Telling the stories of Solar
As long as she can remember, Louise Bendix Hansen has been dedicated to telling stories. Not the fairy tale kind, but real life stories that add new dimensions to the way we see a person, a company or a situation. Since February, she has been Solar Danmark’s content manager with a strong determination to bring Solar closer to our customers.
Louise’s curiosity on life lead her to pursue a career in journalism, majoring in television, and she became involved e.g. in major Danish TV productions such as ‘Keeping Denmark alive’ and ‘Law and Order’. Reporter by heart and by education, she delivered news stories to live TV, webpages, Facebook and Twitter. She knows communication and also masters the technical part of journalism involving camera equipment, editing, etc. Louise thrives on a fast work pace, quick decisions and a constant focus on news value.
From national Danish television to Solar Danmark
Change of scenery to February 2017 and life as a content manager in Solar. Surely, nation-wide television and a sourcing and services company are two completely different worlds? “There is an enormous difference between daily life in television and in a business like Solar. The pace in broadcasting is extreme, and there’s a constant demand for progression in TV to avoid the dreaded ‘blank screen’. But if you take a more holistic view, both TV and businesses have an unwavering need to convey messages that hit the right audience at the right time in the right way. And every person and every business has a story to tell,” explains Louise, whose passion for powerful communication is unmistakeable.
Louise’s mission as our content manager is to make Solar easier to understand. Her nose for interesting stories is constantly activated and because of her, stories about rhinos, amusement parks and mushrooms are no longer unusual in Solar’s digital newsfeed. “Yes, Solar sells power sockets and lighting equipment. But there’s so much more to us than that. We’re involved in so many interesting and peculiar projects, and hopefully, the stories I tell will help people to see just how many-sided our business is – both in the services we provide, but also how fun a workplace Solar is.”
In constant progress
When Louise is not at work, she gives fitness classes in her local gym or plays golf with her husband who is a full-time golf instructor. And on really good days, she likes to turn her back to the world and dive into books revealing stories that other people have discovered.
When she’s in the office, Louise’s playground and workplace are the social media, focusing primarily on Facebook and LinkedIn. Although the two channels are different, they are both fast media that welcome a playful approach to communication. But the information flow is overwhelming, and if you want to get a message through, you have to make sure that your message or method stands out. “When you work with digital communication, you have a unique opportunity to work and play at the same time. There is no one recipe for success. What works for others, does not necessarily work for us. Therefore, we have to have the courage to play with different approaches. We constantly experiment with the way we express ourselves. Sometimes we fail, and then we fail. But the results we achieve when we are successful make up for the less successful attempts. Things move really quickly online, and we must have the courage to keep up. And really, that’s how I thrive,” says Louise.
Going out on a limb
According to Louise, one of the best things about working at Solar is the way Solarians go about their work. “Many of my colleagues have spent several years with the company, and they’re all still amazingly dedicated to doing a good job and serving Solar’s customers well. Even when I come up with crazy ideas, they agree to try new things and trust that I know what I’m doing,” says Louise with a smile. Not only does she enjoy going out on a limb to tell a good story; she feels it is necessary to push the limits from time to time to keep the story of Solar interesting and relevant.
Although she has only been with Solar since February, she has already identified a lot of fun and quirky situations in Solar. Like the day she spent in a zoo with an electrician who, in addition to participating in an energy renovation project, fixes everything from the cash register to electricity in the stables. Or when she followed a group of volunteers who grow mushrooms in coffee grounds. Stories like these are also Solar.
See some of Louise’s work here:
A heating renovation project at the rhino stables in Givskud Zoo ensures a better environment for the animals: Go to facebook post
Electrician Jesper Mikkelsen explains what it's like working in the stable of Givskud Zoo: Go to facebook post
In a sustainable project called 'From coffee grounds to gourmet' a group of volunteers sell mushrooms grown in used coffee grounds from restaurants and sell the mushrooms to the restaurants afterwards: Go to facebook post
Solar helped design a lighting solution for a classic car and plane exhibition at the Danish castle Egeskov: Go to facebook post