Bethany Weston

Country of origin: United Kingdom

Placement: Unilever

During my placement I worked on the Brand Development side of Marketing for Beverages for Unilever. Brand Development consists of devising strategy for brands, creating communication assets such as TVC’s, Prints, Outdoor & digital adverts and product innovation. The brands I worked on were PG tips (the UK’s marketing leading black tea brand), Lyons Tea (the PG tips equivalent in Ireland) and Lipton Ire. 

My role consisted of being the assistant brand manager, helping with the launch of PG tips new Fruit, Herbal & Green tea range which enabled me to be part of a TV shoot (meeting Monkey!) and develop all the creative assets for the full campaign. This project allowed me to witness the full campaign cycle, first seeing it be signed off by the business the post launch review 6 months after launch. I also devised a PR strategy for the PG tips Premium range, looking at how we can improve penetration rates and awareness of these products. I also led an endorsement strategy around the Great Taste Award, looking at improving PG’s quality credentials and proposition around taste.

My placement experience was challenging, but in a very  positive way and has given me a lot more appreciation for the products on supermarket shelves as you see all the work that goes into them! It has allowed me to grow my skills set, improve my communication skills and affirmed that Marketing is what I want to pursue as a career choice.

I would certainly recommend a placement to any undergraduate student as a way to develop themselves and prepare for final year. I can already tell my mind-set has changed dramatically on how I view work and tasks in hand.

The level of responsibility presented to you on placement was a bonus as you really got to stretch yourself, communicating to people across different functions such as Supply Chain, Legal, Technical and R&D which allowed me to understand the business so much better as a whole. I also really liked the fact it was for a global company who has been voted as the employer of choice for marketing. This allowed me to work alongside people who were the best in the business and gave me great insights for what it takes to be a successful Marketer. I really got to see what Marketing involved, and it was so much more than advertising!

My advice to students looking for a placement is to start applying early, even before going back to university for second year as it ensures you have a better chance of gaining one. If you do achieve a placement relatively early into the academic year, you can then just concentrate on university work, as opposed to interviews/application forms/assessment centres.