Recommendations
Leadership & Management
"I reported directly to Mark for a few years at Sam's Club on the content team and I could not have asked for a better manager. Our team worked in conjunction with other teams in the content and creative department; we had constant deadlines and deliverables at any given time. Mark was a supportive advocate for us in both his ability to manage expectations and develop our skills as writers. He was extremely organized and responsive. He was hands-on but did not micromanage--he gave us the autonomy to get our work done but was always available when we needed him. He was the type of manager who always listened to comments/feedback and worked with us to find a solution. Because of his role as a manager, I always felt like a valued team member."
Shannon Park, Senior Copywriter, SamsClub.com
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"Thoughtful, motivating, supportive, empowering -- these are just a few of the words I would use to describe Mark as a leader. I was one of thirteen copywriters, a mix of on-site and remote employees, who reported to Mark through 2016 and 2017. Even with a large team and an ever-growing list of responsibilities, Mark always showed that he was invested in my success at Sam's Club, a rare trait that sets him apart as an excellent leader and awesome human being.
Mark's project timelines kept our team productive and on track with company objectives, helping our team shine in the process. Mark always made me feel supported and responded quickly to any questions or obstacles I ran into, working to find solutions fast. He is a thoughtful manager who would often check in weekly to make sure I had everything I needed to complete my work.
Mark is an excellent communicator whether he is explaining project deliverables and expectations for our team to keeping friendly, open lines of communication through multiple departments, an absolute must in a company as large as Sam's Club with several offices in different states. I watched Mark wear many hats in his role as manager, and was always impressed at how effortlessly he switched between editor, project manager and producer, to name a few. Mark is a wonderful person and an outstanding manager. I miss working with him and envy future teams who will benefit from his leadership!"
Andrea Waldron, Contract Copywriter/Content Manager, SamsClub.com
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"Mark is by far one of the BEST managers I've had in my career! Leading and motivating a team of 12+ who work remotely takes serious skills (and patience!). He spent a lot of 1:1 time with each team member, especially during onboarding, to ensure we had the tools we needed to succeed.
From a content management perspective, it was impressive to watch him find diplomatic ways to help our partner brands shift from brand-centric to customer-centric copy. He helped Sam's Club move away from fluff verbiage and focus on bringing our products to life with the power of storytelling.
Mark is an amazing leader that bats for his team, trains them, and gives them the freedom to let their creative juices flow. In fact, when he left Sam's Club, our team was so productive that we worked autonomously without a manager for over a year. I'm blown away by his kindness and effectiveness as a leader. Any organization that gets to work with him next should consider themselves lucky! "
Amika Sodhi, Contract Copywriter/Content Manager, SamsClub.com
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"Mark Sweeney was the first copy manager I ever worked for. I consider him a mentor and a friend. Mark showed me the ropes of writing retail copy, and has been invaluable in helping me find my way in the copy/content/creative industry ever since. While we were at Walmart eCommerce we both worked on the Sam’s Club private label rebrand, arguably the most important company initiative of 2016-2018. Mark’s combination of tact, fortitude, aesthetic judgment, and overall leadership were instrumental to the brand’s transformation (the Sam’s Club private label sales figures took off as a direct result of our combined efforts). I would work with Mark again in a heartbeat!
Jeremiah Granden, Contract Copywriter/Content Manager, SamsClub.com
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"As a fellow copy professional, I could write all day about what a great pleasure it is to work with Mark. But for the sake of word count, I’ll keep this succinct. I was fortunate to collaborate with him on the copy team he led at Sam’s Club. As Content Manager, Mark was a breath of fresh leadership: positive and upbeat, even in stressful situations; smart as a whip (you want him to read your copy because he’ll always make it better); and just plain enjoyable to be around. As you’ll see from his impressive credentials, he is accomplished and has the mad editorial management skills that would greatly benefit any creative team. I truly admire Mark and would jump at the chance to work with him again."
Paul Lee Canon, Contract Copywriter/Content Manager, SamsClub.com
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"I had the pleasure to work with Mark at Sports Authority when he served as our copy director. It goes without saying that Mark is a great writer and editor. Additionally, Mark is an excellent leader and did a superb job developing his team into a strong cohesive group that excelled at their work. I would welcome the chance to work with Mark again in the future."
Paul M. Okimoto, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Management Executive, Sports Authority
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"I had the privilege of working closely with Mark for over a year. Mark is a tenacious, dedicated, and hard working leader. He is passionate yet a team player who those around him admire and seek counsel. He is able to build strong teams through his excellent leadership. He is adept at working on quick assignments as well as long-term projects and campaigns. I would highly recommend Mark. He is truly a fantastic employee."
Anne-Marie Caldwell, SVP of Marketing, Sports Authority
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"I had the privilege of working with Mark Sweeney for over two years at Sports Authority. During that time I witnessed Mark's rare combination of unique creativity, passion for his work and market awareness. His attention to detail made partnering with him a pleasure. He is a well-spring of fresh ideas, and committed to excellence. Mark will shine in any environment he's placed in. I'm sincerely excited to see what the future holds for him!"
Kira White, Marketing Manager, Sports Authority
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"Mark has a brilliant mind for copy and could always be counted on for coming up with new ideas and challenging his peers. He conducted himself with the utmost professionalism and was one of the most enjoyable people to interact with on a daily basis. His personality is inspiring and contagious. I would work with Mark over and over again given the chance."
Kailey Gordon, Assistant Art Director, Sports Authority
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"Mark has the respect and admiration of our entire team. He was a great teacher in navigating the world of advertising and retail and creating smart, on-brand messaging for a variety of needs, and through his leadership made our team into one of the strongest in the department. He has a talent for giving astute feedback and guidance, and working with individual strengths and weaknesses to develop excellent work. Mark can be relied on to tackle everything with good humor, patience and dedication, and goes above and beyond for every project thrown his way. I would not hesitate to work with him in any situation!"
Sarah Lin, Copywriter, Sports Authority
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"Mark is not only a talented writer, he is an excellent manager. He provides solid creative direction and inspires those he works with to do their best work. He is one of the most creative people I know, and I highly recommend working with him."
Jonathan Noble, Lead Copywriter, Sports Authority
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“Mark and I worked together for six years, and he was my manager for the first two. As a manager, he cultivated an environment that fostered creativity and inspired those around him. He maintained the highest standards and was known and respected throughout Macy’s. Mark is a first-rate editor, a peerless project manager, and a natural leader. He’s resourceful, organized, conscientious, and creative, and is a real pleasure to work with. He's a consummate professional, and I can’t think of a colleague I regard more highly.”
Gina Vanlue, Editor, Macy's West
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“During my career at Macy's West in San Francisco, I knew Mark but did not interact with him on a regular basis. He and I were both relocated to New York in 2004. With this move Mark and I worked together on a daily basis. As the Macy's Home Store was a centralized organization we encountered new challenges and many obstacles on a regular basis. Mark's demeanor was always pleasant and had a "we will figure this out" attitude. I always knew that Mark could be relied upon to find solutions to any issue that arose, that would be expedient and accurate. I would welcome any opportunity to work with Mark again. He will be a tremendous asset to any team he joins. I also make myself available to speak to anyone personally that would like further information about Mark.”
Karen Luehr, Sr. Marketing Director, Macy's Home Store
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“I wholeheartedly recommend Mark Sweeney on the basis of his exemplary professionalism, job knowledge, efficiency, dedication, communication skills, teamwork and integrity of character. As his employee for three years, during which we worked very closely on a day-to-day basis, Mark enabled a work environment in which I could not only effectively perform my job, but also flourish. He consistently mentored my development with patience and friendship and always expected the best from himself, setting the perfect example. Both within our department and beyond, Mark's reputation as a competent professional led to his status at the company as one of the key "go to" individuals, distinguished above hundreds of other staff members. He was awarded several times during his tenure as an outstanding employee. I am confident you will find Mark Sweeney to be everything you are seeking and more.”
Stacy Pope, Copy Editor, Macy's West
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“I worked with Mark for 2 yrs. when he was the Editing Manager at Macy's Home Store Marketing during its inception. Being that the Home Store was more or less a start-up business, a ton of work needed to be done to condense, codify and clarify all of the editorial styles and legalese used by the various divisions. Mark was up for the challenge, and handled the task with expert skill. He was not only a savvy manager with a firm sense of direction, but an eagle-eye editor who understood that big picture success can't be achieved without attending to the details. You would do well to work with Mark Sweeney.”
Joshua Thines, Copywriter, Macy's Home Store
Copywriting & Copy Editing
"Having Mark join our team was a nothing less than a game-changer. His experience as a creative and strategic thinker combined with his disciplined editor’s eye for consistency made him a natural for our customer service UX projects. His work was impeccable; he simplified complex information by rigorously applying an informational hierarchy structure which improved our customers’ ability to self-service. The result was higher ratings and measurably lower call volume to our customer call centers. Mark was always the first to volunteer for every project and he was generous in providing his expertise to his coworkers. I hope to work with him again!"
Donna Lipton, Manager of UX Content, macys.com
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"Mark was one of the most creative, skilled and conscientious copywriters on our Shop Houzz freelance writing team. He was adept at crafting stories around product, doing extra research to add context that elevated his work and delivering clean copy on deadline. He was also very flexible and focused on making me look good as an editor. I'd love to work with him again."
Maria Hunt, Market Editor (Ecommerce Email Marketing), Houzz.com
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"We hired Mark on a recommendation of our new coworker after hitting multiple bumps with outsourcing our ecommerce copywriter needs. Mark was exactly what we needed – got our voice, delivered well-written copy on or ahead of time – and he helped to strengthen our brand voice. I would recommend Mark as a powerful ecommerce copywriter."
Dilyara Breyer, Digital Marketing/Content Management/Visual Merchandising, Zenni Optical
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"Mark is a joy to work with and has become an extension of our team. He is able to take random words and thoughts and transform them into clear and concise messages quickly. Mark has created a consistent voice for our Brand. He is spot on in translating what is needed. We have worked together on a variety of projects where each time he creates magic efficiently and professionally. I wholeheartedly recommend Mark for any kind of writing project and I expect to work with him on many future projects myself."
Jinine Martin, Director of Marketing, SkyMall
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"Mark is an extremely talented, well-rounded editor who I recommend with the utmost confidence. His extraordinary attention to detail, editorial insight, work ethic and resourcefulness were all invaluable assets to our team. Mark is an incredibly quick study who dives into new tasks and challenges without hesitation. He skillfully keeps the big picture in mind while at the same time perfecting the details. In our generally fast-paced environment, Mark always remained calm, collected and in possession of a great sense of humor, even under the tightest of deadlines. Mark was an absolute pleasure to work with, and any team would be lucky to have him."
Annie Girton, eCommerce Copy Manager, Restoration Hardware
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“Mark is the whole package: conscientious, detail-oriented, hard-working, and a joy to have around. In the two years we worked together at Restoration Hardware, Mark and I developed a great working relationship that made meeting our deadlines despite constant changes a breeze. He's self-directed and self-motivated – a manager's dream – and played a vital role in our copy department, both for catalog and web. Never one to sit idle, Mark went above and beyond his job description to help those around him. Last but certainly not least, Mark's keen sense of humor brought a breath of fresh air to the office every day.”
Katie Niekerk, Copy Manager, Restoration Hardware
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“Mark is a top-notch, meticulous editor who can manage any project assigned to him. He's a quick study, flexible with his time, and a responsible team player. With Mark on the job, I never worried about details or deadlines. You won't regret hiring him.”
Anna Payawal-Scanlon, Director, Content Development, Restoration Hardware
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“"Deadline" should be Mark's middle name. He is always on top of things— prompt, professional and accurate. He's also a wonderful mentor and has helped me numerous times throughout the course of my professional career. Mark's consistency and efficiency are rare, and always an asset.”
Brooke Diaz, Copy Director, Madison Brands
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“I could always count on Mark to give my writing that final polish. His knowledge of grammar and his ability to remember arbitrary, job-specific, style rules is uncanny. But it is his understanding and appreciation of the voice of the writer that makes him an exceptional editor. He uses the red pen lightly and effectively. His tireless efforts to make our style guides more user-friendly so that we could prevent some of that red pen in the first place, were also very much needed and appreciated.”
Robin Bruns Worona, Copywriter, Macy's West
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“Quite simply, Mark is the best editor I've ever worked with. Not only does he have the prerequisite attention to detail, but he also sees the big picture. He reads and edits in the context of the overall ad/story/event. He asks questions, and doesn't stop until the answer makes sense. And when he needs to, he does the research himself. Within this position as well as others he held at Macy's West, Mark was always viewed as a "go to" person because of his resourcefulness. And on top of all that, he's just a really nice guy.”
Beverly da Silva, Executive Copy Director, Direct Mail, Macy's West
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“Mark was our indispensable editor. Under his watch, we knew ads would be free of misspellings, inaccuracies, inconsistencies and messages that did not make sense. He’s willing to go above the call of duty to maintain his high standards. He also has no trouble keeping up with lots of detailed work in a pressured environment, yet remains the consummate diplomat.”
Cynthia Ramos, Copy Director, Macy's West
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“Mark is the Michael Jordan of editors. Simply, he does it all. He has superb command of the language, total mastery of our sometimes-peculiar policies, complete commitment to the work (without being a sap), excellent recall, and none of that "you did this wrong" punitive attitude one sometimes gets with editors who catch mistakes.”
Howard Fischer, Advertising Copy Director, Macy's West
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“Mark is an amazing wordsmith. He thoroughly excels at proofreading and, due to his experience in writing, understands how to quickly clarify the complex marketing messages in every one of our projects. He's been an invaluable writer, editor, proofreader and all around friend to everyone who works with him!”
Vicky Ness, Executive Copy Director, Macy's West
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“Mark is a phenomenal copy editor who can focus on the minutiae of a text without losing the big picture. I was always impressed by his amazing ability to keep straight the complicated and constantly changing style guide rules of Macy's Home Store's seven different divisions. He's also a great guy and very fun to work with!”
Kristen McKivor, Copywriter, Macy's Home Store