Featured Leader #10: offline with Dan Patmore - Marketing Masterclass Series

In our latest “offline” edition, we catch-up with Sainsbury’s Head of SEO & UGC, Dan Patmore, and find out about his love for movies, music, how he’s embracing AI in 2025 and some great advice on mental health…

How did you enter a career in SEO?

My first experience of SEO came when in 2003 when I unintentionally ended up in a digital role for a hotel company. It was back when digital roles had an “e” in front of them, and I spent a lot of time explaining to people that I didn’t work in IT. I got a chance to do everything from writing copy to affiliates and dealing with developers, I learned a lot in a short time.

How do you switch off?

I am a man of many interests and 3 kids, so, watching or going to sports events, movies, reading, playing music or going to gigs and various nerdy things like DnD.

What is your favourite Podcast/Book in 2025?

Not from this year, but favourite book I have read so far this year is Happy by Derren Brown, or volume 1 of the graphic novel Die.

What’s your favourite inspirational quote?

“Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.” Goethe

“I was put on this earth to achieve a certain number of things and right now I am so far behind, I am never going to die”. Calvin

Fun fact about you?

The best paying (musical) gig I ever had, was being paid to perform music in a train station and shop doorway by Northampton Town Council.

What’s your proudest professional achievement to-date?

A major migration project that started in 2015, with the main release in 2017. I learned more in that period than any other in my career.

What is your favourite movie of all time?

The Lion King. Followed by Jurassic Park, Karate Kid and Back to the Future.

What 1 thing would you tell your younger self?

You aren’t supposed to feel as bad as you do, go to a doctor and talk to them about clinical depression.

How are you embracing AI in 2025?

I’m using it a lot to enhance the papers I write, save me time figuring out formulas and doing basic analysis. I am also spending a lot of time exploring what could be done with it at scale to stay organically visible

What is your favourite biscuit or chocolate bar?

Chocolate Digestives. Less fancy than the epic chocolate Hob Nob, but always there for you.

About Dan…

Dan Patmore has completed 41 sun laps and has spent 22 of them working in Digital and Marketing, firstly in the Travel sector and then Retail, where he has majored in Search for 15 years, firstly in PPC and then in SEO.

He currently works for Sainsbury’s across all their retail brands, where he has completed more website migrations than he cares to admit but is still enthusiastic about Digital and the future.

For the last 4 years he has also had the privilege of leading User Generated Content and is a generally considered a nuisance. He needs regular fresh air, likes biscuits, tea and red wine. He lives with his wife, 3 children, 3 cats and a fluctuating number of pet rats (15 at time of writing). Connect with Dan on LinkedIn