As part of our ‘day in the life’ blog series, Kevin Tasker, Copywriter at Napier provides insight into how he joined Armitage, (now Napier) and the activities and responsibilities of his role.
For me, the lockdown hasn’t been such a wrench – over the years, I had become well accustomed to the 10-second commute and at the end of the day, switching off the machine and already being home. Back then, working from home, or WFH as it’s now known, wasn’t so common.
How I came to start my role at Napier was also a little unusual. After completing my engineering degree, I graduated with impeccable timing in the middle of a recession. Time to think again – I had always enjoyed writing and decided to give it a go professionally.
I spent a week volunteering at the local newspaper, attending the magistrates’ court and interviewing people about lost cats. Spells at an agency in Covent Garden and for a market research company helped put me on the right path and in what seemed like no time at all, I found myself working for Beddington’s leading media relations agency.
In my time at the company, I have written a huge variety of things, at very different lengths – from captions and headlines, to major feature stories, video scripts, web sites, brochures and white papers. Particularly case studies – lots and lots of case studies.
And subjects? I probably know more about sewerage than is good for the average person but I have also written about robots, 5G networks, laser targeting pods for combat aircraft and the prospects for pilotless airliners – and not forgetting Mrs. Smith’s new bathroom, as installed by a water utility client.
A typical day might find me starting off by completing a press release about a new robot, then editing a blog on communications for emergency crews for the likes of Nokia or Airbus. I might then take a brief for a case study on how our client has improved a website for one of its customers, then do some research for a major new white paper intended to help place a client as a leader in its industry.
My engineering background has certainly stood me in good stead for the more technical aspects of our clients’ business – an ability to find your way around terms like power factor, PID control and dBm is a definite plus.
Then there are the more business aspects and I have needed to develop an appreciation of customer experience management, marketing platforms and NSP scores.
With more clients now than ever before, I am doing a lot more varied work and really enjoying contributing to the success of the company.