It’s not every day someone finds themselves intrigued by marketing while cooking a delicious meal. However, that’s exactly Nadi Mahamba’s experience. While she started her professional career in the hospitality industry as a chef, it sparked her interest in learning what makes experiences special and how to better connect products to the people who interact with them.
Unconventional as this leap into the wide world of advertising may seem, it’s one of the special aspects of Nadi’s work that sets her apart — and what enables her to create such impactful work for her clients. Let’s unpack her storybook-like journey to Brafton, discovering the twists, turns and tips that can help you not only understand her role better, but also how to emulate her thriving link-building work in your own campaigns.
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From Chef to Marketing Guru
Nadi, our very own Digital Marketing Associate, hasn’t always held this title, or worked in the marketing sector for that matter. Early on, she worked in hospitality as a chef, creating amazing meals and serving customers. Her light bulb moment occurred when she noticed a disconnect between people and dining establishments, which got her mental wheels turning. She wanted to learn about how to connect the food to people through experiences and community.
While she could’ve taken a few short courses to learn the marketing ropes, in true Nadi fashion, she went the full nine yards and pursued a degree in strategic brand communication. The skills she learned during her time at university, as well as her experience serving customers in the hospitality sector, helped her get her foot in the door in advertising. Plus, it gave her a strategic lens to view all projects going forward.
She got a job marketing personal and home electronics and gadgets for one of South Africa’s fastest-growing electronics companies. While she didn’t dislike the role, she really wanted to find a career that would enable her to experience marketing outside of the South African market, which led her to Brafton.
Using Her SEO Expertise To Whisk Up ROI
Time flies when you’re having fun and chasing deadlines, right? For Nadi, that sentiment rings true. “I can’t believe I’ll be celebrating my four-year Braftiversary (our special way to say Brafton work anniversary) in just seven months!” She started working at Brafton in July 2022 after she found the job posting on LinkedIn.
“Funny enough, I just knew that I’d get the job as soon as I applied. Not because I’m pompous, but because I felt so drawn to the company after doing my research,” she said. “The job just had to be mine.”
As a woman of many talents and someone always willing to take on a new challenge, she’s held a few different positions during her tenure. First, she began as a social media strategist under the leadership of Samantha Dame, Vice President of Social Media, then did a short stint in the data processing team before officially moving to the SEO team. Currently, she’s working alongside Manager of SEO Link Building Adriana Sandoval and Senior Outreach Specialist Marco Acuña in Brafton’s small but mighty link-building team.
Just like many roles in the industry, there’s no normal “day in the life” of a digital marketing associate. Each day looks different, keeping Nadi on her toes. However, the main work can be split into two categories: SEO and relationship management. Some of her team’s main tasks include:
- Identifying high-quality, relevant websites for backlink opportunities.
- Analyzing domain authority, traffic, spam score and relevance.
- Researching competitors’ backlink profiles to find gaps or opportunities.
- Building and maintaining outreach prospect lists.
- Writing personalized outreach emails to site owners, editors, and bloggers.
- Pitching guest posts, link insertions, resource placements, or collaborations.
- Following up on outreach emails and managing ongoing conversations.
- Maintaining long-term relationships with publishers and partners.
- Collaborating with content writers on guest posts or linkable assets.
- Providing anchor text and target URL recommendations.
In her own words, she “asks for (legal) favors from strangers on the internet.”
While she could do this type of work in a variety of different places, what makes Brafton special from other places Nadi has worked? The humanness of it all and the ability to make normal mistakes without anyone biting your head off. “There’s this unspoken understanding that you’re a person first, and a worker second,” she said. “The whole idea that a company’s biggest asset is a physically, mentally and emotionally healthy employee isn’t just something they said — it’s something Brafton actually lives out.”
She also adores the close-knit nature of, not just the link-building team, but the entire staff as a whole.
“Even when I collaborate with other teams or random colleagues, I’m always met with warmth, patience, a willingness to teach and learn and just genuinely cool people,” she said. “I don’t know how the hiring team keeps getting it right, but I also think it’s the kind of culture that starts with the team leads and naturally filters down.”
The Ingredients of a Good Link-Building Strategy
It can be difficult to know if you’re moving in the right direction when it comes to outreach and creating valuable link-building opportunities for either your own brand or your clients. That’s why it’s critical to stick to the basics and continuously strive for genuine connections to see the results you want.
Here’s what we learned from speaking with Nadi:
1. Remember: Link Building Is a People Job
At its core, link building is people-focused, which means relationships matter. Treat outreach like a human conversation, not a transaction. Personalize messages, acknowledge the other person’s work and show genuine interest before asking for anything.
Pro tip: if your email or DM sounds like it could be sent to 100 people unchanged, rewrite it.
2. Lead With Authenticity, Always
As marketing becomes automated and impersonal, honest outreach, transparent intentions and real value exchanges earn better responses and higher-quality links. And remember the wise words from Nadi herself: “In a world that’s moving away from reality as we know it at an alarming rate, authenticity always wins people’s hearts — and wallets.”
Pro tip: Be upfront about why you’re reaching out and what’s in it for them — no gimmicks or clickbait.
3. Learn by Doing (and Don’t Be Afraid To Mess Up)
Great link builders aren’t born, they’re built through trial, error and pushing past discomfort. Jumping into the role with ambitious goals and a can-do attitude forces rapid growth and sharper instincts.
Pro tip: Track what works and what doesn’t. Every rejection is data, not failure.
4. Focus on Value, Not Just Metrics
Links are important, but quantity doesn’t necessarily mean quality. Prioritize relevance, authority and contextual fit over chasing numbers.
Pro tip: Ask yourself: Would this link still be valuable if Google didn’t exist?
5. Build Community — It’s a Link Builder’s Secret Ingredient
Strong link strategies mirror strong cultures; they’re built on trust, patience and collaboration. When publishers feel respected, they’re more likely to work with you again.
Pro tip: Maintain a list of contacts you’ve successfully collaborated with and nurture those connections over time.
Ready to take after the maestro herself and implement these tips into your next link-building campaign? Yes, chef!
Staying Busy After Hours: From Creative Workouts to Throwing Down in the Kitchen
Similar to her non-stop energy and work ethic during her nine-to-five, Nadi doesn’t slow down once the day is done. “My kind of fun is exploring different ways of moving my body, and if it’s outside, it’s a winner.”
You’ll find her hiking, paddleboarding, doing obstacle courses and pole dancing. And don’t forget about Hyrox, horseback riding and social netball, just to name a few of the excursions she’s bound to test out in her off time.
“My mother and I have a running joke that I wasted a lot of her money chopping and changing activities as a child,” she said. “So, she’s very pleased that I do all of that at my own expense now.”
Just because she doesn’t cook professionally doesn’t mean her love — or skills — for putting together mouthwatering meals has gone away. “When I have the time, I develop new recipes and use my family and friends and guinea pigs.”
If you want the low-down on her latest mealtime creation, or fancy a deep dive into the world of link building, Nadi is always down for a chat. Whether she’s whipping up a standout recipe or a high-impact link-building strategy, she brings the same passion, creativity and people-first mindset to everything she does. And with all the proper ingredients combined, you can also count on her relationship-building skills and strategic approach to create true masterpieces that garner impressive results.
