Lauren Quan

About

I help mission-driven organizations grow with smart, strategic marketing that delivers results. With 15+ years of experience across edtech, consumer, and nonprofit sectors, I bring a mix of strategic thinking and scrappy execution. As the first marketing hire at Khan Academy, I built the marketing function from the ground up—launching AI-powered tools, scaling programs to millions of families, and driving up to 276% YoY growth. Now, I partner with teams as a fractional product marketing leader, offering expertise in go-to-market strategy, messaging and positioning, customer research, and campaign execution. I plug in fast, collaborate seamlessly, and help turn vision into traction. I especially love working with: - Parenting products and services — tools and resources that support families - Edtech products — platforms that empower learners or educators - Social impact / nonprofit orgs — mission-driven teams with heart If you're building something that matters and need a trusted marketing partner, let’s connect. Specialties: Product Marketing, Positioning and Messaging, User Research, Competitor Research, Marketing Strategy, and Go-To-Market Strategy Contact me: Lauren.Quan@gmail.com

Experience

• Personal goal pursuit · Career Break2024-03-01 – 2025-04-01

  Career break to focus on family, expand marketing skills, and lead volunteer projects supporting local organizations. - Volunteer Marketing Consultant, Friends of the Redwood City Public Library: Provided pro bono marketing support to a nonprofit raising $100K+ annually. Designed promotional assets (graphics, videos, posters, and copy), managed Facebook and Instagram accounts, and trained a teen volunteer in design tools and best practices. - Founder & CMO, Joy and Whimsy Design: Launched and grew an online shop featuring 40+ digital templates for parents. Built the brand from the ground up—including logo, brand voice, and visuals. Drove growth through paid ads, email marketing, and strategic influencer partnerships. Managed content and engagement across social platforms. - Event Marketing & Planning Volunteer, Sequoia Children’s Center: Co-led planning and execution of the annual holiday show and potluck for ~200 attendees. Designed marketing materials to boost family engagement. Managed fundraising efforts and coordinated year-end gifts for staff.

• Group Manager, Product Marketing team · Khan Academy2023-08-01 – 2024-02-01

  - Managed a product marketing team of two, overseeing go-to-market strategy, market research, and user insights across Khan Academy’s product suite. - Directed the go-to-market strategy for Khanmigo, Khan Academy’s AI-powered tutor, resulting in hundreds of new subscriptions. - Guided market research and user feedback efforts for Khanmigo, influencing three major roadmap updates to better meet learner needs.

• Principal Product Marketing Manager · Khan Academy2022-01-01 – 2023-08-01

  - Developed and implemented a targeted back-to-school campaign for Khan Academy Kids, contributing to a 20% year-over-year increase in downloads (over 100,000 downloads) and a 6% year-over-year increase in engagement (an average of 1.7M monthly active users)

• Senior Product Marketing Manager · Khan Academy2019-01-01 – 2022-01-01

  - Led a pandemic response initiative, creating 50+ digital learning resources for parents that earned over 550,000 views and strong NPS scores (60s–70s). - Oversaw multi-channel summer marketing campaign for Khan Academy Kids that delivered 93% beyond our download goals. - Partnered with College Board on SAT marketing initiatives, including an SAT practice test campaign that generated 50,000 RSVPs and drove 276% YoY growth in practice exam completion on the Khan Academy website. - Pioneered the development of three new customer personas, shaping cross-functional strategies in product and marketing.

• Senior Email Marketing Manager · Khan Academy2017-06-01 – 2018-12-01

  - Led US and international email marketing strategy for Khan Academy, overseeing end-to-end execution from copywriting to deployment, while defining and tracking KPIs aligned with core business objectives. - Expanded email marketing operations by 230%, serving a user base of 62M+. - Implemented monthly email newsletters that each drove an average of 1.5 million minutes of learning time.

• Growth Marketing Manager · Khan Academy2016-07-01 – 2017-06-01

  - As the first marketing hire at Khan Academy, built the marketing function from the ground up by developing key processes, best practices, and KPIs for the organization’s digital channels.

• Branding and Employee Experience MBA Intern · Shutterfly Inc.2015-06-01 – 2015-08-01

  • Planned and executed annual Family Tour Day event for over 300 Shutterfly employees across two offices with zero budget • Developed goals, strategy, internal communications plans and promotional materials for employee experience initiatives

• Online Marketing Manager · Woodside Hotels2014-01-01 – 2014-08-01

  - As a marketing team of 1, managed 11 websites across six luxury hotels, overseeing content updates, copywriting, QA, and ensuring brand consistency. - Led digital marketing efforts including email campaigns, PPC, SEO, and display advertising; launched a responsive web redesign and managed external agencies. - Created and maintained monthly and annual campaign performance reports; used Google Analytics to analyze web traffic and optimize campaigns. - Developed key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure marketing success and inform digital strategy across all channels.

• Senior Marketing Communications Manager · PlayFirst, Inc.2012-06-01 – 2013-05-01

  • Developed and executed tightly integrated cross-channel marketing launch campaigns for all mobile games, including the popular Dash franchise • Managed outbound marketing communications and PR strategy, including managing relationship with third party PR agency • Oversaw marketing calendar and worked with VP of Marketing to determine strategy across all channels • Collaborated with third party partners, such as Sony and Nickelodeon, for mutual marketing initiatives that garnered millions of new users • Launched games to the top of the iTunes charts, including the #1 game on iPad, with minimal marketing budget • Reviewed marketing campaign materials to ensure brand consistency • Supervised team of 2 staff members and 1 contractor

• Product Marketing Manager · PlayFirst, Inc.2012-03-01 – 2012-06-01

  • Developed competitive product positioning for a majority of PlayFirst’s top mobile titles, including Hotel Dash, Diner Dash, Cooking Dash and Mall Stars • Developed and executed marketing and PR strategy for launches and major game updates • Conducted post launch and promotion analysis using analytics to measure campaign performance

Education

• University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of BusinessMaster of Business Administration (M.B.A.)
• University of California, DavisBachelor's Degree, English & Communication

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