In Conversation With... Sarah Jewers

Describe a day in the life of a Website and Content Officer.

I feel my role is much more structured than some of the others I’ve read. However, it does change depending on what day of the week it is, so I’ll give you a little run down of my typical week at LHT. 

On Mondays, it’s all about getting ready for the week ahead. I update Box Office times on our FAQs, delete any pages for shows that happened the week before, see if any pressing emails came through over the weekend and get cracking with the show builds for any shows going on sale that week. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I am very much in ‘on sale’ mode. I finish the show builds, get them proofed by my lovely team and begin building the emails that go out on Thursday and Friday. First thing on a Thursday, I do one final check of the email to Priority members before it goes out at 10am. If we have a new show starting at The Grand, I’ll build a pre-show email, so everyone has all the information they need. Friday has a similar routine to Thursday but with our General email. On Fridays, I also make sure our new shows are featured on other websites like LeedsInspired and TheatresOnline. I like to end Fridays with an inbox clear-out ready for Monday, but this doesn’t always happen! 

In between the routine, I’m writing blog posts, meeting with our external website developers, answering customer queries in our info@ inbox and lending a helping hand to anyone who needs it. When in the office, I’m also probably balancing answering Henry’s regular questions, with discussing any new Taylor Swift news with my twin brain Aaron (Editor’s note: Hey! That’s me!) or debating whether I’m going to have soup or soup for lunch. (Today, it’s salad! Crazy.) 

As a blog connoisseur, what goes into the perfect blog?

Research! Our Heritage pieces need to be done justice and can’t be half-hearted efforts. A lot of this research starts at the West Yorkshire Archive Service where I have got a few original ideas and then I turn to the magic of the internet. From that, it’s really important to speak to people in the know. I’ve only been here six months and some people in the company have been here fifty times that, if not more, so picking their brains is a must. Then, I bring this all together with photos I take from our folders or that I take myself, and hey presto, there’s a blog! Building it onto the website is the fiddly bit but it’s all worth it when it appears on our News, Views and Stories page, adding to our continuing story. 

Do you have a favourite blog you’ve written?

The blog I wrote about a lost marketing campaign collaboration between theatres in Yorkshire will always hold a special place in my heart as it was the first proper Heritage piece I wrote. It helped me understand the history of theatres in this region and it came from a really cool archival find. I reached out to a few of the theatres that are still standing who were part of the campaign and I got responses back from equally interested folk who also wanted to get to the bottom of the campaign. Whilst I didn’t find the answers to my questions, it made for a lovely piece about collaboration which I think we could all do more of.

What three skills do you think are most important in your role?

Organisation: The to-do list refreshes week on week and dropping the ball can result in emails from distressed promoters so it’s key to be organised.

Creativity: It sounds like my role is rigid and it can be repetitive (as can all jobs) so with a little creative flare, it can be kept fun and interesting. One day you’re building a Celine Dion tribute show, the next you’re writing a blog about the stairs in Leeds Grand Theatre and how they’re actually really cool having got members of the House Management team to walk every stair in the building with you.

Open-mindedness: I build a lot of shows that are probably not ‘up my street’ as we all have different tastes and therefore, don’t give them quite the same brain space as exciting shows I know I’ll like from the off. But actually, making sure I give each show its moment has meant that I’ve found some hidden gems that I wouldn’t have given a second thought to once I’d built them on the web and am now heavily invested in them.

For example: please listen to Katherine Priddy’s new album, it’s so beautiful.

What has been the highlight (to date) of your time at Leeds Heritage Theatres?

I do really love the press nights. It feels very glitz and glam and it’s a real team effort (we even go for a slice of pizza beforehand in preparation for schmoozing). The most exciting was the press night we held for The Syndicate just because it was a bigger affair with a lot of local interest and few recognisable faces came along. It was also my first press night held in Howard Grand Hall which made it feel very special.

Equally or secondly, supporting Leeds Grand Youth Theatre’s Little Shop of Horrors in any way I could was a real treat. That included going along to the screening of the film version at Hyde Park Picture House and seeing Lottie as Seymour and Munashe as Audrey give the audience at The Picture House a little sneak preview of their show.

All this does come with the caveat of only being six months into the job. Maybe ask me again in another six?

What is the most challenging thing about your role?

Keeping on top of everything! Sometimes, you’re deep in your to-do list and then a promoter will send some updated artwork or a trailer for the web and you want to be reactive and do it straight away, but then you need to remember where you are in the to-do list. I can handle it, don’t you worry, but it requires focus, being good at prioritising and probably overuse of the flag tool in Outlook.

I’ve also got to fight any urges I have when a show is in to sing songs from it near the dressing rooms. All I’m saying is that if Anne Boleyn gets her head chopped off in SIX, I got you! I am THERE.

What advice would you give to anyone thinking about working in a similar role?

Take any opportunity you can get. It’s a role that lends itself to being a gateway into the industry and should be treated as a learning experience. Once you’ve got to grips with the daily tasks, you’ll find you have more time on your hands, and this can be used for training or for extravagant blog research like pouring over maps of Leeds… I also get to work with some really inspiring people who have been working either at this theatre or just in the industry for quite a few years so be a sponge, and soak it all in!