This episode features Julia Dettler-Bates, European Marketing Communications Manager at Fellowes. Julia discusses the Fellowes’ global rebrand and her love of working with agencies.
As an international marketing expert, Julia has over ten years of experience in marketing communications, both agency and client side. Through her exciting and global career, Julia has gained an in-depth knowledge of paid, earned, and owned media activities across several different industries.
Understanding agencies
“Transparency is key”
After university, Julia began working at digital marketing agency, Search Laboratory, and this experience provided her with a sharp insight into what makes an agency successful. “It’s being transparent with your clients. And that’s something that I’m still looking for now when I’m working with agencies in house. Transparency is key. Don’t try and blag your way through it.”
What else did Julia learn from her agency work? She emphasises the importance of agility. “I would say my biggest takeaway is really being agile. Especially when you are part of an agency. Everything’s still fast moving. And things keep on changing and you have to adapt to different clients to their requirements.”
Moving forward at Fellowes
“The way we are working is changing”
Julia is currently the European Marketing Communications Manager at Fellowes, which has recently undergone a global rebrand. “The way we are working is changing. So, therefore the needs of people in workplaces are changing. And we are really keen to adapt our products and therefore create innovations that really help people be at their best at their workplace.”
In accordance with the changes to our ways of working Fellowes has adapted its product range to reflect current workplace needs. As Julia explains. “We really expanded over the last few years in what we call our expansive category, which is our health and wellbeing area – our ergonomic accessories, furniture – to really adapt to the new workplaces.”
Boosting creativity with agencies
“I genuinely love working with agencies”
Many companies, Fellowes included, use both in-house marketing teams and agencies to strike the right balance in their marketing efforts. Julia emphasises that she always chooses to work with agencies, in part due to her background. “I think I genuinely love working with agencies because that’s been part of my working life. I like getting new partners and seeing new ideas. I think they’re always super creative sessions. And it’s exciting to find a new partner that you know you will be able to trust for the next few years or months depending on what we hire them for.”
Learn more about Julia’s international marketing career by listening to her episode on iTunes, Spotify, and Stitcher or on the ClientSide website.