14.05.07

UK Online appoints new marketing director to manage emergence of the brand as small business broadband provider

UK Online today announces that the brand is re-positioning itself as a small business broadband provider and that it has appointed Deborah Robertson as marketing director.

In the new role, Deborah will be tasked with building brand awareness by managing an integrated marketing campaign to promote the new service, 'UK Online Business Broadband', a package tailored specifically for small businesses with one to ten employees.

The campaign will see a two stage launch in May and September. Beginning with display ads across portals and comparison sites, it forms part of a wider above-the-line campaign, and will involve outdoor, tube, radio and print advertising.

The creative was implemented by First City, which has been reappointed as lead advertising agency to support the launch. It uses the tagline 'Get On' and focuses on the service's benefits, including a super-fast 8Mb connection, with unlimited downloads, free McAfee security worth £50, 24/7 UK-based business support, free domain with 20 emails, free set-up and installation.

Threepipe, PR Week Magazines New Consultancy of the Year, has been reappointed to bolster the marketing effort by raising the profile of the brand within the national and small business media.

Prior to joining UK Online, Deborah held a number of senior roles in the telecommunications and network infrastructure industry, most recently as marketing director at Avaya UK where she was responsible for creating marketing campaigns to drive growth in IP, contact centre, mobility and services solutions. Prior to her time at Avaya UK, Deborah spent three years at BT Business, where she played an integral role in the launch of "BT Business Plan." Deborah has also held senior roles at Dell and ntl Business and in 2006 was included as one of B2B Marketing magazine's top 20 UK Marketers. Deborah also sits on the B2B council of the Institute of Direct Marketing.

Deborah Robertson commented: "UK Online is a fantastic brand that has a great track record of innovation in the UK broadband market. Traditionally, small companies have been ignored by ISPs, despite the fact that there are 4.1 million small businesses in the UK and I'm really excited to be part of the team that will change this."

Chris Stening, General Manager, UK Online added: "We are delighted to have Deborah, Threepipe and First City on-board. It's an exciting time for UK Online and I am confident that their combined experience in marketing and communications will be pivotal in driving us forward to securing our position as the leading broadband provider for small businesses."

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