Sarah Bell is a senior manager at Bonded Agency, a digital and media agency headquartered in Newcastle.
Following a four-year stint at media agency Carat, she joined Bonded Agency as its first employee back in 2021. Now, her role involves a mix of strategy, creativity, and collaboration.
From analysing data to developing social content, she shares a recent week in her life…
Monday
I start my week working from home, with a strong cup of coffee and a “hype” playlist to get myself feeling fresh. Before I start any working day, I monitor all the profiles I am responsible for by checking interactions, engagement, and any potential collaboration opportunities.
Monday is reporting day, and usually, the team and I have a few weekly reports to complete. This is a valuable moment to gather insights from clients, analysing which social posts have performed well and which formats have been most effective.
For all clients and prospects, I conduct audience research, exploring search terms and key questions asked across social platforms related to client industries. This helps me understand how audiences interact with content and what they want to learn from brands. I then update clients with these insights, advising them on how to best engage their audiences on social media.
After a few reporting calls, we wrap up with a team huddle and a vibe check to align on priorities and set the course for the week ahead.
Tuesday
Tuesday is a very dynamic day as it’s my first office day of the week. I like to walk to work along the Tyne River, where I usually catch a glimpse of a cute otter that swims by at the same time each morning!
Armed with a legendary Greggs coffee, I arrive at the office to a full team. This is a prime opportunity to gather Bonded marketing content, such as Bonded Bitesize or thought leadership pieces for Bonded socials. It’s also a perfect time for a team catch-up, planning social content, taking team walks, going for lunch, or organising upcoming events.
I usually collaborate with the wider team on new business opportunities or projects that require organic social input. If a client project involves filming, this is when we coordinate logistics. Since my focus is building the agency’s organic social product, I catch up with our videographer, Alex, to align on upcoming projects. This ensures that video content is captured with social intent and aligns with trending formats.
After a productive day in the office, I wind down with a Pilates class to relax and reset.
Wednesday
After a dynamic office day, I shift gears midweek by working from home. This is my deep-focus day, perfect for catching up on any tasks that require intense concentration, such as working on Excel plans & reports or editing long-form content ready to be published.
I spend a few hours fully immersed in projects, although my black cat often decides to be my uninvited co-worker. At lunchtime, I disappoint my cat by heading out for a four-mile run to clear my mind and reset for the afternoon.
Post-run, I have team check-ins to review client task lists, analyse social trends, and brainstorm creative ideas for content calendars. We ensure that data and search insights are linked with trending social formats to keep content relevant. Our creative ideas are usually based on existing client assets, and we also create shot lists to guide future content capture in collaboration with clients. Once we are happy with the content, the team spends time scheduling content across relevant social profiles.
I wrap up my day by updating my task list before logging off to cook a comforting dinner.
Thursday
Thursday is another office day, and I update the Bonded Instagram and Facebook stories with behind-the-scenes glimpses of agency life. This authentic content resonates well with our audience, fostering engagement and sparking conversations with marketing professionals. We mirror this strategy across client accounts to enhance engagement.
Thursday is also a key client day. I review content calendars, ensure creative ideas from earlier in the week are actioned, and send status updates before client calls. We also check in with contacts for influencer collaborations, review social platform updates from representatives, and liaise with audience planning teams to refine our organic social approach.
This day is also usually a key day in the week to capture content for clients on location, this usually involves a bit of travelling so it is good to keep this day flexible and dynamic.
Friday
Friday is one of the best days to be in the office. After our Friday Huddle with the wider team where we discuss client updates and reflect on the week, I split my time between managing culture team actions, updating Bonded socials, and finalising client projects.
Fridays are also great for knowledge-sharing sessions, where you may see me hosting or attending a “Lunch and Learn.” Every fourth Friday, my team produces a “Social Trend Update,” summarising key organic trends to share internally and with clients, which is an invaluable way to stay ahead of the curve.
I also check in with the founders to review the development of our organic social product, discussing case studies and new insights from the week.
With an early finish on Fridays, you’ll usually find me posting a well-earned glass of wine in the pub on Instagram, kicking off the weekend with the team.
