Roundtable Experts #PRSL16

Ben Bisco, Head of Digital at JD Williams – Official Keynote Speaker at #PRSL16

Ben Bisco - Head of Digital at JD Williams

An experienced online marketer providing cutting edge digital marketing campaigns across a variety of disciplines and markets.

Having cut his teeth in a specialist search agency, Ben joined Brilliant Media to set up a search offering from scratch. In only a few years he grew the department from a handful of campaigns to be one of the largest in the UK.

A move to digital specialist hômejames gave him the chance to get stuck in to multi-channel work, where he was instrumental in developing a full service offering for the agency. Now, Ben is Head of Digital at JD Williams – helping grow some amazing brands.

Paul Mallett, Joint Managing Partner at Brass

Paul Mallett - Brass

Paul has worked at the forefront of online marketing since its inception. With extensive experience spanning over 20 years, Paul has led the creative and strategic activity on a host of innovative and award-winning campaigns for some of the world’s best known organisations and brands.

After a successful period of creative stewardship at agency Brand New Media, Paul created digital FMCG specialists swamp in 2002, where he was responsible for an impressive client list which included Heinz, Umbro GlaxoSmithKline, Umbro, Tesco and MBNA. Paul then managed the acquisition of swamp by Brass (then Brahm), joining forces with the existing digital team to create one of the UK’s leading digital agencies.

Paul now acts as lead digital strategist for Brass Alt, developing and executing global digital strategy in a multi-channel, multi-screen environment.

Chris Woolford, Digital Communications Director at Search Laboratory

Chris Woolford - Search Laboratory

Chris converted to search engine marketing following 14 years in the PR industry. He has developed content campaigns for the likes of Sony, O2, Office Depot, PayPal and Interflora using whatever it takes – be it flaming firework flower petals or giant Darth Vader Post-It murals – to get effective results. Chris is Client Services Director at Search Laboratory, a global leader in search engine marketing, specialising in English and international SEO and PPC.

Andy Way, Head of Content & Engagement at Greenlight

Andy Way - Head of Engagement & Content at Greenlight

Andy has worked in digital marketing for 16 years now. He started on client side, working for EMI Music, handling the digital campaigns for artist releases & tours including The Beach Boys, David Bowie & Robbie Williams as well as the Now! That’s What I Call Music compilation albums.

He moved to agency life in 2006 and has worked at Creative, Media, Content and Search agencies in that time, working on web build, app development, social media campaigns and video production, amongst numerous other disciplines. Clients have included the BBC, Sony PlayStation, Renault, Miller, Channel 4, Disney, VW & Coca-Cola.

Rick Guttridge, Managing Director at Smoking Gun PR

Rick Guttridge - Smoking Gun PR

With over 15 years Public Relations and communications agency experience, Rick has helped to build and protect the reputations of some of the best known consumer brands around, including Red Bull, Jaguar, Persil and The North Face.

A media geek from a young age (he blames his writer Uncle), his career has seen him land front page client coverage in titles as diverse as the Guardian and Daily Star, deliver stunts that have become internationally famous and start Twitter trends from the iPhone invariably glued to his hand.

Ask him about playing beach football in Dubai with Eric Cantona, pitching to Miss Costa Rica in a swimming pool in Miami, retiring Olympic medal winners or swapping shirts with Bear Grylls.Don’t ask him to measure your PR impact via AVE nor about which football players he’s helped keep out of the press. He co -founded Smoking Gun in 2010 to build an intelligently creative agency that makes a measurable difference to its clients and staff and with seven straight years of double-digit growth and 30 leading industry awards on the shelf things are going to plan.

Martin Calvert, Marketing Director at Blueclaw

Martin Calvert - Blueclaw

Martin has an 11-year career as an international researcher, speaker and client and agency-side practitioner in the field of online communication and influence. Drawing on his diverse experience, Martin provides a practical, personable and data-driven view of digital marketing and SEO.

Having recently joined Blueclaw as Marketing Director, Martin is responsible for enthusing major brands and challengers alike about the new art of the possible in digital marketing.