UK Enterprise 2020

252 | UK Enterprise Awards 2020 Jul20339 Best Full-Service SME Marketing Support Provider 2020 Having spent the last eight years independently assisting companies through broad knowledge of the marketing world, there are few better business leaders in the industry than marketing expert, Maggie Robinson. Now running the show at Smart Thinking Consultancy, we at SME News had the privilege of being able to speak with Maggie about her success, and that of her firm also. With so many communication outlets in the world today, businesses have to ensure that their marketing strategies are aligned across every media platform that they are present on. That is what is at the core of Maggie’s excellence; ensuring that all aspects of a company’s marketing strategy are aligned, from advertising campaigns to social media management, Google Ads to media coverage. Such consistency across the board can help clients connect their brands to the consumers, and helps the business get the most marketing return on investment. Maggie Robinson is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and puts ethics and values at the core of what she does. After spending more than a decade in the corporate world, she founded Smart Thinking Consultancy eight years ago to enable her to break free of office politics and restrictions, instead empowering herself to provide a reliable, personal, and consistently excellent marketing service. Marketing is a fast-changing world, and Smart Thinking Consultancy can help businesses who do not have their own in-house marketing team, make sure they are using the most effective methods to get their business noticed. Maggie shared with us the benefits of staying up to date with the latest developments in the marketing industry, and why she believes it is crucial to do so. “So many people complete their training, and then do nothing further, so they’re still applying theories based on what they learned years ago. The marketing landscape has changed so drastically, even within the last few years, so it’s essential to keep up to date with the way the market is moving to be able to provide the best service.” Now more than ever before, the need for clear communication with consumers is imperative to business’ survival in the United Kingdom. Maggie elaborated further on this necessity, and why Smart Thinking Consultancy has the services that clients need. “Businesses now understand that they have to get clear messages out there to their customers. Understandably, budgets are coming under scrutiny, and must be spent wisely. I have been helping businesses analyse where they spend their money, and the return on their investment. It helps companies decide if they are spending their money in the right way. Whatever a business is selling, the customer journey needs to be simply. COVID-19 procedures have added extra complexity to business, but the customer shouldn’t bear the brunt of it.” Smart Thinking Consultancy can simplify this journey for customers in lots of way. Website health checks and analysis can find the gaps in customer journeys, and can identify where they might hesitate between browsing and buying. Maggie can also pinpoint those missing SEO gems which improve business search engine rankings, and bring new customers to a site. This should all form part of a marketing strategy, taking a client’s business far beyond a firefighting period into an era of success. As Maggie is knowledgeable in so many areas of marketing, she can spot other opportunities, strengthening brand recognition, and ensuring all marketing pillars support one another. Whilst many business have growth and profit at the forefront of their plans, Maggie intends to stay small, saying, “I’ve spent time in the corporate world, managing teams and employing others, and it’s not where my passion lies. I want to build a meaningful relationship with my clients, not become a salesperson who hands the projects over when I get back to the office. This means I have a small number of clients who they’re getting my expertise, and I’m fully accountable for the level of delivery they get.” Ultimately, both Maggie’s experience and Smart Thinking Consultancy’s excellence combines to make it a unique marketing experience for clients. With more than twenty years in the marketing sector and a jargon-free, open, and honest approach, Smart Thinking Consultancy provides tailored advice and support across the whole marketing mix. Maggie’s dedication and passion for helping other businesses makes Smart Thinking Consultancy a worthy winner of the Best Full Service SME Marketing Support Provider 2020. Contact: Maggie Robinson Website: www.smartthinkingconsultancy.co.uk/