Calling all PR pros – aspiring or seasoned – we’ve got some fresh careers advice for you from #CAAlumni and steering group member, Abs Gandhi. 

Abs started off as an intern at Freuds back in 2014 and he is now the PR manager – EMEA at tech company, Snowflake. If you want to know how you can leverage your agency position to go inhouse, the importance of relationship management and why those from under-represented communities should work on their personal brand, then read on… 

Snowflake used to be one of the clients that I represented when I was working at a PR agency. I helped launch Snowflake into the UK market in 2017, and it was my favourite account to work on. It really helped me to grow and flourish in my role. A role came up to lead the PR in EMEA and it was the perfect opportunity for me. I knew how great the company was, as well as the employees within the company. The client I was reporting into is now my boss, which really helped me fit into my role easily and lead the Snowflake PR engine in EMEA.  

Relationship-management. There are so many tools and skills that help you flourish in a role in PR, but without the ability to form good connections with fellow colleagues, senior leaders, and of course, media, you will really struggle to drive real impact in your role and for the business. If it wasn’t for my abilities to focus on relationships, I may never have secured my current role.  

PR is not just about what you do for the company or clients you represent – it’s how you conduct PR for yourself. If you’re bringing something to the table, whether that’s unique or otherwise impactful, you should really shout about this. I have often felt that people from ethnic or low socio-economic backgrounds always have more to do when progressing in their career, and it’s essential to take the time to focus on your own brand, as much as you do in your job. 

Being responsible for the growth of PR across EMEA is a project in itself, and one I’m most proud of. When I joined the company there were only three core markets. Now we have PR presence across 17 countries which shows massive growth, and one that I’m truly happy to have played a key role in.  

Diversity in each working day. I often get asked, what do you do in your day-to-day role, and it’s the most difficult question to answer because every day is a new day. And that’s what really separates PR from other industries. You have the ability to be creative, expressive, strategic, be at events (domestic or international) – all completely different experiences and which help you develop skills all-round.   

One thing that I tell anyone starting their PR career, and one that I think is essential in the creative industries, is to remain authentic and be true to yourself, without compromising too many of your core values.  

The other thing more specific to PR is to find your niche. There are a number of PRs out there, but to climb the ladder and make yourself known in your agency/company/amongst colleagues, you should hone in on something that you’re interested in (just as writing or another specific skill set), and one that makes an impact. For example, in agency life and still in my role now, developing strong and authentic relationships with media has really helped me in my career in creating trust and of course, landing the right stories. 

A great deal of managers I’ve had have really inspired me, and have become mentors and great friends at the same time. I’ve always looked up to them because they have enabled me to be authentic, support my career, and always been a great sounding board if I’m ever facing any difficulties. Having a good manager can really propel your career, and I’m grateful to have had such an amazing group of people manage me. 

Looking for a new role in PR, check out our opportunities board! 

Hi! I’m Adina and I work as an Account Assistant for London Communications Agency (LCA), having started in January. My family is originally from South Africa, however I was born and grew up in North London and ended up studying Media and Communications at the University of Sussex. Graduating in 2019, I was part of the first year hit by the major economic repercussions due to the pandemic. Finding a job proved to be a near impossible task….

After countless applications and soulless rejections (if I was lucky enough to receive a reply at all), I knew I had to go about my job search in a different way. At this stage, nearly all my friends were a part of the Universal Credit scheme, and almost half were now employed through Kickstart – it was time to hop on the band-wagon. Although slightly lengthy, the registration process for this scheme was smoother than expected, and in about a week I was matched with my coach at my local job centre.

Starting my job search afresh with a new sense of hope made this whole process so much easier! I also was pleasantly surprised to see such a large number of companies taking advantage of this scheme, and it then only took me a day or so to come across Creative Access. Although I am somewhat creative, a role in the arts industry wasn’t quite where I had imagined myself. Luckily, the advertised vacancies were not limited to only these, as this is where I spotted my role at LCA!

LCA is a full-service PR consultancy that delivers campaigns, consultations, and content to clients across the built environment sector. My main role within the company is providing practical and logistical support to my client account teams, which includes King’s Cross and a range of developers and architects. Along with daily monitoring and scoping the net for any coverage for our clients, I also research a variety of topics within the built environment when handling client requests and come up with creative ways to pitch my clients’ projects to the media.

Being LCA’s first and only Kickstarter, this was a new realm for all of us. Luckily, everyone on my team made it their main focus to ensure this has been entirely a learning process, allowing me to try all aspects of the business, even those my role wouldn’t usually cross!

On the topic of my team, I have to say this isn’t a normal office. Everybody here has been more than welcoming and supportive throughout my whole journey, but also approachable and just plain lovely (shout-out to my appraiser Phoebe)! It’s a pleasure to be here, and I can thankfully say the feeling seems mutual as I was offered a full-time position just two months in.

In my experience, the Kickstart scheme is literally the sole reason I am where I am today. I was lucky enough to join a thriving agency, but for many other companies, Kickstart helped them to stay afloat through an exceptionally difficult period. Similarly, for myself and so many other young people living through the pandemic, the re-opening of the job market meant we now had a chance to start/continue our careers.

Creative Access allowed my transition into LCA to be as smooth as possible. I have now attended two workshops since starting, giving myself and other Kickstarters key information to take into our roles and further in our careers. This also gave us a chance to connect with those in similar roles and hear about their personal experiences. Those on the Creative Access team have always been warm and welcoming as well as supportive whenever needed.

As my Kickstart journey soon draws to a close (and I became a permanent member of the LCA team!!!), my aim is to continue learning and growing here, soaking up everyone’s knowledge while progressing on my PR path.

For our April Creative Access masterclass, we were lucky enough to be joined by our friends at McLaren Racing to learn about the huge array of different careers within marketing, branding and design.

Creative Access and McLaren Racing have been partners since June 2021 when we joined the McLaren Racing Engage Alliance, which aims to diversify talent in motorsport. Last autumn we launched our first Career Development Bursary together to provide funding to help people overcome the financial obstacles to career progression.

We’re now excited to announce three, month-long paid internships at McLaren Racing this summer. Keep on eye on our website and social media in the coming weeks for more details to follow…

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The masterclass, chaired by Creative Access chief executive, Josie Dobrin, featured McLaren Racing’s head of merchandise and licensing, Caroline Land; Callum Willcox, senior specialist: fan and brand strateg  and Simon Dibley, senior specialist: design.

We were curious to know how our panel got started in their careers at McLaren Racing. Kicking us off was Simon. His design team covers everything from car livery to 3D animation and everything in between. Originally from New Zealand, Simon had studied design at university and told a careers advisor he would love to design cars. However, he was told to pick something “realistic” and cast his dreams of designing F1 cars aside whilst looking for other jobs in the design field. Although he didn’t have much experience in the industry, he passed his CV around and began to work at an agency which ended up working on a project with McLaren Racing and the rest is history!

Caroline oversees the creation of everything from merchandise, such as T-shirts and hoodies, to NFTs. She had started off in fashion merchandising working for British retail brands, specifically in menswear. However, Caroline quickly grew bored and realised she wanted to keep working in products, but in a new area. After working on the London 2012 Olympics, she began working for Puma where she started to work in sports licensing such as with football teams and F1, giving her the experience she needed to join McLaren Racing.

Callum’s role focuses on partnership development, pulling together pitches to target new partners to sponsor and support the McLaren Racing team. Recent partners to join the team, include Google. After studying economics through which he got a feel for marketing, Callum ended up doing a masters in marketing. He got into McLaren Racing by writing his dissertation on social media activation within sponsorship, which he put on his CV. This caught the eye of a recruiter who wanted to interview him on behalf of McLaren Racing.

Although the perception of F1 is that it’s a ‘man’s world’, Caroline says things have changed over the past 5 years, and that McLaren Racing makes an effort to create an inclusive working environment. Caroline laughs that you do have to do your homework in order “to hold a conversation with the engineers and the mechanics.” However, our panel all emphasised that while having an interest in F1 is helpful, it’s not essential within the creative teams at McLaren Racing. In fact, having a fresh perspective can actually be a real benefit, with Simon adding that not being an avid fan may improve your ability to question the way things are done and improve them. Caroline summed it up:

However, Callum warns that once you’re in at McLaren Racing, it’s difficult to not become F1-obssessed!

So, what were our panel’s tips for aspiring marketeers, designers and branding specialists? Simon recommends immersing yourself in your chosen industry. For example, with design, read about industry trends, search out award-winning agencies or new agencies popping up, listen to podcasts featuring designers you admire – essentially learn as much as you can so you’re ready to tackle whatever jobs come your way. As he explained, he had no prior experience in the creative industries, just a passion and drive which helped him land his dream job. Caroline adds that it’s important to form your own opinion and states: “Don’t be shy!”.

Marketing as a department encompasses so many different roles, as depicted in the diversity of roles within our panel. However, whichever niche you find yourself in in the industry, it’s vital to keep up with trends. Callum recommends reading trade press like Marketing Week and Campaign. He also explains that working for a big organisation like McLaren offers lots of progression, so if you find yourself gravitating to a different part of the marketing world, there’s room to explore that. Caroline continues that there is constant communication between the different teams within the department for each project.

Similarly, marketing is all about knowing your audience and how you can reach out to them, whilst also reaching an audience who might not be aware of you yet. And in line with this, our panel all emphasised the importance of listening to McLaren’s fanbase. Callum explained, they host fan surveys asking about everything from merchandise to partnerships and that the marketing team go down to the track and ask fans questions directly such as ‘What can we do better?’ or ‘What do you like?’ He states: “Fans do make a difference!” Even when deciding which other brands to partner with, they keep the fans front of mind.

Our panel finished by reminding the audience that working in Formula 1 isn’t ‘stuffy’ or ‘mechanically-focused’ – it’s so much more than that as a brand and there is a lot of scope for creativity. Caroline came back to the idea that it’s important to have people come in and ‘shake things up’. She said, at entry level, there are so many opportunities to be a sponge and suck up knowledge and work out where your passion lies. Caroline stated: “Sports marketing isn’t 9-5 so you really need a passion for it, but it’s an amazing job.” Chiming in with this, Simon said the most challenging part of his role is also his favourite: the fast-natured pace of the sport itself. While Callum advised:

A massive thank you to both our panel and audience for joining us! You can watch the masterclass in full here. To coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week, our next masterclass on 11th May will be focusing on mental health and wellbeing in the creative industries. Sign up to join here.

I (Larah Yearwood) was hired by Creative Access in October 2020 and I have been dealing with Imposter Syndrome throughout my employment. Here, I share my experience and some tips to help others navigate through the same issue.

Imposter Syndrome is something a lot of people struggle with. It is the internal belief that you are not good enough to be where you are. That you do not deserve to be where you are and that maybe, other people will realise you are not as good as you say you are. A completely false belief that for many of us can impact on our work, life, and relationships.

My story
As a young black woman, I already face challenges in my life and career for where I want to go. Mixing Imposter Syndrome in with this makes life a little more complex. While Imposter Syndrome can vary with people, the general idea that you are not worthy of being where you are normally stays the same.

Before starting as the Marketing Assistant for Creative Access I was furloughed and then made redundant from my previous job, which was just devastating.

Anyone who has been made redundant will know the feeling, especially during the incredibly difficult year that 2020 was. I was lucky enough to actually be unemployed for only two weeks before finding work again at Creative Access.

Although I wasn’t aware at the time, it was then – on securing a new role – that my Imposter Syndrome started. 2020 was a rough year for us all and many people lost jobs. I felt that others who were still unemployed had more skills than I did; had worked for longer than I had; were older than me. And yet it was me that bounced back quickest. It didn’t feel right to me. It felt strange. I felt like I didn’t deserve to be hired so quickly. I carried these feelings with me into my job at Creative Access.

The struggle
To be clear, I am fully qualified to do my job. I have a degree in English Literature and a master’s degree in Magazine Journalism, as well as lots of work experience. There isn’t a single reason why I can’t do this job. Yet Imposter Syndrome has held me back from achieving my full potential in this role so far. It stopped me from putting ideas forward that I know could and would work. It stopped me from questioning other suggestions. It also stopped me from recognising my own success and achievements in this role.

Instead, I questioned them. I questioned if my ideas were worth listening to and convinced myself that they weren’t. I questioned if I truly deserved the praise I was getting and if the work I’d produced was worthy of any commendation. Some may say I’m naturally hard on myself (and maybe I am) but every time I was praised, I truly felt like I didn’t deserve it. Instead, the praise and acknowledgments that were meant to boost my confidence ended up shattering it.

The realisation
The self-doubt can be crippling. It wasn’t until I opened up to a colleague about how I was feeling that I was first informed about Imposter Syndrome. I then decided to some research and found that it’s very common. According to a report by Medical News Today, up to 82% of employees are impacted by Imposter Syndrome. 6 in 10 women experience it. Although the figures are eye-opening, I admit I was a little relieved to see that I wasn’t on my own and what I was feeling was recognised.

I then decided to attend a training session that Creative Access ran about Imposter Syndrome. During this session, I was able to pinpoint when it first kicked in and what caused it. It allowed me to connect with others who also have similar experiences and realise once again that I’m not alone.

I know this is a journey and I’m gradually learning to let go of these feelings. My hope is that over time they’ll fade completely.

Top tips for anyone struggling with Imposter Syndrome

• If you feel able to, open up about it; Imposter Syndrome is shockingly common, and people will be more understanding than you think
• The more I read about it, the more I related to it and the more I was able to understand that I wasn’t alone.
• Don’t hide away. I thought hiding it and keeping it to myself was the best thing to do. It isn’t.
• Keep track of your success. Having a record will help you to recognise that your achievements are due to your talent and abilities and not just lucky flukes
• Embrace the praise because you deserve it
• Remember no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes
• Most importantly, remember your worth. We are not superhuman, but we do have the ability to be great at what we do. You deserve to be where you are.

I still have moments where I question myself and the praise I get, but I’m now able to quickly reassure myself that I do deserve the praise. That I do deserve to where I am today and that I am worthy of this job and what I do. I hope that by reading this, you are able to feel worthy too.

To kick off our first Masterclass of 2021, we were joined by James Dale (Managing Director) and Benji Haigh (Head of Client Services) from Sine Digital, a digital marketing agency specialising in entertainment, leisure, and fashion. James and Benji gave listeners a whirlwind tour of the rise of social media and of future digital trends.

Since the language of digital marketing is rapidly changing, Benji and James started the session with a useful jargon buster section to dispel any confusion around the terms that are widely used in the sector. They explained concepts such as the difference between organic and paid advertising, PCC, display advertising, programme advertising, and SEO. James highlighted the difference between an organic and paid social reach, and explained why social media giants’ strategy of throttling organic reach was vital for their business models.

The pair then went on to describe the current trends in digital advertising. The digital advertising industry has become a part of our daily lives and will only grow going forwards. The rise of TikTok and Instagram feeds has left a trend for vertical video (in contrast to the traditional landscape orientation used for film), and have contributed to shorter attention spans, leaving digital marketers to work out how best to capture fragmented attentions in a matter of seconds.

James and Benji shared their top tips on how to impress your employer in an interview for a digital marketing role. Many large companies are not always familiar with the latest digital trends, so demonstrating you have a grasp on the following areas can really impress a prospective employer:

• The rise of growing platforms like TikTok, and the influence of tech giants popular in East Asian economies like Tencent and ByteDance.
• The feud between Apple and Facebook – Facebook-owned apps won’t be allowed to share data between them by default on iPhones.
• The working of programmatic advertising, and innovative ways to apply real-time ads.
• The growth of augmented reality (AR) apps and integrating AR into advertising.

The digital market moves very quickly but there is a lot of research you can do to show you are staying on top of the latest trends. For example, Benji recommended the Facebook blueprint certification which homes in on understanding the fundamentals of this new digital era. He also highlighted the usefulness of YouTube to find out solutions to the small details and problems that people have faced. He recommends Ben Heath for Facebook ads and MEASURE SCHOOL for tracking and another useful resource: Ad world conference. To keep up with the latest industry news he recommends The Drum, Ad Exchanger, Social media today and Econsultancy as great resources.

We cannot thank James and Benji enough for their highly informative Masterclass on digital marketing. You can watch back the full Masterclass here.

So your dream is to enter the big wide world of marketing. You’ve sailed through education, applied for countless amount of roles and you’ve finally secured an interview. Firstly, congratulations! Secondly, are you prepared?

Marketing is one of the key components to an organisation’s success and there isn’t a rule book on how, when or where it’s done. As you probably already know, there are many components that make marketing a success and it is proven to be a very competitive industry to get into. Regardless of what the type of marketing role you have applied for is, the following tips combined are key to scoring well in a marketing interview.

Research

First thing’s first, you need to research. It may be the most obvious starting point, but we cannot express enough the importance of researching and the difference between a well-prepared and an ill-prepared candidate at an interview. The worst thing you can do is go into an interview without any knowledge about the ever-growing list of marketing strategies and even more so, without any knowledge of the organisation you will be potentially working for.

A great starting point is the organisation’s website. So ask yourself:
– What type of organisation are they?
– Who are their audience?
– What are their current marketing strategies?
– What are their goals and values?
– What are their achievements?
– How do they measure their success?

We all dread the ‘where do you see yourself in five years?’ question, (as no one can predict the future), but you must be prepared to answer it. Know your direct marketing from your promotional marketing and your marketing analyst from your marketing director. Ask yourself why marketing is the career route you have chosen and where you want it to take you eventually so you are prepared for this question.

Ideas

Having ideas can be useful for any type of job interview but when it comes to a marketing role, having ideas is essential. When filling a marketing role, employers tend to be seeking a ‘fresh pair of eyes’ to analyse their current marketing strategies and will appreciate a new perspective.

If you like an existing strategy, suggest an example of what can be done to maintain/enhance it. There is no right or wrong answer, everyone is entitled to their opinion and as a potential employee, bringing ideas to the table can help you stand out from other candidates. Be brave!

Social Media

Social media has become one of the key tools in an organisation’s marketing strategy. If you haven’t done so yet, sign up and become familiar with multiple social media platforms and focus on how they can be used for marketing purposes. The main social media platforms range from Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Snapchat, Google+, YouTube and Pinterest. Find out what social media platforms the organisation currently have profiles on (if any) and be sure to mention that you have seen them active on these platforms and how effective you find their practices.Make sure your own social media channels are relevant and up to date as your potential employer will definitely look at them.

Skills

Consider your current skills, tailor them to the job description and highlight them to the interviewer. Some of the essential skills in marketing that you could demonstrate examples of are:

• Communication. Having the ability to communicate with both internal and external stakeholders of all levels, from youth to pensioners and assistants to CEOs. Highlight your capability and confidence in using multiple channels of communication (face-to-face, social media, email, telephone, skype).
• Creativity. There isn’t a wrong idea when it comes to creativity. Don’t be afraid to express your ideas no matter how big, small, quick or time consuming they may be.
• Writing skills. Be confident in your grammar and punctuation. Understand the difference between your ‘their’s ‘they’re’s and ‘there’s’? Be aware of how different writing styles can appeal to different audiences.
• Team playing. Marketing is a team effort, filled with a combination of ideas and opinions and is hard to do alone. Demonstrate times you worked in a team, what role you played and what was achieved as a result of teamwork. This doesn’t have to be in a work situation but can still highlight your skills.
• Analysis. Knowing your audience and measuring the success of marketing relies a lot on analysis. Demonstrate ways to analyse a market and how you can interpret written, numerical, visual and verbal communications.

Portfolio

It’s one thing to verbally highlight your skills and marketing capability, but presenting your skills with evidence in a portfolio will give the employer a visual idea of what you are capable of and why you are suited for the role. Tailor your portfolio and make it relevant to the role you are applying for. If you are a blogger, print off your best written work. If you are a communicator, print off presentations you have collaborated. If you are a designer, show off your best photoshop work. Be proud of your accomplishments and don’t be shy to bring a portfolio along to your interview, even if it wasn’t asked of you.

We hope these tips have helped to boost your confidence and have helped to prepare you for your marketing interview. Don’t forget that we have some amazing paid internships in marketing as well as other creative sectors, so feel free to check them out here. Good Luck!