Personal brand strategist · Digital and communications specialist
Lerato Mabanga
Digital strategist, communicator and NLP-trained life coach. I bring together brand strategy, public relations, UX design and coaching to help individuals become known for what they know, and I bring the same skills to the organisations I work with.
Since 2010
A career across banking, financial services, marketing, telecoms and higher education
Distinction
Digital Brand Strategy at Vega School
4 languages
Setswana, English, isiZulu and Afrikaans
PR · UX · Coaching
Strategy, communication, design and personal growth in one partner
I use my creative passion to look at old problems with fresh eyes, and to inspire people to step out of their comfort zones. Working across many fields has taught me to adapt fast, learn new worlds quickly and add value from day one.
Lerato Mabanga
Two ways to work with Lerato
For your personal brand, or for your team
For individuals
Build your personal brand
Meaningful Things Studio works one-on-one with leaders, founders, experts and creatives who want to be recognised as the authority in their field.
- Positioning and a clear personal message
- Media training for interviews, stages and podcasts
- Building and managing your personal platforms
- Coaching through the change that visibility brings
For organisations
Bring Lerato onto your team
The studio’s services are for individuals. Organisations that want Lerato’s experience, built at the University of Johannesburg, MTN, MMI Holdings and iOCO, are welcome to offer her a role, in areas such as:
- Digital marketing and brand strategy
- Marketing and internal communications
- Event marketing and stakeholder engagement
- UX, CX and digital design
- Developer and partner ecosystem management
Why work with Lerato
Proven in every step of the journey
Each service at Meaningful Things Studio draws on work Lerato has already done for leading South African companies.
I · Clarify
Strategy and positioning
- Distinction in Digital Brand Strategy (Vega School), now completing an Advanced Diploma in Brand Innovation
- Ran vision, strategy and roadmap design sprints with management at MTN’s Chenosis platform
- Created the digital strategy and content plan for a newly launched company website
II · Elevate
Voice and communication
- National Diploma in Public Relations Management (Unisa)
- Leads marketing and brand communications for the University of Johannesburg’s Department of Commercial Accounting, including the 15th African Accounting and Finance Association (AAFA) Conference 2026
- Ran the full communications process for MMI Holdings’ Infrastructure and Operations division
- Turned highly technical jargon into clear, engaging articles, campaigns and a quarterly newsletter
III · Build
Platforms and digital presence
- Manages content for the Department of Commercial Accounting and AAFA 2026 conference websites
- Designed websites, banking-app screens and launch mailers as part of UX/UI teams
- Managed LinkedIn and Twitter for a recruitment and resourcing team
- Wrote and published website content and technical articles for Chenosis.io
IV · Architect
Ecosystems and lasting change
- Built the feedback loops between customers, partners and developers as Chenosis Ecosystems Manager
- Introduced a company-wide project tracking system that made team capacity visible
- Trained as an NLP life coach to support personal change that lasts
Experience
Where she has made an impact
From 2025
Marketing and Communications Specialist
University of Johannesburg, Department of Commercial Accounting
Coordinates the department’s marketing, brand communications and creative projects, from concept and creative direction to production and approvals. Manages content across its website, social media and newsletters, and leads the marketing, branding and communications for the 15th African Accounting and Finance Association (AAFA) Conference 2026, public lectures and other events, working with academics, professional bodies, industry partners and university teams.
2020 – 2023
Chenosis Ecosystems Manager
MTN, through EOH / iOCO
Brought together the interests of customers, partners and developers on MTN’s Chenosis API platform. Grew and engaged the developer community, ran design sprint workshops with management on vision and roadmap, designed user journeys and prototypes, and turned developer feedback into product improvements.
2019 – 2020
Digital Marketing and Design
iOCO Open Digital (EOH)
Worked across the UX/UI design team, recruitment and HR during EOH’s rebrand to iOCO. Wrote and designed for a banking app and several company websites, created a digital strategy and content plan, and ran internal campaigns and social media.
2017 – 2019
Marketing Communications and Design
MMI Holdings, Infrastructure and Operations, through EOH / iOCO
Owned communications across every channel for the division: design templates and layouts, articles, awareness campaigns and the quarterly staff newsletter, keeping the brand consistent and complex topics easy to understand.
2016 – 2017
Marketing, Client Service and Business Operations
The Creative Counsel
Researched FMCG markets and competitors, turned findings into reports and presentations, and helped clients track and improve their campaigns. Before that, mapped and re-engineered business processes with the operations managers.
2008 – 2014
Earlier career
Performance tracking at The Effectiveness Company, where she introduced a company-wide project management system; recruitment and events at Psybergate; client service at NMG Personal Financial Services and Standard Bank; and events at Old Mutual.
Digital portfolio
See the work for yourself
Lerato’s portfolio of digital work is shared privately. Request access and she will approve it personally.
Opens Google Slides in a new tab. Sign in with a Google account and choose “Request access”; you will receive an email once it is approved.
Education and training
- National Diploma: Public Relations Management
Unisa · 2018 - Digital Brand Strategy
Vega School · 2019 · with distinction - NLP Life Coach
School of Life · 2020 - UX Designer from Scratch
Interaction Design Foundation · 2023 - Advanced Diploma: Brand Innovation
Vega School · in progress, completing 2027 - Design Thinking: User Experience
Interaction Design Foundation · in progress
Toolkit
Languages
For organisations
Offer Lerato a role
Tell Lerato about the role and your organisation. Your message goes to her privately, and she will reply to you directly.
Work with Lerato
Ready to become known for what you know?
Choose the step that fits where you are today, from a strategy consultation to the full Authority Partnership. References are available on request.