Welcome to Behind the Role! In this series, we look at the real-life experiences behind different early career roles through the people who have done them first-hand.

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What makes you feel alive, Helen?

Helen: I feel alive when I’m contributing to projects that I’m passionate about. Some things that really interest me are field hockey, international exchange trips, and at the moment I’m teaching myself how to crochet!

I love sewing, so during COVID sewed all of these headbands so I could donate to a local hospital. That felt really rewarding. Unsurprisingly, I was inspired by TikTok to do this one. I think it’s really cool to see the impact that TikTok has on different businesses too!

How did you land a Junior Marketing role?

Helen: Educationally speaking, I’m currently majoring in Marketing - however, I never thought I’d end up doing this major. The first exposure I had to this sort of industry was in year 11 when I did work experience at a local media agency in Newcastle. I worked there for about two weeks I think, doing part-time work and that's when I knew I wanted to do something within the creative field

As a result, I started to focus my career efforts on media marketing and just being able to connect with different people and brands. I think that was a really defining point in my early career. I couldn’t recommend work experience enough, especially when you’re in high school.

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In terms of uni, my first professional role within the marketing space was at a Pet Tech startup – basically think of it like Instagram, but for Pets.  So I was on-boarded as a social media marketing intern and pretty much worked to create and curate our Instagram page and write different content. I was also exposed to copywriting for the first time and also working with influencers or Petfluencers’. It was pretty cool seeking out different accounts, on Instagram and working with them. It was such a good role because most of the time I spent was going on Instagram looking through like dogs and the cutest animals. It was so much fun.

I was there for three months as an intern and I was exposed to the constantly changing nature of startups. I felt like I was able to build a lot of skills that I maybe otherwise would not have learned and that was the first time I gained so much exposure to a business like a startup. I don’t think I would have ever considered a career pathway where I worked in startups before prior to that. So it was really rewarding.

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What does a day in your life look like as a Marketing and Content Lead?

Helen: Right now, I work as a marketing and content lead for Crimson Careers. My main role is to lead the external marketing assets for the brand and utilise new channels to acquire users such as social media and email marketing. Another part of my role includes building out a content engine where with material such as webinar content, blog content, Ebooks and more.”

At the moment, a ‘day in a life’ generally looks like liaising with stakeholders in new markets to try and collaborate on campaigns we are launching. For example, I recently did a career event online with about five markers. In the lead-up to that, I had to work on getting all of the creative assets ready for Instagram, and Facebook and ensuring all the ad copy was ready to go. I had to also ensure that all of the landing pages were set up correctly so we could acquire leads effectively. Another task I do often is making sure that content is up to date. For example, some changes to the start dates of our programs across collateral, designs and more.

What is your best advice for an aspiring Marketing and Content Lead?

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Helen: I’d say some of the key skills I have to possess daily include problem-solving and stakeholder engagement. When it comes to applying for roles, especially for my first job, I’d say to jump into every opportunity that’s available. I remember when I really wanted to get my first internship, I was applying to so many places, and I always thought that I wanted to work in a corporate firm that had a really big name. Whilst still, I think that would be nice.

I’m so happy that I landed my first internship at a startup. It gave me so much exposure to the many elements of the business. Working in startups is awesome because you get a lot of opportunities to be more generalist versus specialist so you acquire a lot of skills that you perhaps might not have thought about. 

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On top of this, I think it has helped me have a lot of talking points when I go to apply for another job.

Why do you choose Hatch to find work?

Helen: My favourite thing about Hatch is the whole user experience end to end. When you look for a role, the website is so curated, it feels very gen z. I also think it’s very relatable, which is why I love it so much. Also, I like that I’m given the opportunity to stand out really early on in the recruitment process by applying with video interviews and doing short tasks. When I use other job boards, I’m not given this opportunity, especially when we are so early in our careers. It can be really scary just relying on your resume, and not being able to showcase your authentic self. I like that Hatch does give me the opportunity to do that and to really express who I am to potential employers.

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