Dialogue's CEO Zoë Francis-Cox, 25 years in the content marketing industry

Meet Dialogue Content Marketing CEO Zoë Francis-Cox, who is celebrating 25 years with the company. She talks about her career, leadership, her role as Chair of the CMA and scaling an agency – and she also tackles some slightly more unusual questions in the hot seat!

You’re celebrating 25 years at Dialogue. How does that make you feel?

It’s half my life and I don’t feel like I left university long enough ago for it to have been 25 years! I feel like I’ve actually had 15 different jobs and Dialogue doesn’t feel like the agency it was 10 years ago, let alone 25 years ago.

What drew you to the agency initially? 


Previously, I edited a business-to-business magazine, which was my job straight out of university. I planned it, conducted all the interviews, wrote all the content, designed everything, and managed it through to print. I spent two and a half years doing that – really understanding the art of creating magazines – and then a job came up at a publishing house to be a sub-editor. I mastered my craft around words, but I always had an eye on the bigger picture. I couldn’t just write a story without knowing what it was going to look like. So, while I was focusing on the editorial part of my job, I was always really involved in what imagery we used and what it looked like as a finished piece.

That curiosity has gradually evolved into exploring the whole purpose of the magazine, from words to final print. Why are we doing this magazine? Who’s the brand that we’re doing it for, and why do they want a magazine? That level of curiosity saw me move from sub-editor to editorial manager to publishing director, to now running the business.

IN THE HOT SEAT: Do you believe in aliens?
I wouldn’t say I didn’t – of all the planets out there we can’t be the only one populated.

What have been some career highlights for you?

Winning the Harley-Davidson and Bentley accounts were special moments for everyone involved. Both really cemented our expertise in automotive and luxury. Being appointed to run Dialogue and being given the confidence to run the business was also incredible. Winning Agency of the Year twice in a row at the Content Marketing Association Awards is also absolutely up there. Being a successful agency with three and a half years of independence and still being here is a big win too.

IN THE HOT SEAT: Do you have any secret skills or hidden talents?
I can play guitar and used to be in a band; I also have my private pilot’s licence and used to fly a microlight.

When you’ve had low points, how did you navigate out of them and what did you learn from them?

I’m a very solutions-driven person, so for every knockback, there’s a period of analysis. Why did that happen? What went wrong? What needs to happen to make sure that doesn’t happen again and how do we put that plan in place? Those are my four o’clock in the morning thoughts. I’m also a woman of action. In a business the size of ours, working with the calibre of clients that we work with and employing a very talented team, it’s really important that if you say you’re going to do something, you do it. That goes for internal matters and with clients, and that’s always been a priority of mine.

IN THE HOT SEAT: If you could have anything tattooed right now, what would it be?
I just had one a few days ago – a lovely floral design with roses. My next one is in planning: mountains, pine trees, winding road – all to represent my love of mountains (I snowboard) and riding my motorbike.

What advice would you give to young people entering the industry today?

Be curious, be open-minded. Focus on your attitude, rather than skill. As long as you’ve got the interest and the passion for what the business is doing, they can teach you the rest.

IN THE HOT SEAT: If you were a kitchen utensil, what would you be and why?
A whisk – constantly on the move and full of energy.

What does being a good leader look like to you?

First and foremost, having a motivated and happy workforce. If you haven’t got that, you’re not going to produce very good work and then you’re not going to have very happy clients, if any at all. So, the people in Dialogue are the absolute priority. Are we providing enough as a business to keep them motivated and want to stay in Dialogue for a long time? Our people are the business. Then, it’s being able to manage difficult situations. I often say it’s not what’s happened, it’s how you handle it that’s important.

IN THE HOT SEAT: How do you take your tea?
Weak and milky.

How important are organisations like the Content Marketing Association for creatives today?

Absolutely vital. Dialogue is a founding member of the Content Marketing Association. The biggest benefit I’ve found is being able to talk to your peers. There is a bit of a stigma around talking to another agency – why would you talk to one of your competitors about what you do? But you don’t talk about what you do: you talk about the challenges you face, the business and the state of the marketplace. It’s really, reassuring when you talk to people who are experiencing the same things as you, or if you’re talking to people who aren’t experiencing it, then you can learn from them. You need that collective, and I think that’s where the CMA plays a vital role. There are other benefits in terms of offering opportunities for younger members of the team to network. Obviously, the highlight is the awards. The awards have been massive for as long as I can remember and they still are the absolute pinnacle of our industry.

IN THE HOT SEAT: What’s your favourite flavour of crisps?
Depends on my mood… mostly plain but partial to a prawn cocktail or salt and vinegar on special occasions.

What kind of legacy do you hope to leave?

I’d like the culture of the business and our work ethics to continue, alongside our approach to being an agency that cares about the ‘why’, not just the ‘what’. Passion and care are the two things that no one tells you in the interview that you need for the job. If I can create a culture that means people who come to work for Dialogue remain passionate, motivated and care about their work, then ultimately, what more can I ask for?

IN THE HOT SEAT: What’s one celebrity that you would be totally starstruck to meet?
Slash from Guns N Roses.

Do you have any goals yet to achieve?

From an agency growth perspective, just to keep doing what we’re doing and doing it really well. To evolve and always be one step ahead. I feel like I’ve achieved so much during my career – much of which was never planned – you never know what's around the corner and when new opportunities will arise.

IN THE HOT SEAT: What’s your favourite mountain range?
Definitely the Pyrenees. It’s kind of like a smaller, quieter, untouched version of the Alps.

We’ll head towards some more personal questions now. How does cultivating and scaling an agency like Dialogue have an impact on your personal life?

Now that I manage the business, the ‘doing’ is less, but the thinking and the talking are constant; I’m always on. But because I’ve got great people running the operational side of the business, I know the work’s being done, and I know it’s being done really well. I have a 12-year-old daughter and I have a self-employed husband who’s an upholsterer, and I have a dog called Bob. Family time is the priority. Motorcycle trips come as a close second and I love travelling and the job in general has enabled me to travel quite a lot. I consider myself very lucky.

IN THE HOT SEAT: Favourite animal?
Elephant – I got married on one!

Who would you invite to your dream dinner? Which chef is cooking, and who’s providing the background music?

Wow! Def Leppard, without a doubt, are providing the background music. They recently did an album with the Royal Philharmonic, so that version might be playing. For the chef, I’d probably go for Heston Blumenthal because I love all the theatre. Who’s coming? My gut answer is all my friends and family alongside Dawn French, Willie G and Dave Grohl.

IN THE HOT SEAT: Plane, train, bus or car?
Plane.

How did you get into motorcycles?

A lot of people think I’ve always ridden, but when the Harley-Davidson pitch landed on our desks back in 2006, I jokingly said to the team that if we win this, I’m going to learn to ride a motorbike. We won, and they held me to it.

When we won the magazine contract for EMEA in 2006, I proposed that I write a feature all about learning to ride as a woman, as not that many women were riding back then. I went to Harley-Davidson's riding school in Wales called Rider’s Edge, which was fabulous. That was in February 2007, and my husband didn’t ride at the time. He was turning 40 in March, so I bought him CBT training for his birthday so he could get his license, too. Now, I have a whole lifestyle and I have lots of memories of fantastic trips on motorbikes.

IN THE HOT SEAT: What is your dream motorcycling route?
I’d like to do the Great Ocean Road, Australia. I’d love to go and do the Golden Triangle in America, from San Francisco to LA and then to the Grand Canyon, obviously via Route 66. I also really love to ride the NC500 in Scotland, but the weather’s kind of a bit prohibitive for that. One day!

From her earliest days as a subeditor to leading Dialogue as CEO and now steering the Content Marketing Association as its Chair, Zoë has navigated two and a half decades in a changing industry with aplomb. If you’ve enjoyed this glimpse into her career, explore our case studies to see how Zoë’s passion helps to drive success for the brands we partner with and for the people we work alongside.