I wasn’t born into advertising. By which I mean (contrary to popular belief) that I wasn’t raised in London or the Home Counties. Nor, indeed, in the vicinity of any major conurbation.
In fact, I grew up in the far North East of Scotland, in the humble parish of Aberdeenshire. OK - not that humble. The oil money had well and truly seeped through by the time I was on the scene.
This led to a strange mix of ultra-wealthy and extremely poor neighbourhoods, towns and villages - including those where the legacy trades of farming and fishing had long since diminished.
Whichever way you look at it, a career in the creative industries was not the most likely option. In fact, according to that strange piece of software at school, I was fated to be either a marine architect or a council gardener. Some days, they sound like better options.
Finding my calling (lol)
Moving from my remote rural home to the (comparatively) big city lights of Edinburgh, Scotland’s Capital; I started to get a sense of where my future might be headed. Reading journalism, before moving to a broader business degree in my third year, my interest in the media world of tomorrow became ever stronger.
At the same time, my patience for academia waned and after third year I decided I needed some time away from studying. I arranged to complete a year in industry, as I was aware was standard practice for many English students and having applied to all manner of internships, found myself at the desk of a Microsoft hiring manager a little outside of London, in Reading.
Having completed a full-day assessment centre: interview, group task, panel, panel, interview; I was presented with three options for potential placements, “should I be successful”. Two were in Reading and one was in London. You’ll infer from what comes next which one I chose.
I took the overnight train back to Edinburgh and went back to working in a mobile phone shop, awaiting the news that would set my life on a different course. One day an email arrived and that was that: I was accepted into advertising.
Thrown head first into the deep end of “Global Accounts” in Microsoft’s advertising business, I found myself attending meetings with preeminent media minds, curating content from our markets all over the world and generally learning pretty darn fast that there was a whole industry that I previously knew nothing about.
I became aware of the relationships between clients, agencies, media owners and the various tech companies involved in the digital transformation of the industry. I also acknowledged the billions of dollars changing hands as we traded cash for banners and buttons; creative ideas for hearts and minds; and our souls for audience reach via our platforms.
OK, that last point sounds melodramatic (I did study Advanced Higher drama). It’s true though.
In one of the very first meetings I attended, I sat in the upper floor office of an agency near Tottenham Court Road, ready to be briefed on a new campaign. The client was a coffee brand and the challenge was increasing their market share in China.
Research suggested that coffee was consumed typically by adults in an office environment, who would have one cup per day. You can see the limitations. The proposed solution was to aggressively market to students, with the aim of increasing the age range of consumers and with the hope that by the time they reached working age, they may consume multiple cups per day.
Some of you may think this sounds like a great idea, likely to be highly effective in achieving the campaign’s objective. I couldn’t help but feel that what we were actually talking about, was selling drugs to kids.
Outside of this initial crisis of conscience, I was fortunate enough to be involved in many great campaigns, including the more forward-thinking and philanthropic work that big businesses were doing: from Unilever’s water stewardship programmes, to P&G’s work on gender equality.
I was also fortunate enough to visit Microsoft’s HQ in Seattle and co-host a conference for P&G’s Procurement Leadership Team; demo new products on the Gadget Show Live at Christmas at London’s ExCeL Arena and attend the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in France.
It’s fair to say that it was something of a baptism by fire. And yet, although I’d quickly seen the darker side of the industry; I gained a sense that perhaps there was a path here whereby both my ambitions could be followed and my values upheld.
After my internship I was retained part-time, working remotely from Edinburgh while completing my Honours year. I eventually graduated with a First Class degree in Business with Media and despite my misgivings about certain conversations I’d been privy to; I was hooked on advertising.
Integrating sustainability
I moved back to London, before completing stints in Melbourne, Australia and Leeds in Northern England. Holding a plethora of roles across media companies and agencies, I quickly found my flow working in fast-paced environments where the relationships between all stakeholders was of paramount importance.
Communication in all senses became my passion and using it as a force for good emerged as a purpose worth pursuing.
With sustainable development as my “North Star” (yes, I cringed slightly, too) I was able to navigate my way through the complex and convoluted streets of Ad Land. It was useful in framing conversations with teams, clients, suppliers and other stakeholders.
I’ve also been fortunate enough to encounter great groups of like-minded marketers, such as the good people at MarketingKind.
The further we move on in our day-to-day as businesses and as communities; the more we become aware of the need for sustainable development in all that we do. And people from all walks are more aware of it, too.
This matters, because the next generation are acutely aware of the fate we’ve set for them. And when they’re coming to work, or making choices about where to spend their hard-earned money; sustainable choices are at the front of their minds.
It’s why with my previous business we progressed towards B Corp accreditation and why I’ll continue to incorporate those learnings into my future ventures.
Where do we go from here?
Let’s end this blog at the beginning: ads and altruism. Perhaps, it’s an oxymoron? But, I prefer to think of it as a manifesto, albeit one that requires a change of mindset and a different approach.
Advertising is what I do. It’s what I know and I’m glad I found my way into this global industry, far from my North Eastern, oil-soaked roots.
But I also care deeply about the future of our planet and its inhabitants. Humans, yes; but not at the expense of the biodiversity we rely on and that is breathtaking to behold.
The solution, at the end of the day, calls for balance. We must develop, we must move forwards. But we must do so with a long-term view. Sustainable development requires a just transition from where we are, to a future that’s better for all the stakeholders of our world.
And that’s where communication comes in. Because we’ve a helluva lot of education to do, much awareness to raise and, of course (the right kind of) shit to sell. Good shit.
It’ll take a collective effort. One that I’m committed to. And it’ll require real action. I hope you’ll spend a little time here learning and maybe ultimately, come on this journey with me.
Ads and altruism: welcome to my ongoing adventure.
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