Ting Ba, Patreon’s new Director of Product Marketing, Growth, brings with her 10+ years of B2B and B2C marketing experience at companies like LinkedIn, Intuit, Estée Lauder, and Accenture. Read on to learn more about Ting’s own creative projects, what excites her about Patreon, and her favorite creators.
The creator mindset
Ting says she’s happiest when figuring out how to build something out of nothing. At Estée Lauder, she led the launch of a new Traditional Chinese skincare brand in Hong Kong. At Intuit, she launched a new SaaS accounting solution for manufacturing businesses. And at LinkedIn, she led the relaunch and growth of LinkedIn Pages and helped redefine LinkedIn as more than just an employer branding tool.
She calls her role here at Patreon “a dream come true” because it combines her professional experiences with her passion for creating. “I love being a creator and being able to express myself on my own time,” Ting says. As a writer and jewelry line creator, Ting enjoys challenging herself outside of her day job. “At the end of the day, everyone is a creator. You just need the confidence to go out there, tap into your passion, and see who might be interested in what you’re creating.”
What really sold Ting on joining the team was the talent. “The organization is filled with extremely talented people (many of whom are creators themselves) who are driven by helping creators succeed. Everyone I met came here to contribute to a mission greater than themselves, which was a sign that this was the right place for me.”
Creator culture
Working in marketing for over a decade, Ting understands the nuances of connecting with your audiences. “Creators themselves are incredible marketers and excel in the art of storytelling. So when we try to market to the creator community, we really have to up our craft.”
To do this, Ting and her team are focused first and foremost on actively listening and learning. “Creators take so much pride in the work that they do, but at the same time, they have so many questions about how to do it. It’s easy to jump immediately into solution mode, but it’s important to pause and actively listen,” she says. “In fact, I think the most important skill in this role is being able to listen to many different perspectives, aggregate the commonalities, and find the overarching themes that we can solve for.”
Looking ahead
As Patreon continues to grow and hire, Ting suggests that prospective employees really think about what is spiritually important to them and to make career decisions based on that. “My advice is to not join a company just because it’s a unicorn and you might be able to monetize from it. Career decisions have a lasting impact. You want to ensure you’re satisfied by how your time and energy are spent and that you’re surrounded by supportive people. Those outcomes usually come with spiritual alignment, not monetary.”
With Ting’s thoughtful approach to work, it’s no surprise her favorite Patreon value is Win Together. “Here, you’re asked to give honest, constructive feedback so everyone can work more effectively and productively together. While that sometimes comes with difficult conversations, it’s important to leave your ego at the door for the sake of the greater good. Whether you’re recruiting talent, writing copy, or running experiments, we’re all working together with a shared goal.”
Beyond the work
Ting’s most important creations of all are her daughters, Sophie and Audrey. They’re also the inspiration behind her jewelry business called Sophie and the Bird. “I’m a room parent and I’m in the PTA. I love being active in their school and spending as much time with them as I can,” she says
As far as her favorite Patreon creators, Ting’s interested in everything from true crime to pop culture. “I love true crime from a police lens, so I listen to Police Off the Cuff. It’s so interesting to hear from a police procedural standpoint, from the crime scene to the medical examiner all the way to prosecution,” she says. On the pop culture side of things, you can find Ting listening to Pop Apologists, a podcast hosted by two sisters with a refreshing and hilarious take on current events.
