A brief account of how I came to work at Big-Cat.

The recent economic downturn has turned a competitive industry into a recruiting dog-fight, leaving students pining after a foot in the door. Work experience is certainly the key, but finding this much needed experience isn’t easy.

B-Hive is a competition where students in the creative sector can showcase their talent to the city’s biggest agencies such as McCann Erickson, Cogent Elliot, and COI along with many others. With a placement at one of these agencies at stake, the part-taker must develop a proposal tackling the objectives of a brief. The strongest ten proposals then present their ideas and strategies to the agencies and only four of these are awarded placements.

The objectives of the brief were as follows:

• Increase Birmingham Mercer index rating by 5 places by the end of 2010
• Transport: Increase the usage of public transport, bicycles and car sharing for both commuters and day visitors
• Encourage the local business community to become more proactive with green initiatives and sustainability
• Introduce and re-inform residents about green initiatives and greener living
• The target audience covers 1 million residents of Birmingham, plus the wider West Midlands area and the city’s business community, which consist of over 42,000 companies – both public and private sectors.

The Task was particularly difficult because of Birmingham’s diverse population. No single strategy could capture the many different interests and so I segmented the strategy into three strategies.

• ‘Scrappage Green’ for businesses and commuters
• ‘The Big Plant’ for schools and families; and
• Student Event. For example, turning Broad Street road lights green as one of the PR stunts.

To see the brief click here .

I was initially awarded a two-week marketing placement at London Midland, but because I am a Law graduate, I felt that I would need additional experience in order to be a successful marketer. I decided to contact B-hive judge, Kate Gregson (Head of Marketing at Brindleyplace) who then invited me to cover the role of Communications and Events Executive. While at Brindleyplace I was responsible for a series of important task and events and this equipped me with a wealth of experience that is truly ‘gold-dust’ amongst students within the sector.

The benefits of participating in B-hive didn’t stop here. Over a month ago I received an e-mail from Daniel Webb, Marketing Account Manager at Big Cat Group, who was looking to recruit an intern for three months. It turned out that the B-Hive creator, Ollie Purdom, had forwarded my details and because of this I am currently wearing the title ‘Marketing Executive’ at the Big Cat Group. Working within such a diverse and vibrant agency presents me with an amazing opportunity to gain actual hands on experience. My position requires me to delve deep into the workings of the advertising and marketing industries – which is exciting stuff! I am really enjoying working here and the team have made me feel very welcome.