Communications, Marketing & PR Manager > National Equine Charity

Employer:  Bransby Horses Rescue and Welfare; one of the UK’s largest equine welfare charities.

Tenure: 2019 – 2021

Job Description:  Manage a graphic design and marketing team, as well as agencies. Working with the SLT to develop PR and marketing strategies which will deliver on the charity’s strategic targets, including fundraising, income generation, HR, operations and welfare, and leading all of the marketing and PR activities.

Skills: Team Leadership. Rebranding (working with agency) online and on site. Brand strategy, including audience profiling, segmentation and targeting. Marketing strategy. Social Media strategy, management and delivery. Fundraising and income generation initiatives. Retail. Internal Communications. Adobe Creative Suite; Illustrator, Indesign and Photoshop. Web design; WordPress. New ways of working conceptualisation and realisation. Copywriting. Press Release writing and distribution. Local and National Press and Television liaison (BBC). Event stand design. Event coordination. GDPR. CRM. Editorial.

Awards: The Legacy Futures Innovation Award 2021

Highlights: 

• Significantly increased brand reach and profile on social media by devising improved targeted, consistent content. This generated an average Facebook engagement rate of 4% compared to the UK average of 0.9%, 8.2% YOY Facebook follower increase and 18.6 YOY Instagram increase.
• Rebranded and overhauled content for the charity website, increasing page per sessions to 5.5 average and 10% reduction in bounce rates.
• Designed and delivered a legacy campaign that won The Legacy Futures Innovation Award, beating shortlist of Alzheimers Society, St Johns Ambulance and Royal Museum’s Greenwich.
• Redesigned and delivered the nationwide charity magazine whilst reworking improved methods for content collaboration, generating increased donations of 53% and sales of 330%.

Testimonial

PR & Marketing Coordinator > Air Ambulance Service and Trust

Employer: Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance

Tenure: 2015 – 2016

Job Description: Promote charity through a range of activities, events and initiatives, to grow brand awareness, engagement, fundraising opportunities and income generation. As an effective networker, develop strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders in both counties to help raise awareness of the charity and its life saving-service.

Skills: Brand strategy, including audience profiling, segmentation and targeting. Marketing strategy. Social Media strategy, management and delivery. Adobe Creative Suite; Illustrator, Indesign and Photoshop. Web design; WordPress. Copywriting. Press Release writing and distribution. Internal Communications. Local and National Press and Television liaison. Retail design. Event coordination. GDPR. CRM. Fundraising and income generation initiatives. Editorial. Crisis Management. 

Highlights:

• Raised the profile of the charity with local and national press through improved relations and quality content release, resulting in increases of over 50% for online, social media and print coverage, as well as significant television exposure such as The Paul O’Grady Show, Jeremy Kyles’ The Kyle Files and local BBC News.
•  Improved the quality of the charity’s brand strategy and assets by creating brand guidelines and online media library, the coordination of photoshoots, developing the charity website and producing an animated charity video.
• Enhanced Key Stakeholder relations, from Trustee to Volunteers, leveraging the charity’s key messages and appeals
• Worked with an agency to support the delivery of rebranded shops.
• Continued to support with marketing, fundraising and PR charity when I returned to consultancy work.

Testimonial

Branding > Book Cover Design

Client: Catherine A. Sharp

Brief: Design Book Cover & Write summary for Amazon.com

Work: Working with author, Catherine A. Sharp, designed cover for new book about a stroke victim: letters in a lake. Wrote summary for Amazon.com posting. Further work includes 2 new book covers for her nursing series.

Skills: Adobe Creative Suite; Illustrator, Photoshop.

Global Internal Communications Manager > FMCG

Employer: William Grant & Sons

Tenure: 2009 – 2011 (promoted from First Drinks Brands / William Grant and Sons UK)

Job Description: Manage, develop, and evaluate internal communication processes, co-write and manage global company conferences and deliver a global communications portal, launched with an award-winning campaign.

Skills: Team Leadership. Internal Communications. Strategic thinking and delivery. Market research. Competitor analysis. Presenting. Employer branding. Culture defining. Event planning and delivery. Editorial. Intranet. Script writing. Project Management.

Awards: Institute of Internal Communications (IOIC) Award of Excellence 2010

Highlights:

• Building and delivering a world class internal communication strategy supporting the global business strategy.
• Redesigning and editing the global internal communications magazine.
• Planning and delivering employer recognition awards ceremonies, with attendees from all over the globe.
• Managing the internal communications process and evaluating effectiveness to ensure continuous improvement.
• Supporting the company values development and the externally facing Employer Branding project.
• Devising and delivering a globally streamed live internal employee recognition event.
• Conceptualising, designing and delivering a new, pioneering internal communications portal, launched with an award winning campaign and effective processes for content management and validation.

Testimonial

Internal Communications Magazine Editorial > FMCG

Employer: William Grant & Sons

Project: Edit Internal Communications Magazine, Spirit – Lead restyling of magazine, copywriting and editorial.

Skills: Branding. Editorial. Copywriting. Strategic direction. Internal Communications. Stakeholder management. Project management. Agency collaboration.

UK PR & Communications Manager > FMCG

Employer: First Drinks Brands (owned by William Grant & Sons)

Tenure: 2007 – 2009

Job Description: Proactive management & development of internal and external PR and Communications initiatives.

• Ensuring effective communication of brand issues & activities to all key stakeholders.
• Directing internal and external communications at senior level.
• Supporting directors and managers with PR requirements including pitching, writing briefs, selecting agencies, PR programme advice, client/agency appraisals, budgets and evaluation.
• Delivering company media training.
• Ensuring efficient and effective synergies with company owners and partners.
• Producing and maintaining an up-to-date central record of key brand and company information.
• Working with directors, pricing & planning management and leadership teams to identify preferred means of company communication cascade.
• Planning and delivering conferences and events.
• Managing & monitoring usage of company website and digital image library.
• Advising on, managing and organising company submissions to trade competitions.
• Providing brand best practice advice.
• Coordination and communication of activities for nominated company charity.

Skills: Team Leadership. Internal Communications. Strategic thinking and delivery. Market research. Competitor analysis. Presenting. Employer branding. Culture defining. Event planning and delivery. Editorial. Script writing. Project Management. Fundraising. POS. Video.

Highlights:

• Coordinated sponsorship deals for GQ Awards and Glamour Awards for two years. Attended events to ensure branding was optimised and liaised with A list celebrities.
• Modernised the company logo and company materials to create visual connection with new parent company William Grant and Sons – Designed logo, brand guidelines, rebranded website and offices (with an agency), coordinated and delivered a drinks industry press launch. Wrote and produced Corporate DVD.
• Promoted into parent company; William Grant and Sons.