- Name: Garrett Olexiuk
- Age: 28
- Current location: Dubai, UAE
- Home town: Burlington, ON
- Education: Bachelor of Arts in Literature and Psychology, Western University Post-Graduate Degree Digital Marketing and E-Commerce, University of Toronto
- Current position: Strategic Planner, Saatchi & Saatchi
- Bio: After graduating with a BA, Garrett studied Digital Marketing at the University of Toronto. At the time digital marketing was still in its infancy, and Garrett saw the benefits of making it his specialty. Now working as a Strategic Planner at marketing firm Saatchi & Saatchi in Dubai, Garrett combines his expertise in digital marketing strategy with his background in psychology, to understand consumer behaviour and help guide the creative direction on his team's projects.
- Countries I've worked in: Canada, United Arab Emirates
- Sector / subsectors: Business, Marketing, Digital Marketing
- Areas of expertise: Marketing, analytics, digital strategy, communications, planning
- Country: United Arab Emirates
- Region: Middle East
- Sector: Advertising, Research
- Degree subject: Business & commerce, English literature, Psychology
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Who are you, what's your role, and what does that entail?
Meet Garrett Olexiuk, strategic planner in Dubai.
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Tell us about your career trajectory.
You know when you hear a story about a friend of a friend who was offered a really great job via LinkedIn, and you think, 'That doesn't happen in real life.' Yeah - Garrett is that friend.
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So you got recruited via LinkedIn!? What was that like?
If someone offers you a job via a social media network - do your research!
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Tell us about a typical day or week.
Garrett breaks down the anatomy of a marketing agency - and the role a planner plays in creating an advertising campaign.
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You mentioned that a planner's research can help shape the creative strategy of an ad campaign. Do you have an example?
68% of women say their confidence drops as they go through puberty - find out how this one statistic helped spark an award-winning advertising campaign.
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Are there misconceptions about living and working in the Middle East?
Garrett tackles the biggest misconceptions about Dubai - that it is super conservative and super expensive.
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What are the challenges of living and working internationally?
Garrett tells us how he learned to 'take the piss.'
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What abilities or qualities does it take to succeed in this line of work?
"Give me the freedom of a tight brief." Garrett explains what it takes to succeed as a planner in a marketing agency.
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What are the different specializations in this field?
Garrett breaks down agency side versus client side roles, as well as strictly digital and analytics agencies.
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What's your best advice for job searching?
Garrett breaks down his strategy for landing your dream job.
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How did you find your internship? And how did you get your foot in the door?
Garrett walks us through how he networked his way to an internship at Leo Burnett Toronto - and why you never rely on emailing your resume.
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What is the biggest mistake people make when it comes to networking?
Garrett breaks down COLD EMAILING 101 and his trick for getting someone to commit to meeting you for a coffee.
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What is your best advice when it comes to interviewing?
80% of the work for an interview is done before you enter the room.
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What is the most common mistake you see younger people make once they are in the work force?
Patience, young grasshopper.
Tags: patience