"Just Keep It Real: Be Yourself and Build Strong Relationships" with Expert Helena Jelinek

Hello everyone! Today we are excited to share an enlightening conversation with Helena Jelinek. Helena has over 12 years of experience in B2C luxury & hospitality, working with brands like Hilton and InterContinental, where she organized global events, from corporate conferences to high-profile weddings for the rich & famous. She studied business administration and English philology, but marketing initially seemed boring to her - until Don Draper from *Mad Men* made it exciting. Later, she realized she had always been a marketer at heart, drawn to storytelling, strategy, and creativity. Embracing challenges, she took her first marketing role in the photonics industry - intimidating at first, but far more rewarding than selling soda. Now, with years of experience in the field, she is still mastering the art of making complex tech compelling.

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1. From “Mad Men” to Marketing Strategy

Helena admits it openly: Marketing once seemed boring. Until Don Draper entered the scene. What started as a binge-watch of Mad Men turned into a realization – she had always been a marketer at heart. Strategy, creativity, and storytelling weren’t just tools of the trade; they were her superpowers. After studying Business Administration and English Philology, Helena embraced a new challenge: her first marketing role in the photonics industry. It was intimidating – but as she puts it, “way more rewarding than selling soda.”

2. Marketing vs. Branding: What's the Difference?

According to Helena, marketing is strategy. All the tools – from ads and social media to taglines and content – are just methods within a broader strategic plan. Branding, on the other hand, is about the soul of the company. “Everything communicates,” she says – from your visuals and tone to how your team shows up in conversations. Branding builds your identity, your “brand house,” as Helena calls it. And it always comes first. You need to know who you are before you can decide where you're going.

3. Tech Branding: Not Just Charts and Buzzwords

Branding in the tech world can be tricky – especially in B2B. Helena reflects on her time in photonics, where she saw countless companies default to dry graphs and AI-generated slogans like "Step into the future".
Her advice? “Get real.”
Don’t hide behind generic taglines or trendy platforms just because everyone else is there. "Not every company needs to be on TikTok," Helena says. Instead, speak directly to your audience. Know the problem you're solving. Be human. Build relationships. And most of all – don’t be afraid to stand out.

4. Trends? KPIs? Performance Reviews?

Helena challenges the status quo. She openly questions the obsession with trends, KPIs, and rigid performance reviews. Instead, she believes in relevance over reach, quality over quantity, and genuine human connection over vanity metrics.

5. For Companies Still Finding Their Voice

Helena’s message is simple and powerful:
“Just keep it real.”
You don’t need to chase every trend. What you need is clarity. Who are you helping? What problem are you solving? What do you believe in? Once you know that, the story writes itself.

Do you need support from an expert like Helena Jelinek? Or, are you looking to join the expert community at SalesPro4U? Feel free to reach out at expert@salespro4u.com.

Stay tuned for more enlightening episodes of “The Expert Talk”.

Until then, take care!