Lazarina Stoyanova (Stoy)

The Women in Marketing – Bulgaria team had the pleasure and privilege to ask Lazarina some questions about her career, thoughts on the marketing industry, and herself. Here’s what she replied.

How did you start your career in marketing?

My career in marketing started very early – I have always had a passion for marketing. I have been involved in Direct Marketing as one of my first positions since I was a teenager. Then I worked as a Promoter for brands from the portfolio of Unilever and Procter & Gamble in campaigns for product promotions of these brands in stores.

Later, during my studies, I got into graphic design and social media marketing. However, I then decided to learn more about the possibilities of automation in marketing, which was actually the reason I pursued computer science and machine learning as a master’s degree.

After that, my career in the field of marketing, oriented towards SEO and organic marketing, and a little later, strategic consulting on topics of automation in this field and opportunities to introduce machine learning, on various modules to get the job done easier and better quality, especially for sites that are large.

What advice would you give to women who are just starting a career in marketing in Bulgaria?

For women who are the first to start a career in marketing in Bulgaria, I would recommend that they surround themselves with other women, who work in the niche in which they want to develop. It is much easier for a person to have a mentor or someone they can turn to for advice or just share what they are going through. This has been key for me to be able to overcome specific obstacles more easily or develop faster.

Another thing I would say is to start a portfolio as early as possible. A portfolio can mean a project you are working on that is interesting to you. It can be a personal site that you develop, where you share the things that you are learning or a passion project. It could be social channels you develop, or even a GitHub page for the technical marketers out there – whatever is relevant to your niche. Regardless of your field, it’s good to have a portfolio.

And the last thing I would say is take advantage of the fact that globally there are many communities for women in marketing or in digital technologies. Get ideas from these communities. Show yourself as an expert and as a person in these communities and seek development for yourself and your skills in parallel both in the Bulgarian market and abroad. Our industry is globally-oriented, so we should also strive to be.

Where do you find inspiration to be who you are professionally?

I get inspired by many things. The first thing that inspires me is the achievements and successes of women like me, working in parallel in the field of digital marketing and in the field of technology.

I am inspired by women who succeed despite the difficulties and obstacles that are placed in front of them. I am inspired by people who follow their dreams, even when they go against society’s expectations.

I’m also inspired by our industry as a whole. What I mean is that there are not many industries where we can constantly evolve and learn something new every day. The industries, both digital marketing and technology, allow the experts who work in them to consistently develop if they want to be successful in their careers and present opportunities to grow, learn new things, and retrain into a different niche, if this is what the person wants. This, for me as someone who loves not only challenges but also change, means a freedom that not every career could bring.

Is there a change you would like to see in the marketing industry in Bulgaria?

Regarding the marketing industry in Bulgaria, the main change I would like to see is to celebrate more of the successes of women in our industry. To have a community for women in marketing in Bulgaria, I have tasked myself with organising this space. I hope that through it, women working in the industry can have a space where they feel recognized, understood and able to help each other so that they can develop together.

I would like to see more opportunities given to people who have no experience in the industry through mentoring programs, trainings, internships.

I would also like to see a standardization of the services that are offered in the country alongside the standards that are maintained globally. For this to happen, there needs to be transparency in the way specific services are performed, and training at the national level aligned with global standards.

What has been the most challenging aspect of your career so far and how did you overcome it?

The most challenging aspect of my career so far has been dealing with burnout and the difficulty of finding a work-life balance. I was able to overcome it through a deep analysis of myself, my skills and my greatest interests regarding my career. I was able to understand for myself what are the things that give me inspiration, the things that I am best at and how I manage to combine these aspects of my work in a way that I can help as many people and companies as possible, without wasting my energy on things that bring me neither spiritual satisfaction nor career development in the direction I pursue.

I think that anyone who feels burnout or has difficulty achieving work-life balance should give themselves the opportunity to adapt by taking time to spend outside of their role. Whether it’s a week or two or a few months, as long as it’s possible from an economic, financial or purely organisational point of view. The idea of ​​this break from work is to be able to do a deep analysis of your strengths and weaknesses, of the things that energize you and the things that drain your energy. Paired with an analysis of the current skills you have and how they can serve you better.

I think we are people who can’t just work. There must be a life outside of work, and we must find true meaning in our work that’s aligned our character and our goals in life. The sooner you get in touch with the person you really are (outside of your role), the easier it will be for you to overcome such moments and career upheavals if you encounter them.

Why did you become part of Women in Marketing – Bulgaria and how do you see your contribution to the mission of the community?

I created and became a part of Women in Marketing – Bulgaria to be able to connect with women who are like me. Women who work in this industry and who want to help the development of this community in Bulgaria. Since we don’t have such a community at this stage in the country, I think that it needs to exist.

My contribution, apart from the organisational aspect of community initiatives, is to help the community survive long-term, to be an active member and to share my knowledge and resources.

There are so many talented women working in the field and it is my privilege to be able to invite as many of them as possible to become part of the community and together we can help the next generation of women in the country by sharing experiences, enabling development, as well as creating resources to enrich both professional and personal career development.

What industry trends or developments do you find most exciting or challenging right now?

As someone focused on technical marketing and the field of automation and machine learning, I am most excited about the possibilities of automating many of the tasks that are performed in the marketing field. What’s most exciting to me is that many of the functions we have as marketers can be automated.

At the same time, it is extremely challenging to create a general level of common culture of marketers about artificial intelligence and machine learning, and how these technologies can be applied in everyday life. In my opinion, this is also the biggest challenge. Namely, to train marketers towards advanced technologies and succeed in truly taming the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning in their daily lives. That’s my calling, too—to help resolve that conflict and empower marketers to actually implement AI in a way that’s sustainable.

Outside of work, what hobbies or activities bring you joy and recharge your creativity?

I draw inspiration from nature walks, time spent outside, various new experiences and activities related to deep relaxation.

I love going for long walks with my dog, running, moving. I like yoga and pilates as practices to calm my mind. I’ve made it a point to integrate these moments into mini rituals for starting and ending the work day. In this way, I manage to build a routine that helps me be both 100% present in my personal life and more productive at work.

I love trying new things – whether it’s learning something new, like a new type of exercise, a new sport, or a restaurant I’ve never been to, or a new skill like sewing, for example. The learning process is what fuels me.

It was an absolute pleasure getting to know Lazarina better.

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