Interview with Digiscope Media’s agent: talking about why communication is key
Digital presence and CTAs have already been key factors for years, but in today’s economy, the importance of those aspects are increasing even more. What goes on in the life of an agent and why communication with clients is important now more than ever, speaks up the agent of Digiscope Media – Mall Freiman.
Who are you and what is your role in Digiscope Media?
I am Mall and I am an agent for Digiscope Media. My role here is to find nice and compatible clients, and there are many, and select, with whom we fit. Find the companies that need these services and bring them together with Digiscope, specifying customers’ needs in advance. I’m glad to be the agent because I truly believe in Digiscope Media and its quality services.
Tell your story – what is your previous work experience and how did you end up at Digiscope Media
I’ve been working in the media and marketing field since 2003, which means 18 years, in other words, all my conscious career. I started in the field with export sales to Scandinavia. From there on I went to Äripäev and did project management for advertising sales, which meant identifying the client’s needs and bringing them to different areas of Äripäev, both in paper and digital. I was also there at the historic moment when the web for Äripäev was created. I started there in 2004 when there was only the newspaper and in a few years, we started creating the web where we sold banners.
My sales work consisted of all kinds of advertisements: I started with the newspaper, built up my portfolio, and offered my clients a variety of products that Äripäev offered from the perspective of advertising and content marketing. When the web was created, I moved to medical news, where my main clients were pharmaceutical companies. My baby was also the women’s magazine Dilemma, which was targeted at successful women. I was the project manager of the advertising sector, so that meant I worked a lot with the content creation team who created articles and we worked very closely together to ensure that the result was uniform, interesting and appropriate. For me, it was a very exciting and fun time when the Internet came and started to gather momentum.
In 2009 I achieved the title of the best seller in Äripäev, which I am very proud of because there were very many of us and the result was based directly on turnover. I liked it at Äripäev a lot, but then I decided to set my steps towards something else because as people say, you should leave while being at the top. So I went to lead an Estonian branch of a media agency, which unfortunately has closed its doors now. I did it for 3 years, had my own team and we served great international clients. After that, I was head of the sales team in an agency, the team consisted of 15 people. For some time, I was also a sales agent for airBaltic inflight magazine and a digital marketing advisor. Therefore, it was only logical for me to get here, where I am today, in Creative Union.
I came to Creative Union to lead and advise a project named MultiCityTV, which is very well in line with my nature because I like to bring new things into life. I very much believe in this project. My strength is that I can look at the big picture and grab the details. I also love to communicate with people, and I am very happy to be part of this big family. Awesome office space, incredible people, and quality skills to sell – this is actually the biggest value to a salesperson.
The cooperation started with the fact that some customers were brought to Digiscope and they were very pleased with the service, based on that, the decision was made to continue the cooperation.
Like I mentioned before that I was a digital marketing advisor to a number of clients, I needed to find someone who would offer the services given to specific clients, perhaps help them to fulfill their goals. And I completely accidentally, as things tend to happen in life, met one of the heads of Creative Union and told him that I have one client who needed our services and he said of course bring them to us. Cooperation with Creative Union actually started at the end of the summer of 2020, I observed the work process from afar, how the relationship between Digiscope Media and the client progressed. The feedback was very positive, so then in autumn I decided to come to the office and met Rainis, who introduced me to the MultiCity concept, and the next day I was already behind my desk working. Incredibly happy about this opportunity.
Describe your typical day at work
I do a lot of preliminary work to target correctly. Thanks to my extensive experience, I have a very good overview of the Estonian market, which companies are operating here. I also do a lot of networking outside Estonia, because we have an international goal as well. Finally, when contact is being made, I look at what is on that specific customer’s website, LinkedIn page, and other channels, simply put I make contact tactically. A large part of the day is preliminary work and targeting, and if you really want to make great sales, you will have to make at least 20 calls a day. If I target correctly, I can make a sale right away.
As most of my working day is spent on the MultiCityTV project, I have a pipeline for Digiscope, where I will direct it according to their needs and abilities. Fortunately, there is no such thing as a typical workday for me, because typicality is boring.
“Digiscope Media is high-quality, positive, unified.”
What has been the biggest challenge during your time in Digiscope Media?
The main challenge is communication, so that all parties can understand the matter in the same way. Also time is limited for all of us, so it is important to set priorities. Something that may be the most important and urgent for me, may not be for a colleague who has something more urgent in progress. It is very important to maintain a good working environment.
Describe a moment you felt proud of Digiscope Media
Every time I bring a client to us because I know that Digiscope Media offers high-quality services with which the client will certainly be satisfied.
How would you describe our team?
Very positive and professional. I feel like I’ve been welcomed to this big friendly family, which is a great feeling.
What has been the biggest surprise for you?
I discovered that I can go to work by train. I wouldn’t have believed in my life that I’m going to use public transport and like it, but it’s a direct route from home to office and makes time management more convenient as I can work on the train. Talking on the phone and sending emails while driving isn’t a good idea, so now I can use my time more productively. The joy also lies in the fact that I don’t have to sit in traffic jams.
“Everything from one place.”
What has been your favorite project?
From Digiscope’s point of view, I like that several clients have come with high stakes. We have a very important role, as these are projects that want to expand. For me, this journey is extremely exciting. I don’t really have a favorite project as such, because I believe in every project equally.
What is your biggest accomplishment?
Bringing three daughters to the world. Connecting raising my children and work-life is a very good achievement for me, especially achieving and maintaining a balance between them. It can be said that I have achieved harmony and happiness.
What has been the biggest challenge for you?
If some doors have closed, then you have to find another door to open. In March 2020, due to the pandemic, a project I worked on, ended. It was quite challenging but today I have successfully overcome it.
How would you define success?
Harmony and balance are the new dimensions of success. I measure success by the quality of life. That every day you wake up with happiness and happiness. Freedom to be who you are is undoubtedly important in my eyes. Today I can say that I am successful.
Who is your inspiration?
I am inspired by strong independent people who are able to see the big picture. I do have a mentor, who helps me both on a personal and professional level, my very good friend Elle Muuga. She has her own blog and is a staff management guru. With her support, I have passed the spiritual path of self-development that now keeps me in balance. Thanks to her, I have come through difficulties that would have been more complicated alone.
What drives you?
I think if I live a balanced life and have great people around me, then I have a steady flow of energy. It is important to proceed with the idea of “unit of living is 1 day”, not to be stuck with the mistakes from the past or the ideals of the future. You must take every day as a gift and do things that you truly like doing. You are the source of your own luck.
“Unit of living is 1 day.”
Digital marketing in the year 2021 and the do’s and don’ts
What is the situation in digital marketing today and what new norms have developed in this industry?
I think it is well-known that e-commerce and digital marketing have been more positively affected by the pandemic. Regardless of the situation, digital marketing is still growing, and I’ve been believing in it for many years. We as people have been materialists and it has gotten out of hand, now as a result of the effects of the pandemic, this focus has shifted even more to values. Several new demands have arisen, so continuing in the old way would not be reasonable.
3 common mistakes made in digital marketing
Presumptions. Very often there have been situations in which people tend to decide on their own, other words deciding for their clients. The presumption is the mother of all failures. It would be worth putting more trust into testing and measuring. After all, the solution in digital marketing must be liked by the consumer, not by the company. Personal opinion may not always be true, that’s why we are needed because we have the necessary tools to measure data.
Underestimating visuals and messages. Those are also measurable and testable things. If you do a campaign and target the right group, but the message is not clear and understandable, it is wasted money.
Impatience. Not giving enough time to plan, carry out and measure the campaign. The result is needed as soon as possible or even yesterday, but it is still needed to fulfill prerequisites before taking the next step. The same principle that is used in universities – the prerequisites must be fulfilled in order to take the next course. Otherwise, the quality can be significantly affected. The result is based on the contribution.
3 recommendations for successful digital marketing
Set specific goals. For me, for example, it is very important that the client knows where they want to get and understand when they have achieved those goals. And it should certainly be in a numerical form so that you can measure it, whether it is time, financial data, reach, etc. It is therefore worth trusting your service provider.
Use more CTA-s. This is a specific thing that is forgotten to do. If a potential client is on the website and there is no call for what to do next, then they leave the website without doing anything. Therefore it is necessary to pay more attention to Call-To-Action’s, design, and user-friendly experience. In my eyes, more CTAs should be used, but of course, they should be also well thought out. Make it clear what you want the client to do next.
Communicate with your clients. Get to know your customers. This will help you understand better the values of your customers and the topics that matter the most to them. This will help to prevent false presumptions. If clients do not feel that they are important to you, it is less likely that they want to work with you. The keyword is humane marketing.