No one can answer this question better than our happy clients. That’s why we asked them.
A new interview and new secrets of happiness – every week on Depot pages.

Julia Palchikova
CEO
ТМ «Vysoko-vysoko»

How to reach success with zero ad budget, why do we need skeptics and what is the difference between brands and kids

I often work till midnight, but that doesn’t bother me. Probably it is because I work with passion and drive. I would have lacked happiness without my job, that’s for sure.

A brand is like... a clients’ and agency’s baby. The only difference from a real child is that you can change/program a brand before it is born. You have to make choices every day or even several times a day. And you have to choose every detail carefully: how letters are put, what details are used, how bright the colors are…

The best moment in my work is… when I suddenly realize that my “baby” brand has already graduated with diploma with honors.

You can’t stop even for a second. Creating a brand is only a start of a hard work that gives you no rest – just like when you raise a child.

I am glad that I work with Depot. This team makes their clients and customers happy. It’s a pity that the number of our projects with Depot is limited.

The role of an agency in a branding project is strategic thinking, providing a "helicopter view" and coming up with cutting-edge ideas. Clients’ marketing managers are experts in their products and the agency knows what consumers want. Marketing managers set the limits – and the agency tells how to break them or how to get over them. Moreover, the agency professionals always keep in mind that they work on a product that will be relevant not only today, but tomorrow and the day after tomorrow too. I am happy that with Depot as our partner we are not dying to catch up with trends – we are ahead of them.

It’s better not to expect… that the agency will give you a working business on a silver platter. Designing a brand is the work for a team. But it is only possible with a perfect partner that you can fully rely on.

A powerful brand is the brand people trust.

Scepticism is… inevitable part of every project. It is useful, actually. How you deal with it – that’s what matters. I always urge people involved in the project to be sincere. If there’s something that in your view wouldn’t work, don’t hesitate to speak up. It is the only way to find the solution everyone will trust.

“Vysoko-vysoko” campaign’s goal… was very practical and ambitious at the same time – to improve export in Belarus with stimulating manufacturing and distribution of dairy products (as a counterbalance to the primary resources industry).

Depot’s goal was… to create not a niche product but a successful leader of the FMCG market who can beat the strongest brands – even if they invest huge money in TV advertisements. We couldn’t afford spending a fortune on advertising – and we focused on branding. We played around the childhood topic that everyone loves and used packages to attract customers without additional promotion.

Target audience is… one of the key concepts for a Brand manager. Everyone wouldn’t love your product, but the goal is to make it as popular as possible.

Good news for me is… when we meet objectives within the budget set. Prizes from the festivals are just a nice addition to sales figures. Although it is often very useful, we need to remember what our priority is. Budget speaks louder than prizes and figures rule everything.

MORE HAPPINESS
Director of Marketing (Chocolate & Confectionery)
Nestle Russia
Commercial Director
Depot
Head of PR and marketing
URALSIB | Private Bank