This month our spotlight interview is with our fantastic Senior Account Manager – Jamie Gaskins.
How did your career start in Partnerships & Marketing?
My career in marketing started over 10 years ago, working at my hometown nightclub as an Assistant Marketing Manger for a few years which was an experience. I then moved to a gambling company (formerly called Gamesys) known as Bally’s Interactive with HQ based in London, I undertook various roles in account management, team management and retention marketing across an 8-year period. I was fortunate enough to travel the world in this role, managing clients at luxury events and visiting places like Vegas, Monaco, St Lucia, Lapland and Miami to name a few.
I started at Mando-Connect in May 2023, as I wanted a new challenge and to test myself in the world of partnerships and I haven’t looked back since. I currently find myself working with the wonderful teams at Arnold Clark, Lidl Plus, Vodafone Business and VOXI.
What has been your favourite Partnership you have worked on whilst at Mando-Connect?
This is such a difficult choice, however, as I am a foodie, it was a great experience getting tastecard live on Lidl Plus. It took a little while, but it was rewarding to play a major role in getting this through the door, the offer was also extended due to the success of its performance.
What has been your biggest achievement/ most proud of outside of work?
Well, as I write this, I passed my driving test a few hours ago, so that’s firmly in my mind for a recent achievement in particular. I am proud of what I have achieved throughout my career and grateful for the amazing experiences I have encountered on my journey. I am also a fairly recent and proud father, so that feels apt to include and intrinsically my greatest achievement and joy to date.
Could you tell us about a Loyalty Scheme/ Brand Partnership that you think is really impressive?
Again, there’s so many loyalty schemes and brand partnership which could be included here. What I do love to see is when two brands, arguably from different customer demographics partner up, think The North Face x Gucci, Airbnb x LEGO or Marvel x Pandora. It’s great to see these in action, as they stand out, get people talking and in some cases go viral. Impressive loyalty programmes aside from the clients I work with of course, I’d say KFC Rewards Arcade caught my eye recently. They giveaway thousands of rewards everyday but make it interactive for the customer to build that engagement. On this, I certainly feel gamification is the way forward for brands as it builds excitement and involves you in the journey of accessing rewards.
What’s your favourite part of your job?
I thoroughly enjoy seeing brand partnerships and collaborations go live, where you can see all the work you do behind the scenes come to life. The added excitement comes when you evaluate the loyalty programme and individual reward performance to truly understand the individual intricacies of what customers enjoyed and interacted with.
Who would be your dream brand to work with?
Where do I begin there’s so many, I am a huge sports enthusiast who loves music and film so any brands applicable to these sectors would be a joy to work with. I am a massive Newcastle United fan and would love the opportunity to work with them as a brand, so this would take top spot.
Interestingly, I was recently part of the team working closely with the charity TCT for their VOXI Drop, so from a charity perspective working with Diabetes UK would be close to my heart, having personally lived with the Type 1 condition for 25 years+.
What’s a fact about yourself that surprises people?
Back in my school days, a poem I wrote was published which is pretty cool, can’t you tell I have a way with words.
What is the last box series you watched?
I always have something on the go when it comes to TV, I am currently watching Masters of the Air on Apple TV (a drama thriller based on WW II). However, Dexter would be my favourite show of all-time which I couldn’t recommend enough, a perfect binge-worthy series if you are looking for something new.
If you could do any job for just one day, what would it be?
You know what, how cool would it be to be a Hollywood movie star for a day, specifically when on set for a blockbuster film. This would be high up on my list, to have the exposure to experience a completely different world and industry simultaneously.
What did you want to be when you were younger?
It probably comes as no surprise that I wanted to be a footballer, to walk in the footsteps of Alan Shearer and grace the hallowed turf at St James Park. However, unfortunately my footballing skills are not quite elite level but who doesn’t love a dreamer, right?
