CLINTON, ILL., May 19, 2022 – Rooster continues to build its fast-growing digital marketing team with the hiring of Kaelin Hanks, Megan Hammons and Sarah Kwast.
Hanks and Hammons join the firm as senior digital marketing managers, and Kwast comes on board as social media community manager.
“A lot of our clients are often pushing the edge in digital,” says James Arnold, Rooster chief digital officer. “Because digital is so vast, we need more experienced hands to execute high-end digital strategy and tactics on a day-to-day basis.”
Kaelin Hanks brings a strong agricultural and equine background to Rooster. She was previously senior manager for global marketing operations at MicroPort Orthopedics. Other positions she has held during her career include marketing manager at Local Seed Co. LLC; consultant and product marketing manager for Informa PLC; and vice president of marketing and sales at Pre-Vent Feeders LLC.
In addition to her professional duties, Hanks is involved in the daily operations of a commercial row crop and cattle farm in West Tennessee. She has been breeding horses and competing in horse shows for more than 25 years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in animal science and a master’s degree in agricultural economics and business from the University of Tennessee.
Megan Hammons has worked in digital marketing for 12 years and has extensive experience in project management, social media management, paid social media advertising and strategic planning. She was most recently a content and community marketing manager at Informa Markets – Farm Progress.
Other previous professional roles for Hammons include marketing specialist at Andrews McMeel Universal; customer success manager at Farm Journal Media; and SEO and e-commerce specialist at ARY. She is a graduate of Kansas State University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing.
Sarah Kwast, in her new role as social media community manager, will be developing strategies, concepts, calendars, cadence and community management for all Rooster social clients. She previously held strategist and account associate positions at Osborn Barr Paramore (OBP). Her other experience includes serving as marketing intern at the Missouri State Fair, and as legislative intern for Missouri Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Brian Munzlinger. Clients that Kwast has worked with include the United Soybean Board, the National Corn Growers Association and Missouri Tourism.
She grew up on a small farm in Missouri with parents who had ties to agriculture and farming backgrounds. In 2017, Kwast was a recipient of the American FFA Degree, the highest degree an FFA member can attain and only presented to less than one percent of FFA members. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications from Missouri State University.
Rooster has a strong presence in the ag digital marketing space with various offerings, including The Rooster Cast, the Digital Intelligence Report and the company’s annual Ag Marketing in the Digital Age (AMIDA) conference.
“Rooster is pushing the boundaries in all areas of digital marketing, including digital media strategy, content marketing, search, social media, video, email, mobile, web development and design, and digital evolution planning and implementation,” Arnold says. “Kaelin, Megan and Sarah will help push our digital bandwidth and capabilities even further.”
Rooster is a partner to brands, companies and their marketing teams in food and agriculture. Based in Clinton, Ill., the firm has satellite offices in Kansas, Virginia, Missouri, Illinois, Georgia, Tennessee, Colorado, Texas, Indiana, Kentucky, Arkansas and South Dakota.