Melissa Harrison has two decades of experience in marketing strategy, content management and business development. As the CEO and founder of Allee Creative, a content marketing agency based in Minnesota, Melissa is also a veteran entrepreneur with 16 years of experience in building her agency—both in revenue and signed clients and team members.
Maintaining a global book of clients, Melissa works with clients to execute omni-channel marketing strategies. Starting her career in the nonprofit and higher education world in 2003, Melissa focused the early part of her career in traditional marketing and publication management. In 2006, Melissa started Allee Creative (then known as Harrison Communications) with a focus on small businesses, professional services, healthcare, med tech, financial services, higher ed and nonprofits. She is a unicorn in the marketing space with the ability to set clients’ business goals into comprehensive marketing strategies with a pulse on how to execute for success.
Some of Melissa’s notable clients and project work include UnitedHealth Care (Optum Behavioral Solutions), 3M Littmann Stethoscopes, Minnesota Autism Center, YMCA, Dunwoody College of Technology, Minnesota FoodShare, Fazendin REALTORS, Minnesota State Bar Association, MixedBlood Theatre, Capella University, Lifetouch and many more.
Her accolades include being named a Notable Leader in Marketing by Twin Cities Business Magazine, a Top 100 Content Marketer by both Express Writers and Content Marketing Institute, a Top Young Entrepreneur (Minnesota Business Magazine) and a Mover & Shaker (Star Tribune). She is a four-time recipient of the Hermes Creative Award and an international speaker on topics centered around content marketing, business and marketing strategy, and entrepreneurship. She was named one of 100 women to watch in the U.S. as part of The Inspirational Woman Project and is a graduate of the Small Business Administration’s Emerging Leaders program. Melissa was also inducted into the DeForest Area High School Alumni Hall of Fame (her alma mater) for her outstanding achievements in the marketing industry.
Melissa has held leadership positions for a number of boards in the Twin Cities area including MWMC (Minnesota Women in Marketing and Communications, now Team Women), Neighborhood Connections and the STMA Youth Hockey Association. She is also a member of the Alzheimer’s Association’s Longest Day committee and First Fridays Women in Marketing. Melissa lives in St. Michael with her husband and four children.