News

Strategy client manager Alex Faux is defying the terrorism fears at the London Marathon to raise money for a good cause which helped his brother recover from a near-fatal street attack.

Alex will be running in aid of Headway, the charity which helps people overcome brain injuries.

Headway helped Alex’s brother Adam overcome the appalling brain injuries he suffered when he was punched during a night out two years ago.

Adam was in a coma for four days and surgeons had to remove almost a quarter of his skull.  It took a year before he returned to full physical health.

Alex says: “Without Headway we are sure it would have taken much longer. My family are deeply indebted to the charity for the amazing support they have given Adam over the last two years.

“I am a bit worried about running on Sunday following the Boston bombings, especially as my mother will be somewhere along the route. But it will not stop me running for Headway. My family and friends are backing me, and my colleagues at Strategy have been really supportive too, pledging lots of money through my sponsorship page.”

Strategy executive chairman John Courtney says: “We are very proud of Alex’s support for the charity which helped his brother. Running in the London Marathon is in itself a huge physical challenge but following the bombing in America it is very brave of Alex to go ahead with his run.  Everyone at Strategy will be cheering him on.”

To support Alex with a donation please visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AlexFaux

Strategy is launching a contest to find Britain’s best e-commerce websites.

Nominations for the 2013 Strategy E-Commerce Awards will be accepted from Friday April 19^th.

There will be prizes for regional and national winners, and developers are welcome to nominate their own work.

Outstanding design and faultless functionality will be the crucial factors in deciding the winning websites.

Strategy executive chairman John Courtney says: “We are so pleased to announce these new e-commerce awards. We believe it is high time our brilliant shopping platforms in the UK got some well-deserved recognition.

“At Strategy we scour the world looking at e-commerce websites and the best work is right here in the UK. It makes us so proud of our industry.

“We will be publicising the awards through the local and national press, inviting nominations from customers and business proprietors. We will also be approaching developers directly to request nominations of their own work. We are confident of a massive response.”

Nominations for the 2013 Strategy E-Commerce Awards can be made here http://www.strategyinternetmarketing.co.uk/ecommerceawards/

A new position of Head of Partnerships has been created at Strategy Internet Marketing with the arrival of Russell Gregory from Smart Traffic where he headed its reseller division.

At Strategy, Russell has been tasked with building the largest reseller network in the SEO sector over the next 12 months.

He joins Strategy’s 50-strong team in Bristol.

He says: “I’ve been given this nice big juicy target by the executive chairman John Courtney, and I have every confidence in making it happen.

“Joining Strategy was a no brainer. I’ve been watching them closely over the last couple of years and been amazed at the speed of their growth and the quality of their output.

“They are now without doubt one of  the most respected providers of creative content in search, with a massive reputation for integrity and achieving genuine results. I was also attracted by Strategy’s unique Pay On Results SEO no win no fee model where clients are only charged a percentage of extra sales.

“Strategy are the only genuine providers of no win no fee in the UK and probably worldwide. That puts a massive emphasis on performance rather than servicing which suits me down to the ground.”

Russell, who was also previously a marketing lead at student revision website, S-Cool, says as Head of Partnerships he intends to make Strategy the first call for every digital agency looking for white label  SEO and creative content solutions.

He explains: “Strategy’s rapid growth has been so  focused on Pay on Results their reseller side still has massive room for expansion. But the timing is now perfect for us to establish a huge footprint in the reseller, partnership and agency markets.”

Strategy executive chairman John Courtney says: “Having Russell on board is massive for us. He’s got a huge name in reselling and we are sure the wider role of Head of Partnerships at Strategy will take him and us in many new directions.”

The Strategy team decided the only way to beat the cold snap this week was to stage a “onesie day”.

Staff put in a full-day’s work whilst wearing their cosy one-piece romper suits from home.

The comfy outfits have become a hot fashion must-have over the last year, and even deputy prime minster Nick Clegg has confessed to wearing his own onesie at home.

But Strategy’s sales director Stephanie Iles – who stayed snug in her chic leopard print onesie – said it was quite startling to see some of the bizarre onesie styles worn by colleagues.

She says: “You’d never guess that otherwise sensible and sober-minded colleagues are sitting at home in a Tigger or penguin onesie. I don’t think I will ever look at them the same way again.”

Strategy staff paid a fiver towards a good cause for the privilege of wearing their onesies on the day, collecting £100 for Bristol charity One25, which reaches out to vulnerable women trapped in street sex-work.

One25 fundraiser Louise Willott praised Strategy’s onesie event: “I loved the creativity and fun of it and we thank the Strategy team for thinking of us.  Their gift will make a big difference as £100 can provide a meal and hot drink for 40 malnourished women or pay for four women to be taken to their first appointment for drug treatment.”

Strategy director Kath Dawson said: “It was fun for us to enjoy such a cosy day in work during this awfully cold weather, and so great we could make a donation to such a worthy cause as One25.”

Ignorance about online marketing will cause many businesses to follow the same fate as failed High Street brands like HMV, Jessops, and Comet, warns the West Country’s biggest digital marketing agency.

Too many companies of all sizes are either reluctant to hear about the potential of digital marketing, too slow off the mark in calling for expert help or simply turn a blind eye to their online presence.

These have been labelled “tombstone” companies by Stephanie Iles, sales director of Strategy Internet Marketing.

She warns it is just a matter of time before many local brands join HMV in the “digital graveyard”.

Stephanie explains: “At Strategy we predicted the demise of HMV, Jessops and Comet  two years ago because we knew firsthand how complacent they were about their online performance.

“They called us in to look at their online systems but it was quickly evident none of them were willing to devote sufficient time and resources to compete properly online.

“There was so much to do. Their products weren’t coming up in search results and their online checkouts were clunky and falling over all the time but they didn’t want to hear the bad news.

“Sadly, there are too many businesses out there who are heading the same way. I network with lots of business leaders nationwide and ignorance about digital marketing constantly astounds me. I’ve lost count of the number of business leaders who don’t even know what SEO stands for – search engine optimisation.

“Search is now the biggest buzzword in marketing.  If no one can find you when potential customers do a basic online search for your services or products then you may as well turn the lights out and go home. The growing number of gaps on the High Street is proof that even major household names like Jessops can’t be complacent.”

Strategy features a guide to the importance of search on it website http://www.strategyinternetmarketing.co.uk/seo-tools-guide/

The company has grown by almost 500 per cent over the past five years, with its team of 50 making it one of the fastest growing digital agencies in the UK.

Stephanie Iles adds: “Thankfully, Strategy’s fast growth is testament to the fact that more and more businesses are taking their online performance seriously. At Strategy we are so confident about the impact of effective digital marketing that we work on a pay on results basis, so if an offer like that doesn’t shake a business out of its digital complacency nothing will.”

Former national newspaper journalist Graham Parker has joined Strategy in the new role of Creative Promotions Manager.

Graham worked for 20 years in national media, holding executive positions on several national newspapers including The Sun and News of the World. He has also launched and edited his own national publications.

During his career in “Fleet Street” Graham worked closely with many national media personalities including Piers Morgan, Kelvin Mackenzie and Rebekah Brooks who actually began her meteoric career as Graham’s secretary.

Graham says: “You could see from day one she had an incredible future as she was so highly organised and effective, plus she had lashings of lethal charm.”

Piers Morgan was also someone Graham greatly admired. “To this day I have never seen such a highly productive journalist as Piers, “ says Graham. “He would be bashing his keyboard non stop all day, and everything he wrote was instantly ready for publication, which you can say of very few writers.”

But Graham says the highlight of his journalistic career was working with Sun editor Kelvin Mackenzie: “He was an incredibly dynamic and creative boss and not the ogre you would think. Kelvin was actually very approachable and his office door always open; unless, of course, he was being briefed about some scandalous scoop!”

At Strategy, Graham will help clients win more links and exposure on national news websites which are highly ranked by Google and have huge online audiences.

Graham says: “I am delighted to be joining Strategy. It is such a dynamic and creative company where ideas and innovation are very highly valued.”

Strategy’s executive chairman John Courtney says: “We are confident Graham will be a valuable member of our team. His experience of the national press will be invaluable in helping our clients win exposure on these huge platforms.”

Online bicycle retailer All Terrain Cycles has recruited Strategy Internet Marketing to boost its online performance.

The Yorkshire-based company is one of the UK’s top providers of bikes, accessories, components and clothing.

Strategy sales director Stephanie Iles says: “All Terrain has a brilliant well-designed online platform which is helping them establish a major presence in the booming bicycle sector.

“Their store in Shipley is probably the biggest in the north of England, with a range of 1,000 bikes. They are now very keen to increase their online branding.

“Strategy’s remit is to help All Terrain extend their digital reach with the target of dominating more and more search results for their extensive range of products. There is massive potential for Strategy to help them in many ways.”

Year on year growth of 25 per cent has been achieved by Strategy Internet Marketing.

Executive chairman John Courtney says the company’s fantastic growth over the past year is testament to Strategy’s reputation for delivering results.

John says: “We are so pleased to record such a big lift in our numbers during the last 12 months. This is proof that Strategy is now recognized as one of the leading providers in our sector and the biggest digital agency in the west of England.

“Our growth is also due to the fact that more and more business leaders are taking their online performance seriously. It is hard to ignore the growing gaps on the High Street which are tombstones to those brands which failed to invest sufficiently in digital.

“We look forward to delivering more success for our clients during 2013 and being ever more innovative and creative in our approach.”

A top executive at Strategy Internet Marketing is making a big name for himself in the world of creative writing.

Operations Director, Christopher Fielden, has won first prize in a short-story competition staged by the prestigious Writers’ Forum magazine.

Chris, who was a freelance journalist before joining Strategy in 2010, submitted a story entitled “Devil’s Crush” about a solder who lost his legs trying to save a mother and child during a grenade attack on his unit in Afghanistan.

His story earned him an £300 cheque from the magazine. Chris has also had a full-length crime novel published, called “Wicked Game” which is now available online at Amazon.

Chris says: “I am so pleased to see my writing being recognised. It is something I greatly enjoy doing in my spare time.”

Strategy’s Executive Chairman, John Courtney, says everyone at the company is proud of Chris’ achievements. John adds: “As well as being a brilliant Operations Director, Chris is also an extremely creative person. We all enjoy reading his work and it is great to see him winning acclaim.”

Read more about Chris’s writing at christopherfielden.com

A new “creativity lounge” has opened at Strategy Internet’s HQ, complete with brightly coloured bean bags, white boards…and a stringent ban on mobile phones.

Strategy decided to set aside an office where creative and technical staff could escape all distractions and “focus on focusing”.

Executive Chairman, John Courtney, says it was so important to have a quiet, comfortable space.

John explains: “We’re a fast growing company, and our HQ has become a very busy place. Visitors are usually stunned by how frenetic the place is. So we really needed somewhere to slow down, close the door and think; which, after all, is what we’re paid to do.

“The feedback from our creative and technical teams has been very positive. They’ve told me they hadn’t realised before how mobiles ringing and pinging with texts disrupt trains of thought and valuable conversations. We’ve just got to make sure no one takes a bean bag back to their desk.”