About me
I would like to start by going back to my time at University.
While I was there I balanced leading the largest society at the University, founding a magazine and a poetry society and writing and performing creatively all alongside my degree, for which I received a 2.1.
I was able to do this because I could bring focus, precision and intense attention to detail to everything I carried out, regardless of the task’s apparent size or significance. It was for similar reasons that I was able to thrive in the fiercely competitive environment of two extremely successful marketing teams at the biggest arts festival in England, and then the biggest in the world.
Fast forward a year or two.
I’ve recently returned from having spent some travelling in South East Asia (hence the recent gap on my CV). During this period I decided that upon my return, I would look for a role that would build on the skillset that I have developed through the hugely challenging roles that I’ve worked in previously, but not necessarily in the same area.
My primary skill is with words.
Building on the foundations of my English degree, I have nurtured a versatile and skilful command over language. I can make words jump and dance across a reader’s eye, or slip subtly into the back of their mind. This has proved an invaluable cornerstone in the marketing role’s I’ve worked in, and it’s one that I plan to use as the basis for the roles I consider now.
Here is a link to a small sample of my written work if that sounds intriguing: https://chewbaccashairproducts.wordpress.com/
I have a similar skillset when it comes to editing images, layout and design. I take pride in making things look nice, and understand that more than ever, this is absolutely vital in an area when people are bombarded with images through social media. Again this has proved a highly useful and adjustable talent and one that I believe I can bring with me to a number of different roles.
Crucially in both of my previous roles I work in extremely small teams, which I meant I was able to take on a huge range of tasks, and develop a wide breadth of experience. Please see my list of previous jobs and education section to find out more on the exact skills I’ve gained in these roles.
So to conclude, a reliable, adaptable and skilful candidate looking to find a role and company that suits those abilities perfectly. Whom in turn I can develop my full potential to become an outstanding employee of. What’s not to like?
Projects
- Dirty Word Magazinehttp://www.adirtymagazine.co.uk/ Dirty Word was a magazine that I co-founded and edited during my time at University. It was a gender neutral print and online magazine dedicated to providing young people with an alternative source of entertainment, music reviews and recommendations, My role's including writing and editing content, sourcing writers and updating the website and social media accounts.
Work history
Marketing Assistant, Promotions and Offers Coordinator
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Assembly are the largest venue at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the largest arts festival in the world. During 2015 the marketing team consisted of just me and three others. We were responsible for marketing the Assembly brand as well as the 168 shows performed across their 19 venues.
This was a huge workload. I took just one day off during the festival, and would normally work between 10.00 to 22.00 or 23.00. This gave me a comprehensive experience of working in an intense, deadline orientated and demanding office environment.
My chief role was to oversee all ticket offers and promotions for the Assembly shows, which are core part of the company’s marketing strategy. Specifically it was my role to negotiate and advise the companies on these offers, and then transmit this information on the agreed offers to the box office and ensure they were carried out.
This was a perfect step up for me in my career and gave me genuine experience in taking a project from an idea to a successful finished product. And in turn of the research, management and flexibility required to do so.
My role however extended well beyond this, I was responsible for overseeing Assembly’s festival blog, and aiding with social media output. Furthermore I was responsible for identifying and then direct marketing the companies 16 produced shows to local groups of interest. This was a fantastic experience for me in terms of presenting an offer to the public in an extremely competitive market.
I was also in charge of overseeing several offers that applied to all Assembly shows, including an offer for local businesses, local residents and to people who were deemed to be influential at the Fringe.
This was a great experience in brand marketing. Furthermore it provided an excellent insight into forming and analysing a marketing strategy and in turn adjusting said strategy according to the data provided on its success.
In terms of ticket sales Assembly enjoyed their most successful Fringe ever in 2015. I am proud to have been part of a marketing team that was a crucial component in that.
Head of Marketing
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In January 2015 I was appointed to be a Marketing Assistant for Assembly Festival. However, my role quickly extended well beyond this and I was quickly made responsible for overseeing the marketing for The Lantern Theatre’s 2015 Brighton Fringe Programme, as well as a number of other areas.
My primary role was overseeing all of the Lantern Theatre’s external communication, including all social media output, writing and sending out all press releases, web listings and email communication with customers.
This gave me hugely useful experience in digital marketing, particularly in managing the balance between appealing to as large an audience as possible without sacrificing a company’s brand or identity.
My other chief task was planning and carrying out the various show marketing campaigns. The theatre held a wide variety of shows during the Fringe, and this was therefore a challenging and eye opening experience for me, and in turn one that was greatly beneficial.
The Lantern Theatre is run by an extremely small team, five people, who also run the Academy of Creative Training. Hence I was asked to take on a huge range of tasks whilst there, which required great flexibility from me. These ranged from an enormous number of administration tasks for the ACT to painting the theatre itself.
More pertinently I was tasked with overseeing the vast majority of the communication with the theatre companies performing at the venue. Similarly I was responsible for identifying local schools and organizations to arrange group bookings with, as well as theatre companies to perform in the Theatre’s summer and autumn programme. These experiences were hugely valuable in terms of building and upholding strong working relationships with a variety of people.
Beyond this, I was also in charge of managing the theatre’s launch party. My responsibilities included ensuring attendance from all performers, members of the local press, Brighton Fringe team and members of the public. As well as overseeing the event itself.
During the festival itself I worked tirelessly, a minimum of around sixty hours a week. My roles included front of house, running the box office and bar, decorating the venue and generally ensuring the theatre ran as smoothly as possible.
The Lantern Theatre had an enormously successful Brighton Fringe in 2015, with an average of attendance of just under 50% and over a third of the shows receiving 5 star reviews, despite the venue only opening earlier that year and working on an extremely limited budget.
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Skills
- Advertising
- Digital Media
- Editing
- Journalism
- Promotions
- Blogging
- Direct Marketing
- Creative
- Marketing Strategy
- Social Media Marketing
- Proofreading
- Web Content
- Communications
- Office
- Photoshop
Education
English Literature
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I finished my degree at Sussex University in 2014 with a 2.1. in English Literature. Outside of my studies I was extremely pro active at University.
I cofounded the Sussex Guild of Poetry, a platform dedicated to student experimental poetry. My roles included sourcing and liaising with my co-editors to select poems for publication, arranging public performances and contributors to read at our events.
I also set up and edited Dirty Word Magazine during my free time. This was a gender neutral online magazine that aimed to provide an alternative source of culture for young people. I was responsible for the magazine’s social media output as well as sourcing ideas for articles and identifying writers who would be suitable to contribute. This was again a great experience in terms of managing a brand online.
Finally, I was social sec and then president of the University’s drama society, the largest society in the University. I also acted in, directed, produced and stage managed several plays at various points throughout my degree.
Overall, balancing these pastimes with my English degree was fantastic preparation for the workplace, it taught me how to prioritize and manage a workload effectively, whilst ensuring that I approached all of these projects with the same dedication and focus.
English/history/politics
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I left school with 3 A-Levels (AAB) and French to AS Level. As well 10 GCSE's including IT.