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12 Years of Doris

Helen Stott • January 4, 2019

Business Anniversary

Yes, it’s that time of year again, when we mark the anniversary of Marketing Doris starting in business – 8th January.

I can hardly believe we have reached the heady heights of 12 already. As many of you may have heard me say over the years, working as a freelance Marketing Consultant / Director / Manager was only supposed to be a stopgap until I got a proper job following a redundancy.

I don’t mean anything negative in that statement, only telling of the truth. What I didn’t realise back in 2007 that I had (inadvertently) found a gap in the market for this type of role and I am delighted and proud to continue to work with so many interesting and different businesses and help them with their marketing needs.

Usually I would give a list of fun facts about the number, but this year I decided a year of reasons businesses use Marketing Doris would be a bit more grown up!

  1. Holistic approach – I look at all aspects of the customer engagement within a business against their objectives, and not just at one specific area. This enables me to provide an independent holistic view of their overall marketing activity.
  2. Fresh pair of eyes – by not being industry specific I am able to give a fresh viewpoint on companies marketing activity, this has proven to be an advantage to many who felt constrained by what was expected in their industry and wanted to stand out and be different.
  3. Justification – as businesses grow, marketing is often a bolt on role and needs help in justifying its own place on the payroll. I have worked with many businesses to build up the marketing function and have created the need for in-house marketing personnel.
  4. Plugs a gap – I have acted as a temporary Marketing Manager for businesses who have found themselves with a vacant position after someone has left. Usually this has been for a matter of weeks or months whilst the right candidate is selected, and on occasion this has been for a much longer time while the business decides on what they feel they need in the long term.
  5. Senior support – for businesses with junior marketing members of staff, it is often a requirement that they are given additional help from a senior marketer who can guide them with a marketing strategy, identification of the right marketing activities, implementing a marketing plan, advising on campaign details or providing mentoring services to help them develop in their role and careers.
  6. Project Management – for busy marketing teams, the introduction of a new project can be difficult to resource in-house and it is on those occasions that we are brought in to handle the project independently. This can be anything from a key event, new website, new branding, launch of a new product or service.
  7. Niche skills – despite not being industry specific, there are several niche areas where I have gained experience and skills that have been sought out. These include; Information Technology products and services (Business Intelligence, Robotic Process Automation), children’s services (Fostering, Charity), Manufacturing (Retail Supply), Retail (Textiles, Nursery, DIY, Homewares), Professional Services (Legal, Financial, HR)
  8. Copywriting – we can provide fresh new content for websites, blogs, e-marketing campaigns and social media accounts.
  9. Creative Ideas – on numerous occasions I have provided businesses with creative ways to communicate their key messages to their target market.
  10. Supplier introductions – when working with businesses on their marketing support, we are sometimes asked to recommend or suggest additional suppliers i.e. for graphic design, photography, website development, promotional gifts, printing etc. Over the last 12 years we have developed a strong network of reputable and trusted suppliers that we can introduce to our clients as and when appropriate.
  11. Freelance support – for some businesses having a little and regular marketing support is as much as they need. Their business structure may never require a full or part time marketing person to be employed, but they recognise that having someone who can provide ongoing marketing support is adequate and enables them to keep activities going.
  12. Sounding Board – the term trusted adviser can be over-used and to use it may seem like we are blowing our own trumpets. However, over the last 12 years that is exactly what I have been to many senior managers and directors and I’m proud that they have felt able to trust and confide in me.
Thank you to all our clients and suppliers we have worked with over the last 12 years and we look forward to continually working with many of you over the next 12 months.

For assistance in any of the 12 areas highlighted above, give Helen a call at Marketing Doris on 0790 3727750 or email helen@marketingdoris.co.uk

ps you may have correctly noticed that there is a mix of I's / we's above.. that's because in the main it's me (Helen), but I do have help from the team of Doris elves.. and so that's why there is an occasional we!!

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