Heather Lynn Burnside
Heather Lynn Burnside is a seasoned digital marketing professional and instructor with extensive experience in paid search, paid social, and performance media analysis. Currently serving as a Senior Digital Marketing Instructor at COOP Careers in a remote setting, she provides mentorship and instruction to recent graduates and early-career professionals, teaching critical skills such as Microsoft Excel, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Engine Marketing (SEM), campaign management, and client-based project execution. Heather also guides students on professional development, including resume building, LinkedIn optimization, and interview preparation, fostering both technical expertise and career readiness.
Before joining COOP Careers as one of their Digital Marketing Instructors, Heather excelled as a Performance Media Analyst at Spark Foundry, where she managed and optimized campaigns for high-profile clients including Taco Bell, ConAgra, and Sherwin-Williams. Her work involved creating and analyzing campaigns across multiple platforms such as Meta, TikTok, Pinterest, and Google, tracking key performance indicators, managing budgets, and ensuring quality assurance for all campaigns. Heather’s hands-on experience in both corporate and client-facing roles has given her a unique perspective on integrating strategy, analytics, and execution in digital marketing.
Heather’s educational background includes a Certificate in Digital Marketing from COOP Careers, a Certificate in Sign Language Interpreting from Moraine Valley Community College, and a BA in Liberal Arts and Sciences from National-Louis University with concentrations in Spanish and Psychology. Beyond her professional pursuits, she is passionate about community outreach, volunteering, gardening, art projects, and exploring global cultures. Known for her empathy, patience, and dedication to fostering growth in others, Heather combines technical skill with a commitment to meaningful mentorship and positive community impact.
• Pinterest Performance Essentials
• Accelerate Your Job Search with AI
• Assess for Success: Marketing Analytics and Measurement
• Foundations of Digital Marketing and E-commerce
• From Likes to Leads: Interact with Customers Online
• Google Digital Marketing & E-commerce Specialization
• Google Digital Marketing and E-Commerce Professional Certificate
• Make the Sale: Build, Launch, and Manage E-commerce Stores
• DOOH Essentials
• Marketing Funnel Essentials
• MACP
• MarinOne Upgrade Certification
• SEO
• COOP Careers Fellowship
• Moraine Valley Community College
• National Louis University- B.A.
• Neighbor Space
• Chicago Humanities Festival
• South Merrill Community Garden
• COOP
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to teaching and mentoring students in digital marketing, providing guidance and feedback that helps them advance in their careers and navigate the corporate landscape. Moreover, I also attribute it to receiving powerful support from my loved ones and strong, constructive feedback from my colleagues. Success is not only feeling professionally and financially secure, but also feeling genuine happiness, pride and confidence in what I do as well.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve ever received is to “build a block”—focus on laying strong, foundational steps in your career that support long-term growth and accomplishments. Moreover, even if that "block" has the strongest foundation, it is always ideal to continue building upon it as you continue forward in your personal and professional endeavors. After all...When it comes to growth, you should always strive to keep building up. Never let anything or anyone tear your down, not even yourself.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice would be to definitely do your research on Digital Marketing along with networking with long-time professionals. Since the field is constantly evolving, and Artificial Intelligence is in the mix, pay close attention to digital marketing trends that are happening for search engines, social media, influencer marketing and media, and how consumers interact with products/companies they see on their social media feeds or whenever they are researching online. If possible, attend seminars, conferences and/or workshops that will provide crucial, relevant information regarding Digital Marketing, how digital marketing agencies and brand-name companies interact with clients when it comes to having deliverables delivered on a timely basis, and learning what skill sets will set you apart from the rest of the world in the job market (Ex. Microsoft Excel, Tableu, SEMRush, etc.). Just like learning a new language or food recipe, always keep your skills sharp and be open to learning new things!
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
With a plethora of challenges going on in the job market, recruiting; high competition amongst job candidates and business clients; Artificial Intelligence; automation; and information/skills relevancy are some of the biggest challenges in Digital Marketing. As for opportunities, digital marketing always being in demand; knowing how to make creative advertising and content; knowing how to efficiently create performance analysis and key performance indicator (KPI) reports, and being flexible in team and solo work settings are highlights in Digital Marketing. Moreover, as a huge bonus, working with creative, talented individuals, and possibly receiving mentorship from them, is another opportunity in Digital Marketing as well!
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
One of the values most important to me in my work and personal life is creativity authenticity, which I express through activities like rock painting, drawing, and deep, thought-provoking conversations with others. As for authenticity, I believe nothing should be sugar-coated and individuals should be honest with themselves and with others. There are ways to show empathy and sympathy to others and still be honest with them when it comes to providing constructive feedback, making observations, and sharing ideas.