UK Enterprise 2017

WORLDWIDE BUSINESS REVIEW / UK Enterprise Awards 2017 27 , Marke2ing is a hands-on B2Bmarketing consultancy based in London. We invitedMarketing Director and Co-Founder Linsay Duncan to tell us more about the firmand the services it provides. Best Women-Run Marketing Agency - Greater London & Excellence Award for SME Marketing 2017 Drawing on the vast industry experience of its Founders and staff, Marke2ing provides flexible B2B marketing support for growing London businesses. Linsay discusses her firm’s service offering in more detail, outlining the factors that mark it out as the best possible option for its valued clients. “Through Marke2ing we provide strategic and hands-on support to clients and work with senior executives of SMEs. Typically, our clients are in tech, finance or service-based industries with £10m+ turnover. Our part-time marketing directors come into growing businesses and transform their B2B marketing performance. “The CEOs and MDs we work with tell us that they particularly like that flexibility - having us as their part-time B2B marketing directors and team. For them we are a low- risk, proven option and there is no need to have someone on their payroll, nor for ties that come with long-term contracts. They can dial our support up or down, just as they need it. “The flexibility we offer and balance of strategic and execution support is key to setting us apart from our competitors. Our marketing directors are hands-on, pulling on our team of marketing specialists when we need to. Through their Marke2ing director, they have access to a whole team of talent, but have one point of contact and no need for multiple contracts, nor to manage multiple suppliers.” Staying ahead of the latest industry trends is vital to operating in such a fast paced market such as marketing, which is why this is incorporated into every aspect of Marke2ing’s approach, as Linsay emphasises. “Our mission is to bring professional, corporate-calibre marketing to London SMEs. To support this our marketing directors keep on top of marketing best practice. Investing in becoming a Hubspot partner is another way we can deliver market-leading expertise and support. In addition, in order to keep growing our pool of talented marketers, we keep a constant eye on our networks, on LinkedIn, Mumsnet and other channels, watching out for B2B marketing director talent. “Currently, among the core industry trends is a slow shift towards businesses embracing inbound marketing more than in previous years. Step back a few years and many conversations with us would start with a CEO desperate to fill an empty pipeline through some sort of short-term, quick-fix outbound campaign. Whilst there is a time and a place for short-term campaigns, it’s risky to not plan for the mid-to-long-term which is where inbound forms an essential part of any good B2B marketing strategy. “A change in mindset seems to be emerging. More and more, we are seeing savvy B2B business owners asking us about how inbound campaigns can work for them, prepared for the slightly slower lead time but better quality leads which will arise.” Supporting clients through such industry changes, as well as major economic and social changes such as Brexit is a key part of the firm’s client focus approach, as Linsay explains. “Helping businesses make the most out of their precious marketing budget has always been a priority for us. “With expectations that, when the implications of Brexit finally unfold, some of our clients might experience a financial hit of some sort, we are simply going magnify our focus on investment. We’ll do this by helping clients make best use of their marketing spend, refocusing and reprioritising activity where needed, and being WUK17030 ever vigilant with how every single penny is spent.” “Alongside this, we are also prepping clients to consider other businesses they might partner up with, where it makes sense, to put marketing budgets together and make them go further. Collaborating with complimentary businesses in this way is a smart move during tougher times.” Discussing the future, Linsay believes that her firm has enough opportunities and developments ahead to build upon its current success and grow even further. “Moving forward, we are always generating more ideas than we have time to execute. One thing we have committed to is speaking at more events this year, to spread our knowledge and expertise around. We also see an opportunity to productise part of what we are doing so watch this space for a new Marke2ing offering sometime in the foreseeable future. “Looking further ahead to early 2018, we are also incredibly excited about the launch of our client, CivilsedBank. We have been supporting them for over two years now and cannot wait to see this strong challenger bank and its strong brand come to life.”