social media

Marketers Are All over Clubhouse for Career Growth—But Does the Tech Bro Platform Work for Women?

The women most critical of Clubhouse had one shared complaint: men interrupting. 
article cover

Francis Scialabba

· less than 3 min read

Get marketing news you'll actually want to read

Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.

Last week, it happened—the Clubhouse thinkpiece floodgates finally opened. From the app’s viability as an advertising platform to whether or not marketers will keep logging on post-pandemic, it officially entered the zeitgeist.

  • ICYMI: Clubhouse = an invite-and-iOS-only audio-chat platform (dashing, no?) that has exploded in popularity of late.

But as I read word after word about Madison Avenue’s evolving relationship with the app, I couldn’t help but wonder: Does Clubhouse’s reputation as a haven for tech bros make it less appealing to female marketers?

TL;DR: Girls just wanna have Clubhouse

Marketing Brew heard stories from hundreds of women about how Clubhouse boosted their marketing careers in an otherwise socially stagnant time.

Networking: “I’ve actually gotten really cool opportunities from being a speaker/participant in [Clubhouse] rooms, like being asked to be on podcasts or speaking on panels.”—Allyssa Eclarin, branding and product marketing consultant

ROI: “I was listening in on a call today about SMS marketing and wanted to chime in, so I raised my hand and had a convo with the founder of Postscript for 15 minutes and I [got Twitter followers, DMs, and] no joke, a job offer.”—Lillie Sun, growth + DTC lead at Three Ships Beauty

Learning: “In the bitcoin marketing space, [Clubhouse] is making room for women to talk, be heard, learn from other women, and not feel so alienated.”—Aubrey Strobel, head of communications at Lolli

"I’m speaking.”

The women most critical of Clubhouse had one shared complaint: men interrupting.

  • “I've been in rooms where I am in the speaker panel and I will get cut off [by bros]. I will get talked over [or] completely ignored. Ones where they will ask each other questions, clearly ignoring the fact that I am also there,” brand consultant Gabriela Cardoza told Marketing Brew.
  • And Flexible Creative founder Kendall Dickieson told us that, depending on the room she’s in, she has to “fight to get heard when it’s all guys.”

My takeaway: The vast majority of marketing mavens I spoke with said yes, yes, a million times yes—being on Clubhouse has improved their careers. And although it shouldn't be this way—the men of Clubhouse need to show respect—you might have to channel your inner Kamala Harris to get the most out of the app depending on the rooms you join.

Get marketing news you'll actually want to read

Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.