From university to marketing agency
- By Lexi Chiswell
- May 6, 2025
My experience during university wasn’t a typical one. I started at Manchester University, studying Psychology, in 2019, so my first year was cut short due to COVID-19. The following two years were then spent studying from home, rather than at the university. Whilst this wasn’t the uni experience I had imagined, I found that being able to complete my seminars and lectures at home actually worked quite well for me.
During my second year of studying Psychology, I took a marketing course that sparked my interest in the field. I knew then that marketing was something I wanted to pursue after graduation, and I started looking at potential jobs and graduate schemes. However, like many university graduates, I had big plans to explore the world and wasn’t quite ready to jump straight into a corporate role.
Joining ecollective
Luckily for me, an opportunity arose for me to join ecollective while still at university in a fully remote, flexible role. I became part of the community management and social listening team, where I managed our clients’ social media channels daily, including Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, and Reddit. This experience gave me a deep appreciation for the importance of a well-informed, proactive customer service team and taught me how to develop tailored customer response processes for different brands. I also gained a strong understanding of our clients’ products and had my first look at the internal operations of both large and small companies.
When I finished my degree, I continued to work with ecollective whilst also embarking on a six-month trip around Asia and began to deepen my understanding of the different roles (turns out there are lots!) within a marketing agency. Upon returning to the UK, I transitioned into a full-time account executive role, taking on responsibility for some of our longest-standing client accounts.
As I explored the marketing world, particularly within an agency, I began to differentiate between the various roles and identify what would suit me best. As someone who can have a conversation with a brick wall (I don’t stop talking), and who LOVES herself a list, I knew something in the client services area would probably suit me best.
As an account executive, I wasn’t solely responsible for entire accounts but played a key supportive role. I worked closely with the account manager, ensuring team members stayed on track with budgets and timelines, monitoring the scope of work, and attending client meetings to manage and assure progress. While it was initially intimidating – especially fresh out of university – I learned so much about client relationship management and workplace organisation. The nerves were absolutely worth it!
Then came the big step – I became an account manager for my own client account! Starting with a brand-new client, I loved building that relationship from the ground up, getting to know their team, and introducing them to our agency’s approach to managing projects and marketing as a whole.
In this role, I’ve learned – and continue to learn- so much. From handling fast-paced deadlines and tricky situations to managing teams and strategically assigning tasks, I’ve developed skills that allow me to deliver the best possible work while keeping budgets and timelines in check.
Working in an agency like ecollective also brings endless opportunities. For instance, I had the chance to travel to Canada and run a tradeshow (on my own!), where I managed everything from suppliers to staff and event activities. It was an incredible learning experience that pushed me out of my comfort zone.
ecollective is a hub of diverse talents, which has truly opened my eyes to the variety of roles within a single agency. Behind content creation, there are content planners, influencer managers, graphic designers, photographers, and social media managers. Behind website creation, we have UX copywriters, website designers, CMS developers, SEO specialists, and project managers. For paid advertising, there are paid media strategists, campaign managers, CRM specialists, paid media designers, data analysts, and creative copywriters. The list could go on!
One of the best parts of working for an agency like ecollective is the flexibility that comes with remote working. My university experience prepared me for this in ways previous generations didn’t have the chance to experience, and I absolutely love working from home. Remote work gives me the autonomy to structure my day, whether it’s hitting the gym at 11 a.m. to avoid the post-work rush (because who likes waiting for the squat rack?) or making time for personal development.
Thanks to this flexibility, I’ve completed a CRM-focused Mailchimp course and have scoped out some specialist strategy courses that I’m excited to dive into (watch this space!). Most importantly, my time at ecollective – and my incredibly talented colleagues – have introduced me to roles I never even knew existed and helped me understand their critical importance within a marketing team.
So, long story short – if you’re considering a career in marketing and thinking about joining an agency, why wait? The possibilities are endless!
