Meet Maddy, 26, a social brand manager for L'Oréal in London. Her ability to speak French helped her secure her position at this French cosmetics company. Find out more about how she uses French in her role. Part of our Bitesize world of work series.
Growing up in Wales, where lots of people spoke two languages around me, really inspired me to learn another language.
Maddy:
Bonjour, je m’appelle Maddy et je m’occupe du marketing pour L’Oréal - Hello. My name's Maddy and I'm a social brand manager for L'Oréal.
Hello. My name's Maddy and I'm a social brand manager for L'Oréal.
Oui et bonjour ! Qu’est-ce qui se passe là ? Ça va à Paris ? Oui, j’ai vu. - Hello. What’s happening there? How is it going in Paris? Yes, I saw.
I'm a social brand manager, which means that I manage anything to do with social media for my brand: YouTube, ads online that you might see and just general marketing. What I love about my job is that no two days are the same. So, for example, one day I might be in the office, speaking to my colleagues about upcoming launches, campaigns or the next day, I might be in central London, speaking to influencers that you might follow on TikTok, for example, or speaking to dermatologists, who are experts in skin care.
Maddy’s colleague:
Bonjour, ça va ? - Hello, how is it going?
Maddy:
Oui, très bien merci, et vous ? - Yes, very well thanks, how about you?
Because I do work for a French company, of course, there are many French people around. I have a number of French colleagues, my manager's French and I also speak to the team in Paris quite often.
Maddy’s colleague:
Ça a été le weekend ? - How was your weekend?
Maddy:
Oui, c'était bon (bien) merci. - Yes, it was good, thanks.
What I love about my role is the creativity. I get to put my creative stamp on a well-known beauty brand. The biggest challenge about my job is because I work for such a big beauty brand, there's so much going on at one time, so you really need to learn to focus your efforts on one project at a time, so you can make sure you're doing your best job.
Oui, ça va bien merci. Ah, oui, ça va. - Yes, I’m very well thank you. Ah, yes, it’s fine.
So I grew up in Wales, by lots of people speaking two languages around me and that really inspired me, so I started learning French while I was at school. I took it for GCSE and then I took it for A-level. I took French at university as well because I loved it so much.
As part of my degree, I moved to Paris on my own, which sounds super scary, and it was at the time. So basically, I had to move there with a suitcase, go and live in a hotel and try and find a flat, which was really difficult.
At the time it was a complete nightmare, but actually, I managed to enjoy it and that's taught me that if you push yourself out of your comfort zone, it can actually be really fun. I applied for my job because I really wanted to work for a global brand. Because I studied languages and business at university, I had lots of skills to bring a campaign and make it suitable for the UK, so I do that every single day and I use those skills in everything that I do.
I think in any job that you do, communication is absolutely key. Whether you're speaking English, another language, but making sure that you build that relationship with the people that you're working with and communicating very clearly, and I think languages really do help me with that. My top tip if you're learning a language, make sure you throw yourself into every single opportunity that comes your way. Remember, it's a journey. Take every single opportunity that you can, because every single one will teach you something that you can apply later on in life.
- In her role as a social brand manager, Maddy manages everything related to social media for the cosmetics company. The main skills she uses in this job include the ability to work well with others, use initiative and sell products or services
- Her job can involve talking about upcoming launches or campaigns with her colleagues one day and then meeting up with experts in skincare, such as influencers or dermatologists, the next
- Maddy grew up in Wales so she has always been used to being around people who speak two languages. This inspired her to learn French, which she did at GCSE, A-level and university
- Whilst at university, she spent some time living abroad in Paris and so took every opportunity she could to put her language skills into practice
- As the cosmetics company she works for is French, she often speaks to the team who are based in France and many of the colleagues she works with in London are native speakers of the language too. This gives her the opportunity to use her French language skills on a regular basis
- She loves the creativity that the role gives her but it can also be challenging, as there is so much going on at one time. She has learnt that being able to focus her efforts on one task at a time, ensures she can do her best job.
Top tips
- In any job that you do, communication is absolutely key to building positive working relationships, whether that's English or another language. Learning a language can really help develop these skills!
- If you're learning a language, throw yourself into every opportunity that comes your way. For example, if you're living abroad, try to speak that particular language with locals and do your best to make friends with native speakers too
- Don't be afraid to step outside your comfort zone. It can actually make the experience more fun! For example, when Maddy moved to Paris for a year during university, she found it very daunting at first but by making the most of her time there and finding opportunities to experience the French culture, she ended up loving her time there.
A social brand manager can also be known as a marketing manager or account manager. Marketing managers plan how to promote products, services or brands and oversee all marketing activity.
What to expect if you want to be a marketing manager
- Marketing manager average salary: £27,000 to £65,000
- Marketing manager typical working hours: 37 to 40 hours per week.
What qualifications do you need to be a marketing manager?
You could get into this role via a university course, an apprenticeship, working towards this role, or applying directly.
Sources: LMI for All, National Careers Service
This information is a guide and is constantly changing. Please check the National Careers Service website for the latest information and all the qualifications needed.
For careers advice in all parts of the UK visit: National Careers Service (England), nidirect (Northern Ireland), My World of Work (Scotland) and Careers Wales (Wales).
James: a Portuguese and Spanish translator. video
James is a freelance translator who specialises in audio-visual translation.
How I use modern languages in my career. collection
Find out more about careers that use modern languages.
Kate: a travel consultant. video
Kate is a travel consultant and organises school trips all around Europe.
