Having only joined us this summer, our Junior PR Consultant, Melissa Eveleigh, has quickly become an important member of the Porcupine PR team.
We recently caught up with her to find out more about her background and what she does in her role.
Before Porcupine PR
After completing her English Literature and Publishing Media degree at Oxford Brookes University, Melissa started doing freelance marketing for small businesses and individuals to work on her skills and gain a range of experiences in different areas.
She says: “I realised how much I liked creating relationships between businesses and their clients, the media and other companies, and it was this realisation that made me want to go into PR.
“My degree helped me to make contacts and those, in turn, gave me opportunities and a steady flow of freelance work until I landed my first marketing job as a PR Executive at Toolstation’s head office.
“This involved supporting the PR manager and liaising with their PR agency.”
So, what does a normal day look like for Melissa?
“I log on just before nine to read through any emails that came in overnight and to write my to-do list for the day. Then we all have a quick team catch-up about our evenings.
“My days have a variety of different things going on, there’s a lot of writing from blog posts to social media content and other types of publicity.
“We all check each other’s work, so throughout the day I’ll also read what other members of the team have written and add to them if needed.
“There’s plenty to do throughout the day but we make sure to take breaks and we all get an hour for lunch, which is a good chance for me to get a quick walk in.
“At the end of the day, we all talk about our evening plans before logging off for the night.”
How have you found settling in?
“The team have really welcomed me in and they’ve all been super supportive. Everyone is really friendly and approachable, which makes the day-to-day more enjoyable.
“I love that there’s always something going on and that there are so many different things that I get to work on.”
How do you spend your spare time?
When she’s not writing our clients’ blog posts, social media posts or press releases, Melissa likes to keep herself busy by being active.
“I spend a lot of time in my home gym, hiking with my Jack Russell Terrier, Misty – although she prefers being carried now that she’s 14 – and out on my roller skates.
“I also love to read and have recently started practicing pyrography in my spare time.”
Lastly, how would your friends describe you as a person?
“I love to have a laugh and to make my friends laugh, so they would definitely describe me as being funny; I am usually making some sort of joke or another.
“I think they would also say I was driven, as I work hard and try to learn as quickly as I can to get results, even on a personal level.
“They would also describe me as being creative as I enjoy working creatively and getting involved in creative projects in and out of work.”
