8th December | Anouska Leon back

Business development – keeping it real

What did you want to be when you grew up?

For me, my first ambition was to be a lorry driver – I was painfully shy as a child and I knew that would mean lots of time without having to talk to anyone. Then, there was hairdressing, next archaeology – until I was kicked out off the history class for being naughty.

Luckily, Romeo & Juliet had just come out at the cinema (remember them?), so I had a plan B. I was going to become an actress. This new career path would increase my chances of meeting Leonardo di Caprio and, what’s more, I could spend my life pretending to be someone else. I actually ended up going on to drama school but needless to say, I didn’t meet Leo – or even make it onto the stage for that matter. Where am I going with this? Well, somewhere between drama school and my first real job, I realised that talking to people isn’t that scary and in fact, most people are really quite nice – especially if you show an interest in them. I’m no longer shy and through my interest in others, I’ve become one of those people who genuinely wants to get to know people and if I can, help them too. And that brings me to my job. Business development (or at least the sales element) has always been considered quite a shallow, opportunistic trade, and an unusual profession for someone like me. But this is where everyone is wrong. I love my job because I’m doing exactly what I love – finding out about people and helping them. Discovering exciting new brands, new products (before anyone else) – and inspirational, talented people to work with. Building proper relationships with them, getting under the skin of their businesses and careers – and ultimately providing them with a solution to whatever keeps them up at night. It helps our clients’ businesses grow – and our business too. It creates jobs, maintains jobs and, of course, builds the economy. I’ve been told I should have been a therapist by some clients or prospective clients, having helped them get out of their hellish job or get that promotion. I may have even saved the odd marriage. I ask a lot of questions when I meet a potential new client. I like to take a deep dive into their business and what makes them tick so that I am in a position to provide an honest, unfiltered, no BS solution. Sometimes (something very rare for someone of my profession) I might tell them that Richmond & Towers isn’t the best fit for them, and my desire to genuinely help them leads me to put them in touch with someone else who I know really would be their perfect match. Other times, what they think they want for their business or careers, turns out not to be what they actually want, and having got to know them and their businesses, I’m able to make informed recommendations which will get them to exactly where they want to be. There is nothing more satisfying than catching up with a happy client who is enjoying the fruits of our labour – watching them and their businesses blossom, knowing that it all started with a coffee at an otherwise dry tradeshow, or a LinkedIn message. So although I still watch Time Team, I really love playing with peoples’ hair (only if you get close of course) and I wouldn’t pass up a date with Leo, business development honestly is the most rewarding and exciting role IMO. It’s a myth that a business relationship need be any different from a personal one. I’m fortunate enough to be part of a team that supports me to work in the way I like to work and who value the honest, genuine approach to BD – and live by the same values as me. People buy people, after all. I’ve recently been invited to co-chair the PRCA Business Development Group and I’m thrilled to have taken up the position during such an exciting period of change. If you want to talk about the group, or working with Richmond & Towers, drop me a line at anouska@rtc.london or via my LinkedIn.

26th October | Elise Bloom back

Richmond & Towers boosts design services offering with new creative

We have some exciting news here at Richmond & Towers… we’re thrilled to welcome Brett Sayer to the team! He’s a brilliant creative who has recently joined the team.

Brett is a talented 3D and 2D motion designer, as well as being a dab hand at traditional graphic design. We would tell you all the shit hot things that Brett can do, but we figured we would let him tell his story, so we sat him down for a little Q&A. Fire away Brett!   Q: Why did you choose design as a career? A: Design, art and motion have always been an enormous passion of mine. I love coming up with ideas and making them come to life. Seeing an idea on print or screen that you’ve imagined and then brought to life is amazing. I never thought as a kid that you could be creative as a job, turns out you can, so here I am!   Q: What brands have you worked with in the past and what did you create? A: I worked on various projects including a series of explainer videos for National Express coaches, as well as Hertfordshire County Council, made 3D motion graphic assets for Aquafresh’s social media channels, and I’ve even produced a collection of posters for the NHS.   Q: Explain to us your role at R&T? A: In a nutshell, my role at R&T will be focused on producing artwork and designs for our clients from stills to motion, while also protecting and maintaining our very own R&T brand! I’ll be on hand to create any creatives for our existing client base in line with their brand guidelines. But I’m really excited about bringing a fresh pair of eyes to the table and seeing how we can push things further and in new brave ways.   Q: How do you feel you can transform creatives at R&T? A: The brands that R&T work with will get my full undivided love and attention, working to elevate and enhance their visual presence by understanding the needs of each one, and working on fresh innovative ideas that shine through the noise.   Q: What are your top tips for a successful creative? A: A successful creative is one that turns heads and is bold enough to be different. The message has to be clear whether it is through the imagery, motion of the words you put on the screen. Something that Marmite does really well is knowing that their product is either ‘loved’ or ‘hated’.  As a result, they really lean into it on their social media channels to cause conflicting opinions by suggesting some bizarre combinations with their products. In this case, even bad publicity is good publicity!   Q: Where do you get your inspiration from? A: My inspiration comes from all over social media including LinkedIn, as well as creative platforms like Behance, and Dribbble. I love to see what other people are doing and to anticipate and predict where the trends are heading. Being on-top and ahead of trends is extremely important in this saturated market!   Q: If R&T could have one brand on their roster that you could create the design work for, who would it be? A: Brand I’d love to see working with R&T… well, I love seeing brands focusing more on sustainability and being eco conscious so brands with a positive message around looking after our planet would be great. One brand in particular would be Love Cocoa who have a whole range of non-dairy chocolate products, and even plant a tree for every chocolate bar sold!   Q: What is your creative process? A: My creative process is fairly straight-forward. First and foremost, I research the brand to truly understand what they are all about and who their audience is. I would then work towards a similar tone when producing storyboards or sketches to ensure the client is happy and that the ideas are on-brand and relays the message in a striking way that follows the feel of the company.   Q: Who are your design heroes? A: Besides the obvious artistic heroes such as Andy Warhol who fronted the pop-art movement, I consider a lot of modern designers ‘heroes’ too. At the moment I’m really inspired by the work produced by Patrick Foley who posts a lot on Instagram. He creates some really incredible 3D artwork that are usually really clever but are always really beautifully lit. Similarly, I love the artwork by Andry Rasoahaingo as he really cleverly combines 2D illustrations in a 3D world using a very limited colour pallet.   If you feel your brand is in need of a re-fresh or fancy some new kick-ass ideas, get in touch at sayhello@rtc.london and let’s get creative!