Experience to Your Benefit

Studied Political Science & English. Copywriter for: Y&R. Burnett. Saatchi. O&M. Creative Director for Publicis Contur, Citigate Demuth, RMG Connect. Freelancer since 1999.

While I have considerable experience in media advertising, the current focus of my work is on B2B and B2C long copy (flyers, brochures, catalogues) as well as offline and online dialogue marketing. I write in both in German and English. For the variety of industries and communication channels I have worked for, see 'Industry Experience'.

My background as an English teacher drew me into adaptation and translation from early on. Later, working for Procter & Gamble I started to write in English from the start, as English was the ‘official language’ and thus the language of the approval processes. Since then, I have learned that there are many applications in the realm of marketing communications where being not quite native is actually an advantage.

The first 12 years of my career were spent in media advertising and sales promotion. Starting in 1987, I enjoyed excellent basic training as a junior copywriter at Young & Rubicam. From there I proceeded to Michael Conrad & Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi and Ogilvy & Mather (all Frankfurt, Germany), before I took on the position as creative director at Publicis Contur, a small agency with a heavy focus on food and beverages.

In 1999, I went freelance, my career objective always having been to minimise the number of my superiors rather than to maximise the number of subordinates. Nevertheless, a number of agencies have booked me as interim CD over the years – one of them on two subsequent occasions, which I take as an indicator that I haven’t done too bad a job overall.