‘We’ve come a long way since I first started out on my own,’ marketing agency boss says after securing a series of new contract wins
By Beverly Rademacher
Copyright expressandstar
SHC Digital, which was set up by Sally Hawkesford in 2019 when she chose to go freelance, has recorded more than £660,000 in revenues over the last 12 months – a 29 per cent increase on the previous 12 months.
Located in the Assay Studios, the business has successfully beaten off the challenge of rivals to secure work with the South & City College Birmingham and Kings College in London, while also signing up Legal & General and Urban Bubble from the property world.
It has also just won the Citizens Advice’s young person energy saving campaign that will get underway this winter.
All clients are looking to tap into the company’s experience and expertise within their respective markets and its ability to drive more interest and completed applications/reservations.
“We’ve come a long way since I first started out on my own and now employ eight specialists at our Birmingham base,” explained Sally, whose first ‘solo’ contract was to manage the digital amplification of Dunelm’s partnership with ITV’s This Morning.
“SHC Digital has created a niche in our field for being a brand performance marketing agency that brings together the full funnel marketing model, from organic social to paid media all under one roof.
“It’s an approach that is working, with fees up nearly 30 per cent and new accounts being added all the time – especially in the education and property spaces where we really get underneath the skin of what our clients need to be successful.”
SHC Digital, which has also delivered campaigns for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, Selfridges and Greene King, is not stopping there, with ambitious plans to boost turnover by a further 15 per cent between now and the middle of 2026. This will involve the creation of two new jobs to help cater for existing demand and new opportunities in a rapidly increasing future pipeline.
Sally added: “Our main specialism is in D2C (Direct to Consumer) and that is an area that is changing at pace. In addition to the heavy focus on direct response performance, clients also need to look at longer-term strategies that ensure activity is running across the full funnel.
“This includes a strong emphasis on brand activity to avoid simply joining the race for the bottom and only focusing on return on ad spend as the primary metric.”
