麻豆传媒

Creating engaging technical and thought leadership content is no easy task in the complex world of decarbonisation and sustainability. It requires a true customer focus and high-quality input, as Mergyla explains.

In this 鈥�How I Make Every Molecule Matter鈥� interview, we look at the career of Mergyla van Uytrecht, a Marketing Implementer at Shell Catalysts & Technologies. We explore her role in developing technical content that explains the organisation鈥檚 complex solutions, and discover how customer-centric storytelling helps to set Shell Catalysts & Technologies apart.

1. Can you discuss your journey from college to where you are now in your career?

Following my studies in public relations, I worked at the town hall in my remote hometown of Terneuzen, The Netherlands, where my duties included addressing citizen enquiries and curating local event calendars.

In pursuit of new career opportunities, I relocated to The Hague, where I secured a position as an account assistant at a marketing and advertising agency. My role encompassed activities such as customer acquisition, sponsorship procurement for events and writing press releases.

After a few years, having gained valuable skills and experience, I felt ready to look for further career progression, and through working with a recruitment agency I landed a position at Shell in 1997.

Here, I was initially involved in organising a programme of about 20 global technical workshops a year. These were aimed at sharing best practices and learnings among Shell and customer assets around the world, and covered topics such as rotating equipment, electrical engineering and maintenance.

Over the years, my responsibilities have become significantly wider and more varied. For example, I am still involved with in-person events, typically industry conferences and customer forums, and also manage a variety of different marketing activities which usually involve working with the technical teams to help bring new offers to market and creating technical and thought leadership content.

2. Put your job into your own words. Please expand on what you do now, and what is so rewarding about it? 

My primary focus is managing the content development process for marketing and communications projects. To give some examples, this has involved working with our subject matter experts to articulate the features and benefits of licensed technologies such as the Shell Blue Hydrogen Process and the Shell Renewable Refining Process. Another example is the recently launched Shell XTL Process, which is particularly exciting as it can be used to produce synthetic sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from renewable energy, water and CO₂, or bio-SAF from biomass residues.

The starting point is usually a very detailed description of the technical aspects of a new solution and then we go through a process aimed at understanding the customer challenges that it could address and the customer value it could deliver. This enables us to craft the messaging and to develop the marketing and communications content that the business needs.

What is so rewarding about it? Converting detailed technical information into differentiated communications materials that resonate and leave a lasting impression with readers can be hugely satisfying, especially when I hear from our customer-facing teams that their clients are engaging with that content.

3. The messaging is very important, but what format do your customer engagement materials take?

It varies. Because our approach is mainly centred around ensuring our customer-facing teams can interface effectively with their clients, the format differs depending on their needs. For one-to-one engagements they might need a standard sales presentation, factsheet or corporate profile, or in other cases there can be a strong case for creating a video, animation or something more interactive.

Good examples here include the multi-technology materials that we develop, such as those on  which were tailored towards helping refiners remain competitive in a post-pandemic world, and those on decarbonisation solutions.

4. Could you tell us a little more about your webinars?

Yes, these are particularly important because they allow our customer-facing teams and subject matter experts to reach and connect with a broad, diverse audience. We aim to use this platform to educate and provide thought leadership content and so these have addressed some of the most pressing industry issues such as  and , and we have seen very high levels of engagement.

In fact, our recent webinar on the  brought such a large number of questions from interested parties that it prompted us to produce a podcast to provide additional insights. The podcast will be available soon to watch this space.

5. How about virtual reality?

Yes, indeed, we have developed virtual reality solutions when it is appropriate. Take the reactor internals that we license, for example. As these are installed inside a fixed-bed catalytic reactor it can be difficult for customers to fully visualise all the advantages these offer, from increased catalyst loading and improved catalyst utilisation through to improved safety.

So, to bring this to life we developed the Reactor Internals Virtual Reality (VR) Experience, which gives customers wearing a VR headset the opportunity to explore that reactor environment firsthand. We aim for this immersive experience to offer a greater level of understanding and insight.

6. Shell Catalysts & Technologies has various, complex offerings. Is that a challenge in your work or a treasure?

I believe it鈥檚 a bit of both. One of the most exciting and challenging aspects of my role is collaborating with our experts and the specialist agencies we partner with, to create compelling narratives. These narratives draw on insights from within the business, and the aim is to showcase how our technology works while also resonating with a broader audience who may not possess a deep technical understanding. It鈥檚 a delicate balance.

7. What makes Shell Catalysts & Technologies unique when it comes to storytelling?

I think there are three really important elements that play a role.

First, our stories are authentic. They鈥檙e grounded in facts, backed by evidence, and go through a rigorous process to ensure accuracy. That鈥檚 vital.

Second, we leverage the insights and perspectives of our experienced technical and market experts. They are always closely involved in whatever content we craft.

And the third element is that our stories are customer centric. I鈥檓 a firm believer that our materials should not be solely focused on the technical details. Technical aspects are important, of course, but it is critical that we also address what customer challenges these can solve, and how they benefit the customer.

These are the key ingredients, I believe, to making our stories relatable and compelling and ensuring they resonate with the intended audience.

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