Showing, Not Telling: How Jessica Gonzalez Brings Creativity to Marketing
When the pandemic brought the world to a standstill, Jessica Gonzalez was finishing her degree and preparing to enter the professional world. With many of the opportunities she had expected suddenly put on hold, she began looking for ways to earn an income and figure out her next steps. What started as helping online children's programs with teaching and marketing eventually grew into Jessica of All Trades, a creative business built around helping organizations communicate, connect with audiences, and bring their ideas to life.
In the beginning, Jessica focused on promoting educational programs and helping people understand the value of the services they offered. Along the way, she developed skills in marketing, sales, and teaching, learning how to adapt her approach to different audiences and communicate a brand's message effectively. As her experience grew, so did her ambitions. She began traveling across the United States and to Mexico, meeting business owners and building partnerships with smaller businesses and startups. Eventually, her work expanded to include larger companies, luxury brands, private nonprofits, and personal brands.
Today, Jessica of All Trades brings together several of Jessica's strengths, including social media marketing, branding, instructional design, graphic design, writing, and creative content. Her approach reflects a belief that effective marketing is about more than simply promoting a product or service. It's about understanding the audience, communicating clearly, and creating experiences that help people connect with a brand.
One of the most interesting developments in Jessica's journey came from a part of her background she had not initially incorporated into her business: her ten years of experience in the performing arts. Rather than treating performance and marketing as separate interests, she found a way to combine them. That idea led to the creation of the WorkShow, an immersive experience that blends theater with educational workshops to demonstrate marketing concepts in a more engaging way.
The idea came at a time when Jessica was facing one of the most difficult parts of running a business: maintaining clients and finding new ones. After experiencing the usual ups and downs of entrepreneurship, she even considered returning to a traditional nine-to-five job. Instead, she decided to approach the challenge differently. Rather than continuing to tell potential clients what she could do, she would show them.
For one WorkShow, Jessica used Mean Girls as the inspiration for a marketing experience, even bringing in an actress to play Regina George. The event combined entertainment with practical marketing lessons, giving attendees a chance to experience her skills firsthand. The results were encouraging: Jessica gained two to three clients and generated revenue from the event. It also gave her a way to support the performing arts community while developing a creative approach to lead generation and client engagement.
Her experience with the Tech Incubator at Queens College (TIQC) has been another important part of her professional growth. As a Queens College alumna, Jessica had the opportunity to work with her alma mater and use her marketing skills to support educational initiatives. She credits Dr. Ying Zhou with helping her build valuable connections and find opportunities during the early stages of her business.
One particularly meaningful project involved supporting the Louis Armstrong Music Program within the School of Education. Jessica's marketing efforts helped generate enough interest that applications exceeded the program's capacity, leading to the creation of a waitlist. Through TIQC, she also secured a retainer client, establishing a relationship that lasted for a year or two. These experiences helped her move from working primarily in education toward serving a wider range of businesses and organizations.
For Jessica, those early opportunities provided more than client work. They helped her take her business more seriously, build professional relationships, and gain confidence as she expanded into new industries. She remains grateful for the support and connections she found through TIQC and the role they played in shaping her journey.
When asked what advice she would give to someone starting out in marketing or entrepreneurship, Jessica recommends finding a mentor or gaining experience through an agency. Early in her own transition, she spent about a year working under an agency, where she learned how to review data, understand brands, and present businesses in a professional and consistent way. She believes learning from people with experience can make the process less overwhelming and help new professionals develop the skills they need to grow.
Her advice is to recognize that you do not have to figure everything out alone. Having someone who can offer guidance, answer questions, and help you navigate unfamiliar situations can make a real difference. Building a business takes time, and learning from others can help you make that journey with greater confidence.
Looking ahead, Jessica hopes to produce more WorkShow events and take the concept to audiences across the United States and potentially abroad. She also wants to collaborate with more brands in different cities and countries, continuing to explore creative ways to bring marketing, education, and performance together.
From helping educational programs during the pandemic to working with diverse clients and developing her own immersive event concept, Jessica has built her career by combining different interests and learning how to put them to work. Through Jessica of All Trades, she continues to show that creativity can be more than an idea — it can be a practical way to solve problems, connect with audiences, and help businesses grow.
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