Hi, I’m Sara (pronounced sah-rah) 👋🏼

I’m a dynamic people-first marketing professional with 3+ years’ experience helping brands connect through storytelling and strategy.

I’m passionate about creating marketing that adds real value - building trust, educating audiences, and driving positive social impact.

I believe marketing should do more than sell...it should support and inspire while still partnering with operations to deliver what’s needed for success and to drive growth in the market.

Let’s create something meaningful together.

Sara van Velze 🌸

✨Internal Communications Specialist✨

I'm an Employee Communications Specialist with 5+ years experience in marketing-communications. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in History (2:1) from the University of York as well as a Level 4 CIM Certification with Distinction. Alongside my role at AVEVA, I volunteer as a New Hire Facilitator, mentor and blood donor. I started building my personal brand in 2021, and have since amassed over 17,000 followers, and was ranked 43rd in the Technology for Marketing Top 100 Marketing Influencers of 2025.

Amelia Barron

This weekend I did ✨ nothing. ✨



No alarm. ❌ No plans. ❌ No travel. ❌ 

And it was perfect. 😍 

Because if there’s one thing I’ve learnt - if  you don’t take a break, your body will take one for you.

And it almost definitely WON’T be at a good time. 

Spending a weekend:

📚 Reorganising my bookshelves 
💬 Catching up with friends’ messages 
🏋️‍♀️ Working out 
😴 Sleeping 
🏡 Not leaving the house 

…was EXACTLY what was needed in the long longggg month that is January. 

Remember - ‘doing nothing’ doesn’t mean:

🕰️ You’re wasting your weekend 
🥱 You’re boring 
🦥 You’re lazy 

It means you’re taking care of yourself, and as I said, if you don’t do that freely your body will force you to! 

How was your weekend? What did you get up to? 💌 

#personalbranding #personalbrand #linkedin

Global Employee Communications Specialist | Shortlisted as one of the Top 50 Marketing Influencers of 2025

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I’m starting 2026 as an…


Employee Communications Specialist based in Cambridge, looking after AVEVA’s commercial function as well as global initiatives. 💜

And, one thing I’m proud of from 2025 is I never stayed in my comfort zone, even when I desperately wanted to. 

I've talked (a lot) about:

🌟 Donating blood.
🌟 Hosting a talk to 70+ people.
🌟 Being ranked in the Top 50 Marketing Influencers.

But what you didn't see was...

🛑 I nearly cancelled my appointment several times.
🛑 My legs were shaking under the table and I felt sick the whole time.
🛑 I almost didn't attend because I was nervous to go alone.

But because I pushed through…

🧚 I’ve now donated twice, with a third appointment booked.
🧚 My talk recording is being used to inspire and educate others. 
🧚 I got to meet some of the amazing people I’ve gotten to know on LinkedIn! 

This is also something I'm carrying into 2026, because honestly, the more time you spend outside of your comfort zone - the easier it gets! 

What’s one thing you’re proud of, and one thing you’re aiming for this year?

Big shoutout to Phoebe Hayles ACIM 🩵 for inspiring this post!

#personalbranding #personalbrand #linkedin

This is your Friday reminder that a person’s age only tells you how long they’ve been alive...


...not how capable they are at their job. 🫶 

Happy Friday everyone! 

#personalbrand #personalbranding #reminder

Why did you leave?


Understandably - when I introduce myself as a comms person with a marketing background, this question always comes up... 

And it's true that:

👩‍💻 I was in marketing for the first 2.5 years of my career.
👩‍💻 I have a CIM Level 4 Certification in Digital Marketing. 
👩‍💻 The majority of my LinkedIn community are marketers.
👩‍💻 I did really enjoy it!

BUT eventually the dream was shattered by:

🔥 The constant firefighting.
😭 The mismanagement (2/2 managers).
🫠 The 'you're paid to do not paid to think' mentality.

Then 2023 came around and I was approached with an internal comms role, where...

🧚 I get to be creative every single day.
🧚 My professional opinions are sought after and valued.
🧚 I have an amazing manager !
🧚 I play an active role in improving employees' workplace experience.

...and as they say, the rest is history! Does this answer your question?

What's something you love about your job? 

#personalbrand #personalbranding #linkedin

I don’t talk about everything on LinkedIn.


No seriously. 😅 

Here’s a sneak peek into the little things that have made me happy recently:

✈️ Planning my 2026 trips - with Bordeaux, Porto and the Peak District on the list...

🐹 Guinea pig cuddles. 

🧖‍♀️ Booking a Spa day for my mum and I. 

🔎 Watching Lucy Worsley's new documentary (and wanting to be her all over again).

🥞 Pistachio, baklava pancakes. 

❄️ A walk in the snow!

🎭 Going to see SIX the Musical (again).

📚 Reorganising my bookshelf for the millionth time.

🤩 Discovering a new part of London I haven't been to before. 

Not everything is ‘LinkedIn-worthy,’ but that doesn’t make these moments any less fun, memorable, or meaningful! 🫶

What’s been happening in your life recently?

#personalbrand #personalbranding #linkedin

How do you gain followers?


💬 Comments.

How do you come up with post ideas? 

💬 Comments. 

How do you grow your confidence on LinkedIn? 

💬 Comments. 

How do you build a strong community?

💬 Comments. 

How do your posts get more engagement?

💬 Comments. 

✨Comments are ALWAYS the answer.✨ 

Why? 

Because even without posting, comments:

🧚 Build visibility
🧚 Build relationships
🧚 Build confidence
🧚 Build ideas
🧚 Build credibility
🧚 Build reach

Last year, I left 3,769 comments - that’s 23x MORE comments than posts. 

And that’s where a huge proportion of my growth, confidence, and inspiration came from! 📈 

So, if you’re still holding back from posting... why not start with a comment instead?

#personalbrand #personalbranding #linkedin

‘2026 is the new 2016’ 

...

I'll just leave Little Miss Chatterbox here…💖

#personalbrand #personalbranding

🧚 You're not falling behind.

You're just online too much.


🧚 You don't need more stuff.

You're just online too much.


🧚 You don’t need a 'new year new you'.

You're just online too much.


🧚 Your home isn't ugly. 

You're just online too much.


🧚 You’re allowed to be average at things.

You're just online too much.


🧚 You’re not running out of time.

You're just online too much.


🧚 You aren't doing life wrong.

You're just online too much.

The online world is NOT the real world, nor is it the benchmark for a happy, healthy, fulfilled life. 

And if things start to get on top of you, go touch some grass…🌱as the kids say… 

Hands up if you needed to hear this? 🙋‍♀️

#personalbrand #personalbranding #linkedin

taplio

The Battle

Sara van Velze 🌸

Amelia Barron

Followers

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Performance ScoreAmelia Barron's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

Sara van Velze 🌸

Amelia Barron

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Amelia Barron's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreAmelia Barron's LinkedIn Performance