Marina Cooley profile photo

Marina Cooley

Assistant Professor in the Practice of Marketing Emory University, Goizueta Business School

  • ATLANTA GA
Contact
Emory University, Goizueta Business School logo

Emory University, Goizueta Business School

View more experts managed by Emory University, Goizueta Business School

View all Experts

Media

Social

Biography

Marina Cooley joined Goizueta Business School in 2021. A storyteller at heart, Cooley is passionate bringing her love of modern marketing to the next generation of students. She developed a course called, Content Marketing, with a curriculum unlike that of any other school. In Content Marketing, students learn science of sticky ideas and put their learnings to the test.

Most recently, the class started a TikTok account and amassed 10M views and 1.8M likes in 30 days! To truly understand the social media platforms, you’ll often find Cooley dabbling as a content creator on LinkedIn, TikTok and Instagram.

Cooley also co-developed the Advanced Marketing Strategy course which exposes student to real life scenarios like Stages & Gates, Media Flighting and Brief writing.

In addition to her love for modern marketing, Cooley is a huge supporter of equipping students with a resilience and reflection tool kit. She has brought her love for deep work & single tasking to modules including: "Personal Development" and "Life Design for the Modern MBA“.
Prior to joining Emory, Cooley spent 15+ years in strategic marketing roles such as brand management at Coca-Cola, CMO at Lavva, and management consulting at IBM. While at Coca-Cola, she was part of the meteoric growth of two unicorn brands, Gold Peak and Honest Tea.

Outside of work, Cooley adores spending time with her family, playing mediocre tennis and having a slow first coffee.

Education

New York University's Stern School of Business

BS

Marketing & Information Systems

2006

Emory University's Goizueta Business School

MBA

Marketing

2014

Areas of Expertise

Brand Management
Social Media
Content Marketing
Virality
TikTok

Research Spotlight

1 min

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup unfolds across North America, Emory University’s Goizueta Business School experts are available to help media explore the business stories behind the world’s biggest sporting event, from the economics of hosting and ticket pricing to global sponsorship, player brands and the psychology of fandom. Goizueta’s World Cup 2026 Business Hub brings together faculty who can provide timely, research-backed commentary on the commercial, cultural and consumer forces shaping the tournament as it moves from match to match, city to city and story to story. Featured Topics The Economics of Hosting Infrastructure investment, tourism revenue, real estate, local labor markets and the broader financial impact of hosting World Cup matches. The Science of Fandom What drives global fan devotion, audience loyalty and engagement across stadiums, broadcasts and digital platforms. Ticket Pricing and Demand Dynamic pricing, hospitality packages, travel costs and how extraordinary demand shapes the fan experience at major global events. Brand Strategy and Global Sponsorship How companies evaluate World Cup sponsorships, build global campaigns and measure the return on major sports partnerships. The Rise of the Player Brand How star footballers build, extend and monetize personal brands that reach far beyond the pitch. Media can visit Goizueta’s World Cup 2026 Business Hub to explore available experts and connect directly with the right source for their story.

Marina CooleyThomas SmithMichael LewisSaloni Firasta VastaniRyan HamiltonDouglas Bowman

In the News

I tried Denmark's No. 1 secret to happiness for a year—it made me happier and more confident

CNBC  online

2025-07-05

For over four years, I’ve been a professor at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. Before that, I worked in the corporate world at organizations like Coca-Cola and IBM.

View More

Poets&Quants | Emory MBAs Visit Denmark For A Lesson In Happiness

Poets & Quants  online

2024-11-14

If the world can learn anything from Denmark, one of the happiest countries on Earth, it’s how to have a better work-life balance and understand respective generations’ expectations of work.
The MBAs of today will be managing Gen Z and Gen Alpha workers who have far different expectations of work-life balance.

View More

Inside McDonald's Subculture Marketing

Ad Age  online

2024-03-19

“McDonald’s has an interesting challenge,” said Marina Cooley, associate professor of marketing at Emory’s Goizueta Business School. “At one point, nine out of 10 Americans had eaten at McDonald’s at least once a year. It’s not necessarily an issue of finding new customers, it's having them come back again and again.”

But Emory’s Cooley noted that being “cool” is also a way to make McDonald’s more approachable and combat the negative connotations consumers can have of a giant, global corporation.

View More

Powered by