Media Requests has been moved! We are building a new and improved Media Requests experience in Cision’s new app, Connectively, where a community of journalists, content creators, and experts can come together to collaborate and build connections. Check here
As associate director, Hood will work alongside the senior team on Greentarget’s key financial and professional services accounts. As an associate director at Edelman, she played a central role in growing the business’ UAE corporate and financial practice.
Prior to this, she ran major government and financial services accounts at H+K Strategies in Abu Dhabi, and spent five years at Penrose Financial (now MHP) in London.
At Greentarget, account manager Thomas will work across a number of banking and asset management briefs. He was previously a member of Fleishman’s corporate practice focused on financial clients, and prior to that worked in the communications team at the Alternative Investment Management Association – the global body for the hedge fund industry.
Melissa Rowling, Greentarget MD, said: “This year is an exciting year for us as we build upon the business successes of 2015. With professionals of Louise and Matthew’s calibre on the team, clients will continue to benefit from the depth of sector knowledge and cross-border experience that they have come to expect from Greentarget.
“As a member of our senior team, Louise’s ten years of financial services experience in the UK and the Middle East, alongside her proven track record of growing strong teams, will be invaluable.”
Artists Against TTIP, an organisation formed by UK actors and artists opposed to the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the EU and the US, has hired tpr media to raise the profile of its work in the UK and overseas markets.
Artists Against TTIP, established by theatre director Carrie Cracknell and her brother Jon Cracknell, is backed by UK talent including Mark Rylance, Sally Hawkins, Ruth Wilson, Lily Cole, Alison Goldfrapp and Vivienne Westwood.
It aims to raise awareness of the threats posed by the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a free trade and investment treaty currently being negotiated between the EU and the US.
The stated goal of TTIP is to reduce “barriers to trade” between the EU and US. But Action Against TTIP argues it would lead to a transfer of power from democratically elected governments to large corporations.
Artists Against TTIP has handed tpr media an initial six-month brief to develop the campaign’s profile and build awareness among mainstream audiences.
Sophie Toumazis, director of tpr media, said: “This is a vitally important campaign with potential to make a real difference and it’s a privilege to be involved. One of the campaign challenges is to demonstrate, in concrete terms, how something as abstract as a trade treaty can impact on our everyday lives. We need to bring this to life in a way that feels real and relevant.”
Ryanair has appointed Shane O’Toole as head of investor relations. He moves from his current role as an accountant in the airline’s finance team.
O’Toole previously worked for financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald in Dublin, and brings experience in finance and investor relations to his new role.
He said: “I am delighted to be appointed Head of Investor Relations for Ryanair, Europe’s largest airline. I have enjoyed my time working as part of the Ryanair finance team and I look forward to heading up the Investor Relations function and working with our international investor base at this important stage of Ryanair’s development.”
Neil Sorahan, Ryanair’s CFO, added: “We are pleased to appoint Shane O’Toole as our head of investor relations. His appointment comes at an important time for Ryanair, and I am sure that Shane’s experience in the financial sector will be a key asset as Ryanair implements its growth plans over the coming years.”
Working with top tennis star Andy Murray OBE and putting video at the heart of its campaign, Radiator and the team at Head Tennis and multi-media store Pro:Direct successfully launched a new and innovative ‘Radical’ racquet range last November.
Campaign: Head Radical Launch Client: Head Tennis
PR Team: Radiator Timing: 20 September – 20 November 2015 Budget: £12,000
Objectives
Radiator was briefed to devise a communications strategy for the latest HEAD GrapheneTM XT Radical racquet launch; ultimately the agency’s task was to build awareness for the new racquet using an approach that would drive maximum awareness both nationally and internationally.
Strategy
The launch approach had to be original and eye-catching – engaging the maximum numbers of tennis and non-tennis fans alike, while representing Head Tennis in an entertaining and youthful style.
With a short time-frame to prepare, the sports and entertainment teams worked on creating an efficient, but wide-reaching, communications tool-box. The campaign was mainly driven through short lead print and social media.
The teams focused on three main tactics:
Developing a piece of highly shareable film content.
A launch event designed to attract large circulation online and print media.
A selected number of exclusive interviews with Andy Murray across a range of international and sport specialist media.
The short film, filmed in Lodnon, captured the radical nature of the new racquets and put Andy at the heart of the action. Radiator worked with Asylum Films to shoot and edit in 24 hours, making a piece of shareable content which not only championed the racquet but also presented Andy in a different light.
Radiator negotiated for the film to be shared in all interview pieces, through connected influencers attending the event, and via Andy’s powerful social media channels.
The launch event, organised between Pro:Direct, Radiator and Head Tennis, continued the radical theme. Pro:Direct kicked off the evening with a sensory three dimensional light, video and music show highlighting the new racquet and its strong technical and graphic features.
Following a Q&A stage session hosted by Gordon Smart, a former TheSun showbiz editor and the editor of The Scottish Sun, a series of interviews took place in a private branded space with Andy Murray as well as Johan Eliasch, the CEO of Head Tennis.
Results
The launch event was covered in all of the high circulation national print media including The Sun and the Daily Mail. To date, coverage has been combined between online and print media, including numerous shares on social channels, secured across a variety of target media publications including ESPN, Daily Mail, MailOnline, Daily Telegraph, Sport Magazine, Tennishead and Gazetta Dello Sport.
With more than two million views for the video piece on social media, the impact of the racquet launch event and media coverage surpassed client expectations and further secured Head’s’ identity as a trail blazer in the world of tennis innovation.
Got a cracking campaign – with impressive results – that you’d like to showcase? Email [email protected].
Seven Dials has won a UK consumer comms brief from premium French champagne brand Charles Heidsieck. The agency has boosted its luxury credentials with the appointment of Tash Vickers to the newly-created role of head of luxury.
Seven Dials won the consumer brief from Charles Heidsieck following a competitive pitch and the account will sit with the agency’s luxury roster.
The agency will activate a two-year comms programme, which will include influencer marketing, media relations and experiential brand building.
Tori Eeles, brand manager at Charles Heidsieck, said Seven Dials was the “perfect partner” to help it increase brand awareness with a UK audience.
Simon Kelner, CEO at Seven Dials, said: “Charles Heidsieck champagne is led by the quality of its product but it is our job to tell the captivating and colourful brand story to a wider audience and help differentiate it from the competition.”
The new pitch win comes as the agency enhances its luxury offer with the appointment of Tash Vickers to head of luxury.
Vickers, in her new role, will oversee clients including Fortnum & Mason, Brown’s Hotel and Debretts, as well as Charles Heidsieck. She will also lead the agency’s existing luxury brand roster and new business programme.
She joins Seven Dials following previous roles at Exposure, FTI and Freud Communications.
Kelner said: “Tash brings a wealth talent to Seven Dials and we’re delighted to welcome her to the agency in this newly created role. This is set to be a big year for us and Tash’s luxury lifestyle experience will be absolutely invaluable.”
Hill+Knowlton Strategies (H+K) London has hired The Social Partners’ Vinay Chhana and Ebiquity’s Thomas Jackson to bolster its data capabilities.
Chhana joins as a data consultant and takes responsibility for H+K’s measurement and use of data. He has some seven years’ experience in data analysis, working for clients such as Allianz, Avis and Iconic Funds. In his most recent role he worked on the award-winning Wilkinson Sword campaign.
He reports directly into Vikki Chowney, director of content+publishing strategies at H+K, and will work on clients across all sectors.
Jackson joins as a data analyst in the tech team, bringing some four years’ experience in the tracking and analysis of data trends. He worked in Ebiquity’s reputation division, handling clients such as Rolls Royce, Carrefour and Sony.
Reporting to Chhana, Jackson will analyse and transform data into useful insights that inform brand and content strategies for H+K’s clients.
Chowney said: “Data is such an exciting space for us at the moment. As we see continually evolving requirements in this space from clients, the people we hire change as well – and we’re able to bring new skills in to the building. We’re really lucky to have two fantastic new people dedicated to our measurement and reporting, which is more important than ever.”
Vision Express UK has appointed brand PR agency Launch PR to help raise awareness of its range of glasses frames.
Launch PR has been briefed to create media experiences to launch the range and promote the eye health specialist services on offer at Vision Express stores.
Niki Wheeler, a director at Launch PR, will lead the account.
Jenny Wye, senior PR manager at Vision Express, said: “Launch’s creative brand thinking, blend of retail and product PR experience and ability to deliver ambitious results were the reasons behind its appointment.”
Johnny Pitt, Launch founder and creative head, added: “Retail is in our sights at Launch PR and Vision Express fits well with our roster of ambitious and customer service-focused clients.”
Lanware, a provider of cloud-based, outsourced tech for financial services firms, has hired Cognito to raise its profile in the fintech community.
Cognito is working with Lanware’s management team to build a strategic comms and thought-leadership programme. It aims to create a greater understanding of Lanware’s products, which include virtual desktops and cloud-based applications, and highlight its approach to placing security at the centre of every service.
Henry Duncombe, Lanware MD, said: “When looking for a comms partner, we wanted to work with a team that is able to recognise the biggest issues the industry is faced with, such as the focus on cybersecurity, and Cognito fits the bill. Cognito’s fintech experience and exposure to the right influencers in the space means it is perfectly positioned to partner with us.”
Paul Bowhay, Cognito EMEA associate director, added: “We are witnessing some truly exciting companies come to the forefront of the financial services industry, disrupting the way it works, and in particular providing ways to cope with cybersecurity.
“The fintech space is a key focus for us globally, and we are thrilled to be extending our reach to another area of fintech with Lanware, adding to the roster of clients we work with who are already making waves in the market.”
Lucre has had its PR brief with Stonegate Pub Company expanded to include the company’s entire branded bar division, which includes Yates and Flares, following the agency’s work with the Slug and Lettuce chain in the past eight months.
The agency has handled all PR activity for the Slug and Lettuce chain since March 2015. A key part of the brief to work on bar openings and relaunches, as well as provide social media support.
In addition to Slug and Lettuce, Lucre’s remit will now include the following brands: Yates, Flares, Missoula, Pop World, Reflex and Common Room.
Suzanne Baker, commercial director at Stonegate Pub Company, said: “Lucre has done some great work for our Slug and Lettuce brand over the past eight months. It was therefore a natural progression to extend their role to span our entire branded bar division.
“They are a great team to work with and have supported us on everything from brand strategy through to effective media relations, as required, and we have been delighted with the results to date.”
Tamarind Wilson-Flint, director at Lucre, added: “We are of course delighted to be working with the wider team at Stonegate. By having a focus across the entire branded division it allows us to truly showcase our capabilities as an agency whether it be increasing visibility, delivering impact in the form of footfall and engagement or simply heightening the authority of brands within the portfolio.
“From successfully launching new venues to supporting those in existence, food and drink is one of four specialist sectors we focus on as an agency so it is wonderful to extend our credentials further.”
Kwittken London, the UK arm of international PR agency Kwittken, has appointed David Taylor, formerly the head of communications for Orange-France Telecom Europe, and Gary Wilson, a consumer tech PR specialist, to its management team.
Taylor (pictured) joins as director of content with responsibility for Kwittken’s new content arm, Agenda. He will build on the firm’s existing editorial remit, develop new commercial partnerships, and broaden the London office’s creative offer in visual comms.
He has 20 year’s corporate communications experience specialising in tech and telecoms, working with brands BT, France Telecom and airfare search business Vayant.
Wilson will work to grow the Kwittken London’s consumer tech unit. He joins from TinDrumwhere he was associate director. Previously, his work has spanned B2B and consumer briefs and he has worked with Fujitsu-Siemens, Intel and Philips. He will also advise clients on their use of digital and social media.
Sam Bowen, Kwittken London MD, said: “We’re thrilled to have David and Gary join us in our new offices in Kings Cross, to add further weight to our senior team and to help maximise the opportunities which are presenting themselves. We have big aspirations for 2016 and I have no doubt that we have the right team and determined mindset in London to continue into the next phase of our growth.”
