketing - 79 endorsements
• Social Media - 75 endorsements
Bryan Chisholm
Overall Online Presence:
• 500+ connections, professional headshot,
summaries that could use a little more detail,
active on social media, 7 recommendations
received
• Grade: Good, 70 out of 100
Industry Experience:
• 10 years of experience with
marketing specifically in the music
industry
Education:
• Graduated from App State University in 2009
with a Bachelors Degree in Music Industries
Business
Leadership Experience:
• No leadership experience is detailed aside from
his occupations themselves.
Skills and Proficiencies:
• Music Industry - 32 endorsements
• Music - 24 endorsements
• Social Media - 22 endorsements
Overall Online Presence:
• 500+ connections, professional headshot that
could potentially use a more plain background,
detailed summaries that explain the specific
work that he’s doing, no articles published, active
on social media accounts
• Grade: Great, 77 out of 100

11. BRAND POSITION
I will utilize social media and other
marketing channels to spread quality music
and apparel that will leave a positive impact
on anybody that comes across it.
WILL “THE THRILL” HOLLAND
These values have
always been very
important to Will.

12. NETWORKING &
MARKETING
Industry Events & Organizations
• VidCon
‣ July 10 - 13 | Anaheim, CA
• CONEX - The Content Experience
‣ August 20-22 | Toronto, ON
• South by Southwest (SXSW)
‣ March 13 - 22, 2020 | Austin, TX
Digital Marketing
• Primary Content: Focused around country music and
the south. Photos, videos and quotes that support our
lifestyle.
• Primary Tools: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram -
promote my brand and others’ music through these
channels; LinkedIn - network with industry pros and
expand my list of valuable connections. Mailchimp -
send email marketing campaigns.
• Website: My digital portfolio site will help me to show
off my educational and work history, while giving
people a glimpse into my personal brand and
everything that makes me different.

13. PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Mentor
• Seeking senior-level digital marketing pro with
at least 10 yrs of experience in music industry;
Looking for someone who is excited to work with
a motivated young professional.
Formal Education
• Complete Digital Marketing, B.S. by expected
graduation date in 2021
Technical Skills
• Set up free HubSpot CRM; complete all CRM
courses through HubSpot Academy, Dec. 2019
• Complete 10+ courses that will improve my
technical skills - Lynda.com, July 2019
Soft Skills
• Complete 10+ courses that will improve my soft
skills - Lynda.com, July 2019

14. Will Holland
It’s amazing how much growth and change
the digital marketing space has experienced
in the past ten years alone. With social media,
email, radio and a ton of other ways to reach
consumers, it is important to take advantage of those opportunities. I
am able to boost any companies’ digital marketing efforts in the goal of
reaching more consumers. I have over 5 years of experience in this
industry and have pioneered my own digital marketing strategy for the
country music industry.
“

15. REFERENCES
Universal Music Group. (2019). Universal Music Group LinkedIn Profile.
Retrieved May 26, 2019, from https://www.linkedin.com/company/
universalmusicgroup/people/
Universal Music Group Nashville. (2019). Universal Music Group
Nashville LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26, 2019, from https://
www.linkedin.com/company/universal-music-group-nashville/people/
Freeland, A. (2019). Ultimate List of Marketing Conferences. Retrieved
from https://www.clearvoice.com/blog/ultimate-list-content-
marketing-conferences/
Ortmeier, A. (2019). Annie Ortmeier LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26,
2019, from
https://www.linkedin.com/in/annieortmeier/
Chisholm, B. (2019). Brian Chisholm LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26,
2019, from https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-chisholm-08879826/
Gates, D. (2019). Dawn Gates LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26, 2019,
from https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawngates/
Tromblay, J. (2019). Jason Tromblay LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26,
2019 from https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtromblay/
Batterson, A. (2019). Angela J. Batterson LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved
May 26, 2019, from https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelabatterson/
Turcotte, B. (2019). Brad Turcotte LinkedIn Profile. Retrieved May 26,
2019 from https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-turcotte-22a3614/
ONETOnLine.org. (2019). Summary Report for: 11 - 2021.00 Digital
Marketing. Retrieved May 26, 2019, from https://www.onetonline.org/
link/summary/11-2021.00
ONETOnLine.org. (2019). Summary Report for: 13 - 1199.06 Digital
Marketing. Retrieved May 26, 2019, from https://www.onetonline.org/
link/summary/13-1199.06
ONETOnLine.org. (2019). Summary Report for: 11 - 2011.00 Digital
Marketing. Retrieved May 26, 2019, from https://www.onetonline.org/
link/summary/11-2011.00
Universal Music Group Nashville. (2019). Glass Door. Retrieved from
https://www.glassdoor.com/Salary/Universal-Music-Group-Salaries-
E11794.htm
Sony Music. (2019). Glass Door. Retrieved from https://
www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Sony-Music-
Entertainment-EI_IE37127.11,35.htm
Careers at UMG. (2019). Retrieved from https://
www.universalmusic.com/careers/