I’m currently the UK CMO at Womble Bond Dickinson and started my professional services marketing & BD career in the global tax group at EY before joining DAC Beachcroft. After setting up the virtual agency Thirteen, I delivered branding and positioning projects for the likes of Howard Kennedy, Moore Global and Buzzacott, the last of which won best rebrand at the Citywealth Brand Management & Reputation Awards.
My experience covers all aspects of marketing across the 4Ps of product, price, place and promotion, as well as business development, including bids and tenders, key account management, client experience and client feedback. I have a specialist mini-MBA in marketing taught by Mark Ritson, one of the world’s top marketing professors, which means that I really understand the fundamentals of proper marketing across the core elements of diagnosis, strategy and tactics, and actually enjoy the bits that most marketers ignore — such as market research, segmentation, targeting and positioning.
A particular interest is how the empirical evidence seen in B2C and B2B markets translates to professional services. This often means challenging the industry orthodoxy on issues like the importance of client retention and cross-selling versus new client acquisition, the different ways marketing communications impact sales, and the importance of brand for long-term profitable growth.
I try to do my bit to boost the profile of marketing in professional services and served as regional director of PM Forum’s London committee for three years. I also organised a number of their national conferences, taking the opportunity to introduce the professional services marketing community to a range of leaders from wider fields of advertising, behavioural science and market research.
What does “paving the way” for future generations mean to you?
“I believe that it’s incumbent on all of us to leave things in a better place than we found them. For me, ‘paving the way’ means removing the barriers that have historically hindered women in the law, so that we open up more opportunities, in more places, for the women who want them. It also means setting an example. Showing the next generation that the people who came before them did what they could to make things better — so that in turn, they’ll be inspired to make things better for the generation that succeeds them.”
