Meet Chris Melvin: Social Media Marketing Awards 2019 Winner

We’re always looking for an excuse to highlight incredible people in the industry, and when’s a better time than on the run up to the Social Media Marketing Awards, where we celebrate the very best of the best? This week, we’re interviewing Chris Melvin, the award-winning, cross disciplinary creative currently leading the content team at Sunshine Communications.

We asked him everything from how winning a Social Media Marketing Award in 2019 impacted him and his career journey, to the challenges presented by 2020, and what his top tips for creators thinking of entering the awards this year would be. By the way, nominations and entries for the Social Media Marketing Awards 2021 are now open, so get applying!

Hey Chris! First of all, could you tell us a bit about your journey on the run up to the Social Media Marketing Awards?
The road to the SMMAs was a surprisingly short one. Fresh off the back of winning Rising Creative Star in the Scottish Marketing Society Awards, I spied the SMMAs and wondered how I’d fair at a UK level. As an agency, we entered a few categories. It was our first time entering, but flashforward to Café de Paris in London and I was awarded Content Creator of the Year. Shoutout to my friend Kelly Bean too, who won Community Manager of the Year.

An award already under your belt and then you came away the winner of Content Creator of the Year! How did that feel? Did you share the great news with your community?
I certainly did! Taking home gold was fantastic, particularly given that content is my bread and butter (and I really love bread). It was reassuring to know that my contributions to ads land were recognised at a UK-wide level, not just in bonnie Scotland. As for sharing it with my community, does an Instagram post count? Jokes aside, I try to let my career speak for itself at the right times, so I was surprisingly coy about winning. 

Did winning the award change your career or open up any new opportunities for you?
If awards are like qualifications, then their use is evergreen and will absolutely help me in the future. Since winning the award, I remained in the same team, though it added more credence to why I am Creative Lead. It helped put industry-level evidence beyond client sign-off, and on a wider level, having an awards section on the ol’ CV is really beneficial. It’s like a neon sign that says “pick me”. 

What moment in your career are you most proud of to date?
When it comes to putting pride into an anecdote, it’s less of an instance and more of a feeling. Early in my career, I had a chip on my shoulder that I was just a Jack of all trades, master of none; that by dividing my skill set across design, production and copy that I’d amount to very little. Now on the flipside of this, I have enough evidence to say “shut up, you’re doing well” and not be so hard on myself. And that’s the biggest victory really. Trophies help though.

And what do you think the biggest challenge has been for you professionally in 2020?
When you think of 2020’s challenges, you naturally think of “working from home”. Prior to lockdown, it’s something I actively avoided or feared, though now I can do it no problem. Yes, it took change (and a full refurb of my spare room), but there’s a lesson in it: whenever life pushes you out of your comfort zone, you can thrive if you adapt. We stan resilience. 

Are there any campaigns that stand out to you as being particularly great in terms of creativity in the last year?
Twenty Twenty. What a year, eh? I’m going to break the rules here and not answer the question, and instead talk about the power of social media itself – let’s just pretend it’s one big campaign, okay? So, something social media really demonstrated in 2020 was how it could bring people together or galvanise important voices. For the Black Lives Matter movement, it was an important news source. For lockdown, it let us all stay connected. And for entertainment? Jeez, give me meme or two.

We all love a meme! And finally, Chris, what would your top tips be to people who are thinking of entering the Social Media Marketing Awards this year?
For anyone planning on entering the SMMAs – or any award, for that matter – my advice is pretty simple: demonstrate what makes you unique in the industry and against your competitors. For someone with my broad skill set, I needed to show that I was simultaneously “all of the above” yet “none of the above” when it came to the other finalists. So, know your value. And don’t be afraid to show it.

If you fancy a shot at joining Chris in the list of incredible Social Media Marketing Awards winners, head on over to the Social Media Marketing Awards site now. Entries and nominations are now open for the 2021 SMMAs!