A day in the life of… biz dev director at a media agency

(And remember, you can head over to the Econsultancy jobs board to check out the latest opportunities in the industry.)

Econsultancy: Please describe your job: What do you do? 

Will Anderson: I’m responsible for identifying partners we can work with, understanding their needs and working with our team of PPC and programmatic display analysts to present the right solution. 

E: Whereabouts do you sit within the organisation? Who do you report to?

WA: I report directly to our CEO, Robin Skidmore.

E: What kind of skills do you need to be effective in your role?

WA: Prospecting is key. With so many potential partners, we are reaching out to those for whom we add the most value, given our experience.

Being a good listener is also important. Every partner has different challenges and needs, so I must understand those and work on a solution to address them. And time management is vital, striking a balance between prospecting, meetings, proposals and pitches.

E: Tell us about a typical working day…

WA: I’m probably in the office about three days a week, with the rest of my time spent on the road, meeting partners and pitching our approach.

If I’m at my desk, I’ll catch up on industry news and plan for any calls first thing, before working on presentations, discussing strategy with Robin and collaborating with the marketing team. 

I also put time aside to attend industry events, where I can network and keep up to speed with the latest trends in our target industries. 

E: What do you love about your job? What sucks? 

WA: I love helping brands and business realise their potential, seeing them achieve results that were previously unthinkable.

What sucks is more of an industry-wide problem – the lack of clarity in programmatic advertising. Many big agencies are misleading their clients on spend and performance, which engenders real trust issues. Our aim is to be open and up front with our partners, since working together is the real key to success.

Will Anderson

E: What kind of goals do you have? What are the most useful metrics and KPIs for measuring success?  

WA: My personal goal is very simple – to grow Journey Further and establish us as a leading biddable media agency in the UK. 

For our partners, it’s all about driving conversions and reducing the cost per sale or lead, ultimately increasing their ROI. We’re so confident in this respect, we actively explore performance models with our partners (Editor’s note: this is where clients pay only for advertising that impacts the bottom line).

E: What are your favourite tools to help you to get the job done?

WA: We use Pipedrive as our CRM, keeping track of all leads and monitoring the sales process. We’re on Slack too, which helps keep our inboxes clear and encourages us to share interesting reads.

LinkedIn is where I spend my time social media-wise. My network on there has proved valuable on numerous occasions.

E: How did you get started in the digital industry, and where might you go from here? 

WA: I started in digital at university, setting up and managing their first online TV station. I then took a year out to setup an online business advertising local venues to students which was great fun.

After university I worked in recruitment, specialising in digital, before joining the agency world.  

Where might I go from here? The digital industry is changing so quickly it’s hard to tell, but we have some exciting plans at Journey Further which could challenge the traditional agency model, so watch this space!

E: Which brands do you think are doing digital well?

AW: The fast fashion market interests me. The likes of Boohoo and Missguided have disrupted the industry by putting digital, and more specifically social, at the heart of their marketing strategies. 

E: Do you have any advice for people who want to work in the digital industry?

AW: The digital industry has something for everyone, from data scientists to creatives. My advice would be to find the area in which you excel and create something that will impress a future employer.

If you’re passionate about something and can demonstrate your skills, then you don’t necessarily need a degree to land a job these days. Find an employer that offers good incentives, flexible working and a good work-life balance, and go for it!