Agency roundup: Lets Run Social; Ride Shotgun; Journey Further; and more

Social media marketing brand, Lets Run Social, has appointed experienced strategic leader Jake Sweeney to help the business “turn social media marketing on its head.”

Having spent eight years with marketing automation platform Force24 – where he worked with B2B and B2C brands including Michelin, Cisco and BBC Children in Need – Sweeney brings a wealth of industry knowledge to his new role as commercial director.

He will be drawing on his expertise to help organisations move away from metrics such as “likes” and “reach” and instead guide them towards goals that deliver results via conversion-rich social media marketing on platforms including Facebook and Instagram.

Sweeney, who is based in Leeds, said: “The way the brand works with clients is very similar to how I’ve approached customer strategy over the years, and I’ve already seen that the team will do everything it possibly can to transform a business’ bottom-line.

“The results speak for themselves – Lets Run Social isn’t here to make up the numbers. It’s a brand that wants to be quickly recognised as an industry leader for social media strategy, creation, deployment and results.”

Managing director James Urquhart added: “Jake’s experience will prove to be vital in not only helping our clients to transform their bottom-line, but in how we turn social media marketing on its head.

“We want to be known as a brand that cares about customers and their revenue, delivers amazing results and creates a great place to work for talented data analysts, media buyers and creatives.”

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Strategic brand activation agency, Ride Shotgun, has bolstered its growing team with the appointment of business development director Roxy Fielding.

She joins the Ride Shotgun growth team from Goho Marketing and PR and brings 15 years of international sales and business development experience.

In her new role she will be driving forward new business across all the agency’s sites in Leeds, Sheffield, London and Portugal.

She said: “I love solving problems and creating solutions for people, and that’s exactly what we’re doing at Ride Shotgun.

“From working with a wide range of different brands, I understand there’s a desire to streamline agencies and partner with those who can be an extension of their brand. Ride Shotgun’s proposition – where we have everything under one roof – is a really exciting space to be in.”

As a mentor for Bloom, a professional network for women in communications, Fielding added she is keen to ensure her team feels supported to succeed. She said: “I want to help young people joining the industry feel strong and competent within their position so they can grow to their full potential.”

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Leeds-based performance marketing agency, Journey Further, has launched its first creative campaign for international clothing textile brand, TENCEL™.

TENCEL™, part of the Lenzing Group’s branded fiber portfolio, creates fibres from sustainable wood sources which go into fabrics for products around the globe, including some of the world’s most famous brands.

Journey Further was tasked with creating a brand platform and launch campaign that would enable the brand to better engage with shoppers seeking sustainable fashion.

The strategic plan for the campaign was to highlight the brand partners of TENCEL™ including Fila, Jack&Jones, Esprit, Guess, Only and Selected.

The ‘X’ campaign was created,  including new brand guidelines to highlight co-branded partnerships and has been rolled out across the UK, Germany, Turkey, India, Indonesia, Singapore and China. It is due to launch in the USA in 2022.

Journey Further’s campaign combines static and video assets that have been deployed across media such as YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

Billy Burgoyne, design director at the agency, said: “The campaign’s X is a flexible and bold visual device which allows us to celebrate TENCEL™’s exciting brand partnerships while at the same time informing the audience of where they can now buy products containing their fibres.

“We’re most invigorated when we work with purposeful brands and TENCEL™’s goal to define a new standard for sustainable fashion is something we’re really excited and proud to have been part of.”

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Leeds-based digital agency, twentysix, will expand its physical footprint with a new office in Belfast, creating 20 new jobs whilst capitalising on the city’s status as one of the FDI Tech Cities of the Future.

The strategic move, which supports the agency’s long-term growth plans, follows a raft of new business wins and significant client growth.

twentysix says it will build upon its technical and media offering by hiring key roles across website development, DevOps, SEO and paid media benefiting both its local and global client base.

Ryan Scott, CEO, said: “We’re incredibly excited to be joining one of the most energetic tech hubs in Europe.

“An abundance of local talent combined with recent investment in the region’s tech sector is what drew us to Belfast, and we know this city will be a great fit for our business.

“Our accelerated adoption of remote and flexible working gives us confidence to seamlessly integrate remote talent into our team, and we’re also excited about what this means for our global clients.”

twentysix is a sister agency of Smarts, a Northern Irish Global PR & Content agency.

Initially twentysix’s local staff will base themselves in Smart’s Holywood headquarters while it establishes its own permanent premises. Both companies are part of the UK’s growing marketing group – MSQ.