GAINING SOME EXPERIENCE

Choosing a career path is one of the most important and challenging decisions that young people have to make, and like every graduate out there I was faced with this dilemma on leaving university.

Having considered journalism, psychology and (quite incredibly) becoming an estate agent, it was clear some thought was required to make this crucial decision. I decided to settle with something I love, something that had always been a part of my life from a young age, and something that deep down I knew I always wanted to be involved in – sport, and couple this passion with business and marketing, a huge interest of mine at school.

Having graduated, the need to gain relevant industry experience became apparent, both to apply what I had learnt at university and gain an advantage over other graduates. After completing a 2 week placement at a sport & automotive company, I moved on to Generate Sponsorship to offer my services for a month.

My expectations from this placement were to learn about industry and see what happens on a day-to-day basis in the world of sport and entertainment sponsorship, but I have learnt so much more than that.

I have been heavily involved in multiple PR and sponsorship projects since I arrived; liaising with journalists, researching potential partners for a Premier League Football Club and helping generate social content for clients. Working across multiple departments at Generate is something that I have enjoyed, as it has enabled me to learn a new range of skills in PR & Digital, Rights Holders & Events.

Going to work every day and working on tasks that excite you and actually make a difference in the real world are reasons why this placement has assured me that this is the industry I want to work in. When I read newspapers and see stories about inventive digital PR strategies, it makes me want to be a part of that, and working in Sports Marketing opens doors which make that possible.

One such campaign that I have worked on at Generate which I found particularly interesting and enjoyable has been activating Octopus Investment’s sponsorship of Surrey and Birmingham Bears T20 cricket teams. Having the chance to see how a digital platform can be integrated into traditional PR and on-site activation has been enlightening and I hope to bring these experiences to future roles.

I have often been asked what brand I would love to work on, and there is one that sticks out prominently: Adidas. My favourite Adidas campaign occurred in 2012, where they launched a superb campaign with the #takethestage in the build up to the London 2012 Olympic Games. They invited people into a photobooth to show their support for Team GB, and then added an extra special guest to surprise them, in the form of David Beckham. Some of the participant’s reactions are priceless and the video is worth checking out.

It’s hard not to smile at that video, but that is the sort of campaign that I would love to work on, and I feel like the experiences I have gained at Generate have helped reaffirm that belief. I am excited to see what the next step in my career will be, but one thing is for sure, Generate will have played an important part.

To find out more about work experience opportunities, click here