Meet Helene, our new Senior Strategist

Meet Helene, our new Senior Strategist

Last week, we welcomed Helene Thorsen as she started up her new role as Senior Strategist here at Advance. Having recently returned to Denmark after 8 years in Australia with her family, Helene brings extensive experience in strategy, media and creative to the table, as well as an international outlook and a positive, ambitious mindset that have already left an impression after her first few days on the job.

Helene spent the last 6 years working as Senior Strategist at Publicist in Brisbane, and before that she was at the Danish media agency Dentsu. She’s looking forward to combining her strategic skillset with her creative and digital expertise in her new role: “Sometimes strategy and creative can clash, but I like to find where the two worlds meet,” says Helene. “I’m excited to help make creative concepts executional by bringing them to life in a way that drives business results and stands out across media types.”  

We caught up with Helene to officially welcome her to the team, learn more about how she approaches strategy and hear which industry trends are on her radar for the coming year. 

First of all, what brought you to Advance?
I found the job through Cathrine (Head of Strategy), who reached out when she saw my post on LinkedIn about moving back to Denmark. We used to work together at Dentsu, so I already knew how Cathrine works and that I’d love to collaborate with her again. Once I learned more about Advance, the type of projects I’d be working on and the way that the agency is run, I knew it would be a great match. I felt very lucky when I was offered the role.

How do you approach strategy?
I always push myself to stay curious, especially when starting up new projects. I’ve learned throughout the years how easy it can be to have preconceived ideas about the audience or type of problem that needs to be solved, so I try to challenge myself by asking new questions, finding out how different ideas can come from different insights and exploring multiple possible outcomes. If you’re willing to be curious and see things in a new way, you have the opportunity to create something distinctive that truly stands out. And, even if you end up in the same place as where you started, curiosity is a great tool to help you understand topics better and gain a deeper understanding of who you’re talking to.

“If you’re willing to be curious and see things in a new way, you have the opportunity to create something distinctive that truly stands out.”

What areas within strategy excite you the most?
I’ve always been passionate about understanding people and their behaviours, and I see strategy as a journey of finding out how a brand, service or style of communication can have an impact on people’s lives. When I was living in Brisbane, I worked on a project that aimed to address risky behaviours on the roads and promote more responsible driving. This taught me that a strong strategic approach goes far beyond selling a certain product. It can really make a difference, and sometimes it can even save lives.

What are 3 market trends for 2025 that you’ve got your eye on?
While Artificial Intelligence has been on the radar for years now, I’m interested to see how this year will mark a shift from talking about the effects of AI to actually seeing it in action. For example, AI is now actively being implemented on social media platforms and we’re already seeing more customer engagement, so it’ll be interesting to see how these trends develop and how consumers adapt to them.

Another social-forward trend that comes to mind is that Facebook is beginning to pull back their fact checkers. One can only hope that this will reduce biased censoring and encourage a diversification of content, but it’s also important to be aware of a potential increase in the spread of misinformation. Although it’s just Facebook in the US taking these actions for now, other platforms and countries might follow suit, and this can have a big influence on how we read and process information online.

Finally, there’s a lot of unrest around the world, and this directly influences the way that we process information and the type of content that we’d like to see. I can sense a longing for familiarity and the need for a break from all of the intensity of what’s going on around us. That said, I hope that this year will bring opportunities for a canon of light-heartedness and optimism, and I’m curious to see how different brands can contribute to that in an authentic way. This is just a gut feeling, of course, but I like the thought of channelling some more happiness and positivity.

“I hope that this year will bring opportunities for a canon of light-heartedness and optimism, and I’m curious to see how different brands can contribute to that in an authentic way.”

What are your first impressions of Advance so far?
I feel extremely welcome at the agency. It’s incredible how many people have already come up to me to introduce themselves and have a chat, and the friendly and open energy here is tangible. I’ve also noticed how ambitious people are. There’s a lot of talk about creativity and clients, and I can sense a hunger for good, impactful work which I really admire. It’s also one of the reasons why I joined Advance, so I’m very happy to have felt that shared mindset so actively during my first few days.