Advice for Marketing Grads during the COVID-19 Crisis

I often get marketing and communications graduates contacting me on LinkedIn asking for advice on how they can super-charge their career. Firstly, it is very flattering that they would bother asking me and secondly, it makes me feel ancient to think about how long ago I graduated. But I was just now contemplating how unfair it is that the COVID-19 crisis will likely stall the start of their careers over the coming months so perhaps it is the perfect time to write an advice blog post.

You see the thing is, I happened to graduate into a recession (2008 woop wopp!) so I somewhat know the feeling. My first role out of uni was as a Beauty PR intern for a massive London firm. I found out a few weeks into the role that I had actually replaced a PR Junior, who had previously been paid for the role I was now doing for free. You can’t help but feel we both got the short end of that particular stick!

However, over the years, I have been able to make up for my delayed start career wise. And while I truly believe I will never fully catch up financially (I’m talking super and savings from those first few years), I think it is possible to overcome hurdles like these and have a thriving career. So here are my top tips for Marketing Grads…

Work harder than the competition

Although I deeply believe in and fight for a healthy work / life balance now, in the beginning of my career, I worked like a dog and I think you should too. In the previously mentioned internship, I was the first in the office everyday. I would leave at 6 to go and work in a bar until midnight and then do it all again. Is this particularly healthy or enjoyable? No. But if you are young and healthy, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do if you want to make it to the top. I frequently had higher-ups praise me for my dedication and hard work in comparison to my contemporaries whose only excuse for being tired was that they were up late at a cool London PR party.

*Please just make sure you take the time to fuel your body with healthy food, exercise regularly and invest in your mental health. I’m by no means saying that you should kill yourself working, just that staying a little late every now and again looks good to your boss.

But make the most of every moment

There’s no point in working hard if your output isn’t top notch. When you’ve been in your first job for a few months, it can get easy to feel uninspired and stuck in a rut, especially if there are forces within the business that seem to make it hard to innovate (I’ve been there). But never let that stop you!

Always be thinking about how you can contribute more and be your team’s source of innovation. Stay up to date with the latest marketing trends and campaigns in any industry, not just your own. You might see a cool idea from a completely different industry and be able to adapt it to your own, therefore coming up with something completely mind-blowing and original. Bring these ideas to every team meeting or one-on-one with your manager and never stop making suggestions. Your team might not take most of them on board, but they might take one and that’s all it takes to make a name for yourself as someone innovative and exciting.

Where can you find this inspiration? Follow every single brand that is doing anything remotely interesting on Instagram and LinkedIn. Sign up to marketing newsletters and listen to industry podcasts on your commute every day. All these ideas and knowledge will seep into your mind then one day you’ll be sitting in a meeting and you’ll suddenly have the idea everyone is looking for!

Um, how do I even find a job?

You may be thinking the advice above is all well and good but if nobody is hiring, what’s the point. Please don’t let the current job market make you feel demotivated. No matter how hard things get, it’s important to stay positive. People with positive energy who believe in themselves always succeed in the end.

For practical advice, obviously apply to absolutely everything. Create a killer resume that looks amazing and edit it to suit each role you apply for. Hiring Managers are time poor so you need to spell it out to them that you have the skills and experience needed.

Write a customised cover letter for each role showing that you really care about the company. Research their past work and stalk their socials so that you fully understand their goals and vision. In a competitive market, there’s no harm in finding and adding the hiring manager on LinkedIn, sending them a personal note to ask them to check out your application.

Other than that, think outside the box and apply to places that aren’t actively recruiting. When I worked at Keep it Cleaner, we were always interested in candidates who showed initiative and would keep them on file for future openings. Reach out to organisations and offer to write free blog posts or contribute in any way you can just to get some experience on your resume. Then sell the heck out of yourself.

When you land an interview, make sure you have an answer to every question they could possibly ask you. Write these down and go over them again and again. Rehearse your ‘about me’ spiel until it comes with complete confidence.

Above all, Hiring Managers like candidates that clearly understand the company, the role and what they are trying to achieve. Use the interview to show you do!

Finally, don’t be afraid to jump ship

This isn’t the 1950s and I’m sorry to say that loyalty means jack to most companies these days. Look for every opportunity to make a move upwards (within reason) and don’t be shy about insisting on a pay rise each time. After all, you’re worth every penny!

I hope the above advice is helpful. Shoot me a PM on LinkedIn if you have any other questions. Good luck out there!