My name is Justin Hoffman — this is why I joined Aha!
Some big career choices feel like either-or decisions — especially in marketing. Agency or in-house? Manager or individual contributor? Generalize or specialize? It can seem like you are supposed to pick a lane and stick with it, and that switching paths is a step back. But I have found that exploring the alternatives can actually be an effective way to move forward.
Trying different paths — at any point in your career — is often how you discover where you do your best (and happiest) work.
My marketing career started as a side hustle. During college, I needed a way to make supplemental income. I learned about affiliate marketing and gave it a go, setting up my own websites to earn a commission. The extra cash was great. But to my surprise, I really enjoyed the work too.
At the time, digital marketing seemed somewhat opaque as a profession. But I decided to try an internship with a marketing agency. This clarified things for me. It was like an intensive introduction to all things digital, from SEO to analytics. I could see several pathways to building a career in the field.
My first full-time role was with an e-commerce agency. I did various digital marketing projects for all kinds of clients, from online mattress retailers to zoo food suppliers. As part of this job, I was introduced to paid media. It captured my interest immediately. I loved how the work combined creative and analytical thinking. For example, I had to determine which campaign messages performed best while managing ad spend — pulling different levers to achieve the best result. This inspired my next move.
Starting out in a generalist role helped me identify what energizes me most. I was ready to dive in and deepen my knowledge.
I shifted to a digital media position with another agency that served the senior living industry. This sharpened my focus in a few ways. While I still had multiple clients, the knowledge I gained was more transferable between them. I also concentrated solely on paid advertising and honing that skill set. Over the next six years, I continued to grow and eventually took on a director-level position, leading my own digital media team.
This experience confirmed that I chose the right field. But it also clarified what wasn't working for me. As a manager, I was less hands-on with campaigns. That is the natural progression for many in digital advertising. But I did not like feeling removed from the work that I really enjoyed. I also realized that I was ready to move on from agency life and the constant context-switching between different client objectives.
I wanted to do the work. And I wanted to bind myself to one core set of problems to solve.
That mindset led me to the Aha! team. Some say internal marketing is slower or less innovative than agencies. But that is not true for me. Since joining Aha! as a senior digital marketing manager, my work feels more dynamic (and purposeful) than ever. Our team's core goal is to provide the best customer experience at every stage. And for many, this starts with seeing one of our ads. I love the challenge of finding new ways to connect people to our software while ensuring our ad spend is as efficient as possible.
In this role, I am an individual contributor. But I also collaborate closely with the whole marketing group. I work with our website and creative teams to iterate on landing page designs and ad copy to learn what resonates. And I recently overhauled all our reports. This helps everyone better understand our audience and campaign performance — so we can make more data-driven decisions throughout the customer journey.
I am happy that I can keep growing my expertise alongside the high-caliber Aha! team while making a real impact on the business.
It is tough to find what you love to do and a place where you can thrive doing it. It is even rarer to be able to do this with people that hold the same high standards — without it being performative. I am glad that all of these things are true of the Aha! team. And I am excited to see what we accomplish next.
That is why I joined Aha! — and why you should too.
