Typical Company

54%

*Responses to the statement “Taking everything into account, I would say this is a great place to work.”

Employee Satisfaction Rating

0 %

We’ve picked up the certification after recording an overall employee satisfaction rating of 95%, putting it among the country’s best performing organisations for workplace culture and happiness.

We’re delighted with the impressive results from the accreditation, with areas such as Support (98%), Respect (97%), Collaboration (97%), Caring (97%), Fairness (97%) and competence (97%) all ranking highly.

Our Culture and Wellbeing Team

Culture Awards

Not only have we been recognised this year by ‘Great Place To Work’, we were also shortlisted in the coveted UK Company Culture Awards for Best Working Environment (Location), Best Team Culture and Best Agency to Work for (Small).

We have also recently been shortlisted in the Northern Digital Awards for Best Agency Culture, with the ceremony being held in February 2024 to reveal the winners.

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Digital PR and content specialist, Victoria Attwood, joins us from digital marketing agency Cedarwood Digital as Account Director. Victoria brings over eight years’ experience to the role and will really help our Digital PR offering.

Tom Houghton, former North West Business Editor at Business Live – which encompasses the Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo – also joins the team as Senior News and Content Manager.

We’re also really pleased to welcome our first apprentice, 18-year-old Ella Howatson joining the team whilst working towards a QA Digital Marketing qualification.

The appointments come just a couple of weeks after being awarded the North West’s ‘PR Consultancy of the Year’ by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR). As well as being named in Prolific North’s Top 50 PR agencies and taking home the Media Relations Award at the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) 2021 Awards.

Our co-founder and managing director, Gary Jenkins said of the new appointments: “Victoria’s extensive knowledge of digital PR, SEO, and content marketing paired with Tom’s keen eye for a story make for the perfect additions to our growing team. We’re so proud to have Victoria and Tom join us, and to be attracting this calibre of professionals who want to work alongside us and grow with us. I’m confident they’ll both bring something special to the agency.

“Being in a position to invest in young talent like Ella is really rewarding too, and she is relishing the opportunity to forge a new career with us, rolling up her sleeves and doing an amazing job so far. We’re really proud to be championing apprenticeships as more and more young people consider on-the-job learning as an alternative to university.”

If you’re interested in joining the No Brainer team, visit our careers page for more information.

The post No Brainer growth bolstered by two new senior hires appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

Alexandra Hudson, 25, joins the team with a background in the property industry. Whilst working at the firm, Alexandra is also currently undertaking a master’s in digital marketing and data analytics and joins the team as an account executive.

Also joining the team of account executives is Charlie Briegal, 22, after completing an internship at the agency while studying languages at Newcastle University.

Michaela Leech also joins us as office manager with over a decades’ experience working in operations for businesses including ASDA and Byrne & Doherty Mortgage Specialists.

We have also welcomed four new clients to our roster, including Manchester-based clinical trials company, MAC Clinical Research, which undertakes pioneering new research into treatments for a range of conditions including depression, Alzheimer’s, and eczema. We’ve been appointed to support the team on all PR, paid media, and influencer marketing activities to drive leads for trial volunteers.

In addition, joining our client list is one of the UK’s leading credit card providers, MBNA. The team has been appointed to manage the brand’s regional and national sponsorship strategy which includes Chester Zoo, Chester Football Club and Storyhouse. Our team will lead on sponsorship activation including events and special projects.

Online life management platform Once I’ve Gone has appointed us to manage its PR, social media, and content marketing activities. The brand, which helps provide people with the tools to ensure they create and manage their legacy, appointed us after a competitive pitch.

And Rochdale-based community and cultural charity, Your Trust, is also working with us on a new PR and social media strategy for its brand, leisure and cultural assets. The charity manages many of the borough’s leisure and cultural facilities on behalf of Rochdale Borough Council, aiming to inspire residents to live more healthier, happier and creative lives.

Celebrating its sixth year in business in 2021, the agency is also currently recruiting for a new PR Account Manager.

No Brainer co-founder and managing director, Gary Jenkins said:

“This is a really exciting time for us all, as it’s fantastic to be growing our clients and our team.

“We’re proud to have so many talented people and delighted to welcome Alex, Charlie and Michaela to the team. It’s great to see them already rolling their sleeves up and getting stuck into life at No Brainer.

“We’re also proud to have the opportunity to work with four amazing new clients, all of which are doing fantastic things in their respective industries.”

The post No Brainer signals growth intent with a trio of new hires and raft of client wins appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

Since then, the world of SEO has evolved so fast and spectacularly, becoming an established industry, and in recent years, a career specialism. Plus, there’s an amazing community that’s filled with inspiring thought leaders (and to my delight, a huge number of women (hello Women in Tech SEO)).

My adventures in SEO mirrored that evolution. From a beginner back in the day, to where I am now, leading the SEO arm of a fantastic digital PR and SEO agency – and I’ve loved every second.

As I said, I’ve worked in a lot of industries, with brands large and small, but joining No Brainer is 100% one of the most exciting career moves I’ve made. PR was mysterious, and the magic of Digital PR + SEO had me well and truly hooked. So, when the opportunity came along, especially with the amazing bunch at No Brainer, I grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

It has now been over six months since I became a “No Brainer”, and it has been an eye-opening experience – and education. Here’s what I’ve learned…

1. The audience matters most

This isn’t new to me. It’s at the core of what I believe about marketing, and I still get a huge kick out of it. 50% of my role at No Brainer is insights, leveraging them to deliver the very best campaigns and strategies. It wasn’t new to No Brainer either, the entire team just gets it, so continuing that adventure with them has been thrilling.

However, what is new is that it’s reshaped my approach to outreach strategies. I’ve observed what journalists will and will not engage with, how to get the most from each piece, but also how important it is to reach out to the right outlets.

Insights is fundamental to understanding that, especially building target personas, then continuing to expand our understanding from there. All that juicy data creates audience-focused campaigns that are delivering amazing results for our clients.

2. Relationships and collaboration is key

We know the very best digital PR is impactful, delivers to objectives, but is also measurable – whether that’s via AMEC, SEO tools or even good old Google Analytics.

From initial briefing and brainstorming ideas, having SEO and market insights, keywords, and link building targets as the foundation of a strategy is vital to the success of any campaign.

Key to great PR is relationships and collaboration. Hands up, I’m no “PR pro”, but my work as an SEO is important for the team that are the pros, and of course, for our clients too. So, ensuring the right people are in the room from day one helps you achieve the very best for all involved.

3. Making time for fun

Working at a digital PR agency, you can get caught up in the daily cycle of deadlines and meetings. So, having time to reflect and let your hair down is key.

No Brainer genuinely believes and encourages real work/life balance, so you can switch off and reboot. But it’s also important to take time as a team to celebrate the highs, and just connect with each other. Whether it’s grabbing a brew and chewing the fat, having a few cocktails after work, a movie night, or even bigger things (like paintballing!). We all need time to laugh.

This time re-energises you, gives you a little boost, and adds to your well-being. Something we all need every now and again!

4. Don’t panic

Crisis communications seems terrifying from the outside. But, being a bystander, watching the comms person responsible for it, well, it’s like they’re standing in the eye of a storm. They’re calm, collected, and know how to untangle even the most complex or sensitive situation. It’s quite something to behold!

If anything, it’s taught me that in a crisis you need to take a deep breath, stand back and looking at the bigger picture, and importantly, read the room. Then put out the fires strategically – like a fire-fighter would. Working to contain the situation, controlling the spread, before finally putting it out altogether. Those relationships, understanding of the audience, as well as insights, are vital to cracking it.

Sticking with that analogy, once the fire is out, understand what caused it and how to prevent it (if possible) in future. Then start to assess the damage. Has it impacted brand sentiment/affinity? Is there a lasting impact? How can any damage be reversed?

It has given me a new perspective on things, and a deeper appreciation for those working behind the scenes in a PR crisis!

5. PR is hard

For those who haven’t been too involved in SEO, they’d be forgiven for thinking that it’s a bit of a dark art. That SEO folk simply magic-up results – but it takes a lot of behind-the-scenes elbow-grease, hours tinkering with code and staring at data on-screen, along with an inconceivable number of hours in meetings to drive things forward.

PR is similar. It’s bloody hard.

I think I’ve shared this GIF a million times with the team since joining, but when I watch them do their thing, it’s like watching the Jedi in Star Wars.

I was under no illusion that being an expert in PR was truly earned. But the depth of skill, best practices and methods, tactics, and strategies (for a huge range and types of PR). They push things forward, while never taking their eye of the ball with important relationships – constantly building and maintaining them. And there’s so much more I’m still learning about.

With PR, I’d quite happily hold my hands up and say that I’d have no idea on even where to start. But during these last six months, I’ve been in awe of how our wonderful bunch of PR experts do what they do daily.

6. PR is hugely valuable

Again, this isn’t my first rodeo. I was always aware of the power of digital PR, but now I’m its biggest fan. It makes the SEO side of me rub its hands together like some sort of movie villain – the quality of backlinks that good digital PR can generate is gold dust, and the fact the link will be placed with an outlet that’s relevant and meaningful to the target audience means it’ll deliver much more than just link equity.

I’ve seen conversions/sales spike for some of our clients by over 100% for a set period and traffic jump by hundreds of percent.

Now, it isn’t just all about the SEO win. For our clients, gaining coverage for their brand is a big thing. Whether it’s to bolster brand visibility and sentiment, make waves about their latest product, or establish them as thought leaders and experts.

There are so many ways that PR helps brands, large and small, and I’m loving working at an amazing digital PR agency, using insights to demonstrate the great stuff that’s happening!

The next six months

It’s an incredibly exciting time at No Brainer. We’re growing, big time. From new clients, to expanding the team. I can’t wait to see what the next six months hold for us all, and the wonderful new things I’m going to learn while helping to shape and continue to expand our SEO offering. I’ll keep you posted!

The post An SEO’s story: 6 things I’ve learnt from the world of digital PR appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

Eureka! Science + Discovery, which is set to open in Wirral next summer, has selected us to lead on its PR and social strategy after a competitive 4-way pitch.

The exciting new science and discovery centre is a sister site to Eureka! The National Children’s Museum in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and is due to open in summer 2022.

Located at the former Spaceport site in Birkenhead and facing the iconic Liverpool skyline, the 2,700 sqm interactive centre has been co-created with children and young people from the local community, with part of the attraction set to be housed within the existing Seacombe ferry terminal.

No Brainer has been brought on board to develop and implement Eureka!’s PR and social media strategy, leading up to the launch of the new science and discovery centre in summer 2022.

Account Director, Michelle Turner, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with the team at Eureka! and we can’t wait to play a part in establishing them as a key visitor attraction here in the north-west.

“It’s a really exciting win for the agency and the perfect opportunity to use our creativity to have some fun with the launch. Having visited their sister museum in Halifax as a child, I have fond memories of Eureka, so I’m delighted to help them deliver on this next innovative project which will certainly inspire future generations.”

Michelle Emerson, Marketing and Development Director at Eureka! added: “No Brainer’s enthusiasm, creativity and results-focused approach inspired us from the outset, and we knew they were the right team to help us launch Eureka! Science + Discovery with a bang.

“We’ve got some exciting plans for the transformation of the building and so bringing the local community with us as we head towards the opening of Eureka! Science + Discovery is a crucial part of our journey.

“We’re confident that No Brainer will be fantastic partners and help raise awareness of this exciting new project throughout the north-west.”

The post Eureka! moment for new Merseyside attraction as it appoints No Brainer appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

DivideBuy are an interest-free credit provider based in Newcastle-under-Lyme, and we’re working with them to lead on the company’s SEO and content marketing strategy as it looks to continue its rapid growth.

Last year, the firm topped Deloitte’s ranking of the UK’s fastest-growing tech companies with an average three-year growth rate of over 20,000 per cent. Now, the 50-strong team, which provides over 500 SMEs with interest-free, cost-spreading payment options, is planning further expansion in 2021.

Our Managing Director Gary Jenkins said: “We’re excited to work with such a dynamic and disruptive brand as DivideBuy, which has exceeded all expectations for growth despite the impact of the pandemic.

“The team have a clear strategy to stay ahead of the ever-evolving market, and we’ll be supporting this with content marketing and integrated SEO support, with our strategy rooted in data-led decisions.

“This partnership is an exciting one for us and we can’t wait to play a part in establishing DivideBuy as a leader in the highly competitive fintech sector.”

Jo Balsamo, chief marketing officer at DivideBuy, added: “No Brainer is the perfect fit for us as our SEO and content marketing agency, and we share similar stories as fast-growing firms from the North.

“In fintech you can never stand still, and we were in need of a progressive plan to strengthen our content performance and improve our SEO, and No Brainer showed us how this can be achieved with an integrated approach.

“I’m looking forward to seeing the results, with a busy year already underway for the whole team as we continue to improve our services in the lending process, platform and checkout.”

The post UK’s fastest-growing tech start-up appoints No Brainer appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

Laura joins us from FTSE 250 home repairs and improvements giant HomeServe to lead our search engine optimisation (SEO) support for clients, as well as helping shape our data-led campaigns.

Laura brings more than two decades of experience in agency, in-house and consultancy roles, having spent almost three years at HomeServe where she oversaw year-on-year growth in organic search and traffic.

Now, she’s tasked with developing our range of paid, owned, shared and earned services to aid our growth across the North West and the UK.

Laura’s excited to join the team and said:

“We have big ambitions to strengthen our SEO offer as an agency and ensure it is complementary to the traditional and digital PR, content and social media services we’re already famous for. We have a clear plan to deliver more digital-first strategies for new and existing clients that demonstrate outstanding ROI.

“We’re already working with clients to show how impactful SEO and PR can be when they work together, and how we can use data to shape strategies that allow brands to connect with their audiences in a way they haven’t before.

“Having worked with No Brainer before as a client, I know all about their track record for amazing and creative campaigns, and I look forward to playing my part in the journey ahead.”

Our managing director, Gary Jenkins, added:

“Laura joining the team is a landmark appointment for the agency and comes at a time when proving your worth in PR, content and SEO is more important than ever.

“Data and insights are at the heart of everything we do as an agency so Laura’s appointment will help us enhance that across our range of services from digital PR to content marketing and social.

“Last year, we worked hard to achieve the AMEC international certificate in measurement and evaluation – the gold standard in measurement for our industry – and have ensure those best practices flow through the agency. Now, with Laura with us, we’re ready to take No Brainer to the next level.”

You can find out more about Laura on our About Us page.

The post No Brainer appoints FTSE 250 SEO expert in new role appeared first on No Brainer Agency.

We’ve seen things like making banana bread, rainbow paintings and completing Joe Wicks’ workouts all feature heavily in people’s daily routines (all of which we’ve also done!).

Learning and development have also been a big focus for a lot of people, and as a team, we’ve invested some of our time in understanding how we could be even better for our clients.

So, earlier this year we committed to link up with the International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC) and take on one of their gold-standard measurement courses.

We enrolled on the AMEC International Certificate in Measurement and Evaluation – a ten-week course taught online at degree level – and are proud to say we passed the assessment with flying colours!

It means a lot of what we were already doing and measuring for our clients stacks up pretty well against industry-leading standards. So obviously we were pleased about that.

But we’ve also been able to evolve the way we plan and evaluate our activity in line with the AMEC framework, which is helping us drive even better results all round. There are so many great tools and techniques now to help track campaigns more effectively, which means we never want to stand still and we’re always looking to improve what we do.

Measuring Outputs, Outtakes, Outcomes and Impact

Outputs are the things that can be measured across PESO channels. Things like the reach of paid advertising, visitors to a website, the reach of media coverage or how many social posts have been posted.

Outtakes start to focus more on qualitative measures. This is the response and reactions seen to any activity. How well understood was the topic? Did people subscribe for more information? Or did you see an uplift in return website visitors?

And then there are Outcomes – the holy grail of PR. This is where the effect of the activity on the target audience needs to be measured. So, we’re looking for increased levels of trust, lead generation, registrations or greater brand preference.

The final piece of the puzzle here is Impact – measuring the difference that all of the efforts have made. Has staff or customer retention increased? Have sales gone up? Have cost savings been made?

For too long agencies have been guilty of focusing too much on outputs without knowing if programmes of work were making much difference to the companies and organisations they support. The work of AMEC is helping to shine a light on bad practices and we’re proud to be putting our work to these incredibly high standards.

Does PR or communications really deliver any value?

I’ve spent the majority of my career working in PR and over the years, I’ve found that the brands and businesses I speak to generally fall into one of two camps – the believers and the non-believers.

The believers get it. They know how important reputation is for their business. They know the impact it can have on things like sales, share price or staff retention. And they understand how important it is to create stories and content regularly, to shape people’s opinions and ultimately influence their behaviours.

Then there are the ones that don’t get it. They can’t understand the value of reputation building. They view most communications work as the ‘dark arts’. And unless there’s a direct boost to the bottom line at the end of the month, they don’t see the point of it. To be honest, we tend to find these businesses are the ones that are looking for short term fixes and don’t want to tell their stories (for a variety of reasons), but that’s probably a blog for another day!

Despite knowing how the non-believers were never likely to be the kind of clients we would be working with at No Brainer, it’s always bothered us how the importance of good communications and building long-term trust can so often be overlooked.

Evaluation and proving the value of communications is usually at the heart of it and the industry only has itself to blame. Years of poorly planned and badly measured campaigns have created an environment where work is rarely understood, and its value rightly questioned. PR and communications have been way behind the curve.

There is no single metric that defines success in marketing or communications. But integrated campaigns where the combination of different tactics and channels are being measured side-by-side is where every communications agency needs to be. And AMEC agree.

We’d love to put our fancy new AMEC credentials to the test, so if you’re fed up with your current agency, need some extra resources for your team or have a campaign you’d just like to chat about, drop us an email to team@nobraineragency.co.uk and we’ll get straight back to you!

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Our new clients include a soon-to-open, pandemic-themed visitor attraction called ‘Sick to Death’ in Chester, a virus-killing protection spray from Protection Zone, and award-winning IT software consultancy, Synyega.

Protection Zone, an approved UK retailer of revolutionary virus-killing protection spray Liquid Guard®, has appointed No Brainer to handle its PR and social media strategy to help build brand awareness around the launch of the business and its products, as well as driving sales with both B2B and B2C audiences.

No Brainer is delivering PR and media relations support around the launch of ‘Sick to Death’ in Chester, the UK’s first visitor attraction to delve into the nation’s gory history of medicine and pandemics. The immersive experience, featuring the city’s infamous Plague Doctor, is set to open later this year, subject to government announcements regarding COVID-19.

The agency is also now working with award-winning software licencing consultancy, Synyega following a competitive pitch process, to develop an integrated B2B campaign to raise brand awareness and accelerate company growth through PR, social media, content marketing and SEO.

Gary Jenkins, No Brainer’s co-owner and Managing Director said: “We’re delighted and proud to welcome a further three clients to No Brainer, which come hot on the heels of a recent award win and some strong industry rankings for the agency.

“The pandemic has been challenging for our industry and agencies in particular, but to be able to generate new business during that time is recognition for the hard work our team puts in every day.

“It’s also a testament to the clients who have put their trust in us, utilising our skills and knowledge as an extension of their teams. We’re looking forward to long and fruitful relationships with them.”

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In amongst all the dour warnings of global crises, quarantining, deep recessions and further lockdowns,  we all need good news now. We need it more than ever.

Families, friends and colleagues need to believe that good can prevail even in the darkest of times, but also that there’s hope, belief and passion in our businesses to survive, recover and, in time, to thrive once again.

We received our own good news this month and fulfilled one of our dreams to become regarded by our peers as one of the pioneers in our field.

The PRCA – the world’s largest professional PR body – held the PRCA Dare Awards, and we walked away with the biggest award on the night in the Northern categories; winning Medium Consultancy of the Year!

We now go forward to the national gala to compete against the best of the best PR agencies in the UK.

It’s a huge award for us – probably our biggest ever – and we celebrate it with all of you. Our amazing team who work so hard every day;  our partners who offer exceptional advice, our suppliers who help keep our business ticking over smoothly, and importantly our friends and family. We also want to extend our sincere thanks to our clients, who have put their faith and trust in us, allowing us to share their good news with the world during such challenging times.

We celebrate with you because you’ve supported us, worked with us and believed in us over the last five and a half years. It’s been an unexpected journey at some points, but one we’ve enjoyed every minute of none the less.

Our job now is to continue to tell the good news our clients have in bucketloads, to inspire the audiences they’re aiming to connect with, and to help them survive and thrive both now and in the good times to come.

Here’s to building bigger and better!

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