Sticky staff spotlight: Rhian Harries

As part of our International Women’s Day celebrations and Women’s History Month, we interviewed Rhian Harries, Creative Director at Sticky…

What do you do at Sticky in one sentence?

My role is to inspire, motivate and lead a creative team of excellent people to produce outstanding ideas and creative solutions for our clients’ audiences.

Being a female creative director is almost as rare as a unicorn. Only 17% of creative directors in 2021 are women

What is it like being one of the few female creative directors in the industry?

Being a female creative director is almost as rare as a unicorn! Only 17% of creative directors in 2021 are women, which is astonishing and shameful. So for me, my role is as much about the sheer passion I have for storytelling and creating amazing content as about being a role model for the creatives in our business and supporting them to fulfil their potential. I firmly believe creativity needs to be explored, uninhibited but most importantly, nurtured and allowed to grow alongside career development.

I’m driven to push clients and challenge our team to think creatively

What gets you out of bed in the morning?

The thought of potentially producing an award-winning campaign or taking a client brief that will really allow us to make a difference with our solution! I’m driven to push clients and challenge our team to think creatively to ensure we produce the right content for the right audience.

What’s your background and experience?

I’ve always worked in brand storytelling whether that’s through film, design or events. I started my career in design, creating visuals for Honda racing, Harley Davidson and BMW bikes – my boss at the time was a former Isle of man TT winner hence the bike focus. I then moved into film and TV production and have worked in more recent years on producing content for some amazing brands including Jaguar Land Rover, Virgin Holidays, Guinness World Records, Samsung and many more. I’m passionate about purposeful content that speaks to the right audiences in the right way. There’s nothing more frustrating for me than making content for content’s sake.

It’s my job to question briefs and really get under the skin of what will appeal to the audience.

What is a typical week for you at Sticky?

It’s incredibly varied – from financial services to alcohol brands, huge car manufacturers and museums. No week’s work looks the same as the last. But I love working with those clients who really want to work with their agency, to be challenged and let us help them achieve something a bit different to what they might have started out with. It’s my job to question briefs and really get under the skin of what will appeal to the audience. So often brands think they know their audience but there is still room to challenge perceptions and find a new way of targeting them with astute insights and award-winning creative. We have a talented team at Sticky so I’m privileged to work with a group of people who make this process fun and challenging too – even over Teams!

What advice would you give to brands who are trying to make creative content right now during the pandemic?

Be relevant, purposeful and empathetic, but don’t assume that you know how your audience is feeling. Now more than ever is the time to think about the relevance of your message and what you want to talk to your audience about. Once you’ve considered that, and know whether now is the right time for your message, then think about the execution. It’s a challenging time for brands – all your touchpoints with your audience have changed which means behaviour has changed and adapted to suit. We’re not all out running during lockdown getting fit, some of us have tucked ourselves under a blanket and have scrolled the height of Big Ben a million times over on our devices. Consider that and consider the Covid saturation – how can you be different and own your own message? There’s plenty of room for new creative!

Do you have a career highlight – a favourite campaign or moment?

Winning a sweep of awards at the Brand Film Festival for our beautiful film Dear Dorothy for Jaguar Land Rover was an incredibly special moment! If you haven’t seen it you really need to watch it. Dorothy’s story had the perfect elements for film making and she was such a character.

Creative and strategy work hand in hand so I see us being integral to demonstrating how strong strategy works in execution.

What role do you see your dept playing in the future of Sticky?

Creative and strategy work hand in hand so I see us being integral to demonstrating how strong strategy works in execution. It’s important that our understanding of a brand’s audience carries right through from the data and strategy to the final output. We take the intelligence and bring it life in a way that people will engage with, in the right place, on the right platform, at the right time and in the right way. I see us producing thoughtful, intelligent content that effects a change in audiences and serves a genuine purpose for the brand and audience.

How can someone come to you with a project?

Get me on Zoom or Teams for a video call! I love a good chinwag face to face (well virtually). There’s nothing better than having the chance to talk about a brief in more detail and get to the bottom of what you really want to do. Let me know your budget too because that helps manage expectations and we can develop ideas to suit the scope of the project right from the start. If that appeals to you then get in touch, get a cuppa ready and a biscuit and I’ll see you online for a chat!

To set up a chat with Rhian, contact our head of marketing Rajet who’ll arrange a call.