A Day in the Life of Jonathan Emmins

 Name: Jonathan Emmins

Company: Purity

Job title: Development Director

What keeps you busy all day?

 My role straddles both the creative and the client handling/strategy aspects of the business. I wouldn’t have it any other way, but consequently it is very time consuming. You can never estimate how long it will take to crack a brief – sometimes it takes 30 minutes, sometimes several days. I’ve also just been seconded to be MD of our new experiential agency, Amplify, so as well as the Purity work I’ve been tending to our new baby, which is very exciting!

 What keeps you awake at night? 

Task trackers and to-do lists keep my work on paper and out of my dreams, but because a large core of what I do is experiential, I’m often out and about. For example, we’re running over 145 club nights for Virgin Mobile with talent ranging from Dirty Sanchez to Jason Donovan. On top of this I still haven’t lost my appetite for going out and checking out bands, DJs and artists. As most of my mates are in the industry there’s never a shortage of launches or parties to go to.

Describe your working day:

 My favourite times of the day are the beginning and the end when I get some time to myself. I tend to get in early and/or leave a bit later in order to make the most of this. With the rest of the day I enjoy spending as much time with clients as possible. I also do a lot of problem solving; I like challenges whether they involve cracking briefs or dealing with some tricky ‘making it happen’ logistics.

 What’s your busiest time of day?

 It took me a while but I’ve become quite good at planning my days. Being a bit of a control freak, it’s the first part of the day when I’m trying to get as many things ticked off my list before meetings, phones and e-mails begin to flood in . The only problem is when I’m concentrating really hard it can be interpreted as being moody – never a good look! After a few hours of ‘serious’ work then I’m relaxed and can spend more time talking to clients, colleagues and suppliers.

 What brands/accounts have you worked on?

 Lots of alcohol and telecoms brands, a bit of fashion, gaming, music and entertainment brands and increasingly more FMCG brands: Virgin Mobile, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, O2, Vodafone, Diageo, Maxxium, Allied Domecq, Coca-Cola, NUS, Arcadia Group, Kellogg’s, Ministry of Sound, Tiger Beer, Sol Beer, Passion for Life. 

Best day at work:

 I think that like the majority of marketers I’m spoilt because I enjoy what I do. Coming up with the ideas is generally my favourite part of work, along with seeing them come to life. The best was a tiny project, but seeing worldwide coverage gained for Tussauds Group following the Guinness World Records ‘Naked Roller Coaster’ ride both amused me and was a great result for the client. Equally, seeing 4000 happy punters jumping up and down at one of my events is pretty satisfying.

 Worst day at work:

 You can’t let things get to you. Laugh and roll with it… when police held up half my production crew after witnessing a crime, we ended up having 4 hours to get a day’s work done. The build was completed on time. Cheers fellas.

 Name one thing you’ve achieved that has made your bosses sit up and take notice:

 Getting new clients in and projects off the ground always goes down well – particularly as they tend to be a bit unusual. Other than that an ability to be out until 4am at an event and be in the next morning bright and early is another bonus. 

 Ambitions:

 On a short-term basis, my ambition is to push the boundaries in and around experiential marketing to get the best for my clients.

 Mid-term: I’m committed to the Purity ‘collective’, working with the pods, and making a success of Amplify.

 Long-term: I enjoy building agencies and have experience in both the UK and Australia – taking Purity/Amplify forward might be the next challenge.

 Advice to other rising stars:

 Get out there and talk to people. People deal with people – so be open and easy to get on with. Look for parallels and experiences elsewhere in life and bring them into your work. At the end of the day there’s no substitute for good ideas and a bit of hard graft. 

Quote from the boss:

 “When we first met with Jonathan we obviously checked him out – and from peers to clients alike everyone came back with glowing reports. Jonathan gets on with people – he’s focused, passionate, enthusiastic and has a constant twinkle in his eye. Most important to Purity is the fact that Jonathan has the ability to develop and drive ‘big ideas’ – and with his depth of experience he has the ability to turn these into reality.” Rob Gray, Managing Partner, Purity