As part of our commitment to the next generation of marketing decision makers we occasionally put the spotlight on our Marketing Interns and give them the opportunity to talk about their vision, interests and observations.

Here we’d like to introduce Tom Pycraft, Marketing Intern at Creativebrief, January 2013

Background:

Two years ago I set up my music events business, Straycats Productions, which I continue to run. It is named after the Rolling Stones song, ‘Stray Cat Blues’, to express a music policy that doesn’t stick genres, rather straying through the styles putting on the slickest cats around. Alongside this I spent a year in financial marketing for Vinculum, a fund set up in reaction to the problems in the industry. There I worked for Douglas Thursby-Pelham, who had previously headed up Young & Rubicam’s Land Rover account during the launch of Range Rover. Working for him it was much like an apprenticeship, I founded it inspirational and it sparked my interest in marketing, advertising and branding.

After Vinculum I was fortunate to be able to bring my love for music and my ever growing fascination with marketing together, working for Genuine, an agency that works with brands to develop music strategies designed to build deeper relationships with their consumers and connect with wider audiences. Whilst I was there we ran 13 nights of events over the Olympics for the retailer Bosco Di Ciliegi, the official retailer for the Russian, Spanish and Ukrainian Olympic teams – you may remember the swirly designs. We also ran a music festival for the re-launch of Marley’s Mellow Mood, a natural relaxation drink from the Marley family. Both of these events can be seen on the music blog I started and ran whilst there: the genuine article

University:

At Leeds University I studied Cultural Studies, a degree that analyses past and contemporary global society from a range of academic methodologies, to better understand the structures in which we live. It was a fascinating study that read between the lines of every subject, always analysing from 360 degrees, to really get to the core of an issue, but also to understand why it exists in its normal context.  Away from University it has left me with some fascinating perspectives but more importantly a great way of analysing situations.

Aspirations:

I would love to continue my career in marketing as I find the methods in which brands and businesses communicate to people fascinating. The way a brand becomes an identifiable personality that exists above and beyond its product is what interests me most, and I would love to one day be creating the strategies that makes this happen – I will be sure to read this in twenty years time. Right now I am looking to work as an account manager for creative agencies; working as a ski instructor for many years has led me to realise that I like to be client facing, and having been successful at putting together music events I’d love to transfer those skills to ad campaigns.

Experience at Creativebrief:

Working for Creativebrief has been very useful for me, as they are a highly informative source for someone looking to find out more about the industry, I have also really enjoyed it as the atmosphere in the office is great. Their website has been created for brands to have intelligent information on the marketing landscape, in a way that is easily accessible, transparent and navigable. It provides a level playing field for agencies to display their work, where they will be judged solely on the merit of their creations. This is further expressed through informative case studies. It allows brands to quickly and easily find the agencies whose work they like, serving as a one stop shop for agencies, saving valuable time and the task of having to translate the often-enigmatic agency websites.

Advice to students:

For a student or anyone looking to work for agencies, Creativebrief is an extremely useful tool to work out and evaluate who you would like to work for. It has been designed for high profile brand marketers used to accurate insightful information, yet it also serves as a free source of information for the general public. I am using it myself and would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to gain in depth knowledge about the players in the marketing communications industry.