Amy Villarreal is lying in bed next to her fiance in the middle of the night when her phone goes off. She picks up her phone to see what’s happening — it’s a Tweet from work at women’s health company EmpowHER. Villarreal answers and tweets throughout the night, keeping her Twitter followers up to date on women’s trending health topics even after the sun has gone down.
Villarreal does this most nights as social media manager for EmpowHER, a website where women can find information relevant to popular women’s health topics. On the site, women can ask health-related questions, share their personal health experiences and join health groups on a variety of topics, including relationship advice, health problems caused by work and natural ways to end anxiety.
Villarreal always wanted to help people — growing up, she wanted to be a doctor or a veterinarian. However, she discovered in her high-school internship at a hospital that she wasn’t meant for what she had thought was her dream profession.
At the hospital, Villarreal witnessed two live births and a cesarean section. She nearly passed out, and the doctor in the room asked Villarreal to leave.
After that experience, Villarreal decided to pursue a different interest. This time around, she started reporting in the hallways of her high school with her cameraman. Her senior year, she anchored her school news program.
Transitioning from high-school news to the Walter Cronkite School helped Villarreal prepare for her professional career, she said.
One thing she learned was that, in the PR business, it’s important to pose as the expert, Villarreal said. Lack of expertise can undermine trust with the client, which is central to having a successful relationship.
“You have to learn from failure,” Villarreal said. “You have to remember you’re learning every day. It’s probably the greatest characteristic to have.”
As a social media manager, Villarreal promotes EmpowHER by engaging the audience in a variety of ways, such as hosting Twitter chats for her followers.
EmpowHER is a modern form of public relations, Villarreal said. The site deviates from the public relations work of the past, which didn’t include as much technology. Today, it’s important to be tech savvy, since social media is the core of the work.
Putting out information and promoting it in a way that is intriguing to the audience is a huge part of the job, and possibly the most difficult part for Villarreal. Connecting to people through the Internet rather than in-person can sometimes be challenging, she said.
Shana O’Connor, a coworker of Villarreal’s at EmpowHER, said that Villarreal helps EmpowHER by bringing new ways to help improve the company as a brand.
“She impressed me with her detailed execution of our social strategy, redefining our social voice as a brand and publisher and continuing to come up with new ideas to make EmpowHER’s social media better every day,” O’Connor said in an email.
Dawn Gilpin, a professor at the Walter Cronkite School, said she considered Villarreal an extremely organized and driven person.
“She takes her work very seriously but knows that having a life outside of work helps,” Gilpin said. “It makes her work stronger.”
Still, Villarreal makes sure to maintain a life outside of her work.
A weekend for Villarreal consists of golfing as much as she can, tanning outside, being outdoors and reading. Getting the chance to read a book and something other than for work is a luxury she enjoys as much as she can. Being outdoors helps get her “creative juices flowing.”
Villarreal embraces that healthy lifestyle, as it helps in her work as well.
“Her passion for EmpowHER, social media and making a difference in women’s health is contagious,” O’Connor said in an email.
The opportunity to speak with the women who come to the site every day and make an impact in their lives is something Villarreal believes not many other people get the chance to experience.
“It’s rewarding and a personal achievement every day when you can change someone’s life,” Villarreal said.
Contact the reporter at Lauren.R.Tomlin@asu.edu
