“The world of digital advertising and marketing is continually evolving”: Interview with Brandwidth digital strategist Colin O’Riordan 

“Select a job you like, and you will by no means need to work a day in your life.” You might have in all probability heard the above quote earlier than. And with this quote comes the massive query, what job is greatest for me? For some, it may very well be gross sales, for others, it may very well be PR, or in case you are fortunate, it may very well be a digital strategist.

As corporations compete for higher on-line visibility, digital strategists have change into extremely wanted. The job web site Certainly has over 5,000 positions obtainable for the function of digital strategist, with many roles marketed by main names similar to J P Morgan Chase, Fb and The New York Occasions.

To get a greater understanding of what this function entails and the way anybody can get began, we spoke with veteran digital strategist Colin O’Riordan, who works for the worldwide advertising and marketing company Brandwidth, whereas additionally pioneering a busy freelance profession.

1) You’re employed as a Social Strategist on the innovation company Brandwidth. Are you able to clarify what the corporate does, and what your function on the firm entails? 

Positive! Brandwidth is an innovation firm with places of work in London, New York, and San Francisco. It’s a completely built-in company with over 100 in-house consultants working throughout analysis, know-how, branding, advertising and marketing, and different digital tasks. The company is especially lively within the voice-activated advertising and marketing sector and reinvests greater than 10% of its turnover again into new innovation tasks. My function at Brandwidth entails devising digital technique and options to fulfill our purchasers’ targets primarily based on client perception and knowledge. Social campaigns concentrate on elevating model consciousness, partaking with on-line communities, driving site visitors to the consumer web site and producing leads. It’s all about growing a technique that successfully connects the model with the web client. 

2) What was your first job or consumer on this business and the way did you’re employed your method up?

My very first enterprise job was really in provide chain administration. I labored as a World Planner for the pharmaceutical firm, Merck. I spotted fairly rapidly that provide chain administration wasn’t the proper profession for me. I needed to work in an business that allowed for slightly extra creativity. After finishing my Masters in Advertising and marketing Observe, I labored as a Advertising and marketing Supervisor for Garavan’s. This was a terrific expertise, because it gave me the chance to develop my expertise throughout a spread of selling actions such a model growth, social media administration, occasion coordination, and web site growth. Following this, I spent a while working in on-line safety, earlier than transferring to NYC and accepting a place with World Communications Company, Text100.

Via the years, I supplied freelance advertising and marketing companies to small/medium-sized companies and this undoubtedly helped me when trying to find a job in NYC. Having expertise working throughout the pharmaceutical, tech and client items sectors additionally confirmed my versatility as a marketer and that I might be a very good match for company work. The important thing to progressing in an company atmosphere is to boost your hand for brand new duties and alternatives. If you’re surrounded by such gifted folks, there’s a lot alternative to study from them. For those who’re hardworking and keen, you’ll succeed. 

3) I perceive you have got consulted for some well-known manufacturers (Conduent, American Petroleum Institute, ZTE), do you discover there’s a large distinction when consulting for bigger, well-known manufacturers, in comparison with smaller manufacturers? Furthermore, do you discover they’ve vastly completely different necessities or wants? 

Sure. Whereas the advertising and marketing ideas might stay the identical, campaigns for giant and smaller manufacturers run at very completely different scales and budgets. Bigger manufacturers are inclined to have larger in-house advertising and marketing groups and because of this, much more coordination between the events is required. Each the consumer and the company want to make sure that they’re on the identical web page always and integrating their advertising and marketing efforts. This clearly results in rather more frequent consumer conferences. Bigger corporations even have quite a few completely different campaigns operating parallel to one another, whereas smaller manufacturers are inclined to concentrate on simply a few key initiatives at one time. 

The necessities of bigger and smaller manufacturers can even differ. For instance, when consulting for a big enterprise course of companies firm, I may very well be tasked with producing new gross sales leads. Whereas this might be on the early stage of the gross sales funnel, these people are probably price some huge cash to the consumer. We might concentrate on reaching key decision-makers in companies and goal them on platforms similar to LinkedIn. Whereas with a smaller model, I may very well be answerable for managing the connection with the patron proper by way of the gross sales funnel from preliminary consciousness to last buy. The price of buying a sale for a smaller model is clearly rather a lot decrease than securing leads for a bigger model additionally.

5) Do you have got a favourite firm or undertaking that you’ve consulted for?

That’s a tricky query! One of many issues that I take pleasure in most about working for an company is the number of purchasers. Nonetheless, one model that I significantly favored working with was the Web page Society. That is the world’s main skilled affiliation for senior public relations and company communications executives. The group encourages leaders to study from one another and collectively remodel enterprise for the higher. Whereas operating their social media campaigns and attending occasions, I needed to probability to fulfill with high CCOs of Fortune-ranked corporations and discovered a lot concerning the communications business and the way it’s evolving. Getting publicity to thought leaders like that’s inspiring and opens my thoughts to the thrilling alternatives throughout the business!

6) Are there any manufacturers you would love to work with?

I really like manufacturers that create experiences! I feel Airbnb can be a reasonably cool consumer. It’s a service that I continuously use when touring and I really like the way it lets you dwell like a neighborhood whereas exploring a brand new location. I’m obsessed with touring and have an enormous curiosity in property! A consumer like that might attraction to each of these pursuits and as its a playful model, there’s a chance to have enjoyable with campaigns. One other model that I might like to work with is Spotify. Once more, I feel it’s a enjoyable model that doesn’t take itself too critically. I actually favored the “targets” marketing campaign that they ran in 2018. They’re not afraid to create ‘tongue-in-cheek’ content material and that’s thrilling.

7) What recommendation do you have got for these simply beginning out on this business who wish to get forward?

Don’t cease studying! The world of digital advertising and marketing is continually evolving. For those who don’t keep on high of latest developments, you’re going to get left behind. For those who’re struggling to seek out your ft, do some voluntary advertising and marketing work to begin. Choose an company or firm that excites you and for those who impress them, then there’s a very good probability you can be supplied a job. For those who dwell in a metropolis like New York, community and construct relationships throughout the advertising and marketing business. You by no means know who you would meet. In my first week in NYC, I had lunch with Mark Cuban at Wholefoods! It was a case of being in the proper place on the proper time, however the state of affairs actually opened my eyes to the alternatives that exist in a big metropolis like New York. Don’t be afraid to place your self on the market. You actually don’t have anything to lose. 

Disclosure: This text features a consumer of an Espacio portfolio firm