Connective3 is a digital performance marketing agency headquartered in Leeds.
Working with clients such as Avon and Rio Ferdinand-backed DeliveryApp, Elle Pollicott joined the agency back in 2020 as a content strategist.
Rising through the ranks, she was appointed as head of content strategy in 2021.
Pollicott shares all the lessons she’s learnt across her personal life and career…
Which single daily habit or practice could you not do without?
I feel like it’s something everyone probably does, but as soon as I get into work, the first thing I do is spend five minutes checking Twitter and LinkedIn. It eases me into the working day, and it means that I can jump on anything newsworthy in the content/marketing world.
What’s been your luckiest break?
Joining c3 when I did – I joined six months after the company started as the sole person in content. Obviously, a lot of hard work got me to where I am today, but I wouldn’t have had the opportunity I did to grow the team and progress to head of content without being able to join the company right from the beginning!
What’s your best failure?
I accepted a job at an agency when I was 22, despite not having a great feeling about the place. But, I wasn’t very experienced in interviews at the time, and needed the money. Long story short, I quit my job just four months in because the culture – and many people who worked there – were so toxic. Whilst no one wants a four-month stint on their CV, it taught me to trust my gut when going to job interviews, and it also helped me to realise what a great team should look like, when it came to building out my own team at c3!
What is the best investment you’ve ever made, either financial or time?
My Celine bag – I’ve wanted one for as long as I can remember, and I finally took the plunge and bought one a couple of years ago! It’s classic and goes with so many outfits – and I’ll almost always wear it to an in-person pitch or client meeting.
Which podcast or book would you recommend others to read and why?
I know you’re probably expecting me to recommend a marketing-related book or podcast, but I’m going to recommend Paris Hilton’s memoir (very on-brand of me, she’s such an icon!). For so many years she was laughed off as being some kind of airhead heiress, but she’s a super smart business woman (she’s had a singing career, launched lots of perfumes, is a top DJ, has had several of her own TV shows… need I go on?) and people very much underestimated her.
The things she went through as a teenager are crazy – you read it, and you can’t imagine what she went through, but it’s such an inspirational (and fun!) read too.
What one piece of advice would you give your 21-year-old self?
Not everyone will like you, and that’s OK! You can’t please everyone but as long as you’re nice to people (and not being overly nice to the people that don’t like you, because they’re not going to change their mind!), then that’s all you can do.
Who or what has had the single biggest influence on your working life?
I don’t think there’s been a specific person, but I’ve always known exactly what I want… and anyone who knows me, knows that I book a LOT of holidays, and do a LOT of shopping; and being able to afford those things has really driven me to succeed in my career.
Tell us something about you that would surprise people.
… that’s a tough one! I’m not sure if these would surprise people, but I feel like I have a lot of funny travel-related stories, like the time my friend and I got stranded in Hell (it’s in Norway, if you ever want to go!). I had a stalker when I was travelling by boat from St. Petersburg to Helsinki; and most recently, when I was in Malaysia last month, my friend and I got bitten by monkeys and had to go and get rabies vaccines.
If there was one thing you could change about your career, what would it be and why?
My degree was in fashion marketing, so I would have liked to have had the opportunity to have had some fashion clients… sooo if any fashion brands are looking for an agency to create content for them, let me know!
What does success look like to you?
Success to me is enjoying my job, having a great team around me, and having a good work/life balance. Luckily, I’ve achieved all these things 🙂
