As part of our ‘In the Spotlight’ series, we are shining a light on our teams at Major Players, finding out more about them and the sectors in which they serve. For our next instalment in the series, we caught up with our very own Edwina Wickham, who manages our Creative, Design and Studio team here at Major Players.
Tell us a bit about creative, design & studio, and what your team covers?
Our team is made up of specialist consultants who support Creative Agencies and Brands in finding the right talent for their creative teams. Roles we cover include Graphic Designer, Art Director, Copywriter, Digital, Motion Designer, Developers, Artworker, Retoucher, Creative Director and other Senior Levels.
What attributes make someone suitable to work in creative, design & studio?
Creative (obviously) with the ability to think out of the box, empathetic to different audiences needs and wants, a good communicator and passionate - always looking to learn and absorb ideas and skills. You need to have the confidence to share your ideas but also be humble enough to work in a team and share the vision of those you work with.
What are the biggest trends you’re seeing currently?
Digital platforms have been slowly growing in importance over the last few years however Lockdown this year has accelerated this and it is now a skill set we are seeing woven into nearly all briefs. Social media is the biggest platform to communicate on now, but there also seems to be a big push on personalised emails to help consumers still get that special tailored retail experience. Web design is also going to be a key area that makes brands competitive so having great designers crafting these is going to be important. Strong conceptual designers who are able to build convincing and immersive story’s will also be in high demand as the online market gets crowded.
What advice would you give someone thinking of moving into creative, design & studio?
PDF portfolios are still preferred as they show clients how you choreograph your work. It also gives you control of how they experience your work and the order and skills they are guaranteed to see – something you have no control over on a website. That said, websites are still great if you can have more content - just be sure that each project is strong in case they don’t go for the first one on the page! Other advice is upskill so you can confidently work across digital platforms. For designers I’d advise getting comfortable using After Effects and incorporate basic email and UI design into your arsenal.
Branding Designers I’d encourage you to showcase your conceptual and strategy skills clearly - think about including a small paragraph of the brief, the challenge, the market, the idea and - if you have them - the results of how successful it was – this goes down very well!
What do you predict for the industry in 2021?
I think we will see smaller independent companies really celebrating their uniqueness as the market looks to support local products and talent. Big brands will look to reflect a more local feel too by speaking to us on a more personal, individual level with localised strategies reflecting the communities they are targeting. I think we will see the trend of brands continuing to bringing talent in house and agencies diversifying their offering for more 360 campaign and branded approaches.
Any additional comments?
It’s no secret that jobs are receiving record numbers of applicants currently. My advice is to remember that businesses are going to be more particular than ever when hiring so, if you are going to take the time to apply for roles, make sure you have the right skills and tailor your cv and portfolio for the brand. If you want some help with this check out our website as we constantly have advice and tips there to help you.
If you'd like to learn more about our creative, design & studio division or how we can help you further, then get in touch with Edwina today:
Edwina.Wickham@majorplayers.co.uk.
