VP of communications and community at BUNTIN discusses the power of teamwork, having a studious mindset and having a special blend of skill sets.

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Jillian boasts over 15 years of experience in the advertising industry with roles spanning the brand and agency sides of the business, building a deep understanding of the collaborative advertising strategy process.
 
She began her career in-house at ANGI (formerly Angie’s List), taking on roles as a marketing analyst, media planner, and buyer. She transferred her insights from the brand side to shift to the agency side, spending time as an account director at TrendyMinds before joining BUNTIN in 2015 as associate brand director.
 
Following a stint on the brand side as a senior content strategist at SmileDirectClub, she returned to BUNTIN in 2018 and has continued to climb the ranks. At BUNTIN, she has overseen the Hoosier Lottery, Kentucky Lottery, Music City Grand Prix, and Handgards client accounts. She also previously oversaw the agency’s Indianapolis office. Additional client work at BUNTIN has included TVA, Huhtamaki, and Red Kap.

LBB> Tell us about your current role and what you do?

Jillian> As VP of communications and community at BUNTIN, I oversee internal and external communications, new business and employee experience initiatives. I’ve been at BUNTIN for seven years–most recently as VP, group brand director. My new role puts me in charge of spotlighting BUNTIN’s most valuable resources: promoting our creative chops, our client work, and our hardworking people.

LBB> And how did you get to where you are today?

Jillian> I have gained well-rounded experience on both the client side and the agency side throughout my career. I started in marketing at ANGI (formerly Angie’s List), then moved to account management at small and mid-sized agencies. I spearheaded the content team at SmileDirectClub and worked as a writer for the Grand Ole Opry and Ryman Auditorium.
My transition into a communications role felt like a natural next step. It allows me to pair my depth of client service experience with my passion for the agency and our teams here.

LBB> What does your average day look like?

Jillian> It depends on the day. I oversee external communications, marketing, PR, internal events, community engagement, and new business pitching and networking, so depending on what’s happening, each day could entail any of those things. One day I’m pitching new business, the next I’m planning an agency event, and the next I’m writing content for BUNTIN’s owned channels. It’s always busy and always inspiring. I love what I do.

LBB> For your organisation, what is the key function of PR and comms? Is it about company culture? Attracting clients? Empowering talent? Something else?

Jillian> It’s a little bit of everything. I’m driven to get eyes on our work for the benefit of our clients. That’s a huge motivation. But I’m equally excited to publicly highlight our team members through thought leadership pieces, interviews, and recognition. The coverage allows us to experience shared pride as an agency and with our client partners that binds us together.

LBB> PR has always been about finding the story / finding the angle. What is your process for staying ahead of the content curve and serving up something fresh and engaging?

Jillian> Our agency mission is “Beyond Attention. Conviction.” Everything we do at BUNTIN is centred around conviction: the idea that great work pushes beyond attention and drives people to feel something—to get connected, join a cause, and take action. This is the through line in everything we do, in our work or communications. It’s all tied together through conviction.

LBB> Historically Advertising folk have a very different relationship with the media, especially the press, than PR folk. Advertising is about buying ad space and being able to dictate how and where something is presented – that’s a degree of control you can barely dream of in PR. Does that tension still exist, and if so how do you navigate that tension?

Jillian> I’ve been fortunate not to experience that tension with any of my media contacts. Everybody has a job to do; partnerships and collaborative relationships are how we get anything done.

LBB> And what other common misconception do you advertising people have about comms and PR?

Jillian> Because I’m in an agency specifically, I think people sometimes assume that anybody in the agency can do a job like this. After all, we’re all marketers! But agency comms requires a special blend of skill sets: adept storytelling, powerful writing, the ability to build strong internal and external relationships, being comfortable representing the agency publicly, and a genuine belief in what we stand for as an organisation.
I’m not just communicating or managing our owned channels; my job is to shine a light on our agency, our clients, and our people.

LBB> To what extent do you feel ‘the work speaks for itself’? To what stage of growth can a business rely on this mantra to gain more clients?

Jillian> I do think the work can speak for itself, but it can always speak louder with solid communications and strategy. It’s essential to use comms channels and media to put the work in front of as many eyes as possible.

LBB> When it comes to getting coverage for a creative campaign in the consumer press, how should creative teams go about working with their agency’s comms and PR experts?

Jillian> I think communication is key. The best results happen when I’m brought into the process as the work is being done. Walk me through the strategy, the audience, and the client ask. Send me your preferred write-up and assets so I can put your best work into the world. It’s much easier to get the right message out when it’s done as a team.

LBB> When a business is faced with very bad news, what’s the key to getting through it?

Jillian> I firmly believe that it’s always important to be transparent and tell the truth. That’s something I stand by in everything I do. It’s always better to face something head-on than try and hide whatever happened. Own up to the news and enlist a trusted group of people to find ways to fix the problem.

LBB> Generally speaking, how do you approach the hack/flack relationship?

Jillian> At the end of the day, we’re all people working toward our own earnest goals. I remember with each outreach that I’m talking to a human being who is trying to do their best in their job, and that no media outlet is a monolith. Treating reporters and journalists with grace and kindness–and a large dose of knowledge about the industry–goes a long way.

LBB> How does doing comms for the advertising world differ from any other industry you’ve worked in?

Jillian> I feel a lot of ownership in my current role to represent my agency, my team members, and our clients well. What I say and do matters—to my team members and our clients—and so I feel a responsibility to do right by them. More than anything, I love that this role allows me to highlight clients and team members who are doing great things. It’s so fun to put the results of their hard work out in the world for everyone to see.

LBB> What are the most useful tools in the arsenal of a comms professional working in the advertising industries right now?

Jillian> A studious mindset; the drive to want to learn, not just about advertising, but also about your brand, clients’ industries, the media industry, jobs within the media industry, etc. You can’t know too much about media, and every bit you retain just helps make your job that much easier. Well, that, and a great task management system!

LBB> In your opinion, how has the role of a comms professional evolved during your career span? Have things changed greatly or do core tasks / principles remain the same?

Jillian> Clearly, digital media changed everything. Phone pitches were swapped to emails, then swapped (sometimes) to DMs for the right journalist. What stays the same, however, is the need for interpersonal communication and long-honed contacts. Knowing someone well and knowing what they want and need can give your outreach an advantage.
My role specifically also encompasses so many different things. It’s not just writing, not just a press release, not just pitching: it’s influencing culture, networking, making connections outside the agency, and understanding our clients inside and out. The world where comms professionals just handled one of those tasks is long gone. It’s a culture-building piece as much as it is coverage-building.

LBB> What frustrates you about the way the media and PR have changed over the years?

Jillian> The landscape has changed thanks to social media content. Anyone can build a following and be an influencer, which means any one person can conceivably reach as large an audience as a media corporation.
This is an interesting opportunity for individuals, of course, but from a comms perspective, it shifts our strategies quite a bit. Now, any project could go viral, and with that knowledge, we have to think about a whole slate of new potential outcomes for our marketing strategies. I see this as more of an opportunity than a frustration. It forces us to think more creatively about how to break through all the noise and content.

LBB> And what excites you?

Jillian> Thinking of out-of-the-box ways to make a splash with new work or thought leadership is always exciting to me. After all, we work in advertising. Let’s have some fun!
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