The best perks I’ve ever had at work
What to ask for alongside more money, how I finally got around to doing my own marketing and links from this week.
I read the other day that we’re currently experiencing the lowest standard of living since 1952.
Which basically means we have more costs and less disposable income than most of our parents (despite them telling us they had it harder in their day 😉).
One thing I’m finding is that it’s causing a self-fulfilling prophecy in tech land. Even in the companies that aren’t struggling and have access to funds (post Silicon Valley Bank issues) they’re still scaling back. Cutting costs. Not hiring, and worst of all - not offering their staff the pay rises many of them not only deserve, but also so desperately need in line with inflation.
In more than one case this is causing a push pull dynamic where employees aren’t feeling valued and bosses feel like the staff are well, a little bit grateful (“they should be grateful to have a job at all!”).
This isn’t productive for either side. Which made me think about the “perks” I’ve had in jobs past that may not have been financial, but also weren’t as fickle as free lunches or foosball Friday.
In the hope that this may inspire your own negotiations when more money simply isn’t on the table…
1. Business exposure
The best “perk” I’ve ever had in a job was business exposure. By this I mean a company who didn’t keep me confined to marketing alone. Who took me out on client meetings, sat me in sales updates, involved me in the company financials and so on.
Had I gone to start my own company this type of experience would have been invaluable. As it was, it’s been pinnacle in making me a far more experienced (and successful) marketer. Today I can more easily understand what a company is trying to achieve and tie marketing activity back to the wider organisational aims - something not every marketer can.
What to ask for? More exposure to other departments - sales, finance, product and marketing in particular.
2. True flexibility
Most companies don’t offer true flexibility. By this I mean simply treating you like an adult in charge of your own motivation, work hours and work setting. One of the biggest perks of my last in-house role was that I got to choose what I did so long as the job got done.
Which is the closest to “freelance life” one can get while working in-house. In certain professions this won’t work but if you’re a knowledge worker who isn’t expected to speak to customers, there really isn’t a cause for you not being able to just work school hours, or go to the gym in the middle of the day.
What to ask for? Flexibility to work where and when you see fit.
3. Travel
(Pre covid) another brilliant perk I had in a marketing job was travel. I’ve seriously added to my travel pinboard, spending time in places like Dubai, Amsterdam, Vienna, Nice and San Francisco for work. While it wasn’t all laying on beaches there are other brilliant aspects of travel which make it a perk IMO: meeting/working/eating with people you wouldn’t usually spend time with, seeing the business districts of cities that you’d otherwise miss and even having your hotel/food paid for which means you barely spend money while being there.
In many cases my husband could travel with me and go off sight seeing while I worked. Plus, eating tapas before making a quick stop at Spanish Zara really IS a perk worth looking for ;-)
What to ask for? Only really works if job hunting but checkout if your company has offices in other locations and/or if travel is part of your role (think customer case study tours, training, conferences etc.).
4. Unlimited events budget
Perhaps due to tax reasons I’ve never worked for a company that’s refused me wanting to go to an event for the day, or take a (reasonably priced) online course.
Most of us do less in-person learning these days but hearing event speakers and meeting new people at industry events really does help you to grow your realm of possibility. If events aren’t your thing, look at mentorship opportunities instead.
One boss even introduced me to his sister, a director of a high-end PR agency, as a mentor to give me advice and coach me on how to do traditional PR. If money isn’t on the table this is a perk that would help you learn rather than earn and provide invaluable experience/exposure to take to your next role.
Earning well for work well done is something we should all be aiming for, but in the current climate I’d definitely consider bolstering your “package” with some of the above.
What’s the best perk you’ve ever had in a work role? I’d love to know - hit reply and let me know.
Yours,
Beth
I didn’t always market this way…
If you’ve ever thought “I really must do more of my own marketing newsletters/social media/podcasts/SEO” (delete as necessary) then you really aren’t alone.
In 2020 I made a conscious decision to get better at marketing my own business and since then it’s become a hundred times easier to stick consistently to the marketing channels and practices I use. As a result, my visibility’s higher, I have a better pipeline and I can now sell digital products which was always a long-term goal of mine.
Pivotal to getting this right were two things:
Having a framework to use that let me pick just the minimum amount of channels needed for success
Knowing the formats to use on social or my newsletter that work for B2B service-based businesses (and not constantly trying to copy B2C marketing trends)
Which is why my next masterclass is going to deep-dive into these topics, teaching you how to master marketing for your own service-based business.
Links and articles 💡
Descript has written a great reminder of the main tropes in storytelling - and how to use them in any video you create
An interesting summary from TikTok’s recent appearance before congress discussing on-going security concerns. TL:DR; many believe the US has already made up its mind. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see TikTok sold to a US-owned company before the year is out…
Slack is shifting its marketing strategy* from a wide range of brand marketing activities to smaller, more specific opportunities like event sponsorship and it’s very telling of a shift I think we’re likely to see from companies this year. Going to talk more about this in my marketing strategy Masterclass for service-based business owners but with less budget and more uncertainty there’s never been a better time to reassess what marketing channels you use and get focused over an “always on, everywhere” spray approach. *Thanks to MustReads for sharing this article first
Thanks for being here ❤️
Hi I’m Beth 👋 I create content and SEO strategies that help companies to grow organically. I’ve ran marketing and teams for startup and scaling companies like ScreenCloud, Growyze, Countfire, Blueprint (recently acquired by Klaviyo 🚀) and Eventbrite. I’m also a mentor to marketers looking to grow and have fulfilling, financially rewarding careers.
You can find out more about what I do on My website or Built by Content.