BIG Partnership, one of the UK’s largest marketing and communications agencies, has appointed the former chief commercial officer at Telegraph Media Group as its first-ever chief executive. Steve McLaughlin (55) who was responsible for TMG’s digital strategy, subscription programme and syndication, has also held senior management roles at the Daily Mail, Trinity Mirror, ICS Learn […]
Average ad position is the latest of Google’s performance metrics to be dropped from the Google Ads interface. At BIG, we’ve given our thoughts on this update as we prepare to say goodbye to the familiar column that has been a mainstay of Google Ads for over 15 years. Google Announcement Google announced on 26th […]
Manchester’s property market is thriving, but as we watch developments pop up all over the city, is the property sector doing enough to safeguard the wellness of its inhabitants? As marketing experts with a whole host of clients in the property and construction sector, this is the question that formed the basis of our inaugural […]
The BIG team won a trio of gold awards at this year’s CIPR Pride awards in Scotland. Our Aurora campaign for Aberdeen Football Club, which resulted in a positive planning application for the new stadium, was praised by the judges in the arts, sports or culture category. They mentioned our “strategic focus with tactics tailored […]
Sarah Lawless, Head of North West Operations and BIG CSR champion, talks about taking CSR beyond PR. CSR can be a powerful tool for any company. It can help to build your customer base, attract and retain talent and create an influx of positive press about your organisation. In fact, according to the Society for […]
Ellie Reid from our Manchester office looks at the recent boom in virtual reality. Most people have heard of Virtual Reality but this technology still isn’t something we regularly encounter over the course of our day-to-day lives. Whether this is down to cost, the perceived complexity of the software or the unfamiliar hardware that’s needed, […]
BIG Partnership is proud to welcome Steven Hill to the new role of creative director, bringing heavyweight experience with some of the country’s most high-profile brands. Steven has developed marketing strategies for leading brands including Kraft Heinz, Highland Spring, Tennent’s, the Famous Grouse and Royal Bank of Scotland. He has also led hard-hitting public sector […]
Richard Crighton, Account Manager in Aberdeen, looks at what kind of PR should and shouldn’t be part of your B2B marketing strategy. I’ve lost count of the number of times that an interesting PR story has almost slipped through the net because a client didn’t think it was worth mentioning. In business to business (B2B) […]
Following on from a great year, we’re on the lookout for proactive, ambitious and creative people across the business. Be sure to check out our careers page on a regular basis and follow our Twitter and LinkedIn channels to find out about our latest roles. We get lots of applications and while we’re always happy […]
Senior PPC Manager, Craig Edwardson gives his insight into Google Marketing Live 2018 and what it means for the industry. On Tuesday, Google held its annual keynote at Google Marketing Live in San Jose, California. The event was live-streamed, allowing digital marketing enthusiasts around the globe to tune in to the unveiling of the latest […]
Stephen Noble has joined BIG Partnership in a new content director role as we further build our creative and strategic offering. Stephen has previously worked with international brands including Disney, SSE, Virgin, Audi and Tesco and joins us from Equator. Working across our six offices in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Dunfermline and Manchester, Stephen will oversee […]
Taking a traditional PR agency to a full-service, integrated marketing agency. It’s been a week. Actually, no, it’s been a year. And what a year. I’m calling it lucky number 13: the year I joined the “longer in PR than journalism” club; the year BIG Partnership secured its best-ever results. My name’s Alan, and I’m […]
Marketing wins and growth bring BIG bonuses for our team We are celebrating our most successful year in business with employees sharing a £250,000 bonus pay-out. Turnover has increased by £1.4 million to £8.8 million in the year to May 31st, 2018 and profits have risen to £1.4 million following heavy investment in our creative […]
As marketers, we’re no stranger to buzzwords, but it’s always incredible to see how quickly their use can proliferate. Take ‘proptech’ for example – often-used in the industry, without any real agreement on what it means. We thought we’d have a go. On 6th June we welcomed more than 60 property movers and shakers to […]
Jamie MacDonald, Account Manager in our Edinburgh PR team, explains the history of National Doughnut Day and why it’s more meaningful than you think. It’s National Doughnut Day! What better reason can there be to celebrate the most delicious of sugary, jammy or chocolatey treats? Well, there is a better reason and it came as a […]
Over the past few months, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been a hot topic, stirring organisations into action to review their personal data processes and update their data protection policies in time for the 25th May deadline. However, the momentum, investment and focus on GDPR doesn’t end today. Now that GDPR has been […]
You might have heard it mentioned there are some changes to data protection laws coming up. These changes are predicated on the very sensible premise that individuals shouldn’t have their personal data unfairly manipulated for any unwanted marketing or for any other, more nefarious practices. To be clear, this is the General Data Protection Regulation […]
In this three-part blog series, we’ve covered what GDPR is, and what steps you need to take to become compliant with our handy GDPR checklist. But, other than ensuring you’re on the right side of the law, are there any benefits to GDPR compliance? Read on to find out. Preparing for the General Data Protection Regulations […]
This is the second instalment in our GDPR series. Click here to read the first blog, and stay tuned for the final one coming soon. GDPR will no doubt present some challenges for organisations as they ready their employees for the changes and attempt to understand the complexities of GDPR in practice. With so much […]
On 25th May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation – otherwise known as ‘GDPR’ – will be enforced, bringing the biggest change to data protection legislation in 20 years. This blog is part of a series providing a complete guide to GDPR. Click here for part two, “GDPR Checklist: Are you ready to opt in?”; […]
The team is celebrating after being crowned winners of Best Media Relations Campaign at the PR Moment awards in Manchester for our work with the Glasgow Kiltwalk in 2017. PR Moment received 900 entries this year, and the total number shortlisted for the North was 180 and so competition was really tough. It’s a great […]
Chris Brand, Account Manager for our Oil and Gas team in Aberdeen, outlines that you can only truly know your specialist market if you get involved with it face-to-face. Networking is too often thought of as an activity to either dread or endure. Even the dictionary makes it sound ambiguous or uninspiring: Interact with others […]
Since April is Stress Awareness Month, Senior Account Manager, Laura Berry has shared the tips she learned from BIG’s mental health training in Manchester. According to the latest stats from the HSE, 526,000 workers in the UK were reported to be suffering from work-related stress, anxiety or depression last year. If we listen to what […]
Senior PPC Manager, Craig Edwardson has been browsing grooming products and their competing digital marketing strategies. Battle for the clean-shaved buck! I can’t grow a beard. There, I said it. The hipster resurgence of being a gent with a magnificent, bushy facial fuzz on show is just one of those trends that I’ll need to […]
Gillian George, Senior Account Executive, ponders the benefits of entering industry awards. No matter what industry you work in, I can bet there’s an award for it. Whether it’s hospitality, healthcare, oil and gas or sport, every year nominations will open for a plethora of awards honouring different products and services. Throwing your hat into […]
Director Bryan Garvie reveals his 12 steps to get the results you need from your agency. I’ve been in this game for a little while now, so I like to think I’ve seen most of what agency life has to throw at you. What doesn’t seem to change though is, ironically, the inconsistency with which […]
We have hired a trio of experienced marketing specialists to support business growth at BIG Partnership. Natalie Hilton joins us as a senior account manager in the Aberdeen office where she is responsible for delivering integrated strategies, with clients including Stewart Milne Group, KPMG, Oil and Gas Innovation Centre and Stronachs LLP. With 15 years’ […]
BIG Partnership has recorded one of its best-ever starts to a financial year after securing over £600,000 of new business. The PR and digital marketing agency has successfully delivered several high-profile, integrated campaigns since the beginning of its financial year in June. These include Aberdeen Football Club’s AURORA campaign to demonstrate support for its new […]
Pizza, beer and another step towards a better gender balance. Diversity in the tech scene is a subject many companies, organisations and start-up incubators world-wide are trying to tackle, and we wanted to get involved in the debate in a BIG way. We brought together three of the most influential females in the Scottish technology […]
I wonder what the scene was in Morrisons marketing and comms department this week when they realised a few fish pies had escaped the factory disguised as chicken pies. Could have been worse, I guess. Could have contained horse meat masquerading as lasagne, for example. But it’s no laughing matter. The ‘ick’ factor of eating […]
Euan Blair, Digital Marketing Director, tells us what brands can do when their bad press ranks on page one of Google search results. Brands have tried to manage how the media portrays them since the advent of newspapers. But how has reputation management changed in a digital world? A negative front-page headline used to appear […]
Our Digital Marketing Executive, Erin Flannery talks about the retail phenomenon that is Black Friday. Black Friday 2017 Every year, in the wake of the battle of the Christmas ads, as both marketers and consumers, we anticipate the annual commercial phenomenon otherwise known as Black Friday. When Black Friday first crossed the Atlantic in 2010 on […]
Our Senior Social Media Manager, Lucia Funai, weighs in on Twitter’s big news. Twitter has done a 180 on its 140. Since tweeting began a decade ago (yes 2007 was 10 years ago, do you feel old now?), the lure of the channel has been that you were limited to 140 characters. Originally, it was […]
Alston Bar & Beef is opening its second UK restaurant in Manchester this autumn and has appointed BIG Partnership to handle PR for the high-profile launch. After BIG delivered a successful launch campaign for the original restaurant in Glasgow, Glendola Leisure approached the agency’s North West team to deliver a campaign that will put Alston […]
Standards matter. At BIG Partnership, we want to do great work for our clients which delivers great results. And we want to do it the right way. So, we’re very pleased to have retained the PRCA’s Communications Management Standard, the gold standard of service for public relations agencies. The internationally-recognised standard is awarded after an […]
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since we joined the Northern Powerhouse and the worker bees of Manchester at our King Street base; but here we are – looking back on a suitably BIG birthday bash featuring, amongst other things, Lancashire hot pot and giant Jenga. We couldn’t have picked a better […]
BIG Partnership has added to its extensive menu of food and drink clients after being appointed by Equi’s, the luxury ice cream to manage its trade and consumer PR. The multi-award winning family business based in Hamilton celebrates its 95th anniversary this year, and is looking to secure additional listings for its premium range of […]
Scotland’s largest PR and digital marketing agency, BIG Partnership, has boosted its senior team with the appointment of a new client services director. Colin McNab, who has more than 25 years’ experience working with some of the UK’s largest digital marketing and design organisations, has been appointed to lead BIG’s client services strategy. In addition […]
It’s been a little over 17 years since BIG Partnership set sail into the world of PR, and we’ve seen a ton of change in that time. Like most teenagers, image and identity are important to us (thankfully we’ve outgrown the acne), so we thought it was about time that we had a bit of […]
Marketing communications agency BIG Partnership has celebrated its first year in Manchester with a raft of new client wins. The agency has increased its client portfolio by 25% since opening its Manchester office last year, securing contracts worth in excess of £300,000 in the last six months alone. As well as expanding its remit with […]
BIG Partnership Digital Marketing Director, Euan Blair, shares a checklist of things to look out for in your Google Analytics account to ensure you are getting the most value from the data it collects. Google Analytics is a powerful tool for any business. It lets you answer questions like: “how many people visit my site?”; […]
BIG Partnership is celebrating a raft of new business worth more than £600,000. It has secured a number of new PR and digital contracts across a range of sectors, including energy, construction, leisure and sport in recent weeks. BIG Partnership’s Aberdeen office has won a clutch of new accounts from energy and oil and gas organisations. […]
BIG Partnership Account Manager, Jamie Barclay, discusses what he learned from the recent ScotlandIS Tech Trends event, and how the role of communication is key in technology, automation and Artificial Intelligence. Media demand for insight into robotics, digitalisation, med-tech, galactic flights, and numerous other areas in the field of technology has increased considerably over the […]
Digital Account Manager, Kirsty Kirkhope says you can dream BIG in Cambodia in the third installment of her Remote Year blogs… Three months into my remote year and feeling suitably cultured in Cambodia after visiting more temples than I ever thought possible. In the capital, Phnom Pehn, I can’t help but feel incredibly inspired by […]
Digital Account Manager, Kirsty Kirkhope gives us an insight into the second placement of her Remote Year – Thailand. As part of my Remote Year programme, where I am fortunate enough to be traveling with digital marketing professionals to gain insight into different B2B marketing techniques around the world, I’ve just spent a month in […]
Digital Account Manager, Kirsty Kirkhope, reflects on her first stop in Malaysia on her year abroad remote working… For those of you who didn’t get the memo in September I packed up all my pens, notepad, laptop, general gubbins and moved to Kuala Lumpur under a programme called Remote Year. Remote year essentially allows carefully […]
In the wake of the US election outcome, it proved an opportune time for BIG Partnership to welcome the Press Association Scotland’s political editor, Katrine Bussey, as the guest speaker at our latest media breakfast briefing. Katrine has been with Press Association Scotland since 2005. During that time, she has covered six elections, two referenda, […]
This month BIG Partnership continued its expansion across the UK with the opening of an office in Dundee – its fifth in Scotland and seventh in the UK. The move comes just after the launch of BIG Partnership’s Manchester base two months ago, as it secured contract wins worth £250,000 in Manchester and sets its […]
BIG Partnership senior social media manager, Lucia Fella, explains how brands can use Facebook to target specific demographics as organic reach declines. It’s no secret that it’s increasingly difficult for brands to get organic reach on Facebook, due to algorithm changes that took effect at the end of 2014. With Facebook’s latest announcement, content from […]
BIG Partnership has appointed leading lawyer and businessman, Malcolm McPherson, to join its board as non-executive chair. Mr McPherson is the long-standing senior partner at Edinburgh-based HBJ Gateley, one of the UK’s most successful legal firms, with 10 offices across the UK and an international reach. He has been a non-executive director of many successful […]