Ruth Barrett, Head of PR Communications at Root Digital | Official Master of Ceremonies
With over a decade of experience in journalism and digital marketing, Ruth was Highly Commended for Women In Marketing’s One To Watch award in 2019 and has worked on a number of award-winning campaigns.
Alongside the coverage she gains for clients, Ruth shares her views on equal rights and pop culture with the likes of Forbes, BBC, Telegraph, Guardian, Daily Mail, and Huffington Post on a regular basis.
Her background in journalism provides an insight into what the press wants to cover, why, when, and how. This enables her team to craft strong, meaningful, and relevant campaigns that make a real difference to clients and the wider world.
Ruth is a public speaker on topics such as diversity and inclusion in marketing, in addition to marketing best practices within PR and building strong relationships with the press.
She has spoken at the World Marketing Summit, Brighton SEO’s Online PR Show and outREACH Conf online in addition to talking on PRCA panels and judging their awards.
Ruth is a proud feminist, a gender-equality advocate and activist. Working alongside Huffington Post’s Rachel Moss, Lisa Myers and the team at iweigh, Ruth famously got a national series of sexist ‘girl boss’ adverts replaced within 24 hours.
She believes that you can learn something from everyone you meet and that it’s not just about making a seat at the table for people, but more helping them to get there in the first place.
Sophie Coley, Head of AI & Strategy at Propellernet
Sophie is a trained journalist turned search strategist with almost two decades of experience in search and content.
She developed the concept of search listening and now leads AI strategy at Propellernet, helping brands show up where it matters by understanding audiences first and algorithms second.
Currently focused on how AI is reshaping the way we find and consume information, Sophie brings a human-first approach to emerging technology – from AI search optimisation to agentic web experiences.
📢 Sophie’s Joint Talk with Stephen Baker – Digital PR’s Role in Traditional and AI Search in 2026 and Beyond
Stephen Baker, Head of Digital PR at Propellernet
Steve is our Head of PR at Propellernet, where he leads a growing and ambitious PR team focused on strategic, data-informed creative campaigns that drive visibility and credibility for clients.
At Propellernet, he also co-hosts The Digital PR Podcast, a show that explores trends and techniques shaping modern PR with industry practitioners and thinkers.
📢 Stephen’s Joint Talk with Sophie Coley – Digital PR’s Role in Traditional and AI Search in 2026 and Beyond
Laura Smith, Head of Client Strategy at ICS-digital
Laura is Head of Client Strategy at ICS-digital, a multilingual digital agency, where she leads teams across organic and paid media channels, including SEO, Paid Media and Digital PR, focused on helping brands to connect digital tactics to real business goals.
Her background is in both traditional and digital PR, having worked in agencies across the north for the last 16 years, and she is passionate about building insight-driven creative strategies that deliver impact in an ever-changing search landscape.
📢 Laura’s Talk – From Coverage to Context: How Digital PR Builds Brand Distinctiveness in AI
Rosa Mitchell, Director of Manchester at Connective3
With over ten years’ experience in digital PR and content creation, Rosa oversees Connective3’s growing Manchester team of digital marketers across SEO, paid media and PR.
In her career, Rosa has worked across a variety of different projects, from stand-alone campaigns to long-term strategic roadmaps, for brands including Nike, Manchester Met University, Stena Line, and Ann Summers.
She combines her analytical skills with her love of creativity to create concepts that work for many industries, including eCommerce, finance, law and travel.
📢 Rosa’s Talk – Beyond links: How to Measure PR in a World of LLMs and AI Search
Amanda Walls, Director – Head of Organic Media at Cedarwood Digital
Amanda Walls is the founder and Director of Cedarwood Digital, an award-winning Digital Marketing agency specialising in SEO, PPC and Digital PR.
With 15 years of Digital Marketing experience under her belt, Amanda founded the agency eight years ago which was recently named Best Small Integrated Agency at the European Search Awards 2023 and Best Small PPC Agency at the UK Search Awards 2023.
Her talks and digital expertise have been showcased at events including Brighton SEO, Digital DNA, MissingLink LIVE, Sheffield DM, SME 2019, Salford SEO, Natwest Content LIVE, Get Online Week, Retail Right, Cardiff Business Expo, Digital Lancashire and the Digital Shift Summit.
📢 Amanda’s Talk – Closing & Expanding Authority Gaps With Hyper-Relevant Digital PR To Improve SEO Rankings & GEO Visibility
Meet the Producer: John McCambley at Marketing Masterclass Series
A former Head of Marketing, John has worked for a number of global brands and award-winning marketing agencies across the UK, Europe and North America.
A retail management graduate from the University of Ulster in N.Ireland, John started his career with Sainsbury’s and was a key member of their first-ever Northern Ireland management team.
Since then, John has held a number of senior marketing roles at: British American Tobacco (N.Ireland), Philips (Hamburg, Germany), Future Electronics Inc (Montreal, Canada), KPMG Nunwood and Stickyeyes (Part of IPG Mediabrands) in Leeds, England.
In 2015, he created the Marketing Masterclass Series and has since managed to produce a number of innovative live and online events across the UK – Powered by industry leaders from the digital marketing community.
