What’s it like working at Brilliant? Let’s find out!
Our two Social Media Managers, Gwyn and Jamie have been with us for 6 months and a bit so we challenged them to ask each other some questions about agency life and working at Brilliant!
How did you feel on your first day?
Gwyn: Definitely super nervous but everyone was so nice, I remember everyone making a real effort to ask me how my day was going and I really noticed the energy was that of friends as much as colleagues.
Jamie: Mine was such a blur! You’re doing so much training and getting up to speed I feel like I can hardly remember it now, but I do remember being excited for a new chapter and getting out of my comfort zone. I was really going into areas I hadn’t before.
G: What did you think was going to take you out of your comfort zone?
J: Well my previous role was very strategy and paid social-focused with lots of reporting so the creative elements like leading creative meetings has been quite new.
G: Yeah we definitely came at this from opposite directions, because your comfort zone was exactly my background, and I was keen to dive into paid social which I’d done much less of! I remember pinpointing you really quickly as someone I could learn from. I definitely felt like oh cool I’ve got someone who’s learning things I know, and has experience in things I want to know, I think we really bounced off each other from the start.
J: Yeah I definitely agree, I think it was nice both of us coming in within a few weeks of each other. It’s almost like we were brought in at the same time on purpose!
G: You know, Jamie, I think you could be onto something there…
What have you learnt so far?
J: The most important thing I’ve learnt so far is time management. One of the things which is really clear in any agency is that you have a lot of different plates to spin, certainly as a social media manager you’re responsible for a lot of things, the performance of those things and client relationships. So managing all of that in the areas I was new to was a learning curve for sure.
G: It’s hard to pin it down isn’t it? Because I really have learnt SO much even in the last 6 months. Something that stands out is maybe email etiquette? My previous role was very Slack-heavy and I didn’t really email a lot, so learning how to express what I wanted to say without emojis was actually quite new to me. I was so scared of sounding blunt or rude to clients, I definitely asked for people to sense check and make sure my emails were aligned with the processes of the wider company.
J: That’s really interesting because I feel like I had the opposite experience. I was used to being very formal and I think my emails feel more personable now. Maybe I had to lighten up a bit! We really lean into the creative here, even in comms, but I like that.
What have your highlights been so far?
G: I have a couple for sure! Getting asked to pitch for new business was a massive highlight for me. Comms and presenting have always been my strength I think, but to have your team be sure enough in you to speak on behalf of the business, that trust takes time to build up and it felt like a real vote of confidence when it happened. To have that in my first 6 months felt really huge. As an opportunity for me to show my capability, I felt like I established something I was confident I could do and then proved I could do it.
J: I’m copying you slightly in terms of my answer but I definitely feel like working on proposal and strategy documents aligned with my skill set has been brilliant.
G: I mean, you literally got Being Brilliant for your strategy work.
J: That’s true! Didn’t you also get one for strategy and pitching?
G: I did!
J: It’s nice when you feel like you can help a brand and execute their marketing strategy to its full potential, and bring their strategy to life on social media.
G: Oh, also just internal experiences. Like doing things outside of work with the team, even just the little trips to Aldi or Wren, those moments of downtime are so important and create funny stories that then become referenced in the office. It creates such a nice office culture. Rating all the sandwiches at Wren with the team is a highlight!
What do you love the most about your job?
J: This should be an easy one.
G: Hard to narrow it down though because there’s loads. I genuinely have loads.
J: Yeah me too. Probably for me, I like strategy. I really enjoy that element of my job – short and sweet but I really do love it.
G: I don’t think you’re alone in that. What’s great about Brilliant is that even through the days with challenges, everyone does really love their job. And not many people I think in life can say that but it’s so part of the culture here that we all really care about what we do.
J: Yeah, and you really feel that in the office.
G: For sure. I think for me, I’ve always loved food and have worked around it for a long time, so to have this industry be my full time job feels really special. Like, getting to make a real impact on brands that you love and some that you’ve grown up with it’s so special. Especially our household name brands like, I sometimes stop and think “this is a brand that speaks to hundreds of thousands of people on a regular basis” and to know I had a hand in guiding that feels huge.
J: That’s a really good point, you know. I think sometimes it feels easy to become desensitised to the figures because we’re monitoring every day but that’s the amount of people that are seeing a piece of content we’ve produced, and even if they’re seeing it for a second, it does still influence them in some way even subconsciously.
What do you feel you bring to the Brilliant team?
J: Ooh.
G: I know. It feels very The Apprentice.
J: An upbeat attitude?
G: I think you bring loads of stuff! Why don’t we do it this way, I’ll say yours, you say mine?
J: Oh that’s a nice way to do it, let’s do that.
G: Ok, so I feel like I’ve learnt loads from you Jamie especially in terms of social strategy. You’re one of the most detail-dedicated people that I’ve met in my work life. You really do pay attention to the details and your answers are really considered. I feel like when I’m getting advice from you on stuff, what you say is really meaningful. You’re for sure my point person on asking for paid social and audience analysis advice, because I know the answer you give me isn’t going to be an offhanded guesstimate because you’re busy. You always stop what you’re doing and turn to face me to have a proper conversation about what I need, and that’s so valuable, especially for someone like me who is new to that area. Yeah, you really care about the work that you do and that’s really admirable.
J: Oh thank you Gwyn, you’re making me blush! I can’t hope to construct something as eloquent as your answer, but if I were to summarise for you – I would start by saying what does Gwyn not bring to the team?! The top highlights for you is firstly the amount of dedication and enthusiasm you bring to the clients. Clearly, you’re incredibly knowledgeable and the confidence you instil in the clients is because you know your job inside out. Not to mention creativity! That absolutely shines through. Also you’re on hand to help people, you’re such a team player… I could probably go on!
G: Ahhh all the warm fuzzy feelings!
What do you look forward to?
G: You know what, I feel like I’ve done so much in such a short space of time in terms of trying out and learning lots of new things, I’m really excited to now just get really confident in what I’m doing right now. You know, even since the start of 2024, I’ve done a pitch, a rebrand, a strategy, sat in on new business meetings, talked about retainer rollover with a client, communicated contracts, plus a whole load of OOH activations… and it’s been amazing to see the wider parts of the marketing puzzle and now I’m excited to do it all again with more experience to lean on.
J: Great stuff! For me, I guess I’m looking forward to working with some of our new business – my newest client is a real household name and there’s so much opportunity there and so many ways we can take it, and so many ideas we can implement, I’m particularly excited to get stuck in with that.
G: I know what you mean, some of the clients we work with are so well known that it’s such an exciting opportunity to have them trust you to get the job done to a high standard.
J: It’s definitely a massive privilege.