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Ella Hagi, campaign director at YRS TRULY, explains what it’s like to be a senior figure at a fast paced creative marketing company.
What is your role and how would you describe your typical day at work?
I’m really lucky to say I get to have a lot of fun at work. I look after campaigns and people at YRS TRULY, so a typical day depends on the projects we have on. It’s half emails and spreadsheets, half conversations with clients, colleagues or creatives. It can be anything from preparing proposals or figuring out benchmarks to liaising with creators or overseeing freelancers. Our team and clients are great, and our campaigns are often pretty out there, so even if I’m lost in a report, my work never feels tedious.
What qualifications and/or experience do you need to land your job?
The obvious stuff is being a strong marketer who can combine insight and ideas, but I think this experience can come from any industry – so long as you understand games. You need to be able to predict and solve any problems before they even happen, and to be able to find talent and nurture it. A big part of my job is spotting the seeds for something great and then encouraging it to grow.
I think it’s important to not get too stuck in your own role – I’m not just responsible for my own campaigns, but for staff and the company overall as well. Being the boss doesn’t mean dumping the “boring” bits to juniors. And I think it’s really important to strike a good balance between being self-assured and kind. You want people to take you seriously but also to be remembered as someone that’s genuinely nice to work with.
If you were interviewing someone for your team, what would you look for?
It depends on the seniority and specific role, but overall I look out for common sense and creativity. Most things can be learned, but I think you need to have a sprinkle of these already – then we can focus on growing it! I also want to see passion: do you love games and genuinely want to make the industry better? Can’t run a good campaign unless you really get gaming communities. And lastly, a degree of openness and the willingness to communicate. I want people to do well and achieve lots, but I also want them to admit if they need help or are struggling with anything.
What opportunities are there for career progression at YRS TRULY?
I think lots: the beauty of young, growing companies is that you can try on different hats and carve out your own niche. I’ve gone from a freelance copywriter from when YRS TRULY was founded to a campaign director in just over four years. We’re only starting to make our mark in the industry and work on a very wide range of campaigns, so anyone creative and driven will be able to learn a lot and achieve at least as much.
