Having spent over 25 years wrestling with the media to extract maximum value for the minimum investment, his grey hairs lay testament to his level of commitment!
His experience at the highest level on the client side (Nestlé, Camelot) as well as with top-flight agencies (OMD UK, Space and Time) Matthew is ideally equipped to know what clients want and how to provide solutions to advertising objectives.
Increasingly concerned with the decline in service levels within the advertising agency sector, he decided to ‘walk the walk’ and co-founded davethedog in 2007.
Primarily a strategist, he still enjoys getting his hands dirty at the negotiating table and finds the cut-throat world of national and international media a calming alternative to raising five children.
Donna has over 13 years PR experience, gained in an enviable mix of top end agency roles and yet she understands what it is like to be client side having served her apprenticeship in-house.
Her claims to fame include full-page coverage in the Times for a property developer that had simply installed plasma screen TVs in its bathrooms (ask her how!). She also claims to be the brains behind the Sun’s headline ‘Hit the Road Jacques’, thus winning the 2012 Olympics for London (you might want to ask about that too!)
Recent successes include a Chartered Institute of Public Relations Excellence Award for Anchor butter, which delivered a coverage ROI of 300:1
She believes in hard-working, no-nonsense PR that builds brands and drives sales. She relishes the challenge of reaching audiences and markets with newsworthy, journalist-friendly campaigns and she won’t be scared to tell you if something won’t work!
Denied the opportunity to follow his dream to be a jockey (too tall), a basketball player (too short) and a Brown Owl (too… male!), it quickly became apparent that advertising was the only realistic option open to him.
With the backing of a solid agency background working on clients as diverse as Taylor Wimpey, Journey Latin America, Atlas Travel Insurance, Miller Homes and Dees Ford, Andy’s strategic approach to customer care and delivering results as well as his ability to work with clients towards mutually agreed goals sets him at the highest level.
Married and with a charming daughter, Andy can be found, of a weekend, locked away in the studio making music as “Crystal Clear” (some dates still available!).