# Amanda Farris

> Amanda Farris is the Knoxville-based founder and CEO of LinkUnite, a professional community for women in performance and digital marketing. Built with co-founder Sara Malo from a list begun during an industry conference, LinkUnite now combines events, monthly meetups, mentorship, education, a private online community, and partnerships. Farris previously held business-development and strategic-partnership roles at LeadsPedia and Phonexa and has described curiosity, community-building, and values-led work as central to her approach.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at LinkUnite
- **Organizations:** LinkUnite, Phonexa, LeadsPedia, NotSoArtificial, OneLink for Everything!, Email Agency, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee, Performance Marketing Association
- **From:** Atlanta, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Master of Science in Mass Communications, Middle Tennessee State University, Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts, Reinhardt University
- **Known for:** Co-founded LinkUnite, which developed from an informal conference list into a professional community offering events, mentorship, education and an online member network., Led LinkUnite's inaugural forum and retreat for women in digital marketing in 2022., Created recurring member infrastructure including monthly meetups, a private Discord community, trade-show gatherings and the L.I.N.K. mentorship and education programs.

## Career timeline

- **2007-2017** — Owned FarrisFotos, a photography business.
- **2014-2016** — Worked in business development at LeadsPedia, later becoming Vice President of Business Development.
- **2018** — Began building LinkUnite with Sara Malo after identifying a need for stronger support and representation for women in performance marketing.
- **2021** — Joined Phonexa as Director of Strategic Partnerships.
- **2022** — Served as Phonexa's Chief Strategy Officer, spoke at LeadsCon about AI and machine learning in lead generation, and led LinkUnite's inaugural forum and retreat.
- **2024** — Discussed practical AI adoption and co-building NotSoArtificial on the Women And AI podcast; LinkUnite expanded its mentorship pairings and internship activity.
- **2025** — Appeared in interviews about authentic networking, community systems and LinkUnite's growth.
- **2026** — LinkUnite shifted its sixth event series to a multi-city format with gatherings including Austin, Kansas City, Toronto and Fort Lauderdale.

## Achievements

- Co-founded LinkUnite, which developed from an informal conference list into a professional community offering events, mentorship, education and an online member network.
- Led LinkUnite's inaugural forum and retreat for women in digital marketing in 2022.
- Created recurring member infrastructure including monthly meetups, a private Discord community, trade-show gatherings and the L.I.N.K. mentorship and education programs.
- Served in director, vice president and chief strategy officer roles across performance-marketing and marketing-technology companies.
- Spoke at LeadsCon 2022 on AI and machine learning in lead generation.
- Received an AFFY Award in May 2022, as listed on her LinkedIn profile.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — LinkUnite is promoting the November 8-10 Fort Lauderdale gathering in its 2026 multi-city LinkUnite VI series, with Farris and Sara Malo scheduled to open the program.
- **2026-02** — Farris and Sara Malo appeared on the Media Buying Podcast to discuss event ROI, relationship-driven networking and trends shaping affiliate marketing events.
- **2025-08** — Farris appeared on the Systems Simplified podcast to discuss authentic networking, shared experiences and systems for sustaining a community.

## Links

- Website: https://www.linkunite.live/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/farrisfotos/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@linkunite
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/linkunite/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LinkUnite/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/amanda-farris
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-22