Please intro yourself

Hi I’m Oliver. I work as brand and communications lead at Unmind, the workplace mental health platform. 

What inspired you to get into marketing?

At sixth form I studied unusual blend: art, business studies, and IT. Combine the three, I calculated, and you get marketing. So that’s what I studied.

I love creativity and connecting with people. While vocational, much of the marketing course wasn’t massively inspiring – I could only get so passionate about the price point of a cup of coffee – but it did give me the space to read far and wide. Discovering centuries of wisdom locked up in books from Dostoyesky to Dawkins enriched my life and outlook more than I think most degrees could have.

What are your memories of your first job and how did you get it?

I remember being really hard up – full-time in an entry-level position on £12k at a publisher in London – and confused by the office jargon. (I’m from a family of nurses and window-cleaners, so I remember hearing the term ‘moving forward’ so often I assumed it was a product or campaign.)

One moment from my first couple of months could’ve come straight from a Dickens’ novel. I was running late on the 5-mile walk to the office, too skint to afford the bus fare. It was tipping down with rain and my boss was keen to know where the hell I was. The moment I picked up the pace I lost my footing on a drain and twisted my knee. I was immobile, in pain, rooted to the spot directly outside the Houses of Parliament, getting slowly wetter while watching Big Ben tick by. After a couple of years at the company I landed a job on their editorial desk as a content writer. I absolutely loved it and couldn’t believe my luck. ‍

What things do you know now that you wish you knew in the early stages of your career?

Don’t worry about not having a plan. If you work hard, take on responsibility (just a little more than you’re comfortable with), and are generally nice to people and yourself, things will come through. Authenticity is more important, and so are the relationships you build along the way.

How do you think brands can cut through amongst the constant social scroll and content churn?

People can be risk-averse, especially under pressure to hit targets. Using safe tactics may make incremental gains, but it means marketing strategies can look very similar, and also miss out on big opportunities.

Good marketing is about making a connection with your audience – educating, elucidating, and entertaining. If you can do that, compounding results will follow.

Can you tell us about Unmind and what you do there?

Unmind is a workplace mental health platform. We combine human expertise, digital innovation, and proven science to give every person the right support – from therapists, coaches and crisis experts to AI coaching, 24/7 learning and development programs, and mental health data insights.

But it’s not just about giving individual employees access to care – we help leaders to create sustainable, engaging cultures. We believe in proactively nurturing good mental health, not just waiting until there’s mental illness before stepping in. When companies do this, employees perform better and stick around for longer.  

My job is to communicate this idea to our audiences, and to champion a healthier, more human approach to work.

What’s a typical day like? And do you have any routines to get through the day?

Wake up and head out for a run around Plymouth, where I’m spending this lockdown. This exercise clears my head, often dislodges ideas and gives me energy for the day.

I’ll then get into writing or creative strategy work, before moving into a mix of collaborative projects, agency check-ins, and planning. Lockdown evenings are usually for cooking, reading, watching films or writing. 

Mental health is something everyone has to be aware of, particularly in the last 12 months. What kind of things can companies do to help their staff?

Culture is key. Especially for young people starting out, it’s so important to create an environment where people feel psychologically safe and supported. Ultimately this leads to better-performing, more creative and happier employees – which makes sense on both a human and an economic level.

Leaders set the tone within organisations, so they should lead by example: demonstrating emotional intelligence, healthy working practices, and a genuine care for their people. Beyond that, wellbeing programmes and supportive policies should be the norm, not the exception.

What advice would you give to young people who want to work in marketing and at Unmind?

As you’ll have heard a million times before, it’s competitive out there. But you don’t always have to compete with educational background or even experience. What will make you stand out – especially in a marketing role – is demonstrating you can solve the problem the employer wants to fix. Show you understand their challenge, and show you care.

What are your plans for 2021 and beyond?

Returning to London after lockdown in Devon, running the Rome marathon (COVID-permitting), making progress towards writing a novel, and continuing to grow the comms team at Unmind.

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